All About the Writing

Setbacks and Growth Points

If a story doesn't have setbacks for the character, it's not all that interesting. 

Unfortunately, character growth isn't like the rest of the changes that happen to our body from birth to death. The body is programmed to grow, so it can pretty much progress even if we resist it every step of the way.

Character growth occurs, however, when there is a challenge or obstacle to overcome. It requires active participation, which may be why we as humans try to avoid it.    

I am well aware what I need to change about myself, but hey, it's easier to sit on the couch and eat Reese's peanut butter cups instead. (I did choose the mini ones, which have fewer calories, so it's practically a diet food. Add in all the calories I burn by ripping off the outer foil AND that brown paper lining, and I've got quite the impressive training regimen.)

What would happen, though, if a car crashed through my living room wall while I was sitting on my couch avoiding character growth? I'd have to make a choice, and that choice would determine what kind of character traits I possess, as well as what I value in life.

It's the same with our characters. I'm sure they would be perfectly happy to go from Point A to Point B without all that messy "inciting incident" and "black moment" stuff. It's inconvenient, not always a lot of fun, and it gets in the way of what they had planned for their lives. They're probably mumbling under their breath, "Hey, this is who I am, and if you don't like me, that's too damn bad".

But there's no story there. 

How does your character respond when things don't go his way? Does he throw his hands in the air and say, "Oh well!" Or does he grit his teeth and find another way to accomplish his goal? These are things we discover when we force our characters to make choices they would normally avoid. It reveals what they are truly made of when we put them under pressure to act.

When I'm revising my WIP, I create a list I call "Setbacks and Growth Points", which details the obstacles each character experiences, or should experience, in the story. I try to relate these to the "needs improvement" areas of my character's personality, the aspects that require changing before the end of the book. It's a good way to see if I've left out a step in their development, or if the progression doesn't make sense the way I've currently arranged it.

It's hard to be mean to our characters. I know that. The only way I can make myself do it is to tell them, "I'm doing this for your own good". 

They may reach their goal or they may not. Most likely their goal will change along the way. But when they finally do reach Point B, they are going to be a better, and different, person than when they set out at Point A, anticipating an easy journey. 

And they've got me, and their setbacks, to thank for that.

Three Ways to Rehab Your Inner Critic

It seems like our inner critics have gone above and beyond lately to make us doubt our writerly abilities.

They spew criticism we would never tolerate from friends and family. They micromanage our writing in ways that are only permissible from people who sign our paychecks. If a critique partner dared to talk to us about our work this way. . .I shudder to think of the bloodshed involved. 

Yet this brutal inner critic’s voice that knocks us to our knees, sobbing, is the very one we cater to. It’s definitely the loudest, drowning out the encouraging voice of the muse, along with the much more interesting ones of our characters. 

The inner critics know we listen to every word they utter, but even worse, they know we believe them.

They are like weather forecasters who predict it will be sunny for the weekend and then it rains the entire time. Even then, we continue to have complete faith the next time we hear, “We’ll have sun and a high of 80″, even though a hurricane is flattening the trees in the front yard. 

Inner critics make us react the same way. Yet how do they manage it? 

Here’s just a few of their methods:

Non-motivational quotes

“With this manuscript, failure is not an option. It’s a certainty.”

Sarcastic commentary

“Snore, bore, and chore. Alex, I know this one. What are three words to describe this manuscript?”

Doubt-mongering

“Do you really think it’s any good? I mean, I like it, but I’m not sure I like it like it. It’s not anywhere near as good as all those other books you buy. You know, those ones that actually got published. And it’s not like you’ll never get published. It’s just that there are a lot a lot a LOT of really good writers out there to compete with. I’m just sayin’.”

On days when I’m feeling charitable (maybe once or thrice a year), I could argue that the inner critics are merely trying to protect us, from harm, or ridicule, or heartbreak.

But if that’s true, then why are THEY the ones heaping us with harm and ridicule and heartbreak?

There’s plenty to be learned from our inner critics. But first we need to rehab them, so they can be useful, productive members of the writing team. 

Anybody can point out problems. It takes somebody creative to provide solutions.

