Gwen Mitchell

Multiblog = FAIL

Sat, 21 Feb 2009 20:16:49 GMT

Yeah.

One of my goals for the new year is to tie everything into one cohesive site. I'm not even sure if it's possible. But I'm gonna try.

In the meantime, my inaneness can be found here: http://gwenmitchellfiction.blogspot.com

Derailed?

Wed, 10 Sep 2008 00:24:14 GMT

So . . . my computer broke. I quit my job. And my cat now needs twice daily insulin injections.

The people with the cameras can come out now. Srsly.

How much writing have I done since August 22nd?  Uhmmm... about 2K words. That qualifies as an official block, doesn't it?  I finally said screw it leading up to the holiday weekend, and decided to just shelf writing. Was not in a good head space. Instead, I read several craft books, thinking 'at least I'm still doing something writer-ish'. It did help. I've been wanting to read those books for some time.

But I came home and . . . nothing. I *want* to write. I just. Can't. I finally figured out why. I feel guilty. I do not have a job. I should not be allowed to spend my day doing something I love. That's how it works, isn't it?

Everyone is telling me I should take advantage of the time that I have, but I just don't think I can. If I get a taste of what it feels like to have all day to just write, I have a feeling I just won't care about looking for work. Like an addict getting their first taste of something sweeter - ya know?  Okay, so I really don't think I have so little self-control, but really - I have found the first reeeeeally good block for me. Guilt.

Last week I hit the job search hard and ended up with one interview. Hopefully some of that work will pay off later this week. THIS week, I get the news about the cat. *sigh*

But I think I'm making progress. I finally dove back into my online life, at least. As one good friend told me 'you can't isolate yourself'. It's true. I know it's true. But that's exactly what I do when things go to hell. This time I did it so much that I estranged my inner writer.

Julia Cameron and I are getting together later this week to see if we can find a way to free her.

le sigh

Wed, 27 Aug 2008 04:16:45 GMT

I have news. I'm not very enthusiastic about sharing it, but this is supposed to be my journal about writing and the things that affect it, so . . . here goes.

I quit my job.

Yep, just . . . quit. As in, walked out, sent my resignation, and haven't looked back.

I've never done that before in my life, and I don't really recommend it. I've spent the past week in the cave licking my wounds, and am finally ready to rejoin the ranks of the ... er . . . working? Except that I don't have a job. Yet.

I find myself surprisingly serene about the whole thing. And that sorta scares me.

So, other than the fact that I've been home for a week and haven't done a scrap of writing - I don't have much to report. I still have a plan. And, technically, my writing shouldn't be affected by this life change at all, but, well . . . you know how it works. I just gotta find my footing and get my head on straight, and hopefully the words will start flowing.

I've been doing the Artist's Way, by Julia Cameron and it is a LITERAL godsend at this point. I've also been reading like a maniac. That's why I love books so much, why I love writing: escape. I needed it. But . . . I'm back.

Not in the saddle, but . . . shopping for a horse.

*le sigh*

Detour

Thu, 07 Aug 2008 18:43:28 GMT

Ever have those days/weeks/months where it seems like everyone and every thing and every circumstance is trying to get in your way when it comes to writing?

The Gremlins have been seriously screwing with me lately. First, my iPod crapped out. I think I have posted in several places exactly HOW important music is to me when it comes to writing. It feeds me. I NEED it.

No iPod = very unhappy Gwen.

So, I commandeered the male slave's iPod Shuffle, put some music on there that I wanted, and got rolling again.

Then my laptop died.

Yes, well and truly dead. *sob* Luckily, since the last time that happened to me, I've been a freak about backups. But, still . . .

That computer was my writing life. My companion. It was the piece of equipment I used to type my first story, to edit my first novel, to build my network of online goofballs, and discover my latent graphic design talent.

It was my best friend. And now it's teh ded. *sniffle* I knew it was time to buy a new one soon. I even had my eye on the future 'precious' as Cora Zane so aptly named our lappies. But I didn't have the cash yet. Now I'm stuck in the 'in between' zone, trying to make do with the 'family' computer - a PC mostly designed and purchased for gaming. And I'm stuck using *horrified gasp* Word-fucking-Perfect. Blegh.

And still no iPod.

But! I have decided I will adapt and overcome. I've always said that nothing, NOTHING would get in the way of my writing, and it looks like it's time to put my money where my foot is . . . in my mouth. Or something.

The point is, when you are truly passionate, you find a way. And I will, and I am. It sucks, but I've found that making lemonade out of gremlins is . . . really dirty work. err... you know what I mean.

When I sell something, I'll reward myself with a new precious. In the meantime, I'll make do, and count my other blessings.

