 After a month of appearing in Writing, articles will be magically whisked away to The Archives rather than be buried, I mean, filed, in the depths of my overcrowded filing cabinet.  |
 Cautionary Tale For Writers Celebrate Library of Congress Birthday Heart Of The Matter: Understanding Dramatic Structure Use Your Writing Skill Agent Questions To Ask Alternative Markets: Are They For You Books: A Strange Commodity Character Truth Found In Old Movies Contract Advice Cowboy Poetry The Craft of Writing Create A Restore Point In Windows Five Steps To Email Press Release Success Five More Steps To Email Press Release Success Hie Thee To A Blog Presenting Characters, Part 4 of 8 Presenting Characters, Part 5 of 8 Presenting Characters, Part 6 of 8 Presenting Characters, Part 7 of 8 Presenting Characters, Part 8 of 8 Staggering Facts About Illiteracy Why Attend A Writers Conference Illiteracy: Be Part Of The Solution Presenting Characters, Part 1 of 8 Presenting Characters, Part 2 of 8 Presenting Characters, Part 3 of 8 by Joan Reeves February 2008 Do you try to use your writing in every day life? Or is it something you do only when working on a novel, short story, or article? A few years ago I read about writers who donate their services at fairs and festivals. Instead of face painting or selling needlepoint, they produce 15 minutes of writing for a fee for anyone who stopped by their booth. That struck me. I mean we're writers so why don't we all do something like that -- produce writing in real world situations. The more I thought about it, the more I wanted to attempt that. So I made a decision that I would no longer buy greeting cards for birthdays and such but would create my own, with my profound, and hopefully, moving words. After all Hallmark, a-gazillion-dollar a year industry doesn't need my pittance to stay afloat. Now, I'll be honest. I still buy Christmas cards, and if pressed for time, you'll find me hanging out at the card counter. But I try to arrange my schedule so I have design time for this endeavor. What does it take to do this? Some quality papers or card stocks are nice. You can splurge on a graphic design software or you can just print a lovely quotation in a pretty font on the front of the card stock then print your personalized message inside. You can use special software to create greeting cards or just use your word processing software because they all have a template for greeting card. I find I really enjoy creating specially designed cards for my family and friends, and I've received a lot of compliments on the cards. What I'm proudest of is that when I can, I use my writing craft and my words rather than buying a card with someone else's words. Sure it would be cheaper and less time-consuming to just buy all my cards, but I'm doing this as a statement that I'm a writer with words at my disposal, and my words are a gift to my loved one. by Joan Reeves January 2008 On January 26, 205 years ago something of great importance to Americans occurred. I'll give you a hint. It involved reading materials. Give up? In 1802, Congress passed an act calling for a library to be established within the U.S. Capitol. The Library of Congress is our library, the oldest federal cultural institution in our nation, and it serves as the research arm of Congress. The Library of Congress is the largest library in the world, with more than 130 million items on about 530 MILES of bookshelves. The collections include more than 29 million books and other printed materials, 2.7 million recordings, 12 million photographs, 4.8 million maps, and 58 million manuscripts. The current Librarian of Congress is Dr. James Billington. He says the Library's mission is: "to make its resources available and useful to the Congress and the American people and to sustain and preserve a universal collection of knowledge and creativity for future generations." The Librarian is charged with the task of setting policy and directing and supporting programs and activities to accomplish this mission. Now, that's your tax dollars at work with good results! January - December 2007 Check out my blog Sling Words and some of these others. A few of these blogs aren't being written any more, but they contain wonderful resources for writers and readers. Agent 007 On Publishing Agent Obscura A Writer's Life Backstory Bill Crider's Pop Culture Magazine Buzz, Balls & Hype Confessions of an Idiosyncratic Mind Conversations About Famous People Crimson Ink (Anon. Editor) Defamer Deidre Knight Diary of a Mad Romance Author Et in Arcaedia ego Ink Slinger Jory Sherman The Knight Agency Blog Lipstick Chronicles Miss Snark Newbie's Guide To Publishing Northcoast Exile Paperback Writer Polly P. I. Red Pen Diaries Romancing the Blog Silent Bounce Smart Bitches. Trashy Books Southern Comfort UNDERSTANDING DRAMATIC STRUCTURE by Joan Reeves©2008 February 2008 In "The Heart of the Matter," talented Don Henley sings about trying to get down to the heart of the matter but his will weakens and his thoughts scatter. Unfortunately, this scenario is repeated each day when writers attempt and fail in their efforts to become successful novelists. Why do they fail? One reason may be because they have not mastered the technique of writing scene and sequel, the driving force that powers a novel from beginning to end, or, defined in its simplest term, dramatic structure. According to the late Jack M. Bickham, guiding light behind the University of Oklahoma’s Creative Writing program and author of WRITING NOVELS THAT SELL, a "gut-level understanding of scene and sequel is the single most crucial factor in becoming a successful novelist." He goes on to say: " . . . for me, the heart of the matter: [is] dramatic structure." From my experience, I believe Mr. Bickham is absolutely correct. So what is scene and sequel (dramatic structure, storytelling structure, or whatever you wish to call it)? It is the technique of rendering a life-like reading experience for the person holding your book. By life-like, I mean that the story is told moment by moment with no summary, from a viewpoint, lived now, with actions that have results. Without this life-like reading experience, there is no forward motion, no excitement, in your book which means that no one will want to read your book. Oh, so if we wish to create an exciting novel then we simply tell everything that happens, with no summary, so that everything becomes a scene? Wrong! If everything were a scene, books would be a gazillion pages long. In real life, we summarize, so, in a novel, we also summarize some things. That is the sequel part of dramatic structure. Thus, we can refine our definition of scene and sequel by saying that it is a clearly-defined structure that develops a novel through a sequence of stimulus and response transactions that begin with page one and conclude with "the end." The SCENE is the way the action is developed between the characters - moment by moment with nothing left out or summarized. The SEQUEL is the characters' reaction to what has happened. The scene starts with a character stating clearly what he wants. This is the GOAL that the protagonist wants to achieve. In the scene, the writer develops the CONFLICT that prevents the character from achieving that goal, then shows that DISASTER strikes as a result of thwarted goal achievement. The SCENE QUESTION, arising from the scene goal, tells the readers what to worry about so they'll keep reading to find the answer. You should