The Eyes of Bob: Revising/Rewriting, by Jeff Posey

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The eyes of Bob Mayer are upon you. Inscrutable eyes. New York subway-stare eyes. Once you take his Warrior Writer class, they lurk forever in the recesses of your mind.

Just a few moments ago, I wrote the last word of the first draft of my second novel. Maybe you have too, or will soon (how’s your National Novel Writing Month piece coming?). The Eyes of Bob are looking at us. What do we do now?

I’ve got my notes from Bob’s class in July in front of me. Yeah, here it is: “Revising/Rewriting.” This is what I wrote:

Revise/rewrite in three stages:

1. Plot arc
2. Character arc
3. Symbolism arc

That third one alone made my mind race for two weeks. But let’s save it for last, and look briefly at each one — think of this as my interpretation of the wisdom of the Master Warrior Writer. Pretentious, perhaps, but I am what I am. (Note: Also see Bob’s The Novel Writer’s Toolkit, especially “Tool Seven: Your Finesse.”)

Plot Arc

Step back. Way back. A bit father. Look at your story without seeing the words or paragraphs or scenes. Notice where it starts, where it goes, and where it ends. You know, big picture stuff.

That’s it, really.

All that’s left is the nearly impossible: Pretend that you didn’t give birth to this story, and decide if the plot arc works like a reader would see it. Ask yourself questions like these:

Does the subplot overtake the main plot?

Does the story flow logically?

Does the antagonist overcome obstacles placed by the antagonist and successfully reach the original goal; succumb to the obstacles; or change his/her mind and abandon the original desire?

If you don’t like your answers, the writer in you has to come back out and re-compose the story where it needs fixing.

As Bob says, “Everything is fixable. Just keep writing.”

But it’s not always easy. Those scenes you wrote that you think are your best writing ever? If they don’t fit the plot arc that best shows the story, you’ve got to kill them. Chalk it up to the warrior.

Character Arc

Bob takes every scene that contains a character and pastes it into a document with that character’s name. Then from time to time he reads through it to make sure the character isn’t drifting, acquiring a British accent, losing an arm without explanation, or scurrying off in quest of a subplot goal rather than a main plot goal.

It’s easy to get too detailed too quickly. Don’t focus on the small stuff, at least at first. Keep the word “arc” in mind — that’s a big thing. That’s where a character starts, the hinge points (where the character changes), and the ending point. The rest is just detail. Here are some guiding questions:

Does the antagonist go through a series of changes that are plausible and in keeping with the plot arc?

Does the protagonist also change in a realistic way that feeds the plot arc?

Are your main characters always clearly the main characters?

Once again, if you don’t like your honest answers, then you’ve got to get in there and kill, kill, kill … and build again.

Symbolism Arc

This is my favorite. Symbolism and motifs are fascinating. Bob says our subconscious writer always throws these in, and our challenge is to recognize them and elevate them into conscious building blocks that support the story.

Bob defines symbolism as “images or actions that parallel or foreshadow the theme or plot of the book.”

The most important function of symbolism is to show the reader without telling them; or, even better, allow the reader to discover symbols that lead to a richer understanding of the meaning of the book. Readers love that.

Bob suggests watching for uses of images that come (or could come) in threes. In the manuscript I just finished, for instance, there’s a symbol of a face within a face carved on an amulet of mammoth bone. I later have the protagonist paint a face on his forehead similar to the amulet. That’s two uses. I like the symbol because it alludes to the main character’s identity issues, so in revision, I want to add a third face-within-a-face image to give it the full punch of a symbolic triple image.

This is such a great tool, because, as Bob says, “Everything introduced in a book should be used several times.” If it’s not, then it’s probably not important. Cut it out. Most things that appear only once are dangling scenes or information dumps for our sake and not the reader’s, things that do not advance the book. That’s why the keyboard gods give us the delete key. Use it well. Your readers (and editors and agents) will thank you. Most writers don’t have the warrior’s discipline to kill enough of their own precious words.

The whole point is making the story as good as it possibly can be.

As Bob says, “The story is everything.” A good story well told trumps everything else in the business most of the time. Which is good. As writers, that’s the only thing over which we have full control.

Happy Warrior Writing/Revising/Rewriting.

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Jeff Posey writes historical and contemporary fiction informed by archaeological findings of the Anasazi culture of the Southwestern U.S. a thousand years ago. He blogs as Anasazi Stories by Jeff Posey, and enjoys his Twitter buddies as AnasaziStories.

I Have a Secret…and I’m Not Going to Tell You!

 

Hey peeps. I’m standing in for Kristen this week while she is busy with something called “life.”  So be gentle with me! I am merely a shadow of her great self!

 

Do you keep secrets? Things you don’t tell anyone else? You probably think that makes you a stand up guy (or gal!) You keep whatever is told to you by others close to the vest. Heck, you’re a pillar of the community you keep secrets so well!
 
But let me tell you something, if you’re a secret keeper, you may be a  sucky writer.
 
Stop gawking at me! I’m telling you like it is! Sheesh. A man tries to do you a favor and what does he get!? Looks of scorn and rolling of eyes.  Patience, my apprentice.
 
If you are a “secret keeper” you are doing a disservice to your reader and yourself. Notice the quotes there? Good.
 
Warrior writer again here. Bob references the sage advice of John Saul, who says, “Don’t be a secret keeper.” 
What precisely is a secret keeper, you’re probably wondering about now, right?  A secret keeper is someone who doesn’t tell you what the story is about until you get to the end. See, if the reader can’t identify the story with some level of rapidity (boy, that really sound like I was smart, writing rapidity, didn’t it?) then everything else you the writer does–exposition, settings, any characters–will be confusing to the reader because they don’t know what the hell the story is about!  (Huh…there’s a book called Secret Keeper. Wonder if it’s any good. Hold on while I check Amazon. It’ll only take a minute!)
 
Okay, back.  I might read it. Prolly not.
 
I think Bob should spend more time with secret keeping in his Warrior Writer Workshop, and I’ll tell you why. I have read many books that keep the secret until the end of the story, and that was okay! Seriously. Who wants to know who the killer is until the very end of the book? But that’s not what Bob is talking about. See, you, the writer can withhold certain key pieces of information (Bob does this a lot in his Area 51 stories) but you cannot keep the root conflict of the story secret. It doesn’t work. You can’t tell a story about a boy living on a farm, but secretly be keeping the secret about him being the president of the country, and there’s terrorist coming to take over the world, but I don’t tell you that until the end and it’s all a dream! POW! Most writers probably don’t even know they are secret keepers (if indeed they are) and structurally speaking, this weakens the entire story.
 
 People often equate keeping secrets with building suspense, but how will I know it’s suspenseful, if I don’t know what’s going on!? Can you build suspense while still keeping secrets? Yeah, and people do it all the time, but what’s the point?  Is your secret so flimsy it has to be hidden behind a screen until you jerk it out and yell, TADA!  Ugh. Secret keeping can also be attributable to bad plot structure, but that’s a blog for a different day. 
 
Of course, there have been plenty of secret keeping stories that have worked well. But, as Bob says, you still have to a) make the reader care about the characters, and b) still have rising action. Two stories that immediately come to mind that don’t tell you the real story until the end, but are still good, are the Usual Suspects and No Way Out. Of course there are numerous novels that do this, but movies are often times easier and simpler to pick a part.  So I give to you these as examples. The neat thing is, even though the Usual Suspects throws you on a spin at the end, it still escalates the action throughout the story. You still know that the dudes are being chased by Kaiser Soze. Also, in No Way Out, you are with Kevin Costner as he muddles his way through the story and tries to figure out what’s going on, while all along being the actual bad guy they are looking for. Hell they even give you the ending in the beginning of the story. The Matrix is another good one. You don’t know what the Matrix is, but as the movie goes on, you realize that not everything is as it should be. The writers reveal the Matrix about a third of the way into the story, but before that, they introduce some things that make you freak out (Trinity jumping across the buildings….but wait! One cop can do it too!!).  They do build suspense, without revealing the real world as a computer simulation.
 
