Dishing Out Backstory in Digestible Bites

 

Yesterday I discussed the importance of knowing your backstories to avoid flat characters.  Today I'm going to cover how to share that history with the reader without choking them.  Think of backstory like a big steak--you can't swallow the whole thing at once, it must be cut up and devoured in small, juicy bites.  Ideally, these bites will blend so well with the rest of the story, that the reader will barely notice that you've slipped it in on them.

So first let's look at some choking hazards:

Prologue--These are notorious for being solely backstory, which is probably why they've developed a bit of a bad reputation.  Make sure what you have in your prologue (if you have one) can't be sprinkled in somewhere  else instead.

First Chapters--This is where it's most tempting to put in big blocks of backstory.  Resist!  Your story should start in the middle of things.  Readers don't have to know all the background yet, get them to the action so you can hook them.  Pay particular attention to chapters 1-3 in your first draft.  Many times it's where we as writers are working out the story for ourselves (which is fine as long as you go back and cut them during revision).

Alright, now for some ways to blend in that backstory...

Dialogue

This is an easy and obvious way to reveal information to your reader.  However, watch out for the traps with this.

--Make sure that the conversation is realistic and that there is a reason for it to be happening besides slipping in backstory to the reader.

   NOT "I can't believe you cheated on me six months ago with someone half my age." (the guy would already know that)

   INSTEAD "How's your new bimbo? Has she graduated high school yet?"

--Make sure the conversation comes up naturally and not out of the blue.  Something needs to trigger that discussion.

--Use action to break up the dialogue so it doesn't start sounding like an info dump.

Flashback
Where your character relives in their head a past event as it happened.  Unlike a memory, they don't filter the events through their current point of view.

--Be very careful with this one.  Many people advise against flashbacks.  But I think if used correctly and sparingly they can work.

--Something has to trigger the flashback. That memory needs to be brought to mind by some object, situation, person, etc.

--Make it clear that it is a flashback so your reader doesn't get confused.  Some people use italics to help with this.

Memory
Similar to flashback, but the memory is seen through the person's current POV.

--Sprinkle this in.  Like everything else, large chunks of prose on a memory will get tedious.

--Just like the others, the memory must be triggered by something.  Don't have your MC vacuuming and just suddenly think of how her father died (unless it was death by vacuum).

--Can build and foreshadow throughout the story, not revealing everything up front.  For instance, in my romance, my MC goes to a concert and for a moment she's reminded of a tragic night many years ago.  But all I show is that she has a sick feeling and that she remembers to the day how long it's been since she's seen a concert--which lets us know something important happened back then, but I don't say anything about what it is specifically, just foreshadow.

--Ex.) He smiled at her, and for a moment, she was reminded of the boy he used to be, the one she used to love.  (See, that tells us they had a previous relationship and that something changed along the way.  Just enough to whet the reader's appetite.)

Thoughts
Using direct thoughts instead of narrative.

--This doesn't have to be a specific memory, but can let us know that there is something there behind the thought.

--i.e. "Don't you just let go and have fun sometimes?" he asked.  She shook her head and averted her eyes.  "No." Not anymore.

Action
Sometimes you can use some event in your story to relay past events.

--i.e.  A news story comes on TV talking about a cold case murder that relates to your MC.

The easiest way for me to figure out how to put in backstory is to think like a screenwriter.  They cannot tell you things in a movie, they have to show it all.  So how would I convey this information if it were a movie?

Alright, so those are my tips, what are some of yours?  How do you sneak in your backstory?  

Backstory: Avoiding Flat Characters

Photo by AForestFrolic (click pic for link)

In an effort to think positively, I have decided to start on the second romance in the Wanderlust series.  Initially, I had moved on to a different project because I have a fear of starting a sequel before Book one sells.  But in this case, the books are meant to be free-standing stories if necessary--i.e. a character is pulled from book one but it's a different band member's story.  (For those of you who have beta read for me, this would be Sean's story.)

Plus, the characters have been poking me in the ribs demanding I let them have their own story.  So I have started doing my haphazard outlining for book two and have the concepts sketched out for books three and four.  See, I told you, I'm in positive thinking mode.  There better be something to that whole "Secret" thing Oprah's always talking about.  :)

So as I get my thoughts together on the book, I realized that one of the most important components for me is backstory.  If I don't know the character's backstory, then I have trouble starting the book.  There are writers out there that say you shouldn't worry about backstory, just focus on what is going on with the character's right now, but I don't agree.  Yes, we should not bog the reader down with all aspects of the character's history.  However, I as the writer need to know even if it never makes it in the book.  This goes hand and hand with motivation for me.  Why does the character act this way?  Because of A, B, C.  If I don't know this then I'm just writing a paper doll--a flat caricature with no shadows or depth.

So along with plotting and such, I come up with the big events in the character's history.  Think of this like Dr. Phil's "defining moments" technique.  He often asks his guests to list the five or ten defining moments in their lives--things that happened that changed everything.  Now hopefully your story is starting one of these moments, but you also need to know the ones from their past.  And they don't all need to be smack-you-upside-the-head incidents.

Maybe when you character starred in a play at school, his parents decided to go to his brother's football game instead--showing him who they favored.  Maybe that has made him fiercely competitive.

Or take inspiration from your own history.  I hate when people are late--loathe it.  Why?  Because when my dad used to pick me up for my every other weekend visit he was notoriously late--sometimes half an hour, sometimes much longer.  Sitting on that front step waiting for him made me feel like whatever was keeping him from picking me up on time was more important than me.

It is especially vital to know the history when your character has some less than admirable qualities or takes some undesirable action.  For instance, my character is in a band and has been a bit of womanizer in the past.  So I need to motivate that properly to let the reader eventually forgive him for these past actions and be open to seeing him as the hero.

Now the key to all of this is to know your character inside and out, but to be able to convey that to your reader without telling them all that background.  So, tomorrow I am going to go through some techniques of how to work in your backstory without bogging down your story.

So what is your method?  Do you start writing and develop backstory as you go along or do you need to know the history before getting started?  Or, do you believe that backstory isn't that important and that you should only worry about the here and now of the character?

 

 

**Today's Theme Song**

 

"My Paper Heart" - All-American Rejects

(player in sidebar if you'd like a listen)

Looking Back at 2009

I know it's not quite the end of the year yet, but I started my writing journey in November of last year, so it's easier for me to recap from that point.  Here's what my year looked like with regards to books, music, and writing.

Books read: 79

Young Adult: 41

Adult Romance (including paranormal/erotic/historic/contemporary): 24

Non-fiction/Writing Books: 7

Other (Literary, Mystery, Horror, etc.): 7

Here's a sampling of what I've read.  For more detail, you can visit my GoodReads page:

Roni's book montage

Roni Griffin's favorite books »

Now as many of you know from reading this blog, I'm also a bit obsessed with music and going to concerts, so I'm going to include that list as well.  Music always inspires me in my writing and this was especially true this year.  The Buckcherry/Aerosmith concert was definitely where I got the idea for writing Wanderlust.  My husband and I have binged on live music a bit this year because the previous year we had a new baby and hadn't found a babysitter we felt comfy with yet, so we barely went to any.

Here's the list (not all of these were separate shows, some were opening bands at the same concert.)

Weezer

Angels and Airwaves

Pink

The Ting-Tings

AC/DC

New Kids on the Block

Fall Out Boy

Chicago

Earth, Wind, & Fire

Kelly Clarkson

The Offspring

The Toadies

Bowling for Soup (2x)

U2

Muse

No Doubt

Paramore

All-American Rejects

Taking Back Sunday

30 Seconds to Mars

Buckcherry

KISS

My Writing Progress:

Two novels completed and revised:

• YA (Shadow Falls) 
• Contemporary Romance (Wanderlust)

Joined a crit group

Joined RWA and local chapter

Started a blog.

