Fran Shaff's Blog - Posts Tagged "writing-tips"
Flash Blogging and Characters
Stories consisting of a few hundred words, maybe a thousand words are referred to as "flash fiction."
I've been thinking about brevity in writing, and I've decided to start "flash" blogging. We're all too busy to read long posts, no matter how much we may enjoy taking in a well developed column. So, starting this week, as I resume my blogs on writing technique, for the most part, I'm going to keep my posts brief, but highly informative (hopefully).
CHARACTER CREATION is challenging for beginning writers. They wonder, how can I make the people in my stories as real as possible?
Here are two easy ways to jump start creative juices when inventing believable fictional characters.
1. Let your character emulate a real person you know or let him be a composite of two or more people you know (know personally or through the media, etc) Write a complete description of these real people, embellishing where you see fit in order to create the character you envision for your story.
2. Let your character emulate a fictional character you see as very real, someone who is as messed up, evil, good or heroic as you want your fictional character to be. Write a complete description using this fictional character and embellish as liberally as you need to in order to create the character you want.
Naturally, character development is much more complicated than this, but these two starting points are excellent places to begin to get the creative juices flowing.
Try it!
Fran
Fran Shaff, Award-Winning Author
http://sites.google.com/site/fshaff
I've been thinking about brevity in writing, and I've decided to start "flash" blogging. We're all too busy to read long posts, no matter how much we may enjoy taking in a well developed column. So, starting this week, as I resume my blogs on writing technique, for the most part, I'm going to keep my posts brief, but highly informative (hopefully).
CHARACTER CREATION is challenging for beginning writers. They wonder, how can I make the people in my stories as real as possible?
Here are two easy ways to jump start creative juices when inventing believable fictional characters.
1. Let your character emulate a real person you know or let him be a composite of two or more people you know (know personally or through the media, etc) Write a complete description of these real people, embellishing where you see fit in order to create the character you envision for your story.
2. Let your character emulate a fictional character you see as very real, someone who is as messed up, evil, good or heroic as you want your fictional character to be. Write a complete description using this fictional character and embellish as liberally as you need to in order to create the character you want.
Naturally, character development is much more complicated than this, but these two starting points are excellent places to begin to get the creative juices flowing.
Try it!
Fran
Fran Shaff, Award-Winning Author
http://sites.google.com/site/fshaff
Defining Characters by their Actions
What a person does in secret defines who he is.
I'd wrap punctuation around this statement if it were the exact quote, but I don't think it is. Nevertheless, you know what I mean.
We've all known someone either personally or politically who preaches the importance of helping those in need publicly then gives little of his time or money privately to do as he claims to advocate. We may want to call this person a hypocrite or duplicitous or maybe a dirty, rotten scoundrel.
This week I'm continuing to offer more ways for writers to define the characters in their fictional writing.
Last week we talked about using comparisons in character illustration; the week before we discussed using examples. This week we're looking at defining characters by their actions.
Here is a simple telling of a fact about Jack: "Jack is a dirty, rotten scoundrel."
To better describe Jack's private convictions so our reader can get to know him intimately we might define him in this way.
"Jack stole $60 from the blind man's donation cup when the bystanders, upon hearing a crash, turned to see the aftermath of a bus accident."
While Jack was robbing the blind man blind, Carey was doing something else.
"Carey had never had a day of medical training, but when she saw the bus accident, she went immediately to the passengers to offer whatever help and comfort she could."
While Carey was offering aid to accident victims, the driver of the bus had her own agenda.
"Louise left the driver's seat as soon as she felt the bus hit the fire hydrant. She figured if she ran off and hid for a few hours the alcohol content in her blood would no longer be high enough to warrant another DUI conviction."
Jack was a jerk.
Carey was a caring person.
Louise acts irresponsibly.
Characters are so much better illustrated when writers show who these people really are at the very core of their beings by using the characters' actions to define them.
Hope your week is a good one!
Fran
Fran Shaff, Award-Winning Author
http://sites.google.com/site/fshaff
I'd wrap punctuation around this statement if it were the exact quote, but I don't think it is. Nevertheless, you know what I mean.
We've all known someone either personally or politically who preaches the importance of helping those in need publicly then gives little of his time or money privately to do as he claims to advocate. We may want to call this person a hypocrite or duplicitous or maybe a dirty, rotten scoundrel.
