Links of Interest

CRAFT: That first page of your novel. What it needs and what it doesn't.

http://storyflip.blogspot.com/2010/09/250-chances.html

BUSINESS OF PUBLISHING: Enhanced ebook rights versus movie rights.

http://ereads.com/2010/09/will-enhanced-e-books-kill-movie-deals-were-about-to-find-out.html

CRAFT: How to avoid being preachy.

http://cba-ramblings.blogspot.com/2010/09/how-to-make-point-without-being-preachy.html

CRIME FICTION RESOURCE: Crimespace is for readers and writers of crime fiction with info about books and writing. A really excellent list of research resources.

http://crimespace.ning.com/

PROMOTION: The value or lack of value of giving away your writing in different stages of your career, including unpublished.

http://writerunboxed.com/2010/09/24/giving-stuff-away-is-not-a-strategy/

PACE: Creating pace in a thriller.

http://killzoneauthors.blogspot.com/2010/09/ten-tips-on-pace-structure-of-thriller.html

FORENSICS: Exhumation of a body.

http://clarissadraper.blogspot.com/2010/09/mystery-writers-guide-to-forensic_22.html

PROMOTION: Author branding.

http://warriorwriters.wordpress.com/2010/09/22/more-than-an-author-how-to-become-a-household-name-branding-101/

PLOTTING FROM CHARACTER

http://edittorrent.blogspot.com/2010/09/plotting-from-character.html

SEQUELS: Should you or shouldn't you?

http://betweenfactandfiction.blogspot.com/2010/09/stuff-to-consider-about-writing-sequels.html

PICK YOUR OWN PLOT CLICHES: Humor.

http://wondermark.com/c/2009-09-22-554fiction.gif

CHARACTERS: Resources on mental illness.

http://talktoyouniverse.blogspot.com/2010/09/so-your-characters-insane-what-does.html

HISTORICAL FANTASY UP TO STEAMPUNK: A three-part blog on the past, present, and future (steampunk) in historical fantasy.

http://www.adventuresinscifipublishing.com/2010/09/historical-fantasy-part-one/

CHARACTERS: Quirks and hobbies that will make a character more interesting.

http://pbackwriter.blogspot.com/2010/09/quirk-ten.html

COPYRIGHT AND CONTRACTS: A loophole in the 1978 Copyright Act will allow authors with book contracts from that period to renegotiate their terms.

http://ereads.com/2010/09/copyright-asteroid-hurtling-toward-earth-impact-due-2013.html

PROMOTION: Online blog tours.

http://writerunboxed.com/2010/09/27/coordinating-a-book-blog-tour-dotting-your-rs-and-crossing-your…-rs/

CHARACTERS: The psychology of the serial killer.

http://writersforensicsblog.wordpress.com/2010/09/27/the-psychology-of-a-serial-killer-guest-blogger/

CHARACTERS: What to show and not show in the first scenes with your main character.

http://annerallen.blogspot.com/2010/09/12-dos-and-donts-for-introducing-your.html

CONFLICT: Why should the reader care?

http://helpineedapublisher.blogspot.com/2010/09/conflict-why-should-we-care_20.html

STORY: Back story, present story, and hidden story in a novel.

http://ht.ly/2IEfE

COPYRIGHT: 10 misconceptions about copyright.

http://www.templetons.com/brad/copymyths.html

BLOGGER GOODIES: New features and apps for Blogger.com blogs.

http://www.abloggersbooks.com/2010/09/bloggers-got-new-features.html

~*~

Marilynn's Workshop Schedule and Information Links

http://marilynnbyerly.com/workshopschedule.html

Last week to register. "Magic, Monsters and Amour: Creating a Believable Paranormal, Fantasy, or SF World." October 4-31, 2010. Savvyauthors.com

Are vampires, fairies, and space aliens real? If you create the right background for your paranormal romance, they will be to a reader. I'll show you how to create a fantasy or paranormal background from scratch and how to make it utterly believable.

