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Writing The Middle: Cue the Ominous Music.

January 17, 2011

I’m in the middle of my novel and it’s a bit of a scary thing.

Though I’ve a point of departure (my beginning) and a destination in mind (my end), in between I’ve got great, murky swaths of The Unknown to traverse through.

I am in The Middle a.k.a. The Great Unknown.

Generally, I am using a previous scene to build the current scene and thus I am inching my way slowly forward through the dark. Sort of like building a bridge across a chasm with tiny Lego bricks. Little bit by little bit, I am stretching my way from Beginning to End–

And of course I am trying to ratchet up the tension with each small step forward (cue the Ominous Music).

It makes for an unnerving experience.

Because anything could happen. They’re sitting in a room and they could talk or they could fight or they could kiss.

Or a cat could jump out from a closet and scare them or they could hear a scream or they could fall asleep because their tea was drugged.

Or they could decide to eat oysters or ham or white soup or they could go for a walk.

Or they could discover the Professor stabbed in the back, slouched over a potted fern.

My characters and I are constantly in the present moment, never knowing what the next moment (or Lego brick) is until it appears like magic. Poof!

(Sort of like real life, I guess.)

Writer, is this your experience of The Middle? Or is it more of a Happy Place for you?

Personally, I’m finding it pretty freaky!

Posted in Plot | 5 Comments »

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The Reminder…

December 29, 2010

Posted in The Writing Life | 2 Comments »

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Why Writing a Novel is Like Shopping For A Pair of Jeans…

December 14, 2010

Sometimes writing a novel is like trying to buy a pair of jeans….

With this latest scene I’m working on, it’s like I’ve taken 50 pairs of jeans of all kinds—low rise, boot-cut, sequined, dark fabric, light fabric and acid washed—and dragged them into a small, cramped, badly lit change room to wrestle with. And each time, I’m twisting this way and that, catching every angle, trying to decide—is THIS the one?

But nothing is FITTING right.

I’ve rewritten this scene a dozen different ways, providing minor alterations to the details (in jean parlance: button fly vs. zipped) as well as major alterations (in jean parlance: skinny legs vs. baggy). My characters have tried arguing, making nice, kissing, witty banter—and now I’ve got him skipping out on the meeting altogether—the heroine is left stewing in her second hand clothes, wondering why the Devil he’s stood her up—.

And yet even that doesn’t feel/fit right…

Sometimes the writing flows and other times it’s like this and I have to try every word on, evaluate, discard. Try another word on, evaluate, discard. Repeat, repeat, REPEAT. Until I have a heap of words in the corner of the change room and I’m storming out in a fit of pique…

Worse than going jeans shopping, I tell you!

Anybody else out there have this problem?

Posted in Flow, The Writing Life | 6 Comments »

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Smelling the Setting: My Novel Isn’t Smelly Enough!

December 1, 2010


I realized recently that my novel doesn’t smell right, by which I mean it doesn’t have enough smells.

The setting of my book is London, 1813–a time of a particular…er…olfactory ripeness when horses pooped in the streets, people rarely bathed or had clean teeth and everyone tossed their body wastes into the gutter.

In other words, if my dream were to suddenly come true and I was instantly tele-ported back in time to London of 1813–let’s say, in the crush of an Almack’s ball scene in high summer, for instance–I would probably take one whiff and pass out from the shock of it. My delicate modern day nose wouldn’t be able to handle all of that body odor!

Eau de London 1813. Ew, indeed.

Smells, however, can make a place come alive. Scent is a very powerful body sense, linked to taste. If I say ‘lemon’ your mouth can curdle. If I say ‘coal smoke’, my nose can feel that acrid burn. Bringing these essences to the setting enrich it, make it believable, livable, alive.

I’ve decided my novel isn’t smelly enough.

Is yours?

Posted in Regency, Setting | 7 Comments »

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Cursed/Blessed: A Writer’s Existance

November 24, 2010

When you’re a writer, there are really only 2 states of existence.

Writing & Not Writing.

There is no other state of being beyond these two.

The ideal state to be in, of course, is WRITING. This is the bliss, the joy, the goal. Always, you are scheming in the back of your mind: when will I be writing? Maybe after lunch I will be writing? Maybe when the kids are asleep I will be writing? Maybe before I go to my day job I will be writing?

And Heaven Help You if you have spare time, and you are NOT WRITING…

“OMG, why am I watching TV? I should be WRITING!”

For when you are WRITING, you are assuaged. Even if all you are writing is crap, at least you can say: Thank god I’m doing it! I’m WRITING!

It’s the elemental teeter-totter, the unyielding ying/yang tidal pull of deciding to call yourself ‘A WRITER’.

