Will I ever feel like a “Real” Writer? with Alison Stone

Will I ever feel like a “Real” Writer?

By Alison Stone

This morning I went to the bank to make a deposit. The teller was finishing up the transaction when she squinted at her screen and said, “Oh, I need to update your profile. Where do you work?”

“I’m self-employed,” I answered, always feeling like it’s a trick question.

She looked up from her screen. “What do you do?”

For some inexplicable reason, my heart races in my ears every time someone asks me this question. Do I mumble something about having an engineering degree, but I’ve been home with the kids for 15 years and now I write? No, too long. I decide to go for the direct answer: “I’m an author.” Yet, the words feel funny on my lips.

Interest sparks in her eyes. “Really? What do you write?”

“I write romantic suspense for Harlequin.”

The teller angles her head and studies me. “Do you ever get writer’s block?” 

I glance behind me, sure the customers in line are growing impatient, but there is no one in line.

I shrug. “The worst problem is procrastination, like running to the bank when I’m supposed to be writing.”

She laughs. I’ve always been great with humor, but telling people I’m a writer. Not so much.

Why is that?

When I decided I wanted to become an engineer, I had no problem telling people I’m going to school for engineering. When I was a young professional, I told people I worked for General Motors without missing a beat. Was it because engineering and corporations are more concrete? People can relate to that? Everyone has a job, right? How many people sit at home in yoga pants writing novels?

Yet, when I do own up to my new career, people are inevitably fascinated. When I was an engineer, I never had a bank teller ask me eagerly how I conducted efficiency studies on the manufacturing floor. Yawn.

Is my hesitation to tell people I’m a writer due to my own insecurities?

For over ten years, I taught myself how to write a novel. (Can’t say I took any creative writing classes at Georgia Tech!) I was a closet writer. Only my husband and my close friends knew I wrote. Only my husband knew how much I wrote. I think my friends thought it was a hobby, like cross stich or putting together puzzles. By not sharing my writing, I think I was trying to protect myself from having to share what I thought would be my inevitable failure.

During this long journey, I’d look up the biographies of other writers and lament every time an author’s bio read something like this: I’ve been reading novels since age four and I penned my own at age eight. I have a degree in English and a Masters in Creative Writing.

Groan.  I wanted a Masters in Creative Writing. I didn’t even read novels for fun until after I graduated from college. (Shhh…don’t tell anyone.) How did I ever expect to be a writer when I took calculus, physics, and thermodynamics?  And we all know that writers are terrible at math. (I only say this because many seem to lament their math skills as much as I lament my lack of formal training for “authordom.”) See, I’m good at math.  Does this mean I’m a terrible writer? A fraud?

Why do I think I can be a writer? This was the constant refrain running through my head on my long journey to publication. These doubts slowed my progress. It was easier to talk myself into taking a night off from writing if I didn’t think I was going to be successful anyway.

Finally, finally in 2011, I sold two sweet romantic suspense novels to Samhain Publishing. A year later I sold my first book to Harlequin Love Inspired Suspense. To date, I have four books contracted by Harlequin. Yet, I still don’t feel like a “real writer.”

I get nervous when a fellow writer asks me to critique her work. Does she really value my opinion? I sweated it out when the wonderful Missy Tippens invited me to stop by Seekerville. How can I write a better post on the topic of plotting, or creating villains, or layering my work when authors more knowledgeable than I have already done so?

Recently, a friend introduced me by saying, “This is my friend, the writer.”

I smiled and shrugged it off and she said, “You never tell people you’re a writer, so I have to tell them for you.”

Her words hit home.

I am a writer. Aren’t I?

Funny thing is, I’m not a wallflower. If you met me in person you’d consider me outgoing and as one friend once told me at an RWA conference, “Wow, you really know how to work a room!”

Just goes to show you that what’s on the inside doesn’t always match the outside.

If you’re experiencing similar doubts when it comes to your writing, here are some suggestions:

1)    Repeat this phrase over and over (and I apologize for paraphrasing): I wouldn’t have the desire to write if God hadn’t given me a talent to write. I truly believe this. When the seed of an idea to try my hand at writing was planted in my brain, it wouldn’t have taken root if God hadn’t already blessed me with some innate ability.  

2)    Educate yourself. I read a gazillion (there’s my math coming into play!) craft books and have taken numerous online workshops. Ask authors you respect what craft books or workshops they recommend. Check out the wonderful workshops advertised on this blog.

3)    Read. Read across genres. Decide what you like and what you don’t like and why? Sometimes knowing why you don’t like something goes a long way to improving your craft.

4)    Write. Writing is hard. Writing when you doubt you’re a real writer is even harder. But if you write, even if you never get published, you ARE A WRITER. The sense of accomplishment from tackling the blank page is awesome.

5)    Network. Whether it’s a local writers’ group or online writer friends. You won’t feel so lonely and it’s great to have someone who understands the crazy ups and downs we writers (yes, WE WRITERS) experience.

6)    Focus on what you can control. Whether you are published or on the journey toward publication, don’t get caught up in things that are out of your control. For example, shake off the bad review, the rejection, or the poor sales. Instead focus on what you can truly control: writing the next best book you can.

photo credit: Crestock/creatista

I share this story with you to reassure you that no matter where you are on your writing journey, it’s normal to have doubts and insecurities. But we must not let them stop us from writing.  Stop us from moving forward. Stop us from achieving our dreams.

While I was mulling this post over, a quote popped up on my Facebook feed. I believe we receive messages right when we need them most:

“The sign of intelligence is that you are constantly wondering. Idiots are always dead sure about every damn thing they are doing in their life.”― Jaggi Vasudev

Perhaps this fear, this uncertainty, this “wondering” is what drives up to keep improving. This doesn’t automatically change when you sign your first contract or self-publish your first book. It takes time.

How much time?

I’ll let you know.

Meanwhile, I’ll be writing the best book I know how.

Have you experienced similar feelings? How have you overcome them? I’d love to hear from you in the comment section. I’ll be giving away a digital copy (Amazon or Barnes and Noble / US only) of Plain Pursuit, my first Harlequin Love Inspired Suspense, to one random person who comments.

Thanks for stopping by! ~ Alison

Bio: Alison Stone left Buffalo, New York and headed a thousand miles south to earn an industrial engineering degree at Georgia Tech in Hotlanta. Go Yellow Jackets! She loved the South, but true love brought her back North.

After the birth of her second child, Alison left Corporate America for full-time motherhood. She credits an advertisement for writing children's books for sparking her interest in writing. She never did complete a children's book, but she did have success writing articles for local publications before finding her true calling, writing romantic suspense.

Alison lives in Western New York with her husband of twenty years and their four children where the summers are absolutely gorgeous and the winters are perfect for curling up with a good book—or writing one.

Besides writing, Alison keeps busy volunteering at her children's schools, driving her girls to dance, and watching her boys race motocross.

Alison can be found on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/AlisonStoneAuthor. Her website is www.AlisonStone.com. Her twitter handle is @Alison_Stone.

Latest release from Harlequin Love Inspired Suspense (inspirational fiction)

Critical Diagnosis Available July 2014:

HER PERSONAL PROTECTOR  

Researcher Dr. Lily McAllister has dedicated her life to finding a cure for a family disease and now, steps away from a promising new treatment, Lily is attacked. Only the training of army physician James O'Reilly can save her. As the would-be CEO of his family's pharmaceutical company, James's secret dream is to reenlist. But he can't leave Lily with a bull's-eye on her back. Nor can he stay and stop her from pursuing her goal. No one can, including the stalker who shadows her every move. Still, James has lost too many people he's loved—and this time he refuses to lose Lily.

