The Biggest Weakness

Randy Ingermanson, in his blog post at Advanced Fiction Writing, said something profound yet beautifully simple: "The life of a novelist is about continuous improvement. You will NEVER arrive. You will never be perfect. The trick is to identify your biggest weakness and work on it until it's no longer your biggest weakness."

Wow. That's heavy. In the last month or so, I've been working on my dialogue tags, trying to remove unnecessary ones. I think I've about mastered that. So now, I ask myself, what's my new biggest weakness?

That's a no-brainer, since I've struggled with this for years: imagery.  

One of my writing friends, Melody, has the spirit of a poet. Her fantasy fiction sparkles with beautiful imagery. Her word choices are exquisite. Her scenery jumps off the page, making me feel like I'm there. And I've noticed, in speaking with her, that it all just flows naturally that way from her brain. She's lyrical. Imaginative. Poetic.

I've not been blessed with that type of gift. I'm a Vulcan. I see things in logical progression, with proper motivations, plot lines and subplot lines weaving in and out of each other. Scenery and imagery is incidental, especially in my first draft. Once I've got all the action, suspense, and character development thoroughly laid out, then I have to go back and add in the scenery, the sensations, the metaphors and similes that make the story hop off the page. I easily identify the patterns, mirrors, and moods I need to establish; then I struggle to add the sights, sounds, smells, tastes, and textures. 

I'm pleased that I can identify my greatest weakness. Now I'll follow Randy's advice and work on it until something else takes the title "biggest weakness."

-Sonja

"Holy dialogue tags, Batman!" Robin exclaimed

For the past two weeks, I've been struggling with dialogue tags. Silly me, I thought I'd mastered them... then a friend pointed out how many unnecessary tags I managed to work into my text. So, I went on a learning binge, and am now ready to impart the vast amount of knowledge I've collected. Which isn't a ton, but it's definitely improved my dialogue.

Lesson #1: The modifier "said" is invisible. Use it, because readers completely overlook it. 

"Take this," Matthias said. 

I've identified the speaker with that little invisible word. Other words, like exclaimed, postulated, articulated, and shouted, are not invisible. They stand out in the sentence, calling attention to themselves and away from the actual dialogue. And I don't want that. So I use "said" whenever I need to identify the speaker.

William Noble, in his book "Shut up!" He Explained: A Writer's Guide to the Uses and Misuses of Dialogue, says that the modifier "said" should be used at least three-quarters of the time any modifier is used, and a page of dialogue should not go by without a couple of "saids" appearing in the text. 

Lesson learned: when I want to identify the speaker, use the word "said."

Lesson #2:  When possible, avoid dialogue tags altogether.

"Take this," Matthias said.

"What is it?" I peered inside.

"Gold, mostly."

The reader knows Matthias said that last line because it was his turn to speak. (Of course, if there were three people in the conversation, then the speaker of line 3 becomes foggy. But when there's only two, this works well.) When possible, leave out the tag. It makes for a quicker read, and it's definitely invisible. But I need to be careful, because if it isn't clear who is speaking, then leaving the tag off can add to the confusion and annoyance factor.

Lesson #3: Use beats instead of a modifier. Beats are the little bits of action interspersed through a scene, such as someone walking to the window or rubbing their eyes. They can take the place of the word "said," like this: 

"Take this." Matthias handed me a bulging leather bag.

Instead of saying said, or gushed, or ordered, I substitute the dialogue tag with this big of action. Doing this adds a pause in the speech, eliminates the need for tag, and identifies the speaker all at once. A brilliant little tool, which I employ often. There are two important rules to remember when working with tags: don't interrupt the dialogue with too many beats (the poor reader will get dizzy, trying to follow all the action and conversation) and don't use cliched tags (puffing on a cigarette, drinking coffee, scratching, etc.). Otherwise, they work nicely in place of tags.

Lesson #4: Use a variety of these methods. Too many of any one technique stands out. Not using "said" enough, using no dialogue tags at all, or using only beats all lead to confusion for the reader. That Biblical truth is universal: moderation is the key.

For what it's worth!

-Sonja

Happily Ever After

I read an interesting blog posting by Rebecca Luella Miller today. She was talking about how Christian fiction is "growing up" and is no longer the "poor quality" stuff that used to come out. What caught my attention was this line:  "Some Christians are troubled by writing that includes immoral behavior, while others are disturbed by stories that have happy endings."

I'll admit, I laughed when I read that line. Obviously, the title "Christian reader" can't be limited by boundaries. Not all Christian readers appreciate romances.  Not all Christian readers buy speculative fiction. Some of use won't touch a story about the end times, while others thrive on end time thrillers. Obviously, diversity is alive and well among Christian readers.  As it should be!

I write fantasy. Bad things happen to my protagonist. He's tempted by those things that tempt all men: lust, greed, anger. Yet I've heard some well-meaning Christians say they don't want to read books that have the protagonist doing something evil. They don't want to see bad things happen. They don't want to read about giving in to temptation. They want a happy ending, where the hero and heroine get married and live happily ever after raising seven kids, three dogs, a cat, a rat, and a hamster. And I'm happy there are books out there to fit the bill. Personally, I'd rather stick my finger down my throat. Conflict gets my blood racing, and there's nothing I love more than a story full of tension and fantastic elements and the unknown. I don't mind a love story subplot or a sad ending, as long as it was a fantastic ride and the ending tied up all the loose ends. I know I'm a minority in the world of Christian fiction readers, but it pleases me immensely that I can find books I like in amongst the romances, thrillers, and cozy mysteries.

God has created a fantastic world, and none of us created beings are completely alike. And THAT'S where the conflict comes from. It's a blessing to know good writers fulfill all those literary desires, and that the Christian fiction industry is, indeed, growing up, publishing a wide variety of genres by authors who've perfected their word-smithing skills.

-Sonja