It’s always there, in the back of your mind or at the fore, when you’re shopping or cooking dinner or talking on the phone or at work or walking the dog or skiing or at the computer or whatever. You are always thinking about where you are in that WRITING/NOT WRITING continuum, this eternal push-pull–

Such is the curse/blessing of choosing The Writing Life (or does it choose you?).

‘Curse’ because the demand to write never ceases; the muse is a constant nag.

‘Blessing’ because the joy of writing surpasses all the pain-in-the-butt-ness (for which we thank the muse, she/he deserves a big wet kiss and a box of bonbons…)

And never the 2 modes do we leave…

(I’ve never noticed a third state of existence. Have you?)

Posted in The Writing Life | 6 Comments »

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In Honour of #NaNoWriMo…

November 7, 2010

Twitter is constantly abuzz these days with #nanowrimo business, writers shouting out their word counts with ecstatic glee: 600 words! 1000 words! 2000 words! They’re trying to make it to *50, 000* words by the end of November. They’re racing, rushing, pushing, striving, laying it all down as fast as they can. A full 175 page novel, totally from scratch!

Are you people crazy?!

Don’t get me wrong. I’m in awe! I’ve been chipping away at my novel for the past 10 years. I’ve set my goal of having it done in one year, which, given my track record, seemed pretty reasonable. But you people make me look like a tree sloth, writing/moving in mega slow motion, just hanging upside down, surveying the world with a slow tongue flick…in the time it takes you #nanowrimo folks to dash out 15 pages, I’ve written the letter ‘m’…

I’m flabbergasted by your goal setting.

A month?! You’re going to write a novel in a month?!

I’m not sure how you are accomplishing this. I presume you have:

-disconnected your phone (but not your internet connection)

-called in a month’s worth of sick days

-stocked up on Red Bull and energy bars

-hired a cleaning service

-bookmarked all those on-line fast food ordering services so you don’t have to cook

-placed a ‘DO NOT DISTURB’ sign on your back so those who dare approach you while you’re at the computer know they’d better BACK OFF!

I’m impressed. So very impressed. You’re a  bunch of determined, gritty, impassioned…disheveled, exhausted insomniacs…

Only writers would willingly sign up for a project of this masochistic magnitude. One they’re not even being paid for it. It’s all a labor of love!

You gotta admire the gumption. Writers are the best!

This blog is dedicated to you guys. Best of luck, everyone! I’m cheering for you!

Posted in The Writing Life, Twitter | 2 Comments »

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Relax, it’s just an adverb!

November 2, 2010

I’m going to confess it right now: I like adverbs. I realize this makes me a social pariah in writer circles. I’ve seen it time and time again, on all different kinds of ‘writing tips’ sites, how much writers dislike the -ly words, advising things like:

Use adverbs sparingly–or, better yet, not at all!

Adverbs can’t do anything a good verb couldn’t do!

Adverbs are the mark of an unskilled and lazy writer!

Boo, shame on you, adverbs! And shame on you writers who use more than 1 adverb! Boo! Hiss! Boo!

Do a google search for ‘writing tips-adverbs’ and you’ll see what I mean…

However, like all other writing advice, I tend to take this with a grain of salt. My attitude is certainly more relaxed than others would have it.

While I don’t think every sentence needs an adverb, neither do I think we need to avoid them as if they were publishing poison; a serious offense worthy of the Grammar police. Yes, every word you lay down in your novel should be there ‘for a reason’. Yes, examine your word choices and and choose judiciously. But some of those words you choose can be adverbs, for gods sake! They won’t bite!

Would everyone please just relax!?!

Personally, I love to experiment with adverbs. In my last writing session alone, I tried out these delicious morsels:

firmly, testily, emphatically, smoothly, wearily

These are all good words, to my mind. Am I going to keep them all? I don’t know. It’s only a first draft. Maybe I’ll change them in re-write. Or maybe I’ll keep them. I like them, frankly. I think they have *pizazz*.

I’ve also got a prissy Regency-era narrator speaking in my WIP. She likes adverbs. She also says ‘quite’ a lot and speaks in exclamation! (Another big no-no, apparently. One writing tip I once read suggested only 1 exclamation point per novel! Imagine! Only one! Ha! Ha! Ha!)

Do I sound defensive? Yes, I guess I am! I am defending the adverb (and the exclamation point and the word ‘quite’) from eventual extinction! Use them, damn it! Use your adverbs! Exclaim away! Be ‘quite’ rebellious! Go for it, gleefully! Joyfully! Judiciously! Select one of those dusty adverbs squandering away on the top shelf, rescue it from dereliction, give it a shampoo, cut and a blow dry and see how it sparkles! Go on, give it a try!

I’ve also got bucketfuls of exclamation marks to give away, free! Sprinkle those amongst your prose like little fairy gumdrops, why don’t you? Just for the heck of it! See what it’s like!

