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Posts from the ‘Craft’ Category

May 7

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Creating high-concept story ideas, part I

Recently, at our local Field’s End Writing Conference, author Shelia Roberts spoke about high-concept novels. Whenever I hear the term “high-concept,” it always brings images of espionage thrillers like John le Carre’s Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy or a complex, multi-charactered story like Stephen King’s The Stand.

But what I learned from Roberts was that “high-concept” doesn’t necessarily mean exceedingly complex. A high-concept idea is one that is unique, unusual, or stands out in some way. Roberts describes it as, “stepping outside the box.” Read more

May 3

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Write to your white hot center

In my writing group last night, somebody talked about how as writers we often write around what we really want to say.

Think of your idea, story, or poem as a bright yellow sunflower or maybe a snow-white lily. Around this flower flits a multi-colored butterfly. He dances, darts, and flutters around the flower until he finally hones in and lands.

Writing can be like that. Sometimes, it takes me a while to warm up to what I want to say and that’s okay. Writing is a process of discovery. The key is in the editing after the initial dance of pen and paper. In a poem, I may cut the first stanza or even first half of the poem. In my memoir, the current chapter one is not the chapter one I first wrote. Read more

May 2

Using background sounds to create realistic settings

A couple years ago, a friend told me that when her 90-year-old mother got hearing aids, she found out she would have an adjustment period as she began to notice things that over time she had stopped hearing.

Once she began to wear the hearing aids, she heard the hum of refrigerators, sounds of cars going by outside, and other background sounds we all take for granted. This reminded me of staying in houses where I’d lie in bed in the quiet of the night and hear the creaking of the house, the wheezing of the furnace, and the clanging of radiators.

I’ve thought about how I should show this sensory part of the world in my scenes and settings. It’s a way to add realism, and I imagine it makes it easier for readers to immerse themselves in the story world I’m trying to create. Read more

Apr 27

Famous writers’ rules of writing

Writers are apprentices. We are constantly trying to polish our craft. I know some writers who’ve written for years, are best-selling authors, and still strive to learn and grow as much as they can.

You can’t teach writing like you can brain surgery–there are just too many variables but you can head the advice of those best-selling authors. Everybody has their own method but here are a few tips from the pros:

George Orwell’s Five Rules for Effective Writing

Robert Heinlein’s Rules of Writing

Elmore Leonard’s Ten Rules of Writing Plus Some – this post includes Leonard’s rules plus other authors, including Margaret Atwood, Jonathan Franzen, and Neil Gaiman.

Exercise: Create your own “rules” list and hold yourself accountable to them for 30 days. I’ll post my list soon.

Apr 24

Random scrivenings from my writer’s notebook

Writers have to be the kind of people who look closely at the world and what’s going on around them. We must develop our writer’s antennae and constantly tune in to the odd, poignant, and startling details.

Here are a couple of notes I collected and noted in my writer’s notebook during a recent trip. I’m always looking for good names and scored with two in one flight.

Entry one from my commonplace book:

“Good character names: Pink Wilkerson. Short for Pinkney.”

Read more

Apr 23

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Do your characters have secrets?

When developing characters–hair color, size, likes, dislikes, hobbies, background–do you think about what secrets they might have? Secrets can make your character more complex, human, and interesting.

For ideas on the types of secrets people have, listen to Frank Warren’s 11-minute Ted.com talk below about an art project he started back in 2004. He handed out 3,000 postcards and asked people to anonymously mail in their secrets. He has since collected over half a million secrets and posts them weekly on his website www.postsecret.com.

Warren says, “Secrets can remind us of the countless human dramas, of frailty and heroism playing out silently in the lives of people all around us.”

What secrets might your characters have?

Apr 20

Writing spice for your reading pleasure

I’m always looking for a dose of writing spice. Here are three posts for your reading pleasure.

In Write the Way Vermeer Paints (Or What I Learned from Girl in Hyacinth Blue), Tim Kane writes about the techniques of the old masters and how they relate to writing.

Next, how would you define your entire story in two sentences? Find out from Nick Thacker in this guest post for WordPlay, How to Write a Novel in Two Sentences.

Finally, learn about how to build settings into your stories by reading Jody Hedlund’s take on Seven Setting Basics that can Bring a Story to Life.

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