Bianca Speaks

Meet Bianca, an interesting character from the Watcher Clan. I didn't know how interesting, until she decided to speak up. Hear what she has to say at MostlyMystery. My post on 6/20/14 is titled "My Characters Speak". Check it out.

Creativity Killers? Dump Them!

Part one of a twelve-part series on "the Artist's Way":

Instinctual creativity lurks within us all. It's just a matter of unlocking it. Each of us has an inner artist that many of us deny. We think our love of writing, painting, singing, cooking, gardening, collecting, or any other wonderful act of creativity is something to be ignored, a childish fantasy better left to the young.

A friend of mine suggested I buy "the Artist's Way" by Julia Cameron, a course in discovering and recovering your creative self. I did. For the next few weeks, at the suggestion of Ms. Cameron, I intend to share what I'm learning about my own creativity.

Before beginning the journey, it's suggested we dig out all the negative feedback that we always give ourselves when we talk about our art. My mind tells me things like "I'm not good enough. I can't write a book." or "Don't try to compare yourself with (name of favorite author). You're not in the same league." Another good one is "That's all right for a hobby, but you'll never get published."

Now that I've discovered some of 

my creativity killers, I have to go back into my past and find where those denigrating words originated. I remember some of my family and as well as the nuns telling me I was nothing but a daydreamer. I grew up believing daydreaming was bad. I've since learned differently. Daydreaming, for me, has always been about beauty and possibilities. It's part of my instinctual creativity. 

Once I've pinpointed the negative thoughts, I begin to combat them with positive alternatives. "You don't know how to write" becomes "I can learn how to write." Positive affirmations using a higher power i.e., the Universe, God, or H.P. (Higher Power) also help. "My dreams come from H.P. and H.P. has the power to accomplish them." 

In this book, Ms. Cameron asks that her students begin each day with Morning Pages, three written pages or writing that lasts one half hour. This "stream of consciousness" writing about anything or nothing at all, helps students to see and clear out the negative censor. According to Ms. Cameron, this writing not only helps to clear away the negativity, but it also kick-starts the creativity.

I bought the book three days ago and I have already seen a huge difference in my thought processes. This morning, I had an exciting idea about promoting my book and those of my writing group. I was able to come up with a long list of steps to accomplish this dream.

Each chapter ends with tasks to perform. One I love is to take yourself out on an artist date. Each week go someplace, all by yourself, that will give you pleasure. It doesn't have to be anything big. I'm thinking about going on a trolley ride.

What about you? Where would you like to take your creative self?

Writer's Revenge

How many times have you enjoyed reading a story where Karma catches up to the bad guy? You smile and say to yourself, "I wish (add your own nemesis here) would get what's coming to him/her."

Wish no longer, give them what they deserve. Write them into your book. It's the perfect writer's revenge. You can enjoy the long-awaited payback, cause embarrassment, pain, and even death, in the privacy of your home with no repercussions. Whether you use a short story or a novel, I guarantee the satisfaction will be awesome. I've taken care of a few people that way and they never knew what hit them. You needn't make the identity of the person obvious, if you're concerned about that. The fact that you know their identity is all that's necessary.

On the other hand, you might want the connection to be fairly clear. I'm pretty sure one of my targets of retribution will never read my book, but if they do, I know they'll recognize themselves immediately. That thought makes me want to purr.

Maybe you think I'm being unduly cruel. Too bad. I'm the writer. It's my book. And, payback is a bitch!

If you want to read more about my revenge tactics, check out my post on www.mostlymystery.com called "This Writer's Revenge".

A Writing Conference Tale

Morning Coffee

The fireplace flickers as I tuck myself into a comfortable chair. I open my laptop and get ready. The 2014 New England Chapter of Romance Writers of America conference has begun.

Excited flutters tickle my spine as I watch each conference patron arrive in the lobby. I turn to my friend Dianne, sitting beside me, with a giggle. She responds with a huge smile.

This is my third RWA conference, Dianne's second. This year, two others from our writing group will join us, Lisa and Rachel. As the noise level increases, I give up on typing and play the game of trying to recognize acquaintances from former years.

This conference is shorter than most but packs an awesome punch. The registration includes an eight-minute session with an agent or an editor who has read a blurb about your book and five pages of your work. I have high hopes.

Lisa and Rachel arrive and my excitement ramps up a notch. Knowing the workshops will begin shortly, we sit down and hash over which ones we want to take. Buoyed by excited anticipation, I start the conference journey.

Lisa, Me, Dianne, Rachel

At the end of each class I meet with my cronies and we discuss the valuable information we've received. One of the things I love about these events, is the easy camaraderie with other writers. 

