Writing from the Peak

PPW Event – March 10, 2012

2012-03-03T09:30:00.001-07:00

PIKES PEAK WRITERS to host panel discussion about writing featuring top Colorado authors!

Saturday, March 10th from 4:00 to 5:30 p.m.

East Library of the Pikes Peak Library District

5550 N. Union Blvd, Colorado Springs

***FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC***

Have you ever wondered where authors get their ideas? Or how they develop such engaging characters or intriguing plots? How does one go about writing a novel or a nonfiction book? How do writers get published? What do "traditionally published" authors think about e-publishing? What do they predict the future will bring to brick-and-mortar bookstores and the printed book? Join us for a free panel discussion to hear best-selling, multi-published authors, new authors, and e-book authors talk about these topics and more. Questions from the audience are encouraged, so come ask your questions about writing and publishing!

Author panel includes Kevin J. Anderson, Barbara Samuel/O'Neal, Robert Spiller, Erin Blakemore, Rebecca Moesta, Ron Cree, Amy Efaw and Laura DiSilverio.

These authors will sign books immediately following the panel discussion.

Some books will be available for purchase on-site, with a portion of the proceeds going to the PPLD. Attendees are also welcome to bring in their personal copies to have autographed by the authors.

This event is FREE and OPEN TO THE PUBLIC, so bring a friend! RSVPs are not required, but questions can be addressed to rsvp@pikespeakwriters.com. Concerned about closures or delays due to weather? Check pikespeakwriters.com or contact the Pikes Peak Library District to see if the event will proceed on schedule.

Pikes Peak Writers is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization and host of the PIKES PEAK WRITERS CONFERENCE, now in its 20th year.

PPWC 2012 will be April 19-22, 2012 at the Colorado Springs Marriott -- Registration is OPEN NOW.

Visit pikespeakwriters.com for more info and brand-new ONLINE BROCHURE.

Beginning Writers: The Great White Tunnel by Mandy Houk

2012-03-01T09:00:00.000-07:00

If you stare at it long enough—and who hasn’t?—a blank page can begin to look like a long, vacant tunnel. More ominous, I believe, than a deep, dark, black one.

In a black tunnel, there is the promise, or the delicious threat, that something is hiding in there—something you have only to stumble upon and discover. A bright white tunnel, though, seems to have no secrets. No hidden treasures to find, explore, experience.

That Great White Tunnel is literally nothing without you. Terrifying, isn’t it?

Learning to face the blank white page is hardly a problem exclusive to beginning writers. No matter how many years someone has been plugging away at this craft we call writing, the blank pages don’t get any less blank. The difference between a beginning writer and an experienced one is simply this: the experienced writer has been here before. The feelings of inadequacy, impending doom, and who-do-I-think-I-am-ness are familiar. The experienced writer still feels all of those feelings, but he or she has learned to push past them. Eventually.

There are likely as many solutions to the problem of the White Tunnel as there are struggling writers out there. I can only share what works for me. (By “works for me,” I mean, “keeps me from dissolving in a gigantic puddle of tears.”)

First, I keep in mind a quote from Nora Roberts: “You can’t edit a blank page.” Every writer knows that first drafts are awful (Ernest Hemingway famously said, “All my first drafts are s***.”). The real art of writing doesn’t happen until you’re revising. So my first goal when stepping into the Great White Tunnel is to litter it with lots of little black letters, like tossing cracked black pepper in front of me as I go. On particularly fear-inducing occasions, when my mind feels as empty as the tunnel appears, I might even start out with whining. In my character’s voice, of course. She might complain that I’m waking her up. He might rant about another character’s annoying habits. Whatever gets them talking.

After the first few sentences, I have a finger-wrestling match, trying to keep my right pinky away from the delete button. About 99% of the time, whatever I’ve got on the page is truly, horrifyingly awful, and the despair I was feeling before I started tossing all that pepper only intensifies. When the page was blank, at least the idea that I was a hack was merely theoretical. With the first few sentences, though, that theory is in the process of proving itself, and I desperately want to go in reverse and feel fear again rather than disgust.

In order to win the finger-wrestling match and tame that stubborn pinky, I often have to speak out loud. I start with that trusty Nora Roberts quote I mentioned earlier. In particularly stressful situations, I’ve been known to revert to elementary school favorites: “Shut up, Stupid-head. Just shut up!”

The goal here is to remind and promise myself (and my pinky) that I have no intention of letting another human’s eyes fall on the awfulness I’ve thus far produced. I will just keep working to fill up that page, decorating the tunnel with cracked black pepper. In the meantime, I’m praying fervently that my character will say something useful, something inspired, even something shockingly obnoxious. Anything that will get my mind and imagination on the track that was hidden under that snowy whiteness all along. Something that my pinky finger wouldn’t dare touch. It won’t be brilliant; it won’t be polished and immune to revision. But it will be enough to get me rolling. It’s as if the tunnel’s opening were a steep, uphill climb, and if I can muster enough courage and strength to push on, I’ll not only find the track, but I’ll find the crest of the hill!

After that? Hold on. It’s quite a ride.

About the Writer: Mandy Houk teaches high school writing and freelances as an editor and author. She's sold several nonfiction articles and stories, and placed in a couple of short fiction contests, but she has yet to break into book-length fiction. Her first novel is safely and appropriately in a deep, dark drawer. Her second is seeking a home with a literary agent.

PPWC Value by Grant McKenzie

2012-02-27T09:00:00.001-07:00

The Pikes Peak Writers Conference has a reputation for being the friendliest writers conference. I have discovered that PPWC is friendly to your pocketbook, as well. I did a little research on some other writers conferences around the nation, just to see where PPWC stood. Turns out, it is one of the most economical conferences in the country, if not the most economical. I didn’t look at ALL the conferences, so I can’t be completely certain, but read on and you’ll be sure to come to the same conclusion I did.

First, let me tell you how I chose which conferences to look at. One or two are currently being advertised on LinkedIn events (along with PPWC), but the majority came from reviews at Writers Digest. These are big name conferences and are considered the same caliber as PPWC. In fact, one conference has literary agent Donald Maass as a keynote speaker and another has bestselling author Susan Wiggs, both of whom will be part of the 2012 PPWC faculty.

I looked at several aspects of all of these conferences, such as fees, add-on days, meals, etc., to see how they compared in those categories, and then I tallied up an overall comparison to see where PPWC would rate. Here is what I discovered:

Rates: This is most likely the first thing people look at when comparing conferences. I looked at two one-day conferences, two two-day conferences and four other three-day conferences. With no adjustment for the number of days (just using each conference’s advertised fee), the average price of a conference is $396.50. If you just look at three day conferences, the average jumps to $443 dollars. The fees for three-day conference ranged from $310 - $595. One two-day conference was $645. PPWC has, and maintains, one of the lowest rates available.

Add-On Days: This year, PPWC is holding four day-long workshops, including one presented by Donald Maass. PPWC’s rate is $135 for just the Thursday workshops or $85 with full conference. For most of the conferences reviewed, the rates ranged from $99 for an evening (3-hour) workshop to $249 for a full day. One conference charged $199 in addition to their $525 conference fee for a half-day add-on workshop. PPWC has the best value for add-on workshops.

One-On-One: Most conferences offer some kind of one-one-one time with editors, agents, or other faculty. This time ranges from short pitch/critiques sessions to hour-long manuscript critiques. Most conferences include short pitch sessions like those offered by PPWC or short critique sessions like PPWC’s Read & Critique. About half the conferences I looked at charged extra for one-on-one appointments, but these were usually critiques (not pitches) and lasted from 10 minutes to a full hour. Fees ranged from $30-$140. PPWC rates evenly with other conferences for one-on-one appointments.

Meals: PPWC 2012 offers its attendees two continental breakfasts, three lunches, and two dinners. The lunches and dinners all feature keynote speakers like authors Robert Crais and Jeffery Deaver. No other conference even comes close. The closest offers three continental breakfasts, two ‘afternoon snacks,’ and two dinners, with keynotes. PPWC offers the best deal by far for meals among writers’ conferences.

Overall: Taking all of this into consideration and doing a bit of statistical manipulation (I am a rocket scientist, after all), I came up with a measure of value to compare everything each conference had to offer. PPWC is about 15% more valuable than its nearest competitor and 70% more valuable than the average of all the conferences I examined.

The Pikes Peak Writers Conference has as much or more to offer than any other writers conference out there, and does it at a lower price.

About the Writer: Grant McKenzie is a renaissance man. A genuine rocket scientist and self-made chandler, Grant also enjoys writing poetry, fantasy, historical fiction, and non-fiction. He has ghostwritten a business/leadership book and is working on a YA fantasy novel for himself. Grant currently serves PPW as the registrar for the Pikes Peak Writers Conference, as well as other non-conference events.

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2012-02-26T09:00:00.001-07:00

The role of a writer is not to say what we all can say, but what we are unable to say. ~ Anaïs Nin

Sweet Success! - Darby Karchut

2012-02-24T10:00:00.003-07:00

Darby Karchut has two Sweet Successes to celebrate!

Her young adult urban fantasy novel, Griffin's Fire (ISBN 978-1-60619-212-2; trade paperback), will be released April 15, 2012, by Twilight Times Books. The book will be available at most online bookstores and in many independent brick-and-mortar bookstores.

For centuries, there have been rumors about a lowly caste of supernatural beings known as the Terrae Angeli, angelic warriors and their apprentices who clandestinely serve as guardians for humans in danger.

Forced to become mortal, ex-teen angel Griffin has been banished from the Terrae Angeli. Struggling to adjust, he enrolls in the heaven-and-hell known as high school. To make matters worse, his Mentor has been ordered to take on a new apprentice, the gifted and egotistical seventeen-year-old Sergei, whose covert attacks make Griffin’s home life as bleak as a Siberian winter.

