writing Archives | Page 3 of 9

Inspiration for 2013’s Goals and Targets

comedy tragedy masks Happy New Year!

For those of you who thought the world was going to end in December (an end that the Mayan’s never in fact predicted), welcome back to the party. And it is a party, by the way. I have the highest hopes for 2013 being a fabulous year.

It’s time for resolutions. It’s a time I usually dread. I think back over the resolutions I’ve made (and never kept) in the past and wonder why I should bother. But this year I have a better outlook. One reason is that I know even attempting to improve myself in any way is better than the status quo. Another reason is that everyone needs a clean slate once in a while. This is a great time for a fresh start. Finally, I usually look at the resolutions as something bad that I have to try to change. This year I’m looking at them as something good that I want to try to attain. Perhaps a different outlook will make all the difference in achieving my goals. Even though I’m just starting today (my vacation is just ending because my kids are just going back to school today), I already feel better than I have in prior years. It all has to do with outlook.

Many writing sites say to set both goals (something within your control) and targets (something outside of your control, but likely affected by your goals), and to be specific. They say if you set them publically, you’re more likely to be held accountable. I agree with the goals and targets, and I agree that a public declaration does give you motivation, but I believe that your resolutions are personal. Do what you want with them. If you want to share them for motivation, by all means, take a megaphone to the mall. If posting them above your laptop keeps them on your mind, then post them there. Write them in glitter paint and hang them across from your toilet dining table so you see them several times a day. Tell your mother-in-law so you can be harassed about them until you complete them. (Hey, whatever works for you.) But the important thing is to be specific. Use concrete numbers, not generalities, and set realistic deadlines.

In order for me to set my 2013 goals and targets, I thought back over 2012. And I realized, I had an emotional year. I laughed a lot, and I cried a lot. I cried when my niece left for boot camp, I cried when my son “graduated” middle school and cried again when his football team went undefeated this year. I cried when there were births and deaths, I cried at natural disasters and violent tragedies. I cried at Mass when I heard hymns that reminded me of my grandfather and I cried when I heard songs on the radio that reminded me how precious and short life is. I cried during movies, TV shows and reading. And, despite my kids’ utter humiliation, I even cried during certain commercials on television. I’m a softie.

But I also laughed a lot. I laughed when my husband and kids told jokes. I laughed when my dogs jumped up and licked my face. I laughed when family visited from out of state. It filled me with joy just seeing them walk in the door. I laughed (and maybe cried a little) when my daughter won her first tennis match. I laughed when I learned for the first time I was getting a story published. I laughed with my friends at writing group and at writing conferences. I laughed at myself when I did and said stupid things (more times than I care to count). I laughed when my computer posted an, “It’s dead, Jim,” message on my screen (otherwise I would have cried). I laughed when my daughter and I foolishly thought we could do the P90X system. That lasted four days. (And then I almost cried when I could barely walk.) I laughed when the Steelers hired Todd Haley as the OC. (Look where that got us.) I laughed at Christmas when my kids opened their gifts—their faces were priceless.

Yes, it was an emotional year. I wish I could erase the horrors, but we learn and grow from them, and they make us appreciate our joys and successes all the more. As I evaluate 2012, I know what I want from 2013. I hope you take the time to do an honest assessment of your last year and create a goal and target list for 2013. If you want, post it here. I’m not your mother-in-law, but I’d be happy to keep after you about your progress!

The Year in Review

It’s Christmas Eve. I haven’t been writing as much as I usually do. I guess I’ve been taking a “holiday” vacation leading into the Christmas season. It’s been a busy year for me, so I don’t feel too guilty (who am I trying to convince, anyway, you or me?), but I promise, after the New Year things will go back to normal.

So, the year in review for my girls and me. My sister Michele has a degree in Accounting. When she got a job at a newspaper, no one was more surprised than I was, but it was in the accounting department, so it seemed to fit. Then they asked her to write book reviews. I had seen her write. I wasn’t optimistic. So I helped edit every last one of them until she left the newspaper. And became… what you ask? A technical writer! Who would have guessed my sister was interested in writing and would not only develop an interest for it, but a knack for it, too. This year, she published her first two pieces: a memoire essay, “Letter to Krista,” which was published in the Spring 2012 issue of Pastiche and a poem, “Shadow People,” which was published in the Fall 2012, 6^th issue of Canyon Voices Literary Magazine. Congratulations Michele!

