Got Stuck? Ideas to help get unstuck

Writing for me creates an escape. A kind of hide away where words dance joyfully in my head. I know it may sound a bit silly, but writing stimulates joy in me. Well, most of the time. Except when I get stuck and have trouble thinking of the next thing to write.

I am sure you have found yourself getting stuck and not knowing where the next scene is going or what your character may do next.

Here are a few things I thought may help the next time you get stuck:

Think about the reason why you started writing. Put yourself in the place of joy and happiness and start writing about how you are feeling. Pull in everything you are receiving from your senses and write it down.

Take time to refocus. You may be focusing on being stuck and not focusing on the possibilities of where your story can go to next. You can create a new story. Think about what you would be doing if you weren't stuck. Concentrate on the character's reaction to being in a hard position and how they would get out of it.

Move around. Change the scenery. Go for a walk. Put on some music and dance. Exercise. You could just be in the same place for too long and if you move and have new things to see, smell and interact with, it could possible allow you to move forward with your story.

I hope these help when you get stuck with your writing.

Do you have strategies, ideas or suggestions you have done when you have gotten stuck with your writing?
If so, please feel free to share them with us. Let's help each other keep writing.

New addition to site

Hi all!

We've added a new section to our blog called Getting Published Without Getting Taken. We will add to it as more links are received. Use this section to check out agents and publishers before making a deal that could cost you money. Personally, I write because I have to, to express what's inside. If I never get published, that wouldn't stop me from writing. However, the thrill of being in print motivates me to write the best I can, to be critiqued, to edit and revise, and to avoid the urge to just get something printed as fast as I can, no matter the cost. I'm sure you've read of all the rejections famous writers have received before their first publication. It will be a while before I give up and go the self-published route in the areas where that route is not the best (fiction, especially).

Let me know what you think of this section, what additional links we can post here, and what else you'd like to see on the blog. It's here for your benefit. Thanks for inspiring me to continue this journey.

John

Molli Marks Up the First Page

Publishing consultant Molli Nickell reviewed first pages, spoke on the state of the publishing industry and encouraged a captive audience to review their use of adjectives, adverbs and weak verbs in order to polish the first page (and others, as well) of their manuscript. She emphasized the need to grab attention, mentioning that most editors know within six or seven sentences if you are a writer. She also remarked that Times Roman is the new font standard, and cautioned against fudging on double-spacing to get more lines on the first page.

Though focused on fiction, Molli included advice for the non-fiction writer and reviewed several non-fiction works.

She concluded by mentioning four books that she has found very useful for the writer:
1. How to Write a Book Proposal - by Michael Larson (good for non-fiction, especially)
2. What's Your Story? - by Marion Dane Bauer (good overall plus for young writers - fiction)
3. Writing the Breakout Novel Workbook - by Donald Maass
4. The First Five Pages - by Noah Lukeman

You can read Sam's review of the third book, by Maass, on an earlier posting on this blog and I can second the motion that the fourth book is valuable, as I've read it and learned a lot.

UPDATE: Molli will return in October to review your synopsis!

On Conferences

I have returned from Sleuthfest 2009, tired but happy. I've already written about my experience at Sleuthfest on my personal blog. Short version: Wow. I met wonderful people ranging from beginners to best-selling authors. I attended fantastic panels and sessions where I picked up dozens of tips on craft. And I came back energized and encouraged, ready to write and now regretting that I must sleep--I'd rather be awake and writing.

Because I've been busy preparing for and then attending the conference, I don't have a book review for you this month. I do want to take this opportunity to plug not only Sleuthfest but conferences in general.

If you write genre fiction, a writer's conference for that genre is an excellent way to network with other writers in your field. From those who have only recently realized that they want to write on up to best-selling superstars, you'll make contacts who will help you--and be helped by you--throughout your writing career. Panels and lectures covering topics specific to your genre will provide you with information you didn't even realize you needed to know, and of course there will be craft-oriented sessions as well. In addition, most conferences off opportunities to meet directly with agents and editors.

If you don't write genre fiction, or write non-fiction, look for general writer's conferences. You'll get the same chances to pitch your work directly agents and editors, panels and lectures that will help you improve your craft, and the chance to network with other writers. There's nothing like spending several days among a crowd of people who value writing as much as you do. It will energize and inspire you.

