Can You Really Teach an Old Dog New Tricks?



It's been nearly two hours since I started my search for the meaning (and purpose) of an RSS feed.  I know, I know...I can see your eyes roll.  But for this old lady, RSS was just as foreign as FLK or AFK would be to anyone outside of an ER.  (Oye, the acronyms!)  Finally, my head is wrapped around the concept.  However, the process still eludes me. 



Finding a safe place in the ever-evolving cyber world of online communication and information exchange is daunting to say the least.  I realize that I'm not the first to blog about this issue - just the first in my own household. 

Writing the book(s) is easy.  Marketing and getting them "out there" is not.  Research and becoming savvy to the processes required to market a product in this era can be a full time job.  Personally, I'd rather hire someone else to do it.  Alas, finances doesn't allow this.  Fortunately, there are resources for people like me who struggle with understanding just what the "next step" would be. 

Create Space (Amazon's publishing house) has provided amazing resources to those of us who seek assistance with our marketing plans.  Their free assistance to marking for fiction is invaluable - providing links to everything from website design to website analysis to retail wholesale companies (the people we market to). 

My past few years has been focused on target audiences that center around my series genre:  Paranormal Historical Romance, Fiction and PIRATES.  The efforts have been rewarding , fun and eventful bringing in profits which have been notable.  However, these avenues are limiting.

Finding time to learn "new tricks" necessary to succeed in current markets is a key element to sharing the amazing story found in the Deja vu Chronicles.  I supposed, with the prospect of "getting it out there" through cyber tactics, learning a new trick or two won't hurt this old gal!

Thoughts...Just Thoughts for a Monday

Today's began amazing!  The mist settled over the beaches and passed through the trees outside my balcony.  Tiny sparrows played hide-n-seek with a hummingbird just feet from where I sat with my feet wrapped in a blanket and book on my lap.  It was the perfect way to begin a new day.

Hours later, I still sat with a blanket wrapped around me even though the sun was out and the dog begged for another walk.  My joints ached and my head pounded.  Something was trying to invade every cell of my body and it was obvious I wasn't going anywhere except back to the soft chairs on the balcony with the blanket and book. 

I think it was meant to be though.....

Taking up my Nook, I decided to read Oprah's magazine and found three questions she had asked her staff that month.  The questions resonated with me.  I pondered them for quite a while.  These are amazing questions that breathe life into a typically mundane existence.  I am grateful that I was able to answer them and while I would be happy to do so (should anyone ask...), I would prefer to post them here for your benefit.  Take a minute and ponder these questions as they relate to your life, your week, your day.  Answer them and share, if that feels comfortable to do so on this blog.  I take joy in reading about others' accomplishments and triumphs, as do so many of you!

And so...the questions are this:

1. What is my greatest accomplishment?

     2.  The most risky thing I've ever done is...?

     3.   If I had no fear, I would......?


Namaste ~

How To - Writing, Step 3

Your notebook is gapes open with scores of ideas scribbled in no particular order - organized chaos speaking volumes to the author.  An outline beckons you to fill in the gaps and fatten its skeletal framed entity into a fat, juicy story.

...Now for the fun part....

Today is a day of genesis - the birth of your characters.  In stillness, take your mind and spirit to sit with the main character of your story.  What does he/she/it look like?  What is their scent?  What does this character eat?  How do they cry and what do they laugh over?  (or can that character laugh?).  Describe every single detail as if you were living that character's existence.  Experience in completeness the very being of the character.

Write it down.  Write and write and write until each and every nuance of that character is recorded.

Then do it again...with the next character and the next.  Be sure to leave space to include detail that may inadvertently crop up as the manuscript unfolds.  Keep intricate notes and know these characters intimately.  It's imperative!

There is very little that will be as rewarding as the actual creation of the characters in your story.  You assume great responsibility, almost altruistic in nature, when you create these beings.  You are meant to relish the experience, savor creation at its fullest.  Enjoy!

Now...go create.....

 

 

How To - Writing, Step TWO

A few weeks have passed and the little notebook, kept inseparably attached to your writing pen, is rapidly filling with notations, sketches, thoughts and images.  Random though these may appear, you now have the opportunity to create an organized story out of the scrolled chaos scribbled over the pages of that precious little book.

