Category: Writing tips

Feeling stale? Writing prompts!

Hi, peeps!

There I was, minding my own business on Facebook, when I noticed that author Patricia Cornwell had just posted a photo along with a brief line of text to accompany it (part of her “On the case with Scarpetta”). She does that a lot on her Facebook pages and I like to go see what she’s up to, because the photos and line of text encourages interaction. Today she posted a photo of an outdoor staircase (cement) with a line of text that said “just beyond her hotel were the old steps”.

So I used that as a serendipitous writing prompt and came up with this:

‎”…beyond her hotel were the old steps” where, years before, the brutalized body of Nettie Halstead was found, her head on the last step, as if someone had propped it there, on a concrete pillow. All investigators got were the tales her blood tried to tell, eerie graffiti smears from midway down the steps, and the secrets sliced into her skin, a still unknown weapon and a still unknown assailant. Most people who knew the story hugged the railing when they used the stairs, avoiding the long-gone blood stains. And almost all skipped stepping on that last step.

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Stories exist all around us. As a writer, I’m always watching people interact, and I’m always wondering about places I go — what happened here? What might have happened? What could happen? How do these people negotiate this situation?

But I do know that on occasion, your brain goes a little stale and you find yourself stuck in a rut. No worries!

Here’s a nifty site to get those juices flowing:
Creative Writing Prompts
Just put your mouse over any one of the numbers and see what the prompt is.

Writers Digest also offers prompts.

Fun fiction prompts from writing.com.

And here are a couple from yers truly:
1) He’d seen spiderwebs before, but this one completely covered the entryway into his bedroom.
2) “Do you believe in ghosts?” she asked as she reached for the doorknob. “No.” He smiled. “Why do you ask?” She pushed the door open. “You might want to start.”
3) Jeff tripped and the coffee arced from his cup, a beautiful one-way journey to Allison Danvers’ silk suit.

You don’t need to create a story or a novel around a writing prompt. Hell, just tack on a couple of sentences or a paragraph. Who knows? Maybe it’ll turn into a story or a novel. The point of a writing prompt is to get you into a writing groove and allow yourself a little room to breathe.

So happy writing and happy Wednesday!

by Categories: Inspiration, Writing tipsTags: , , , 2 Comments

Writing and self-awareness

Hi, folks–

Thought I’d chat a bit about writing. That is, the process of writing. The craft, and how we put words to paper.

Many writers will tell you that in order to improve your own writing you need to read. I’ve even said that several times. Writers will also tell aspiring writers (and even other writers) to study the greats, and to study the writers you really love.

Sure, do that. It’s important that you get a feel for what good writing feels like when you read it aloud or to yourself. Here’s the thing, though. When I say “study” the writers you really love, that means you have to have a grasp of what writing craft is all about, so you can put into words what it is you really like about that writer’s work. Is it POV? Characterization? How she ties her subplots up? Dialogue? Plot arc? Twists? The way she uses certain words to describe settings? How he introduces the bad guy? Pacing? What, specifically is it that you like about that writer?

Then, once you have a handle on that, you can translate what that writer does into your own work. That’s where self-awareness about the craft of writing comes in.

In other words, you need to develop a self-editor who tells you when something you’re doing is working or not. I can look at stuff I did back in the day and I know it sucks. There are some good things in the piles of writing poo that I threw onto paper, and I see some glimmers in those early works of things to come, but I’m not going to fool myself or you and say “it’s not that bad.” Because it was. Truly. I can take any of my early stuff and compare it to my later stuff and my later stuff is boocoo tons better. Why?

Because I got a better handle on writing craft. That is, I learned about grammar, narrative infrastructure, the definitions of various elements of a story, how they work together, and what to look for and do to make them better. When you do that, you are developing your self-editor. That’s the yardstick against which you measure not only your own writing, but how your writing stacks up against other writers’ (including your faves).

I practice these things all the time. I’m always looking for ways to write better, tighter, and to change styles in certain ways to reflect different genres.

So yes, analyze your faves. But analyze your own stuff, as well, and take some courses or workshops on the basics of writing craft, because that will help you develop your self-editor and thus give you a baseline against which to measure yourself and the work of others.