Caught between school, Sergei, and a desperate secret, Griffin is certain of one thing: the only way to fight a Cold War is with Fire.

Darby’s middle-grade urban fantasy novel, Finn Finnegan (soft and hardcover) will be released on March 11, 2013, by Spencer Hill Press. The books will be available via online bookstores.

A modern teenage boy apprentices with a legendary Celtic warrior to battle the hobgoblins infesting their suburban neighborhood.

Darby Karchut is a writer, a teacher, and a compulsive dawn greeter. She lives in Colorado with her husband and owns more backpacks than purses. As she should. She is the author of the award-winning Griffin Rising (YA fantasy from Twilight Times Books), and she is currently working on the next two books in the series: Griffin's Fire (April 2012) and Griffin's Storm (release TBD; both from Twilight Times Books). Visit her website at www.darbykarchut.com.

What’s Not Pending by Karen Albright Lin

2012-02-23T10:00:00.001-07:00

"Pending" allows for time to look forward, for time to reconsider, for time to celebrate those little steps toward whatever we are waiting for.

What's NOT pending for me today: shopping for necessary household supplies, picking up my child from school, shoveling snow, and cooking dinner.

This writing business is a bizarre one. Its slogan could be "Hurry Up and Wait..."

The pain of the business is parallel to the angst suffered by the chimps who were subjected to punishing electric shocks. Those that got them on a predictable time table coped much better than those that got randomly timed shocks. Those in the latter study group spent every moment cowering in corners, full of anxiety. If our industry was more predictable, it wouldn't frustrate so much. Only the bravest and strongest among us can handle this uniquely punishing business. This intrepid Sister of the Quill suggests we celebrate our persistence and patience and give ourselves the kudos we deserve. Love and strength to my fellow writers.

(Originally posted at the Sisters of the Quill blog 12/2/2009)

About the Writer: Karen is an editor, ghostwriter, pitch coach, speaker and award-winning author of novels, cookbooks, and screenplays. She’s written over a dozen solo and collaborative scripts (with Janet Fogg, Christian Lyons and director Erich Toll); each has garnered international, national and regional recognition: Moondance Film Festival, BlueCat, All She Wrote, Lighthouse Writers, Boulder Asian Film Festival, SouthWest Writers Contest, and PPW Contest. Find out more at www.karenalbrightlin.com.

Letter from the PPW Executive Director

2012-02-20T09:00:00.004-07:00

My Fellow Writers:

That feeling is in the air. You know the one, right? The one that tells us that the Pikes Peak Writers Conference(PPWC) is getting closer. My favorite weekend of the year.

As a writer, for over a decade I have anticipated the PPWC. Not only because of the world-class agents, editors, and best-selling authors we bring in, but for the workshops and fellow writers that fill my writing well. There is always something to learn as a writer no matter what point of the journey you are on...novice or multi-contracted author. The energy that fills the halls and classrooms at the conference cannot be described. It simply has to be experienced to be understood.

Now, some may say I'm biased. And they are right. But I'm biased because I've attended many different conferences and still find myself filled with the most anticipation for PPWC.

If you've been to the conference before, come back. We've missed you. If you've never attended a PPWC, make this the year you find out what agents, editors, and authors mean when they say that this conference is the friendliest, best organized, and most educational.

This year marks our 20th conference event and we are pulling out all stops to top our best. Visit our web site, www.PikesPeakWriters.com, to read about who will be there. See the fabulous events we have planned. Read about the top-notch workshops available to attendees. Don't forget to take a look at our additional Thursday programming that you can add to the weekend.

If you have any questions, don't hesitate to contact me. I'm always happy to help.

Hope to see you in April.

Jodi Anderson

Pikes Peak Writers Executive Director

Jodi.Anderson@pikespeakwriters.com

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2012-02-19T09:00:00.001-07:00

Don't try to figure out what other people want to hear from you; figure out what you have to say. It's the one and only thing you have to offer. ~ Barbara Kingsolver

Column: The Business of Writing - Myths About Writers by Linda Rohrbough

2012-02-16T09:00:00.002-07:00

What is it about being a writer that everyone assumes you can spell? In fact, I run into a whole bunch of mythical assumptions about writers.

The spelling myth one is one of my favorites. For them, it must be like me going to dinner with my dentist – I would be afraid to smile. I see people visibly relax when I tell them what a crummy speller I am.

My spelling is better the more I write. But I’m so far off sometimes, the spell checker can’t help me. And if you don’t have the correct first letter, then you’re outta luck with a dictionary, thank you very much. Like when I tried to find the correct spelling for “kyniption,” (which I had to look up again to correctly spell it at the end of this paragraph.) I was under deadline, never did find the spelling, and had to substitute the word “fit.” Conniption was a much better word and I grieved its loss.

By the way, thank God for the Internet. Evidently they’ve figured out what piss-poor spellers some of us are. I can almost always find my corrected misspelling of a word on the Web. Almost. (Didn’t work with conniption, though.)

Another one that comes to mind is that everyone assumes I know exactly where commas go. Sheesh. This is why I have an annual subscription to the online AP Style Guide online.

What’s even more amusing is when I consult with authors and they say to me, “I’m in a hurry to get this book published, because I need the money.” I really hate hearing that because then I have to let them know they’d be better off financially as the greeter at Wal-Mart. Of course, they don’t believe me until much later. This isn’t a fast business, folks.

Oh - then there’s the, “I’ve got a book idea, you write it, and we’ll split the money.” Sure. Like I can just whip out a book like my chef mother-in-law whips up a batch of cookies for desert while everyone is finishing up a meal. Plus, do you know the value of a good idea? (This is a trick question.) It’s zero. Yep. Zip, zilch, nadda. An idea only has value when it’s executed.

I want to say to someone who brings me a deal like this, “Honey, I have so many ideas I can’t get to now, I don’t have a clue how far down the queue yours would end up.”

One of my best-selling friends says she’s tempted to quip, “How about I give you one of my ideas, you write and publish it, and then split the money with me?” No one wants that deal, though.

I wonder sometimes if it’s like playing the lottery, which I don’t do by the way. But I hear if you play the same set of numbers over and over for a lot of years, yours is likely to hit. Now that I think of it, most of my writer friends love gambling. When we meet at conferences, I’ve found they have an instinct for finding a nearby casino. I reluctantly pull ten bucks out of my pocket and kiss it goodbye just so I can talk to one of my author friends about the business while we sit side-by-side at identical Wheel of Fortune machines. If I get stuck by myself, I migrate to video poker because I feel some input over the outcome. I’m grateful some of the casinos are non-smoking.

But my writing friends have their gambling tricks, like choose a machine close to the isle because it’s been played more often. It occurred to me one day that maybe writing really is like gambling and that’s why these successful writers like both writing and playing the slots. Because in both cases, you’ve got to believe you’re that one in a million. If the truth be known, deep down, I do believe my books will be on the New York Times list. That’s one of the things that keeps me going despite the obstacles and hurdles.

I’m sure there are a lot more myths out there. What ones have you run into? I know there are more. C’mon people, I’m counting on you.

About the Writer: Linda Rohrbough has been writing since 1989, and has more than 5,000 articles and seven books to her credit along with national awards for her fiction and non-fiction. New York Times #1 bestselling author Debbie Macomber said about Linda’s new novel: "This is fast-paced, thrilling, edge-of-the-seat reading. The Prophetess One: At Risk had me flipping the pages and holding my breath." She recently won the 2011 Global eBook Award and the 2011 Millennium Star Publishing Award for her new novel. An iPhone App of her popular “Pitch Your Book” workshop is available in the Apple iTunes store. Visit her website: www.LindaRohrbough.com.

Running a Three-Legged Race? Why Collaborate? by Janet Fogg

2012-02-14T09:00:00.001-07:00

(Originally posted at the Chiseled in Rock blog on January 16, 2011)

Is the sum truly better than the parts? It could be!

When considering this topic I was reminded of an analogy used by one of my partners at OZ Architecture. He described several of our designers as cheetahs – sprinting ahead of the pack to try to land a project and then dragging the kill away to gorge on all by themselves. But then, if they needed help, guess what happened? Suddenly the cheetahs became interested in team work and learned to share. What does that have to do with collaborating on a manuscript? It’s analogous. An award-winning project can be designed by a team and a contract-winning manuscript can be written. It’s fun, often more efficient, you have a partner to back you up when you’re failing or tired or just plain sick of the project, and yes, sometimes it can be a pain in the ass. But the pain can be circumvented if communication is clear and egos are (mostly) checked at the door.

I’ve collaborated on award-winning screenplays, a soon-to-be-released non-fiction book, a narrative non-fiction, and a novel. I used to do quite a bit of ghost-writing. I love writing solo and have been published, yet I also enjoy collaborating. It’s nothing to fear, especially if you’re a good communicator and plan ahead.

First up? Collaborating on a screenplay.

What if you have a great concept, start drafting a manuscript, and your wheels won’t stop spinning? Yes, this happens to most writers at some point, but I mean spinning so fast that the wheels carve out a quicksand-filled sinkhole. Should you abandon thoughts of escape? Perhaps not. I’ve collaborated with Karen Albright Lin on several screenplays, and our first effort, Headhunters, began in exactly that fashion. I had a concept, started to write the book, and then hit quicksand. Why? I’m not exactly sure. The story just didn’t sing to me anymore. I was vigorously and thoroughly kicking myself when Karen suggested my concept would make a great screenplay. Voilà! She remembers that I suggested we write it together and I think she did. See? A great collaboration, where each gives credit to their partner! We had a blast and I believe Headhunters was meant for film.

Karen had already written several screenplays so she generously shared her expertise, and together we brainstormed the characters, developed the plot, shared time on research, and then alternated writing scenes. We both edited every sentence. Since then we’ve co-authored another screenplay based on a concept of Karen’s, and have a third in development. All three are award-winners and we’ve even had a Hollywood agent, though we ultimately severed that unfruitful relationship.