Creative Spaces by Sherry Kyle

Cheryl here! Today's guest is friend and Abingdon author Sherry Kyle who has some great thoughts on the importance of having a writing space. Sherry has graciously agreed to give away a copy of her new release, Delivered with Love, to one lucky commenter. Contest rules apply. Enjoy!

Cheryl

================

Creative Spaces

Hi, everyone! A special thanks to Cheryl for inviting me to the Seekers!

When I sat down at the kitchen table with my laptop and thought about what to
share, I was immediately distracted by the loud noises coming from the video game
my husband and son were playing. Yikes. Get me out of here!

So I grabbed the key to my office and went out to my backyard.

Backyard?

That’s right. But I’ll get to that in a minute. Allow me to start from the beginning . . .

For years I wrote at a desktop computer in my bedroom. It was a good arrangement
until my back and neck started hurting and I couldn’t stop thinking about my
characters when it was time for bed. My desk was not conducive to good posture,
nor was working in my bedroom the best idea for a full night’s sleep. I ended up
going to the chiropractor on a weekly basis for months. I had to think of a better
arrangement if I was to keep writing.

Then my husband bought me a laptop. Now I could write anywhere—the local
coffeehouse, the kitchen table, or sitting in my favorite chair in the family room.

But I still longed for a space of my own.

Of course the ideal situation would be to have an office in a spare bedroom, but our
four children filled every room in our house. I thought about transforming a large
closet into an office and even went so far as considering remodeling our house.
Drastic, I know, but I was desperate for a quiet space.

One day, I went to Home Depot and spoke to a worker about my dream of having an
office. She responded, “What you need is a shed.”

A writing shed? Brilliant! Why didn’t I think of that?

I was excited about the idea and went home and researched sheds on my computer.
I stumbled across California Custom Sheds. They build every type of wood storage
shed imaginable. Check them out here: www.calcustomsheds.com.

I gave them a call and a worker came to my home and looked at the area in our
backyard where we planned on putting the shed. He asked me specific questions
about door and window placement as well as roof color. The best part is that they build the shed on site in a day!



My writing shed is 8 ½ x 9 feet. I like a lot of light, so I chose a French door, big
windows, and a skylight. The rest of the project my husband and I either worked on
together or hired out, including: electricity, insulation, drywall, flooring, trim, and
paint inside and out. (Most areas do not require permits for accessory structures
under 120 square feet, but check with your local building department to see
whether or not you’d need a permit.)



We hung valances, shelves, pictures, and a clock as well as purchased a rug and
new lighting. Check out Home Reserve for small, comfortable furniture you build
yourself: www.HomeReserve.com and Office Max for affordable desks to fit your
space: www.OfficeMax.com. I purchased a loveseat and desk from these companies
and couldn’t be happier with my choices. What do you think?



What does having a writing space have to do with writing?

Everything! When you have a specific place to write, you’ll take your work more
seriously. Do you have a writing space? With a little creativity and determination,
you can find a way to have the space you’ve always dreamed about.

If you don’t have a spare bedroom to use as an office or the budget to build a shed,
consider these ideas:

Set up a desk or table in a quiet corner.

Convert a closet into an office space.

Purchase a computer armoire.

Go to your local library or your favorite coffeehouse.

Or consider these ideas to get you in the writing zone . . .

Write when everyone is asleep.

Wear earplugs to block out sound or headsets and listen to your favorite music.

Carry a notebook and write whenever you have a spare moment.

Light a scented candle to signal it’s time to write.

Tell us about your writing space. Or if you have one. Or what gets you in the writing

zone.
Blessings,
Sherry

Bio:

Sherry Kyle is a graduate of Biola University with a degree in Communications, and
a minor in Bible. She is the author of The Christian Girl’s Guide to Style (Legacy Press,
2010) and Delivered with Love (Abingdon Press, 2011). Sherry and her husband
have four children, three biological and one by adoption. When she isn't writing,
she enjoys Zumba, watching movies, reading and spending time with her family and
friends. She lives in California. You can find her on the web at: www.sherrykyle.com
Back cover copy of Delivered with Love:

An old love letter found in the glove compartment of a young woman's inherited
1972 Volkswagen propels her to leave her life in Los Angeles and go to the small
town of Capitola, California. There her dream of finding the writer of the letter leads
her on an unexpected journey that changes her life forever.


Claire James, age twenty-three, is ready to make it on her own. When she's fired
from her job as a waitress and subsequently kicked out of her sister's home, she
sees it as an opportunity to start over. But even before moving, a thirty-five-year-old
love letter written to her mother keeps Claire stuck in the past. Michael Thompson, a
middle-aged real estate agent, wants to keep the past where it belongs--at least until
his grown daughter is married. But, then a young woman comes to town...
Cheryl here! Don't forget to leave a comment for a chance to win Sherry's book! s

Cheryl & Sherry

Super Secret Insiders Notes on Writing When You're Stuck.

Let me set the stage.

You're writing along, fingers smoking at the keyboard, the Internal Editor on one shoulder is muzzled, and on the other shoulder, Ruthy the Word Count Vixen has been subdued with copious amounts of Mallow Cups.

When suddenly ...you pause.

Thinking. Thinking. Thinking.


Nope that won't work. Nah, not that either.

You blink.

Okay, now you've lost your train of thought.

You aren't sure what do do next, or why. Panic dominoes. What could possibly fix this perilous situation upon which the entire axis of your book rests? Life as you know it is about to end if you don't find a solution fast. You simply cannot be...

STUCK!

Normally you'd have to pinky swear and sign a pledge in blood for access to the information we are about to share. However, there's pretty much nothing we won't do for Seekerville, so today we bring you the insider secrets on what many of your favorite authors and contest divas who hang around Seekerville do when they are stuck. We cannot recommend any method over another and we highly suggest you see your doctor, therapist, agent, editor or at very least your nutritionist before embarking upon any program.




The idea for this post came from curiosity. How, I wondered, do other writers respond to Stuck? Was I normal? The results are in. I'm not.


But here's my Four Step Recovery for Stuck anyhow.

1. Never Underestimate the Power of a Nap.

Naps" sharpen motor skills and boosts sensory processing." They also allow your subconscious mind to work out those plot issues without interference. If you've forgotten how to nap, here's a handy guide.


2. Lifeline or Shout out?

Quick. Who's your plot buster? Who do you have on auto dial for a quick response? Who gets the job done, fast? Finding a plot buster is a must for writers.


3. Brain Food for the Writer Soul.

Foods that stimulate brain activity include: fish, chocolate, berries, and nuts. (More info here). So at your next visit to the library, pull out your mackerel and almonds and snack as you wrestle that GMC issue.



4. Get Away From the Problem.

Sometimes all it takes is reading a Nora Roberts quote, watching your favorite romantic movie to get you outside the problem so you can move forward.








Now for what everyone else had to say about Stuck:


"When I'm stuck I do some more research and hope that will melt my frozen brain. If that doesn't work I just read a novel and hope my subconscious takes over."

Cara Lynn James--Love by the Book, Thomas Nelson, July 2011



"I get off the computer and start working on paper. I brainstorm ideas, re-read my character charts and update my GMC chart. Usually that gets me going."

Missy Tippens -A Family for Faith, Harlequin Love Inspired, April 2011



"If I were to get stuck, which, of course, never happens to me (grin), I would head for The Border. Yup! Taco Bell fuels my creativity. It's amazing the inspiration I can derive from a seven-layer burrito with extra green sauce.

And if Taco Bell fails me? Well, that's easy. I ask my resident plotting partner for help. Gwynly has great ideas and is happy to share them--provided I don't ask for help when he's in the middle of a car repair. Yes, I actually did that once. I didn't get any ideas that day, but I did get a good lesson in malespeak. =)"

Keli Gwyn, A Bride Opens Shop in El Dorado, California, Barbour Publishing, July 2012.




