~Shhh... I've been having an affair ~

   


"Ink and paper are sometimes                     passionate lovers, oftentimes brother and sister, and occasionally mortal enemies."

                                        - Emme Woodhull-Bache

Writing is like being in love

There's that first flush...when you come face to face for the first time,
 ( in this case when you first meet your story.)
"Hello" says Mr. Story "How do you do?"
"Hello." I respond with curiosity. "My name is Terri...and you are???"

It doesn't take long before you enter into the 'Giddy' phase. Just like when you first meet your true love it's all you want to talk about. It's certainly all you can think about. And just like new lovers everywhere, you are in a rush to find out everything about them, no detail is too small. In this phase when all the pieces begin to tumble out willy nilly, it's hard to remember that I'm the one writing the story. Because in the beginning, I feel like an observer. All the facts are simply being REVEALED to me.

Unfortunately at some point you have your first fight... it's a difficult blow when you realize you don't understand one another after all. What were you thinking? You ask yourself. You might be ready to throw in the towel.
But then you kiss and make up.

The words on the page become your love song. Sweet nothings whispered in your ear. Sometimes I've made a spectacle of myself as the right words have taken me by surprise. I dance around the room with a big goofy grin on my face, like a sixteen year old that just got asked to the prom.

So I think you get the picture.

But not only am I in love, but sometimes it's like I'm having an affair. I sneak around and write a line or two or jot down my notes with every spare moment I can snatch from the day. I'm constantly writing secret love notes. Or recording some random bit of dialogue on my phone to capture later.
"What are you doing?" asks innocent Hubbs
"Nothing....nothing. Pay no attention to me." I say with a guilty grin.

Yes, it's quite obvious to anyone who is looking.

 I'm having an affair with my writing.

~ The Good, The Bad & The Ugly ~

           "You take people, you put them on a journey, 
           you give them peril, you find out 
          who they really are. "
     
                                                   -Joss Whedon

Character development. 

Here is where the Good, the Bad and the Ugly comes in to play. Even my darling hero/heroine has flaws. I shouldn't cover them up or sweep them under the rug. The flaws are what humanize characters. I have learned to embrace their imperfections, and allow my character to

  G  R   O   W. 

When Kate first whispered her story to me (while in my bathtub, over a year and a half ago) I knew I liked her right from the start. I loved the fact that she was 'every girl '. Not too perfect. Pretty, but not gorgeous. She often thought of a splendid retort, hours after an embarrassing incident. In other words, she was a girl every one could relate to.



                                                             

 And it was important that she remain that way throughout the story. As an author one can become so intimately involved with our characters, it's sometimes hard to watch them get kicked around. But it's important that they don't always win at everything ... because hey, that's life. 

So I had to fight my instinct to protect Kate. I had to let her fail a time or two. But in the end it makes for a stronger character and a better story. It's up to my reader to discover the character for themselves. And in that discovery, they will either fall in love ... or they won't. That is the beauty of reading. For how do you know that the ending is fitting...if you haven't been on the entire journey, page by page?

Likewise, I let my reader follow a trail of breadcrumbs that allow them to take a small peek into the mind of my hero's nemesis. Even if the antagonist's logic is flawed, in their little world they have a reason for their behavior. The evil villain in a cartoon, is just that...a cartoon. REAL people have many layers.

In my current novel, The Bootlegger's Wife, 
there are plenty of flaws and weaknesses to go around. But hopefully the characters are lovable in spite of them...or perhaps... BECAUSE of them. 

But that,dear friends,will be for you... to tell me!

~ Write From the Heart ~

The book you write will change      

YOUR life.

                                                                     -    Joanna Penn

While at a writer's conference a few months ago, someone asked the question of the panel of agents and editors,"What do you see as the next big trend? We've had vampires and zombies, what's next?"

The agent who answered, knew exactly what the questioner was asking and she responded truthfully.
To paraphrase, she said something along the lines of "I don't have a crystal ball. No one knows what will capture the imagination of the public and cause a wildfire to spread in the publishing industry. But if you're looking for an inside tip so that you can write a story based on what you think the next big trend will be...you're playing a losing game." I say...

Write from the heart

That is the only way to write. Now...if you just so happen to LOVE vampires and zombies and Dystopic worlds (think Hunger Games) ...great. Write your little heart out and in this very moment the market will love you for it. But for the rest of us it's a huge mistake to force a story, simply to catch a ride on the coattails of the latest whim in the publishing industry. 

Write from the heart  

Your story is your voice, and your voice is unique. No one else can tell your story like you can. Embrace it. Believe it. Trust it. And don't worry about writing the next '50 Shades of Gray'.   

When you write simply because you MUST write, because the thought of not writing hurts too much, then you are listening to your heart. And whether or not you become the next JK Rowling or Stephanie Myers matters not in the long run; for the book you write WILL CHANGE YOUR LIFE. But only if, you...

Write from the heart. 