We discovered that I was better at writing action scenes (gimmie a car chase and a bunch of thugs with guns!), while Karen excelled at quiet, introspective moments, so we allocated scene drafts accordingly. I’m an early riser and Karen works late into the night. This worked to our advantage when we had a deadline, as we wrote in shifts, emailing a draft back and forth, morning and night.

Then there’s marketing. Whether pitching a story in person or subscribing to an on-line lead service, sharing that burden is not only attractive, it’s cost effective. Quite frankly, it’s also a hoot pitching with a partner. Playing off each other is effective and far less nerve-wracking.

Be aware that if you’re interested in writing specifically for Hollywood, collaboration will be your middle name. If your screenplay is optioned there will be re-writes, possibly by you and definitely by others. Then a shooting script will be developed and the story may change all over again, and it’s unlikely that you’ll be involved in those revisions. Writing for TV is another tale, as episodes for a series are invariably written by a team. You’ll also need to move to Hollywood to achieve that particular goal.

Back to Headhunters. Did we stumble during this three-legged race? I don’t think we even stubbed our toes. While we had a tendency to debate whether a character should act or speak in an overt versus subtle fashion, they were respectful debates. Together, we pounded out the plot points, just as we shared the writing, editing, and research, and continue to share marketing efforts.

Screenplays lend themselves to collaboration. Action needs to be described in a consistent, crisp style; characters should be well developed with no superfluous dialogue. Karen and I work and play well together. It helps that we have similar goals and are unafraid of revisions. We both want to write great stories and sell them, so we’ll continue to stride towards Hollywood.

But there are other races to be won! Next installment, I’ll talk about lessons learned while collaborating with my husband, Richard, on Fogg in the Cockpit, a military history book released by Casemate Publishing. After that I’ll look at co-authoring a novel, and I’ll also share a contract sample and suggest discussion points between collaborators.

About the Writer: Janet Fogg’s focus on novel-length fiction and screenplays began in the 1990s when she was CFO for the coolest architectural firm in Boulder. Numerous manuscripts and fifteen writing awards later, Janet resigned from OZ Architecture to write full-time, and ten months later she signed a contract for Soliloquy, her award-winning time-travel romance. In 2011 Casemate Publishing released Fogg in the Cockpit, co-authored by Janet and her husband Richard Fogg. Based on the wartime diary of Richard’s father, Fogg in the Cockpit offers a first hand look at Howard Fogg’s fascinating and often unexpected story as a fighter pilot during World War II.

Janet is a long-time member of Pikes Peak Writers, RMFW, and two fantastic critique groups. In her free time she has fun with cars with Richard.

http://www.janetfogg.com/
http://fogginthecockpit.blogspot.com
http://sistersofthequill.blogspot.com

http://chiseledinrock.blogspot.com

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2012-02-12T10:00:00.001-07:00

Fill your paper with the breathings of your heart. ~ William Wordsworth

Sweet Success! - Deb Stover

2012-02-10T09:00:00.001-07:00

Deb Stover's adult paranormal romance novel, Mulligan Stew (ISBN 978-0515133097, 320 pages, hardcover, softcover, ebook) was re-released as an ebook in August 2011 by ePublishing Works. The book and ebook are available via online bookstores. The author's website is at www.debstover.com.

A cursed Irish castle, star-crossed lovers, destiny, and comfort food.... Widowed mother and aspiring chef, Bridget Mulligan, leaves small-town Tennessee and the only home she's ever known to take her son to Ireland and the in-laws she's never met. They are welcomed by all but one member of the Mulligan Clan--her brother-in-law, Riley--who believes she is a fraud and fortune-hunter. However, when the Mulligan Curse lures Bridget to the sealed family castle, Riley Mulligan must face all his demons--past and present--along with the powerful longing both he and Bridget battle for each other.

Deb Stover's adult time travel romance novella, Citizen Daisy (ebook, about 23K), was published January 5, 2012, by ePublishing Works. The ebook is available via online bookstores.

You will never look at an MRI the same way after reading how a United States Congressman finds himself transported to the past, where he is accused of being a spaceman by locals who have recently read the latest Jules Verne novel. His adventures include falling in love with a young lady branded a witch by the superstitious townsfolk, and she believes she "wished" him to the past. Can these two lovers find a world they can share?

Once upon a time, Deb Stover wanted to be Lois Lane until she discovered Clark Kent is a fraud and there is no Superman. She has received dozens of awards for her cross-genre fiction. Please visit www.debstover.com for additional information.

Feel the fear… and run the other way by Shannon Baker

2012-02-07T09:00:00.003-07:00

(Originally posted at the Inkspot blog on December 28, 2011)

“You won’t believe what just happened.” The Man With Endless Tolerance (MWET) with whom I live, said over the phone. “A guy tried to land without putting down his landing gear. The whole runway is shut down.”

Despite sitting at my desk fifteen miles away, my heart rate spiked into the red zone. MWET is a general aviation pilot. He has a sweet Cessna 182 that he loves a lot and makes travel easy and fun. Well, fun for him, anyway. I read and sleep and hope for smooth tailwinds. I’ve never panicked when flying in turbulent skies. Hardly ever, anyway. And I’ve only tossed my cookies once…so far.

I usually study the landscape during landings, wondering who lives near the airports or have my nose stuck so far in a book I’m oblivious to the ground rushing up to meet us. Occasionally, I’ve tried to accustom myself to the fine art of landing. Every time I pay attention I break out in a cold sweat. There is an acronym MWET recites so he remembers every step. GUMPPFI or is it GUMPPFY? Gas, Undercarriage (that’s the landing gear part), Power, Pitch, Mixture, Flaps---and what else? WHAT ELSE!? That memory lapse is the stuff of nightmares.

I know what Eleanor Roosevelt said, “Do one thing everyday that scares you.” Why in dog’s name would I want to do that? I hate to be scared. I don’t face my fear like a conquering warrior. I deny it, sneak up on it and try to do an end run around it. I whistle past the graveyard to keep from disturbing the spooks instead of going all Buffy on their ass.

What I lack in courage I make up for in denial. I never watch the needle insertion when giving blood; I take myself to a happy place full of bluebirds, talking deer, and thumping rabbits. I’m one of those people who stub their toe and limp around saying, “Didn’t hurt, didn’t hurt, didn’t hurt,” for two days before admitting it’s broken. I’m so good at this my daughter once bought me a t-shirt that said, “Denial. It works for me.”

That’s how I deal with writing novels. If I thought too much about the writing business I’d be a whimpering, quivering mass in a corner, too afraid to write an email, let alone a whole novel.

So I write a really nasty first draft. That’s not a big deal because no one but me will see it. Then I’ll edit it a few times and polish it up and that’s okay because only my critique group will see it and they’ll save me from embarrassing myself. Then I start whistling and sending it out to professionals and go about my daily business doing my best to forget it’s out there. Denial, bluebirds, whistling through rejections, sales and publishing. Who needs courage for that?

If I hadn’t played Mind F*&%k with myself all along, I’d have had to face (and probably succumbed to) paralyzing fear. I’d never have become a mother and yet, my daughters are pretty terrific. I’d never have learned to scuba dive, which I love. I wouldn’t have moved from Nebraska to Colorado and then on to Arizona and experienced my life expanding all around me. And I certainly would never have written a book, let alone a couple of them.

I guess I’ll take some landing lessons soon. Not because I will finally “grow a pair.” The truth is if I ever really need to use those lessons, it will be because I’m the only one who can land the plane and the fear of splattering all over the landscape trumps fear of forgetting to put down the landing gear. What does that I or Y stand for anyway?

What about you? Does writing, plotting, or the book business make you tremble in your shoes?

About the Writer: Shannon Baker has a right brain/left brain conflict. While the left brain focuses on her career as an accountant, her right brain concocts thrillers, including her 2010 release, Ashes of the Red Heifer. A lover of mountains, plains, oceans and rivers, she can often be found traipsing around the great outdoors. The first book in the Nora Abbott Mystery Series will release in the fall of 2012 from Midnight Ink publishers.

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2012-02-05T09:00:00.001-07:00

The best time for planning a book is while you're doing the dishes. – Agatha Christie

Sweet Success! - Mandy Houk

2012-02-03T10:30:00.001-07:00

Mandy Houk's adult inspirational article, "Flip Sides," (about 800 words) was published by Kyria.com in January 2012. The article is available to read for free here. The author's website is at forbetterforworseforlife.wordpress.com.

Mandy is a freelance writer and editor and has been volunteering with Pikes Peak Writers since 2008.

From the Editor: Staying in the Game

2012-02-01T09:00:00.002-07:00

Wow – we’re already a month into 2012! I hope you’ve been immersed in an exciting new writing project, or making headway on one you’ve been struggling with.

Even though I have projects in both of those categories, I can’t say there’s been much progress on either of them. Devoting energy and cranial space to college and a new job left me with little time to write fiction. Now that my brain is beginning to regenerate burned-out cells, story ideas are surfacing, plots are twisting, and characters are growing.

Here are five ways to stay in the writing game even when time and motivation are at a premium:

1. Keep reading. Writers love to read; that’s usually what gets us into writing in the first place. We read to escape real life, but we can also learn from other authors while we’re enjoying a novel. Read books in the genres you like to write. Read books from different genres to shake things up and see a different method of storytelling. Read books on craft. Just keep reading.

2. Stay connected. Time constraints kept me from attending most of last year’s PPW events, but I stayed connected to fellow writers via the Pikes Peak Writers’ Yahoo discussion loop, the PPW web site, and this blog. These connections kept the motivational fires stoked and the writing dream alive until I could return to my projects.

