#AuthorToolboxBlogHop: Writing in the Lazy Days of Summer

I don't know about you, but writing in the summer can sometimes feel like a daunting task. Summer is a time to be outside and to be a little lazier than usual, or so my tired mind tries to convince me. Not that summer can't be an amazing source of inspiration, summer adventures and beautiful sunsets can end up being the perfect set up for your story.

BUT... what do you do when you feel the lazy days calling for you?

1. Answer the call. Take a short break. Let your vacation be a real vacation (though make sure to pack a small notebook in case you get inspired.) I am a big proponent of writing every day, but if you feel like your writing is suffering, take a couple days off. Honestly, you might come back recharged and ready to knock out that plot you've been working on forever.

2. Take your work outside. I love my laptop because of its portability. But I also travel with a small notebook and sometime writing by hand is the best. A change of scenery might be the thing you needed all along.

3. Listen to music. Sometimes the perfect song comes along and sets the tone for a scene. Bands/Artists that have been my inspiration lately are: The Strumbellas, The 1975, The Moth and The Flame, Billie Eilish, Amy Shark, Young the Giant, and The Matthew Good Band. Make a soundtrack for your story. It's fun and can keep you on track.

4. Schedule a time each day for writing and stick to it. Lock yourself in your office or living room or bedroom or wherever you write and just do it. Just write. Make it a habit and stick to it.

Summer is a hard to time stay motivated. There is so much to do and so many adventures to be had before you get trapped indoors by winter. So definitely enjoy it and soak it all in, it just may be what inspires your next story.

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#AuthorToolboxBlogHop: Outside Your Comfort Zone

While I am a firm believer that you should write what you love, what you know a lot about, and what you're comfortable with, I do think you should get outside you comfort zone every once in a while.

Lately I've been in a writing rut so I decided to try writing in a way I normally don't, I've started writing poetry. I normally write YA/Fantasy but writing poetry has opened up a new type of creative beast in me. It has made me think about sentence structure and the rhythm of my prose in a whole new light.

So, if you are ever in a rut or stuck, try taking your WIP and switch its genre. Writing a mystery thriller? Try turning it into sci-fi. Writing YA romance? Try lyrical prose. If you aren't comfortable doing that with you WIP, try just starting fresh with a short story outside of your typical genre. 

Sorry this post is so short. My computer froze up and I lost my work, but I still wanted to get something posted!! See you all next month!!

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#AuthorToolboxBlogHop

Hey Everyone!! I am so sorry but I am going to sit this month out. I have been extremely busy and would prefer to give more valuable advice next month. I will still comment on and share your blog posts!!

Thank you so much for all of your support. It means a lot to me!!

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#AuthorToolboxBlogHop: Knowing Your Limitations

For this month’s #AuthorToolboxBlogHop I’m going to talk about knowing your limitation as a writer.

I had a friend read a few chapters of my WIP and while she liked it, she was also kind of upset that my main character was a straight white girl. My cast of characters is pretty diverse. My main character lives with her aunt. Her aunt is married to a black woman who has a son from a previous marriage that the main character loves like a brother. None of those characters were just written that way, they evolved as I wrote them. She would like me to make the main character a bisexual woman of color. 

I do not agree with her.

Not because I don’t think a bisexual woman of color deserves to have her story told, but because I am not the person to tell her story.

I am not bisexual, gay or questioning. I’m not a woman of color. I know that I write best from personal experience and that I wouldn’t be able to do her story any justice. I know I could research and I could interview people but I know my limitations as a writer.

Now, I am not saying that a writer can’t write outside of their experience. That would be stupid and dangerous. I mean, To Kill a Mockingbird would have never been written if Harper Lee didn’t feel capable. 

What I am saying is that I don’t feel like I am the one to write that story, especially with the story I am working on.

Someday I might be able to write a story with a person of color who is questioning their sexuality at the center of it, but not now. I know I am not ready and I know I not the writer to write that story.

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#AuthorToolboxBlogHop: Visual Inspiration

Writer's block happens to almost every writer at some point. When that I happens to me I try to use music, writing prompts, and notes from my journal to help me get back into the groove. Sadly, those don't always work. That is when I turn to visual prompts. Sometimes even the most simple photo will lead me into a scene. I hope these photos can be of use to you at some point. (All photos were taken by me.)

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Location is Everything: #AuthorToolboxBlogHop

Kansas City Skyline (Photo: Vanessa M Scott)

Whether your story takes place in a generic suburb in a "make believe" town or in a well known city like New York City, London or Cairo, you have to make it believable.

