Want to write a compelling piece for critique?

One of the key pieces of advice that bubbles to the surface of my consciousness time and time again is, "to write well, you have to read well."
That means reading the chosen piece twice. Once for shear enjoyment and then a second time to analyze the authors technique and craft points.
It also means, reading what you want to write - be it technology articles, poetry, literary fiction, historical non-fiction, travel writing, short stories, or mysteries in all their glorious sub-genres.
It's a tall order and that is why sometimes, picking a genre or theme and sticking with it is so important for new writers.
Focus and practice, not every four weeks, but every day develops a flow and a rhythm and there is no better way to do this than writing a short blog on a subject that interests or entertains you.
The blog can be set to private for you alone or shared with only those you nominate, at least until you're ready to face the world or have it face you.
If anyone would like help or advice in setting up there own blog drop me a line.

In the meantime, I can recommend reading Andrew McAleer's "The 101 HABITS of highly successful novelists" available on Amazon or on 14 day loan from our very own Lincoln Library.

To be verbs and avoiding 'was'

We discuss passive voice often at our meetings (some people even count the number of times was is used). Here's a neat explanation:

8. Am/Is/Are/Was/Were (“to be” verbs)
Action verbs are always preferable to state-of-being verbs. Use words that describe the action occurring. Rather than saying what something/someone is, show the reader what something/someone does.

Example: “I am envious of her success.” This can be revised as “I envy her success.”

Example: “She was dressed in leather chaps and a flannel shirt.” This can be revised as “She wore leather chaps and a flannel shirt.”

The above is from snippet is from

10 over used words - see the rest are here.

http://preciseedit.com/Article10OverusedWords/tabid/215/Default.aspx

It's a Mystery

Why are we in this financial mess? It's a mystery, or is it?

If it's due to incompetence then the telling of the story does not meet the criteria for the mystery genre.
If it is due to a criminal act, or a criminal act is implied then it does belong to the mystery genre.

Who says so?

Well, the authors, no less, of Mystery Writing in a Nutshell, John and Andrew McAleer.

Paragraph 1.1 quotes Otto Penzler's definition of a mystery as, "Any short work of fiction in which a crime or threat of a crime is central to the theme or plot. It is a broad definition, covering detective, espionage, suspense, and crime fiction. Horror or supernatural is not included."

So there you have it, at least for the purpose of Crimestalker's Casebook.

I'm told the library has a copy of this excellent little book, used by Andrew McAleer, Professor of Crime Fiction at Boston College, to teach his course.

If you want to get into mystery writing, (and by the way, it goes way beyond - a sort of Strunk and White for fiction writers) it is also available at Amazon.com for $9.95 new or less secondhand.

Sepllnig mttaers not to unredsadntnig, but punctuation does.

Turn off your spell checker and get the first and last letters right and you are all set.

I pledge to be more tolerant of misspelled words - just as long as all the letters are present and the first and last letters are correct.

Now, if only the same also applied to punctuation.

The sentence - A woman without her man is nothing. - might offend some people when punctuated as follows:

A woman, without her man, is nothing.

Then again it might well offend others with this punctuation:

A women: without her, man is nothing.

Does anybody have other favorite 'eats shoots and leaves' type punctuation examples?

Writing exercises to do at lunch

Kate Flora - who incidentally is one of the publishers of Level Best Books, a collection of short stories that will include the Al Blanchard winner - posted these useful tips on getting the most out of your lunch time.

The post is on the Writers Plot blog that on Thursdays hosts our own Jeanne - who is keeping exalted company these days.

You can go straight to Kate's article by clicking on the title of this post.

How many comments are enough?

Last night's meeting really got me thinking. We were a healthy sized group of about fifteen. Two comments each on things that worked, and two areas that might be improved adds up quickly to a whole lot of input – perhaps as someone rightly pointed out, enough to destroy the quality of the original work.

I think that's why it's important to take the comments as input and then, as the author, to decide which are relevant and improve it for its intended purpose and which would detract from that purpose.

Writing with purpose – or not.

Often, when I sit down and begin tapping away at the keyboard, I don't know where my initial thoughts will lead me. This approach, likened to throat clearing before making a speech, is an exercise recommended in a writing course I once took.
After a while, ideas take shape and, following several re-writes, they firm up and I understand the purpose or reason for writing the piece. If they don't, well it was just an exercise and is consigned to the wastebasket.
On other occasions, I plot and plan and storyboard and outline and then write. That usually happens for longer, or more complex works of fiction or non-fiction.
Knowing the intended purpose of the piece, its market if for publication and the target audience then helps me when in the self-editing mode.
When we pick up the New Yorker or National Enquirer, we know what to expect and how to receive it.
Describing the purpose of your work, whether intended for publication or not, and presented without the benefit of hardcover or magazine masthead, helps those reviewing or critiquing it to offer comments in an appropriate context.

Publisher for you family history or memoir?

