Blog Rewind: All There Is

In honor of reaching 600 posts on Blogger I am re-posting an entry from 2011.  It's one of my favorites and every word is still as true today as it was when I wrote it.

I watch the new television series ‘Once Upon A Time’ and I’m not going to answer the obvious question of why. Instead I’m going to pose another question…why aren’t you?

One of the main characters is a small boy who is in therapy because he believes the entire town is cursed and every person in it is actually a fairytale character. Only they don’t remember who they are. On the last episode his psychiatrist (who is actually Jiminy Cricket) asked him why he needed to believe this so desperately. His answer?

Because this can’t be all there is.

That one phrase is why I write the stories I do, and read the ones I love. It is the single most defining and brilliant answer I have ever heard to describe the deep need to believe in more than just what we can see with our own eyes. It is why all things fantasy, high and low, urban and whatever else you want to label it holds my attention like no other story can.

This can’t be all there is.

When a suburban housewife can write a story that induces a hysteria of emotion in 99% of the teenage female population, or a single mother can create an entire world of breathless magical possibilities from a jotted outline on a napkin, or a struggling English teacher can become the foremost authority on all things horror…it proves magic does exist. It’s in the words. Our wand may have Bic written on the side but it is filled with power. One simple truth burns within to guide us onward.

This is not all there is.

Insecure Writers:Ready or Not...

To query or not to query, that is the question. When do you know you’re ready? When you’ve combed through your story a hundred times? Check. Had someone you trust critique every single line? Check. Fixed obvious plot holes left from that middle of the night caffeine induced burst of inspiration when you changed the story completely? Check. Read entire manuscript out loud despite crazy looks from family? Check.

Wrote stunning query letter sure to blow prospective dream agents out of their office chairs in seizures of happiness? Well…I think so. But despite my feelings, I am leaving it to simmer on a back burner for a few weeks. When I return, I am hoping to find the brilliance I’m sure I left on the page but I’ve been in this position before. My biggest fear is sending out the query too soon, and thereby blowing my shot at those top ten agents I’d sell my soul for.

I think a little insecurity in this case might be a good thing. It might prevent me from acting impulsively. But I refuse to let fear cripple me forever so at some point I am moving forward…ready or not.

Here I come.


This post has been part of The Insecure Writer's Support Group.  Therapy priced just right for a starving writery budget.

Insecure Writers: Love Me/Love Me Not

I have to remember and accept that not everyone will love me or my writing.  This fact of life hasn't changed since I played dodgeball at recess and it won't after I become published either.  But I hope I'm strong enough to blow it off if one day someone I greatly admire disses me in public.

The next slide was going to be Stephenie mowing down J.K. and Steve with a van but I thought I might be taking this post to a violent place...

I am open to compliments regarding my artistic abilities.  There is a reason I usually stick to words. 

This post is part of Alex J. Cavanaugh's Insecure Writer's Support Group. Because we all need a little group therapy.

Insecure Writers: Playing with Power

Words are powerful.  Maybe more so than the average person realizes.  They can lift us up or bring us crashing down.  They can ignite a generation, change a belief system, and make dreams come true.

They can also crush and conquer, damage and destroy those very same things.  Even if your goal is to write for entertainment purposes only (as mine is) you still have to understand that your words will have an impact.  They will have the power to affect those who read them.  Maybe that won't be very many.  Or maybe it will be millions.  It's not be taken lightly.  And sometimes the thought of this scares me a little.

Words can hurt or heal.  Which do you want your words to do?

With great power comes great responsibility.  Be prepared.  Don't play with it.

And yeah, I totally stole that line from Spiderman.  Still true.

This post is part of The Insecure Writer's Support Group, hosted by Alex J. Cavanaugh.

HooRah.

Insecure Writers: DareDreams

We all have those negative insecure thoughts swirling through our minds from time to time.

Everything I write is crap on a cracker.
My next door neighbor may be a serial killer.
I’m going to be in menopause before I’m published.
College is just going to be a stepping stone for my son’s long career at Taco Bell.
I will never be the sort of writer who changes the world.
The mailman may be a serial killer.

I’m going to share a secret with you. When these thoughts occur to me I play a little game called DareDreams. Which is basically daydreams only these are so big not many people dare to have them. Get it?