• 113 posts
• hit over 200 followers (thanks guys!)

Whew, it's been a fun year!  Can't wait to see what the next one brings.  I have not thought through goals for the next year yet, but I do plan to come up with some, at least with regards to writing.  I know there are a lot of reading challenges popping up around blogs (here's a good list if you're interested), but I"m not sure if I'll commit to any of those.  I read like I write, I can't plan too far ahead.  :)

So how about you?  How was your year with regards to reading or writing or music?  Are you setting any specific goals for yourself for the next year?  Is anyone joining any of these reading challenges?

**Today's Theme Song**
"From Yesterday" - 30 Seconds to Mars

(player in sidebar if you'd like a listen)

Contest Alert!

Ho, ho, ho...'Tis the season for gift giving and Kimberly Killion must be feeling verra generous this year. She's giving away a sled-full of books...

Highland Dragon by Kimberly Killion
Her One Desire by Kimberly Killion
An Affair Before Christmas by Eloisa James
Claiming the Courtesan by Anna Campbell
Untouched by Anna Campbell
Tempt the Devil by Anna Campbell
Before the Scandal by Suzanne Enoch
Death Angel by Linda Howard
Too Good to be True by Kristan Higgins
Wild Sight by Loucinda McGary
Heart of the Wolf by Terry Spears
Everything Forbidden by Jenna Petersen

You have to do two simple things to enter:
1) Go to Kimberly's website and fill out the form on her contest page
2) Follow Kimberly's blog, Wowf about Writing!

GOOD LUCK and HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!!

Contest Rules: One entry per person per contest period. Contest winner will be announced on Kimberly Killion's website and blog Dec. 26th, 2009. All entrants must be 18 years of age or older

What Keeps You Going?

As complicated as we humans are, there are certain rules that hold true for pretty much everyone. For instance, we don't do things for no reason. Whether it's conscious or not, we do things for some kind of payoff (or to avoid some type of negative consequence). This is why "they" tell you to not shower your child with attention when they are acting out--don't give them a reward for a bad behavior. This is also why you know not to touch a hot stove--you want to avoid the consequence.

For those of you who took Psyc 101, you'll recognize this as behavior theory or operant conditioning.

So why am I going all psyc student on you? Because the other day I read Tina Lynn's post on the difficult journey of trying to get published and the fact that even if the dream comes true, we're most likely not going to be rich and famous or anything. It got me to wondering, what keeps up going despite the bleak outlook and lack of monetary reward? Are we just stupid?

So let me insult everyone and compare us to rats...

There are four factors that determine if a rat/person will continue to do a certain behavior:

1. Satiation/Deprivation

Rats: If a rat is really hungry and the reward is food, then he's more likely to perform whatever action. However, if he's full, he will be less motivated.

Writers: We are STARVED for publication, so we are like those girls on Survivor, taking our clothes off for a spoonful of peanut butter.

2. Immediacy

Rats: If the reward is given right after the behavior, the rats are more likely to perform. If it's delayed, they aren't as motivated

Writers: There is very little immediacy for us. Writing and editing take time, query responses can take months (if you ever get a response). If you're lucky enough to get a agent--then the shopping to publishers takes time and it still may not sell. Then if you do sell, to get on the shelf takes even longer. Which means--we're dumber than rats in this respect. :) However, I think this is also one reason we get crit groups and blog--this offers small bouts of immediate gratification to keep us going--we'll take crumbs.

3. Contingency

Rats: If the food pellet is offered every time they hit the lever, they're more likely to keep doing it. If it only happens some of the time, they won't do it as much.

Writers: We hit that lever over and over and over again hoping someone will dish out a pellet. Even though the big one hasn't come out yet, we're still hopeful. We're also happy if just a bit comes out (a good crit, a nice comment, a breakthrough in writing our plot , a personalized rejection letter, etc.) We have this in common with slot machine players--one day we could hit the jackpot.

4. Size

Rats: If the reward is lame, the rat isn't that motivated. Give that rodent a big hunk of cheese and he's good to go.

Writers: The reward is HUGE, if elusive. Having a professional believe in our writing, getting published, seeing our name on a book, having others read what we wrote and enjoy it, being able to do what we love for a living, etc. I think this, above all, is what keeps many of us on the path.

So in a lab, we wouldn't be the smartest rats, but at least we're dedicated, right? Why am I telling you all of this? Well, first it's because I'm a psychology nerd. But really it's because when you get down or feel like giving up, remember these things. Go seek out some crumbs--talk to your crit group, focus on the positives you've experienced, think about the end goal.

Earlier this week I was having one of those days where I just felt down. Why am I doing this? Will this ever happen? Do I totally suck? Am I wasting my time? I love to write, but should I be more practical? Blah, blah, blah.

Then, I got two positive crits back from my group on chapters. This perked me up and I felt a little better. However, I still was feeling frustrated. I did the whole--I need some kind of sign, universe. And seriously, later that day, I was answered.

I received a full request on Wanderlust from a publisher (who will remain nameless, but let's just say I'm beyond thrilled.) So the rat inside me ran around in circles because I got a big chunk of cheddar. And my motivation was renewed. Now I have enough juice in my tank to wait the months to hear back and to continue writing my next manuscript.

So what about you? What keeps you going despite the adversity? If you're having a bad day, what turns it around for you? If you knew you would never get published, would you still write?

**Today's Theme Song**

"Bullet with Butterfly Wings" - Smashing Pumpkins

AKA Despite All My Rage I am Still Just a Rat in a Cage

(player in sidebar if you'd like a listen)

Endings: How To Prevent Reader Rage

Photo by Jason Rogers (click pic for link)

Yesterday we talked about the type of endings you could choose for your story. Today, I want to look at what things to avoid so you don't have readers chucking your book against the wall or using it for kindling when they finish it.

Let's take a look at some common ending mistakes according to Edward Patterson.

1. Anti-climax

 

How to recognize it: This is the ending that when you reach it, you really don't care anymore. You're not surprised, excited, or invested.

What went wrong: This happens when the story peaked too soon in the book. The big, exciting, conflict-resolving moment was chapters ago. The only reason there is a story to begin with is the conflict, once it's resolved, you're done. It's okay to have a "afterglow"/denouement chapter, but don't drag it out.

How to fix it: Move the conflict resolution closer to the end. Or if you've resolved, say, the external conflict (yay, they've saved the world!) make sure you haven't settled the internal conflict yet. (They saved the world, but the MC still hasn't expressed her true feelings for hero, etc.) Give your reader a reason to keep reading.

2. Runaway Train

 

How to recognize it: This is where things are building up, but then toward the end, the pacing goes out of control and the wrap up feels rushed. "Wait, it's over?"

What went wrong: Sometimes this is because you, as a writer, are ready to "get 'er done" after writing the whole book, so you rush through it. Other times, this is because you didn't begin with your end in mind. You should be building toward your ending the entire time so that it's not abrupt and slapped on at the end.

How to fix it: Know what your ending is going to be so that you can work toward it throughout the book. As I mentioned in one of my beginnings post, even your first few pages should hint at the end. By the middle of the book, you should be starting to end it.

3. Contrived Endings

 

How to recognize it: This ending makes you say, "Seriously? Yeah, right." Everything falls into place in crazy coincidences, characters make decisions that don't make sense, etc.

What went wrong: This can happen if you are too tied to the ending you originally envisioned. Yes, you should know where you're going when you write, but usually your characters take over at some point and guide your story, requiring changes. An ending may feel contrived because it no longer matches what your characters and stories have developed into.

How to fix it: Know how you want to end your story, but change things organically as your characters and story grow and develop. Make sure the actions of your characters at the end are properly motivated throughout the book. And do not rely on coincidences to fix the conflicts in your story.

