Being Emo - Emotional Triggers for Creating Rich Characters

Happy Tuesday! As the title of the post implies, today I'll be talking about emotional triggers you can (and should) use for your characters. As a writer, you're a student of human nature. Let's put those studies to use in your writing so people can identify with your MC. Ready? Grab those pens and notebooks and let's get going!

I often wonder why writers of an older generation have books that scream at readers with such truthiness. Now, I'm not saying younger folks can't write deep novels (because they can, and do), but those little sparks of talent are rare and have likely been cultivated. Many people tend to take up writing when they're in their late twenties or early thirties.

Why?

Because they've lived it. They have a greater well of life stuff to draw precious words and experiences from. Don't you love sitting and talking with older people? Listening to their stories is like reading a really great book that answers questions you want to ask. A teenager who's lived a normal life (no abuse or bullying or anything like that--you get my point) will find this more difficult.

So why am I bringing all this up?

Today is about emotional triggers. Older folk have more of these to draw on simply because they've been in the world longer and experienced more. Reading about something and feeling/living it are two different things. No matter how engrossed in a book you are, you never really know everything that was going on around the character or in their past. That novel would be like War and Peace. When you live it, you can draw on it more readily.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying only older people can do this exercise; I'm saying their lists will be longer--and probably easier--and that's okay. I just don't want you to be daunted or frustrated if you have nothing for a particular item. This could open up an opportunity for you to talk to someone else and listen to what they have to say about the emotion.

Exploring your character in depth like this can lead to a more rounded individual on the page. Heck, this may help a younger generation of writers hit that ever-elusive personified character we all strive for. Either way, it'll help you get to know your MC.

There will probably be more than one answer for each of these, but try to think of just one the first time through.

Here's the list:

• Shame - When did the character feel shame? Why? How has it shaped them?
• Joy - Yup, that moment when they felt they could fly without wings. What happened afterward?
• Fear - This is a big one because it fuels a lot of the ways we perceive ourselves. Insecurities can arise from fear. What change did it cause in your character?
• Guilt - Another big one. Carrying around guilt can cause your character to react a certain way in a specific situation. How heavy is the burden? Will they ever admit it?
• Love - When did they feel it the first time? How did it shape their perception?
• Failure - Will your character give up after a huge let down? What was it and how did they push through?
• Courage - What were they facing when they showed courage? Did they succeed or fail? How did that shape them?
• Forgiveness - There's always that one screwup. Who was the forgiver? Did it make the character stop and think about holding a grudge with someone else later on?
• Rage - How did they internalize it? Did they? What were the repercussions if they acted out?
• Indignation - Someone pushing the character to do something they refuse to do? What prompted it? Why didn't the character take part? Moral code?
• Sorrow - Profoundly. Stemming from death of a loved one. How did they deal with it?

I know that's a long list, but it'll give you some fodder to draw on as you write your story. You don't have to reveal all of them (remember that comment above about a book being different from a life?), but you'll have a better grasp of who your character truly is if you give them all the emotional baggage.

Have you ever done an exercise like this? How did you fare with this one?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Men vs Women - Author's Voice

Happy Thursday, and welcome to another writing tips post, everyone! Today, we're talking about your author voice and how it translates to the reader vs how you want it to translate. Ready? Grab those pens and notebooks and let's get going!

How about a slice of truth to start us off?

If you're a female, chances are very good that, no matter how hard you try, you'll sound like a female when you write (even if from a male POV). Same goes for you males.

While there are authors who've managed to pull off writing as the opposite sex, I'm positive their editor made a huge difference. If that editor was male and the voice in the book was male, he likely told the author that a man/boy would never think/say/do "this." Likewise for the male writing as a female, using a female editor.

So how can we, as writers, fix it?

Let's go into the male writing as a female first:

Women are emotionally driven creatures. We cry, we care, and we talk about our personal lives a lot. When we talk, we generally use softer words like "would you mind" and "what do you think about this." We're often unsure about what we say or how it will come off to other people (we care about what you hear), and we don't like to hurt feelings or be crass.

Our thought process leans toward our families or responsibilities when we're in peril, and most of us aren't as highly competitive as men. To get us interested, you have to put out a ton of feeling and market to our gentle, helpful, feminine side. We also love to be empowered.

Now, women writing as men:

Men are action and solution driven creatures. If there's no clear goal, and the character isn't fighting toward something they can achieve against all odds, men won't identify. They use clear, demanding speech, that tends to lean toward sarcasm and "taboo" topics. They don't talk about personal things, and they generally prefer confrontation to descriptive floweriness.

Their thought process leans toward the thrill of the moment, and most of them desire to win. To get them interested, you have to market to their competitive, thrill-seeking side.

How do you get to know a woman's thought process? Spend time talking with them, asking questions, and paying attention to how they interact with their peers. Same goes for how to get into a man's head. You have to really immerse yourself in the gender if you want to be believable.

Go now and take a look at ads geared toward women, and then look at some geared toward men. See any difference? That's what connecting with a gender is all about. Books work the exact same way.

If you're a non-fiction writer, you may need to create two separate books; one that uses language women want, and one that appeals to men.

Male readers consume only 20% of the literary fiction read today. Know what that means? Right! Women are left with a whopping 80% of the pie.

Wow.

So what do the other 80% of men read? Sci-Fi, History, and Political. Certainly food for thought.

Have you stepped into the shoes of the opposite gender? How did it work out for you?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Avoiding the Backstory Infodump by Using Layers

Happy Tuesday, good people of the blogosphere! Today, we're talking about backstory. Every character has one, but no one wants it shoved in their face in huge chunks. I'll be giving you some ways to work the yummy goodness in as your story progresses so you can avoid the dreaded infodump. Ready? Grab those pens and notebooks and let's get going!

#1: Throw out tidbits in dialogue

This one can be fun. Say you have two characters arguing. One friend screams at the main character about an embarrassing or revealing thing that happened in the past that shaped the MC's personality. Boom. Backstory. One character can also be talking to another and reveal something about the MC's past to explain why he/she reacted the way they did in a situation. There's no need for a whole conversation about it; just throw things in here or there.