My friend Rhonda is one of the most creative people I know. She has ideas that amaze me time and again. But she constantly insists that writing is difficult for her because she doesn’t have the education that I do (which I tell her is ridiculous… technique can be learned, creativity can’t). She’s been working really hard. We’ve attended local seminars, taken local classes and even gone to our first conference. With a lot of encouragement and even more hard work, Rhonda got two things published this year. She got a four-line western published in Cactus Country III and a short story called “The Devil’s Growl” published in Bigfoot Confidential: Finally the Truth Revealed. Way to go, Rhonda!

One of the local classes I just spoke about leads me to Joy. Rhonda and I met Joy in a short story seminar and we formed a writing group of our own afterward. We’ve become good friends through that experience. Joy is truly a joy… she brings laughter to our group, which is kind of funny, because she mostly writes horror stories. Joy is also an incredibly hard-worker. We meet around her work schedule (she seems to always be at work, and when she isn’t there, they seem to be calling her to go in), plus she freelances for a magazine, and she still finds time to write… and she has time for family and friends. She is, in short, a joy. And she is, now, a published author. She also got a four-line western published in Cactus Country III and got a short story called “Legend of Dark Mountain” published in Bigfoot Confidential: Finally the Truth Revealed. Nice job, Joy!

As for me, my progress and published works are always available for review by clicking on the tabs above, but I’ll give you a quick rundown here. My short story, “No Peace in the Quiet,” won second place in the Storytellers Magazine division at the OCW Conference. I had a story published in Female First, a UK online magazine, called “Bridging the Five Year Gap.” My short story, “The Den,” was published in Bigfoot Confidential: Finally the Truth Revealed. I also had a four-line western published in Cactus Country III. My short stories “Dudley” and “Code Blue” can be found in the HSFAC anthology. I won first place in an online teen fantasy fiction contest for my short story, “Rite of Passage.” And I’m now an Associate Editor for Frontier Tales, the Western Division of Pen-L Publishing. (Can you picture my fingers cramping? It’s been crazy!)

So, we’ve had a productive year, and we’re all working on projects that promise to make 2013 even better than 2012. Congratulations to my fellow writers mentioned above, and to those of you out there who also reached new heights in your writing careers this year. Let us know in the comments how you did, and what you are hoping for in 2013.

I’m done blogging until the new year. I’ll be celebrating Christmas with my family. The picture here is the nativity scene my brother and sister gave me and my husband as a gift the year before we got married. My brother built the manger and storage case; my sister was responsible for all the figurines. Not only is it one of my most treasured possessions; it’s what the season is really all about. I wish you all a blessed holiday, and I’ll see you all in 2013.

— Staci

HELP THE ELF: I Found Santa’s Missing Nice List!

Hi everyone! As you may remember, a few weeks ago Pete the elf had a touch too much Eggnog at the Holiday Christmas Party and as he stumbled home, he lost Santa’s NICE LIST.

The North Wind scattered the papers to all four corners of the world, and The Bookshelf Muse put out a call to help find them in order to SAVE CHRISTMAS.

Ever since I read about it, I’ve been on the lookout. And then today, EUREKA!

Yes that’s right…I found part of Santa’s missing NICE LIST. There it was, fluttering in the
wind, half caught under the corner of my welcome mat. And shock of all shocks, I recognized the names, and I bet you will too.

Here they are below:

NAME: Michele Jones

LOCATION: On her way to Vandergrift, PA

NICE LEVEL: 91%

NAUGHTY LEVEL: 9%

OBSERVATIONS: Michele is a great sister, hard worker, and makes time to edit drafts, even long distance.

RECOMMENDATION:

a) Coal

b) Gift X

~~*~~

NAME: Joy Keeney

LOCATION: Fayetteville, AR

NICE LEVEL: 93%

NAUGHTY LEVEL: 7%

OBSERVATIONS: Joy is overworked, and has been spending all her free time visiting a loved one in the hospital, yet she still finds the time to write and edit for her friends.

RECOMMENDATION:

a) Coal

b) Gift X

~~*~~

NAME: Rhonda Lee

LOCATION: Springdale, AR

NICE LEVEL: 92%

NAUGHTY LEVEL: 8%

OBSERVATIONS: Rhonda has the most creative mind, puts her friends and family before herself, and works hard at writing and editing.

