Guest Author Myra McEntire: On Brainstorming

Toady I’d like to welcome Myra McEntire to the blog and get down and dirty with a little brainstorming. She has a few tricks that I use myself (the shower thing? Totally works) and a bunch of others that I might try. I especially like #10, especially on a Friday. And a Monday. Heck, most days. Myra’s young adult novel, Hourglass, debuts next week on June 14th, so mark your calendars, folks.

About Myra
Myra McEntire knows the words to every R&B hit of the last decade, but since she lives in Nashville, the country music capital of America, her lyrical talents go sadly unappreciated. She’s chosen, instead, to channel her “mad word skills” into creating stories infused with her love of music.

Take it away Myra…

Brainstorming fuels my storytelling, and happens at every level of a story’s creation for me. Sometimes even when I’m done! (Who tweaked names and places the day before her book went to press? That’d be me.)

Noteworthy Links: Creating Conflict

There's a wonderful interview with Elizabeth Loupas on Writer Unboxed, where she talks about conflict and how to use it in your novel. She has some great tips on adding conflict in small and subtle ways, plus some tips on software that helps her keep track. It's a great interview.

I especially like how she talks about the little ways you can add conflict. Simple details, small observations, almost unremarkable things yet they cast an uncomfortable tone over an otherwise normal scene or event. You guys know how much I love the subtleties in writing and her example of a creepy way to peel an orange is right up my alley.

What are your thoughts on creating conflict? Is it easy for you or hard? Do you have favorite tricks you use to keep the tension up? Problem areas you wish you could find tricks to help you with them?

Thinking to Myself: Internalization 101

From a writing standpoint, internalization is what the character is thinking. It’ll comprise a lot of your narrative, especially if you have a tight POV, so it makes sense that it would be fertile ground for some common writing snags. POV shifts, infodumps, backstory, the dreaded telling. Unsurprisingly, all things that occur when the writer forgets to be “internal” and looks at things from the outside. Internalization is personal. It’s often where you really get to know a character because they’re the most “them” in those internal moments.

The dictionary definitions for internalization are quite useful here:

Definition #1: to incorporate (the cultural values, mores, motives, etc., of another or of a group), as through learning, socialization, or identification.

Making An (Exclamation) Point

OMG!!! You can't ever use exclamation points!!! Ever!!!

Exclamation points are a troublesome beast. Like adverbs, we get lots of advice to cut them out of our books. But like so many nevers, it's more about proper usage than the exclamation point itself. They do have uses and are valuable tools to show emphasis. But too many become visually distracting. If readers are yanked away from the story by punctuation, that's a problem.

She was so lost! She couldn't believe how stupid she was, leaving her compass in the tent! What an idiot! A total idiot! Arrgghhh!

Multiple exclamation points like this dilute the exclamation. Did you keep reading the sentences as exclamations, or did you just read them all the same intensity after the first few? If everything being said is exclaimed -- and thus emphasized -- then nothing stands out. If nothing stands out, what's the point of the exclamation point in the first place? Periods would achieve the same result.

Real Life Diagnostics: Does This Opening Work?

Real Life Diagnostics is a recurring column that studies a snippet of a work in progress for specific issues. Readers are encouraged to send in work with questions, and I diagnose them on the blog. It’s part critique, part example, designed to help the submitter as well as anyone else having a similar problem.

If you're interested in submitting to Real Life Diagnostics, check out the page for guidelines.

On to the diagnosis…

We have another opening this week. (Actually, I think openings will be pretty common for a long time, but that’s okay since they’re tough and lot can be learned from examining them). Today’s author wants to know:

1. Is it too slow a start?
2. Is there enough here to keep someone's interest for another page? Cause the figurative bomb drops on page 2.
3. Is this opening situation believable? 'Cause that worries me.
4. Do these feel like 17 year olds?

Original Text:
Jesse wore her cap and gown over the top of her wedding dress. Kevin gazed into her eyes and declared his love with such fervency that half the women sobbed into their hankies. I admit, I might have teared up for a moment myself. Lucky for me, no one else knew about my brief time with Kevin. It had been a test to see if our friendship could be more, but it only took a week for us to agree that we made better friends than lovers.

The next week I introduced him to Jesse, and the rest as they say in the story books is history. Truly happy for both, I performed my maid of honor duties with ease. I grew restless while they danced surrounded by the rest of our graduating class. The music drummed inside my head and all I could think of was getting out.

Jesse sat down beside me. “Are you alright?”

“Yeah, why do you ask?”

“I dunno. Usually you’d be out there dancing with us.” Jesse flicked her head toward the gyrating mass of bodies.