This week I'm continuing to offer more ways for writers to define the characters in their fictional writing.
Last week we talked about using comparisons in character illustration; the week before we discussed using examples. This week we're looking at defining characters by their actions.
Here is a simple telling of a fact about Jack: "Jack is a dirty, rotten scoundrel."
To better describe Jack's private convictions so our reader can get to know him intimately we might define him in this way.
"Jack stole $60 from the blind man's donation cup when the bystanders, upon hearing a crash, turned to see the aftermath of a bus accident."
While Jack was robbing the blind man blind, Carey was doing something else.
"Carey had never had a day of medical training, but when she saw the bus accident, she went immediately to the passengers to offer whatever help and comfort she could."
While Carey was offering aid to accident victims, the driver of the bus had her own agenda.
"Louise left the driver's seat as soon as she felt the bus hit the fire hydrant. She figured if she ran off and hid for a few hours the alcohol content in her blood would no longer be high enough to warrant another DUI conviction."
Jack was a jerk.
Carey was a caring person.
Louise acts irresponsibly.
Characters are so much better illustrated when writers show who these people really are at the very core of their beings by using the characters' actions to define them.
Hope your week is a good one!
Fran
Fran Shaff, Award-Winning Author
http://sites.google.com/site/fshaff
Characters and Their Belief Systems
Whether or not characters in fictional stories live up to their belief systems tells readers a lot about what kind of people they are.
Consider fictional character Alvin Pastorini, a beloved preacher in Mapleton, a beautiful fictional Midwestern town.
Preacher Pastorini has a lovely, kind sixteen-year-old daughter who has become pregnant.
As a respected Christian pastor it would seem this man's reaction to his child's situation would be one of compassion.
Readers would expect this beloved and respected man to stand by his daughter and help her find Christian solutions to her challenges. Some of her options would include raising the child on her own, marrying the father and raising the child with him or placing the child for adoption.
What if, however, Reverend Pastorini secretly forces his daughter to have an abortion because he doesn't want his congregation to learn his daughter behaved immorally?
What if his daughter is so emotionally scarred by being forced into the abortion she turns to drugs and the preacher hides her away in a clinic and pays for her treatment with church funds?
Every character in every story has a belief system. As writers we can more thoroughly flesh out our characters as "real" people by showing how they live up to their belief systems.
While it may be adequate for a writer to simply tell a reader, "Reverend Pastorini was a hypocritical, cold-hearted, thieving SOB" the reader gets a much clearer picture of who Pastor Alvin Pastorini is when she sees first hand how the reverend does or doesn't live up to his belief system during challenging times.
Accountant Annie who considers herself an honest person but frequently takes home office supplies can't hide her true nature from the observing eyes of readers. The "Thou shalt not steal" sign on her desk fails to keep her on track with her belief system.
Second string Steve who secretly works after hours with first string Frank night after night to help him become the best quarterback in the conference is a shining, heroic star in the shadows of the readers' minds. Steve obviously lives by the simple motto written on a piece of notebook paper and taped to the inside of his locker door "Team work."
Showing whether or not characters live up to their belief systems is an excellent way of illustrating characters in fictional pieces.
(For more on character development, see previous posts on use of comparisons, actions and illustrations in fleshing out fictional characters.)
Fran
Fran Shaff, Award-Winning Author
http://sites.google.com/site/fshaff
Consider fictional character Alvin Pastorini, a beloved preacher in Mapleton, a beautiful fictional Midwestern town.
Preacher Pastorini has a lovely, kind sixteen-year-old daughter who has become pregnant.
As a respected Christian pastor it would seem this man's reaction to his child's situation would be one of compassion.
Readers would expect this beloved and respected man to stand by his daughter and help her find Christian solutions to her challenges. Some of her options would include raising the child on her own, marrying the father and raising the child with him or placing the child for adoption.
What if, however, Reverend Pastorini secretly forces his daughter to have an abortion because he doesn't want his congregation to learn his daughter behaved immorally?
What if his daughter is so emotionally scarred by being forced into the abortion she turns to drugs and the preacher hides her away in a clinic and pays for her treatment with church funds?
Every character in every story has a belief system. As writers we can more thoroughly flesh out our characters as "real" people by showing how they live up to their belief systems.
