Writing Fiction Is Not Like Playing Make-Believe

All fiction writers have much to pay attention to in order to create a reader-worthy novel. Something significant new fiction writers sometimes forget to pay attention to are the details.

Let’s go back in time a bit. Many of us played make-believe as children. We’d come up with an idea then act out our story, often changing it as we went along. Maybe we were the only cast member or maybe we recruited one or more others to be on our pretend stage with us. We might have started out saying, “Let’s pretend that . . .” then took it from there. Perhaps what we suggested was agreed to by everyone who had a role in our mini-production. Perhaps one or more cast members decided to change their role or the plot a bit. “You’re a school teacher,” you might have said to one, and he may have responded with, “No! I’m a pirate.” You may have then said, “There aren’t any pirates in this story.” He may have replied, “Then I’m not playing.” Either the story went on as planned, without a pirate, or you came up with a way to include one.

In make-believe, we may start out with one “reality” in mind then alter it to suit our purposes. The structure is loose. That’s fine when you’re playing that game. It’s not fine when you’re writing a novel. Details and structure matter in fiction. Some new writers don’t realize this. The responsibility to keep track of details and structure consistency is yours, as the writer. Your readers will expect this of you. They expect to suspend belief in some measure when they read fiction, but they still expect the story and details to be believable, logical, and realistic. And they expect you, as the writer, to fulfill this promise to them so something written on the page doesn’t launch them out of the movie playing in their minds as they read.

Being an editor for over twenty years, I’ve seen a lot of good writing and writing that needs improvement, especially since new writers tend to be my clients. It’s a tremendous pleasure to assist them to become better at the craft of writing and to create books they’re proud of. But I do come across issues like the one being discussed in this article. For example, a client had her protagonist living on the East Coast. The protagonist did something that led to her incarceration. The writer had her protagonist imprisoned on the West Coast, for no reason other than that’s what came to mind. First, that’s not how the legal system works. Second, the writer had the protagonist’s family, friends, and lawyer visit her often in prison. That’s a very long way to travel, and costly. You can see why that’s impractical and implausible for the purposes of the story: It contradicts real life in a way that doesn’t work, even in fiction. But this is the kind of “oopsie” that happens fairly often for new writers. The Devil is indeed in the details.

As a new writer, you may feel the thrill of your fingers flying over the keys as the story pours forth from your imagination. That’s a great feeling. But you need to create a system that works for you and that you stick with so you can manage the details. Somewhere, somehow, you need to track dates, days, and times of day so you keep this straight. You need to track the approximate time that passes in each scene. It would benefit you to create a cast list. This is especially important if your first book is one with a sequel or will be a series. And this also helps you to be consistent with the spelling of your characters’ names. It can quickly become tedious to keep scrolling through your manuscript to confirm or check something that you could readily find on a separate document.

Repeating that the Devil is in the details, you may (or should) have to do something many new writers fail to do or don’t think to do: Research. For example, if your story takes place in a town or city you’ve never been to—or even if you have been there or lived there—you still need to get certain details right or you’ll have readers howling at you. This research also helps you create settings so your readers can imagine themselves in them, and your research notes help you stay consistent about the details. What else in the novel you’re writing would benefit from research?

Go ahead and get your draft written, but when you sit down to read through it, aloud, for that first of several revisions, look at the content not as the writer but as a reader. Pay attention to what’s going on in your mind’s eye. Is more research needed? Is what you have your characters saying and doing realistic, logical, and believable? Is the timing involved for each scene and the story as a whole realistic, logical, and believable? Did you inadvertently change the “facts” anywhere in the story in a way that makes the reader balk, or that defies basic physics or time progression in an unacceptable way? Did you mistakenly alter the personality of any of your characters without creating a valid reason for this to happen? What else needs your attention?

Yes, there are many things you as the writer must pay attention to if you want your readers to be happy with your novel and you as its author. Whether you like it or not, writing a good novel involves managing the details and getting them right, rather than just making up whatever you feel like writing as you go. Don’t give readers a reason to call you a lazy writer. It may seem as though other authors, including or especially best-selling authors, sit at their computers and just make stuff up. Yes and no. They make stuff up, but they base it on real information they’ve researched and real life experiences. This is part of how they draw us in and keep us captive until the last word, and sometimes even after we finish the book. You can be this kind of writer as well. You just have to do what it takes.

I wish you the best with your writing and progress.

Joyce L. Shafer provides services for writers, with a focus on assisting new and indie authors. Services include Manuscript Evaluation, Substantive Editing, and Silent (Ghost) Rewriting/Editing, which includes converting plays and screenplays into novels. Her clients say she’s part editor, part teacher, part coach. Details available at http://editmybookandmore.weebly.com/. 

An Easy Way New Fiction Writers Can and Should Expand Their Writing Vocabulary

If you’ve heard this advice for new writers before, it bears repeating: Read novels by other authors, especially, but not solely, in your genre. This is beneficial, but there’s something else you could or should do while you read, to help you improve your writing vocabulary.

We all have a vocabulary we use on a regular basis. If you’re a writer, you want to expand the word choices you have in your grab-bag. When you write fiction, you want to use the best action verbs, nouns, and modifiers you can. Yes, good or great writing is partially about how words are put together, but it’s also about the words, themselves.

The first thing you’ll notice as you read a novel is that if it’s an engaging story, you’ll get into it just as any reader might. That’s terrific. Enjoy the novel. Then reread it and pay attention to the writing. Pay attention to the creative aspects such as how the plot and characters were developed, as well as the technical aspects (punctuation, etc.) One thing to keep in mind: There are some differences between books written by British authors (or as though the author is British, e.g., Elizabeth George) and books written by American authors or for American readers. Not only will certain words be different between these two literary cultures, but so will some spellings and some of the punctuation. One example: Among is the American word; amongst is the British word. If you’re writing for American readers, stick to the standard rules.