First off, let’s not take the inner critics at face value anymore. They have to get specific with their concerns. When they say, “this sucks”, they need to explain what in particular is causing them heartburn. Pin them down and make them deliver some practical advice we can apply to our manuscripts. No more blanket statements allowed.

Next, insist that the inner critics wait their turn. If their relentless condemnation keeps us from producing anything, they won’t have anything to whip into shape later, right? The role of inner critic is an important one, but it is dependent on proper timing. So write, then critique. It doesn’t work the other way.

Finally, don’t be discouraged if this inner critic rehab doesn’t work perfectly the first time you try it. It might take a little time since the inner critic is an old dog, and you know how they are with new tricks. But hang in there. Revisions aren’t perfect the first go-round either. But isn’t the finished result worthwhile?

So let’s share some of the lines our inner critics spit out and see what we can do to rehab them. By the end of today, we ought to have some factory-reconditioned, refurbished, better-than-original inner critics to work on our manuscripts.

I originally wrote this last year, but the Inner Critic needed another visit to rehab. Hope yours benefits from this too!

The Pros of Prologues

Prologues have fallen out of favor with a lot of people, and there's a good reason for that. Too often they are used to create a (false) sense of interest or urgency, or to throw in information that is meant to be important later on in the story, but can't really be shown anywhere else. 

Even worse is when you read a prologue, get caught up in it, and then get snatched away into what seems a completely different story.

However, there are some prologues that are done in a way that. . .well, I hate to say, "correctly" or "properly", because those smell a little too much like RULES, and we're all aware how one sniff of that makes my inner contrarian rear up and start to screech like a banshee.

So let's just say there are some prologues that accomplish what any good opening does: it draws you into the story. It's not just tacked on as an afterthought. Or as a pre-thought.

Maybe this will work better if I "show" rather than "tell".

In Linda Lael Miller's historical romance High Country Bride, there are three rowdy cowboy brothers, and their father Angus decides they need to settle down. So he tells them the first one who gets a bride and fathers a child will inherit his huge ranch, AND the winner will essentially get to boss the other two brothers around.

While this is a great setup for a series, it seems like Angus is being a bit high-handed trying to run his sons' lives.

Until you read the prologue.

It starts with Angus at his wife's grave, updating her with details about their wild sons in order to justify his decision. It creates sympathy for this man, who is aging, and desperately missing his wife. But it also cleverly gives information about each son's personality and conflicts, and again, increases sympathy for Angus because he blames himself for their wayward lifestyles, and he wants them to settle down and be happy.

After a couple pages, I'm thinking, "Dagnabbit, they ARE a bunch of wild-mannered ruffians!" At the same time I'm mentally patting Angus on the shoulder, reassuring him that he did the best he could, raising three young boys while grieving the loss of his beloved wife.

This prologue is also a great example of giving description that is integral to the POV character, while showing who that character is. Here's the first sentence:

"Angus McKettrick hated every thorn and cactus, every sprig of sagebrush, every juniper tree and jackrabbit and hunk of red rock for fifty miles in all directions, and if he could have scorched the land bare as a pig's hide at rendering time, he'd have done it, yes, sir."

Another memorable prologue is from Suzanne Brockmann's Gone Too Far, which is Book 6 in her Navy SEAL Troubleshooter series. Sam is the hero of this book, although he's been an important character in each of the previous books (and Sam is a nickname he goes by, but his real name is Roger—it's information you need to know in just a minute). 

In the previous books he's fallen in love with Alyssa, one of the other recurring characters, but she thinks he has dickish tendencies, and she won't get permanently involved with him because of that, and for her own emotional reasons. 

Of course, Sam's dickish tendencies blossom when he is spurned by this woman he loves. However, at his core he is also heroic, which means he does wonderful things, and we know the dickish things are a result of emotional wounds he carries around.

The prologue of Gone Too Far starts with these words:

His lunchpail was empty.

Again.

Roger Starrett quickly closed it and latched it back up, looking around the middle school cafeteria, praying no one had seen.

Now who wouldn't feel sympathy for him after reading that?

In the next paragraph you find out that his mother is ill, and you can see his tough-guy façade as he informs the lunch lady that yes, he's eaten his lunch because look, his lunchbox is empty. These things would naturally create sympathy for any young boy, but they're doubly effective because readers have gotten to know Sam as an adult in previous books, and now there's a little more insight into the reasons for his behavior.

