Wednesday's Writing Prompt – Bored

Your character is bored. Plain and simple. There's nothing to do. Nothing on TV. No one to talk to. He's desperately wanting for something to happen. So he begins looking around the room he is in.

Describe what he sees. Have him move around, touching things, picking them up, shifting them around. Think about how things feel in addition to how they look. Does he move things around or put them back exactly in their place? Then, he discovers something surprising. What is it? Perhaps he notices an object that wasn't there before – that he's certain wasn't left by him. Maybe he's finds that an object he thought was solid actually has a hidden compartment within it. Or, he finds a note slipped between two dusty books. How does this discovery affect your character? Is this beginning of a new conflict, or somehow tied to a preexisting one? What are the thoughts going through your characters mind? What does this set in motion? Where will this lead your character?

Perfection Comes from Patience — Not in the First Draft

This week, I worked on one scene for quite some time — much longer than I can remember working on another singular scene in a quite a while. Although there were plenty of moments of sitting and thinking, or jumping ahead to get down the other ideas that popped into my mind for later scene, I kept coming back to this one scene: working and reworking it; contemplating what I wanted to say and the appropriate responses of the characters; balancing the need to give information while also trying to make sure it remained interesting and moving forward. It was quite a doozy. But when I started to think about why it was so hard, it became really clear to me. It wasn't just hard because I was having a writing-block moment. It was because it really mattered. And the scenes that really matter the most are often the hardest to write.

See, the part I was most stuck on is a portion of a scene in which my two characters discover some super important information that they've been looking for for quite some time now. So not only is it a typical scene where pacing must be right and interesting things have to happen, but it's also a time where their characterization is key, and their reactions must be believable, and the important information must be perfectly stated in just the right way to help all the pieces tie together. Oh yeah, and, they read it from a book. So of course, I have to write the text of that book with a distinct voice of its own. Lots of layers, right?

Most of the problem wasn't finding the words themselves, but actually figuring out what I needed to say in the right way. Within my novel, I've conceived this scene as one that plays a pivotal role in getting my protagonist closer to the mystery she is trying to solve. So I want the details to be perfect. And I want to make sure this isn't just another scene that gives some information, but that it is a scene that marks a shift between the first part of her journey and the second. With this new knowledge, she will be able to go out, to set forth into the quest she is destined for and become empowered to seek her goal. But the more I thought about how important I wanted this scene to be, and how each detail had to be right, the harder it became.

I brain-stormed. I talked to a friend about it. I wrote and deleted, moved things around, thought some more, brains-stormed some more, and continued writing. And I am happy to say that I got it to a place I am comfortable with. But it certainly was a struggle.

Sometimes, we put added pressure on scenes to make them right the first time, which is of course exactly what I described about. But while I think this is very important, especially within the most pivotal one or two scenes within your book, I also think it's important to remember that you, and I, still have time to work out all the kinks in revision. I mean, perhaps my later scenes will better help me understand my current scene. In fact, I am quite sure that it will — for when I can see the work as a complete whole, I will have a better view of all the pieces and how they fit together. And maybe later I'll change my mind about how I want my protagonist to react. Or the perfect bit of dialogue will pop in my head while I'm riding the T or working on a project at work.

But I have to realize that just because it's hard, and just because it comes at this exact point in my story doesn't mean I have to have it all together now. There are many drafts to come. So perhaps I can just ease up a bit, knowing that I've got something down that already had a lot of thought behind it.

I may have a detailed outline now, but remembering that my novel, as a first draft, is fluid and has the time and space to change is important both to the success of the novel, and to my sanity. So while I fully believe in working hard and writing intentionally in the first draft, I need to remember that perfect doesn't have to happen today; and that all great novels and finished products were not so great at the get-go. They come with time. They come with patience.

So as I move onto the next scene, let's all take a deep breath, and trust that we did our best, and still have a whole lot of great work in front of us. We can do it. I am sure we can. Happy Writing!