Okay, with that out of the way, here’s how new writers can and should expand their vocabulary anytime they read another author’s work. You might expect me to say that when you come across a word you don’t know, write it down and look it up. That is a logical thing to do, and it seems obvious, but readers don’t always do this. However, that isn’t my strongest suggestion for building your writing vocabulary. What follows is.

Get a notebook, or use whatever system works for you, and create categories that fit your needs. Let me explain. As you read (or listen to people talk, or listen to movie or TV dialogue), add to your lists any verbs, modifiers, and nouns, which includes compound nouns, that get your attention (compound nouns are two words that act as one: roller coaster, grab-bag). You’ll be surprised at how many of these you’ve used in your writing, didn’t think to use, or perhaps didn’t know about.

You also want to keep a list of words and phrases for what affects your characters physically, emotionally, and so forth. Here are some examples.

-Hands: his face sank into his hands; he drove his hands into his pockets

-Skin: a sheen of perspiration blossomed on her face

-Body: tension coiled its way up his neck

-Mouth: she smiled with regret

-Mood: he strained to compose himself

-Posture: his arms hung flaccid at his sides

-Eyes: her eyes surveyed the room

-Voice: his voice faltered

-Talking: she jabbered away

-Laughing: a hearty laugh rumbled from his chest

-Walking: she wended her way through the park

-Face: she wore a gray hat and pinched features

-Action: he threw a wild punch

-Setting: the graceful façade of the house rose above the hedge

-Sounds: a heavy thump outside the window made her lurch from the bed

-Internal: one word came to mind about how she felt—wretched

Making note of words you read or hear is meant to inspire you to expand your ability to describe what’s going on internally and externally for and or around your characters. These lists are meant to guide you to write in a fresh way, rather than copy what someone else wrote. You’ll, hopefully, continue to add to these lists forever, but there is a best time to use them: after your first draft is completed and it’s time for the first (of several) revisions.

You see, it’s likely that when writing your first draft, you relied on your regular vocabulary, which is fine because you’ll write faster when you don’t pause to deliberate over every single word or phrase. You want to get the draft written so you can then focus on cleaning it up and making it the best read it can be. Unless your regular vocabulary is extensive, and even if it is, you still may need to look for better words or better ways to describe or express what’s going on. A thesaurus is a good idea, but you have to make certain you know what replacement words mean. It’s very easy to use an inappropriate word you found in a thesaurus because you erroneously believed all the words listed mean exactly the same thing. For example, if you look up sensual, you’ll see salacious listed. But they absolutely do not mean the same thing, which only a trip to a dictionary would clarify. The biggest advantage of creating your own lists is that you can create categories specific to your needs and likes, as in the example above, which makes it easy and convenient to look up better word or phrase choices.

The fact will always be this: Good and great writers work very hard to make writing seem easy. This includes deliberating about the best verbs, nouns, modifiers, and phrases to use, which is done primarily during the several revisions the novel goes through (or should go through). You can improve your ability to tell a story that fits your characters, and with a writing style that is uniquely yours, through usage of the best words and phrases for your story and genre.

As you read novels, notice how the words used are what make your heart race or make you laugh out loud or bring tears to your eyes. That’s how you want to right as well. Yes? Yes.

I wish you the best with your writing and progress.

Joyce L. Shafer provides services for writers, with a focus on assisting new and indie authors. Services include Manuscript Evaluation, Substantive Editing, and Silent (Ghost) Rewriting/Editing, which includes converting plays and screenplays into novels. Her clients say she’s part editor, part teacher, part coach. Details available at http://editmybookandmore.weebly.com/. 

Nifty Manuscript Revision and Proofreading Tips for Novels

You’ve completed the first draft of your novel. Now you’re supposed to follow that pesky rule that requires you do something called a revision—more than once. How can you make this easier?

The first thing you need to know is that there are no real shortcuts when it comes to the revision process. And, it’s going to take multiple passes through the manuscript in order to make sure it’s the best story and cleanest copy it can be. Why more than once? For one thing, and especially if you’re a new writer, you absolutely will not be able to see everything in just one reading. Really. It’s also very likely that if you’re truly tuned in to your novel, ideas and even questions will continue to come to you for a while. Be sure to write them down!

If you know that your skills regarding technical and or creative matters aren’t what they should or could be, at some point you’ll need to get an editor on board to assist you. There’s no shame in this! Every writer serious about his or her work uses an editor in some measure. This can be through either an evaluation (critique) or substantive (aka developmental or conceptual) editing. Even if you believe you’re adept at the writing craft, you still need at least one other pair of eyes to go over your manuscript after you revise it, or depending on your skill level, perhaps even before. Yes, you may want a relative or friend to read what you’ve written, but are they qualified to advise you on the technical and creative aspects? If not, you absolutely need someone who is to look at what you’ve written.

But for your purposes, here are some (just some) of the things you are obligated to address as an author.

• Does the story work? Is the plot engaging from start to finish, and are your characters developed well enough?
• Have all the questions posed in the story been answered?
• Look for inconsistencies. Is your protagonist completely bald in chapter one but you have him comb his hair in chapter five? Does your story start on Monday and two days later it’s Friday?
• Watch for repetitive word usage and even incorrect word usage (both are all too easy to do).
• Check your verbs: Are they strong action verbs or weak, passive ones?
• Is your dialogue strong and natural sounding for each character, or is it stilted, or boring? Do all of your characters sound alike?
• What’s the pace like? Is it faster in action scenes and slower in narrative passages? Is there any place where it drags?
• Are you telling when you should be showing?
• Is your protagonist making a decision—any kind of decision—in each scene? She or he should be if you want to keep the story moving forward and the pace from lagging.
• Is each scene written from one, and only one, POV (point of view)?
• Is tense correct and consistent throughout the story?
• Make sure you have only one space between sentences and no spaces between your indented paragraphs.
• Do not overuse exclamation points, ellipses, em-dashes, and italics.