#2: First person thoughts

I have an excellent example of this one! In Fractured Glass Kelly Risser lets Sloan remember a time when she and Diego rode an amusement park ride and he yakked afterward. This reveal came when he groaned through her earpiece after she flipped around and around, and she needed to recall his motion sickness issue. It flowed right into the story, but gave the reader a better understanding of Diego.

#3: Memories

This one can be a bit tricky. Some people go into memories as a whole separate scene, but they don't have to be set apart. You can add a snatch of them here and there like sprinkles, rather than dredging the entire cupcake and leaving the reader with a mouth full of pasty yuck. When the character sees a rose, he/she can have three lines of memory that recalls the funeral of a good friend. Don't get bogged down in details.

#4: Third person narrative

While it isn't the best way to work in a lot of drama, you can have the narrator recall a situation where the MC changed or did something amazing/horrid. "This one time, at band camp, Harry and Joe..." You get my point.

#5: Long flashbacks or dreams

This is where you cut out a chunk of story and lend it to the character's drama. It becomes a whole separate scene in the chapter where you go into feelings, who, what, when, and where. Long flashbacks should be used sparingly (italics are hard on the eyes). If in a dream sequence, try offsetting it with asterisks rather than setting in italics. Be sure you're setting time and space in there somewhere so you don't lose the reader.

#6: Paperwork

Exactly what it says. Maybe the character finds an old newspaper article stuffed in a photo album that was locked in a trunk in the attic for fifty years. Perhaps it's birth certificates. If you're V. C. Andrews, it would most certainly be the latter, and the document revealing Mom and Dad as brother and sister won't be discovered by the child until the last page of the last book. Yikes.

Something important to remember: Don't use these items until your story has been well established. Readers need some mystery as they dive into the prose, and most don't want to be dumped on early in the novel. When there's nothing left to discover, why keep reading?

I hope you found these tips useful.

Any you hadn't thought of?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

13 Rules for Stronger Writing

Happy Friday, everyone! Wow, it's the weekend already. I feel like I've missed out on a couple of days in here somehow. Anywho, today is all about making your writing stronger. I have thirteen tips that'll help you keep your writing flowing. Ready? Awesome. Grab those pens and notebooks and let's get going!

No dallying today. Right into it. When examples are given, what you shouldn't do will be in red, what you should do will be in green.

1. Use active voice. Don't use were. Reconstruct your sentences to read as it is. Example: There were fifteen girls standing on the field. Fifteen girls stand on the field.
2. Kill the truth. If reality is blocking, make up new rules. You're writing fiction, after all.
3. Unite common phrases. Things that go together, stay together. Example: Molly lifted her arm and then, with a roar like a lion, she began beating the door. Molly lifted her arm, roared like a lion, and beat the door.
4. Write as you see. When you're writing, think visually about the scene, and use the imagery as fodder.
5. Catch the beat. All writing has a rhythm. You know it. Use it.
6. IT is a horror story. Beware of dangling "it" in your prose. Example: I thought it was strange. I thought the chair scooting across the floor by itself was strange.
7. Sentence structure variation. Don't write the same sentence over and over. Example: I walked into the kitchen. I got a glass from the cabinet. I filled the glass with water, and I drank. I drank it in one gulp. I walked into the kitchen, grabbed a glass, and filled it with water. As thirsty as I was, it went down in one gulp.
8. Marry related words. Keep things together that go together. Example: Henry stared at the float in the pool that was spinning in the middle. Henry stared at the float spinning in the middle of the pool.
9. Allow the reader to infer. Don't over explain. Example: "I'll do anything I can to help," Tina said lovingly. "I'll do anything I can to help," Tina said.
10. Create parallels. Mix some ideas and compare two unrelated things.
11. Kill repetition. Don't use the same word more than once in a paragraph; your reader will feel like they're reading the same sentence again and again.
12. Use one instead of two. If you can delete a word and not lose meaning, do so. Example: A scary, creepy spider is crawling up my leg. A creepy spider is crawling up my leg.
13. Beef up with stronger verbs and concrete nouns. Use these to replace adverbs and adjectives.

I hope you got some good tips today. Any of these that you didn't know?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Publishing Your Blog to Kindle

Good morning, and happy Monday, everyone! Yeah, it's the beginning of a whole new week, but that means more opportunities to do all the things writerly. Today, my post is for bloggers. You're gonna find out all kinds of neat stuff about Kindle you may not have known. So grab those pens and notebooks and let's get going!

Welcome to Kindle Publishing for Blogs! Did any of you even know this feature existed? Well, you're about to get a crash course. Screenshots will accompany. If you want to see one live, here's my blog's page on Amazon.

Start by going here to the Kindle Publishing for Blogs homepage. Click on Create a New Account and follow the prompts to do so:

I'm gonna click sign in, and walk you through adding a blog. Click the button:

You'll be on a screen now that looks like this:

We're gonna set up your RSS feed. Go here if you're using Blogger and copy the second string. This one:

Replace the words blogname with your blog's name, and copy it again. Paste it into the form on Kindle Publishing for Blogs here:

Validate, please.

Now, fill out the next four boxes:

You need a screenshot of your blog, and you can get it by using the snipping tool. Be sure it's under 1MB in size (there is no dimension restriction). Save it as a JPEG or GIF. Upload it.

If you don't have your blog's banner, you can use the snipping tool in Windows to capture it, too. Be sure it's only 50px high by 430px wide and no more than 1MB in size. Save it as a JPEG or GIF. Upload it.

Next, enter your blog's web address, select a language, pick the categories you fit into, fill out your keywords, and select your posting frequency:

You're all done and ready to publish your blog to Kindle! Click zee button! You should be live within 48 hours. Be sure and fill out your account information so you can get paid when people subscribe.

Did you know this option was out there? Will you use it?

Come on back tomorrow for more on the Amazon Author Central page and what you can do there.

