A Few Foundations of Fear in Fiction

By Bonnie Randall

Part of The How They Do It Series

JH: A lot of skill goes into making stories scary. Bonnie Randall shares five ways to put the fear into your fiction.

It’s that season again! Fears, frights, and bumps-in-the-night. If you’re like me, you’ve saved every scary book on your TBR list all year till finally you could crack the spine on October 1st. Or, if you’re really like me, you’re in the mood to brainstorm creepy plots and supernatural situations that could coalesce into a sensationally scary story of your own.

But what makes things frightening—and why the heck do we enjoy being scared in the first place? Isn’t that whole notion counterintuitive?

Yes…and no.

Forbidden Formats: The Risks and Rewards of Uncommon Narrative Structures

By Bonnie Randall

Part of The How They Do It Series

JH: Not every story needs to be told in the Three Act Structure. Bonnie Randall shares three examples of narrative structures that defy convention—and still work.

Every fiction writer from veteran to novice knows there’s a collection of “don’ts” when writing.

Don’t use adverbs

Don’t use adjectives

Don’t use any tag other than ‘said’.

Don’ts abound in narrative structures, too, (how the story is delivered). Nevertheless, this summer I’ve read several bodies of fiction that used ‘Forbidden Formats’ with outstanding results. Let’s unpack a few and analyze why they worked—and how they can be utilized in your fiction.

Accessing Deep Point of View Via Description—A Writing Exercise!

By Bonnie Randall

Part of The How They Do It Series

JH: POV is a vital and powerful tool for writers. Bonnie Randall shares a fun writing exercise to sharper your point-of-view skills.

Shout-out to the cable news personality who recently described a certain Canadian Premier as a “demonic hedgehog.” It didn’t just make me laugh, it also inspired this month’s column on accessing Deep Point of View via descriptions.

The way an individual sees the world offers insight into how we, in turn, see that individual. In other words, a benevolent and soft-spoken anchor would be unlikely to pair demons with hedgehogs. A sarcastic wise-guy though…? It’s demonic hedgehogs all the way, baby!

Think of the last time a character in your fiction was in a setting. Was the sun blistering their skin, or was it beaming? Did that same sun illuminate everything they’d rather not look at, or did they have to squint away their chronic hangover? Andrew, the hero of my paranormal suspense Within The Summit’s Shadow—and an acerbic, pessimistic kinda guy—travels to Vancouver for a stakeout where he “Sat in the pissing rain. Typical Vancouver.”

The Juggling Act! On Managing Multiple Projects

By Bonnie Randall

Part of The How They Do It Series

JH: Keeping up with multiple projects can leave a writer's head spinning. Bonnie Randall shares tips on how to manage and organize your writing projects.

A recent hit by Luke Combs is called “When It Rains It Pours” and YOWZA! That’s been my theme song lately.

I have a paranormal fiction project on the go, a series of children’s books that’s garnered a bid from a mainstream publisher, a consultative engagement with a Traumatic Response agency who’ve contracted several articles on COVID-as-a-traumatic-event from me, and if that wasn’t enough, two complete plots for a ‘drama-edy’ series I’ve been writing hit me out of the clear blue sky this past weekend.

Oh, and I write this column once a month.

How am I attending to all of this? How can I keep track of all of this?

Emotions and the Body: Less Cliché Ways the Body Responds to Emotional States

By Bonnie Randall

Part of The How They Do It Series

JH: If a cliché is a cliché for a reason, is it still a cliché? Bonnie Randall shares how common emotional responses actually connect with readers.

The other day I read a writing article that really lambasted authors who ‘overuse’ so-called clichéd emotional responses for their characters. “Readers,” the article said, “are really sick of hearing that someone’s gut dropped when they were startled or that their belly got loose when they were scared.”

I confess my heart sank (heh heh) when I saw this. First, as an author, I get a little shirty when I hear that readers are sick of this or sick of that. The snarky curmudgeon in me says “Well then maybe they should write their own damn books!” Second, though, those so-called clichés exist for a reason.

Deconstructing Deadly Illusions—What Not to Do With Your Manuscript

By Bonnie Randall

Part of The How They Do It Series 

JH: The smart writer learns from the mistakes of others. Bonnie Randall shares what went wrong with a story that made plenty of them, and how we can avoid those same mistakes.

Friends, because I’m a little salty these days, and because Netflix is a quadra-gajillion-earning empire (and therefore will not, in any way, suffer from this tiny hit piece), I decided to deconstruct one of their latest movies—a total stinkeroo called Deadly Illusions—in order to illustrate what not to do with your story.

So, if you’re prepared to hear a little snark, here we go:

Cathartic Writing & Cathartic Reading—An Intersection

By Bonnie Randall

Part of The Writer's Life Series 

JH: Stories do more than simply entertain or inform us. Bonnie Randall shares why reading is critical to good health, and why writers should write the tough stories.

