How Do You Cook Your Stories?

I recently had a conversation on Twitter with another writer. NaNoWriMo prompted the conversation. We both had attempted NaNo in the past. (Mine was in May and not part of the official November NaNo.)

The conversation left me pondering the many ways writers prepare--or cook--their stories.

Every writer is different, just as every cook is different.  We each have our preferred methods, our secret ingredients, our own assessment of when it's cooked to perfection.

My stories must simmer, percolate and sit for a spell.  In other words, my stories are cooked in a crock pot, not a microwave.

Oh, how I'd love to crack open a couple characters, drop them into a bowl, scramble up some plot and setting and cook in less than a minute by pressing "1" on the Microwave oven's keypad. I could crank out books like McDonald's cranks out fries.

But no. I cook like Grandma.  Turn the heat on 4.  Let simmer.  Stir.  Add plot potatoes.  Stir again.  Simmer some more. Lift lid and take a whiff.  Needs pepper.  Maybe some oregano.  Back the heat down to low and turn in for the night. The next morning, stir again and serve slow-roasted-story for lunch.

Perhaps some stories need to be cooked differently? But where one measures every 1/8 teaspoon, another uses a pinch.  Where one sets the timer, another watches the oven.  Some folks disappear for hours in a steamy kitchen while others bask in nature's warmth.

Cover with frosting? Baste in a sugary glaze? Bathe it in butter? Oh my goodness, everything's better with butter!

We all want sizzling settings and satisfying stories.   Broil them, broil them, serve them in a stew!  Chill the plot like pudding until it thickens.  Dazzle your readers with distinctive description like seasoning.

But I can't serve them raw! Stories aren't fruit. They need to be prepared.

Regardless of how you cook your stories, cook them well.  Serve them hot and spicy.  Make us come back for seconds.  Fill the kitchen with the aromas only your masterpieces have.  Let us taste your mouthwatering brilliance.

You're the artist, the chef, the baker of the best books in town.


How do you cook your stories?

Come Visit Me at Adam's!

I'm really not a nomad. I promise. Nevertheless, I'm blogging away from home again. Today, I'm at Adam Gaylord's blog. You've visited there, I hope, because this guy is a great blogger and an excellent writer. His site is called:

He's hosting my post that I titled, "I've Never Had a Story Rejected!" The title is obviously meant to catch your attention, but there's a message buried within its paragraphs that I believe with all my heart. 

I featured Adam on my blog during my "August is Awesome" series.  He came through with a marvelous post.  If you haven't read it, it's right here.  Spend some time at Adam's blog and get to know him if you haven't already.  His prose packs a punch!

It's Available! And It's PROOF!

I posted about it on Facebook first, and then on Google+. Then I went and tweeted about it. I saved the blog post for last.  I didn't really know how to word my little announcement.

Proof that it's possible!

You see, it was a magical moment, seeing my name on Amazon for the very first time. But then, it should be magical, right? It's an anthology of magic stories. And mine followed Barnabas searching ever so desperately for his magic.

But there must have been real magic at play. Nothing else explains how my story found itself rubbing shoulders with those written by some highly skilled and talented authors.

I achieved something that not all writers achieve. I'm obviously thrilled. But I'm also humbled because there are so many worthy writers who haven't yet been published.

And to that crowd of deserving writers still reaching for the dream I say this:

Don't you dare stop reaching!

Some get lucky right out of the gate. Others struggle years before finding success. And for a few, the accomplishment comes posthumously.

And I can hear some asking, "So which is this? An announcement or a pep talk?" I honestly don't think the two can be separate. Yes, I'm announcing that the anthology containing my short story is available. And that is proof the goal is attainable. So Do Not Give Up!

My story is called "Barnabas" and appears in Spells: Ten Tales of Magic. It's currently available on:
Amazon
Amazon UK
Smashwords

Muse For Hire

Seventy-four.  That's how many ceiling tiles hang above the sofa in my muse's office--excluding the partials.  I know because I counted them.  Repeatedly.  Perhaps my time would have been better spent giving this creative spirit a name.

"And how does that make you feel?" she asked.

"Maybe you should ask Jake that question."

My muse thinks she's a psychiatrist!

"Why?"

"Because he's the one you killed."  I found her wry grin more than a little disconcerting.  "You're all heart, aren't you?"

"Jake wasn't real, Jeff.  You really need to get a better handle on differentiating these things."

"I'm getting better."  Of course.  She always answers my claims of progress with silence.  The woman really does think she's part psychiatrist.  "I didn't resurrect Brian, did I?"

"Brian never even spoke a line of dialog, Jeff."

"Your point?"