3. Be realistic. “Write every day” is the best single piece of writing advice out there. But when I started back to school, I knew that fiction writing would take a back seat to academics simply because I know my limitations. So I gave myself permission to take a break from writing – and not feel guilty about it.

4. Write when you can. Just because I was on a self-imposed break doesn’t mean I didn’t write at all. I wrote what I could, even if it was only a sentence or some notes on a character. (Keeping a notebook and pen handy at all times helps.) I also continued my blog, posting once or twice a week to keep my writing muscles in shape.

5. Never give up. Life is unpredictable and often requires a readjustment of priorities. That doesn’t mean you won’t ever write again. Keep percolating your story ideas, do what you can when you can, and believe in your dream. It’s yours for the taking.

For more tips on writing through life’s ups and downs, check out these posts:

The Day I Quit Writing by Mandy Houk

Lost in Excuseville by DeAnna Knippling

CONTINUING by Karen Albright Lin

Finding Balance by Robin Widmar

Inspiration by Carol Berg

Robin Widmar

Managing Editor, Writing from the Peak

Much Ado About Nothing by Cindi Madsen

2012-01-30T09:00:00.001-07:00

Whenever I get stuck in my work-in-progress and I ask my husband what I should do next, his go-to answer is “put some aliens in there.” Or his other favorite, “have a dinosaur chase them.” (Yeah, he’s just full of helpful ideas.)

So what do you do to add tension when your book isn’t about characters on the run or aliens or dinosaurs? You have to make all the nothing things, which really aren’t nothing, of course, something. Amp up the chemistry between your hero and heroine. Make their goals more important. Put more obstacles in the way of their accomplishing their goals. Do whatever it is you have to do to make your readers care; make them need to find out what happens next.

At one critique group, one of my writing partners said, “I think you just let all the tension out of your scene.” But there was an apology and happiness and everything was right with the world. When I re-read it, though, I realized she was right. I tend to want to resolve everything and make everyone happy—give people their closure at the end of a chapter. But once you let the tension go, the pacing slows, and your reader could end up bored, or worse yet, putting the book down.

So as I write and revise, I’m working to make all the little things bigger. The past, personality traits, goals, obstacles, and body language can all add to the scene so that whatever’s going on, there’s going to be a whole lot of ado about it. So let’s get out there, grab those readers, and never let them go. (Er, not, you know, in the stalkery, they're-going-to-get-a-restraining-order way.) Just remember, while drama in real life equals sucky, drama in books equals awesomeness. Good luck!

(Originally posted at the author’s blog, http://cindimadsen.blogspot.com/ on January 27, 2012.)

About the Writer: Cindi Madsen sits at her computer every chance she gets, plotting, revising, and falling in love with her characters. Sometimes it makes her a crazy person. Without it, she’d be even crazier. She has way too many shoes, but can always find a reason to buy a new pretty pair, especially if they’re sparkly, colorful, or super tall. She loves music, dancing, and wishes summer lasted all year long. Look for her YA novels, All the Broken Pieces with Entangled Publishing and Demons of the Sun with Crescent Moon Press out fall 2012. More information on her website: cindimadsen.blogspot.com.

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2012-01-29T09:00:00.002-07:00

It is impossible to discourage the real writers - they don't give a damn what you say, they're going to write. – Sinclair Lewis

Roadmap to Indie Publishing by DeAnna Knippling

2012-01-26T09:00:00.004-07:00

(Editor's Note: This is DeAnna's handout from last week's Write Brain session.)

Want to put up an ebook but don't know how? (Or just want more facts before you make up your mind?) Here are the bare minimum steps you need to consider when self-publishing an ebook:

1. Material. Short stories that are not under an exclusive contact with their publisher are probably ideal (they've already been edited). However, any story to which you own the rights will work. If you don't know if you have rights to your story, please read The Copyright Handbook by Stephen Fishman at Nolo Press.

2. Freelance Writing Business. Even if you are not going to be a full-time freelancer, you need to set up your business to help prevent IRS issues. See Nolo's checklist, "Start Your Own Business: 50 Things You'll Need to Do" at their website. You won't need to do most of the stuff on the list.

3. Marketing. 1) Author website. 2) Social media like Twitter or Facebook (I love Goodreads & Library Thing, too). 3) Keep an eye out for reviewers; expect to send them FREE ebook copies. 4) Specialty markets relevant to your specific book - e.g., fishing websites if you're selling a fishing murder mystery. 5) Local writer groups = word of mouth.

4. Editing. If you know how to edit and are confident in doing so, you can edit your own stuff. If not, get editing, by hook or by crook as it is readers' single biggest turnoff. Ask around; if you know other writers, you know someone who can edit.

5. Formatting. Read The Smashwords Style Guide at www.Smashwords.com. Follow it. There are more advanced methods, but this will work.

6. Cover Design. Create a cover using images for which you have the rights, either 1) your own private images or 2) images that you have obtained from a stock photo company or have a signed contract from the artist. Look at the cover sizes for lists of books at Smashwords: your cover must look readable & interesting at postage-stamp size.

7. E-Publishing. I recommend publishing at Smashwords (www.Smashwords.com), which feeds to all kinds of other sites, like Sony and Apple. I also publish at Kindle Direct Publishing (Amazon - kdp.amazon.com) and PubIt! (Barnes & Noble - www.PubIt.com). If you follow the Smashwords style guide but remove all references to Smashwords from your ebooks, you can use essentially the same files to publish to PubIt! and KDP.

8. Validating. After you have published, check your files and decide whether you can live with any weirdness. Developing formats = unpredictable results.

9. Announcing. Announce publication via any marketing you have set up.

10. Having Patience. I hate being patient. Hate it, hate it, hate it. Least favorite part of the whole thing.

Links:

www.goodreads.com | www.librarything.com | www.nolo.com

http://www.stepbystepselfpublishing.net/reviewer-list.html (indie-friendly blog reviewers)

http://blog.deannaknippling.com/?category_name=editing (my ongoing indie editing series)

http://www.smashwords.com/b/52 (Smashwords style guide)

www.gimp.org | www.scribus.net | www.dreamstime.com (free image software and cheap legal images)

http://www.smashwords.com | kdp.amazon.com | http://pubit.barnesandnoble.com (sell books here)

zenhabits.net (patience)

TIPS:

· DRM or not? I do not. I suggest if you do, make sure you publish in most formats, because DRM makes it illegal for readers to convert files to a format they can use.

· Pseudonyms or not? I do, mostly because I don't want kids to unintentionally read my adult work. I don't advise it: 1) I had to set up as a small publisher in order to handle both names' books; 2) You have to do marketing for each pseudonym AND for the small publisher; 3) Building a reputation/making money is slower, because you're splitting up your writing time between authors. But it makes me feel better.

· Will I sell a million copies? No. From what I hear, things start to take off when you have about 25-35 things (short stories, etc.) posted. PER AUTHOR NAME. I've heard estimates of ~5 copies/short story or collection/month, ~25 copies/novel/month. AFTER you have those 25-35 things up. I'm not there yet. I think because I'm still trying to find my niche for my adult stuff.

· What if I mess something up? You will. Take the story down, fix it, and repost.

· Can I sell a story if it's online elsewhere for free? Yes, if you have the rights. Ebook cover/format/possibly additional editing and/or material = value added.

· POD or not? Get comfy with epublishing first. POD is fun but probably won't make you any money unless you're really good at marketing. Personally, I LOVE IT! I'm currently using CreateSpace (www.createspace.com). I suggest doing a few gift books first to get a feel for it and to read up on how to lay out professional-looking interiors.

· Will big publishers hate me for being an indie writer? This should not be a problem UNTIL you are offered a contract. If so, read the fine print very, very carefully to ensure that you can live with their requirements: they may stipulate that you have to stop epublishing anything under the same name or that will compete with whatever you're publishing with them. I would check out The Passive Voice blog (www.thepassivevoice.com), written by a lawyer whose wife is in indie publishing. He has some really good caveats and is available to review writer contracts. Writer Laura Resnick (www.lauraresnick.com) also has good information.

· Should I epublish or submit? I try to keep one foot in each world and have submissions going to short story and novel publishers all the time. As I feel satisfied that I've been rejected from the markets I want most to get into, I epublish. I also epublish stuff that's been published and I have the rights back on.

· Am I a good enough writer? Only you can answer that question. My personal rule of thumb is that if I'm getting published with short stories (for money), then I'm writing well enough to epublish, too. But sometimes the only way to find this out is let the readers decide, especially you don't fit current sales trends.

· The biggest gripes about indie ebooks come from poor editing or writing a really good story: people dislike typos but HATE it when they hit the end of a book, especially if it's good.

Find DeAnna Knippling at www.deannaknippling.com (personal blog), www.wonderlandpress.com (small publisher website), or www.dekenyon.com (middle-grade pseudonym blog). Contact me for ebook and POD formatting rates. If you liked this handout, consider buying an ebook via www.wonderlandpress.com. How to Fail & Keep on Writing is a good writer-kick-in-the-pants book, if I do say so myself.

Column: Ten Tricks for Controlling Clutter (and Don’t Forget “Love is Like Oxygen”) by Karen Albright Lin

2012-01-23T09:00:00.002-07:00

With the post Christmas mess and other disorderly belongings crowding me out of my home office, I decided to make a game of utilizing specific strategies for staying on top of the clutter that somehow multiplies exponentially, pushing in on me like a throng of rabid groupies around my computer. It’s ordinary stuff. I don’t collect dried white out, 3/4 used candles, or ancient computers—remember when the words flashed only in green or orange? Those might be tempting, but dumpster diving isn’t my thing.

I’m talking about necessary items to a wife, mother, secretary, professional editor, writer, craftswoman, gift preparer, mail carrier, shopper, message relayer, filer, seamstress, lugger, nurse, florist, entrepreneur, speaker, banker, reader, donator, office supplier, card sender, decorator, and captain of the repository of all things necessary for everything from emergency lighting to party preparation to household necessities and a thousand other things…

The avalanche of objects precious to my hoarder self was making me feel claustrophobic.

