90 Days to Your Novel

Hello, all.  I’m excited to be presenting a live Webinar, “Write Your Novel in 90 Days,” through Writer’s Digest University this Thursday (3/31) from 1-2:15. Click here to register!

Those who register will also receive an individual critique from me on their novel synopsis or the first few pages of their work.

Here’s some of the marketing copy from Writer’s Digest:

What you’ll learn:

• How to plan in advance for hurdles during your 90-day challenge
• How to find or form a writers’ group to better your chance of success
• Assessing your novel’s marketability
• The purpose, function, and usefulness of outlining, along with tips for creating one
• How to shape the arc of your story
• Getting your readers to care from page one
• The biggest mistakes writers make when approaching a novel

Of course, I’ll be talking about a few other things, too.  But you’ll have to tune in to find out.

Looking forward to talking shop on Thursday!

I’m happy to have a short piece, “Love Letter to the Mercantile,” in this month’s issue of Talking Writing.  Check it out—and while you’re there, take a look at some of the other excellent work featured in this issue that explores the provocative topic, Is Print Dead? Yet?

One day, libraries may become a relic of our pasts.  I can still recall a movie we watched during “Library Period” in elementary school.  (Yes, an entire period dedicated to the library!)  The movie was called Tomes and Talismans, a post-apocalyptic series about aliens taking over Earth.  A librarian, Ms. Bookhart, somehow rescues planet Earth, saves all record of human knowledge found in a hidden, underground library, and, at the same time, instructs some children on the proper way to use the Dewey Decimal System. AWESOME!

Here’s a clip:

Really, it doesn’t get much better than that.

On March 31st at 1:00, I’ll be hosting a webinar over at Writer’s Digest.  Details to come!

During this 90-minute session, I’ll be discussing:

• How to plan in advance for hurdles during your novel-writing challenge
• How to find or form a writers’ group to better your chance of success
• How to assess your novel’s marketability
• The purpose, function, and usefulness of outlines, along with tips for creating one
• How to shape the arc of your story
• How to get your readers to care from page 1
• The biggest mistakes writers make when approaching a novel

And more!

(I love how marketing blurbs always say: And more!)

Whether we choose to believe it or not, technology is changing the book industry.  E-books and on-demand publishing options provide instant access for both writers and readers alike.  Once upon a time, a reader had to wait weeks—sometimes months—for a book to become available to them.  Once upon a time, too, writers had to query editors and agents in order to get their books into the world.  Technology, of course, has changed all that.

Click here for a fantastic essay in Talking Writing by the ever-brilliant Kelcey Parker.  In this essay, Parker examines the evolution (and reinvention) of the book in the digital age.

Why do I mention this?

Drum roll, please…

90 Days to Your Novel is now available in a digital edition, of course.

Ta-Da! Presto!

Visit Amazon to buy a Kindle version, or check out Barnes & Noble within the next few days if you’re a Nook user.

*Thanks to Marly Allen for this guest post.  Follow Marly’s blog at Making My Own Work. If you’d like to share your own experiences with the book, e-mail me at 90daynovel@gmail.com.*

I’ve attempted to write several books over the years and always got stuck because I didn’t know where the story line was going. One problem came in when I needed to switch things around, and got confused as to what went where. Making each chapter heading a different color helped, but it was really hard on the eyes, especially since the latest Word version only has pukey colors.

Then I tried writing the basic premise for each chapter in red on my Word document. That way, I could simply write (in blue) whatever struck my fancy at any one time, rather than having to first write chapter one, then two, etc. The problem here was that if I decided chapter one really belonged after chapter four, I’d have to highlight it and cut it, then scroll down and try to remember where four ended. It was madness—absolute madness!

Then I came across Sarah’s “Choosing The Best Outline Method For You” chapter from 90 Days to Your Novel. She said that the advantage of using notecards was that it’s easy to move cards around to find the best order; it visually breaks the novel into mini compartments so it’s easy to see how the story is progressing, and they are portable. That made a whole lot more sense to me. So, I simply transferred the major plot details from my Word document onto individual cards.