One thing Bob says, (and while attribute a lot to Bob here, I am in no way granting him “Godhood” and I think he would agree that most of his teachings are more guidelines for writers than hard and fast rules.) if you keep secrets, you potentially alienate your readers. See, just keeping a secret does nothing, because I (the reader) don’t know there’s a secret, so how can I get excited? Well, I can’t of course.
 
You can actually tell if a writer is a secret keeper from just reading the query letter and synopsis.  If you read the query, and it doesn’t tell you what the root conflict of the story is, the writer may be a secret keeper.  They also might be just a sucky writer, but I think Kristen’s already covered that in an earlier blog post.  Also, if a writer can’t tell you what his story is about in a few sentences, he might be a secret keeper.
 
Are you a secret keeper? Can you tell what your story is about without saying, “I know it doesn’t sound like much, but there’s a HUGE twist at the end!” ??  Might you be a secret keeper and not know it?

National Novel Writing Month–Sowing the Seeds of Success

                                                                                                                                                       

 

One of the most difficult aspects of living a successful life is that often you must go against the norm and the mass of people’s opinions about the way you should live. There is a strong power in society trying to pull you into the 95% of people who are not capable of major, sustained change.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        ~Bob Mayer, Who Dares Wins

I have been richly blessed to call a lot of talented authors and individuals my friend. Yet, the largest reason I choose to use a lot of Bob Mayer’s materials in this blog is that so much of his insight is focused on the dynamics of success. In fact, on a personal note, I saw the greatest amount of change in my own attitudes and approach toward my profession only AFTER befriending Bob at a conference in Oklahoma. Why? I had been approaching my craft and my attitude about success in general as two separate entities, blissfully unaware there was no separating the two.

We are just now entering National Novel Writing Month, a month that challenges individuals to toss all other obligations on the back burner and dive into writing that novel they’ve always dreamed about. Yet, like any other month, week, day dedicated to major change—National Physical Fitness Month (May), National No Smoking Day, the vile first week of January (New Year’s Resolutions anyone?)—only a handful will ever realize success. In fact, statistically, the number of the successful will peak at about 5%…across the board. Whether one is writing a novel, losing ten pounds, cutting up credit cards, or vowing to finally have organized closets makes no difference.

Why is this?

I believe that, for the most part, most of us dive into major change without doing any of the proper preparation. We are like newbie farmers who walk into a field and throw out seed before we have readied the land.

Our 5%er sisters and brothers manage to break free of the bell curve’s massive gravitational pull mainly because they prepared ahead of time to be confronted with challenges, while the rest of us somehow, year after year, continue to think that the Thin-Thigh Fairy or the Rock Hard Abs Fairy will bless us with success if only our intentions are pure enough. Yes, bad news is signing up for that gym membership is NOT enough…we actually have to go….and exercise.

Crap.

Writing is no different. I have written several blogs about how writing is a profession that lends itself to not being taken seriously (even by those of us who make a living doing it). One will often hear even seasoned authors say how they write so they can avoid getting a “real job” (for more on this refer to my blog “Formula for Disaster Meets the Recipe for Success–Part II”  http://bit.ly/3uaO3c  ). Many of us find dealing with friends and family to be an uphill battle, the apparent trade-off for loving what we do. If we love writing, it CAN’T be WORK! MUST be a hobby. Most of us can expect to have to negotiate with friends, family, and children for quiet time to work. We can expect rolling eyes, huffing, and general negativity because our little “hobby” is different from the norm. As Bob always says, “It is NOT normal to sit alone in front of a computer and write 100,000 words.” Face it…we are breaking free from the norm and daring to be different.

That scares people.

Writing will be treated like all other endeavors that separate us from the pack. And if you don’t believe me? Go on a diet and see how many loved ones offer to feed you something chocolate.

So this separation anxiety is only the first major challenge most writers will face this month while pounding away at the keyboard, slaving over their opus in order to meet the deadline. I think that many will begin this month believing that the writing itself will present the biggest challenge. What many won’t expect (unless they are clever enough to read this blog ) are all the inner demons that will appear as if summoned. The good news, though, is that outsiders only have the power we give them.

I have a lot of respect for what Bob is doing with his Warrior Writer Workshops. I think that his teachings make a HUGE difference in changing that 5% rule of thumb. Why? Because so many of us, as I said earlier, try to sow the seeds of success in an unprepared field…then we are left frustrated and disillusioned when the seeds die or are eaten by crows (the other 95%).

Warrior Writer, based on Bob’s Who Dares Wins, is a way of preparing the earth, so to speak. Unless we understand our relationship to a habit, we are powerless to change it. For instance, unless we understand what food, smoking, alcohol, procrastination, etc. represents to us (friend, comfort, way of dealing with boredom, escape) we cannot hope to substitute an unhealthy lifestyle of binge eating, chain smoking, drinking, etc. with a healthy lifestyle of discipline.

Similarly, we are our own worst enemy when it comes to writing. Warrior Writer helps us to look inside and locate the internal self-destruct buttons, so we are less likely to fall back into the mundane habits of the “everyone else.” We are better prepared to put down boundaries and stick to them. We are far better armed to make good decisions and then plan ways of reaching a successful outcome.

Farmers work first and play later. They plan. They prepare for the worst and hope for the best, all the while staying fixed on the ultimate goal…harvest. Farmers understand that it is no one great action, but a collection of small everyday habits that leads to success. Writers have to do the same.

Farmers do more than just plant the crop. There are a lot of activities that lend to a successful harvest, and writing a novel is no different. Farmers understand weather patterns. Successful writers understand there are times of the day more conducive to being productive. Is that getting up an hour earlier than the rest of the family? Staying awake late at night? Farmers till out the weeds that can choke life from seedlings. Writers must do the same with our work (friends, Internet, social media).  Limit or get rid of those activities that steal precious time and focus. Farmers fertilize the ground for the greatest reward. Yes, writers fertilize. When we aren’t writing, we can READ. Read books about the craft, books by those who were successful. Research. I am often amazed how even reading non-fiction can provide so much imagination to my fiction. Farmers also have the proper tools. The successful ones don’t tackle a hundred acres with a wheel barrow, a hoe and good intentions. They have the proper equipment. Writers need basics, too—a dictionary, thesaurus, and good craft reference guides, especially for new writers. In Warrior Writer Boot Camp, I recommend a basic reference library comprised of Bob Mayer’s Novel Writers Toolkit, Christopher Vogler’s Writer’s Journey, Les Edgerton’s Hooked, and Bullies, Bastards, & Bitches by Jessica Morrell.

I wish everyone the greatest success for this exciting month. With some forethought and planning, it is my dream that more than 5% can find their way to the pinnacle of achievement…finishing a novel. Most Americans say they want to write a novel…and most of them fail. Whether one is ever published or not there is something deeply satisfying about pushing back the chair and saying… “The End.”

Good luck and happy writing!

Until next time…

For more information about Bob Mayer’s Warrior Writer Workshops, go to www.bobmayer.org

Also highly recommended, Bob Mayer’s Who Dares Wins—The Green Beret Way to Conquer Fear and Succeed (Simon & Schuster 2009) and the Novel Writers Toolkit.

A Good Gritique Group Will Tell You, “You Have an Ugly Baby” by Terrell Mims

Recently I was at my regular writer’s critique group, the Thursday night bunch. We had two visitors show up. After everyone left, we stayed and talked about writing, the process and business. They asked me why should they join our Warrior Writer Boot Camp (Saturdays). I told them the wonderful benefits of camaraderie, feedback, joining OWFI and such. I then told them one big reason. “There are many good critique groups, but members in our group will tell you that you’re baby is ugly.”

We all have seen an ugly baby. Not wanting to disrespect the parents, we say, “Bless his heart,” or, “Wow! You have a . . . baby?” Never once do we say, “What the hell is that?” It’s rude and uncouth, yet we think it. Many writers’ groups are the same way. A writer brings in a work to critique and many critiquers do not have the courage to say, “Your baby is ugly.” These groups are dangerous to the writer. They coddle their feelings with, “You’re missing a comma”, “Great dialogue,” and the always beneficial, “Beautiful writing.” I have seen beautiful houses built upon horrendous foundations.