“Headache.” I tapped my temple.

“Why don’t you walk through the garden or something? I don’t want any wall flowers at my graduation party.”

“I thought this was your wedding reception.” I squinted at her.

“Of course it is, but Daddy wouldn’t pay for both, so I’m combining them. Just because I got married doesn’t mean we can’t celebrate the end of high school.” She laughed and started bobbing her shoulders in time with the music.

Worry overwhelmed me. “Jesse, is this really what you want? It’s not too late. I think you can get the marriage annulled if you back out now. Come to college with me.” I grabbed her hands in mine. “We have our whole lives ahead of us.”

My Thoughts in Purple:
Jesse wore her cap and gown over the top of her wedding dress. Intriguing first line. Kevin gazed into her eyes and declared his love with such fervency that half the [women] women makes this feel older than 17 to me, so it colors the paragraph with an adult vibe sobbed into their hankies. I admit, I might have teared up for a moment myself. Lucky for me, no one else knew about my brief time with Kevin. It had been a test to see if our friendship could be more, but it only took a week for us to agree that we made better friends than [lovers.] Same with lovers. While teens do have sex, you don’t always automatically equate lovers with teens. Those words make the narrator feel older, even if Jesse is a teen.

The next week I introduced him to Jesse, and the rest as they say in the story books is history. Truly happy for both, I performed my maid of honor duties with ease. I grew restless while they danced surrounded by the rest of our graduating class. The music drummed inside my head and all I could think of was getting out. You lose me in this para because it’s backstory and then a jump ahead in time. These two paragraphs also sound more adult to me due to the words I mentioned above. Cap and gown and graduating class are the only words that suggest these characters aren’t older.

Jesse sat down beside me. “Are you [alright?]” Personal pet peeve: all right

“Yeah, why do you ask?”

“I dunno. Usually you’d be out there dancing with us.” Jesse flicked her head toward the gyrating mass of bodies.

“Headache.” I tapped my temple.

“Why don’t you walk through the garden or something? I don’t want any wall flowers at my graduation party.”

“I thought this was your wedding reception.” I squinted at her. Perhaps flip these sentences?

“Of course it is, but Daddy wouldn’t pay for both, so I’m combining them. Just because I got married doesn’t mean we can’t celebrate the end of high school.” She laughed and started bobbing her shoulders in time with the music.

Worry overwhelmed me. “Jesse, is this really what you want? It’s not too late. I think you can get the marriage annulled if you back out now. Come to college with me.” I grabbed her hands in mine. “We have our whole lives ahead of us.”

Let’s answer the questions first:

1. Is it too slow a start?
A bit, but only because of the summary of the first two paragraphs. The actual story doesn’t start until Jesse sits down. The beginning is set up.

2. Is there enough here to keep someone's interest for another page? Cause the figurative bomb drops on page 2.
I think the pieces are there. The wedding dress under the graduation gown was interesting, and the narrator having a prior relationship (even briefly) with the groom shows conflict. Daddy not being willing to pay for more than one party was also intriguing. Did he approve of this marriage or was he unhappy about it? From just this set up I suspect the bomb about to be dropped is that Jesse is pregnant, but only because that’s the most common reason to get married suddenly. But this is more about Jesse and Kevin, and I’m not sure what the narrator wants besides college.

3. Is this opening situation believable? 'Cause that worries me.
I’m buying it so far. I can see a young couple getting married at graduation, making the best of what they have, being crazy and reckless and wild. It’s an unlikely situation, but stories are about pushing situations over the top for dramatic effect.

4. Do these feel like 17 year olds?
They do once they start talking. The opening paragraphs sounded older to me (see above comments), but I suspect that’s also partly because it’s summing up the scene so it’s more the author than the POV in voice.

My Suggestions
I’m not sure if this is starting in the right spot yet. The very beginning hints that the narrator might be sad about her friend getting married (her wanting out, the headache) and maybe this was about lost love or opportunities, with the narrator losing her best friend Kevin. Then it shifts and she comes across more like Jesse’s friend, and wanting her to go to college with her, worried she made a mistake getting married. I’m not sure which “side” the narrator is on, so I don’t know how to put this wedding into context with what she wants and fears. I don’t know what her goal is.

What is the narrator most concerned about? Where does this scene take the story? Since it starts with the wedding, how is the wedding important? What happens here that starts the protag on the plot path to the core conflict of the novel? What does all this mean to her on a personal level?