One of my favorite DareDreams is being interviewed by Matt Lauer for my bestselling, life altering debut novel. He tells me J.K. Rowling has vowed to never write again after reading my work and falling into a deep depression over not being able to compete. Anne Curry declares me her new best friend and wants to hang out after the show. I let her down easy.

I also like to dream of all the contests I will hold for peeps to win a copy of my new book. Maybe whoever leaves the best comment about my hair…?

You can let your mind bully you into thinking you will never be good enough. You can let it push you around, shove you in a locker, and eat your lunch. Or you can fight back, refuse to be beaten, and feed it just enough crazy to keep it confused.

You know what I choose to do.

Sometimes I totally feel like this dude.

This post has been part of the Insecure Writers Support Group.

Do You See?

I don’t like doing book reviews. It may the only time I find myself at a loss for words. If I truly love something…then I turn into a babbling idiot. If I hate it, well then the words of my mother haunt me. If you can’t say something nice, say nothing at all. But that’s only a part of it. Our reviews are just opinions and one person’s take may be the complete opposite of someone else’s. I also appreciate how hard it is to write, and how much blood and sweat we spill onto each page, so to belittle any of that makes me cringe.
And I don’t cringe easily.

I am not going to review the book I read last night. But I am going to say, I cried. Not silent, pretty little tears but the kind that claw their way up your throat and choke you on the way out, that squeeze your heart until each ragged breath is a study in pain.  When I was done, the world looked different somehow.  Maybe a little clearer.  And now I can’t stop thinking about this story.

Read it. Then tell me if you don’t think what all of us really want…is just to be seen.

Insecure Writers: Measuring Success

You can’t measure your success against what others have achieved. Haven’t we all heard this before? Some people get an agent after querying for an hour, some wait for 3 years. Some peeps get a book deal and a movie in the works after a few months, while other’s wait on submission for a year.

In the end, no matter what it takes to get your book on the shelf, there will be people who love your writing and those who hate it. We are all eventually on equal terms.

My personal measuring stick has Stephen King at the top with J.K. Rowling a close second. If I let their success intimidate me, I would never put another word to paper again. But I’m not competing with them at this point. I’m competing with myself. I run a race against a clock of my own making. My greatest opponent is fear. But I’ve beaten it before…and I will again.

Maybe sometimes it wears J.K. Rowling’s face and I imagine beating the crap out of it with my measuring stick of success but that’s a topic for my therapist to handle.

Note: This post is for the Insecure Writers Support Group hosted by the awesomeness that is Alex Cavanaugh.

The Big Picture

We can become so consumed by details we fail to see the beauty in the big picture. A small issue can suddenly become a boulder that blocks our path and keeps us from achieving our goals. 

Don't let it.

Whether it’s our story or something happening in our life, sometimes just taking a step back to check the view makes all the difference.

Oh, yeah

Join My Cult

This may be a little disturbing coming so soon on the heels of my Marry Me post and if so…please stop reading now. Come back Friday to check out new Walmart pics. But if you’re up for more dysfunctional relationship analogies, then stay tuned. It’s been on my mind lately.

There has been talk of peeps becoming burnt out with blogging since it can be time consuming and time is not something we all have a lot of. We need to do what’s best for each of us and in my case I love being connected to the writing community too much to quit.  I've made some real friends online and learned more than I ever thought possible. 

But I have never obsessed over the amount of followers I have. It pleases me that I have any at all. Because it’s not really any fun ranting or sharing words of...‘wisdom’ with just family members (that’s what holidays are for). I believe if you have a few loyal friends who get you then that’s all you need.*

It does bother me when someone decides to stop following though.  I realize this is probably never going to happen but I wish they would consider sending an email first. I’m not asking for a long break up message. Just a quick ‘hey, this isn’t working for me’ or ‘you really aren’t that funny’, or even a ‘I hate Walmart and sometimes you frighten me’ is ok.

I promise I wouldn't try to track you down and force you to drink my kool-aid.** This isn’t the Hotel California and I’m not a cult leader. I’m just a writer with hidden abandonment issues.

Ok, I’m totally lying. Join my Cult!!! Preferences regarding specific Kool-Aid flavors will be considered.