Here’s something else to pay attention to when you’re looking at your manuscript on your computer. Many new writers completely ignore the red and green squiggly lines under words, sentence segments, or sentences. What these lines mean is your attention is being drawn to either a misspelled word or a grammatically incorrect structure. You’ll have to carefully read what you’ve written so you catch oopsies like typing “they’re” when you should have typed “their” (or “there”). If you use dialect in your dialogue (hopefully not too much of this, or you’ll slow the pace way, way down), you’ll see lots of words with red squiggly lines indicating misspellings. Be sure these misspellings are deliberate on your part. The same goes for sentence segments with green squiggly lines under them: If the way you wrote them was deliberate, and not because you didn’t know better, you don’t want to change them in a way that alters the voice of a character or the storyteller.

Something I cannot stress enough: At some point, print your manuscript. Sit somewhere with the manuscript, extra paper, and a pen, where you can read your novel draft out loud. This is an invaluable tip that allows you to hear how it reads for readers and to see and catch things you won’t if you read it silently.

Wayne Dyer said, “If you want the things you look at to change, you must change the way you look at things.” This is also true for writers! The fact is that after you’ve looked at your manuscript a number of times both on the computer screen and in print, it can become tedious and not as easy to see the details any longer. So, switch the view—literally. If you work in Word, click on View then on Reading Layout. It’s amazing what you see when your manuscript looks more like a real book. If you’ve ever been reading a book and spied typos, you know what I mean. Set your own manuscript up this way then read it aloud, and don’t speed through this. If you prefer to print it out in this format, go ahead, but it’ll take a lot of paper. Also, when you save and close the document and then open it again, it likely will have reverted back to the original 8 X 11 version. So, if you have to stop reading this altered format, be sure to make note of which page you stopped on. When you return to the document, just choose Reading Layout again and you can easily return to your place.

Granted, there is a lot to know about the writing craft and always more to learn. But anything that assists you to create a novel that will entertain readers in the way your story is meant to—and that they expect—is something you should be committed to doing for your sake and for the sake of your book and its readers. What an adventure, yes? Yes.

I wish you the best with your writing and progress.

Joyce L. Shafer provides services for writers, with a focus on assisting new and indie authors. Services include Manuscript Evaluation, Substantive Editing, and Silent (Ghost) Rewriting/Editing, which includes converting plays and screenplays into novels. Her clients say she’s part editor, part teacher, part coach. Details available at http://editmybookandmore.weebly.com/. 

What Exactly Is a Ghost Rewriter, and Why Would You Ever Use This Service?

You’re likely aware there are ghostwriters (I love the movie, The Ghost Writer, with Ewan McGregor), but are you aware there are ghost rewriters who provide services as well? Let’s look at what they can do for authors.

You seldom see the term “ghost rewriter” used, if you’ve ever seen it at all. If you search that term online, you’ll see tons of site listings for ghostwriters and then maybe some sprinkled in for rewriters. Ghostwriting is the more familiar service, which is an involved method of getting a book written that’s based on a concept, notes, and or interviews with and for the person who wishes to put their name on the book cover, even though they don’t write the book (there are far more books written by ghostwriters, including best-sellers, than you may be aware of). So, what is a ghost rewriter? Maybe it’s self-explanatory. If not, you’ll know more in a minute, as well as why an author might want a rewriter on his or her team.

There are new, budding, and prolific authors who are do-it-yourselfers. They appreciate input from an editor because they sincerely want to put the best book out there that they can write, but they want to do all the writing and revising. There are other new, budding, or prolific authors who want to write a rough draft of their fiction or non-fiction manuscript then turn it over to someone else to rewrite and revise it, including writing additional content, if needed, until it’s ready for readers. If you’re in the first group, you may wonder why any author would do what those in the second group do.

 

One reason may be that the author never focused on the technical and or creative mechanics of writing, and has no intention to. Ever. These writers rely on their editor/ghost rewriter to bring what they write to finished form. There are other authors, new or not, who don’t have the time, or inclination, to do more than a rough draft, so rely on an editor/ghost rewriter to bring their manuscript to the finished-product level. Yes, your book—your baby—is, after all is said and done, a product you promote and sell.

 

Ghost rewriting can be an involved process (though not as involved as ghostwriting usually is) because now the editor/rewriter is creating what is essentially a new first draft that will need to go through the revision process just as an author doing all the writing would be required to do. The author is the one credited for the work; though, mention of the editor usually appears on the copyright page, in acknowledgments, or both. Credit for services rendered is up to the author. But the fact that someone ghost rewrote (or ghostwrote) the book isn’t mentioned, at least, not usually.

 

If you think this is a form of cheating, please consider that a number of best-selling authors do a version of this: They engage a co-author to write their book(s). A good example is James Patterson. At some point in his career, he shifted gears from being a solo writer, and his fans (I’m one of them) don’t mind at all. They want to be entertained Patterson-style, and he fulfills this for them. He fleshes out an outline for a novel, working on it until he’s satisfied, and then he sends it to one of his co-authors to write the novel (that’s what the other names on his book covers are about, in case you weren’t certain). This happens with Patterson’s input and approval about what’s written, of course. What a terrific opportunity and win-win-win-win for him, the co-author, the publisher, and readers.