RECOMMENDATION:

a) Coal

b) Gift X

~~*~~

Because poor Pete is dashing all over the place trying to hunt down the rest of Santa’s missing Nice List, I decided to take care of these three myself. Michele, Joy, Rhonda… I feel so blessed to know you! Enjoy the gifts I sent to your inbox and have a wonderful Christmas!

Idea courtesy of The Bookshelf Muse: http://thebookshelfmuse.blogspot.com/

It’s NaNoEditMo—Five Ways to be Sure You’re Successful This Editcember

Congratulations to those of you who earned win badges from NaNoWriMo. Hitting the 50,000 word mark is an accomplishment for anyone; doing it in thirty days is a highlight few will ever be able to say they managed to hit. Now what? It’s easy to coast on a sugar cookie high (who wouldn’t want to do that?) and immerse yourself in holiday shopping and tree-trimming, but beware… before you know it January will have rolled around, new year resolutions will have begun (and possibly ended just as quickly), and the manuscript you toiled over before Thanksgiving will be a forgotten bunch of words—a sad little file taking up space on your laptop or flash drive.

Doesn’t your effort and time deserve better?

Doesn’t your story deserve a chance to be heard?

Unless you’re some kind of genius who managed to knock out such a brilliant rough draft in the first go round that it’s beyond the need for revision and polish, that NaNo treasure is just waiting for you to open it up and show it some love. If you were a pantser during November, you may have more work ahead of you than the plotters who went into the challenger with a roadmap, but with a little TLC and a lot of work, chances are you can shape your manuscript into a real gem.

1) Reread the novel.
I know, it seems like a no-brainer, but you’d be surprised at how many people try to start editing on page one without having taken a pass at the document. Your fingers were typing at the speed of, well, not light, but they were typing really fast. And you haven’t looked at your draft in over a month. It’s likely that you’ve forgotten some things that are in there, especially if you were a pantser or if you veered far from your outline. Give the manuscript a quick once-over, just to re-familiarize yourself with its contents.

2) Consider goals and conflicts for your main characters
Each character in your story has to have motivation for every action. Do you know what those motivations are? If you have scenes where you noticed your characters doing something you consider odd, or your story veers off in a strange direction, or the pace just lags, it’s probably because the motivation wasn’t logical, or the character wasn’t acting toward his or her goal, or there wasn’t any conflict in the scene (and we all know the only scenes that are interesting are the ones that build conflict). Make notes for yourself in the manuscript to revisit these passages and correct the problems accordingly.

3) Check your scenes for content and structure
Make sure you have each scene written as tightly as possible. Did you stay in the correct tense and point of view? Did you really establish the character’s voice, in both dialogue and internalization? Is the scene building conflict and is there good pace in the scene (rising and falling action)? Do you start with a hook and end with a cliffhanger of some sort to keep the reader turning the pages? If the answer to any of these questions is no, go back and see how you can correct the problem. It might be as simple as rewriting a few passages of dialogue or as difficult as redoing whole sections of text, but the end result will be worth it.

4) Look at individual passages for weak writing
Now that the big issues are dealt with, look for places to spice things up. Add details to make the novel more rich and realistic. Are there places where the dialogue can be tweaked to sound more authentic? Can the setting be described better, or have you neglected to describe it at all? Are there places where you did too much telling, where you can add a scene to show the characters interacting and reveal more about them or their motives? Perhaps there are places where some foreshadowing can be subtly added, or conversely there may be times when you’ve done too much of these things and you need to know when to cut back.

5) Polish the manuscript
The final step in revising your novel is to dot the I’s and cross the T’s. Almost literally. Proofread the document. Look for any repetitive words, fragments or run-on sentences. Spell-check and grammar check the document. Find and correct any typos or passages with poor writing technique. This is your last chance to shine. Take advantage of it.

So you did it. You completed NaNoWriMo. Do you have what it takes to edit your novel? If you can write an entire book in thirty days, squeeze in a national holiday, and still manage to function in society, I have every confidence in you. Plus, writers are awesome. We support each other. If you don’t already have a critique group, find one, in person or online, to offer advice or just a hug while you go through the process. And I’m always here for you.

You wrote your draft. That was the easy part. Now you need to make it shine. That’s the hard part. But you can do it. And there are millions of readers out here who want to read it. Get busy editing. We’re waiting.

