Which way is best?

We all want to be as efficient as possible when writing. Our most valuable resource is time. Our time is irreplaceable. The clock is always ticking and it always moves forward.

Is it better to put words on the page as fast as you can type? Or is it better to write with slow deliberation, choosing the perfect word or phrase to convey the exact nuances you want your reader to understand?

I’m sure you already know the answer—the method that works best for you is the best one to use.

Being the Hare

The hare bursts forth from the starting block as fast as he can. The video in his head is already queued up and ready to roll while his fingers race to put it all down in writing. Write until the video comes to an end or time is no longer available, whichever comes first.

• This is the best way to approach NaNoWriMo where the goal is to write 50,000 words in the month of November. Quantity trumps quality. The goal is to get from point A to point B and have a body of writing substantial enough to make it worth moving forward with it.
• You need a solid understanding of your plot before starting to write if you use this method. If you think you can make it up as you go along, you may find that you have written yourself into a corner and have to back the train down the tracks to reconnect with the intended story. Or you may end up with a very different book than you started out to write.
• In any event, the finished result is only an embarrassing first draft. Take a deep breath and a significant break before diving in again for edits.

Being the Tortoise

The tortoise begins his day by examining the prepared map of the story. With the goal firmly in mind, the day begins by reading the work of the previous day. If possible, reading out loud to check the rhythm and flow of dialogue. He inserts commas, changes a few words as he reads, and generally cleans up any rough spots in the writing to date. This will produce a smoother and cleaner first draft.

• Reading over the prior pages will reinforce the character traits, speech patterns, and details that need to continue throughout the book. It will also delay the beginning of the addition of new work for the day.
• Word choices can be refined. “She was afraid.” can be replaced by something that aligns with the internal video. Afraid? Does that mean anxious or worried? Does it mean terrified? Make your words draw the pictures with sharp edges.
• Being a good tortoise means apportioning your time appropriately. Don’t get lost in the minutia of perfect words and comma placement. Keep the big picture front and center of your thinking. Always remember that big picture edits can eliminate chunks of text. Like everything else, it is a question of balance. Look for obvious improvements. This is not the time for final polishing.

What works for you?

My own approach to writing is to start as a hare. The beginning of a new project is always exciting, and the words tumble off the ends of my fingers so fast the letters are often reversed or even skipped. As long as I can keep up the momentum, I will continue to write in bursts of speed. Then comes the day I sit down and search for the next sentence or paragraph. That day I will become a tortoise and begin reading out loud and beefing up the narrative.

If you are beginning your writing career, getting the skeleton of the story on paper as soon as possible is probably a good route to take. My opinion is that they both take about the same amount of time to produce a polished manuscript. One method leaves all the polishing to the subsequent drafts, while the other method incorporates a lot of the basic editing during the writing process.

P.S. This article also appears as part of the Writing Women newsletter written by three writing women that comes out twice a month at https://writingwomen.substack.com. If you enjoyed this, why not subscribe to the free newsletter and get more helpful tips along with short fiction pieces.

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Naming Characters? Be kind to your readers

Characters need less and less detail as they have smaller roles

Not long ago I was concerned that I might not be able to fulfill my New Years’ Resolution of reading 21 books in 2021. One of the reasons for this was the relatively large number of books I did not finish due to problems with the writing that squashed the joy of reading. Surprisingly, when I shifted genres from cozy mysteries to YA fantasy, I found the reading more satisfying. Since I enjoy both genres (and many others), I believe it was just coincidence.

I am pleased to report that I exceeded my goal with ease and am still reading voraciously. I stumbled on boxed sets of delightful young adult books. The plots were entertaining, and the writing was good—not excellent, but good. The first set had nine books, and I read and enjoyed them all.

The second was also a set of nine, written as three trilogies. I read the first two trilogies, but the third did not hold my attention. I did not find the characters as interesting. The third box set had eight books, and I read them all because I liked the characters and the story held my interest. The writing was not consistent. In the last book or two all the characters began smirking—sometimes several times on a single page. Ugh! The characters lost a lot of their individuality and their dialogue became almost indistinguishable as the snarky humor spread to infect them all.

As a writer and editor, I cannot read without picking up on the things that bother me. I read for the joy of reading, but also to learn what I can about the craft. Like many readers, I read quickly and often take shortcuts. One of these shortcuts is not storing the names of tertiary characters. I have enough trouble remembering the names of real people I speak to regularly. I don’t have the bandwidth to remember characters who walk across the stage in one or two chapters of a novel.

1. If you must name two secondary or tertiary characters with names that begin with the same letter, please make the names markedly different in length. The outline or picture of the name should be distinct—especially with names that are not familiar. Don’t make the reader read every letter before recognizing the character.

2. You do not have to name every person who appears in the work—especially in a nine-volume boxed set. Some characters can be identified by a physical characteristic or a title, etc. One rule of thumb that might be useful is to remember that characters who do not have character arcs seldom need names,

3. Please do not introduce too many characters at once. I must work hard to remember names of real people I meet at a gathering—I don’t want to have to work hard to read a book.

4. Please don’t change things mid-stream. The latest book I read switched from last names to first names as the relationships became less formal. It was fine for the major characters, but the secondary characters never sorted themselves out in my head. Remember that you the writer have been living with these characters far longer than I have. I live with your characters for a few hours whereas you have been living with them for weeks, months, or even years. The intimate backgrounds that you construct as you write give the characters depth, but I don’t have access to your character sheets.

5. My final suggestion is to make sure you do make character sheets. If a character, no matter how minor, has been named, for goodness sake, please keep the same name with the same spelling throughout the entire book or series. The same is true, of course, for eye color, mannerisms, or other traits that make them unique. Anything else tells the reader you are not taking your craft seriously.