Wednesday's Writing Prompt — Visitor

Your character has a visitor coming. But not just any visitor — the person who creates the most stress and tension; someone who comes with the highest of expectations.

Who is this visitor? Is this visit for business purposes? A personal relationship? A parent or guardian? What are the potential ramifications of the visit? Does your character stand to lose anything if the meeting does not go well? Or is she perhaps trying to gain something from the exchange?

Think about all the steps she needs to go through to prepare. Cleaning, getting work done, planning the right outfit, providing the right food. Take your character through a series of preparatory steps, all the while using the actions to reflect her internal feelings. Does she talk to herself as she goes? Or is she constantly frustrated by her plans not working out as she'd hoped? Or do things go smoothly, and the only thing left to worry about is the moment when the visitor arrives at her door?

Themes — What Are They and Why They Matter

A couple weeks ago, my mentor asked me to consider what themes I wanted to come across in my book. After my second batch of pages, she said now was about the time when they should start to emerge. Reading her comments, I nodded my head before realizing that I wasn't quite sure exactly what she meant by 'theme' or how exactly I should be working it into my pages. I mean, I don't want my book coming across as some kind of didactic 'message book' that tells the reader exactly what I want them to think and feel about a certain topic. So during our next conversation, I asked her directly (despite feeling a little dumb), and said, "What exactly do you mean by themes? And how should I bring them out more?"

I don't know if you're like me, but I know that we all understand what a theme is. We've all been through middle school and standardized testing where someone asks us to identify the theme of a passage. But still, when it came to trying to make one in my own writing, or more so, trying to make one stand out within the pages, I felt a little unsure. So this is what my mentor said: A theme is a message I want my reader to take away from my book. Not a didactic lesson, or a judgement on how to live, but more of a human connection created between my characters and my reader. Thinking about it this way, I nodded my head for real. A theme is the connected, shared emotion I want to offer my reader. Yes, it is in some ways a message, but it should be based around emotion and struggle and the truth that sometimes living is hard.

Doing a writing exercise to brainstorm just what I thought my themes could be, I came up with three take-aways for my novel. Sharing them with my mentor, she thought they all fit well within the context of the story, and were good messages for readers to connect with. But while this helped me come to a greater understanding of just what my themes should be, and how a theme or themes fit into my book at all, it left me with the question of how exactly to get these themes across.

I think the answer can be different for each and every theme, and each and every book. For some, it is continually pointing out a significant struggle or lesson your character is dealing with without stating it directly, while for others, a theme might have to be explicitly stated by one of your characters in the book. Regardless, writing with the intention and knowledge of your themes is an essential aspect of getting them across. For example, one of my themes for my current novel is tradition — both the break of, and the discomfort and sometimes negative consequences of doing so, as well as the creation of new traditions that come from following your heart. Although I am not inserting the word tradition in every other sentence, or having the adult characters always talk about it or my protagonist agonize over it either, tradition has become a large part of my plot, and thus affects the action of the story tremendously. So while some might not identify tradition as a theme within my text, because it is intertwined with the plot so heavily, it is something a reader isn't like to miss — whether they can articulate its importance or not.

But regardless of how exactly you work theme into your narratives, I've come to realize that theme — the moment of emotional connectedness that will stay with the reader after the book has come to a close — is an important part of both the writing and reading experience. The trick is to find a theme that seamlessly fits into your novel and is true to the heart of the story you are writing.

Themes need to have an authentic connection to the story itself. Trying to throw in a message that has nothing to do with your actual storyline isn't going to help you at all. If anything, it will stand out as misplaced and perhaps even come across as didactic. So taking some time to stop and think about the messages your story is sending you is a good place to start. After all, while you are the writer, you are also a novel's first and truest reader. So make sure it resonates with you first and is something you care deeply about, for how else with your future readers care and connect with this theme.