This Italian’s Guide to St. Nicholas Day

religious stockings Yesterday was the first day of the Advent Season. We lit the first purple candle on our advent wreath, sang verses one and two of O Come, O Come, Emmanuel at Mass, and have already finished decorating our home for Christmas. That is, after all, what the Advent Season, is all about. It’s the preparation for Christmas. Parents everywhere are baking and shopping, and if there are young ones in the home, lists are being made for Santa’s visit. But wait! Didn’t we forget something? Christmas is actually Christ’s Mass, and there isn’t really a Santa Claus Day, but there is a St. Nicholas Day, and it’s this week. Due to the commercialism of Christmas, it’s been overshadowed, but there are customs and traditions that are still alive, some of which I’ve kept going in my own family.

Nicolas was born to wealthy parents in land under Greek control. His parents died when he was very young, and he followed Christ’s teachings to give his wealth to the poor, giving the whole of his inheritance to help the sick, needy and suffering. At a young age he became Bishop of Myra, and was known for his generosity, particularly to children and sailors. He was persecuted and imprisoned for his faith, and finally released when the prisons were too full of religious prisoners to hold actual criminals. He attended the Council of Nicaea in 325, and finally died in Myra on December 6, 343, where he was buried in the cathedral. In the spring of 1087, his remains were moved to Bari, Italy for easier pilgrimage access. The Basilica di San Nicola was built over his crypt, allowing tourists to pay homage to the saint who assisted children, sailors, prisoners, famine victims, and others in need.

In Italy today on St. Nicholas Eve, children put a plate on the table with a letter to St. Nicholas. They promise to be good in the coming year, and in exchange they ask for gifts from the saint. When St. Nicholas visits overnight, he reads the letters and fills some of the requests. He’ll also leave candies and cookies on the plate for the children to wake to. On St. Nicholas Day, grandfathers will sometimes dress up like St. Nicholas and hand out the presents. Good children will get their gifts, but naughty children will get sugar candy that looks like lumps of coal.

St. Nicholas is the patron saint of young women wanting to get married. There is a special ritual in Bari for young ladies hoping for a husband. They go to the Basilica and drop a note to St. Nicholas in a special box, along with three coins. In Sicily, young ladies will wear traditional dress on December 5 and 6 and sing special songs to him.

My daughter isn’t old enough to look for a husband, and I wouldn’t expect her to sing for one or drop notes in a box. We’re going to do things the American way, I think. But we have adopted the celebration of St. Nicholas Day, because, if as Americans we can commercialize Christmas, then as Italians and as Catholics we can celebrate the life of the patron saint of children.

We have special “religious” stockings in our house. These are our St. Nicholas Day stockings. On December 6, our kids know to look in them for little gifts. Also, there is always fruit in them, usually an orange or an apple. I’m not sure when or how that tradition started. I think it had to do with my grandfather and there always being fruit on the holiday table, but for St. Nicholas day, there is always fruit.

To help the less fortunate, St. Nicholas used to throw bags of money through windows and fireplaces of people’s homes. Those bags would land in the socks that they’d hung to dry or in the shoes that were warming on the hearth. That’s how the stocking tradition began. And that’s why we give our St. Nicholas gifts in the religious stockings at our house.

We don’t make nearly the production out of St. Nicholas Day that we do out of Christmas. (After all, it’s not Christ’s Mass.) But we do celebrate it. It’s a nice reminder of where our family came from. This time of year is hard for my family because we don’t get to spend it with our extended family. Celebrating this holiday is just another way we can keep family traditions alive. Perhaps it’s a tradition that you’d like to start with your family.

How Dr. Seuss Can Improve Your Writing

When I was a kid, I loved Dr. Seuss. I liked everything he wrote, but my favorite was Fox in Socks. I’ve always been a sucker for tongue twisters, and that fox really had a few zingers. There are still a couple I stumble over.

When I became a parent, I read his collection to my kids. Their favorite was The Lorax. I read it so often, I think I can still quote most, if not all, of it by heart. It has a poignant message, and it was delivered in such a Seussical way, I really don’t mind.

Now my kids think they’re beyond Dr. Seuss, although we still watch The Grinch Who Stole Christmas every winter. So you would think my Seuss days are over. But you’d be wrong. Theodor Geisel wrote about writing, and one of my favorite and inspirational quotes is by him:

“So the writer who breeds more words than he needs, is making a chore for the reader who reads.”

Yes, it’s another childhood rhyme, but that just makes it easier to remember. And it’s a phrase we writers should take to heart.