"When I'm stuck, I read. I have to fight the guilt that I'm doing something pleasurable when I should be writing, but I found that refilling the creative well really helps more than anything else I've tried."

Camy Tang --Romance with a kick of wasabi





"When I'm stuck what I've usually done is gone to far in solving a problem--and drained all the tension out of a story. So I need to back up and see where I was too nice and do LESS, tell less, confess less, pretty things up less, so the story can storm along wreaking havoc. Also, seriously, I'm not kidding. I shoot somebody. I just let lead start flying and figure out why later."

Mary Connealy--2011 RITA Award Finalist--Romantic Comedy with Cowboys




"Sometimes, just opening up an email and explaining the problem to someone clarifies things. It forces me to be concise and straightforward. Otherwise, Ruthy gets confused. None of that plotstorming stuff for Ruthy. She's a one, two three kinda gal. More than once I've started an email to the Seekers explaining a snarl I have in my plot, and by the time I'm done, (before I even send the email) I've figured out where to go next!"

Pam Hillman, Stealing Jake, Tyndale House, July 2011




"When I'm stuck I clean. Cleaning is so ALIEN to me, that it frees up my creative juices. I can plot while scrubbing sinks. Toilets. Tubs. Folding clothes. And I keep country music on or contemporary Christian music on. That jars my thoughts into new directions and I truly believe the Holy Spirit gob-smacks me into putting thoughts together and coming up with an "AHA" moment. Oh, that God!"

Ruth Logan Herne--Enduring, endearing... Fiction that embraces the heart.




"If I’m stuck because I’m not quite sure if the next thing that happens should be shown in a full-blown scene, or just summarized, I will start to summarize it, like, “Abigail was angry and left the party to go back home. She sat in next to the abominable Mr. Turtletaub in the carriage as he prattled on about the party.” Usually by this time I realize it should be a scene and should not be summarized, and I realize HOW I need to convey Abigail’s anger and what Mr. Turtletaub should be saying and voila! I will be unstuck. I can go back and cut the summarizing and write the scene.

And sometimes it helps to listen to music, like Andrea Bocelli, which is in Italian and very romantic but doesn’t distract me because I can’t understand a word he’s saying."

Melanie Dickerson
Coming in November, The Merchant’s Daughter, from Zondervan.




"I don't have time to get stuck ;-)
Well, I try different things:
Take a break from the ms and go to another one
Turn on some music that 'fits' my story and work through a few 'what ifs' in my head
Eat chocolate and remind myself WHY I'm not published: because I can't even finish this stinking story!

Pray - and remind myself that God gave me this calling, and it wasn't because He wished to torture me.:-) He MUST have a plan."

Pepper D. Basham--2011 Double Genesis Finalist--“Stories peppered with grace and a dash of humor.”




"Most of the time when I get stuck, it's because I haven't let the story marinate long enough. I take awhile, sometimes only an hour, sometimes a day, to figure out just where the story is supposed to be going. I read through the notes I made before I started writing the story and try to figure out if I've gotten off track or if my characters are doing something contrary to their natures. Usually, this is sufficient to get me unstuck. If I'm still floundering, I make one of my family members sit down and listen as I tell them the story. Often, this jogs loose the sticky point, revealing where I've gone wrong, and I'm able to get back to writing."

Erica Vetsch -- Stories that Testify to Love




"When I get stuck, it’s usually because the scene needs more conflict. So, I ask myself, what’s the worst possible thing that could happen to my heroine right now? I’m talking shipwrecks, deadly illnesses, devastating secrets—anything to stir things up. I pick the most gut-wrenching obstacle I can think of and make it happen. Mwah-ha-ha. With enough juicy conflict, the scene practically writes itself."

Anne Barton--2011 Double Golden Heart Finalist




"Here's what I do when my cursor keeps blinking at me and my fingers don't move to its beat:

Eat Chocolate - to stimulate brain cells
Pace or Walk - get those endorphins flowing
Take a Pretend Nap - to think, not actually sleep
Eat Chocolate - for the health benefits of course
Do Other Work - so when the block is gone, I have the time to write to my heart's content
Sleep - for real this time, because problems sometimes do solve themselves
Eat Chocolate - do you see a pattern here
Talk it over with Someone - or just vent to them
Reread any Notes - to spark forgotten ideas
Eat Chocolate - now to celebrate getting over being Stuck!"

Eva Maria Hamilton--Highland Hearts, March 2012, Harlequin Love Inspired Historical.





"Ooooh - I have a whole workshop based on this idea! It's called Blasting Through Blah.

If I'm stuck it usually means I've screwed up earlier, so sometimes it means taking a step back and doing something mindless - mowing the grass, ironing, etc. because often the answer comes when I'm not thinking about it. If the scene is feeling flat and I don't know why, sometimes I'll change the dialogue tags/attribution - so that she says what he's saying and vice versa. It can be quite comical, but also illuminating!

Truly though - the only sure thing is to write through it. It's okay to write crap. Sometimes (a lot of times!) I find I have to write ahead to figure out what is wrong. Hindsight really does work, even if it's maddening!"

Donna Alward--A Family For the Rugged Rancher, Harlequin Romance, July 2011





Finally, I did have input from authors who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

" I eat miniature marshmallows from the bag when I am stuck. Generally I like to toss them in the air and see how many I can catch using only my mouth. It distracts me for a bit and the sugar rush help me think. It's a well documented medical fact that sugar and caffeine open the blood vessels thus allowing rich oxygenated blood to circulate. Of course if the marshmallows fail I move directly to espresso shots. "



"I am certainly not advocating this, but when I am stuck I withdraw from the world with a large thin crust vegetarian pizza, a six pack of diet Dr. Pepper and a bag of Red Vines to reread my favorite keeper romances. Sometimes you just need a little Mr. Darcy to put everything in order."




We hope you found these insider secrets helpful, but remember, what happens (and is said) in Seekerville, stays in Seekerville.Your turn. Tell us what you do when you're Stuck. I have another Seeker author book package to giveaway! You're all winners for sharing, but the book package winner will be announced in the Weekend Edition.

...and the survey says!: The Lodown on LoCash plus GIVEAWAY!

Hey Seekerville! Let's face it...polls are boring. LOL! So I'm gonna mix this one up a little.

I've been SWAMPED this summer. Lots of crazy family stuff going on. I've also been MIA doing tons of sound gigs with my audio-oriented hubby while I'm not under deadline. We've had a blast. He's the cute & funny rocker dude to my right in the pic above at a recent concert he did. That's what I love to do when I'm not writing. My girls have been twisting sound knobs since they were in diapers. Gigs are GREAT family time. We meet lots of interesting people and many become our lifelong friends.

The two sweet guys to my left are friends from an AWESOME up-and-coming band called LoCash Cowboys. They have a song called Here Comes Summer that I hope you will go to the country music sites and vote for. They are new on the music scene but have been trying to break in to the music industry for years, like many of us in the book industry. I predict VERY SOON they will be a household name. IF you ever get a chance to attend one of their concerts, GO! You will have THE time of your life. These guys are former professional choreographers-turned-country/rock artists. They are AMAZING in concert and WOW can they dance! You can Google "LoCash Cowboys Dance" and see just what I mean. Check out one of the videos I took at a recent concert and put on my Facebook author page here. Click the video link LoCash gig or like I said, Google 'em.

