Join the best erotica focused adult social network now
Login
MorganHawke
Over 90 days ago
Bisexual Female, 61
United States

Forum

Quote by sprite
Looking for: Domme/editor. Must be willing to tie me down and punish me for grammatical errors, typos, spelling mistakes, and aimless plots. Apply in person.


I HAVE ONE! Stef my editor at Mojo Castle will and HAS worn leather and wielded a paddle just for me. Of course, this was at a convention, but hey...! It still counts!

I have learned far more from my editors than I have from any book or tutorial. Seriously. The only reason I'm as good a writer as I am is because of my editors.
Quote by GallagherWitt
Editors are awesome. I've learned something from every one of them, and the most brutal among my editors have been the best.


Here! here!

Quote by GallagherWitt
And can I just say, it would be wonderful for my sanity if every house in the universe adopted the same house style. It'll never happen, but...a girl can dream. lol (About two weeks ago, I was juggling four sets of edits, all from different publishers, and it was actually funny how many things one house would do one way and another would do completely differently. It was either funny or I was going insane. One of the two.)


I have 4 publishers and NONE Agree with Any of the others!
Quote by TracyAmes
I didn't see it! Can we load it into a cannon and fire it across Lushland? lol! Thanks...


LOL! It's kind of hard to miss, I guess. There are three pages of writing tips.
Quote by Mistress_of_words
Absolutely. I've heard action tags called "beats" elsewhere...

Wow... I've never heard that term. Learn something new every day!

Quote by Mistress_of_words
I try to avoid using a dialogue tag wherever I can, but where I do feel I need to use one I stick to said, whispered, cried etc. Nothing fancy.

Different strokes for different folks.
-- Just because "I" loathe something doesn't meant everyone else has to. It's a technique, not a Law.

Quote by Mistress_of_words
I read somewhere that the sole purpose of a dialogue tag is to identify the speaker. I find that quite a good rule to work to.

I just don't like the way dialogue tags clog up the word-count. When you have a seriously tight word-count limit, removing all the "said" tags give you room for description or exposition. Also, if there's a "said" tag, that usually means that All Action has Stopped in the story; the background and sound effects have disappeared. I like to SEE the stories I read, not just listen to people talking.

Quote by Mistress_of_words
Everything in moderation is my motto. Very few things are inherently wrong, but become so when they are overused. Better to utilize every trick in the book a little bit than one trick all the time.


Agreed.
Quote by gypsymoth
I am SO going to call in some favours at this point in order to obtain some totally gratuitous ego enhancing posts from people I edit for here at Lush to slavishly tell you how much that article touches them because I have proof-read, critiqued, and edited their writing, which they have always appeciated at some point. Or not. But that is great to read, thank you.


You're welcome!
-- A really good editor is one who can tell what you Meant to write even if it didn't come out that way. Stef is a genius at doing that for me.
The Editor is Your Friend
Or If You Can't Take an Edit, Stay Out of the Publishing House
By
Stefani V. Kelsey
Editor-in-chief of Mojo Castle Press


Featured in
Xodtica Magazine March 2005
http://www.xodtica.com/


Back in the day, in order to see a book in print, you were forced to do it the old-fashioned way: submit to a major publishing house and use the rejection slips to dab your tears. Repeat the process until you either buried your dreams--and your manuscript--in the bottom of a trunk, or by God and by Golly...Hit the Big Time.

Now, the world is your publishing house. If Doubleday is foolish enough not to recognize your genius, you can hit small press, or POD, or ebook, or even do it yourself, whether by paying someone to do it for you, or truly making it your own. With so many options, finding the right fit is worth taking the time.

A huge factor in the decision-making process is that of the most feared facet of the publishing world: The Editor.

One misapprehension that the editor is out to hack, twist, trash, or otherwise fold, spindle, and mutilate your work. The true job of an editor is to take what you have and make it the best it can be, not to rewrite it in their own image and likeness. Spelling, grammar and sentence structure are standard, as is consistency.

You may get a manuscript back marked with enough red to illustrate the St. Valentine's Massacre, and still find not all that much is changed, as far as the true heart of your work: the story. An editor doesn't bake the cake, just decorates it.

Unfortunately, not all editors know their role. Some want to rewrite a story in a way they like, regardless of author's voice. Others fail to understand the author's world building, and end up literally destroying the carefully wrought storyline. Still more take on the role with a minimum of training and experience, and end up putting in more mistakes than they take out.

Usually because of a bad experience such as this, the author goes into the publishing world mistrusting the editor, and the relationship is doomed from the start. The trick is knowing the difference between a professional edit, and the evil alternative.

Editing can seem traumatic...you just handed over your baby, and when you get that book back, you feel like you've been attacked. Sentences you labored over have been hash-marked. The quaint turn of phrase you spent a good amount of time getting just so has been designated "too passive", and there is a detailed note attached asking you all sorts of inane questions you thought were made perfectly clear in line eighteen of page four.

What would bring an otherwise kind person to perform such brutality?

Oddly enough, they're doing it to help you.

If a publisher signs you, they think you have a good bit of writing that the public may enjoy. So their goal is to put out a book that people will want to spend money on. Now, no matter how good you and your crit group are, things will be missed. That's the editor's job. What seems perfectly clear and right to you after fifty readings may not be so to a reader during their first. A certain turn of phrase may read as offensive, or it may just not fit the image the house wants to project.

And of course, two words to strike fear in any wordsmith's heart: House Style.

Every publisher has their own style, terminology, and formatting methods. Which, in most cases, is nothing like yours.

But the end result is not intended to send you into a fit of weeping and bosom-rending, but merely to create a marketable product.

If it's not about the money, or you think your misspellings are creative, and should be left in for emphasis, or you truly fear the evil editor, don't go to a publisher.

Insane advice? No, self-preservation.

You're better off going to a vanity press, or simply doing it yourself because all it will result in is bad blood between you and the publisher. If you sign their contract, you are in essence agreeing to do it their way. If you don't like their way, don't sign the contract.

And yes, an ebook publisher is a real publisher. And a contract is a contract.

Going to an ebook publisher is not a "last resort." It also does not mean you get the right to do or say whatever you like. An epublisher commands the same respect as any other.

- If Doubleday signed you, would you argue with and/or insult the editor?
- Would you ask the publisher after they spent hours editing and putting your book up for sale to dissolve your contract because you want to go to another publisher?
- More important, would they?

Straight up answer is no, on all counts. You wouldn't do it, and they wouldn't take it. So keep that in mind when you make your decision.

© 2010 Stefani V. Kelsey
Posted with Permission
Quote by Mistress_of_words
...said in your dialogue tags. On the basis that, in theory, your dialogue should speak for itself, and propping it up with diverse, inappropriate verbs and adverbs is just explaining what you should be conveying with the speech itself. Meanwhile "said" is neutral and functional.

This was one example - http://fecklessgoblin.blogspot.com/2011/01/guest-blog-dialogue-by-tony-noland.html


I hate ALL dialogue tags.
-- Yes, dialogue should speak for itself, however, I use Actions to denote who is speaking, not Tags.

When you have an action with a line of dialogue, you don't need Dialogue tags, such as "said" at all. You already know through their actions WHO is speaking. Dialogue tags are only ever needed when you don’t have any other way of identifying the speaker. HOWEVER, if you have no other way of knowing who is speaking than dialogue tags, then you have committed the heinous crime of: Dialogue in a Vacuum, also known as “talking heads syndrome.”