4. Dribble Out Endings

 

How to recognize it: This is the ending that isn't an ending at all. The story just sort of fades away and you're left wondering..."wait, what?" These are sometimes meant for the reader to be left pondering (similar to the 'things that make you say hmm" ending of yesterday) but it has no impact and falls flat. I loathe books and movies that do this.

What went wrong: The author avoided writing an ending or failed in an attempt to be profound.

How to fix it: Do not take your reader on a ride with you only to abandon them at the end. Give them something to take away--a conclusion, a lesson, something.

 5. An Epilogue is Not an Ending

Some people love epilogues and some hate them. However, if you do decide to include one, realize that it is not the ending. It is the afterglow. Your ending needs to be impactful and climactic and satisfying. The epilogue is meant to be the cuddle time after the big moment so that you can mellow after that ending high.

Have you found yourself falling into any of these traps? Or, have you read any books that have committed one of these sins? When you start writing your stories, do you have the end in mind?

**Today's Theme Song**

"It's the End of the World As We Know It" - R.E.M

(player in sidebar if you'd like a listen)

Endings: Happily Ever After or Not So Much...

Image by Magenta Rose

Have you ever read a book that you loved the whole way through, then you reach the ending and the author totally blows it? I've talked a good bit about beginnings and first chapters (here, here, here, here and here.) because that's what hooks your readers/agents/publishers, but endings are just as vital. I don't care how much I loved a book, if the author lets me down at the end--that is the lasting impression, that determines whether or not I go out and buy another book by that author. (Thanks to CKHB, btw, for suggesting this post topic.)

I have to admit, I struggle with endings. I go through this whole process of writing a book then when I get to the end I'm like, uh, hmm, well--even when I know how I want it to wrap up. I enjoy writing the journey much more than the destination. So this is definitely an area I am working on.

First, let's look at some common ending options:

1. Happily Ever After (HEA) or Happy For Now

--This is the most common ending, especially in romance.

--When I pick up a Harlequin, I know that no matter what crap the characters have to go through, they will be together in the end. It's the same with romantic comedy movies--you know when you go see them what the end will be, you're just not sure how they are going to get there. It seems like knowing the ending would ruin the process, but it doesn't--we enjoy the journey.

--And be careful setting up this expectation then pulling the rug out from under your reader. As with any rule, it can be broken, but be careful having a happy lighthearted novel then at the end you decimate every relationship or good thing.

2. Sad Ending

--These are trickier, in my opinion. Some people like to cry with their books (*waves at Oprah*), but you don't want to end sadly with no kind of resolution or lesson.

--Give the reader something to walk away with. In Titanic, it's horrible that sexy Leo dies, I ugly-cried in the theatre, BUT I was left with the sense of the undying power of love and how someone who we meet only briefly can touch our lives forever.

--This kind of ending also works when the only logical place for the story to go is down the sad road. If you're writing a story about the Holocaust, you probably aren't going to be able to wrap it up with balloons and sunshine. (And your readers won't expect you to).

3. The Cliffhanger

--These are only okay if you are planning a series, in my opinion. Nothing with piss me off more than a book ending with no wrap-up and no next book. That will ruin me on an author.

--Even if you are setting up for the next book, make sure that you have some resolution with some of your story threads so that your reader has some sense of satisfaction (along with a desire to know more on the unresolved ones.)

--These can be very effective, as I mentioned in my review yesterday. The cliffhanger is the only thing that's going to get me to buy the next book. I also just finished the first four books of The Vampire Diaries and LJ Smith is great at the cliffhanger. I read all four books in about three days because of those darn cliffhangers.

4. The "Things That Make You Say Hmm" Ending (yeah, I just pulled out that old school reference)

--These endings are more common in literary fiction than genre fiction.

--This ending leaves you with something to think and ponder on. If someone were to ask you what you thought of the book right after finishing it, you'd probably say "I'm not sure yet."

--Sometimes books with these endings provide a profound experience, other times it's just frustrating, so it has to be done artfully.

In my YA, I struggled with the ending, rewriting it at least three times. I started out with HEA, then changed it to a sad ending + cliffhanger, and now it's a happy for now (with the romance thread) and a cliffhanger with the external plot. My adult romance was always a HEA, but it still was difficult to write and make it feel fully satisfying and not rushed.

Alright, so those are some of the options for endings. Tomorrow I will cover what to do and not to do when creating your ending along with some tips of how to come up with the direction you want to go in.

So do you find beginnings or endings harder? Which types of endings do you prefer to write or read? Have you ever read a book that you loved the journey but loathed the ending? How do you feel about cliffhanger endings?

**Today's Theme Song**

"It Ends Tonight" - All-American Rejects

(player in sidebar if you'd like a listen)

Face Off Friday: YA Lit and Sex*

As most of you know, young adult books are all the rage right now. Many are calling it a YA renaissance. I know that many of you who read this blog both write (and read) YA, as I do. So hopefully this is a relevant topic for you guys.

When I was writing my YA, I had the constant worry about where to draw the line on the controversial things, particularly sex and cursing. In my teen years, YA lit was very different. Most of the books were pretty clean. There were the exceptions that many of the libraries banned (Judy Blume's Forever and the book Go Ask Alice come to mind), but for the most part books were "wholesome". So, in theory, when reading YA we were protected from the "adult" things. Right?

Well, this theory didn't hold true for me because by fourteen, I was bored with YA and had moved on to adult novels. As I mentioned in a previous post, I started V.C. Andrews' Flowers in the Attic series my freshman year of high school. Looking back, these books would probably be considered YA now. The protagonist was a teen. However, the books had sex, so at that time, they were marketed as adult fiction. And as for cursing, well I had a thing for Stephen King books in high school too, so...

In today's YA market, the books run the gamut--from the squeaky clean to the shocking. So when writing, I had to make the decision of where I would fall on this issue. People on each side of this debate feel very strongly about their opinions. I'll give you the argument, then I'll tell you what I ultimately decided worked for me.

Wholesome vs. Edgy

For love of the wholesome:

• Books with cursing, sex, and drugs normalize these behaviors and encourage teens to participate in them
• These books are pornographic and are selling sex to kids
• They teach teens (girls especially) that their worth is tied into their ability to please a boy
• The situations in these books expose children to adult situations that they aren't prepared to handle or interpret correctly

In defense of edgy:

• These books, although it is unfortunate, reflect reality: many teens are in fact having sex, some are exposed to drugs, and the majority are cursing.
• Teens are programmed to think about sex so we're not giving them any ideas with the books
• There is safety in fantasy. Perhaps teens can explore the topic through a book instead of in real life. For instance, in Forever, the sex is there but so are the emotional consequences that can happen in a sexual relationship.
• Most YA authors, although I'm sure there are exceptions, do not put sex in for gratuitous purposes, but for plot purposes.
• Has anyone watched TV lately or seen a movie or listened to the radio? Teens see a lot more sex outside of books than they see inside them.
• Teens can connect with a character who is struggling with the difficult issues and not feel as alone.
• Teen readers won't believe you if all your characters are squeaky clean
• If it's kept out of YA, the kids (like me) will just move to adult books, which may paint sex in a much more gratuitous and tempting light (sans consequences).

Both arguments have good points. So what did I do? I ended up trusting my characters. If in real life, I felt the character would curse, then I let him (where it would have the most impact.) I also put in some sexual situations and dialogue, but nothing beyond making out actually happens (although my beta reader has told me I need to dial the loving back a bit, lol, so I still struggle with this line).

Why? Because of plot reasons. If I had felt my character was ready to have sex, then I probably would have let her. But the story didn't lead me that way. So I guess I fall on the liberal side in this debate. Perhaps I'm jaded from working with troubled teens in my past. They always trusted me more in therapy when I didn't balk at or preach about the things they were experiencing. I just let them talk through their feelings and offered some insight to try to lead them in a better direction.

