Category: writing

What’s in a Name?

While endings may be my least favorite part of writing, the part I enjoy the most is naming my characters. Weird, I know. But I like coming up with the perfect name for each character, the name that just feels right. And I like names that have an appropriate meaning for that character, too, or at least have a meaning that’s somehow linked to the character. For example, I just finished naming the characters in the new DOTD story. My MC’s name is Acacia Fauve. She’s very standoffish and untrusting, and Acacia (well, Cacia, anyway) means thorny. She was also born in the jungle (which is an important part of the story), and Fauve means “wild and uninhibited.”

What’s your process for naming characters? I make a list of the characters I need names for, with a one- or two-word tag (i.e.: the princess). Then I brainstorm words that are linked to that character. These could be character traits, physical characteristics, or background info (like the jungle thing with Acacia). Then I go to a naming website, (I like BabyNames.com) and use the search function to find names that mean those things.

It’s not an exact science, but it works pretty well. Sometimes it even works after the fact. With my Witches story, I have a king named Vassilus. I have no idea where I got that name, but one day I was looking the name up. Apparently, it’s another form of the name Basil. Which means, yes indeed, king. How’s that for happy coincedence?

Pirates and Priests

You know what sucks? (Okay. Besides, you know, natural disasters, mean people, and running out of ice cream at an emotionally difficult time.) Let me rephrase that question. You know what my least favorite part about writing is? Endings. Yep. You’d think, after spending all that time with the characters and world and story, everything would just sort of wrap itself neatly up with a bow on top. (All of you writers out there, stop laughing. I know. But I used to think that’s the way it should happen. At least, until my favorite character died tragically at the end of my first story. Sniff…)

Seriously, though, endings are hard. Very hard. For me, anyway. Even if I know where I want the story to go, it’s difficult to make the denouement live up to the rest of the story. And that’s very important. If the ending doesn’t resolve things satisfactorily, then, as a reader, I’m left with the impression that the entire book sucked (for lack of a better word). If it does live up to the promise of the rest of the book, then a shiny golden aura surrounds the book in my mind. I want that aura around my own stories, so I get a case of…performance anxiety about the ending. Two movies I saw recently are good examples of good endings…and not-so-good ones. (No spoilers. I swear.)

I saw Priest a couple of weeks ago. Still not sure how I got talked into that, since I don’t do scary movies, and the trailer looked…quite scary. Vampires, Paul Bettany, and Karl Urban would normally be a sure bet for me, if it weren’t for the scary part. The movie had an interesting premise: vampires had once almost overrun the world, and a bada** group of warrior-priests were created to fight them and confine them to reservations. We’re not talking about cute, sparkly vampires here, either. Gross, slimy, beastly monsters is much more accurate. Anyway, the niece of one of the priests gets snatched by vamps and he defies the church in order to go after her. Turns out, his old priest buddy, whom he thought was killed by vampires, is actually the first known human vampire and is in charge of a nifty new vampire army intent on destroying all humans. It had all the makings of an epic showdown. The reality was….well, the words “anti-climatic,’ “convenient,” and “disappointing” leap immediately to mind.

Last night, I saw the new Pirates of the Caribbean movie: On Stranger Tides. Now, pretty much everyone on the planet should know the basic premise of the Pirates movies (and if you don’t, exactly what rock have you been hiding under?). They’re not deep, soul-searching types of movies. But fun and entertaining, yes. So, Captain Jack is trying to reach the Fountain of Youth before the English delegation, led by his old nemesis Captain Barbossa, and the Spanish delegation. Oh, and he’s up against the notorious Blackbeard, and Blackbeard’s daughter, whom Sparrow has a history with. Of course, much chaos and hand-gesturing ensues, but in the end, you know there’s going to be a big, violent showdown with lots of Captain Jack’s tricks and maneuverings. And the movie doesn’t disappoint. That’s exactly what happens. The viewer is not disappointed. Guess which movie I liked more?