In the meantime, here is a SUPER COOL BLOG that will provide some great tips for doing what I’m talking about here, as well as other things writing:

The Other Side of the Story (Janice Hardy’s blog; H/T to writeadvice on Twitter for this link, which goes directly to a post that deals with my topic today)

Janice also gives you the rundown on craft with regard to novel-writing. Check it out.

Happy writing, happy reading!

by Categories: Cool blogs, Inspiration, Writing tipsTags: , , 1 Comment

Cool blogs for writers

Hi, folks–

Just some quickie links for those of you who are chained to the written word and constantly seek ways to make your own work better.

Write Anything
Multi-author blog that includes writing prompts and tips with regard to the craft of writing.

Inkygirl
The blog of Toronto-based Debbie Ridpath Ohi, writer and illustrater. She posts writing tips and often includes her own comics; tips on using the Internet as a writer.

Backstory
This one might interest readers, too. It’s a blog where writers post on where they got the inspiration for what they’ve written.

The Urban Muse
Freelance writer Susan Johnston with handy tips and musings on finding markets, and living a working writing life. She’ll help you navigate finding clients an being your own businesswoman.

Writers Write
This one might interest readers, too. News and info about writers, books, and publishing.

There you go. Some stuff to peruse (as if you didn’t have enough already!).

Happy writing, happy reading!

by Categories: Cool blogs, Inspiration, Publishing bizness, Things that might make you think, Writing tipsTags:

Follow the Evidence

Hi, kids–

Well, there’s been a major freak-out over the Casey Anthony verdict (as I knew there would be), but I’m also hearing some really hateful and ignorant things being tossed around about the case and the jurors. Just a little reminder about manners, friends. Sure, disagree with someone. And sure, disagree strongly. But threats? Really? Behaving like that doesn’t make your case hold up that well, either. Just a friendly tip from the etiquette gallery.

That said, I write a character who is an Albuquerque homicide detective named Chris Gutierrez, and in her first book, State of Denial, she has to solve a murder. A suspect presents early, but Chris — like any good detective knows — must prove the case. That is, she must find the evidence that clearly demonstrates a link (hopefully, more than one link) from the dead person to the suspect, and between what happened to the dead person to the suspect. She has her suspicions, but she also knows what happens in court is contingent on the quality of the evidence she collects and the procedures she employed to collect it. There must be little, if any doubt, that the evidence clearly links a suspect to the victim. As a writer of mysteries and police procedurals, I have to get this stuff as accurate as I can. I’m trying to write a convincing detective who does a good job. In order to do that, I have to educate myself about police procedure and criminalistics.

I want to be very clear about something here. I noticed that many of the “polls” circulating on the Interwebs ask the following question: “Do you believe Casey Anthony is guilty?” I think that’s the wrong question to ask about this case. It is my belief that clearly, something happened in the Anthony household (which has been called “dysfunctional” in the trial, with accusations that Ms. Anthony was abused by her father) that led to the death of Caylee Anthony. The question remains as to what specifically that was. The question, I think, that should be asked is whether you think there was enough concrete evidence to convict Ms. Anthony on a charge of 1st degree murder.

To prove 1st degree murder, you have to prove that a suspect planned out a murder with malice ahead of time, and then acted out that plan. I don’t think the prosecution had that concrete evidence, and the jury had to assess whether or not the evidence the prosecution provided was strong enough to lead them to conclude that Ms. Anthony plotted her daughter’s murder, carried it out, then disposed of her body.

So let’s chat about this a bit more, yes?

Continue reading →

by Categories: Random WTF stuff, Things that make you think, Writing tipsTags: , , , 1 Comment

Awesomely cool writing tip

This comes from one of my fave bloggers and writer-guys, Chuck Wendig. He can be a little raunchy with the tips, but he’s always right on.

This week, Chuck enlightens us with 25 tips for writing dialogue, and I gotta tell you. I think dialogue can make or break a character, pacing, and a story. Here are some of MY thoughts on that.