Ladies, have a heavy-duty fan ready because those guys can shake those booties and I'm not talking about knitted baby socks. LOL. Definite romance cover material right there. Yes, my husband knows I like to stand at the back of the stage just so I can see those cabooses wiggle. Trust me, if he were running sound for Dolly Parton he would certainly not be watching her eyes. LOL! We have a mutual understanding. This post won't shock him and in fact he teases me about drooling over the way these dudes dance. CHECK OUT THE VIDEOS ON YOU TUBE like this and this and this. Gospel song here and here is the best one. Love that last song. Love it. LOL. BUT wait until after this post to check all those out. LOLOLOL! Another beautiful ballad is You Got Me. You name it, they sing it.

Why am I telling you this?

Because I have learned over the last decade and a half of being on gigs with my husband while simultaneously pursuing writing that the two industries are VERY similar in many ways.

How Preston and Chris (LoCash vocalists and the crux of the band) came up with their name is they'd say, "Man, that's so low cash." Meaning something is so low cash, it's almost free. But hey, some of the best advice is free, right?

Anyway, "Low Cash" became a phrase between them and eventually stuck. The REALLY neat thing about these guys is that they have no set list when they play. They READ the audience each night and just have fun and gear their show to the audience at hand.

This reminds me SO much of the market research we do in our profession. Music and books are very similar industries. Musicians have a listening audience. Authors have readerships.

If you're not yet published, your readership is out there, trust me. You just have to find them or trust an editor or agent to help them find you.

How can you best do that? READ YOUR AUDIENCE? KNOW THEM? WRITE TO THEM? Trust that your future editor/s know their (soon to be your) audience. Read your readers as much as they read you. Know what it is that they love about you and your style of writing then never cease to deliver less than the best their money can buy.

This will hold true both before and after you're published.

Like Preston and Chris, each of you have an extreme amount of talent and I believe, like the LoCash guys, you have a special niche that you alone are meant to carve. NO ONE is doing musically what Chris and Preston are and that is why I fully believe they will be enormously successful. I believe they're right on the rim of it in fact.

This pertains to the pursuit of publication how? If you are reading this, you likely are meant to inspire and entertain people with your words. Or you are an avid reader drawn into the publishing process because of your love of books. You were drawn to this blog for a reason. You're going to be most happy when you're using the gifts you've been given. Whether that's writing books or reading books others have written and perhaps reading them to your grandchildren, children or to underprivileged kiddos at the library or a school, etc. I want you to be fulfilled in your endeavors, so I'm using this poll post to encourage those of you who are aspiring toward publication to do everything you can on your end to make success happen for you. To a great extent, success means getting your gift into the hands of the people who'll enjoy or otherwise benefit from it, right?

Your FIRST audience will be an acquisitions editor, agent or first reader hired by the publishing house.

For the past two years I've been conducting a series of publishing polls. ABA and CBA editors, agents and publishers have been SO gracious with answers. In the beginning of this poll, my goal was to provide helpful information to conference workshop participants actively pursuing publication. When industry professionals taking part in the polls expressed great interest in the results, I decided to expand my research another year. The outcomes have honestly astounded me in that on several questions, over half of those hundreds polled have given the same blind answers.

One example is when I asked them what their most common reason/s for rejection was.

OVER 70% GAVE THE SAME ANSWER for Number One. MOST of the other 30% gave similar answers that could actually be tied to that NUMBER ONE REASON FOR REJECTION.

None of those polled knew ahead of time what others answered. I'm sharing the results of that submission poll today in hopes that it will better your chances to have your submission make the best impression possible so that you can reach your readership. I sincerely want each of you to be successful and for your dreams to come true. You are going to be someones (or many someones') favorite author some day.

How does that sound?

Awesome beyond words, huh?

SO, how do you get there?

I know I'm stalling but I love the suspense. LOL! Want to know what THE most common reason for rejection was? I know because I've asked. :-)

Over 70 percent of the hundreds of ABA and CBA agents and editors polled cited this being their NUMBER ONE reason for an automatic rejection: "When it was clear the submitter either did not know or choose to follow submission guidelines."

I'm going to say that again in case you didn't catch it.

THE NUMBER ONE REASON FOR REJECTION IS WHEN THE AUTHOR DID NOT FOLLOW SOME ASPECT OF THE PUBLISHING HOUSE OR AGENCY'S SUBMISSION GUIDELINES.

OHMYGOSH! This is such an EASY fix! The very good news is that this mistake is 100% preventable.

What's the WORST thing you can do to detriment your dream right out of the gate?

Fail to know or follow submission guidelines.

If you think I'm trying to pound this into you...you're right! LOL. The poll speaks for itself. Don't jeopardize your chances by skimping on market research.

In the comment section, I'd LOVE to know how you research the market. If you can list a source that I haven't named above, you will be entered into a drawing to win one of seven LoCash Cowboys Here Comes Summer candles.

AND I will be giving away a copy of Sally Stuarts Market Guide OR a 2011 copy of Writers Market Guide to ONE lucky commenter. Winners will be announced in the Weekend Edition. SO stay tuned for that and be sure to view our contest rules and leave an e-mail address so I can reach you.

To be entered, list ways that you research the market, be that Web sites, books, industry blogs, etc. One example is Lyn Cote's blog. Did you know she does fabulous, comprehensive market research? I'm sure you know some sites or resources that others don't. Give us the URLs so it will truly be helpful information pooled in one place in case others aren't aware of how to research the market. It can be overwhelming to know where to begin.

One of my favorite ways is to attend conferences and sit in on agent/editor/publisher panels or ACFW publisher-hosted workshops. They will often talk extensively in those about what they're looking for and hand out copies of their most current submission guidelines.

If you are unable to make the conference, you can purchase the CDs online at ACFW.com Click the conference CD link.

To reiterate for those of you actively submitting: I encourage you...make SURE your ms follows submission guidelines. If you think it won't matter, my poll proves your thinking is in error. I didn't pull these answers out of my ear. These results came directly from THE industry professionals who have and will hold the death or life of your manuscript/s in their hands.

I'd hate for something so preventable to be the reason your work shows back up in your post office box or Inbox with a big fat devastating red R scratched across it.

Invest time and effort understanding the line and imprint you are targeting. That means reading books that publisher puts out. KNOW the guidelines and don’t fool yourself into thinking they’ll overlook your ignorance or laziness. The poll results are proof they absolutely will not and there is almost ZERO tolerance for failure to follow submission guidelines. I urge you to obey them to a fine T! If you do not, prepare for rejection because not knowing or following submission guidelines is, according to those whose jobs are accepting or rejection submitted work, almost always a lethal mistake.

If you are going to entrust your ms to these people, know their house/agency and for goodness sakes, their submission guidelines. This is absolutely attainable. Absolutely crucial. Market research takes time but it will be time well-spent. It's professionalism and it WILL better your chances of breaking in, I promise.

Musicians, like authors, have to research the market. I'm sure at first music industry professionals didn't quite know where to 'shelve' Preston and Chris because they do a little bit of everything in their shows including old and new country, rock, pop, hip-hop, gospel and you name it. They've branded themselves country-rock but trust me, they stand out. There is NO ONE out there doing what they do on stage and there is NO ONE out there who writes like you. Finally, someone noticed the uniqueness that is LoCash. They are infectious!

And in an unforgettable moment, someone will notice you and your work too. They'll love the spark. The voice. The marvelous way you string words together. They'll cling to a flashlight and relish your story into the wee hours and put you on their auto-buy list then long like crazy for your next release. They'll bask in the images you paint with your words unlike anyone else in the world. Your readers are waiting.

I'd hate for you to spend years writing the book of your heart only to have it pushed back in your face at NASCAR speeds by an editor because you spent minuscule time getting to know the house you've attempted to entrust it to.

You don't have to be a statistic. Be the exception. Send in exceptional work that follows guidelines perfectly. It can be done. It should be done if you want to be taken seriously and looked at like the professional I know you all are.