"The Big Question: How to Create a Powerful Novel from a Few Ideas and One Big Question" November 8-13, 2010. writersonline.com.

Have you ever read a story then felt dissatisfied by it as you put it down? All the story elements--plot, characters, romance, and suspense--were there, but something was missing. That something is often called depth or resonance, and it's that element that turns an ordinary story into one you couldn't put down.

How do you write a story like that? It starts with the creation of the story. I?ll show you how to take a simple plot idea, premise, or character and turn it into a novel with resonance.

"Deconstructing Jim Butcher's STORM FRONT" November 8-13, 2010. Savvyauthors.com

Jim Butcher's "Dresden Files" series is one of the best-written and most successful urban fantasy series today. I will analyze STORM FRONT, the first novel, as an urban fantasy, as a genre-blending mix of fantasy and detective noir, and as a great model for worldbuilding for a series. I will also show how the hero, Harry Dresden, is a perfect mixture of other worldly powers and human strengths and weaknesses. Paranormal romance authors will also find this analysis of interest.

Voice, CRAFT

I've read somewhere that an author doesn't have a voice or true style until they have written over a million words. This is true to a certain extent. By the time we've written that long, we've stopped trying to copy our favorite authors or second guess ourselves, etc., if for no other reason than we're tired of doing that.

Some writers don't read the kind of fiction they write while they are working on a book for fear that they will start copying a writer's voice instead of using their own.

Voice is more than just the use or misuse of metaphors, etc. I know I choose the language I use because of the character's viewpoint I'm in. (I write strict third-person viewpoint.)

One character might see a plane wreck and describe it in my narrative as

The plane's pieces were scattered over the valley like clothes dropped by a drunk on the way to bed.

Another character who is more analytical would think

The gouge of earth left by the plane's moving fuselage led him to a boulder. The left wing tip lay against it. The furrow veered violently left there, and bits of wing then fuselage littered the area around it. When there was nothing left of the plane to break apart, the gouge ended.

The author must also choose voice by the genre expectations of the readers. Choosing the wrong voice can be quite jarring.

Can you imagine a romance novel written like a "noir" detective novel.

I can say this for Lord Garven, he was built, built like Cleopatra's Needle, but I walked away alone in the dark, dank London fog. I had my partner to avenge, and he had a date with Lord Southby.

One big mistake I've seen used by beginning writers is emulating the wrong writers, especially writers from the past.

A friend had this thing for Sinclair Lewis who wrote in the early 20th century, but I had to explain to him that Lewis' style was hopelessly outdated with its languid pace, florid style, and sentence structure, and with the current tastes of editors and readers, he would find no readers.

It's equally disastrous to emulate the current literary style of the moment like writing in second immediate or first person immediate.

I look at Lord Garven. He is built. Like Cleopatra's Needle. But I shake my head no and walk through the door. I must find my partner's killer.

or

You look at Lord Garven. He is built. Like Cleopatra's Needle. But you shake your head no and walk through the door. You must find your partner's killer.

By the time you're publishable, the moment is long gone.

What I'm saying is find the right voice for each work, and your own voice will emerge.

~*~

Marilynn's Workshop Schedule and Information Links

http://marilynnbyerly.com/workshopschedule.html

Final Week of Registration! "Magic, Monsters and Amour: Creating a Believable Paranormal, Fantasy, or SF World." October 4-31, 2010. Savvyauthors.com

Are vampires, fairies, and space aliens real? If you create the right background for your paranormal romance, they will be to a reader. I'll show you how to create a fantasy or paranormal background from scratch and how to make it utterly believable.

"The Big Question: How to Create a Powerful Novel from a Few Ideas and One Big Question" November 1-28, 2010. writersonline.com.

Have you ever read a story then felt dissatisfied by it as you put it down? All the story elements--plot, characters, romance, and suspense--were there, but something was missing. That something is often called depth or resonance, and it's that element that turns an ordinary story into one you couldn't put down.