If you want to find some interesting short pieces, author interviews, or other tips for writers, you can sign up for the free newsletter published semi-monthly by three writing women.

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“If you don’t have the time to read, you don’t have the time or the tools to write.”
― Stephen King

Writing Short Stories

Some writers love writing short stories. They love the attention to detail. They love the master stroke of a twist at the end. Other writers decry the lack of space to develop character and intricate plots. Whichever camp you belong to, short stories can help get your name out in the world as a writer.

The following is taken from my writing in a recent issue of the free Writing Women newsletter.

A simple internet search reveals there are 5 steps to writing a short story. No, it’s 6 simple steps. Oops, 9 proven steps. Apparently, both Neil Gaiman and Kurt Vonnegut had 8 rules, but not the same rules. One website pared that to 5 important rules. Another found 7 immutable rules, and yet another found 24. Scrolling a bit more reveals the 5, 9, or 10 elements of a short story. Stop! We’re here for the Readin’ and Ritin’ not the Rithmetic.

Let’s take it word by word.

• Writing — a good short story, must follow the same general principals of writing. To name a few: 
  • The reader wants to connect with the protagonist. Characters must have depth and emotion.
  • The setting should contain just enough description to allow the reader to build a mental picture, but bear in mind that sometimes the setting is a character.
  • Short pieces are good places to display your versatility. Look for powerful verbs and descriptors to convey maximum meaning with few words. 
• Short — Make sure every word counts. After writing the story, go through it paragraph by paragraph, sentence by sentence, and word by word making sure each element moves the story forward.
  • Focus on one aspect of the story: character, action, setting, and atmosphere must be there, but one must dominate.
  • Leave the complicated conflicts, inner tensions, and convoluted plots for your next novel.
  • Sketch your characters and your descriptions with as few words as possible. Leave out any unnecessary details, but don’t leave things so nebulous the reader is left adrift.
• Stories— The plot must evoke emotion in the characters. The conflict and its resolution are vital elements, but without emotion your story will be flat.
  • Keep your story coherent by sticking to one character’s point of view. This does not have to be the protagonist, and often suspense requires the POV character to be secondary and not privy to the protagonist’s thoughts.
  • Limit your characters, but not your imagination.
  • The piece should flow from beginning to a satisfying end.

If you want to find some interesting short pieces, you can sign up for the free newsletter published semi-monthly by three writing women.

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“Ideas are like rabbits. You get a couple and learn how to handle them, and pretty soon you have a dozen.”
― John Steinbeck

Blog of Accountability

Lot of room for improvement

My last blog announced two New Years Resolutions. I haven’t given up or abandoned them…yet. However, I have been procrastinating writing this blog of accountability, hoping to be able to announce a stellar performance. Three stars is not exactly stellar.

FIRST RESOLUTION: Reading for enjoyment
In nearly four months, I have read four and three halves books. I reviewed three of the books. The fourth book I considered mediocre so I did not review it. The fifth book I abandoned half way through. There are too many good books out there to waste my time on a book in which the main character annoyed me. I’m still working on the sixth book, but I put it down and started another one. I may pick it up again.

Helpful hint for writers: If you are going to write a book featuring someone who lies to her best friend, breaks promises, and lives like a slob, there better be a character arc that shows self-recognition of flaws and at least attempts at improvement if you want your reader to bond with the character. I skipped to the last chapter to find out whodunnit and found the character unchanged. So much for finding a series I could binge read.

SECOND RESOLUTION: Expand my reach as a writer
In February, I joined two other writers and did an online book launch for my new food memoir Breakfast in Palestine. This was a new experience, and it was a lot of fun. Terry Korth Fischer launched her debut mystery Gone Astray, and Linda Harris Sittig featured Counting Crows, the third book in her Threads of Courage series of historical novels.

Helpful hint for writers: You can always benefit from teamwork. We are not rivals, we are colleagues. We each have a unique platform and followers—even if our platform is small. In our case, we were writing in three different genres, yet our target readers were similar, and we would each benefit from the overlap.

Will I make my goals by the end of the year? I don’t know, but being a writer has taught me that success does not come without hard work. I will keep trying.

PS: If you have any suggestions for me, please leave a comment. Bear in mind, I want to read for enjoyment, and for me that means a happy ending (no romance, please).

21 in 2021

Flying in the face of all known evidence, I still make New Years Resolutions and encourage others to do the same. Yes, I remember my blog post saying that nearly a third of all New Years Resolutions are abandoned in the first two weeks of the year.

But I really mean it this time. Echoes of five-year-olds everywhere. This time is different because I’m resolving to do something I want to do—for me. I want to read just for fun. This means while I’m reading I’m going to ignore the twenty ebooks on writing that I just downloaded. I’m going to ignore the tsunami of submissions that I should be reading. I’m going to ignore dirty laundry, unmade beds, and quarreling dust bunnies. And the most important part is I’m going to ignore my nagging conscience while I do it. 🙂

Unfortunately, my conscience is a real nag. I was only two pages into my first book of the year when it started screaming at me. The only way I could get it to leave me alone during my reading time was to make another resolution. So I did.

1. Read 21 books in 2021 for pure entertainment.

2. Do 21 things to expand my reach as a writer by going outside my comfort zone. This means writing in new ways and venturing into the dreaded land of Marketing.

So why am I writing about this? Following my own advice, I am writing this to set up an accountability check. I’ll take you along with me on the journey into new territory and let you know how well things are going.

Today I have accomplished one step: I have dipped a toe into the water and posted a partial cover reveal on my Facebook page, something I have never done before. Later today I intend to curl up on the couch with a cozy quilt and a hot cuppa to get to know the characters in my new book.