 Then there are writers’ groups, like mine, which has members who will tell you, “Something is wrong with that hellspawn you produced.” (They’re not that harsh.) Thanks, to our wonderful past president and her insight into building the foundation before building the house, we are acknowledging, “I did not give birth to a stripling cherub.” A good writers’ group is one that pushes you to become a better writer, a lover of your craft. It pokes, prods, pushes, and prunes you. These things hurt, but the road to success is not easy. This type of group does not just hunt for every was and comma splice, but examines conflict, character, and crossing arcs and then provides solutions.

The writer who attends this type of group must be willing to admit he is not presently the greatest author (but may be one day), that his craft needs work, and that he desires to grow. This benefits the writer who gets 40,000 words in and finds out the characters have no goals, chapters have no conflict, and the inciting incident should have happened on page 3 instead of page 33.

The writer who believes in her heart of hearts that her baby belongs in the Gerber pageant need not attend. This writer can’t stand the heat of true critique. The thought of her work not being the next big thing is unfathomable. God forbid, she be forced to scrap 100,000 words and rewrite or ditch the entire project because there is no conflict between a Green Beret who’s antagonist is a pimply faced band geek who believes he can stop the Green Beret in hand to hand combat.

Most babies are not ugly. However, there are some you want to feed with a slingshot. Many people write beautifully. Others need help whether they know it or not. Writers who join critique groups should not go to be coddled. They have friends and family for that. They should go to be challenged and pushed. The good critique group is like a refiner’s fire. They challenge without condemning. They burn out the dross to help produce a work that is publishable and something the reader wants to say, “You have got to read this!” If you’re interested in more, check out Kristen Lamb’s (my wonderful Warrior Writer Boot Camp D.I./ President), blog “Critique- If You Can’t Stand the Heat, Get Out of the Kitchen” at http://warriorwriters.wordpress.com/2009/08/12/critique-if-you-cant-stand-the-heat-then-get-out-of-the-kitchen/

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This guest blog brought to you by aspiring YA author, Terrell Mims, a teacher and talented writer who devotes every Saturday to his craft by attending Warrior Writer Boot Camp.  You can also follow his blog at http://terrellmims.wordpress.com/

For more information on a Warrior Writer Workshop, go to www.bobmayer.org for a workshop near you.

Method to the Madness–How Acting Can Make You a Better Writer

Last week we discussed one of the tactics used for creating great characters. The beauty of the Warrior Writer Boot Camp format, though, is that we appreciate that not everyone learns the same way. Not all tools are suited for all people. Thus, I would like to introduce you to another WWBC technique you can employ to not only create amazing characters, but also to craft believable scenes guaranteed to draw in the reader and never let go.

Method acting.

Now this doesn’t mean we have to take up living in a Dumpster for a month if we desire to write about a homeless person (though Daniel Day-Lewis would be proud), but it does mean that we have to use and develop our ability to empathize. Empathy can be defined as the ability to identify and understand somebody else’s feelings and experiences. But, it is also the ability to step into that person’s (character’s) perspective. Unless one is writing in omniscient, it will be critical to keep the POV camera where it belongs in order to gain the most impact from each and every scene.

I’ll give a few examples.

Example #1

PERSPECTIVE PROBLEM

At critique, one of my dear friends and fellow writers brought a selection from his science fiction novel, which happened to be written in first-person. The opening scene is a robbery of sorts and his protagonist, like most sensible folk, dives under a nearby table and hides. The narrative that followed was very clever and engaging, but I happened to notice one HUGE problem. Thus, I raised my hand and asked, “How can your character know all of this detail if he is crouched under a table at the other end of the restaurant? The most he will likely see is legs and shoes.”

The writer had gone to great lengths describing details and events that simply would be impossible to see from the protagonist’s perspective. What my friend should have done (and eventually did do) was to have his character relying on other senses, since his visual sense was handicapped by situation.

It was a simple detail, but one that made all the difference in the eventual quality of the story. The writer, by stepping into an authentic perspective, made the experience visceral and real. Now he was SHOWING and not TELLING. With the right use of description, my friend successfully transported the reader under a table at a Chinese All-You-Can-Eat Buffet. Before we knew it, we were in the head of the protagonist, desperately trying to connect different voices and personalities to their shoes while searching for the nearest escape.

He greeted me the next week, beaming with pride for his reworked scene, bubbling with stories of him lying on his living room floor under a coffee table imagining what his protagonist would likely be able to see—method acting.

Example #2

PHYSIOLOGY PROBLEM

Another author and friend of mine brought a selection from his horror novel. In this scene, the protagonist (who starts out as a misguided petty thief) is with his buddies and they are robbing a convenience store right before a major hurricane hits. The Korean store owner pops out of nowhere, scaring the hell out of this motley group, and they take off toward the front door. Mere steps from freedom, the protagonist slips on rainwater that has spilled inside, and cracks his head on the counter, then floor. All good, but what followed was again a lengthy detailing of events that would be impossible for anyone in this situation to experience in this way.

Physiology would have taken over. That blow. The pain would have taken center stage. Voices would have become indistinct, and thus the sentences should have been shortened to a word or two to give the impression of someone who has been knocked senseless. Perspective would have changed. He (the camera) is now on the floor looking up. This needed to be consistent.

I challenged the author to think back to any time he’d been whacked in the head. Make a list of all things he remembered (or didn’t remember) of the experience. Stars in the peripheral vision. Blackness. Blurriness. Sounds. Were they dull or sharp? Pain. Sharp? Throbbing? Funny smells? What was the first thing he noticed when his head cleared? Voices? Faces? I advised him to then take that list and overlay it with the scene he wished to create.

Example #3

MULTIPLE PROBLEMS

One of the writers on Twitter bravely posted her prologue for public view. Being the nosy editor I am, I just HAD to take a look. This is supposed to be the beginning of a thriller—a young woman running from someone chasing her through a swamp. In this selection, I noted several oopses.

TIME.

There is the weirdest time shift I have ever seen. It goes from being evening at sunset to pitch black in a matter of three sentences. There is no steady progression of losing the light and the desperation that would ensue from that (a missed opportunity to create growing tension).

CONSISTENCY.

The author describes it as pitch black, as in can’t see your hand in front of your face black…but then describes the crescent moon. Any moon (even a crescent moon) would offer some light and negate the pitch black—the author really should have chosen one for consistency. It is supposedly pitch dark yet the protagonist sees/describes quite a few objects and critters that she would need light to see. Which is it? Dim light or no light?

PHYSIOLOGY.

This character fears for her life. Yet, a handful of paragraphs down in this prologue, there is a very lovely description of a sunset. Big problem. How many people running for their lives through an unknown swamp filled with snakes and alligators take time to notice the “pastel sky?” When humans are under stress, the brain takes blood from the cortical brain and diverts it to the mammalian and limbic brain (and the large muscle groups). That is part of the adrenalin response. Fight or flight. Out of self-preservation, the body shuts down higher thinking capabilities while kicking primitive senses into hyper-drive. Thus, if one truly steps into the shoes of this character running for her life, it would be physiologically impossible for her to make such flowery observations. Reptilian brain cannot process information beyond the level of the five senses (and possibly a sixth).

PACING.

The greater problem (and this is a style issue) is that this writer actually did a great job of creating tension. Yet, three sentences of poetic description of a sunset RUIN all that effort by pulling the reader out of the conflict.

Remember. Our goal as the author is to transport the reader into the head of our characters. Method acting is a way that we can create a genuine experience. There was nothing, per se, wrong with this writer’s prologue, but she missed great opportunities to create spine-tingling tension. When we step in the head of a character that has time to notice stars and sunsets and butterflies, we are subconsciously cued to not get too stressed.

Example #4

CHARACTER PROBLEM

Perspective is our greatest tool for creating great characters. We have to feel what they feel, notice what they notice so we can craft the world in which they live. This morning I edited a piece that had me banging my head on my keyboard. This author has a fantastic story, but his failure to truly empathize with his characters is KILLING—no, SLAUGHTERING—a great plot.

His female protagonist has just, hours before, witnessed her mother’s murder at the hands of Yankee renegades. Yet, nothing in her actions tells the story of a woman whose life has just collapsed before her eyes. She has romantic feelings for another male character. She is calm. She never gives the situation another thought. It is as if it is just another day of milking cows and saddling horses while making goo-goo eyes at the boy from town. Not only does this make her utterly unlikeable, but the reader doesn’t care about her losses…because SHE doesn’t care about her losses.