The prologue continues with the POV of Noah, a young boy who is being harassed by bullies. Sam comes to Noah's defense, and when one of the bullies ends up getting hurt, Sam does the heroic thing and provides first aid, even comforting the bully who is now really afraid and crying. As the prologue continues, you learn about Sam being bullied by his own father, and how Noah's parent informally "adopts" Sam, providing him the male role model that will steer him the right direction into manhood.

You can read the entire prologue on Amazon, and I suggest you do. There's a lot to be absorbed about deep POV, and how to show a character via another character's thoughts and actions. It's actually a wonderful story on its own merits. Even better, it makes you eager to turn the page and read more of this character's life.

Which is exactly what you want a prologue to do.

The Surprise of Storytelling

Storytelling involves a lot more than "first this happened, and then that happened, and they lived happily ever after, The End".

Relating events in chronological order works better if we're testifying in a criminal case, or demonstrating how to bake a cake, where the steps need to be shown in a step-by-step fashion.

With a story, we need to intrigue our readers, entice them into going one more paragraph, and then one more page, luring them into finishing the chapter, and then leaving them breathless to read "just one more".

In order to accomplish this, we may need to change how we present the sequence of dramatic events.

For instance, while drafting a recent story, I started with the hero's POV--and his dilemma--since it's the catalyst for what happens later. It also presents him in a more sympathetic light, since his actions could possibly seem callous without the reader knowing why he's acting the way he does.

Then I switch to the heroine's scene, where she is dealing with the consequences of the hero's actions. She thinks he is heartless, but the reader knows what is going on, and is able to reassure her: "Hey, it's not his fault! Just wait, you'll see!"

But then I wondered if it might be better to change this up, putting the heroine's scene first. Without the hero's initial scene, there could be a lot more potential conflict if he is required to explain things to the heroine later. There will definitely be tension in the scene (and okay, some groveling on his part). This might make for a more interesting story merely by reorganizing how I relate the events.

Or maybe I'll leave things as they are. I haven't completely decided.

One thing I do know for sure: storytelling isn't always linear. It's filled with surprises, and twists and turns, flashbacks and backstory. Sometimes information is delayed to increase suspense, while other times it is divulged to make readers squirm with apprehension.  

As the writer, you know what needs to happen, and you decide how to present that information so that it is entertaining, intriguing, and delightful, making readers exclaim, "I didn't see that coming!"

Now all you have to do is get the characters to go along with your plan.

What is your favorite storytelling technique? How do you keep readers surprised and turning the pages?

Finding A Character's Perfect Match

As writers, we do everything we can to make sure our characters are fleshed out, 3-D, flawed yet fabulous, enticing readers to invest in the story we're about to tell them. 

Unfortunately, the hero and heroine aren't so easily persuaded. When they meet for the first time, they look at each other and see a "type", which is the first step of categorization. Categorization leads to judgment. And judgment is based on past experiences, often painful ones.

It gives the character a valid reason to dismiss this new person, because of a sincere belief that "they are not my type". Sometimes there's a mental checklist of characteristics they want in a potential mate. More often it's a process of elimination, ensuring the love interest doesn't share traits with a person from the past who is responsible for that barbed-wire fence around the delicate heart area.

However, we don't allow our characters to disprove our theories about their mutual suitability, not after just one encounter. We insist they interact—constantly—repeatedly—incessantly. They will have to provide concrete proof that they are not a good fit, and we have deeply-entrenched reasons to make them fail at that evidentiary task.

We put the hero/heroine in dozens of scenes, giving them multiple opportunities to examine each other's behavior and compare it to the ideal attributes of their "type". They input the data, push a button on the Romance CSI computer, and wait the requisite ten seconds for the single page to appear in the printer tray. They pick up the report and pronounce, "Nope, it's not a match", in a gleeful I-told-you-so tone of voice.  

Yet just because the preliminary testing rules them out as a "person of interest" doesn't mean they're free to go. Further tests are necessary, and unavoidable.

