Up In Smoke...

Just had to share...

My short "Up In Smoke" is live at Mysterical-e.

This is a really nice market for mysteries so check them out and send something.

Follow me...

...over to Let's Write a Novel...Together. For the next couple weeks I'll be posting there.

Tomorrow's post is on naming our characters and I list some very good name sites to check out.

See you there!!!

POV Dilemma - Pt. 2

Well, I did it. I revised my first chapter back into third person, added a chapter two from a second character's pov that because I was writing in first couldn't be used and then revised chapter three back into third person. Not serious revision, just a change of pov.

While studying where I wanted to add this second character's pov, I realized he'd have ch. 2, maybe 5 or 6 and then 10. I also realized after rereading the revised chapters that I'd lost a lot of the MC's voice which was one of the things I really, really wanted to keep.

I also realized third person just wasn't the POV for this novel. First person is just better for the story. And like I said at the Let's Write a Novel...Together! blog, the story is the most important thing.

So, I saved the third person chapters in a seperate file and now I'm feeling confident in my choice of POV.

Sometimes it just takes a while to figure out which POV works best. So, when you wonder if you made the right choice, play with it a bit. See which works best. You aren't stuck with your original choice.

Now, off to ponder where I'm going from here.:-)

POV Dilemma

Those of you who stop by here on a regular basis know the horrid time I've had deciding on which POV to write my novel in.

I started the darn thing in third and had about three chapters done. Then, due to shoulder vultures and encouragement from a friend, I gave first person a try and actually liked that better.

At about the 10k mark, I started questioning my choice though. It's been nagging at me for about 35k now and I finally decided to revise part of chapter one back into third person since I'd gotten a better grip on my MC's voice.

Both POVs worked well. I still couldn't decide which way to go. So, I talked to my mentor tonight.

She told me a couple things I already know. First, that first person POV is a weaker pov to write in. You are limited by just what the character sees, knows, hears, smells, etc.

Next, that first person had a different structure than third person. Meaning, you have to plan your scenes so that you can get in the info you need instead of being able to use others to get the info to the reader.

So...you guessed it. I'm back to third person pov for the novel. I'm going to continue where I left off on Friday in third person and will revise the previous later.

I feel good about the change. Not only can I get in a bit more info, I can add another character's pov and get his take on things too.

I'm ready to get started.

Be sure to stop by Let's Write a Novel...Together! and see what's happening there. I'm posting every day there during the week and we'll start planning our NaNo novels in Oct.

Checking in...

I've been writing like crazy and working on the Let's Write a Novel...Together! blog so this place has been a bit neglected. Sigh.

But...I'm officially over halfway done with my novel. I figure to have the rough draft finished by the end of this month and it to come in at about 65k. I'll have to revise and add the meat to get up to the 80k I was told to aim for. But that won't be a problem. My first draft is very, very, very bare bones.

I do want to encourage you to stop by the Let's Write a Novel...Together! blog and join us as we get ready to start planning our NaNo novel. I'm planning a sequel to the WIP.

So...what you writing? What you reading?

Passion

I'm cross-posting this from the Let's Write a Novel...Together! blog. Hope you enjoy. And, if you've ever considered writing a novel, click over and join us.

***************************************************************************

I'm so mad right now I could bite nails in half. And while I won't go into the cause, it gave me the topic for this post.

We must have passion in our writing…and for our writing. Our characters must be passionate. Without passion in our writing, it's meaningless.

I'm not talking about passion of a romantic nature though sometimes that can be good too but more of the kind of passion that moves a story, that connects the reader with the story and causes them to remember it long after the last page is turned.

I'm not sure exactly how to get that passion in the story though. Maybe be finding something the characters are passionate about and channeling (so to speak) our passion into them as we write? Or do we somehow fuse our passion to that of our character?

A while back, I'd lost the passion for the writing process and for writing in general. I'd begun to think of writing as work for the most part. It was something I had to do instead of something I wanted to do. And honestly, I wasn't having any fun.

I took some time off from writing, did some serious pondering and found my joy again. I'm having fun, the writing process is exciting again and I look forward to each day's writing time. In fact, it's gotten to the point I get cranky when I have to miss a day. Thankfully for the family, that doesn't happen often.J

I think the thing I want y'all to take away from this post is what is your passion and how can you use it in your writing? Why are you writing in the first place? Heaven knows it's darn hard work, the pay is practically nil unless you manage to grab the brass ring and even if you do "make it" there will always be someone out there to put you down. You must find satisfaction in your writing, not for someone else, but for yourself. In fact, if you are writing for someone else, I sorta think you are doing it for the wrong reason.