How often have you been immersed in a novel only to wonder why the author has spent sentences, paragraphs, even pages describing something when a few words would have sufficed, or even worse, when the information could have been omitted altogether? Poetic phrases have their place, but that place isn’t in a novel. Save the purple prose for the poetry books. Fiction has come a long way since the classics were written. Every word must now have a practical purpose or it must not be allowed to stay in the novel.

Frankly, I’m not sure the effusive description served even the classics well. I swear I read a four-page description of a ladder in Moby Dick before Ishmael ever set foot on the ship. Perhaps Melville could have benefitted from listening to Dr. Seuss. I’m not saying I’m in Melville’s league, but I know I’ve learned a thing or two from Dr. Seuss. I didn’t learn anything from Melville.

If you aren’t into Seuss-style whimsical poetry, take some advice from William Faulkner. “Kill your darlings.”

Five Suggestions for the Non-NanNoWriMo Writer

It’s that time of year again. Writers everywhere are hoarding Halloween chocolate and stockpiling caffeinated drinks (Diet Pepsi and Gevalia coffee in this house) because November, despite having only thirty days and requiring a full week of preparation for Thanksgiving dinner, is NaNoWriMo, or National Novel Writing Month. Actually, it’s probably just Writing Month, as it’s also WNFIN, or Write Non Fiction In November month. I’ve even seen NaNoPoMo mentioned, or National November Posting Month, challenging bloggers to post every day. With the daily blogging, with fiction writers racing to write a 50,000 word novel in thirty days and with non-fiction writers also struggling to meet the same deadline, how could it not be Writing Month? And how could writers who aren’t participating fail to take notice, with daily word counts in everyone’s social media feeds?

I’m not participating this year. I decided I had too many other obligations to make a good faith attempt at a novel, or a daily blog. But that didn’t mean that I couldn’t learn from all the advice flying around. Many of the points are useful to any writer writing to meet any deadline or under no time constraints at all.

1) Say it in a Sentence.
If you can condense your story concept down into one sentence (think of it as your elevator pitch), you are on your way to developing the essence of your story. If you begin planning your novel and you can’t even come up with the words that encapsulate the crux of the tale, you probably haven’t thought it through completely yet. Think of your story as a painting. The elevator pitch is where you are laying down the big bold strokes of color. It just lays the shape of the work, nothing more. The major milestones are the smaller strokes where the picture emerges. The scenes are the fine detail work where the picture takes shape and becomes a true work of art. In the planning stage, the broad brush strokes of a single sentence are all that is necessary. If you can’t do that, you don’t have a novel in the making.

2) Research Research Research.
NaNoWriMo or not, much of your research can be done before you sit down to write or outline. It doesn’t matter what your idea is… unless you’re writing your autobiography as fiction, there is likely something you need to research. Even if you’re writing your autobiography as fiction, there’s probably something you need to research. Most likely you’re not writing something you know as well as yourself and your life. That will require more research, whether it be geography, history, and/or biography. The Internet has become an easy resource for us. Remember to try to use academic, government or specialist sites rather than general commercial sites, as they tend to be more thorough and reliable. But the Internet isn’t the only option for research. We tend to forget about books (how ironic), maps, charts, film, and other media, and most importantly, going directly to the source when possible. Visiting the geography we are interested in and interviewing the people we are writing about are excellent options. As this is research and can be done before the writing begins, the only constraints we have are the ones our lives and our bank accounts put on us. But if and when possible, we should consider doing something other than Internet research.

3) Pantsers will struggle in November.
Are you a pantser or a plotter? Everyone writes differently, and, while I certainly have my favorite way to write, I’m not going to tell you which way is correct. There’s only one way that’s correct for you, and that’s the way you should stick with. That said, in November, if you go in without an outline or a plan, you’re probably going to fail, because you don’t have the luxury of finding your way through a plot in a mere month. If you are comfortable with a working plan or outline of some sort, it will help guide you through your novel. And if you find that comfortable in November, perhaps that structure will help you anytime you sit down to write a book.

4) Editing is a Writer’s Worst Enemy
If you are participating in NaNoWriMo, you don’t have time to edit as you go. You’ll never get done in time. If you aren’t, should you edit as you go? Many authors say no. If you edit as you write, you’ll spend so much time editing that you’ll lose your flow and rhythm. Writers need to write. You can edit later. Some writers take the beginning of their writing day to edit the prior day’s work. That helps them get back in the story from the day before and lets them correct any issues that may have developed before they get out of hand. If you absolutely have to edit before draft one is complete, try just doing it once a day.