You not only want to sell your manuscript, you want to sell yourself. Editors and agents NEED to know that you are someone they can work with and do so long term. Let the quality of your writing and manuscript make them sit up and take notice. Let your professionalism and Presentation make them sit up and reach for the phone to make that contract call.

So where do you get those elusive guidelines?

I'll give you a few hints: Publishers’ Web sites. Publishers’ forums. Message boards such as what Steeple Hill has. Authonomy. Sally Stuart’s Market Guide. Writers Market Guide. Romance Writers of America is a tremendous resource. Frequently check house and agency Web sites because things change constantly and editors move by the end of the year.

Just for giggles and grins, here are some other reasons for rejection cited in the poll:

Inappropriate content.
Writing not up to par.
Poor grammar or other mechanical flaws.
Stepping outside the word count parameters.
Submitting genre we don't publish.
Author needs to grow a bit in craft or mechanics.
Synopsis incomplete or failure to tell us the ending.
Query letter that tells me I will love the story
Cover letter proclaiming I should buy this.
An argumentative tone upon correction or rejection.
Project not right for us.
Genre not selling.
Novice mistakes. ***

That's FAR from a complete list, but I wanted to show you a few just to see if you notice anything?

MANY of those "other" reasons cited can fall under the category of "submission guidelines."


***Regarding novice mistakes, I asked responders what exactly that constituted. I will share those answers in another post because there were numerous craft-related mistakes mentioned in detail by those who were able to respond to this question. For now I'll list a few which are: Too much telling. Passive voice. Backstory dumps. Too much introspection. Pacing or tone not right for genre.

Those are only a few! :-)

Those mistakes often flag an unpublished writer as a beginner which equates in an editor's mind to an author who is too much of a financial risk because they're still too inexperienced/not quite ready to work with an editor. I had a couple rejections because I submitted too soon, so don't feel bad if you have. It takes guts to submit. But use your brain as well as your courage and study those guidelines. LOL!

In Story by Robert McKee, (recommended to me by my Steeple Hill editor) he mentions how new authors sometimes are resistant to rules because they think it messes with their creative freedom. But editors view it as rebellion against guidelines. McKee states, "Anxious, inexperienced writers obey rules. Rebellious, unschooled writers break rules. Artists master the form."

To many in the country music industry, Chris and Preston were written off as breaking the rules. I mean, what kind of country singer plays rock and dances hip-hop style in cowboy boots and a Stetson then belts out a sweet, beautiful love-song ballad in a Harley shirt and skull and crossbones doo rag at a camo concert piano with fingers nimble enough to tickle Carnegie Hall?

But no, they are who they are and they studied the market and used their gifts and who they are as artists and individuals to carve out a niche. I'm telling you, they will be wildly popular. If you haven't heard of them now, hold on because you will. And if you ever see them in concert, you will be hooked because NO ONE puts on the kind of show they do. They have the most outstanding, energetic stage presence of any band out there. I've seen thousands. My husband is in this industry and he has told them from the beginning they have what it takes. He is a professional, he knows.

I want you to stand out to readers and industry professionals the way LoCash is standing out to those who've caught LoCash Fever. Fans and industry professionals who see a raging hole of a market for what they do. They filled a niche and you can too.

Mastering market research and keeping up with industry changes will greatly benefit you and get your work into the hands of readers who will rave over your words.

Interestingly, on a different question on the agent/editor poll, I asked responders what their number one pet peeve was. OVER 90% of them said, “When people do not follow our submission guidelines.”

Since SO MANY of them responded to both questions with the above answer, or a variation of the above answer, that leads me to believe that they must get a LOT of submissions that breach their guidelines.

This floors me. With the competition as fierce as it is, WHY would anyone want to intentionally lessen their chances of survival? LOL.

So, if you are tempted to skimp on researching guidelines for the house or agency you are targeting, I hope the above poll will deter you from that. We spend enormous amounts of time researching our novels. But the acquisitions editor of the house of our heart or the agent we'd love to be repped by will never know that if you don't set a good first impression.

My advice?

Take careful time to research houses and agencies. Do your homework before shooting that story off the runway. Don't send out blind submissions, meaning cannon ball it or shot gun your work to every house without checking first to see what they're currently acquiring. Be sniperish about it. Study the market. Trends. Watch the house or houses you're targeting very carefully. Granted some people just send stuff out everywhere and hope to hit one but it's rare that they do. Market research can speed up the process for you. Who likes to wait longer than they have to? LOL.

Submission guidelines include things like knowing how they like the mss formatted (font and paper size, margins, etc.) Use industry standard when there's a question. If you don't know that that is, find out because it's one of the first things you need to know when you submit. Submission guidelines include word count parameters, genre listing and whether they accept agented submissions, e-mail submissions, hardcopies, etc. This is not a comprehensive list. But it gives you an idea if you're really new at this. If so, don't fret this. Just fling yourself into finishing that story. LOL. If you're close to submitting, pay attention though. LOL. All of these details might seem mundane, but you are better off to be a little obsessive about getting things right.

I think contests are a great way to practice submitting to houses. Some contests disqualify people for not following the guidelines. This upsets entrants but learning a hard lesson is better than learning an even harder lesson down the road. What I mean by that is that it's better to get a low score or a disqualification than a form rejection from your dream editor or agent.

Let's turn the comment section of this post into a market research venue. EVERY person who lists a source of market research not listed above will receive the chance to win one of 7 LoCASH Cowboys Here Comes Summer candles AND will be entered into the drawing for their choice between a 2011 edition of Sally Stuart's Writers' Market Guide if you're targeting CBA or The 2011 Writers' Market Guide if you're targeting ABA.

So, comment away~! And don't forget to go vote for our friends, the very talented LoCASH Cowboys. Help us help them get to the top of the country music charts with Here Comes Summer. You can do that here on the http://www.locashcowboys.com/ site. Click the CMT and GAC buttons and you'll see LoCash in the top 20!

LEAVE A COMMENT, letting me know how you keep up with industry changes. Be specific. Let this post be a tangible resource for those who are overwhelmed and don't know where to begin.

If you're a reader-only, leave a comment and I'll enter you into the candle drawing if you like. Just list the top three reasons you put an author on your auto-buy list. :-)

And for WHEN not IF that happens, I leave with you these LoCash Words in hopes you will take them to heart. This next video is the one most worth watching. Scroll down to the bottom right of their My Space page, to the video showing hands on a piano. Click that. The song Keep in Mind is near the middle of the moving video on this page. "I know those dreams you're tryin' to chase. You want 'em now but they won't wait. Last thing you're thinkin' about is slowing it down and the ones you left behind. I'm always thinking of you cause when somebody loves you that's what they do...all of the time, so keep in mind. Keep in mind...." "LoCash means remembering your roots. Remember where you came from. Stay true to who you are. Never forget the people who helped you. It's a way of life."--Preston Brust and Chris Lucas of LoCash Cowboys.

Thanks for sticking with me through this long post. Enjoy the rest of your summer! And PS...GO VOTE FOR MY FRIENDS' song on GAC and CMT!

Don't forget to leave your comments here for a chance to win a LoCash Candle or a Market Guide book.

MANY THANKS!

Cheryl Wyatt

Ramping Tension and GIVEAWAY!

Tangible example of ramping conflict:

The most important question you can ask that will enable you to ramp conflict and put tension on every page is:

How can I make things worse?