This writer, I know, is just excited to get the story rolling, but he is doing so at great expense to his characters. As authors, we have to think like actors (or profilers). We need to get into the heads of our characters and display the emotions properly. If someone is grieving, then we need to see that character going through the Kubler-Ross Five Stages of Death and Dying—Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression, Acceptance. The event also must fit the character’s psychological profile. Is this character the kind who would stay in denial for years? Is she one to be angry? Would she get through all five stages quickly, or get stuck in depression? The writer needs to understand who this character is in order to slip into the correct head and craft the scene accordingly.

And this applies to the entire spectrum of emotion. Who is your character? I have heard people squeal and scream on the radio because they won free movie rentals from Blockbuster. Other people win ten million in the lottery and barely crack a smile. These are questions that have to be answered in order to craft believable characters and riveting scenes.

Warrior Writer relies heavily on learning from the experts, on drawing from unconventional sources of wisdom. It is a holistic approach that calls on the writer to dig deep inside to the true emotions, into the dark scary places where we are weakest and most vulnerable. Actors, in many ways, do the same. In fact, we could consider them to be the founders of our craft. Actors were the keepers of legends long before the authors. Actors kept stories alive on the stage and passed them on to audiences who would not be literate for centuries. We can learn a lot from their insight into the human condition.

Until next time…

Balance the Party—Warrior Writer Guide to Creating Legendary Characters

Warrior Writer Boot Camp was created to fill a glaring hole in the world of critique by blending the insight of a beta reader with the world of the critique group. It has been an effort to steer writers away from the comfort of line-edit, and stretch their skills in innovative ways that develop great storytellers. The last WW blog gave a brief introduction to WWBC, and this week’s blog continues our journey.

One of the greatest goals of WWBC is to help writers create multi-dimensional characters. As mentioned in the last blog, participants are asked to create their story’s antagonist first. Why? Because the antagonist is the impetus for disrupting the protagonist’s happy-happy-joy-joy life. If Sauron never created a Ring of Power designed with the sole purpose for ruling Middle Earth, Frodo would have just continued goofing off with his buddies and being bored with Hobbit life. If Wild Bill didn’t have a fetish for size 14 Chick Skin Couture then Clarice Starling wouldn’t have a job very long at the FBI. If the Wicked Witch of the West….

…you get the idea, .

Yet in my years of being an editor and running critique groups, there is one character that makes an appearance in virtually every new writer’s manuscript…the Born Evil Bad Guy (Antagonist).

Of course, along with Born Evil Bad Guy, I tend to see the Born Noble Hero, and the Born Loyal Minions and the Born Wise Mentors—all in the same book. And these characters can be interesting, but they are only one part of a highly complex and dynamic psychological gamut. That’s like using only two colors of the entire spectrum to create art.

WWBC helps writers get away from the cardboard caricatures by exploring the entire psychological continuum then mining it for attributes that breathe life into any character. How? We do this using a most unique resource from my painfully awkward youth.

Dungeons and Dragons.

Growing up it was not uncommon for me to switch schools twice a year—22 schools by end of college. As the perpetual new kid and object of torment, I used to be excruciatingly shy. Shy to the point of being invisible. For years, I played Dungeons and Dragons (ok…stop laughing). And though my mother called it a waste of time, I have come to believe that D&D has a simple brilliance that can help any fiction writer create multi-faceted characters worthy of legends.

How?

I’ll tell you in a second. But for the benefit of those who were not social outcasts, a quick overview.

Before any game play, one is requires to basically build a character using a D&D Compendium. Everything is included—race (Moon Elf), class (assassin), physical attributes, skills, gods, feats, weapons, etc. Not too dissimilar from the Character Sheet we use for Warrior Writer Boot Camp (taken from Novel Writers Toolkit by Bob Mayer) and use as a template for creating characters.

Yet, as leader of WWBC, I have to bring my own unique insight to the table, right? Thus, I added to Bob’s guide. I think Dungeons & Dragons ™ offers one additional qualification that is HIGHLY useful in creating great characters.

Alignment.

I often ask the WWBC participants to explore their character’s alignment which is basically a way to categorize a character’s moral and ethical perspectives in relation to the greater societal framework. The Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 2nd Edition Player’s Handbook. TSR, Inc.  breaks down character alignments into the following:

 

Lawful Good	Neutral Good	Chaotic Good
Lawful Neutral	Neutral	Chaotic Neutral
Lawful Evil	Neutral Evil	Chaotic Evil

 

These nine classifications are used to help determine how a character will act (or react) in any given circumstance.

***And, yes, my fellow nerds, I know they have since whittled this list to five, but the original classification system, I feel, is more useful for crafting characters. So delete your e-mail correcting me .

We as writers are tasked with creating characters that can easily be mistaken for living breathing creatures. In order to do this, we have to develop “people” who act in ways consistent with their backgrounds, experiences and beliefs. In other words, we must assign “alignment.”

Each D&D alignment is associated with an archetype which we see reflected in literary examples.

For convenience, the following definitions/excerpts/examples are taken from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alignment_(Dungeons_&_Dragons) in compliance with the Terms of Use as stipulated by Wikipedia. This hyperlink will take you to the complete article, where you can learn more about alignments in greater detail. As a former D&D acolyte, I can (sadly, LOL) attest to the accuracy of the following information, and I hope it helps guide you in your writing.

Lawful Good

“Saintly” or “Crusader” alignment. A Lawful Good character typically acts with compassion, and always with honor and a sense of duty. Lawful Good characters, especially paladins (knights), may sometimes find themselves faced with the dilemma of whether to obey law or good when the two conflict – for example, upholding a sworn oath when it would lead innocents to come to harm – or conflicts between two orders, such as between their religious law and the law of the local ruler.

Literary Examples—Superman, Joan of Arc, Olivia from Law & Order.

Neutral Good

Neutral Good is known as the “Benefactor” alignment. A Neutral Good character is guided by his conscience and typically acts altruistically, without regard for or against Lawful precepts such as rules or tradition. A Neutral Good character has no problems with co-operating with lawful officials, but does not feel beholden to them. In the event that doing the right thing requires the bending or breaking of rules, they do not suffer the same inner conflict that a Lawful Good character would. A doctor who treats soldiers from both sides in a war could be considered Neutral Good.

Literary Examples—Zorro and Spiderman.

Chaotic Good

Chaotic Good is known as the “Beatific,” “Rebel,” or “Cynic” alignment. A Chaotic Good character favors change for a greater good, disdains bureaucratic organizations that get in the way of social improvement, and places a high value on personal freedom, not only for oneself, but for others as well. They always intend to do the right thing, but their methods are generally disorganized and often out of alignment with the rest of society. They have no use for those who would try to push them around and tell them what to do.

While they do not have evil intentions, they often do bad things (even if they do not necessarily enjoy doing these things) to people who are, in their opinion, bad people if it benefits their goal of achieving a greater good.

Literary Examples—Starbuck from Battlestar Galactica , Malcolm Reynolds from Firefly, and Robin Hood

Lawful Neutral

Lawful Neutral is called the “Judge” or “Disciplined” alignment. A Lawful Neutral character typically believes strongly in Lawful concepts such as honor, order, rules and tradition, and often follows a personal code. A Lawful Neutral society would typically enforce strict laws to maintain social order, and place a high value on traditions and historical precedent. Examples of Lawful Neutral characters might include a soldier who always follows orders, a judge or enforcer who adheres mercilessly to the word of the law, a disciplined monk, or a cowardly commoner.

Characters of this alignment are neutral with regard to good and evil. This does not mean that Lawful Neutral characters are amoral or immoral, or do not have a moral compass; but simply that their moral considerations come a distant second to what their code, tradition or law dictates. They typically have a strong ethical code, but it is primarily guided by their system of belief, not by a commitment to good or evil.

Literary Examples—James Bond & Odysseus.

Neutral

Neutral alignment, also referred to as True Neutral or Neutral Neutral, is called the “Undecided” or “Nature’s” alignment. This alignment represents Neutral on both axes, and tends not to feel strongly towards any alignment. A farmer whose primary overriding concern is to feed his family is of this alignment. Most animals, lacking the capacity for moral judgment, are of this alignment. Many roguish characters who play all sides to suit themselves are also of this alignment.