Just for the record, using dialogue tags is Not against the rules. Dialogue tags are a perfectly viable way to identify who is speaking -- it just makes that part of the story BORING. (I don't know about you, but I won't read something that bores me.)

I choose to write my dialogue without using "said" unless I am actually describing a change in voice, tone, or volume in the same paragraph. And even then, I try to avoid them. I use the speaker's actions to define who is speaking to whom. I use ACTION TAGS. What the heck is an Action Tag? BODY LANGUAGE.

Stories are Mental Movies you play in your imagination. I don't know about you, but I HATE to be interrupted when I'm involved in a good movie. If I have to stop and reread a section just to figure out what the heck is going on, I've been interrupted. One too many interruptions and I'm switching to another story -- with no intention of continuing with something that's just too much work to get through.

Action tags keep the mental Movie rolling and the MEANING of what is being said crystal clear. A small simple action can tell you right away, what's going through the speaker's head.

Don't just SAY it! ~ SHOW IT!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“I love you too.” She rolled her eyes and sighed dramatically. “Oh yes, I truly do love you.”
“I love you too.” She dropped her chin and pouted. “Oh yes, I truly do love you.”
“I love you too.” She glared straight at him. “Oh yes, I truly do love you.”
“I love you too.” She turned away and wiped the tear from her cheek. “Oh yes, I truly do love you.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
And I didn't even need to use the word "said" even once.

from: The Secret to Proper Paragraphing & Dialogue
http://www.lushstories.com/forum/yaf_postst15716_The-Secret-to-Proper-Paragraphing-and-Dialogue.aspx
Quote by TracyAmes
Another excellent post, Morgan. Penning a captivating back cover blurb used to render me a glass-eyed omphaloskeptic. Normally I pick up a book, read the back, and if the blurb peaks my interest, then I'll read the first page. So when it came to creating my own, I freaked! ~cue glass eyes~


Writing back blurbs ARE a pain in the ass. I use a Formula.

Synopsis:
*YOUR PROTAGONIST* *PURSUES A GOAL*. *YOUR OTHER PROTAGONIST* *PURSUES A GOAL*. *WHEN SOMETHING HAPPENS* they are thrown together & sparks fly! To * PURSUE A NEW GOAL*, they are forced to work together & more than sparks fly.

But *ANTAGONISTS* are *PROVIDING OPPOSITION*!

And then there’s the *HINT AT PLOT TWIST*


Quote by TracyAmes
"A book without an opening hook certainly won't make it past an agent."
Bang on! Agents are peppered with submissions. Manuscripts lacking proper hooks land in litter bins.
Didn't you write a post on the uses of "Said"? 'Said' = nails on a chalkboard.


I did indeed. I LOATHE the word "said."
Quote by DirtyMartini
Quote by MorganHawke
...Partial manuscripts, that's 60 pages - 4 chapters - not whole manuscripts.


How standard is that, if at all? I've been reading in writing forums that five chapters and a 1000 word synopsis seems to be the thing these days... Is is different for erotica/romance?


A Partial plus synopsis is standard for brick and mortar publishers and some epublishers like Samhain Press or Ellora's Cave. NONE of those will take a full manuscript without express invitation. How many pages they consider to be a Partial, depends entirely on the individual publisher -- which is why one should ALWAYS read the submission guidelines BEFORE submitting anything to anyone.

However, 60 pages (double-spaced with each page counted as 250 words,) plus a full synopsis was what my agent asked for while she was shopping my manuscript for Kiss of the Wolf to several of the larger publishers. That's what she considers 'standard.'

Just so you know, my chapters tend to be roughly 2500 words each, so 60 pages WAS 4 chapters for me.

My erotic romance publishers are ebook publishers. They prefer a completed manuscript.
Quote by Mistress_of_words
Your first line must make the reader read the first paragraph
Your first paragraph must make them read the first page
Your first page must make them read the first chapter
Your first chapter must make them keep reading


That should be taped to every writer's monitor.

Quote by Mistress_of_words
I've found that of the easier ways to try and hook your reader with the first line is to start with a line of dialogue. Drop your readers straight into a conversation.


That is an excellent method. I've used it myself. It's especially good if the line is intriguing or Sarcastic.

Quote by Mistress_of_words
The importance of this on Lush is quite visible - when a story appears on the home page it shows about the first three lines, what you put in those three lines will definitely affect whether someone clicks to "read on."


Absolutely! Which is why Author Notes should NEVER go at the beginning of a posted story. It eats up all the space where your story's hook should be.
Ooooooh! GOOD Article!
-- I use pictures for inspiration myself. Right here on LUSH there's a huge picture gallery with tons of men and women in interesting situations that simply beg for stories.
An Opening HOOK?

-----Original Message-----
"We constantly hear people talk about a hook. I was just wondering, how important is an opening hook? How close to the opening does it have to be? Seriously, how many people pick up a book or story and put it back down after the first sentence or paragraph? Do we have some forgiveness here? I would think that a published, well known author might not need one."
-- Writer in Waiting

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Let’s break this down and tackle each, one at a time.

"I was just wondering, how Important is an Opening Hook?”

How important? Vitally important.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"57% of new books are not read to completion. Most readers do not get past page 18 in a book they have purchased."
--Jerrold Jenkins

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This means you have 4500 words to catch your reader's interest in your story. If you can't grab your reader the moment they open to the first page, your chances of them walking that book to the counter and buying it DROP astronomically.

On a story post site, you have ONE PARAGRAPH to grab your reader's interest enough to read more. If you don't catch them IMMEDIATELY, it's all too easy to click on another title to see if that's more interesting.

Just so you know, most potential readers decide what books they’ll purchase by:

-- Cover Art*
-- Back Cover Blurb
-- Inside Excerpt
-- First Page (first 150 words)
-- Last page (A LOT of buyers will not buy a book with an Unhappy Ending no matter how good the meat of the story is -- especially if that book is marketed as a Romance or EROTICA.)

-- In that order.

If your first page is dull and boring, you’re more or less screwed.

When it comes to story post sites, you don't even have that much. You have your opening paragraph -- that's it. (Which is why author notes at the beginning of a story are a BAD IDEA. Put them at the End.)

*Note on Cover Art: Although it is the first thing assessed by a potential buyer, Cover Art actually carries far less weight in the final purchasing decision than any of the others. Cover Art is merely a tool to catch the eye and make the buyer pick up the book for consideration. Most readers have learned that few covers actually have anything to do with what the book is about, so if the cover art stinks, but the rest is interesting, they’ll buy it.

“How close to the opening does it have to be?”

To GET them reading, your hook should be on the first line of the first page. To KEEP them reading, you should have a hook at the end of every single chapter.

Examples from my books:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Kiss of the Wolf

It was so cold…

Her breath steamed from her lips. Naked and shivering, she rose from her crouch. Her long pale brown hair falling over her bare shoulders, and the tall white dog pressed against her side, were her only sources of warmth.

The windowless basement of the abandoned textile factory was thick with shadows. She couldn’t see the walls or ceiling at all. The only light came from the circular design inscribed on the worn plank floor blazing an eerie blue, all the way around them.

She needed to get out of there.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Insatiable

"Might I have your company for the night?"

"Huh?" Elaine glanced up from her belly-down sprawl across the private compartment’s plush banquette sofa. The art deco lamp directly over her was on, but the polished cherry wood walls made the rest of the antique Pullman car very dark. She blinked. Where did he come from?