It isn't long before the characters learn that maybe they've miscategorized, or misjudged, the other person. They discover they're falling in love with someone who is not the "type" they initially saw. Instead, they see the layers unveiled, and become enamored of things that were not apparent during that first dismissive look. 

Also, since the characters have grown and changed, those long-ago hurts cannot be applied to the current situation. It is a mismatch, like trying to test oranges for caffeine content.

That seemingly "not-my-type" person was exactly who they've been seeking all their lives.

Perhaps the heroine is too kooky, and the hero likes peace and quiet. Guess what? He didn't realize how boring his life was until she came along with her special brand of crazy. 

He's too stiff and controlling for this freeform gal. Oops. Guess a little bit of structure actually made her life simpler so she could focus on being zany.

It's not easy playing matchmaker, especially with characters who are convinced they know more about their relationship needs than the writer does. Still, it would have taken all the fun out of the process if they'd believed us from the get-go.

Let's just hope the next couple doesn't know about our 100% success rate. 

A reprint of a post from last year, since it's the summer rerun season.

How to Amuse Your Muse

Each of us has our own source of writing inspiration, something that helps us create and mold our stories, an elusive creature we worship with cult-like devotion.

No, I’m not talking about Richard Armitage. I am talking about a muse. Or in my case, Muse, capitalized because it’s her title, her calling, her raison d’etre, the reason she can be such a pain in the–

My Muse is Endora. (For the young ones out there, she’s the temperamental mother in the TV show Bewitched. For the rest of you, thank you for your sympathy.)

Endora is the perfect storm of haughtiness, disdain, and tough love. During her unpredictable visits, I count myself lucky when she remembers to call me Donna instead of Durwood.

If there is anyone who is more confident of their contrary opinions, I haven’t met them yet. She’ll bark out a laugh when I startle her with something funny (especially if I didn’t MEAN for it to be funny). She’ll wrinkle her nose and sniff as if the litter box is overflowing when I’ve offended her storytelling sensibilities.

She’s also incredibly surprised when I create something that amuses her. I live for those rare moments when her heavily penciled eyebrows shoot up with astonished admiration. She’s miserly with her praise, as if each encouraging word causes a sharp pain in her soul, but I make her give until it hurts.

She’s a witch with a capital B, but I’m driven to please her. And she knows it.

Endora loves her job, but she’s also flighty, and fickle, and rather capricious about when she will actually do it. She is incapable of keeping to a regular schedule, so I’ve quit suggesting it. If I accidentally bore her, there’s a snap of fingers and a puff of smoke, and I’m instantly alone, staring at a blinking cursor on the computer screen, wondering how to lure the insufferable wench back.

What I usually do is tap away at the keyboard, resigning myself to the fact that I’m going to have to do this writing thing on my own for a little while. Somehow the mundane task of typing entices Endora. Maybe she’s planning to thump me on the head for waking her from her beauty nap. Or maybe she’s come to warn me of the hex with my name on it if I don’t stop trying to write solo.

I’m never sure WHY this technique brings her back. I doubt she knows either. But it does. The next thing I know, she’s looking over my shoulder, snorting with derision, and then I hear a muttered, “I suppose that part’s not too horrid.” 

It’s hard to tell which of us is the most surprised by her grudging approval.

The tricky part is figuring out WHAT makes Endora happy, because, as with any diva, it’s never the same thing twice. If she adores chocolate one day, and the words flow after I’ve presented her with the most exquisite confections ever made. . .the next time she’ll take one bite of the same stuff and spit it out as if I’d given her a clod of dirt.

If I take a nap to deal with the heartbreak of her desertion, she plops down next to me, whispering tantalizing plot points in my ear until I am wide awake, frantic to give her my undivided attention again.

There’s some sort of magic in this partnership of ours, and I’ve quit trying to figure out the dysfunctional workings of it. Ultimately she seems proud of my efforts, and I like to believe she wouldn’t hang around if she didn’t get something out of the experience.  (I don’t want to even contemplate how many other unfortunate writers she torments on her daily rounds. We could probably have an annual convention.)

Yet, as contrary as the old gal is, I can’t imagine what my writing life would be like without her. I do my best to amuse her, and she returns the favor, in her own inimitable fashion.