Enough stuff to make one hyperventilate. I couldn’t face the clean-up all at once because I didn’t have the time to devote days to the chore. I couldn’t throw it all out and start over with a fresh clean study; after all, who would keep the nail polish remover that is devoted to rubbing price stickers off? Who else but me would volunteer to pay and file the bills and create a nest for photos all the family members and friends have sent over the years? How crazy would I be to think that my sons would actually keep the spare school supplies in their bedrooms rather than next to my stash of gifts for unexpected celebrations? Sigh.

I had to improve my environment. Like a juggler in training, I started with small steps, the easiest ones.

I was born with a clutter gene. I had a tendency to create great piles of paperwork that resembled the Rocky Mountains just outside the window. I always had the noble intention of sorting through it all--in a week or so. But digging through them later took time I couldn’t spare. I had to break that pattern.

Solution one: Develop the habit of immediately filing bills, receipts, medical records, even depressing correspondence such as SASE decline-letters from agents. No more piles allowed.

There were boxes of every shape and size full of gifts I collected throughout the year and Christmas wrapping paper. It was January. I hardly needed to look at that stack for eleven more months.

Solution two: We all need exercise, right? So do aerobic stair stepping by finding a little corner in the basement storage area and climbing up and down repeatedly with loads to stash away in well-marked boxes. Great! Four square feet of the study freed up for walking. Make sure you break into a sloppy sweat so you can skip calisthenics for the day. No time lost.

The closet and shelves were filled with vases, sewing kits, packing envelopes, even craft items and Halloween costumes that hadn’t been used since my boys were in elementary school. I suspect other writers who are spouses and parents relate to this.

Solution three: Every once in a while there’s this obnoxious craving to visit YouTube and listen to favorite 70’s pop songs. LOVE IS LIKE OXYGEN? Pure nostalgia. Let that wonderfully tacky music be background entertainment as you make piles that you then attack, one at a time, each time you come to your study. BEFORE you check on those email loops take care of one pile. Reward yourself after the next pile with a visit to Facebook.

There are tricks to dealing with each of the piles, even the ones that strike fear into your heart.

Solution four: Wrap the vases as if you’re moving, nestle them into labeled boxes, and shove those suckers into the basement storage area (that place becomes very handy and crowded, but it’s out of sight, out of mind). Hooray! The march up and down with the boxes qualifies as exercise.

Solution five: Relocate the sewing kits into the hall closet where the towels, Mylanta, and shampoo can keep them company. The packing envelopes deserve a spot in stacked egg crates along with other office supplies used regularly.

Solution six: Those craft items that promise to keep the grandchildren entertained – once you have them in ten years or so? Time to let them go. Donate them to local art teachers (they’ll take anything). The Halloween costumes? Come on, the scarecrow garb can be offered to friends with kids. Besides, recycling feels good.

My desk was scattered with research materials for articles I plan to write, tomes bookmarked for later reference, works in progress, lotion and Burt’s Bees Lip Balm, batteries that may or may not still have juice, lotion infused Kleenex, a computer bag I hadn’t used in several months and lots of office paraphernalia like tape and scissors. Most of it would be better out of sight. Others I’d need easy access to.

Solution seven: Lotion, lip balm, and Kleenex are allowed on the desk. But in the corner, not in the work space.

Solution eight: Tape and scissors go in the desk drawer--If that is too crowded, take half an hour to listen to your favorite talk radio personality discussing politics while you go through the drawers and find better places for that chaotic junk.

Solution nine: Materials for articles in progress, lists of books you want to buy, agent-search spreadsheet, etc. File them. Are you unable to find room for them because they are crowded with the bills from Solution One? Next time you are heading home from the critique group meeting, buy lots of file folders and a huge file cabinet from the Habitat For Humanity thrift store. Use it.

Solution ten: That stack of books? Tuck them into the bookshelf, duh! Work in progress? Put it right in the middle of your now-clear workspace where it’s supposed to be.

Can you guess what my favorite trick to straighten out my office is? LOVE IS LIKE OXYGEN, of course.

So there you have ten ideas. Do you have any other hints to help control the clutter? I can always use more.

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2012-01-22T09:00:00.001-07:00

How vain it is to sit down to write when you have not stood up to live. – Henry David Thoreau

Column: The Business of Writing - The Editor’s Seat by Linda Rohrbough

2012-01-19T09:00:00.004-07:00

I remember several years back while visiting a New York Times best-selling author friend, I went to dinner with a group of writers. When several of the others left the table on an errand, I ended up alone with a writer I didn’t know well. She asked me how I got some well-paying writing work she’d heard about. So I asked her a few questions, then gave her some advice.

Next thing I heard, a year and a half later, she was making six figures. Turns out the dinner was a set up and my author friend deliberately left me alone with this writer so she could ask my advice. Evidently, now that writer was going around telling everyone I coached her into her current success.

So my author friend asked me, “What did you say to her?”

And I wondered, what did I say to her? Because if I could remember what it was, I’d say it to myself.

Here’s how the conversation went.

I asked her about what she did now and about her background. She was working in a bank at the time, but she used to own a magazine. I remember I was stunned.

“You had a magazine? And you’re asking me how to get work? My gosh, girl, you’ve seen it from the other side.”

She just looked at me without saying a word. But I was on a roll.

“You remember the freelancers you loved to work with? How they behaved?”

She nodded.

“So be THAT.”

She was quiet. I wondered if I’d disappointed her. The other writers came back to the table and the subject got changed.

What I wanted to ask, once I heard she was making six figures, was what THAT looked like. During our dinner, since I felt like she’d taken me into her confidence and the other writers would be listening, I never did ask the question. Turns out she had the ruby slippers on the entire time and didn’t know it.

But I took an editing job that lasted several months and now I know what THAT looks like. Because I see it from the other side of the table. So, if you’ll bear with me while I take the long way around, I’ll tell you what I saw.

First, and I know this will come as a shock, I know when an author is lying to me.

They say things like, “I will have the material done, but I might miss the deadline because I’m traveling and I can’t upload until I get back.”

Oh please. You can upload at Mickey D’s. Do I look like I have stupid written all over my face? (Now I sound like my mother.)

Even worse is when I hear something like, “I’ve got this really important party to go to where I’m the guest of honor, so I might miss my deadline.” Or I’m doing some real expensive activity (like taking my yacht out for the weekend, going on a cruise, or water skiing in Santa Barbara). And oops, the deadline is gonna suffer. Do they really think I’m going to say, wow, you’re the important artist and I’m just a small and humble editor, so go ahead and miss the deadline?

Or there’s silence. I send an e-mail. I wait. Repeat. Then they say they never got the e-mails. Or they refuse to acknowledge my correspondence. So I send them back the file to work on and three weeks later when I ask them how they are doing, they say they never got it.

What I didn’t know when I was just a humble author, is editors account to someone above them regularly for every deadline and the status of the project. Then the information is compared to the plan originally submitted by the editor after initial meetings with the author.

I also didn’t know that in some cases the editor doesn’t get paid until the final version is turned in and accepted. In that case, every delay by the author means a delay in the editor’s bottom line. But even if the editor is salaried, it makes them look bad, even incompetent, when authors are late. And that will eventually affect even a salaried editor’s job.

So I now understand why some editors got so angry with me when I was late. And why they often took the delays personally. I get now how insulting it is to the intelligence of another person to talk to them the way I’ve been talked to by some of the writers I work with. It reminds me of junior high when one of the popular girls would say she’d love to come to my party, but she had to wash her hair.

I never had high-dollar, going-out-on-the-yacht excuses, but I remember making excuses that probably were more lame than the ones I listed here. What I remember the most is being terrified. I was behind, I knew it, and I was either not sure about how to handle it or I was afraid to try. Or I underestimated the amount of time I needed. Bottom line was, I was afraid the editor or the house would pull the plug.

But sitting on the other side of the table, I realize now that the best thing I can do is when I’m going to be late, is just let my editor know. Call or e-mail them first, rather than waiting until they ask me where the work is. Tell them what’s going on (with a reasonable explanation) and give them an accurate and realistic estimate of when I can get the work in. They’re not going to like it, but they’ll have a lot more respect for me than if I make up “stories.”

I faced a project this year where I got behind. Given what I know now, I screwed up my courage, called the editor and just told them where I was at. It worked great. It turns out he was behind too and so instead of two weeks, I got an extra month to finish. I’d never known that if I hadn’t simply put my cards on the table. And he gave me some great tips on things I didn’t know from their end that would help me finish the project.

The other thing I see besides all the problems with deadlines, is writers turn in crap work just to hit a deadline. Then they get mad when I edit the work. I notice if the work is shoddy. I can see there’s some benefit to turning the work on time rather than ignoring the deadline. But I wanted to say to the writer, if you’re going to turn in schlock, at least have the decency to keep your mouth shut when I fix it. Plus, I wanted to add, if you’re going to scream about every change I make, I’m going to think you’re a baby.

And remember this. As an editor, I don’t get credit when you, the writer, look good. I may not even have my name on the project anywhere. You get the credit.

Sometimes I get a submission and I know it is off but I have to think about it a while before I can figure out how to fix it. That’s brain drain and it takes time. It’s helpful to remember the editor didn’t go to the trouble to do all that reorganization because it felt good to one-up the author. They did it because they think it makes the work better.

One thing I have done well as a writer is recognize that an editor can make me look good and express my gratitude. And even if I have an editor who looks to me like they are changing things for the sake of change, I save my arguments for the big ticket items, and let the small stuff go.