 

What you, as an author, need to decide is what works best for you; what helps you accomplish your desired outcome. Sometimes the best assistance for you is to have your manuscript evaluated or to use substantive editing services so you know how to improve your book. Just make sure the person doing this is going to provide you with enough guidance you’ll use to revise your manuscript so it becomes the engaging book for readers you intend. And if you need or want more assistance than that for the reasons listed above, or for some other reason, consider a ghost rewriter who’ll take your manuscript where it needs to go but not require his or her name on your book cover.

 

There’s an advantage to working with an editor/ghost rewriter: You can choose to start out with a completed rough draft or submit one or more chapters at a time, until the draft is completed (a number of my clients prefer to work this way); just be consistent about writing so that you never allow the momentum to flag. Yet another advantage to working with an editor/ghost rewriter, if you’re committed to improving your skills, is that you see what the person did with your manuscript and learn from it.

 

Ghost rewriters are skilled writers but may not wish to travel the publishing path themselves. They love writing and are avid readers. They love assisting authors, especially indie authors, to put their best foot forward for their particular audience. This is another win-win-win experience. As a new, budding, or—if you’ll pardon me—somewhat lazy author when it comes to the technical and creative mechanics of writing, finding the rewriter right for you can be the difference between not going far (or anywhere) with your book and going the distance (and getting great reviews).

 

No matter which group from above you fit into, the fact is this: No writer ever completes a book entirely alone. At least, writers shouldn’t, if they want to put the best book they can into publication. There should be one or more qualified beta readers involved to give quality feedback. At some point an editor needs to be involved, without exception. Line-editing may be needed. Eventually, the services of a proofreader are required. Best-selling authors have teams who assist them, whether they go the indie or traditional publishing route. And if you’re Patterson and want to publish ten books a year to keep your readers and publisher deliriously happy, you engage the services of co-authors. If you’re not 100 percent confident about your skills or don’t have or want to take the time to go the distance, you put a ghost rewriter on your team. A team makes a dream come alive.

I wish you the best with your writing and progress, always and in all ways.

Joyce L. Shafer provides services for writers, with a focus on assisting new and indie authors. Services include Manuscript Evaluation, Substantive Editing, and Silent (Ghost) Rewriting/Editing, which includes converting plays and screenplays into novels. Her clients say she’s part editor, part teacher, part coach. Details available at http://editmybookandmore.weebly.com/. 

Some Beneficial Tips for New Fiction Authors

Let’s start with what is for some writers akin to a four-letter word: Outline. Yes, there are successful authors—and I do mean best-selling authors—whose practice is to let their fingers fly and write by the seat of their pants (known as pantsers), but they are few in number. These authors may seem like they’re winging it. They aren’t. They have years (or decades) of practice built upon a foundation of knowledge about technical and creative principles of the writing craft. The majority of best-selling authors spend time on their outlines, even a few months, including doing needed research, before the first word of the draft is typed. This includes sometimes significantly changing or tossing the outline and starting over.

I recently worked with a client who wrote and self-published his first novel. It was written without an official outline, but he had an organized mental outline going on, even though he didn’t realize it. However, during our time working together, he did James Patterson’s online writing course, and saw first-hand how creating an outline would save time. As I write this, we’re working on the sequel, which started with an outline we both reviewed and revised. And as anyone who uses outlines will tell you, just because you wrote the outline down, this doesn’t mean it’s etched in stone. For example, as I went through the client’s outline, several ideas came forward, especially about how to create the desired big twist that alters the protagonist in a monumental way, which is a shift the author was looking for. When such inspiration happens to you, just change the outline and keep writing.

Now, let’s talk about skills. This client has experience writing non-fiction papers and articles, but this was his first foray into fiction writing. He was genuinely shocked to learn he didn’t know how much he didn’t know about the technical and creative aspects of writing fiction. A truth to keep in mind is that a successful author works very hard, using the technical and creative principles, to make writing seem easy. This means you, if you are committed to being a good writer, need to study these principles and put them into practice so they can become natural for you as well.

Initially, the client expressed that his confidence was shaken because of the needed corrections brought to his attention and because of the suggested revisions provided. I pointed out that his innate abilities were obvious to me (they are!) and reminded him that he was just starting on this path, so it was unfair for him to compare his efforts with my twenty-plus years of study and experience. He soon got on board with the learning process. Happily for both of us, he’s a willing, enthusiastic learner. (By the way, he’s ecstatic that his debut novel is getting five-star reviews!)

The more willing and enthusiastic you are about improving your skills, the better your experience and results will be, and the more eager your readers will be for additional books from you. As you improve, you’ll reduce the time it takes to get your novels ready for your audience. If you’re a new writer of fiction, please understand that rushing the process of writing a novel, especially your first one, is never a good idea. Never. Be willing to take your novels through a number of revisions, if needed.

Some other things to focus on when writing a novel are as follows:

Track the chapters: Keep track of chapter numbers and include a brief one-liner about what main thing happens in each chapter. This makes it easier to find your place in the story if/when an inspired idea or needed change flashes in your mind. If this flash happens during the night or when you’re doing something else, make a note so you don’t lose the idea, and then add it in the next day. Also, watch that you don’t make your chapters too long. Look at several books by successful authors and note how long their chapters usually run. The number of chapter pages will differ throughout their books, but you’ll see that sometimes chapters are longer and sometimes they are one, two, or three pages in length. Shorter chapters keep readers reading. Long chapters will keep them reading as long as the content is page-turning good. In longer chapters by these authors, note how often they have scene breaks or scene changes.

Track timing: Keep track of the dates, days of the week, months, and times of day. It’s too easy to slip up. You might start a scene at eight in the morning then three paragraphs or two pages later it’s nighttime but you’re in the same scene that may have lasted only fifteen minutes. Oops. So, it’s also beneficial to keep track of the duration of the scene. Did it play out in fifteen minutes, a half hour, an hour or more?