In A Soldier's Reunion, I opened the scene with a bridge collapse. That's pretty bad, huh? But guess what? I made it worse. LOL! I made it worse by:
--having the PJs called to it. Made that worse by having them called to it after just coming off another mission so they're tired. I made that worse by having the collapse happen in their beloved hometown so there's the fear there of someone they loved having been on the bridge. I made that worse by having word get to them en route that there are confirmed fatalities, but no ID yet. So the tension keeps getting ramped and ramped and ramped. How did I make it even more worse? LOL! By having the wife of one of the PJs realize his stepdaughter was on a field trip at school and would have been on the bridge on their way back at the exact time of the collapse. Then they get word that there is a school bus on the bridge between the gap, which is tilting at one inch per minute and will give way any second. Then I made it worse by adding a burning tanker, ready to explode any second.

That's ALL in the opening few paragraphs. The book continues this way. There are breaks to give the reader a breather. LOL! But I just wanted to give an example of how you can keep asking yourself, "It's already bad, but how can I make it worse?"

Camy Tang is a MASTER at ramping external tension, meaning something that is an external threat to the character. So are Mary Connealy and Debby Giusti. They do well with physical conflict and danger scenarios. So if you don't have copies of their books, pick them up asap to see great examples of authors who know how to keep a steady stream of conflict in their books. Excellent tension rampers, these gals!

Julie Lessman has tons of romantic tension in her books. I've read Audra's stuff and she's excellent at this too. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the romantic tension she puts in her books as well as the external tensions she works through even her settings and rough terrain and through her characters' pasts that haunt them. This counts! So does emotional tension, which Janet, Cara, Glynna and Missy do well.

There's also relational tension, tension between characters. Sandra, Tina, Pam, Myra and Ruthy (as you'll soon see!) do this very well.

Positive tension counts too. So go for it! Tension is tension. It can be external or internal, positive or negative. But mostly, keep upping the stakes, meaning make really bad things happen to your character. Make their worst fear come true. Give them two choices with equally bad consequences and make them have no other choice than to choose one. LOL! Make the reader love them then make the character's life completely miserable throughout the book until the resolution or black moment when everything comes to a head. Tension comes from giving the characters dreams and wishes and goals then throwing hurdles, wrenches and roadblocks into the mix.

Put some type of tension on every page. If your character is just driving and introspecting or conversing, make it be raining so there's that constant ping in the background. If your character is running late, make it her first day on the job. Then make her go outside to discover she has a flat tire. LOL! How could you make that worse? Make her boss be the type of person who doesn't dole out mercy and has a pet peeve for tardiness.

Proofreading galleys for A Soldier’s Devotion, I decided to jot down the external conflict and see how it ramped.

Opening scene disaster: Christian attorney Val Russo crashes into USAF PJ Vince.

Tension ramps:
• We discover hero has a thing against attorneys because his brother was wrongly convicted due to an attorney who didn’t rat out a false informant.
• We discover Vince was headed to a mission when heroine rammed him
• His beloved bike is toast
• Val is embarrassed about being an upholder of the law and given two citations and one warning for traffic infractions which she will have to go to the courthouse to pay. Same courthouse she uses to prosecute criminals
• It was the only tangible reminder he had left of his late brother, who custom built him the bike
• His brother passed away in prison
• Vince discovers Val is not only a Christian but an attorney and not just an attorney but a prosecutor which Vince thinks is the worst kind
• Val was on her way to court when she was talking on the phone (illegal) and hit Vince
.The first officer on the scene is a good friend of Vince's
• Val crashed because she’d received a phone call that her aunt toppled down stairs on her medical scooter
• The aunt takes a turn for the worst
• Val discovers Vince was headed to a rescue mission when she hit him
• Vince was unable to go on the mission, leaving his team one man short=dangerous
• Vince discovers his team let another team go in their place, a more novice team=livid
• The pilot is still missing after a week.
• Superiors notify them the pilot was found but not alive and Vince’s anger surges toward the woman who hit him. He hopes she steers clear because she wants nothing to do with him
• Vince verbally lashes out at Val when she comes to apologize
• Vince discovers about her aunt’s accident and feels terrible for accusing Val of driving under the influence of distraction
• Vince’s dad was an alcoholic and Vince realizes he (himself) may have a drinking problem
• Val determines to get Vince’s bike rebuilt after she discovers about his brother. She also determines to get his brother’s name officially cleared
• The only person who can help with the bike’s custom rebuilding is Vince’s sister
• Val determines Vince is estranged with his sister
• Vince determines to stay out of heroine’s path
• Val discovers the only person who knows the bike design is Vince’s sister
• Val discovers Vince and his sister have been estranged since their brother’s prison death

The kicker: THIS IS ALL IN CHAPTERS 1 & 2. And there's more tension/conflict than what's mentioned above but I’ll stop here but you see how I continually ramped tension by asking myself, “How can I make this worse?” Then keep asking that. “It’s already bad, but how can I make it worse?”

Writers, I’d love to hear examples from your own work.
Readers, I’d love to hear examples from books you’ve read where the author did a great job of continually upping the stakes.

How can you make things worse and worse and worse for your character?

For the photos up there (two of them are from the inland hurricane I went through in Southern Illinois recently) think of the scenario. Write a small scene if you want and think how you could ramp the tension in those scenes. For instance, maybe a car is trying to get past the tree in the road. Maybe the person is late for work. Or maybe it's a pregnant woman in hard labor. Maybe the pregnant woman isn't due for three more months. See how you can continually ask, "How can I make this worse?"


Talk away!.

Oh, and everyone who leaves a comment with your e-mail address included (include spaces or brackets around the "@" sign so Net spiders, etc can't phish your address) in a drawing for a free, autographed copy of A Soldier's Reunion. Deadline for entry via the comment section of this post is Sept 3 at Midnight CST.

Transitions-lead readers from one cliff(hanger) to another...AND GIVEAWAY!!!

Photo taken of hiking trail cliff crevice near my home.

(Article reprinted from eHarlequin 2009)

Creating strong transitions is something I've been striving to do better in my work. Transitions are the passage from one scene (or chapter or POV switch) to the next. Most often, you can link the two by one hooky sentence out and one hooky sentence in.

All strong transitions need to contain hooks in my opinion. Each transition sentence or paragraph at the end of a scene or time or chapter break should keep the reader turning pages. I recommend you not do anything that would give the reader an excuse to set the book down.

Oftentimes you will hear people say about a book, "It was a page-turner" or "I couldn't put it down" or "I stayed up and read the entire thing." In those stories, pay particular attention to how the author executed their transitions. I'd venture to guess that most of the time, the author has great hooks in and out of their chapters or scene breaks or POV switches. Strong transitions can alleviate episodic writing. Oftentimes, episodic writing (writing that is just a series of events that have no overall story arc) contains weak transitions.

An example would be ending the scene or chapter with the character going to sleep and then beginning the next scene or chapter with the character waking up. You don't have to show every detail of a character's daily living. Weak transitions slow pacing and can lead to drab sections where the characters are just going along, mundane, about their daily routine but nothing significant is happening to chain one scene or chapter to the next.

Strong hooks in and out of your scenes or chapters make for excellent transitions. Most authors work very hard to make the opening hook of their book strong. But you need to strive to write EVERY first and last scene/chapter sentence as though it were your first one. The most logical place for a character’s POV switch is also during a strong transition which occurs during a scene, time or chapter break.

Many (but not all) strong transitions leave the reader hanging either by an unresolved conflict or a brand new crisis that arises right at the end of the scene or chapter. I’ve also seen great transitions that allude to the developing relationship in romance. Hints of attraction. Wonder at the emotions forming for the opposite character, etc. So strong transitions don’t just have to be some sort of crisis, danger or calamity. It can be a poignant hook that denotes for the reader a change in the heroine’s heart, where it’s bending toward the hero for example.