A tall man in a nearly floor-length black leather coat, stood just inside the deep shadow of her compartment’s door. His hands hung loose at his sides. "Pardon the intrusion." His voice was soft, low, and velvety with a touch of exotic eastern European lilt. He tilted his head toward the closed door. "I did knock, and your door was unlocked."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hungry Spirits

"This historical mansion is supposed to be haunted. Isn't that cool?"

"What?" The rubber soles of Keiko's pink house slippers caught on the antique, red and gold carpet, making her trip. She barely stopped from pitching into the student directly in front of her. With the entire class crammed in the narrow hallway, there was barely enough walking room, never mind room to fall. She turned to her left, and frowned at her classmate. "Tika, did you say, haunted?"

"Yep." Tika smiled, showing the boy-grabbing dimple in the heart of her cheek. The light shining through the warm cream of the rice paper wall, they were walking alongside, gave her oval face a warm glow. "The ghost of an old samurai is supposed to be watching over the family."

Thunder boomed, rattling the rattan frames of the long, rice paper sliding walls on the left.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Seriously, how many people pick up a book or story and put it back down after the first sentence or paragraph? Do we have some forgiveness here?”

Survey says…!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“As a reader I generally give a new book (before I've bought it) the first paragraph to get my interest, sometimes less. I'll almost always put down a book that starts with a description of landscape, as lots of fantasy seem to.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“As a reader, I always open the book to the first page and start reading (in a book shop before I buy the book). If the writing style is awkward or the wording is boring I'll put the book down and keep looking.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Weather report beginnings are a turn off for me. But something subtle, interesting, or thought provoking, in the first paragraph is enough to keep me reading, for a while.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“I'll only grant ‘forgiveness’ to an author who has entertained me in the past, and even then I'm not all that lenient.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Most if not ALL potential buyers have only one interest when buying a book to read: PERSONAL ENTERTAINMENT. If the reader is not grabbed on the first page, your book goes back on the shelf in favor of one that DOES grab them.

The only books allowed to be dull and boring on the first page, are text books designed strictly for education. (They’re expected to be dull and boring.)

“…I would think that a published well known author might not need [a hook]."

Being published and well known does NOT mean that a reader won't put a book down that doesn't interest them, and there are ALWAYS people that have never heard of you.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“If a book is going nowhere after initially getting my interest, I'll stop reading, and never pick up another book by that author again.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“If I'm not ‘into’ it after 15 pages I usually give up.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“It's the author's job to keep me interested from the very first line to the very last, because if they can't, there are plenty that can and I'd rather be reading their books.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Never forget! Your book is in direct competition with every other book in that store, therefore you should avail yourself of every trick you can think of to Get that Reader – and then Keep that Reader.

“What is a HOOK anyway?”

Very simply, it’s what makes the reader turn the page. It’s the Mysterious Circumstance, the Precarious Situation, the Horrible Turn of Events, etc. that drives the Reader to Keep Reading to discover: “What will happen NEXT?” More commonly known as: SUSPENSE.

There is a Reason why MYSTERIES are a top selling genre – they keep the reader guessing right up to the last page.

“But I’m not writing a Mystery!”
So what? I don’t write mysteries either, but I do have a Mysterious Circumstance, a Precarious Situation, a Horrible Turn of Events -- a hook -- at the end of every chapter. And I never give anything away until the last possible second.

“But what if I'm writing Literature? They rarely (if ever) have hooks.”
Once upon a time they didn't, (like 10 years or more ago.) They DO NOW or they don't get past the publication editor. A book without an opening hook certainly won't make it past an agent.

These days agents and editors ask for Partial manuscripts, that's 60 pages - 4 chapters - not whole manuscripts. Not a whole lot of room to impress someone. What they DON'T tell you, is if you don't hook them on the First Page, they won't even bother reading the REST of the partial.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Publishers toss Booker winners into the reject pile.
They can’t judge a book without its cover.

Jonathan Calvert and Will Iredale

The Sunday Times, London UK, January 01, 2006
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Publishers and agents have rejected two Booker prize-winning novels submitted as works by aspiring authors. One of the books considered unworthy by the publishing industry was by VS Naipaul, one of Britain’s greatest living writers, who won the Nobel Prize for literature.

The exercise by The Sunday Times draws attention to concerns that the industry has become incapable of spotting genuine literary talent.

Typed manuscripts of the opening chapters of Naipaul’s “In a Free State” and a second novel, “Holiday,” by Stanley Middleton, were sent to 20 publishers and agents. None appears to have recognized them as Booker prizewinners from the 1970s that were lauded as British novel writing at its best. Of the 21 replies, all but one were rejections.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Read the Entire Article: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article784051.ece

In Conclusion:
If you expect your manuscript to get past an agent, or a publishing editor, you need to make your story engaging, and compelling to read right from the Opening Line.

If you want to make your READERS ask for More, you you need to make your story engaging, and compelling to read, from Opening Line to the Closing Chapter.

DISCLAIMER: As with all advice, take what you can use and throw out the rest. As a multi-published author, I have been taught some fairly rigid rules on what is publishable and what is not. If my rather straight-laced (and occasionally snotty,) advice does not suit your creative style, by all means, IGNORE IT.
Quote by GallagherWitt
...why would we want to put our names on something half-assed?


EXACTLY.
Quote by GallagherWitt
There are similarities from book to book, but I can't get into the whole "change the names and a few adjectives" routine. So far, no one's asked me to, so here's hoping it stays this way. biggrin


Wait til you get: "Just write anything, it doesn't matter what, as long as you give them something."

I got that from my Agent. (The one I don't have anymore.) She was more than a little obvious about being interested in "as much as possible, as fast as possible" than a decent story.

Unfortunately, (for her,) I have fans that WILL give me shit of the story isn't the best I can produce. Happily those same fans have no problem waiting for something "good".
Quote by nicola
The same could be said for almost any creative profession - artists asked to continue producing work in one particular style, typecast actors etc.


This is also true of Webmasters. Building a website is very creative. Maintaining and updating websites however, is quite boring.

Quote by nicola
...What I mean is, one "different from expected" book will probably not be enough to put off hardened fans, but may attract new ones in the process. It's a fine balance of course between losing your original fan base, and broadening your horizons.


LOL! And then there's me with EVERY book I write being quite a bit different from the next. However, it hasn't lost me any fans.
Quote by TracyAmes
Hell yeah, Morgan! Excellent advice for us seasoned writers and newbies alike.


I'm glad you like it!

Quote by TracyAmes
...My poor copy editor freaked and warned I'd hit the wall of overcommitment sooner or later...which I did. ...I don't recommend traveling that road!


I don't either. I made that mistake myself. What made it worse is that I do Not do well with deadlines. I freeze up on them.

Quote by TracyAmes
And yes, the larger publishing houses don't encourage change. As long as the same old, cookie cut BS is selling they're not gonna rock the boat. Sadly, this stifles creativity and exacerbates mounting frustrations amongst their writers.


Yes, yes, and yes, but do they ever learn from their mistakes? NO.
Quote by shawnababy
...Let's say you lose your job and/or your husband does too. You need to find someway to make some money. You only have two choices to make money. ...stripper or ...paid to have sex once a week with a total stranger.


Stripper.
-- Johns have a habit of not caring if they've got an STD they can pass, hepatitis being the most common one. They also have a habit of murdering the girl they've just slept with, especially if they're married and/or have high-profile jobs.