If you choose a real world location, I find it best to be a city or place you have actually been to. Why? Because researching a location via the internet, other books or movies is not a substitute for the real thing. I can always tell when a writer has written a story that takes place in NYC based solely on what they have seen in the movies or on television. The story typically lacks the small details that bring a location to life and tends to focus on places that locals tend to avoid like Time Square (unless they work near there) and other famous tourist spots. 

That is why I tend to write stories that take place in my hometown of Kansas City. Kansas City has a lot to offer when it came to range. There is downtown, midtown, and multiple suburbs, along with great hiking trails, scenic parks, and a river. The city offers unlimited possibilities for telling an authentic story for almost any plot.

As for a fictional location, you can get away with quite a bit more and if you want to attach it to the real world, all you have to do is mention that the nearest hospital/shopping center/concert venue is an hour or two away in Berlin/London/Portland. 

Why is location so important?

Your story's setting and location help determine many factors that will ultimately shape your plot. Take my chosen location of Kansas City for example, my characters won't ever take the subway/train to work and will most likely have their own car because Kansas City is too spread out to walk everywhere. Kansas City has all four seasons (though this is becoming less true each year, I really miss a full blown spring and autumn) so I have to make sure that when I write an outdoor scene in January that my characters are dressed appropriately. I should also take into consideration local slang and diction when writing dialog. Imagine reading a story that takes place in the UK but the dialog is completely American, it doesn't make sense. 

So, when choosing your story's location, make sure it is something you can make feel real. There is nothing more satisfying than a story that I can get completely lost in without being distracted by a setting that doesn't make sense for the story being told.

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Names Have Power - #AuthorToolboxBlogHop

"Names have power." - Rick Riordan, The Lightning Thief

You have to be careful when naming your characters. You have to consider the genre, the time period, and where the story takes place.

If you are writing a story about Mary, Queen of Scots (and your story isn't about time travel) who lived during the 1500s then I would stay away from names that have only recently became names. Even my name, Vanessa, would not be appropriate. Vanessa wasn't a thing until 1700s when Jonathan Swift invented it. 

You also have to think about where your story takes place. Some places, like the United States, gives you more leeway when picking names. But if your story takes place is small town in the Ukraine, you aren't likely to find a Nevaeh there, but maybe a Viktoria or a Sofia.

You should also be consistent with nicknames. If you have a character named Gregory who prefers to go by Greg, make sure he only goes by Gregory in formal encounters or only have one friend/family member who calls him by his full name. 

As a writer, I try to avoid using names that are too similar by both spelling and sound. Readers don't always fully read words. If you have characters names Laurie and Lauren, readers might confuse the two. Same goes with Tim and Tom. Also, have two characters with the same name, even if spelt differently can be awfully confusing. 

I would also be careful when naming based on ethnicity and looks alone. If you are going to name a character based on their heritage make sure you do some research. Do not be like E.L. James and be so lazy that you name the two characters go color in your book the same thing. In Fifty Shades of Grey, James named her characters of hispanic decent Jose Rodriguez, Jr. and Sr. It's lazy and rude. It would only work if there was a reason behind it, but as I recall, James never stated one.

When I name characters I tend to avoid names in the top 50 to 100. But if I love a name, I don't care if it's very popular though I rarely love popular names.  I also avoid names with heavy connotation. Beyonce will immediately make people think of the singer. Elvis, Madonna, Hitler, Kanye... those names can turn your characters into caricatures. 

So, where should you look for names for your characters? I keep a running list of names in my writing journals. I also look through phonebooks, baby books, yearbooks, and name generators. I write down my favorite names from my favorite television shows. 

What advice do you have for naming characters? Please share in the comments!!

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Building Block: The Five Bones (#AuthorToolboxBlogHop)

During my time at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, I had a professor who taught me something he called, "The Five Bones." Basically, it's a way to get to know your characters, particularly your main protagonist. 

What are "The Five Bones?" They are the things that make your character tick. "The Five Bones" are what makes your character who they are. When Professor Pritchett first told me about his building block theory, I thought it was crap. But I found myself using it in order to better understand my characters. Using "The Five Bones"has really added a depth to my story that wasn't there previously. 

And here are "The Five Bones"

1. Desire - This is what your character wants now and will want five years now. It is one of the things that drives them.
2. Fear - This is what terrifies your character and again, will terrify them five years from now. It also is one of the things that drives them.
3. Strength - This is what will help your character accomplish their desire.
4. Weakness - This is your character's suffering. It is the thing which will stand in the way of your character fulfilling their desire.
5. Action - This is what your character is doing about the other four bones. This is what defines your character. This is what makes your character lovable, relatable, and revered. 