The assembly of your cacography into a coordinated thread of ideas is the next step...aka: creating an Outline.

(This is actually my least favorite step!)

Typically, once an author has a fair number of pages filled with ideas, he also has a relatively good idea about what his story will become.  At this point, the great temptation is to begin the act of writing the actual story, bypassing the important step of outlining the plot - including character devlopment.  I am one of these authors who have been unmercifully enticed into skipping the outline in lieu of writing the story.  However, this is never a good idea....particulary for me!

I learned a valuable lesson from a very famous, very successful author - someone I admire tremendously.  J.K. Rowling understood the importance of the outline.  For FIVE YEARS, Ms. Rowling outlined the Harry Potter series, beginning with that infamous train ride sketching ideas on napkins as she travelled through Scotland the day Harry Potter was created.  Not only did J.K. Rowling outline the plots, she also outlined the details of each intricate allotment in her stories, ie: the type of feather used in each wand, the smells and tastes of the food consumed in the dining hall, the rulebook for Quiddich, the color of the woodwork in Snape's office, etc.  My admiration for the dedication of this talented writer allowed me to take a step back, breathe deep and begin the process of outlining my own series. 

Initially, outlining your story will feel an arduous task.  Fortunately, the notebook you have compiled will assist you and as your outline progresses, the skeletal portion of your story will take shape.  Start by identifying the conflict and subsequen resolution.  What ultimate antagonism will your hero/heroine face and how will they overcome it (assuming they do)?   The events that occur prior to this climax and those that follow are the rest of the outline.

Creating the basic blueprint for your novel is worth your time and dedicated effort to complete.  My advice is to follow the example of those who have proven successful - such as J.K. Rowling.  There will be much more to add to this outline in time but without it, detail will be lost and the spine of your story will be soft. 

So here's to the strength of a well-written story!  Here's to the OUTLINE!

How To - Writing, Step 1 1/2

I pulled out my blue notebook the other day.  The edges are worn and some of the pages are torn from the binding.  At first glance, it looks like a student's day-planner filled with scribbling and old post-it notes stashed in between notations and numbers.  For me, it's the pulse of my story - the life force of Deja vu.  My ideas, thoughts, images, phrases, poetry and pictures are scribed inside that black-and-blue cover.  What would the series be without it, I wondered as I leafed through the pages once again.

The need to keep a notebook such as the simple one I keep by my side cannot be emphasized enough for the serious author.  It's importance is brought to the forefront of my writing everytime I sit down and gather my ideas.  Truly, such tools - this one in particular - will be invaluable as you write your story.

So what comes next? 

Honestly....FAITH.  I know that seems a strange idea to present, especially when the student of artistic creation is ready to move ahead and begin the journey that will become his beloved project.  But I stand by my attestation (is that a word?) of the need for faith...also patience and an open mind.  Indeed, this sounds a little like scripture which proports the importance of personal virtues.  Perhaps that is part of my intent.

There stands a tremendous need for an author to remain open and willing to hear what is brought to him.  Often times, ideas will present themselves at the most in-opportune time (hence the reason for the notebook).  These ideas need to be reverenced and honored (and written down!).  Other times, people will offer insight into your ideas, thoughts, dreams, plans, plot, etc.  These comments also need to be honored and given appropriate consideration.  Yours, as the author, is the right to cast aside that which doesn't belong.  Your "gut" will tell you what is valuable "advice" and what isn't.

As your work becomes ready for editing and a publisher's scrutiny, be prepared to have a very un-emotional, open mind to suggestions for a successful novel.  An agent from Pennsylvania contacted me at the beginning of my submission process and made some suggestions to Midnight Omen which, at the time I received them, did not make a heck-of-a-lot of sense.  Fortunately, I wrote them down (in my little blue book).  Yesterday, as I thumbed through the pages and re-read the agent's suggestions, I could see that she was exactly right-on for the genre, market and sales potential.  Wow! 