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Cook Your Novel Low and Slow

Happy Tuesday, good people of the blogosphere! If you remember my post from yesterday, where I gave you some tips and tricks on how to speed up the pace of your novel, you'll know what's coming today. If you missed that one, be sure and check it out here. We're talking about how to slow down the pace today. So, grab those pens and notebooks and let's get going!

Sometimes, a novel needs to slow down a bit to let the reader catch their breath. Unless you're Dean Koontz, or your idea is similar to Intensity, where the reader is on the edge of their seat the whole time. Ha! Readers need a break in the action or they get overwhelmed.

Here's how you can slow things up a bit:

• Have your character make a mistake. Success constantly moves a story forward, and it increases the pace. If you want to slow down a bit, introduce a misstep they have to reverse and correct before proceeding.

• Distract the character. This move can also distract the reader, so use with care. You can engage the reader's emotions rather than starting a mundane task though. Maybe John and Marsha are arguing, and the intensity of the scene is up there. She's getting ready to go on a date with him, so she stops yelling and turns to apply her makeup (which is difficult with the tears in her eyes). You get the point.

• Change the structure. Longer sentences take more time to read and digest. Be wordy, use description, and use words like flugelbinder (kidding - that's not a word). On a serious note, pay attention to the length of paragraphs or placement of soft sounding words.

• Insert inner-monologue or memories. These are an excellent device to halt the flow of the story by bringing the reader back in time or into the character's head. It stilts flow, and that's good when trying to slow things down.

• Insert action scene followup. Your character just committed his or her first murder. Give them a moment to reflect on what they've done and think about the consequences. Not all action scenes need this, but use it when you need to cook something to a tender state.

• Use more description. I'm terrible at this (just ask my editor), but it has it's place in a novel. Sometimes, talking about the scenery or what the little dog's fur color pattern looks like is just what a scene needs to add a little molasses.

I hope you found these tips helpful. Are there any I missed?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Pick Up the Pace

Happy Monday, everyone! Today, we're talking about ways to increase the pace in your novel. I assume you've used the tools in my previous post on measuring pace and scene writing, so now I'm going to give you ways to speed it all up. Tomorrow, I'll tell you how to slow things down. Grab those pens and notebooks and let's get going!

You hear folks talk about how a novel dragged on and on, right? To keep your readers interested, you have to have the right combo of a fast pace and a let's-look-at-each-and-every-flower-and-tree pace. Those novels that dragged had more of the second kind. *grin*

Let's fix that.

• Word usage. This is the most basic way to increase a novel's pace. Shorter words and sentences make reading and processing easier. Seek out places you can cut a sentence to six words or fewer. Oftentimes, you can remove introductory words: Then, However, Often, etc... Independent clauses can come out if they aren't helping the sentence. MS Word has a checker that will seek out wordy sentences for you. You can highlight the section and tell the program to look at it. Easy peasy.

• Dialogue with few to no action tags. If you refrain from giving description of the characters' movements or expressions during dialogue, it'll help. Stick with invisible tags (tags readers see but don't actually have to process): Said, Asked, Answered. Don't go down the rabbit hole, and keep the back and forth going.

• Action! This is where you can leave off the telling and show. You aren't trying to increase tension, just give the character some kind of goal and get him or her there. If it's a battle scene, you want to do a little telling and describe a few things, but don't go into paragraph after paragraph of description. Action happens quickly, and you, the writer, can just sit back and watch as the beauty unfolds.

• Suspense. Yeah, that's right, keep the reader turning the pages to find out what the heck is going on. You'd think dragging something out would slow things down, but it actually engages the reader's brain and makes them read faster so they can find a solution to their twanging nerves.

• Scene cut/breaks. This is where there's no transition to a new scene. You can end the previous scene on a cliffhanger or not, but your story makes a leap into something totally different. Keep in mind, you can also create a scene cut by cutting out some of the tale where the prose is dragging.

• Summary paragraphs. Your character just spent three months getting to know the people around them? Awesome. Readers will be fine with a summary now and then if nothing significant happens during those three months. Cut the scene and summarize.

You can use some or all of these techniques. Either way, you're guaranteed to pick up the pacing of your story if you follow the suggestions above.

Which one(s) did you know about, and which are new?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Stealing Characters

Happy, happy Monday, good people of the blogosphere! Wow. I'm totally late again. But at least I got something written and posted today, right? So, we're gonna talk about this lovely thing I like to call imagination. Basically, I'm going to tell you where you can steal characters and it be on the up and up, and how anyone that tells you otherwise is full of mahoney. Grab those pens and notebooks and let's get going!

Where do characters come from, anyway? You can say they're all figments of the author's imagination. You can say they're everyone and no one at all. Heck, you can even say they're people the author knew/know.

And you know what? You'd be right on every count.

There's no such thing as an original character.

Are you ready to rip my face off yet? Good. Now, let me explain.

Your characters will all have an inherent piece of you. Yes, all of them. When you have to write anger, you draw on your own experiences with anger. In this way, it's impossible to write what you don't know. If you happen to come upon a feeling you've never had, chances are you'd have to ask someone else what it's like. Therefore, your character takes on a few basic traits of that person.

Writing that woman you watched in the airport who was oozing emotion through the phone at what you could only guess was a man? She's totally unique and not you, right?

Sorry. No.

Because what you've seen of her brings you to certain conclusions of your own about who she is. You draw upon experiences you've had in the past to fill in the rest of the proverbial sketch of her life.

But what about that character that came from nowhere? You just sat down, chose a name, created an identity, and drew them from thin air, right?

Let's think about that for a moment.

While that character in the book may have purple hair, pointy ears, and a forked tongue, you have to create a personality from somewhere. If you don't use your resources: yourself, a friend, a stranger you spoke to, a family member, a character you once read about that stuck with you in personality, an old classmate you hated/loved, etc..., you're setting yourself up for failure and flat characters.

There's no such thing as an original character. Even if the man or woman in your book has one small piece of you, it's not 100% unique. They must have some part of someone to be real.

But characters aren't real, Jo!

Aren't they? Don't they talk to you when you're writing them, telling you how to write their story so the world sings along? Don't they force your hand sometimes?