One problem I found was that, when the cards were in one neat pile, I couldn’t remember what was supposed to happen two cards in, so I spread them out on the kitchen table. That fixed that problem, but since the table wasn’t very big, I quickly ran out of room, especially since it is where I pay my bills, leave my gloves to dry, read two and three books and magazines at any one time, and, of course, eat my meals.

So I moved everything to my massage table, and you know something? It worked beautifully. As the table is 7×3 feet, there was plenty of space to spread things out, and still have room to write. With the table next to my computer, I can simply go back and forth as the spirit moves. Another advantage is that the surface is padded, which makes it much more comfortable on the arms. And mine has a table warmer!

Having the outline left me free to focus on bringing my characters to life and creating a new world, rather than continually wondering what happened next.  Now the problem is that my characters keep changing their minds, or withholding important facts about themselves until I bug them. Liz keeps tapping me on the head and saying things like, “This doesn’t make sense. If I was supposed to be here, then how come I was doing that?”

Having my characters continually question everything I write does make for a better story line. I do have to wonder, however, if Liz sometimes just does this to tease me.

–Marly Allen

A student recently said to me, “Is writer’s block a medical condition?  If so, I have it.”

“Bring me a doctor’s note, and I’ll excuse you from the assignment” I replied.

Of course, I’ll never see that doctor’s note, just as that individual will never receive a diagnosis.  Sure, we all experience moments when our minds feel blank. We stare at the computer screen, but nothing comes to us except the thought of what to have for dinner.  You can think of all sorts of mundane things, but nothing inspired, nothing artistic.

Stop thinking of a blank canvas in terms of its emptiness, and start thinking of it in terms of its possibilities.  Since I love lists, following are some of my own tips for conquering writer’s block:

1.       Think of writing as manual labor instead of art. If you’re serious about writing, consider it your job to sit down and physically write.  A certain percentage of everything we write will end up in the recycle bin—but you never know. Nobody can be inspired or inspiring 100% of the time, and the good news is that you don’t need to be.  The first rule to being a writer is to write.

2.       Write something, anything. If you can only think about what’s for dinner, write about that.  Maybe your description of Chicken Cordon Bleu will get you thinking about the French country side, which will lead to the new setting of a story. Even bad ideas can lead to good ones.

3.       Don’t aim for perfection the first time around. Perfection can be the enemy of the writer.  If you aim to write perfect sentences and perfect drafts,  you’ll be disappointed.  Allow your first drafts to be sloppy, knowing you always need to go back and revise.  Margaret Atwood once said, “If I waited for perfection, I would never write a word.”   So true, wise Atwood, so true.

4.       If you’ve run out of ideas, borrow some. For fun, try rewriting Romeo and Juliet from memory in two hundred words or less.  Pen a love letter from Romeo to Juliet.  How would Romeo and Juliet have been different had Romeo been a germophobe and Juliet a pathological liar?  Writing exercises can often jumpstart your creativity.

5.       Embrace your fears. Perhaps you fear that what you write won’t win the next National Book Award.  That’s okay.  Instead, intentionally write something as bad as bad can be.  Write as awful a scene as you can imagine.  Is it melodramatic?  Sappy?  Is the dialogue painful to even write?  Does the narrator say lines like, “My god, Stella.  Your curly blond hair and blue eyes that are shaped like crescents when you smile with your lips painted with red lipstick (Revlon lipstick #345 “Burnt Winter Cherry”) make me feel a love so deep I can’t describe it.”

6.       Don’t take yourself too seriously. Exercises like the one above require you to have a healthy sense of humor.  Taking yourself—and your writing—too seriously 100% of the time can close the doors of possibility.  Lighten up, and you may be surprised at how quickly the ideas flow.

Next Saturday (2/19) at 2:00, I’ll be visiting a Barnes & Noble store in Cincinnati, OH, for a discussion and book signing of 90 Days to Your Novel.  I’m looking forward to getting back to the Midwest, eating some Cincinnati-style chili, and talking shop.  Come on out–and bring a friend!

Click here to visit the Barnes and Noble site for more event details.

Stay tuned for more upcoming event announcements.