Transitions should make sense and flow smoothly. In the book I'm working on now, my editors marked a couple of places with the words, "Good transition!" Two or three books ago, I was struggling to make strong transitions. So I'll provide one good example one bad example from my work. The bad example was mentioned above. I had a bad habit of having my characters end the scene with dinner or bedtime. Then I would begin the next scene or chapter with breakfast or waking up. There's nothing wrong with doing that if you do it sparingly and or if you need only one day's passage between your story timeline. BUT, I was using that transition device for a lot of my scene or chapter breaks. B-O-R-I-N-G! LOL! My editors urged me to strengthen the transitions on edits. On recent books I've tried harder to focus on strong transitions.

In the recently line-edited one, (the good example) the hero is having a conversation with his pararescue teammates about the heroine, who is a Christian. He's not yet a believer and knows she won't date him unless he commits his life to Christ. The other thing he knows is that if he ever comes to God, it has to be on God's terms and not for the sake of the heroine. That's the story set-up. His PJ (pararescue jumper) teammate mentions his spending more time with the heroine, who he supposedly didn't like because she crashed her sizzling red sedan into his custom built motorcycle and kept him from a mission. I ended that chapter with the hero responding in dialogue to his teammate, "…besides, we'd never fall for one another. She has a strong idea about the kind of guy she wants to spend the rest of her life with. And I definitely do not fit that description."

The next chapter switches to heroine’s POV. They’ve discovered they have a common goal in reaching out to at-risk teens and have been hanging out together. She's waiting for the hero to come pick her up for a motorcycle ride. Her aunt, living with her, peeks out the window and says, "He definitely fits the description." What is happening there is the aunt has wanted to meet the hero and the heroine is describing his manner of dress. That part is assumed from context. But this transition worked because, though I was talking about two different things related to his description, it worked to be a hooky transition because of clever wordage and truths and a foreshadowing of the hero/heroine’s future destiny together that the reader picks up on before the characters do.

So basically I end one chapter with hero saying, "And I definitely do not fit the description."

The next chapter's first sentence reads, "He definitely fits the description." Elsie peered through the gauzy curtain at Vince who rumbled into her yard.

"Black leather jacket and jeans?" Val dabbed at her nose with powder. Maybe Elsie was too distracted peering at the tall, dark and handsome but brooding PJ to notice her freshening her makeup.

"Quit primping and answer the door. Here he comes." Elsie let the curtain fall back into place and Val raced her to the door knowing Elsie'd give him the third degree if she got to him first.

Elsie has been spurring Val not to get into a romantic relationship with the hero because she (Elsie) married an unbeliever and struggled through thirty years of marriage. Neither wants Val to have to go that, so Elsie is the constant reminder to Val that she must keep her heart at a distance until/unless Vince devotes his heart to God. That has nothing to do with the transition other than to help you understand this example in context.

Another thing a strong transition will do is let the reader know right off the bat, like in the first sentence or second at the latest, whose POV we're in for that scene or chapter.

There are a lot of other things involved in creating strong transitions, but basically, try to make the last sentence of previous scenes or chapters lead into or tie cleverly into the next somehow, even if there's a large passage of time. A transition can be one sentence out and one sentence in. Or it can be one paragraph out and one in. But if you can cull it down from a paragraph to a sentence or two, it will pack more punch.

I'd love to hear examples of great transitions from your own WIPs or from books you've recently read. Do share! Thanks for spending time with me today. Happy transitioning! Warmly, Cheryl

A Soldier's Devotion, the book referenced in this article, releases in January 2010 from Steeple Hill Love Inspired.

Speaking of...I'm giving away to two lucky (I hope!) Seekervillains (that's you) a free copy each of Soldier Daddy and A Soldier's Reunion, my June and October Wings of Refuge books from Steeple Hill. To be entered, leave a comment with your e-mail address. Insert brackets somewhere in it so phishers/net spiders don't troll your addy. Deadline to enter is this Friday, August 21 at Midnight CST. I'll notify the winner over the weekend and possibly have our fantabulous Tina post their name on the Weekend Edition. Two books. Two winners. Be sure to leave us your e-mail address so we may get in touch with you if you win.

Happy Transition-ing!

Warmly,

Cheryl

Plotstorm--Preparing for a Writing Spree PLUS DOUBLE DRAWING!

For this post, I thought I'd do something different and fun. And since it's Christmas, I'd like to offer those of you who comment on this post a chance to win one of two prizes: 2 thirty minute brainstorming/plotstorming sessions with me. You can choose between 1.) helping me Plotstorm my next book (might appeal to you readers-only) or 2.) me helping you Plotstorm/brainstorm your book. If you'd like to be entered in a drawing for one of the above chances, add a comment to this post, letting us know which prize you'd like a chance to win, as well as leave us a valid e-mail address should your name be drawn. Deadline for entry is Friday, Dec 19 at midnight.

Disclaimer Note: my input DOES NOT guarantee you will be published. This is just a chance to brainstorm with a published author who loves to help others and who works with editors on a regular basis.

Now...on to the guts of this post:

I tend to write a rough draft in under a week. I am an instinct writer. I think that comes from being an avid reader of the genre in which I write. For the most part, I am a panster. However, writing a book as fast as I do requires some pre-work. I call it plotstorming.

Everyone has different methods. I am always changing (and hopefully improving!) mine. This method won't work for everyone. But for my post today, I thought I'd share a list of things I HAVE TO KNOW before rushing off into my writing spree. It is a fill-in-the-blank list.

The ***KNOW MY CHARACTERS*** part is more complex. I always know more about my characters than my plot when I first start out. Getting to know my characters and doing my story research or research on the character's career are the two most time-consuming things I do when writing. On another day, I will share my character chart with you. But for now, just know that the ***KNOW MY CHARACTER*** is a fill-in-the-blank list all on its own that is way too long to list here. But in that chart, I'd know (about the hero and heroine) things like:

Character Career___________
One-word adjective_________
Physical Description___________
Flaw____________
Quirk___________
Age_____________
Height__________
Build___________
Hair style/color________
etc, etc, etc and a gazillion other things.
This character chart is literally PAGES long.

Also, the prepwork/plotstorm involves making things easy on my family prior to my writing spree. Which means cooking a week's worth of meals and freezing them to make life easy for my family during my Weeklong Rough Draft Writing Spree. I clean my house top to bottom (because I can't concentrate well with clutter around me...sorry...it's the OCD in me. LOL!) And I plan exclusive activities with members of my family days prior to and following my spree so they don't feel neglected and are able to show more grace during the week I am unavailable. I sometimes leave my house to write, but sometimes I retreat to my room or office or otherwise quiet place. I also make sure they have an emergency number for me. I also try to clear out all my Inboxes and take care of any committments so I don't have to stop and take care of another project. Once I start writing, it's best to just blow through it, otherwise I tend to write scenes out of order which is a nightmare later.

For this blog post, I'm sharing my list of things OTHER than character specs.

I write action-romance but I imagine you could adapt this list to any genre/sub-genre.

I hope you can take something of value from it:

Cheryl's Plotstorm List

The Meet Cute: How will heroine/hero meet?
The Draw and Push: (What plot element will keep shoving them together? What story element or secondary character will keep them in contact throughout the book? Also, what (conflict and conflicting goals) will continually be prying them apart.)

Hero and Heroine's Story Goals
Hero and Heroine's Motivation
Hero and Heroine's Conflict: External, Internal, Spiritual, Relational

Hero and Heroine's careers

Story setting (I always know where the story takes place but not necessarily the season of year)

Inciting Incident (the chaos, disaster, crux, dilemma, catastrophe or change that opens/starts/catalyzes the story. This ends up being scene 1/opening hook.)

Relationship Reticence-hero
Relationship Reticence-heroine

1st Major Disaster
2nd Major Disaster
3rd Major Disaster aka Black Moment

Important Ancillary I use main characters' interactions with one or two important secondary characters to help characterize and sympathise them to readers. "Important Ancillary" is the character (other than hero and heroine) who is most central/important to the plot.