While it may be adequate for a writer to simply tell a reader, "Reverend Pastorini was a hypocritical, cold-hearted, thieving SOB" the reader gets a much clearer picture of who Pastor Alvin Pastorini is when she sees first hand how the reverend does or doesn't live up to his belief system during challenging times.
Accountant Annie who considers herself an honest person but frequently takes home office supplies can't hide her true nature from the observing eyes of readers. The "Thou shalt not steal" sign on her desk fails to keep her on track with her belief system.
Second string Steve who secretly works after hours with first string Frank night after night to help him become the best quarterback in the conference is a shining, heroic star in the shadows of the readers' minds. Steve obviously lives by the simple motto written on a piece of notebook paper and taped to the inside of his locker door "Team work."
Showing whether or not characters live up to their belief systems is an excellent way of illustrating characters in fictional pieces.
(For more on character development, see previous posts on use of comparisons, actions and illustrations in fleshing out fictional characters.)
Fran
Fran Shaff, Award-Winning Author
http://sites.google.com/site/fshaff
How Characters Treat Others
Words of wisdom such as "Actions speak louder than words," "These people pay me lip service" and "Do unto to others as you would have them do unto you" come to mind in thinking about this week's discussion of character definition. We're talking about defining fictional characters by the way they treat others.
Melanie Hamilton Wilkes pops into my mind when I think of a character being defined by the way she treats others. Remember how kindly she treated the prostitute Belle in "Gone with the wind?" Remember how generously the prostitute treated Rhett, Ashley and Dr. Mead when they were trying to escape the Yankee soldiers after having burnt out a dangerous encampment?
In both of these instances the attitudes these characters have toward fellow human beings goes a long way toward defining the hearts of Melanie and Belle.
In my book "Stephanie's Surprise" there is a married couple who has taken in the mentally handicapped sister of the wife. Showing this act of kindness in the early 20th Century when mentally handicapped people were often hidden in shame or institutionalized makes these folks look as though they've behaved heroically. The protagonist, Dr. Aaron Wesley, however, discovers the poor woman has been badly treated, and her sister and brother-in-law have taken her in merely to get their hands on her monthly stipend.
Showing readers the hearts of characters by revealing how they treat fellow human beings, especially in private, is highly effective in defining fictional characters.
I hope your week is beginning to show signs of spring.
Fran
Fran Shaff
http://sites.google.com/site/fshaff
Melanie Hamilton Wilkes pops into my mind when I think of a character being defined by the way she treats others. Remember how kindly she treated the prostitute Belle in "Gone with the wind?" Remember how generously the prostitute treated Rhett, Ashley and Dr. Mead when they were trying to escape the Yankee soldiers after having burnt out a dangerous encampment?
In both of these instances the attitudes these characters have toward fellow human beings goes a long way toward defining the hearts of Melanie and Belle.
In my book "Stephanie's Surprise" there is a married couple who has taken in the mentally handicapped sister of the wife. Showing this act of kindness in the early 20th Century when mentally handicapped people were often hidden in shame or institutionalized makes these folks look as though they've behaved heroically. The protagonist, Dr. Aaron Wesley, however, discovers the poor woman has been badly treated, and her sister and brother-in-law have taken her in merely to get their hands on her monthly stipend.
Showing readers the hearts of characters by revealing how they treat fellow human beings, especially in private, is highly effective in defining fictional characters.
I hope your week is beginning to show signs of spring.
Fran
Fran Shaff
http://sites.google.com/site/fshaff
Character Creation--Putting it all Together
Even with a framework for character creation in fiction it isn't easy to build compelling fictional characters. Having a guide definitely makes the job less challenging, though.
Summarizing the character creation posts of the last few weeks:
1. To nudge inspiration, begin your character creation exercises by writing a description of a real or fictional person and embellish where necessary. (See post on 1/17/11 at cavewriter.blogspot.com)
2. Show rather than tell facts about a person. "George was stupid." vs "The teacher explained four times the process of opening a jar of peanut butter, but George still did not understand the procedure." (See post on 1/24/11 at cavewriter.)
3. Compare and contrast to fully illustrate a character fact. "He moved as fluidly as Michael Jordon executing a perfect layup." instead of "He was graceful." (See post on 1/31/11 at cavewriter.)
4. Choices characters make give readers insight into their hearts. Read the post on 2/7/11 at cavewriter.blogspot.com to see how three different people react to a bus accident.
