I'm also looking forward to meeting Sandra Bishop from the MacGregor Literary Agency and Nick Harrison from Harvest House, who's teaching a course on Selling Your Fiction in Tough Economic Times. I imagine he'll say something about how writing a spectacular novel is the best way to do this, but we'll see.
When it's over, I'll blog all the highlights, so stay tuned.
-Sonja
Sun Tzu presented orderly principles to his generals for battle planning. Bell ran with the idea and offers a collection of principles for writing that will help authors "write stronger books and win the battle to get and stay published." The book's divided into three sections: Reconnaissance, Tactics, and Strategy.
My favorite part was Tactics, which has 33 techniques regarding the craft of writing, and contains all sorts of delicious tidbits. I can't share them all, but I'll share a favorite or two.
Tactic #45 says "Progressive Revelation Keeps Readers Turning Pages." The first couple sentences sum it up nicely: "Reveal your plot incrementally. That means leaving mystery inherent and unfolding things progressively." This isn't the first time I've heard this advice, but it bears repeating. I find myself setting up a beautiful mystery, then feeling compelled to dump an explanation immediately thereafter. Instead, I should dole out the revelations in tiny bits to keep the reader involved. After all, I don't want my precious reader stuffing in a bookmark and reaching for the tv remote!
Tactic #50 was a hard one for me. It says, "Success may be found in three great scenes, and no weak ones." Basically, my book has to have three fabulous scenes that stand out from the rest, "packed with conflict, emotion, and surprise." The hardest part, for me, was the "no weak ones" - there can't be a single weak scene in the entire book. Bell identifies a weak scene as one that feels "like fluff or filler. No one is really going after anything. There's a lot of sitting around, small talk, waiting, reacting." Identifying weak scenes in my own writing is tough, so I'll have to rely on my critique partners to point them out to me.
This book is packed with gems like these. It's definitely worth the price, and it's the right size to stuff in a stocking. Go ahead and get one for yourself!
-Sonja
I listened to the lecture the moment it finished downloading, all in
one shot, even chasing the kids out of the room when they complained
about wanting lunch. And it was worth it. Though compelled to share
everything I learned, I can't do that to Mr. Olson. You'll have to buy
the lecture if you want to absorb all his wisdom. But I will share the
concept I found the most helpful in my own writing.
Every scene should give the reader an emotional response. The words I chose, the mood I create, the character's emotional reactions, all
should enhance the central tension, the emotional response I want the
reader to have.
Olson used an example from his book Shade. He wanted the reader to
feel fear for the protagonist, Hailey. She believed she was being
followed, and made her away through a building to a place of safety.
Olson used phrases like "aftertaste of decay and wet rat" and
"fighting the urge to break into a run." He used verbs like "lunged"
and "escaped." He used visuals like "the door closed behind her with a
sigh" and "the floor was quiet as a tomb." These word choices all
worked along with the action of the scene to set the mood of fear for
the reader.
I chose a scene from my current WIP and identified what I wanted the
reader to feel as he read. Then I went through and re-worked the
scene, adding phrases, changing verbs, intensifying the character's
emotional responses, all with the goal of stimulating the reader's
emotions in the direction I wanted them to go. What a power rush! It
was fun, too. I can't wait to move on to the next scene and manipulate
the reader's emotional responses some more.
For what it's worth,
-Sonja
Mistake number one, according to Mr. Hyatt, is: You Don't Post Enough.
I immediately noticed that I am guilty of this mistake. Not only am I
guilty, but I've been aware of this mistake for quite a while now and
have managed to NOT fix it.
Here's the deal. I like to blog. I like to post pithy comments and
pass on creative ideas and paste in remarkable quotes. So why don't I?
After pondering a good six minutes, I came to this conclusion: I don't
post often enough because I feel I don't have anything to say that's
worth reading.
Ain't that a hoot? I, who routinely overshoot my projected word count
by a good 20,000 words, can't think of anything to write in a blog. Or
I think of something, then wonder if anyone will be interested in
reading about it. The funniest part of this whole conundrum is that
when I DO finally post something, I usually get good feedback from my three loyal readers. They don't always post comments, but I hear from them in emails or in person.
The fix for this problem is pretty easy. Post More Often. I should be
able to do, for what it's worth. I shall try harder this next year.
Promise.
-Sonja
Character
Premise, Plot, Pacing
Reader Satisfaction, Renewal, Revision
If your story is sinking, delving into these concepts can help pull
the story back out.
First, take a look at your main character. He has a conflict, a
problem to solve, an obstacle to overcome. As he moves through the
story, how is he dealing with this problem? Are the obstacles too
easy? Or so hard he can't get past them? Does he make mistakes, or
simply skate through them without a backward glance? Finding a balance here could help resuscitate your story and get it moving again.
Stories lose momentum when the plot strays too far from the central
conflict, and too many subplots may confuse the reader. Focus
carefully on the main plot. Is it too predictable? Can the reader 'see
what's coming' long before you get there? Is your character intimately
involved with the conflict, or is it too far removed from him? The
closer the character is to the conflict, the more sympathy the reader
feels, and the better the story moves along. If your story isn't
moving along, maybe your plot needs to be adjusted.
Lastly, revise any weak writing in the story. Look for redundancy: is
your narrative repeating what your characters are already saying and
doing? Look for exposition overkill: do your action scenes droop with
too much description? Look for style predictability: do you have too
many long sentences? Do your dialogue tags disappear? Do you rely too heavily on adverbs? Alter your patterns and see if that helps.
For what it's worth.
