Posted in Writing, tagged creative writing, historical fiction, novel writing, Seattle, Seattle history, The Wolf Tree, Writing, writing research, writing techniques, writing tips on 12 Jul 2013| 1 Comment »
For the past few weeks, I’ve been doing research for The Wolf Tree. It’s been an education, in several ways.
Seattle isn’t like New York or San Francisco or London. I don’t have dozens of books to choose from, rows of scholarly tomes filled with history, details, and anecdotes. (more…)
Posted in Writing, tagged Characters, creative writing, elevator pitch, novel writing, outlining, plotline, plotting, The Wolf Tree, wolf tree, Writing, writing techniques, writing tips on 07 Jun 2013| 4 Comments »
I had my first Book Meeting on The Wolf Tree.
This is the meeting where First Reader and I sit down, I give her the pitch, and she tells me, No, the plot doesn’t sound stupid.
Seriously. That’s what this meeting is for. Well, mostly. She also picks apart the plot, the characters, the backstories, she asks how it’ll be told, etc., but mostly, she needs to tell me the plot doesn’t sound stupid.
Why do I think my plot sounds stupid? I don’t know. Looking back on my completed novels, those plots don’t sound stupid. But always, at the outset of every project, I’m convinced that my plotline is hopelessly flawed and will make the worst book ever. To be fair, when you boil any plot down to that one-minute “elevator pitch,” it loses a lot. All elevator pitches sound more or less stupid, insipid, unbelievable (in a bad way), or cliché. So, to get me over this first hurdle, we have our first Book Meeting.
But before I can walk into this meeting, the book must have gelled. I’m not talking about working out the basic plot–in fact, plot is the least important aspect. Plots take care of themselves, to a certain degree, as do sub-plots. Sure, I need to know where the bit set pieces are going to be, what the main action is, and so forth, but if I have them sketched out, that’s good enough. I need to know where I’m going, but I don’t necessarily want to know exactly how I’m going to get there. I used to obsess about every detail in outlines before, and found that it always changed in the production phase, so now I don’t worry about the details of the action. Broad brushstrokes work fine for plot.
More important than plot is the structure. Not what will happen in the story, but how it will be told. Will it be linear? Recursive? Flashbacks? Multi-threaded? How many characters? How many POVs? Structure affects the reading of the story because it controls how information is presented. An action-heavy plotline will benefit from some cliffhanger chapter breaks, whereas a more character-driven plot will have a forced, unnatural feel if I shoehorn cliffhangers into it.
I also need to have an idea of what style I’m going to use. First person or third person? Omniscient or limited? Lyrical or straightforward? Dialogue-heavy or dialogue-sparse? These aren’t cast in concrete (well, none of this stuff is, really) but they’re decisions that should be made before pen touches paper. Stylistic decisions need to support the plot, structure, and the thematic elements.
And those are the crucial items: the thematic elements. What are the big questions facing my characters? What is the book about? I don’t believe a novel needs a “message,” per se–“If I’d wanted a message, I’d have called Western Union!”–but I always want my books to have a single encompassing idea, a topic they will discuss. Usually, it’s a single word that (for me) infuses the story. Betrayal. Family. Love. Forgiveness. I’ve used these in the past.
Before I walk into my first Book Meeting I need to have all this ready because I’m going to pitch the book to First Reader, and she’s going to pick it apart with all her might.
Turns out, the plot for The Wolf Tree is not stupid.
Oh, and we fixed the ending (parts of which were unbelievable, cliché, and stupid).
So…onward.
k
Posted in Books, Writing, tagged amazon, book marketing, book promotion, books, creative writing, free book giveaway, Kindle, novel writing, self-publishing, Unraveling Time, Writing, writing techniques, writing tips on 31 May 2013| 6 Comments »
Reality is a test. Are you going to face it? Or are you going to reject it?
I’ve tried the latter. I don’t recommend it.
Example: for decades I believed I was a dog person. Then I lived with a dog. I’m not a dog person. I’m a “let me play with your dog” person. Don’t get me wrong; I love dogs. I just don’t want to live with them. At least, not at this point in my life. It wouldn’t be fair to the dog.
So, I’ve learned the lesson that facing reality is always the better choice.
Therefore, I took a long look at the hard numbers from my Amazing Free Book Giveaway Weekend (AFBGW). [For those of you just joining, the AFBGW was a three-day event wherein I was giving away Unraveling Time, my time-travel romance/adventure novel, for free in the Kindle Store.]
