The Most Difficult Thing To Write…

Hello again, everybody!

Well, in my last post, I talked about a new project I wanted to start and how I was going to chronicle all of the different steps I take to create a novel.  However, I’m going to have to put that endeavor on hold for a bit while I get my second book, Betrayal in the Highlands, ready for publication hopefully later next month (but probably in September, we’ll see.)

Anyway, Betrayal in the Highlands is currently being edited by the wonderful Kimberly Grenfell.  Seriously, if you ever need an incredibly talented editor to not only go line-by-line over your entire manuscript, but also provide insightful feedback regarding your manuscript’s plots, characters, and so forth—you can’t go wrong with Kimberly. You can find her website.  You’ll be glad that you hired her!

So while Kimberly is smoothing out my many typos and writing gaffs, I have to face the worst part of writing a novel.  I have to write the promotional blurb.

If you don’t know what a promotional blurb is, think of the trail for a movie. You know, the brief commercials about a film where a guy with a deep voice says something like:

“In a world where all hell has broken lose, one man stands between salvation and utter ruin…a fat stuttering librarian named Edmund….”

Promotional blurbs are a book’s commercial.  They usually appear on the back cover and advertisements.

Along with the book’s cover, the promotional blurb SELLS the book. 

Whenever somebody puts Riddle in Stone on their “to read” list on Goodreads.com, I try to send them a quick e-mail thanking them and asking how the learned of my book.  Ninety percent of the time, people will say something like: “Oh, I was looking for a good fantasy to read, read the description of your book, and thought it sounded interesting.”

So the blurb is really, REALLY important.  Good blurbs can sell bad books.  Good books have difficulty overcoming bad blurbs. 

I NEED TO WRITE A TERRIFIC BLURB FOR BETRAYAL!!!!

The problem is—I suck at it. 

If you haven’t written a promotional blurb before, picture summarizing you entire novel and all its many plots and twists and characters into a single paragraph.  Honestly, it is the hardest piece of writing I’ve ever had to do.  Harder than the book itself. Harder than even my dissertation.

So, dear reader, I could use your help and I could use it really quickly (I need the blurb within a week or so). 

Below are some rough drafts of blurbs.  Please help me polish them (or help me write something completely different).  Again, the idea is to create something that sounds so good you’ll want to go out and read it!  Any and all help will be gratefully appreciated!! 

There are a few key things that I think need to be in the blurb: 

1.      Edmund knows a secret that is potentially dangerous for all of humanity.

2.      Goblins will go to any lengths to capture him. 

3.      Just when he thinks he’s safe, he realizes that the woman he’s loved since childhood is telling stories about him, stories that will make things much worse for Edmund and his friends if anybody starts to believe them.

4.      Edmund has to risk getting captured by goblins in order to get to Molly.

5.      Molly has already promised not to tell people about Edmund, but she’s doing so anyway.

So here are a couple rough versions that I have so far…

Version 1:

Pursued relentlessly by evil goblins for the ancient secret he knows, Edmund believes that he has finally found safety in the inviting confines of a sleepy coastal town far from the frozen mountains of the Undead King.  Then he learns that the woman he has loved since childhood is telling stories about him—stories that, if people start to believe them, will have every bandit, cut-throat, and aspiring king out to kill him and his friends. Edmund has to evade his goblin pursuers, get back to his hometown of Rood, and stop the stories from spreading.  But how can he convince his former love to stop talking when she’s already promised not to reveal his secret?

Version 2:

Edmund knows a secret—an ancient secret that, if in the wrong hands, could destroy all of humanity. Pursued relentlessly by sadistic goblins, Edmund hides in the inviting confines of a sleepy coastal town far from the frozen mountains of the Undead King.  For a moment, he believes he’s safe.  Then he learns that his former childhood love, Molly, is telling stories about him—stories that will get Edmund and his friends killed. Edmund has to abandon his sanctuary, avoid being captured by goblin hunters, and race back to his hometown to convince Molly to stop talking about him. But how can he get her to stop talking when she’s already promised not to reveal his secret?