Now that's not to say you don't have to keep your potential reader in mind as you write and revise, you must. But it's also important to take your own happiness in mind.

So…how do you impart passion into your story? And how do you keep that passion for writing and the process involved? How do you keep the passion you have for the idea throughout the writing process that may take months and months?

Share your thoughts in the comments for all of us. I'd love to hear from you.J

Been gone too long...

But I'm back now. I didn't plan this blog neglect but sorta got wrapped up in this novel.

As you can see...I'm just over 29k and should reach 30k by this afternoon. That's if the writing muse cooperates.

I've also started another blog project for NaNoWriMo called "Let's Write a Novel...Together" and encourage everyone to stop by and check it out.

This month, we'll be talking about different aspects of writing. Next month, we'll plan our NaNo projects, have some brainstorming chats maybe and then together in November, we'll write those novels. It'll be fun so don't miss out.

My internet diet is still working. Making writing a priority has been a very good thing.

Remember, if you don't get it written, you don't have anything to revise!!!

Writing Links

One of the things I LOVE about Twitter and connecting with other writers is checking out the links they share. Naturally, it's sorta like separating the chaff from the wheat but quite often, there's a very cool treasure.

For example, StoryFix. This is an excellent place to hang out. There is so much info, you'll just have to pull up a chair and settle in. There's a series on structure along with all sorts of tips and techniques.

And...Men with Pens. Here's another website FULL of tips, techniques and just plain good advice.

Give these sites a visit, let me know what you think.

THR3E by Ted Dekker

Back Cover Blurb:

Kevin Parson is alone in his car when his cell phone rings. A man calling himself Slater offers a deadly ultimatum: You have exactly three minutes to confess your sin to the world. Refuse, and the car you're driving will blow sky high. The the phone goes dead.

Kevin panics. Who could make such a demand? What sin? Yet not sure what else to do, Kevin swerves into a parking lot and runs from his car. Just in case.

Precisely three minutes later, a massive explosion sets his world on a collision course with madness. And that's only the first move in this deadly game.


Publishers Weekly says "An almost perfect blend of suspense, mystery and horror."

And I totally, 150% agree. I found Thr3e mostly by accident yesterday and then sat up until almost 1 a.m. and finished reading. There are so many things I love about this book,the thing that sealed the deal and made me a fan is that I never saw the end coming. Not many books surprise me and but Thr3e kept me in my seat and held me until the very end. And even after I'd put it aside, my thoughts still returned to the characters, the plot and the great twist. (My daughter will be reading it soon - I can hardly wait to have someone to talk about this book with.)

I love the characters and how "real" they are. The plot never became predictable and the twist...AWESOME!!!

My one concern when I considered purchasing Thr3e was how much or how preachy did he get. Afterall, I found Thr3e at a Christian book store. No worries though...the religious message blended into the story, was never preachy or condemning and didn't over power the story either. A perfect balance, in my opinion.

If you enjoy Stephen King or Dean Koontz, then give Ted Dekker a try. You won't be sorry.


You can read an excerpt here.

Midnight Snack

Since I'm not aware of a market for dialogue only pieces and this was only done for fun anyway, I've decided to share my dialogue contest entry with y'all.
Hope you enjoy.


“Finally, it‘s about time you got here. What’d you tell Bill?”

“Just that you and Dave had a fight, that you were upset and needed someone to talk to. I told him not to wait up for me, that I might stay over. Of course, he was practically asleep on the couch before I left so that’s where he’ll probably be in the morning. He’s such a bore lately. Where’d Dave go?”

“He didn’t go anywhere. Come on. I’ll show you. “

“Oh god! Is he dead?”

“Yeah, he’s dead. But I warned him. I told him what would happen if he ever cheated on me. He asked for it. You know, he didn’t even lie about it. Said she made him feel like a real man. Well, she won’t be making him feel anything ever again, I can tell you that.”

“Did he tell you who she is? I mean, do you know who he was seeing?”

“I didn’t even ask. Right now though, we got to get rid of him. I saw a couple gators when I jogged over Possum Creek yesterday. We can dump him there. It’ll be days before they find him, if they ever do. Wrap the shower curtain around him. I’ve got the truck backed up to the deck. We can just slide him right in.”