Being on the other side of the table has helped me be a better author. And I’m grateful for the experience. Now I know what I told my friend that made her so successful. I, too, had the ruby slippers on the whole time. And now I’ve given you a pair. So try them on and see how they fit. Because you can do this, too.

Call for Anthology Submissions

2012-01-16T09:00:00.005-07:00

Pikes Peak Writers is pleased to announce it has partnered with Courtney Literary to create its first ever short story anthology, to be released in conjunction with the 20^th Annual Pikes Peak Writers Conference in April 2012.

The theme for this anthology is “Moving Mountains.” Stories considered will be between 1,000 and 5,000 words in length and will relate to the theme. All genres of stories will be considered. No poetry.

Submission instructions and an online submission form are located at http://www.pikespeakwriters.com/html/anthology_2012.html. Stories must be submitted NO LATER THAN Wednesday, February 29, 2011.

This is an unpaid anthology, to be used as a fundraiser for the Pikes Peak Writers Conference Scholarship Fund. Through this fund, Pikes Peak Writers offers opportunities to attend the Pikes Peak Writers Conference to those who would otherwise be unable to attend due to financial hardships. Authors whose stories are accepted for publication will receive two free Contributor Copies and the opportunity to purchase additional copies at a discount.

For additional information, please visit the Pikes Peak Writers Website at http://www.pikespeakwriters.com/html/anthology_2012.html , or email anthology@pikespeakwriters.com.

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2012-01-15T09:00:00.001-07:00

Every writer I know has trouble writing. – Joseph Heller

Thermodynamics of Magic Systems by Laura E. Reeve

2012-01-12T09:00:00.006-07:00

"Magic" by Laura E. Reeve

(Originally posted November 14, 2011 at www.ancestralstars.com/)

When I was at a writer’s conference in Denver, I pitched to a science fiction and fantasy (SF/F) editor for a NY publisher. After expressing disappointment that I wasn’t pitching an SF manuscript, he brightened and said, “But I usually like Fantasy written by SF authors.”

“Because their magic systems make sense?” Being an avid reader of SF/F (and all sub-genres), I knew exactly what he meant.

He agreed.

Later I heard several writers at that same conference express why they liked to write fantasy (“It’s so easy, because you don’t have to do research,” “You can make everything up,” and “Readers don’t expect accuracy”). I decided I’d have to counter these misinformed ideas.

There are fundamental scientific laws and logic most readers understand intrinsically. If SF/F world-builders address these laws, the realism of their worlds will be enhanced and their readers won’t be getting that nagging feeling they’re reading a puffed-up idiotic Hollywood script. So, the first subject we’ll tackle is the laws of thermodynamics as they apply to magic systems.

FIRST LAW: THOU SHALT NOT CREATE ENERGY FROM NOTHING.

Physical sciences and engineering disciplines all address this rule in different ways (okay, okay—they don’t use King James English in their textbooks, but then, their textbooks are boring). When this law was discovered, chemists went off to play with gas pressures in closed systems while engineers used it to drive a stake through the heart of the perpetual motion machine, an idea most readers intrinsically understand is dead.

This law is about conservation of energy, meaning that energy can change forms and transfer from material to material, but it must come from somewhere. It can go through many transformations but in the end, a closed system will have the same energy it had in the beginning. Heinlein put it succinctly in The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress: “There ain’t no such thing as a free lunch” (yet another concept most readers understand).

Basically, magic can be considered the application of energy. As a fantasy writer, please take time to figure out where the energy for your magic comes from. Before you grumble about this heinous limitation upon your creativity—it’s a world-building exercise where you’re in total control and your magic system will benefit from it, I promise. Just because the energy comes from somewhere doesn’t mean it has to be rare or limited. For instance, it could come from sunshine or starlight or the life force of plants, animals, the universe (“Feel the Force, Luke”), etc. It can come from generous gods or the ground one walks upon. If you do pick an essentially unlimited source, you’ll find this raises other questions, such as: Why isn’t everybody performing magic? And, if they are, what will be the ramifications upon society, economics, etc.?

To the contrary, your energy source could be incredibly constrained, having to be mined from the ground by imprisoned faeries during a blue moon in winter. Obviously, its scarcity will have ramifications. Hunt down and define those complications; you’ll discover more about your characters and world.

Consider, as well, how characters would channel/transform/wield this energy. What are the risks and the costs involved? If magic in your world is fueled by the internal energy in characters, then I would expect to see an incredible cost associated with a work requiring great power. After all, how much energy could be pulled from characters before they turn into dry husks–and before a reader says, “Come on now, this is a vapid Hollywood creation,” and throws it against the wall?

SECOND LAW: THOU SHALT APPLY ENTROPY, BECAUSE NATURE DESIRES DISORDER.

The second law of thermodynamics was discovered when trying to explain the direction of spontaneous change. Scientists observed that gas always expands to fill a vacuum, but never spontaneously contracts. Nature obviously abhors a vacuum, but why? Why do chemical reactions always proceed in one particular direction? Engineers also noted that heat (energy) never flows from a cooler to a hotter body. Spontaneous change is predictive and has a direction, but scientists wanted to know why. The answer: Systems change toward greater distribution of energy, toward greater “disorder,” which scientists called the entropy of a system. Entropy turned out to be measurable.

You’re probably thinking this entropy stuff can’t possibly be sensible to readers. Surprisingly, it’s quite intuitive when stated this way: Systems naturally change toward greater disorder, and it often takes more energy to apply or maintain order than disorder. We see examples of this in our everyday lives. It’s so much easier to drop your stuff on the floor in the family mudroom than put it away in those nicely labeled cubbyholes. Eventually someone (mom or dad) snaps and orders a family clean-up. Everyone finds it takes a good amount of energy to impose order upon that mudroom, while it seemed to naturally change or “decay” into disorder.

What does this mean to magic systems and your average reader? Let’s say you have a mage encase a city in a magical forcefield. No one can get in or out of that city. After this feat is performed, are you going to have the mage walk away with the guarantee this forcefield will be in effect forever? Only if you want your reader to dump your book, because we all sense that something of such high complexity and order requires energy to maintain it. This applies to even small abstract entities/spells like “wards,” as well. A fantasy I recently read had mages using wards like doorbells to sense when they had visitors and identify them. The author mentioned these wards needed continual maintenance—a careful detail that made her world more solid.

What if, instead, that mage reduced the city to dust? Would the reader believe the job is done and the mage can walk away? (Moral/ethical implications aside, of course.) Yes, the reader would consider the task completed and irreversible, but why is that? Because our world has engraved the instinct in us that no energy is required to maintain immense disorder. Furthermore, we understand the energy required to reorder that dust back into a city would be astronomical. The second law of thermodynamics is behind the maxim that “destruction is easier than creation.”

Entropic change also affects knowledge (Information Theory has the principle of degradation, where changes to information over time/transmission are irreversible). Everybody knows how the Greek Dark Ages and the Western European Dark Ages walloped advancement in those civilizations. From our own history, readers sense that a body of information requires continual energy to stay “ordered,” meaning relationships between data must be maintained or adjusted as knowledge increases. Copies must be made, distributed, and protected, whether by monks or computers.

In fantasies, having plot-critical magical lore established hundreds or thousands of years ago has almost become stock background. When information has to be transferred over many generations, when it must survive wars and natural disasters, the author should create inaccuracies and gaps. Otherwise, the credibility of the entire world is weakened. If your character is lucky enough to find good (never perfect) information, the author should provide hints on how it’s been preserved, whether through immortals with eidetic memory, fanatic quill-wielding clerks, multiple copies, special preservation methods, or survivable mediums.

WRAPPING IT UP…

If your magic system fits within these first two laws, it will feel natural and solid to your readers. These simple premises are ingrained: we know energy comes from somewhere and we assume spontaneous change always moves toward disorder. We instinctually feel that the natural progression of time makes organized matter “decay” toward randomness. Use these instincts—based on natural laws of thermodynamics—to your benefit.

Make your magic, and your worlds, real to your readers.

About the Writer: Laura began writing SF and Fantasy in the fifth grade, but it took her thirty years to learn to finish her novels. Along the way, she spent nine years as a U.S. Air Force officer and her civilian jobs ranged from Research Chemist to Software Development Lead. In 2007, her dream of becoming a "paperback writer" came true with a 3-book contract from Roc for the Major Ariane Kedros Novels (Peacekeeper, Vigilante, and Pathfinder). Laura lives in Monument, Colorado, where she writes fantastical worlds, struggles with high-altitude xeriscape gardening, and dabbles with digital art. For more, see her web site at www.AncestralStars.com.

January Write Brain: New Models in Publishing

2012-01-09T09:00:00.005-07:00

Join us for a FREE "Write Brain" session on new models in publishing. Presenters include Deb Courtney of Courtney Literary, and authors Robert Spiller and DeAnna Knippling, both of whom have books that are traditionally published, self-published, and published in e-book formats. Panel discussion will cover indie-publishing, managed self-publishing, traditional publishing and self-publishing in its many incarnations. Hear what options are available to you, learn the pros and cons of each, and find out why one traditionally published author has turned to managed self-publishing for his next book. Panel will also take questions from the audience. A great way to start your writing year!

When: Tuesday, January 17, 2012, 6:30-8:30 p.m. (doors open at 6:00 p.m.)

Where: Celebration Place at the Citadel Mall

Who: Open to the public (Note: Teens under 18 can attend with parental permission; e-mail jodi.anderson@pikespeakwriters.com for more info)

Cost: FREE!

Quote

2012-01-08T10:00:00.004-07:00

If my doctor told me I had only six minutes to live, I wouldn't brood. I'd type a little faster. – Isaac Asimov

Inspiration by Carol Berg

2012-01-06T09:00:00.016-07:00

There is a set of standard questions that readers always ask authors. Where do you get your ideas? When did you start writing? How did you get published? How many hours a day do you write? Why are you so mean to your characters? We’ve answered them so many times, we don’t even have to think about them.