Checkout the December 2007 copy of The Writer - (I'm not sure if the library subscribes).
Page 14 has a breakthrough story about Betty Grant Henshaw, who wrote an account of growing up in the Oklahoma Hills during the Dust Bowl and Great Depression era.
At 60 years of age she decided to try her hand at writing, took writing classes, joined a writing group and wrote stories about her life.
Then, recognizing that they did not hang together, she drew up an outline (something she said that she should have done at the beginning) and created a book length novel. She spent the next 10 years attending writing conferences, talking to agents and sending out samples of her work, only to receive rejections.
The breakthrough came when a writer friend recognized that her work told the history of the era and suggested she submit it to a university press.

Texas Tech University presses jumped at the chance to publish her memoir and provided editing support and cover design. The book 'Children of the Dust: An Okie Family Story' is a finalist for the Oklahoma Book Award.
Publication through a university press could apply to any one of several works read in our group.

In a similar vain, page 30 has a six-page step-by-step article by Moira Allen on "How to Write a Family History", which includes interesting sidebars on the 'crazy-quilt memoir' (an alternative to the usual chronological approach), and using birthday letters and tales from the family newsletter as source material.

Foreshadowing

I think of foreshadowing as similar to planting a clue or misdirection (red herring) in a mystery story – you don’t want to be to overt when you do it. Foreshadowing is the subtle positioning of information that usually serves two (or more) purposes.
The first purpose is to provide information relevant at the part of the story that is being told.
The second purpose is to explain something that happens later, for which an explanation at that point in the story would significantly disrupt it.

Here is a simple example from my Finger of Suspicion story.

Early on, I wrote "Kelly fingers, their nails chewed to the quick,”…

The first purpose was to tell the reader about Kelly – anxious, a nail biter, not in a position to be concerned with her looks.

This is then compared (though not specifically) with the long painted fingernails of the kidnapped heiress and finally revealed as the reason Kelly retains her digit (and perhaps her life).

Franklin explains foreshadowing on page 150 of ‘Writing for Story’ as “the technique by which the writer unobtrusively inserts details early in the story that will allow him [or her] to conduct his [or her] dramatic scenes without the necessity of explaining the background details.”

Franklin says that the principle was codified by Anton Chekov as Chekov’s Law, which specifies, “if the opening of a story mentions a shotgun hanging over the mantel, then that shotgun must be fired before the story ends.”

To flashforward or foreshadow?

At our last meeting, I said that flashforward (think of it as the opposite of flashback) is not the same as foreshadowing. I would like to expand on this using information from the book I also mentioned.

According to Jon Franklin in his book 'Writing for Story' "flashforward is a woebegotten technique that usually goes something like:

Joe chose to go to the prom with Alice instead of Sue. In the future that choice would come back again and again to haunt him. But now he was much more attracted to Ann."

Franklin says "the flashforward is most of all intrusive, because it has the effect of the writer's telling a secret, sotto voce, into the reader's ear. Like any other intrusion by the writer, the flashforward reminds the reader that the story is an illusion and thereby destroys the sense that the story is real."

He goes on to say that a professional writer may use flashforward perhaps three times in a lifetime and he suggest that as such editors and critics automatically assume the writer who uses flashforward is an amateur. If he wasn't he or she would have foreshadowed instead.

So if that's flashforward how does foreshadowing work, at least according to a Pulitzer prizewinner?

Of course it's more complicated, but I'll sort out some of Franklin's words and post again later.

Writing can be such a tease

A jumble of books on the craft of writing competes for space on my crowded bookshelves. One book never finds a resting place there.

It is possibly the best book on writing non-fiction or fiction that I have ever read and has become a go to reference work due to its simplicity of structure and working examples.

I read it cover to cover and now dip in to it for specific topics.

The book makes use of two Pulitzer Prize-winning articles written by the author, who explains in detail every aspect of their construction and execution in easy to understand terms. The author also describes his process for focusing on the key points of the story and achieving a result with which the reader can resonate.

The appendixes contain a dissection of each article with no less than 292 annotations defining the reason or purpose of each word, phrase or thought in the articles.

The small paperback book is truly a remarkable aid to understanding the craft of writing for story.

Don’t forget to ask me for the title and author next Wednesday.

In case you missed the comment I posted, this is the name of the book

Writing for Story
Jon Franklin

More details at Amazon - reviews are "wow this is great" to "anyone who needs this must be a bad writer".

Guess I know where I stand.

Writer & Reader

I find it very hard to write in a way that preserves my sense of my own voice and yet at the same time speaks to the reader. A long time ago I used to write a column in an educational journal on Math and Logo. My "mission" was open–inquiry, setting up situations where students could discover patterns, make hypotheses and then test them to see if they were correct. I was one of three columnists, so mine only appeared every third month. The other two entries were much more prosaic - I thought they often represented all that was wrong with typical math teaching. However, looking back, I think by being true to myself, I was not talking to the readers, and I don't think many, if any, teachers used my ideas in their classrooms. Letters to the editor indicated that teachers did use some of the other columnists' ideas.