Track characters: Create a character list. The best way to do this is to write the characters’ first and last names down (and make certain you are consistent with how you spell their names throughout the manuscript), as well as their relationship to the protagonist and or their role in the story. This also makes it easier for you to look up a character’s name if s/he hasn’t been “on stage” for a while. You benefit by doing character profiles prior to starting your draft. The more significant a character is to the story, the more detailed the profile should be.

Track conflict type: You want to pay attention to how many scenes include conflict that is external, internal, interpersonal, and or antagonistic so that you keep the correct balance for your plot and character development. Conflict is required for a good story, and how much and which types of conflict occur have all to do with your genre. Commercial fiction typically has far less internal conflict for one or more characters than literary or light literary fiction requires. The most engaging, page-turner novels have conflict of some sort escalating gradually until the climax point in the story. This doesn’t mean each chapter has so much action or conflict in it that you exhaust your readers. Some conflicts are simple, like your protagonist needing to contact someone in a hurry and s/he can’t reach them, or perhaps your protagonist needs to speak up in a situation but has self-esteem issues.

Track point of view (POV): This is something you can organize when you create your outline. Tracking POV for scenes is important because it’s too easy for inexperienced (and even experienced) writers to include more than one POV in a scene. Each scene that includes POV needs to be in the POV of only one character at a time.

Read aloud: This includes reading passages from books by your favorite authors, but especially your own manuscripts. Once you complete your first draft, print it out (don’t read from the computer) and read it aloud with pen and extra paper on hand. It’s vital that when you do this, you do so from the perspective of a reader/editor, rather than the proud creator. Look for extra spaces, misspelled words, missing words, incorrect punctuation, consistency of indents for paragraphs (be sure you do not include spaces between paragraphs, and be sure you do use only one space between sentences), wrong word choices, boring dialogue, not enough information, more information than what’s needed, run-on sentences, flow, pace, and anything and everything that impedes the writing from being a good story that keeps readers in their mental movie and eager to turn the page. You read aloud what you write because you need to hear how your story sounds, because this is how it will sound in readers’ minds. Do this for each revision. You’ll be happy you did.

There are many, many additional things to pay attention to when writing fiction, and this is why there are so many books available on this subject. One book I highly recommend is Spellbinding Sentences: A Writer’s Guide to Achieving Excellence & Captivating Readers by Barbara Baig. This is not a book you read like most books: Baig puts you to work, but it’s not hard or tedious work. If you’re committed to being a writer and improving your craft, you’ll find her practices engaging and revealing. Your ability to write better, and with more confidence, will unfold as you move through the material.

Know this: There’s always more to learn. This is why even best-selling authors go to workshops and conferences. Commit some of your time to studying to improve your skills, some time to reading so you study what other authors do, and some time to writing, which is the only way to practice what you learn.

I wish you the best with your writing and progress.

Joyce L. Shafer provides services for writers, with a focus on assisting new and indie authors. Services include Manuscript Evaluation, Substantive Editing, and Silent (Ghost) Rewriting/Editing, which includes converting plays and screenplays into novels. Her clients say she’s part editor, part teacher, part coach. Details available at http://editmybookandmore.weebly.com/. 

What Reading Does for Writers

How gratifying it is to read a book that grabs your interest from the start and keeps you turning pages. Such books cause you to forget you’re reading; you become fully engaged with the story and characters. The movie in your mind is fluid. No matter the genre, such an experience is pure bliss for readers.

This is the experience writers want to create for readers, or should want to create for their readers. However, there’s one vital thing new and “young” writers should keep in mind: writers who achieve this with their books work very, very hard to make writing seem easy. A great deal of effort goes into making this happen.

What does this have to do with what reading does for writers? A lot. But it requires you to do more than just read a book. In fact, it may help at the start if you read a book for your own enjoyment the first time then read it again to pay attention as a writer. Here are some things writers who read can focus on, to their benefit.

Vocabulary: Reading strengthens your vocabulary. It also can remind you of excellent word choices you may not think about or haven’t thought about in a while. Make a note of any words that resonate for you, whether this relates to developing characters or plot. You might even create separate lists for words that relate to physical descriptions, body language, settings, emotions, and so forth, and keep them on hand when you write.

Plot Devices: Observe how good writers develop plot, how they set pace, how everything that happens works. This includes how characters react. Never have a character do anything, especially that’s out of character, just to fit something into the plot. If you have to do that, you have a plot hole regarding plausibility that needs to be fixed.

Dimensional Characters: Notice what causes characters to stick in your mind or hold your interest. What makes you care about them or detest them? Notice how the writer develops characters over time, rather than all at once. Pay attention to what you come to expect from characters, and how they surprise you.

Punctuation: Pay attention to how sentences are structured through the use of punctuation. When are colons, semi-colons, ellipses, em-dashes, and commas used? What about hyphenated words? Notice how seldom, if ever, exclamation marks are used. What about single and double quotation marks, especially for dialogue? Be aware there are several significant differences in punctuation usages between American and British writing. You don’t want to confuse them.

Proper Format: You’ll see there is only one space between sentences, not two. Two spaces were needed when people used typewriters. Now that computers are here, use one space only. This is industry standard. Also note that paragraphs are indented and that there are no spaces between paragraphs. Note how scene changes and scene breaks are handled. Note how dialogue is handled: each character’s dialogue lines are always indented the same as a paragraph.