I don't know a writer anywhere who says, "My characters do exactly what I tell them, and my story doesn't suffer for it." Yeah, that's not the way it works.

We create these people, and they go with us everywhere. I'm almost convinced those crazy people who walk around mumbling things to themselves aren't crazy at all; they're retired authors talking to the characters that refuse to leave.

They're in your head. You formed them. You breathed life into them. They're all going to have a piece of you, no matter how miniscule.

Guess what that means? If you're a lot like author ABC over there, and the two of you have had similar experiences/pasts, your characters might just act and sound alike.

Nothing wrong with that.

So, the next time friend A asks you if they're in your book, smile at them and nod your head. Chances are, there are enough pieces there to make it the truth.

But never, ever be afraid to steal bits and pieces of those folks you meet on the street or watch on the sly. They'll inject your characters with new traits.

What do you think? Have you written a character who acts/sounds like someone you know (accidentally)?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

MS Word 2013 Tips and Tricks - Grammar Check Solutions

Happy Tuesday, everyone! Today, I'm talking about a tool you already know and love but may not be using to its full potential. Please note! I haven't tried this on earlier versions of Word, but in the 365 suite, all these functions are available for you to exploit use. Are you ready to get your awesome on? You may need pen and paper, but you might wanna open your MS Word and be ready to follow these steps. Either way, grab some java and let's get rolling!

First, open Word by clicking on the icon and choose blank document.

Next, you'll wanna go to the menu item File. Click there and you'll get a screen that looks like this:

No, I'm not gonna show you my file list. *grin* You'll know what I've been up to soon enough. Let's move on! Please click on Options down at the bottom left (see arrow).

You'll get a screen like this:

Now, we want to click on Proofing (see arrow).

And we get this:

Under the heading When Correcting Spelling and Grammar in Word, there's a Settings... box to the right of Writing Style. Be sure Grammar and Style are selected from the drop down there, then move to the box. Click it (see arrow)!

Here's where the magic happens! Look at all the nifty check boxes! If you missed changing the drop down in the step before this one, you may do that now. You won't see all these boxes in one view; you'll have to scroll. I'm showing you here so you may have a nice overview. *grin* Are you all in grammar geek Heaven like I am?

Make your selections and click OK.

Now, open your manuscript and review everything Word magically underlines for you. Booyah!

Please keep in mind that Word doesn't "read" your manuscript. There are still stylistic choices you'll have to make, but most have an option to keep the program from pointing those out.

THIS DOES NOT NEGATE THE NEED FOR AN EDITOR. Yes, you can get a cleaner manuscript this way. No, it won't catch all your errors. Yes, it will create new errors if you blindly accept all suggestions. It's a program, not a human.

I hope this little tutorial helps you all in some way.

Did you know these options existed? Did you check it out? What did you find! Share with us!

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Creating Feelings Workbooks

Happy Thursday, good people of the blogosphere! It's writing tip day, and I've got some great exercises that'll keep you on the edge of your seat, and they'll keep you writing; that's the most important thing. If you've read my post titled "Indescribable, and Why it Cannot Work for a Writer," you'll be one step into this process already. So, grab those pens and notebooks and let's get going!

Have you ever been in a rut? One of the ones that have you pulling your hair out and wishing you could meet that deadline with great words instead of mediocre ones you slapped on the page out of haste?

Sometimes, all you need is a little muse push. This exercise can help you frame your writing for drawing on later.

What the heck do I mean?

Stay with me.

If you're feeling something, anything, that's a great place for any novel to grow. Even if you're overwhelmed by the size and pressure of the task ahead.

Here's what I want you to do:

• Open a new document
• Center your cursor at the top
• Think about how you're feeling in the moment
• Type that word in
• Hit enter
• Left flush your cursor and use a cliche (angry = mad as a mashed cat)
• Now hit enter again
• Highlight those two lines (the one with the cliche and the blank one) and click numbered list
• Create more than twenty-five sentences that tell how angry feels
• Save the document as: Feelings_YourEmotionHere so you can find it when you need it later

I know what you're thinking. Twenty-five, Jo? Twenty-frikkin-five! You must be smoking crack.

But I'm not. Plus, I asked for more than twenty-five. *grin* If you stick with it, expand upon your few word descriptions to great phrases. I'll get to when and where this will come in handy in a few minutes. I think it goes without saying that I don't want you to worry about being grammatically correct. Just let it flow.

Let me go with depressed as an example.

1. Empty nest
2. Wrapped in a shroud
3. In a dark place
4. If the world explodes, I'll be one lucky bastard
5. Rocks in my stomach
6. Lead weights on my shoulders
7. Fog obscuring my every thought
8. Windows blackened so I can't see daylight
9. As though a bat has wrapped me in leathery wings, stealing my breath
10. Tiny and insignificant
11. If I weren't around, no one would notice or care
12. Numb all over
13. Brain in a cloud that prevents me from thinking happy thoughts, as though I'll never find joy again
14. Everyone is out to get me because I'm like the buzzing fly puking my acid on their food so I can slurp it up in my misery of short life
15. Desire to step out of my mortal shell and walk where I might get a glimpse of the light my heart craves but has been denied for so long
16. Scum on the top of a pond that only exists to be feasted on by parasitic insects determined to suck every ounce of nourishment out of me to feed themselves
17. Hands shaking, brain racing, heart dead and unfeeling
18. Life sucked out of me through a hole in my heart made, ripped, and gaping because of the cruelty of the people in my life
19. A dark cloak descending from the sky, fluttering down delicately, inviting me in, promising me warmth and safety, only to choke me when I accepted its black embrace that siphoned the will to live
20. Blank stares filled with thoughts of everything lost throughout the years is all my mind can focus on
21. Tingles rushing through my fingers, up my arms, twining around my heart as they beg me to let go of my own soul; to free my spirit so it can glide away through the ether, leaving me in peaceful nothingness
22. Weight pressing down on me, and a twenty-ton monkey on my back who insists on dragging me the wrong way--away from the success, happiness, and assurance I crave
23. Back cramps that slowly make their way around my ribs, creating pressure on my abdomen I can't release, suffocating me as my breath is stolen and my lung capacity closing down inch by inch
24. Heat in my head threatening to burst forth from my eyes in the form of tears I'm convinced will be crimson if allowed to flow
25. No desire to move, breathe, or think as my senses shut down, one by one, leaving me bereft
26. Every reflection of myself making me want to lash out at the person on the other side, because I know she's worth nothing

You don't have to stop there. Keep going until you can't. This is just to show you it can be done. It only took me about twenty minutes, so it's not a terribly time-consuming exercise. Yeah, I'm feeling a little depressed right now. Why? Because I had to step into it to make it come out. What I'm asking you to do is write about it when you're feeling it. You can probably see the progression above, yeah?