In writing my short story, Delinquency, I see some of the same pattern. In the draft I read at the Write Stuff meeting it was a 4th draft), I was focused on the telling of the story. The feedback from the meeting has made me think a lot more about listening to the story - what does the reader hear? There was also positive feedback about the voice of the narrator, except a couple of places where it broke down. Both are necessary: what is important to me, and how do I get the reader to visualize or live that importance so it becomes a shared experience.

And then you publish in one way or another, and you relinquish all rights to the meaning of what you have written, as each reader reads into it his or her own interpretation, often ones unanticipated.

Tim

p.s. As is so often true, writing this has been very helpful. A note turned into something much longer.

Write Stuff Critique Group 'Rules'

“Rules” for the Write Stuff at Lincoln PL

updated Sept 2006

General

• The Write Stuff is an open group.
• All are welcome to join. However, only those who have attended at least two previous meetings will be eligible to read their work.
• The group may be divided if it becomes too large; having about a dozen regular members is ideal.
• The meeting shall be chaired by a facilitator, who shall keep track of time, encourage open and sympathetic comments and record who will read at the subsequent meeting.
• Members unable to attend the meeting should notify the facilitator.

Presenting Work

• Those who will present at each meeting shall sign up at the previous meeting.
• A copy of the work (maximum about 1000 words, or 4 pages double-spaced) should be sent by the author to each person in the group by e-mail at least 24 hours before the meeting.
• It is recommended that the work be sent as an attachment and pasted into the body of the email.
• The words Write Stuff should appear in the title of all emails relating to the activities of the group to aid filtering and recognition
• Names, email address and telephone number of members are made available to others in the group for the sole purpose of distribution of material and comments.
• If a reader is unable to send their work out in advance, then sufficient hard copies should be made available by the reader for distribution at the meeting.
• If a reader is unable to attend the meeting at which they are to read, they should notify the facilitator as far in advance as possible to permit substitution.

Providing comments and input

• Members will read the work, make comments and be prepared to discuss them at the group.
• Comments should include two positive aspects that the reviewer found in the work and two aspects that may be improved.
• Comments should be as specific as possible, give examples and be limited to the craft of writing as it pertains to the piece under review. (see appendix 1 for critique guidelines)
• All work should be considered confidential within the group, copyright of the author and should not be distributed outside of the Write Stuff group without the written permission of the copyright owner.
• All work should be considered fiction and not taken as a commentary or the express views of the author, unless clearly stated as such, for example as an editorial piece, memoir or non-fiction.

Appendix 1 (with acknowledgment to lessons learned at The Gotham Writers' Workshop)

Characters – the people in the story

• Are the characters interesting? Sympathetic?

• Are the characters dimensional, or one-note?

• Are the characters well drawn? Are you able to “see” them?

• Is there enough character: action, dialogue, appearance, thought?

• Are the characters distinctive, different from each other?

• Does the protagonist have a strong desire?

• Does the protagonist grow or change?

Plot – the sequence of events

• Is the plot interesting? Dramatic? Is a good story being told?

• Is there enough conflict?

• Does enough “happen”?

• Is there a logical flow to the plot?

• Does the story move forward? Does the tension increase?

• Is there a strong enough climax?

• Are any parts of the plot unnecessary? Are any necessary parts missing?

• Is exposition provided effectively?

Point of View – the viewpoint from which the story is told

• Is the right POV used (first person, third person, etc.)?

• Is the POV too “close” or “distant”?

• Is the POV consistent throughout the story?

Description– the way things are described

• Are the descriptions effective?

• Is there too much or too little description?

• Do the descriptions utilize the senses? Are they specific?

• Are adjectives and adverbs overused? Are the nouns and verbs strong enough?

• How is the use of figurative language (metaphor, simile, etc.)?

• Are cliches being used?

Dialogue– what the characters say

• Is there too much dialogue or not enough?

• Is there enough use of “scene”?

• Does the dialogue sound natural?

• Is the dialogue rambling?

• How is the use of “stage directions” – the staging of the dialogue scenes?

• Does the dialogue reflect the characters?

• Is the dialogue too “on the nose” – where characters always say what they mean?

• Are the tags (he said, she scolded, etc.) unobtrusive?

Setting – the place and time

• Is the story grounded enough in place? In time?

• Is there too much or too little setting description?

• Does the setting enhance the emotion or mood of the story?

Pacing – the manipulation of time

• Are there sections that should be cut, or moved through more quickly?

• Are there sections that should be slowed down?

• Are there too many flashbacks?

Voice – the “sound” of the narrator

• Do you find the narrator’s voice appealing or off-putting?

• Does the voice sound natural or affected?

• Is the voice consistent throughout the story?

Style – the stylistic choices

• Are the words consistent with the narrator’s voice?

• Are the sentences and paragraphs too long or too short?

• Is the writing too wordy, or too spare?

• Are there any style choices that distract you from the story?

Theme – the underlying meaning

• Does there seem to be a point to the story?

• Is the theme too heavy-handed?

• Is the theme dramatized by the plot?

Grammar