I like the imagery and idea of the wedding dress under the graduation gown, but I’m not sure how it ties into the story since the narrator seems to be going in a different direction from Jesse and Kevin. Perhaps use the wedding as a thematic element to illustrate the narrator’s problem or conflict. Maybe something about this mirrors another issue that’s central to the story. Or if this is the central problem, perhaps let the narrator think about it earlier so the reader knows how this fits.

If the wedding isn’t that important and it’s just the fact that these two got/are married, then perhaps start the story later instead. Or earlier if trying to stop the wedding matters. (just tossing out ideas here since I don’t know the story) The title is Faerie Wings, so I have a feeling “freedom and flying away” might be themes and the wedding connects to that in some way. Perhaps that can connect the situation and the narrator’s goals. If this is about running off to college, then perhaps just trim the first two paragraphs and fill readers in while the narrator and Jesse talk.

It’s a solid start, and I think if the author clarifies where the narrator is at emotionally and how this scene triggers the plot, they’ll know the right opening and what this needs to show. That might only be a few words here and there to reposition this and strengthen the scene goal, or it might be a longer wedding scene.

Thanks to our brave volunteer for submitting this for me to play with. Feel free to comment and make suggestions of your own, just remember that these pieces are works in progress, not polished drafts, so be nice and offer constructive comments.

Expect the Unexpected: Creating Plot Twists

We're all looking for a great plot twist, right? Be it in the books we write or ones we read. That unexpected event or revelation that changes everything we thought we knew and takes it to a whole new level. The things that make us go, "wow, that was awesome. I never saw that coming."

Trouble is, knowing you want one is a lot easier than coming up with a good are. There is no formula for devising a great twist, because every plot is different and any number of things can work in a story. My trick for twisting my plot is pretty simple:

Reader expectations.

Now, I'm not talking about what readers expect when they pick up your book, but what they expect in how a scene plays out or how a character acts.

Noteworthy Links: Writing By Design

If you poke around the blog you'll notice that I often equate building a story to building a house. Live To Write...Edit When Necessary did a fantastic post about how writing was like interior design. I love how she broke it down, because she makes it so clear and simple how some harder to get ideas work. Like what voice is, how mood works, how pacing affects the story. Go read this one, 'cause by golly I wish I'd written it.

What kind of writing similes do you use? Is there a process that helps you put the writing pieces together?

Knowing What You Know: And Writing About It

We hear this all the time: Write what you know.

Does this mean if you're a graphic designer, you should only write about graphic designers? Doctors should only write about doctors? Third-grade teachers should only write about third-grade teachers?

I don't think so, because most people don't want to read about what they know. They want to read about what they don't know. It's our jobs as writers to make that unknown, feel known. To make what isn't possible feel real.

We can do this by using what we know, even if we know it in a way that's not the least bit story worthy.

Noteworthy Links: Is Hard Work Better Than Talent?

Terri Giuliano Long wrote a very intriguing article about talent vs work. It's something I think every writer should consider once in a while, because there are a lot of talented writers out there, but publishing is more than just a showcase for your creative skill. It's a business, and there are so many factors that go into writing and selling a novel.

Talent probably won't do it on its own. It's gives you an advantage, sure, but you still need to learn the skills to be a commercial writer. I'm a firm believer that those writing skill can be learned (otherwise I wouldn't work so hard on this blog) but talent does play a role. It's often that intangible spark that sets one book (or writer) apart from another. I don't think that if you're having trouble getting published it's because you have no talent. Sometimes it's a market or sales factor holding you back, other times it's a skill you're missing, and sometimes, it's just the wrong book for the current publishing culture. And sometimes, yeah, it's is because you have no natural talent. Can hard work make up for that? I don't know. But I bet folks have done it.

The writers that make it are usually the ones who work hard to get there, and make the most of the talent they have. Whether it's writing skill, storytelling skill, or the ability to understand the market and write something highly sellable.

What do you think? How important is talent to being a successful writer?

Laying it on the Lie: Commonly Misused Words

There are some words that trip up just about everyone, and it's hard to remember the correct usage. Words like father and further, lay and lie, less and fewer. It doesn't help that we see them wrong all the time in the real world on signs, either. We get so used to it that we don't even noticed it in our own work when goof up and use them wrong.

But being a writer is all about using the right word, so it's important to check those words before we send our manuscripts off into the world. Even when you know the correct usage, it's still easy to mix them up.

I have some little tricks I use to keep them all straight.

For funsies, let's do this in quiz format!

Lay vs Lie
A. Bob wanted to lie down after hacking up the zombies.
B. Bob wanted to lay down after hacking up the zombies.
C. The zombie head lay over by the desk.
D. The zombie head laid over by the desk.
E. Jane laid the zombie head on the desk.