Pace: Sentence length creates rhythm and influences pace. You want to mix what’s considered long beats and short beats, without overdoing either. Longer sentences slow pace, which is sometimes desirable. Shorter sentences, including effective sentence fragments, speed pace. This is usually more applicable for action scenes, which you want to happen at pace. What you want to watch for is that no action scene takes longer to read than it would take to happen. Here are examples of beats:

Mary stood. She smoothed her hair and tucked loose strands behind her ears. She paused. Then she slapped Mark’s face. (Short, long, short, long)

Mary stood. She tucked loose strands of hair behind her ears, and then she slapped Mark’s face. (Short, long, long)

Setting: You always want to give readers a sense of place. Seeing how a number of excellent and best-selling writers handle setting is beneficial. How much description is included? Notice how the writers blend setting with plot and character development. You’ll never please every reader. Some like long, detailed descriptive passages; some don’t. Use what you feel provides enough description for the story, without slowing pace.

Let what you read stimulate ideas—your own ideas; don’t copy. How many times has the original story of Cinderella been rewritten in various ways? Or stories by Shakespeare? It’s said there’s nothing new under the sun, just new ways to write about it. You can learn by observing and studying what writers of the books you love and admire do to make their stories fulfilling, entertaining, engaging, or thought-provoking. But do keep in mind that time and effort went into choosing every word you read, likely through several revisions.

I wish you the best with your writing and progress.

Joyce L. Shafer provides developmental/substantive editing and book evaluation services, especially but not solely, for new writers. Details about her services, plus her e-book for aspiring and new writers—Write, Get Published, and Promote and her special reports—How to Get an Agent for Your Book or Choose Self-Publishing Instead: Tips, Lists, and More and How to Get Your Book Started: Plan Your Work Then Work Your Plan are available at http://editmybookandmore.weebly.com/ . 

Common Mistakes New and Indie Writers Sometimes Make

There is a lot to keep in mind when you write a novel, memoir, or other non-fiction book. Enthusiasm is great to have and necessary for getting that first draft and subsequent revisions done. But here are some common issues I frequently see in manuscripts from clients. Are any of them ones you need to watch for?

Let’s look at some technical matters.

Punctuation: Not everyone loves punctuation. Not everyone knows how to use it. If you don’t know how to use it and aren’t inclined to learn, be certain to use the services of an editor or proofreader. A literary agent or publisher wants to see the best copy you can submit. If you self-publish, your readers will appreciate proper punctuation. You see, in real life our hand gestures, vocal intonations, and facial expressions clarify our intended meaning of the words we use. In the written word, punctuation is one way we accomplish this.

And then there’s dialogue. Many writers do not know how to punctuate dialogue. As important as punctuation is in narrative, it is equally important in dialogue.

Fact Checking and Spelling: You can certainly use the spell-check feature, but you still have to make sure the right word is used. If you mean to write “I put my keys right there,” but type “their” or “they’re,” spell-check will only highlight the wrong word if it’s misspelled. The grammar feature may highlight it, but you may not notice it.

When it comes to fact checking, just do it. I’ve seen clients use business or brand names, universities or institutions, song or video titles, and so on, without verifying the correct names, titles, or spellings. With the Internet so available these days (or a phone directory or library reference desk), there’s no reason for this to happen. And you don’t want readers, including agents or publishers, to see that you didn’t go the distance to get such things right. It won’t speak well for you as a writer.

Space between Sentences: When everyone used typewriters, it was necessary to have two spaces between sentences. Now that most people use computers, only one space is needed. In fact, it’s now industry standard. You can also look at this from a monetary aspect: The extra spaces create extra pages. Extra pages cost more to print. A traditional publisher won’t allow it. If you self-publish in print, your cost and cost to readers will be more than it needs to be. Even if you self-publish an e-book, that extra space throughout your text will make the book longer than it should be.

Space between Paragraphs; Indents: I’ve noticed that some e-books don’t indent paragraphs. Instead, they include a space between paragraphs. This isn’t a requirement for e-book formatting, and traditional publishers usually make e-books look like print versions. But I will say that for print, it’s best if you indent each paragraph (5 spaces) and leave out the space between the paragraphs. Again, you can look at the economics of this: extra space equals extra pages that results in extra cost. If you intend to submit to a literary agent or publisher, make sure your paragraphs are indented (including dialogue) and there’s no space between paragraphs. This is what they expect and consider professional.

No Chapters or Too-Long Chapters: Some writers get so excited about writing they forget to use chapters (some forget to use paragraphs). Or they get so into writing they don’t notice how long their chapters are. One client’s first chapter of his manuscript was 42 single-spaced pages. In paperback, that comes out to something like twice that number of pages—way too long for a chapter. Even 42 print pages for a chapter is too long. In times past, when readers didn’t have TV or radio, much less electronic devices, they didn’t mind long books with long chapters. That’s not the way it is today. Readers want pace and punch. And the fact is that if a chapter is only a few to several pages long, or has scene breaks, readers will keep reading to see what happens next.

No Scene Changes or Breaks: When the next scene comes after an interval of “time” has passed since the last scene, or an entirely new scene is presented, this must be indicated to readers.

Mixed Themes/Scenes in the Same Paragraph: Often a writer gets everything down but not necessarily where it best belongs. Each paragraph is a scene unto itself, within a scene. Everything that occurs in the story through narrative or dialogue is to lead to the very next thing that is to or should occur. This holds true for paragraphs.  

Tense: I’ve seen people start out in the right tense then slip out of it. Sometimes the writer starts in the wrong tense and stays there. This usually means the manuscript is written in synopsis form, rather than manuscript form. Example of proper tense, in third-person point of view (POV): Marcus walked to the window and peered at the shadowed form behind the oak tree. Example of improper tense: Marcus walks to the window and peers at the shadowed form behind the oak tree. The first example puts readers into the story. The second example reminds them they’re reading.

