MYTH BUSTERS: Debunking “Sticks & Stones” Myth for Writers

“Sticks and stones may break
 your bones,but words 
can never hurt me.”

—Old adage from 1862

Yeah, right. 

Julie here, and trust me, if you’re a writer, words can not only hurt a lot, but they can cripple the message you’re trying to convey to your readers. And let’s face it, the very last thing an author wants to write is a “lame” novel.

The truth is, for writers, one solitary word can hurt you if it doesn’t work in tandem with your scene, your dialogue, or your message. As authors, we paint pictures for our readers, creating a story in their minds. But if that picture or story doesn’t match with your choice of words, it can completely derail your message, such as in the header picture above of my sweet granddaughter when she said, "Mommy, I found a cherry book!" 

You see, my daughter-in-law takes her children to the library and bookstores on a regular basis, and I have to tell you, when she sent the picture above after my granddaughter found a cherry book she wanted to read, I laughed out loud. Not just because it’s funny, but because it reminded me just how important the right word is to the strength of a story.

That said, I thought it might be fun to demonstrate ways we can make good words even better, and one good example I have is from one of my favorite TV shows, Person of Interest. One of the main characters, Harold Finch, is a sweet and gentle professor type who almost never loses his temper. But in this one scene where someone he cared about was being put in danger, he tells the perpetrator, “I have two modes: Calm and furious.” I remember being somewhat disappointed at that line because I thought it could be so much stronger, such as in a similar statement I made to someone once about my temper: “I only have two modes: Sweet and Rip-Your-Tonsils-Out.”

Now, admittedly, I’m a bonafide CDQ (caffeinated drama queen) and not a screenwriter, but I do think the right words—powerful words—can add punch to your story by evoking emotions and adding depth, humor, impact, power, and so much more. I mean, think about it—how much power or impact would there have been in the ending of Gone With the Wind if Rhett had said, “"Frankly, my dear, I don't give a poop."

Ouch.

It’s downright painful how the wrong word can transform a strong, hulking man into a total ninny, isn’t it? And as a romance writer who LOVES alpha-male heroes (who doesn’t??), I cannot emphasize enough how important the “write” word is, not only in describing our characters, but in every sentence of our novels.

I once read a pretty good book where the heroine—a shy, quiet thing—had just suffered a tragedy. Now mind you, I was engaged in this very low-key scene, completely feeling the angst of her misfortune, tears and all, when BOOM! The author ends the scene by having her 18-year-old heroine “skipping” out of the house and down the street to see her good friend. No, No, NO! Words must fit in with the mood and the sense of the scene or they will rip the reader right out with a scrunch of their brows, a gaping jaw, or in my case with this particular scene, a comment such as “Are you kidding me?”

So, here are just a few of my favorite ways to add power to a story with the “write” words.

1.) PURPOSELY CREATE ANALOGIES TO ENRICH A STORY: In A Light in the Window, I had a scene where the hero was painting scenery outside with some little girls when the heroine comes out to talk to him. I wanted to show he was tongue-tied with the heroine, so I purposely included a clover necklace around his neck that one of little girls made for him so I could empower the already strong word “tangle” this way: 

Her scent of lilac water and Pear’s soap captured him, tangling his tongue—and his stomach—into more knots than the clover necklace Tillie had strung around neck.

In the same scene as above, I also wanted to show the heroine’s blush in a more potent way, so I created a "red" barn as one of the scenery pieces to do just that.

Her eyes connected with his and instantly her face fused as scarlet as the paint on the brush in his hand, the memory of his stolen kiss the night on her porch obviously coming to mind.

2.) PURPOSELY USE WORDS TO SET A MOOD:  When setting a scene, I try to utilize words that are in keeping with the mood or feel of that scene. For instance, in the following paragraph from A Passion Denied, I wanted to convey the dark and deadly pain that Marcy O’Connor was experiencing when her normally loving husband cruelly rejects her. So I loaded up on words like bleak, rain, weeping, gray, dismal, mourning, cold, dead, corpse, hoping to inject some of their gloom to reflect Marcy’s own:

Marcy stood at Mrs. Gerson’s kitchen window, in bleak harmony with the rivulets of water that slithered down the pane. It was a slow and steady rain, endless weeping from a gray and dismal sky, and Marcy felt a kinship with it. It showed no signs of letting up, much like the grief in her heart over the loss of her husband. A silent mourning over a spouse who was still very much alive, but whose love was as cold and dead as any corpse.