Regardless of the path you plan to take in your writing career, attending a conference has benefits that far outweigh the costs. The FWA conference is scheduled for October 23-25 this year. Plan to attend. You won't regret it.

E Sabin Enlightens all on Editing

Elenora Sabin presented tips and techniques on revising and editing your work last Thursday, the 12th, to an enthusiastic audience. Using her own personal experience as a base, Elenora touched on sentence structure, using all the senses and working to get your final manuscript to match your original vision. She answered many questions about content and mechanics and included several handouts to take home; in addition, she shared some steps she takes to make her revision process go smoothly and help her editor when it's time to prepare the work for publishing.

We tried out a new seating arrangement, requested by members and inspired by PINAWOR, with tables set up in a rectangle. This worked very well and I received thanks for setting it up, but I confess it was set up about that way when I got there, and I only had to make a few minor adjustments. If the tables are not set up like that, it would take a lot of work to put them up. I usually try to get to the library around 5 p.m. for setup, and if anyone else can make it by that time it would help in getting the room setup like that every time. (hint, hint)

Again, a warm thank you to Elenora for sharing her experience and expertise. I know several of our members are also members of PINAWOR, and I would encourage those who can to join that group also. They hold some low cost workshops several times a year. Also, if you can't find the time to join a critique group, they do critiques most Saturdays (5 min reading - members only).

John

Writing the Breakout Novel

Maass, Donald. Writing the Breakout Novel. Writer's Digest Books, 2001.
Maass, Donald. Writing the Breakout Novel Workbook. Writer's Digest Books, 2004.

Do you dream of making a living as a novelist, or at least of writing that one smash-hit best seller? Well, forget it. You can’t. That’s the tone many books, web sites, and magazines take. It’s easy to come away feeling that agents don’t want to represent you and that even if one does, no editor will select your manuscript and that even if one does, the publisher will refuse to promote you. It’s a matter of pure chance who gets onto the bestseller list, anyway. Donald Maass says that’s all nonsense.

Breakout novels are books that "vault onto the best-seller lists," and the premise of Writing the Breakout Novel is that, "Breakout novels can be planned." Maass is honest about the long odds that novelists face but he counters honesty with hope: in spite of the lack of advertising and publisher support for most books, word of mouth is "the engine that drives breakouts." He promises that "Virtually all writers can write a breakout novel." He provides eleven chapters of helpful, encouraging advice coupled with analysis of existing breakout novels to help you do exactly that.

The foundation of a breakout novel is its premise. Using several famous novels, Maass identifies depth of setting; unforgettable characters; and unusual, dramatic, and meaningful events as key components of breakout premises. He examines breakout premises in terms of plausibility, inherent conflict, originality, and gut emotional appeal. Finally, he demonstrates how a breakout premise can be developed with a concrete example so compelling that you’ll wish you could find it on a bookstore shelf.

The premise is the foundation on which the other components of a breakout novel are built. Maass explains how to create larger than life characters whom readers will identify with and cheer for, how to select settings that affect the psychology of the novel, and how to weave compelling conflict into every page. He comes nearly full-circle with a discussion of theme. Like a premise, theme is a unifying force that winds through all the novel’s elements, but it does much more than that. It gives the story meaning. If that intimidating thought makes your stomach clench, don’t worry--Maas tells you how to build your theme, step-by-step.

Each chapter ends with a checklist of its most important points, which makes later review easy. He closes with advice on dealing with the publishing industry once you’ve got a finished, polished manuscript. The advice is still relatively current--the book was published in 2001--and is a good start. This is a book you’ll want close at hand whenever you are planning a novel.

But what if you’ve already got a manuscript, either finished or in progress? That’s where the companion Writing the Breakout Novel Workbook comes in. Frequently, workbook companions for how-to books are gimmicks that extract a few extra dollars from readers of the original book without providing new value. Writing the Breakout Novel Workbook is not that kind of workbook.

Where Writing the Breakout Novel helps you plan your novel, the Workbook provides exercises targeted at improving an existing manuscript. Sometimes you're directed to pick a random place in your manuscript. Other exercises ask you to select a central aspect of character, plot, setting, or theme. In each case, Maass prescribes multiple exercises for working with that portion of your novel. You’ll heighten or diminish turning points, change a character's motivation for a single scene, and deepen exposition without bogging the reader down. As you work through the exercises, you’ll recognize how to apply them to other areas of your manuscript, working toward one goal: producing a dynamic novel with breakout potential.