What I really like about Chuck’s tips here is that he nails the importance of good dialogue and its role in plot. Here’s a taste:

3. Sweet Minimalism
Let’s get this out of the way: don’t hang a bunch of gaudy ornaments upon your dialogue. In fiction, use the dialogue tags “said” and “asked” 90% of the time. Edge cases you might use “hissed,” “called,” “stammered,” etc. These are strong spices; use minimally. Also, adverbs nuzzled up against dialogue tags are an affront to all things and make Baby Jesus pee out the side of his diaper, and when he does that, people die. In scripts, you don’t have this problem but you can still clog the pipes with crap if you overuse stage directions. Oh, heavy dialect and sland? Just more ornamentation that’ll break the back of your dialogue.

6. Shape Determines Speed
Short, sharp dialogue is a prison shiv: moves fast ’cause it’s gotta, because T-Bone only has three seconds in the lunch line with Johnny the Fish to stitch a shank all up in Johnny’s kidneys. Longer dialogue moves more slowly. Wanting to create tension? Fast, short dialogue. Want to create mystery? Longer, slightly more ponderous dialogue. Want to bog your audience in word treacle? Let one character take a lecturing info-dump all over their heads.

And there are 23 more, just waiting for you to peruse
RIGHT HERE.

Happy writing, happy reading!

by Categories: Cool blogs, Cool stuff to read, Coolness, Inspiration, The Awesome, Writing tipsTags: , , ,

Tips on writing stronger characters

Hi, all–

Usually on Sundays I provide some reading material or share with you a title of an article or book I’m reading. But since I am a writer, I also like to share tips for those of you who, for whatever reason, thought being a writer was a good idea. Welcome to my circus! I thought it was a good idea, too! LOL

Anyway, since we’re on this journey together, here are a couple of articles from Writer’s Digest that might help you create stronger, more nuanced characters. Plus, there’s another link to a blog that fellow writer Clifford Henderson did on it. And readers, if you ever read something and the writer makes it look easy, I hope you can appreciate the amount of work that went into that tract. Because it’s when everything’s working properly and smoothly that you know it’s the best kind of writing. Most writers work hard to achieve that — I don’t know if I have, yet, but dang it, I keep trying.

Want some more?

Continue reading →

by Categories: Cool articles, Cool blogs, Inspiration, Things that make you think, Writing tipsTags: , , , , , , , 6 Comments

Quickie Writer Tip!

Hi, all!

As an editor, I see a ton of manuscripts, mostly fiction these days. The fun of editing a new author is watching them develop their own style within the framework of writing.

One of the things that many of the beginners I work with is that they have a problem ending chapters effectively.

I have two suggestions: 1) keep your chapters about the same length, which forces you to really think about scenes and pacing and 2) make sure your characters’ business is finished in that chapter before you break for a new one. That is, you want your reader to feel satisfied, as if something was happened and reasonably resolved or at least reasonably explained before sending them to a new chapter.

Aaron Elkins has a good piece over at Writer’s Digest to help you with “chaptering.”

Here’s the link!

Happy writing!

by Categories: Cool articles, Inspiration, Writing tipsTags: , ,

Fun reading

Hey, folks. If you get a chance, start reading Janet Evanovich‘s Stephanie Plum series.

Plum’s in Trenton, NJ (so get ready for a slew of Jersey references and jokes). She’s half-Italian, half-eastern European (not sure which country), and she’s one big lovable screw-up who ends up working as a bail bondsman for her cousin, Vinnie. With an uproarious cast of secondary characters like Lula, the prostitute-turned sober file clerk at Vinnie’s to Stephanie’s completely off-the-wall Grandma Mazur whose regular hobby is attending viewings, you will laugh out loud through every single one of these books.