5) Been There, Scene That
Scenes need to be thought of as vehicles. They take the reader from Point A to Point B in your story. If you are planning your story (or pantsing it) and find yourself with a scene, even a beautifully written scene with several darlings in it, but it simply stays in Point A, you have to cut it. Each scene should start with a hook (or at the very least something interesting enough to entice the reader to keep reading), continue with action that progresses the plot, and ends with something that leaves the reader desperate to read on. If you have a scene that doesn’t do those three things, it either needs to be rewritten or deleted.

These five points are popular points given to writers preparing for NaNoWriMo, but they are points that any writers can use when working on a novel. Like I said, I’m not doing NaNoWriMo this year, but I am going to put these suggestions to use as I work on my current and future projects. Hopefully you find them useful in your writing as well.

Five Ways to Avoid Ruining Your Scene Descriptions

When you write, you’ve got main characters, secondary characters, minor characters and villains. Many people contend that the setting can become a character in its own right, and in certain situations, a well-written setting can take on a life of its own. But there are mistakes to avoid with settings so they aren’t handled poorly.

Here are five pitfalls in scene-setting to be aware of.

1. Not Writing Enough
Have you ever read a scene so dialogue-heavy that you felt ungrounded? You were missing the basic foundation tools provided by “setting the scene.” Without just a few well-placed details to tell you where the characters are, you will uncomfortably float in the scene.

2. Being Lost in Exposition
Conversely, too much scene-setting can break down the flow of the writing. It’s a real slam of the brakes as your eyes scan the page if suddenly you’re mired down in a lengthy description of where the characters are. More isn’t always better.

3. Making Lists
One of the ways people try to condense their description is to just hit the highlights of the scenery. That often results in a laundry list of details describing the setting of the story. That’s a sure fire way to slow down readers. No one wants to read sentence after sentence of room or landscape detail, particularly if it really isn’t value-added information.

4. Writing Purple Prose
Sometimes the description is added simply as filler because the writer wasn’t sure what to do next or he or she wanted to slow the pace a bit. Often this is where the writer flexes the old poetry muscle, and purple prose is born. Scene descriptions are created in language so beautiful that The Bard himself would be envious. Don’t be afraid to kill your darlings. In this case, they aren’t really darling. Just because the language is exquisite doesn’t mean it belongs in your story.

5. Regionalizing
I was at a conference recently when an agent discussed scene-specifics. She said that stories set in Anytown USA are more marketable than stories written about miners in Western PA because a coal mine in Western PA poses a limited market. That doesn’t mean you can’t set your story somewhere real—plenty of wonderful stories take place in actual places—but try not to limit your market so severely that you make your story’s audience a small, segmented market.

So, we don’t write too little, we don’t write too much. We avoid writing lists and we cut the poetic phrases that were inserted as filler. Finally, we make certain we don’t pigeon-hole ourselves into a region that is too specific to be marketable. What’s left?

The perfect sprinkling of well-placed, well-chosen details. You don’t need to describe the whole forest; throughout the scene mention the darkness of the shadows, the thick carpet of fallen needles and the pungent scent of pine. Those details throughout one scene aren’t too many, but you know you’re in a forest without saying, “They’re in a dense forest. There are trees as far as the eye can see. Needles and cones line the path, and the scent of pine permeates the air.” Further, if you mention the details in lieu of dialogue tags, you’ve killed two birds with one stone. But I’ll leave that discussion for another post…

Five Ways to Write a Successful Villain

So we’ve been covering how to write successful characters, and we’ve talked about heroes and heroines. Those protagonists can be tricky, but I think we have a handle on it. Now we press forward to those pesky villains. Sure, everyone is picturing twirling mustaches and swirling capes, or creepy smiles and smeared make-ups, but it doesn’t have to be that sinister. Villains could be as innocuous as the bully who gave you swirlies and shoved you in a locker after gym class or the girl who spread rumors about you costing you your best friends and your homecoming date, causing you to lapse into depression, fail all your classes and drop out of school… Scratch that. She could be the girl who pulled your pigtails on the playground. Villains can be dark, but they don’t have to be. It depends on your genre. But they do have to have a few key points in common in order to be successfully written.

Here are five key strategies for writing successful villains.

