Crafting Corner—Hardcore

A few months ago author Shannon Hale wrote a post on being a hard core writer (you really should read it). She said the following…

“I've discovered that I can be hardcore as a writer. I write when the words are flowing. I write when they're not. I write when the story delights me and I can't wait to see what happens next. I write when the story is murky and sticky and complicated. I write when I'm energized and feeling great. I write when I'm sick, pregnant, have newborns, am grumpy, sad, confused, angry, and so tired I can barely keep my eyes open. I'm hardcore, baby.”

I on the other hand am NOT hardcore :) I’m kind of a wimp. I need quiet and peace to write. I need no distractions and no stress. You can guess how much writing I’ve gotten done in the last few months. NONE.

But I’m jumping back in and trying to finish my second book (Sorry Emily for all the whiny emails). While going through chapters I’ve already written to see what I can use and what needs cut, I found this gem of a paragraph smack in the middle of a chapter.

Oh my gosh I need some words, but my brain is mush and I want to scream. So I’m going to push out some crap so I can make my goal even though it will be completely unusable. So should it even count? I don’t know. I don’t care. I just want to be done writing for the night!

Hardcore? Nope. But it sure made me laugh :) It took me a minute to realize I was saying it and not my characters.

So I need your help. What do you do to push through the times you don’t want to write?

-Angie

Crafting Corner—POV

Do you have a favorite Point of View? Do you find yourself writing better in one or another? Or are you like lots of writers and you aren’t sure which one to pick. Here are a few thoughts.

Third Person Omniscient: The narrator knows the thoughts and feelings of all the characters, and usually jumps from character to character to tell the story. I like to think of this kind of like God’s POV—I hope that didn’t sound blasphemous.

Pro: Because you are not limited to one character this POV works well for epic stories or stories that need to be told from multiple POV’s. It is also the only POV where you can foreshadow with phrases like, “Little did they know what grave events were about to transpire.”

Cons: With so many characters in the mix sometimes it is hard to pin point the Protagonist, and your story can feel unfocused. Because you aren’t tightly into one characters head this POV will often feel more “told” than the others. And if the narrative is too distant it can make readers feel disconnected—telling of feelings instead to making readers live them.

Something to think about:  Remember that every character you use to tell the POV needs to have a character arch. That gets tricky. I’ve heard NEVER to use more than four.

Examples: Lord of the Rings, Anna Karenina, The Westing Game

Third Person Limited: The story is told from one—maybe two—characters POV. Usually you are in one character’s head and only see the other characters externally.

Pros: With third person limited you have more freedom that first person. You can write scenes that the protagonist isn’t in. It can give you a more complete story view.

Cons: It is easy to POV shift in this POV. You have to remember that you can’t know any feelings or information that the current POV doesn’t know.

Something to think about: You CANNOT head jump in this POV. You can only switch POV at a scene break or chapter break.

Examples: Harry Potter, Chronicles of Narnia, For Whom the Bell Tolls

First Person: The protagonist is the narrator. The story is told as “I”.

Pros: This POV has a very immediate feel. The reader is right in the action, and. you actually “live” the story.

Cons: Sometimes it can be hard to remember that you can’t “tell” how a character feels in this POV. For example a character would never think, “I feel sad” they would just cry. You MUST show thoughts through actions.

Something to think about: Your story is limited you what the main character knows and that is all! You can’t let them have more knowledge than they would naturally have.

Examples: Twilight, The Hunger Games, Matched

What is your WIP and why did you choose it?

-Angie 

Crafting Corner—Meanings

Who doesn’t love Princess Bride? The Romance. The Action. The Humor.

Here’s a gem:

Vizzini: He didn’t fall? INCONCIEVABLE!

Inigo Montoya: You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.

Here is another gem I learned from my writing conference:

When choosing your words be aware of their connotation and denotation.

Denotation: Dictionary definition of a word.

Connotation: Emotional associations of a word.

In an editing class I took we talked about this, and how important it is to choose words that truly say what they want them to say.

I’ll give you an example from my own MS:

“Zven is a hard man, I want to know how hard.”

I big thanks to Cassie and her dirty mind for convincing me to change hard to cruel :) LOL!

This is something I’d never thought to look for, but it is so true. You can’t just hit the thesaurus when you need a new word for walked, because march means something different than stroll, and stride and roam are actually opposites.

What about you? Are you aware of the secondary meanings of words? What was your worst blunder?

-Angie

Crafting Corner—Miracle

This isn’t so much of a crafting tip as it is a break through! Now if you all already know this humor me :)

Do you ever feel like your head is so full of words you just want to empty it? And wouldn’t it be nice to do it as fast as you could talk?