The results are pretty grim. (more…)
Posted in Writing, tagged creative writing, novel writing, simplification, time management for writers, Writing, writing discipline, writing schedule, writing techniques, writing tips on 30 May 2013| 14 Comments »
We just passed the six-week mark since the Amazing Free Book Giveaway Weekend, and it’s time to start evaluating the entire process for success or failure. I’ll crunch the numbers later, but right now I want to discuss one of the “softer” aspects of the AFBGW.
As part of the AFBGW, I went out to LinkedIn and joined a few writers’ groups.
I joined these groups because it’s a quick way to reach a lot of people at one time. Writers are (presumably) readers as well, and some of these groups have membership up in the five-digits. With one post, I could (presumably) reach thousands and those posts could (presumably) drive traffic to my blog, my AFBGW promotion, and my books. In addition, the groups can (presumably) provide a venue in which to discuss Things Writerly, and I looked forward to entering discussions on style, debates on the value of writing disciplines, and reading posts on marketing strategies.
What I found was very different. (more…)
Posted in Writing, tagged Barb Hendee, creative writing, finding a title, mist-torn witches, noble dead, novel writing, Writing, writing fiction, writing techniques, writing tips on 28 May 2013| 6 Comments »
Sometimes, it’s the little things.
We spent a lovely holiday weekend with our friends, Barb and J.C. Hendee, authors of The Noble Dead Saga (among other titles). They’re a couple of the lucky ones: bestselling authors who have had the wonderful opportunity to make their living writing books. Naturally, it has its trade-offs (all self-employment opportunities do), but it was great to spend time with them, talking about Things Writerly, and learning from tales from their lives as modern writers.
Barb Hendee has a new book out, first in a brand-new series, so if you like fantasy, exceptional character development, a tight plot, and a satisfying read, check out her The Mist-Torn Witches, available in paperback and on Kindle.
During our visit, I took advantage of the quiet mornings to do some clustering exercises for my new project, and in doing so, I discovered my working title! (more…)
Posted in Writing, tagged clustering, creative writing, fiction, inverse clustering, vignettes, Writing, writing techniques on 23 May 2013| Leave a Comment »
Alfie drove the black Audi up the hillside curves, through the grey dawn and springtime rain, stopping under the still-burning lamps of the Alta Mira. He got out and opened the passenger door.
She stepped out onto the quiet street, hair wild from the damp, portfolio of photos under her arm, and saw her ex standing at the curb across the street. Sleepy-eyed, disheveled, he looked as if he’d just wakened from a dream.
She smiled, and that was all it took. He stepped toward her.
“I miss you.”
She retreated, eyes glancing, smile snuffed like a candle. “Don’t go there, or I’ll be lost.”
Alfie interposed himself–her guardian, her protector, her armor–“Easy, mate.”
Her footsteps echoed on the brick pathway. The ex watched as she ran up to the hotel, to her dark room, her photos, and her memories.
“Leave her be,” Alfie said as he got her camera bags out of the trunk.
“For years now, everywhere I go, all I see is the light.”
Alfie’s chestnut hair gleamed with droplets of rain. He flashed white teeth in a devil’s smile as he shouldered the bags.”I know exactly what you mean.”
The ex frowned. “Where is she going next?”
“San Francisco. Then Portland.” Alfie walked across the street to the ex and extended his hand. “We won’t see you there, will we?”
The ex looked at the offered hand, then reached out as well. Alfie’s hand was strong, broad, and warm.
“No. You won’t see me.”
“Thanks, mate.” Alfie smiled again and winked. His leather soles scraped on the asphalt as he turned and walked to the hotel.
The ex watched him go, watched him toss his car keys to the valet, watched him go inside.
The ex sighed, smelling the fresh, rain-washed air. He put his hands to his face, scrubbed away his tears, and looked around at the newborn morning.
The light was beautiful.
———————————-
Product of inverse clustering, 23Apr13
Posted in Books, Writing, tagged chthonic, creative writing, dan brown, linkedin, novel writing, obscure words, writers discussion groups, Writing, writing techniques, writing tips on 17 May 2013| 6 Comments »
Sorry for this late post. I’ve spent the morning dodging trolls over in the LinkedIn writers’ groups. Oy vey. But while there, someone brought up a topic that actually interested me (until it submerged into troll-dom).
The topic was: big words. Or, more precisely, obscure words.
The poster was complaining about the word “chthonic.” Any of you know what it means, off the top of your head? (more…)
Kurt R.A. Giambastiani 