"The point, Jeff, is it wasn't much of a sacrifice to keep him dead."

I kept my eyes level and focused on hers.  "You know, I do have a real psychiatrist."

"And what did she say about Brian?"

"He," I corrected.  "Less than he had to say about you."

"I can imagine.  Did you tell him I'm attractive?"

"I'm married!"

"Doesn't mean I'm not attractive."

"It means I know better than notice."  That impish smile of hers always beckons trouble.

Can you trust a muse for hire?

"Well, I still say your story was better off with Jake dead."  The timer dinged.  "Already?  My, where does the time go?  You're always so much fun to work with, Jeff.  Same time next week?"

I rose from the couch and loosed a resigned sigh as I grabbed the door knob.  "Of course."

"Oh, tell your friends I'm running a special.  You get a free consultation for each new client you bring me."

My breath caught the moment I realized I'd called her a sadist aloud.  What on Earth did I just do?

"Maybe you are making progress," she said with her widest grin yet today.  Leaning forward, she dropped a few business cards into my hand.  "Here, make sure you give them these."

Sunday Surfing

Should You Eliminate "Was" From Your Writing? Why Sometimes "the Rules" are Wrong.

Nags Head, North Carolina at dusk 2012

5 Must Read Blogs for Indie Authors

Rejection pt1: Unpacking Criticism

How to End a Chapter

When to Add a Scene Break 

AuthorsDen.com

PubMatch  (I haven't joined this site.  Anyone have experience here?)

The Quest for Story #3 (I'll probably link to this entire series once it's complete. #3 is on voice.)

4 Soul-Crushing Realities Indie Writers Must Learn to Face

It’s a Trap! Admiral Ackbar’s 6 Indie Author Traps to Avoid  (yeah, that makes two links to Sean.)

Five more awesome days of August remain!  Be sure you stop by and visit these awesome people!  All guests this month are linked under the Inteviews / Guests tab near the top of the page.

August is Awesome Because of Ken Rahmoeller

People are awesome for more reasons than I dare try to name here, but you can always count on awesome people to be awesome in their own unique way.  Ken Rahmoeller is no exception.

Ken is writing his first book with what I believe to be the healthiest approach I've seen.  He doesn't intend to rake in millions from it.  He intends to rake in something far more valuable: knowledge and wisdom.  

Ken goes into detail about what he's doing, how and why on his blog's About Ken and His Book page.  I believe that if he's not careful, he just might discover the formula for success!

Ken's a chemist and can do more than stupify you with his awesome wand!  Give Ken a big, awesome welcome!

Peanut butter or chocolate?
Chocolate, of course.

Paper or plastic?
Plastic. It works better when I’m emptying the litter box.

Plot or character?
Hmmmm...

Which is more important to the success of a story? Opinions vary, but many experts will tell you the character is more important. I tend to disagree. I understand their point, especially in certain genres such as romance, but for me personally, it’s always been about the plot. If I have a choice between a story with a great plot and average characters or a story with an okay plot but really great characters, I’ll pick the one with the great plot every time.

Now I’m not denying the benefits of creating good, interesting characters. The reader is going to spend a lot of time with these people (or aliens, or animals, or whatever) and it can be a boring ride if you don’t care what happens to them. I’m just of the opinion that a great plot can help you fall in love with otherwise boring characters as you watch them struggle their way through the story.

But even if you’re one of those writers who think plot is more important, you still want to create great characters to go along with that fantastic plot you spent all that time creating. So what’s the trick to creating great characters? There’s no one perfect answer. Some writers fill out questionnaires describing their MC’s likes and dislikes. Others interview their MC. Still others work out huge backstories for each and every person in the story.

None of these methods work for me. They all require an intimate knowledge of my characters at the beginning of the story and I simply don’t have that knowledge until I’ve finished writing the story. I let my characters start out as blank slates and their traits evolve over the course of the book. Perhaps this is a consequence of being a first time writer, but I’ve found this technique works well for me and I’ll continue to use it until something better comes along.

When I began writing my story, my characters were startlingly bland. I knew one of them was going to be the bad guy and one was going to be a jerk and another was going to be supportive of the main character, but that was about it. But as the story progressed, I would often realize a particular subplot could be strengthened by having one of the characters behave in a certain way, so I simply gave that character the necessary trait(s) and ran with it. Not only did my subplot become stronger, but I’d also learn something new about one of my characters. Cool.

After repeating this process ad infinitum, I soon found my story populated with characters who were far more interesting than any I could have created on my own. Best of all, I was giving them the best kind of quirks – ones which have an effect on the plot. After all, if the quirks and traits you give your characters can be removed without affecting the story, you need better quirks and traits.