‘Catharsis’—a word derived from the Greek Katharos; to purify, and Katharein; to cleanse. To experience catharsis is to know a sense of ‘renewal upon release’, and much material has been compiled on cathartic writing: there are analysis out there on everything from personal journaling to the Taylor Swift lyrics that appear to process the artist’s angsty relationships.

Less, though, has been written about the concept of cathartic reading, yet perhaps at no time quite like the unusual era we are living in now do the benefits of cathartic reading seem more profound.

Following is a compilation of reasons why the fiction and memoirs you—yes: YOU—are crafting right now are so incredibly valuable for the population you’re reaching out to.

How to Write Rich Characterization: A Cheat-Sheet

By Bonnie Randall

Part of The How They Do It Series 

JH: Wonderfully rich characters typically leads to a wonderfully rich novel. Bonnie Randall shares tips on how to reveal the depth and richness of your characters. 

A character is infinitely more than just who the author says they are. Like their living, breathing counterparts, fictional characters often reveal themselves in incidental ways. 

Here are five quick ways to help readers make powerful inferences about your characters:

1. Weave In Subtle Tells

My mom used to say you could see everything you needed to know about a man just by looking at his shoes, a crazy philosophy that actually holds water. Preferences and choices reveal much about who we are, where we come from, what we value…and what we don’t. Our clothes, music, art, vehicles, etc, are often as revealing as our actions and words. 

3 Quick Building Blocks to Creating Crackling Character Chemistry

By Bonnie Randall

Part of The How They Do It Series 

JH: When sparks fly between characters, so do the pages. Bonnie Randall shares tips on creating irresistible chemistry between your characters. 

So, I’m reading a novel right now—romantic suspense—and I’m enthralled by the snap-crackle-pop of sexual tension between two of the characters.

Except…I don’t think they’re the characters the author intended me to get giddy for. In fact it might even freak her out to know that the hottest couple she created is… <drumroll> the hero and the heroine’s grandmother.

Yes. Grandmother.

(Hey—don’t look at me that way. I don’t make the news, I just report it).

An Exercise in Layering & Depth: 25 Questions to Ask Your Characters

By Bonnie Randall

Part of The How They Do It Series 

JH: I don't think I know a single writer who isn't interested in better ways to develop characters (grin). Bonnie Randall shares 25 questions to help you figure out just who that character is. 

Some of the most telling moments of character definition—for both real people, and the fictional ones we craft—is when they are

• made vulnerable
• forced to choose
• made to reveal their morals or their values

The following battery of questions, when asked of your MC (or secondary) offer an opportunity into insight as to who they really are…and also illuminates who they envision becoming. 

The Scary Season: Tips on Bringing the Scary to Your Novel

By Bonnie Randall

Part of The How They Do It Series 

JH: We can learn a lot by studying other authors' novels. Bonnie Randall shares two novels that taught her a lot about tension and making readers crawl out of their skins. 

Halloween and horror. One cannot be peeled from the other, and we expect to be scared during this spooky season. Seems to me though, that some of the best—or perhaps most effective—frights happen when we are not expecting them. 

This month I’m going to do a quick deconstruction of two novels I’ve read this year, pointing out the elements that made them such effectively horrifying reads—devices to be stored on the index cards we keep in our heads which build our own stories’ scaffolding. 

*Caution: Spoilers abound here, so if these novels are on your TBR pile, you might want to bookmark this post until after you’ve read them. 

Employ the Four Seasons to Enhance Atmosphere in Your Novel

By Bonnie Randall

Part of The How They Do It Series 

JH: Dipping into the archives today for a golden oldie from Bonnie Randall on how writers can take advantage of the four seasons to establish tone and mood in their novels.

Frankie Valli alone can’t establish a mood in your novel—but the literal four seasons just might.

First, though, let’s consider what comprises atmosphere. Certainly the five senses play a leading role, but real richly atmospheric pieces also play off a reader’s presentiment to a location, their innate responses to it. 

Consider, for example, author Barbara Michaels (aka Elizabeth Peters). Michaels loved setting her Gothic mysteries in sprawling old mansions with closed off wings and dusty rooms. 

BOOM! there’s your atmosphere; all of us can immediately appreciate the sense of dread, fear, mystery (maybe even doom) when faced with an old building like this. 

What Doesn’t Work? Learning from the Mistakes of Even the (gasp!) Greats

By Bonnie Randall

Part of The How They Do It Series 

JH: Some authors are bestsellers in spite of gaffs in their writing, not because of them. Bonnie Randall share a few things to avoid--even if a Big Name Author does it. 

Stephen King said “If you don’t have the time to read, you don’t have the time (or the tools) to write” and it’s true. Writers collect ribbons of prose, excellent syntax, and well-executed transitions like precious stones in a jar, for once you’re a writer you can never be ‘just’ a reader again. Your eye becomes keenly honed for what works.

It’s also honed for what stinks.

Right now I am reading a novel by someone pretty prolific and very famous, and what I enjoy about their work is the mastery of pacing and plotting.

How to Weave Setting Into a Deep Point-of-View

By Bonnie Randall

Part of The How They Do It Series 

JH: A sense of place can transport a reader to your story's world. Bonnie Randall shares tips on how deep point of view can enhance your novel's settings. 