Trudgery

Tue, 29 Jul 2008 18:53:17 GMT

This weekend was not as productive as I'd hoped, but I did get some important things crossed off my list. Namely, I put my plan for the rest of the year and my rough plan for the next TWO years down on paper. Well, not really - but cyberpaper.

I'm glad I downloaded all the aspirations from my brain and made them into concrete goals. I was running out of space up there. It's a daunting list, but I did hammer out the first part of it. I submitted my completed manuscript to a contest and queried three agents with it on Saturday. Between that and having the full out on review, and having just submitted my NB novella, I now have 6 feelers out there, 6 cogs turning. It feels pretty good. Nerve-wracking, but good.

I have two more contests I plan on entering, and I think 8/9 cogs at once is about my pace, maybe even less. One of my writing heroes said she followed the 'rule of 25' to get published, but I'm not THAT ambitious yet. Or that rich. I'm saving my pennies for the Emerald City Writer's conference and hoping I can scrap together 30,000 of them by Aug. 18th. It's LITERALLY in my backyard, so it seems a shame to miss the opportunity. Plus, I'm curious as heck how one of these things works. It would be good practice for Nationals next year (On my goals list).

On the writing front, not going so hot. I made up my mind to focus on Witch Hunt, aka SoMH, but I'm finding it difficult. I don't know if it's been too long, or if I just need to stew on it more, but I'm having SERIOUS doubts - as in, maybe I should scrap my outline and re-write it, or possibly work in other POVs. I'm having a hard time connecting with my heroine at any time that the hero is not in the scene.

Not sure what THAT means, but I'm sure there's some explanation.

Meanwhile, I've committed myself to a rigorous writing schedule for it, per the goals mentioned above - 10K a week. I'm doing good so far this week - 5K to go, which is totally doable. Except for the worry that I won't end up keeping any of it.

For now though, I'm just trudging through it and hoping it's just me, and not the story.

On the road again . . .

Wed, 23 Jul 2008 16:52:37 GMT

I did my pitch on the NB today. It went well, and my story is now sitting in the editor's inbox. It was an interesting experience - brief, but I suppose that's how pitches are. I wasn't 'on it' like I hoped to be, but I didn't fumble either, so I guess that's good enough. She wants to read it in any case. I consider it a success! She also mentioned interest in any related stories, so I'll have to give that some thought.

I really need to get my game plan together. I've looked at my other 'started' novel and have hacked it down some, but I'm still searching for the story inside me. I know it's there - just buried under a mound of other projects. I'm on a quest to find it, and finish it.

I decided, I could go hunting opportunities and chasing submission calls and contests like wildfire - but what I really need to do is write MY stories.

So, that's what I'm going to do. *saunters down road with hands in pocket and whistles*

Keepin' It Real

Wed, 16 Jul 2008 19:08:04 GMT

I recently had a conversation with my mother about my first novel and re-capped the basic characters and plot for about the third time. Only, this time, she had a comment/question that sorta knocked me sideways.

The main character, Alex, was raised by her mom, a single mom. And my mother immediately jumped to the conclusion this was based on my life.

Ummm . . . no.

Last time I checked, my mother's not a heart surgeon, nor did she have me via means of artificial insemination, NOR do I have a latent telekinetic ability waiting to be awakened by a vampire's bite. Though . . . there's no way to be absolutely sure about that last part.

This book is not my life. It's a story. And the fact that my own mother would draw such a conclusion got me thinking about how the general public perceives us when reading our work.

They say 'write what you know' - but when does taking elements that are familiar to us (for my purposes, a girl raised by a single mom, and on a pre-med course in college) cross the line into 'working out our issues'?

I don't know about you, but my writing is not a place for me to work out issues. That's what a therapist is for. My writing, and stories, are an escape. Sure, it all comes from my mind . . . but . . . it's more like a vision of a constructed world, through my lens. The reader sees what I want them to see, feels what I want them to feel (hopefully) and draws the conclusions I want them to draw (again, one hopes). Ideally, they walk away with the general message underlying my story - a message I'm trying to wrap into an entertaining read. HOPEFULLY, they don't walk away going, 'whoa, she's got daddy issues' or something like that.

But how can we as writers avoid it? And in the end, does it matter? It shouldn't bother me, perhaps. Maybe it just comes with the territory. But, thinking about it does make me a bit queasy - not because I actually CARE what people think of me (Heh.) but because I don't want that thought pattern to distract from my REAL message.

Basically, it makes me want to make sure that every character I write is so far removed from myself there would be no chance to mix them up with me. But then . . . how do I write what I know?

*ponderous sigh*

Hmm... What to do, what to do?