Whenever I feel absolutely miserable about my chances of becoming a published novelist, much less ever making a living at the craft, I turn to Donald Maass for encouragement and advice. These books inspire me to take control of my writing destiny. They deserve a place on every novelist’s bookshelf.

Bringing up Bobby

Many of you may remember "Bringing up Bobby," the short story I brought to last year's critique workshop meeting. This morning, I received an email from The Absent Willow Review accepting it for publication in their April 16 issue. Thank you to everyone who provided feedback and encouragement!

Roy Peter Clark Touts Tools on T'ursday

Dr. Roy Peter Clark discussed several of the writing tools from his book to an enthusiastic audience of 25. Reading two of his own earlier journalistic pieces evoked poignant memories from several members. Roy used an example for in-depth evaluation of tool #2: Order words for emphasis, and used the same story to explain other tools when asked for clarification of specific strategies.

He also spoke about his City of Writers project, an idea that is still building, that celebrates and promotes those involved in writing and encourages others to participate. FWA is happy to work with him in any way we can to support this idea.

I had hoped he would use music in his presentation, but we found that the piano in the library auditorium is not owned by the library, and apparently can only be touched by the tuner of said instrument. Strange indeed.

I look forward to seeing you at next month's meeting, and thank those who were able to attend our first meeting of 2009.

John

The Creative Habit

Tharp, Twyla. The Creative Habit: Learn it and Use it for Life. Simon & Schuster, 2003.

I was tipped off to this book by a post on thriller writer Jeff Abbott's blog. His organized writer posts are full of tips on writing discipline, advice for other writers, and encouragement for pursuing creative dreams. In one of these posts, he mentions Twyla Tharp's book on creativity, The Creative Habit. Although Ms. Tharp is an Emmy and Tony award winning dancer and choreographer, the book isn't limited to dance. Of course it is written from a dancer's perspective, but Tharp has a broader understanding of creativity that makes this book worth reading for any artist.

Tharp dismisses the idea that good art is the result of a muse whispering in someone's ear, independent of skill or practice. Instead, she argues that artistic creativity come from hard work. "Creativity is a habit, and the best creativity is a result of good work habits." Mozart, for example, practiced and worked so hard at creating music that his fingers were deformed by the time he was twenty eight. That's a far cry from the popular belief that he was simply a prodigy whose success was the result of "God whispering in his ear."

In each chapter, Tharp identifies one aspect of making creativity a habit. Several chapters have to do with generating and developing ideas--through daily rituals that put you in a creative frame of mind, by exploring your background and personality (what she calls "Creative DNA"), or by harnessing your memories. She also discusses organization (and how not to over-organize) and overcoming the accidents and obstacles that occur during the creative process. And of course, she urges all creative types to practice, practice, practice, the fundamentals of their craft.

If the book has a flaw, it's that sometimes she goes overboard with examples. About half way through the book, I realized that once I'd gotten her point in each chapter, I could skip the rest of the material because it wouldn't add anything new. However, that's a minor complaint.

The most valuable thing about the book is that at the end of each chapter, Ms. Tharp provides a handful of exercises that specifically address the issues in that chapter. They aren't specific to dance, and many are clearly valuable to writers. You could do worse than to pick up this book and simply do the exercises without reading the rest.

On the other hand, the rest is kind of fun, too, and some of Ms. Tharp's stories about how she works are fascinating in their own right. This is a book well worth picking up.

Defeating Self-Defeating Behavior

Margie Lawson will present her one-day Master Class "Empowering Characters' Emotions" on October 22 next year at the FWA Conference. I've taken this course before and I can hardly wait to take it again--it's that good. Margie teaches an editing method that is the perfect diagnostic tool for writers looking to make their prose sizzle. She also analyzes how contemporary best-selling authors like Harlan Coben and Laura Lippman pack their stories with emotionally evocative language that keeps readers turning the pages. If you want to write gripping stories, you owe it to yourself to register for this course.