answer the scene question disastrously so as to keep the reader hooked. For example, let's say the scene starts with John Smith (viewpoint character) stating: "I must get you to the hospital, Mary, before the baby comes!" (The action is being lived now.) This is his goal: get his pregnant wife to the hospital before the baby comes. The scene question is: Will John get his wife to the hospital before the baby comes? The conflict is that which prevents him from achieving his goal: the weather, the traffic, the other drivers, his rattletrap car, his paranoid fear of driving in the rain, his nervousness, his wife's thrashing about, her screams of terror, etc. And of course the disaster is that he does not get to the hospital in time. (The action has results.) Play the scene out, moment by moment, telling about the slippery roads, the blinding rain, the car fish-tailing when he hit the brakes too hard, the other drivers' speeding, etc. The SEQUEL (reaction) is the character's REACTION to what has happened. That reaction embroils the character in a DILEMMA based on the way the scene question was answered, forces him to make a DECISION which leads him to a new ACTION with a new goal which of course becomes the next scene. In this manner, scenes and sequels are like dominoes standing next to each other, one falling tile gives way to the next and the next until the end is reached. With our John Smith above, after the scene question is answered disastrously, John realizes he must deliver the baby and reaction sets in (the sequel). John goes through the emotional REACTION of knowing he must do this (perhaps he faints at the sight of blood? or his first wife died in childbirth? more conflict), the physical reaction of clammy hands, racing heartbeat, the knot in his stomach. On the heels of the reaction, John is faced with a DILEMMA or quandary. Does he attempt the delivery? Does he flag down someone to help? Does he run away from the trauma? Does he become catatonic and contemplate his toes? The dilemma forces him to make a DECISION. What is he going to do? The character weighs all the options and within the scope of the character’s personality, makes a decision that leads him to take action, and of course, this action leads to a new scene where you go through the process again. If a failure to understand dramatic structure is holding you back, then you owe it to yourself to study this crucial skill. by Joan Reeves January 2008 A few years ago I spoke at a writers' conference and ran into a friend I hadn't seen in a long while. After the usual conversation between writers, she told me she had recently paid nearly four thousand dollars for a valuable writing lesson. Astonished and frankly curious as to what could have cost that much money, I asked her to tell me more. Turns out, she'd submitted her manuscript to an agent who in turn praised it and said it just needed some editorial input to make it publishable and ready for submission to the big boys in New York. They had an editorial consultant in mind who could take her immediately if she paid in advance. This woman is intelligent, educated, and normally sane. She'd tried for years to get published. To her, this sounded like her brass ring. She mailed them a check for three thousand some-odd dollars. A few months later she received her edited manuscript. When she began reading what had taken her years to write, she immediately felt ill. I'm sure her blood pressure sky-rocketed. She told me she found her pristine punctuation replaced by commas, haphazardly injected or erroneously removed. Her tightly edited active voice narrative had been replaced with wooden passive passages. Her brown eyes were awash with unshed tears when she told me how she'd been taken for a ride. And it cost her nearly four thousand hard-earned dollars from her day job salary for the ticket. The killing blow was delivered with the returned manuscript. The so-called agent decided the story really wasn't as salable as originally thought so representation was declined. If you're a writer and think you need an agent, then for God's sake, do your homework. Know who the demon agents are. Demon agents? Yes, those who prey upon writers and are only too willing to suck the soul and every dollar they can get out of the unwary. With the Internet, you can find out just about anything you want about any individual, especially agents. Here are some basic actions you always need to take when seriously interested in an agent. 1. Join a writing organization that has a professional relations committee or agent liaison. Romance Writers of America has such. They maintain a data base of complaints against agents. Check out the prospective agent with your organization. 2. Plug the name into the major search engines and follow the links, and go to more than the first few pages. 3. Ask for information from those on writers' forums and listserves. Find out who the present clients are as well as former clients. Request those willing to share their experience to email you privately. 4. Go to any of the Internet sites that report on agents like Preditors and Editors. 5. Please check out the list of the 20 Worst Agents maintained by Science Fiction Writers Association and find out who to avoid. 6. When you think you've found someone reputable, know what questions to ask about the agency business practices. These can be found on many websites, published in many articles, etc. There's a list in the Archives of this website. 7. Use your common sense. If something seems wrong, trust your intuition. 8. Know what you want from an agent and be prepared to express that in your negotiations. If you want had-holding and the agent you've singled out isn't big on mothering, find another agent. 9. Never, ever pay an agent for reading your manuscript or editing. Agents make their income from selling your manuscripts. If they require certain business expenses be reimbursed to them, know this in advance and find out if this is common with most agents. If you don't like it, find a different agent. 10. Educate yourself about contracts so you'll know if an agent is doing the best job of representing you. If an agent pushes you to sign a contract with what is commonly called "basket accounting" in order to make a sale, then that agent doesn't have your best interests at heart. Know the clauses. Know what is standard and what can be negotiated. Novelists Inc., Authors Guild, and Romance Writers of America, to name a few, have published wonderful analyses of standard contracts. Don't ever be lazy and ignore the research a smart writer needs to do. Writing income is never "easy come," but it's all too "easy go" if you are unwary. ARE THEY FOR YOU? by Joan Reeves Today’s alternative markets, let’s call them “AM’s” for brevity’s sake, are seemingly endless with the advent of the electronic media because all the above mentioned markets exist in print hard copy as well as virtual copy. Just look around. If you see anything that contains words, then that’s a market, possibly a market you can tap into. My entire career is built around one philosophy: nothing ventured; nothing gained. When I started freelance writing, I took advantage of these abilities I possess: composing at the keyboard which I learned when writing for newspapers; writing quick, clean copy; expressing myself in an articulate manner; and asking for the job. Here are a couple of writing jobs I had early on and how I found or created them: ■ script for a tourist