5. Whether or not a character lives up to his belief system can tell readers volumes about who he is. The preacher and the pregnancy illustration of this in the Cavewriter post on 2/14/11 shows exactly what I mean.
6. The hearts of characters are clearly illustrated by the way they treat others. Remember the example shown in last week's post at Cavewriter regarding Melanie and Belle from "Gone with the Wind?"
These six helpful ideas in character creation should go a long way in aiding writers struggling with characters as they hammer out their stories.
These points may also inspire fresh questions in the minds of writers such as "Do I use all of these ways of building characters in all of my works of fiction?" "When do I use them?" "Do I use them on all of my characters?"
Naturally, the writer is the creator when it comes to his or her stories. When, how or if writers use these techniques is totally up to them. I would suggest, however, that it might be most effective to use the type of character illustration which best suits the scene being written.
I'd also suggest interspersing these techniques throughout the story, using the most appropriate technique for each part of the story.
One more suggestion--as writers flesh out their characters before they write a word of their stories, it might be a good idea to consider answering questions about each of the character's belief systems, life choices they've made prior to the beginning of the story, how they'd treat another person given a certain situation, and things of this nature. It's very helpful to know the characters' hearts as well as their overall personalities, their connections to other people and the way they look.
Remember, the better a writer knows her characters, the more believable they become to readers when they react in ways true to who they are as they face the challenges presented to them in the plot of the story.
Still sound complicated? As I said, character creation isn't easy, but all the work necessary in building believable characters is worth the effort. It truly is.
Fran
Fran Shaff, Award-Winning Author
http://sites.google.com/site/fshaff
Summarizing the character creation posts of the last few weeks:
1. To nudge inspiration, begin your character creation exercises by writing a description of a real or fictional person and embellish where necessary. (See post on 1/17/11 at cavewriter.blogspot.com)
2. Show rather than tell facts about a person. "George was stupid." vs "The teacher explained four times the process of opening a jar of peanut butter, but George still did not understand the procedure." (See post on 1/24/11 at cavewriter.)
3. Compare and contrast to fully illustrate a character fact. "He moved as fluidly as Michael Jordon executing a perfect layup." instead of "He was graceful." (See post on 1/31/11 at cavewriter.)
4. Choices characters make give readers insight into their hearts. Read the post on 2/7/11 at cavewriter.blogspot.com to see how three different people react to a bus accident.
5. Whether or not a character lives up to his belief system can tell readers volumes about who he is. The preacher and the pregnancy illustration of this in the Cavewriter post on 2/14/11 shows exactly what I mean.
6. The hearts of characters are clearly illustrated by the way they treat others. Remember the example shown in last week's post at Cavewriter regarding Melanie and Belle from "Gone with the Wind?"
These six helpful ideas in character creation should go a long way in aiding writers struggling with characters as they hammer out their stories.
These points may also inspire fresh questions in the minds of writers such as "Do I use all of these ways of building characters in all of my works of fiction?" "When do I use them?" "Do I use them on all of my characters?"
Naturally, the writer is the creator when it comes to his or her stories. When, how or if writers use these techniques is totally up to them. I would suggest, however, that it might be most effective to use the type of character illustration which best suits the scene being written.
I'd also suggest interspersing these techniques throughout the story, using the most appropriate technique for each part of the story.
One more suggestion--as writers flesh out their characters before they write a word of their stories, it might be a good idea to consider answering questions about each of the character's belief systems, life choices they've made prior to the beginning of the story, how they'd treat another person given a certain situation, and things of this nature. It's very helpful to know the characters' hearts as well as their overall personalities, their connections to other people and the way they look.
Remember, the better a writer knows her characters, the more believable they become to readers when they react in ways true to who they are as they face the challenges presented to them in the plot of the story.
Still sound complicated? As I said, character creation isn't easy, but all the work necessary in building believable characters is worth the effort. It truly is.
Fran
Fran Shaff, Award-Winning Author
http://sites.google.com/site/fshaff
New Ideas and Inspiration
Sometimes we need to relax a little in order to get our creative juices going.
For a couple of weeks I've been looking for something new and different, something very creative, maybe even unique. I want a writing project which is totally outside of my typical writing projects, a task which is fun and humorous.