*Until your book deal, then your perspective has to change and broaden to include that.
**This statement is not applicable in TX, OK, NM, and lower LA.  Think of it as an inverted T of terror.

I Quit!

Two little words…that carry so much weight and have such huge consequences. We’ve all said them at one time or another. I have several times in many different situations over the years. Sometimes I actually even meant it.

But never when it came to my writing.

How do you quit a dream? How do you quit something that fills you up and keeps you sane? Do you think you’re the only one who’s ever thought of quitting the struggle writers face each day? It doesn’t get any easier after being published either. The words do not magically flow to your fingertips after that first debut novel.

I imagine there were days when J.K. Rowling wanted to poke Harry in the eye, shave Hermione bald, and throw Ron under the nearest trolley. Or maybe Stephen King wanted to take his characters and…wait. Nevermind. He does torture his characters.

But they never quit. Oh, the horror if they had, the loss of all those stories which shaped us, made us believe the impossible and had a hand in forming who we are today.

Breaks are a necessary part of the writing process. Take a step back, catch your breath, mull over the possibilities, or just forget about it for a few weeks so you can recharge the magic. Then get to work again.  Because dreams don't happen if you aren't willing to sweat over them a little, or in some cases, a lot.

Save those other two words for more appropriate situations…like during the last conversation at your day job the morning after the film rights to your best selling novel are sold to the CW.

Then you can scream it. Or put it up in lights. Whatever works for you.

This has been a post for the Insecure Writers Support Group.

Because it’s no fun being nuts all by yourself.

 

In Stereo

One of the mistakes newbie writers can make is the overuse of stereotypes, the squeaky clean hero or the evil villain, the cigarette smoking slut, or the straight-A virgin. What about the dumb jock or the awkward nerd? These one dimensional characters don’t exist in real life so it’s not easy to make them believable or ‘real’ in print.

Heroes often have troubled pasts and villains are rarely all evil (or all gay). Straight-A students can be sluts and virgins can pick up bad habits like smoking just as easily as anyone. It’s these very flaws that make us relate and see them as more than just characters in a story. It’s what makes us love them.

So, remember to change it up and Keep It Real.

And here are a few peeps we tend to stereotype just for fun.

 Skanks

 Bitches

Anyone with a southern accent must be retarded and look like this guy.

Note: In direct conflict with my above post - there are quite a few movies which have become hits using extreme stereotypes. Check out this article, you’ll like it.

Your Voice

In writing there is always a lot of talk about voice. Finding your voice, developing your voice, making sure your writing reflects your voice. Some people get this concept right off the bat and it emerges without any difficulty at all.

But what about those who’ve been ignoring their voice for so long they’re not sure it’s still speaking to them?

I think your ‘writing voice’ hides most of the time. It’s the one you silence during polite conversation so you don’t appear rude or worse…crazy. It is the uncivilized part we keep gagged…except for when we start tapping on those keys.

Then it speaks of murder and magic, swords and heroes, or maybe even unicorns and rainbows.  Whatever.

My inner voice is an angry teenager. I’m not sure why. Maybe it's because I don't listen when she says ditching everything to live in a hut on the Scottish coast is a good idea, or maybe it's because I’ve kept her silent when she wanted to rage against the unfairness of 5:00am wakeup calls or a boss who doesn’t recognize Halloween as a legitimate holiday…or maybe she’s just a bitch. But she’s the one I let write, at least for now.

Your voice is there…you just have to listen.

Voted Most Popular

As a parent you’re not even in the race.  It's sort of like a computer...just about the time you think you know everything, the software changes.  But being a parent should not be a popularity contest.

As a writer getting a chance in the ring is hard enough, but with persistence and hard work, we can all have a shot at the future title.  Let me warn you though, there will still be those who bet against you.

As a person...well one of the lessons learned as you get older is that you cannot make everyone like you.  So when this happens, I wonder briefly what is wrong with such a person and then dismiss it.

My point, and I'm not entirely sure there is one because it's Wednesday and my morning caffeine fix wore off long ago, is that maybe you won't ever be voted most popular in life...but who the hell really cares anyway?

Love your family, they can either love you back or learn to do their own laundry. 
Cherish the friends you have (that includes blogger ones).
Never give up on your dreams...and be happy.