(God, sometimes I hate reading ‘writing tips’, don’t you? Thou shalt, thou shalt not… They get my back up. Well, I guess now my nose has been thoroughly thumbed in that direction…)

PS. How about you? What’s your take on adverbs: do you think they’re evil incarnate or something more benign? Please leave your comments below!

Posted in Grammar, The Writing Life | 8 Comments »

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#teasertuesday: Later that night…

October 19, 2010

Bogged down by teaching commitments for the past while, I haven’t been able to do much work on my WIP: my comedic Regency mystery. To get myself back in the mood, I thought I’d post an excerpt on #teasertuesday!

This scene is the one I am currently working on: Sir Milburn has shown up in Caroline’s room in the middle of the night..

This excerpt takes place mid scene.

**

“What now?” I asked, with limited patience. “Has Lord Wavelry drunk too much Madeira again?”

“Actually, he’s gone.”

“Gone!” I laughed.  I couldn’t believe it, so I repeated it: “Gone!”

“Yes, gone. And I implore you, again, Caro, to keep your voice down.”

“What madness is this?”

“You may well ask.”Aggrieved, he ran his hands through his hair, messing it even more becomingly. “Somehow in spite of being guarded by myself and four of the best Runners in the country, he managed to give us the slip.  He’s eluded us all. We can’t find him.”

“What?”

“Lord Waverly. He escaped from my custody. About 21 hours ago. While we were in Hampshire.”

“What?” I was getting annoyed with my own repetitiveness. But—honestly: what? “How is that possible?”

“We underestimated him, that’s how. We thought he was drunk and he fooled us.”

“What?”

Sir Milburn stirred impatiently.

“Might we sit down to discuss this, Caro? This could take a while.”

So saying he stepped away and pulled the chair away from the vanity table.

“Uh—” I replied, hesitantly. He was supposed to be leaving, wasn’t he?

“Go on,” he insisted, gesturing at the chair. “You sit here and I’ll sit over here.” He now took the chair that belonged to the scroll top desk and placed it so it faced the other. Then he looked at me expectantly.

We were each deliberately ignoring the bed, a vastly more comfortable place to settle—.

“All right,” I sighed.

We sat—formally, primly—like two people meeting each other at a Barrister’s office—which was absurd. Just absurd. This was my bedchamber.  It was the middle of the night.   On top of that, we were dressed like a couple of refugees, with me in my get-up and he, with no jacket, no waistcoat, no cravat; a torn shirt. And no boots either, I realized. Just stockinged feet.

The better to sneak into my room with, I presumed.

Posted in #teastertuesday, Novel Excerpts | 6 Comments »

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Writer’s Bliss

September 28, 2010

There is nothing quite like Writer’s Bliss–especially after a period of Writer’s Block. I’ve spent many days now struggling over this scene, shaping it, molding it, fussing over it…and then today it’s there, it feels right, it flows, it’s exactly how I want it to be, it’s so fantastic–

And it’s FUN!

It’s so great when this happens, this feeling of ‘oh-my-God-it’s-working!’ that you just want to put it on a billboard, write it in the sky, shout it as you dance a jig down the streets tossing bouquets of flowers to all your neighbors!

I’M A WRITER AND I LOVE IT AND I WOULDN’T TRADE IT FOR ANYTHING!

*Note-to-self: remember to tuck this amazing feeling away to relive again when times get rough.

Posted in The Writing Life | 4 Comments »

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Blah Blah Boring

September 24, 2010

I’ve a character in my novel who needs to explain a few things to the heroine. He needs to tell about what happened when he went to the Red Lion Inn a few days ago…its very important to the plot, so it must be done. This information must be revealed and he has to tell her . It can’t come across in flashbacks or a dream sequence or any other writer-trick, because the book’s written in the heroine’s voice, first person. He tells her the news and she tells the reader, and, of course, she reacts and converses back at him and tells the reader all about that, too.

Sounds simple?

No.

It’s actually quite painful to write an explanation. Though necessary, the detail is tedious and it feels like it takes too long to impart. I’ve tried breaking it down into chunks, and delivering it via dialogue, interspersed with the heroines’ wry observations and her own lively reactions, but still it comes across like some kind of boring legal document, overloaded with detail after detail:

And so, in part a, subsection i, sub-subsection 1.0, the man then followed the other man down the street to the physicians.

In part a, subsection i, sub-section 1.1, the man waited outside the physician’s house for the man to reappear…

Either that, or I have a bad case of the “and then’s”, such as:

And then he followed him down the street. And then he waited outside. And then he saw a body being carried to a horse cart. And then…

ARG! How do I make this explanation less boring? Any and all suggestions greatly appreciated!

Posted in Character, Flow, Plot, Writer's Block | 7 Comments »

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