paddle boat I took the cruise, commented to the captain that it would have been more enjoyable with a narration of the area’s history. He thought that was a great idea. I gave him my card and said I’d be happy to write one. He bought the script and the rights to use it for a set length of time with an option to renew. Nice chunk of change that kept on paying. ■ business copywriting I was at my dog’s boarding kennel. The owner was complaining about her outdated forms because her business had grown so much. I told her I’d be glad to revise her forms to meet her current needs. I obtained other copywriting jobs at local businesses I frequented via similar conversations. I’ve written all kinds of business papers from the general to the esoteric in addition to advertising, scripts, fillers, puzzles, articles for newspapers, magazines, and newsletters. I’ve supplied newsletter companies (publishing companies that supply clients, corporate for profit and nonprofit, with articles for in-house publications). I’ve lost count over the years of just how many pieces I’ve written. Self-expression products, one of the traditional AM’s, is mind-boggling in today’s world of individualism. We’re not just talking bumper stickers or tee shirts, sweatshirts, and nightshirts! There’s buttons, coffee mugs, caps, posters, tote bags, calendars, day planners, note pads, plaques, checkbook covers, key rings, combs, mousepads, car window signs, yard signs, banners, pennants. Whew! The list is endless. Now, with the World Wide Web, the opportunities have increased, and the smart writer who’s a go-to girl or guy benefits. There are online publishers of books, magazines, greeting cards, information sites, and that doesn’t even count the multitude of web sites out there hungry for CONTENT. Content is a hungry monster waiting for someone to feed it. Someone has to write all this copy. Everyone from a website in Italy outsourcing its content needs via a freelance business website to local businesses who have established web sites and need some interesting little article on a regular basis. They are all potential customers for a good writer who can deliver. As I said before, someone has to write the copy for anything that contains words, and, often, that someone is a freelance writer like me, or possibly you. Okay, you’re pumped. You want to tackle these markets. How do you find them? How do you let them know you’re ready, willing, and able to offer them your brilliant words? There are books published offering information on the traditional AM’s. WRITER’S MARKET, published by Writer’s Digest Books each year, is a standard. Now, WRITER’S MARKET also includes information about electronic magazines that acquire articles, short fiction, and the like. At www.writersdigest.com, there are even guidelines about many of these markets. The electronic markets seem to be bigger short fiction markets than print media. They also pay handsomely! Writer’s Digest Books also publishes a little jewel called HOW TO WRITE & SELL GREETING CARDS, BUMPER STICKERS, T-SHIRTS AND OTHER FUN STUFF. That book will really get you going in the AM’s. Another great way is to find the online magazines that cater to things of interest to you. Often they ask for submissions. Plug “writing” or “freelance writing” into the search engines and follow the links. Join writers’ listserves and pay attention to the posts. Markets are often mentioned there first. Go to the electronic magazines by, for, and about writing because they have market listings. Join writers’ clubs and read their newsletters for market listings. Subscribe to Writer’s Digest Magazine and read their market listings closely because they often mention AM’s. Pay attention to contests being run to see if it’s something you could write. Supermarket products often have contests with great prizes, i.e., write 50 words or less about the joys of peanut butter. Book publishers have contests when they are opening new lines. Harlequin has often run contests, and they can sometimes give away very nice prizes like new cars. Magazines have contests too. The opportunities are out there. To quote a very old book that was, one might say, mostly freelance written: “Seek and ye shall find.” If you don’t see a market, then try to create one for your talents. I seem to be throwing out old aphorisms, but this next one also seems appropriate: “God helps those who help themselves.” Or, perhaps, you should just adopt my personal career philosophy. I offer it freely. Nothing ventured; nothing gained. by Joan Reeves Affair To Remember with Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr was on this morning so my daughter and I took a few minutes out of our busy day to watch THE scene. I haven't watched the entire film in years, but if I find it's on, I always watch THE scene. Which one is that? It's the one where Cary Grant is at the door leaving, and he's talking about how he painted Deborah Kerr wearing the lace mantilla, or shawl. He couldn't take money for the painting so he told the gallery owner to give it to this young woman who fancied it because she liked it and because she was... you know, he stammers. (The young woman was in a wheelchair in case you haven’t seen the film.) The play of emotions on his face as he's talking and as he begins wondering then putting two and two together to get an inescapable four is incredible. You are so into the character that you can imagine his thoughts arriving at the impossible conclusion that the woman who was in a wheelchair and who fancied the painting is the same as his beloved who sits on the couch and makes no attempt to go to the door to see him out. He comes back to the couch, places his coat and hat on it, and walks to the other door in the room. He opens it, sees the painting he'd been describing. That's when he creates another memorable cinematic moment. His face reflects how crushed he is, how his heart is in a vise as he realizes the woman he loves is indeed the woman in the wheelchair who visited the gallery. He's staggered by the certain knowledge and nearly falls against the door. That is THE scene I can never miss just as I never watch it without tears sliding down my cheeks. It's the greatest of acting because of its truth. Cary Grant is so good in that scene that the viewer forgets he's Cary Grant. He is Nicky, the devastated artist in search of his own truth. Character truth is what makes viewers remember certain movies long after they’ve seen the flick. Characters, breathed into existence by the actor’s performance, live on to enthrall future generations who may not even have been born when the movie was made. Movies heavy on character truth seem to take a back seat to exploding cars and indestructible, testosterone-drenched males in today's world. Perhaps this is one reason why old movies, and even television series, sell so well on DVD. New movie makers from directors to producers to actors would do well to watch the old movies that remain viewer favorites instead of trying to figure out how many unbelievable, physics-defying stunts they can dream up. Touch the emotions, whether through laughter or tears, and you touch a person’s life. Character-truth in movies is easier to portray since movies are a visual medium. It's not so easy in books where you have to use words to convey that truth to readers. But, as a writer, that's your job. You have to figure out a way to reveal that truth. When you do, you'll have a story worth telling. by Joan Reeves©2007 