Category: Writing life (Page 4 of 18)

Killing My Darlings

This has not been a happy week for me.

I started the rework on an old ms with high hopes. I had a new heroine and planned to turn the old one into the antagonist. In the original story she was a villain and I had hoped to reform her in this novel. Turns out, I couldn’t. Even as the author I could not make her likeable — she is sexy as hell and dangerous–but just too selfish and self-centred and manipulative to have my lovely hero love her again.

The new heroine doesn’t show up in such bright colours but she is loyal and steady and smart and becoming and generous and has a heart for the misused hero. Still, when I write her description beside that of the original, she comes off as bland. I’m afraid readers will think the hero has settled for second best when he chooses her. 

Hence, “killing my darlings.” All the flair and power I put into the description of the now villain has to be tempered and the bland heroine spiced up. The latter is fun, the former is painful. Stephen King wrote: Stephen King wrote, “kill your darlings, kill your darlings, even when it breaks your egocentric little scribbler’s heart, kill your darlings.”

Well, my egocentric little scribbler’s heart is breaking. Maybe I can just save those words to an outtake file somewhere. ?

What about you, fellow authors? What do you do when your favourite passage has to go?

Visits: 131

Playtime

I start my day with the morning newspaper, then watch a little news commentary on television. Mostly, I enjoy this routine, but sometimes the bad news is overwhelming. Sometimes, a body just needs some playtime. So, today’s blog is dedicated to my cats. I hope readers will enjoy a little downtime with my furry critters.

cat as toddlerPlayful cats make as much mess as a playful toddler!

Not sure about this white stuff!

 

 

 

 

Oh, boy, Christmas!

 

Time for a little music.

                                                                                                                              Aren’t we sweet?

 

I read an article the other day where a woman whose family had contracted COVID remarked that they were lucky they had a yard where they could go outdoors.  As a farm girl I can’t imagine not having a yard, but looking at the high rise buildings in our cities it is clear that many, many people do not have that luxury. It reminded me to be grateful for even the smallest things–like pets. 

I hope all my readers see blessings, find something to smile about and look forward with hope today.

 

Visits: 70

On Being a Student – Again

doing homeworkMoving along in Laurie Schnebly’s “Plotting via Motivation” course. . .I’ve learned that taking a workshop on-line instead of in person has some surprising benefits. The most important one for me is thinking time. I’m no good at those brainstorming sessions where everyone in the room calls out possibilities and questions. My ideas need time to brew. They grow from a glimmer to a beacon when they can swirl around in my brain for a while, so when I complete my homework assignment, I’m satisfied that I’ve answered the right questions. 

Another surprise is my pleasure in doing homework. I shouldn’t be. I liked school and homework was part of the package.  The best part of homework is getting it back with the teacher’s comments. An in-person class doesn’t allow the presenter enough time to do that. With the on-line course I get a personal response from Laurie on each assignment. That is so helpful because it deals with the particulars of my story, not just the generalities of plotting.

There is one aspect of the course that is no surprise. I’m terrible at plotting! The beginning comes together fairly well and I know how it should end, but that dratted middle sags in an exercise as much as it does in a full-length novel. Hence, one of the reasons I took this class.  

And that brings me to another reason I’m taking this class. Laurie Schnebly is a terrific teacher. She infuses her lectures with clear examples from various genres so whether  students write horror or romance, adventure or shape-shifters, they can feel at home in the class. 

Finally, I’m becoming intrigued with this character I made up just for practice. Who knows I may find a full-fledged novel here, or at least a short story. 

As the garden work picks up I find myself doing a lot of math. I need to know how much fertilizer to apply per square foot. So I need to determine the square footage. I need to convert tablespoons to cups. How many cubic meters in my wheelbarrow? How many litres in a gallon? When I left school I had hoped to be done with arithmetic forever but it is essential to modern life. Similarly with this writing homework. I hope the lessons learned here will prove useful for the rest of my writing career.

Over the years I’ve taken many workshops from some of the best in the business. I like the personal contact. I enjoy meeting other writers. It’s fun to get a day away from home with lunch laid on. I have a whole file drawer full of the notes and handouts from those workshops. When I read the notes I’m convinced I should be able to write a novel just by following the pattern set out for me. Yet, somewhere along the way, I just can’t get my thoughts to fit into the pattern presented. Having Laurie’s personal feedback makes this workshop special. I highly recommend it. You can see her upcoming classes offered through writeruniv.

This sounds like a total fan-girl article because it is. Feel free to add the names of your own favourite teachers in the comments below.