Now, I bet you're wondering how this can help you in your writing, huh?

This is the awesome part. If you ever need a way to describe how a depressed character is feeling, you just created more than twenty-five descriptions of depression you can copy and paste into your manuscript. Never just say your character was feeling depressed. Use what you know to bring that feeling to life on the page for your reader.

It can also help you by becoming an outlet, like a journal, where you know you can write stuff down honestly. If you get it out, it'll help you deal with those feelings in a positive manner.

Don't just write about being sad, depressed, or overwhelmed. Be sure you're sitting down to fill out pages for happiness, excitement, or curiosity. You need everything in your writing arsenal.

What do you think? Do you use methods like this to help your writing? Tell me, and other readers, how you do it and how it helps!

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Writing Caves or Coffee Shops - Writer Groove

Happy Tuesday, good people of the blogosphere! Today, I'm gonna chat about the different ways writers get their novel creating groove on. Similar to NaNoWriMo, but when every day should be about words. So, grab those pens and notebooks and let's get going!

What's a writing cave?

Well, a writing cave is your zen space. Think of it as the place you go when you need to bang words out on the keys of your laptop, bringing yourself to a place of complete relaxation and creativity. When you enter your writing cave, it should feel like it's begging you to create.

Many writers have a bookshelf in their writing cave. What's on those tall, dark, handsome slabs of wood varies depending on what tasks the wordsmith takes on when in the room. For example: Mine is a short table with design how-to and editing books stacked on it. My issue of the CMoS is right on top, staring at me. It inspires me to do more and be more, and it's a handy reference shelf I access often.

Some writers have novels lining their shelves. Others have mementos, photographs, or other items to spark their creativity. It depends on the mood you're trying to set.

What else should be in your writing cave?

• A visible schedule
• Nail clippers (yeah, ever tried to write with a hangnail?)
• Notebooks (for those ideas you get)
• Pens 

You might also want to have a printer for those scenes you need to work out. Trust me, stepping out of the writing cave with scene in hand can make a huge difference.

I know one writer who prints images of her characters and a snatch of their bios, then hangs them on the wall where she can see them as she writes. When I asked why, her answer was: Because they speak better when I'm looking them in the face.

If you write romance, light a candle or two. Paranormal? Try some posters of otherworldly things.

Or, maybe you prefer to write at a coffee shop. Does the hustle and bustle, or conversations of other people, get your spark moving? Here are a few things to watch out for when choosing to write in public:

• Fluffy chairs (they tend to make typing difficult and staying awake even more of a challenge)
• High-traffic areas (you don't want to get bumped a lot)
• Wi-fi (if you don't need it, turn it off so you aren't distracted by social media or e-mails)
• Bad coffee (yeah...)
• Chatty people

Regardless of where you choose to write, make it your zen space.

Whatever you do, be sure the mood is right for you and your process.  It's your book, and you need to make sure your surroundings are conducive to the creative side of your brain.

Where do you write?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Beta Readers - When, How, and Why

Happy Thursday, everyone! Guess what? Tomorrow is Friday! Woot! One more day until the weekend and kicking your shoes off for some relaxation time. Hope that made you smile. Today, I'm discussing beta readers per a request by my featured author next week, Inger Iverson. Oh, yeah, you're gonna love her to pieces. Yes, you do have to wait until Monday. Enough rambling by me! Grab those pens and notebooks and let's get going!

Whazza Be-ta Reed-er?

Well, to put it simply, a beta reader is someone who reads your novel and sends you feedback about characterization, plot, and structure. They'll tell you what they liked, what they didn't like, and point out any holes in your storytelling.

A good beta reader will take your great novel and make it an awesome one.

A fantastic beta reader (these people are usually paid) will make inline comments, guide you on structure, give you tips on where they feel you can draw out more emotion, and make sure they can nail the plotline by the end of the book. This kind of beta reader will make your great novel into a bestseller.

I know many authors that use more than one beta reader. Those writers feel they need more than one opinion. It's a preference thing.

How do you find a beta reader?

This question comes up more than I can mention. One of the biggest problems plaguing the Indie author community right now is theft. Sadly, it's often someone who's volunteered to be a beta reader that steals. When speaking with a few of my author friends during our coffee meeting, one of them mentioned she had a friend that send a novel to a beta reader. That person uploaded the work to Amazon and sold it as their own. That author was screwed.

It's SCARY.

So, it's really best to use people you know (and I don't mean randomly via Facebook interactions, but in real life) or trust (this level of trust usually includes a contract - with or without pay).

If you aren't passing your novel off to friends or family, USE A FLIPPING CONTRACT! Protect yourself, please! I can't stress that enough. Even if the contract is for zero dollars, sign it; that may be the only proof you have of ownership if your novel gets stolen. 

Why you should use a beta reader.

Like I mentioned above, they can point out weak parts in your storytelling. Yes, you're too close to the story by the time it's written, and you're likely to think things are properly communicated when they might not be.

When someone says, "I got ABC from that." but you meant XYZ, you'll understand.

When do you need a beta reader?

You should seek out betas once your novel has been through at least two edits by your own hand, before it goes to an editor for pricing. Why? Because your word count could change dramatically between points A and B, based off feedback from your beta readers. You may change a character's name, or you could delete or add entire scenes out of necessity.