So here it is holiday time and one is thinking about family dinners and travel and New Year’s celebrations, as well as January book releases, and my friend Rashda, in her most unique and clever way, comes up with a question I have to consider carefully. Where do I get my inspiration to write? Inspiration, not ideas. What makes me sit down and tear my brain to shreds to come up with these convoluted stories? What gets me back in the chair only a few weeks after finishing seven years of constant deadlines. As I sit here and close my eyes, the notions that come to mind are kind of odd.

Trees. Dense evergreens or multicolored oaks along a meadow or sparse across a desolate hillside. Or colored gold with autumn and sheltering a path.

Green seams in the rocky face of a mountain.

Weather: lowering clouds or driving snow or a thin autumn day after the leaves have blown and the haze says a change is coming. Sun sparkling on frost covered tree limbs.

Moonlit nights so bright that trees and fences cast shadows.

The way the dust rolls up in the desert air.

Unanswered questions. The Etruscan artifacts in the Penn Archeology Museum, talking about a sophisticated people who were inundated by the Roman Empire.

Phrases like the last lighthouse or you can’t go home again or who is on the other side of the mirror. What does that mean?

The glimpse of Billy Elliot grown up (at the end of the film by the same name) leaping onto the stage…no, really it is the expression on his father’s face as he looks on a wonder we can’t see…

Books, certainly. Oh yes, I’m getting close.

Each of these speaks of one thing…story. What’s happening, who’s out there just beyond the place I can see? What makes a hard-bitten miner’s face express such awe when he’s watching a ballet?

So that’s it. There’s a story in there somewhere, and I want to know what happens!

About the Writer: Former software engineer Carol Berg majored in mathematics at Rice University and computer science at the University of Colorado, in part so she could avoid writing papers. Yet now her thirteen epic fantasy novels have won national and international awards, including multiple Colorado Book Awards, the Prism Award, the Geffen Award, and the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award for Adult Literature. They have been read, so readers tell her, on five continents, on a submarine under the Mediterranean, in the war zone of Iraq, and on the slopes of Denali. Her novels of the Collegia Magica have received starred reviews from Publishers Weekly and Kirkus Reviews, the reviews using words like compelling, intelligent, complex, enthralling, and superbly realized. The latest is The Daemon Prism. Carol lives in Colorado and on the internet at [www.carolberg.com].

From the Editor: Five Tips for the New Writing Year

2012-01-02T09:00:00.003-07:00

Welcome to 2012!

The calendar page turns, and suddenly we face a bright, shiny new year full of promise and dreams and hopes. It’s a great time to do a little housekeeping and get more organized so that you can have a productive writing year.

1. Clean up your electronic files. It’s all too easy to save documents, e-mails, and other odds and ends because you might want to read them later. Go through your document folders and inboxes with a cool detachment and delete anything that’s just taking up space. If you haven’t used the file or read the e-mail in the past year, chances are you don’t need it.

2. Back up your computer files – especially those all-important works in progress! This is something all writers should do on a regular basis, but if you haven’t been keeping up with your backups, now’s the time.

3. Clean up your writing space. File papers you need to keep, and shred or recycle the rest. Make sure everything has a place, and put it there. Get rid of items that don’t belong. A neat writing space invites creativity.

4. Get out the calendar and mark the dates for writing workshops and conferences. (To get you started, PPW Write Brain sessions are held on the third Tuesday evening of each month. The 20^th annual Pikes Peak Writers Conference will be held April 20 – 22, 2012.)

5. Set some reasonable writing goals, and create a plan to achieve them. Then write, write, write!

Do you have any more tips to share? Post them to our comments.

Have a terrific new year!

Robin Widmar

Managing Editor, Writing from the Peak

New Year’s Resolutions for Writers – 2012 Style by Cathy Dilts

2012-01-01T12:24:00.001-07:00

The much dreaded and anticipated year 2012 unfurls. Maybe you have your reservations for a hotel in the Yucatan Peninsula in anticipation of the end of the world. Or perhaps you share my cynicism about the accuracy of the Mayan calendar.

Believer or scoffer, the threat of the demise of civilization as we know it does have a powerful motivating effect. This is the year to finish that manuscript, sell a short story, enter a contest!

Have you made any writing resolutions? If you need inspiration, I have attached links to various takes on Writer’s New Year’s Resolutions at the end of this article. But remember, inspiration is a spark you have the responsibility to fan into a flame. If you can’t afford to waste precious writing time, I have gleaned some tidbits from the plethora of articles on the internet.

- If you are spending more time writing about writing and talking about writing than actually writing, shut up, apply butt to seat of chair, and write.

- Set concrete goals. Becoming a better writer is too lofty. How are you going to accomplish your goal? For example, “I will improve my writing by attending X workshop, class, conference,” then register for the event. Entering a contest is too vague. Better is “I will enter the PPW fiction contest in 2012,” then mark the deadline for the contest on your calendar so you don’t forget.

- Trust yourself. Seek advice, read how-to books, try critique group, attend workshops. But at the end of the day it’s your story, and you have to tell it the way it needs to be told.

- Remember that doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results is the definition of insanity (quote attributed to Albert Einstein). This whole New Year’s resolution thing is about wiping your slate clean and starting fresh. You can’t get the hang of outlining? Try seat of the pants writing. Critique group is stifling your creativity? Drop out. Can’t write when you get home from work because you’re too tired? Set your alarm for an hour earlier and write before you go to work.

Here are just a few results from my Google search for writers’ New Year’s resolutions.

1) Setting realistic writing goals:

http://www.authormedia.com/2011/12/28/how-to-set-realistic-writing-goals-for-2012/

2) Tamera Craft offers writer’s resolutions in a short and sweet list with links to articles expanding on each resolution, such as how to make time for writing:

http://wordsharpeners.wordpress.com/2011/12/27/a-writers-new-years-resolutions/

3) What writers say about New Year’s resolutions – quotes:

http://classiclit.about.com/od/newyearlit/a/aa_newyearquote.htm

4) Sally Jenkins lists a few concrete resolutions involving contests, and gives the links if you want to try your hand at them:

http://sallyjenkins.wordpress.com/2011/12/28/new-years-resolutions-or-maybe-not/

5) Resolutions from a non-fiction writer:

http://chicwriter.com/2011/12/12/5-years-resolutions-writers/

6) Resolutions from a memoir writer:

http://marionroach.com/2011/12/memoir-writing-resolutions-number-one-no-more-writing-exercises/

7) Using a writing quote instead of a list of resolutions:

http://www.meanderingsandmuses.com/2011/12/new-years-resolution.html

8) An entertaining New Year’s resolution article by Daniel Sanchez from 2009, but worth revisiting:

http://www2.uclaextension.edu/writers/feature.php?recordID=56

9) Ten popular resolutions for writers:

http://fictionwriting.about.com/od/writingexercises/tp/resolutions.htm

10) Creative writing prompts based on New Year’s Eve:

http://www.build-creative-writing-ideas.com/free-creative-writing-prompts-new-years-eve.html

11) The Surly Muse takes a humorous look at resolutions:

http://surlymuse.com/

About the Writer: Cathy Dilts is an assistant editor for the PPW blog. She writes cozy murder mystery and inspirational fiction, and has recently begun writing short stories because they’re easier to fit in to her busy schedule. Cathy’s publication experience is similar to fishing – getting lots of nibbles on the line, but no bites yet.

In her spare time, she enjoys raised bed gardening, which her husband claims look the perfect size for burying bodies, while reminding her that you can’t get rid of the bones.

Ten Ways Fiction Compares With Life by Karen Albright Lin

2011-12-27T10:00:00.003-07:00

Ten Ways fiction is different than life:

1) Life starts at the beginning.

Fiction starts in the middle.

2) Minimize conflict in life.

Maximize conflict in fiction.

3) Life: Want it to be in your control.

Fiction: Want it to be unpredictable.

4) Life: Dialogue is often mundane.

Fiction: Dialogue is clipped, relevant, dynamic.

5) Life: Truth through facts.

Fiction: Truth through lies.

6) Life: What you see is what you get.

Fiction: What you see is rarely what you get.

7) Life: Poetry of life measured in the macro.

Fiction: Poetry of life measured in the micro.

8) Life: Protect the good guy from the bad.

Fiction: Kick good guy while he’s down.

9) Life: Backstory matters when we talk about it.

Fiction: Backstory only matters when needed.

10) Life: No do-overs.

Fiction: Editing allowed.

Ten Ways fiction is the same as life:

1) Begins with great promise.

2) We don’t want to be cliché, yet we want to fit in.

3) Everyday life until something goes wrong.

4) We want it to be interesting and engaging.

5) Setting has great influence.

6) Both are a series of discoveries.

7) Act on motivations.

8) Both include major turning points (think teen, menopause, bar mitzvah, baptism).

9) Resolutions suggest more story.

10) End is unpredictable yet inevitable.

Sweet Success! Ian Thomas Healy

2011-12-23T09:00:00.001-07:00

Ian Thomas Healy's superhero novel for adults, Just Cause (ISBN: 978-0984882816, 294 pages, trade paperback/ebook), was released November 24, 2011 (ebook) and December 1, 2011 (print) by New Babel Books. The book is available at New Babel Books (http://newbabelbooks.com), Amazon (print edition only), Barnes & Noble, and on Smashwords. The author's website is at www.ianthealy.com.

Some superheroes can fly, or lift great weights, or shoot lightning bolts.

Mustang Sally runs.

A third-generation superhero, Sally's life changes forever when she fights and loses to the notorious villain Destroyer, who killed her father just before she was born. She dedicates herself to tracking him down so she can even the score.

When all you can do is run, you'd better be fast, but can even the fastest girl in the world run quick enough to save her teammates' lives from Destroyer and his growing parahuman army?