So, do you have a muse? How do you keep your muse happy? How does he/she reward you for your efforts?

Five Ways to Increase Your Writerly Wellbeing

As writers, we put a lot of pressure on ourselves. 

Partly that's because we're trying to be the best storyteller we can be, and partly we know that the publishing bar gets lifted higher and higher – especially when it seems we're getting closer to vaulting over it. So we keep pushing ourselves, striving to reach our goal of a near-perfect story, perfectly written, in the shortest timeframe possible. 

Yet the more pressure we put on ourselves, the more stressed we feel, which makes us feel inadequate. Then we either can't write or we're convinced what we've written originated from the back end of a donkey with serious digestive issues.

Stress can actually help us, toughening our hide for those days we encounter critics (even our own). However, too much of this can be detrimental, and we start looking for relief. By a show of hands, how many seek out chocolate, or a beverage of an alcoholic nature, or the distraction of the internet?  

These are all great stress relievers, and I'm not suggesting they should be ignored or avoided. I could do an hour-long infomercial on the efficacy of each one and still feel like I needed more time to extol their benefits.  

However, maybe it's time to expand our repertoire with a few other tricks of the trade.

Obviously none of the things I'm about to suggest could be classified as avant garde or radical. We all know these things, but sometimes we need a reminder. That's why we read blogs and articles and self-help books: to retrieve good advice that we've stored away in the deep recesses of our brain.

So let's get those mental backhoes out and start excavating! Way back there, in that section labeled, "Self-Care Advice I Plan to Use Someday When I'm Exhausted and Finally Ready to Acknowledge How Much I Really Need It".

Take a walk—Swing your arms and really breathe. If something is making you gnash your teeth, this can help you work it out. Soon you'll be paying attention to the sounds and sights around you, and your mind will naturally wander back to your story, but you'll most likely leave the stress behind you, panting as it tries to catch up.

Get up and get a glass of water—None of us drink enough water on a daily basis, and I worry that our brains are shriveling without that necessary liquid replenishment. It's okay to have your beverage at your desk or near your chair. But it's even better to get up and walk to where your beverage is. It's a brief movement that's beneficial, along with a momentary change of scenery that's just as valuable as the water. I try to do this at least once an hour.

Stretch—Writing is an intense occupation, and when we're absorbed with our stories we can get all hunched over our desks or our laptops. If we're writing by hand, our fingers get cramped hanging on to the pen. If we're in a good groove, we hate to stop, fearing the flow will never return. However, do you want your body to freeze into that position? Hey, I've got an idea! You can stretch when you get up to get your glass of water! I'm not talking about downward dog yoga poses here. Just a few simple hand and arm stretches, to reward them for their efforts and get them ready to go back for the next round.

Give thanks—Writing is a gift, even when it feels like one we'd stand in line to return on the busiest shopping day of the year. So a little "thank you" to your muse, your characters, or even yourself, goes a long way to reducing built-up stress. Reflect on what is going well when you're writing. Anyone can focus on the negative, but it takes a discerning person to focus on what IS working, especially when surrounded by mayhem and chaos and dire news.

Smile—Your writing is intended to touch readers' hearts, so it's got to impact yours. Read what you've written and smile. If you're alone when you write, it's your own little secret. If you're writing in public, you'll intrigue the hell out of the people nearby, so be prepared to answer with enthusiasm when they ask, "What are you writing?"

These are my suggestions. Now I'd love to hear what you do to relieve stress and increase your writerly well-being. Any and all ideas are welcome.  Please share!

A little reminder/rerun, to keep us all healthy and productive!

I Want To Be Engaged

Reading has been a magical experience for me ever since I sounded out the riveting details of my first Dick and Jane book. Every time I open a book, I'm going on a new adventure, one where I can participate merely by following along with the words and turning the pages.

I love learning info about the writing craft, but right now I'd prefer it enter my brain subliminally. After I close the covers of a book, I can muse about how lyrical the prose was, or marvel at how all those adverbs made it past the grammar police. As a writer, I like to go back and research exactly how the writer accomplished all the technical things I admire.

But first, I want to fall in love.

I want to be absorbed, engaged, immersed in a story that feels more lifelike than all the things waiting for me once I'm forced to return to reality.