As an editor, I can say I hate when I've done a round one edit and the author adds five chapters because of beta feedback. Not only does it screw the pooch on my price (based on grade and word count), but I then have a whole section (or sections) needing a round one level edit. Round one is different from round two because the first time through takes more time nit-picking sentence structure and grammar. On a round two check, there should be minor changes to pan through. Make sense?

Can your editor be your beta reader?

YES. However, your editor should beta read and offer fixes before round one of editing begins. They should also work it into your editing contract (with dates). Usually, an editor will charge you for this service.

I've been through this exact scenario. I had an author with a book that read like a draft, and beta read it with a lower score for editing. That person still got the two rounds of edits and the proofread, but there were no major additions once we'd been through the beta read.

Not every editor offers that service. Be sure you ask if you feel it's something you may want to do.

Above all else, be sure you trust the person you're sending your novel to. At the very least, use a contract if you're not sure. CYOA - always.

Do you love your betas? Where did you find them?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Excuse Me, is Your Caps Lock on?

Happy Thursday, everyone! Book review tomorrow! I know you're all excited as can be. Today, I'm bringing you a little information on when to use a capital letter. Seems like a no-brainer kind of thing, huh? Well, it's something many, many people confuse, so I'm gonna touch on it. Grab those pens and notebooks and let's get going!
 

DON'T YOU HATE IT WHEN FOLKS DO THIS?

Yeah, I do, too.

But caps lock isn't what we're talking about here. This is all concerning those horrible things called proper nouns.

What's the difference between:
Our sergeant told us we need to fall in.
and
Hey, Sergeant said we need to fall in.

?

Are you confused?

Because, in the first, you aren't using the term as a proper noun. Terms like doctor, sweetheart, sir, madam, etc... aren't proper nouns and shouldn't get a capital letter. These are terms of endearment, not names or titles (even with titles, there's a caveat, as you can see above).

When you're talking about a thing, a word that might be capitalized in a different use might get a capital letter. Examples:

I was going to make life hell for her.
I thought I was living in Hell.

Second one is the place, Hell. First one is referring to the state of living, not the place.

I dug at the earth with my hands.
I'm from Earth.

Same situation. Lowercase earth is referring to the dirt, uppercase to the planet.

Given names get caps.
States get caps.
Your Majesty gets caps.
Our King or our Queen gets caps, but not when saying something like: He's the king of all he sees. Only when you're referring to the actual monarch should you capitalize the title.

I hope this helps you avoid a little bit of confusion.

What have you put a capital letter on only to go back and smack your head over it later?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Marketing Plans

Happy Tuesday, everyone! I know you've probably heard the term Marketing Plan a billion times, but do you really know what it means to have one? Do you even know what a marketing plan is? Well, today I'm gonna do my best to lay it all out there. Heck, you might even get a handy checklist by the time it's over. Grab those pens and notebooks and let's get going!

Definition of Marketing Plan (from Wikipedia):
Marketing strategy is the goal of increasing sales and achieving a sustainable competitive advantage. Marketing strategy includes all basic and long-term activities in the field of marketing that deal with the analysis of the strategic initial situation of a company and the formulation, evaluation and selection of market-oriented strategies and therefore contribute to the goals of the company and its marketing objectives.

In author layman's terms: Marketing Plans are goals you set for the launch or publication of a novel, and it includes details on how you'll keep it selling long term.

You need a marketing plan so you don't just throw your book out in the world and hope it hits someone who might enjoy it. Yeah, I've done this. I imagine you have, too.

So, let's go over the things you need to think about when you're halfway through your novel and the things you need to answer once it's off to the editor. You can do these things while you work on your book!

Grab a sheet of paper (if you haven't already) and write down the following questions:

1. What's my book about?
2. What genre is my book?
3. What age is my target audience (Don't write all - be specific)?
4. Will more males or females enjoy my book?
5. What other books will they have read?

Now that we have those questions down, let's go into some channel specific stuff. Next:

1. Where does my target audience hang out?
2. What social media do they use most often?
3. What activities do they enjoy?
4. Who would they most likely get a book recommendation from?

Let's say my book is about a young skater boy trying to escape the oppressive dictatorship his family has endured for hundreds of years. Genre is young adult urban fiction. Target audience are males between the age of thirteen and seventeen who've read Outsiders. They hang out at skate parks, hip coffee shops, and restaurants like McDonald's after school. They'll read books suggested by friends or forced by teachers.

Make a list of things you can do to get your book in front of those readers. Be detailed. Examples:

Advertisement:  I'll put an ad on my car that appeals to skateboarders and go to McDonald's every day for an hour to have a coffee and write for an hour. My car will be parked in the lot in a highly visible area. I'll put free bookmarks at every hip coffee shop within a fifty mile radius of my house and replenish them weekly. I'll put an ad on the local teen radio station with my blurb.

Social Media: I'll post images of skateboarders doing cool tricks with a link to my book and a twenty-five word blurb every week on Instagram. I'll use Twitter to increase hits by having my photos auto-tweet.

And so on. Also, write down what you'll do with folks you know. E-mail list, friends and family, etc...

After you've done all of the above, create your launch plan. Start four to six months out. It should look something like this:

24 Weeks out -

• Schedule author interviews with blogs
• Start posting to social media about what's coming
• Blog about writing the book

16 Weeks out -

• Finalize list of bloggers willing to help (yeah, they schedule way ahead of time)
• Add the book to Goodreads with a release date

8 Weeks out -

• Have cover designed
• Order swag and vehicle imagery
• Contact radio station

6 Weeks out -

• Send book to beta readers
• Ask for ARC reviewers

4 Weeks out -

• Send book to editor
• Schedule Facebook party and collect giveaways

and so on.

As you can see, it's a long and arduous process to properly launch a book.

I found a couple of apps that may help you along the way! They're all about creating a business plan.

Get them here for iPad and Android. They're called: MyBizPlan and MarketMyBiz

How do you plan for a launch? Share!

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Down for the Count

Happy Tuesday, everyone! Well, I'm out of commission for a couple of days because of an elbow injury. Doc said take it easy on the computer for now so I'll be able to delve in and give my 30 days of crazy writing in November for NaNoWriMo.

