Monthly Archives: January 2012

January 31, 2012 · 9:32 pm

Work Smart, not Hard

I think that every now and then it’s important to discuss marketing.  Right now, my marketing efforts are pretty minimal and consist mainly of letting readers get to know me a bit.  Because I don’t really have much to offer by way of an actual product, I offer my ideas, knowledge and results from experiments that may or may not produce better fiction and poetry.

But what’s the best way to get my ideas out there?  I’ll share with you what I’m currently doing, and perhaps it’ll benefit you too–of course, feel free to share tips and tricks you’ve picked up along the way.

At present, I’m enjoying the Publicize feature in wordpress.  I schedule or post my blog entry and it automatically posts to my Twitter account (@mmcnelliswrites).  My Twitter account automatically posts to my Facebook.  Automation really has come a long way since I first used wordpress four or five years ago.

I’ve also come to adore Buffer App, which lets me schedule tweets ahead of schedule in a similar way I schedule some posts on wordpress ahead of schedule.  No longer will I have to worry that a busy schedule keeps me out of the loop of sharing information.  And let’s not forget the glory and addiction of stats, offered by both Buffer App & WordPress.

What do you do to get your ideas out there?

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January 30, 2012 · 8:00 pm

Chapter Outline

One of the keys to creating a book where all the chapters have a point and the book closes up all of the loose ends is outlining where you’re going with each chapter.  While this may seem an odious task, there are some key things to remember:

1. Nothing is set in stone (unless you’re carving your chapter outline into stone, in which case, perhaps writing is not your best artistic activity)

2. Doing this will provide you a framework for your story that you can reference when you inevitably want to tie events to something that was brought up earlier in the book…i.e., you get to avoid plot holes.

I’m offering up an example using my prologue.  For my novel, the story is told through the POV of two characters: Catherine and William Johnson.  In addition, because the book takes place in two different places most of the time, I’m including the month and year in each chapter heading.  And so my outline for the prologue looks like this (feel free to read my prologue in yesterday’s post and call me out if something doesn’t match):

Part Date POV Character Goal(s)
Prologue October 1887 William
  1. Establish Thomas & William’s relationship
  2. Suggest regional recession
  3. Set up Thomas’ disregard for authority
  4. Launch the reader to presume William will take on the job of cooper on the ship

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January 29, 2012 · 7:09 pm

Out of the Sea: Prologue and Other Thoughts

My goal was to finish rewriting not only my prologue, but Chapter One.  Well, I made it through the prologue.  A matter of visiting with friends I’ve not seen in some time–though well worth it–made it necessary for me to amend my goals for the first chapter with assigning a deadline of Tuesday.  I don’t think these extra two days will much hurt my overall goal.

Nevertheless, I’m pleased with the prologue.  I’ve taken a lot out and really focused on a single scene, as I believe the best prologues are just enough to set the stage.  Too many scenes and it starts, to me at least, to feel like another chapter.

I’ve uploaded a pdf of my prologue as it now stands.  Take a read! :)

Out of the Sea Prologue

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January 26, 2012 · 12:00 pm

“You Really Had to Be There,” or 4 tips to Show v. Tell

A couple of weeks ago it finally clicked: how to show v. tell in my writing.  I’d hit the mark here and there before, and I’d read countless articles about this easier-said-than-done practice but like most things in writing, I believe it just has to happen one day.  On that day, it suddenly becomes easy to find ways to invite your reader into the story.  I thought I’d post some tips up that helped me get into showing v. telling, a skill I’ve been working on for the last year:

1. As an exercise, write a scene with your character in 1st person point of view (POV), even if your story isn’t told in this POV.  This has the instant effect of writing through that characters thoughts, actions and experiences.  You can always switch it back to 3rd person later, or any other POV you’re using.

2. Take a scene of your story and map out as many of the five senses as you can.  What does the world sound like?  Smell like?  Look like, feel like…is there a taste in the air?  For example, if you’ve ever been to New York City in the summer, and have gone into the subway, you might notice that the air feels heavy.  It smells–and in some unfortunate cases–like rotting garbage.  The breeze when a subway train passes is a hot wind, and sometimes moist.  Maybe your character winces as he or she grabs the warm, smooth metal pole because they’re imagining all the germs that must live there.  (Disclaimer: Yes, I’m a fan of the countryside.  I also think there are some great places in NYC…the subways are not among them.)

3. Comb through every sentence for evidence of telling.  Do you have sentences like “Jane felt bad for Joe.” or “Jane ate the yucky food.” and such?  These are examples of telling the reader.  You can show the reader instead.