~ The Art of Editing in the Rain ~

'

'Kill your darlings, kill your darlings; even when it breaks your egocentric little scribbler's heart, kill your darlings.'
                                                     -Stephen King

Why that title for this post? I just love the sound of the words. I stole them from 'The Art of Racing in the Rain' by Garth Stein. ( a fabulous book, written by a dog) It's not plagiarism if you admit to stealing, is it? But once I borrowed the title I thought I would just continue with the theme of race car driving and merge
 ( see what I did there?) it into my thoughts on editing.

Whether racing or editing there are some similar things to watch out for:

When to let off the gas

When to go full steam ahead

Watch out for those tricky corners

Keep the Finish Line in sight

The hardest thing to come to terms with is: 'What to purge what to keep??? But as Stephen King so delicately put it above, sometimes you have to be ruthless. Case in point, I had several beautiful pages that were drop dead good and I was IN LOVE with those words. But come to find out.....they didn't actually belong in this book. I was shocked to find that out. And as much as it hurt my little fingers to press the 'delete' button, I had to do it. So the words I loved fell from the pages onto the cutting room floor. But I carefully swept them up, and I will use them somewhere else where they were meant to shine. 

As long as I'm still editing, the story continues and my characters live.The hardest part is knowing when you're done. If I'm editing I am still in contact with my characters, and the truth is I don't want to say good-bye. So for now we are still visiting daily, I am not yet ready to close the book and send them away. But soon, very soon. 

~ First Draft ~

 

  'My own experience is that once a story has been written, 

one has to cross out the beginning and the end. It is there

that we authors do most of our lying.'

                                                               -Anton Chekhov                  

I suppose that quote shall be my fate as I say ..... I've completed the first draft of my latest novel;

'The Bootleggers Wife, a Love Story.'

But oh well, I shall revel in the deliciousness of that first heady flush that comes with typing those small but oh so powerful words; THE END. At this point I can easily convince myself that this labor of love will only need a quick touch up. A comma here, a misplaced quotation mark there, one or perhaps two small typos and voila', I'm done. Certainly nothing that a simple brushstroke can't take care of.

But then the truth of the matter settles in. First Draft....not to be confused with:

Bank Draft

Cold Draft
Rough Draft
Down Draft
Over Draft

Back Draft
But....FIRST DRAFT

The first of several re-writes stare me in the face.
I'm with Mr. Checkhov; for me the first and the last chapters are the most difficult.

The first chapter ,of course, because I'm trying to find the right voice. Each character is unique and wants to tell their story in their own way. I hear them clearly, but the task before me is to insure that YOU hear them as I do. Sometimes it takes a bit to get into the rhythm and find that sweet spot. I have to find my way. By the time I come to the end of my book and I'm totally immersed in my character and her world, it is easy to see where changes need to be made back at the beginning.

The last chapter  is difficult because I'm sprinting to the finish line when I should have been stopping to smell the roses. I'm in such a hurry to get those last words out there, that the last chapter usually needs a lot of work in the re-write stage. But hey, that's what first drafts are all about, right?

Here's a picture of me, the tireless scribe, working on my first novel.

For now, I'm on a short break; a two week leave of absence from the manuscript that has eaten up every spare moment for over six months. It is necessary to step away, to breathe, to gather my thoughts before diving into the deep end. But if the truth be told.........I can't wait.

~ Birds of a Feather ~

  "The difference between the right word and the almost right word, is the difference between lightning and a lightning bug."
                                           -Mark Twain

           

Birds of a feather flock together......so I'm told. And so we did, on Saturday last. Two local writers groups, Ozark Romance Authors and Sleuths Inc, pooled their resources and hosted 'The Mega Critique Group and Write-In Event' at The Creamery Arts Center. There was room at the table for everyone no matter what kind of bird you were. 

What a fabulous way to kick off the new year; with a day devoted to our passion. 

Dozens of people thumbed their noses at the cold January day to sit in a room surrounded with their brothers-in-arms. It is a universal truth that the next best thing to writing, is to be in a room full of like-minded people and talk about writing. In my case it's even better, because my best friend was sitting beside me. Two souls joined at the hip.

Fingers were flying across laptop keyboards. The hushed atmosphere made it all the easier to pick up on the creativity crackling in the air around us. I plugged into the energy and my story soared. Two hours whipped by in the blink of an eye.

Writing is grueling work.....therefore the hoards must be fed. The hosts of our party took good care of us. And once we had been properly fueled up, we were prepared for the last half of our day.

Critique sessions were offered for the brave souls who were willing to put their words on the table and allow strangers to run their fingers through them. Please don't break anything and play nice, I whispered to myself. Encouragement was served up with a smile and a red pen and I am happy to report that no writer walked away from the room bloodied or bruised. 

What stories begun in this room will find their way to the public at large? Who knows. But it was a wonderful day of camaraderie and my battery feels fully charged. I look 2014 in the eye as I roll up my sleeve and say,

BRING IT.

~ Happy New Year ~

"Write it on your heart that every day is the best day in the year."

                                                                                                                          ~Ralph Waldo Emmerson