Each spring in Alpine, Texas, the Texas Cowboy Poetry Gathering takes over the small west Texas town. If you’re like me, you grew up in the South where most grandparents had shelves of Zane Grey western novels. By the time I was fourteen, I think I'd read about fifty Zane Grey westerns. Some of those books, like West of the Pecos and Riders of the Purple Sage, I remember distinctly, but most have kind of blurred together. One thing that hasn’t blurred is my love of all things cowboy. If you don't know much about Cowboy Poetry, prepare to be educated and amazed. Each year there are about 200 gatherings of cowboy poets, and they're well attended by fans. Cowboy Poetry includes traditional elements like rhyme, meter and narrative, that aren't seen much in modern poetry any more. Most of the long-time practitioners of the genre have actually worked as cowboys, or they have strong links to that culture, for instance, wives or daughters of ranchers. No rhinestone cowboy need apply. Yes, there are some poets who've never had to deal with throwing a saddle over Old Paint, but somewhere along the line they had ancestors who knew how to cinch a saddle and ride the line. Johnny Carson used to have cowboy poets on The Tonight Show. That's where I saw the first one, and I’ve been hooked ever since. It was as if I were listening to one of the heroes from a Zane Grey novel lyrically tell about facing the bitter cold and loneliness in a line shack in winter. Loneliness seems to be as much a part of the job of being a cowboy as the ability to ride and rope. Cowboy Poetry has been around a long time and doesn't seem to be fading. Maybe in this frantic rat race we call life, listening to someone recite simple yet powerful words about living with honor and integrity has greater appeal now than ever. “Forgotten” is about an old abandoned horse that nobody wants to put down and was written by one of the greatest of the Cowboy Poets Bruce Kiskaddon. The poem ends with a poignant irony. You can find Kiskaddon’s work available for sale online. If you want to discover more about Cowboy Poetry or Kiskaddon, simply put those words into Google, and you'll find plenty of sites such as Cowboy Poetry. Happy trails, pardner! by Joan Reeves Copyright 2007 I've been doing research for an article about illiteracy. Championing literacy programs has been a pet project of mine since I chaired The Literacy Luncheon in 1998 for the Bay Area Chapter of Romance Writers of America. It's hard to comprehend some of the facts I came across. Did you know that in 1910, the literacy rate in the United States was so high that educators predicted that public schools would soon eliminate illiteracy? Then in 1930, illiteracy rates among adults ranged between 1.5% and 9.9, based on ethnicity and native-born versus foreign-born. So what happened? In 2003, a study showed that 50 million adults in this country could not read or comprehend above the 8th grade level. We have a dropout rate of 29 per cent. In Japan, it's only 5 per cent; in Russia only 2. Reading proficiency is slipping. I've seen college graduates who have trouble understanding written text. I wonder how they got through college. A few years ago, UNESCO announced that there were 900 million illiterates in developing countries. This represented nearly 25 per cent of the world’s youth and adults. Much of this is because of the millions of children who have no access to public education. Yes, this is shocking, but nearly 25 per cent of the youth and adults in the richest countries are functionally illiterate. These are people who had all kinds of access to education. Why should this concern us? Economically speaking, illiteracy costs $225 billion a year. Sixty per cent of the prison population is illiterate. How can they be successfully reintegrated into society when they can't compete in the work force? No wonder recidivism rates are so high. Almost 90 per cent of juvenile offenders are illiterate. Fifty per cent of adults on welfare are illiterate. Children of unemployed parents are 5 times more likely to drop out of school. Nearly 75 per cent of the unemployed are illiterate. What's happening? Why in a country where education is available to every single individual has this occurred? Good questions. No easy answers. What are we going to do about? That's another question with no easy answers. by Joan ReevesAs a professional writer, you must protect the integrity of the computer hard drive where your writing files are stored. Nothing is more terrifying than loading a new software program or downloading an upgrade, only to find that it messes up your computer. Here’s something important to know about your operating system which in most cases means Windows XP or the new Vista. Mac users, you can just have a big laugh about us poor PC slaves. Last week I really screwed up some of my programs when I was trying to offload them from my C drive to the new external hard drive I'd purchased. I messed up my C drive so much that I belatedly went to the Windows Help Index to find out how to "go back" or restore my drive to the way it was before I messed it up. I found out something important. To successfully restore, you first need to create a restore point. Now Windows XP is supposed to make Restore Points by default each day, but I learned that's no guarantee your system will restore to the way it was. The proper thing to do before installing a new application or upgrade or making major changes that might affect the integrity of your files is to first create a Restore Point that Windows can easily find. These instructions are for XP since most still use that. If you are a Vista user, then simply plug Restore Point into your Windows Help Menu to find out how to do it. In XP, here are the steps to ACCESS THE SYSTEM RESTORE WIZARD. 1. Click START then click HELP AND SUPPORT. 2. Click PERFORMANCE AND MAINTENANCE and it opens the wizard. (Then you'll CLICK the action you want to take from the list displayed.) 3. Click CREATE A RESTORE POINT then click NEXT. 4. In the Restore Point Description box, type a name to identify this Restore Point, System REstore automatically adds to this name the date and time the Point is created. 5. Click CREATE. You can read all the detailed instructions in the Help Index under To create a Restore Point. Take a tip from me: do this before load new software or uninstall old software. That way, you probably won’t mess up your computer the way I did. Old Ben Franklin was right: “Experience keeps a dear school, but a fool will learn in no other.” by Joan Reeves Sometimes writers may work all their lives to learn these necessary skills in order to tell their stories in a way that will garner them a publishing contract. Perhaps, if you aren’t selling yet, it’s because you haven’t learned enough of the required techniques or haven’t practiced them enough. In other words, you just haven’t written enough words. Dean Koontz said a couple of decades ago that a writer must write X thousand words before anything can be written worthy of publication. What that X is varies from writer to writer. Just what are these skills one must learn in order to be a selling writer? I think Jack E. Bickham, author of Writing Novels That Sell hit the nail on the head when he said, “A story is the formed record of a character testing conflict, told from a point of view.” In his book, Mr. Bickham discusses each of these elements - formed record, character, conflict, viewpoint - at length. I