Though I knew what I wanted, I didn't know EXACTLY what I wanted. So I let the essence of what I sought simmer in the back of my mind.
All of a sudden, upon awaking recently, the idea I'd been seeking came to me. I grabbed a pen and paper and began to flesh it out.
It's funny how many times inspiration comes upon awaking, while relaxing in the sunshine or while sitting quietly for a moment or two. It seems when we clear our minds of responsibilities and "to do" lists inspiration likes to sneak in and get us thinking about something exciting and new.
I guess I'd recommend doing a little sleeping or relaxing if a person is blocked while looking for inspiration. At times we just need some recharging to get the creative juices flowing again.
Have a great week, and a happy St. Patrick's Day.
Fran
Fran Shaff, Award-Winning Author
http://sites.google.com/site/fshaff
For a couple of weeks I've been looking for something new and different, something very creative, maybe even unique. I want a writing project which is totally outside of my typical writing projects, a task which is fun and humorous.
Though I knew what I wanted, I didn't know EXACTLY what I wanted. So I let the essence of what I sought simmer in the back of my mind.
All of a sudden, upon awaking recently, the idea I'd been seeking came to me. I grabbed a pen and paper and began to flesh it out.
It's funny how many times inspiration comes upon awaking, while relaxing in the sunshine or while sitting quietly for a moment or two. It seems when we clear our minds of responsibilities and "to do" lists inspiration likes to sneak in and get us thinking about something exciting and new.
I guess I'd recommend doing a little sleeping or relaxing if a person is blocked while looking for inspiration. At times we just need some recharging to get the creative juices flowing again.
Have a great week, and a happy St. Patrick's Day.
Fran
Fran Shaff, Award-Winning Author
http://sites.google.com/site/fshaff
Rewrites and Edits Step by Step
Completing a first draft to a novel is a huge relief. By the time an author has reached this milestone, she's spent quite a bit of effort on research, character and plot development and tons of little things which go into completing a novel. She may have spent weeks, months or even years on her first draft.
Unfortunately, the relief of first draft completion is often short lived because the savvy author knows rewrites and edits to a manuscript can take as long as it took to put together the first draft.
In order to minimize the time necessary to make a manuscript just right, it sometimes helps to follow a few organizational steps which can make rewrites and edits a bit less overwhelming.
1. Let the manuscript set for at least a month. Two months would be even better. Putting time between the completion of the first draft and the beginning of first rewrites can give an author better perspective toward his project.
2. When picking up the manuscript to give it a good read through, it can be helpful for the author to look at it as though it were the work of someone else. The more objective and critical he is of the book, the better he'll do in finding flaws and areas which need further work.
3. To keep things as simple as possible it helps to examine scenes one at a time. Does each scene have a goal? Does each scene drive the plot forward? Does each scene end in a way which compels the reader to want to read more?
4. It is important to notice the way characters behave in each and every scene. Are they being true to whom they are?
5. Do turning points, the dark moment and the climax come at appropriate points in the plot?
These are a few suggestions which may help in the initial read through and rewrites.
Later, after the rewrites of plot/character are finished, come the edits. Here the writer notices such things as:
1. Character inconsistencies (Joe's blue eyes on p. 25 and green ones on p. 152).
2. Poorly written sentences or paragraphs.
3. Redundancies--overusing a word.
4. Repetition of circumstances, words, phrases.
5. Any overlooked English errors (their for they're, two for too, etc)
It's a good idea to let time lapse between rewrites and edits so the author can maintain a high level of objectivity each time she reviews her project.
Completing a first draft does have its moment of bliss, but it is soon followed by the reality of the hard work it takes to get a novel into first-rate condition.
And nothing short of our best book is owed to our readers.
Happy spring!
Fran
Fran Shaff, Award-Winning Author
http://sites.google.com/site/fshaff
Unfortunately, the relief of first draft completion is often short lived because the savvy author knows rewrites and edits to a manuscript can take as long as it took to put together the first draft.
In order to minimize the time necessary to make a manuscript just right, it sometimes helps to follow a few organizational steps which can make rewrites and edits a bit less overwhelming.
1. Let the manuscript set for at least a month. Two months would be even better. Putting time between the completion of the first draft and the beginning of first rewrites can give an author better perspective toward his project.