This building block technique has helped me give purpose to aimless characters. It has helped me discover what exactly my character needed to be doing in order for my story to feel complete. I say, give it a try. Use it to outline, at least, your protagonist and antagonist. See if it helps you get out of writer's block.

Let me know if "The Five Bones" works for you in the comments! 

Have a great week everyone!!

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Fifty Shades of Once Upon a Time

I want to preface this post by saying that I am not anti-fanfiction. In fact, my current obsession, The Dorothy Must Die series, is fan fiction. But, I sometimes wonder... do authors (including myself) have no more original stories to share? I'm sure that isn't the case. I mean, borrowing from other authors is a tale as old as time. Yet, I can't help but notice, even with TV and movies, everything seems to be a retelling or re-imagining these days...

I feel like Hollywood has always had a penchant for reimagining previous movies and remaking them or turning them into TV shows. The writing world may have done the same thing, but more in the form of publishing new editions of novels, not reworking them. But, it feels like the moment Fifty Shades of Grey was published and the moment Once Upon a Time hit the small screen, that stories started to be reimagined. Especially fairy tales...

I was browsing books at Barnes and Noble the other day and noticed that there were so many books based on fairy tales. My mind immediately went "this is the Once Upon a Time effect." Disney has a set of novels written from the villains point of view. (I will be reading Fairest of All: A Tale of the Wicked Queen, thanks to Prime Reading.) I saw Marissa Meyer's The Lunar Chronicles which twists fairy tales and makes them as dark as they were originally. I picked up Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Paige because I'm a sucker for all things Wizard of Oz and was intrigued by an evil Dorothy. I also saw The Storymakers books by Betsy Schow (these seemed ridiculous to me and the back matter put a nail in the coffin of me reading it,) where Dorothea wears Hans Christian Louboutin heels and her parents are stuck in Kansas. As much as I liked the play on words with the shoes, the reimagining felt like it was just along for the fan fiction ride.

So, have we gone too far? I mean, at least Fifty Shades of Grey tried to distance itself somewhat from it's source material. Honestly, if I hadn't known it was fan fiction, I might not have put it together. I love that fan fiction has opened a path to creativity for so many, a path that has lead to some amazing writing and original stories. I don't want it to go away, but should we, as authors, try harder to make sure our stories can stand on their own even if they are a result of fan fiction?

The Importance of Word Choice

Have you every read a short story or a book that felt off? The story itself was good but something just didn’t feel right. There is a good chance that it was poor word choice that was throwing you off.

The way I see it, one of the most important things a writer can focus on is word choice. Especially when it comes to dialog. Dialog can make or break a story. As a writer I need to know when to have a character say “hello” versus having a character say “hey.” I need to know the connotation behind words, particularly if I am writing a period piece or a story taking place in a certain country (if the story takes place in the US but a character had just moved there from London, it would be a smart choice to have the character use British slang versus having them use American slang.) 

Along with good word choice, I find that my favorite writers aren’t afraid to use “colorful” language. They use cuss words and content appropriate slang. It’s kind of sad that I feel the need to mention this, but Americans are extremely weird when it comes to language. The word “fuck” will have some of them up in arms and they will act like you’re obscene idiot for using the word, but they have no problem watching something extremely violent as long the language isn’t too filthy (PG-13 movies.) 

Why is using colorful language important to me? Because it makes your characters easier to relate to. Think about Fifty Shades of Grey, it’s hard for to me to take it seriously because of the language that the characters use, whether in dialog or their head. The main protagonist is 22 and calls her vagina “my sex.” She says “holy crap” and “double crap” way more than most adult women do. The only Latino in the books says “dios mios” almost every time he appears. (Basically, you should read Fifty Shades of Grey as “what not to do” example.) It’s all good to have a character who has a tagline, but to have them repeat the same words over and over feels cheap and lazy.

So, when you’re writing your next story or editing your current story, please look at your choice of words. Did you make sure the language made sense? Did you make productive choices? If a sentence doesn’t sound right, try changing a word or two and see if that helps.

I hope this helps you in your writing. Please let me know if you have any word choice tips or advice!

Next week’s blog will discuss getting a job that allows you to use your degree. I would like to give a shout out to my great friend, Lori, for the idea!

Change: A Story Needs It

Last week I ranted about the changes that I am currently going through and I promised to share how one could use that change in their writing.

Well, how do you use what you’re going through in your life in your writing?