 

Who has used the app—Dragon Dictation? I’ve just discovered it. And it is a MIRACLE!

All you do is speak CLEARLY into your phone or computer and it types your words out and you can e-mail it to yourself. The first time I tried it I thought the app was broken, but it is important to talk SLOW and ENUNCIATE.

I will admit I felt like a fool sitting in the parking lot next to Starbucks (you do need an internet connection for it to work), but I “wrote” 800 words in 30 minutes last night. AMAZING (at least for a slow writer like me). I have to do a little tweaking, like adding punctuation, but it is still a break through.

So I want to know who else has tried it? Do you love it? Any other writing break throughs you want to tell me about?

-Angie

Crafting Corner—What is my type? Part 2

I wasn’t going to post this until next Wednesday, but then I realized I will be gone all next week. My kids have spring break and we are headed to Grandma’s house :) So you get two days of crafting advice.

Like I said yesterday, Blake Snyder’s book Save the Cat is awesome. He talks about the 10 different story types. Every type has rules that if you follow them will make your story stronger.

If you missed yesterday here’s the link to the first 5 story types: What is mytype—Part 1.

1. Wish Fulfillment Story: Somehow the MC makes a wish that changes everything. It doesn’t matter if the wish comes from a genie, wishing well, love potion, or magic beans. The wish must somehow change the wisher.

The Purpose: This is so simple—your MC must be someone we want to root for. Who wants to see a billionaire get another million dollars? But human nature being what it is, we don’t want to see someone have it too easy :) Ultimately the MC must learn that magic isn’t everything. It is better to be normal—like the reader—and grateful for what you have.

Examples: Freaky Friday, My Unfair Godmother (side note—I had a hard time finding good examples of this story type, so if you have a great wish fulfillment story—the field is wide open)

2. Coming of Age Story: This type of story is as old as time. We love it because every one of us has gone through it and can relate.

The Purpose: To say these stories are about change is terribly obvious. They are about the pain, growth, and torment of LIFE. But usually the catalyst of the story is an outside source. Only going through the experience can offer the solution.

Examples: Catcher in the Rye, Paper Towns, Are You There God? It’s Me Margret

3. The Love Story: This is of course the obvious romantic “love story” but stories about two friends also fall into this category. Ultimately this story type is about relationships.

The Purpose: At first the two MC’s hate each other (or have some other kind of conflict), but as they go along they realize how much they need each other, but that just leads to more conflict. Then we have the inevitable “all is lost” moment (a personal favorite). But the final resolution comes in the moment when both characters surrender a little of themselves for the other. In my opinion sacrifice is true love!

Examples: The Kite Runner, Pride and Prejudice, Charlotte’s Web

4. Regular Guy Huge Problem: I love this kind of story because it is so relatable. Who doesn’t feel like their life is one ongoing huge problem?

The Purpose: Take one regular guy (or gal) give them a GIGANTIC problem and shake HARD! The worse the problem is the more potential for heroics.  The real key to this story is that your MC must overcome his/her problem because of a talent or ingenuity that ONLY they have! Why is your MC uniquely perfect to solve this problem?

Examples: The Maze Runner, Night, Harry Potter (we can debate my choice to classify Harry here, but I think of all the story types this one fits the best. I know Harry is not a regular guy, but he thinks of himself as average. And we all have to admit that Voldemort is a HUGE problem!)

5. Monster in the House:  I borrowed Snyder’s title (I couldn’t think of a better one :) This is also a very primal story type, “Something is trying to kill me, and I must get away!” The monster can be lots of things: zombies, monsters, animals, crazed killers, toxic viruses.

The Purpose: According to Snyder the rules of this story type are VERY strict. You break the rules the story will fail. Rule 1) The must be some kind of “house” or contained place: an island, a house, a spaceship—a place characters cannot easily escape. If you break this rule it will undermine your tension. Rule 2) A sin is committed (usually some form of greed) that creates this monster bent on punishing its creators and sparing those who recognize the sin. Rule 3) The rest is run for your life!  

Examples: Jurassic Park, I’m Not a Serial Killer, Cujo

Here are all 10: Monster in the House, Regular Guy Huge Problem, The Love Story, Coming of Age, Wish Fulfillment, Superhero, Underdog, Mystery, Family Saga, and the Quest.

I had tons of people say that their stories are multiple story types. I just wanted to say—Your main plot is really only one type, but then you can have subplots that use the other types.

One reason you need to focus on one type is that different stories have different motivations. A quest story is about learning something about yourself through a journey. A love story is about sacrificing a little of your ego for love. Wish fulfillment is about learning to be grateful for what you have. If you try and mix too much you get split motivations.