So, as I get ready to start outlining my new story, my thought is this: I want a Pirates ending, not a Priestly one. (And as a side note, the vampire mermaids in Pirates are pretty freaking cool!)

Goals. And Strippers. And Maybe Some Writing Stuff…

You know what I’ve discovered after taking off months from working on anything related to writing? Getting back into the swing of things is hard. I mean really, really hard. I started working on revisions to the faerie story today. Wow. It’s like I forgot what the story was about. I’m using Holly Lisle’s How to Revise Your Novel, and this lesson involves the Monastery. If you’re familiar with the technique, can you imagine how difficult it was to keep track of everything when I haven’t really thought about this story in months? Yeah. I’m sure I missed some things. And if you’re not familiar, well, it’s an excellent technique (as is the class as a whole), and definitely worth the effort.

Also, I’ve been doing a bit of research for the new story, the DOTD (Day of the Dead) story. Very little, to be completely honest, but I’m hoping (No. I’m PLANNING.) on getting the last of my background details (of which there aren’t going to be too many) solidified today, and hopefully start outlining this weekend. Of course, it’s research, so I’m easily distracted by all the pretty, shiny lights (What? The Mayans practiced bloodletting as a form of worship? And made bread offerings of a specific number of grains? Hmmm…..), but I think I have some of the pertinent details I intend to use (where “use” means “twist to my own nefarious purposes”) nailed down. So, yay, I’ll finally be writing again!

In other news, I’m working on my 101 goals for the year. Maybe I should post them here and keep them updated? Yes? No? You don’t really give a crap? Well…goal #21 is: Start going out more. I’m working on that. Yes. As a matter of fact, last week, I went out so much I was exhausted at the end of it and practically comatose. First, I went out for dinner and drinks with a friend who was in from the Big Easy (had a great time, and I really miss hanging out with my friend…). The next night, I went out with a couple of the girls from work, and one of their sisters. Who is a stripper. Excuse me, an exotic dancer. (No, I did not put “start hanging out with colorful people” on my list. I already know plenty of those. I didn’t think it was necessary to state it explicitly.) On a slightly unrelated note, while we were out running around, I discovered I have the same taste in shoes as she does. (No, I don’t want to know what that says about me, thankyouverymuch. The shoes were cute. That’s all that matters. Pfft.). After that little adventure, the next night I hung out with an old friend ‘til 2 a.m. and then collapsed from exhaustion. This week…well, the new Pirates of the Caribbean movie comes out, so I’m definitely gonna see that. As for the rest of the weekend, well, I’m going to try to knock out at least two of my goals (#14 and #26)….

When Words Aren’t Enough

Emotional catharsis comes in a lot of forms. Runners log miles. Artists throw themselves into their paintings. Writers….write. For me, writing has always been a catharsis, whether it’s journaling or immersing myself in a story. Whatever I’m feeling, I pour it into the writing. Anger. Frustration. Despair. Joy. Hope. All of those go into the writing. One of my favorite writing quotes (from Red Smith) is “Writing is easy. I just open a vein and bleed.” This statement is so true. So very true. I think better on paper, whether “paper” is actually paper, or a computer screen or text message. Verbalizing things…I’m not so good at. I don’t like confrontations. I don’t like arguments. I despise drama. It’s more difficult for me to get my point across if I’m emotionally involved in the situation. That’s why I turn to words. They’ve been my salvation many times.

But what happens when words aren’t enough? When there are things you want to say, so many things, but you don’t get a chance to say them? Maybe you were never given the opportunity to actually say the words. Maybe words—or a lack of them—are actually part of the problem in the first place. Maybe a situation escalated because you were never told what was going on, and without that knowledge, it felt like something totally different was occurring. If you’d had the words, the situation never would have happened in the first place.