Some Neutral characters, rather than feeling undecided, are committed to a balance between the alignments. They may see good, evil, law and chaos as simply prejudices and dangerous extremes.

Literary Examples—Lara Croft & Hans Solo.

Chaotic Neutral

Chaotic Neutral is called the “Anarchist” or “Free Spirit” alignment. A character of this alignment is an individualist who follows his or her own heart, and generally shirks rules and traditions. Good and Evil come a distant second to their need for personal freedom, and the only reliable thing about them is how totally unreliable they are.

They typically act out of self-interest, but do not specifically enjoy seeing others suffer. Many free-spirited adventurers are of this alignment. Alternatively there are madmen whose actions are chaotic, but are not themselves inclined towards evil.

An unusual subset of Chaotic Neutral is “strongly Chaotic Neutral”, describing a character who behaves chaotically to the point of appearing insane. Characters of this type may regularly change their appearance and attitudes for the sake of change, and intentionally disrupt organizations for the sole reason of disrupting a lawful construct.

Literary Examples—Jack Sparrow Pirates of the Caribbean. Al Swearingen, Deadwood.

Lawful Evil

Lawful Evil is referred to as the “Dominator” or “Diabolic” alignment. Characters of this alignment see a well-ordered system as being easier to exploit, and show a combination of desirable and undesirable traits; while they usually obey their superiors and keep their word, they care nothing for the rights and freedoms of other individuals. Examples of this alignment include tyrants, devils, undiscriminating mercenary types who have a strict code of conduct, and loyal soldiers who enjoy the act of killing.

Literary Examples—Boba Fett Star Wars & X-Men’s Magneto

Neutral Evil

Neutral Evil is called the “Malefactor” alignment. Characters of this alignment are typically selfish and have no qualms about turning on their allies-of-the-moment. They have no compunctions about harming others to get what they want, but neither will they go out of their way to cause carnage or mayhem when they see no direct benefit to it. They abide by laws for only as long as it is convenient for them. A villain of this alignment can be more dangerous than either Lawful or Chaotic Evil characters, since he is neither bound by any sort of honor or tradition nor disorganized and pointlessly violent.

Examples are an assassin who has little regard for formal laws but does not needlessly kill, a henchman who plots behind his superior’s back, or a mercenary who switches sides if made a better offer.

Literary Examples—X-Men’s Mystique. Spike Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TV Series).

Chaotic Evil

Chaotic Evil is referred to as the “Destroyer” or “Demonic” alignment. Characters of this alignment tend to have no respect for rules, other peoples’ lives, or anything but their own desires, which are typically selfish and cruel. They set a high value on personal freedom, but do not have any regard for the lives or freedom of other people. They do not work well in a group, as they resent being given orders, and usually only behave themselves out of fear of punishment.

It is not compulsory for a Chaotic Evil character to be constantly performing sadistic acts just for the sake of being evil, or constantly disobeying orders just for the sake of causing chaos. They do however enjoy the suffering of others, and view honor and self-discipline as weaknesses. Serial killers and monsters of limited intelligence are typically Chaotic Evil.

Literary Examples—Riddick from Pitch Black. Joker from The Dark Knight. Stargher’s evil half in movie The Cell (2000).

An author’s task is not easy, but it can be simplified. Alignment is just one of those tools that can help us get a better idea of who each of our characters are. Once we “know” them, it then becomes far easier to craft scenes, because we know how each will act/react in any given situation and within any stipulated context. Once we understand their moral compasses, we can then plot their courses accordingly. Alignment is also valuable for understanding character arc, goals, and motivations.

Bob Mayer’s Warrior Writer Workshops teach authors to think in unconventional ways, and to learn from the successes of others. Dungeons & Dragons may seem like a strange writing resource, but Role Playing Games (RPGs) are addictive for a reason. Gary Gygax (creator of Dungeons & Dragons ™) literally fashioned a standardized method for crafting and populating other worlds so real that it was easy for participants to be drawn in and become utterly lost in fantasy, for them to venture into a new world and never wish to leave.

Isn’t that what all of us writers aspire to create with our stories? To create something so rich that the reader is utterly captivated? Don’t we desire to leave readers forever changed for having joined our characters in adventure? I don’t know about you, but THAT is the kind of story I want to write.

Until next time…

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Additional references:

• Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 2nd Edition Player’s Handbook. TSR, Inc.. 
• The Complete Druid’s Handbook. TSR, Inc.. 
• Novel Writers Toolkit by Bob Mayer
• The Sociopath Next Door by Martha Stout
• List of D&D Character Books can be found at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Complete_Scoundrel

For a Warrior Writer Workshop near you, go to www.bobmayer.org

Welcome to the Hell–Surviving Fiction

Writing a novel…welcome to hell.

Just kidding (not really).

After almost a decade in the business, I must attest that fiction is the toughest form of writing. It’s like trying to create and conduct a symphony with only black letters on a white page. So many things have to be balanced perfectly so as not to provide a natural spot for a big fat bookmark. The author must first have a hook that makes the reader want more, and then create a protagonist who possesses a story-worthy problem that makes us desire to spend the next 80-100,000 words giving a crap…without tipping over in the TDTL category (Too Dumb to Live). On top of that, there is pace, tone, POV, characterization, etc. It can be a dizzying experience that can frustrate even the most highly motivated.

Back in the summer, I had the privilege of attending the first Warrior Writer Workshop by NY Times Best-Selling Author Bob Mayer. Several of my writers from my Fort Worth critique group also attended. We realized after day one that we needed to make a serious change to the way we were approaching critique. Truthfully, we’d known it for a couple of years, just didn’t really have a solid idea how to change things. Bob’s Warrior Writer gave us the answer.

For my one year as VP and four years as Prez of this particular group, it had been a never-ending battle trying to get rid of this sick dependence on line-edit. Too many members believed that showing up twice a week to look for every “was” cluster or dangling participle was actually productive. In my opinion, there were too many members mistaking mere “activity” with meaningful “progress.” And the tragic part is the writing never improved. Week after week, the characters still remained flat, the POV switched so much that reading required Dramamine, and the plots had more holes than cheesecloth. And there were also some great writers, but this format of 5-10 page critique in a microcosm was merely a formula for frustration when one was working on a piece that spanned 100, 000 words.

What bothered me most was that I saw a lot of highly motivated writers in the group who wanted more, and who possessed the talent to write great material…if they could just see HOW. I’ve also fought the battle (in another group) with some extremely talented (published) writers who firmly believe that if members just attend and pay attention at critique, that, by osmosis, they will learn what they need to learn to write a darn good book.

Um, no.

That’s like saying if I hang out long enough at the Dallas Symphony practice, I will eventually be able to pick up the cello and play by ear. Now are there people who learn that way? Yes! And boy are we ever jealous of those guys. But, the reality is that, as a leader, if I cared about those in membership, I had to appreciate that not everyone learned the same way. Thus, we broke off and created Warrior Writer Boot Camp. This was a group designed specifically for those who desired to write a novel.

Making hell a little more manageable, .

Before any writing (or rewriting) takes place, Warrior Writer Boot Camp runs attendees through a series of steps designed to provide a much stronger framework for a story, and hopefully a much greater likelihood of publication.

Today, we’ll discuss two Warrior Writer Boot Camp steps for success.

1)      In WWBC, we have the author place the one-line conflict in the header.

A woman must choose between her love for her husband and her love for her country when she finds a box of mysterious letters indicating the man she loves is a Jamaican spy.

This one line is to make sure that all that follows after this point in critique falls in line with that conflict. All other group members at all times know what the story is about. We are reminded of the big picture. This makes it easier for us to catch an author who’s gone off on a tangent. Or, sometimes the tangent is better (subconscious working) and then the group can help the author modify the one-line conflict accordingly. This simple tactic prevents “critique in a microcosm”—the five or ten pages might be great, but if they have nothing to do with the main conflict, then the scene needs to be cut or rewritten and made salient.

This one line is the very first step. And, to be blunt, at this point in Boot Camp, it doesn’t matter if it sucks. This next step will likely change that one line anyway.

2)      Plot every detail, no matter how small.