Perhaps theme comes across a bit more overtly in texts for children or is even more significant, but it is undoubtedly present within adult novels as well. Theme, as defined by this emotional connection, is what will elevate your story from a good narrative to one that resonates with your reader. It will sharpen your novel and make your story memorable rather than a text defined for only a good plot or characterization. Theme gets at the heart of the story you are telling. And ultimately, it's the hearts of the reader we are targeting, not just their brain. So spend some time thinking about the heart behind your story, and just what you want to convey. It will make your story better, and perhaps connect you even more closely to your characters than before.

Wednesday's Writing Prompt — Valentine's Day

Your character is the object of someone's affection, and it just happens to be Valentine's Day. How does your character feel about this person? It is unrequited love? Love that is felt just as strongly in return? Or a struggling relationship which is only magnified by the pressure of the holiday?

Place these two characters in a situation together. Perhaps they share a classroom, get stuck next to each other during a long car ride, or have schedule to get together for a date in honor of St. Valentine. How will their relationship unfold? Is your protagonist the one to initiate conversation, or is he the more passive one in the situation. Did one send the other a valentine, or forget all together? Begin a dialogue and see where it takes them.

Now throw in a third person — an unexpected presence that makes one or more of your characters uncomfortable. Why does she make things uncomfortable? Is she simply a friend showing up at the wrong moment, or someone acting out of spite or jealousy? How does she change the action of your scene? What does your protagonist do in response?

Speak Up! — Avoiding Hesitant Characters and Using Your Words to Assert Meaning

Receiving my pages back from my mentor this weekend, one thing that jumped out at me through her insightful comments was the occasional and sometimes not so occasional slip from a strong, assertive voice to a more tentative, hesitant one. Instead of my character saying something in a strong, positive manner, the language I chose made it seem almost as if they didn't really want to speak of their feelings,  or they weren't quite sure what they thought. But certainly, this is not a good way for my characters to come across, and not an effective manner for establishing a strong, engaging story for the reader.

When reading a story, it is important for the characters to come across as people who have a consistent voice, know who they are (to some extent), and convey their emotions in a clear manner. Of course, this does not mean that all characters always know how they feel or what they want, or that a character can't be inconsistent if that is what an author intends. But even so, creating characters who only half-way say what they mean or never fully say what they are trying to convey doesn't make for a strong reading experience, or for a character who will last well beyond the last page turn of the book.

I think part of this tendency comes from our own hesitation as writers sometimes. I know that in working through this first draft of my current novel, I'm not always sure exactly what I want to say or how I want to say it for every line. But we don't want the characters to reveal whatever hesitation we have as writers. We want them to stand strong, defined on the page, and confidently owning who they are. Even if you have a character who is completely lacking self-confidence or is desperately unsure of who she is, you still need her to assert herself as unconfident, perhaps not by saying so, but by simply using the words she speaks to convey a decisive point. This may sound a bit confusing as we are getting into the line between us writers (or creators) creating and controlling these characters and the characters sometimes creating and dictating their own paths, but still — the point is that each of our characters need to assert something. Whether its fear, joy, trepidation, anger, or insecurity, no character can do this half way. At least not an effective character.

Words like "probably" and "possible", the passive voice, and phrases like "she could feel" instead of "she felt"are all good indicators that perhaps a sentence needs to be reevaluated and made stronger. Having another person read through your work and look for these things is a helpful tool for identifying your own hesitant writing since we all know that we miss things when we read our own work. And, remembering that this will be something you can make better again and again as you work through your revisions is something to keep in mind. We all struggle with making our words convey exactly what we want them, too. So it's certainly not just you, and it's not just me. 

But when I think about the books that affected me the most, or the books for which I admire the prose or the strength of character, all of them have this same element in common. Their words assert meaning. And their characters' words clearly convey who they are, uniquely, consistently, and with no shame. So as we work through our prose, and develop our characters, let's keep this in mind: write characters who are not hesitant to reveal who they are, even if they are only revealing insecurities. And don't be afraid to rework that sentence over and over again, until the right words shine and are just as powerful as you had hoped. 