The art of Deep Point-of-View projects everything within a scene through the unique lens of a character. Deep POV incorporates the goal / motivation / current conflict into this projection, but is also mindful of many other variables that make up the character, including:

• Gender
• Age
• Culture
• Ethnicity
• Geography
• Era/Generation
• Education / lack thereof
• Profession
• Beliefs
• World View
• Values
• History
• (And others).

Why You Can't Concentrate Right Now

By Bonnie Randall

Part of The Writer's Life Series 

JH: Writers everywhere are experiencing something that's far worse that simple writer's block, and for a very good reason. Bonnie Randall shares why it's hard for us to focus right now. 

It has been a wild year. 2020 has impacted the quantity, consistency, and flow of my writing. Productivity has been a challenge because my concentration has been nebulous, jittery.

Unsurprisingly, many other writers and content creators are reporting similar challenges—and as a result I’ve seen multiple articles offering solutions to these issues: ‘How To Stay focused During COVID’, ‘How To Muscle Through the Multitude of World Events And Keep Creating Content’, ‘How To Crank Out a Bestseller In the Midst Of Global Meltdowns (I should probably take a peek at that one). 'Writing in the Time of Covid-19'

The Antithesis Method: A Simple Solution to Getting Unstuck in a Scene

By Bonnie Randall

Part of The How They Do It Series 

JH: Stuck in a scene? Maybe going forward isn't the right way to handle it. Bonnie Randall shares her method for fixing a troublesome scene. 

A challenge I have used when stuck on a scene that feels wooden, isn’t working, or just refuses to write itself is something I have nicknamed “The Antithesis Method,” and it’s as simple as this:

Just write the scene precisely opposite of how you had planned to write it. If they were going to be friends, make them fight. If they were robbing a bank, have them get robbed. If they were headed to a wedding, land them at a funeral.

Sound like a lot of work and a lot of dismantling? Trust me, it is—put it can be well worth it.

The Power of Journaling Through Difficult Times

By Bonnie Randall

Part of The Writer's Life Series 

JH: Writing can entertain, inform, and even heal. Bonnie Randall shares thoughts and tips on the therapeutic power of journaling. 

These are strange times and, like much else these days, this month’s column is going to deviate from the norm. We’re still going to talk about writing—just not fiction. Not even anything for publication. We’re going to talk about writing that heals and soothes the stressed brain during the most unprecedented time we will ever see in our lives.

Journaling from the Heart, For Your Heart

In my day job as a therapeutic counselor, I assign journaling all the time. It is not an uncommon practice in or out of the counseling room; one quick peek at Pintrest and you’ll be overwhelmed with articles about journaling, journaling prompts, and even journaling doodles you can incorporate onto your pages.

The Grieving Process & Finishing Your Novel

By Bonnie Randall

Part of The Writer's Life Series 

JH: Writing a novel is a commitment, and when that "relationship" ends, it can be traumatic. Bonnie Randall shares tips and thoughts on dealing with novel grief. 

Truman Capote said “Finishing a book is just like you took your child out into the back yard and shot it.”

Writing a novel is a full-time immersion into an alternate reality within which we live for extensive stretches of time—creating characters who, by our own intense efforts, are as three-dimensional as any flesh and blood person we’ve ever encountered, and settings as vivid as any locale we’ve ever been to.

Naturally, then, we form relationships with the acutely real people and places we create.

The Story on Your Heart Is the Story Readers Want to Hear

By Bonnie Randall

Part of The How They Do It Series 

JH: There are a lot of reasons not to write that novel you're itching to write. Bonnie Randall shares a lot of reason why you should.

“I had this really cool dream sequence in my story, but…dream sequences will make an agent stop reading, so I can’t.”

“I have a prologue but all the writing articles say they’re a no. So I can’t keep it.”

“I have this amazing plot on my mind, but the characters are all overdone—so I can’t write it.”

“I’ve sketched out this beautiful book of schedules, budget planning, inspirational quotes and lists, but there are so many already on the market. So I can’t write mine.”

I follow many writers on social media, and over the last several weeks this theme—I want to, but I can’t—has recurred, in variant forms, again and again. So much, in fact, that I want to scream:

“WHO TOLD YOU THAT?!”

Kick the Social Media Addiction

By Bonnie Randall

Part of The Writer's Life Series 

JH: Social media has its uses, but when it sucks away our lives, joy, and creative energy, it doesn't do any writer any good. Bonnie Randall shares some scary numbers on what social media can do to your writing and your life.

Even as I write this, the ensuing hypocrisy is not lost on me: most of you will all be reading it off a screen, and will have likely arrived her via some social media platform; Facebook, Twitter, or the like.

Nonetheless:

I have arrived at a writing resolution for 2020 that’s been a long time coming, and a longer time needed. My own addiction to social media is a problem, and I’ve known it for a while—but it is not until now, with a few lofty fiction goals[1] in my near future, that I have actually wanted to make a change.