urge you to read this book if you can find a copy (it’s out of print). Briefly, a formed record means an author controls the material. There is a formal structure. There is a consciousness of narrative principles. Classical ideas of dramatic architecture are followed. In other words, great stories just don’t happen. A character is not just a person. In fiction, a character is a creation of many things. A character is an exaggeration of a real-life person in some respects. A character is much easier to understand than a human being, because their “tags” and traits, their attitudes, internal and external wants and needs, their conflicts are played on the stage of our minds. Often, it’s much easier to understand what makes a created character tick than to understand why your spouse gets depressed during the holidays. Or it should be much easier. That’s the author’s job: make the character understood by the reader and make the reader want to know the character. Conflict is the driving force of fiction. Conflict is struggle. It is a fight that plays on stage for the reader. Yes, sometimes conflict is a character at war with himself, but this isn’t enough. There has to be an external conflict driving the external plot and reflecting the internal struggle. Don’t confuse adversity, which is bad luck, with conflict. Point of view, is the scale that makes the story someone’s story. Viewpoint is necessary to fiction, because a reader wants and needs to identify with someone. The reader wants to cheer for someone and relate to the story. Viewpoint is a carefully wielded skill by the writer. A writer must make careful decisions about what kind of viewpoint to use, whose viewpoint to use, and how to use that viewpoint to not only relate the events of the story but also reveal character to the reader. If you are just starting out, your writer’s tool box probably has lots of empty space. Add these skills as quickly as possibly, and you’ll be well on your way to writing salable fiction. The Tale of Georg Christoph Lichtenberg by Joan Reeves Just in case I find myself in the horrible position of having to move again, I try to keep my library to a manageable size now. Each spring and fall I try to give away books. Recently, in one of the books I was thinking of parting with, I came across a quotation attributed to Georg Christoph Lichtenberg. Many erudite people have made insightful remarks about books. This one is for the cynical crowd. Georg Christoph Lichtenberg said: “There can hardly be a stranger commodity in the world than books. Printed by people who don't understand them; sold by people who don't understand them; bound, criticized and read by people who don't understand them; and now even written by people who don't understand them.” That's quite a commentary on the state of publishing, isn't it? The really interesting thing about this is that Georg Christoph Lichtenberg, who taught physics, mathematics, astronomy, and other subjects, was not talking about contemporary books and publishing because he was born in 1742. Lichtenberg did research in many fields, geophysics, volcanology, meteorology, chemistry, astronomy, and mathematics to name a few, but he's remembered primarily for his work in physics. His only true scientific discovery though was related to electricity. In 1777, he found that discharges of static electricity formed patterns in bits of dust. Though these Lichtenberg figures were of no use to him at that time, they are the basic principle used in modern photocopying machines. Now, Lichtenberg figures, radial patterns formed when sharp, pointed conducting bodies at high voltage get close enough to insulators to discharge electrically, are being studied because they are fractals. He is remembered for the thousands of pithy sayings he composed as much as for his contributions to science. Actually, I think he's remembered more for his creative witticisms since he's considered a mere footnote in scientific history. In an odd way, I find it comforting that someone a few hundred years ago felt the way we writers often feel about what gets published. So if you are a writer or a reader disgusted with what's lining the shelves at your local bookstore, you're in good company. by Joan ReevesI've read many discussions on the various writers lists to which I subscribe about some author's disappointment in discovering the true meaning of his or her contract - after the contract had been signed. So I thought I'd take this opportunity to give two simple rules about book contracts. DO NOT sign a book contract unless: 1. You have read the entire contract. 2. You understand the entire contract. If you and the editor discussed anything that is NOT in the contract, then no matter what the editor promised, it doesn't count. Only what is in the contract is legal. If there's something you've been promised, then don't sign until the contract has been revised to represent that. It goes without saying, but I'll say it any way, an agent is the ideal person to handle contracts. However, many of you do not have an agent as of yet, so you have to educate yourself about contract terms. Romance Writers of America and other professional writers' organizations have published excellent articles about the different publishing houses' boilerplate contracts. Join RWA or one of the others and look these up. If you have already published, then you may be eligible for membership in Authors Guild Inc. They offer a contract review service for a relatively inexpensive fee. As a last resort, ask your friends who are published if they will go over the contract with you or even go on your lists and ask for help. Yes, there are individuals like attorneys and some agents who will review contracts, but they usually charge a couple hundred bucks minimum. If you're thinking of signing an E publishing or small press contract, chances are you won't be getting an advance or will receive only a nominal advance so that fee has to come out of your personal pocket. Use some common sense. Don't pay $500.00 to someone to interpret your contract when you are getting zippo in advance money, and the publisher has a track record of only producing a hundred dollars or less in earn out on its projects. There are many books out there (check Writers Digest Books) on understanding contracts. Educate yourself even if you eventually plan to get an agent. An informed writer is a writer who is less likely to be taken advantage of. Part 5 of 8 by Joan Reeves In the first segment, Nasco is presented using physical description and action. In the second segment, the reader learns more about Nasco when his some of his traits and motives are presented. The following example occurs after a dialog passage in which Nasco threatens his hapless victim: In Wolf’s Hour by Robert McCammon, hero Michael Gallatin is introduced first as a wolf who kills a Nazi officer then as a man arriving for a tryst with his lover. When his woman is killed by a Nazi assassin, Gallatin turns into a wolf and kills the assassin. In the next segment, which is the set-up for the rest of the book, Gallatin is presented, showing human traits and motives, but with his duality present: Part 6 of 8 by Joan Reeves Going back to WATCHERS by Koontz, the last part of the quoted paragraph concludes with a little of Nasco’s psychology: “The two shootings had been satisfying, but he wanted to draw this one out, kill her more slowly. Sometimes, death could be savored like good food, fine wine, and glorious