NEW Version 3:

Hunted relentlessly by sadistic goblins, Edmund believes that he has finally found safety in the inviting confines of a sleepy coastal town far from the frozen mountains of the Undead King.  Then he learns that Molly, the woman he has loved since childhood, is telling stories about him—stories that will surely get him and his friends killed. Edmund has to evade his goblin pursuers, get back to his hometown of Rood, and stop the stories from spreading.  But how can he convince his former love to stop talking when she’s already promised not to reveal his secret?

**One of the problems with this these is that I use the word “secret” twice and I can’t figure out a good way of altering it while keeping the context.

Thoughts?



Here are some more drafts:

Edmund believes that he has finally found safety as far from the frozen mountains of the Undead King as possible.  Then he learns that Molly, the woman he has loved since childhood, is telling stories about him—stories that will get him and his friends killed. Edmund has to get back to his hometown of Rood and stop the stories from spreading.  However, if the goblins catch him, all of humanity is doomed.

Edmund knows a secret—an ancient secret that, if in the wrong hands, could destroy all of humanity. Pursued relentlessly by sadistic goblins, he hides in a sleepy coastal town as far from the frozen mountains of the Undead King as possible.  For a moment, Edmund believes he’s finally safe.  Then he learns that Molly, a woman he’s loved since childhood, is telling stories about him—stories that will get him and his friends killed. Edmund has to abandon his sanctuary, avoid being captured by goblin hunters, race back to his hometown, and convince Molly to stop talking about him. If he fails, all will be lost.

Edmund’s old, boring life is gone forever. Pursued relentless by sadistic goblins, he hides in a sleepy coastal town as far from the frozen mountains of the Undead King as possible. However, this quiet respite will not last, as he learns that his childhood love, Molly, is revealing information about him—information that will get him and his friends killed. Edmund is forced to embark on a perilous journey home to confront the woman who broke his heart. If he fails, all of humanity will be doomed.

The Writer's Process: Step One!

I know what you are thinking! You’re thinking, “Two blog posts within a week! When did hell freeze over?”

Well, I’ve had a bit of an idea that I’m excited about.  You see, I have just finished the second full draft of my third book in the Riddle in Stone series.  This one will probably be called “Blood in Snow” although I also like the title “A Terrible Time for a Holiday.”  No real reason why. It just sounds fun.

Anyway!  So I have the third book in fairly good shape, plot-wise.  I just need to let it sit for a couple months so I can read and edit it with fresh eyes.  While I’m letting book three sit, I want to start writing a new project. 

Now, I often have people asking me about the writing “process.” So what I want to do over the next few posts is to walk people through what is happening to me with this new project.  I want to go step-by-step over what I do when I start something new.  Make sense? 

For me, the first issue that arises when starting a new project is selecting an idea.

You see, I have TONS of ideas for books and television shows and off-Broadway theatre…and commercials! I have TONS of ideas for commercials, most of them very Monty Python-esque and not at all fit for American daytime television. 

The problem that I often have is that I start one project and then get distracted by an idea for another project before the first one is completed.  So I really need to select a project that’ll be captivating enough for me to finish. 

Further, it has to be somewhat developed in my head.  I don’t need to know the entire plot.  In fact, I prefer not to know how things are going to end.  That way I look forward to finding out what happens.  But I do need to feel like I know the main characters relatively well. I need to be able to hear their voices and feel their attitudes.

How do I get to that point?

I don’t know what other authors do; but I daydream—A LOT.  During faculty meetings, on the treadmill, when my boys are prattling on about stuff.  I tend to be in my own little world most of the time.  So I tend to toy with characters and their backgrounds and their perspectives on the world in my head.

Once I get a fairly good feel for who my main characters are, I think of a situation that creates some sort of ongoing conflict.  And this is really important!  The situation has to be rife with possibilities. It needs to be able to spin off into a hundred different ways; otherwise, I’m going to get bored. So will the reader. 

For example, I’ve often thought about having an entire novel set during one night in a bar.  The concept interests me.  But I don’t have enough skill as a writer to pull that off.  I need more outlets for possible action and reaction.  I need a broader concept and more room to run, creatively speaking.

So… this is what I have so far… 

For my main character, I have a newly-minted Ph.D. in special education, young, bright-eyed, energetic, wanting to change the world “one child at a time.”  Can you picture him?  The kind of person who wants to sing Kumbaya and cheer everybody on.