Villains have to believe they are right.
No one starts down a path to evil saying, “I’m going down the path to evil.” They believe that what they are doing, whether they are seeking to become the popular kid at school or seeking to become the ruler of the world, they are doing it for the right reasons. If people get hurt while they benefit in the process, well, eggshells and omelets.
Villains have a tortured past.
There is almost always one inciting incident that created the villain. There should be that moment, that one deciding moment, where he could have taken the high road or the low road and when that defining incident occurred he felt he had no choice but to take the low road. That incident framed his life and his actions from that moment on to the present day, where he is now the villain who is terrorizing the village, bent on world domination, cannibalizing co-eds, or whatever his personal brand of crazy happens to be.
Villains need a character arc.
Just as our protagonists have to grow and change as they progress through the story, so should the villain. Whether he finds redemption or he goes off the deep end doesn’t matter. What matters is that the villain grows throughout the story. Readers need to see that the villain is a person too, a well-rounded and well-developed person with thoughts and feelings who grows and changes. By the end of the story he should have the same path options as the protagonists do.
Villains need human traits.
Villains aren’t uber-evil. They have thoughts and feelings, hopes and dreams, fears and anxieties. They experience joy and have nervous ticks. They have family and friends (possibly, unless their inciting incident resulted in them being abandoned and alone), and they have jobs and homes. When the villain is on the scene, play with these traits so the villains seem more human.
Villains need to interact with the protagonists.
The more the protagonists and the villain interact, the more the readers can learn about the villain. In fact, it is better for the reader and often the plot if there are paths of intersection in their lives. A villain who just shows up is fine, but a villain who has crossed paths with the protagonist time and again is so much better. It helps draw parallels between their lives, letting the reader see how things could have been different for the villain had the inciting incident gone another way.

These points will help craft a strong and compelling villain, but remember, most times writers don’t write from the villain’s point of view. That means that all these tips need to be implemented without insight directly into the antagonist’s thoughts. Don’t despair—it can be done, and done effectively. It just takes some clever writing to convey the message. And no one wants to admit they’re naturally good at it—people might wonder why it comes so easily to them.

45th Annual Ozark Creative Writers Conference

Lou Turner, Dusty Richards, Beth Bartlett, Johnny Boggs

I spent the weekend in Eureka Springs, Arkansas learning about writing, publishing, and platforming at a fabulous writers conference put on by Ozark Creative Writers. This was their forty-fifth annual conference, and while it was my first time in attendance, I can’t imagine they’d ever put on a better one.

Thursday evening began with President Dusty Richards hosting an informal discussion group welcoming everyone and discussing different writers’ journeys from novice to published author. Later, a reception was held and writers had the opportunity to read a few pages of their work to their peers.

Friday was a full day. After opening remarks, keynote speaker Cherry Weiner addressed the group. Ms. Weiner lives in New Jersey and is an agent who works closely with the Big Six publishing houses in New York. Rather than giving a prepared speech, she immediately opened the floor for questions, and boy did we have them. We learned about query structures (everyone has a format, but a general rule to follow is one page, four paragraphs: first is the genre, word count, and if it’s a single title or series; second is the storyline; third is any publishing credits; fourth is a thank you, followed by a request for instructions on how to submit if interested). We learned that the Big Six will only give an author six weeks on the shelves, and if the book doesn’t sell it gets pulled. That means an author must market. We learned that these days, series are preferable to single titles because it means that the author will have more books coming along. We learned that formal prose is likely too stiff, but that doesn’t excuse poor grammar and excessive colloquialisms. Manuscripts still need to be polished when they are submitted, because editors aren’t going to “edit” anymore. In short, we learned a lot.

After the break, Susan Swartwout from Southeast Missouri University Press talked about hooks in first lines and first pages. In addition to all writing needing to be tight and full of action, there are certain rules that will improve first page hooks.

Avoid starting with dialogue. There’s too much mystery when readers don’t know the characters. They don’t know who’s speaking.
Avoid straight description for too long. It will bore the readers.
Start with an action or a compelling statement and then fulfill the promise. If you start with something exciting or an interesting statement but the action isn’t resolved or the statement isn’t explained, you’ll lose the reader’s attention.
Think short and simple. Don’t begin with word play puzzles. The reader isn’t vested yet, so he or she won’t care enough to try to figure it out.
Don’t try to write the hook first thing. Just write; then edit and make a great hook.

After lunch, Johnny Boggs spoke about the YA market. Mr. Boggs has successfully written for adults and teens, and he offered tips for writing for a younger audience.