Visits: 354

Motivation

old fashioned classroomThis week I’ve started an on-line course with Laurie Schnebly Campbell, Plotting via Motivation. We’re at the stage of introducing ourselves. Turns out, we’re a mixed bag of day job writers, homemaker writers, retired from the day job writers, empty-nest writers and writers juggling it all! 

What, I wondered, is the motivation for these various types to take a writing course? From the introduction letters I found

  • Repeaters–those who’ve taken one of Laurie’s courses before and loved it.
  • Those stuck on a wip and looking for guidance.
  • Those looking for a change after being under COVID rules for a year.
  • Newbies wondering what it’s all about.
  • Experienced authors wanting to improve their craft

I could put myself into any of those categories or all of them. I’m bored after a year of mostly staying home. I’ve been to Laurie’s in-person classes and loved them. I’m stuck on a wip but want to try a brand new idea for this exercise. Mostly though, I want to shake myself up. I feel my writing and my motivation have gotten stale.

When I was first published the only option was traditional publishers. So the goal was to get your ms in front of an acquiring editor, followed by the goal of getting her to buy your work. The motivation for that effort varied from personal achievement to making some money to validating the hours I spent at the computer, putting my ideas out into the world.

With the legitimization of self-publishing, a lot has changed. Now, if the goal is to get words in front of readers, there are many avenues. If the goal is to make money, the self-published author has much more responsibility for managing her publishing business. As for validation, does that mean ten people read my work? 100? 10,000? 100,000? Does traditional publishing or self-publishing hold out the most promise for achieving the goal? Am I suited to the “go it alone” technique or would I be better off working with a publishing house? Knowing my own motivation will help answer some of these questions. I think a month devoted to working out character motivation might help me get a handle on my own.

Apart from all of the above, I enjoy mingling with other writers. I find creative people interesting and full of surprises. Like this one, shared by a classmate. It’s called the plot generator.  https://writingexercises.co.uk/plotgenerator.php   

The site gives you six elements of a story, main character, secondary characters, setting, theme, situation and character action. You click on the buttons and up pops an answer in each of the elements. If you don’t like the first suggestion, click it again for a second suggestion. The ideas are totally random. It reminds me of a present I got at Christmas when I was about ten.  A box containing about 30 text covered 5×7 inch cards in different colours offered an endless variety of stories. Any pink card combined with a yellow, blue, green, purple and gold card yielded a cohesive story. Change any of the cards for another of the same colour and you got a different story. It was very clever. I have no idea now what it was called or who was the genius who figured out how to write a story with so many interchangeable segments but the plot generator seems similar to me.

Laurie wants us to work on a new idea. I have a file labelled “story ideas” that never got developed. If I can’t find something in there that appeals, I may go to the plot generator. After all, the class is an exercise in motivation, not the “story of my heart.”

Questions: Does anyone remember that story box idea from long, long ago? Do you know what it was called? Please e-mail me writersstudio@shaw.ca or leave a comment below if you can fill in the blanks of my memory.

Visits: 184

How I Chose a Timely Book

One of my Christmas gift books was a repeat so I had the pleasure of returning it to the bookstore and browsing the shelves for a replacement. I settled on The Company We Keep, by Frances Itani.

Of course, the cover was the first thing I noticed, uncluttered with a picture of a small table and a single chair with a parrot on the back. I picked it up and read the back blurb. The story is set in Canada. I find a book extra enjoyable when the references are one’s I am familiar with. A book set in the UK may refer to the High Street. One taking place in the US may refer to Applebee’s. I know the High Street is the main shopping avenue of a town or village. I know Applebee’s is a restaurant chain , but I haven’t experienced those places the way I have Tim Horton’s or Loblaw’s.

The subject of the story also intrigued me. A group of strangers meet in response to a notice on a bulletin board (the physical kind not on facebook) to talk about grief. Since I’m missing casual connections just now, I thought a story about strangers getting to know one another would be entertaining. The topic of grief seems apropos as well since our whole world is grieving. Perhaps we haven’t lost a loved one, but we’ve all lost the life we used to know.

Finally, Ms Itani has won several literary awards, that sealed the deal for me. I carried the book to the cashier.