1. Keep a journal. Writing about your feelings about things as you are feeling them is the best way to capture the emotions in a raw way. 
2. Use that journal to help mold your characters. It is much easier to write a realistic emotional scene if you know you how that emotion actually feels. For example, if you have ever moved and felt said about it, you will know exactly how to have your character emote that without it being over the top or unrealistic.
3. The changes in your life, no matter how small, can be used as inspiration for your story. Maybe you have a character that feels like their life is piling up on them but it feels off to have everything be a major issue. I hate it when I read stories about people who literally have every bad thing you can imagine happen to them. So, if you have a character who has gone through a series of bad things (they got into a car wreck and lost their job in the same day) using a small change could be the best way to set the character off (like their favorite snack being taken off the market or even going to. different restaurant than their usual for a birthday dinner.) I feel like making the tipping point something small makes the situation for realistic. 

Why do I feel that way? Why wouldn’t it be something major that sets a character off?

When I think about my own life, I was fine with moving and getting a new job, but it was spending a holiday (Valentine’s Day, a day I don't even care about) in our temporary living space that made me cry. With everything changing around me, I couldn’t help but long for something to stay the same. I feel like that tends to be the case with most people. Most people say that big change freaks them out when it’s really the little things that get to them. For example, moving is a big change and while it is normally not a bad thing, a lot of people hate it. I don’t think they hate it because they don’t want a change of scenery, but because of the little things that will be different (you might have to use a different grocery chain, your bedroom might be set up differently, but mostly, it’s just not the same.)

Why is using your experience with change important in your writing?

Because you have no story without change. If your character’s life is the same from beginning to end, if there is no change, no growth, then you didn’t tell a story.

I hope this helps you harness your own experiences and using them in your writing. Next week I will talk about words and why word choice is extremely important.

Change is the Only Constant

Lately it feels like everything in my life is changing. We have recently sold our first home and are moving into a new one, but we haven't closed on the new house yet. I feel like I am in limbo in our temporary shelter, living out of a suitcase and never feeling quite right. I may have somewhere to lay my head but I feel homeless. 

I also got a new job as a Digital Marketing Assistant with a small, woman-ran company. So, I quit my part-time gig and while I should be so happy that I finally got a job that allows me to use my degree, I can't help but miss my co-workers at H&M. Some of those people are like family and it's going to suck not seeing them daily. BUT, I am happy about my new job and I love that I am helping companies reach out to their customers in an organic way (the only downside is my lack of time for writing...)

My sister is getting divorced, making holidays and family get togethers different. America is being ran by a narcissistic psycho, making me fear for the future. The QuikTrip near my work is closing and being moved down the street. In 2018 my driver's license won't be an acceptable form of ID to fly because Missouri is stupid. My kiddo will have to go to a new school district because of the move and he fears he will lose his friends. I miss our first house terribly and makes me regret the decision to move.

I just want something to stay the same in my life, even if just for a minute, but it can't. The only constant in life is change.

And how can I use my feelings about this change in my writing?? 

I'll tell you next week...

(P.S. Thanks for reading my rant about problems that aren't really problems. I don't handle big change well and writing about it helps.

Name That Book

I believe that a compelling story needs an equally compelling title. 

Why?

Titles matter. Think about the titles of the most beloved books in literature and you will find that they are not only unique but also memorable. Same goes for the books on the best seller’s lists. Titles are, at times, what originally draw readers in.

Here are a list of my favorite book titles, even though they are not always my favorite books.

Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury

The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera

The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky (One of my favorite books of all time)

Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak (Also a favorite)

The Winter of our Discontent by John Steinbeck

As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner

Fifty Shades of Gray by E.L.James (I loathe this book but the title is memorable and catchy)

Of course there are many many more, but looking at these titles should give an idea of what I mean. These titles are catchy, unique, and memorable. Just think if these books had generic titles, would they have caught people’s eyes on bookshelves?

So, how does one come up with a badass title?

I actually find my inspiration in music and from my own writing. The story I am working on now is called “Reigniting Salem.” It came from a line in the story, it’s funny because its a minor character who says it, but it works on so many levels.

When it comes to using music, sometimes a line in the song becomes the title or it becomes the inspiration behind the story and weaves itself into it.

My one piece of advice for naming your story is to write it first. I never give a story a title until a good chunk of it is written. 

Do you have any advice for coming up with titles? Let me know in the comments!

Big Picture Revision: Part One

My Cutting Draft for my Capstone.

So, it’s a been a little over two weeks since National Novel Writing Month came to an end and I haven’t looked at my story again once.

Why?

Well, if I am to edit it and revise it, I need some time away from it. Trying to edit anything immediately after writing it won’t do any good. The story is too fresh, you will miss mistakes and errors because you will see them for what you want them to be and not for the mistakes and errors that they are. Also, time heals all wounds, and if you hated your story or parts of it, you might just delete too much and lose an amazing novel. Time will let you see your story clearly.