2. When picking up the manuscript to give it a good read through, it can be helpful for the author to look at it as though it were the work of someone else. The more objective and critical he is of the book, the better he'll do in finding flaws and areas which need further work.
3. To keep things as simple as possible it helps to examine scenes one at a time. Does each scene have a goal? Does each scene drive the plot forward? Does each scene end in a way which compels the reader to want to read more?
4. It is important to notice the way characters behave in each and every scene. Are they being true to whom they are?
5. Do turning points, the dark moment and the climax come at appropriate points in the plot?
These are a few suggestions which may help in the initial read through and rewrites.
Later, after the rewrites of plot/character are finished, come the edits. Here the writer notices such things as:
1. Character inconsistencies (Joe's blue eyes on p. 25 and green ones on p. 152).
2. Poorly written sentences or paragraphs.
3. Redundancies--overusing a word.
4. Repetition of circumstances, words, phrases.
5. Any overlooked English errors (their for they're, two for too, etc)
It's a good idea to let time lapse between rewrites and edits so the author can maintain a high level of objectivity each time she reviews her project.
Completing a first draft does have its moment of bliss, but it is soon followed by the reality of the hard work it takes to get a novel into first-rate condition.
And nothing short of our best book is owed to our readers.
Happy spring!
Fran
Fran Shaff, Award-Winning Author
http://sites.google.com/site/fshaff
News and Tips
I haven't updated my latest news here for a while so I'm going to do that before I post a few writing tips.
It is exciting to see that "Married While Intoxicated" (romantic comedy) is the # 1 BESTSELLER in short humor at Smashwords.com, and it is the # 4 Bestseller in short romance there.
Blurb: Ever do anything ill advised while under the influence? Melinda and Matthew did.
See the video for "Married While Intoxicated" at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sUmHlf...
"Married While Intoxicated" is available at major Internet E-Book Stores.
"Male Fraud," a romantic comedy novella is in the release stage. It is currently available at Amazon Kindle and is coming soon to B&N, Sony Books, I-Books, Kobo Books and more.
Blurb: Terry Fiscus disguises herself as a man in order to get a job as trainer for the pro football Chicago Cyclones. When Coach Dan Barringer meets Terry outside of work and gets to know her as the lovely "Teresa" he falls in love, and so does she. As Terry tries to manage her double life things get complicated and very funny.
See the video at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pPQ1Cj...
"Male Fraud" has just started its own page at Facebook. I'd appreciate readers stopping by to "Like" it.
Here's the link: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Male-Fr...
This week's writing tips:
1. When rejection or unfair criticism rear their ugly heads, writers should take a moment to get out a piece of work which they believe they've written really well. They should read it and know their only defeat comes when they allow rejection or unfair criticism to stop them from writing. There isn't a writer alive, no matter how successful they are in every sense of the word, who hasn't been rejected, given a bad review or had their work otherwise disparaged.
2. It's a good idea for writers to make time everyday to write even if it's only a few minutes.
3. Writers need to take a little time to celebrate accomplishments before getting back to work, no matter how many deadlines are looming.
I hope everyone has a wonderful week, full of spring sunshine.
Fran
Fran Shaff, Award-Winning Author
http://sites.google.com/site/fshaff
It is exciting to see that "Married While Intoxicated" (romantic comedy) is the # 1 BESTSELLER in short humor at Smashwords.com, and it is the # 4 Bestseller in short romance there.
Blurb: Ever do anything ill advised while under the influence? Melinda and Matthew did.
See the video for "Married While Intoxicated" at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sUmHlf...
"Married While Intoxicated" is available at major Internet E-Book Stores.
"Male Fraud," a romantic comedy novella is in the release stage. It is currently available at Amazon Kindle and is coming soon to B&N, Sony Books, I-Books, Kobo Books and more.
Blurb: Terry Fiscus disguises herself as a man in order to get a job as trainer for the pro football Chicago Cyclones. When Coach Dan Barringer meets Terry outside of work and gets to know her as the lovely "Teresa" he falls in love, and so does she. As Terry tries to manage her double life things get complicated and very funny.
See the video at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pPQ1Cj...
"Male Fraud" has just started its own page at Facebook. I'd appreciate readers stopping by to "Like" it.
Here's the link: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Male-Fr...