From the second book, Two for the Dough (1996):

“They had a closed casket all right for Moogey Bues,” my grandmother said to my mother. “I got to see him anyway on account of the accident.”
My mother’s eyes opened wide in alarm. “Accident?”
I shrugged out of my jacket. “Grandma caught her sleeve on the lid, and the lid accidentally flew open.”
My mother raised her arms in appalled supplication. “All day I’ve had people calling and telling me about the gladioli. Now tomorrow I’ll have to hear about the lid.”
“He didn’t look so hot,” Grandma Mazur said. “I told Spiro that he did a good job, but it was pretty much a fib.”
Morelli was wearing a blazer over a black knit shirt. He took a seat, and his jacket swung wide, exposing the gun at his hip.”
“Nice piece!” Grandma said. “What is it? Is that a forty-five?”
“It’s a nine-millimeter.”
“Don’t suppose you’d let me see it,” Grandma said. “I’d sure like to get the feel of a gun like that.”
“NO!” everyone shouted in unison.
“I shot a chicken once,” Grandma explained to Morelli.
I could see Morelli searching for a reply. “Where did you shoot it?” he finally asked.
“In the gumpy. Shot it clear off.”
(pp. 63-64)

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If you’re a writer of fiction, Evanovich’s characters and characterization often carry a lot of her narratives. Want to get a taste of what great characterization is? Read the Stephanie Plum series.

All rightie, happy reading and happy writing!

by Categories: Books, Cool stuff to read, Funny stuff, Writing tipsTags: , ,

When books go not-so-good: some writing tips

Sigh. I finished reading a mystery today on my Kindle. I won’t say which one or who the author is, because I don’t do book reviews and I’m sure there are people who enjoy this writer’s stories. I was able to try this author’s work for $.99, for which I’m grateful. And if I like an author, I’ll gladly pay full price for his or her work.

In this case, the book started strong — set in Arizona, which is right next to my New Mexico stomping grounds, so I love stories set in the American Southwest. A great premise, too. Double murder at a campsite, internally tortured female detective with all kinds of issues, both professional and personal, and weird stuff about the murder victims and the possible suspects.

The author has a nice eye for detail, and included some great descriptions. That went on and on and on and on and…seriously. Often a tangent that took up 1-2 PAGES, detracting from the narrative and losing the reader. The author also did another no-no in my mystery-writing toolbox — a form of “as you know, Bob.” That’s another form of info-dumping and telling, not showing. It occurs when a writer provides way too much backstory and not enough narrative to move the story along. Your purpose as an author is to MOVE THE STORY FORWARD. You do that in a number of ways. Dialogue with characters to reveal things, action sequences, and subplots tightly woven in to your main plot. This author included a subplot that was a serious red herring and ended up adding probably 80 pages to this book that were unnecessary to the main plot. And it’s frustrating, because the author didn’t effectively tie the two together in a logical way.

Want more? Read on.

Continue reading →

by Categories: Things that might make you think, Writing tipsTags: , 1 Comment

Cool blog alert

Hey, kids–

This is a site I use when I’m doing research or just feeling the need to check out criminalistics and forensic methodology. As some of you may or may not know, every other book (even-numbered) in my New Mexico series stars Chris Gutierrez, a detective in Albuquerque who works a lot of homicides. Now, I do have somewhat of a background in criminalistics and forensic anthropology through my graduate work and outside interest — I’ve taken courses outside my fields and workshops, as well and done a community police program — but when I need some help with research, I can go to this blog and probably find the answers I’m looking for or a way to get that answer. That is, if I can’t find any of my friends in the field to help me out in a pinch.

The Graveyard Shift

That’s veteran police investigator Lee Lofland’s blog. Here you’ll find tips on proper police procedure, crime scene investigation, proper technique and gear that law enforcement and emergency responders use. For example, the current entry is a guest blog by firefighter Joe Collins, who gives you a breakdown of new bunker gear (comparing it to older gear).

Here’s a taste of that, from Mr. Collins, a 12-year veteran firefighter/paramedic:

Modern bunker gear is constructed of space age materials—some of the same used in space suits. It must meet the requirement of not melting, igniting, dripping or separating when exposed to a heat of 500°F for five-minutes. Considering that in structure fires ceiling temperatures as much as 1000 F have been recorded, it doesn’t provide as much protection as you would think. Those temperatures are also why we do most of our work crawling along the floor.

source

There are photos, too.

So if you’re a writer of police procedural fiction, or just interested in how this stuff works, check out Lofland’s blog.

Happy reading, happy writing!

by Categories: Cool blogs, Super cool blogs, Writing tipsTags: , , , , ,