During dinner, I introduce myself to others at the table and exchange business cards. I listen to the speaker, Bella Andrade, who's left a book on each of our seats. A wildly successful author, she gives us inspiration and motivation.

It's the end of the first day. I head off with my friends to a quiet corner to discuss our experiences. We share valuable nuggets gleaned from the workshops, and pass along funny people stories.  I love how our group bands together to help each single person. 

Later, my roommate and I discuss our pitch strategies in our p.j.s. As we talk our stories out, my fear lessens. I can't believe it when I see 11:30 on the clock. I'll never get up at 6:00 a.m. 

Surprise! Nervous energy wakes me up before the alarm. My editor session isn't until 10:40 this morning, but I'm already breathing too fast. Breakfast seems noisier than the previous dinner. Anxiety hovers over each table. We all want to sell our work.

I volunteer to help out at the Editor and Agent appointments, an effort that quiets my nerves. I'm too busy to worry. A little wave of sheer terror does envelop me, though, as I sit in front of the editor, and, by the time I finish giving her the gist of my story, my throat needs water.

I hold my breath, waiting. She smiles and asks me for a synopsis and three chapters. YIPPEE!

My friend Dianne walks out looking shell-shocked. She has a request for a synopsis, her WHOLE book, and an overview of her series. WOW!

The news is so enervating that I'm ready to use it as an introduction to the story I'd like to write, "How I Sold My First Book". What the heck. I'm in a positive mood.

Is there a moral to this story? I've got two. "Never Give Up" and "Writing Conferences Work!"

Humorous Paranormal?

Hmmmm. I just found out that Mystery and Horror, LLC is hosting two short story contests. Unfortunately, the deadline is May 1st and I don't have anything ready to contribute.

One contest is looking for Historical Mystery short stories for that anthology. The other contest, will publish winners in their Humorous Paranormal anthology.

Humorous Paranormal? Sounds like fun. Although, I've always concentrated on the horror side of paranormal, I love to add add humor to my characters' lives. I'd like to try a little comedic twist to the paranormal, but the deadline is only ten days away. Too little time since I'm preparing a manuscript for the NECRWA  conference on the 3rd of May.

But, you might have time. Check it out: ShortStorySubmissions.
Good Luck!

Speak Up!

This week, I wrote a blog about dialogue at MostlyMysteryBlog. I've always enjoyed writing dialogue, but I never knew what an important tool it can be.

Have you ever wanted to ramp up your character's emotions but you run out of adjectives? This can happen when you're writing in the third person. Or, if you're like me, you might have to watch out for the old telling vs. showing.

One easy solution to the problem is dialogue. If you have John slam his hand down on the counter and say, "Damn!" That certainly shows anger. And, if you have him think, It isn't fair. Dave always gets the girl. The reader understands that John is ticked at Dave for winning the prize once more.

What if you had John telling Dave how he feels?

"Since when is it okay to steal someone's date?"
"What are you talking about? You just met her an hour ago. Did you ask her out?"
"I would have if you hadn't butted in."
"You introduced me to her, for crying out loud."
"What was I supposed to do? You barged in and sat down."
"You were sitting at the bar."
"I saw her first."
"Yeah, and she gave me her number."
"Damn! it isn't fair. You always get the girl."

Now, you can see what really happened. John is jealous of Dave because the girls prefer him. Perhaps the person on the other end of his anger shouldn't be Dave but himself. Depending on the dialogue, you can make John look like the injured party, a good sport, or even pathetic. Dave can be a pal, clueless, or a self-serving jerk. And, by the way, you've added a lot more words to your manuscript.

Dialogue paints a more in-depth picture of a scene and its characters. I love it because I learn more about my characters through their verbal interaction. In one of my scenes, I had two characters meet for the first time. I wanted it to be a cordial meeting of neighbors, but it quickly disintegrated into a threatening situation. I hadn't realized that one of the people was so nasty and petty until I heard her in conversation with the other.

In another instance, I found one of my characters, a very nice person, had a devious bent to her personality. It came out as she was saying one thing but thinking something very different.

With specific speech used in a conversation, the length or brevity words and sentences can increase tension and  evoke emotions. If you're having trouble with dialogue, look back at books you've read where the dialogue moves the story along. See how that author did it.

I always speak out loud to hear how my conversations sound. There are also good books on the subject, or try the great online resources .

And, then there's always the old "tried and true". To understand how dialogue works, listen to it!

Keep on writing!

Hybrid Publishing

A few of the authors at the SinC workshop talked about hybrid publishing, going with both traditional and e-publishing. For successful authors, this seems to be more the norm than an outlier. These authors have established a name and collected a readership. Why do they need the traditional  houses? There's a great article about this trend at The Passive Voice, PassiveVoiceBlog.