Fingers crossed it'll be 100% working by then. Just one week to go.

This year, I plan to write through every day, even if I finish my NaNo novel. Markaza and M both need to be finished, too.

So, we shall see.

Anyway, I invite you to check out some of my archived posts during my couple of days out!

Here are some of the most popular ones according to my stat meter:

Dialogue Exercises - A short series with fifteen dialogue exercises to flex your muscles. Three on each link.
#1
#2
#3
#4
#5

Punctuation Series - All about how to use various punctuation, according to the Chicago Manual of Style, 15th Edition.
Dashing Dashes and How to Use Them
The Period
Comma Part 1
Comma Part 2
Comma Part 3
Parentheses, Brackets, Braces, and Slashes

Choosing a Viewpoint - Pros and Cons of different viewpoints.

lOOk at YoUr xXx series - How to maintain a cohesive online presence.
bLog
wEbSitE
fAceBoOk
tWitTeR
bUsiNeSS CaRd - This one also has a link to a handy PDF you can download and keep.

Your First 100 Words

Enjoy picking through the fun :)

Which ones do you like best?

I'll be back to give you some more tomorrow. Unless some of those authors impacted by the blogger blackout decide to take me up on my offer :)

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Length of Novels - It Matters

Happy Friday! Welcome back to the humble ablog! Exciting things coming for you next week! Here's the current lineup: Monday - Author Interview with Christina Mercer, Tuesday - Your First 100 Words, Wednesday - Book Review: The Fly House, Thursday - Crypt Keeper Tour K. A. Young, Friday - Fractured Glass Cover Reveal. Yeah, so you wanna come back for all that.

Also, I'll be putting together the official reading list for UtopYA. A page will be dedicated to that endeavor. Be sure you check that out, as well as voting for the official poster design (coming soon)!

Today, we're gonna talk about the length of your novel and why it matters. Remember that post on genre from yesterday? We're keeping with that theme. So, grab your pens and notebooks and let's get going!

Let's begin by thinking about why page count plays into your novel writing. If you write epic fantasy, your books will be really long (think LOTR) because you'll be taking time to explain things and build characters and worlds so the reader can see and feel them. You can't label a book that's 100k words in length as epic fantasy and not expect backlash from fans of the genre. In contrast, you don't want a contemporary romance to end up with a 300k word count, either.

So how to know?

Your research lies in the best seller list. Go look at the most popular books in your genre and see how many pages they have. I'll get to the math on factoring an approximate page and average word count in a moment. Write down the top three best sellers and navigate to their Amazon pages. See how long they are.

Now for the math.

I'm gonna use some numbers I grabbed really quickly from the Young Adult list here:

320 pages: If I Stay by Gayle Forman
337 pages: The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
306 pages: Where She Went by Gayle Forman

See a trend? Yeah... So, we now have a page count that we'll average. Add all the numbers together:

320 + 337 + 306 = 963

Divide by three:

963 / 3 = 321

For every four pages, you have about 1k words. So, divide by four:

321 / 4 = 80.25

Multiply by one thousand:

80.25 X 1000 = 80,250

Now, I don't know about you, but I've heard Young Adult books range from 35-75k. Our number is slightly more. Go figure.

So, you can gather readers of Young Adult enjoy a length of around 80k. 

This matters because you don't want to try and sell a 300k word novel to a crowd that enjoys, on average, 80k words. You won't do well. After all, you write so others will read your work, right?

I hope this helps you in some way.

What do you think? Did you try it for your genre?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Writing Exercise - Word Fun

Happy Hump-Day, good people of the blogosphere! Today, I'm gonna give you a writing exercise. Don't worry, it'll be fun. This is to expand your writerly vocabulary and get you thinking about the words you use on the page to craft your prose. So, grab those pens and printers and let's get going!

Start by printing out the four pages linked to below.

We're gonna use some common cliches for this exercise:
Babe in the woods.
The whole ball of wax.
By the book.
Same old song and dance.

Got those? No? Well, print them. I made them just for you!

Now, take a look at what you have in front of you. Try coming up with alternate endings so your cliches aren't. Step outside the box. Think harder. Fill out column A.

Remember to be engaging, outrageous, and contradictory when filling out columns B and C.

When you're done, fill out the bottom.

I'd be willing to bet you can do it in less than fifteen minutes.

Can't come up with that many? Try using MS Word's synonym tool.

• Open MS Word.
• Type in woods.
• Right click.
• Go to synonyms and see what you have.
• Write them all down on your blanks.
• Choose another word you came up with and do that one, too!

Make your own sheets and do this exercise often. You can find a list of common cliches easily if you do a Google search.

What do you think? Was today fun?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Blank Canvas and Page Woes

Happy Tuesday, everyone! I hope you all had a fabulous weekend. You're almost halfway to the next one, so chin up! Today, I'm gonna blast my inner musings and thoughts for you to read; maybe you'll take something away from it, maybe you won't. Either way, it's therapeutic to talk it out! So, grab your coffee, get your typing fingers ready, and let's get going on my not philosophical discussion. *grin*

While browsing through Michael's art store the other day, I came upon a 40% off canvas sale. Well, I usually don't spring for the big ones because they aren't cheap. I ended up buying one that's 24" x 36" and giggling the whole way home. If you didn't know I draw and paint, I have to ask how long you've been following my blog, or if you've ever seen one of my book covers (most notably Yassa and The Bird).

Here are a couple of my artworks:

But, anyway, as you can see, I have no lack of skill. Yet, I find myself staring at the blank canvas, wondering what in the world I'm gonna put on it. I don't want to stop once I've started, and I don't want to hate it halfway through and have to gesso it out and start over.

So I find myself planning.

If you know anything about me, you'll know I'm a strict pantser when it comes to my writing.

When the thought of picking up a brush and going at a canvas makes me cringe, how the hell can I craft a story by the seat of my pants?

Truth: I don't.