Sat, 12 Jul 2008 18:07:09 GMT

My early-July scramble is over. And I do have a to-do list of real life and elife tasks to complete, but as always, my brain starts plowing towards the next WRITING task. I find I have to keep a constant flow of work going for myself, but I can only really dedicate my attention to one project at a time.

For June, that was a novella aimed at NB, which I'm now going to pitch to the editor on the 23rd of July. For early July, it was scrubbing up a shelfed manuscript and sending it off to a publisher.

Naturally, the next thing would be prepping for the pitch, yes? Check.

*drums fingers*

What now?

I am 28K words into a WIP that I introduce to people as 'the story of my heart'. Because . . .well, it is. It's something I started writing for me, and it grew and grew into a whole world with multiple dimensions and an interesting mythos. Since then, I've outlined three novellas and written several flash pieces that take place in the same universe.

And that's what worries me. I think the universe might have changed to fit those smaller pieces. And I'm afraid of whether it will still fit with the angst-ridden tear-jerking SoMH that I began early this year, a.k.a. Witch Hunt, Book 1.

Witch Hunt was supposed to be the second novel I wrote this year. I wanted to have it finished and ready to enter into contests and start querying agents by December. I could totally do it, too. In fact, I could have it drafted by mid-end August easy.

The only problem is, as soon as my ms was in the mail and I thought I would kerflump facedown into the mattress and sleep for daaaaaaays . . . I stirred in half-sleep all night stewing up a really cool plot for what I have decided to term an Erotic Paranormal Thriller - and if that genre doesn't exist yet, I'm coinin' it right here, baby - cuz that's *exactly* what this story is. I got up the next morning and outlined the whole thing. I even have character backstorys, and my fingers are *itching* to start pounding it out and find the voices.

But I don't even read thrillers. I have no idea what I'd be doing. I have no idea if it would be saleable, publishable, or if it might just push too many boundaries.

Yes, it is that far out there. Don't ask me where it came from. I don't know. But, true to form, it all started with a vague idea, and a title. And the title rocks, IMO.

CARVED IN BLOOD

See? Doesn't that just sound like an erotic paranormal thriller?

So, now my dilemma is: story of my heart that is 1/3 drafted and 110% plotted in a universe I LOVE; oooooooor the lightning-strike genre-bending idea?

Decisions, decisions.

Shifting Gears

Tue, 01 Jul 2008 17:27:31 GMT

I just got some really good news today. An NY publisher I submitted a partial and synopsis to in March has requested the full of my first completed novel, Cloak of Deceit. They got back to me in 90 days! o.o

I'm . . . stunned. Well, first I was ecstatic, then I hyperventilated and now I'm stunned, lol. I would say shocked but that implies I don't deserve it, and I have to believe that I do. This couldn't have come at a better time, because I've been praying for some sign that I am on the right track in pursuing writing so faithfully. Ask, and ye shall receive!

I had sort of 'shelfed' the revisions on Cloak assuming it would be at least six months before I heard something. I just kept them going slowly in the background while I pursued other venues.

But, now I have the four day weekend to dive back into it, polish it up and mail it out. Luckily, I don't have any other un-met deadlines on my plate at the moment, so this won't be too hard. And even more luckily, I have FOUR UNINTERRUPTED days to whip the ms into submission and an army of help and support at my back. I like to think of that as divine order.

Lucky for me again, I thrive under pressure.

Wheeeeeeeeeeee!

*goes to hunt through iPod for 'Cloak' playlist*

The Week in Review

Fri, 13 Jun 2008 23:24:42 GMT

Slowly getting caught up on my to-do list now that school is over. Somehow, I took a final on Monday morning (and forgot everything about intracellular signaling cascades by Tuesday) and passed a headcold back and forth with my husband all week, yet toughed it out at work and managed to be extremely productive. I feel good about that. It will make it easier to get the rest of my life on track next week.

Life without doing the work/school/writing split feels like a vacation. *lol*

This weekend is my birthday AND father's day, so I'll be spending it with my mom and dad. Hubby is taking me out for some sorta surprise on Saturday, and I probably won't get much writing done.

My mentor gave me some serious things to think about regarding my current Nocturne Bite project. I'm torn. I get what she's saying, and I agree in part. But when I went back to re-write, it was a literal REWRITE. She wanted me to basically cut 3.5K words of the beginning I had. It's not that I'm particularly attached to them, but as I got further and further into it, I realized I had done a lot later on that built on things established in that earlier passage. Somewhere, the meaning got lost, and at the moment, I'm stumped at how to get around that. Not sweating it, just . . . ruminating.

I am anxious to get this submitted out, but I don't want to just throw something at them that isn't the best it possibly could be. So, I'll take my time.

