Blog Number Eleven

A couple of  punctuation rules won't hurt.  Honest.  These are some rules and observations that will help you in your every day pursuit of the perfect story.  In fiction, we take "literary" license with punctuation, but still there are some hard and fast rules.

1. THE ELEMENTS OF GRAMMAR, by Margaret Shertzer, states that "use a dash (double dash or em dash) to indicate a sudden break in a sentence.  When you end a sentence in a dash, no punctuation is needed."

2. THE ELEMENTS OF GRAMMAR (regarding ellipsis dots) states that you should use three dots in the middle of a sentence, four dots at the end of a sentence.  Ellipsis dots can indicate the passage of time, that a statement is left unfinished, or can be used to indicate hesitation or a kind of "dying away" of a thought or action.  Whether to put a space between the dots is a matter of individual style.

3. PUNCTUATE IT RIGHT by Harry Shaw states "a dash lends a certain air of surprise or emotional tone on occasion."

A favorite saying to help me remember the rule regarding commas:

A cat has claws at the end of its paws

A comma's a pause at the end of a clause.

The following is my argument with an editor concerning the use of hyphens.

I wrote:  "Dear Lee, Regarding "soft-hearted father."  I thought the rule concerning adjectives was if neither word could stand alone, then they should be hyphenated.  For example: it's not her "soft father" or her "hearted father," but her "soft-hearted father."  You used this rule with "back-stair gossip," stating in one place that it should have been hyphenated, but in another instance you didn't.

"Regarding " ill-at-ease" I deleted the hyphens as you requested.  But, I thought that when two or three words are used as one, that the hyphens were called for.  However, I can't seem to find a rule of grammar for that."

Lee's response:  Touché.

Blog Number Ten

I was at a writers' retreat in the mountains a few years back when a woman asked me to read the first few pages of her manuscript and tell her what I thought.  I'm not easily shocked.  At my age, I've been there, done that, heard that, seen that!  However, those first few pages did indeed shock me.  Just because you have an overwhelming urge to write porn or erotica, doesn't mean that someone else will pay to read it.  If you write in this genre, the avenues leading to publication of your work are narrow, but with Google, I guess nothing is impossible.

Readers usually know what they want--romance, suspense, fantasy, true crime, action, the list is endless.  When they go to a brick-and-mortar-book store, they head for their favorite section.  And if they surf through online bookstores, they nearly always put a key word in a search engine.

Before embarking on your journey into the world of fiction, you need to know your specific genre and try to stay within those boundaries.  "Joe Blow Best Selling Author" can get away with just about anything because he or she has name recognition.  A newcomer doesn't.  So, hold off on that time-traveling vampire cowboy.  Make it easy for a prospective reader to find your book.

So...truly, it doesn't matter what your genre is (zombies, vampires, time travel, SciFi, shape-shifting, ghost stories or talking animals), lifting the veil of believability takes a delicate hand.  Write your stories--but don’t slap your reader in the face.  Stay true and don't wander.

Guide your reader, lead them gently by the hand.  Make them a promise in the first few chapters and keep your promises or you'll have a disappointed reader.  They want to care, want to worry and want a satisfying conclusion.  If you give them a book with too many characters swimming in an outlandish plot, you won’t win any followers.  Make them cry.  Make them laugh.  Make their hearts beat faster.  Give ‘em what they want.

Blog Number Nine

Oh dear, I missed a week.  Last weekend Hurricane Lee managed to push inland as far as Chattanooga, TN., dumping nearly 9 inches of rain on my back yard.  Since there was a great deal of lightning with it, I decided not to turn on my computer.

This week, I would like to mention some "how to" titles.  These books are to be read for educational purposes.  If you put fifty writers in a room with pencil and paper, you would end up with fifty methods on how to write a book. 

Robert Ray.  THE WEEKEND NOVELIST

Even though his method isn't my method, I still found his book extremely helpful and informative.  His lyrical style makes the book very readable.

Dwight Swain.  TECHNIQUES OF A SELLING WRITER.

When this book was first recommended to me, I thought "how can a book published in 1967 possibly be relevant in today's market."  I was so wrong.  Some advice withstands the test of time.  His recommendation of "Begin in violence, end in hope," has been my mantra for many years.

Blog Number Eight

 MURDER, INCORPORATED.  I've just spent three days learning just about everything there is to know about murder and catching the culprits who think they can get away with it.

I (along with two of my fellow authors) attended the Killer-Nashville (TN) Writers' Conference.  I went to six workshops and listened to a speech by Dr. Bill Bass, founder of the University of Tennessee (Knoxville) Body Farm.  For those of us who are a bit ghoulish, it was great fun.