“What are you going to tell everyone? Sooner or later someone will come looking for him.”

“Yeah, all his buddies down at Joe’s. I’ll just say we had a fight, he left and didn‘t come home. It’s almost the truth. The Johnson‘s will confirm the fight and that he left.”

“But he did come home. What about that?”

“They were asleep by then. A 747 could land in their yard and not wake them. Besides, he parked in the back when he came home. Thanks to the privacy fence Dave insisted on building, they can’t see back there. Now, let’s take out the trash.”

“God, he’s heavy. How are we going ever going to get him over the bridge?”

“I’ve got a plan. Don’t worry. Follow me in your car.”

“Alright, I’ll meet you there.”

“Don’t wimp out on me. I need you. You don’t want me going to jail do you?”

“Of course not. You’re my best friend. I won’t let you down.”


*

“Hold onto the shower curtain. I’ll ease the truck away and he’ll slide right out. Ready?”

“Go real slow. Oh god, oh god, oh god. He’s out.”

“Now to get him over the bridge. Here gator, gator. Time for a midnight snack. Grab his feet, pull him up and over the rail. Leave the shower curtain, I’ll get rid of that later. There’s a construction site not far from here. They won’t notice it in the dumpster. Good, now help me shove him over.”

“I’m going to have nightmares for weeks.”

“No, you won’t. I mean, you only helped a friend. It’s not like it’s your fault. Oh wait, it is partly your fault.”

“What do you mean?”

“Did you really think you’d get away with it? That I wouldn’t figure it out? You’ve been wearing that same cheap perfume since sixth grade. When Dave came home from his business trip last month, his clothes reeked of it.”

“Come on, I’m not the only person who wears Temptation.”

“True, but you were gone the same weekend. I called. Thought a girl’s night out would be fun. Bill told me about your business trip.”

“I was in meetings all weekend. Honest. It really was a business trip.”

“Maybe. I couldn’t prove it one way or the other so I started following Dave. The Blue Moon hotel on Tuesday and Thursdays at lunch. Then there was the day y’all didn’t even make it to the hotel. Last Wednesday wasn’t it? I always hated doing it in the front seat but you seemed to be enjoying it.”

“I didn’t mean to… I couldn’t help it. And he said it was over, that he was filing for divorce.”

“It doesn’t matter. You were my best friend. There’s no excuse. No matter what he said.”

“What are you going to tell Bill? He knows I went to your place. He’ll expect me back in the morning.”

“You never made it to my place. Just cause you said I called, doesn’t mean I did. Besides, once he finds out about you and Dave, he’ll be more angry than concerned.”

“Please… You don’t have to do this.”

“Yeah I do. You were a good friend but it‘s too late. Now, you’re dessert for the gators. Bye Pam.”
“I’m sor…”

“Look out below. Open up boys, this one will make you feel like a real gator.”

Happy weekend...

This week started out on a very good note. The winner of the Reading Writer's Dynamic Dialogue Contest was announced and while I didn't win, I did get another Honorable Mention. I'm calling it a "tie for second" since she only picks one winner. The winning piece is excellent so check it out. For tips on what an editor is looking for in a piece, read the judge's opinion. You can check out the archives for back issues of their ezine, THE VERB, and read other winners and her comments.

And, check out the current contest prompt. These are fun to do and a great way to practice your craft.

In the novel writing news department, I've added almost 6k this week. Wednesday I had to be away from home and the puter all day so I only wrote four days this week but still did well. I'm excited about the way things are going. I hope others will be also.

Here's a cool link to check. On Sunday's they post the "Best of Twitter" links.

Want to track your word count? You can add a progress meter like mine to your website too. These are fairly easy to work with and it's really nice to see the words add up. You can find yours at StoryToolz.

Now, go write something!

Coming up for air...

Seems I've been missing around here lately but today, I'm coming up for air and reporting in.

As you know, or maybe you don't, I've put myself on an internet diet. Meaning,no internet until I get my "First 500" words written each day. This is working so well. It's reminded me there are more important things than reading the latest Twitter or Facebook update. And you know what, the world hasn't come to an end just because I've neglected the internet a bit.

I still read several agent and author blogs though not on as a regular basis as before but I've made my writing a priority and that's what I needed to do.

One thing I've noticed in the years I've been learning my craft is the more I write, the better I get. The more I write, the less I struggle with my inner editor. And the more I write, the easier the words flow.