Ian Thomas Healy is a prolific writer who dabbles in many different speculative genres. His superhero novel Deep Six: A Just Cause Novel was a Top 100 Semi-finalist in the 2008 Amazon.com Breakthrough Novel Award. He's an eight-time participant and winner of National Novel Writing Month, where he's tackled such diverse subjects as sentient alien farts, competitive forklift racing, a religion-powered rabbit-themed superhero, cyberpunk mercenaries, cowboy elves, and an unlikely combination of vampires with minor league hockey. He is also the creator of the Writing Better Action Through Cinematic Techniques workshop, which helps writers to improve their action scenes. His goal is to become as integral to the genre of superhero fiction as William Gibson was to cyberpunk and Anne Rice was to urban fantasy.

Write ON # 4 from Chris Mandeville

2011-12-18T09:00:00.003-07:00

Editor’s Note: Following are the tips Chris Mandeville provided to those participating in NaNoWriMo and NaNoTRYMo during the last week of November, but they are excellent tips any time of year!

Write ON #4

Five Tips, Quotes and Exercises

Provided by Give! 2011 Collaborating Nonprofits

We've made it three-fourths of the way through November, NaNo-ers. It's been a long and arduous journey, and it's not over yet. Is your energy or enthusiasm flagging? If so, we hope the quotes and suggestions below inspire you and reinvigorate your NaNo efforts. Press on!

1. Think left and think right and think low and think high. Oh, the thinks you can think up if only you try. You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose. Today is your day! Your mountain is waiting. So... get on your way. Dr. Seuss

Today is your day TO WRITE. Don't let ANYTHING stand in the way!

--CHILDREN'S LITERACY CENTER

2. "I get everything all beautifully planned out and it has to go and rain." E.B. White in Charlotte’s Web

If it feels like rain is ruining all your best laid plans, why not embrace the rain? Try welcoming whatever it is that's putting a damper on your plot, waylaying your characters, or washing away your carefully drawn world. Instead of fighting the problem or ignoring it, go with it! See where it takes you. This "rain" could be exactly what your novel-in-progress needs. If you don't end up loving the rain, you can always try a colorful umbrella.

--IMAGINATION CELEBRATION

3. One Man, an Inspiration by K. Chopera:

"He began his work and got his aim. He was alone, but he didn't lose his patience and most importantly his hope." From Stone Soup 2011, a publication of essays by participants of the Pikes Peak Library District's Adult Literacy and ESL Program

In the last three weeks you began your work and got your aim. Now it's time to hang on to your patience and your hope for the final third of NaNo. Have faith and confidence: you can do it!

--PIKES PEAK LIBRARY DISTRICT ADULT LITERACY AND ESL

4. Listen to the mustn'ts, child. Listen to the don'ts. Listen to the shouldn'ts, the impossibles, the won'ts. Listen to the never haves, then listen close to me... Anything can happen, child. Anything can be. Shel Silverstein

You have the power and the ability within you to reach your goals. But beware--right next to them are the doubts and the excuses. Be aggressive in pursuit of your goals, and shove aside anything gets in the way, especially the obstacles within you. They often seem the most formidable but they are actually the ones most within your control.

--UCCS LITERACY FOR LIFE

5. Want to double the speed you're racking up the word-count? It's simple: banish your inner editor. That means stop critiquing and second-guessing what you've just written, and leave the delete key alone. Shut out the voice of the perpetually unhappy critic who lives in your head, and replace it with a cheerleader who thinks you can do no wrong. If you keep your "editor's hat" in the drawer and your "writer's hat" firmly on your head, you'll be amazed how fast you complete your rough draft. But be careful not to lose your inner editor forever--when NaNo is over, take out that "editor's hat" and make your story shine.

--PIKES PEAK WRITERS

For more information about these nonprofit organizations and their collaboration in Give! 2011, please visit http://pikespeakwriters.com/html/give_2011.html.

Kindle Fire: Why I Returned Mine, But Still Recommend It by Linda Rohrbough

2011-12-14T09:00:00.001-07:00

Editor’s Note: The opinions in this article are that of the author, and do not imply endorsement of any particular product by the Pikes Peak Writers.

When the Kindle Fire was announced, I ordered it the same day. And waited over a month to get it. I returned it recently, but I still think it’ll be a success. Here’s why.

Why I Ordered

I have the second generation Kindle. When the first one came out, I passed because it looked clunky. And it turns out it was clunky. The second one looked like it had promise. And what I discovered is the main beauty of the Kindles (up until the Kindle Fire) is you can always connect to the Kindle store. No WiFi needed. Which means you can always get something else you want to read. Doesn’t matter where you are or what time it is. No planning ahead required.

Since I travel a fair amount, this is important to me. I usually have a series of books I am studying by a fiction author, reading them in order from the first to the most current title. (I just finished studying Jonathan Kellerman’s Alex Delaware series and am starting on Allison Brennan’s books.)

Now, I figured the Kindle Fire would be the same way. My mistake. You must have WiFi available to connect to the Kindle store. I knew the Fire would browse the web, and I figured Amazon was smart enough not to provide every Kindle Fire customer with free, unlimited access to the Internet. But I thought the thing would operate like its predecessors and allow me to download Kindle books any time, any place. Nope, I was wrong.

The iPad Nixes the Fire

Playing with the Kindle Fire, my conclusion is that if you have an iPad, you don’t need a Kindle Fire. Fire does most of what the iPad does, including a lot of the same Apps, but it’s clunky. (It’s the Droid operating system, so there are a lot fewer Apps, but still enough to be respectable.)

What do I mean by clunky? It’s elegant when it first starts. But when you drill down some, that’s when I noticed the problems. For example, where I wanted to scroll through a list of Apps on the screen, instead of a smooth, rolling motion, it’s a jerky, pot-hole-filled ride that is hard to track. Plus, for web browsing, it’s harder to work with than my iPhone even though the screen is bigger.

I kept my Kindle Fire for a month on the nightstand next to my iPad. And when it was new, I picked it up first because I was curious. But later, after fat-fingering choices I didn’t want on websites and clunky scrolling that made me cross-eyed, when it came time to reach for one or the other, I found myself reaching for the iPad.

You can also watch movies on the Fire, through Amazon. But that requires not only WiFi, but another $79 a year for Amazon Prime. Prime offers other perks like free priority shipping of items purchased on Amazon.com and a best-seller lending feature, although Amazon is in a fight with publishers over that. I did get 30 days of Amazon Prime free, but it wasn’t enough of a draw for me to plunk down more dough. I must say, though, the return process for the Fire was hassle-free and didn’t cost me anything.

I Still Recommend the Fire

Price is the big upside to the Fire. The other big contender, the Barnes & Noble Nook, while smoother, won’t allow you the same Internet access or let you download Apps. (You can “root” the Nook, and turn it into an Android tablet. But that means getting inside the case to pull the SD card and tweak the code on it, which I suspect voids the warranty along with any support from B&N.)

For just under $200, the Fire is a great choice for an e-reader that does more, given that’s less than half the cost of a low-end iPad. And Amazon says sales of the Fire are good, so it’ll be widely supported, which is another big perk. The bottom line is my recommendation for someone new to e-readers, who wants something inexpensive and cool, is the Kindle Fire.

Write ON # 3 from Chris Mandeville

2011-12-11T09:00:00.002-07:00

Write ON #3

Five Tips, Quotes and Exercises

Provided by Give! 2011 Collaborating Nonprofits

Stuck? Stalled? Or just plain bored with what you're writing? Call "King's X" and take a time out to try one of the exercises below. Before you know it, you'll be ready to get back in the game.

1. "Inside all of us is a wild thing." Maurice Sendak in Where the Wild Things Are

Are you afraid to go wild with your writing? Give yourself permission to let your wildest thing out, and let the wild rumpus begin! To make it less intimidating, start with a fresh sheet of paper or a new computer document, and set a time limit. If your inner wild thing writes something awful, you can throw it away and you've lost next to nothing. But chances are good that somewhere in the rumpus you will find a gem worth keeping.

--CHILDREN'S LITERACY CENTER

2. Feed your imagination...by feeding your characters. What would each of your main characters—including your antagonist—choose for their last meal? Create backstory that explains why.

--IMAGINATION CELEBRATION

3. A Golden Key by Larysa Harrington

"We all know that a golden key opens every door. For us, this golden key is our knowledge of English, which give us the possibilities to have the education, prestigious work, and communicate with friends. To have this 'golden key' we must be diligent, assiduous, and attentive that for the future, we could send our own knowledge ("our golden key") to other people, and help them too." From Stone Soup 2011, a publication of essays by participants of the Pikes Peak Library District's Adult Literacy and ESL Program

Find your character's "golden key" – the one thing that will open the door to his or her biggest dreams coming true.

--PIKES PEAK LIBRARY DISTRICT ADULT LITERACY AND ESL

4. "Don't try to figure out what other people want to hear from you; figure out what you have to say. It's the one and only thing you have to offer." Barbara Kingsolver

Banish the voices of the critics you keep in your head, and torpedo your desire to please them.

Be yourself and say what you want to say, the way only you can say it. Trust yourself to give words to your vision. Write your story—no one else can.

--UCCS LITERACY FOR LIFE

5. Take a note from history. Select a famous historical event—a pivotal battle, a royal wedding, an amazing discovery, or even a traumatic/dramatic/climactic event from your own history. Don't take too long, just pick one. Now, how can you incorporate a similar scenario in your story? Chances are the details won't mesh, but look at the event symbolically. How could a situation like that become a scene for your protagonist? Or your antagonist? Try writing a scene in the historical period, then write one in your story's setting.

--PIKES PEAK WRITERS

For more information about these nonprofit organizations and their collaboration in Give! 2011, please visit http://pikespeakwriters.com/html/give_2011.html.