4. Here’s the real trick…avoid lengthy swaths of description.  These kick your reader out of your story because there’s not actually anything going on.  Take all that beautiful and poetic description and drop it in throughout the action and dialogue.  Attach it to the goings on in your story and your reader will experience your world and events with your character, instead of being told after the fact.

Weigh In

What exercises and tricks do you use to incorporate showing v. telling in your writing?  Or, if you’re more a reader than a writer, which authors/books do a great job of showing v. telling?

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January 25, 2012 · 12:00 pm

When you’re having a bad day…

Today my day started out with waking up way too early.  I usually set my alarm for 7:30 am, which allows me a good forty-five minutes to get ready for work.  But today, I woke up at six.  I played with my dogs for a bit, which was fun, and watched some news.  But at half past seven, when I went to get ready for the day, it turned into one of those mornings when none of my clothes seemed like they fit–today’s big issue?  Sleeve length.  I doubt I grew last night, and so the culprit must be my dryer.  Being that these garments have been washed and dried before, I can only look to sub-par quality!  To make matters more frustrating, I couldn’t get my hair right and nearly poked my eye out with eyeliner.

My point, and I do have one…is that days like these should not be discounted–don’t take the day off from writing just because Murphy’s Law creeps into everything you do.  Use your frustration to write scenes in which your characters might be feeling the same way.

That brings me to tonight’s goal, which works toward my week’s goal: to write the scene in which one of my main characters expresses his frustration of being at sea for nearly six months and having accomplished nothing toward finding out the identity of his father’s killer.

Don’t let an off day turn into writer’s block.  Just direct that frustrated energy at your page, keyboard, whatever you use to write these days…and let the words fall out.  You might have to do some editing later (depending on how off your day was) but the emotion of your character will be true.

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January 24, 2012 · 8:48 pm

Getting in the Mood

One of the trickiest elements of writing historical fiction isn’t attempting to apply research toward perfecting those nuances which transport the reader back in time, but rather to get into the head of characters who lived in the past–perhaps even hundreds, or dare I venture, thousands of years ago.

I find the best way to further acclimate myself with historical fiction characters is to conduct activities with limitations as close to those they experienced as I can safely replicate.

Among my favorite is to sit down and write by hand, with only candle light, with a quill or dip pen and a pot of ink.  This isn’t an excuse to practice calligraphy, because I’ve always been horrid at it.  But rather, sitting at my mid-19th century writing desk (complete with velvet padding), I am able to appreciate what it must have been like to have to conduct all business through written letters.  How often do we write by hand anymore?  It takes a lot longer and after a half hour of constantly adjusting the pressure of the pen or quill, my hand was tired.

I feel like some kind of Wall-E post-apocalyptic prisoner saying that, so accustomed to a keyboard and screen that I’ve nearly forgotten what it meant to really sit down and write.

Five additional helpful activities include:

1. Walking to the nearest market, buying food and carrying it home.  This offers an added benefit of exercise.  Be careful of cars though, and if it’s summer, don’t buy anything cold unless you literally live down the street.

2. Listen to music popular in the day of your character(s). Added benefit of broadening your musical horizons.  Beware: you might fall in love with what you’re hearing.

3. Bake bread.  Without a bread machine.  Added benefit: delicious, warm, fresh baked bread right from your own kitchen.

4. Grow something in your garden.  Don’t have a garden? Even better!  Make one first.  Double added benefit: healthy veggies and exercise.

5. Visit a living museum.  Being a resident of New England, my two faves are Mystic Seaport: The Museum of America and the Sea, and Sturbridge Village.  But such places are more common than you think!  You probably have one within an hour of your home.  Added benefit: you’ll learn things.  Lots of things.

In what ways do you get into your character’s thoughts?

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January 23, 2012 · 11:26 pm

Short term goals are important too

In a previous post, I briefly discussed the importance of a long term plan when considering writing, editing and publishing a novel. Don’t discount the value of short term goals as well. Taken one at a time, these mini deadlines are the meat of your plan for success. More flexible and more manageable, these baby steps offer two benefits.

Not only will you actually reach your long term goals, but completing little steps along the way will keep you motivated. For example, I know I want to finish editing my book by the end of April. That’s a huge task to complete in a large span of time. While I want to keep my larger goal in mind, I will create a smaller deadline: completing edits for one more chapter by next Monday, January 30.

What reasonable goal will you meet this week?

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January 22, 2012 · 8:00 am

A Snippet of Chapter 2 from Out of the Sea

CHAPTER TWO

April, 1888

 

Six months have already passed since William and Thomas sailed. Why haven’t I heard from them? Catherine knew her brother hoped to find the truth quickly, but she’d not yet received a single letter, and stared out the window with a bitter taste in her mouth.