I once heard that we need to write a million words of dreck before the good stuff comes along. And while I'm not sure I'd agree with a million, I do know the more I write, the more I make writing something important, the better the writing is.

One thing that helps me it to have a general idea of what I need to write for the day. I'm betting it'll help you too. So, have a couple scene ideas in mind. Maybe ponder them the night before or set aside a day to plan your writing week.

I saw a quote about writing inspiration a while back that really struck home. We can't wait around and hope for inspiration to find us. We need to be busy and working and serious about our craft. The inspiration will be there we just have to tap into it.

So, my challenge for you is to make writing a priority. Carve out a niche of time where you can write without being interrupted. Take whatever measures you need, even if you have to get up a few minutes earlier or stay up later than normal. Sure, the first couple days will be rough, but it'll be well worth it. Make an appointment with your writing instrument of choice and keep it. Don't wait to be inspired.

Now, what are you still doing here? Go write!!!

Changing POV...

Seems my mystery novel wants to be written in first person. It's been nagging me for a while but I'd been ignoring it. I mean, I already have a good start with it in third person. But the other night I finally gave in and seriously pondered the change.

My writing mentor, if I'd asked her, would say to write some in first person and see which way worked best. So I took her advice and gave first person a try. I figured I could do the "First 500" in first and not lose much if I didn't like it.

The only problem…I didn't have a good opening line. I wasn't happy with the third person opening either but just didn't have a clue how to fix it. However, once I made the commitment to give first a try, a really nice first line arrived.

Now I'm almost 2k into my rewrite, changing from third to first person. I'm really pleased with the way things are flowing and how much more the character comes through. I figure by the end of the day, I'll have caught up to the 4k mark on the counter to the right. Which will be very cool.

So, what's your favorite POV to write in and why?

First 500

I'm a procrastinator. In fact, if they gave awards for procrastination, I've have at least one of each award. But I've decided to tackle this issue in order to get more writing done. So, I decided to put myself on an internet diet. No internet until the "First 500" are written.

I started this on Monday of last week and I have to say, it's worked quite well. I've managed to get over 500 words each day, two days I got close to 1,000 and one day I got over 1,300. And only one day were the words so bad I deleted them later. Even though they were dreck, they did give me some ideas and got me started on the right direction. So, when I wrote the new scene the next day, it was very nice.

I did take the weekend off and spend it doing stuff with family and of course, church on Sunday but I did do a bit of planning so I'd have a starting point this week.

This week, I'm aiming for 1,000 words each morning before going to the internet. Seems doable and I seriously need to make progress on this novel. May will be here before long and I have to be ready.

I've also decided to focus solely on novel. No more prompts for fun. I won't promise no more short stories since when the plot bunny drops off an idea, you don't want to insult them by being ungrateful but I'm going to try to stay on track.

And so…if you need to get things written, try the "First 500" idea. Put your writing before whatever it is that distracts you and get those words on paper. Believe me, it's worth it and gets easier each day.

I'm back...

Finally…a new blog post.

It’s been a while since I updated but that’s mostly because of puter problems and having to buy a new puter. I now have a very nice laptop I call “The Precious.” I tell the kids it’s because “I needz it.”

Then, I was trying to catch up on things and get back into writing and blogging just didn’t take top billing. I’ve thought about it numerous times but never seemed to get around to it.

One thing I learned from the past two months with all the puter issues is to back up EVERTHING!!! I’ve been pretty obsessive about backing up the writing since I lost some and had to start over but this past May, I learned the value of backing up other things as well.

Such as…your favorites list. I didn’t and now I can’t find one of my favorite name sites. I’ve asked other writing friends I might have shared it with, googled every combination of key words I can think off and even did the new “bing” thing. I can’t find it. Most of my favorites weren’t a big deal or were things I could refind easily. Don’t lose something special.

Misc. software… A while back, Give Away of the Day had Liquid Story Binder as their give away. And I really liked it for keeping things organized. And while I always backed up things I added to LSB, I never made a second copy of the program. Now, I’m back to waiting for them to offer it again. I hope soon.

Also…I managed to get the printer driver from the manufacturer’s website but the OCR software was lost. So, while I can use the printer, I can’t scan anything in and convert it to a Word doc. Sigh.

I plan to do better this time around.

This past week, a good friend of mine lost about 28k of her novel when her puter decided to eat it. The only thing we can figure is somehow she hit one of the “F” keys and it deleted the whole document as she was typing. She didn’t have a second copy of it anywhere and they couldn’t find it. Now she’s got to start over. She had sent me the first 5 pages so I returned them and she had a beginning but all that work, gone.