How do you write a story like that? It starts with the creation of the story. I?ll show you how to take a simple plot idea, premise, or character and turn it into a novel with resonance.

"Deconstructing Jim Butcher's STORM FRONT" November 8-13, 2010. Savvyauthors.com

Jim Butcher's "Dresden Files" series is one of the best-written and most successful urban fantasy series today. I will analyze STORM FRONT, the first novel, as an urban fantasy, as a genre-blending mix of fantasy and detective noir, and as a great model for worldbuilding for a series. I will also show how the hero, Harry Dresden, is a perfect mixture of other worldly powers and human strengths and weaknesses. Paranormal romance authors will also find this analysis of interest.

Links of Interest

AGENTS: Info links to lots of how-to articles on queries, etc., as well as links to agent blogs, etc.

http://mysterywritingismurder.blogspot.com/2010/09/looking-for-agentthoughts-and-resources.html

WEBSITES: Should or shouldn't you design your website or blog?

http://blog.writersdigest.com/norules/2010/09/17/ShouldYouHireSomeoneToDesignYourWebsite.aspx

CRITIQUE SERVICES: How to pick a good one.

http://nailyournovel.wordpress.com/2010/08/22/how-to-choose-a-good-writing-critique-service/

CHARACTERS: How to make a likable character.

http://www.darkangelwritingandreviews.com/2010/09/thirteen-ways-to-make-characters.html

BLOGS FOR WRITERS:

http://www.bubblecow.co.uk/blogs-for-writers/

WORLDBUILDING: How one writer created an alien language.

http://talktoyouniverse.blogspot.com/2010/09/alien-language-introduction-to-aurrel.html

NOVEL STRUCTURE 101:

http://www.genreality.net/the-quick-and-dirty-guide-to-structure-or-stories-are-made-of-threes

THE NOVEL PITCH: Eleven questions you need to answer.

http://cba-ramblings.blogspot.com/2010/09/11-questions-for-crafting-pitch.html

REVISION/REWRITING: Working in layers.

http://mysterywritingismurder.blogspot.com/2010/09/writing-and-revising-in-layers.html

FORENSICS: The perfect murder poison?

http://writersforensicsblog.wordpress.com/2010/09/20/succinylcholine-an-anesthetist’s-view-guest-blogger/

BUSINESS OF PUBLISHING: What to do before your publisher applies for bankruptcy.

http://pubrants.blogspot.com/2010/09/if-you-think-publisher-will-be-filing.html

CRAFT: How to make things go horribly wrong for your characters.

http://storyflip.blogspot.com/2010/09/re-write-wednesday-oh-what-now.html

MARKETS: A blog which interviews editors, etc., of different markets for short stories, novels, etc. Recent interviews have focused on markets for mystery.

http://sixquestionsfor.blogspot.com/

~*~

Marilynn's Workshop Schedule and Information Links

http://marilynnbyerly.com/workshopschedule.html

"Magic, Monsters and Amour: Creating a Believable Paranormal, Fantasy, or SF World." October 4-31, 2010. Savvyauthors.com

Are vampires, fairies, and space aliens real? If you create the right background for your paranormal romance, they will be to a reader. I'll show you how to create a fantasy or paranormal background from scratch and how to make it utterly believable.

"The Big Question: How to Create a Powerful Novel from a Few Ideas and One Big Question" November 8-13, 2010. writersonline.com.

Have you ever read a story then felt dissatisfied by it as you put it down? All the story elements--plot, characters, romance, and suspense--were there, but something was missing. That something is often called depth or resonance, and it's that element that turns an ordinary story into one you couldn't put down.

How do you write a story like that? It starts with the creation of the story. I?ll show you how to take a simple plot idea, premise, or character and turn it into a novel with resonance.

"Deconstructing Jim Butcher's STORM FRONT" November 8-13, 2010. Savvyauthors.com

Jim Butcher's "Dresden Files" series is one of the best-written and most successful urban fantasy series today. I will analyze STORM FRONT, the first novel, as an urban fantasy, as a genre-blending mix of fantasy and detective noir, and as a great model for worldbuilding for a series. I will also show how the hero, Harry Dresden, is a perfect mixture of other worldly powers and human strengths and weaknesses. Paranormal romance authors will also find this analysis of interest.

The Selfish Goal, CRAFT

A powerful novel needs a main character with an important goal he must achieve by the end of the novel. At all costs, the main character must achieve the goal or fail utterly with devastating cost to him and those around him.

A recent novel I tried to read reminded me of when that goal won't work.

Here's the premise. The heroine is the standard urban fantasy woman-- incredible supernatural abilities, snappy leather outfit and dialogue, sharp weapons, and a supernatural boyfriend. So far, so good.

Even better, she is the prophesied warrior who can stop the supernatural baddies before they can start the Apocalypse by opening the gates to Hell.

The Big Bad holds her innocent kid sister hostage, and the ransom is the keys to open all of Hell's gates to Earth.

She must decide whether to save her kid sister by helping the demons of Hell wipe out human life or lose her sister and save everyone else.

A no-brainer, right? She'd choose to save humanity.

Instead, she chooses to help the demons end life on Earth with the very faint possibility she may be able to stop them.

At this point in the novel, I said some rude things about the stupidity and selfishness of the heroine and stopped reading because this wasn't a heroine I could root for.

When you are thinking about your main character's goal for the novel, remember that it must be a goal the reader can root for. Saving a sibling is a good thing but saving a sibling at the cost of everyone else's life is a bad thing.

A hero's goal is selfless, not selfish.

~*~

Marilynn's Workshop Schedule and Information Links

http://marilynnbyerly.com/workshopschedule.html

"Magic, Monsters and Amour: Creating a Believable Paranormal, Fantasy, or SF World." October 4-31, 2010. Savvyauthors.com

Are vampires, fairies, and space aliens real? If you create the right background for your paranormal romance, they will be to a reader. I'll show you how to create a fantasy or paranormal background from scratch and how to make it utterly believable.

"The Big Question: How to Create a Powerful Novel from a Few Ideas and One Big Question" November 8-13, 2010. writersonline.com.

Have you ever read a story then felt dissatisfied by it as you put it down? All the story elements--plot, characters, romance, and suspense--were there, but something was missing. That something is often called depth or resonance, and it's that element that turns an ordinary story into one you couldn't put down.

How do you write a story like that? It starts with the creation of the story. I’ll show you how to take a simple plot idea, premise, or character and turn it into a novel with resonance.

"Deconstructing Jim Butcher's STORM FRONT" November 8-13, 2010. Savvyauthors.com

Jim Butcher's "Dresden Files" series is one of the best-written and most successful urban fantasy series today. I will analyze STORM FRONT, the first novel, as an urban fantasy, as a genre-blending mix of fantasy and detective noir, and as a great model for worldbuilding for a series. I will also show how the hero, Harry Dresden, is a perfect mixture of other worldly powers and human strengths and weaknesses. Paranormal romance authors will also find this analysis of interest.

Links of Interest

PROMOTION: The virtual book tour.

http://www.ninc.com/blog/index.php/archives/virtual-book-tour

RESEARCH RESOURCES: Native American resources. (A PDF version is available on a link at the right.

http://crln.acrl.org/content/71/8/430.full

PROMOTION: Working with an out-of-house publicist.

http://writerunboxed.com/2010/09/12/working-with-an-out-of-house-publicist/

PROMOTION: Running a Facebook page.

http://confidentwriting.com/2010/09/a-simple-guide-to-running-a-facebook-page

CRAFT: Sneaky backstory.

http://fictiongroupie.blogspot.com/2010/09/that-sneaky-backstory.html

MYSTERY WRITING BLOGS

http://sisters-in-crime-sinc.blogspot.com/2010/09/mystery-and-writing-group-blogs.html

PROMOTION: Writing a better "about me" page.

http://michaelhyatt.com/10-ways-to-create-a-better-about-page-for-your-blog.html

BOOK GENRES: Listings of genres and subgenre types.

http://ht.ly/2zOWw

SCENE STRUCTURE: What each scene needs to work.

http://www.tribalwriter.com/2010/09/07/the-key-element-that-every-good-scene-needs-or-how-to-change-the-game-in-your-novel/

THE WRITER'S LIFE: How taking time off for yourself can improve your writing.

http://wow-womenonwriting.com/41-FE1-TakeABreakForCreativity.html

CRAFT: Dialogue. It's more than just talking.

http://scotteagan.blogspot.com/2010/09/dialogue-its-more-than-simply-talking.html

CRAFT: How to make your fictional world real by choosing the right details.

http://talktoyouniverse.blogspot.com/2010/08/what-kind-of-details-make-fictional.html

MARKET NEWS: A call for recently published horror short stories for a "best of" antho.

http://www.locusmag.com/News/2010/09/best-new-horror-call-for-submissions/

WHAT TO WRITE:

http://www.genreality.net/warrior-writer-tactical-goal-what-to-write

BUSINESS OF WRITING: Know your contracts.

http://scotteagan.blogspot.com/2010/09/published-authors-know-your-contract.html

HOW WELL IS YOUR BOOK SELLING? Finding the numbers.

http://cba-ramblings.blogspot.com/2010/09/how-can-you-tell-how-well-your-book-is.html

~*~

WORKSHOP

Magic, Monsters and Amour: Creating a Believable Paranormal, Fantasy, or SF World. October 4-31, 2010 at SavvyAuthors.com October 4-31, 2010 at SavvyAuthors.com

http://www.savvyauthors.com/event.cfm?EventID=173

Are vampires, fairies, and space aliens real? If you create the right background for your paranormal romance, they will be to a reader. I'll show you how to create a fantasy or paranormal background from scratch and how to make it utterly believable.

Inspiration

I've been asked numerous times to explain what inspiration is and how a writer goes from inspiration to a full idea.

Recently, I found the perfect visual explanation.

In this film clip from Royal Wedding, Fred Astaire is waiting for his dance partner who hasn't shown up. He starts with inspiration--replacing the dance partner with the coat rack, then he begins to play with and expand that inspiration through experimentation of what does and doesn't work.

When he reaches the point that he's done all he can do with the coat rack, he moves on to the different pieces of gym equipment to see what they can improve on the idea.

None really add to the essence of inanimate object as dance partner so he returns to the coat rack and completes the conceit with the end of the dance.

In the same way, a writer starts with inspiration, plays with the possibilities of that inspiration, expands those possibilities to see what does and doesn't work, then adds that idea into the structure of the scene or story.

Of course, none of the staring into space we do while playing with an idea is nearly so cool looking as Astaire with his grace, but we have just as much fun with our mental leaps and flourishes.

MAKING A BETTER MONSTER: Speaking of inspiration, the Syfy Channel now has a series called BEAST LEGENDS where a group of experts create a probable version of a mythic monster by using real world animals, inspiration, old stories, and real world logic. It's like a master course in writing a better monster. It's on Thursday night at 10 PM ET, and it's also available online. Last week's monster, the kraken.

http://www.syfy.com/beastlegends/

~*~

WORKSHOP

Magic, Monsters and Amour: Creating a Believable Paranormal, Fantasy, or SF World. October 4-31, 2010 at SavvyAuthors.com October 4-31, 2010 at SavvyAuthors.com

http://www.savvyauthors.com/event.cfm?EventID=173

Are vampires, fairies, and space aliens real? If you create the right background for your paranormal romance, they will be to a reader. I'll show you how to create a fantasy or paranormal background from scratch and how to make it utterly believable.