I hope this was helpful :) I love this kind of stuff. Story structure fascinates me. So now that you have all ten—what type of story are you writing? Remember only pick one!

-Angie

Crafting Corner—What is my type? Part 1

We’ve all heard it…There are no new stories. I guess that is only partially true. There are basic story structures that have stood the test of time. But what we do with these structures is our own.

Like I said on Monday, I just finished reading Save the Cat by Blake Snyder. Amazing book! Purchase worthy. He wrote about 10 story types, and knowing what is expected in these types can improve your story.

I wanted to blog about this, but I don’t want to plagiarize Mr. Snyder. So I’m going to give you the story types, but give it my own Angie spin :)

After I started writing this post I realized it would be super long, so I’m going to break it in two and post the second half next Wednesday.

1. The Quest Story: This story type is as old as Greek mythology. Have you read Odysseus? The quest story follows a hero (sometimes with a group of friends or sidekicks). The hero needs something and must go out on a quest to find it.

The Purpose: What you need to remember about a quest story is that the real story is not about what the hero is searching for, but about how the journey changes him and what he learns. If all you focus on is the end result you miss the point.

Examples: Lord of the Rings, Fablehaven, Wizard of Oz

2. The Family Saga: This story type is about groups of people and how they interact with each other. Family can be a bit misleading it can mean: traditional families, military, offices, political groups, religious groups, girlfriends, etc.

The Purpose: Stories of this type tend to explore what is good about “families” and what is dysfunctional. When is it honorable to sacrifice for the group and when is it foolish? Often told from the POV of the new comer, the question is usually, “Who is crazier? Them or me?”

Examples: Little Women, Animal Farm, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn

3. The Mystery: Yep, this is pretty self explanatory :) Readers are the detectives. If you are writing a mystery making your MC relatable is important, because the reader mush be able to see themselves in the character.

The Purpose: The mystery is less about “who” did it, but “why?”  It is about readers discovering something about human nature that they didn’t know before.

Examples: Agatha Christy, Dan Brown, Mary Higgins Clark

4. The Underdog: Don’t we all love an underdog? We do! We can see ourselves in them, because haven’t we all felt like we can’t win against the big bad world?

The Purpose: You need a MC to fight against the institution, but you also need some kind of insider to help your MC navigate this uncomfortable world. You don’t need to make things impossible for your MC, but in the end David must beat Goliath.

Examples: The Hunger Games, Flowers of Algernon, Diary of a Wimpy Kid

5. The Superhero: Extraordinary guy thrown into an ordinary world. There is a little special in all of us, which is why we love these stories so much.

The Purpose: This story explores the idea that even being special is hard. The hero must deal with the small minds around him that just don’t get it.

Examples: Artemis Fowl, Frankenstein, all Comic Books J

Here is a quick peek at the next five: Monster in the House, Regular Guy Huge Problem, The Love Story, Coming of Age, and Wish Fulfillment. Want to read the post? Click here!

So what type of story have you written? Does your story fall into one of these categories?

-Angie

Crafting Corner—Tension. Don’t leave home without it!

I try and learn as much as I can from the books I read—even the terrible ones. One thing I’ve noticed about the bad published books I’ve read lately is there is a lack of tension.

Tension is an ABSOLUTE must!!! I think the more the better. So what can you do to add more or fix the tension you have?

What to do:

• Big tension. Have overarching tension, a problem that starts at the beginning of the books and follows the characters around like a black cloud. This tension will only be resolved at the end of the book. 

• Small tension. Tension should peak and resolve over and over. Small bits of changing tension will push people to read your story. 

• Use setting. The emotion of a place can really increase the emotion in your character. Cut off escape routes and narrow options. 

• Add potential threats. Potential sometimes has more power than actuality. What could go wrong? Play that up! 

• Put your characters in danger. Physical danger. Emotional danger. Psychological danger. But don’t forget to have them react! 

• Choices. Force your characters to make impossible choices. Choices between people. Choices that are all terrible. 

What NOT to do: 

• Don’t rely on the overarching tension to carry the story. It will always be there, but it is usually not enough. 

• Don’t undermine your tension. If the situation is scary don’t have your characters making out :) Character reactions add to the tension. Use them. 

• Long lyrical sentences and paragraphs don’t really add tension. They take time to read and understand. Keep it short and simple. Faster reads speed up tension. 

I hope that helps a little. Tell me what has helped you to add more tension to your stories.

