Seven Hurdles For New Writers: Number Two

Number Two:  Make it Read Well

Newbies make mistakes.  Everyone does it.  How stuff sounds matters.  People have to think.  Sentences matter.  Length is important.  Vary for effect.  The same thing gets old.

Whew!  That made me tired.  Hopefully, you noticed how monotonous the above paragraph sounded.  Rule number two for more effective writing?  Readability.  Varying sentence length is essential to good writing because it improves the flow of your story.  It can be taxing for your reader if every sentence has the same or similar amount of syllables.  Varying sentence length helps keep things moving.  Seems like such a simple suggestion.  It works.

The best way to check the flow of your story is to read it aloud.  Trust your ear.  If it doesn't read easily--if there is no natural rhythm, considering revising.

Remember:  If there is no flow, it has gotta go.  (Cheesy, but true...)

Seven Hurdles For New Writers

Hurdle Number One:  SHOW, don't tell.

When I started practicing the craft of writing, this was the first piece of advice I heard from more seasoned writers.  Amateurs tell.  Authors show.

But telling is so easy.  Let's face facts.  Telling is easier, but is it better?  You be the judge:

TELLING:
Jenny became nervous.

SHOWING:
Jenny's hands trembled and a cold sweat dampened the back of her neck.

Which example would you rather read?  Which gives the clearer, more interesting picture?

This rule kicked my butt when I started writing.  I told everything.  I still find myself desiring the lazy way out of telling instead of showing.  I fight the "tell hurdle" every time I write.  Now, unless it slips past me, the only slack I give myself concerning this rule is if my story is in first person and it fits the personality of my main character, who is talking to the reader.  Otherwise, I try to catch those sloppy "tells" and rewrite them.  It takes time, but it is worth it.

I Love Your Ghost Stories

While browsing signatures in an old elementary school yearbook, I came across something interesting.  More than wishing me well, or saying they would never forget me, or exclaiming their joy at being the first one to sign my crack (yep, that one still makes me giggle), my classmates inevitably repeated one wish for me—one sixth-grade mantra:  “Keep making up stuff.  I love your ghost stories!”

By late elementary school some girls were known as brainiacs or cheerleaders, others as athletes, some as beauty queens.  Me?  I was the class storyteller.  My forte?  Ghost stories.  Yep.  Sixth-grade girl-version of Stephen King. 

I told the classics—headless specters and haunted farmhouses, black velvet ribbon, the bloody hook.  Kathryn Tucker Windham didn’t have jack on me.  (Take that, Jeffrey!) And when I ran out of stories to tell, I made up new ones.  I told stories on the bus, stories on the playground, and stories at the top of the gym bleachers.  I told stories anytime my sixth-grade teacher let me stand up in front of the class.  (God bless you, Mrs. P.)

Turns out, some people are inherently born storytellers.  I am one of them.  The question I pose to you is, “Are the terms storyteller and writer interchangeable?”  If so, why?  If not, in your opinion which aspect is more important, storytelling or writing?

Personally, I think storytellers are born and writers are made.  Every storyteller has a story and if you are around them for more than five minutes, you are going to hear it.  They can’t help it.  It’s in their nature.  It is who they are.  Writers, on the other hand often take years to learn, practice, and master their craft.  Solid writing takes natural talent, but I believe it is an acquired skill.

So, is MacLaney Blue a storyteller or a writer?  I’d like to think I’m a little of both.  What do you think?  Check out my new book, The Heat, and give me your opinion.  (Dang, how was that for a smooth transition into shameless-plug mode?)

ttyl guys,

Laney

LINK for kindle version of, The Heat

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:)

The Heat available NOW for kindle at Amazon.com

Drum roll, please...

My new novel, The Heat, is officially available for kindle at Amazon.com  (If you could see me right now, you would know I'm doing a SERIOUS happy dance!)  *big grin*

To purchase, go to the kindle store and search:  maclaney blue

If you don't have a kindle or a compatible ereader, you can download a free kindle viewer for your computer at Amazon.com so you can read ebooks.

And my sweet, wonderful, lovely readers--I would love to hear your feedback.  If you snag a copy of The Heat, would you be so kind as to write a quick review at Amazon.com to let future readers know what you thought of my book?

Whew.  I spun around so much, me thinks I'm a bit woozy.  Fat chicks really ought not do the happy dance at 2 a.m.  Bleh.

The Skeleton That Holds It All Together

People sometimes ask me how I write a story.  In particular, they want to know how to take on something as huge as completing a novel.  My answer?  Think of it in sections or increments, instead of one huge task.

The starting point of every story for me is to outline three main aspects:

1.  MAIN CHARACTER

Who is the protagonist (main character)?

Write out everything you can conceive about them. 

(I do this for all essential characters to my story)

Physical, emotional, and spiritual traits. 

Habits.  Quirks.  Allergies.  Hopes.  Dreams.  Environment.

Are they allergic to shellfish?

Perhaps they collected bottle caps as a child.

Do they twist their pinkie ring when they are nervous?

The more you define every aspect of your protagonist, the more you know them.  Even if  all the things you write don’t make it into your story, just knowing the details of your character’s life will help you write them more convincingly.  In my new novel, The Heat, my main character Maggie Sheldon is crazy about dessert.  In particular, she is addicted to strawberry cream-filled donuts.

2.  PRIMARY CONFLICT

What challenge(s) does this character face?

This is the meat of your story.

Without an obstacle or foe to overcome, the story line is flat. 

A complex plot will contain one primary conflict and a few other smaller obstacles for your character to attempt to overcome.  (And remember, they don't always HAVE to overcome every obstacle.  Sometimes loosing the battle is what shapes the growth/outcome of your main character.  Keep it realistic.)

3.  RESOLUTION

How does your protagonist deal with the issue(s) he/she faces?

Will there be a happily ever after? 

Do they defeat the bad guy? 

Overcome the obstacle? 

Or do they get their butt kicked but have the inner strength to accept the defeat and keep pressing forward?  In essence, how does the conflict change the character's life?

These three items are the essential elements to your plot.  They are the framework to build your story upon.  Start with a well-defined main character, a strong conflict and a creative resolution.  The rest will fall into place as you write.