One too many of my friends turned call-girl -- only once a month -- and DIED at the hands of a john by disease or strangulation. The johns were never arrested for it either because the local cops didn't care if a whore died 'on the job.'

I worked in strip joints for 4 years. I never once had a problem keeping wandering hands off of me. In most cases the guys were older businessmen looking to get some attention from a pretty girl that wouldn't normally give them the time of day.

Yeah it's in a sleazy club, but it's only 8 hours a day, 5 days a week, and there are bouncers, usually 2 to 4 of them that keep the guys in check. As long as you don't drink, pick fights with the girls or the customers, or buy drugs off the pushers that like to hang around strippers, you pocket your money and go. I ALWAYS had at least $100.00 cash in my pocket at all times -- and that's after paying rent and bills.
Quote by stephanie
... she tells me it doesn't matter but ... Does It?????


Yes.
Quote by sprite
... Those times i feel i HAVE to write a chapter, it usually shows - it's just not as good as it could be. I'd rather leave something hanging for a long while than submit something that's just ok, rather than amazing.


I do that myself, when I can afford to wait on it. Sadly the bills won't let me wait too long.

Quote by sprite
...i have abandoned well loved series because of this - it the author isn't into it, how does he expect me to be?


It's not the author. It's usually the publisher, or as in my case the Agent who's doing the pushing for more books than the author wants to write.

Quote by sprite
i recently read Change - Jim Butcher's latest Dresden Novel. It's an amazing series and it doesn't disappoint, but yes, after the end, i found myself wondering how much longer he'd want to keep going - it seems he's moving towards a place he could easily wrap it up if he wanted to. Hopefully, he does it in style.


Hopefully he hasn't gotten too dependent on those checks from New York. Giving up those fat royalty checks isn't easy.
Quote by GallagherWitt
A-freaking-men. It is so, so easy to burn out. ...Solution? ...I've forced myself to take 2-3 weeks off to recharge, and it works like a charm every time. I call it my self-imposed grounding.

Anyway, that's my ongoing experience with the burn-out demons. Great article!


I'm glad you liked it!
-- I take a week-long slacker's break every time I finish a full novel. In my case, I usually sleep all the way around the clock for the first few days.

The most detrimental problem for a writer, isn’t Failure – it’s SUCCESS.


The Mystery of the Missing Best-selling Authors.
-- You see it all the time. A hot new author puts out book after book, then suddenly the story quality drops, and those books aren’t so wonderful any more. But you keep buying them on the hope that what made them great (in the first 9 books,) will resurface. Instead, that author suddenly drops off the face of the earth; sometimes for years – sometimes forever.

What Happened?

BURNOUT

In the corporate arena, the wildly successful with nothing left to achieve, often turn to self-destructive behavior; drinking, drug use, extramarital sex, embezzlement... just for something to DO.

Authors, become self-destructive too, but internally, rather than externally. They destroy themselves and their relationships, rather than turn to actual crime. Burnout causes many authors to become mentally unstable, neurotically paranoid, and bi-polar, as well as secret drinkers, and prescription-drug abusers. (How many of you take Xanax already?) Authors typically end up in the hospital, rather than in jail.

What causes burnout?
-- One of the primary reasons for burnout in Writers (and high-powered execs) is tedium, ahem BOREDOM. While building your career, you're developing your skills, and experimenting with techniques. With every new revelation, ("Wow! This works!") you feel psychologically rewarded.

Once you have the techniques down, and are recognized for a specific ‘style’ of plot or characters, you become locked in to producing that ONE style, often by the publishing house that recognized you -- and don’t discount your adoring fans! To keep that recognition, you start replicating the same story, over, and over, and over... Dull, dull, dull…

Out of sheer self defense against the mind-grinding boredom, your brain shuts down into Writer's Block. And then your brain -- and your body -- rebels. Exhaustion, mood-swings, health problems that the doctor swears is stress-related...(and this can take YEARS,) until you get total mental and physical meltdown -- BURNOUT.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“I do a lot of work with white-collar criminals, and invariably -- and I mean invariably -- they're not doing it for the money. They're doing it because they're bored.”
-- Steven Berglas, corporate psychologist who deals with burnout among the ultra-successful.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

-----Original Message-----
Boredom began when I became bored with the sex scenes. (Yawn) Okay, you showed me how to fix that. Then, it was (writing) the series. Oh, yes, the series. That creativity-eating monotony of being locked into "What do I do now?" Oh, yes, how well I understand the series author's pain.

However, I will add one thing: Over-commitment.

Authors are, by and large, a hungry bunch. We love praise, and sparkle when we get it. We succumb so easily to flattery, especially when the publisher that made us successful asks for you to "squeeze in just this little story" for the themed promo, the continuity, or whatever. (I have managed to resist, but not without a modicum of guilt.)

Let's not forget the other form of overcommitment: "Don't put all your eggs in one basket/publisher." Two baskets are good. Three may be pushing. Four is a killer, at least for me.

Writing for different pubs allows the author to stretch their creative muscles, change voices, and even experiment a little. In theory, that's good.

Until they all want your time and effort.

Until you start saying, "I'm sorry, I won't start on the book for you for another three months." One publisher actually said to me, "The fans will forget you in six months!" (They didn't.)

Publishers have their own timetables, and are not above trying to push an author into working harder than they should by moving a deadline or deliberately misunderstanding you. If you say, "I won't start on this book until June," it's entirely possible they'll set the release date for June! It's happened to me three times.

I no longer give them any clues like that.

Lena Austin
-- Multi-published author

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

What about money and success? Don’t they offer a sense of accomplishment?
-- At first, but to Keep that success going, to Keep those paychecks rolling in, you strangle your creativity to keep manufacturing the stories that made those paychecks happen in the first place – and put a time-limit on your whole writing career. Tick… Tick… Tick…

In most cases, the problem is NOT with the author, it's with the Publisher. The bigger publishing houses DON’T encourage Change. They encourage stasis -- especially with something that proves successful. They have no desire to fix what ain't broke.

To many of the larger publishing houses, authors are consumable product Manufacturers -- rather like the Pepsi Cola company. The last thing they want is a change in the recipe. But authors AREN’T factories, their work is NOT mass-produced, so this kind of thinking actually encourages author turnover, especially among the best sellers.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“When you try to get people off that track, they say, "What am I supposed to do? Take my kids out of Exeter, move from Nob Hill?" I say, "Well, what are the alternatives? You loathe your job, and you're gonna take it out on them." This is why you get these flagrant burnouts. When jobs become constraining, we will often do things that will (deliberately) throw us off the fast track.”
-- Steven Berglas

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Is leaving the Publishing House or Quitting the only option?
-- Nope. Leaving one publishing house for another is just as career-killing as quitting altogether. (The publishing world is VERY small. The editors are constantly talking to each other.) Rather than scrapping everything, your books, your publishers, your careers... EXPAND on what you are already doing. Add an interesting twist, or a change in locations.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“The paradox is that to prevent burnout you need more challenges, not fewer.”
-- Steven Berglas

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

What role does stress play in burnout?
-- Stress ISN’T the problem. Stress can actually help alleviate the boredom by making you work harder to get that story down on paper.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Stress and burnout are unrelated. Stress is being thwarted from a goal. A traffic jam causes stress. Burnout would be giving a canned lecture every day of the week for four months.”
-- Steven Berglas

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Who is Least likely to suffer from burnout?