So where do you fall in the debate? How did you make the decisions in your own YA? If you're a parent of a teen, how do you feel about what your child reads?

**This is a REPOST from 8/28/09. Hope you guys have enjoyed the "reruns", all new posts next week! Have a great weekend!**

**Today's Theme Song**

"Don't Tell Me" - Avril Lavigne

(player in sidebar if you'd like a listen)

No! No! Bad Writer*

Photo by Michael Stout (click pic for link)

Growing up, I was a girl who (except for the occasional rebellious moment) followed the rules. I wanted my parents, family, and teachers to be proud of me. I did what I was supposed to, got the As, and developed a bit of a perfectionistic personality. In many ways, this was a good thing. On the other hand, worrying about perfection is a bit maddening because of course it can never be achieved.

When I started to get serious about my writing, I jumped in and just started typing. I didn't pick up a writing book, read an agent blog, or do a lick of research. Very unlike me. But the creative juices were churning and I needed to get the words on the page before I did anything else. Once I finished my first draft, I took a breath and started to read more about writing. And boy, oh boy, there was enough out there to send me into a near panic attack.

There was so much I didn't know, so many rules I had never heard of. I thought with a firm grasp on grammer, an idea about story structure, and the show don't tell rule, I was good to go. I had no idea there was a written (and unwritten) code of the do's and don'ts of writing. This, of course, sent my anal-retentiveness into overdrive. I jumped into editing and tried to fix the things I had no idea were wrong the first time around. Then, draft after draft, I would discover a new rule I wasn't aware of and would have to go back through again. It was liking trying to break the code into a secret society.

And it hasn't stopped yet. I'm still learning new things every day. At times, it's overwhelming, but I want my manuscripts to be as good as they can be, so I'll keep reading and going to workshops and absorbing all I can.

2015 Update: However, I've also learned that rules are not rules. They're guidelines. Writing shouldn't be "perfect" according to some list. That's boring. You have to find your own style, your own voice, your comfort zone with the so-called "rules." But these do exist for a reason. So it's important to know these things and why they exist. Then you're informed and can break them wisely. Because if you're going to break them, you need to know why you're doing that and then do it well. 

What I Done Learnt So Far:

1. Adverbs are the devil incarnate. They will steal the soul of your verbs.
2. Excessive adjectives are like white shoes after Labor Day.
3. Prologues can be a crutch (though, can also be done well.)
4. Non-said dialogue tags (he growled, she shouted, he bellowed) are like big, fat "I'm a new writer" billboards in your manuscript
5. The being verbs are the ugly stepchildren of the verb family
6. You want verbs that go to the gym--nice and strong.
7. Rhetorical questions in query letters make agents burn your letter in a weekly bonfire.
8. Backstory should be slipped in like roofies into a drink--your reader didn't even notice it happened.
9. Present Participial phrases are generally bad. (This one is a new discovery for me. Editortorent has a whole series on PPPs alone.)
10. Hidden/Buried Dialogue is not preferred and slows down your pacing. (This one is also new to me. My handy dandy critique group gave me a lesson on this one recently. Apparently, dialogue passages need to be in one of the following structures:

• dialogue -->narrative-->dialogue
• narrative-->dialogue
• dialogue-->narrative

NOT narrative-->dialogue-->narrative OR (my personal favorite) Dialogue-->narrative-->dialogue-->narrative. Don't bury dialogue in the middle of narrative. I did this all over the place, including the submissions I currently have with agents--sigh).

There are hundreds of more "rules" out there, but these are the ones you'll hear most often.

What writing rules have you discovered that you never knew existed? Which rule do you disagree with? Which one is your biggest enemy--the one who sneaks in your writing all the time?

**Today's Theme Song**

"Know Your Enemy"-- Green Day

(player in sidebar, take a listen)

This Magic Moment*

What separates a novel from being just good to being great? We can talk about plot points and characterizations and originality. All of those things, of course, count for a lot. However, what seems to really define the difference for me is if I remember parts of the book (or movie) for years to come. I could enjoy a book, feel drawn in, feel satisfied when I'm done, but if you ask me in a year or two and I can't remember much about it, then maybe the book wasn't great (or maybe I'm my long term memory is just getting worse--always a possibility.)

So that got me to thinking about what makes a novel particularly memorable. In Ann Rittenberg and Laura Whitcomb's Your First Novel (a great resource, btw), they argue that a novel is memorable because of the moments an author creates. They define five main types of moments that make a story stick with us for long after we've closed the book.

1. Opening Hearts

These are the moments that are either filled with joy or sorrow. These are often the heartbreaking moments that make us cry.

ex.) In Titanic when Rose has to let go of Jack's hand in the water. In Romeo and Juliet, when Juliet awakes to find Romeo dead.

2. Instilling Fear

These are the moments that scare the bejesus out of us. These scenes are the ones that make us get up to check and make sure that we've locked the front door.

ex.) In the movie The Ring when the little girl steps out of the tv. In Stephen King's (who is the master at this type of moment) The Shining when the wife finds the stacks of typed pages that say "All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy."

3. Raising the Temperature

These moments, for lack of a more delicate way of putting it, turn us on. This doesn't necessarily mean sex; it could be a simple kiss, but it hits a hot button.

Ex.) In the Mortal Instruments series, the scene with Jace and Clary in the fairy court. In Charlaine Harris' Sookie books, (hmm, there are so many, where to start), I'll say in the fourth one Dead to the World, the shower scene with Sookie and Eric.

4. Getting a Laugh

These are the moments that make us laugh out loud while we're reading, even though we're in the middle of the airport and everyone turns to look at us. My husband gets particularly annoyed with me when I hit these in a book because he feels left out on the joke.

ex.) In Knocked Up when the friend walks into the delivery room and she screams in her most demonic voice for him to get out.

5. Winning Victories

This is the part of the book that we're all waiting for. The hero gets the girl/guy, the murder is solved, the bad guy is caught/killed, the war is won, etc.

Ex.) The examples are all over the place. Every book and movie has one of these, it's the climax. But the key is to make the reader really care about getting there. We have to feel personally invested in the outcome. If not, we're left cold.

So what do you think? Do you have these in your own book? Are these types of moments what make you remember a story? Also, what are some of your favorite moments that stayed with you long after the end of the book or movie?

**REPOSTED from 8/17/09**

**Today's Theme Song**

"This Magic Moment"-- The Drifters

(player in sidebar, take a listen)

For Love of the Bad Boy*

I just recently finished reading Motley Crue: The Dirt - Confessions of the World's Most Notorious Rock Band . Even though I usually stick to fiction, I picked up the book for a few reasons. One, I'm a big fan of the band. Two, my current WIP's male protagonist is a lead singer in a rock band, so this was helpful research. I'm not going to go into a detailed review. But I'll say that I really enjoyed the book. It was an unapologetic look into the proverbial world of "sex, drugs, and rock 'n roll." So, if you like rock music, don't mind an r-rated (nc-17?) book, and can handle the overuse of the word "dude" in the Tommy Lee chapters, then I would say go for it.

But in addition to being a fun read, this book also got me to thinking about bad boys. They show up all the time in fiction, especially in romance and YA. It's one of our favorite alpha male types both in books (and for some of us, real life). After reading this true life account of four seriously bad boys, I started to wonder why we're so drawn to them and why certain bad boys are appealing and others appalling.

The Motley members were drug addicts, womanizers, and, at times, criminals. Yet women flocked to them even before they were famous or rich. Therefore, something about them was inherently appealing.

Then there are guys like Wes on the past season of The Bachelorette. He's considered the bad boy of the show. And based on the reunion show, he was wildly unpopular with the female viewing audience (including me.)

So what's the difference? Where is the line between uber hot and uber jerk? What traits make a bad boy sexy instead of scary? When writing, how do we create that delicious bad boy that will make our reader not just swoon but fall in love in with the character?

