Cover released!

Check out the completed works page for the cover of Perils of Forgotten Pain, to be released in January!

NaNoWriMo

 We are well into November, which is National Novel Writing Month-a month where people around the world decide to bang out a novel in 30 days, which apparently means 50k words.

I’m not a huge fan.

Don’t get me wrong, I don’t outright dislike it, and I have been tempted to join in the fun in the past. NaNo is a good thing in general, in some respects. For those people who need to overcome the fear of writing a large piece of work, or who think they can’t do it, NaNo serves as a fantastic motivator. And discussion of stories on forums can serve as a fertile breeding ground for ideas.

Personally, I don’t NaNo because I already have a writing system set up. I can’t bang out 50k words in 30 days, but I can write a 70k story in five months, or a 30k story in two. I set my goals in terms of story accomplished, not word count. I don't really feel the need to participate.

But there is a dark side to NaNo, that always bothers me-50k words of a story written in 30 days will almost never be a complete story. Most of the time, it won’t even be any good.

There are many skills a writer needs, but two very important ones are the ability to perceive flaws in writing, and the knowledge to fix them. Writing a story blisteringly fast does nothing to promote those two skills. Instead it forces you to shove them aside as you strive to make your word count and ignore any warning bells in your head that say “maybe this scene is pointless” or “where am I going with this?”

Edit? Bah. Who has time for that? I need more words!

Many experienced writers already know this. They know the rigorous editing that will come after a NaNo story is completed. But the newbie writers who are just learning that they can, indeed, write a real story? They don’t.

I’ve heard dark tales of agents and editors besieged with unedited work after NaNo is over, newbie writers glowing with their accomplishment. But finishing a story is not finishing a story. The mass of bloated words that comes out of a NaNo project is not ready for the experienced public eye. People who receive praise on their blogs for their NaNo stories get falsely puffed up with the expectation that agents and publishers will want it the day after it’s finished.

They don’t. Agents and publishers want to look at something that has been edited to perfection, and they do have the ability to tell when something has been rushed prematurely out the door. And if it’s been posted on a blog? Don’t expect publishers to want to publish something that has already been available for free.  

Alpha's world

Like my bio says, I write exclusively science fiction and fantasy. One of the most enjoyable things that comes out of those genres is constructing a new world-but even fantasy and sci fi worlds have elements of reality to them.

Let’s look at Alpha. In this world, those with money can basically pay to increase their child’s intelligence. This results in a society where the difference between rich and poor is taken to extremes. Rich children are given intelligence and success, while the poor are left to fend for themselves.

But when you think about it, that’s not so incredibly different from what we see today. IQ is more elastic than people think-it’s not solely what you’re born with. Kids given opportunities, who have their good health maintained, and who are supported by their parents, end up with higher intelligence than those who are less fortunate. Taking IQ out of the equation, the rich have vastly more opportunities than the poor, and are able to get better educations and have more access to healthcare-which are important factors to future success.

It’s not all doom and gloom, though. Those with both natural intelligence and resilience still make a name for themselves, regardless of their background. But too many are getting left behind, and there doesn’t seem to be any easy solutions forthcoming. 

Tips on Writing a Fiction Book part 3-Structuring the Story

So you've got a great idea, and you're going to dedicate yourself to getting this book done. Congrats! So what structure is your story going to take? How fast paced is your story? 

These are things that people typically don't think about consciously, but the actual structuring of your story is one that you should spend some time on. What POV are you in-first or third? How many characters are you following, and how deep into their thoughts are you willing to go? How soon do you launch into your main plot, or introduce us to the conflict? Even seat of the pants writers should have some idea of these things, either before they start or soon after starting.

Deciding these things is often a delicate balancing act, and the more you write the more the experience will benefit you. Unfortunately, the experience of writing an entire book is the only thing that will prepare you for writing the next one, and the next, and then maybe, finally the one that will actually be good enough to publish. Pacing and execution are not easy, and can break an otherwise fantastic story.

First, the structure. Try to decide early on how many main characters you have and the best POV to take, or consider it as you write. There are several ways to tell a story, but some are better for certain types of stories than others, and only you can decide what is best for yours.

Are you following one person or many? Does the villain in your story get a say in anything? How will all of these POVs interact, and how does each one actually advance the story?

There are a few traps here to avoid. Don't write from a character's POV if they don't actually have an important role. Not only will it slow your story down, but people will resent the character. Also, if your story is only going to follow one person in a limited third person POV or from first person, make sure to make them very interesting characters and have them develop throughout the story, or your readers may start getting bored. If you're writing from an omniscient narrator's perspective, make sure it's clear who the lens is focused on at the moment. Head hopping without a clear indication of when it occurs (like with a chapter break) will do nothing but confuse your readers.

Secondly, we have pacing. How soon does the important part of your story begin? How long do you spend setting it up?