Insecure Writers: Writing for You

I love my mother. She is the kindest, most gentle person I know and one of those women who were just meant to be a mother. Obviously all my evil traits are a genetic throwback.

She is extremely supportive of everything I do and I’m quite sure if I phoned her today to tell her I invented time travel or a cure of cancer, she would not be surprised. Because in her mind, I can do anything.

But when it comes to writing, if I let it…her love would cripple me.

I have to block out her abhorrence for foul language or the credo of ‘do unto others as you would have them do unto you’ that she raised me to believe in. If I don’t blindfold her watchful eye over my shoulder or strangle her sweet voice in my head, then the most my characters would ever do is hold hands and sip tea as they pondered the beauty of the world and isn’t everything just NICE?

No, it’s not. I want my characters to scream curses as they run with sharp objects that oh yes could definitely put someone’s eye out and kiss with their TONGUES, and betray friends and tell horrible lies and maybe the ultimate bad of all…not ever listen to their mothers.

You can’t write like your momma is watching. Or your father or the pastor of your church or that old dude who smokes hand rolled cigarettes and stares at you while you pump gas every week at the corner store.

You have to write for YOU. You have to let go of the fear and allow your own voice to speak. If you don’t then your work will show it, it will be stifled and stiff, and your characters just stick figures that never come to life.

Maybe killing your darlings isn’t just about the delete button on your keyboard…maybe it’s about those disapproving voices in your head too.




This post is part of the awesomeness that is Alex Cavanaugh's Insecure Writer's Support Group.  Hit the link in the sidebar and join our neuroticness (is this a word?)

Magical Realism

Still not clear on what Magical Realism is?  I am sure you have heard the saying 'a picture is worth a thousand words' but as a writer I tended to disagree...until now.

Cinderella

 Jasmine

 Little Red Riding Hood.

 Snow White

The Little Mermaid

Note:

The first four pics courtesty of Dina Goldstein at Fallen Princesses. 

The last one I added just for fun.

The Words

The first draft of my current wip or b-nip (best selling novel in progress) is complete. Feeling quite proud, I hit the word count tool and received a small shock when the number came back at approximately 52,000 words. I told myself this one was tighter and took slightly longer to write due to compulsive editing as I went along. It’s also paced much faster, if a scene didn’t move the story forward, I cut it with ruthless disregard.

Of course, this is only the first draft and after a short time away I may come back to find a major plot hole that needs a little clarity. Where the hell did that character come from in the middle of the story and didn’t I kill him two chapters in? But even then I don't see needing more than a few thousand extra words.

So began the obsessive googling of published novels. Remember what I said on Monday about NOT googling story lines and just writing your story?

Yeah, well that doesn’t apply to word counts.  I discovered these facts and decided to share.

Current:

Wake (Lisa McMann) 37,000 (rounded up)
Fade (Lisa McMann) 46,000
Gone (Lisa McMann) 40,000
If I Stay (Gail Forman) 50,000
Hex Hall (Rachel Hawkins) 67,000
White Cat (Holly Black) 76,000
Sister's Red (Jackson Pearce) 80,000
Spells (April Lynne Pike) 83,000

Much Loved:

Harry Potter Books
Philosopher’s Stone-77,325
Chamber of Secrets-84,799
Prisoner of Azkaban-106,821
Goblet of Fire-190,858
Order of the Phoenix-257,154
Half Blood Prince-169,441
Deathly Hallows-198,227

Other Famous Books:

Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe-36,363
Old Yeller-35,968
The Outsiders-48,523
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory-30,644
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer-69,066
Lord of the Flies-59,900

I feel a lot better now.

What are your thoughts regarding shorter word counts? If you don’t mind sharing your own, then spill it!


Information websites:
http://www.betterstorytelling.net/thebasics/storylength.html
http://nicolehumphrey.net/word-count-for-famous-novels
http://www.renlearn.com/store/quiz_home.asp

Must Be Love

What does love really mean to you? Do you ever think about exactly why you love a person? As writers if we don’t try to dig deeper and understand our emotions and what drives us to them, how can we expect our readers to feel as we do?

Here are some deep thoughts about love from leading experts…kids.