sunsets.” Here’s a profound bit of psychology which opens chapter one in MORTAL FEAR by Greg Iles. It is offered as the thoughts of the main character and serves to present Lee and sets the emotional tone of the book: “Life is simple. The more complicated you believe yours is, the less you know of your true condition. For a long time I did not understand this. Now I do. You are hungry or you are full. You are healthy or you are sick. You are faithful to your wife or you are not. You are alive or you are dead. I am alive.” Note that which he emphasizes: I am alive. Of all the choices he listed, food, health, fidelity, life, he chooses to assert that he is alive, which is apparent. Of the four choices he lists, fidelity is the subject that doesn’t “fit.” Almost by evasion, he leads the reader to believe that fidelity will be important to his story - and it is an overriding theme woven throughout his book. Next time, this series of articles will conclude with the last two ways to present characters: by the character’s reaction to other story people and circumstances, and by what other story people say about the character. Part 7 of 8 by Joan Reeves In ONE FOR THE MONEY by Janet Evanovitch, Stephanie Plum, the main character, reacts this way to Joseph Morelli, the man who shares her adventures: He was sprawled on the pavement, looking up my skirt. “My leg.” “Good,” I said. Then I turned on my heel, got into the Buick, and drove to the mall.” Wow! With that passage, Evanovitch is telling us that Stephanie Plum reacts emotionally - unpredictably even - to Joe Morelli. What a marvelous introduction to Stephanie Plum - and to Joe Morelli. Part 8 of 8 by Joan Reeves In ONE FOR THE MONEY by Janet Evanovitch, Stephanie Plum, the main character, reacts this way to Joseph Morelli, the man who shares her adventures: The next time I saw him, I was three years older. I was on my way to the mall, driving my father’s Buick when I spotted Morelli standing in front of Giovichinni’s Meat Market. I gunned the big V-8 engine, jumped the curb, and clipped Morelli from behind, bouncing him off the front right fender. I stopped the car and got out to assess the damage. “Anything broken?” He was sprawled on the pavement, looking up my skirt. “My leg.” “Good,” I said. Then I turned on my heel, got into the Buick, and drove to the mall.” Wow! With that passage, Evanovitch is telling us that Stephanie Plum reacts emotionally - unpredictably even - to Joe Morelli. What a marvelous introduction to Stephanie Plum - and to Joe Morelli. In this passage from the same book, Stephanie reacts to her meeting a boxer named Ramirez. His smile had turned tight, and the civility had slipped from his voice.... I felt tendrils of panic curl into my stomach, and I cautioned myself not to overreact.... I made a display of looking at my watch. “Sorry you feel that way, but I’m supposed to meet Gazarra in ten minutes. He’s not going to be pleased if I’m late.... I took a step backward.... Ramirez grabbed me by the scruff of my neck.... No one’s going to help me, I thought, feeling the first licks of real fear.” Also, from the same book, the first three pages are devoted to what Stephanie has to say about Joseph Morelli, beginning with the first sentences of the book: There are some men who enter a woman’s life and screw it up forever. Joseph Morelli did this to me - not forever, but periodically. In MIAMI, IT’S MURDER by Edna Buchanan, the viewpoint character Britt Montero says this about a man who plays a major part in the story: Dan was one of the best detectives the city had... and they forced him out.... Legally, they can’t force a terminally ill cop to retire. But they do it anyway. So, writers, that's it. Here's the list once again on generally accepted ways to introduce characters in a story: * by description of the character * by speech of the character * by action of the character * by the effect of the character on other story people. * by explaining traits and motives of the character * by analyzing the psychological processes of the character * by the character’s reactions to other story people and circumstances * by what other story people say about the character. by Joan Reeves Conferences for writers are wonderful events that are anticipated with varying degrees of excitement and/ We all know the importance of increasing our knowledge about the craft and the business of writing, but, you may wonder, what is so important about meeting people, especially these people who intimidate you? Well, let's take editors and agents. If you've never met an editor or agent before, face to face, chatted with them about their daughter who's home sick with a cold or their son who just took his SAT, you may have a misconception about these people who earn their salary from writers, either directly or indirectly. You may think they have the intelligence of Stephen Hawking, the arrogance of George III, the looks of Katherine Heigl, the savvy of Oprah Winfrey, and the compassion of a turnip. After a few minutes of talking though, you realize that - gasp -they're just (usually) average people trying to do the best job they can in a down-sizing corporate world. They're tired; they have family worries. And, like you, they're probably underpaid and overworked. They are not ogres, with horns growing from their foreheads, whose primary goal in life is to keep you from getting published. You've met published authors before in your own writers club, right? So why does your heart flutter alarmingly if there's a chance you might meet, say Ridley Pearson or John Grisham or Nora Roberts or Janet Evanovitch, to name a few? I guess it’s human nature to imbue others who are vastly successful with charisma. And that charisma you invest in them makes you put them on a pedestal, high above poor little you, the struggling writer. By talking with them over cocktails, you learn that they're not any different from the writers you know, published or unpublished. Sure, they make more money, sometimes tons of it, but that just brings them the same problems you've got on a grander scale, and often, different problems that you wouldn’t want! So walk up, introduce yourself, and talk with them a while. You'll begin to see them as fellow human beings with families, personal problems, bills to pay, and, many times, a job that gives them more headaches than pats on the back, just like you. While we are talking about conferences, let me mention why NOT to go to a conference. There are writers who go from conference to conference and workshop to workshop. They already know nearly everything they need to know in order to write, but by hitting the conference trail, they avoid sitting in front of that keyboard and sweating blood in the effort to put words on paper. Don't fall into that trap. Gaining knowledge is wonderful, but knowledge is not power. The APPLICATION of knowledge is power. by Joan Reeves This is a business. Embroider that on a sampler or design a screen saver with that on your scrolling marquee. At the very least, here are some basic questions a writer needs a prospective agent to answer when an offer of representation is on the table. 1. Does the agent maintain separate escrow or trust accounts for client funds? 2. Does the agent have a separate signatory for the client account in case of death or incapacitation? 3. How do I get my money if the agent is incapacitated or dies? 4. Does the agent have a surety bond? 5. Does the agent maintain some sort of error, omission or fidelity insurance? 