If you don't know what the "Body Farm" is...well, hmm, let's see if I can word this politely.  It's a place where they expose dead people to outdoor environments to see how long it takes to decay.

It was interesting to learn that werewolves and zombies are fading from popularity, while murder in any genre continues to fascinate the reading public.  It's also good to know that "cozy mysteries" (my genre) have never faded, but continue to be consistent sellers.  Continuing characters in a series are also well accepted.

Another interesting observation spanning the twenty years I've been going to writers' conferences is that in the early years, you never saw anyone who would admit to being self-published.  Nowadays, about half of the speakers and panel members were.  Hooray for our side!

When I arrived home, I was "pumped" full of new ideas and plot twists for my current (WIP) Work In Progress.

My advice for today...find a conference near your hometown.

Blog Number Seven

 Okay, you've finished your book.  Now what?  The worst thing you can do is to continue working on it.  Don't second guess yourself.  I've said it before and I'll say it again.  Find someone (not related) to critique your novel.  Get an honest opinion, even if it hurts.  If a reader who knows nothing about your characters and plot and gets lost or confused, possibly your novel needs more work.

If it's okay, stay in your genre and start another book.  Editors don't want a "one book wonder."  They want someone with several story ideas in the pipeline.  What they want is one book a year so no matter how long it takes to get published, keep writing.  That way you'll have several books in YOUR pipeline.

Another thing...DO NOT put your work on social media networks.  NEVER!  NEVER!  NEVER! give it away.  Why would a publisher want to give you a contract to SELL your book if you've already given it away for free?  They won't.

Yes, I remember the story of how Diana Gabaldon got her shot at publication back in 2001.  That was a decade ago in the infancy of the Internet when she posted her novel "The Outlander."

The old rules no longer apply.

Blog Number Six

BLOG Number Six.  The number one biggest misconception new writers have is to think "Mistakes don't matter.  An editor will fix it."

"Not true, grasshopper."  Editors don't edit.  They acquire.  In most cases, they don't even read your book.  There are housewives in New York City who earn a good living as a "professional reader."  They are paid per manuscript to read through an editor's slush pile and sift the wheat from the chaff.  This is the person who will decide your Fate.  She's usually a stay-at-home mom with a couple of screaming kids begging for her attention.  If you don't catch her interest in the first three pages, all your hard work is shredded for recycle or returned in your SASE.

That acquisitions editor you've been "courting" for the last few months only reads the books that make it through Level One.  Unless, of course, you've been to a conference and met with an editor.  Conferences are an invaluable tool.  Do not discount them as fluff.

If the editor gives you his/her business card and tells you how to "flag" your envelope to get attention, lordy, you have climbed from the gutter onto the curb.  You've made that first step.

Editors usually acquire for only one line which is their specialty.  They need to find possibly four titles each month and already have their calendar booked about a year in advance.

For Heaven's sake....don't make your book a 250,000 word, 600 page epic.  Believe it or not, because of the high price of paper these days, and the number of trees they have to cut down to make the pulp to make the paper, editors cannot AFFORD to invest a great amount of money into a new author.

You are unproven and unknown.

They will not let you forget it.

Blog Number Five

For the fiction writer, Createspace is NOT a vanity press.  However, you must be able to do your own editing for spelling, grammar and punctuation errors and please don’t have your character getting shot before the villain pulls out his gun.

If you tell a good story with believable characters in an interesting, fast moving plot, there is always someone who is willing to spend a few bucks to read it.  First and foremost, you need to get a positive, UNBIASED opinion of your work.  You know your relatives will unfailingly praise you to the sky.

Do you ever watch the try-outs on American Idol?  It makes you wonder why mothers, spouses, siblings or closest friends don't tell their youngster the truth..."you need a bucket to carry the tune."  No, they let this poor individual embarrass him or herself in front of millions of people.  So, my advice is...don't embarrass yourself with poor craftsmanship.  Publishers want a marketable product.  It's a business and they want to make a profit.

This is where RWA shines.  By going to RWA sponsored conferences, (or one of many writers' groups who have conferences) you can get an appointment with an editor and pitch your novel.  It doesn't have to be in the romance genre.  The editors usually have a panel discussion early on and tell you the types of stories they are looking for RIGHT NOW.  Don't waste an editor's time if your novel is not completed.  Don't present your manuscript to an editor that doesn't publish your genre.   But this is a great way to get a leg up and moved to the front of the queue.

My advice is...if you're young, energetic and your novel is clean, error free and as good as you can get it, then by all means aim for the big New York publishing houses.  The important message here is "if you can't take the heat, get out of the kitchen."  Criticism is a painful but necessary part of writing.