So, I’ve declared Wednesday each week as Back Up Your WIP Day. I’ll try to remind you each week.

Great Rules of Writing

Do not put statements in the negative form.
And don't start sentences with a conjunction.
If you reread your work, you will find on rereading that a great deal of repetition can be avoided by rereading and editing.
Never use a long word when a diminutive one will do.
Unqualified superlatives are the worst of all.
De-accession euphemisms.
If any word is improper at the end of a sentence, a linking verb is.
Avoid trendy locutions that sound flaky.
Last, but not least, avoid cliches like the plague.


~William Safire, "Great Rules of Writing"

Titles or A Rose by Any Other Name

Last week I took the plunge and queried a publisher for my romance novella. I'm still in the revision phase but they didn't demand it be complete, just to let them know if it was and include a synopsis.

Today, I received an email from the Senior Editor letting me know they had already published a work with the same title as mine and I needed to send her an alternative.

Okay...not a problem. Until I discovered my next choice was taken. Deep breath! I can come up with something appropriate. I spent some time with a thesaurus looking at alternative words and while I found a couple I liked, nothing that thrilled me or connected with the story. I made a note and might use them later.

Thankfully the plot bunnies were around and had an appropriate title that connects with the story and its theme. So, I sent it to the editor and made a note for myself.

Will see what happens now.

The question is, how attached to your title are you? Could you come up with another if needed?

And what about character names? I had to change a main character's last name in my mystery novel and still am not really happy with my choice. I keep trying out new names and hope something rings a bell. Sigh...

Happy Memorial Day

Well, actually Happy Memorial Day weekend since the "real" Memorial Day isn't until the 30th of this month.

Special thanks to all those who either serve or have served in the military. Hubby and I both were in the Air Force. I spent a little over 4 years and then served at hubby's side while he finished out his 20.

Hubby will be off for three days, we'll hang out around the house, sleep late, do some yard work and later throw some burgers on the grill. Yum!

And, I'll be working on romance novel. Got to get that taken care of.

Have a great weekend y'all!


Jean
Oh...bit of trivia. A group of turtles is called a bale. Yeap, that's right.

Shoulder Vultures

That's right, you know, shoulder vultures. They sit on your shoulder and whisper how terrible that last sentence is or how no one in the entire world could ever want to read anything you could write.

And they show up at the most inconvenient times too. Like right before deadlines, as you are about to drop that submission in the mail or hit the send button.

These varmits can be a major thorn in the flesh for most writers at one time or the other. Especially those of us just starting out or getting more rejection than acceptance letters. And I'm not really sure we ever totally vanquish them. I've talked to writers with many publications credits and they tell me the shoulder vultures still gather as they write.

So how do we deal with these varmits? Here's a few of my favorite ideas.

* Realize self-doubt is normal and things aren't near as bad as we think.

* Get a second opinion from another writer you respect.

* Take a break from your piece for a couple days. This allows you to look at it with fresh eyes.

* Be positive. Fight those negative thoughts with positive ones.

Shoulder vultures are one of the many things writers have to deal with. However, we don't have to let them win.

Writing Contests

I'm not into writing contests. Mainly because they are so subjective and you never really know what the judge is looking for.

However, I've found one contest I love. It's over at Reading Writers and I want to urge all of you to check it out and enter.

Each quarter, a new prompt is posted along with guidelines and date to enter by.

This quarter it's a "Dynamic Dialogue" prompt. How cool is that! Be sure to read all the guidelines on the site but here is a glimpse to whet your appetite.
Write a complete story—not a scene—that consists of pure dialogue. No narrative whatsoever, not even a he said or she replied. If it isn't spoken, and within quotation marks, it can't be on the page.
Now, why I like this contest...

1. No entry fee.

2. Winner gets nice stuff, a cash prize, a book and a critique of their entry.

3. I can read previous winners and see what judge is looking for, her likes and dislikes.

4. Working on the prompts help me learn my craft while having fun, trying new things and genres.

5. Prompts vary from quarter to quarter and you can twist them to whatever genre you are writing.

6. They let you know that your submission was received. (I hate not knowing.)

Now, click on over, check it out and get writing.

Oh, in the last contest, there were 318 entries. They pick one winner and several Honoarable Mentions, this time ten of them.
I managed another Honorable Mention. I call it a "tie for second."