But you don't have to wait until next fall to learn something from Margie. A practicing psychologist, Margie teaches more than empowering characters--she also empowers writers. Whether you struggle with writer's block or simply feel that you could be more effective at accomplishing your writing goals, Margie provides tools to help in her on-line course, Defeating Self-Defeating Behaviors, offered through Writer University. In this one-month workshop, Margie provides advice and strategies for overcoming paralysis, silencing your inner critic, managing your moods, making time to write, and more.

I took this course last year. I was already pretty good at time-management, but I struggled with a vocal inner critic that had kept me from realizing my full potential. Thanks to "Defeating Self-Defeating Behaviors," I now recognize several varieties of "faulty thinking" (pessimism and perfectionism are my biggest problems) and have created strategies to counter them. I also picked up some great techniques for managing my mood--and when I'm in a good mood, I write better. This class, like "Empowering Characters' Emotions," is a bargain at twice the price.

Defeating Self-Defeating Behaviors costs $30 and runs from January 2 through 30. What better way to kick off the New Year than to dedicate yourself to realizing your full potential as a writer?

December Meeting Review

Dianne Ochiltree gave a very informative presentation last night. We learned not only about the effort that goes into writing a children's book, but also about the promotion side of the business and some of the details about the different types of children's books. Dianne read her latest upcoming book and shared the story of her writing journey. We had 15 people in attendance, and I want to thank those who were able to make it. Next time I'll have to take pictures from up close!

Here's Dianne and I after the meeting.

May your holiday celebrations be filled with joy.
See you next month!

John

Dianne's Books for Sale

As promised in the final reminder for this month's meeting, here is the list of books (with prices) that Dianne will bring to the meeting. Would make great Christmas gifts.

CATS ADD UP!, a math early reader paperback in the 'Scholastic Reader' series, for ages 5-8, at $4 per copy.

PILLOW PUP, a hardcover picture book from McElderry Books/Simon & Schuster, for ages 2-6, at $15 per copy.

TEN MONKEY JAMBOREE, a hardcover picture book from McElderry Books/Simon & Schuster, for ages 4-8, at $17 per copy.

LULL-A-BYE, LITTLE ONE, a hardcover picture book from G.P. Putnam's Sons, for ages 0-4, at $17 per copy.

Hope to see as many there as can make it.

John

Making the Perfect Pitch

Sands, Katharine. Making the Perfect Pitch: How To Catch a Literary Agent's Eye. Watson-Guptill, 2004.

Getting an agent is an effort almost as Herculean as writing a book in the first place. Constructing a query letter or developing a pitch requires an entirely different skill set than creative writing, whether it's a novel or non-fiction. It's no wonder that many beginning writers throw up their hands in despair. One book that can help is Katherine Sands's Making the Perfect Pitch. Although the subtitle is "How to Catch a Literary Agent's Eye," it's not a how-to book, but a collection of essays by agents on what they look for in query letters.

This book is not for the easily discouraged. These agents are very blunt about the huge quantity of queries they receive, and what the means for the prospective writer trying to become a first-time author. It's easy to come away from the book feeling that if you don't have an MFA or an existing mass audience, you might as well not even bother. But there's plenty of encouragement as well.

Since it's not a how-to, you'll have to mine the chapters for the advice you need, but it's well worth spending the time to read each agent's advice. You'll find that some of the advice seems contradictory. One agent says that it's important to work the setting into a query letter for fiction; another says it's irrelevant. There's no single, magic formula. But if you study these chapters, you'll quickly discover the common elements that agents look for in queries... and in those who query. Agents aren't just looking for good writing--they're looking for good writing by people who understand that publishing is a business and who are willing to present themselves in a professional manner.

The bottom line: if you want to be published, you almost certainly need an agent. Making the Perfect Pitch can help you get an agent's attention.

Full Wolf Moon - KL Nappier (book review)

Gripping story, November 18, 2008

(That's my title of the Amazon review. Yeah, I know, it's weak.)

I'm not a big fan of this genre, but when reading Full Wolf Moon I continually found myself up at night, in bed with the light on, reading instead of sleeping. I couldn't put it down. I enjoyed one of the main characters and one of the supporting characters the most, and understand that in the following book, Bitten, the supporting character I liked is going to play a more prominent role. If you like werewolf stories, this one is a good one. Unique and exciting.