I would recommend not taking too long to introduce the main conflict. Have an idea of what the conflict is early on, and don't try to keep main plot points in suspense when they don't matter that much to the overall plot. I made that mistake in my first novel-I wrote thirty thousand words to introduce a plot point that was taken for granted in the grand scheme of the story. If the plot point you're trying to keep mysterious and spending a lot of time on is something that would ordinarily show up on the plot description on the back of the book, don't bother spending so many words on it. Introducing it earlier will make your book more exciting and save you editing later.

On the flipside, of course, don't rush into conflict so quickly that you sacrifice everything else. If your character is rushing out of the inn he works at to follow some mysterious wizard, that sounds like a great plot introduction-unless it's happening on page two, in which case I'm not sure I care about him enough yet to want to continue.

Make sure everything you write matters to the story. This is basically just avoiding filler. Every scene should advance something that is important to the story you are writing or the world you are building. Don't waste time on details that don't matter; people don't really care what your main character had for breakfast.

Of course, don't skip things that are necessary, either. If your character was gravely injured in a fight, don't make him recover after a day just to keep the story moving. Keep things fast paced, but keep them realistic as well. If you aren't writing an action scene, use the space to develop the character. The order things should be addressed in terms of importance, especially after the story has begun, should be plot advancement, character advancement, and finally worldbuilding. If the scene you're writing is not addressing any of those things, think about it further before writing it.

To sum up, pacing and structuring your story is vastly important. It's also the hardest thing to learn and the hardest to teach, because it is so dependent on experience and on the exact story you are writing. The best thing to do, especially when you are uncertain, is to write far more than you think you need. If you're not sure if you want an extra character POV, write them both and decide later based on what you've written. It is easier to delete than to add. This also makes editing easier, which is what I will talk about next time.

Alpha is released!

My M/M erotic novella, Alpha, has been released by Extasy books! Check out the blurb on the completed works page!

You can purchase it here!

Fantastical humans and creatures in writing

Ever since Twilight came out, there have been undercurrents of discussion in the unpublished writing world (and maybe the published one too, who knows?) about how effective supernatural or modified humans and creatures are in creating tension in a story. Unlike talking animal characters, supernatural and fantastical creatures are human enough for readers to relate to, but fantastic enough and with enough paranormal background to create an interesting fantasy (or romantic) world.

This is just a list of ones I see most often or would like to see more of, from most to least favorite.

Cyborgs: Ok, these aren’t really supernatural at all, but they are certainly on the fantastic side. A human, given robotic implants to make them, if I can borrow a phrase, stronger, better, faster. I love them-who doesn’t like an otherwise vulnerable guy with overwhelming physical strength? I’ve said this before, but I haven’t seen as many stories featuring cyborgs as I would like, and very few of them explore the effect that such modifications would have on a character’s humanity.

Faeries: Faeries are neat because of the variability with which they are portrayed. They can be tiny things with insect like wings, or human sized. They can be elements of nature or almost contemporary. They can be good, evil, or just like to play tricks. There is a ton of classic literature on fairies that is begging to be addressed in future work, and there is also a ton of recent novels that explore fairies and the fairy realm in interesting ways. For a quick read, check out War of the Flowers by Tad Williams.

Shifters/ Werewolves: Humans that can turn into animals, and of course, the classic werewolf. Shifter books are practically their own genre in a lot of romance, with the classic alpha pack leader serving as a status symbol for the hero/heroine to fall in love with. Werewolves are often a subset of shifter books, with many liberties taken on how shifter society works and which animals shifters turn into (it’s 99% of the time a large predator). Classic werewolf fiction has fallen off a little bit, however-being a werewolf is no longer the curse it once was in the literary world.

Animal Hybrids- If the characters are truly anthropomorphic animals, then it is probably furry fiction, but animal hybrids are a bit different. I classify animal hybrids as stories where a character looks mostly human, but has animal like traits or abilities-think catgirls from anime, or perhaps a human with wings or claws. Usually these stories have a society of animal people, or several different societies of people who have different species traits, who coexist with humans. Typically there is a romance subplot between two different “species.”  This is a huge genre in unpublished fiction, and I’m surprised it hasn’t taken off in the legit publishing world yet. Characters that are human enough to be attractive and yet have innate, cool abilities based on an animal, with no shifting required? That sounds interesting to me.

Aliens: UFOs, abductions, and creative takes on otherworldly species-Aliens can be a lot of fun. Most of the time, unfortunately, they aren’t put to good use, and are the ambiguous enemy that must be defeated or are mere background players in the human space opera. There is a lot of potential for aliens, though, and good science fiction takes advantage of the many intergalactic species humans may encounter. For a good MG book series with interesting aliens, check out Animorphs. For a great TV show with interesting alien races, check out Babylon 5.

Vampires: Blood totally skeeves me out. So do needles. Combine needle sharp teeth and sucking blood and just…ugh.  That said, vampires can be very interesting, and their lore is intriguing. The thinly veiled sexual innuendo of blood sucking can even titillate if done well. However, vampires are getting a lot of knocks, chief among them that lately, they are extremely overdone.