3.) PURPOSELY USE WORDS THAT DO DOUBLE DUTY: When describing a character, I try to use words or phrasing that will give more insight into a character as well as describing them, such as in this scene from Surprised By Love. I didn’t want to just describe the hero’s hair as “dark and curly,” I wanted to do double duty by showing he’s too busy to get a haircut.

He stood staring out the mahogany French doors, one palm braced to the wall, his charcoal suit coat strained against broad shoulders. Wisps of dark hair curled up on his high collar, typical for a man too consumed with obligations to take time for his barber. She noted the gray French Mossant fedora casually tossed on the cordovan loveseat as if he expected to stay and was making himself at home, also typical of the man she intended to show the door.

4.) PURPOSELY USE POWERFUL WORDS: Powerful words not only set a scene better, but they evoke a higher level of emotional response from your reader as well.In the following clip from A Passion Redeemed, the hero, Mitch Dennehy, is irate over his attraction to the heroine, Charity O’Connor, the woman he wants nothing to do with because she ruined his life. Note how his anger is manifested and magnified by words such as hurled, bludgeoned, growled, or vicious, volatile verbs/words that reflect his mood and hopefully incite the same emotions out of the reader.

He reached in his jacket and hurled a wad of bills on the bar. “To the devil with my future. It might as well fry with the past.” 

He wheeled around and bludgeoned his way through the crowd, riling customers on his way out. Outside, the bitter cold assailed him, tinged with the smells of burning peat and the slight whiff of horses. He could hear the faint sound of laughter and singing drifting from the various pubs tucked along the cobblestone road. His anger swelled. 

He flung his car door open and chucked the bottle on the passenger seat. Mumbling under his breath, he rounded the vehicle to rotate the crank, gyrating the lever with such ferocity that it rattled unmercifully. The engine growled to life, its vicious roar rivaling the angst in his gut. He got in the car and slammed the door, slapping the headlights on with a grunt. With a hard swipe of the steering wheel, he jerked the car away from the curve and exhaled a loud breath.

It was happening again. He was finally past the pain of one sister and now it was beginning with the other. He gunned the vehicle down Lower Abbey Street, nearly bashing a pedestrian who probably wouldn’t have felt a thing, given the near-empty bottle in his hand. Mitch gritted his teeth. That’s what women did to you—drove you to the bottom of a bottle where you drowned in your own liquid travail. He yanked his tie off, loosening his shirt to let the frigid air cool the heat of his anger. Thoughts of Charity suddenly surfaced, and a heat of another kind surged through his body. He swore out loud, the coarse sound foreign to his ears. He turned the corner on a squeal. The bottle careened across the seat and slammed into his leg.

He’d been without a woman way too long. Once, his appetite had been voracious. But Faith had changed all that. Her sincerity, her purity, her honesty. She had ruined him for other women. Since she’d left, he’d had no inclination, no interest. No desire. 

Until now.

Now I ask you—take a look at each of these sentences from the clip above and tell me which you prefer to convey the appropriate anger in this scene, A or B?

A) He turned and made his way through the crowd, disturbing customers on his way out. 

OR

B) He wheeled around and bludgeoned his way through the crowd, riling customers on his way out.

______________________

A) He opened his car door and threw the bottle on the passenger seat. Mumbling under his breath, he rounded the vehicle to rotate the crank, turning the lever till it shook.

OR

B) He flung his car door open and chucked the bottle on the passenger seat. Mumbling under his breath, he rounded the vehicle to rotate the crank, gyrating the lever with such ferocity that it rattled unmercifully. 

______________________

A) The engine came to life, its rumbling rivaling the upset in his gut. He got in the car and closed the door, turning the headlights on. With a swivel of the steering wheel, he pulled the car away from the curve and exhaled a loud breath.