As a writer, your subconscious mind is one of the greatest assets you possess. By plotting “every” detail ahead of time, you provide all sorts of fodder for your subconscious to get creative. In Warrior Writer Boot Camp we require members to detail everything (using the Character template in Bob Mayer’s Novel Writers Toolkit). The more detail the better. And give your details underlying reasons.

Write down that your protagonist loves Frosted Flakes because it reminds her of happier times when she was a kid before her father died. This way, later, when you get to writing and you have a stressful scene for your protagonist, what is going to be a natural choice for comfort food? Frosted Flakes. This will prevent a lot of your characters doing the same things. When we have to think of things on the spot, often we insert our own likes/proclivities. I recently edited a writer who had every single character drinking coffee when they were stressed or thinking. Guess what this author drinks when he is stressed or thinking?

If I know ahead of time that my protagonist is a Christian (religious beliefs are part of the template), then it is logical she pray when faced with an EOE (emotionally overwhelming event). If she is a Christian with wavering faith, the prayer will be different than a person of more solid beliefs. You get the idea.

Getting an idea of looks, manner, habits, beliefs are all vital to creating rich characters and a great story. It’s like going from a palette of paint with three primary colors to suddenly having one of those super-duper paint sets with hundreds of colors.

If you ever attend one of Bob’s Warrior Writer Workshops (and I certainly hope you do), you will probably hear him talk about the characters in Lonesome Dove. McMurtry did such a great job of creating characters that there was no question what each would do when the inciting incident occurred. Think about this in your own life. How would your mother react to being mugged? Now your father? Your best friend? The guy at the gym who teaches Cardio Kickboxing? Each of these people would have an entirely different book with the same inciting incident. Why? Because everyone is comprised of a different set of experiences, skill-sets, attitudes, beliefs, and abilities. All of these elements are going to directly affect HOW they react, or even if they react at all. This is what you the author are doing before you ever start the novel.

In WWBC, we create the antagonist first. Why? Because without the antagonist, the protagonist doodles on and has a happy conflict-free life. We don’t really give a rip about Luke Skywalker unless Darth enters the picture. Our WWBC goal is to make certain the writer is creating a worthy adversary, one whose defeat will elicit cries of joy from a riveted reader. It also makes it much simpler to create a protagonist perfect for taking him/her/it out (Week Two). These short dossiers make it much easier to adjust characters, goals, agendas, plans ahead of time before the author gets 50,000 words in and realizes there is a huge problem.

Pantsers need not cry out in pain. This method will not impede your creativity. I can attest to that, being a long-time pantser myself. It’s just that we get an opportunity to get to know and adjust our characters/plot/setting ahead of time. This will help keep us on track once we begin writing our novel. We can still be pansters, but it will be far easier to see the difference between getting creative and just jumping off the train altogether and landing in a tar baby. This tactic also creates characters that are richer sooner. As a pantser, I always found that my characters were kind of flat until about 40 pages in. Well, it took 40 pages for me to figure out who the heck the characters were! By doing all their back-story first, I now find my characters coming to life on page ONE.

To all you plotters, this method is good for helping you focus on characterization, which is often a weakness for the plot-driven author. It will give depth and texture and provide information to your subconscious to help make your plots even better.

Never underestimate the power of collective minds. In WWBC we now can have qualitative critique that focuses on CONTENT. When a new attendee brings his antagonist (with the one-line conflict in the header) the group now gets an opportunity to say, “Whoooo. Can’t WAIT for the book!” or “Seriously? Are you high?” (we’re not that mean). We get a chance to help the author make the strongest antagonist possible before the writing ever begins. We can say, “That goal seems silly,” “His goal needs to be bigger,” “What she wants is way too complicated, and I’m lost,” “Your bad guy isn’t scary, he’s annoying,”“That isn’t logical,” “What does this goal have to do with your one-line conflict?” Of course, we also can say, “I like that, but it might be stronger if you did X,” or “Great plan. Now make sure your protag’s greatest fear is X, because then you’ll have your arc.”

One doesn’t have to be a published author or a professional editor to do this sort of critique. We are ALL readers, and we know what we like, what will make us stay awake until four in the morning reading. We also know what will make us toss a book with great force across the room. The WWBC method allows problems to be addressed and fixed ahead of time, and I can attest that critique time is now put to far better use than merely looking for repetitive words and misplaced commas. Critique is also much more productive because instead of an author hearing, “Well, your protagonist is unlikable,” the writer now can get feedback from the group as to WHY the protagonist is unlikeable and can be given suggestions as to what would fix that problem. As authors, we often get tunnel vision, and can’t see the forest for the trees. WWBC alleviates this problem by providing different perspectives at all critical stages along the genesis of any work.

Critique now becomes a crucible where all the “impurities” can be fired out.

Over the coming weeks, we will delve deeper into this method of critique/constructing a book. Although having a group setting is ideal, a lot of these tactics can be used by an individual. In WWBC, we are actually a group designed to work for all kinds of learners (visual, auditory, kinesthetic, combination). Mostly, this format provides accountability, practice and repetition. Writing fiction can be hell, but no one said we had to do it alone.

Until next time…

For a Warrior Writer Workshop near you, contact Bob Mayer at www.bobmayer.org.

“What’s Your Favorite Type of Pain?” by. Jason A. Myers

What’s your favorite type of pain?

 Sure, sure, you’re going to say, “I don’t like pain at all.”

No one does, but pain is something we must experience to have growth. 

What if a masochist (we’ll call him “Bobby”) captured you and made you choose?: Do you want a sharp stabbing pain that occurs in a few seconds/minutes, or would you prefer a low level, always-on pain for a month?  Think about that for a minute while I wait.

<waiting>

Okay, you’ve made up your mind. No, no, you don’t need to tell me right now. You can keep it to yourself.  But you need to know the answer.

 

Why am I asking you this question and what the hell does it have to do with writing a manuscript? Well, everything.

 

I attended Bob Mayer’s Warrior Writer Workshop a while back and he introduced me to something called “front-loading.” I had no idea what he meant, but when Bob speaks, you listen. Front-loading is just another word for a “plotter” as opposed to a “pantser.”  Plotters work out all the nuances and story before they write one word of prose. Pantsers do it during the work.  Which way is better? I’m sure Bob would tell you plotting is, but he would also deliver the caveat that either way will work. I agree with him. I used to be a firm pantser, but now do a lot more plotting and find it significantly speeds up writing. Now, don’t get me wrong, plotting is a TON of writing, just not your actual story. You have to write down everything you research, your characters back stories, key points , your overall outline, timelines, and your inciting event. Write it down.

 

But that doesn’t matter. Pantsers and plotters are doing the very same thing, just going about it differently. Plotters are pantsers and pansters are plotters—they just don’t know it

 

How is that, you might ask? Well you might not ask, but I’m going to tell you anyway, so buckle up.

 

When a pantser starts in on her story, she just jumps in and starts writing like a madwoman.  Typically, she’ll get a significant way into the story, and get lost or even blocked.  What does she do then? She must plot. She has to decide on which way the story will go from the stuck point. (Ha! To all you pantsers out there! You’re secretly plotters and didn’t know it!)  So she feels the pain while writing the story. It’s a slow, dull ache that lasts mostly during the middle parts and even toward the end, where she might not be entirely sure where the story will end up. (This can also be addressed by getting back to your Original Idea.) I have seen numerous pantsers on Twitter complaining about being stuck somewhere in the middle of the story, and when I throw out perhaps they should try to plot a little, they strike back with, “That’s not the way I work.”  I disagree.  You must plot out your story or you will write it forever.

 

Case in point: I just now (yes, while writing this) see an assumed pantser on Twitter. This person tweeted: Brain this would be a great time for you to kick in and give me something useful for this scene.  Plotters don’t have that problem. They know the purpose of every scene before it’s written.  I hear those pantsers out there bemoaning the “creative process” and “getting into their character’s heads” and “What fun is it if you already know the entire story?”  They like to let the story go where it may and be surprised by their characters. (Stephen King is a pantser by the way…he said he didn’t even outline Needful Things. Read that sucker and tell me he’s not a genius. No outline!)

 

 Keep reading, you pantser.