I was not disappointed.  Each of these strangers has a unique story of loss, a spouse (good or bad), a parent, a friend . . . Yet grief doesn’t figure much in their discussions. Having lost the person closest to them, they mostly, want to talk and they want someone to listen. The stories aren’t so much about grieving as they are about living. There are also secrets. The lost relationships had a public face and a private face. It’s that private aspect of the lost relative that colours the way the bereaved live the rest of their lives. As a bonus, the woman who placed the notice is a word aficionado. Her thoughts are sprinkled with the etymology of the words she uses. A quirk that enlivens her character and amuses me as the reader.

As the group gathers, they begin to think of themselves as a company. A place where judgement is withheld and trust is formed. Shameful secrets are exposed and forgiven. Hurtful relationships are explored without censure. Sympathy is free and abundant. Help with practical things like moving furniture is readily offered.

A book with grief at its core  sounds sad, but it is not. It is hopeful. The characters clear out the troubles from their old lives then prepare to live again. They turn to a clean page for the last chapters of their lives.

I wonder if we can look a 2020 that way. The year that was mostly a void in our lives can be viewed as a resetting point. When society opens up, when we’re ready to hold hands with our friends and high-five a stranger can we take the lessons of isolation into a hopeful future? Having cast off so many activities, can we re-engage in a thoughtful way? Do all those clubs nurture us or are some a waste of time? Are all our previous relationships healthy or were some toxic?

We’re not out of the woods yet. Billions of people still need to be vaccinated. We may need to get a booster shot every year. We may need to keep our groups small for a while longer. But light glimmers on the horizon. As we prepare to pick up the dropped threads of life we might like to consider “the company we keep.”

Visits: 652

What I miss the most

waiting for the rain to end.

The weather where I live has been grey and gloomy for weeks. The Covid-19 restrictions from Public Health get tighter and tighter and our case numbers hover in the dangerously high numbers. The vaccine supply is shorted.  I’m at home nearly all of the time. I have my husband and my cats for company. They have already heard all of my opinions and complaints and tend to wander off when I start preaching.

While staring out the window and pining for the day when life returns to “normal” I recalled something I posted here, some time ago about a book called The Book that Matters Most. It was a fun read and sparked great discussion among my book reading friends. Thinking of that book, I started a list of What I Miss Most. Sounds dreary, I know, but sometimes it helps to “define the problem.” So here’s my list.

  1. Casual friendships. Seems like an odd item to put in the number one position but there it is. I keep in touch with my close friends via e-mail or telephone or zoom. But the lady who sits beside me at Bible Study, or the woman with the hair appointment just before mine, or the vet, or the letter carrier–these are people I know only in one specific instance but I miss them. I like to hear their views on events of the day because they are outside my close circle of friends. They connect me with the world in different ways. They make me part of something bigger. I need these casual acquaintances to give perspectives that may not align with my own.
  2. The library. At present my library is available for pick-up and very limited browsing. I miss the freedom to peruse the shelves in my own time. To pick up a volume and read a few pages before deciding whether to check it out. I miss seeing the community notice board in the lobby. I really miss inspecting the “returns” trolley. I am convinced that all the best books have been checked out by someone else and I’m eager to scan those favourites. It’s a way to connect with other library patrons.
  3. Line-ups. What?  I can hear you all shouting that we line-up all the time. Yes we do. Outside stores to get in and inside stores to get out, we’re all in line six feet apart. Not many casual conversations at that distance. No playing peek-a-boo with a baby when parents are terrified of exposing their children to disease. No tips from a smart shopper on a bargain I overlooked. No connection!
  4. Exercise class. I know, there are endless exercise videos on the internet and I’ve got enough room to work out with one of them by myself. But that’s the point. Exercise by myself is a drag. Exercise with a bunch of other reluctant trainees keeps me at it and usually provides a laugh or two. We connect over a mutual dislike of exercise.
  5. Choirs –– both as a singer and a listener. There is something soul refreshing about making music in a group. Again, I can participate in on-line versions of rehearsals and concerts but they lack that vital element — connection. And with music, the connection is heart to heart without any interference from the mind.

I could make a longer list, but it seems I have defined the problem — lack of connection. On Sunday our minister preached a virtual sermon warning of the consequences of an  “us vs them” mentality. Without the kind of connections I mentioned, that us/them attitude flourishes. Such a mindset makes for an unhealthy society. 

As a writer, how can I use this insight to my advantage? 

In a dystopian novel, us-and-them makes a perfect excuse for war.  In a tragedy us/them is the driver behind the Romeo and Juliet story. In a comedy personal quirks, e.g. neatnik vs slob, can lead to funny situations. I write historical romance so feuds, immigrant vs native, rancher vs farmer provide plenty of scope for conflict. What’s needed is ways and means for connections if I want to lead my characters to a happily ever after ending. How to make those connections?