It’s hard enough to put words to what is actually occurring in your own life. If you’re on the outside of someone else’s life, and you’re never given any hints as to what they’re going through, choosing the wrong words is inevitable. Wrong words = misunderstandings and hurt. They can cut like a knife in an instant, and do damage that will never heal. Or they can drive a wedge between two people that will never disappear. But the right words can heal anything.

Between a Rock and a Hard Place

What, for you, is the hardest part of writing? The part that makes you want to bang your head against your desk (or the nearest wall), the part that you have to grit your teeth to get through? Is there a part of writing like that for you, or is it all sunshine and roses? (And if it is all sunshine and roses, you suck. Just sayin’. I’m jealous…)

I’ve been writing more or less seriously (depending on how you look at it) for the past 11 years. I love the thrill of getting a new idea, and planning a new story is great fun. (Sometimes a little too much fun, as I tend to plan all sorts of details that aren’t particularly necessary, and therefore keep myself from actually starting to write the story. But that’s a whole other post…) The rush of writing and getting what I see in my head down on paper is always (Okay, usually.) fun. I like talking about writing. I like thinking about writing.

But for me, the part I like least about writing is…revising. Yep. Revising=not so much fun to me. My revision process goes like this:

1) Finish draft, put it aside for at least 2 months.
2) Re-read draft and resist impulse to cry at how badly I suck!
3) Slog through the MS, trying to figure out how I managed to mess up my spiffy, pretty idea so badly…and try to repair it.
4) Actually cry when I couldn’t quite manage to make the actual draft match the vision in my head.

Well, at least that’s how my revision process used to work. And then I discovered Holly Lisle’s How To Revise Your Novel class. I’ve been a long-time member of Forward Motion for years. I’ve been in a private crit group there for years (Hello, any of my fellow Silver Griffins!). The crit group alone has taught me an astronomical amount. I would never have imagined that critiquing other people’s work would teach me so much about my own, but it did. I took Holly’s How To Think Sideways class, and while I know some of the techniques escaped me, I learned a lot. So, when she created HTRYN, I jumped at that chance, baby! A system to actually teach me how to revise, and how to look at each aspect of revision logically (and therefore avoid the whole crying/head-banging thing?). I was there!

I’ve only used the class to revise one full novel so far, but I’m a third of the way through my second revision with it. Is it easy? No. Is it still painful? Yes. Do I still want to cry when I realize what I wrote doesn’t quite match up to my vision? Yeeesss. Do I actually cry now? NO!

Revision is still my least favorite part of writing, but this class has made it much less painful. More like minor surgery without anesthesia, instead of…a double amputation. And I think it’s awesome that Holly does so much to pay it forward to other writers. I’ve read several of her books, and enjoyed them all, and the amount of work she puts into helping other writers is phenomenal. Her amount of knowledge–and she freely admits that these techniques are what work for her–is also astonishing. If you haven’t yet checked out her site, you should. In addition to the paid courses, she also has a bunch of helpful freebies and writing advice.

So, tell me, what’s your least favorite part of writing?

Done!

Yay! I finished the first draft of a MS today. It’s not perfect. It’s not pretty. It is, however, finished. I have no immediately plans to revise it. It will sit for a while as I write something else, and I’m already revising another story, so I definitely can’t revise it yet. It’s the sequel to something I’m hoping to put through my crit group sometime, so revising it at this point is probably a waste of effort. But at least it’s finished.

Of course, this means I can give my full writing-attention to the new story…the one that the Muse is still playing with. I love new stories! They’re so fun!

Backstory…or not?

So, I’m reading Those that Wake, by Jesse Karp, (which doesn’t hit shelves until March 21st, by the way), and it starts off with what seems perfectly normal days in characters’ lives. One of the characters, a high school student, wakes up late for an important interview for an internship. At this point, it seems the story world is normal. Then the author starts dropping hints of a 9/11-style disaster, the aftereffects of which have been contained by a dome, and you start figuring out that this is a future society where today’s smart phones would be the obsolete equivalent of rotary phones, and everything is recorded and digitalized to within an inch of its life. And then the character tries to call her parents and they have no memory of her whatsoever. Her school has no record of her. She has no idea what’s going on. I’m 150 pages into the book, and I…don’t really have a clue what’s going on. Don’t get me wrong, I’m intrigued, and I want to know. I just…don’t.