"Love is when you go out to eat and give somebody most of your French fries without making them give you any of theirs." Chrissy - age 6

"Love is what makes you smile when you're tired." Terri - age 4

"Love is when my mommy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip before giving it to him, to make sure the taste is OK."  Danny - age 7

"Love is what's in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and listen,"  Bobby - age 7

"Love is when mommy sees daddy on the toilet and she doesn't think it's gross." Mark - age 6

"You really shouldn't say 'I love you' unless you mean it. But if you mean it, you should say it a lot. People forget," Jessica - age 8

I couldn’t come up with any better examples. They pretty much nailed it. When we grow older we have a tendency to complicate issues, to take the simplest concept and twist it until it doesn’t make sense anymore. Depending on what genre you write in, this may work well for your characters but if you are writing for children or young adults, you have to remember what it was like to see these emotions with new eyes not yet jaded by age and experience.

Capturing emotions isn’t easy, you should try to show and not tell as much as possible. The problem is making sure what you show is communicating the right emotion.

But in real life it might be a good idea to say it a lot. You know…so they don’t forget.

Know It All

I believe the worst piece of advice ever given to any writer is ‘write what you know’. It makes me angry just hearing it. I will not be confined to the limits of what I know. How did Tolkien know about Middle Earth and Hobbits? How did Stephen King know the monster in your closet had claws and long dripping fangs?

They didn’t.

Because if you want to be truly great, then you should write what you love, what you dream, or whatever the hell calls to you from the dark corners of your mind.

I don’t consider myself an expert except when it comes to common sense and this smacks of stupid. I know about being an accountant but I’m not going to write about it. Unless it’s an accountant who finds a doorway into an alternate world in the supply cabinet. Using familiar elements from your life to enrich a story is one thing but please for love of the written word…write what you DON’T know.

Indie Love

I missed the boat yesterday but I still wanted to toss a line out to show some indie bookstore love.

There used to be a strange little used bookstore located down the street from me. It was a sad day when the plastic open sign no longer swayed in the breeze above the door and the owner couldn’t be seen standing out front in the early morning hours wearing nothing but a pair of faded boxer shorts and mismatched socks.

He lived in the back, surrounded by boxes and boxes of books…and cats. But they weren’t in boxes. Not that I know of anyway. If you dared to disturb him as he sat reading cross-legged on the floor near the front, he would pin you with his magnified stare (due to his incredibly thick glasses) like an insect on a scientist’s slide. Taking the time to push back his long white hair, he would eventually answer but by then you had pretty much forgotten what you asked in the first place.  It didn’t matter because it was all part of the unique indie experience.

Do not cry for me now that he is gone (ok, you can but just a little), because I still have the awesomeness that is the Blue Willow Bookshop.

This is no obscure book store. You never know who might walk through the door.

Hey, is that Stephanie Perkins?  Why yes, yes it is.

And hello to you Maggie Stiefvater!  (I have no clue how to pronounce your name so it comes out sounding something like Steve Avatar...and I like it.)

Visiting authors even get to sign the wall.  My name is going to be there someday. I hope yours will be too.

Love your indie bookstores.  If you don't...pretty soon the quirky, sometimes scary strange, and unique love they give you will be replaced by big chain stores that smell of coffee and high priced muffins. 
 
Not that we don't love coffee and muffins.  But a bookstore should be all about the books, and your independents never forget it.

The Road to Riches

It's a dangerous one and you have to pick your opportunities wisely.  Here are a few I had to pass up since I am committed to be a starving writer...or a dieting one anyway.

Princess Anita Mungo, I'm sorry but I can't help you.  4.5 million dollars is a lot of money but I am sure you will find someone else who will protect you from your thievin' relatives for a percentage.  I can't even pronounce the name of your country.

Mrs. Miri Jonado, shame on you being a bank manager and all.  I will not split some dead client's money with you.  26 million is a lot though and I admit to a little daydreaming before deciding against it.

Now I have to go because the Microsoft Windows Live Team is emailing me for my user-id and password so they can keep my account active.  Do you think they really need my mother's maiden name?

FYI: Keep your eyes open for this scam.  The nerve of some ducks.

Have you noticed an increase in these types of emails?  Or am I just checking mine too often?