This advice from Alan Watt’s wise how-two, THE 90-DAY NOVEL: “I didn’t try to figure out the ending, but rather, imagined a sense of my hero at the end of the story. How was he relating differently to his father? What had he come to understand as a result of his journey? How was the dilemma resolved? What was the visual metaphor, the image that captured the essence of my story at the end? As I pondered these questions, ideas came to me, and I realized that they were a goldmine of images for what preceded the ending. Imagining our …
Author: Sarah Lovett
WRITING RULES
One of my favorite writing rules comes from Dwight V. Swain from his wise and practical book TECHNIQUES OF THE SELLING WRITER (University of Oklahoma Press): ” 1) Separate creative impulse from critical judgement. The first a most essential step is to recognize the human tendency to mix the two. Then, walk wise around it. To that end, adopt a working rule of “Create now….correct later.” Promise yourself the privilege of being as critical as you like, as soon as the first draft of a scene or story is completed. Until the draft is done, however, stick with impulse. Let …
WORD PLAY
Every writer knows word play is addicting. And, happily, readers flock to those writers who express themselves with originality and authenticity. By that I mean, the images evoked are vivid and often surprising, and the words feel “right” for the narrative world they bring to life. My seven-year-old daughter and I are currently enjoying the series, HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON. We look forward to our nightly installment, and always we end up laughing out loud. Today’s playful description comes courtesy of Cressida Cowell, the series author, and Toothless, Hiccup’s tiny and sleep-deprived dragon: “Toothless crawled up from his place …
THE WARRIOR WHO WIELDS THE MIGHTY PEN
WRITING MEMOIR IS NOT FOR WIMPS.
Life of Fiction
From Kenneth Atchity’s A WRITER’S TIME: Fiction isn’t identical with reality. Instead, dramatic fiction gives the impression of reality. Aristotle described it as an “imitation” of action. In many ways we prefer the imitation to reality. Fiction has a definable shape, a satisfying closure. When you read a good book or see a good play, you walk away with a feeling of having experienced something definite, something conclusive. Unfortunately, life itself doesn’t often provide such a well-rounded feeling. We go to the theater or the bookstore to find fictions that are philosophically, morally, or dramatically more meaningful than those we …
QUOTE OF THE DAY: DRAMATIC FOCUS
Today’s quote comes from David Harris Ebenbach musing on plot in the book from Gotham Writers’ Workshop WRITING FICTION: “Works of fiction are not, and cannot be, about a million things–they are usually about just one thing. And that thing, the force that draws everything together in a successful piece of fiction, is a single, pressing question.”
Dead on the Web–Hope Kiah’s 911 for Author Marketing
These days with so many publishing options available to authors, we should all know about award-winning web marketing author and web designer Hope Kiah’s free marketing tutorials, specifically, Dead on the Web? Resurrect Your Book Site! Whether your book is published by a traditional house or a regional or academic publisher, or you are going exclusively digital, or via print-on-demand, readers need a direct line to you and your book. Hope Kiah offers her tutorials for free. I think of her as my “911” person for author book marketing. Give yourself a 15-minute holiday gift and listen to her tutorials …
The Thrills of Real Life
Last night I had the chance to hear director Doug Liman speak at the Santa Fe premiere of FAIR GAME, a riveting feature film based on two books: FAIR GAME by former CIA operative Valerie Plame Wilson and THE POLITICS OF TRUTH by Ambassador Joe Wilson. During a Q&A session, Liman (who also directed the film The Bourne Identity) spoke on the evolution of the original film script to the final story, focusing on the relationship between Valerie Plame Wilson–outed as a CIA NOC during the Bush administration’s countdown to the invasion of Iraq in 2003–and her husband Ambassador Joe …
BORN WITH A RUSTY SPOON
Colorado watercolor artist Bertie Stroup Marah contacted me awhile back, in search of coaching and editorial support. She had a story to tell, a book she needed to write, and she was in a hurry. Some of her family members were in failing health and this book would tell the rollicking, heartfelt and heart-wrenching story of a family growing up dirt poor and hard-scrabble in southern New Mexico. Bertie finished her book and it is now beautifully illustrated with her paintings and drawings and published by Plain View Press. Her signings at chain stores and independents are attracting crowds and …
ALL PLAY, NO PRESSURE
This November, National Novel Writing Month, offers the perfect opportunity to test out a new idea for a novel. After all, you can benefit from the energy of thousands of other writers. Just knowing so many people are sitting down to write every day can give you juice. If you decide to jump in, I suggest you make it fun. If you’ve been laboring on a novel for months or years (and it’s not flowing to completion), try setting it aside and working with a fresh idea, character, concept. You’ve got nothing to lose and you might discover new things …