My question is, as a reader, do you prefer to have a solid grasp on what’s happening in the book you’re reading right up front? I don’t mean you know every little detail and there aren’t any surprises in store. I’m talking mainly about world-building and cultural/societal details. I didn’t know right up front this was some sort of dystopian futuristic story, and it didn’t exactly throw me off-balance, but I didn’t have a solid grip on setting.

And as a writer…what’s the best way to set the stage for your readers setting-wise, so to speak?

Spring Fever

I’m ready for spring. I know the weather has been very spring-like for the last few weeks, but I’m ready for full-fledged, official spring. I always get spring fever. Every year. When the weather gets warm, I want to be going somewhere, doing something. It doesn’t even matter what. Just something. I love the Texas wildflowers in springtime, too. The Indian paintbrushes and the bluebonnets that bloom along the roadside are my absolute favorite flowers, and they are one of the things I missed when I lived out of state, so I’m really looking forward to seeing them this year.

Unfortunately, I’m also easily distracted in the springtime. That makes writing a little more difficult. Even sitting here right now, with the window open, I can hear the birds singing, and I find myself listening to that instead of writing. I guess that’s a sign I need to start working on writing discipline a little harder again. My daily word count goal isn’t much, but sometimes it’s a struggle, and sometimes I find myself rambling a bit. Part of that is that I’m down to the last third of the MS. Part of it is I’ve got another story idea growing in my mind, and the lure of something new and shiny is distracting the Muse. (And telling the Muse to focus apparently doesn’t work, either. I’ve tried.) Any suggestions for staying on target are welcome!

Blah

You know those weeks where it feels like the whole world just exploded on your head for no apparent reason? Where everything goes wrong, or everything just feels wrong? Yeah. I’m having one of those weeks. Not sure why. On the surface, things seem to be going (mostly) okay, but my attitude just sucks lately.

The revisions on the faerie story are going pretty well. Not fantastically well or anything, but, well, revisions are hard. I’m still getting bits of writing done every day. Not a lot, but enough to make me happy. And the Muse is still tinkering around with the new story idea. I have almost a full page of random notes on it, although some of them seem to be a bit…fragmented. The story, or parts of it, keep waking me up in the middle of the night, which is a very good sign.

Hopefully I’ll get out of my blue funk and be much cheerier, well, as cheery as I ever get, soon.

Where’d the Week Go?

Seriously. How is already Saturday night? The week’s over, and I’m not really sure what I accomplished this week. Let’s see…I remember doing homework. More homework. And yes, MORE homework. That’s an awful lot of school work, especially since I can’t remember what else I did this week. *thinking….thinking*….Hmm. I wrote two book reviews for Examiner.com. Read a few books (the first four books in Michelle Sagara’s Chronicles of Elantra series. Really enjoying them.) Ah….what else? I can’t think of anything else. That’s just…ridiculous. Oh! I did get some writing done. Yes. About 3500 words this week. I know it’s not a lot, but it’s steady writing every day, and that’s my main goal.

My Muse is working on a new story idea. I can feel it! I should probably be writing some of the details she throws at me down. Things are coming together. I have a vague idea of a character, well, two, and the main conflict, so that’s cool. The setting is coming together, too, and it should be something radically different than I’ve ever written before. I’m actually starting to get really excited about the idea, but I’m trying not to rush my Muse. Bad idea, that.

No revisions done this week. Which gives me…two days to finish Lesson 4 of HTRYN. Guess I need to get on that, huh? Okay. I’m off to do more homework. Two exams next week, and some essay questions that are waiting for my attention (Not the kind of writing I enjoy. At all.) And I’ll have another book review up tomorrow.