6. Is the agent a member of RWA or other professional organizations? If so, check with that organization to see if there are any comments or complaints against the agent. 7. Does the agent offer a written contract? 8. Does the agent also package books? 9. Does the agent also write books? Is there anyway this could be a conflict of interest for you? 10. If I ever have to return an advance, does the agent forfeit commission? 11. What fees or charged? Courier, copying, telephone, postage, flat "Office Expense" fee, others? 12. Am I sent an accounting? If so, how often? 13. Does the agent send a year-end statement of activity or some other kind of report? 14. How can the agent be terminated? Read these questions carefully. If you don't know what some of these things mean, look them up. Educate yourself. This is a business, not just a creative pursuit. BE PART OF THE SOLUTION by Joan Reeves To a reader, it may seem odd that so many people never had the opportunity to learn or could not take advantage of that opportunity when it was offered. Yes, it sounds insane to us who are part of mainstream America, but millions of people have no way to grab hold of their piece of the American dream, and all too often, these illiterate people are women. The reason why they haven't learned to read is not nearly as important as their determination to learn now. There must be programs available to them. There must be tutors available. How can we make sure the opportunity exists for people to overcome illiteracy? By ensuring that funding exists to keep the programs going. Funding? Let's speak plainly. I'm talking about money - cold, hard cash is needed on a regular basis to keep literacy programs going. And, I'm talking about time - time given by those who can read to teach those who can't. I belong to Romance Writers of America, a writers organization that each year makes a significant contribution to literacy programs. Each year, by the money we raise nationally and locally, we help somebody learn to read. Probably more than one somebody! If you want to take the larger view, what I call the "no man is an island view," in helping others, we help ourselves. In helping people learn to read, we help society because literacy decreases unemployment. If you are a writer and want to take the most narrow view, helping people learn to read increases the number of people who can purchase our products - books. Whatever reason you choose, funding for literacy programs is an issue all people, not just writers, should address, whether from the standpoint of concerned members of society or from the narrower viewpoint of increasing the customer pool for books. Helping people learn to read is a win-win situation for everyone. There are so many problems, other than illiteracy, that our country faces, problems for which we can't begin to find solutions. Illiteracy is a problem we can do something about. Do your share to help someone learn to read by donating money and/ By the way, if you are a writer, have you realized that the world doesn't need writers if there aren't readers? Call today. Be part of the solution to the problem of illiteracy in our country. Press Release Success by Joan Reeves 1. Follow the KISS rule - keep it short, sweetheart. People are busy. Give the pertinent information, you know, the old who, what, when, where, why, and how along with the book info: title, genre, ISBN, publisher, release date, price, & how to get a copy. Keep it to a couple of paragraphs so the reader doesn’t have to scroll and scroll again. 2. Address the emails individually. Don't send them en masse. What’s worse than BCC’ing everyone though is putting all of them in as recipients where everyone can see everyone else’s email addresses. I can’t tell you how much annoying mail I’ve received from total strangers who click a mass email mailing Reply To All. Don’t be guilty of this. If you send each one individually, the recipient will think you actually thought of them especially for this, and it will make them feel special. 3. Personalize where possible. Put a little note at the top of the email with a personal message. The few seconds you spend doing this will make the recipient regard you warmly rather than with irritation. 4. Send your email announcements in a timely fashion - not so far in advance of the book’s release that they forget, and not so far after the release that the book is no longer available. Timing, as funny man Steve Martin said, is everything. 5. Make sure your news is not only of interest but is presented in an interesting or entertaining manner. If mailing to media for inclusion in local newspapers, remember to find a hook that makes it local newsworthy. Press Release Success by Joan Reeves 2. Always, be a professional. Proofread your email. Don’t treat it as if it’s a hurriedly scribbled Post It Note. It’s professional correspondence. 3. Keep a log of the press releases you send so you’ll know if you’re getting any publicity as a result. 4. If someone objects to what you send, be polite and assure them you will remove their name from your list. Then do it. 5. Install a sign up sheet on your website or blog where people can sign up to receive emails regarding book releases from you. That's it. Pretty simple and mostly common sense, but you'd be surprised how many writers fail in this area. So give some thought to the result you want to achieve and then plan your publicity campaign carefully. Part 4 of 8 by Joan Reeves Casey turned to answer and found herself face to face with Dr. Hunsacker....There couldn't be any mistaking just who he was....It was the smile. She could nearly hear the delivery nurses sigh four floors away....Nice-looking but when he smiled he was unforgettable. It hit you right between the eyes and left you a little dizzy. It made you smile back, no matter what else you wanted to do....Casey had never heard anyone whine and coo at the same time. That was exactly what Mrs. Van Cleve was doing...Hunsacker was holding the woman's hand, and she was batting and cooing at him. By inference we find out that the nurses in the hospital all think Hunsacker is a heartthrob, as do his patients. He is unforgettable. His smile makes a woman dizzy, and she has to smile back regardless. Holding his patient's hand, he has Mrs. Van Cleve batting her eyes and cooing. In TIMESCAPE by Gregory Benford, John Renfrew is introduced this way: “Daddy, look--.” “Damn, watch out.... Get that paper out of my porridge.... Marjorie, why are the bloody dogs in the kitchen while we're having breakfast?" Three figures in suspended animation stared at him. Marjorie, turning from the stove...Nicky...mouth formed an O of surprise...Johnny...his face beginning to fall.... Renfrew knew what was going through his wife's mind - John must be really upset. He never gets angry. The effect of Renfrew's uncharacteristic actions is shown on the other characters and serves to introduce him and show his emotional state. Part 3 of 8 by Joan Reeves When you first meet the character, he or she is doing something sufficiently interesting in and of itself or intriguing in the way it is being done that makes the reader keep reading. After all, that is the goal: make the reader keep reading. In Ken Grissom's mystery DROP OFF, he introduces you to his sleuth this way: Yes, I know we are told not to start with a dream, but in this case it works because of the word raging. Raging surf is interesting enough to make