  1. Proximity. That’s probably the easiest one. Make the feuding families share a fence line, or a water source. No matter how much the clans dislike each other, they cannot avoid meeting.
  2. Common goals. In my present wip the two lead characters work in a frontier hospital. Despite their differences, they work together to cure disease and ease pain.
  3. Children. In a frontier town children all attend the same school. The grandfathers may hate each other, but the children play together. As time goes by they may fall in love with the “enemy.”
  4. Outside agency. Again, sticking with historical, feuding families may have to pull together against fire or drought or flood. Who is to say the patriarch’s won’t see the good in one another then?
  5. Mutual friend. Make them both friends with a third party. If A spends time with the librarian and B is a book lover, chances are A and B will run into each other frequently. This device even lets the librarian act as cupid when she sees two people who would be perfect together, feuding.

Most philosophies hold that hardship is opportunity. It is up to the individual to find that opportunity and make something of it. The disconnect between all of us during this pandemic is not fun. I don’t like it. I wish it would go away. But, if I look for opportunity, perhaps this time of physical distance can lead me to better insights into my characters and their journey to HEA.

What about you? What do you miss most? Will you use it in your writing?

Visits: 398

Unmuddled! 10 Lessons

Hurray! The transformation of my writing room from dull to vibrant is accomplished.  As I mentioned in a previous post, it’s a family trait to undertake major renovations during the Christmas season.

I  thank  the health authorities for the COVID restrictions that meant no company for Christmas. Since I wasn’t cooking for a crowd, I had time to paint and wallpaper. Even the pandemic has a silver lining if you look for it.

Today our weather is grey, wet, windy and nasty, but I’m tucked up in my cheerful room and happily writing this blog before I go back to editing the wip. I feel cozy and content and productive. 

What have I learned from this adventure?

  • A sense of humour is vital to the health of a marriage during home renovations.
  • If you want to change your environment, don’t wait thirty years to do it.
  • Wait until you have the new wallpaper in hand before stripping off the old. (I lived in writing chaos for four weeks while awaiting delivery of my order.)
  • Cats cannot resist licking the glue on wet paper or the gooey water in the trough.

    two cats are here

  • A pleasing writing space really does improve productivity.  I don’t keep finding excuses to go somewhere else.
  • While I do not suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) brightness and light do put me in a better mood.
  • Don’t forget about writing rituals. Some people can dive straight into the work, but little steps to set the scene for work help me a lot.
  • Clutter impedes creativity — for me, maybe not for you.
  • Show up at writers’ events even if they are virtual. It was Laurie Schnebly’s workshop that spurred me into making this transformation — finally!
  • In all things, give thanks. We’ve lived through 10 months of limitations and there are more to go. When we cannot celebrate the big events in our lives, rejoice in the small ones. We drank champagne when the last picture was rehung.

    mirror reflects opposite wall

2021 will still offer challenges, but we know we can get there. When the case numbers go up, the lockdown hardens and the case numbers go down. Each of us is powerful in this worldwide campaign to defeat the virus. All great heroes sacrifice for the common good. I applaud all the heroes.

Here’s to a happy and healthy 2021.

Visits: 80

Cancelled

hand made ornaments for my family

In my part of the world, we are under severe restrictions due to COVID-19. That means no gatherings in the home or elsewhere at Christmas. No live church services on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. No office parties. No family home for Christmas. It’s a rather dismal outlook.

As my gift to readers looking for some joy in the season, I’ve written my annual Christmas short story. It does involve the pandemic, but it ends on a hopeful note. 

To read “Christmas in the Time of COVID-19” click here to subscribe to my newsletter. The story is part of the welcome package.

However you spend Christmas, I hope it is filled with joy and deep meaning for you.

 

Visits: 65

Escape or Reflect the Times

I had been hoping to post pictures of my newly renovated office this week. Sadly, I can only report “out of stock” messages for the wallpaper I wanted. After much more searching, I’ve found another that uses the colours I want and I’ve just ordered it — promised by Dec. 14. Fingers crossed I don’t get another oops message.

Meanwhile, we’ve cleared the drop cloths from my desk and I’m working on my Christmas short story. I spent a lot of time pondering the place of COVID 19 in my fiction. As an historical writer, I would have every excuse to set my story in another age and ignore the pandemic altogether. Yet, the virus has had such a huge impact on my day-to-day life, I find it hard to put it out of my mind.