Personally, I won’t be starting my editing process until after the new year. I like to put some distance in between the writing and editing, if I can. But, if an idea for my novel comes into my head, I write it down in my “handy-dandy” notebook that I keep with me at all times. (I would advise anyone who writes to do this. I have notebooks upon notebook filled with names and ideas and places and random plot lines, I go back them for inspiration.)

Editing is time consuming and has a lot of steps, so this is just part one of my editing process.

This is the big picture revision.

Anyway, the first step I take when revising my story is to read it all. Rereading the story allows me to get reacquainted with it. I will also read it aloud, because that allows me to hear the mistakes and hear when dialog doesn’t sound natural. When I do come across those moments I underline them, so I can revisit them later on. (I would suggest printing the story off if you can, editing on a computer is difficult, but printing so many pages isn't always feasible.) 

After that, I do what I call my “cutting draft.” I go through my story and strikeout everything I hate or deem unnecessary. My goal is to cut at least 30-45% of it. I know that sounds like a lot, but when you think of all of the fluff that you added to reach your 50k word count, you hopefully won’t be cutting the meat of your story and only the fat. Things I normally cut are adverbs, overly wordy dialog tags, and scenes that add nothing to the plot. I get rid of characters who add nothing to the story or only seem to show up as a plot device. I look for scenes that take too long and for distracting verbiage. 

I do not edit spelling mistakes or grammar errors during this process. This is just  about the story and not its readability. 

When you are done cutting your story to pieces you should save that draft with the unwanted material still there but struck out, and then open a new document. Copy and paste the whole thing into it and then delete the crossed out items. Why keep a copy with the things you want to get rid of? Well, you just may need those ideas for a different story or you might want to reuse those things in the story but somewhere else in it.

And that brings us to the next phase of my big picture revision, which I will blog about next week. I hope you come back to read about my “deepening draft.”

Have a great weekend!

And You Wrote, Now What?

Congratulations to all of the winners of this year's National Novel Writing Month! You did it! Please, pat yourself on the back, have a drink, and celebrate. Congratulations to the people who didn't meet their 50K but still wrote their hearts out, writing is hard, but even if you only wrote one sentence, at least you wrote!

So, the question everyone is asking is: I wrote this crazy rough draft, now what?

My answer: TAKE A BREAK!! And whatever you do, do not send your story to agents or publishers, at least not yet!

Your story is probably full of errors, spelling and grammatical ones, and that is perfectly fine. NaNoWriMo is all about writing with an insane recklessness that doesn't allow for that nonsense. So, before you try to sell your story, you are going to need to edit your story, and before you can edit your story, I suggest you take a break from it. Enjoy the holiday season, dive into whatever holiday festivities you participate in, spend some much needed time with friends and family, maybe even veg out and binge watch something on Netflix (I recommend Gilmore Girls.)

I will be taking a small break from my story. I definitely need some space from my characters otherwise they might not make it to the end of the story. BUT, I will be posting some ideas and inspiration throughout December and I will have tips for the revision process after the first of the year.

Good luck on all of your future writing endeavors and I hope you will check back here for more tips, ideas, and inspiration! 

Down to the Last Minute!

Hey guys!! I would just like to wish everyone who is participating in NaNoWriMo good luck! I hope every single one of you reach your 50k word goal and beyond!

Tomorrow I will be exploring my National Novel Writing Month journey. I will discuss my ups and downs and my future plans for the amazing story I got out of it!

If you are need of some last minute inspiration feel free to browse my blog or to check out these posts:
Inspiration from Writers
Songs that Inspire
Tell Me This Story
Author Advice
NaNoWriMo Success Pt1
NaNoWriMo Success Pt 2

I hope you find some inspiration here! Good luck and I will see you on the other side!

The Night Before NaNo

Well, tomorrow is the big day. I have to admit that I am pretty nervous. I have an idea and I have my characters, but man, I'm not sure how I will pull off this National Novel Writing Month. The important thing is that I am going to try my hardest.

Things I am going to do tonight: 

• Take my kiddo treat-or-treating
• Eat some candy
• Watch a scary movie
• Outline the scene I will be writing on November 1st
• Sleep

Tomorrow I am going to:

• Go to work
• Write at least 2,000 words (I prefer to start off over the 1,667 words a day just incase I fall behind.)
• Outline a scene for the next day
• Sleep

I would like to wish all my fellow NaNoWriMos good luck! I hope that you find the story you want to write. I hope that writer's block never rears its ugly. I hope that you get the crazy awesome rough first draft that you need!

Remember, the world needs your novel.

(P.S. I will try to post things to inspire you throughout the month, good luck again.)