Faith in yourself, ability and in the Universe allows you to accept these suggestions and ideas as they are presented to you.  Take the time and have the courage to jot down all that is given to you.  Time will prove its value and the story will dictate what you use.

My challenge to each of us this week is to jot down one idea, comment, criticism or thought each day as it presents itself.  (You will find that more and more is presented as you open your mind to receive...this I PROMISE!).  I would love to hear about your experience if you are willing to share!

Happy writing! 

(By-the-way, attestation IS a word): 

Main Entry:	attestation [at-e-stey-shuhn] Show IPA/ˌætɛˈsteɪʃən/ Show Spelled
Part of Speech:	noun
Definition:	confirmation
Synonyms:	authentication, corroboration, declaration, documentation, evidence, proof, substantiation, testament, testimonial, testimony, validation, verification

How To - Writing, the First Step

"So Marti, what is the very first step to writing a novel?"

If I had a dollar for every time I've been asked this question....but what an honor to be asked!  The same question escaped my lips not many years ago as a fledgling-author attending the first writer's seminar of my life.  My guess is that every writer has been similarly perplexed at some point during their career.  Fortunately, we are all part of a thriving team of creative thinkers seeking the same "correct" process.

So what is the first step?

Anyone asking that question will receive as many varied answers as there are stories waiting to be written.  Let me give you my take on the subject.

To begin, open your mind and lose any expectations.  I say this because stories have a magical way of weaving their own tale when the author is willing to step aside and allow the plot to evolve.  Ideas are genuine and valuable even when they make no sense at all.  Eventually, the fabric of creative thought weaves itself into a beautiful quilted story.  Because of that phenomenon, it is critical for every author to be prepared to capture ideas, thoughts and images as they reveal themselves.  The method for being the "tool", whose job it is to capture these revelations, varies with each author.

As a "tool", I chose to write with a pen on actual paper held within the confines of a plastic cover...aka: a notebook.  Indeed, I keep a notebook with me at all times and have been known many-a-time to pull over while driving to jot down dialogue that suddenly sounds or an image that appears, all within the confines of my very active mind. 

The notebook - my lifeline within the pool of imagination I swim in daily.  There is freedom that comes with having the ability to allow creativity at any time, in any place.  This freedom comes with having some way to facilitate the ideas that present themselves.  Of course, if the "tool" is not predisposed to writing long hand, anything else that allows some form of note keeping works.  It is simply a means to record the ideas as they come to mind allowing the author to draw on these documented ideas at a more convenient time. 

To say that my notebook is invaluable to my writing is the grossest understatement.  So many revelations are inscribed there.  I am thankful daily for the chance to preserve creative thought as it is gifted to me. 

And so this is my offering - the first step - a keeper of ideas documented within a journal. 

Happy writing and may creativity be gifted daily ~
Marti

The Necessity to Write

Only recently have I realized the correlation between the breath and my need to write.  Both are events which occur without much thought until the desperate moment when my soul become starved from lack of it.  Indeed, as the industrious Captain Phillips experienced when cast overboard, the survival instinct surfaces as oxygen is depleated.  Writing becomes oxygen and a fight-or-flight instinct to sit in silence and create is no less the survival process for an author.

Many have contacted me asking what to do when that urge to create bubbles.  Unaware of the "tools" needed to write, these talented authors struggle to "breathe" life into their story.  How to do it is the question..."how do I survive with this story screaming to surface?"

The thought crossed my mind that perhaps my brief experience as a published author, screenwriter and now producer might be of benefit to some.  The resulting shift in my intention for this blog site steers a different course for the words to be written on this site.  That intention will be to write for authors, historians, film creators and those who hunger for the means to release their story.  My hope is that I can offer something of substance to you.  This is done in humility and with the sincerest desire to share experience only, never assuming that you (my very learned collegues) are lacking.  In fact, the opposite is the case....I desire to learn from you as well and hope this blog will become a forum for authors, writers, visionaries, creators and imaginations everywhere.  Indeed, that is the title of the blog and the intent from the beginning.

Please return and partake of my experience, learn from my mistakes and successes and let's move forward as creators and imaginaries together.  Until the next post....

Namaste ~