My book club met last week and I asked if they would read pandemic stories or if they’d stay clear of the topic. They all said they didn’t want to read about the virus, yet one pointed out that no one wants a war yet our appetite for war stories seems limitless. This year every second book I pick up seems to relate to either the first or second world war. Is there anything more to say on the topic? Yet I read these books and enjoy them enough to recommend to friends. 

Maybe we’re happy to read war novels because we know how it ended. We know the good guys won and evil in the form of Hitler’s Nazi’s was defeated.

 

I’m a terrible sports fan. I’d rather watch the game after it has been played and I know who won. If my team was victorious, I’ll enjoy every minute of the recorded events. If my team lost, I don’t bother. I’m sure “real” sports fans cringe when they read that. Maybe our fascination with war stories is like that. We don’t want to live it, but we’ll read about it after it’s over.

A couple of my favourite television shows aired new episodes last week. One stayed in 2019 and avoided the pandemic. The other embraced it head on, expressing fears for the characters’ health, their financial well-being, their emotional stress levels and the state of the world. I actually liked their approach better than the “bury your head in the sand” angle.

Now, a survey of two is hardly definitive, but I’m leaning toward writing about the world I inhabit, i.e. using my fiction to reflect the time I live in. What about you, dear readers? Can Christmas and Covid live in the same story? Can we have a happy ending while isolating at home? Or would you rather escape the current crisis and read about a different world.

Please leave a comment so I can be sure the story I write is the story you want to read.

Visits: 1415

A Muddle of My Own

Blame it on the season. Blame it on Covid-19.  Blame it on Laurie Schnebly. I am redecorating my office!

  • The season.  We are approaching Christmas and throughout my childhood, my parents made major renovations to the house at Christmas time. Usually, on Christmas Eve, just before the crowd of relatives arrived, my Dad would be nailing down the last strip of flooring or finishing a bit of painting behind the tree. I grew up on a farm so all seasons were busy, but winter was the least busy. Maybe that’s why renovations happened in December. Or maybe that was Dad’s idea of a Christmas present for Mom. In any case, Christmas the decorating chaos go together in my mind.

 

  • Covid-19. Like everyone else, I’m spending a lot more time in my house these days. Nothing to do but look at the walls and think how much better they’d look with fresh paint, or new wallpaper. Now that gardening season in my part of the world is ended, the interior of my house becomes even more important. And, I’m really tired of this old wallpaper in my office. For years, when I wanted a change of scene, I’d go and write in a coffee shop. With the virus on the loose, I’m reducing the number of times I go out in public.

    piles of books headed for the thrift store

 

  • Laurie Schnebly.  When we had our virtual workshop with Laurie she talked about putting the joy back into writing. She mentioned things like writing rituals. At least, I’m pretty sure it was Laurie who said that. I’d love to check my notes but as you can see, in this mess I can’t even open a desk drawer, let alone go through my files.  So, here I am staring at the grey days of November and an old wallpaper that was never as cheerful as I’d hoped. I thought pink would be bright and bubbly, but dusty rose has turned out to be cold and uninspiring. There is a room in my house that is filled with sunshine most of the day, but it is a space shared with my husband. So, I want to bring the sunshine into my writing space. Sunny yellow is my goal, but I don’t want to change all the accessories in the room. So, I’ve found a sunny yellow paper with hints of pink and blue in the background. But first, the old paper has to go.

Like everything else these days, I looked up how to remove the old stuff on the  internet. The answer was “easy-peasy.” Rip off the coloured layer, spritz the remaining  glued layer with warm water and peel off.

Well, the coloured layer came off easily  enough. I thought I’d be done in a couple of days. The glued layer, however came off in some places and in others, clung like a whiny child. We used so much steam that the  paper on the drywall lifted, but the glue remained stuck. Now I’m looking at weeks of  turmoil. Lesson to self: don’t believe everything you see on youtube!

On the bright side, the glued layer of wallpaper is kind of a buttery yellow, so I’m getting the idea of what my redecorated office might look like. Since everything had to be moved I’ve cleared out a lot of clutter.  I’ve also finished the Christmas ornaments I make for my great nieces and nephews every year. So, there is progress. And once my room is finished, I’ll enjoy the writing ritual of walking in here and congratulating myself on making a change — even though the process was painful. Kind of like writing. I love have the finished product in my hand, but getting there can be a struggle.

The gurus say redecorating can kill a marriage. I’m happy to report dh and I are still speaking to each other and laughing together.

Visits: 810

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