Girls will read about either gender, boys are really only interested in male protagonists.
A great hook is essential.
Language needs to be about two years older than the protagonist.
Kids are more sophisticated than we were; be age appropriate.
The missing parent is a typical plot device; it lets the kids be the heroes. They need to face life alone in some way.
Nothing is off limits anymore. Death, abuse, drugs, sex, violence, profanity… if it’s handled in an age-appropriate way, it can be written about.

After a quick break, Ms. Weiner returned with New York editor Daniela Rapp to do a “single page book buy.” Authors submitted one page of their WIPs and the agent and editor listened to them and offered comments, sometimes even saying they’d like to talk to the writer further after the session. This was by far the most helpful session, as we all got to see and hear firsthand what agents and editors look for in manuscripts, and what they reject.

We ended the day with the choice of attending a session by Poet Laureate Peggy Vinning or CEO of 2 Rivers Communications Dianna Graveman. I attended the session with Ms. Graveman to learn more about platform building. As expected from a social marketing guru, she spoke fast and covered a lot. While she did mention the usual Twitter and Facebook topics that social media experts have to cover, she also delved into blog tours, speaking gigs, Goodreads, eventbrite and speakerfile. I had explored the first three briefly on my own, but I had never even heard of eventbrite and speakerfile. The customization options of the two were quite impressive and worth exploring.

Saturday began with Ms. Rapp discussing what kinds of things she looks for when deciding what to publish. She says it’s more than just a quality judgment, books should come to her polished and ready and must meet three criteria: They must tell a story. She must love at least one character. They must be different in some way from every other story. If they pass those tests, the author should keep these seven points in mind:

Research the industry – Know what’s going on and what’s changing.
Research the market – Know the genre.
Don’t be motivated by money or fame – Most authors don’t ever make a living writing.
Marketing isn’t a necessary evil; it’s the way books are sold today – You have to do it today if you want to sell books tomorrow.
Getting published takes time – Contract to shelf can take two years. Be patient.
Writing is a career, not a one-off – Know what other projects you have coming up and be working on them so you have something else to pitch.
Be an expert in your area – Research you genre, the authors in your genre, the time period in which your books are set…

After a break, Susan Swartwout discussed contracts. She recommended getting an agent, because an agent’s job is to get a writer the best deal possible, and an agent will understand the contract better than even a lawyer, and certainly better than the writer. Even so, she brought along a sample contract and pointed out some key areas of note. One thing that isn’t usually in contracts is cover control. Try to get some say over the cover design (at least veto rights), as that can make or break a novel. Also check that the copyright is in your name, not the publisher’s. And lastly, confirm who has international rights and film rights. Those are things agents can negotiate for you.

After lunch, Dianna Graveman hosted a session on selling an author’s work. Running concurrently was a session by the Board. Lou Turner, Dusty Richards, Beth Bartlett and Johnny Boggs took questions from the audience and discussed their careers. We got some valuable information about how to query a small press (and how not to nag them afterward), how to write dialogue and internalization using different voices and how to tag (also how not to tag), and how joining online organizations and being a good “netizen” can help drive up book sales. Listening to four such accomplished professionals was an honor.

The next session was by Ms. Weiner and Ms. Rapp. They put on a little skit showing how a manuscript goes from agent to editor to publication. This section was full of valuable information regarding timeframes, agent and editor roles, and publishing house functions. I now understand why it can take two years for a book to hit the shelves. I still don’t like it, but I get it. The manuscript goes through so many hands and so many revisions, plus cover design, marketing and sales… Not to mention, it’s not the only one they’re working on. It’s daunting. No wonder the publishers want our patience and our help promoting. We are our number one cheerleaders.

The conference “proper” ended with a toot-your-own-horn segment, where people could talk about their successes. There are a lot of successful people there. I hope to join the ranks soon.

I missed the awards banquet; I had to get back to town. A friend emailed me that I took second place in one of the writing contests and I won the Cherry Weiner raffle (for her to look at and critique some of my work), but I won’t believe any of it until I actually see it for myself. I mean, my first conference and to take second place in a contest and win a raffle! That’s too good to be true. Plus I picked up an anthology while I was there that I was published in, and I have a blurb on the back cover (Bigfoot Confidential – High Hill Press). If that’s not a great first conference, I don’t know what is. I can’t wait until next year’s! Hope to see some of you there.