-Angie 

Crafting Corner— “MICE”

I’m currently reading Life of Pi. Everyone raves about this book—but I’m struggling. I keep looking for the PLOT, but it refuses to be found. Maybe it is still floating on the ocean :)

When I read books that I find boring or slow it really helps me to remember—all books are not constructed with the same emphasis on plot. I came across this idea while reading Characters and Viewpoints by Orson Scott Card.

There are 4 types of story factors. Each of these factors are present in every story, but one will usually take prominence. Card has an acronym to help us remember these factors: MICE.

M—Milieu

I—Idea

C—Character

E—Event

Milieu—In a Milieu story the setting or world takes prominence. The world becomes another character. The way the characters interact with the setting dramatically affects the story. If you take the characters away from the world the story falls apart.

Example: Lord of the Rings and Gullivers Travels.

Idea—A question is always posed at the beginning of an Idea story.  The entire point of the story is to answer this question. Mysteries and thrillers are Idea stories. These stories generally get a reputation having weak characterization, but the point of this kind of story is not the characters, it’s the idea.

Example: Agatha Christie and Dan Brown

Character—Literary fiction almost always falls into the category of a Character story. In this story character is KING! Character arch can replace the plot. The point of the story is the characters journey.

Example: To Kill a Mocking Bird and The Road

Event—In this type of story one event is usually the catalyst for the entire story. The world is out of balance somehow and the point of the story is to right this wrong. The Event stories drips with plot.

Example: Hunger Games and Harry Potter

Great stories will have a little of all these factors, but one is usually more prominent than the others. If you are struggling with a story maybe it is because you aren’t crazy about its main factor. I know I’m more drawn to event stories than any other kind.

What about you? Do you write: milieu, idea, character, or event stories? Which is your favorite to read?

-Angie

Crafting Corner—I’m seeing RED

I’m an over-writer (is that a term? It is now). My MS is too long (91K) and on this editing pass I’m cutting words—a lot of words. My goal is to cut 10K from my story. So out comes the red pen and a plan.

If I cut 25 words per page, by the time I get to the end it will have cut 10K. Now 25 words per page seems easy to me and it won’t really change my story. It will just make it tighter.

Let me give you a real life example. I edited this just last night. So straight from my MS, this is section is 80 words…

Once inside, Breck slumped into one of the kitchen chairs. He started to bring his half empty bottle to his lips and Taggert snatched it away. Breck didn’t notice until his hand met his face.

“I think you’ve drunk enough,” Taggert said. “We’ll put this over here, for later.”

“You take such good care of me,” Breck said, smiling. “He…he…saved my life you know,” he said slurring toward Jocelyn. His head hit the table top and he was out—asleep.

Now the edit :)

            Once inside, Breck slumped into one of  the kitchen chairs. He started to bring  brought thehis half empty bottle to his lips and Taggert snatched it away. Breck didn’t notice until his hand met his face.

“I think you’ve drunk enough,” Taggert said. “We’ll save put this over here, for later.”

“You take such good care of me,” Breck slurredsaid, smiling. “Tag…Tag…saved my life you know.,” he said slurring toward Jocelyn. His head hit the table top and he was out—asleep.

Right there I just cut 13 words and didn’t really change the intent of my paragraph, 12 more and I’ve hit my goal. I think it makes everything a little tighter.

I guess my advice for today is—If you need to cut a large amount of words take it slow and take it page by page.

Do you have any tips for cutting words?

-Angie

Crafting Corner: Do you want that Steak…Medium or Rare?

I’m kind of on a beef kick this week, but I’m not going to talk about “pink slime” again. In fact I’m not even going to talk about steaks—at least not the beef kind :)

Do you ever worry about the stakes in your story? I do. All. The. Time. I want to pass on something that has changed how I write.

It’s great to have a big over arching stake that runs the duration of your story, but it will not carry your story. It isn’t good enough.

You MUST have some kind of stake in EVERY scene. Let me put it even simpler. There must be something to lose in every scene! EVERY SCENE.

Just think about it for a moment. If there is always something to lose, people will read on to see what happens.

Need a few ideas of what your characters can lose?

• Friendship
• Freedom
• Love
• Secrets
• Face
• Protection
• Help
• People
• Dreams
• Security
• Family
• I could go on and on. 

I learned this principle from that “Filler” book I’ve been reading. The characters are never in danger of losing anything—but their life. Now, don’t fall in to this trap.

Threatening to kill off your main characters doesn’t really work (unless you are J.K.), because if you kill of your main character—the story is over. We've all been reading along and thinking, “Ya, this is bad, but I know they won’t die there are 200 pages left.”

So, give us real stakes. Give your characters something to lose. Make us read on :)

-Angie

6 days to I’m HearingVoices Blogfest. Yay, I can’t wait!