Basic Premise: (a one-sentence summary or few paragraph blurb of the basic story idea.)

Scene Index Skeleton: (not a chapter chart. These are one-liner plot points describing what goes into each scene. This is never exhaustive when I start out and my conflict and tension always gains momentum as I write)

The Resolution: (In a romance, I always know the hero and heroine will get together in the end. I like to know before starting out which one of them is most resistant to the relationship and why. I also like to know the what, where, when and why of the resistant one to giving in and realizing they can't live without the other person.)

Most of my story time lines span about a 6 month time. Since I know that, I don't have that on the chart. But if your story time lines vary, you may find it useful to add. So I'll put a lean Plotstorm list below.

-----

Cheryl's Short Plotstorm List:

***KNOW MY CHARACTERS***
The Meet Cute
The Draw and Push or Keep Cute
Hero and Heroine's Story Goals
Hero and Heroine's Motivation
Hero and Heroine's Conflict: External, Internal, Spiritual, Relational
Hero and Heroine's careers
Story setting
Inciting Incident
Relationship Reticence-hero
Relationship Reticence-heroine
1st Major Disaster
2nd Major Disaster
3rd Major Disaster aka Black Moment
Important Ancillary
Basic Premise
Scene Index Skeleton
The Resolution
Story Timeline
-----

If I've left something out, I'm sure it will come to me. Also, I wanted to mention on the Scene Index, I don't write down EVERY scene in the book. Just major milestone ones, such as the first kiss scene, and the scene that establishes attraction, disasters, etc. I will also give a Scene Index Example on another post another day.

I know the list probably doesn't seem like a lot. But as I said, I start out pretty minimal because I'm more of an instinct writer, which means I don't set out to plan themes, intricate structure and all that but somehow, in the end my books have that stuff in there.

For this reason I HIGHLY recommend that you avidly read current releases from any house, line and genre you are targeting.

Hope you find something useful. If you don't understand any of the elements (after all, I tend to use my own terminology...LOLOLOL!) please feel free to ask.

What kind of prep work, if any, do you do when you write?

Merry Christmas everyone! And don't forget to leave a comment, letting me know if you're interested in any of the above two prizes. Be sure to leave a valid e-mail address. Might wanna put spaces or brackets around the @ symbol so Net spiders don't get ya.

Here's a practical example from Ready-Made Family, my third book, which releases from Steeple Hill in April, 2009. If you want to see the finished product, the book is available for Pre-order now on Christianbook.com here.

I will also use this book to example the Scene Index and Character Charts I mentioned before in two of my future Seeker posts.


---***KNOW MY CHARACTERS***

---The Meet Cute: H/h meet in a parking lot when heroine's daughter approaches Ben to say her mommy needs help. (Heroine is incapacitated from an electrolyte imbalance.)

---The Draw and Push or Keep Cute: Heroine, passing through town with her daughter, gets stranded in the town of Refuge. She passed out leaving a pharmacy lot and her car crashed into a light pole. Heroine isn't released from hospital until her health is restored. Garage has to order car parts and then heroine loses the job she's headed to. Hero suggests she stay in Refuge to find a job, claiming Refuge lives up to its name. She stays, but is resistant to him because she's not sure about his motives. Hero promises to help her find a job and provides rides to interviews, etc.

Hero and Heroine's Story Goals: Heroine needs to find a job before summer's end. Hero's goal is two-fold. He needs to prepare his Mosaic Down Syndrome brother to come live with him for a year and he also wants to help the down-on-her-luck heroine.

---Hero and Heroine's Motivation: Single mom heroine needs to provide for her daughter because her parents have her nearly convinced she can't. She fears men's motives because her daughter's father abandoned her after coercing her to sleep with him in high school, which led to her pregnancy. The church where she's from shunned her and so now she shuns church. Hero's motivation is that he is ashamed of the fact that he was ashamed of his brother growing up. Now he wants to rebuild his brother's trust so Hutton can come live with him while their parents go on a year-long world travel they've always dreamed of. Ben's Asian descent gives him a strong sense of honoring his elders. He wants to help heroine out of a sense of compassion and obedience, feeling like she was put in his path for a reason.

---Hero and Heroine's Conflict: External, Internal, Spiritual, Relational: Hero's external conflict is he continually gets called away on a mission or problems with Hutton. And the heroine's housing plans fall through. So his two goals of helping his bro and heroine clash against one another. Also he's trying to find his brother ajob. Heroine is looking for a job in same town so H/h goals clash. Heroine internal conflict is she doesn't believe people help one another without agenda. She doesn't trust Ben is helping her for no reason so she's reticent, yet needs his help. Relational conflict: Heroine was duped by her daughter's father and her father is critical of her, leading her to constantly question Ben's integrity. Spiritual conflict: Heroine thinks that since her old church shunned her for her mistake, then God must feel the same way. Hero is a new Christian but strong in his faith and determines to show her the truth about how God sees her.

---Hero and Heroine's careers: Heroine has high school diploma only. Forwent college because her funds went toward hospital bills for a preterm pregnancy. Being a single mom, she couldn't afford college but taught herself secretarial skills she hopes to utilize. Hero is a US Air Force Pararescue Jumper and church worship leader

---Story setting: Fictional Refuge in Southern Illinois

---Inciting Incident: Heroine passes out while driving in a parking lot. Her daughter runs for help, approaches Ben in the same parking lot. He rushes over to help.

---Relationship Reticence-hero: he needs to focus on re gaining his brother's trust rather than on romancing a girl.
Relationship Reticence-heroine: Heroine is most resistant to this relationship and relationships in general. She was decieved majorly by a guy with ill motives. Trust issues from that.

---1st Major Disaster: (after inciting incident) Hero contacts heroine's parents thinking to help. But they aren't getting along w the heroine at present. He had also let DCFS know there was an unattended child w incapacitated driver. This put heroine's plans and reputation in jeapardy. Heroine loses job and housing opportunity that she was headed to in Missouri. Stranded in Illinois now.

---2nd Major Disaster: Hero discovers heroine's dad is prejudiced against Asians and interracial/cross-cultural relationships. Heroine wants her relationship w her dad restored but now realizes she might have to choose between a relationship with Ben and one with her father. There is also a job clash. Heroine gives up her job to Ben's brother, putting her in a potential position to have to move out of Refuge to find a job.

---3rd & 4th Major Disaster aka Black Moment: hurricane hits heroine's parents home. Hero goes to help and gives his word to help. As Ben is on the roof helping while heroine's dad is yelling obscenities at him, Ben gets word from his team mates that his father has passed away. He needs to be with his mother and brother but vowed to finish the roof to earn heroine's dad's respect and complete this act of kindness even in the face of ugly prejudice.

---Important Ancillary: Hutton, Ben's Down Syndrome brother, and Reece, heroine's daughter.

---Basic Premise: Romanace. Cross-cultural/interracial. Hero determines to help a struggling single mother and ends up falling for her. But she has major trust issues and needs to know she can take care of her daughter on her own.

---Scene Index Skeleton: no room for this here. Will share it another post. But is a series of one-sentence summaries per scene. I normally have three scenes per chapter and normally around 20 chapters, so around 60 scenes total.

---The Resolution: Heroine chooses hero over her father. Heroine's mother chooses her daughter over her husband, who is being mule-headed. Through Hutton's words and Ben's acts of kindness and fear of losing his family, heroine's father comes to realize his prejudice is ugly and makes amends.

---Story Timeline: six month period

(For blog post-length sake, I left off some of the detail, but this will at least give you a gist of what kinds of things I write into the Plotstorm.)

Cheryl Wyatt