I think the key probably lies in the character's motivation. Your bad boy can't just be bad for the hell of it, just because he thinks it's cool. (Yes, Wes, I'm looking at you.) You have to explore the reasons why he is the way he is with your back story. He also has to have some crack in the armor that the heroine can pry into and heal. Because, otherwise, why are we reading?

Since the Motley Crue guys maintained their appeal (in my mind) even after wildly egregious acts, I'll use them as an example of some appealing types of bad boys. (I'm leaving Mick out because he is not an alpha male.)

The "I've always been pretty" bad boy (Vince Neil, lead singer): This is the bad boy who knows he's hot. Girls have always liked him. Attention has come easily. He can get whomever he wants, which can make things boring for him. It can also lead to going through girls like they're disposable. He's not used to being told no.

Crack: He ain't that confident. Sure, he knows he looks good, but he's not convinced the person underneath the looks is all that great.

Other Examples: Eric in the Sookie Stackhouse books (a personal fave of mine), Keenan inWicked Lovely, Jordan Catalano on My So-Called Life (to pull out an old 90s reference)

What he needs: A heroine that isn't afraid to knock him down off that pedestal and challenge him.

 

The "Up for anything" wild child (Tommy Lee): This guy appears to have no fear or impulse control. Seeks thrills and fun at all times. He's ruled by the Id. Doesn't take anything seriously including silly things like rules, laws, or social mores. Sees relationships as something that would hold him back from thrill-seeking.

Examples: Jules in Erica Orloff's Freudian Slip (who is basically a good-looking version of Howard Stern), Barney on How I Met Your Mother (although his thrill seeking is limited to women)

Crack: He's actually a sucker for long-term relationships. He's so passionate about everything in his life, that when he finds the right girl, he will give himself over completely to love. Tommy Lee turned lovesick both with Heather Locklear and Pamela Anderson.

What he needs: Someone that can keep up with him, but is also a calming force. A heroine who incites enough passion in him that he seeks thrills with her instead of separate from her.

 

The Wounded Soul (Nikki Sixx): This is my favorite to write and read about. This guy's motto is "get them before they get me". He's been hurt deeply somewhere along the way, and now has locked away all true feelings from others. He's easily angered and shuts down when anyone gets close. He can be the most formidable of bad boys because he doesn't care enough about himself to avoid danger.

Examples: Julian in Sherrilyn Kenyon's Fantasy Lover, Edward in Twilight, Jace in City of Bones, Wrath in J.R. Ward's Dark Lover, Johnny Castle in Dirty Dancing

 

Crack: He feels unworthy of genuine love. Nikki Sixx was abandoned by both his parents early on. So later, when people in his life showed him love, he didn't believe them. He'd push them away before he had a chance to care.

What he needs: A super tough girl that can push through that seemingly impenetrable wall. A woman that will call him out on his crap and not be intimidated by his flashes of anger. A woman that will love him fiercely.

So there's my theory. The only bad boys worth writing are the ones that offer a challenge, but that can ultimately evolve. We don't just want to read about the bad boy being bad, we want to see his character heal and reform so that he can keep the good parts (fun, attitude, touch of danger, daring) while taming the undesirable parts (lying, cheating, illegal behavior, etc.).

So, what's your opinion? Do you like a bad boy character or do you think they're overused? What makes you like one better over the other? Who's your favorite bad boy?

**This is a REPOST from 7/21/09**

**Today's Theme Song**

"Kickstart My Heart"-- Motley Crue

(player in sidebar, take a listen)

Why do you read what you read?*

Since it is Thanksgiving week, I am rerunning some posts I did before I had many followers. I will still be responding to your comments. Here is my very first post, hope you enjoy. I look forward to hearing about your own reading journey

**REPOSTED from 7/15/09**

As I start this blog, I found myself wondering how I became such a book-obsessed dork and why I prefer certain types of stories to others. Looking back, I've decided that reading development is kind of like that Plinko game from the Price is Right--certain people and book experiences bump you in one direction or the other. Some of us land in the $5000 slot and become lifelong readers of every type of book, others land in zero and miss out completely, and many of us fall somewhere in between finding a particular reading niche. Here's how my Plinko game went:

4th grade: Inspired by my mother's love of mystery novels, I start reading James Howe's Bunnicula: A Rabbit-Tale of Mystery series and Betty Ren Wright'sThe Dollhouse Murders .

Result: A love of stories that scare me and make me laugh. This also leads to me being convinced that my room is haunted by an evil stuffed monkey that has sat on my shelf since toddlerhood. Monkey gets evicted to the attic, I sleep on the couch for six months (seriously.)

5th grade: My teacher, Mrs. Hymel, starts reading a chapter a day of Madeleine L'Engle's A Wrinkle in Time to the class. I'm hooked. I go to the library to get the book because I can't tolerate waiting for her to finish. I proceed to read the rest of the series in rapid succession. When I'm finished with those, I move on to The Neverending Story by Michael Ende

Result: My love for both fantasy and series books is planted.

6th grade: We're assigned to read Where the Red Fern Grows

and Bridge to Terabithia . Amazing literary books. But both tore me to shreds. I had just lost my grandmother who I was extremely close to and books involving deaths just shattered me.

Result: I develop a respect but also a wariness for literary fiction. In addition, I acquire a lifelong aversion to novels that kill off the dog. I go on a binge of R.L. Stinehorror books (such as The Baby-Sitter (Point Horror Series)

)and Roald Dahl instead. I also began to indulge my budding interest in the paranormal. My science fair projects for this year: ESP and Poltergeists.

9th grade: I dig through my mom's book collection and pull out V.C. Andrews' Flowers in the Attic and Petals on the Wind . These books were depressing, full of drama, gothic, darkly romantic, and totally addictive. But why do I remember these? Because in the second book there was (wait for it) sex. Gasp. I was a very naive at fourteen and found this to be so scandalous. This is the first time I remember hiding the spine of the book while I was reading in public just in case. Of course, I went on to read like twenty more books by Ms. Andrews.

Result: Discover that romance + sexy + darkness = awesomeness

10th grade: I realize that most of my favorite horror movies started as books. I go through a Stephen King and Anne Rice phase. I also read a "based on true events" book called The Black Hope Horror: The True Story of a Haunting that scares the bejesus out of me. I have to remove the book from my room at night so I can sleep.

Result: Decide psychics, monsters, vampires, and ghosts are by far way cooler than normal humans.

9th grade-12th grade: My teachers beat us over the head with the classics because that's their job. I know now these books are works of art, masterpieces, etc. But as a teenager, I thought all of them (outside of Shakespeare and Poe) were big giant suckfests.

Result: I raise the stock of the Cliff Notes company (allowing me to ace all English tests and papers) and am further turned off by the term "literary."

And what do I do with the time I should be using to read my assigned books? I write my own romance novel because clearly there is no chance of actual romantic interludes in my own angsty life. A hundred and fifty typed pages of sappy teenage indulgence is born and titled Kismet. My male protagonist bears a strikingresemblance to Joe McIntyre of New Kids on the Block.

College: I start off with a double major: Psyc and English, but feel overwhelmed. I drop English because it's not as "practical", but still sneak in a few classes. LSU offers a Vampires in Literature class. How frigging cool is that? Not only do I get the chance to read stacks of vamp novels, I get the chance to write short stories about them, too.

Result: Regret dropping the English major. Promise myself that once I get settled in my psychology career, I will try to write in my free time.

So now, years later, where does that leave me?

Reading and writing the same things I grew to love as a child. My Plinko chip landed in the voracious reader of genre fiction slot. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not closed off to the literary side, but honestly its not the first thing I pick up. So, be warned that most of my reviews on here will fall under genre fiction.