I think about the book, plan out my characters, and have the plot (at least a beginning and ending) in mind when I sit down to write. I think a true pantser would sit down with no idea what they're going to do and bang out a book.

Like people say a true artist sits down and bangs out a painting.

But is it really that easy? No. Most of the famous artists in the world never sat down and slapped paint around on a canvas. They had direction, and they had a picture in mind before they ever began. This leads me to believe art rarely comes from nowhere. Even color choices made by the artist who attaches balloons to the wall and throws darts at them is a decision. There's never complete freedom in art. Everything has a plan.

Writing novels is an art form. Sure, you can write whatever you want, whenever you want, and throw it out there for the world to consume. But readers will become disenchanted if your novels have no cohesion, plot, or character building. Just like art lovers will spot an amateur painter if the colors on the canvas clash.

On the same note, there must be some freedom in painting like there is in writing. My imagination is my only limitation as far as situations, characters, and plot go; but I'm bound to certain rules of the written word—like artists are bound to rules of composition and color usage. Even Jackson Pollock had a specific idea in mind when he tackled a work. But he got to choose the colors. Note my baby pink oak tree up there.

What I'm saying is: We all have freedom in our writing or art,  but knowing all you can know about your craft—and using that knowledge—never hurts.

I guess buying that canvas did more for my thought process than I realized.

It's still sitting there, completely blank, waiting on me to make a decision.

I'm knee-deep in my section of the Fractured Glass anthology. It's so much fun giving characters free reign to lead me in the direction they choose. I've had a number of epiphanies while writing. Interesting twists and some mighty creepy situations are emerging as I bang the keys. Not long now. Good thing I had a plan, eh?

Time for you to join in the discussion here! Do you think it's possible to write an entire novel from the hip? Or do you think you must know the building blocks on all sides in order to craft something with no idea where it's going or how it'll get there?

Inquiring minds wanna know.

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Improving Your Writing with a Journal

Happy Monday, good people of the blogosphere! I hope you all had a super fabulous weekend and are ready to kick the week off with a bang. Today, I'm gonna talk to you all about keeping a journal and discuss how it may help you in your writing life. So, grab those pens and notebooks and let's get going!

Journal
/ˈjərnl/
noun
1. A newspaper or magazine that deals with a particular subject or professional activity.
2. A daily record of news and events of a personal nature; a diary.

As you can imagine, I'm talking about the second definition of the word. But we'll take it a step further and add to that definition. Now, it'll read: A daily record of news, events, and emotions from a singular individual of a personal nature; a diary.

If you take five to ten minutes a day and write down your feelings or news topics that piqued your interest, you'll end up with an invaluable resource for your novels. I've talked about creating a feelings bible before, but this is something different.

Because you'll be writing in it every day, those emotions will be fresh. Feelings you had will still be on the tip of your fingers and ready to be slapped down on the page.

How does one journal feelings?

Think about a particular incident where you were taken aback by the reaction you had, or consider how something might have made you over-the-top happy. Write down what happened, then go on to describe your feelings about it in vivid detail.

Engage all five senses when you write these things down: Smell, Taste, Sight, Touch, Sound.

Go bananas. If you were angry, let it all out. Be real because you'll only be lying to yourself if you aren't.

What you'll find, after a month or so, is that you have a wonderful record of situational impact on a human being's emotional state. You'll know the situation, the players, and the results. Not only that, but you'll be able to recall things that interest you as a person.

You can also go sit in a cafe or coffee shop and journal other people. Yes, you'll have to guess about their feelings; but, chances are, you've been in a similar situation and can get pretty close to the physical fallout of a given situation. If you're an outgoing type (most authors aren't haha), go ask the person how they're feeling and write it all down. Take note of their facial expressions, posture, and vernacular.

Once you have this gem of a written record, put it somewhere you can get to it when you're stuck on a particularly emotional scene in a novel. If you already have a feelings bible, add some of the content from the journal.

I promise, it's never a waste of your time to get in touch with Human Nature (that's a link to another blog post series I did on the Jo Michaels blog that will give you some awesome insight into what makes us tick).

What do you think? Do you already have a feelings bible or journal? How has it helped?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Blog Hop

Happy Monday, good people of the blogosphere! Today, I bring you another blog hop. This one was sent to me by the fabulous L. K. Evans as well. It's a little bit of fun information about my work. It's just four questions and answers. Won't take you long to read. Check out L. K. on her blog/website here. Without further jawing on my part...

What am I working on?
I have so many projects in the pipeline right now it's crazy. Markaza, book six of the Mystic series. M, a standalone about a mutating drug. Desiree's Apocalypse, a standalone about a girl who can't remember her past. A short story for a Christmas anthology. My part of my own Young Adult Novella anthology titled Fractured Glass (we're doing this one a lot differently than others have done) about twins who can traverse parallel worlds. So, as you can see, there's a lot going on in my universe. Fit in reading, and you have a lady who doesn't know which end is up. *grin*

How does my work differ from others in its genre?
My work always has a strong female lead character. No matter what genre I write in, you'll find yourself cheering for my heroine. She'll never need a man (though she may want one), and she'll probably end up trying to take over the world at some point. M is my first novel with a male lead since Yassa (and even then I managed to stick a strong female in there). My girls won't let you down.

Why do I write what I do?
Because I believe in empowering women while telling a great story. I have a daughter who happens to be eight. Because I see so many books out there with weak females as someone for her to look up to, I write the things I want her to read and take something away from. I worry that she'll fall into the "I need a man or I won't survive" trap I see all too often in novels. My characters have their men, but my women are equally as strong and level-headed.  There's nothing wrong with that, and I want to get that point across to her before she's too late to save.

How does my writing process work?
I come up with an idea and jot it down, then I work my characters out. After that, I pants it. I've written an outline or two in my time, but they usually end up in the garbage before the first fourth of the novel is done. Meh, it works for me. I do write at the same time every day. I think that helps my muse know when to pay me a visit.

I tried to find people to pass this on to, but everyone I asked had already participated. I guess that happens when you take part in something like this, eh? Eventually, it makes the full round.

What do you think? Do you have a process?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo