tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-49940724703126398372024-03-19T02:00:33.642-07:00Criminal MindsJosh Stallingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09913654176433125233noreply@blogger.comBlogger1905125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4994072470312639837.post-32857258937805571172024-03-19T02:00:00.000-07:002024-03-19T02:00:00.153-07:00Hello! Is Anyone Out There?<p> </p>
Terry here, lamenting the answer to this week's question: Having one’s book rise above the crowded marketplace is difficult. What have you tried to get yours noticed — what has worked and what has not? <div><br /></div><div> As far as I can tell, nothing I’ve done has ever worked to raise my books “above.” I am a solidly midlist writer (or lower than midlist), who has never “broken out.” That’s not to say I haven’t had some local and minor success with sales. But I mean I sold “tens of books.” Rising above means selling hundreds, or thousands, of books. </div><div><br /></div><div>Oddly, someone told me that most people think I’ve made a lot of money from writing because I’ve had ten books published (#11 is coming April, #12, sometime in the fall.) But as any midlist writer can tell you, being published in the lower echelons is largely a vanity undertaking. I love being in the spotlight, love doing events at bookstores and book clubs. I enjoy being on panels at conferences, which gives me the illusion of “success.” <div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHLaUwrJ756SfZP4qvSxXS53hQbCrjDhAFArFrTWoRn39h5fq5Qdz7IRjcvNypm3aBsOK37Lb1igksHEL0lPMBRrrHySXo2lfkaDBiek5XoJDIMZRpGXM1luYuIlldXUsRmPdT0w7iBw4ADF2wwwI3zWvwA7aVZnXiE-iheXJgfSlaaba5aQvGrkNd6gJ-/s3264/T%20and%20marquee.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="3264" data-original-width="2448" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHLaUwrJ756SfZP4qvSxXS53hQbCrjDhAFArFrTWoRn39h5fq5Qdz7IRjcvNypm3aBsOK37Lb1igksHEL0lPMBRrrHySXo2lfkaDBiek5XoJDIMZRpGXM1luYuIlldXUsRmPdT0w7iBw4ADF2wwwI3zWvwA7aVZnXiE-iheXJgfSlaaba5aQvGrkNd6gJ-/s320/T%20and%20marquee.JPG" /></a></div>But it doesn’t make money, and the only way to make money in the writing game is to get noticed—big time. </div><div><br /></div><div> One would think that touring the country for a book tour would get some notice. (By the way, touring is on my dime. Publishers don’t pay anything for midlist writers to tour. And it’s expensive! Flights, hotel rooms, ground transportation—all obscenely expensive—and without much to show for it, except ego boosts.) <div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1r4jiiYmnSDxW_ksZzPpCn30oOyy8nX-0GuHbZJMALLCdQlpjG8X0GbuGLOlqT0zIXSCpTJO7y6ja3p17Mo6W8M2ucKzhoLfrhuxPyxW7eHzIuHoLatJio-cHVK-cd5wvYykpAPENiUCVcqJiMZh25CKW_bFtoyQTeJUQgpL-aD73BhwUio-eTw-dQfaS/s3264/T%20reading.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="3264" data-original-width="2448" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1r4jiiYmnSDxW_ksZzPpCn30oOyy8nX-0GuHbZJMALLCdQlpjG8X0GbuGLOlqT0zIXSCpTJO7y6ja3p17Mo6W8M2ucKzhoLfrhuxPyxW7eHzIuHoLatJio-cHVK-cd5wvYykpAPENiUCVcqJiMZh25CKW_bFtoyQTeJUQgpL-aD73BhwUio-eTw-dQfaS/s320/T%20reading.JPG" /></a></div>I have routinely publicized bookstore tours on social media and in newsletters. And sometimes I’ve sold quite a few books at bookstore events. But those were usually in bookstores in the Bay Area, where I lived—friends and family! One little breakout was a reading in a wine store, where I sold a lot. Also, I have sold a number of books in Texas, where my books are set. But no matter how many books I’ve sold at these events, it’s small potatoes in the larger scheme of “success.” </div><div><br /></div><div> I’ve had more success at drawing people to book club talks and libraries. But bottom line, no book “events” have ever moved the needle to permanent best-seller status. </div><div><br /></div><div> I have always been with medium-size presses, and they don’t budget much for author publicity. I’m usually on my own paying for any publicity. Occasionally I’ve wheedled a publisher to pay half of an ad. And occasionally they’ve sprung for an ad when several of their authors are being promoted. But it’s rare. </div><div><br /></div><div> Some authors do break out of the pack of midlist doldrums, and it’s usually because they are picked up by a large publisher—one that’s willing to put money into promoting and publicizing. </div><div><br /></div><div> The only thing that ever really got my books noticed was when a widely-read author, Carolyn Hart mentioned my first book as her favorite of the year. That created the coveted “buzz.” And for one shining moment I had great book sales. But as so often happens with series, the first few sell well, and then sales drop off. </div><div><br /></div><div> How about awards and good reviews? Do they affect sales? My first few books were finalists for awards, including the Strand Critics Award and the Left Coast Crime “Lefty” awards.</div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsC8V6lPM3TvM66wOJh98PfG5G-FMCq-BFHCoJZ913p_68wI0IzoMikegk8hkYpeS4Jd1XAbnyh4ZVqfSMZ2ThSSWnz1I3kczHoS30Qafxci6dZ7r6iEja1mbb9NMAj0vWD-jMFn_ZZXi6yjVeuDN2szeo9b17kRYJhYAVjSh6irVgJ71E_RWI0HNB0DIm/s3264/T%20with%20LCC%20award.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="3264" data-original-width="2448" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsC8V6lPM3TvM66wOJh98PfG5G-FMCq-BFHCoJZ913p_68wI0IzoMikegk8hkYpeS4Jd1XAbnyh4ZVqfSMZ2ThSSWnz1I3kczHoS30Qafxci6dZ7r6iEja1mbb9NMAj0vWD-jMFn_ZZXi6yjVeuDN2szeo9b17kRYJhYAVjSh6irVgJ71E_RWI0HNB0DIm/s320/T%20with%20LCC%20award.JPG" /></a></div>The fifth book won a critics award from the now defunct RT Reviews. Have the awards garnered sales? I don’t think so. </div><div><br /></div><div> All of my books have garnered terrific reviews, including starred reviews from <i>Publishers Weekly</i> and <i>Library Journal</i>. It’s exciting to get those great reviews and I holler about them on social media. But have those reviews resulted in being noticed? Not that I can tell. </div><div><br /></div><div>Happily, I do have a loyal fan base, to whom I’m very grateful. They email me, rave about my books on social media, and tell their friends. They buy multiple copies. And that, as far as I can tell, has been the only thing that works—word of mouth. </div><div><br /></div><div>One problem I have is that the books are set in small-town Texas. Regional. As Library Journal, said, “The Samuel Craddock series may be the best regional crime series around today.” But even in Texas, I don’t think that resonates with book buyers. I was on TV in Dallas, I’ve had long reviews in the Dallas Morning News. But nothing has ever sparked the buying public to buy my books by the carload. </div><div><br /></div><div> I have high hopes that my new series, a thriller series set in various places around the globe, <div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8ET6Bq0UXspESEhcifeyOD4zOrqivR2s8dt0-XBvqw8N-dSwTLC0BQGS3L54om1K8xaDYs98l-pmKbL_u9xzY9pNrkCdm1k3LXgFocXK_-2c_kWWnoDck32268d5AqtYl46oh3EubVGkJDwhjFhF1qpio3Y-kxAL_KRq2-ep3UEW4tmp1g1N4P59ooqCD/s2522/Cover-Perilous%20Waters.jpeg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="2522" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8ET6Bq0UXspESEhcifeyOD4zOrqivR2s8dt0-XBvqw8N-dSwTLC0BQGS3L54om1K8xaDYs98l-pmKbL_u9xzY9pNrkCdm1k3LXgFocXK_-2c_kWWnoDck32268d5AqtYl46oh3EubVGkJDwhjFhF1qpio3Y-kxAL_KRq2-ep3UEW4tmp1g1N4P59ooqCD/s320/Cover-Perilous%20Waters.jpeg" /></a></div>might be more generally read. But the question remains, how do you get “noticed?” Bottom line: I haven’t figured it out.
</div>Terryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17478393430722574447noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4994072470312639837.post-11668172387336076122024-03-17T21:00:00.000-07:002024-03-17T21:00:00.138-07:00Book Marketing Tips<p><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Having one’s book rise above the crowded marketplace is difficult. What have you tried to get yours noticed — what has worked and what has not?</span></b></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Brenda at the keyboard.</span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Such a pertinent question for all authors. It's been 20 years since my first release, and my marketing ventures have run the gamut from the good to the bad to the ugly.</span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">First, the ugly.</span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #222222;">I remember my first event was with about five fellow authors at a used book sale at a public school in the east end of Ottawa. It was the school's annual fundraiser and the books were being sold for next to nothing. Bad idea, therefore, to attempt to sell new books at a profitable price. </span><span style="color: red;">Author books sold (for all 6 of us) = 0</span><span style="color: #222222;">.</span></span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #222222;">I used to agree to participate in just about any event that came along. My favourite misadventures included a turkey parade in a neighbouring village, and a plowing match at a different neighbouring village. Between the two events, </span><span style="color: red;">books sold = 1.</span><span style="color: #222222;"> Selling one book didn't even begin to cover gas, time and humiliation.</span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-CA"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Events such as these were not a total waste, however. I learned to be discriminating and only agreed to participate in events that attracted readers and book buyers. </span><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Yet, </span></span><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">I've occasionally been fooled by these too. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #222222;">I once travelled to Toronto to be part of a street book fair that was spread out over quite an area with many tables, lots of authors, and no way to stand out. People were looking for handouts and freebies and those actually selling their books at a reasonable price didn't stand a chance. </span><span style="color: red;">Books sold = 0</span><span style="color: #222222;">.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: #222222; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #222222;">Book signings in stores can also be hit and miss. I tend to do better in my own city but line up signings when I'm travelling. I had one at a Chapters in Regina several years ago - we were in Moose Jaw watching our daughter curl and drove to Regina for the signing - no publicity in the store and no absolutely no interest by anybody. </span><span style="color: red;">Books sold = 2 (only because my husband bought them for people back in Ottawa).</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: red; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">I was once in Saskatoon on business as the communications advisor of an Indigenous retreat. I set up a signing one evening at the McNally Robinson bookstore. They had about 40 chairs set up for a reading and asked if I'd invited anyone. When I said no, I didn't know anybody in Saskatoon, the woman said, "Oh dear, normally authors have their own people come out. Well, we can scrap the reading." As the time drew nearer only two people were sitting in the chairs (I hoped not just resting for a minute), and I prepared myself for the humiliation to come. And then ... all of my colleagues from Ottawa began arriving (I hadn't invited them because it seemed inappropriate), bought books and filled the seats for my reading. I still think of them with immense fondness and gratitude. (a potentially awful situation turned wonderful.) <span style="color: red;">Books sold = lots.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Now, more of the good.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">An even better idea than bookstore signings are book clubs. The members buy and read your chosen book and will continue buying other books in the series. They also tell friends about you and your books and this results in more invitations. I've even done virtual book club visits with clubs in other towns and cities. Recently, a woman at a book club asked if her charity could raffle off a book club visit and a couple of my donated books, and I said of course. This resulted in meeting a great group of new readers and helping out a cause. She's lined me up for another raffle this year.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Media and book reviews in traditional outlets have been terrific for sales over the years, but these opportunities are becoming scarcer. I've been fortunate to connect with a couple of local community newspapers and a local tv station and recommend fostering relationships where possible. A good website and social media are also imperative for getting the word out. I've maintained a personal blog for a number of years, talking about my writing and projects, and this keeps me in the public eye. I'm surprised sometimes by the number of people who read the blog and comment, either through social media or in person.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">I can't stress enough the importance of getting to know booksellers and librarians in your town and region. Booksellers will hand sell your books, hold signings and recommend you to festivals or other events. Likewise, librarians will order in your books and help to spread the word, and word of mouth is huge in marketing. It's the intangible, biggest factor in turning your book into a success and rising it above the multitude.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">I'll end here with a few last truisms I've learned during my two decades in the book business. The best way to sell books is gently. In my experience, the aggressive sales approach doesn't work in the long run. (Someone told me only last week about a woman who forced her book on a customer in a bookstore, even signing it to them. The customer left the book on a shelf before leaving the store.) I will also add that you should stay true to yourself and to your values, as in any business. Accept opportunities that stretch your comfort zone and don't be afraid of failure. When this happens, refuse to become discouraged. There will always be another opportunity. Think of marketing as a muscle that strengthens the more you work it. Control what you can control and accept the rest with humour and grace.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>Website: www.brendachapman.ca</b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>Facebook & Instagram: BrendaChapmanAuthor</b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>Twitter (<i>X</i>): brendaAchapman</b></span></p>7 Criminal Mindshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06060496735767676472noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4994072470312639837.post-53235227877031136142024-03-15T00:30:00.000-07:002024-03-15T00:30:00.243-07:00Everybody’s Talking at Me, The Art of Dialogue, by Josh Stallings<p><b style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue";"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></b></p><p><b style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue";"></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue";"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ3eV_rUP197qoqXCGgac1N9aHC3KOX4x7JBjhfeZ9y2rNAAGA_bEurlC_oIjq7DVTNqtvrczSntAPw9cEZxxCAYmcziOBAu1OBksLExcTaJHAHYMKRiL_ycF834IdYGnhhMZAyQkk19O5R2DgsG7TFwxLsbzAk10rTeR1Z-hoYy5QFIOn-PtjugE5bHo/s1200/LouBerney%20Goal.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1032" data-original-width="1200" height="275" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ3eV_rUP197qoqXCGgac1N9aHC3KOX4x7JBjhfeZ9y2rNAAGA_bEurlC_oIjq7DVTNqtvrczSntAPw9cEZxxCAYmcziOBAu1OBksLExcTaJHAHYMKRiL_ycF834IdYGnhhMZAyQkk19O5R2DgsG7TFwxLsbzAk10rTeR1Z-hoYy5QFIOn-PtjugE5bHo/s320/LouBerney%20Goal.jpg" width="320" /></a></b></div><b style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue";"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></b><b style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue";">Q: </b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;"><b> </b></span><b style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue";">Share your tips for writing believable dialogue. What separates good dialogue from poor, and how do you strike a balance between too much and too little in a scene/book?</b><p></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b></b><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>A: </b>David Mamet said he always carries a pad and pen with him so when he overheard good dialogue he wrote it down. When I steal words from a chainsaw sculptor, it isn’t theft, it’s an homage. I try and always have a Moleskine notebook and a Fisher Bullet Space Pen with me to capture story ideas and snippets of dialogue that I either hear in my head or in the world around me.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">In the early stages of writing a new character they tend to sound wooden. It takes me getting to know them well enough to dial in how they think and feel. Cisco in TRICKY was easy to start with because he was based on my son Dylan. I’ve listened to Dylan his whole life, his rhythm, word choice, and humor all came through. As I got deeper into the writing, Cisco’s life growing up in East LA added its own flavor to the dialogue.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Grandpa Hem in the same novel grew up in Deaf Smith Texas. My friend Amy loves a good turn of phrase. She was raised in Texas and she had a relative who used to say, “It’s hotter than two rats fucking in a wool sock.” That became a touchstone to Hem’s dialogue. I made the mistake of googling Texas Slang. Every phrase I found came out corny. I’ve spent time in Texas so it is best to draw on what I’ve heard than to trust Google. A little regionalism goes a long way. Planting a line like rats fucking early on tunes the reader’s ear so that they will hear all that character's dialogue with the tone or accent. Little things help remind them. “Git.” instead of “Time for you to leave.” Lets you know it’s Hem talking.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I write until I know a character and then go back and revise early dialogue. I also have a file about every character and as I discover more about them I add to their bio description. I note if they are frivolous with their words or miserly. Do they want to sound better educated than they are because they feel insecure? Do they front with street slang to sound tough and cover fear? By building this file I can refer to it a hundred pages later when they reappear and I’ve forgotten what color their eyes were or that they spoke in broken Spanglish in chapter two.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I have been told by enough women to believe them that I write wonderful female characters. I’ve been asked how I do it. Simple. I have never written a woman character. I have written many characters that are women. Gender identity, affectional orientation, cultural, or racial backgrounds are not characters. They are monolithic generalizations and of very little value when writing a character’s dialogue. </span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">A good place to study dialogue is by reading plays. <b>David Mamet’s</b> <b>American Buffalo </b>is a master class in rhythm. <b>Sam Shepard’s</b> <b>True West</b> delivers complete fully rounded flawed characters using only dialogue. I love films, but a screenplay relies on knowing it is a visual medium. So much can be said with a close up on an actor, that the dialogue doesn’t need to carry the work. When reading a play I was taught to only read the dialogue. Stage directions of any kind are almost always written by the stage manager after the play has been mounted and might not reflect what the writer was thinking at all.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Find writers whose dialogue speaks to you. Reread their books and ask yourself “Why do I like this? How does it work?” Take it apart and look at the lines. Steal freely. </span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> Here are a couple of books with dialogue I dig… </span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIoBAYxyF5_YKJ-ObzBo_JedML0DeCC0_WRoJLncBpCjX_2CJG1LuuMtERlNazgZUcY2dTCbXYshKmiw_bcpsOpEhFm4KBB5Hf7umkwbWj-uIqO1XitoEUlY01qSpPqfXuQ_YGnU78JRxRT4HcYzKi9RJWeQIoZmpXBTUaJCVcoCKDTwSiJuCYlCT5i5A/s1509/Gary3.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="721" data-original-width="1509" height="181" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIoBAYxyF5_YKJ-ObzBo_JedML0DeCC0_WRoJLncBpCjX_2CJG1LuuMtERlNazgZUcY2dTCbXYshKmiw_bcpsOpEhFm4KBB5Hf7umkwbWj-uIqO1XitoEUlY01qSpPqfXuQ_YGnU78JRxRT4HcYzKi9RJWeQIoZmpXBTUaJCVcoCKDTwSiJuCYlCT5i5A/w379-h181/Gary3.jpeg" width="379" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Set in LA 1963<b> Gary Phillips’ One-Shot Harry </b>subtly uses<b> </b>dialogue to remind the reader of the era and place without ever clubbing you over the head with it. He writes about Black characters that come from every educational level and social strata.</span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3v4UK21BLOsPzSw_3DYaQhpxKTHmEgtcgwIfeTpTfAc94YrI0nwAtWVl-M-01_TWMWCbETkS3j6w4zMGrpbBYoH3yDtZ_pzWi58dXuTCvw7OrSGjhBKRpO2C42GfA4nHSYr7SwOGtS_A_G91KMke7tJ6JLFZeTD8J_YMlUJWcUsV_JjgK5tjisGrrffQ/s1543/Jordan%20Inmages.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="918" data-original-width="1543" height="190" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3v4UK21BLOsPzSw_3DYaQhpxKTHmEgtcgwIfeTpTfAc94YrI0nwAtWVl-M-01_TWMWCbETkS3j6w4zMGrpbBYoH3yDtZ_pzWi58dXuTCvw7OrSGjhBKRpO2C42GfA4nHSYr7SwOGtS_A_G91KMke7tJ6JLFZeTD8J_YMlUJWcUsV_JjgK5tjisGrrffQ/s320/Jordan%20Inmages.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Jordan Harper’s Everybody Knows </b>covers characters from multiple levels of LA’s social classes. Actors, film makers, petty thieves, executives, cops, each with their own coded language. He captures but never mocks his characters. </span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjruqGa6kmh9kpi9ht1eymAevWIzoDOJ9d0K60K3GmODOKwkrE7JGIPAlJI7oCC1f1cEfaG8vcuUHglzphotlhFm6LDG3w-oIAW803mnhyphenhyphenPke02OJ-sE2W1fuCZ7k4A3lNIAfQqLgf-EZvOymfWVZVW-qRLx9wtXcjy7qdZFBJr10h5BDJtWgiMSpGnZjw/s1623/Open%20lou%20bernie%20quote3.1.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="991" data-original-width="1623" height="195" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjruqGa6kmh9kpi9ht1eymAevWIzoDOJ9d0K60K3GmODOKwkrE7JGIPAlJI7oCC1f1cEfaG8vcuUHglzphotlhFm6LDG3w-oIAW803mnhyphenhyphenPke02OJ-sE2W1fuCZ7k4A3lNIAfQqLgf-EZvOymfWVZVW-qRLx9wtXcjy7qdZFBJr10h5BDJtWgiMSpGnZjw/s320/Open%20lou%20bernie%20quote3.1.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">In<b> Lou Berney’s Dark Ride </b>he writes with love and respect about a stoner slacker thrown into a situation that calls forth his need to be a hero or as close to an approximation of a hero as he can pull off. It vibes a Hitchcockian everyman for our times. Written in first person even the descriptions read like dialogue. </span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><i>“I’m the kid in the back row, moving his lips and just pretending to sing. I’m the dude with a fake badge and a toy gun. The dumbest thing you can do, if you’re someone like me, is believe you can be more than you are.” — Dark Ride: A Thriller by Lou Berney</i></b><i> </i> </span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I haven’t answered the last two parts of this question. <b>How do I know good dialogue?</b> It’s like the court’s take on pornography vs art, I know good dialogue when I read it. It’s one of those intuitive things that ultimately inform what becomes our individual voices. </span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>How much is too much or too little dialogue? </b>Same answer as above. <b>Tana French’s</b> Murder Squad books all come down to these incredibly long dialogue driven interrogations. They read almost like transcriptions of an interview. It gives a level of authenticity that’s hard to achieve. I haven’t ever used that much dialogue, but I’m damn glad she does. Her books sing a brutal tune that I love to read. As a writer or a reader there are NO RULES… Okay, there is one rule, everything is possible if you can pull it off. I’m not Tana French, I love what she does but I’ll leave real time interrogations to her.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Last thought - I have been lucky enough to work with editors I trust to guide me when I stray too far off the map. And editors who push me when I stay too safely inside the known lines.</span></p>Josh Stallingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09913654176433125233noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4994072470312639837.post-85900930370318641352024-03-14T00:30:00.000-07:002024-03-16T14:35:29.585-07:00A Case For the Ladies, by Edith Maxwell<p></p><b>Catriona writes</b>: As someone who, herself, writes all over this beloved genre of ours, I always feel an affinity for fellow authors who do the same. Edith Maxwell is a great example. I first knew her as the author of a Quaker midwife series, but she had some full-on cozies to her name too. And then came a California-set wine-country caper (which is splendid, by the way) and now this! Amelia Earhart investigates. I imagine there wil lbe a bit of premise envy amongst authors who wish <strike>we'd</strike> they'd though of that first. But great delight amongst readers.<div><br /></div><div>And now, Edith!<br /> <div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaqo7SYTqjPh_Hy4djiMor5z3hwpMR41sIXWosTwvy8DG_xNHfIm0gHaWwk17fHNywuEciGWyalrbZJilX1shPoXSFArgNmJ6IuboPcdjxEMHGzbGyYPXMcywAL7-EgetnXeSAbi73rp_cNZcwvAAhn4JVa9sygpdYQSU65nK4_BReDTeRExL2vh3Y_1cP/s4288/EdithMaxwell.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4288" data-original-width="2848" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaqo7SYTqjPh_Hy4djiMor5z3hwpMR41sIXWosTwvy8DG_xNHfIm0gHaWwk17fHNywuEciGWyalrbZJilX1shPoXSFArgNmJ6IuboPcdjxEMHGzbGyYPXMcywAL7-EgetnXeSAbi73rp_cNZcwvAAhn4JVa9sygpdYQSU65nK4_BReDTeRExL2vh3Y_1cP/s320/EdithMaxwell.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; text-indent: 0.5in;"><div><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; text-indent: 0.5in;"><br /></span></div>Thank you to my pal
Catriona for inviting me over to talk about my new historical mystery, </span><a href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CW3GW7CX" style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><i><span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">A Case for the Ladies</span></i></a><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; text-indent: 0.5in;">. It’s hot off the
press (or off the ebook compiler, according to your preference) and available
wherever books are sold. </span><p></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; text-indent: 0.5in;">You all dwell on (or
HAVE?) criminal minds over here. Let me tell you, 1926 Boston had no shortage
of them.</span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg1tj75Ym8XJ5GFQXS8s8HWrEFw3J0qkY8uewGL1FHKDDr3cTPugl_N3jvll-P4fi7ZKi0gkELk9KF2ogcxEcwLbRsmkKn9aLuSCGRuRU44Fn7eYVDEuDREDzSzm_2ugQ7vZoWcpke19t8sNzbmnmIuTriQ7pzMrUDA14INePL0QvgI9nOpKhHZ6j2gJh0/s2550/CASE-cover-front.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2550" data-original-width="1650" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg1tj75Ym8XJ5GFQXS8s8HWrEFw3J0qkY8uewGL1FHKDDr3cTPugl_N3jvll-P4fi7ZKi0gkELk9KF2ogcxEcwLbRsmkKn9aLuSCGRuRU44Fn7eYVDEuDREDzSzm_2ugQ7vZoWcpke19t8sNzbmnmIuTriQ7pzMrUDA14INePL0QvgI9nOpKhHZ6j2gJh0/s320/CASE-cover-front.jpg" width="207" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; text-align: left; text-indent: 0.5in;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Here is the blurb:<i> Amid
Prohibition, Irish gangs, the KKK, and rampant mistreatment of immigrant women,
intrepid private investigator Dorothy Henderson and her pal Amelia Earhart seek
justice for several murdered young women in 1926 Boston. As tensions mount, the
sleuths, along with their reporter friend Jeanette Colby and Dot’s maiden Aunt
Etta Rogers, a Wellesley College professor, experience their own mistreatment
at the hand of society and wonder who they can really trust.</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; text-indent: 0.5in;">I made up the attacks
on young immigrant women, but they could have happened. Most immigrants,
especially if they came from poorer countries or didn’t have pale skin, were
treated with disrespect and abuse. Gosh, </span><i style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">p</span></i><i style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; line-height: 200%;">lus ça change, plus c'est la même chose</span></i><span style="background: white; font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; line-height: 200%; text-indent: 0.5in;">.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; text-indent: 0.5in;">I didn’t invent the
smuggling of alcohol, or the ruthless nature of the men who ran those rackets. When
I read about the Tailgate Gang, run by Irish-American men, I knew I had to
include them. This was during the years when the Volstead Act, otherwise known
as Prohibition, was the law of the land. This gang would stop trucks carrying
alcohol and steal it off the tailgates.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; text-indent: 0.5in;">You’ll read casual
mention of Mayor James Michael Curley and Mayor John “Honey Fitz” Fitzpatrick,
who, if not outright criminals, did their share of shady political dealings. A
rumor floats around about Joseph P. Kennedy, Sr. having his finger in the
alchohol trade, but historically that seems to be inaccurate.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; text-indent: 0.5in;">Anti-immigrant and
anti-Catholic fervor was also rampant, and the KKK was alive and kicking. Part
of my story involves people from The Ville, aka West Medford, a section of that
town northwest of Boston settled by Pullman porters. At the time, most
residents were Black, and the KKK was a constant menace.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN5NMQOK9j2hFr54aXt3K1q8Mp78QIT_aqXgFkJBhsRgUlV51XE8qfG9oQzkUPyKMRoaDoj551X5Y-UeOFwPDYvEVyXBLl2Cm-Y12g0f9fFwpVzrgDCSQ_E5-jM1e2SWD9nFQ_CF-U0tH9_A-gHJ3i4VLaG1hXpGXSn-XK5AY7chcGQX6jO-ocpO57qYzp/s4032/Mural.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN5NMQOK9j2hFr54aXt3K1q8Mp78QIT_aqXgFkJBhsRgUlV51XE8qfG9oQzkUPyKMRoaDoj551X5Y-UeOFwPDYvEVyXBLl2Cm-Y12g0f9fFwpVzrgDCSQ_E5-jM1e2SWD9nFQ_CF-U0tH9_A-gHJ3i4VLaG1hXpGXSn-XK5AY7chcGQX6jO-ocpO57qYzp/s320/Mural.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; text-indent: 0.5in;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Nearby is also where
Amelia lived with her mother and sister while she worked at the Denison
Settlement House in Boston (this was all before she became famous, but she was
already avid about flying and piloted a plane out of Quincy on Massachusetts’s
South Shore, on the weekends).</span></p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: 0.5in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8JT7HwR2BPo-mQt-IG6o8Y9Bkvcxzo3HXrjqe7v7ROV5Cm0n5DRk-hzpaQoUBkbOXe2WgnL2ThM82gpPJQI5qVzQRAEdLruK3-NBMcHzuUKVpGycs94KrVfnlLC4dZYcIlWfGkfDEI6_CChXHbUTRETI2bMKRknY_DW1DS_T1qaLihM-ifcBCLDwWD8zz/s5548/Amelia_Earhart,_circa_1928Los%20Angeles%20Daily%20News%20via%20Wikimedia%20Commons.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4293" data-original-width="5548" height="248" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8JT7HwR2BPo-mQt-IG6o8Y9Bkvcxzo3HXrjqe7v7ROV5Cm0n5DRk-hzpaQoUBkbOXe2WgnL2ThM82gpPJQI5qVzQRAEdLruK3-NBMcHzuUKVpGycs94KrVfnlLC4dZYcIlWfGkfDEI6_CChXHbUTRETI2bMKRknY_DW1DS_T1qaLihM-ifcBCLDwWD8zz/s320/Amelia_Earhart,_circa_1928Los%20Angeles%20Daily%20News%20via%20Wikimedia%20Commons.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; text-indent: 0.5in;">Speaking of immigrants,
the anarchists Sacco and Vanzetti were in prison in 1926 for murder and armed
robbery south of Boston (Braintree, to be precise), but appeals were coming in
from around the world pleading their innocence and asking for their freedom.
Alas, they were executed the next year in a Boston jail (Charlestown, if you’re
local).</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: 0.5in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjU6jdEV6-Ksq3V1KzGuO5gQclEDGdoU1rcDe9kg_8bzOUWEUp7SFKhSclUrx3_hh1ZfDpz43lqpG1TqWvI2_N-ZshcoZr_icfViR66XTHWxdS-TwcP8hkj9MZD3bdb53R74xyrIXqZgg1YaXLKGxcNgOYM1Xvy3lvC3AJNHRy1zuP3qaAC3p2sOtRj5mS_/s778/Denison_House,_Boston%20pub%20doman%20wikimedia%20commons.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="564" data-original-width="778" height="232" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjU6jdEV6-Ksq3V1KzGuO5gQclEDGdoU1rcDe9kg_8bzOUWEUp7SFKhSclUrx3_hh1ZfDpz43lqpG1TqWvI2_N-ZshcoZr_icfViR66XTHWxdS-TwcP8hkj9MZD3bdb53R74xyrIXqZgg1YaXLKGxcNgOYM1Xvy3lvC3AJNHRy1zuP3qaAC3p2sOtRj5mS_/s320/Denison_House,_Boston%20pub%20doman%20wikimedia%20commons.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">One true crime I didn’t
bring in was the horrific death of Edith Greene, an unmarried pregnant woman.
She went for an abortion in 1926. Instead she died at the doctor’s hands, who
then carved up her body and dumped the parts around town. (Insert shiver here.)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">I hope you love reading
about a real person (Amelia) assisting another real person (my grandmother Dorothy
in an alternate reality as a lady PI) to come to the fictional aid of women all
over the Boston of nearly a hundred years ago.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiloXuC-ZXpw441KqN8lOa0tjsyZ-EIMSyILGZorshGu6NbS5lzpvznjaVwEugZpDAlB_GL75wEOtWcO4H9TD77DRJf5F_R-jNKjkrpAXROcBIwO0ww6UObqH55-Sr5gFdqy8pjJiW9A0ovSQsXhteyUy7JIHravBW6iHlXzaIXRCEwN53cTb4m2qXYcqC7/s438/Dot%20Closeup.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="359" data-original-width="438" height="262" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiloXuC-ZXpw441KqN8lOa0tjsyZ-EIMSyILGZorshGu6NbS5lzpvznjaVwEugZpDAlB_GL75wEOtWcO4H9TD77DRJf5F_R-jNKjkrpAXROcBIwO0ww6UObqH55-Sr5gFdqy8pjJiW9A0ovSQsXhteyUy7JIHravBW6iHlXzaIXRCEwN53cTb4m2qXYcqC7/s320/Dot%20Closeup.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: 0.5in;"><b style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">Readers</span></b><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">: What’s your favorite era
to read about? Share any factoids about Amelia you happen to know! I’d love to
send one of you a Case for the Ladies tote bag. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt; text-indent: 0.5in;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Maddie Day</span></b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"> pens the Dot and Amelia Mysteries, the Country Store Mysteries,
the Cozy Capers Book Group Mysteries, and the Cece Barton Mysteries. As author <b>Edith
Maxwell</b>, she’s the author of the historical and Agatha Award-winning Quaker
Midwife Mysteries and short crime fiction. Day/Maxwell lives with her beau and
cat Martin north of Boston, where she writes, gardens, cooks, and wastes time
on Facebook. Find the author under both names at </span><a href="https://edithmaxwell.com/short-fiction/"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">EdithMaxwell.com</span></a><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">, </span><a href="https://wickedauthors.com/"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">wickedauthors.com</span></a><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">, </span><a href="https://www.mysteryloverskitchen.com/"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Mystery
Lovers’ Kitchen</span></a><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">, and on social media: </span><a href="https://twitter.com/MaddieDayAuthor"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 105%;">Twitter</span></a> <a href="https://www.facebook.com/MaddieDayandEdithMaxwell"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 105%;">Facebook</span></a> <a href="https://www.instagram.com/maddiedayauthor/"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 105%;">Instagram</span></a></p><p><br /></p></div></div>Catriona McPhersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17234089279665716446noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4994072470312639837.post-42243631163795802932024-03-13T11:02:00.000-07:002024-03-13T11:02:35.757-07:00SPEAKING OF DIALOGUE by Eric Beetner<span style="font-size: medium;"> Writing good dialogue can be helped by a single word: listen.
Listen to how people speak. Eavesdrop, lurk, spy and loiter around conversations from different walks of life. Pay attention to how people speak, not just what they say. “believable” dialogue in a book mostly means that the reader can hear it in their head and it sounds like overhearing a conversation. </span><div><span style="font-size: medium;"> Some keys to making that happen: </span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"> People don’t often come right out and say exactly what they’re trying to say. Bluntness and spright talk is a rare commodity and we rarely do it in our normal day-to-day conversation. By slightly hiding what your character has to say you will create more believable dialogue.
<span> </span><span> </span><span> </span>Embrace filler words. Most of us start a sentence with little filler such as “well” or “look”. Not every Um and Uh needs to be on the page, but filler words can also be quick and easy ways to differentiate characters. If someone has a speech pattern that leans heavily on filler, i.e. the girl who says “like” all the time, then when that person speaks in their distinctive way it becomes easier to identify who is speaking without always having to add speech tags. Think about how often you or people you know end a sentence with the phrase, “y’know?” It’s unnecessary and therefore a copy editors nightmare, but if a character uses the phrase frequently in your book, you’ll set them apart and the reader will always know who is talking. People often stop and start a sentence while they organize their thoughts. If someone is in a stressful situation, as often happens in crime novels, then their thoughts won’t always come out cleanly the first time. Real dialogue can have some false starts. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"> Embrace interruptions. People cut each other off quite often, especially in an argument. Don’t shy away from this messiness. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"> Listen for regionalisms. If you have someone from a specific region, a different country or some city with a distinctive accent – search up those words, phrases, pronunciations that make it unique. If a guy from Brooklyn is talking to a guy from Nashville, their dialogue should look and feel different on the page. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"> Sometimes the best answer is a non-answer. Moments in any conversation can often end in something as non-committal is “Huh.” or “Well, whatever.” These are perfectly legit uses of dialogue even if they don’t feel like they are “saying” anything. Real people don’t often speak in finely crafted gems of insight and truths. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"> I tend to lean heavily on dialogue in my books and I think you can learn about a character as they speak as well as push the story forward. There are dialogue heavy books like The Friends Of Eddie Coyle where probably 75% of that book is told in dialogue and it works brilliantly, often because the pattern of speech is so authentic. I know of at least one book, Barry Gifford’s Wyoming, which is nothing but dialogue. Hard to pull off, but I was never lost about the story. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"> The biggest pitfall in writing dialogue is to keep from having all the characters sound like the author. It’s easy to have a conversation with yourself in your head and just transcribe that, but it’s all going to be one voice. Find those little things, the unique quirk that makes that character unique. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"> In the end, let your voice be heard and let your characters speak loud and proud!</span></div>Eric Beetnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12504563937840205835noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4994072470312639837.post-26421727729203287062024-03-12T01:00:00.000-07:002024-03-12T05:18:17.781-07:00What We're Talking About When We Talk About Dialogue<p>
</p><p><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Share your tips for writing
believable dialogue. What separates good dialogue from poor, and how do you
strike a balance between too much and too little in a scene/book?</b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWZSd4fC7TcS44r5950nGdhpHL-c2blzXaohaLbuyetqTM72T05uEtUIzT7SkXTllPWA16K7W_VYlItbLm10RA7Wty1v1PqROoxKbd8BGGKqf3fGvQz4atUwDe76HXEpBJ_oNGMWXssr98lURJN67P-Xe5LLjFCJQ-lMJrd6rB_luzdYnoA-1WTO446Rk/s400/Button-Twitter.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="400" height="292" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWZSd4fC7TcS44r5950nGdhpHL-c2blzXaohaLbuyetqTM72T05uEtUIzT7SkXTllPWA16K7W_VYlItbLm10RA7Wty1v1PqROoxKbd8BGGKqf3fGvQz4atUwDe76HXEpBJ_oNGMWXssr98lURJN67P-Xe5LLjFCJQ-lMJrd6rB_luzdYnoA-1WTO446Rk/w292-h292/Button-Twitter.png" width="292" /></a></div><br />I am struggling with this topic. I’ve been told that to
write dialogue well, you need skills in observation and good ears. My eyes are fine, but
my hearing is terrible. Seriously. I’m considered profoundly hard of hearing,
with 70% damage in one ear and 50% in the good ear. I can’t hear anything
behind me, and if I did I couldn’t locate the noise. I read lips, so if I can’t
see it, I can’t hear it most of the time. I’ve made serious gaffes in social
interactions, enough so that I avoided people for years. I’ve come to laugh at
what I’ve gotten horribly wrong. If you meet me, ask me about the “Cat and Calf
in a Bar” story. Something most people don’t want to hear (pun intended) is that
people are not neither patient nor pleasant with those of us who are hard of hearing, or with disabilities, in
general.<p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">That I’m told that I write crisp dialogue well perplexes me
because I sincerely don’t know how to describe how I do what I do. I simply do
it. I’ve known intelligent people who can’t write worth a lick, and polyglots
who would write dialogue so wooden that it should’ve sank with the deck chairs
on the Titanic. I know this isn’t helpful to readers, but I write dialogue
leaning forward, into the story. I dislike dead air because life is movement, even when it doesn’t look that way. Think of the ocean.
It’s both beautiful but there’s menace beneath the surface. Dialogue appears to be all
surface, but what is beneath is character, psychology, and subtext. We can discern
a lot about a person by the words they use.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p><p class="MsoNormal">I’ll
write two or three paragraphs of description or action before I have someone
talk. I do this, because I know attention spans are short. Writing good speech requires a good ear, and both of mine are faulty, so I guess what “works” in my
dialogue is humor and that I fit speech patterns to the personality of the speaker. I think I do some form of The Method from acting
to sync speech to character. I become that character. Then there’s
cadence, the way one of my characters talks, the use of contractions and
fragments. In real life, talk is not grammatically correct nor does it
require an extensive vocabulary. <br /></p>
<p>Speech is meant to communicate ideas and information. Dialogue is transactional. Two people want something from each other. Sometimes
I’ll have characters answer a question with a question, either for
clarification, or because they have something to hide. This is called
mirroring. To see how effective this strategy is for tension or creating a comedic effect, watch the movie <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Midnight</i> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Run</i>. The logic behind the interrogative is that a Yes or No ends the conversation, but
questions or a paraphrase of what the other person said will keep the ball in the air. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Subtext in dialogue is difficult. It’s talking about Lord
Voldemort, without saying his name. It’s hard to execute well, but think of it
as every conversation must have have consequences. Permit me a stark but real
example. The rules to a sit-down meeting in the world of organized crime provides an
example of subtext, and it’s no different than a confrontation in the
corporate boardroom. You’ve been invited into a room. A peer has accused you of
something, be it something financial or a personal slight. The grievance is
aired and you sit there like a samurai. You don’t say a word until you’re told you
could speak. The catch? You know the person is lying through their teeth. The
stakes? Lose your temper and you die. Call them a liar, you die. When you
respond, you do it in a way so those around the table know that without you saying
the word LIAR you’ve proven your innocence and demonstrated your integrity.
Subtext.</p>
<p>There are thorns in the rose garden of dialogue, and the recent movie <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">American Fiction</i> illustrates some of them.
I won’t delve into the intersection of Art and Commerce here, but writers have
to make ethical decisions around dialogue. A writer has to choose between the Ideal and the
Real, to wear rose-tinted glasses or not. There is the Ideal or Utopia, where
people do and say the right things, and then there is real life, where what people say
and do contradict each other. </p>
<p>My Shane mysteries have ethnic groups opposed to each
other, class distinction, gay and straight characters. Nobody in Shane’s world
is a complete innocent. I wrote dialogue in the Shane novels that was <i>somewhat</i> accurate
to the 1970s, the era in the Shane Cleary mysteries are set. I say ‘somewhat’
because I downplay the racism and sexism in dialogue. I don’t use much of the profanity
or epithets people used casually then. I’m aware that some of my readers were
not alive during Shane’s decade, but I will tell you that language in the 70s
was raw and it had energy, for better or worse. Language that would be considered
‘offensive’ today was used on both sides of the table, across gender, race, and
social class. Neither sensitivity nor politeness were issues because “Feelings”
was a song on the radio, and it was a one-hit wonder for a reason. </p>
<p>You didn’t need to hear well to experience the way people talked then, but you
could feel the pulse with your fingertips. </p>
<p>I try to put that across from the keyboard to the screen, to the page. </p>
<p>THE BIG LIE, the fifth Shane Cleary mystery is out today, March 12, 2024.</p>
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{page:WordSection1;}</style></p>Gabriel Valjanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07338577478120561661noreply@blogger.com2Boston, MA, USA42.3600825 -71.0588801-1.5317690829084185 -141.3713801 86.2519340829084 -0.7463800999999961tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4994072470312639837.post-85566536253686382024-03-11T00:00:00.000-07:002024-03-11T00:00:00.137-07:00The Pleasures of Dialogue<p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">Q: <span lang="EN-CA">Share your tips for writing believable dialogue. What separates good dialogue from poor, and how do you strike a balance between too much and too little in a scene/book?<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><span lang="EN-CA"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><span lang="EN-CA"><i>-from Susan</i><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><span lang="EN-CA"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">I love to hear my characters talking. In a way, I’m eavesdropping on them because I don’t always know exactly what they’re going to say when they (I, I guess) open their mouths! Good dialogue has to sound real even though it isn’t. Why not? Because we salt our conversations with words and phrases that give us a couple of seconds to think about what we want to say, or to soften our meanings, or to present ourselves favorably. To our ears, that works. On the page, not so much. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">For me, dialogue has to serve a purpose. It moves the plot, reveals a character, creates or dissipates tension, may even carry a very small bit of background. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">How long is too long? The same amount that makes your eyes glaze at a party, that reduces you to “uh huh”s as you look for an escape. Some of us read our entire manuscripts out loud to catch long-winded treatises, or listen to the texts with audio apps that read for us. I just put down a much-praised noir novel because the private eye narrator not only used every cliché ever written for the genre, but carried on with the longest self-important monologues I’ve ever tried to endure. At a party, the character would be the person everyone else tries desperately to evade! Sadly, I don’t think the author was trying to paint him as such.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">MURDER AND THE MISSING DOG, my newest mystery, launched formally last week, so I decided to include an excerpt in which dialogue does everything I wanted it to.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">‘<i>Bonjour, Madame. Viens ici vite!</i>’ the widow called, beckoning with her free arm and hurrying over to the garden gate. Ariel thought, not for the first time, that Madame must have cut discreet eyeholes in the hat brim because, otherwise, how could she see everyone and everything that passed her? <o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">‘<i>Bonjour, ma ch</i>é<i>rie</i>,’ Katherine called back. ‘Shoot,’ she said in a low voice to Ariel, ‘I’m not supposed to use endearments when speaking to the women in the neighborhood. My American habit of assuming friendships that haven’t been cemented by decades of connections leads me into danger all the time.’ <o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Madame Pomfort’s downturned mouth said she had heard and disapproved of Katherine’s familiarity as much as ever, but Ariel wondered why she was distressed. The woman unlatched the gate and stepped through. ‘This was bound to happen once those Bellegardes took over our village for their benefit. I warned everyone, did I not, that vagrants and rude people and <i>voleurs </i>would descend on us?’ <o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">‘What’s happened?’ Ariel looked around but saw no streams of threatening, swaggering strangers, much less curious strangers begging to spend money in Reigny. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">‘Well, it is you who should be the most concerned, Katherine, since it is happening at your’ – here Madame paused to sniff, her long nose adding emphasis – ‘shop. I saw it with my own eyes not ten minutes ago.’ <o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">‘Saw what? I’m on my way there now. Surely no one has broken into it?’ Katherine’s face registered fear. ‘A small negative cash flow is one thing, but the loss of so many exciting finds would be a catastrophe.’ Katherine’s hand went to her mouth. ‘I blame myself for not asking Michael to fix the back window that doesn’t close properly.’ <o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Madame Pomfort would not be distracted from her most severe warning. ‘A vagrant, a homeless person just sleeping in your doorway. What does he think – that we shall all feed him, give him our own money, let him sleep in our houses? We will be run out of our homes, next thing.’ Her mouth turned down into a dramatic frown to register all kinds of nasty possibilities. ‘We will not be safe in our beds at this rate.’ She clutched one gloved hand to her heart, waved her hoe around and her voice trembled. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Ariel frowned. A vagrant wasn’t a good thing overall, but Madame Pomfort had a habit, fed by an overactive imagination and old biases, of seeing the fall of civilization in anything that disturbed the routine of the village over which she reigned by dint of willpower. The gardener had taken off her apron, settled her long-handled hoe at her side and was clearly not going to miss any action from this invasion. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">As the defenders of Reigny’s safety rounded the bend and the whitewashed old house that now housed the little shop on the ground floor came into view, Ariel saw there was, indeed, someone curled up in the recessed doorway. But the beret, slightly askew on a head of gray hair, and the long shapeless coat were familiar. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">‘Could it be Madame Toussaint from Noyers?’ Ariel asked. The poor woman had probably arrived before dawn and was exhausted by what must have been a long walk. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Katherine made a clucking noise and hurried forward. For Madame Pomfort’s benefit, she said, ‘She brings me little things to buy. She’s harmless, but she’s quite old.’ <o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Ariel stepped closer. ‘I’ll wake her gently. No need to hold that over her.’ Madame Pomfort had advanced slowly to about six feet away and the hoe was poised as if to strike the small bundle of a woman. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"> </span> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF1Qrn8Bhwwp_rhAGWivzDM5ORgwVIJK7JzaQ4BG_y7dU00RhyphenhyphenLRAA6i-qaWXk34lzuJCZyTTQzhY-r5CzG2w5k75-FW7xHQtjy2dwQq-yr95IAJaCfthk20MYUl6HxAPfX43iyRApwyfm0hGmKLnDfiWS5D8O8eahKvfjIGVL6zDAi63AOKUD7-_y2v_F/s2512/final%20image%20DSOG%20cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2512" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF1Qrn8Bhwwp_rhAGWivzDM5ORgwVIJK7JzaQ4BG_y7dU00RhyphenhyphenLRAA6i-qaWXk34lzuJCZyTTQzhY-r5CzG2w5k75-FW7xHQtjy2dwQq-yr95IAJaCfthk20MYUl6HxAPfX43iyRApwyfm0hGmKLnDfiWS5D8O8eahKvfjIGVL6zDAi63AOKUD7-_y2v_F/s320/final%20image%20DSOG%20cover.jpg" width="204" /></a></div><br /><p></p>Susan C Sheahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18225627756540127032noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4994072470312639837.post-39372062407847362024-03-07T21:28:00.000-08:002024-03-07T21:31:00.296-08:00Creating mood through setting and ecology in 1920s Bangalore - Harini Nagendra <p><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 13px;"><span style="font-size: large;">This week's topic is a fascinating one. </span></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;"><i style="background-color: white; font-size: 13px;"><span style="font-size: large;">Creating mood through setting is important in crime fiction. Can you give examples from books that have inspired or moved you? Also, please share an evocative paragraph from your own work and tell us how you came to write it.</span></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><span style="background-color: white;">My books - The Bangalore Detectives Club series, set in 1920s Bangalore - are all about the setting. For me, the place and setting - 1920s Bangalore in the times of the British Raj - in a princely state, at a time when women were beginning to step outside the home in large numbers - is critical to the story. In that sense, I think of 1920s Bangalore with its bungalows, lakes, trees, monkeys and wildlife - as a character too, one of the protagonists that shape my tale. As an ecologist, of course nature plays a major role in my books. That's why, as soon as I read this prompt, I knew the book I would select as an example. These short extracts are from Sally Andrew's wonderful Tannie Maria series, set in the South African Karoo, a semi-desertic plateau dominated by heat. Tannie Maria is a baker, an excellent cook who writes an agony aunt column, and a woman struggling to come terms with her own traumatic past, as she gets entangled in murders. The combination of local food, ecology and geography that Andrews writes about conjures up a sense of place almost instantly, as the brief extracts below - from her first book, Recipes for Love and Murder - demonstrate.</span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><span style="background-color: white;"><i><br /></i></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><span style="background-color: white;"><i><b>Extract 1</b></i></span></span></p><p class="tx" style="margin: 0in; text-indent: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">I shifted in my chair. The shrike flew back up to a branch with
something it had caught.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="tx" style="margin: 0in; text-indent: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">‘I phoned them on Friday,’ said
Hattie, ‘to tell them, Sorry we just can’t do it, not right now, I said.’ Her
throat became all squeezed like a plastic straw. ‘They said we can cut out the
recipe column.’<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="tx" style="margin: 0in; text-indent: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Her voice sounded far away. I
was watching the shrike; it had a lizard in its beak. It stabbed its meat onto
a big white thorn.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="tx" style="margin: 0in; text-indent: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">‘Tannie Maria.’<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="tx" style="margin: 0in; text-indent: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Was the lizard still alive, I
wondered?<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="tx" style="margin: 0in; text-indent: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">‘I argued, told them how much
the readers adored your column. But they said the advice column was
non-negotiable.’<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="tx" style="margin: 0in; text-indent: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Was the butcher bird going to
leave the meat out to dry, and make biltong?<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="tx1" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></span></p><p class="tx1" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana;"><b>Extract 2</b></span></i></span></p><p class="tx1" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><i><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></i></span></p><p class="tx1" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The
next morning my phone rang. It was Hattie.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="tx" style="margin: 0in; text-indent: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">‘Have you heard?’ she said.
‘Nelson Mandela died last night.’<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="tx" style="margin: 0in; text-indent: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">When I put the phone down, I
made myself a cup of coffee and took two rusks and sat out on the stoep. But
before I could bring the coffee to my lips, the tears started leaking out of
me.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p>
</p><p class="tx" style="margin: 0in; text-indent: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Mandela was ninety-five and had
been sick for a while, but it still came as a shock. I looked out at the brown
veld and the wrinkled gwarrie trees and the distant mountains. My tears made it
seem like rain was falling, but the sky was wide and empty. I knew that people
all over the land were crying with me for Tata Mandela.</span><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><span style="background-color: white;">And now, for the next question - "</span></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana; font-size: 13px;"><span style="font-size: large;"><i>please share an evocative paragraph from your own work and tell us how you came to write it." </i></span></span></p><p class="tx1" style="margin: 0in;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana; font-size: large;">Here's an extract from book 3, A Nest of Vipers, out on Ma</span><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">y 2</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">The women navigated a muddy river of
clayey, sticky slush, balancing carefully on the small slabs of stone as they made
their way past the semicircular arena that served as the makeshift parking area
of the circus, to the ramshackle homes at the back.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">What a contrast the circus grounds were
from the last time she had been there. The tent stood in a far corner, covering
the stage where the performance was held. No longer exciting or magical, as it
had seemed at night, its then attractive bright colours now appeared cheap and faded
in the sunlight. The parking lot where they had encountered Pawan’s body was
pitted with car tracks, seeming like it had not been swept in years. A high
line of eucalyptus trees enclosed the clearing, pale and tall like eerie silver
sentinels. The peeling bark on the trees appeared like distorted faces,
watching them as they moved. She could not see people anywhere, though as they
neared the wicker gate, she could hear sounds. Metal clanked and water splashed
in the distance. Women, cleaning vessels and washing clothes, called to each
other as they worked.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">They had almost reached the edge of the
stone path. Once they were out of the clearing, the women entered an area
bounded by a makeshift bamboo fence, ill constructed shacks with crooked walls
and aluminium sheets for roofs standing cheek-by-jowl with each other.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">‘Strange, that a famous magician like
Das would agree to live in such seedy quarters,’ Uma aunty said.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Occupied with domestic chores, the
circus performers chattered to each other, shouting loudly to be heard above
the din. After the silence of the open grounds, the noise seemed deafening.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Muscular grey-haired women squatted
next to large stone slabs, taking out heavy bed sheets that had been soaked in
large tin buckets. They bundled up the sheets, slapping them against the slabs
to loosen the dirt before sluicing them with clean water, squeezing them dry
and hanging them out on long clothes lines. Tied to the trees around the edge,
the clothes lines dipped drunkenly down to the ground, creating an obstacle
course that criss-crossed the clearing. Short and plump, Uma aunty was able to
navigate them with ease, but long-limbed Kaveri had to bend and duck to move.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">Children capered around playing with
cork balls made from the pods of the raintree whose branches shaded them from
above, making it even harder for her to get across. Crows cawed, diving down to
attack the plates of food that the older children held in their hands as they
chased their younger siblings around, trying to feed them. She saw a lot of
older people, too, but most of the performers must have left for Mysore.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">‘Do you know where Suman is?’ Kaveri
asked an exhausted-looking young woman with a swollen belly, one child on her
hip and the other tugging at her hand. But she only stared at her with
compressed lips, not saying a word.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">********************************************************</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">How did I come to write this? The Sampangi circus is fictional, but the dried lake in which the circus is situated is real, and has an especially rich ecological history which Hita Unnikrishnan, one of my former PhD students, studied in detail. Through most of the 19th century Sampangi lake was one of Bangalore's largest lakes, a thriving water body used by farmers, fishers, grazers, weavers and potters. But by the late 19th century, the British administrators began demanding that the lake be drained, because water from the lake flowed into their bungalows and breweries (which they built on the lake bed!). The farmers protested, but the lake was eventually drained so that the British regiments could play polo on the lake bed. After the demise of the lake, the grounds were eventually converted into a sports stadium - we documented the sad tale in this short article here, but it was such a fascinating (and sad) story, that I knew I had to work it into a book somewhere! </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><a href="https://www.environmentandsociety.org/arcadia/lake-became-sports-stadium#:~:text=As%20Bangalore%20grew%20into%20a,former%20ecological%20and%20social%20importance."><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">The Lake That Became a Sports Stadium</span></a></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;">And now, I hope you don't mind the obligatory writer's pitch - A Nest of Vipers is now available for pre-order, so if this excerpt makes you want to read a bit more, here's the link!</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><a href="https://bookshop.org/p/books/a-nest-of-vipers-a-bangalore-detectives-mystery-harini-nagendra/20166908">A Nest of Vipers: A Bangalore Detectives Club Mystery</a> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6SsIAzfgepiBRxkhzT1Zz0oqlFvwZlEu21A7wcGOIHK4KKHYXOUjXBB8ly0MI5GwdWAxeaKll9qui32HC1eWQm-9R7Are9BrpFrCS4QrgnmREAJfy5v7c-RxUN68HwWQKEG-anzOSlmpXO06CfRXJOyE-ZbFd-aVSsoH3xUrxwg0dxU3EVPQsqrrtipzu/s900/a-nest-of-vipers-9781639366149_xlg.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="593" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6SsIAzfgepiBRxkhzT1Zz0oqlFvwZlEu21A7wcGOIHK4KKHYXOUjXBB8ly0MI5GwdWAxeaKll9qui32HC1eWQm-9R7Are9BrpFrCS4QrgnmREAJfy5v7c-RxUN68HwWQKEG-anzOSlmpXO06CfRXJOyE-ZbFd-aVSsoH3xUrxwg0dxU3EVPQsqrrtipzu/s320/a-nest-of-vipers-9781639366149_xlg.jpg" width="211" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p></p><div><br /></div>Harini Nagendrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00706654609116149604noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4994072470312639837.post-73753184972286581402024-03-07T00:30:00.000-08:002024-03-07T04:40:50.210-08:00Opening Salvos from James W. Ziskin<p dir="ltr" id="docs-internal-guid-1ead6fa0-7fff-86d3-634c-72c09ff1ca81" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Creating mood through setting is important in crime fiction. Can you give examples from books that have inspired or moved you? Also, please share an evocative paragraph from your own work and tell us how you came to write it.</i></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" id="docs-internal-guid-1ead6fa0-7fff-86d3-634c-72c09ff1ca81" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" id="docs-internal-guid-1ead6fa0-7fff-86d3-634c-72c09ff1ca81" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9CalGWI0I0w_9EtTeN5BCNqiUitFFJAcC4AxNdFG8UN8-LMB3IWJPGWKEo0LowkvRiHBB4JLxnn6YoG4ss7eASkPNDr_8iCPJzsbN3GqD-ten76NfvpI8xjI5RZojM32rT2MKxIdU3xQwrA3g-koDR0luDkwRi0_O8zQxMqznp83LSw_Y5m7VR0oJJ0MP/s522/IMG_2564.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="522" data-original-width="361" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9CalGWI0I0w_9EtTeN5BCNqiUitFFJAcC4AxNdFG8UN8-LMB3IWJPGWKEo0LowkvRiHBB4JLxnn6YoG4ss7eASkPNDr_8iCPJzsbN3GqD-ten76NfvpI8xjI5RZojM32rT2MKxIdU3xQwrA3g-koDR0luDkwRi0_O8zQxMqznp83LSw_Y5m7VR0oJJ0MP/s320/IMG_2564.jpeg" width="221" /></a></div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Adrian McKinty’s Sean Duffy series has some of the most compelling openings I’ve ever read. They’re visual, gritty, and poetic. The writing is beautiful, and I confess to being envious. I love all seven of the Sean Duffy books, set in 1980s Belfast and Carrickfergus in Northern Ireland against the backdrop of the Troubles. </span><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Sean Duffy is a detective sergeant in the Royal Ulster Constabulary. But he happens to be Catholic, which means pretty much everyone hates him. His Protestant comrades distrust him, and the IRA wants him dead. It’s a terrific series. The fifth book, <i>Rain Dogs</i>, won the Edgar Award for Best Paperback Original in 2017. </span><span style="font-size: x-small;"><b>(Should I be jealous that my own <i>Heart of Stone</i> was also a finalist for that Edgar that year? Perhaps, but I’m not.)</b></span><span style="font-size: medium;"> The series concluded last year with <i>The Detective up Late</i>, and I’ll miss Sean Duffy.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I’ve chosen the opening passage of <i>The Cold Cold Ground</i> (book 1), because, for me, it’s a masterpiece of description.</span></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNt2csM-KiVce4lw6e1KEDhZC8Ucoxro2J9D-diyXyyIapMRCHWrpBf9yrbW4Xb5xUISQuamQalosxjBDD0tt2pNNma2IWr79ziiDk7P9Ulcv4pepZxJ6sO4lRpE9iXrUW_366OvE_ibyPI8mF5_1qzG9ilxvd4kJ2XO-yZZSiFz4devky_Hv3y_KKPhOf/s1376/IMG_2563.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="779" data-original-width="1376" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNt2csM-KiVce4lw6e1KEDhZC8Ucoxro2J9D-diyXyyIapMRCHWrpBf9yrbW4Xb5xUISQuamQalosxjBDD0tt2pNNma2IWr79ziiDk7P9Ulcv4pepZxJ6sO4lRpE9iXrUW_366OvE_ibyPI8mF5_1qzG9ilxvd4kJ2XO-yZZSiFz4devky_Hv3y_KKPhOf/w562-h318/IMG_2563.jpeg" width="562" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: medium;"><br style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;" /></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The scene roars to life, blitzing the reader with shapes, sounds, geometry, light, and colors. Flames and improvised bombs. (The use of the word “gasoline” instead of “petrol” intrigues me...) And I was so impressed by the brilliant choice to introduce the police helicopters—not by the beating of their rotors as you might expect—but by their searchlights casting about ineffectually, as they scan the dark, riotous landscape, only to land on others of their kind. But the most powerful image in this passage is that of the men yelling below decks on a torpedoed prison ship. Wow! You can’t describe desperation and panic any better than that. The curt, one-sentence paragraph at the end reminds us that it rains in Belfast. And it rains oily. A perfect codicil.</span></span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">**********************</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">As for my own modest efforts to create mood through setting, I thought it would be fitting to offer the opening of <i>Heart of Stone</i>, the very same book nominated for the Edgar that Adrian won. I’ve posted it before, but here it is again.<br style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;" /><br style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;" /></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsJTBDpRBjtIKXkboKfDTriU_ySZtLKsEZbG2d3h-W-IgATfyPfMtRpiUO9Ww0cEGIpcn5x-obdq2JZVJH_RvlC1ii6G4aT-se75HBBBMRQcPtNhcTXr9sKXzr-3_PzN-5o2HdDefCftxzzHD0GPBYArvi9p4ZcP36qzQevAJ9idzPhU4dXCDMY92MILC8/s2218/IMG_1199.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2218" data-original-width="1500" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsJTBDpRBjtIKXkboKfDTriU_ySZtLKsEZbG2d3h-W-IgATfyPfMtRpiUO9Ww0cEGIpcn5x-obdq2JZVJH_RvlC1ii6G4aT-se75HBBBMRQcPtNhcTXr9sKXzr-3_PzN-5o2HdDefCftxzzHD0GPBYArvi9p4ZcP36qzQevAJ9idzPhU4dXCDMY92MILC8/s320/IMG_1199.jpeg" width="216" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i><span style="font-family: arial;">I remember the cool breath of the night woods on my neck. I see the gl</span><span style="font-family: Arial;">ow of moonlight on the highest boughs, filtering down in a pale cast, weak and washed-out, fading into darkness. I smell the moss and the decay of the forest floor, heady, damp, musky. And I can taste the earthy mushrooms and bitter berries on my tongue. But most of all, I hear the pines whisper and sigh, their needles, like millions of tiny blades, carving voices into the breeze.</span></i></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: medium;">—<i>Heart of Stone</i></span></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;" /><br style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;" /><br style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;" /><br style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;" /><br style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;" /><br style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;" /><br style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;" /><br style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;" /><br style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;" /><br style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;" /><br style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;" /><br style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;" /><br style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;" /><br style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;" /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> Sdlfjhds</span></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;" /></span><br style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;" /></p></div>James W. Ziskinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07677940119373480715noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4994072470312639837.post-1175661430254378442024-03-06T00:00:00.000-08:002024-03-06T00:00:00.135-08:00In the Mood<p><i><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Creating mood through setting is important in crime fiction. Can you give examples from books that have inspired or moved you? Also, please share an evocative paragraph from your own work and tell us how you came to write it.</span></i></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 18px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">by Dietrich</span></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 18px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">My idea is to set the mood for a scene with as powerful a description as I can come up with, using the fewest words possible, and always keeping in mind that the story needs to keep moving forward.</span></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 18px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">To my mind, the master of setting mood was Cormac McCarthy. An example that illustrates this is from <i>The Road</i>: </span></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 18px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><i></i></span><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><i><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">“He lay listening to the water drip in the woods. Bedrock, this. The cold and the silence. The ashes of the late world carried on the bleak and temporal winds to and fro in the void. Carried forth and scattered and carried forth again. Everything uncoupled from its shoring. Unsupported in the ashen air. Sustained by a breath, trembling and brief.”</span></i></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 18px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><i></i></span><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Or how about this from another master of the craft, James Lee Burke. This one from <i>The Tin Roof Blowdown</i>:</span></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 18px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><i></i></span><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><i>"New Orleans: where the dead wear masks and the living wear faces.”</i> </span></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 18px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Or how about this from Toni Morrison from <i>Beloved</i>: </span></span></p>
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<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><i><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">“It never looked as terrible as it was and it made her wonder if hell was a pretty place too. Fire and brimstone all right, but hidden in lacy groves.”</span></i></span></p>
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<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The last question asks us to share a paragraph from our own work. My new novel <i>Crooked</i> is scheduled to come out this fall. It’s based on the life and crimes of Alvin Karpis, a man who topped the most wanted list in America in the 30s. Writing it was an interesting process which involved considerable research and the following of actual events while peppering in fictional elements. Here’s an excerpt:</span></span></p>
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<p style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><i>Walking past the crossbuck, he followed the railway line, curly dock and grass tufts sprouting between the rusting rails. Going the way the kid manning the pump told him, the Magnolia station about a mile behind him now, he felt the morning heat rising. Stepping between the ties, going another quarter mile before stopping to shake a stone from his shoe, thinking what the kid at the pump warned him about: a bunch of freebooters working the area, robbing passengers at gunpoint after their tour bus slipped off the shoulder, taking the driver for the fare money and relieving passengers of their rings, wallets and watches. The same gang that hijacked a cab driver two days back, binding the man to a willow outside of town, robbing his pockets and stealing his taxi. Alvin thinking these were his kind of people.</i> </span></span></p>Dietrich Kalteishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06403361738445161528noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4994072470312639837.post-26625570260575094402024-03-05T02:30:00.000-08:002024-03-05T02:30:00.131-08:00Setting Sets the Mood<p> </p>
Terry here, answering our question of the week:
Creating mood through setting is important in crime fiction. Give an example from a book that have inspired or moved you? Also, please share an evocative paragraph from your own work and tell us how you came to write it. <div><br /></div><div> Setting is more than just place. It’s nice to know a few details about immediate surroundings. Is the action taking place inside or out. If it’s in a room someone is in—are they sitting on a chair or on the floor; is there furniture? Are they alone or with people? Are there windows? What is outside? And if they are outdoors, what is in their immediate area? </div><div><br /></div><div> In a larger sense, setting is also geography, weather, and time. Every element of the story will hinge on when it’s set—the way people dress, the way they talk, their mannerisms, their customs, their government, their beliefs. Geographical setting in the world is also vital. A book set in Japan is going to have a very different feel from one set in Australia. One set in Africa will be different from one in London.
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtZ1bSjjguALdT8lgS33Q47A3k97l_g3Lk3C7jxQQahDhrfamJMtCSQnAS3b_dAnkdYouLJHmhyphenhyphenL4UVRKLmKjkugkJdtzlYeyo8YWxBLoSTY980khOARVMJqxnnKSWsthzKxla4bUBEQVkM3Ukm5vznHKJySA-qlMksnIzqpcf-FT-qtD_Fbrku3iAk_zc/s2448/Lion.jpeg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="2448" data-original-width="2448" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtZ1bSjjguALdT8lgS33Q47A3k97l_g3Lk3C7jxQQahDhrfamJMtCSQnAS3b_dAnkdYouLJHmhyphenhyphenL4UVRKLmKjkugkJdtzlYeyo8YWxBLoSTY980khOARVMJqxnnKSWsthzKxla4bUBEQVkM3Ukm5vznHKJySA-qlMksnIzqpcf-FT-qtD_Fbrku3iAk_zc/s320/Lion.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div>
And more immediate geographical setting matters come into play—mountain life is different from life in desert country; life on a beach is different from life in a city condominium.
In the mountains your protagonist may be struggling to chase a killer in a snowstorm (Walt Longmire, anyone?). In the city, you face traffic and crowded conditions. In a desert you have to contend with drought and water deprivation. And maybe loneliness. On the beach, you may be subject to hurricanes. If you are at sea, you could have rough seas or utter stillness. <div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5HkhuGu8r0YxZwIkg_Kx3ohOrDcLKKw0JHFhg6ZteFT-v3w96vGeTdtjW1CsztbNOQ_F5X6jAl2HixdRS1uGi1zIPerDPd9kkJondgcfe6idrty4k1aHYBe5RA-0GjEjop0One971gEYSeTacNreKgF4VflC0Lckuva6ht5HcBrjya0_VF3xKxw9wDlmp/s3264/Boats%20in%20evening.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="3264" data-original-width="2448" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5HkhuGu8r0YxZwIkg_Kx3ohOrDcLKKw0JHFhg6ZteFT-v3w96vGeTdtjW1CsztbNOQ_F5X6jAl2HixdRS1uGi1zIPerDPd9kkJondgcfe6idrty4k1aHYBe5RA-0GjEjop0One971gEYSeTacNreKgF4VflC0Lckuva6ht5HcBrjya0_VF3xKxw9wDlmp/s320/Boats%20in%20evening.JPG" /></a></div>
These geographical settings influence personal perspectives. For example, people who live out on a ranch with few neighbors have to depend more on themselves. That will reflect in the kind of people they are-more independent, maybe more worn-down from the rigors of trying to run the ranch. People who live in a community will have different issues—loud neighbors and petty quarrels. </div><div><br /></div><div> One of the questions I get asked is, “Could your books be set anywhere else?” I set my Samuel Craddock series in small-town Texas. As one reviewer put it, in my books, “You can feel the Texas wind blow and the dirt dust up beneath your feet…” Another mentions, “Shames wonderfully evokes small-town Texas life…”
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBwIAVk-JCFLLodm9NcF3ask-WBZBYGMJlqYAXdRHP9kpN_cfXDd2yzaNO2XyJTk5u_U3P4wlszzreTTS8DZPmkbWIW0yYTzEW27LiH44ut0glPi9H9BQCD_kuzTzbjvdhtxBz3C9J3AcicFwB7KlwrMDBDIrtH3RIRe8ekusPfdwbDh6atlMwbNDJQ3BL/s475/Texas%20town%20copy.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="382" data-original-width="475" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBwIAVk-JCFLLodm9NcF3ask-WBZBYGMJlqYAXdRHP9kpN_cfXDd2yzaNO2XyJTk5u_U3P4wlszzreTTS8DZPmkbWIW0yYTzEW27LiH44ut0glPi9H9BQCD_kuzTzbjvdhtxBz3C9J3AcicFwB7KlwrMDBDIrtH3RIRe8ekusPfdwbDh6atlMwbNDJQ3BL/s320/Texas%20town%20copy.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
But according to my emails, the books could be set in small towns in other states as well. Maybe even in other countries? It’s more about the small-town ambiance than the broader environment. As another reviewer puts it, “Shames outshines most writers of mysteries with her …understanding of small town dynamics.” In other words, in any small town you have the same petty quarrels among citizens, you have gossip, suspicion of outsiders, worries about the financial viability of the town, and jockeying for power in the political and policing life of town. And even murder. At least in a mystery you do. </div><div><br /></div><div> No matter where and when you set your book, there’s going to be weather. And seasons of the year. One of the best book titles I ever heard was Julia Spencer-Flemings <i>In The Bleak Midwinter</i>. With that title alone, you know you’re going to plunged into dark, cold days. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioWPkbNrceCfjac_P86QAz8EnNZIECWHkZZ7B1cv__ZItrrbpiL3XLY79LM4OzUneMvOh9wplI8g0mUlDhg3b8Q52VtNm3lmJ4_NufK_-uy3oPe4JDHWogu3VzBqvjxq_JiDP1Z_xWBjmcmiCgYocq9Hcg5KynZ57QHlbq0sov2uvye24bYN9akfnH1zel/s4032/NY%20snow.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioWPkbNrceCfjac_P86QAz8EnNZIECWHkZZ7B1cv__ZItrrbpiL3XLY79LM4OzUneMvOh9wplI8g0mUlDhg3b8Q52VtNm3lmJ4_NufK_-uy3oPe4JDHWogu3VzBqvjxq_JiDP1Z_xWBjmcmiCgYocq9Hcg5KynZ57QHlbq0sov2uvye24bYN9akfnH1zel/s320/NY%20snow.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br />
We were asked to give an example of setting that inspired or moved us and I can think of no better book than Timothy Hallinan’s <i>The Hot Country</i>. I go back to this book and again for its strong sense of place. </div><div>Here’s the opening paragraph: </div><div><br /></div><div> “The dusty braid of Christmas lights in the tiny window has been there for decades and has been plugged in all year round. The original bulbs are long burned out, but not even the occasional, irregular replacements, glowing in faded red and green, can compete with the prisms of light and color created by the big beads of rain on the outside of the glass.” </div><div><br /></div><div> Wow. I don’t know about you, but I’m standing at the door of some dingy, worn-out place and feeling the pull of defeat. </div><div><br /></div><div> I have trouble with writing setting and usually have to go back and fill in descriptions after I have done a first draft. Sometimes I laugh and say, “Where is he? Is he standing in the air?” And when I do fill in descriptions, they always enhance the scene. </div><div><br /></div><div> Here are a few samples from my own work. </div><div><br /></div><div> “Reinhardt is driving faster than he ought to. I watch houses slip by. In this bleak time a few weeks after Christmas, it’s hard to believe there will ever be green in the landscape again. Everything is gray and brown—the grass dead from nights of hard freeze, the post oaks and pecans bare of all except curled brown leaves.” <i>Dead Broke in Jarrett Creek</i> </div><div><br /></div><div> Here’s another: </div><div><br /></div><div> “The rainstorm is over. I had hoped it would bring cooler air, but all it has done is make the air muggy. Hailey and Wendy complain that their hair will be frizzy tomorrow. I file that under things I didn’t know anybody had to worry about.” <i>Murder at the Jubilee Rally</i> </div><div><br /></div><div> Anybody who has been in a rainstorm in the heat knows this itchy, unsatisfied feeling. </div><div><br /></div><div> No matter how you describe the time, the place, the geography or the weather, “setting” is the backdrop for challenges presented in daily lives at home, with neighbors, or in a community. And in Jarrett Creek, the small town where I set my books the petty quarrels can be…well, judge for yourself: </div><div><br /></div><div> “Late afternoon we have a recurring problem to deal with. Pigs have gotten into Mrs. Bedichek’s vegetable garden, so I have to go help the owner of the pigs, Sandy Morton, round them up. When (Sandy) retired, for some reason he decided to take up raising pigs. The problem is that the pigs seem to be cleverer than Sandy…they find ways to get out and raise havoc, either getting on the road and stopping local traffic, or invading neighbors’ yards.” <i>Guilt Strikes at Granger’s Store</i> </div><div><br /></div><div>You’re not going to find that at the beach or in a city.
And I’ll cite one more passage from one of my books. This can be set nowhere but Texas: </div><div><br /></div><div> “I walk back to the pond where Nonie’s body was found. Most people around here call a pond a tank, from when all these small bodies of water used to be for watering cattle. The word pond conjures up an image from a storybook—a shallow pool with lily pads and nicely kept-up banks and cute little animals playing in the grass.
This small body of water is surrounded by weeds most of the way around. There’s an old stump on the far shore next to a big sycamore tree whose branches hang out several feet over the water. Water moccasins like to lie in shady areas under trees like that one, or even in the low branches. There must not be in any in this tank, or they would likely have latched onto Nonie’s body.” <i>The Necessary Murder of Nonie Bl</i>ake</div>Terryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17478393430722574447noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4994072470312639837.post-85932567894958123132024-03-03T21:00:00.000-08:002024-03-03T21:00:00.135-08:00Setting the Mood<p><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Creating mood through setting is important in crime fiction. Can you give examples from books that have inspired or moved you? Also, please share an evocative paragraph from your own work and tell us how you came to write it.</span></b></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Brenda starting off the week.</span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Using setting to set a mood is integral to crime fiction but it's also key to all good writing. When done well, the setting and mood seamlessly flow into the story, like a movie set.</span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">I used to love Gothic romances set in sprawling, dark mansions with hidden passageways, stormy nights, wind-swept moors, and secrets ... lots of murderous secrets. <i>Rebecca</i>, <i>Jane Eyre</i>, <i>Wuthering Heights -- </i>the setting soaked in grim moodiness, like the characters who inhabited the pages.</span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Another book where the setting breathed like another character is <i>To Kill a Mockingbird</i>. I still think of the hot, summer nights in that Southern town, people drinking lemonade on their front porches, sparkly fireflies, and the kids walking past the scary house where Boo Radley lived. The Hallowe'en night where Scout is attacked is memorable all these years later.</span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">In the crime fiction genre, a book that made an impact is Truman Capote's <i>In Cold Blood</i>. It's another book I read in high school and the devastating realism of those murders stayed with me for a long, long time. At its best, mood and setting complement the plot and enhance the pathos, or horror, or whatever feeling the author is working to evoke.</span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">In creating mood through setting in my own work, I believe that details should be slipped into the scene without long tracts of description. I use the setting to up the tension, often having the scary bits happen at night, during stormy weather or in an isolated location, such as the woods or an empty house. As an example, here is a scene from <i>When Last Seen</i>:</span></span></p><p><i style="font-family: arial; text-indent: 28.8px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The road was unpaved but pothole-free. Tony drove slowly while he and Ella peered into the bushes and trees on either side. No sign of a car on the first pass. At the five-minute mark, the road ended at an overgrown driveway that led to a house with the roof caved in, a black, hulking mass set in a clearing now thick with tall grass and bushes. Tony parked and they circled the building on foot, their eyes adjusting to the gloom and moonlight. They met in front of his car. “It can’t be safe to go inside. We should just leave.” He took a last glance toward the house and shuddered as he reached for the car door handle.</span></i></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDNRQP78FK5yZ0VXEs5RsLkj1Po1SZxtcYO_5LVaL9DDpmm8mpEr4oSjAKcfL5JbWR88V9qQAOvktJ8hpSGcyUMJu7ed_tPTB1MBgyN7bENnlMD2roFIBtIV-y5AszffXlOXZQw2syAp9fjpAecQdEi8KSTuT2O9s3ZjMLRngNALqGNg6XOlq7jCr4M0S_/s2800/E187B4AC-DE43-43AB-971C-399C51A3B905.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2800" data-original-width="1750" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDNRQP78FK5yZ0VXEs5RsLkj1Po1SZxtcYO_5LVaL9DDpmm8mpEr4oSjAKcfL5JbWR88V9qQAOvktJ8hpSGcyUMJu7ed_tPTB1MBgyN7bENnlMD2roFIBtIV-y5AszffXlOXZQw2syAp9fjpAecQdEi8KSTuT2O9s3ZjMLRngNALqGNg6XOlq7jCr4M0S_/s320/E187B4AC-DE43-43AB-971C-399C51A3B905.jpeg" width="200" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large; text-align: left; text-indent: 28.8px;"></span></div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; text-indent: 28.8px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">When writing works best, setting and mood enhance the plot and evoke emotion in the reader. I've visited several book clubs this past year and am always thrilled and perhaps a bit surprised when something retells a scene from one of my books in detail and talks about the impact it had on them. This really is the objective in my mind -- create a picture in words that the reader sees in their imagination and that makes them feel something.</span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; text-indent: 28.8px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">And to end this post, one last descriptive passage from<i> Closing TIme</i>, seventh book in my Stonechild and Rouleau series:</span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; text-indent: 28.8px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Kala drove with care through the stormy night, the road slick with rain that puddled on the shoulders and spread in snaky rivulets across the pavement. The light from her headlights pierced through the swirling fog that parted for a moment until she'd passed through and then closed in as if she'd never been.</i></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; text-indent: 28.8px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_WYYebW_01tYIsYjFb_xBHD6z7L1wIlhJL9cO8xIS6gWveWz6rxCoqQDYmWhHA1sx9OJnwngQ4Z-QNSwGPkwWfkWBlt5gZ6BGDib8_dALBVxBEwkW4jYlSPQYic_H1GYHcbEIUDx-FMnR528MP-ZFK-HYLPvhCvuXURUxxbNIozImxnMGTAaOKEKhMYQa/s2400/34F89438-6E1D-4F65-A6FC-DFAE95748740.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2400" data-original-width="1500" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_WYYebW_01tYIsYjFb_xBHD6z7L1wIlhJL9cO8xIS6gWveWz6rxCoqQDYmWhHA1sx9OJnwngQ4Z-QNSwGPkwWfkWBlt5gZ6BGDib8_dALBVxBEwkW4jYlSPQYic_H1GYHcbEIUDx-FMnR528MP-ZFK-HYLPvhCvuXURUxxbNIozImxnMGTAaOKEKhMYQa/s320/34F89438-6E1D-4F65-A6FC-DFAE95748740.png" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /><i><br /></i></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; text-indent: 28.8px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Website: www.brendachapman.ca</b></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; text-indent: 28.8px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Twitter (<i>X</i>): brendaAchapman</b></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; text-indent: 28.8px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Facebook & Instagram: BrendaChapmanAuthor</b></span></span></p>7 Criminal Mindshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06060496735767676472noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4994072470312639837.post-60913916074055023942024-03-01T00:30:00.000-08:002024-03-01T00:30:00.138-08:00How to Write a Query, an Outline, or a Synopsis, by Josh Stallings & friends<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Q:</b> A query, an outline, and a synopsis walk into a bar, and a writer/bartender has a panic attack. Publishers and agents often want one or all of these thinga-ma-jobbies. Any advice for writers who are flummoxed by how to create them?</span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>A:</b> Truth time, I wrote this question hoping I wouldn’t have to answer it. I have skated by never having to learn how to write a good query, outline, or synopsis. The entire idea flummoxed me. A smart person is one who knows a lot of facts, a wise person is one who knows what they don’t know, and whom to ask for help.</span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I have been blessed to know many very smart writers and publishing professionals. Here are four brilliant friends who each in their own way tackled these problems and broke them down to simple steps and modes of working. I’ve learned much from them and I know you will too.</span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b></b><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-size: medium;">From Amy Moore-Benson Literary Agent: </span></b></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">As an agent – a publishing professional who receives multiple queries a day – the query is everything. And every writer should put the work into getting it right before sending it off. It’s the writer’s one opportunity to get through the door, to make enough of a positive impression to engage an agent, to create a sense of interest and urgency to compel the agent to ask for more. I think of it as the same as the relationship between back-cover copy and a potential book buyer: there needs to be enough plot to make a reader think, “Wow, what next…?” and enough distinctive voice to make a reader think, “I want to experience how this story is told.”</span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The fact that your query should be professionally conceived is a given. Do your research, know what the agents you are querying are looking for, what they’re selling. Make sure that the description of your work is concise and has a narrative flow, not too long (for me, max two short paragraphs), and that it is infused with your voice, your confident and unique writerly calling card. Only use comps if they’re interesting <i>and</i> accurate, and add something biographical that doesn’t sound like a resume.</span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">An outline or a synopsis are what I turn to after I’ve asked for the manuscript, after I’ve read enough to know I’m interested in the work to want to know where the story is going. They are a necessary part of the process, but for me, they should be straightforward and logical, and should give me the confidence that you know your story.</span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: medium;">****</span></b></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b></b><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-size: medium;">From Victoria Helen Stone, WSJ bestselling author of Jane Doe. Her upcoming book, FOLLOW HER DOWN comes out June 4th.</span></b></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I hate writing synopses. Absolutely HATE them. Given free rein, I’ll start writing a book with just a basic idea of where I’m going, because at the beginning, I don’t know these people. I know their backstory and what nightmare I’m going to drop them into, but how they’ll respond? How they’ll think and act out and plan and regroup? I have no idea until I spend time with them. </span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Tragically, my publisher doesn’t seem to trust that I’ll (probably) puzzle out the plot eventually. When I’m under contract, they ruthlessly demand blood. And by blood, I mean an outline. </span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">So here’s my trick: after spending years plodding through ten pages of boring plot points, I’ve started including dialogue. That’s the flavor. The spicy meat of the story. Not point A to B to C, but my actual writing voice and the personality of the people in my head. Instead of describing how the characters react to chaos, I sprinkle in a few exchanges, a few disagreements, some funny asides. This makes it so much easier for me to write, and I assume it’s easier for my editor to read too. </span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Now once the publisher has the outline and I get my approval? Well, who’s going to remember the exact story I proposed when I turn in the manuscript six months later? My editor has been living a busy life the whole time. And so have my imaginary friends. </span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>****</b><span style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-size: medium;">From Jamie Mason who writes more whydunnits than whodunnits because the why in stories is her favorite part. She is the author of Three Graves Full, Monday’s Lie, and The Hidden Things.</span></b></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">It’s not like writing a novel isn’t hard enough. I understand why we have to write queries. But understanding it doesn’t make me hate it any less.</span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">All the advice I have here for querying probably mostly applies to written queries. It’s the only kind I’ve ever done. In all honestly, I don’t understand in-person pitches for novel-length written material. I mean, it’s great and all if you can conjure up your inner salesperson and put your query material into a competent song and dance. I’m just not much of a performer. Asked to pitch my book out loud and I’m just as apt to swallow my own tongue as getting anything useful out.</span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">It’s always made more sense to me to pitch a page on a page.</span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">But maybe if you get a good query summary written down, you can rehearse it in front of the mirror and find a way to make a short speech out of it.</span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Anyway.</span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">As far as I can tell, the query serves two purposes: to demonstrate that you actually know what you’ve written, and to show a prospective agent or editor that you’re not a crazy person.</span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The horrible part is capturing the interest and essence of what you’ve accomplished in 100,000 words in less than two hundred or so.</span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">One thing I’ve found helpful and effective is to go to one of your favorite lines in your story. Something that when you wrote it made you go <i>awwwwww yeah, hell yeah</i>. Revisit it and see if it can be repurposed as an anchor for a recap of what happens in your story. Not all great lines will work, but it’s worth a try. If you can explain what in the story got you to that great line, what was happening in the plot that resulted in that run of seven to twenty brilliant words, you might be on the way to the framework for a query-style summary of your novel.</span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">There’s also a trick that I guess I would call “layering.” But you have to do this one quickly. You can take one straightforward, unadorned sentence to articulate the main problem that incites your plot. Maybe two sentences—absolutely tops. Then come in with the razzle dazzle of how the problem is actually much worse than all that for your protagonist.</span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Basically, I would say polish the setup and wrap up the query summary with assurances that it all gets resolved to immense satisfaction. Make the problem really sexy and you can exit the query summary with a knowing nod and wink conveying that you sorted it all out by The End, rather than attempting to explain all the twists and turns.</span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">As for the rest of the query—the part where you give the impression that you’re not a crazy person—it’s pretty basic. Don’t compliment your own work. You’ll look like a crazy person. If you have relevant life experience that makes you extra qualified to write the type of story or characters you did, great! If not, don’t try to make it sound so. You’ll look like a crazy person. Probably don’t go on about how much you like to read or how much you’ve always wanted to be a writer. It’s kind of a given and if you make too big a deal of the obvious, you’ll sound like a. . . you get the idea.</span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">A longer synopsis, if asked for, can be less frustrating than a query, but not by all that much. Some of the same sensibilities that work for querying also apply to writing a synopsis. In fact, last time I wrote out a full synopsis, the first two paragraphs were my query summary and then I just fleshed it out, point-by-point, in the rest of the document. In a summary, you’ll have to describe a little more about how the sausage of the resolution gets made.</span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I think in a query you have to show some flair. You have to do it in “voice”. I guess that’s why I like to use the query summary as an opener for a synopsis, because then you can switch into a more school-book-report style and just explain what happens. That way, you’ll show what you do artistically and then don’t have to reinvent the wheel of your novel to explain what happens in it.</span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">As for anyone asking for an outline, I just have to really, really hope this doesn’t happen anymore. I do outline my work, but for my own purposes and in my own style. If anyone wanted to see that, I might as well send them a paper bag with some onion rings and a few Viking rune stones in it for all they will be able to make of it.<br />
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I hope this helps anyone out there in one of these hard parts of this hard business. My heart is with you. Best of luck! </span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: medium;">****</span></b></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-size: medium;">From Lenore Van Horne, editrix extraordinaire:</span></b></p><p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I have a super foolproof method for query writing, it’s an easy formula and it goes like this:</span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Paragraph 1: Your name, title of book, word count, genre, is it a series?, one-two sentence longline. </span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Why do we need this? So that the reader (agent, editor, whoever) knows a little bit about it, like if they represent/publish your genre, or if you’ve for some reason written a 200,000 word rom-com…stuff that we need to know before committing further to the project.</span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Paragraph 2-3: Your mini-synopsis. Hold a sec for how to write this until we get to the synopsis part. But a couple of quick notes. Just focus on the protagonist, their wants, the roadblocks in the way, and the overall journey. No detours.</span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Last Paragraph (or, the “about me” paragraph): This is just a value-add so if none of these things apply to you, you don’t need this paragraph. Just say thanks for reading, hope to hear back, and go on about your life (riddled with anxiety until they get back to you). If you DO decide to include this paragraph, it should only (ONLY) contain the following:</span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>1) Anything that makes you a “professional writer,” you’ve got an MFA, you’ve published multiple non-fiction journal articles (yes, this counts), you’ve won an award, you have published other books, you are the president of your local writing group…this sort of thing.</span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>2) Anything that makes you an “expert” on your topic. Your book is about serial killers and you, yourself, are a serial killer (hopefully this doesn’t apply). Your book takes place in Spain and you spent 3 years there, drinking wine and communing with Guernica. Your protagonist is a lawyer and your parents were both lawyers and you escaped to become a writer…that sort of thing. </span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>3) Anything that makes you independently marketable. You climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro with Johnny Cash. You won an Olympic medal. Something that if you were being interviewed you could talk about over and above your book. (Hordes of social media followers go in this category, too.)</span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">That’s it. You’ve got your query letter. As an FYI you’ve also got your in-person pitch if you’ve got your query letter. Same dealio, you just sit down and start with, “My name is, I’ve written x book, it’s x words long, and this genre…” and go on from there with your query letter. Just out loud.</span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Okay, now time for the scariest thing about the submission process: The Synopsis. I’m not joking. This IS the hardest thing for a writer to write. How to condense your brilliant 80k word baby into one page? It’s impossible. So here’s my quick and easy cheat. Pretend that you were up all night reading your own book. It was SO good you couldn’t put it down. The next morning, you’re meeting a friend for coffee and they say, “Why do you look so tired?” And you say, “You have to read this book.” Well… “What’s it about?” Now answer that! First practice doing it with a movie or book you’ve recently read. Record yourself on your phone giving the synopsis to someone else. You’re going to see what you focus on, what you leave out. Then do it for YOUR book. Transcribe what you say. Then polish it a little. That’s all there is to it. </span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: medium;">****</span></b></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">It’s <b>Josh</b> again, I wanted to thank these four brilliant creatives for taking the time to help educate me and our readers. All of them are busy people who prove what I discovered a long time ago about the writing community, reach out for help and they will reach back. They pay it forward and backwards and sideways. If you have questions don’t hesitate to ask, if I don’t know the answer I know somebody who does. </span></p>Josh Stallingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09913654176433125233noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4994072470312639837.post-45903207809758278212024-02-29T01:00:00.000-08:002024-02-29T01:00:00.153-08:00Two out of three ain't bad, by Catriona<p><b><span style="color: red;">A query, an outline, and a synopsis walk into a bar, and a
writer/bartender shoots themself. Publishers and agents often want one
or all of these thinga-ma-jobbies*. Any advice for writers who are
flummoxed by how to create them? </span></b></p><p><b>*In Scotland,"jobbie" means <i>turd</i>. An extra layer of meaning to the question, I say.</b></p><p><b>And onto the question - which is three separate questions. Or rather, it's one question about writing and two questions about not-writing. </b></p><p><b>The question about writing is "how to outline". My answer is . . . not a clue. Not a scooby-doo. My guess would be . . . write down what's going to happen in the book you're planning? </b></p><p><b>If you're a outliner/plotter, or think it sounds like fun, scroll down and read Eric's post from yesterday. If you're a non-outliner/pantser, or think it sounds like fun, then come with me, Gentle Reader. </b><b>But either way, don't worry about it. Neither method, nor any mixture of them, is better or worse than the other and it won't show up in the finished book.</b></p><p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEins2f68kWG1PYHryYtU1YdUBjRhAvEbP1uk-rRrlD03Xk7TACYvBYBpQVAcl4SD__uPRMTJDOUHuQtbjri4-mICFcv9KA3-4Yvy5EYSmCXRAOwXidyg_9Y8pn3VrKwftj_DoqhveaUxg-TmMZ16yoRUiqus5kOaYF1yJtBxHk_ErCqEbC_GnX9BySCATPf/s5312/20171129_220456.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2988" data-original-width="5312" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEins2f68kWG1PYHryYtU1YdUBjRhAvEbP1uk-rRrlD03Xk7TACYvBYBpQVAcl4SD__uPRMTJDOUHuQtbjri4-mICFcv9KA3-4Yvy5EYSmCXRAOwXidyg_9Y8pn3VrKwftj_DoqhveaUxg-TmMZ16yoRUiqus5kOaYF1yJtBxHk_ErCqEbC_GnX9BySCATPf/s320/20171129_220456.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pantsing that first draft is messy, mind you</td></tr></tbody></table></p><p><b>I hope no one mistakes my "dunno" for veiled advice. The related and frequent question "Should we or shouldn't we outline?" is unanswerable. God, I wish it was unaskable. It doesn't matter! We are all free to write that Anne-Lamotty first draft or produce a lavish outline and I cannot for the life of me work out why anyone cares what anyone else does. It's right up there with "Mac or PC". </b></p><p><b>However, the other two bits of the question - regarding queries and synopses - are a different matter entirely. If we want to pursue tradional publishing, with an agent, we need to write queries and synopses. How? Well, I would say we need to pull on our big knickers, remind ourselves that there is no job in the world where every last sub-task is pure joy, and crack on with it. It's not writing; it's not worth the angst of a writer.</b></p><p><b>Querying is <strike>admin</strike>. Hang on, not quite. But it is ancillary to writing, like choosing a laptop or attending a convention. So it's fine - maybe even preferable - if your query letter is brisk and business-like even though your prose style is lush and lyrical. I'd say a good start would be Janet Reid's <a href="https://queryshark.blogspot.com/">Query Shark</a> website. Anything I wrote here would be duplication. Maybe even theft.</b></p><p><b>Synopses are <strike>admin</strike>. No, they're not, but I liked the echo. It too is ancillary to writing, like</b><b> designing new bookmarks or updating a website.</b><b> It won't be a surprise to hear that I can't write synopses until I've finished the first draft of the book - until I've chipped it out of the ground without breaking any bits off, as Stephen King puts it. Which is not to say I've never done it. I've recently written one-page synopses for books 7, 8 & 9 in the Last Ditch Motel series - complete with titles - and I'm hoping that A. I forget what I promised before I try to write it and B. no one at Severn House holds me to it over the next few years. They're more aspirations than they are manifestos.</b></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhumcl_koZGOCV7_yDmVDn462IYqV35cKhN0wkyxa4v-7vTz-2abkhRH9F-H6z1tvLnUsGbSaRx4STPx9nO294ck3xtE5yEw4SsfimPZbuNhPzvyATLdUC82gaxTkQwkUtXM89WMZA7nqrtqTh4LsyFnapbp6833vD5Km05x3mI-U3-Z7l9KyQemc5PJjNo/s3867/20240228_141455.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3867" data-original-width="2676" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhumcl_koZGOCV7_yDmVDn462IYqV35cKhN0wkyxa4v-7vTz-2abkhRH9F-H6z1tvLnUsGbSaRx4STPx9nO294ck3xtE5yEw4SsfimPZbuNhPzvyATLdUC82gaxTkQwkUtXM89WMZA7nqrtqTh4LsyFnapbp6833vD5Km05x3mI-U3-Z7l9KyQemc5PJjNo/s320/20240228_141455.jpg" width="221" /></a></div><b><p><b><br /></b></p>But a jacket-copy-style zippy synopsis of a book that's out of my head and onto the paper? Love 'em. I can even write them for other people (and have done several times). What Eric said yesterday is spot-on. You need to be able to recognise what the grabby bit is and what you can miss out. </b><b>How do you recognise the grabby bit, though? It's helpful to think which bits of the plot would be in the trailer of the film. That keeps your jacket-copy-style synopsis spoiler-free, for a start, and forces any kind of synopsis to stick to big, clear moments that don't need too much set-up to make sense. </b><p></p><p><b>My only further advice is to miss out great big chunks - whole sub-plots and entire characters - rather than trying to snip away until you've got a smidge of everything. It's like a buffet: I'd always rather have a lot of a little than a little of a lot.</b></p><p><b>As well as that, I'd advise to name the main character early. Mary Higgins Clark's method of starting each chapter with a character's name has never been bettered, as a way of handling POV switches: so simple, so effective. The same goes for synopses. The fewest further characters you can get away with naming, the better.</b></p><p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHKFmbqXplxB57cswSv4eimo2afULf-YJ_1P1LO-z6jTMVq9zVXc8k0qjPP7GhDJk1_oeoKRfCFKIMMh4Y7P92RgFKXCkfi9ndJS4BgCyQL8sjFhf3Ckca8_8_MykEBDSvfeLPASU8SVB9B39_pEPsuOwkSsb8Vrgk336H8lPP2q-5I15eX6z8tY8Bvyv9/s4608/20240228_141513.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHKFmbqXplxB57cswSv4eimo2afULf-YJ_1P1LO-z6jTMVq9zVXc8k0qjPP7GhDJk1_oeoKRfCFKIMMh4Y7P92RgFKXCkfi9ndJS4BgCyQL8sjFhf3Ckca8_8_MykEBDSvfeLPASU8SVB9B39_pEPsuOwkSsb8Vrgk336H8lPP2q-5I15eX6z8tY8Bvyv9/s320/20240228_141513.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I've read every word she ever wrote</td></tr></tbody></table><b><br /></b></p><p><b>Also, I'd counsel you to say where the book takes place. Does that sound too obvious? Would you prefer to allude to a landmark or a custom, rather than say "in Chicago" or "across England"? I'm not convinced a synopsis is the place to be leaving a trail of breadcrumbs, frankly. Even if the book itself is a crime novel with twists like a pretzel that's needing a pee. Because synopses aren't writing. </b></p><p><b>Cx</b></p>Catriona McPhersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17234089279665716446noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4994072470312639837.post-68573908934787533842024-02-28T00:00:00.000-08:002024-02-28T00:00:22.065-08:00To sum up… by Eric Beetner<span style="font-size: medium;"><b>
A query, an outline, and a synopsis walk into a bar, and a writer/bartender shoots themself. Publishers and agents often want one or all of these thinga-ma-jobbies. Any advice for writers who are flummoxed by how to create them? </b></span><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"> So this is the post where I fear I make a lot of enemies. I don’t mind synopses. I outline all my books, and I’ve rarely had to query. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">Still with me? </span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">The synopsis can be a daunting task to many writers, but I feel like most people overthink it. It’s really just a boiled down version of your story. But let’s boil that down even further – it’s the hook. That thing that made you write the story in the first place. The thing you’d read on the back cover that makes you take the book home. I find far too many books miss this crucial step in the execution of the full novel. (perhaps this happens when people don’t outline? Who’s to say?) </span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">But if you’re cornered at a party and it slips out that you’re a writer, invariably someone will ask what your latest book is about. Do you start from page one and tell them chapter by chapter the entire story? No. You give them the hook. You give them that first twist that makes us want to know more.
And here’s a tip when you’re writing the full manuscript: if that hook doesn’t happen until page 50, rethink the top of your book. How many times have I picked up a book and read about it inside the jacket flap and then had to slog through 20, 30, 40, 50 pages of nothing until we get to that thing you used to sell me the book in the first place. THAT’S your story. Start there. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"> As for outlining – again, you’re overthinking it. We all outline. Yes, even you pantsers. Don’t pretend you don’t, because I’m here to tell you that you do, in that you go through the same process, just at a different time that an outliner. At some point, we all make up the book from a blank page. Whether you make it up in notes and bullet points or you make it up in paragraphs and chapters, it’s the same thing. You get it all down after thinking it all up.
I feel that creating an outline makes the writing easier and allows me to be more focused and concentrate on prose and details when I get into the scene, because I already know the basics of it. Some people don’t, and that’s fine because it works for them. No wrong answers. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">If you want to wing it, again, you’ll end up in the same place, just at a different time. You’ll do it in revisions. I have very light revisions and you’ll never hear me complain about a messy first draft. That notion has got to go. “Your first draft <i>should</i> terrible,” is, to me, the WORST writing advice you can ever give or get. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">Why would you not work to make the first draft as close to the real thing as you can? You don’t build a house with crooked walls, holes in the roof and no bathrooms and think, “Eh, I’ll fix it later.” That would be crazy, right? </span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"> As for queries, don’t try to write them for what you think someone wants to read. Be honest about your book and return to that spark that made you take the weeks, months or years to commit to write that book in the first place. If it was that interesting to get you to go through the process, then it should be good enough to hook and agent or a publisher. If it doesn’t, then they story isn’t for them and no amount of spit and polish you put on it will fix that.
Surely we’ve all read some big best seller that didn’t connect with us. You just don’t get how that could have been the talk of the town last summer. Well, someone loved it. Taste is subjective. The market is vague and shifting like smoke. Write for you. Describe your story in a way that would make YOU excited to read on. You’ll find that kindred spirit who feels the same way and that’s the right agent or publisher for you, not the one who was tricked by your fancy query letter. Then you hand in the manuscript and they want to change it all around because it’s not the same voice in the query. Give them you and your style, right from the first thing they read of yours. It’ll save you agony later. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"> So to synopsize this – don’t overthink it. Get to the core of your story and trust it. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"> With that in mind…
My new novel, The Last Few Miles Of Road is hot of the presses and it is about Carter McCoy, a 72-year old man who just received a terminal diagnosis. With his final days he decides to make a bold choice and do something he’s thought about for decades: to kill the man responsible for his daughter’s death. But Carter is no killer…yet. Can he right this injustice and still remain the man he has been his whole life? And once you kill, can you ever go back?</span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6AKzOu-Hnhw12wDufPsq7MTwU-WekQAfc-C69rCduMuhbqfIgVpKG3OuvZL1Cr2HkOVMkqGVARMH6W7VB9liOfhPKJw5OGrJ70l66BdulRZWRTkfM6x_NNsRmogfcZ9vWqC4Vpt9S6Z0_4htFWlwveKzo91Ko9_JSGCuU3JBIaii4cEK7McvNxWbzdr-j/s2700/Last%20Few%20FINAL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2700" data-original-width="1800" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6AKzOu-Hnhw12wDufPsq7MTwU-WekQAfc-C69rCduMuhbqfIgVpKG3OuvZL1Cr2HkOVMkqGVARMH6W7VB9liOfhPKJw5OGrJ70l66BdulRZWRTkfM6x_NNsRmogfcZ9vWqC4Vpt9S6Z0_4htFWlwveKzo91Ko9_JSGCuU3JBIaii4cEK7McvNxWbzdr-j/s320/Last%20Few%20FINAL.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div>Eric Beetnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12504563937840205835noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4994072470312639837.post-91461909658338999962024-02-27T02:00:00.000-08:002024-02-27T02:00:00.137-08:00Walk That Talk by Gabriel Valjan<p>
</p><p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4QcaMQVwV5IMTefjUdkS_-eMxcdBWx8X2Y4BcT3e02D260Ipfet8OsTXzg3qS4YmXhLsJrOC-tc3VXvslZFcRf4hyLPLFvUHzov2dixkCFSCwLrSmxgvX3uqQN0ML-s-5PHEGe1LesxTIThi2jmsoxGbHbiCCJ6eQXYxO2W8xNI_ywIGQLxiPAgWq9Qo/s400/Button-Twitter.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="400" height="310" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4QcaMQVwV5IMTefjUdkS_-eMxcdBWx8X2Y4BcT3e02D260Ipfet8OsTXzg3qS4YmXhLsJrOC-tc3VXvslZFcRf4hyLPLFvUHzov2dixkCFSCwLrSmxgvX3uqQN0ML-s-5PHEGe1LesxTIThi2jmsoxGbHbiCCJ6eQXYxO2W8xNI_ywIGQLxiPAgWq9Qo/w310-h310/Button-Twitter.png" width="310" /></a></b></div><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><br />A query, an outline,
and a synopsis walk into a bar, and a writer/bartender shoots themself.
Publishers and agents often want one or all of these thinga-ma-jobbies. Any
advice for writers who are flummoxed by how to create them?</b><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> </b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I’d rather endure a visit to the dentist than write any of
these items because they all sound like lingerie ads to me, or worse,
descriptions for wine or perfume.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">A refresher for those who don’t know the subtext. The query
letter should have a Hook aka Log Line that “grabs” the agent. Everyone is
pressed for time, mere seconds to read an email. Sorry, that is the harsh
reality.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">A Synopsis should state word count, identify genre and the
potential audience for your work. Translation: the What and Why. Word count
gives an agent and publisher an idea of print costs and an estimate for an
editor’s time. Savvy authors will often bypass these headaches if their Log
Line is catchy, memorable, and does the work for them.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Here’s a trifecta for Benjamin Stevenson’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone</i>:</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Knives
Out</i> and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Clue</i> meet Agatha Christie
and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Thursday Murder Club</i>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">A chef’s kiss. This opener has cinematic and literary
allusions, and it cleverly identifies several demographics for an audience. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I’ll be honest. I’ve not heard of authors asking to submit
an Outline until <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">after</i> there is an
active interest in the manuscript. The good news is that there’s plenty of
great resources on how to craft a query letter, a Log Line, and synopsis that
would make Don Draper envious. I recommend readers plumb the depths of sites,
such as <a href="https://careerauthors.com/" target="_blank">Career Authors</a>, <a href="https://www.jungleredwriters.com/" target="_blank">Jungle Red Writers</a>, and the Education and <a href="https://www.sistersincrime.org/page/webinars" target="_blank">Webinars at Sisters in Crime</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Since most submissions are online, make sure you follow
directions. If an agent wants a synopsis that is 100 words, they don’t mean 150.
You are not that special exception. You’d be shocked at how many authors do not
format their manuscripts properly or have the correct margins. If you can’t
follow simple directions, you’re telegraphing a potential problem. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Where my advice may differ from others on today’s topic is that
I strongly encourage writers to take advantage of conferences. Almost all of
them have Pitch Sessions or workshops on how to write the Items above or
practice your 20-second elevator pitch, and these masterclasses are often
taught by agents. What not to do is as important as what to do right. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Present yourself as a professional at conferences. Impressions
count. Agents will look at your social media and web site, in part to see how
you do marketing and what image you project. I don’t, for example, respond to
trolls. I don’t express my personal opinions. At worst, I am a cipher. At best,
nobody can say anything negative about me. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">My take is nobody knows what will sell tomorrow, and reading
tastes are subjective. Focus on making a connection so the conversation
continues. Be prepared for opinions. Don’t take rejection personally, and remember
that people are people. There are jerks and there are stand-up individuals. An
agent may love your work but may not know if they can sell it. Let’s not delude
ourselves: this is a business and writers may write for love and dream of
champagne and press junkets, but agents, like us, need to pay the bills. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I’ll repeat it: research. See if you’re a fit. The mechanics
of writing a query, synopsis, and outline can be learned. In addition to
meeting agents at a conference<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">—</span>and
face time is not to be underestimated, along with a business card in hand<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">—talking to other writers can
save you time and grief. Authors are people and they have experiences, so talk
to members of your tribe. Take what they say with a grain of salt, but there’s
often an element of truth in the drink at the bar or water cooler. </span>Writers
have introduced other authors to their agents, and the rest is history. A door
otherwise closed has opened, and someone walked in. <span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Learn who is excellent, who works hard for their clients,
and who doesn’t. You’ve paid a hefty price to attend a conference, probably
traveled far, so take advantage of the time there.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
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{page:WordSection1;}</style></p>Gabriel Valjanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07338577478120561661noreply@blogger.com1Boston, MA, USA42.3600825 -71.058880114.049848663821152 -106.2151301 70.670316336178843 -35.902630099999996tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4994072470312639837.post-70697000800487488072024-02-26T00:00:00.000-08:002024-02-26T00:00:00.146-08:00Hurdles to Publication<p> <b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14pt;">Q: A query, an outline, and a synopsis walk into a bar, and a writer/bartender shoots themself. Publishers and agents often want one or all of these thinga-ma-jobbies. Any advice for writers who are flummoxed by how to create them?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14pt;">From Susan<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14pt;">I remember how high a mountain it seemed to write that query letter for the first book, how much advice, some of it contradictory, we got in classes and workshops and writing groups. Like most of us, I sweated bullets trying to be sparkly and smart and concise and friendly and informative and brief and specific to the agent’s professed interests and positive without being egotistical. I probably wrote it twenty times at least, had it shredded by fellow classmates, wrote again, and got to the point where it became so much harder than writing the 75,000 word novel. I confessed my desperation to a published, award-winning author and member of SinC, who, blessed be her, took me on as a mentee and helped me set aside all the internal finger-wagging and led me to a good final version. She even let me use her name and a brief blurb she wrote for me in the query as a way of saying I really had written something work looking at. It worked and the agent used some it in in her pitches to publishers. I’ve never had to write another, for which I am deeply grateful. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14pt;">Advice re queries</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14pt;">, 18 years later: Agents are even more inundated with pleas for representation now. Their requirements for communication are strict and I have been told that the smallest violation by someone submitting may get their email dumped because agents need any way they can find to stem the avalanche. Second bit: use every honest, legitimate touchpoint you have to get their attention. You met them at a conference – mention it specifically and thank them for even a brief moment of connection there. A published author they know or represent has recommended you to their attention. (Make sure that author has given you permission to use their name.) There’s more but there are other sources than me, a handful of whom will be covering this in the coming days, so stay tuned.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14pt;">Outline</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14pt;">: Ugh. I’m awful at it, fortunately never had anyone ask for it. To me, they’re soulless and only prove the author can write an outline, not enticing text.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14pt;">Synopsis</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14pt;">: Ah, now, there’s a format I’ve learned to like. This will sound crazy, but the biggest obstacle for me was sharing the solution to the mystery before the synopsis reader read the book. I can write flap copy easily, but that only includes the hook, not the cooked fish! Agents might request a one, two or four-page synopsis and with any of them I think there are a couple of vitally important things to keep in mind. The agent is looking for the same level of tasty prose they expect to see if they then ask for pages. Don’t rush it and miss the opportunity to show your talent and creativity. Even with a tight word limit, don’t give up a few telling details of character, or setting, or tension. Second, the agent wants to see how well you’ve organized your story. Don’t skip around, don’t waste space on back story or flashbacks or side explanations or history of the setting. Focus, focus, focus is critical here. You can do it because you were focused enough to write an entire manuscript that is in the best shape you’re capable of making it before submitting. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14pt;">Be strong, be brave, be creative and be optimistic!<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-GTLk1MnwrQzBBfxM_5v979aptRDhYFY0tSWBnuhD5Fe2rkdgMzriO8OF8WwxVEVE9C-vaeBK7SlOr6rqNkcTj2ApJv4nY9Yq8LdlbRPnJbPanOQvLjN-HH36MlbnIZaNARE1Tj4Im1sY9rE18WRS8Fxe5kJazF1SshKqVnN04g-GmgxlvFYFuKdlbkuS/s1322/iStock-1021714894.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="794" data-original-width="1322" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-GTLk1MnwrQzBBfxM_5v979aptRDhYFY0tSWBnuhD5Fe2rkdgMzriO8OF8WwxVEVE9C-vaeBK7SlOr6rqNkcTj2ApJv4nY9Yq8LdlbRPnJbPanOQvLjN-HH36MlbnIZaNARE1Tj4Im1sY9rE18WRS8Fxe5kJazF1SshKqVnN04g-GmgxlvFYFuKdlbkuS/s320/iStock-1021714894.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14pt;">MURDER AND THE MISSING DOG is up for pre-order and comes out in early March. It's set in my favorite Burgundy town, includes more than one mystery, and was fun to write. I'll be doing some guest blogs (and will talk more about it next time I'm up here) and a few appearances. I hope to catch up with you somewhere! </span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCoaBpz8coOaCETDo6YmlFRph4qEc7e-I8NS6B-Vrppv1O5B_DcYLeokw0xWVcJwdzlGsw6r4hCB9YPA9Y7A7iQrOVda-WK0Q4D6XIoF3ahGF8Dv3CW5s63KyvmGShFduwUehciaLFXvg0BiTxvb5lY1bzA8YAPUmNwpgSFzIF4VZTF3EYZqvmj-iLs4dZ/s2512/final%20image%20DSOG%20cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2512" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCoaBpz8coOaCETDo6YmlFRph4qEc7e-I8NS6B-Vrppv1O5B_DcYLeokw0xWVcJwdzlGsw6r4hCB9YPA9Y7A7iQrOVda-WK0Q4D6XIoF3ahGF8Dv3CW5s63KyvmGShFduwUehciaLFXvg0BiTxvb5lY1bzA8YAPUmNwpgSFzIF4VZTF3EYZqvmj-iLs4dZ/s320/final%20image%20DSOG%20cover.jpg" width="204" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></p>Susan C Sheahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18225627756540127032noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4994072470312639837.post-45956086897003801372024-02-22T21:25:00.000-08:002024-02-22T21:27:39.681-08:00Of dragons - and the human quest to dominate nature - by Harini Nagendra<p> <i style="background-color: white; font-family: arial;"><span style="color: red;"><span style="text-size-adjust: auto;">What is the most surprising book you’ve read in the last few years?</span> </span></i></p><p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial;">This week's question is a tough one. As we all have, I've read so many books that moved me to tears, annoyed me, got me angry, feeling dejected, feeling positive - all shades of the rainbow. But what's been the most surprising? I had to think for a long while.</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial;">And then, when I got the answer, I was surprised - how obvious it seemed in hindsight.</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial;">So, dear readers, wherever you are - here is my most surprising recent read. Although I picked up the first in the series over ten years back, it's still the only book that comes way at the top of my list. </span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial;">And that would be Robin Hobb's Farseer series - starting with the first book of the first trilogy, Assassin's Apprentice, and going all the way to the last book in the last trilogy, Assassin's Fate. </span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiqoEb8s_bhpOPE0q6TZby0DTC9PXkxPmpgdfP9MB3gDA9qVykqkPtmbL9gWU43dKwdVg6Dy7fydWyC6Ld7LbVbaHaWrPXdr-XXfwkb-EVzQBQp_vsCGvwPxKcPcu1-IthfejY2hgT9pJ25Fm62_puxpqN629DaLHavDdZhaydIVM5uNEYgTFTk5MhPC4zN" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1580" data-original-width="948" height="377" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiqoEb8s_bhpOPE0q6TZby0DTC9PXkxPmpgdfP9MB3gDA9qVykqkPtmbL9gWU43dKwdVg6Dy7fydWyC6Ld7LbVbaHaWrPXdr-XXfwkb-EVzQBQp_vsCGvwPxKcPcu1-IthfejY2hgT9pJ25Fm62_puxpqN629DaLHavDdZhaydIVM5uNEYgTFTk5MhPC4zN=w226-h377" width="226" /></a></span></div><span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial;"><br /><br /></span><p></p><p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial;">For those of you who love discovering new series and authors, you're in for a real treat if you haven't read Hobb yet - while I like her other work, including the Soldier's Son series (set in a different time and space), and the Liveship series (set in the same world as the Farseer series, but with a different set of characters) - I don't think they hold a candle to her other Farseer series: beginning with the Farseer Trilogy, and then moving to the Tawny Man Series, then the Rain Wild Chronicles, and finally, the Fitz and the Fool trilogy.</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial;">So many books. And surprising, I said. Why surprising?</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial;">Apart from writing 1920s historical mysteries, in my alter life I am an ecologist. As someone who teaches one of the classic dismal disciplines, speaking of topics as grim as climate change, biodiversity collapse and pollution to young people, it is clear that there are no easy techno-fixes for the world. Moving to renewable energy, driving electric cars, finding biodegradable alternatives to plastic - yes, we need to do all of this, and much more. BUT - unless we, as humans, rethink our approach to dominating the planet, and understand that nature is far bigger, grander and more intricately organized than we can fathom in our very utilitarian imaginations - we are doomed to failure.</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial;">Science and scientists have tried, and failed, to communicate this to the rest of the world. But fiction can succeed in a way that science cannot manage alone. Hobb speaks to these big picture issues in her work. While I don't want to get into the specifics of the story - please do read the books - she imagines a world in which dragons used to dominate the skies, and shape the rhythms of everyday life, but vanished forever one day - hunted, caged, and butchered by people. The question at the heart of the book is this - what happens to humanity, when we no longer have nature - nature at its grandest, most terrifyingly dominant - to remind us of our own finitude, our limitations? </span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial;">We grow arrogant.</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial;">The heroes at the heart of the book set out to rescue dragons, restoring them to the world of people. Not because they are biodiversity enthusiasts, or dragon aficionados. Not even because returning dragons to the world will be good for humanity. But they do so because we need dragons - to be reminded that we are only one of the species that live in our planet, to be reminded of the need for humility, introspection, and of wonder. </span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial;">Magic is wonder. Nature is magic. And writers like Hobb, by keeping us in touch with our inner selves, remind us of these important issues.</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial;">Are there books that did the same for you? I'd love to know about them... </span></p>Harini Nagendrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00706654609116149604noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4994072470312639837.post-18227833147696420362024-02-22T00:30:00.000-08:002024-02-22T03:09:43.984-08:00A Secret Surprise from James W. Ziskin<p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><i><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: white;">What is the most surprising book you’ve read in the last few years?</span> </i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">It took me some time to decide how I was going to answer this week’s question. Because the book that most surprised me in recent years was one I had little interest in reading. I didn’t know how to present the book without sounding condescending or dismissive about the subject matter.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Let me explain. <span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(5, 5, 5); color: #050505; white-space: pre-wrap;">I’m not a fan of comics. I don’t read them and I don’t watch movies about superheroes or anyone traipsing around or swinging above the metropolis in tights and a cape. A couple of years ago, a book called <b><i>SECRET IDENTITY</i></b> came out. It was a mystery set in the comics industry in 1970s New York. Award-winning author Alex Segura wrote it. I know Alex from writer conferences and we’re friends on social media. We were even up for an Anthony Award once. (He won.) Alex is wildly talented and a stand-up, good guy, too. So when I started hearing great things about <b><i>SECRET IDENTITY</i></b>, I decided to leave my comfortable little bubble and explore something I wouldn’t ordinarily read.</span></span></p><p><span style="color: red; font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><b><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Secret-Identity-Novel-Alex-Segura/dp/1250801745#:~:text=Secret%20Identity%20received%20starred%20reviews,Times%20Book%20Prize%20in%20the" target="_blank">LINK TO PURCHASE ON AMAZON</a></b></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCUhxXM4IWrJC7tbFNQnbbxPrHW4nIB2mNu-NjuXgLK26kK2yzCootlHKhAmQMeG3nknLzjSRiLWWy5uchq0BXr60_o8Uc7ZxuXXmY68QtsnNMTZYCaaeHSReGVv6JsLZRpATHvBtyG_NPrSTo5C1Mi0s4kl2MWFv0pth7XSNypcF0XghICmDWYVRfvPGl/s800/IMG_2544.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="526" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCUhxXM4IWrJC7tbFNQnbbxPrHW4nIB2mNu-NjuXgLK26kK2yzCootlHKhAmQMeG3nknLzjSRiLWWy5uchq0BXr60_o8Uc7ZxuXXmY68QtsnNMTZYCaaeHSReGVv6JsLZRpATHvBtyG_NPrSTo5C1Mi0s4kl2MWFv0pth7XSNypcF0XghICmDWYVRfvPGl/s320/IMG_2544.png" width="210" /></span></a></div><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(5, 5, 5); color: #050505; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">And, as things turned out, <b><i>SECRET IDENTITY</i></b> surprised me. Delighted me. I was floored by it. </span></span><p></p><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(5, 5, 5); color: #050505; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><a style="color: #385898; cursor: pointer;" tabindex="-1"></a>Maybe it’s the way Alex writes dialogue. Easy, natural, but sharp and on point. Or maybe it‘s the way his characters are so distinctive, believable, and engaging. So rich and unexpected. Odious one minute, seemingly sincere the next. Never stencils or borrowed from popular imagination.</span></div></div><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(5, 5, 5); color: #050505; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Or maybe it’s his voice and the layered emotional description. Alex takes his time to show us what his characters do, think, and wonder. How they debate with themselves before giving a response. This patient storytelling pulls you in deep. You know these people better. You might dislike them or despair at their bad decisions. But they’re full and real, not just stock characters, placeholders, or clichés. I found myself growing more impressed—and I confess, somewhat jealous—with each chapter read. </span></div></div><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(5, 5, 5); color: #050505; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Anyway, never mind all that. Whatever it is that wowed me, Alex wrote one hell of a book. His heroine, Carmen Valdez, is a sparkling character. She sizzles in only the most contentious ways. Her courage, her foibles, her bad choices, and her talent all conspire to make her unforgettable and iconic. An inspiration to girls, boys, women, and men, the underrepresented, the dreamers, and even the patriarchy. At least she is if those folks are paying attention.</span></div></div><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(5, 5, 5); color: #050505; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Alex’s feel for the 70s, his portrait of a decaying, bankrupt New York City, and the incestuous comic book industry are painted to what feels to me like perfect authenticity. Remember, I knew nothing about comics and, in all honesty, I hadn’t been interested in learning anything about them. But this book showed me how wrong I’d been.</span></div></div><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(5, 5, 5); color: #050505; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><i>SECRET IDENTITY</i></b> got lots of attention and earned starred reviews from Publishers Weekly, Kirkus, and Booklist. It was named one of NPR’s best mysteries of the year, and was a finalist for the Barry and Lefty awards. Finally, it won the prestigious Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Mystery/Thriller.</span></div></div><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(5, 5, 5); color: #050505; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">My advice is to read this book. Like me, you might be surprised.</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Here’s the synopsis, provided by Macmillan Publishers: </span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: black; white-space: normal;"><span style="font-family: courier; font-size: medium;">It’s 1975 and the comic book industry is struggling, but Carmen Valdez doesn’t care. She’s an assistant at Triumph Comics, which doesn’t have the creative zeal of Marvel nor the buttoned-up efficiency of DC, but it doesn’t matter. Carmen is tantalizingly close to fulfilling her dream of writing a superhero book.</span></span></div><span style="font-family: courier; font-size: medium;"><br style="-webkit-box-shadow: none; box-shadow: none; box-sizing: border-box; caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: black; white-space: normal;" /><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: black; white-space: normal;">That dream is nearly a reality when one of the Triumph writers enlists her help to create a new character, which they call “The Lethal Lynx,” Triumph's first female hero. But her colleague is acting strangely and asking to keep her involvement a secret. And then he’s found dead, with all of their scripts turned into the publisher without her name. Carmen is desperate to piece together what happened to him, to hang on to her piece of the Lynx, which turns out to be a runaway hit. But that’s complicated by a surprise visitor from her home in Miami, a tenacious cop who is piecing everything together too quickly for Carmen, and the tangled web of secrets and resentments among the passionate eccentrics who write comics for a living.</span></span></div>James W. Ziskinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07677940119373480715noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4994072470312639837.post-14143857989477629922024-02-21T00:00:00.000-08:002024-02-21T05:49:13.110-08:00 Moved by THE HELP<p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">What is the most surprising book you’ve read in the last few years?</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; font-kerning: none;"><i><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">by Dietrich</span></i></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; font-kerning: none;"><i></i></span><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">It’s hard to boil it down to just one book, but here goes . . .</span></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">While I loved the movie, <i>The Help</i>, it wasn’t until some time later I read the book by Kathryn Stockett, and wow, I was blown away. It was such a treat to read, a balance of hope, courage, with a good mix of humor.</span></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">It’s powerfully written and set in 1962 Mississippi, turbulent times indeed. The story looks at women subjugating women, inequality and civil rights in that time and place.</span></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The details around the setting paint vivid pictures, and Stockett has a keen ear for dialogue too, it’s perfect and adds much to bring the main characters like Skeeter, Minnie and Abileen to life. Although they all seem world’s apart, the women come together and form a wonderful bond, while dealing with hate and mistrust all around them. And the characters will stay with you long after you set the book down.</span></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">And to think this was Kathryn Stockett’s debut novel. It’s an instant classic, and I’d put it on the top shelf right next to <i>To Kill a Mockingbird</i>. I can’t wait to see what her next novel’s going to be.</span></span></p><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyrqR12hvJVAjxjAg8E_SppCVAuTSb5juNSacEPs1Fg9VrIbxAiIFAIB2Sj60KkAsKtCxaeZSwEiSaA26rqmw7buBVcDyTlqt39tDylp-l_mUe67Twpn7PxzjkqmsGRir61fAHLECxtv0uVsp0jriuaVOLvaQOZjNvGGZfw6e1KcD7VyWmHbYCnQLv_Ak/s1500/814e9UM5MiL._SL1500_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="993" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyrqR12hvJVAjxjAg8E_SppCVAuTSb5juNSacEPs1Fg9VrIbxAiIFAIB2Sj60KkAsKtCxaeZSwEiSaA26rqmw7buBVcDyTlqt39tDylp-l_mUe67Twpn7PxzjkqmsGRir61fAHLECxtv0uVsp0jriuaVOLvaQOZjNvGGZfw6e1KcD7VyWmHbYCnQLv_Ak/s320/814e9UM5MiL._SL1500_.jpg" width="212" /></a></div><br /><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; font-kerning: none;"><br /></span></div>Dietrich Kalteishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06403361738445161528noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4994072470312639837.post-44556274081206655542024-02-20T08:31:00.000-08:002024-02-20T08:31:39.522-08:00Surprise!<p> </p>Terry here, with an interesting question this week:
What is the most surprising book you’ve read in the last few years? <div><br /></div><div> I read so much that I thought it would be hard to choose. In thinking about this question, I wondered whether it means the most surprisingly good book or the most surprisingly bad book. Whether it means I was surprised that a writer I considered pedestrian came up with a gem of a book—or vice versa, if someone who I thought of as a stunningly good writer laid an egg. </div><div><br /></div><div>I decided on a different tack. A writer I was unfamiliar with who surprised me.
I went to my trusty Reading lists, which thank goodness I started keeping a few years ago. I didn’t have to work hard to find what I consider the most surprising book I’ve read in a while. Most surprising for several reasons. </div><div><br /></div><div> The book is Dance of the Returned, by Devon A. Mihesuah. <div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitoUr-hukjYEo5xxiTX0Rws85MjGwTqwTB_xfwaQTt3-Uj052P14fkO6zIXvRYHN5-tscvteV2xET6dq3A-7GhaZ-K_mk2fL_rL_aNypuP-1EFdpb_R9ckcmZNZiPqfl3vShJE7833p-Ez3vgae8pZDF1vUDLbJzw3xZKz-pSBzlVpFyiWl3y6RNVTmcqQ/s436/61e3sxi5+iL._AC_UY436_FMwebp_QL65_.webp" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="436" data-original-width="282" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitoUr-hukjYEo5xxiTX0Rws85MjGwTqwTB_xfwaQTt3-Uj052P14fkO6zIXvRYHN5-tscvteV2xET6dq3A-7GhaZ-K_mk2fL_rL_aNypuP-1EFdpb_R9ckcmZNZiPqfl3vShJE7833p-Ez3vgae8pZDF1vUDLbJzw3xZKz-pSBzlVpFyiWl3y6RNVTmcqQ/s320/61e3sxi5+iL._AC_UY436_FMwebp_QL65_.webp" /></a></div>
Briefly, it’s about American Indian time travel. Leroy Red Bear Ears is the instigator of the portal to the past for this Choctaw tribe. The book is beautiful and poetic. The reason it surprised me is that I don’t generally go in for paranormal books. I like sci-fi and time travel, but woo-woo turns me off. And this book is seriously woo-woo. But I loved it. Which goes to prove how good writing can sweep away a reader’s hesitation. </div><div><br /></div><div> I would never have read the book if I hadn’t been invited to moderate a panel at Tucson Festival of Books last year. The panel was a strange one in that the books written by the three writers on the panel had almost nothing in common. One was a techno-thriller, one a police procedural, and this American Indian time travel book. What they had in common, though, was an ability to write great characters in chilling situations. The time travel in "Dance" was fraught with a hint of danger that was largely felt rather than apparent. </div><div><br /></div><div> Mihesuah is a member of the Choctaw tribe and a serious writer. She mostly writes non-fiction about American Indian culture. But a few years ago she got the urge to write fiction centered on the non-fiction work she’d done. I don’t know if she discovered her poetry or knew it was there all along, but her words are lyrical, the descriptions lush, and the story grounded. It think the latter is why the story worked so well. Even though you know that mystical time travel is happening, it feels real and substantial. </div><div><br /></div><div>I highly recommend it if you're looking for something a little out of your zone.</div>Terryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17478393430722574447noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4994072470312639837.post-79132292040839487862024-02-18T21:00:00.000-08:002024-02-19T05:15:37.268-08:00Surprising Reads<p> <span style="background-color: white;"><b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">What is the most surprising book you’ve read in the last few years?</span></b></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Brenda</span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">This question is a thinker. I usually like to have a crime fiction novel on the go, but I belong to a book club, and our choices range far and wide. I'll therefore pick from both categories.</span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">I suppose in the 'surprising' crime fiction category, I'd have to go with Denise Mina's standalone <i>Conviction.</i> I'd read many of Mina's books, my favourites including her Paddy Meehan series, but <i>Conviction</i> is original and a departure from her other books that I'd read up until that point. It is a 'Reese's pick' and New York Times Best Novel of the Year, so not too shabby accolades. My book club also read and loved this book to a person - best accolade of all! Here is the synopsis on the Amazon site:</span></span></p><p><i><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face=""Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #0f1111;">The day Anna McDonald's quiet, respectable life exploded started off like all the days before: Packing up the kids for school, making breakfast, listening to yet another true crime podcast. Then her husband comes downstairs with an announcement, and Anna is suddenly, shockingly alone.</span><br style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0f1111;" /><br style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0f1111;" /><span face=""Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #0f1111;">Reeling, desperate for distraction, Anna returns to the podcast. Other people's problems are much better than one's own -- a sunken yacht, a murdered family, a hint of international conspiracy. But this case actually is Anna's problem. She knows one of the victims from an earlier life, a life she's taken great pains to leave behind. And she is convinced that she knows what really happened.</span></span></i></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #0f1111;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">The writing is what makes this a stunning read, in my opinion. And being a fan of Mina's earlier work, it is refreshing to read an accomplished author stretching, growing and taking on new challenges.</span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #0f1111;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Now as for the most surprising 'literary' or general fiction book that I've read recently, the award goes to <i>Yellowface</i> by R.F. Kuang. The manager of a local bookstore recommended it to me, saying it was 'hilarious'. My reaction to the story was the opposite -- I found the book troubling and depressing, to be honest. Topics of privilege, appropriation, authenticity and power structures within the publishing industry are raised. The random way a book is picked to be a bestseller is painfully mapped out, and the role of social media in making or breaking an author is also portrayed. The stunning thing for me about the book is how many industry taboos the author speaks bravely about, albeit fictionally. The plot is like a train wreck that you can't take your eyes off of until it reaches its inevitable climax. All in all, a worthwhile and illuminating read for those both in and outside the publishing industry.</span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #0f1111;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>Website: www.brendachapman.ca</b></span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #0f1111;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>Twitter (<i>X</i>): brendaAchapman</b></span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #0f1111;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>Facebook & Instagram: BrendaChapmanAuthor</b></span></span></p>7 Criminal Mindshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06060496735767676472noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4994072470312639837.post-84789725317399083902024-02-16T00:30:00.000-08:002024-02-16T00:30:00.146-08:00How To Fall in Love With Your Work, by Josh Stallings<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_-WTGvAtdJHHBablT-eN3bfq1KMp7-bDhZveqQbx9pFoavZV8Or7tD3CN-McaGAPSwFjZ1odvjdyiceYTMNH5Q5mOI1Gy0NvGD7lKB8U5A2E8cgWA67-EYT9qXpB9-T16gz3w58BZhyzT7aU0ITXIXXeyzVLIa1jyAuBZqT9Yg-FmEmhQvXqWyRUFkoc/s2586/Heart.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2266" data-original-width="2586" height="280" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_-WTGvAtdJHHBablT-eN3bfq1KMp7-bDhZveqQbx9pFoavZV8Or7tD3CN-McaGAPSwFjZ1odvjdyiceYTMNH5Q5mOI1Gy0NvGD7lKB8U5A2E8cgWA67-EYT9qXpB9-T16gz3w58BZhyzT7aU0ITXIXXeyzVLIa1jyAuBZqT9Yg-FmEmhQvXqWyRUFkoc/s320/Heart.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><b style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue";">Q:</b><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: large;"> What hooks you into an idea enough so that you want to write it? Character, setting, plot, genre? Or …?</span><p></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>A:</b> Anything I’ve ever written that I felt was of value, came from a place of pure intuition. My most intricate and well laid out plans inevitably led me to drivel. I wish that wasn’t true. If I knew how to come up with <b>the big idea</b> and then write it, I would. Just isn’t how my process works.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">What pulls me into an idea? I am attracted to writing about worlds and genres I haven’t done before. The challenge of the unknown excites and terrifies me. But that is often a secondary consideration. First thing that gets my attention is a glimmer I see in my periphery. Stare too intently it will disappear. I will think about it while walking in the woods. With no pressure to develop it farther. </span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I was eleven years old when I fell in love with the film Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. I read anything I could find on the real life outlaws. In a book written by Butch Cassidy’s sister I discovered the true story of how it ended. After that famous freeze frame, Sundance was dead, Butch wasn’t so lucky. This tickled my pre-teen creative brain. Four years later I heard The Who’s Behind Blue Eyes. In a flash I saw a film I wanted to write. I wanted to tell the story of Butch’s life after Sundance was killed. How did he go back to ranching after all he’d seen and done? I never got that story written, but it still feels like a cool idea. </span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Elvis Costello’s Oliver’s Army led me to write a screenplay about a young man who lies to a group of mercenaries, telling them about his demolitions expertise. It wasn’t bad, almost got made for a minute. Point is those two ideas sparked from listening to music. </span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">My most recent work came from driving with my son Dylan making up songs. By accident we came up with the theme song to a story that didn’t exist. So I decided I should write it. Like a faithful detective I have hunted that story down, following the leads where they take me. </span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2sycsJNXjb0vJonMWCzOkioOuT4I48A1GHSXamkU2bboK5d4iZqpKm32Zgssz7nfjYx-DMQwCI_oYIKLWZB-XWHOW4SGR39XmFQtMgB0DIl2zuLy7gUeBHM7aNTp9VOzD0QzZNjRifCgiMvJrsH65ND9kmDvV-2qPQHliM0ONnfO3h0VU-BlLN46pixw/s1186/TRICKY%20-%20Josh%20Stallings%20copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1186" data-original-width="767" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2sycsJNXjb0vJonMWCzOkioOuT4I48A1GHSXamkU2bboK5d4iZqpKm32Zgssz7nfjYx-DMQwCI_oYIKLWZB-XWHOW4SGR39XmFQtMgB0DIl2zuLy7gUeBHM7aNTp9VOzD0QzZNjRifCgiMvJrsH65ND9kmDvV-2qPQHliM0ONnfO3h0VU-BlLN46pixw/s320/TRICKY%20-%20Josh%20Stallings%20copy.jpg" width="207" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">One of the concepts I felt strongly about in TRICKY was the danger of confirmation bias. Bad things happen when a homicide detective believes they know what happened before they have all the facts. The same applies to writing, but with less dire consequences. If I believe I have all the answers I will never discover the truth in a story. Knowing everything limits what I learn along the way.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Does this sound crazy? Yes, it does. But it’s the only way I know to access the intuitive part of my brain. The part that knows what I don’t know.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Sometimes I know a character from page one, Cisco in TRICKY was based on Dylan. But as I wrote he slowly morphed into his own person. Cisco has Dylan’s humor. But Cisco also carries a heavy load of guilt. Cisco worries that his past makes him a bad man. Dylan seems sure he’s a good guy who makes mistakes. I wouldn’t have discovered these differences if I had decided I already knew who was who and how they should be reacting. I try to take this into real life. Realizing I know very little about what other people are thinking or feeling, allows my view of them to evolve. </span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Sidebar:</b> <i>Is there anything worse than having come up with a very clever plot turn only to discover that your character wouldn’t do what you have them doing?</i></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">My first book Beautiful Naked & Dead started from an opening line that I heard in my head. That opening line is the only thing that survived all the many drafts. And it is still the best opening I’ve written. It contained the entire DNA sequence of what the novel would become. </span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Regardless of where the spark comes from, I am aware of how damn hard writing a book is. It’s also joyous and thrilling and frustrating and big fun and hard work. To take the writing of a book on I need to find a reason to fall in love with it.</span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxXsDMBmVy-fAc6CsVs9HtGuHjeO3M3J-mTleyr3Xl9Wi6av16RDkeUT9XTig1fovwlKUUXAkEXF-uh5d67EZJMrC9Olk3B0GhdcZJCc0aZiJBTMdKv7OxvqNeO5Y1W-ury79y5ZuVptxcHbkTsdCcfHQjntEgcU4lE6WNCioKmeqsl2nEeA-9nm_PEqo/s963/Erika%20josh.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="963" data-original-width="829" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxXsDMBmVy-fAc6CsVs9HtGuHjeO3M3J-mTleyr3Xl9Wi6av16RDkeUT9XTig1fovwlKUUXAkEXF-uh5d67EZJMrC9Olk3B0GhdcZJCc0aZiJBTMdKv7OxvqNeO5Y1W-ury79y5ZuVptxcHbkTsdCcfHQjntEgcU4lE6WNCioKmeqsl2nEeA-9nm_PEqo/s320/Erika%20josh.jpg" width="275" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">A couple of days ago Erika and I celebrated our 44th Valentine's Day together. That’s a long time to love someone. And it all started when I met a pretty girl with a sweet smile, a wicked intelligence, and a strong heart that called to me. Along the way it’s been hard work mixed with long days of riotous joy. Sometimes we cut each other deep. Danger of pain from unintentional cruelty comes in equal proportions to how much and how long you love a person. I have felt loving support and tender words at the exact moment I needed them. </span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The late night I asked Erika to marry me, I was a scared kid running from everything. There was no logical reason for us to expect getting hitched was a good idea. At the time I dreamed of making it in film or theater, but I had no job or backup plan. All I had was a deep feeling that this was the correct next move. Pure intuition. Faith in her. Faith that I wouldn’t irrevocably fuck it up. Turns out by trusting our guts we beat the odds. </span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">This is the same as falling in love with a story idea. Intuitively I have to know that it won’t be easy but the book will be worth whatever the cost it extracts from me.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>All faith is blind.</b> </span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Following intuition is by definition illogical. </span></b></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b></b><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-size: medium;">It is also the only way I know to discover stories worth writing.</span></b></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>******</b> </span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">My latest reads: </span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhATA4Ae3zJUc76IzP0XIU14CGMWG9OwMfyW8urgw-efzhdgb6sSEC2MFtsPKo_trsHNjWa7_PjfRY8Lr2i1T_l0ZTP1ybT5N4AOmP6-aoUUOzAH_1mRCwGzdmwyFZNybf8uJ9RDFUygS6FWSnUzerjWQqUnPoX168tRFnWzYv5IwstWJaAMCzD_wHRVHw/s2700/Chain_Gang_cover+FINAL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2700" data-original-width="1800" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhATA4Ae3zJUc76IzP0XIU14CGMWG9OwMfyW8urgw-efzhdgb6sSEC2MFtsPKo_trsHNjWa7_PjfRY8Lr2i1T_l0ZTP1ybT5N4AOmP6-aoUUOzAH_1mRCwGzdmwyFZNybf8uJ9RDFUygS6FWSnUzerjWQqUnPoX168tRFnWzYv5IwstWJaAMCzD_wHRVHw/s320/Chain_Gang_cover+FINAL.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Chain Gang All Stars</b> by <b>Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah</b>. The New York Times named this one of the 10 best books of 2023. It is one of the best novels on incarceration in the USA. It is a dystopian world where prisoners can fight and kill each other for reduced sentences. But it is so much more, it speaks to the morals involved with who we as a nation are becoming. It also has flawless footnotes to keep you tethered to the factual basis of the not far fetched story. It isn’t for the squeamish, but damn it is important. </span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9Foycn6nd0nDNlF6zc3SdV7YupdGiHl_lccrlzAbYRmnXQLiHYy_ZYT5_VyaL3qxWngSmN3qJmhORHPW9wha3gUhGHu5Apmfn4pwRGpglSL7HQwtaubGdQISes3_TRoyEyS_qCGheJEhSPo2gkNRsfFqd5RXgJcgc77OtqEYTRc4jndlp8R1QQeS8dUI/s1024/city%20beast.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="679" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9Foycn6nd0nDNlF6zc3SdV7YupdGiHl_lccrlzAbYRmnXQLiHYy_ZYT5_VyaL3qxWngSmN3qJmhORHPW9wha3gUhGHu5Apmfn4pwRGpglSL7HQwtaubGdQISes3_TRoyEyS_qCGheJEhSPo2gkNRsfFqd5RXgJcgc77OtqEYTRc4jndlp8R1QQeS8dUI/s320/city%20beast.jpeg" width="212" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>City of the Beast</b> by <b>Isabel Allende, </b>translated from Spanish to English by Margaret Sayers Peden. Published in 2002. A fun YA book set in the Amazonian rain forest. While on an anthropological search two teenagers come in contact with real magic and local gods. My only problem with the book was its use of the word “Indian” to describe the indigenous people. This may be from the translation, or it may just be that in the last twenty years we’ve learned to use more accurate language when speaking of first nation folk. </span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-emoji: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p>Josh Stallingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09913654176433125233noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4994072470312639837.post-25806793158005611432024-02-15T01:00:00.000-08:002024-02-15T01:00:00.131-08:00Fizzy Pips, by Catriona<p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="color: red; font-size: medium;"><b>What hooks you into an idea enough so that you want to write it? Character, setting, plot, genre? Or …?</b></span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: medium; text-indent: 36px;">Definitely "Or . . ." for me. </span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: medium; text-indent: 36px;">Well, genre is a given. I've spoken before about the unpleasant experience of <i>not</i> writing a crime novel: in short, I found out that my time-travel caper was women's fiction (because I was a woman, I think) except it wasn't quite there yet so it needed to be changed and softened and clipped and packaged until I was scared I'd end up publishing a book I wouldn't read. I fought back. Lost on the title but kept most of the humour.</span></p><p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip20LM8qCN4gmSbRJC_PcXRPZ2SO2G_R513ezd6dTbw8IQpkXYgpFbKpAEJ47ZssJYpmJA0NrPFKQs5YmdB_5PXbTZIjCPqiBX7MuR0Qznp0n9VNFh7uiiRhGdd70gkPlOkBnerq9qcEiZv7reu71O4nKNhniaJ5WSA5T4kpln_qZsACXbM-4okNJYluVs/s2272/elvis%20cake.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1704" data-original-width="2272" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip20LM8qCN4gmSbRJC_PcXRPZ2SO2G_R513ezd6dTbw8IQpkXYgpFbKpAEJ47ZssJYpmJA0NrPFKQs5YmdB_5PXbTZIjCPqiBX7MuR0Qznp0n9VNFh7uiiRhGdd70gkPlOkBnerq9qcEiZv7reu71O4nKNhniaJ5WSA5T4kpln_qZsACXbM-4okNJYluVs/s320/elvis%20cake.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">If you know, you know.</td></tr></tbody></table></p><p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: medium; text-indent: 36px;">So crime-fiction it is. But I often find myself casting around for a setting, so it's definitely not that that lights the spark. With Dandy Gilver, I study the map of Scotland for locations she hasn't been and try to find an interesting social or institutional background nearby: a school in Wigtwonshire; a hotel in the Borders; a publishing house in the city of Dundee ...</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: medium; text-indent: 36px;">For the standalones, it seems I try to find the bleakest, grimmest, most depressed area of either poor agricultural land or post-industrial-decline towns and plonk my characters there. And then I make sure it rains every day. Unless there's a hailstorm.</span></p><p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz8ClsiFOx40Joe9hFodcNIyoIqqx82xO8SQW3jn3WROV4GBMDS13lpjwzSW94PtHk7y_9Z_VUU8zJEVkbXG3Ipg8S_sKIABjtgpyceYv-uBOPf3NworQVmuLv2QZ6Up10ehgq8_LevgURTE5qm-0zGZC86meMVbuK4-SPyiSAqT0Ld1itvamAaoph1DwU/s2622/DEEP%20BENEATH%20US%20cover%20image.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2622" data-original-width="1666" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz8ClsiFOx40Joe9hFodcNIyoIqqx82xO8SQW3jn3WROV4GBMDS13lpjwzSW94PtHk7y_9Z_VUU8zJEVkbXG3Ipg8S_sKIABjtgpyceYv-uBOPf3NworQVmuLv2QZ6Up10ehgq8_LevgURTE5qm-0zGZC86meMVbuK4-SPyiSAqT0Ld1itvamAaoph1DwU/s320/DEEP%20BENEATH%20US%20cover%20image.jpg" width="203" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Case in point. Pre-order <a href="https://severnhouse.com/books/deep-beneath-us/">here</a></td></tr></tbody></table></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">The Last Ditch Motel setting is easy. Big clue in the name, right? Except that last time I sent them to Scotland for Christmas (where it rained every day, except when it was snowing). The new series - Can I say series when there's only one out and the second one is sitting in draft form on my desk? - is the same deal. It's set in about half a square mile of Edinburgh - a pretty grim bit with lots of smells. It actually didn't rain every day of book one, mind you.</span></p><p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvHZKwwx9Tig8ihvabKGOEBkwBc4bVij0JsxiYxGJ5qZ87z3uAI73DdjfSEGMGjFoYtndVnrht0i5Qg2QALsqc_w4IfiOXlozD0kaB8IF06RaFxLpuxyK8PLhYRD3BK6ZVgFeN7GdpnhVG6JR3jz2qs73UOZlVWFMYHL_R8BPpE0bjZYf8k2XLEiytq4P7/s2761/jacket.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2761" data-original-width="1843" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvHZKwwx9Tig8ihvabKGOEBkwBc4bVij0JsxiYxGJ5qZ87z3uAI73DdjfSEGMGjFoYtndVnrht0i5Qg2QALsqc_w4IfiOXlozD0kaB8IF06RaFxLpuxyK8PLhYRD3BK6ZVgFeN7GdpnhVG6JR3jz2qs73UOZlVWFMYHL_R8BPpE0bjZYf8k2XLEiytq4P7/s320/jacket.jpg" width="214" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Edinburgh is much less glam inside</td></tr></tbody></table></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">Is it character? Sometimes a character comes along early and stakes a claim. Lowell in QUIET NEIGHBORS was based on a bookshop owner I saw once for about twenty minutes in Norfolk. He made a huge impression, mostly cardigan-based, and sprang into the book fully-formed. Other times, I've had to write numerous desperate notes to myself in my oh-so-swanky notebook. Notes like "Who is this though?" and "Yeah but who is it who does this?" and "WHO IS ANY OF THIS EVEN HAPPENING TO????"</span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisSEk41-umiAIsE3JA_tHzfUr8P6wPxJudknHnDwFkZedseSC86PHXjRMaaQyRul2kXJi4F_JoSvYa9yCjldAnin20xzyV94wWHxSI2nt0SLfiFW0ZynwlbnTf-HgrsdhCKWznJLMSIBC7Hld1BzIKacwT9RMcpkcP_QdHBHvoyVGrt9Y3oG-bbmZWM8Lf/s4608/20240214_103025.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4608" data-original-width="3456" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisSEk41-umiAIsE3JA_tHzfUr8P6wPxJudknHnDwFkZedseSC86PHXjRMaaQyRul2kXJi4F_JoSvYa9yCjldAnin20xzyV94wWHxSI2nt0SLfiFW0ZynwlbnTf-HgrsdhCKWznJLMSIBC7Hld1BzIKacwT9RMcpkcP_QdHBHvoyVGrt9Y3oG-bbmZWM8Lf/s320/20240214_103025.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Complete with left-handed smudge</td></tr></tbody></table><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Another kind of note I write to myself a lot during the first draft is "What's going to happen?" and "What is this book about?" and "Yes but where is ANY of this GOING????" So plot definitely isn't there in the beginning. Sometimes, plot is so late showing its face that I get quite panicky and have to remind myself that it always works out in the end if I just keep on writing. MAN, though, I wish I was a plotter. I don't think anyone ever wishes they were a pantser. You'd have to be clinically insane.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">So what is it? Well, it starts with a pip, like a pebble in my shoe, something that keeps just sitting there, troll under a bridge, toad under a rock, doing nothing useful. This pip could be something like "It's not illegal to buy and sell skeletons in the US, except in three states" or "Could a dental hygienist tell if a severed head belonged to a right- or left-handed person?" or "Capgras Delusion - blimey!" </span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGHXv4u6fHDGBk6hS7xx-KdJBB2k-tVc9A-hCxHOp171vMwt20gNV6AmRompA4Er3rqcl5lNEbbfJ1wQw67wUXucNFGqSq6JLD_2cB3-4beejEB7ib3go6GDY0z2xq87xfkWqNRnrE3ZbcArm6F8sdXjqdSzni0dw0jICzvEUOmAW2z1y7ahxy7kO5fNWb/s2761/jacket.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2761" data-original-width="1843" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGHXv4u6fHDGBk6hS7xx-KdJBB2k-tVc9A-hCxHOp171vMwt20gNV6AmRompA4Er3rqcl5lNEbbfJ1wQw67wUXucNFGqSq6JLD_2cB3-4beejEB7ib3go6GDY0z2xq87xfkWqNRnrE3ZbcArm6F8sdXjqdSzni0dw0jICzvEUOmAW2z1y7ahxy7kO5fNWb/s320/jacket.jpg" width="214" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">None of those pips turned into this </td></tr></tbody></table><p><span style="font-size: medium;">But then, every so often, one pip brushes against another. "People get married in graveyards?" or "Punch and Judy men are called Professors!" or "Cotard's Syndrome - blimey!" and together the two pips start to fizz and a story grows around them like something I can't quite remember from chemistry lessons at school. They attract settings and characters and - eventually - a plot.</span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxzyMqzZ0BejpqfQAguavdzxbp7oD0qxS7cm3b6CWSJSVfm2i-ECdIQ8prYzaS3thyphenhyphen6PSehISG3Lrr7Xoywu2vu2ZvSpxdjFtozL0Rzxvi59wwV-aVzjTA87KC9WFpdEFmnw95t37fbWrE2SafvIZMNkNcIMPge9UhR3ngFLb9sRtIQiKwouwQ6XilLtos/s500/51rzNt9cj+L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="313" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxzyMqzZ0BejpqfQAguavdzxbp7oD0qxS7cm3b6CWSJSVfm2i-ECdIQ8prYzaS3thyphenhyphen6PSehISG3Lrr7Xoywu2vu2ZvSpxdjFtozL0Rzxvi59wwV-aVzjTA87KC9WFpdEFmnw95t37fbWrE2SafvIZMNkNcIMPge9UhR3ngFLb9sRtIQiKwouwQ6XilLtos/s320/51rzNt9cj+L.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nor this - and check out<br />picture-postcard Britain, eh?</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I wouldn't recommend it. I don't enjoy it. I certainly won't make my fortune running workshops that teach it. But that's the way it starts for me. Thirty-eight times and counting. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Cx</span></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; text-indent: 36px;"><br /></span></p>Catriona McPhersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17234089279665716446noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4994072470312639837.post-26515901314033548442024-02-13T23:41:00.000-08:002024-02-14T09:44:27.364-08:00What Hooks you? by Eric Beetner<p><span style="font-size: medium;"> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; text-indent: 36px;">What hooks you into an idea enough so that you want to write it? Character, setting, plot, genre? Or …?</span></span></p><p class="p2" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 12px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p class="p2" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 12px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I have often told other writers not to take anything from my method of working in the early stages of a book. I know it’s silly. You see, I tend not to write down the amazing ideas I get. I’m sure I have lost many certain best sellers to this technique, but I like to let things roll around in my head for a while. If it’s still there weeks or months later, I know I might be on to something.</span></p><p class="p1" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Let’s say I get to that point – I have what I think is a killer idea. I have that hook, the thing that will be the one-liner on the book jacket or in the press materials that makes people think “I want to read that”.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p1" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I’m still not ready to start.</span></p><p class="p1" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p class="p1" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Any writer worth their ink will have a collection of false starts, dead plots and frustrating close calls with stories. Those happen when someone starts a novel before it is ready to go. A good hook is not enough. A killer plot isn’t even enough, though some have gone ahead and written those books and invariably, they come off as thin and unsatisfying.</span></p><p class="p1" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">It’s the characters. The people involved in your killer plot are what the reader is going to attach on to. They are what moves that plot forward. Once you set your amazing story in motion, if it pushes the characters along then it’s not going to work. But if the protagonist the antagonist and the side characters all contribute to moving the STORY along, then you’ve got something.</span></p><p class="p1" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">When I get a story stuck in my craw long enough that I think it’s going to stay there until I write the book to dislodge it, then I start writing in my head. Again, not putting anything on paper yet. And yes, again, I have probably lost great stuff this way. I never said I was smart. But when the characters start to talk, when I get an insight into how they act and feel and move through the story, that’s when I know it is time to start getting this down on paper.</span></p><p class="p1" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">For my newest book, <i>The Last Few Miles Of Road</i> (out Feb 27th!) I had my hook – an elderly man who gets a life-threatening diagnosis and decides to right a decades old wrong and kill and man who was responsible for the death of our hero’s daughter – but until I started hearing how Carter McCoy would talk and gave him some details like his guitar playing, his favorite restaurant, the kind of truck he drives, then I wasn’t ready to begin.</span></p><p class="p1" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Once all that came together and I knew who Carter was, I hit the page running and never looked back.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p1" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">So don’t do it like me. But if you want a story to really stick I’d say however you do it, the characters are the ones who give the go ahead and tell you when to start typing.</span></p><p class="p1" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p></p><p class="p1" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;"><br /></p>Eric Beetnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12504563937840205835noreply@blogger.com4