So, I'm curious. What books from your past guided your tastes? Can you remember that first moment or first book that really hooked you on reading? Or something that turned you away from a certain genre? Leave a comment and let me know.

**Today's Theme Song**

"Thnks Fr Th Mmrs"-- Fall Out Boy

(player in sidebar, take a listen)

Face Off Friday: Movie vs. Book (and Contest Winner!)

The results are in and the winner of the gift certificate is....at the bottom of the page. :)

First, I wanted to talk about movies and books. Tonight I'm going to see New Moon (yes, I've told you, I'm a Twilight dork, so I'm braving the crowds on opening night.) But, I'm going in with relatively low expectations.

Although I am looking forward to the eye candy, I know that movies typically don't live up to experience of the book. Part of this is because movies can't really "tell" you much, they have to "show" everything which, of course, is preferable in novels as well. But it means we can't hear as much internal dialogue and voice and we have to rely on the actors to nail how we pictured the characters reacting. It's almost impossible for a movie to meet the level our imaginations can achieve when reading.

So here's my Face Off Friday question:

 

Should you read the book first so that you can experience the story in it's pure form before seeing the movie?

Or, should you see the movie first and enjoy it for what it is before your expectations skyrocket, then read the book and enrich the experience?

 

I personally am a read first, see movie second person. Although on the few occasions where I saw the movie first (John Grisham's The Firm), I liked the movie much more than I probably would have had I read the book first.

So how about you? What's your style? And have you ever found a movie that was BETTER than the book or that perfectly lived up to your expectations?

Also, just a note, but I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving week. I am hosting family for the week and am doing all the cooking for Turkey Day, so instead of new blog posts, I will be re-running some of my earlier posts that I did before I had most of you following. I will still be responding to comments and such, but I probably won't be making it to very many blogs.

Okay and finally, the winner of the certificate is....NATALIE MURPHY!!! Congrats! I'll be emailing you later today.

Thanks to all of you who entered and I loved all the blog suggestions. I will definitely be covering those in future posts! :)

Here's the random.org breakdown, which picked the winner:

List Randomizer

There were 31 items in your list. Here they are in random order:

1. Natalie Murphy
2. Gavin
3. UberGrumpy
4. Donna Hole
5. Angela
6. Jessica Kennedy
7. Fiction Vixen
8. Stephanie H.
9. Shannon O'Donnell
10. Susan R. Mills
11. jbchicoine
12. Dawn Hullender
13. Julie
14. Julie Dao
15. Amber Tidd Murphy
16. Joshua
17. Stephanie Thornton
18. Stephanie L. McGee
19. Ash. Elizabeth
20. Angie Ledbetter
21. jenheadjen
22. AjFrey
23. Tabitha Bird
24. Patti
25. Alice in Wonderland
26. CKHB
27. Jennifer Shirk
28. Angie
29. melane
30. sherrinda
31. Makita Jazzqueen

Timestamp: 2009-11-20 15:40:43 UTC

**Today's Theme Song**

"Uprising"-- Muse

(in honor of Twilight, a little Muse--my player isn't working, i'm trying to fix it)

The Title Struggle

Many writers say not to worry about the title of your WIP because most of the time, the publisher's marketing department changes it from whatever your name was anyway. However, I have also read that agents (can't remember which agent blog this was on) sometimes ask to see pages even if the query was only alright because the title was really great. So, I think it's worth giving more than a passing thought.

Coming up with a title is HARD. How are you supposed to come up with a few words that a) make a reader want to pick up the book b) relate to some important aspect of your book and c) hasn't been used before? It's daunting.

Some writers say that a name pops into their head before they even start the story--that the title itself was part of the inspiration. This was not the case for my first two novels. Shadow Falls was titled The Scholarship until I got through the second draft. I didn't like the working title, but I needed something to call the thing besides "the book". Wanderlust was the same way. I started off calling it Rockstar. However, with my most recent WIP, the title finally came to me first: Exposure Therapy. Now that third one could change since I'm just starting the book, but I kind of like it.

So what can you do to help come up with title possibilities?

Brainstorm a list of words that come to mind about your book. Don't edit yourself, just make the list.

--Some obvious things that could inspire the title

• Character names (Carrie)
• Character career
• Setting (Twilight)
• Theme (Atonement)
• Conflict/Turning Point (Marked)
• Time Period
• Special object that plays role in the story (The Sword in the Stone)

--There are some titles that aren't so literal and this is a good way to come up with them. For those of you who have read Hush, Hush, you know that those words aren't uttered in the book. So why is it called that? According to the author, it's because the book is about secrets.

Look for inspiration in unexpected places.

--Music: song titles and lyrics have been used for titles (Wally Lamb's I Know This Much Is True and She's Come Undone; In the Still of the Night has been used multiple times, Bed of Roses by Nora Roberts). However, do note that song lyrics are subject to copyright laws but song titles are not. Either way, this doesn't come into play until you get published.

--Nursery Rhymes: James Patterson has used this as a theme--Along Came a Spider, Jack and Jill

--Cliches & Puns: something to avoid in writing, but if twisted a bit for a title it can work. Tall, Dark, and Dead by Tate Hallaway, Cross My Heart and Hope to Spy and Don't Judge a Girl by Her Cover by Ally Carter

--Classic Literature/Shakespeare: The Sound and the Fury, A Rose by Any Other Name

Alright, I hope that gets your brain cranking. In case your wondering about my titles, here's where I got them from:

 

Shadow Falls is the name of the town in the book, but is also a play on the fact that something dark is trying to consume the character

Wanderlust is the name of the hero's band, but also a play on the fact that he can't settle down. It also plays into the MC because although she has the desire to see the world, something in her past keeps her stuck in one place (emotionally and literally)

Exposure Therapy is from the MC's job as a social worker. She has something to overcome in her past and exposure therapy is a technique used by counselors to work through phobias and such. It's also a play on the fact that the book will be sexy and well, things will be exposed, lol.

So what's the title of your WIP? How'd you come up with it? What are some of your favorite book titles?

Also, don't forget my Amazon gift certificate contest is still open until midnight (central) tonight, so if you missed yesterday's post, check it out to enter.

**Today's Theme Song**

"I'm Like A Lawyer with the Way I'm Always Trying To Get You Off"-- Fall Out Boy

FOB are masters at the unconventional yet awesome punny titles

(player in sidebar, take a listen)

100th Post Contest!

I'm ready for syndication, I've hit 100 episodes posts! Whew, time flies when you're having fun. I had no idea when I started blogging a few months ago (with only my husband and mother following) that it would turn into such a great part of my day and that I would meet so many wonderful people. So thanks! You guys have made this an awesome experience.

And as a thank you to all of you who take the time to read my posts, I'm offering a little gift. Leave a comment in today's post telling me what topic you would like to see covered on here in a future post then leave your email address. All those comments will be entered to win a...

$15 Amazon gift certificate!

Rules:

You must be a follower (if you aren't already, it counts if you go ahead and join now)

You must leave an email address so I know where to send the certificate

Entries will be accepted until midnight (central time) tomorrow night

You must offer a suggestion for a post

*Lurkers, it will not be held against you if this is the first post you've ever commented on. :)

Winner will be chosen randomly and announced on Friday's blog post. Good luck!

**Today's Theme Song**

"Thank You For Being a Friend"-- Andrew Gold

(player in sidebar, take a listen)

*Yes this is a remake of the Golden Girls theme song*

What Role Does Writing Play in Your Life?

Yesterday I was catching up on my Tivo-ed Oprahs (yes, I live an exciting life) and I caught the interview with Stephanie Meyer. Oprah asked her what made her start writing Twilight. Stephanie said that she had three kids who were difficult babies--none of them slept through the night until past two--and that she had gotten burnt out and gone into zombie mom mode. So when she had her now famous dream, she decided to write it down. And writing became her way back to herself to discover the person she was and not just the mom/wife/etc.