Of course, this method is not without its drawbacks. Creating characters in this manner often necessitated that I go back and revise earlier chapters. And I'm not sure how I would go about writing a sequel using this technique, since the characters will have already had their traits locked in beforehand, but that's the chance I'll take for now.

So what method do you use to create your characters?

I'd like to thank Jeff for allowing me to participate in his August is Awesome series.

About Ken Rahmoeller

Ken Rahmoeller is awesome!

I'm a chemist living in Detroit, Michigan who accidentally discovered he loved to write stories while fooling around with Harry Potter fan fiction. I enjoy castles, alchemy, and making stuff blow up for the amusement of my children (and myself).

Connect with Ken at:

His Blog: A Hogwarts Sabbatical

On Twitter: @ChemistKen

August is Awesome Because of Cristina dos Santos

Today's awesome guest is one I've actually had the pleasure of meeting in person.  She and I attended Orson Scott Card's writing workshop a couple months back.  While I attended the first two days, Uncle Orson chose her to be among the select few to attend the following four-day workshop. (Yes, a congrats to Cristina is in order for that!)

Cristina's family is blessed to have a wife and mother awesome enough to prioritize her life.  Yes, we love writing and most of us have big dreams and ambitions, but those who are wise prioritize.

Please welcome the awesome Cristina dos Santos!

 

Carving Out Writing Time

by Cristina dos Santos

Two years ago when I decided that I was going to be serious about my writing, I never imagined how difficult it'd be to actually find the time to write. I thought that with being a stay at home mom--between naptime and late night hours and plenty of random quiet minutes throughout the day--I'd be a writing machine.

But somehow, with all that "free time"(ha!) I was still struggling to get enough words down to move my story along--managing only about a couple hundred words a day. And then, there there were days when I couldn't get any words down, because you know, life happens, and two little people can keep you super busy. And apparently, I'm a super slow writer though I blame that on my inner editor.

Cristina's Inner Editor

At one point, I started to feel discouraged. On the days I wasn't getting any writing done, I was feeling like maybe I wasn't cut out for this; and on the days when I was getting it done, I was feeling guilty because it was at the cost of time with my children. And as serious as I am about my writing, I don't want to ever look back at my life and feel like I missed out on time with my babies (they are only this little for such a short amount of time, you know?)

But I wasn't going to give up either. So I tried all kinds of schedules and in the process I learned a whole lot about myself as a writer: I learned that I can't write in short spurts because my brain needs time to ease into the zone. I'm useless late in the day and at night. I need sleep or I can't function. I'm never ever going to write a book in two weeks ;) Writing first thing in the morning gets my brain in the zone--and this has changed everything for me.

When I start my days with writing, I'm able to write more (I'm averaging between 1000 and 1500 a day, huge improvement) and the actual writing is better because my brain is rested. I now get up at 5 am, before my family, so that I have uninterrupted writing time. I find that if my brain goes into that place as soon as it wakes up, it stays there all day. So even though I have to stop after an hour or two to tend to the rest of my life, I can ease right into it throughout the day.

Who doesn't love sleep?

It also means that I need to get to bed at a reasonable time, so my brain is rested and alert in the morning. Sleep is so important for our general health. You can't write books if you're sick, right? And, I need days off or I burn out. So I write for 4-5 days straight, and then take a day off and sleep in.

And, besides getting those words on paper at a pace that feels good and keeps me excited about my story, I'm not shushing my kids, telling them to go find something to do, or that I'll play with them later because I'm busy. And that is worth getting up every day before the sun and the birds!

I'd love to hear from all of you. How do you find the time to write?

About Cristina dos Santos:

Cristina dos Santos is awesome!

Cristina dos Santos, when not being a wife or mother, is writing YA fantasy/paranormal stories and reading as many books as she can get her hands on. And that's about all she does with her time and is not complaining. Not one bit.

Visit her Once Upon a Time blog.

To Blazes With the Formula

So far this year I've critiqued four complete novels, dozens of chapters and a boatload of short stories.  I've also had my own novel critiqued by others in addition to it receiving a thorough inspection by a professional developmental (content) editor.  I think I've learned something through all this.

Forget the formula!  At least during the first draft.

(Yeah, that advice is worth exactly what you paid for it, but I'm almost sold on it.  Besides, that advice isn't aimed at seasoned, professional authors steadily pumping out a book or three a year.)

Is a formula needed to tell a good story?  I don't think so.  But a formula is needed to tell a story well.

So why forget it?  Because the purpose of the first draft is not to write a best seller.  The purpose of the first draft (for me at least) is to tell the story that I might one day be able to sell.