*****

I met Kathy at Necronomicon 2008 in October, in St. Petersburg. I hope to have her speak to the group this coming year. She publishes both through a small local press, Aisling, and an e-book publisher out of Canada.

John

FWA Conference Closing

The conference closed with C. Hope Clark delivering a great keynote address. Elliot Kleinberg gave the Saturday night one. Both were outstanding. I counted 9 St. Petersburg members in attendance! Everyone I talked to had a good experience, and I hope took away a lot of new information to help in their writing journey.

I enjoyed the last workshop I attended, although it meant I was once again rewriting the opening to my story. I think I'll stick with this new one, at least for now. I had a great time, met some wonderful people, and have a commitment from the founder of FWA to present to our St. Pete group next year. I hope we can make this coming year our best year ever. But before we get there, we have one final meeting this year, featuring Children's author Dianne Ochiltree from Sarasota. I hope to see many of you in attendance.

Later!
John

Our FWA Royal Palm Award Winners!

Our knight in shining armor, Sir John Ray, decked out in white suit, tie, socks and shoes took home 1st place in the Thriller (Unpublished) category Saturday night at the FWA Conference. Jackie Minniti hauled in 2nd place in the Woman's Fiction (Published) category. Congratulations to both of you and to all in our group who participated in this year's contest.

It's late, but the day went well and I met more exciting and interesting people, including one whose column on the internet I had read several months ago. Everyone has been helpful and friendly and after the long awards ceremony, ready to go home! One more morning and we'll be on our way.

See you soon,
John

FWA Conference 1st Day Thoughts

The first day is over for me. I couldn't stay for the completion of open-mic night. It was interesting, but I'm fighting a cold and retiring a bit early. The two presentations I attended were well done and interesting. I liked what I learned about writing scary stories, and found a wealth of information on marketing and promotion from Marcia Freespirit of Jimsaminc.

Feedback from others was also good, and attendance is the highest ever, so I sense a lot of joy from the organizers. A big thank you to them, as this was a monumental task.

My agent interview went well, too. I found if I could trim my novel, she'd be interested. Seeing as how it's not quite complete yet, that means I have less to write! But I recommend, if you have the chance, of talking to these types of people, if for no other reason than to get comfortable around them, realize they are just like you, and hopefully with additional face time they may get to know you. As I read on one site, one of the keys to success is Contacts! So don't be afraid to make them.

All for now,

John

FWA Conference Opens

It's Friday morning and the beginning of the conference. I'll be sending updates and impressions as the weekend goes on, so that those who couldn't make it can find out what I think about it. I won't compare it to last weekend, when I attended Donald Maass's High Tension Workshop. That wouldn't be fair. But I will have an entry about that (along with a pic with Don) after this weekend. That one was excellent and well worth the money.

I did find out that going through Tampa at 6pm on a weeknight is not the best way to spend your time. From Pinellas it took me an hour to get near the I-4 interchange! I finally made it here after 3 hours on the road, though once I hit I-4 it was smooth sailing. There was a well-placed rest stop on the way.

Stay tuned...

John

Scene & Structure

Bickham, Jack M. Scene & Structure. Writer's Digest Books, 1993.

Last month, when I recommended Techniques of the Selling Writer, I mentioned that the book is quite dense. Swain provides so much information on so many components of modern fiction that it can be difficult to tease out the individual strands of advice and apply them. I especially wanted a deeper look at the "scene and sequel" technique he presents. I found it in Jack Bickham's Scene & Structure.

Bickham, a student of Swain's, begins with an analysis of the structure of modern fiction. He dispels the myth that "structure" requires a formula or particular format. Instead, structure is a method of organizing a story "in a way that's both logical and dramatic." The rest of the book is devoted to demonstrating that definition.

Many writers struggle with how to begin and end their stories, so Bickham tackles that problem first. A story should start, "at the time of change that threatens your major character's self-concept." That threat generates the protagonist's story goal: the one thing she must accomplish in order to end the threat: "Sarah must find her lost child," for example. The story goal turns into a yes-or-no story question in the reader's mind: "Will Sarah find her lost child?" The story ends when that question is answered.

So what goes in the middle?