This week's writing tips:
1. When rejection or unfair criticism rear their ugly heads, writers should take a moment to get out a piece of work which they believe they've written really well. They should read it and know their only defeat comes when they allow rejection or unfair criticism to stop them from writing. There isn't a writer alive, no matter how successful they are in every sense of the word, who hasn't been rejected, given a bad review or had their work otherwise disparaged.
2. It's a good idea for writers to make time everyday to write even if it's only a few minutes.
3. Writers need to take a little time to celebrate accomplishments before getting back to work, no matter how many deadlines are looming.
I hope everyone has a wonderful week, full of spring sunshine.
Fran
Fran Shaff, Award-Winning Author
http://sites.google.com/site/fshaff
6 Steps to Writing a Book Synopsis
Synopsis writing is often dreaded by novelists.
Here are a few suggestions which should help make this difficult task a little easier.
1. Making an enumerated list of what's going on in a story from beginning to end helps a writer see his complete story in a nutshell.
2. From that list the writer should identify major scenes or points in the plot. These plot points, the ones the story needs to survive, should be included in the synopsis.
3. Identifying important facts about the characters is crucial. What they look like doesn't matter so much in a synopsis, but essential facts such as their objectives, motivation, determination, etc. are critical in fleshing out who these people are and what they want. Story relies heavily on characters. As with identifying plot points, it can help to make an enumerated list of facts about the characters and choose from them which aspects of these fictional people must be illustrated in the synopsis.
Once this preliminary work is completed, the writer is ready to put the synopsis together.
4. The opening. Grab the editor's attention with a good opening hook. Here's an example of an attention-getting hook which I could use for my book "Stolen Son."
A year after his wife dies, Rafe Wallace discovers his five-year-old adopted son was kidnapped when he was a baby--by Rafe's wife--and the adoption is illegal.
5. The middle. Here the author writes a novel-like story in a few pages giving the main plot points and character information as gathered from the pre-writing exercises suggested above.
It is of the utmost importance the writer makes it clear in the body of the synopsis just what the essential conflict is between the main characters.
In "Stolen Son" Rafe devises a plan to get to know the birth mother of his son so he can find out what kind of person she is. He knows he must set things right, but he won't risk bringing the birth mother into his son's life if she's a "bad" person.
The conflict: He falls in love with her, and he knows he'll lose her when he tells her the truth about her kidnapped son. Once he reveals the truth, how do they work together in their son's best interest, and how do they handle the strong feelings they have for each other--the good and the bad?
"Stolen Son" is quite dramatic. Therefore, conflict should be peppered throughout a synopsis written for this book in order to convey the intensity of the plot.
6. The conclusion of the synopsis must include the ending of the story. Answer all the questions raised in your plot description. A writer must not "leave the editor hanging" thinking this will encourage her to want to read the book. She needs to know the complete story in order to decide if she'd be interested in reading the book and considering adding it to her publisher's collection.
These six steps are an overview of synopsis construction. It is important to keep in mind there are many details which are essential to making a synopsis flow smoothly and pique an editor's interest. Some quick points:
A. Use present tense in telling the story.
B. Use third person for the synopsis even if the book is written in first person.
C. Keep the synopsis as short as possible while still telling the complete story.
D. Using dialogue in a synopsis isn't usually a good idea unless the writer feels a brief bit of dialogue is essential in illustrating a character trait or plot point.
E. Choosing strong, descriptive verbs and nouns and eliminating adjectives and adverbs as much as possible will give the synopsis more punch with fewer words.
I wish I could say this lesson is "Synopsis Writing Made Easy," but, in the 10 plus years I've been writing, I've always been in the group of writers who think writing synopses is one of the hardest parts of being an author.
Good luck with whatever you're writing this week!
Fran
Fran Shaff, Award-Winning Author
http://sites.google.com/site/fshaff
Here are a few suggestions which should help make this difficult task a little easier.
1. Making an enumerated list of what's going on in a story from beginning to end helps a writer see his complete story in a nutshell.
2. From that list the writer should identify major scenes or points in the plot. These plot points, the ones the story needs to survive, should be included in the synopsis.
3. Identifying important facts about the characters is crucial. What they look like doesn't matter so much in a synopsis, but essential facts such as their objectives, motivation, determination, etc. are critical in fleshing out who these people are and what they want. Story relies heavily on characters. As with identifying plot points, it can help to make an enumerated list of facts about the characters and choose from them which aspects of these fictional people must be illustrated in the synopsis.