OR

B) The engine growled to life, its vicious roar rivaling the angst in his gut. He got in the car and slammed the door, slapping the headlights on with a grunt. With a hard swipe of the steering wheel, he jerked the car away from the curve and exhaled a loud breath.

MAJOR TIP FOR POWER WORDS! 

Two of the BEST online thesauruses I have ever come across are the OneLook Reverse Dictionary, a website I keep open constantly when I write. Here’s the link: http://onelook.com/reverse-dictionary.shtml. And my second favorite is Thesaurus.com, which I keep on my favorites bar: http://www.thesaurus.com/.

Okay, that’s just a few of the ways I use words to my advantage, but there are many, many more, so feel free to tell us your favorites as well. 

GIVEAWAY!!

Leave a comment, and I’ll enter you in my giveaway for a copy of my upcoming book 2 in the Isle of Hope series, Love Everlasting or your choice of an eBook of A Glimmer of Hope, Isle of Hope, or A Light in the Window.

HUGE SALES!

WHOO-HOO … all four of the Seeker Christmas novella collections (two historical, two contemporary) are now on sale for only 99 cents, so do take advantage of this Christmas in July sale!

Hope for the Holidays Contemporary Collection

Hope for the Holidays Historical Collection

A Heart Full of Christmas Contemporary Collection

Home for Christmas Historical Collection

Imagine getting five novels from five award-winning authors for only 99 cents! Now you can with Heart & Soul, a book bundle of novels by Ruth Logan Herne, MaryLu Tyndall, Sally Bradley, Naomi Rawlings, and moi. That’s less than 20 cents per novel, and the sale won’t last long, so check it out HERE!

Seven Essentials For Powerful Fiction

with guest Brandy Vallance.

It’s a great honor to be on Seekerville today! I’m very excited to chat with all of you about one of my favorite subjects—fiction! We all want to know what makes powerful fiction, right? Well, here are some things I’ve noticed: 


1. Relatable Characters

I recently did a YouTube video with Chris Vogler, author of The Writer’s Journey and Hollywood film consultant. We often hear that our characters need to be likeable, but Chris says they only need to be relatable. We should be able to see ourselves (or the human condition) in every character that we write. Although we may not agree with a character’s choices, we at least need to understand what brought them to that decision. 



2. Real Emotions

How many emotions do you experience in a week? A month? If someone told your story, what emotions would they put on the page? Think about your lowest moment and your best experience. I know it’s scary, but if you want your stories to have power, you have to be willing to be vulnerable. You have to be willing to translate your emotions and experiences into ink and paper.                                                                                                                    
Maya Angelou said,  

"I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel." 

This is true for life and fiction. Emotion is what will carry your story to the end and leave your readers with a lasting impression. If you can make someone laugh, cry, or ache, you have done your job as a novelist. You have made them feel.          
                                    
Suspense author Brandilyn Collins says, 

“You should never apologize for human emotion.” 

I think as writers sometimes we’re afraid to let people know that we feel as deeply as we do. We’re tempted to write half-truths in the fear of being judged. But you have to decide what kind of writer you’re going to be. If you truly want to write fiction that is unforgettable, you have to be willing to go deep.                             


3. Vivid Settings

Readers come to fiction for a couple of reasons. Sometimes they want to be entertained. Sometimes they want to escape. They always want to learn. Therefore, make your settings all of these things—an entertaining escape where the reader will come away knowing something they didn’t know before. Make your settings so real that your reader can smell the air and feel the heat from a fire. Find ways to make the ordinary extraordinary. Treat your setting as another character. This is vital. Every city has a certain mood. Get that onto your pages. 

One of the best parts about being a fiction writer is that we get to experience many lives and many places. When I’m writing, I listen to the music from the area I’m writing about. If possible, I eat the food. Immerse yourself in every aspect of your world as much as you can. This will make a difference in your fiction. 


4. Unexpected Plot

I’m not sure where I heard this quote, but I think there’s something to it: 

“Dismiss the first thing that comes to mind and write the buried truth.”