I wrote The Bonding with little thought to a three act structure beyond knowing I needed a beginning, a middle, and an ending.  But face it, little thought was required.  All stories have a beginning, middle and end.  My first draft would have suffered immensely had I focused on formula over story.  My first draft was never destined for Amazon's KDP, nor were its first three chapters queued up in my email's outbox.  

Once you've got your multiple book contract or you're writing to meet deadlines imposed upon you by your publisher, you've probably got the knack of storytelling down fairly well.  That means you probably already write to formula without the formula sitting in the forefront of your mind--where your muse should be sitting.

If, while penning or typing that initial draft, you're concentrating on the three steps of this or the seven points of that, you're not concentrating on what matters.  You can't just stop the creative juices and yell, "Oh crap! I forgot my faux resolution!"  Most of us who entertain a muse know a muse doesn't like to be stopped on a technicality.  Technicalities are for later, for rewrites and revisions--not first drafts.

I'm not advocating that you banish the time-honored building blocks of crafting a story, I'm saying craft the story.  I've never met an author who writes a perfect first draft.  Get the story out.  Let it flow.  Let it grow.  Let it be all it can be.  Once done, then examine its structure.  Mold it.  Massage it.  Perform surgery on it, whether it be a nip and tuck or an amputation or a transplant.

Give some thought to structure and formula while you plot and outline.  Weigh the draft once it's finished and see if it balances the equation.  Measure it against the markers of accepted storytelling practices once the muse has quieted and smiles in satisfaction.  Only then can it be fully and properly evaluated.

There is wisdom in choosing the right tool for the right job, but there is also wisdom in choosing the right time to do the job.

How a Geek Writes an Epic Fantasy part 2

In my previous post (How a Geek Writes an Epic Fantasy part 1) I introduced you to Magic Muse, my writing workbench.  But that's only a portion of my Epic Fantasy Writing tool set.  I also wrote an additional program that I call Visual Story.  (One day I'll merge the two into a single application.)  It has a number of uses, but I use it (loosely) as a storyboard or outline interface.

Essentially, the application consists of textboxes that can be sized and arranged on a large backdrop.  Each box contains one section for a title or heading and a second section for content.  Colors can be applied to each box's borders, titles and content.  I prefer setting the border colors according to plots.

I tend to wrap a complete chapter into a single box.  I list a description of the chapter's scene(s) and indicate which character's viewpoint is being used for each scene.  This works well for documenting chapters already written.  For planning, well, let's just say that this is about as close to true outlining as I get.

I've written a number of other applications over the years.  One served as virtual index cards that I intended to use for character bios, description of places and things, etc., but I've found that my scribblet in Magic Muse serves that purpose well enough for me.

But as much as I love my electronic tools, I don't rely exclusively on them.

Whiteboard
I have a whiteboard beside my desk at all times.  I've been known to draw on the whiteboard.  I sketched out the Hosiyin Citadel from my first book on it.  There were characteristics I knew I wanted, but I needed my eyes to see it so I could see it through a character's eyes.

I use the fine-tipped dry-erase markers so I can scribble loads of legible text.  I'll occasionally jot down the names of characters that need addressing in the story and how soon.  I'll work out plot mechanics for finding logical reasons for Character A to be in Location B so that Event C transpires according to plan.  I may write about dragons and magic, but even they must adhere to some form of logic.

Journal
When it comes down to fleshing out my world's settings, background, history and other such trivia that makes it into the manuscript only by--at best--a passing reference. Journals and diaries are great places for me to discover my world's history, back story.

I used this method for working out details of the last major war in my book, exploring treaty details, discovering the origins of races, even for writing short stories that serve no purpose other than enabling me to flesh out characters before they make it into the book.

The actual manuscript
I sometimes type quick notes, reminders, potential dialog or possible narrative snippets right inside the manuscript itself, usually at the end of the scene or chapter.  I do this when the snippet must be addressed or incorporated before moving too far into the next scene or chapter.

I've tinkered with index cards, college or narrow ruled spiral-bound notebooks, even loose leaf paper, but I really prefer a searchable, organized electronic means to store notes. And of course, I now have my Android tablet.  It's great for proofing what I've written.  The format and display is just different enough that I'll spot mistakes that I've overlooked a hundred times on the computer monitor.

What tools do you use?

How a Geek Writes an Epic Fantasy part 1

It's tough not to be a geek when you're male, a computer programmer and a lover of fantasy.  In fact, I'm so geeky that I wrote my own computer program to help me write my epic fantasy.  (That should rank me fairly high on the geek-o-meter, yes?)