 

Now, when a plotter begins a story, she starts with her Original Idea and builds upon that by deciding what characters and items are going to be in the story, their back story, what they want (no, what they really want) and plots out the general idea of where the story is going using the Narrative Structure of:

 

Initiating Event

Rising Action

Crisis

Climax

Resolution

 

This is all before she writes a word of story.  This is also where she is pantsing.  She is trying different flavors of the story, deciding on what POV to use, deciding on setting, and voice, the ending, how her protagonist will overcome the obstacles in her path, writing a good outline…all that good stuff. She is going through the very same thing a pantser goes through, but she’s doing it before she writes one word down. What’s the ending going to be? She doesn’t know, but she works through the story—just like a pantser, and finds it.

 

Her pain is sharp, like a knife stab, but over quickly.  Well, quickly being a subjective term. It may take her just as long as the pantser to figure out where her story is going, but she’s doing it before she writes. Once the pain is inflicted, it’s over. Unlike the pantser who will feel pain like a broken toe for chapter after laborious chapter of flailing about on the page, wondering where the damn story is going, and why is the main character going into that cave, when he should be getting on the ship? Plotters feel the pain and feel it sharply because, at the beginning stage, they test the viability of the idea without writing for two months only to discover the thing is only forty pages long and they’re out of story!

 

So take your pain answer from above and apply it to which type of writer you are.  If you like a shorter duration of pain, you might want to try plotting and see how it works. I know, I know, you’re a diehard pantser, but hey, you’re still going to get all that fun pantsing time, it’ll just be before you write yourself into a corner in chapter 22 and freak.

If you prefer the slower, dull ache of getting stuck halfway through your story, by all means, pants to your heart’s content.  However, understand one thing: you will be plotting later. And when you do, you may very well have to go back to chapter one and start rewriting the entire freaking thing!  If that sounds fun to you, by all means, carry on.  But often I’ve seen people have to turn their character from a tall blonde woman, to a short black man because of the revision they could have done before and saved them all that time. 

 

Which do I do? I have embraced plotting—with one exception!  I only stretch my outline (which is just a scene breakdown in paragraph form) up until the final few scenes.  I know by then where the story is heading, and I know my Climax, and my Resolution.  I then pants the final few scenes seeing where the story goes and how the characters are going to deal with the mountain of stones I am throwing at them.  I pants this part, because I don’t really want to know the ending of my story and more than the reader does, until I get there.  So does this make me a pantser?  Ha! Not so much, but I do get the best of both worlds. 

 

What about you? Do you plot? Is there a solid reason to pants?  I would be interested to hear it.

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Jason is a rising talent and underappreciated megalomaniac with a thirst for world domination. When he isn’t working his day job (IT Geek) or spending time with his family, he is busy crafting worlds he can destroy on a whim. As an enthusiastic member of the DFW Writers Workshop, he can often be witnessed dedicating his time to supporting his fellow minions–I meant other writers.

He is a highly talented writer and blogger. For more of Jason A. Myers, go to:

Web: http://jasonamyers.wordpress.com/
Twitter: twitter.com/JasonAMyersTX

He is truly a Warrior Writer and we are all grateful for this thoughtful post.

 

To sign up for a Warrior Writer near you, go to www.bobmayer.org

The Power of Fear

I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and through me. And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path. Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain.

                                                                                                             ~Bene Gesserit Litany Against Fear from Frank Herbert’s Dune

 

Writers are assailed by fears every day and from every angle, regardless where we are in our career. Fear we won’t endure. Fear of finding an agent or even the right agent. Fear of failure and even, strangely, fear of success. If left unchecked, these anxieties can sabotage our creativity and even our dreams.

The last couple of Warrior Writer blogs have addressed the emotionally volatile subject of critique, generating more comments and feedback than any other blog posted. That says something to me. Why do we take critique to heart the way we do? I mean, my mother always told me that opinions are like noses, everyone has one—ok, maybe she used a slightly less socially acceptable body part, but you get the idea. On an intellectual level, we do understand that everyone has the right to his opinion. But, deep down, criticism can feel like a sucking chest wound, so too often we avoid it if we can.

In his Warrior Writer Workshop, Bob Mayer spends a lion’s share of the time getting writers to locate and identify 1) weaknesses 2) fears 3) blind spots. Now one might think this is a waste of time. There are so many other useful topics this NY Times Best-Selling Author could teach. Give us some characterization mojo, or plot juju. So why would Bob spend so much time on identifying fear?

…because most of us don’t want to.

Ignorance is bliss. Right. The problem is that fear is like that mole you’ve had since childhood that suddenly gets a little sore and changes color. You don’t go to the doctor for fear it might be cancer, but it ends up being cancer because you didn’t go to the doctor…and then it goes metastatic and turns into a killing machine.

Fear does that to a writer. We avoid attending a really (good) brutal critique group, because they are like the doctor who could give us bad news. We focus on the scalpel (red pen), and forget they are healers. Forget they possess all sorts of ways to cure the ailment. All we see is that they (critics) have to power to give us bad news.

I’m sorry, but your protagonist is brain dead.

We’ve done all we can, but this plot needs to be taken off life support.

Your POV is violently schizophrenic and a danger to the characters in your novel. Putting it down is the humane thing to do.

Fear’s reach often extends beyond the critique group. We are terrified to ask family to cut us a break and give us quiet time, or afraid we won’t finish that novel. Or worse, we fear we will finish, but that our work will end up a tall pile of unpublished nothing only suitable for lining a bird cage. We fear asking agents the tough questions about the industry or how to handle the financial hassles like self-employment taxes. We fear asking about the details in a contract, fear asking for what is rightfully ours (rights, advances, etc.). We avoid all these things that might have helped our success because we fear being seen as weak, or foolish, or plain stupid. Yet the ironic part is we can end up being seen as far worse by failing to act.

All of us have fears, but not all of us are self-aware. Trust me; what we don’t know will hurt us. Fear, like that mole, if left unchecked will grow tentacles guaranteed to reach into our work, our attitude, and even our destiny. The symptoms are clear.

Symptom 1: Writer’s Block

I had several e-mails this week asking for tips to overcoming writer’s block. One big tip? Ask yourself what is making you afraid. Fear is a big reason most writers hit a point and then it is as if an invisible wall has landed in front of them.

I’m going through that right now. I’m in the process of writing a thriller. While it is my favorite genre to read, I’m finding it has been by far the hardest for me to write. Why? Because I was never in combat. I’m not an expert. Even though I have researched and researched and researched, I still fear that I won’t get the details correct, that I’ll be viewed as a fraud or as someone too lazy to get the facts straight. I fear I am a far better editor than writer (even though I’ve won multiple awards that indicate otherwise).

I am just blessed to have friends who give me regular swift kicks in the derrière and help diffuse my anxieties.  Granted, every page has been like pulling teeth, but no one ever said facing fear would be easy, .

Symptom 2: Avoiding Rewrite

We already discussed the generalized anxiety we all have for critique. In this case, fear can make new writers avoid critique altogether—almost sealing their fate to never be published. But I’ve also seen writers with a finished manuscript keep shopping the same work even though it has been rejected time after time after time, and often for the same reasons. They fear going in and fixing the problems. The irony is they might have saved time had they just taken it on the chin.

Symptom 3: Changing Genres like They’re Socks

I have been guilty of this one. We get some really great momentum going then hit that wall. Instead of facing what the real problem is? We chalk it up to the fact that we just haven’t found the “right” genre for us. While that might very well be the case, be wary. Examine and, again, ask yourself the tough questions. Why are you really making the shift? Is your desire to stop writing romance because you really, really want to write articles about yoga? Or does writing romance make you have to face some dark parts about your own personality? Remember writing is therapy. Maybe your writing is unearthing some things that are making you feel vulnerable and, therefore, uncomfortable. Thus, switching genres has less to do with preferred subject matter and more to do with self-preservation.

Just think about it.

There are, of course, more than three symptoms of fear, so feel free to comment and expound on some others.

I began this blog with the Bene Gesserit Litany against Fear for a reason. Fear most definitely is the mind-killer. There has probably been no better moniker assigned to this emotion. Fear has the power to cripple, maim, paralyze, and kill your writing and your career. The good news, though, is that fear, like any other emotion, is energy. Energy, when harnessed, loses its destructive properties. A lightning bolt that burns down a forest becomes electricity that powers the modern world and its conveniences. Fear, too, is an immense reservoir of potential energy that can be channeled and redirected…

…you just have to have the courage to stand in a storm with a kite and a key.