“The tea tastes poor to you as well?” her mother asked from across the table.

“Oh, I hadn’t noticed. I can buy some more today.” Catherine watched as a wagon drove by outside, pulled by a Clydesdale horse. When it passed, the town green, empty in the morning hours, once more filled the window frame. “Is there anything else we need?”

“Yes, but we can’t afford much.” After another sip, and a sour puss expression, her mother stood from the small table in the corner of the kitchen and retrieved a list, handing it to Catherine. “Can we sell anything else?”

Catherine glanced around the room. Faded wallpaper gave evidence to where artwork once hung on the walls. The shelves over the basin were barren save for one cooking pot and a white layer of dust. “Nothing from here.”

“Sell your father’s clothes,” her mother whispered reverently.

“But—” Catherine frowned. They had already sold his watch, his compass and his books.

“Don’t argue with me, I beg of you.” Her mother’s voice shook though her body stiffened, her hands clenching at her sides.

“Very well. I’ll pack them this morning.” After finishing her tea and washing up, Catherine climbed up into the attic. The roof was pitched so that she had to hunch over and walk in the center. The only light streamed through a small window that reminded her of a porthole on a ship.

Her father’s trunk sat beneath the window; she knelt before it and eased open the lid. The smell of the sea—salt and mustiness—wafted around her, but she welcomed it. The clothes smelled like her father, and just sitting before the large wooden sea chest brought a smile to her face. She could almost feel his arms around her—his hugs after a long journey at sea always made her feel as though their large colonial was a home once more.

His pea coat was the first item she pulled out of the chest. Navy blue and wool, it matched just about every coat worn by every other sailor save for one detail: a line of stitching on the left breast where the fabric was repaired after an accident at sea. She trailed her fingers over the thread sutures that held the wool together. He never revealed the nature of the accident but said this was his lucky coat after that, and that it would keep him safe. I wonder if he wore this the day he died.

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January 20, 2012 · 8:00 pm

Writing Music

Have you ever heard of “Mozart Makes You Smarter?”  An album released in the mid 1990′s, it followed the theory that Mozart’s compositions allow your brain to more efficiently store and recall information.

I feel as though the same is true for compositions by J.S. Bach and the creative centers of the brain.  For me, whenever I listen to Bach’s music, the writing not only comes easier but is of a better quality.  However, for me, any music is an aid to writing.  Although if it has lyrics, it has to be of a calm mood or I get distracted.

A friend of mine creates soundtracks for her characters and those songs help her to get into the mood.  I find it interesting how the brain works and sometimes find myself wondering whether all music does somehow unlock capacity in our brains, like Mozart’s, or if it just becomes Pavlovian.  Then I remind myself to stop wondering about it and get back to the writing. ;)

Weigh in–what type of music do you like to listen to while writing, or do you prefer complete silence?  I’m always curious to know where others stand on this as myself and a friend or two are hardly a reasonable sample size.  Feel free to suggest tracks too–my favorites of Bach’s are his Unaccompanied Cello Suites–any of them, all of them…played by Yo Yo Ma.

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· 8:00 am

With the right tools…

My journals for my handwritten novel project arrived.  I definitely recommend these to anyone wishing to write by hand.  Not only is their size ample enough to allow a good number of words per page, but they’re college ruled, which I prefer.

They open nicely too.  Nothing is more odious while trying to write than the book closing on your hand.  These open and lay flat, which will make them a breeze to use.  I also like that they’re hard cover, as I’ll be carrying whichever one I’m currently working in with me at all times.

This is the pen I will use.  It’s the only pen I like to use.  I first discovered the Pilot G-2 in college and marveled at the way it allowed me to take notes faster than ever before.  This pen has been well-rated all over the place and is very inexpensive.  Furthermore, many stores sell ink cartridges for it which cuts down on both cost and waste.

I wholeheartedly recommend this pen to everyone, whether you’re writing a book or a grocery list.

God’s War: A New History of the Crusades by Christopher Tyerman

This book has been both my inspiration and first source of research for my handwritten novel.  Of course, I haven’t finished reading it through yet.  It’s nearly 1,000 pages and it’s not the only book I’m reading right now.  But thus far, I think it’s well done.

Research is one of the elements of historical fiction I love.  Perhaps it takes longer to complete a story but writing historical fiction makes me feel so enriched–almost as though I’ve traveled in time (which I would only want to do for a day or two at maximum).

Of course, I also want to find some accounts written from the opposite perspective.  Tyerman’s work is written through the Western lens.

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