Overuse of Words or Use of Incorrect Words: There will be words you cannot avoid using often, but there are words that should not be used more than once in the same sentence or paragraph or even again in the entire story—because they stand out. Example: Marcus suddenly stood, alerted by a sudden noise. He walked to the window and peered out. Suddenly, a shadowed form moved behind the oak tree.

As for incorrect words—if you only think you know what a word means, please look it up in the dictionary to make certain it’s the right word for what you mean to say. I’d say use a thesaurus, which is good advice, but be sure to check the definition of the alternate word or words. One client used a thesaurus to find another word for sensual, found salacious, and kept using it, believing the two words meant exactly the same thing. I knew she likely didn’t know what the alternate word actually meant, because it wasn’t that kind of book. When I provided the definition and asked her if that truly was her intended meaning, she was so very glad I paid attention.

Hyphens: If you aren’t certain whether or not two words require a hyphen, are written as two words, or form one word, the dictionary is the place to go to confirm this. I suggest that unless you have access to a proper reference online, stick with the dictionary. If someone wrote it wrong online, you’ll copy them. You don’t want to do that.

Those were some of the most frequent technical matters I see. Now for several creative issues that crop up often.

Proper Attention to Timeline: Are you familiar with the term “pantser”? Pantsers are writers who write by “the seat of their pants”—meaning they write without planning or an outline. This is not a promotion for outlining, but to bring your awareness onto the necessity of paying attention to what’s happening in the story so that scenes and events are logical and or sequential. Novel writers should have at least these three things on hand, whether created beforehand or as they write: a list of characters, character sketches, and a timeline for scenes and events.

The timeline will help you keep events, and when they happen in time, in proper order. This includes keeping track of hours, days, weeks, months, and years, as needed for the story. Also track the ages of your main characters, the year the story takes place in, and the year or years of any back story instances. If your protagonist is now 40 and you want to use a scene from his high school prom, including a special song he danced to, make certain the song comes from that prom year, rather than a song that didn’t exist at that time. This holds true for any real-life and fictional events used in the story.

Character Development: I mentioned character sketches above. The more you know about your characters the easier it is to write them. You can look up my article about this on this site: “Developing Strong Characters.” I provided what’s needed to create a character sketch, which you should do for each significant character. You want to make them as real to readers as possible. Cardboard characters do not engage readers.

Setting: Give a sense of place for readers. Your characters do not act and speak in a void. They need place. Readers want place. See my article about setting on this site: “The Importance of Setting in a Novel.” Even memoirs and other non-fiction books require setting in some form.

Inconsistencies: You have to watch for these. They can sneak up on you when you’re more involved with writing than with paying attention to what you’re writing. If your protagonist is completely bald, don’t have him run his fingers through his hair.

Keeping It Real: In books like the Harry Potter series and other magical stories, a character that needs a hammer can have one appear out of nowhere. That’s acceptable to readers (believable), because of the type of book it is. If your non-magical detective needs a hammer and “suddenly” has one in his hand, it won’t work. He has to look for or see a hammer nearby and pick it up. Also, figure out how things can happen. Never write something like this: Marcus somehow got out of the locked room.

Recommendations

One solution that can assist every writer with these or other technical and creative matters is this: Read. Read more than you may be reading now. Read to enjoy a book, but also read or reread it with the attention of a writer. One disclaimer: There are a number of differences between American and British writing. This includes some spellings, punctuation, and grammar. Do not mix the two up. Example: Among is the American usage; amongst is British.

Also, understand from the start that manuscript revisions are required. Every best-selling author does revisions. Any new or indie writer who doesn’t understand this or do this does an injustice to him- or herself, the work, and readers. From best-selling author Michael Crichton: “Books aren’t written—they’re rewritten. Including your own. It is one of the hardest things to accept, especially after the seventh rewrite hasn’t quite done it.” One thing that will absolutely assist you is to read your original draft and each revision aloud to yourself. I ALWAYS advise my editing clients to read their revised manuscripts out loud. It makes a huge difference, as this brief article by Wayne Hughes states: http://buildbookbuzz.com/for-reading-out-loud/ .

Writing a book is an adventure. The more you understand about the process and are on board with it, the better experience you have and the better what you’ve written can be.

I wish you the best with your writing and progress.

Joyce L. Shafer provides developmental/substantive editing and book evaluation services, especially but not solely, for new writers. Details about her services, plus her e-book for aspiring and new writers—Write, Get Published, and Promote and her special reports—How to Get an Agent for Your Book or Choose Self-Publishing Instead: Tips, Lists, and More and How to Get Your Book Started: Plan Your Work Then Work Your Plan are available at http://editmybookandmore.weebly.com/ . 

Do you feel like a writer? What would it take?

Feeling Like a Fraud

by Moira Allen, Editor of Writing-World.com

Reprinted with permission by Joyce L. Shafer

http://newwritertips.blogspot.com/

"I wish I was a real author. I truly do." "I'm sure true authors do not work like this." "I still feel like a fraud."

Do you ever have thoughts like these? Do you, in the dark of night, whisper them to your pillow, or scrawl them in a locked journal? Do you occasionally confide them to other writers? Have you, perhaps, even whispered them (if e-mail can be said to whisper) to me?

If so, you're probably assuming that the opening lines of this editorial came from a writer much like yourself. Probably, you're thinking, some other reader has written to Your Intrepid Editor with a question much like that which haunts your own thoughts: "Why do I feel like such a fraud? When will I feel like a 'real' writer?" And, indeed, Your Intrepid Editor has read similar statements in other writers' newsletters, blogs, and, yes, personal e-mails.