 

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Recommended reading  “Who Dares Wins–The Green Beret Way to Conquer Fear and Succeed” by Bob Mayer (Simon & Schuster 2009)

Go to www.bobmayer.org to order a copy or to sign up for a Warrior Writer Workshop in you area. Bob also posts wonderful blogs for dealing with fear, so make sure to check those out as well.

Growing Pains–Meet “Critique Jerk”

 

Critique has been a popular topic this month and has generated a lot of feedback and questions. Today I am going to debunk some myths about critique.

When I posted “Critique—If You Can’t Stand the Heat, then Get Out of the Kitchen,” some interesting commentary surfaced, but a lion’s share seemed to revolve around the nefarious breed of critic who apparently is so powerful, he or she has the power to crush a writer’s dreams. Like other creatures of the night, it was alleged that the Malus Critiqueus not only could give bad advice, but also apparently had the power to drain ambition and creative power like a succubus, leaving a hollowed out husk of what used to be an aspiring author who now cannot even bear to open Word.

Give me a break.

I will still stand by my assertion, All critique is useful. Just not all of it is valuable.

***A Note of Importance for All, but Especially New Authors

Before continuing, I would like to point out that good critique might very well make you angry. But, before casting judgment, take a break, calm down, then ask yourself why this person’s comments so upset you.

A really good critic is highly skilled at finding your greatest weaknesses. That is a good thing. Better to find and fix the flaws while a work is in progress and changes can be made. But, it is normal to react. Thus, the best advice is to breathe deeply. Listen. Calm down by breathing deeply some more. Ask questions. Check your ego. And then grow. Trust me. One day you will thank these people for having the courage to be honest.

Think of your time in critique like going to the gym. The goal is the happy medium. If after exercising you need ice and prompt medical attention? That is bad. If you don’t so much as break a sweat? You are wasting your time. A good critique is like a good workout. You want to walk away sore. It means you are pushing your limits, and therefore growing and getting stronger.

With that clarified, on to myth-busting…

Myth #1 Malus Critiqueus exists.

Um…no. No such thing. There is no Malus Critiqueus…but there are some people who happen to just be jerks. They were born little creeps who just grew into larger creeps. And here is a dose of reality….fully expect to find at least one of these folk in a writing group. Why wouldn’t you? Come on! Think about it. Most of us work or have worked day jobs. Didn’t there seem to be some sort of a hidden @$$hole quota? Like HR was tucked away in their offices watching a panel of hidden cameras?

Hmmm. All the folk over in accounting seem to be getting along. How about hiring that guy with that special talent for making people feel like an idiot? You know, the one who we can count on to make everyone dread coming into work. That guy.

Now Critique Jerk can take the fun out of a meeting, but always remember….he has the right to be wrong. But, better still, you have the right to be RIGHT.

Myth #2—Critique Jerks should be avoided.

Jerks are everywhere. And they are like an allergen. They get under our skin and make us puff up and wheeze and wish we were dead. But, the best way to get over this kind of severe reaction? Small exposures. Build an immunity. This person’s comments may make us want to scream and shout and carry an automatic weapon, but it isn’t going to get any easier. Also, since a lot of critique groups/writing groups are open to the public, it will be next to impossible to keep the Critique Jerk out—and you can count on this guy to have perfect attendance. So what can you do? You cannot control Critique Jerk, but you can refuse to add fuel to his fires. Just refuse to engage him and focus on the only thing within your control—your reaction.

Myth #3 Critique Jerks will eventually go away.

No, they just change form. Mean people do not disappear simply because we get published. If anything, they multiply in number and escalate in intensity. This is what Critique Jerks prepare us for.

There are actually people out there with nothing better to do than write hateful notes to authors. Bob could tell you some stories. Writers are also in a profession that is very public and open to the world for evisceration. Book reviewers can be brutal enough, but now with the wide-open world of the Internet, any twerp’s opinion can be up for public display….permanently.

A couple of months ago, I went to a friend’s book signing, and she was nearly in tears after some random person left a hateful review on Amazon. It didn’t matter that there were 42 other positive reviews. This one nasty human being managed to suck all the joy out of what should have been a really wonderful day. But, to give credit, my friend did hold it together very well. She exhibited true grace under fire…the sort of composure that, for most of us, does not come naturally. It is developed.

 Myth#4—Critique Jerks can derail a career.

So you may think the jerk in your writing group serves no purpose, but he does. He is there to rub and rub and rub and rub on you….until you build a callous. Publishing is brutal, and the thicker our skin, the better the chances we survive and thrive.

Critics (critiquers), in my opinion, only have the power we give them. As authors, there is a certain amount of responsibility we shoulder, and it is unwise to hand the keys to the kingdom to others. Professionals understand that knowledge is power. They actively read and educate themselves every day in order to arm and prepare against the onslaught of negativity and bad advice.

And not to be a smart-aleck, but how far can anyone’s bad advice really lead us astray without our own consent?

All writers should have a basic command of the English language. Don’t laugh. There are some great story-tellers who wouldn’t know a dangling participle if it bit them on the leg. That said, if punctuation and grammar are weaknesses, then it would be wise to read more books on these subjects. Eats, Shoot & Leaves (Lynne Truss), The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Grammar & Style (Laurie E. Rozakis, Ph.D. D. Rozakis), The Elements of Style (Strunk & White).

If you are a grammar Nazi, but story structure is a weakness, then look for books on the craft of writing. The Novel Writers Toolkit (Bob Mayer), The Writer’s Journey (Christopher Vogler),On Writing (Stephen King), Bird by Bird (Anne Lamott), Hooked (Les Edgerton), etc.

Go to writing conferences and instead of hitting every class on landing an agent, go to some of the classes that teach about the craft. Listen to experts.

Again, knowledge is power. Knowledge will help refine one’s ability to discern good advice from bad advice. The more education one has, the harder it is to be misled. To rely solely on the feedback of one critic or even a critique group is, at best, foolishness. And if we are too lazy to read books, and blogs, and articles, and do all the things professionals do…then we deserve what we get.

Myth #5 Critique Jerks can steal our dreams.

Malus Critiqueus is the Boogeyman of the writing world, an urban legend. No person should have the power to take away your passion. Bob Mayer tells this story in his workshops, but it is a perfect illustration. 

A young man received a violin when he was a boy, and started to play. He practiced and practiced and actually got quite good.

One day, he heard a great violin master was coming to his town, so the young man decided to play for the master and get his feedback.

The master agreed to see him and the young man played his violin as hard and as well as he could. When he was finished, he asked the master how he did and the master replied, “Not enough passion.” And turned and left.

The young man was crushed. He put his violin away and never played it again.

A few years later, the same master returned to the town, and the young man saw him at a party. The young man approached him and said, “Master, the last time you were here, I played for you. You said I did not have enough passion.”

“So what did you do?”

“Well, I stopped playing the violin.”

The master replied, “I say that to everyone. In your case, I guess I was right.”

There are all sorts of ways to find a good critique group—fellow writers, the Internet, the public library, local chapters of RWA. But, in my opinion, the worst sort of critique group (or critique partner) is one that holds our hand and does not challenge us to grow. In fact, the only thing worse is the group or person who charges us money to have our hands held. Again, think of the gym analogy. We want a good personal trainer. The pill that promises us instant weight-loss and a six-pack abs with no sweat, no effort, and no discomfort is probably a scam.

Critique groups or editors who promise a pain-free experience aren’t doing us any favors. NY is not going to baby our feelings. There are too many other talented authors out there who have the skin of a rhinoceros, who can take the truth on the chin and keep on chugging. With this said, though, critique should also be productive. If you feel like throwing yourself off something very high after every critique…it is probably time to look for another group.  

The best critique partner or group challenges you, but also helps keep the fires of your passion burning bright.

But the person who succeeds will sometimes get there with luck. Most of the time, though, she gets there because she never, ever, ever, ever, ever gives up…no matter what anyone says.

Happy writing! Until next time…