-Sonja
Hunter brown and the Secret of the Shadow by the Miller Brothers
Getting the Words Right by Theodore Rees Cheney
Several Stephanie Plum novels by Janet Evanovich
Gone for Good by Harlan Coben
Conspiracy in Death by JD Robb
Several VI Warshawski books by Sara Paretsky
Several Robert Crais novels (two stand-alone and an Elvis Cole)
How to Write a Mystery by Larry Beinhart
Camelot Caper by Elizabeth Peters
Welcome to the Jungle, a Dresden Files book by Jim Butcher
So many books, so little time... (sigh)
-Sonja
Becky Miller, a giant in the world of speculative Christian fiction,
made her own list (only 70 on hers). I thought it'd be fun to play
her game and see how many of the books on her list I'd read. An X
indicates I've read the book.
Til We Have Faces – C.S. Lewis X
The Good Earth – Pearl S. Buck
Out of the Silent Planet – C.S. Lewis X
Perelandra – C.S. Lewis X
That Hideous Strength – C.S. Lewis X
The Scarlet Pimpernel – Baroness Orczy
Christy – Catherine Marshall X
The Black Stallion – Walter Farley
Fathers and Sons – Ivan Turgenev
Treasure Island – Robert Lewis Stevenson X
Lord Foul's Bane – Stephen R. Donaldson
The Illearth War – Stephen R. Donaldson
The Power that Preserves – Stephen R. Donaldson
The Assassin's Apprentice – Robin Hobb X
The Book of Three – Lloyd Alexander
The Black Cauldron – Lloyd Alexander
The Castle of Llyr – Lloyd Alexander
Taran Wanderer – Lloyd Alexander
The High King – Lloyd Alexander
Magicin: Apprentice – Raymond E. Feist
Chocolate Beach – Julie Carobini
Truffles by the Sea – Julie Carobini
The Secret Life of Becky Miller – Sharon Hinck X
Renovating Becky Miller – Sharon Hinck
A Promise to Remember – Kathryn Cushman
Waiting for Daybreak – Kathryn Cushman
The Feast of St. Bertie – Kathleen Popa
To Dance in the Desert – Kathleen Popa
Every Good and Perfect Gift – Sharon Sousa
When the Shofar Blew – Francine Rivers
Raising Dragons – Bryan Davis
Isle of Swords – Wayne Thomas Batson
The Year the Swallows Came Early – Kathryn Fitzmaurice
Something Wicked – Alan Gratz
Savvy – Ingrid Law
The Bark of the Bog Owl – Jonathan Rogers
The Book of Names – D. Barkley Briggs
Landon Snow and the Auctor's Riddle – R. K. Mortenson
On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness – Andrew Peterson
DragonFire – Donita Paul X
Winter Haven – Athol Dickson
Heaven's Wager – Ted Dekker
The Hidden – Kathryn Mackel X
Scarlet – Stephen Lawhead
Tuck – Stephen Lawhead
Autumn Dreams – Gayle Roper
Tiger Lily – Lisa Samson
My Name is Russell Fink – Michael Snyder
Forgiving Solomon Long – Chris Well
Demon: A Memoir – Tosca Lee
Gideon's Dawn – Michale Warden
The Restorer – Sharon Hinck X
Arena – Karen Hancock X
The Light of Eidon – Karen Hancock X
The Legend of the Firefish – George Bryan Polivka X
Blaggard's Moon – George Bryan Polivka
Auralia's Colors – Jeffrey Overstreet X
Beyond Summerland – L. B. Graham
Guardian of the Veil – Gregory Spencer X
Hunter Brown and the Secret of the Shadow – Christoper and Allan Miller
The Mill on the Floss – George Eliot
The Return of the Native – Thomas Hardy
Pilgrim's Progress – John Bunyan X
Where the Red Fern Grows – Wilson Rawls X
The Yearling – Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings
The Diamond of Darkhold – Jeanne DuPrau
Little Women – Louisa May Alcott X
Canterbury Tales – Chaucer
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer – Mark Twain X
Sir Gibbie – George MacDonald
If I counted right, I've read 19 of the 70 - not so great. Becky did
the same thing as the BBC, though - listed only a few books by an
author, instead of all of them. And why is Little Women in a list of
speculative Christian fiction? (For that matter, Robin Hobb isn't
Christian, although her books had some fantastic moral lessons to
teach). I think Becky's list should be expanded to 100. How about
adding these?
The Shadow Within – Karen Hancock X
Shadow of Kiriath – Karen Hancock X
Return of the Guardian King – Karen Hancock X
Dream Thief – Steven R. Lawhead X
Emperion – Steven R. Lawhead X
Siege of Fiera – Steven R. Lawhead X
In the Hall of the Dragon King – Steven R. Lawhead X
The Warlords of Nin – Steven R. Lawhead X
The Sword and the Flame – Steven R. Lawhead X
Taliesin – Steven R. Lawhead X
Merlin – Steven R. Lawhead X
Arthur – Steven R. Lawhead X
Pendragon – Steven R. Lawhead X
Grail – Steven R. Lawhead
Byzantium – Steven R. Lawhead X
Royal Assassin – Robin Hobb X
Assassin's Quest – Robin Hobb X
Ship of Magic – Robin Hobb X
The Mad Ship – Robin Hobb X
Ship of Destiny – Robin Hobb X
Fool's Errand – Robin Hobb X
Golden Fool – Robin Hobb X
Fool's Fate – Robin Hobb X
Lillith – George McDonald X
Three – Ted Dekker X
Boneman's Daughter – Ted Dekker
House – Ted Dekker X
Shade – John B. Olson X
Adrenaline – John B. Olson X
Dragon's Keep – Janet Lee Carey X
Now my count is 47 out of 100. Not too bad. Don't get me started on a
list of mysteries... For what it's worth.
-Sonja