The interview goes on and I've included the first part below, but I have to say the interview really struck home for me. This could be because my two year old has gone back to not sleeping through the night and has always been a bad sleeper, so I'm feeling a little burnt out myself.

But I realized that writing provides me the same thing that it did Stephanie Meyer--a connection with the person I am underneath all the roles I have. To remind me that I am more than the diaper changer, cook, wife, etc. And honestly, if I didn't have that outlet, I probably would have escaped back to work by now because even though I adore being home with my son, without any other mental challenge, I would have climbed the walls by now.

So that's what writing has done for me. Me and Stephanie Meyer aren't so different. (Well except for that whole writing a novel that captured millions and being filthy rich and famous thing, but I'm working on it.)

So what does writing do for you? What made you start typing or writing on that blank page? How would your life be different if you didn't have writing in your life?

**Today's Theme Song**

"The Sweet Escape"-- Gwen Stefani

(player in sidebar, take a listen)

Naming Your Characters

Photo by Larry Page

When I was pregnant, deciding on a name for my son was a highly researched project. I studied name books and the social security lists, said the names out loud, tried to think like a third grader to make sure the name couldn't be turned into something for merciless teasing. I drove my husband crazy.

Now, I don't know if you need to put quite as much time in as I did for my son into your characters' names, but you also should not take it lightly. Names define us and conjure up an instant image.

The name Candy is going to produce a much different image than Francis. A Caleb is very different from a Murray. When people hear my first name, they probably aren't going to picture some elegant debutante, they're going to picture a spunky tomboy (which, in my case, worked because I indeed was a tomboy.) You want your character's moniker to ring true with your reader and produce the desired image.

Some things to consider. These are NOT rules. 

1. Make the name true to the person's age

--You're not going to have a sixty-year old Jayden

--Also, don't show your own age if you're writing YA by naming teen characters Cathy and Deborah and Barbara.

--Go to the Social Security website which will give you the top baby names for each birth year. If your character is 16, go back to that year she would have been born to see what names were popular.

2. Check if the name rolls off your tongue because the reader will be saying it in their head.

--Don't use names that are impossible to pronounce (Fantasy writers maybe can get away with this. But try a spelling that readers will at least be able to sound out. Otherwise, we'll just reassign the name in our head.)

--It's also advised not to use first names that end with S because it causes hissing when reading the possessive form. (I've done this many times, so *shrug*, I choose to ignore this suggestion.)

3. Avoid naming multiple characters with names that start with the same letter or sound similar because the reader could get confused.

--Billy and Bobby, Jack and Zach

4. Let the name fit the gender. That doesn't mean you can't give girls names that are traditionally male though. (Says girl who is named Roni.)

--Names with hard consonant sounds create a more masculine feel (Jake, Tate, Todd, Kirk) whereas softer sounds are more feminine (Lacey, Alanna, Jennifer). Once again, this isn't a rule, just food for thought. I have a Jace, which has a soft sound and he's a tough guy.

--One syllable names scream alpha male. (I don't pay attention to this at all. Jace, Grant, Reid, Pike, Kade, Keats. *cough*)

5. Be careful of alliteration

--It can make the name sound silly and contrived. Jenny Johns, Bobby Buckwell

--However, I think this can also work well My hero in Wanderlust is Lex Logan, which I think works for a sexy rockstar.

--And Charlaine Harris has definitely made Sookie Stackhouse work

6. Make it fit the region of the character.

--Where are they from? How would that affect their name?

7. Avoid names that conjure up images of other well-known characters (especially in your genre).

--Don't think you're going to get away with naming a character a Bella in YA paranormal for a while.

--This isn't just for books, TV shows count too.

8. Beware the extremely odd name.

--These can annoy people. I personally don't mind a unique name as long as it's not too distracting. But if you're hero is named Satan or something, that might throw people off, lol.

9. Don't fall into stereotypes, but also have the name fit the person's personality and occupation. (Or on the flip side, you can play with it and give a really tough character a dainty name she hates.)

--True Blood is a good example: the name Sookie Stackhouse is fun and perky like the character, Bill Compton is the boy-next door vamp so has an accessible, softer sounding name, Eric Northman is the bad boy and his name sounds more mysterious and tough (to me at least)

10. Don't be afraid to change your character's names if you get halfway through the book and it's not working. That Find/Replace feature is your friend.

--However, try to get it right the first time because even if you tell yourself it's a placeholder name until you come up with the real one, you'll inevitably start thinking of the character as that name and it will be hard to change.

So what are your MC's names? How'd you come up with them? Have you ever read a book that the name was too odd or it didn't fit the character to the point of distraction?

Face Off Friday: Will Blogging Sell Your Books?

I'll admit that I first started blogging because I heard that the omniscient THEY said that all aspiring authors should be on the internet building a platform. So off I went with the goal of building an internet presence, which lasted about two seconds. As soon as I started meeting other bloggers and discovering all the helpful information out there, I forgot about the whole platform thing and just kept blogging because I liked it.

Now I don't know if this whole blogging thing has built me any kind of platform, but it's definitely improved my writing because I learn something new every day from you guys and from researching the posts I do, so it's been worth its weight in gold.

However, I'm still curious, do you think THEY are right? Does someone having a blog sell books when they eventually get published? If you've never read a romance and I get published, are you going to go out and buy it because you "know" me or feel invested in my journey because you watched it unfold?

My own opinion is that, yes, it could sell a few books. For instance, blogger and about to be published author Jody Hedlund, writes inspirational/Christian fiction, which is far from my typical genre. I have no issue with the genre, it's just not something I gravitate toward. However, she's a great blogger and I have followed her journey over the last few months, so when her book comes out, I'll buy it. I want to support her. Same goes for all my bloggy friends out there, I can't wait to buy your books whenever they are out there.

And what about established author websites? Are you more likely to buy an author's book if they have an interactive website like a blog or tweet regularly or offer free writing workshops online? When authors do those blog tours, are you more likely to pick up their book?

I will say that when I ran across author Stacia Kane's website, which had loads of information on writing love scenes, I did go out an buy one of her novels. I liked her voice on the website along with the fact that she was offering helpful writing advice, so it sold me on picking up one of her books.

But if I just run across a standard author website with no updated information, it probably won't coax me into buying a book. Or if someone blogs solely to sell their books--i.e. every post is a promotional plug--I'm not that enticed either.

**Also, quick apology. I haven't been on your blogs in the last two days. That partial of Shadow Falls that I sent out like 3 months ago came back with a request for a full. Woo-hoo! So I've been buried in my manuscript the last two days--going through it to make sure that everything looked alright. I've learned a lot in three months so there were a few things that needed tinkering. I'll hopefully be finishing it up today and sending it off. I promise to catch up on your blogs over the weekend. :)**

So what about you? Do blogs sell books? What online can make you buy someone's book?

**Today's Theme Song**

"Popular"-- Nada Surf

(player in sidebar, take a listen)

How to Win Followers and Influence People

Photo via Ben Stanfield

I love blogging. I love my followers. And I'm a total comment whore. Therefore, I feel very fortunate that I have you guys as part of my day. I never expected when I started this that I would discover so many great people and have such a great experience. I honestly was surprised when I hit my first ten followers. Like, really? Ten people want to read what I have to say? I would have never guessed that a few months later I would have eclipsed the 150 mark. So thanks!

I used to look at people who had over a hundred followers with amazement--like wow, how'd they do that? Well, now I realize it's no big mystery. So today I figured I would list some of the things you can do if you want to gain readership and comments. Some of these are obvious, but I wanted to cover all the bases:

1. If you want to be followed, follow.

--If you're just starting blogging, this is the best way to gain followers. Go find blogs you like and follow them. Many will return the favor.

