When was the last time you had a really truly terrible sucky day? One of those worst days, when everything went wrong and you felt defensive and angry and backed into a corner? Maybe you really were backed into a corner–by your best friend or by the driver who cut you off in the parking lot and then waved a single digit your way. Maybe the bad stuff lasted a few hours or a few minutes; either way, by the end you were ready to blow your stack and rant! I’ve had my share of bad streaks and the rants …
Author: Sarah Lovett
BREAKING INTO THE BUSINESS
Literary agent Don Maass–author of WRITING THE BREAKOUT NOVEL–has gained a reputation in his field as a writers’ advocate. I heard him speak at the Surrey Writers’ Conference this past weekend. He delivered a realistic and energizing message. Yes, it is a tough business. And, yes, you can find an agent and a publisher–if you write a great book, and if you are professional, make smart choices, and do your homework. Sound daunting? Take a deep breath and shake off the “daunts”. Why? Because you will write a terrific book and you will do your homework. Begin by visiting Don’s …
SURREY INTERNATIONAL WRITERS’ CONFERENCE 2008
I’ve just spent an energized and informative weekend presenting at the 2008 Surrey International Writers’ Conference, located in Surrey, just outside Vancouver B.C. This year’s author presenters included Donald Maass (also a well-known literary agent), Hallie Ephron, Diana Gabaldon, Anne Perry, Phillip Margolin, and Jack Whyte. Agents, editors, and publishers attended from the U.S. as well as Canada. At least one author signed a contract this weekend, and several attendees from past years were here to celebrate publication of their first book. Over the years I’ve attended quite a number of conferences. I’ve added Surrey to my list of favorites. …
SURREY INTERNATIONAL WRITERS’ CONFERENCE
From October 23 to October 27 I will be presenting at the Surrey International Writers’ Conference, just a few miles outside Vancouver B.C. I hope to post while I’m there, and I look forward to sharing the highlights on this blog. Wishing you free flow and abundant creative energy.
CREDO — IN LIFE, IN FICTION
Credo (Latin for “I believe”) is traditionally a statement of religious belief. It is also a statement of personal belief, whether you subscribe to a religious tradition or not. If you’ve listened to any of the personal essays from the long-running public radio series, “This I Believe,” you’ve heard a variety of credos. For writers, credos are especially powerful. The act of penning your credo on paper will remind you of your deepest beliefs. These are the beliefs that inspire you to write. You may have done this before; if so, you might be surprised how many writers have never written …
MAKING HEADLINES!
I learned one my favorite writing “tricks” from Charles Dickens, who often published his novels in installments. He used chapter headings, or, what I call headlines. Open OLIVER TWIST to Chapter 6 and read: Oliver, Being Goaded by the Taunts of Noah, Rouses into Action, and Rather Astonishes Him. Or Chapter 32: Of the Happy Life Oliver Began to Lead with his Kind Friends. But page forward to Chapter 33: Wherein the Happiness of Oliver and his Friends, Experiences a Sudden Check. And near novel’s end: The Pursuit and Escape. When I’m writing my first draft, I aim for scene …
ACTION–OBJECTIVE–PARITY!!
My previous post focused on a character’s action-objective. Now, I want to expand the discussion and consider action-objective in terms of parity. In physics, parity may be defined as an intrinsic symmetry. In terms of narrative, parity means equality. It means that you, the writer, know and understand the motivation and objective of the viewpoint character and the important non-viewpoint characters in each scene. You know what they want and why. And if you don’t know what and why yet, you discover it. For example: Say we are writing a scene from the viewpoint of Jane, a 37-year-old singer, who is engaged …
ACTION———-OBJECTIVE!!!!!!!
Writers have much to learn from actors. Actors are trained to take action in every scene. They have a main objective–win a first date, force the bad guy to show his hand, sweet-talk the doorman, seduce a rival’s hubby–and they pull out all the stops to achieve it. The objectives in each scene build toward the big story objective. If the big story has the requisite conflict, you’ll find conflict in every scene–in the form of obstacles that stand in the way of the actor achieving her goal. Obstacles may be environmental, intrapersonal, and/or interpersonal. For now, let’s focus on …
INTENTION & COMMITMENT–YOUR CONTRACT WITH YOURSELF
This post is taken from material I use in my workshop: The 90-Minute Novel. Over the next weeks, as I prepare to teach at the Surrey International Writers’ Conference in B.C., I will continue to post exercises from the workshop. Many of them are applicable to writers of memoir as well as fiction. The Contract: When you sell your book to a publisher, you will be asked to sign a company contract. Now, wherever you are in the process of your new writing project, I am asking you to sign a contract with yourself. This contract means you will:A) Aim …
QUOTE OF THE DAY–TRUE CHARACTER
Today’s writing quote, one of my favorites on character, comes from Robert McKee’s powerful book STORY: Substance, Structure, Style, and the Principles of Screenwriting. “TRUE CHARACTER is revealed in the choices a human being makes under pressure–the greater the pressure, the deeper the revelation, the truer the choice to the character’s essential nature.” Whether you are writing a screenplay, novel, play, or memoir, I believe the quote holds true. Think about people close to you, think about yourself, think about your characters–and now make a quick list of defining, revelatory choices made. What was the context of the choice? What …