I want an author to do that smoke and mirrors thing to distract me from the manufacturing aspect of a book. Make me care so much for these characters that I can't think of anything else, especially when my nose isn't buried in that book. Make me rush back to that story, cutting phone calls short, cutting people off in traffic, cutting back on chores, all so I can hang out with these fictional people once more.

If I am emotionally engaged, I will love your story, even if it's not a genre I normally read. If you engage my heart and mind, I will want to read everything you write. I will hang on every word, breathless to get to the end, while dreading it at the same time.

Since this is what I want from a book, it's also what I am striving to give to readers of my stories.

Now I'm looking at each scene to see what I can do to draw the reader in deeper, to lure them into a chapter so far they can't find their way out except to seek The End.

How can I make the reader care just a little bit more? How can I make them feel the same joys and pangs that my characters are experiencing? How can I provide nonstop enjoyment?

As I work on this, I try to keep in mind: It's not the technique or the words that engage the reader. It's the story.

Procrastination: The Ultimate Writing Tool

If there’s one thing I know about myself, it’s that I can’t plan more than a few days ahead of time, and even when I do, it’s gonna be in pencil—while I’m brandishing an eraser in my other hand.

Sometimes I forget that aspect of my personality, and I actually try to PLOT, rather than PANTS. It never ends well. In fact, it adds unnecessary pressure trying to conform to something so foreign to my being.

That’s when I realize I need to call upon a higher power: The Power of Procrastination. It’s often characterized as the ugly stepsister of Avoidance, and I will admit I’ve helped to keep that notion alive. But I wonder if I’ve been a little too harsh. 

After all, what is Procrastination but Avoidance allowed to roam free?

Let’s take a peek at some famous procrastinators:

Scarlett O’Hara:  “After all, tomorrow is another day”

Mark Twain:  “Never put off until tomorrow what you can do the day after tomorrow”

Lil Orphan Annie:  Honestly, is there anybody who could love “tomorrow” more than this gal?

What do they all have in common? They have a deep-seated, unshakeable, abiding belief that there is PLENTY OF TIME.

Yes, procrastination is a hope-based philosophy. Optimism is the cornerstone of this belief system, along with faith that time won’t run out before we finish what we need to do. . .some distant day in the future.

Ironically, procrastinators are actually given LESS time than that allotted to non-procrastinators. But we don’t let that bother us. Why? Because we know that our efficiency and productivity kicks in whenever there is a “last minute”. 

We like residing on that tiny ledge that is crumbling into the abyss. It revs us up and sparks our creativity. We’re adrenaline junkies, thrill seekers, addicted to the mania that comes with accomplishing something in record time while wondering if this was the time we waited too long.  

If there’s anyone that knows how to ratchet up the suspense. . .it’s procrastinators.

Yet somehow, miraculously, with hosannas from heaven above, we get it done. Because there was actually plenty of time to accomplish WHAT HAD TO BE DONE. 

We didn’t get distracted by all the possibilities, the paths not taken, the meanderings that might have been fun but ultimately would have paralyzed us because there was too much to choose from. 

Instead, with the clock ticking, we used our laser-beam focus to concentrate on the essentials, those things that could not be ignored, and it was a bright light guiding us to our destination.

So how do we make procrastination work as a writing tool? Here are a few suggestions:

1. Set a deadline. And then ignore it, until—yup, the last minute. This works particularly well with contests, class assignments, chapters that a critique partner is waiting on, or, my personal favorite, blog posts.
2. Do all your Hierarchy of Avoidance chores, to make sure you get them out of the way–and then do whatever you feel like the rest of the day. After all, there’s always tomorrow to do some writing. You need time to ponder all the possible plot threads in your story, and this is the time for it, not later when you’re scribbling to get the word count done.
3. Start something and then set it aside to work on something else. Then put it down and move onto a third project. Leave all of them half-finished until it’s time to get something done, then grab the one that intrigues you and write like the wind.

Now it’s your turn. Share some of your favorite tips and tricks for utilizing The Power of Procrastination. Maybe we’ll even gather them and put them in a book. . . one of these days.

Time got away from me today, so I decided to re-visit one of my favorites, a post I originally did for Romance Writer's Revenge.