For the situation, I have the world’s worst university.  People are hopelessly dysfunctional…to the point of pulling practical jokes on each other that could turn deadly. 

I’m going to try to put the two together.  I don’t know what’ll happen.  But I think there’s a story there.

So now I go off and write a bit!

Five things I've learned about writing...

Hello everybody!

I'm sorry that I've been away so long.  To be honest, this summer hasn't been as relaxing as I had hoped.  Between getting Book Two: Betrayal in the Highlands ready for release (hopefully in September), writing Book Three:  Blood in Snow, and actually working for a living...things have been a bit busy.

At any rate, rather than write a completely new post, I'm going to be a lazy ass and re-post an interview that I did for Jaye Viner on her wonderful blog WRITE CASTLES IN THE SKY.  Thanks to Jaye for having me on her blog and promoting Riddle in Stone!!!  Please check out her stuff!

I'll try to come up with something more original next time!

1.      You have to study the craft of writing

It always amazes me how many people “want” to write a novel.  As soon as I mention something about my first book, Riddle in Stone (shameless plug), they nearly always say something like, “You know, I think I’ll write a novel someday. I have several really good ideas!” 

What amazes me even more is that people seem to think that, since they can write an e-mail, they can write a novel—as if a novel was just a REALLY long e-mail! 

What people don’t realize (and I had to learn the hard way) is that writing is a craft. You have to study it. You literally have to approach writing as if it is a job or you’re learning a new language. You have to read other authors and examine why their stories work or why they don’t. You have to read the “how to write books” and join online writing communities. It takes a tremendous amount of effort, but without knowing the craft, it doesn’t matter how much time you spend typing away or how many good ideas you have.  You probably won’t get published. 

2.   It’s all about marketing and promotion

Nearly every publisher that my agent approached wanted to know about my “marketing plan.” Even before they read the manuscript, they wanted to know how I was going to promote my book.

Silly me, I thought I was the writer and that they would take care of everything else.  But that’s not how it works—at least, not for new writers.

New writers need to market their own books. My publisher will make sure my book is on Amazon and Goodreads and so forth, but I have to get online and talk about my story. I have to beg and plead for people to read and review it.  Otherwise, it doesn’t sell.  (By the way…PLEASE read and review my book! J)

Most days I spend far more time promoting my books than I do writing them!

3.   EVERY sale, every review, every blog post counts!  

My publisher has contracted me to write three books. However, that doesn’t mean they’ll publish them.  They published the first book and are getting ready to publish the second (Betrayal in the Highlands…another shameless plug!), but there won’t be a third book unless the first two sell well. 

And sell “well” really doesn’t mean thousands upon thousands of copies.  Sometimes the only thing standing in the way of getting another book published is a few dozen copies sold. 

So if I want to keep writing (and keep my main character alive), I must write something worth reading, but I also have to make sure the readers know my book is out there. That’s why I need people to review my book and talk about it on their blogs, facebook accounts, twitter, and so on. Otherwise, all that time in front of the computer, typing away goes for naught. 

4.    Writing is a team support

I’m not the most social person in the world.  I feel uncomfortable around people, especially people I don’t know.  That’s why I love writing so much. It enables me to sit in my darkened office, basking in the glow of my computer screen, all alone.

But I’ve learned that writing really is a team support. It took a huge (and growing) number of people to get Riddle in Stone published and selling. There’s my agent, my publisher, the wonderful people in the art department that made my book’s cover (By the way, the cover sells the book. Make sure it’s good!). There are also the many people who read and edited the first drafts of the manuscript.

But most of all, there are the readers.  The readers tell me what they like and don’t like. I ask!  I can’t become a better writer without listening to what they have to say…no matter how painful that might be. Even negative reviews can help me improve!

There are also the people who are willing to mention my book on their wonderful blogs and the people who read those wonderful blogs! As I said before, writers can’t continue to publish if people don’t buy their books.  That’s why we need people to champion our stories and to write about them on the internet.  We can’t promote our books by ourselves. We need you!

5.   You can’t please everybody

Finally, I had to learn that all books have their critics, even the classics. Nobody likes everything.  No matter how hard I try, I’ll never write something that everybody enjoys. Some people will always HATE my work.  And that’s okay. It doesn’t reflect on me personally or condemn my soul to hell. All I have to do is keep trying to become better.