--Once you start gaining momentum and those follower numbers increase, then the scale starts to tip and people begin following you first. So don't be a diva, go check their blog out and if you like it, follow them back.

2. Comment!

--I ♥ comments. The fact that someone took those few seconds to tell me what they thought makes me happy. So I try to provide the same for others. If all you do is lurk on blogs, you probably won't get many comments of your own (unless you're famous, already published, have already developed a base, or have some established platform.)

3. When people comment on your blog, try to respond to the comments.

--I try to do this most days--sometimes I run out of time. But in the comments section, I try to respond to each comment. That way it feels more like a conversation. And many people subscribe to comments via email or check back on blogs later--make sure you let them know you heard them.

--Some people also respond to comments individually via email instead of in the comments section. That is also effective, especially if you start getting loads of comments.

--Of course, we wouldn't have to do it in these tedious ways if BLOGGER WOULD GET FREAKING THREADED COMMENTS! Okay, I feel better. Maybe I'll start a petition.

4. Make sure that when people click on your name from a comment you leave that it leads to either your blogger profile or directly to your blog.

--I try to comment on every blog that left me a comment each day, so if I don't have that link in the comment email, I'm probably not going to hunt it down.

5. Ensure your google friend/follower button also links to your profile or website.

--Lately, I have been getting new followers, who, when I click on their little picture it just shows me who they follow, but doesn't list their website. So for those of you out there, if I'm not following you back, that may be why--I don't know how to find your website.

--To check this, go click on your follower picture on someone else's site. If it's not showing, change your settings.

6. Having multiple blogs can make it confusing.

--When I click on someone's profile and they have four blogs, I'm not sure which one is most related to writing or whatever our common ground is. I'm probably not going to check each one. And this will divide up your followers.

--So, if you have multiple blogs, I would suggest making the title clear enough that people can figure out the subject of the blog.

--Also, you can hide certain blogs from your profile if you want to funnel people to one instead of the other. For instance, I have a blog for my son, but it's for my family, so I don't list it in my profile.

7. Keep a regular blogging schedule.

--If you only post once a month, people will probably not remember to come back.

--It's okay not to post every day, just make sure you follow some pattern that people can expect. For instance, I blog M-F, occasionally I'll throw something in on the weekends, but that's rare. So you guys know that every day of the workweek, I'll have something new on here. (If not, someone send out a search party, I've been kidnapped.)

8. Write blogs that people care about.

--Remember, this is only if you want to gain followers/comments/etc. If the blog is just your outlet and you don't care if people are reading or not, then it's fine to do whatever you want.

--However, if you do want people reading, don't just have nonsense posts all the time. Figure out what commodity you are offering the reader--why would they want to come back?

--I've chosen a teaching/information sharing model. So if you come here (most days) I hope you are able to take away a little nugget of helpful information. For other blogs the takeaway may be humor or shared experiences or an ongoing story or book recommendations or contests.

9. Beware big blocks of text and posting large writing samples.

--I have to watch for this because my posts are long. So I try to break things into bullet points or lists or isolate different sections in a different color.

--Also, this is just my opinion, but huge passages of your fiction writing can also scare people away. Not because of the writing, but when someone follows 100 blogs and they hit a big story excerpt that

a)they have to read without knowing context and

b) have to comment on--which is precarious because it's like critting someone's work, they may just click by.

(However, if this is the purpose of your blog and what people expect, like public query slushpile, than that's okay. Your followers have signed up for that.)

10. Ask a question at the end of each post.

Involve your readers, make it easy for them to comment. A question gives them something to ponder and share.

11. Practice good karma

Link to other bloggers when you find something helpful on their blog. Honor others with those pat on the back awards.

12. Be sincere.

If you're only mission is to get as many comments as you can, so you go and comment "great post" on everyone's blog without reading them, people will realize what you're doing.

13. Technical stuff

Get rid of that little word verification box that people have to fill out to make a comment.

--Man I hate those. I can't tell you how many times I type of my comment, hit publish, then close the window, only to realize that a verification box had popped up and I just lost my comment.

--This is the standard setting on blogger, so if you want to change it, you need to do it in your settings under "comments", choose no for word verification.

I changed mine ages ago and have had no problems with spam.

Remove the comment approval/moderation feature unless you have a specific issue with ugly commenters.

--This makes it confusing sometimes because it looks like your commetn didn't post. Plus it often prevents commenters from seeing the previous comments so they can't respond to those.

Embed your comment form instead of having it have a pop up window, this makes commenting quicker.

--Go to Settings-->comments-->select the embed comment form feature

Alright, those are my tips. What are yours? Or what are your pet peeves that turn you away from a blog or commenting? What makes you return to a blog time and time again?

 

 

**Today's Theme Song**

"I Will Follow Him"-- Sister Act Soundtrack

(player in sidebar, take a listen)

Committing Murder: One Verb At A Time

First I want to give a big thanks to those of you who volunteered last week to read my first fifty pages. The feedback I've gotten back so far has be uber helpful. Which means I haven't spent any time on my new WIP, I've thrown myself back into fine tuning Wanderlust.

In addition to tweaking those first fifty pages, I've been going line by line murdering weak verbs and practicing step 11 of the layering I talked about yesterday, trying to find the exact right way to say what I'm trying to say. It's a tedious process, but I've almost made it halfway through the manuscript and I am feeling good about the changes. It's amazing to me how one word change can make a sentence sound so much better. Examples from yesterday's revisions:

 

Before: Sweat, cold and clammy, covered her back.

After: Sweat, cold and clammy, glazed her back.

Before: He pinned her with his gaze.

After: He speared her with his gaze.

 

Simple changes to a simple sentences, but there is something about finding that exact word I was looking for that gives me a little thrill. I just have to be careful that I'm finding a better word, not just a different word. I don't want the thing to read like a thesaurus.

Also, instead of using a thesaurus all the time, btw, I've started writing down verbs or turns of phrase that strike me as I come across them in my pleasure reading. Then after I'm done with writing a rough draft, I can Find/Search words I know I overuse like looked and walked and go to my list I've created to stimulate some ideas.

How is it that we writers have this ginormous vocabulary, but when writing the rough draft, all the damn words disappear and we suddenly have the word bank of a second grader?

Progress this week: Even though I didn't add word count to the new WIP. I did add 500 to the old one and have gone through almost a hundred pages of editing.

Plan for the coming week: Get through the whole manuscript and possibly plump up my ending. I had a few betas tell me that the story wrapped up a little quickly and they wanted to see more (at least that means they weren't like--*groan* thank God this is over.) I have room in my word count to do that, so I'm going to play around with it a bit.

Okay, and finally, a few AWARDS...

Natalie over at The Sound of Rain gifted me with the Heartfelt Award. Thanks so much!

Julie Dao over at Silver Lining passed along the Lovely Blog Award, which was, well, lovely of her. :)

And Gavin over at Insanity's Musings, sent the From Me To You award over. Thanks, you're too kind!

If you're not following these three people, you are so not hanging with the cool kids--go follow!

I am not energetic enough today to come up with specific blogs I'd like to pass these along to. My son climbed/fell out of his crib last week, so we've moved him to a toddler bed, which he thinks gives him free reign to wake up every hour crying and running around his room like a headless chicken in footie pajamas. So I'm existing on fumes today. Here he is on Halloween (as a rockstar). This is the "who me?" look he gives me when I go in his room and fuss him for getting up yet again.

*Pic removed

 

So for these awards, my favorite bloggers are those of you who take the time to comment on my posts and brighten my day. Therefore, if you comment today, feel free to select one of these awards for your own blog. I ♥ you all!

So what do you find yourself slaughtering when revising? Am I the only one whose vocabulary regresses to kindergarten quality while writing a rough draft?

**Today's Theme Song**

"Getting Away With Murder"-- Papa Roach

(player in sidebar, take a listen)