To answer that question, Bickham zooms in to focus on "Structure in Microcosm: Cause and Effect." In order to make sense to the reader, a story must present its events in a logical sequence: cause precedes effect. That's easy to see on the macroscopic scale. In a mystery, the crime must occur before the detective has anything to investigate. But it's also true on an almost line-by-line level in a story. Characters experience an event (stimulus), consider what to do (internalization) and act (response). Granted, the pattern doesn't always hold: if someone points a gun at your character, internalization vanishes in favor of an immediate reaction. But in general, this pattern of stimulus-internalization-response is necessary to hold the reader's attention and interest.

Bickham turns next to the macroscopic versions of cause and effect: scenes and sequels. The scene is an action unit in which the point of view character strives to attain a specific, short-term goal that leads to the story goal. Conflict leades to failure: Sometimes the goal is blocked entirely (No!), sometimes the goal is blocked until another goal is achieved (No, but...), and sometimes the goal is blocked and another setback is inflicted (No, and furthermore...). The reader keeps turning pages, wondering how the character will deal with this disaster and what he'll do next.

The character wonders, too, and that's where sequel comes in. Sequels tie scenes together by providing a period of introspection (internalization) during which the character can review the situation, analyze options, and decide what to do next. Sequels can be as long or short as necessary: in a thriller, sequels are often so short as to be nearly non-existent; in other forms of fiction, they can last for pages. But the sequel allows the character to determine a new short-term goal, which becomes the starting point of the next scene.

Bickham offers further advice on using scenes and sequels to control the pace of a novel, varying the internal structure of these components, dealing with common scene errors, and using scene and sequel to plot a novel. If, like me, you prefer to work from an outline, this advice will be particularly valuable. If you don't like outlines, you'll still find Bickham's advice useful, because you'll need to keep the story structure in mind as you write or revise.

Like Swain, Bickham is primarily concerned with popular or commercial rather than literary fiction. However, if the latter is what you want to write, this book is still worth reading. Structure is like the frame of a house: whether you're building a Colonial mansion or a shotgun shack, you'll still need walls and a roof. Whether you're writing a deeply literary character study or a pulse-pounding thriller, you'll still need scenes and sequels. Let Jack Bickham show you how to build them.

Techniques of the Selling Writer

Swain, Dwight V. Techniques of the Selling Writer. University of Oklahoma Press, 1982.

I've volunteered to write twice a month reviewing books, software, and other writing resources. I have accumulated a lot of such tools, and I want to share the ones I've found most useful. For my first post, I'll start with a book John mentioned at this month's meeting: Techniques of the Selling Writer.

I've enjoyed writing for as long as I can remember. In third grade, I started writing plays and short stories. At thirteen, I realized that I wanted to be a novelist. Yet it wasn't until earlier this year that I finally finished my first novel.

What took so long?

One factor was that I didn't know what I was doing. I knew the basic building blocks--plot, setting, character, and so on. I had a vague idea of how they all went together, too, but I couldn't quite figure out how to make them cohere. Writing a novel felt like trying to build a house without having any blueprints. I almost gave up several times. Then I discovered Techniques of the Selling Writer..

I was astonished. Though the book is four decades old (originally written in 1965, it was republished in 1982), the techniques Swain describes are still crucial to creating best-selling popular fiction. As I read, I had frequent "aha" moments as I understood why my favorite writers made the choices they made and just what it is that makes a novel so compelling that I stay up far past my bed time to finish it.

Swain leads off with the basic building blocks of fiction and discusses how to avoid traps that beginning (and some experienced) novelists often fall prey to. His chapter on conflict is one of the best primers on the subject I've ever read. The best value in this book, however, is Swain's advice on the strategy of constructing the plot of popular fiction. For Swain, a plot comprises a series of scenes and sequels. A "scene" means action--the character strives to achieve a goal that will move him closer to realizing the story goal. Scenes are followed by a "sequel," by which he means a period of reflection on the previous scene, in which the character plans a new short term goal and gets ready for a new scene. By utilizing this rhythmic structure of scene-sequel-scene-sequel, authors of popular fiction keep their readers turning the pages.

The final chapters contain information on marketing and sales; these chapters are very out of date, and you're better off skipping them entirely and looking for more recent information.

This is a very dense book, not to be read in one sitting. But if you can absorb the techniques Swain presents and apply them to your fiction, you'll have a far better chance of getting published.