Wednesday's Writing Prompt — A Walk in the Woods

Your character is taking a walk in the woods. There is snow all around. Silence fills there air. Is your character used to this climate, or is it entirely new to him? Is he trying to get somewhere specific, or just needing to clear his head? Perhaps he simply loves the stillness.

But then, he notices something up ahead. A rustling. A light. Something unexpected. What is it? Does your character know? Was this the purpose of his walk? Or does he feel trepidation about what might be ahead? Does he choose to turn around or does he continue onward, to see what it is.

What is on the other side? Is it symbolic? Realistic? Transformative? Does the reader know before your character does, and if your character chooses to turn back, how does the mystery affect his life?

The Super Bowl of Writing — Reminders to Help Us Get There and Keep Chasing After the Dream

Every year there is a lot of hype about the Super Bowl. Almost everyone watches it, snacks are provided, and everyone tunes into the see the infamous half-time show which people either love or criticize. And for the fans of the teams who are in the game, and undoubtedly those who just really love the sport, there is a lot of excitement that comes with this day. But this week I started thinking, for every player who made the Super Bowl, there are exponentially more who didn't.  And for every person who worked hard to get there, there are just as many more whose hard work didn't land them in the game this time. But even though they didn't make it this year, none of those players watching from home love the game any less. And no one is giving up on the dream of the Super Bowl next year.

So why all this thought about the Super Bowl, you ask. Because I think it is a great metaphor for writing, and the place I find myself in now, and know many of my friends and fellow writers are in, too.

I know for me, and many of my friends, there is a lot of hope and anxiety around finishing your book quickly, making all the revisions, sending out to agents, and of course, getting published. But yet, in the same way that not every team gets to the Super Bowl every year, not every project we write is going to be an instant success. Do you ever have those days where you sit in front of the computer for hours and barely get half as far as you wanted? Or those days where the sentences just aren't coming out right, and you know there is totally a better way to say it that is just simply eluding you? Or, after sending out hundreds of queries, you still can't get anyone to bite? I think the answer is we all go through these things as we work hard to reach out Super Bowl of writing: publication.

But even though it can be discouraging to not make it into the final game of the year, or not get accepted for publication right away, I think it is often important to reflect on the reasons why we write – and why we love to write. So that's why I'm writing this post – to remind us all, and certainly myself, that sometimes things don't happen as quickly or quite the way we want them, but that doesn't mean they won't happen in the future, and that absolutely doesn't mean we should give up on the dreams that we love.

I know for me, from fourth grade and beyond, sometimes all I wanted to do was read. Going to the bookstore was the best, and coming out with a stack full of books so generously given to me by my parents was even better. I loved the stories I plunged myself into every week. I loved the characters and the new world views and all I learned from experiencing life after life through these fictional worlds that became so real, as if they were happening all around me. I couldn't get enough of reading, and while I enjoyed many other things as well, nothing quite felt the same way as spending time with a truly fabulous book.

So as I got older, kept reading and started writing, I realized the books that meant the most to me, the shaped my world view and became part of my beating heart, were the books of my youth. And the idea that I could make a book that so affects someone the way hundreds of books affected me — breathtaking. If only I am so blessed.

So maybe I haven't quite reached my Super Bowl of sorts yet. And maybe you haven't reached yours either. Or perhaps you are stepping into the arena for the very first time, or are even a season pro returning for another great game. But remembering why we write, and why we love books in the hard moments, big and small, can help us to keep going. Those reminders can help us train hard and stay focused; they can help us reach out for help when we need it and keep us reading all we can. But one thing that is true about all of us writers is that we love books, and we love the idea that our created worlds could do for another what others have done for us.

So why do you write? And how can that keep you motivated when you just need that extra push of encouragement as you faithfully pursue your own Super Bowl?