Elves: Can we please have elves in a story that aren’t stuck up assholes? Everyone steals Tolkien’s elves, who are always fair haired, long lived, wise nature loving creatures who look down on humans. I don’t like elves because they’re typically portrayed as misanthropic, and being human, I kind of love humans. Societal commentary is great in fantasy, but a writer doesn’t typically need an entire perfect race that exists just to make the humans in the story look bad. It’s not realistic.

That’s just a few of my opinions on fantastical character types I see in the publishing world. There are others that have been popular at some time or another-ghost stories are classic, and there are a few angel or demon stories out there that I’m not familiar with, I’m sure. Zombies have been big for quite a while, though I would be loathe to truly call them “characters.” If someone can make a sympathetic zombie character, I would love to see it.

Tips on Writing a Fiction Book Part 2-Keeping up Motivation

So you have a fantastic idea plot idea, and your muses are singing in your ears. So how do you actually get it down on paper?

Obviously, there are the given tropes- “Just write!” “Set aside time everyday!” But these don't work for everybody, and if you don't feel motivated at all, then doing those things becomes hard. It may be more helpful to try to figure out what kind of writer you are, and then understand what motivates you. From my observation, there are two major styles of writing.

First, there are the “Seat of the Pants” writers. I classify myself as one of these. These are people who do no revising as they write and don't plan out the course of the story when they begin much further than the setting, the characters, and the overall plot. Often, their story can get away from them, and they will add things as they get inspired. It is very difficult for them to write a synopsis without referring back to the original story because they don't remember exactly how they got where they did.

The drawbacks to this type of writing are many-you end up with a very unorganized mess of what may be loosely connected scenes that need to be divided into chapter chunks after the fact, or you may have scenes that just don't belong at all. Editing is a huge pain for this type of writer.

The plus side is that this type of writing is very easy to continue. Your momentum snowballs on itself. It doesn't feel like a chore, or an English writing assignment (now I must write the scene where Bob buys some staples). You're driving a very fast, very hard to control car, but it never really stops.

Of course, it's not all easy. The car can slow down. Seat of the Pants writers can write themselves into a corner and not realize it until they end up having to delete a good portion of their progress. When this happens, they feel the urge to give up. Also, if you end up writing too many scenes on a whim that don't fit the story, your desire to write can get choked.

If you're this type of writer, it's usually easy to start writing, but finishing can be hard. If you notice you have to struggle to keep writing, it may be because of the reasons above. Make sure you like where you story is going, and keep your characters the way you prefer them. A lack of enthusiasm may signify that you wrote something that doesn't really fit your story.

Also, Seat of the Pants writers often have several ideas that are in their head at once. As a result, they often don't finish anything. If this describes you, then really try to apply those basic tropes-write something every day. Have a schedule of a certain number of words per day, or at the very least a schedule of when you want to finish your novel. I solved this problem by specifying that I wanted a 75k novel done in a certain time. As a result I had to write 400 words a day. I let myself take breaks, however, and sometimes would write four times that amount in a day when the inspiration struck so I could take a break when I needed to. All the while I did battle other ideas that screamed to be worked on, but the urge wasn't as strong when I was focused so intently on the one story.

Another problem this type of writer has-often your idea stemmed from one really cool scene, or one really cool idea. If you really want to write that exciting scene in your head but you have to slog through a bunch of boring stuff first, don't just write the exciting scene and leave yourself with nothing but boring ones-lead up to it! Go in order. Don't let your excitement control you completely. Make that exciting scene something to strive toward, and reward yourself by writing it.

Now for the second type of writer-the organized writer. I am not one of these, so my advice to you guys may not be as helpful, but I'll try.

Organized writers tend to plan out their story in advance. They may write out a synopsis beforehand, or a chapter by chapter plan. Even if they don't, they know each twist and turn before they start. They often write out extensive character backgrounds so they know the reasoning behind every character choice. They think over every sentence. Their finished product typically requires less editing.
However, as a result of planning out everything, nothing new is left by the time they sit down to write. This kills motivation.

How to fix this? Some organized writers try to see the joy in the actual craft of writing. The fun is not in discovering the story, the fun is finding the best way to tell it. If you are having trouble staying motivated, try to think that way. Enjoy the craft, and keep the progress steady.

The set schedule for writing often works best for these guys too, and by that I mean sitting down at a specified time each day and writing for a certain duration. You already have your story planned, so there's no need to take advantage of bursts of inspiration.

Sometimes, though, those bursts of inspiration are needed, and it can be daunting to change a thoroughly planned idea. Look on those as a way to fit new ideas in a story, as a puzzle on how to make them fit. Control is good, but don't control the story so much that there is no wiggle room.

In sum, it is best to incorporate both elements of the two types of writing. Don't fly ahead with no plan at all and then give up when it's too hard, but on the flip side, don't over plan to the point that it's no longer fun anymore. Writing is a process, and it is by nature flexible. But it is also a structured art. Keeping that in mind will help your writing process, and knowing when to pull back and when to apply some needed control is important to maintaining that desire to write.