My biggest challenge in writing epic fantasy is consistency.  Spend too many months "discovery writing" anything of that scope and errors are bound to creep into the manuscript.  Red hair becomes blonde.  A character is from Osek-Dahm in one chapter and suddenly from Jerok Thel in a subsequent one.  If you're not careful you may even forget which distant countries are at war with each other.

So I needed to find a quick and easy way to record these details and have them readily available when needed.  I searched the net.  I found some that had good features.  I found some that had marvelous interfaces.  But I didn't find one that tripped my trigger.  But hey, not a problem, I'm a software developer so there was really only one choice I could make.

Write my own!

And so I did.  I created Magic Muse, my very own, tailor-made, writing workbench.

This is a Visual Basic application I wrote many years ago to handle all the things that I felt I needed in a writing application.  I still use it for drafts.  It interfaces with MS Word for word counts, thesaurus, spell and grammar checking.  It even allows me to paste in maps and other diagrams.

All projects can be selected via a dropdown and each project can contain any number of cabinets, folders and documents displayed in the treeview on the left.  

I use the treeview to add, delete and reorder chapters and scenes.  Clicking a scene within the treeview opens it in the RTF (Rich Text Format) editor on the right.  Each scene is saved as an RTF document that I can load into MS Word, Open Office, MS Wordpad, etc.  When the book is finished, I can package its contents into a single RTF usable by those same word processors.  (Handy when you want to pump out a quick eBook using Word and Calibre for proofing on the Android tablet.)

Notes can be handled in one of two ways.  A cabinet can be created to hold all notes, which can also be broken down into multiple folders and documents.  My preference for most notes, however, is the scribblet.  That's the window attached to the bottom of the treeview and editor.  There are dedicated sections for things like characters, places, glossary of terms, etc.

The scribblet is collapsible.  To get items into the scribblet, I highlight the word I want to add, right-click it, and indicate which scribblet list should hold it.  I can then add all the generic information about the term and save it.  I can even "index" the term and Magic Muse will scan every scene and provide me with a complete list of where it was used.  (This is handy if I know I referenced the minor character Terrin, but don't recall which chapters featured him.)

I can do all the basic word processing tasks in Magic Muse.  And being able to quickly toggle between scenes instead of scrolling through a huge document is a massive plus for me.

In part two of this post I'll discuss additional ways I handle notes and plot lines, including my storyboard application that I, of course, wrote for myself.  I call it Visual Story and will leave you with a sneak peek at it.

New Ground

I broke a lot of new ground in April.  I came out of the closet and called myself a writer!  Of course, I qualified it with amateur, but I publicly declared that I write and intend to do something with it.  It's a profession of faith, a commitment, new ground.

No longer shall I write in the closet.  I'll write out in the open and not be ashamed.  No longer will I be Jeff, the guy who writes.  From this moment forward, I shall stand with my back straight, look people in the eye and say, "Hello, my name is Jeff, and I'm a writer."

And I've taken the first step by submitting my "Cathryn's Bay" short story to the L. Ron Hubbard Writers of the Future competition.  Big step for me.  Definitely new ground.  But I figured, hey, why not?  It's just sitting around gathering pixel dust.  And that's what writers do.  They submit their writing.  To competitions, magazines, agents, editors.  They write.  And writers write to be read.

I'm also working on a short story called "Barnabas" that I plan to submit for a magic stories anthology.  I've been working on it for the past couple weeks.  I've never submitted anything for publication before.  So this too is new ground. 

And I'm even considering writing another short story to submit to John Hartness' Big Bad Anthology.  I have a few ideas, but haven't fleshed out the plot for that one yet.  It's worth a look if you're interested.

Of course, I also broke new ground in April by completing my very first book, The Bonding.  A few fine folks have offered to alpha read it for me.  I'm giddy with anticipation.  It's kind of like sending your newborn off to see a pediatrician and waiting for the prognosis.

I completed my first full-novel critique for another writer this month and am in the midst of a second one.  I work hard at giving critiques and feedback.  I take it seriously because the people who wrote the books take it seriously.  Fair is fair.

And I made a commitment.  A scary commitment.  Don't ask me why.  I'm a guy.  I'm supposed to be afraid of commitment.  Several members of the Yahoo Fantasy Writing Group are doing their own little private May NaNoWriMo challenge.  You know the deal, right?  50,000 (new and original) words written toward a novel within a month.  I agreed to participate.  My internal editor works overtime.  I want to learn how to send him on vacation while I draft.  This should help.  Again, new ground.

Wish me luck.  New ground is often soft.  I don't want to get stuck or sink or become mired in this new ground.  I want to cultivate it, fertilize it, and watch things grow from it.

So, are you that person who writes?  Or are you a writer?