Those who are PASSIONATE in their work. The pains in the ass authors that constantly shift their style, their characters, and sometimes their genres, are never bored. These authors tend to avoid writing long-playing series, but instead, have a ton of good-selling, well-written, single-title books.

They’re the ones that publishers point to, and wince. “They could be superstars, if they only stuck to one thing.” And yet, they are far more likely to have steady careers that span decades.

Robert Heinlein
Poppy Z Bright
Andre Norton
Neil Gaimen
Dean R Koontz
Stephen King

These authors are usually passionately supportive of their fellow authors, (even if their fellow authors don’t want to hear it,) because they have a million ideas running through their heads, and aren’t afraid to share. They may not always play well with others, but they are NEVER accused of back-stabbing, or idea theft.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Throughout my career, I've noted that the most authentically motivated employees are the ones who will get in your face and get angry. I always counsel managers that the yes-man/yes-woman is the most malicious force in organizational life because they're the ones who are whoring, who are mercenary, who are talking behind your back.” -- Steven Berglas
~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Who are candidates for burnout?
-- The wildly successful authors who made their success writing long-playing series of books.

Robert Jorden, for example, bored many of his more passionate readers to tears because his Wheel of Time series, stopped evolving -- and then he Died before he ever finished it. In all honesty, he was a One Hit Wonder. He only wrote ONE story, that story was over a dozen books long, but it was still only ONE story.

Laurell K. Hamilton, is fighting tooth and nail to keep her Anita Blake series going, by adding character after character and a lot of sex.

Jim Butcher is well aware of the danger, and intends to end his Harry Dresden series, and in fact, has already started another series. However, the big question is, will his Publisher LET him stop writing Harry Dresden books? Will his bank account?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Let's take an entrepreneur for example; Michael Dell. What did Dell do? He created a distribution system that was both economical and efficient. Ted Waitt, at Gateway, did the same thing. Those two men, I think, are in jeopardy of burning out because they're replicating and refining a single paradigm. When you're changing your product, that's when you're happy.”
-- Steven Berglas

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

What can you do early in your career to stay Inspired?
-- KEEP your Passion. If you are stuck doing a series, make sure that the fictional universe you’ve created is big enough to sustain radical shifts in theme, story-line, and characters. Fight boredom by giving yourself room to grow, and change.

“Easy for the fantasy authors, but what about us contemporary authors?”
-- For those of you trapped in the mundane world, try a Location change. Put your established characters in New places, and New situations. Send your characters to other cities, other countries. At least get them fired from their job, and have to deal with a new one.

Already stuck?
-- Try writing a new series, something different from your old one. Contract it with a new publisher, under a new name, if you have to. When a book in one series gets to be too tedious, you can switch over and write a book for the other series, to refresh your mind, body, and creative soul.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Stay angry. When you notice you're not committed to an organization anymore, when you don't need to fight for changes, take stock. When Bill Gates handed over the running of Microsoft to Ballmer, he said, "I'm going back to the drawing board." About five other CEOs did the same thing.”
-- Steven Berglas

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

How can Publishers & Agents keep from losing their Selling Authors?

STAY CONNECTED to both the authors you work with, and their reading audience.

With the advent of the Internet, the reading market changes faster than ever before. With access to email, instant messaging, weblogs, and fan-groups lists, Authors are no longer isolated. They’re directly connected to other Authors, as well as their fans, and their fans talk to each other.

USE THAT RESOURCE! Don’t leave everything up to the Marketing department. Marketing is all about Packaging --> Advertising. They don't have a clue about managing your bread-winning authors, or dealing with their fans. They’re ‘idea’ folks with a pile of sales numbers on their desks – and those numbers are DATED, usually by months. Authors are actually more aware of the fluctuations in their readers’ tastes than Marketing is. They are connected directly to the source -- the BUYERS.

> Want to know what’s happening in the reading market?
> Want to know where the trends are going?
> Want to know who has buzz -- and who is getting a bad reputation?
> Want to know if your Author is dealing with undue stress – or extreme boredom?

Get your answers straight from the source – the authors you work with, and the readers they talk to. Get a blog and encourage the readers to talk to you directly. Run a poll, ask questions and get answers before you lose that money-making author.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“If you're a manager and you don't have someone to tell you that you're a fool, then you're in big trouble. Hire a court jester. Just give someone carte blanche to say, "Berglas, you're an asshole." And "Berglas, this is (what’s being said on) the grapevine.

"What managers don't understand is that they will not know (what’s being said on) the grapevine unless they beg for it. The grapevine will give them the negative information (that they can’t get anywhere else)."
-- Steven Berglas

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The Business end is killing me!
-- Them’s the breaks. Publishing IS a corporate business. Dealing with contracts, filing taxes, convincing your family that you need to be left alone to WORK, and handling publicity, is part of the job – and not the fun part.

If you have an agent, you can shunt a lot of the legal crap on them, that’s what they’re there for. However, managing your time and handling Publicity -- going to conventions, book-signings, managing a fan-group, and a building a website to promote your work -- is ALL YOU.

Welcome to the world of Fame.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Extra reading:

Reclaiming the Fire: How Successful People Overcome Burnout
By Steven Berglas Random House

DISCLAIMER: As with all advice, take what you can use and throw out the rest. As a multi-published author, I have been taught some fairly rigid rules on what is publishable and what is not. If my rather straight-laced (and occasionally snotty,) advice does not suit your creative style, by all means, IGNORE IT.
Quote by nicola
Some sound advice there, written in a very witty manner.

RIP indeed.


It's a terrible shame that his writing articles have pretty much disappeared off the 'net. I posted them on my home site so they wouldn't be lost to new writers.
Quote by TracyAmes
Yet another reason I adore you! Great info.


Glad you liked it!
-- THIS was the first guide to punctuation that I actually remembered, simply because it made me laugh so hard.
From Phil Phantom’s: “Guide to Writing Good Trash"
-- I know, you hate to think of your writing as trash, but if done well, others will. If done poorly, your magnificent creation is just crap, shit, or garbage. Excellent trash can rise to the level of good shit, but you and your good shit will never be studied in English Lit. As for riches, sure, but it helps if you are wealthy when you start.

Guide to Punctuating for the Reading Impaired


Okay, so you wan'na rite reel good.

Good use of punctuation is key to effective communication, even in trash, especially in trash. You may think trash is easy to write, but trash is the most difficult to write well. When you write about sex, passion, erotic feelings, and powerful emotions, you are taking on a major communication challenge. When you add scenery and a large cast of characters, you are taking on a writing challenge that makes "Moby Dick" look like a fishing trip to Lake Wannapoopoo.

Melville hardly needed any punctuation until they caught up with the whale. Mark Twain, in fact, used no punctuation. After his editor chastised him for this, Twain sent in a page full of periods, commas, colons, semi-colons and such with the following note:

"Here is the punctuation marks you wanted put them where you want them"

I can make punctuation easy for you. Simply imagine that all of your readers suffer from a condition called Myopic Un-Mitigated Balance of biLateral Equilibrium (MUMBLE). They move their lips when they read.

Actually, they silently speak what they read. They need punctuation in order to breathe properly. Long paragraphs of run-on sentences cause them to pass out. Please consider these unfortunates when you write. Although writing without punctuation or proper capitalization is no reflection on a person's intelligence or education, doing so is inconsiderate of people who suffer from mumbleopia. They knew nothing about mumbleopia in Twain's day. He had an excuse; we don't. MUMBLErs (as they prefer to be called) suffer in silent neglect.