you read the next sentence. So in meeting Rodrigue - by the character's action (of dreaming) - we learn through what he dreams that the wily Cajun who makes a living by his wits, as much as by his diving skills, prefers hustling barmaids to underwater labor. In SILENCE OF THE LAMBS by Thomas Harris, Clarice Starling is introduced by description in the first couple of paragraphs. Yet, in the screenplay (the movie version), starring Jodie Foster as FBI Agent Starling, Clarice is introduced by action. The camera follows her as she runs the obstacle course at Quantico. She's dogged in her attack of the course, sweating, breathing heavily, never giving up, stopping only when instructed to report to Jack Crawford's office. This introduction by action of her character also serves as a metaphor for her dogged effort to extract information from Hannibal Lechter, the infamous serial killer she is sent to interview. How does Harris introduce Lechter in the novel? Here we see a man who previously has been described by other characters. We already know he is a monster, a serial killer of extraordinary intelligence. Now we are introduced to him by his actions--tranquil, calm, precise, composed, ordered. Where is the raving lunatic one would expect to see? The contrast is intriguing. We read on to discover what this serene facade conceals. In MR. MURDER by Dean Koontz, the main character is introduced in the second paragraph: Action introduction: leaning, rocking, holding, dictating, repeating, clicked, could not recall. Though commonplace, these actions concluding with: “Repeating the same two words in a dreamy whisper. ‛I need. I need.'” draw us into the story. Part 2 of 8 by Joan Reeves This selection is taken from Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, first published in 1937. This characterizes both major characters, George and Lennie, by speech, as well as by description and action. “His huge companion dropped his blankets and flung himself down and drank from the surface of the green pool; drank with long gulps, snorting into the water like a horse. The small man stepped nervously beside him. “'Lennie!' he said sharply. 'Lennie, for God sakes don't drink so much...Lennie. You gonna be sick like you was last night.' “Lennie dipped his whole head under, hat and all, and then he sat up on the bank and his hat dripped down on his blue coat and ran down his back. 'Tha's good,' he said. 'You drink some, George. You take a good big drink.' He smiled happily. “George unslung his bundle.... 'I ain't sure it's good water,' he said. 'Looks kinda scummy.' “Lennie dabbled his big paw in the water and wiggled his fingers....'Look, George. Look what I done.' “'...You never oughta drink water when it ain't running, Lennie,' he said hopelessly. From these passages, by Lennie's action of drinking from scummy water without thought for health, but only with thought to satisfy thirst, the reader learns that Lennie is retarded. Even though Lennie and George both speak in an uneducated manner (improper subject-verb usage, use of oughta, ain't, etc.), Lennie's speech has a child-like quality. “'Tha's good, you drink some. You take a good big drink. Look. Look what I done.'” This child-like quality is illustrated by the adverb modifiers also. “He smiled HAPPILY.” And what was Lennie doing? Drinking from a scummy puddle. George is characterized by speech as an uneducated man who is the apparent caretaker for Lennie. It's obvious that he cares for Lennie and watches out for him. “'You never oughta drink water when it ain't running, Lennie,' he said HOPELESSLY.” By the adverb modifiers used for George, we learn that taking care of Lennie is a futile, frustrating task. “'Lennie!'” he said SHARPLY.” “He said HOPELESSLY.” In reading the next few paragraphs, one learns that George is morose, angry, and tired. By his speech, we also see that he feels much put upon and kicked around by the world. “'We could just as well of rode clear to the ranch if that bastard bus driver knew what he was talkin' about.'” Part 1 of 8 When a reader meets the character for the first time, the writer hopes that the reader finds the story person so interesting that the reader is compelled to read on, to follow that character through the story. How then does a writer introduce characters in a way that hooks the reader's interest? How does a writer involve the reader in such a way, that the book cannot be laid aside? According to Walter S. Campbell, founder of the Professional Writing Program at the University of Oklahoma, there are eight ways. He discusses these eight ways at length in his book Writing: Advice and Devices (New York, Doubleday, 1950). They are also presented in Jack Bickham's book Writing Novels That Sell, (New York, Fireside, Simon & Schuster, 1989, ISBN 0-671-68393-4). These eight ways are: 1. By description of the character 2. By speech of the character 3. By action of the character 4. By effect of the character on other story people 5. By explaining traits and motives of the character 6. By analyzing the character's psychological processes 7. By character's reactions to other story people and circumstances 8. By what other story people say about the character. This month, let's look at methods one and two and some examples for these two methods of introducing characters. Method 1: By description of the character. This example is taken from the very first paragraph of Gone With the Wind by Margaret Mitchell. “Scarlett O'Hara was not beautiful, but men seldom realized it when caught by her charm as the Tarleton twins were. In her face were too sharply blended the delicate features of her mother, a Coast aristocrat of French descent, and the heavy ones of her florid Irish father. But it was an arresting face, pointed of chin, square of jaw. Her eyes were pale green without a touch of hazel, starred with bristly black lashes and slightly tilted at the ends. Above them, her thick black brows slanted upward, cutting a startling oblique line in her magnolia-white skin--that skin so prized by Southern women and so carefully guarded with bonnets, veils and mittens against hot Georgia suns.” In five sentences, along with a physical description “slanted, pale green eyes without a hint of hazel, bristly black lashes, thick black brows slanted upward, magnolia-white skin,” the reader knows the character's full name, how the character is perceived by others “men saw her as beautiful though in truth she wasn't,” her ethnic heritage (French and Irish), a hint of the economic status of her family (mother an aristocrat), a hint of a familial conflict (what's a coast French aristocrat doing with an Irishman with heavy, florid features which connotes a man of lower class?), the mores of the time (A high value was placed on women's white, pampered skin.), and that she was from Georgia. Notice also how the physical description is presented: SLANTED, PALE GREEN eyes WITHOUT A HINT OF HAZEL STARRED with BRISTLY BLACK lashes THICK BLACK brows SLANTED UPWARD MAGNOLIA-WHITE skin. Is the reader interested in this person immediately? You bet! Several million people have attested to that fact since the book was first published in 1936.  "Take what you can use and let the rest go by." Ken Kesey Copyright 2002-2008 by Joan Reeves. All rights reserved. For permission to reproduce anything on this web site, please contact: Joan Reeves, P. O. Box 1045, Richmond TX 77406-1045 or email: joan @ |
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