 Usually when I’m stuck on a plot point, I make a list. On this list I do stream of consciousness writing. That means I write down all my ideas, no matter how ridiculous. The list might look something like this: 

Alasdair 
Says he’s sorry
Questions his vocation
Questions his father
Flies to the moon
Becomes a pirate
Shaves a dog
Is secretly working for the queen
Is secretly working for the French
Kisses Feya
Gets kidnapped
Finds a key
Finds a lock
Finds a knife
Finds Winston Churchill
Etc.

Sometimes my list takes up an entire page. Usually, by the time I get to the bottom, I have an idea that I can work with.  

Powerful fiction often has a plot that the reader didn’t see coming. Learn the art of misdirection. Subtly give the reader hints that will logically lead their thoughts where you want them to go. Then, do the opposite thing. 



5. The Five Senses

If your scene lacks tension, look at the five senses. Have you used them all? Make the reader feel what your character feels. Use strong, descriptive words. Don’t just have a pillow in your scene, have a blue velvet pillow. Is your character drinking something? Make us taste it. Give us the heat of the tea in our mouths. And, as your character swallows, allow us to taste the floral undertones. Take time with scents and textures. Let the reader live vicariously. 

I teach a writing workshop and I talk about the power of suggestion. Another way to bring in sense of sight is to use color. Did you know that every color has an emotional association? Google “color association” and then look at the images that come up. 

What emotion do you want your reader to feel in your scene? Insert the associative color and see if it works. Have your character walk into a room and make the walls a certain color that corresponds with an emotion you want to bring out. You can use this like foreshadowing. Or, maybe there’s an object of note in the room. Play around with color and see what happens. 


6. Tension On Every Page

The most powerful fiction always has supreme tension. Years ago, I read a Writer’s Digest article entitled The Trouble With Tea. The idea was that you should skip all the mentions of food or drinks that don’t have tension within them. Don’t have your characters drinking tea just because. There has to be something deeper going on in the story—tense dialogue perhaps. 


7. Torture The Reader Until The End

Stephen King says, 

“Good books don’t give up all their secrets at once.” 

This is certainly true. Learn to sprinkle your secrets strategically throughout your book. First, hook the reader. Then, draw them in. Portray real, raw, deep emotion. Continue to raise the stakes. Heighten every scene—it can always be bigger! When the end finally does come, your reader will be sorry to close the book. The characters will feel real to them. And that’s what you want. 

Next time you’re told that your fiction lacks power, try some of the above suggestions. I’d love to know what works for you!

Some questions to ponder: 

*What books have you read that have included all of the above points?

*Which of these points do you have the most trouble executing?

*Did I leave something out? Is there something else you’ve noticed that makes fiction powerful? 

*Have you ever read a character that you didn’t agree with but who you could relate with?

*Does writing deep emotion scare you? 

*When you’re reading, what makes you skim the pages? 

Brandy Vallance fell in love with the Victorian time period at a young age, loving the customs, manners, and especially the intricate rules of love. Since time travel is theoretically impossible, she lives in the nineteenth century vicariously through her novels. Unaccountable amounts of black tea have fueled this ambition. Brandy's love of tea can only be paralleled by her love of Masterpiece Theater Classics, deep conversations, and a good book. Brandy is the 2013 Operation First Novel winner and the 2012 winner of the ACFW Genesis Contest for historical romance. You can connect with Brandy via her website www.brandyvallance.com, Facebook, Goodreads, Pinterest, YouTube, or Twitter @BrandyVallance.

The Covered Deep

Some Dreams Are Worth Searching For

Bianca Marshal is looking for a man who can quote Jesus and Shakespeare. Not surprisingly, that man is hard to find in the small Appalachian town where she lives. Her mother insists that Bianca lower her standards. One the eve of her twenty-fifth birthday, Bianca wonders if her mother is right. 

Still set on experiencing love, or at least a little adventure, Bianca wins an essay contest that propels her into a whirlwind search for the perfect romantic hero. Via the opulence of London and the mysteries of Palestine, Bianca's true love will be revealed--but not without a price that might be too heavy to pay. 

Today, Brandy is giving away two copies of The Covered Deep to our Seekerville commenters. Leave a comment letting us know you want your name put in the silk purse for the giveaway. Winner announced in the Weekend Edition.