Adding More Conflict in Story

It is important to add conflict to our stories. This article provides helpful tips on adding more tension to our novels.

Remember when Tommy Lee Jones holds up the empty shackles in The Fugitive and says, “You know, we’re always fascinated when we find leg irons with no legs in ’em”? It makes me think of readers who pick up thrillers and find no thrills in them. Or at least not as many as there could be. I’m not just talking about plot here. It’s possible to have guns and bombs and hit men and terrorists and black helicopters and still not have a novel that grips the reader in the gut. For a healthy, fully functioning thriller, try some literary vitamin C. Dose your book with these five Cs and it will stand strong, chest out, ready to give your reader a run for the money.  Learn more.

Getting Into The Writing Zone

Today, I wanted to expand on the zone concept. A beginning writer once asked me: “I’ve heard authors talk of being ‘in the zone’ regarding their writing, which I take to mean being in an altered state of extreme creativity. But how, without drugs or other stimulus, do you get into that state?”

In fact, as Jim mentioned, we hear the term in the zone used often, not only with writers, but athletes, artists, and just about any activity that requires skill, creativity and concentration. Learn more.

Nancy

Staying Focused

With the holidays upon us, it is very important to stay focused on what matters.

You know what they say . . . “A picture is worth a thousand words.” But what if the picture was blurry and out of focus? It’s worthless.

Or is it?

Have you noticed when you first press the screen on your phone to take a picture, it goes fuzzy before taking the perfect, clear shot? It has to go out of focus before going into focus.

Lately, I’ve been feeling the same thing about my writing. Unfocused. I settle in to write and find myself getting distracted. Ding! Was that an email? Learn more.

Nancy

Self-Care For Writers

Cec Murphy is running a series for writers on self-care. It is worth the hop over there to read each blog post.

“Why do you polish your tools every time after you use them?” I asked my dad when I was about six years old.

“Makes them last longer.” Dad was a man of few words, but I understood. At the time it seemed like a lot of extra work. When I was older I understood the lesson. As I thought about this topic, the principle applies. If I care for myself—my body, my mind, my spirit—every part of myself—I’ll survive and be productive much longer. Learn more.

Nancy

Writing Action Scenes

Writing action scenes is fun.

What comes mind when I say those words? Typically someone would think of a movie set in the oldun’ days. Someone had a tripod camera and a megaphone and a snappy board with numbers on it.

I want you to try this when you’re writing an action scene. The idea is to get you to look at the scene in your mind’s eye. Capture what you see with words. Be visceral. Don’t fill in any embellishments like “it was a dark stormy night.” I don’t even want eye color or clothing. Just the facts ma’am! Learn more.

Nancy

Real Life and Novel Writing

As writers we can glean from our own lives and put those experiences in our stories.

The second book in my Chapel Lake series, Chapel Springs Survival,came from a real life event-and became a mother’s retribution. Insert creepy music and evil laughter.

The day started out normal, boring even. Then I got a phone call from our eldest son.

“Hey, Mom. I emailed you some pictures. Take a look and call me back.” Learn more.

Nancy

First Drafts

First drafts of any project are far from what the finished project will be. This article provides an interesting take on rough drafts.

My son is working on college application essays and one of my daughters is tackling her first two high school English classes and all the writing that goes with them. First drafts are flying around this house!

And they are stymieing my kids…

First drafts are tough because we want them to read like the final product. We want the words to flow with resonance, cadence and brilliance – and the ideas should do the same. But idea-generating, honing, editing and revising all in one moment is seriously hard work. You might be able to do it (I can’t), but I suspect you’ll end up frustrated, anxious and, maybe, have only a couple sentences down at the end of the day. A full manuscript will probably never come…I’m doubting we’ll even get a 200 word college essay around here. Learn more.

Nancy

Helpful Tips For Writers

This article provides some helpful tips for writers.

1. If you’re doing it right, the writing never gets easier.

I sat down to write my second novel with a naïve optimism. I’ve done this before, I thought, and along the way I’ve learned so much about how fiction works and how I write. Even so, it took five drafts to find the right voice and structure. At first, I was disappointed in myself. (The writer’s first instinct.) After all this time, how could I find myself still so lost? Then I realized I was lost because I was trying something new. It might be easier if I was rehashing the same plots and settings and characters, but I don’t want to do that. All of that stumbling and grappling doesn’t mean my skill-level is stagnant—it means I’m developing even more as a writer.

Learn more.

Nancy

Writing

Here’s a helpful article on writing.

As writers, we are attentive to the settings, plots, characters, and all things that make for great storytelling and honed writing. We capitalize on our characters’ thoughts and feelings, and there is nothing quite like exploring the reasoning and nuances of their weaknesses while finding the frailty of their strengths.

But do we put as much time and effort into understanding how we tick as we give to our stories and characters? Learn more.

Nancy

Now What?

Have you ever read a book with the sinking feeling that the story seems so very, very familiar? In fact, it seems almost an exact replica of the story you are writing or have written. A story this author knows nothing about, just as you knew nothing about theirs. The farther you read in the already-published book, the more deflated you become. What hope is there for your story now?

Not only have I had this feeling in the past, but I am in the midst of it right now! As I am currently reworking the first novel I ever finished (almost 15 years ago!), a story no one but a few close friends know, I am also reading the latest novel by one of my most favorite authors. And there it is. A very similar plot line. Very similar time period. Even a few of the same character names! It would be extremely easy to be discouraged and scrap my own rewrite now. Learn more.

Nancy