Guide to Punctuating for the Reading Impaired

ALL CAPS is like shouting. Writing in all caps causes swelling of the inner ear which presses on the cerebral cortex, leading to a loss of bladder and rectal control. Avoid using all caps for more than a few words in a row, even during explosive orgasms.

PERIODS allow a MUMBLEr to breathe. Sprinkle a few in each paragraph. Mumbleopiacs don't care where, but after each complete thought is generally a good idea.
-- (Note: Follow a period with a sentence or paragraph that starts with a capital letter. MUMBLErs breathe out on the period and breathe in when they see the capital letter.)

COMMAS don't give time to breathe, but do give the lips a rest. Severe lip injury can result from long sentences with no commas. On the other hand, overuse of commas is the leading cause of stuttering in mumbleopiacs.
-- (Note: You probably had a teacher who advised (as a rule of thumb) place a comma where a natural pause seems right. That teacher didn't write trash, or good trash. Commas have a purpose. Commas separate items in a series, phrases in a series, an introductory phrase, a parenthetical expression, nice-to-know shit you don't really need, or a person being addressed. You don't just slap them where you feel like it or omit them where they are needed. We all need commas to make sense out of a complex sentence in a crazy, mixed-up, tumble-down world.)

SEMI-COLONS are better than commas for easing lip fatigue but do not allow for the taking of a breath. Use them sparingly to separate short sentences that beat the same drum.

DASHES signal a pause - so mumbleopiacs take advantage and snatch a dash of oxygen.

HYPHENS join words to make a combo word, like "that no-pussy-eating wimp." Also ex-this, ex-that. MUMBLErs seem to be ambivalent toward the hyphen.

ELLIPSES MARKS (...) are like speed bumps on a page. In proper English usage, they signal omitted (or skipped) material, but they make a MUMBLEr's head rapidly bounce three times. Never get carried away with those dots as speed-reading mumbleopiacs have lost contact lenses and jarred fillings loose when they hit multiple periods, ie: ....................
-- (Note: Grammar pinheads get all twisted when you use their precious ellipses dots as indicators of long periods of silence. In our field of literature, we need this tool as sex often involves long periods of silence. Mouths are often occupied and the writer has to wait. Most will keep tapping the dot key while waiting the suckers out. Readers of trash, shit, crap, and garbage have learned to ignore three dots as meaning omitted material, because fuck and suck stories don't omit anything.)

COLONS introduce lists of shit. MUMBLErs and proctologists know to take a deep breath when they see a colon.

EXCLAMATION POINTS raise the eyebrows of mumbleopiacs but do no lasting harm unless repeated after every statement or used in multiples. Overuse of EPs can lead to nervous brow twitching. Multiple EPs (!!!!!!) have caused the eyebrows of some mumbleopiacs to migrate to the top of the head.
-- (Note: Here, again, we give the pinheads fits with our multiple EPs. Fuck 'em. If that is your style, go for it. Me, I prefer to go to CAPS when the hubby walks in and finds the wife in bed with her mom. I think "WOW!" is better than "Wow!!!!! and WOW!!!!!! should be reserved for those times when you catch your wife and mother in a threesome with Bigfoot.")

QUESTION MARKS wrinkle the brow and bring the eyebrows down and in. Question marks should never be sandwiched between two EP sentences! Never leave a question unanswered. The answer allows the individual to slap the forehead and re-align the eyebrows (note that hyphen).

PARENTHESIS If something isn't all that important, (nice to know stuff, but you can live without it,) put it inside a set of parenthesis. In long sentences, a MUMBLEr who is running out of breath knows he can jump over this part in a pinch.

APOSTROPHIES thrill a MUMBLEr as they know you are omitting letters, words, and sometimes, bunches of words. For instance, "them" can be shortened to "'em," and spitting can be spittin', and in words that show possession, ie: "Mary's ball" replaces "the ball that belongs to Mary." Thrill a mumbleopiac; use apostrophes.

QUOTATION MARKS also thrill mumbleopiacs as they signify a speaker speaking. Very often, they are familiar with the speaker and can simply inject, "blah, blah, blah," or "yadah, yadah, yadah," and move right along.

And finally, a word on PARAGRAPHS.

Every new speaker gets his or her own paragraph, even if all he or she has to say is, "Huh?" Try to keep paragraphs short and sweet. Lump all of your (character's) related thoughts into one paragraph and start a new one when you get another thought.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~ Note from Morgan ~
Every new speakers' ACTIONS go in the same paragraph as their DIALOGUE. I have seen one too many lines of dialogue 'stranded', just hanging out all by its lonesome, staring at the action done by that speaker in the very next paragraph. Take pity on your poor Dialogue and put it with its Actions.

One other thing; if John licks Mary's nipples and Mary moans... John's licking and Mary's moaning do NOT go in the Same Sentence! They don't go in the same Paragraph either!

John wriggled his tongue across Mary's nipples.

Mary moaned, and gasped. "Oh God! That is so good!" She grabbed his head to pull him closer.

John yelped. "Hey, watch the hair!"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Paragraph breaks allow MUMBLErs to go to the bathroom. This also helps those who read from a scrolling monitor.

And another thing. Hit the return key twice following each paragraph. That places white space between paragraphs. Do not indent or tab. Keep it clean; keep it tight; just like pussy. (Note the use of the semi-colon with short sentences, and this don't-really-need-to-know shit I placed in parenthesis along with a combo word I made using the hyphens.)

Thank you for your attention.

From Phil Phantom’s: “Guide to Writing Good Trash"
Copyright Phil Phantom (C) 2003

May he rest in peace.

Everything I learned about Writing Fiction
I learned from Commercial Copywriting.


Fiction writing is a lot like professional Copywriting. A lot of the rules are the SAME. For example, the “AIDA Formula” is the basic formula for Advertising: Attention, Interest, Desire, Action.

> Get their Attention.
> Develop Interest.
> Create Desire.
> Get them to Take Action.

In Fiction it becomes:

> Get their Attention – with Unusual circumstances.
> Develop Interest – with gripping Drama.
> Create Desire (to know more) – with Hints, not Answers.
> Get them to Take Action – KEEP them READING

The 3 Rules of Selling Anything - such as Your Story

1) People hate to be Sold.

In other words: Don’t offer something you don’t intend to give them.

Certain genre labels, like Romance, have very specific connotations that lead to very specific Expectations. People get really pissed if you MIS-REPRESENT those genre labels.

For example... Don’t advertise your story as a Vampire Romance if the Vampire ISN'T the Hero, even if the story IS a Romance! In fact, ESPECIALLY if it’s a Romance!

Labeling a story as a “Vampire Romance”, leads a very specific group of readers to think they’re getting "a Romance about a Vampire". If they buy that book and it’s Not what they expect, or WORSE the TRUTH has been used against them, it’s a Romance with a Vampire in it, but the Vampire is the VILLAIN…! They not only feel Cheated they feel SCAMMED. NOT a good way to keep Readers.

2) People Buy for Emotional reasons, Not Rational reasons.

People buy what they think they can USE. What do people get from a book? Knowledge and Information. This INCLUDES fictional stories.

Everybody is looking for solutions to their personal issues. To make your story a “must read”, offer an ANSWER to a BURNING QUESTION! (Ahem, PREMISE = the story’s ISSUE.)