Once this preliminary work is completed, the writer is ready to put the synopsis together.
4. The opening. Grab the editor's attention with a good opening hook. Here's an example of an attention-getting hook which I could use for my book "Stolen Son."
A year after his wife dies, Rafe Wallace discovers his five-year-old adopted son was kidnapped when he was a baby--by Rafe's wife--and the adoption is illegal.
5. The middle. Here the author writes a novel-like story in a few pages giving the main plot points and character information as gathered from the pre-writing exercises suggested above.
It is of the utmost importance the writer makes it clear in the body of the synopsis just what the essential conflict is between the main characters.
In "Stolen Son" Rafe devises a plan to get to know the birth mother of his son so he can find out what kind of person she is. He knows he must set things right, but he won't risk bringing the birth mother into his son's life if she's a "bad" person.
The conflict: He falls in love with her, and he knows he'll lose her when he tells her the truth about her kidnapped son. Once he reveals the truth, how do they work together in their son's best interest, and how do they handle the strong feelings they have for each other--the good and the bad?
"Stolen Son" is quite dramatic. Therefore, conflict should be peppered throughout a synopsis written for this book in order to convey the intensity of the plot.
6. The conclusion of the synopsis must include the ending of the story. Answer all the questions raised in your plot description. A writer must not "leave the editor hanging" thinking this will encourage her to want to read the book. She needs to know the complete story in order to decide if she'd be interested in reading the book and considering adding it to her publisher's collection.
These six steps are an overview of synopsis construction. It is important to keep in mind there are many details which are essential to making a synopsis flow smoothly and pique an editor's interest. Some quick points:
A. Use present tense in telling the story.
B. Use third person for the synopsis even if the book is written in first person.
C. Keep the synopsis as short as possible while still telling the complete story.
D. Using dialogue in a synopsis isn't usually a good idea unless the writer feels a brief bit of dialogue is essential in illustrating a character trait or plot point.
E. Choosing strong, descriptive verbs and nouns and eliminating adjectives and adverbs as much as possible will give the synopsis more punch with fewer words.
I wish I could say this lesson is "Synopsis Writing Made Easy," but, in the 10 plus years I've been writing, I've always been in the group of writers who think writing synopses is one of the hardest parts of being an author.
Good luck with whatever you're writing this week!
Fran
Fran Shaff, Award-Winning Author
http://sites.google.com/site/fshaff
Got a Great Idea for a Book?
Pretty much every time I've done a book signing at least one person (usually more) comes up to me and says, "I've got a great idea for a book..."
Each person then proceeds to tell me a bit about his idea. In turn, I encourage him to take the time to develop his idea. After all, I think there is a writer in all of us. We all communicate, therefore, we can all write.
Whether a person is keeping a diary, attempting to put together a short story, or covering a news story for his hometown paper, he's communicating via written word. He's transcribing thoughts or opinions or facts onto his computer, notebook or other writing device. He's writing!
No one knows until she tries whether or not she has the ability to persevere in developing that novel idea into a wonderful book.
So, if a person really, REALLY, wants to see that sparkling idea come to life in a mass of compelling words, she should begin writing today.
I truly do hope that those who've talked with me at past book signings about their ideas for books and those who will talk to me about ideas at future book signings will go on to write wonderful stories, for their sakes and for the sakes of us readers too!
Fran
Fran Shaff, Award-Winning Author
http://sites.google.com/site/fshaff
Each person then proceeds to tell me a bit about his idea. In turn, I encourage him to take the time to develop his idea. After all, I think there is a writer in all of us. We all communicate, therefore, we can all write.
Whether a person is keeping a diary, attempting to put together a short story, or covering a news story for his hometown paper, he's communicating via written word. He's transcribing thoughts or opinions or facts onto his computer, notebook or other writing device. He's writing!
No one knows until she tries whether or not she has the ability to persevere in developing that novel idea into a wonderful book.
So, if a person really, REALLY, wants to see that sparkling idea come to life in a mass of compelling words, she should begin writing today.
I truly do hope that those who've talked with me at past book signings about their ideas for books and those who will talk to me about ideas at future book signings will go on to write wonderful stories, for their sakes and for the sakes of us readers too!
Fran
Fran Shaff, Award-Winning Author
http://sites.google.com/site/fshaff