But I did not stumble across those lines in the newsletter or blog of a writer "much like myself" or, perhaps, "much like yourself." (OK, I'm making an assumption about YOU - I can only say with confidence that this writer is, statistically speaking, not so much like me.) They did not arrive in a heartfelt e-mail from a struggling writer seeking to affirm his or her identity.  

OK, enough suspense. The person who wrote those lines was none other than Terry Pratchett ("A Slip of the Keyboard"). Now, if you already know the name, little more need be said. If you do not - Terry Pratchett is "currently the second most-read writer in the UK, and seventh most-read non-US author in the US" (Wikipedia). He's actually SIR Terry Pratchett, having been knighted in 2009 for "services to literature." He has sold over 85 million books worldwide.

Well, all right - even someone who goes on to sell 85 million books and receive a knighthood for literature probably had doubts early on, right? Um, Probably. But Pratchett didn't write those lines back in the early 1980's, when he might indeed have wondered whether Discworld would "catch on."  He wrote them in 2004, when, by his own estimation, he'd sold 45 to 50 million books (and was already an OBE, if not yet a knight). Yet he could still say, with complete sincerity, that he felt like a fraud.

My first thought was that if, after 50 million books, Terry Pratchett could feel like a fraud, what hope was there for the rest of us? For I do, indeed, hear many writers say the same thing - including writers whose productivity makes me feel as if I must be spending most of my days in a hammock sipping daiquiris. So why DO we (and I do mean "we") feel this way?

I'm sure therapists could have a field day with the question. For myself, however, I believe the feeling stems from two inter-related causes that are common to nearly all serious writers.  

The first is an inborn love of books. Chances are, you're a writer because, first and foremost, you are, and have always been, a reader. You may not even remember a time when you didn't love books. Perhaps you can remember not only the books that meant the most to you, but even where you were when you read them for the first time! I can still remember the first time I read Mary Stewart's "The Hollow Hills," or E. Nesbit's "The Railway Children," or Tolkien's "The Hobbit," or the way my sister and I practically fought over the right to be the first to read the latest James Herriott. More importantly, I can still remember the feelings of wonder and amazement and - for lack of a better word - EXPANSION - that these books evoked. Reading was sheer magic. If you know what I'm talking about, I don't need to explain it; if you don't, there's no way that I CAN explain it.

The authors of such books seemed to me, and I suspect to many of us, to be scarcely less than gods. How could mere mortals create such worlds, such magic, such wonder? Books took us by the hand and led us places we had never gone or even imagined, opened our minds to ideas that we could never have conceived alone. They didn't simply change our lives; they molded our lives.  

As we took our own first fledgling steps as "writers," that view of "authors" as distant, godlike beings with amazing powers never left us. We might, if we were lucky, MEET the "greats," and perhaps gain an autograph, but live and walk amongst them? Hardly! "Real" writers, "real" authors existed in some distant galaxy. They were not common clay like us.  

Herein lies the first problem. Think for a moment about the book that meant the most to you at some point in your life, a book that you'll always keep on your shelf - perhaps a book you don't even need to read anymore because you have it stored in your heart. Think for a moment what it meant to you and why. Now... Imagine yourself being the AUTHOR of that book. Imagine that it was YOU who created those words, those worlds - you who made such a difference in the lives of your readers.

Not so easy to do, is it?

Now for the second root. Because we admire "real" authors so much, most of us have sought avidly for any bits of advice, nuggets of information, or pearls of wisdom that such authors might cast in the paths of humble would-be writers like ourselves. And many authors DO like to dispense advice. This one writes out scenes on 3x5 cards. That one gets up at 5 a.m. every morning and writes 500 words before breakfast. Another has a rule of writing a certain number of words every day, no matter what. One keeps a dream journal; another carries a tape recorder everywhere. Over time, we build up a mental picture of what "real" writers DO - and what, perhaps, we DON'T.  

Meanwhile, we go through life acting like everyday humans - scratching, sneezing, scooping the cat litter, and, quite often, writing stuff that makes us think perhaps we would have been better suited for a high-tech career in ditch-digging. Whatever we do, we know we're NOTHING like the idols who shaped our lives through the books we adored. And if we're nothing like them, how can we be "real" writers?  

Of course, there are plenty of would-be writers who don't share these feelings of angst in the least. There are those who have scarcely read a book, and pay little heed to the advice offered by "experts." They are also, quite often, those who pay little heed to such trivial matters as grammar, punctuation, spelling or plot - but as they often point out, that's what editors are for! Based on some of the e-mails I receive, however, such writers have no difficulty convincing themselves that they are "real" writers (their main complaint generally being that they haven't, thus far, been able to convince anyone ELSE).

If my theory is correct, then, what gets in the way of "feeling" like a "real writer" is a lifetime of being a "real reader." It's the avid, "don't stand between me and a book" reader who harbors these impressions of authors as being larger than life, impossibly greater than thee and me. But notice that I used the word "feeling" in that opening sentence. Being a "real reader" may,
indeed, help keep one from "feeling" like a "real writer." It doesn't prevent one from actually BEING one.  

If Terry Pratchett can sell 85 million books and get knighted without feeling like a "real" writer, then it seems to me that perhaps I don't have much to worry about. "Just get on with it," I suspect he'd say. In fact, it's rather liberating to realize that, at the end of the day, I don't actually HAVE to "feel" like a "real writer" at all. It doesn't matter. Because Pratchett has taught
me one more thing about "real" writers: 

REAL writers, quite often, feel like frauds!

Copyright 2015 Moira Allen

Moira Allen is the editor of Writing-Wrold.com ( http://www.writing-world.com ) and the author of more than 350 published articles. Her books on writing include Starting Your Career as a Freelance Writer, The Writer’s Guide to Queries, Pitches and Proposals, and Writing to Win: The Colossal Guide to Writing Contests.