“So, how do I get the handsome guy I just met?”
“How do I deal with my new stepchildren?”
"How do I deal with a sucky job, and a boss I seriously loathe?"
“How do I know I found someone worthy of being my husband, or lover?”
“How do I deal with a monster in my closet?” (VERY popular among Young Adults.)

Ever hear the phrase: “People are People”? No matter who they are, or where they live, human issues Never change. "People are People." Embrace this phrase, love this phrase, use and abuse this phrase! THIS is the key to fiction people WANT to read.

Sure, you could be writing a Horror or a Fantasy, but the people in your horror or fantasy should STILL be dealing with the same issues everybody else deals with:

From: Lord of the Rings by JRR Tolkien
-- Sucky bosses - How do you think Saruman really felt about working for Sauron?
-- Love interests - Arwen Evenstar's Dad, the king of the elves, did not approve of her dating that scruffy human.
-- Family issues - Eowen of Rohan had to deal with a senile dad PLUS several bossy older brothers.
-- Monsters under the bed - Wringwraths & Orcs. Need I say more?

No matter how fantastic or unusual, people STILL suffer from the same issues. The trick is making those issues INTERESTING.

Traditional hard-core Sci-Fi answers theoretical (scientific) questions such as, “What if we lived on another planet?” but few of them talk about PEOPLE Problems. This is all well and fine for those interested in scientific theories, but the average reader is far more concerned with personal issues, which is why the popularity of hard-core Sci-Fi suffers.

NEVER FORGET: People only buy what they think they can USE RIGHT THEN – not tomorrow, not next week, not a hundred years from now. And people have only ONE true interest – Themselves.

People buy Erotic Fiction for a REASON:
The plain truth: People buy erotic fiction to get the warm tinglies. No if’s, and’s, or but’s – they are buying it for the SEX.

It doesn’t matter if you have the most fabulous story in existence, if you have labeled that story as Erotic, no matter what kind of pretty words you couch it in, or sit it next to, (and that includes the word Romance,) that story had better deliver on the SEX.

ANY story labeled as Erotic, MUST deliver on the SEX and that Sex better get the reader Hot and Bothered, because that’s what the reader buys Erotic Fiction FOR.

If you can’t deal with this basic truth, DON’T label the story as EROTIC!

3) After they Buy, people seek to Justify their emotional decision with logic or reason.

After a buyer coughs up their cash for your worthy product, they need to be reassured sure they've made the right decision with logic and reason. You have to deliver EVERYTHING the Buyer expects, seriously, to make their purchase seem worthwhile.

It’s as simple as: DELIVER on that excitement you posed in the cover blurb. ANSWER your story’s problematic Issues, and make it Good! Writing about a relationship problem without delivering on a Satisfying Conclusion to the ISSUE makes Frustrated Readers.

Frustrated Readers = Won’t read your next story.

Oddly enough, a Happy Ending doesn’t seem to be as important as delivery on that satisfactory Answer. However, if the genre you are writing in has a reputation for Happy Endings, you better deliver that Happy Ending PLUS a Satisfactory Answer. (And people think writing Romances is EASY???)

Justifying Erotic Fiction to the Reader:
You absolutely, positively MUST reassure the Reader that they are NOT Reading PORN!!!

Yes, they bought the book for the SEX, but they Don’t want to admit it! Your job is to make sure They Never Have To! (Unless of course, they want to.)

This means you better have a Damned Good STORY with the Sex, so they can turn to their husband, wife, and granny and say: “Oh, it’s just a Fantasy, a Suspense, a Sci-Fi, a Romance…” To make that argument convincing, you had better make darned sure that story is EXACTLY what it’s co-labeled as: a Fantasy, a Suspense, a Sci-Fi, a Romance..., in addition to being Erotic. And you better make it GOOD. That means: worth talking about, so they don’t have to mention the sex-bits if they don’t want to.

Other Copywriting & Marketing Wisdom Bits


Write like You Talk
You’ve been hearing it everywhere – “Use snappy dialogue!” Why is that? Because that’s how people in this day and age talk, it’s what the Reader is used to HEARING. Anything else just sounds…wrong.

You’ve also been hearing “Cultivate your writing VOICE!” Boy, has that one been misunderstood big-time.

VOICE = “Write like the POV CHARACTER talks.”

How simple is that? The story is ALWAYS told in the POV character's style, snotty, aggressive, sweet, whatever... Anything else is AUTHOR INTRUSION!

Know Your BUYER Cold
What's your typical Readers’ age range? What's their approximate income level, on average? What things do they tend to like or buy? Their gender? Marital status? Have any children? Own their own home? Are there any hobbies that a lot of your customers seem to have in common? What do a lot of them do for a living? What kinds of things do they consider "good" "bad" "great" "awful" "a sin" or "saintly"?

Readers identify with characters. They like to think that THEY could handle your story situations EXACTLY like your characters! Possibly better! Your job as a writer, is to ENCOURAGE this impression.

Knowing your typical Reader allows you to TAILOR your Fiction to your Readers. Make your characters the same kind of people as your Readers, with the same likes and dislikes. Use situations that your Readers face, such as relationships issues and careers problems. This automatically makes your characters sympathetic – and Likable.

Okay, so you have a totally fantastic landscape with totally fantastic characters, how do you make This type of story sympathetic to Mary Ordinary? Give them a problem, a situation and ISSUES similar to a situation your Reader would have to deal with.

Say you have a Unicorn in a fantasy land. How could a creature like this possibly be similar to Mary Ordinary? Have the Unicorn fall in love with a Dragon. Now there are some serious Relationship issues!

Know Your Product - Intimately
Want to get hate-mail fast? Write about something you don’t know a gosh-darned thing about. I can’t say it enough: RESEARCH! RESEARCH! RESEARCH!

Whether you are writing a Vampire story, a Historical, a Fantasy, or a Sci-Fi, be aware that your reading audience has very likely read every single book on that subject they could get their grubby mitts on – for YEARS. They probably know your subject Better than YOU.

NEVER write about something you don’t know backwards and forwards, because the Readers will KNOW if you don’t know diddly-squat about your subject.

Have Passion for your Product!
If you're not sold - completely and utterly - on the story you are telling, you can forget about getting to the Reader.

Your level of passion for your subject and characters shines through your fiction. This is where “bleeding on the page” comes in. When you write about issues and situations truly close to you, something you yourself have lived through and suffered, that passion, that feeling, comes through on the page.

If you want to make the Reader laugh or cry or scream with rage use issues that make YOU laugh, cry or scream with rage in your fiction. BUT make darned sure you only use issues you’ve already handled. Remember, you are not just presenting Issues, you are delivering ANSWERS. Don’t write about an issue you Don’t have an Answer for or you will paint yourself into a corner Really Fast.

Educate Your Buyers
Expose the reader to new ideas, new cultures, and give them new experiences that no one else can give them… BUT never in big honking "no-action happening here" paragraphs!

Info-dumps are bad. Okay?

Don’t just TELL the Reader stuff – make the reader LIVE through that stuff in your story. Make them EXPERIENCE your worlds, your situations, and SEE what you have to say! Back-story should be dropped in bits and bites through out the action and dialogue. Description is the same way, keep it Short – keep it TIGHT.

Make everything - characters, settings, objects - do Double-Duty! If you don't USE it more than once, Don't bother putting it IN the Story!

The rule of Mystery Fiction: “If the gun is shown in Chapter One, it better go off by Chapter Three -- and there had better be a damned good reason for that gun to be there.”

The Rule of Erotic Fiction: “If the Kiss is shown in Chapter One, the Sex better happen by chapter three -- and there had better be a damned good reason for that Kiss to be there.”

A Final Tip from:
~ Walt Disney ~
"Do what you do so well and so uniquely that your customers can't resist telling others about you."


Enjoy!

DISCLAIMER: As with all advice, take what you can use and throw out the rest. As a multi-published author, I have been taught some fairly rigid rules on what is publishable and what is not. If my rather straight-laced (and occasionally snotty,) advice does not suit your creative style, by all means, IGNORE IT.
Quote by Dudealicious
WYR have a three orgasms yourself or give your partner three?


I'd rather give my partner three orgasms.
-- It makes the Grateful, and usually enthusiastic about returning the favor. smile

Quote by Marina
...in the kitchen or in the bathroom?


Kitchen. It's more exciting.

Would you rather...
-- Wear something your lover insists looks hot on you, or wear something You think looks better?
Quote by Mistress_of_words
Nicely summarised.


Thank you!

Quote by Mistress_of_words
Ah, precedent. The trick is to slip it in without it being obvious, and sometimes it's not easy :P Usually I have to go back and re-write whole sections to address this.


This happens a lot to me too, but it's absolutely necessary of you want a water-tight plot. Thank the gods that my beta-readers are fantastic at catching things like this.

Quote by Mistress_of_words
... And this doesn't just relate to objects or scenarios either, it relates to character's skills too. Can't have a every-man office worker type suddenly hot wire a car with no prior reference to why he might know how to do such a thing.


Abso-flogging-lutely. An easy way to do that is by introducing that skill early with a short scene that shows that skill on a smaller scale. For example, fixing a transistor radio and admitting that they were once into tinkering with rewiring things they probably shouldn't have at a younger age.

Foreshadowing is when the opening scene of a story is a kind of nutshell prophecy for the whole story.


The Beginning

* In a Horror, this is when the originating Bad Thing happens.
* In a Mystery or Crime story, it's when the first victim is slain, and/or object (McGuffin) goes missing.
* In a Sci-fi, this is where the ruling Theory is presented.
* In a Gothic, this is where the main character meets the monster he is about to become.
* In Erotica & Romances this is where the main character meets their soon-to-be lover for a fleeting but memorable moment.

This also reveals the Premise, or ruling argument that the story is trying to illustrate; what the story is trying to Prove.

• The results of Revenge
• The path of Ambition
• The reality of Love
• The pain of being Different

The Middle

The meat of the story should fulfill that prophecy using twists, turns, and surprises that compel the reader to Keep Reading to discover 'what's really going on?' Never forget: The readers DON'T want to see what's coming. They want to figure it out THEMSELVES.

However, if you intend to use (what looks like) chance and coincidence to move your plot you're going to need careful preparation. Using deus ex machina (situations, objects, and helpers that were just suddenly THERE without explanation,) is unacceptable. The author should NEVER pull a rabbit out of their hat simply to rescue their hero.

The trick is to put the plot element into your story EARLY without making the reader aware of its importance. Never telegraph your punches. Every choice made MUST seem logical for that character.

The Conclusion

The last part is what that prophecy brought about--what happened BECAUSE of the events in the story.

* Were the guilty punished?
* Was the lost object or person found? Plus who did it and why?
* Did the lover gain the attention of their beloved?
* Was the scientific theory convincing? (Or horrifying enough?)
* Did the monster reconcile with their nature?

Always complete each circle you began. Solve EVERY problem presented, no matter how small. Any unsolved problems become Plot Holes your readers WILL notice and call you on. "Hey, whatever happened with...?"

The easiest way to do this is by keeping your Main cast SMALL.

* Hero
* Ally (buddy or lover)
* Villain

Side characters are those who occupy places in the story: the waitress, parents, coworkers, the beat cops..., but don't actually change anything. Main characters are the characters whose actions actually affect the plot.

The more Main characters you have, the more problems you add--which means the more story you have to write to solve those problems.

Enjoy!


DISCLAIMER: As with all advice, take what you can use and throw out the rest. As a multi-published author, I have been taught some fairly rigid rules on what is publishable and what is not. If my rather straight-laced (and occasionally snotty,) advice does not suit your creative style, by all means, IGNORE IT.
Creative Narrative
A Description exercise


DESCRIPTION is the key to fleshing out ANY scene, but especially Sex Scenes.

Don't just call it 'juice,' describe the glistening moisture that slides in slender rivulets down the inside of her thigh THEN describe how it feels physically, THEN how the character feels emotionally about the fact that they're dripping from excitement.

1. What it looks like.
2. What it feels like Physically.
3. How they feel about it Emotionally.


You have 5 senses -- USE THEM:
Texture, Flavor, Appearance, Sound, Aroma


The glistening moisture slid in slender rivulets down the inside of her thigh. The coolness of the moisture tickled in contrast to the wamth of her skin. Because her skirt was so short, her excitement was clearly visible to anyone who happened to be looking. Her cheeks filled with embarrassed warmth and she lowered her gaze, not wanting to know who might be staring at her, aware that she was aroused.

"So how do you DO that sort of writing?"


The same way you do anything, you PRACTICE.




For this exercise, you will need the movie Sin City. If you don't have it, The Matrix or Equilibrium will do.

WATCH the movie undisturbed from beginning to end. NO INTERRUPTIONS. This is Important!

Watch where the Camera looks. Sin City in particular is a brilliant example of how to describe using pictures. The movie is filmed in black and white with splashes of color here and there only where the viewer's eye needs to be.

When a character is first introduced, LOOK at how the camera starts in Close Focus on the character's face and then pulls back to reveal the character's body, lovingly showing the viewer exactly what the character looks like AND their distinguishing characteristics from top to bottom. THEN the view expands wider to disclose where that character is and what they are doing at that moment.

After those first few moments of sheer View, you get a narrative from the Point of View character -- which may Not be the character the camera is showing you. You get the narrator's opinions, their feelings, their delusions. THAT is how the viewer (the reader) learns about the character.

Once the movie is over, put on some music that fits the movie. (I actually have the soundtracks, to these.) Next! Break out your remote control and Watch The Same Movie AGAIN -- but this time, with the volume OFF.

Sit on your couch and Out Loud, Narrate what you are looking at. Do NOT write anything. Just talk to the TV screen Out Loud and describe -- in detail -- what you are looking at as though it was a book you were reading.

Describe the Characters.
Describe the Actions.
Describe the Fight Scenes.
Describe the Kisses.
Describe the Backgrounds and Setting -- including the rooms and weather conditions!

Use your remote control and STOP the scene where you have difficulty describing what you are seeing. Work at it until the words come to you. They don't have to be perfect -- close IS good enough for this exercise.

Do NOT write anything down.

Keep going until the movie is Over.

This should help loosen up a few things in your writing mind -- and give you some strong visuals to write from later.

Next!
-- Write a 1000 word Scene that introduces a character of YOURS. Make sure you picture the scene in your mind with the same dramatic camera angles and close-ups the movie and Describe it so that anyone Reading it can clearly see it.

Compare that scene with any introductory scene in a story you've already written and SEE the difference.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Just so you know, this is an exercise I created to make my own writing more Visual back when I first started writing. The movie I used was "The Lost Boys", the original 1984 version. It really helped my ability to describe in my stories. I though other people might find it useful too.

Enjoy!