I also started collaborating with a good friend 'officially' this week. We are going to try each other on as crit partners, and I think it will be good for both of us. I respect and admire her as a writer, and we mesh pretty well, so I'm excited. I've never had a 'crit partner' before - just a beta and some other very cool people who look at my stuff.

It's hard when you're very prolific to get people to bite off big chunks of your work. I have 'advanced readers' who are more than willing to read something when it's done and edited, but they don't really make comments. So, basically, if you write novels, (unless you're lucky enough to get a beta like the one I had) you pretty much have to find a crit partner. Step one - check. Hopefully.

I'm excited to get back to my Witch Hunt novel when I'm done with the Nocturne Bite. The universe keeps growing and growing in my mind and I have lots of notes to assimilate. It's also been a while, and it's fun to go back and read something I wrote a few months back and realize that in that small time, I've already improved.

Getting back to my Cloak re-write/edits is also on my list. So . . . lots to do! Now I finally have the time for it.

Oh yea - and I'm gonna start running again. I HAVE to get my butt de-flabbed this summer. Priority numero uno.

I've been thinking . . .

Tue, 10 Jun 2008 19:34:04 GMT

About what to do with this blog. A lot of people keep up more than one, along with a Myspace, Facebook and whatnot. I'm just not that organized at this point. Maybe someday when all I have to do is write and promote myself. For now, though, I think I like the idea of this being my 'under the radar' blog. Not that it's hard to find. It's linked from my other blog. But I think I'm not going to use it for promotion. This is my hidey hole. The place to keep my more private thoughts. You know - like a journal?

Well. I know it's not really private, per se. But I figure anyone who actually goes through the trouble to look into this blog must find me interesting, or have way too much free time on their hands. In the first case, I may as well disillusion them, and in the second - maybe it will be entertaining.

So, this is now my journal. No promotion. No bullshit.

Though, there will probably be a lot of whining . . .

It's Been a While . . .

Fri, 22 Feb 2008 20:04:27 GMT

I need to get better about keeping up on both blogs, but material and time are both short for the time being.

So . . . what have I been up to?

I had a moderate crisis of 'what should I be writing?' but that is now THANKFULLY resolved. Big thank you to Jean, and the rest of the WR group that helped me through it. I now have a plan, and that feels wonderful! lol

I've been trying to be a better wife and daughter lately, up to and including actually COOKING for my husband. *takes a bow*

And I came up with an amazing recipe for chicken enchiladas, which I will share here, for lack of anything worth while to post:

Gwen's Chicken Enchiladas

Ingredients:
1/2 white/yellow onion
1 small can green chiles - undrained
4 small chicken breasts
(can substitute tofu, pork or mixed veggies)
1 large and 1 regular can of red enchilada sauce
1 can of pinto (or black) beans - drained
1 large bag of mexican-blend cheese
(or grated cheddar and jack: 2-3 cups)
7" corn tortillas
Sour cream, guacamole & black olives (for garnish)
Seasonings: Oil, cumin, oregano, salt

Directions:
1. Saute chicken, onion and chiles with oil in skillet until chicken cooked through.
Add cumin, salt & oregano to taste.

2. Add 1 regular-size can of enchilada sauce, and beans. Continue to simmer until well mixed and sauce thickens slightly
Add 1/2 cup grated mexican cheese blend and melt into sauce.

3. Prep the tortillas. Recipe makes 6-10 depending on how 'stuffed' they are. Heat the tortillas in a separate pan, or layer with damp paper-towel and microwave.

4. Cover the bottom of a 13 x 9 inch pan with enchilada sauce.

5. Make the enchiladas. Take the heated tortilla and dip both sides in the sauce, then spoon in filling, roll and turn over. Continue until the pan is full. If there is filling left over, you can spoon it into the edges or between enchiladas.

6. Pour the remaining sauce over the top of the enchiladas, and cover with a layer of cheese blend.

7. Bake in the oven on 325 for 10-12 minutes, until cheese is bubbling at edges. Let sit for 5-10 minutes.

8. Garnish with sour cream, guacamole, and olives, and serve with Mexican rice or another favorite side.

To half the recipe, cut ingredients by half, and use only 1 large can of enchilada sauce, in a 9 x 9 inch pan.

The Zodiac Series by Vicki Pettersson

Wed, 06 Feb 2008 06:39:35 GMT

***NO SPOILERS***SPOILER FREE***SAFE TO READ***

I read this on a loaner from a friend that I frequently trade books with. When she gave it to me, she wasn't very clear what it was about, but said she liked it because "the heroine keeps screwing up." That was all she'd say - and it piqued my interest.

Being the wannabe author that I am, I of course, immediately went to Vicki's Rewebsite, which has just been re-done, by the way, and is pretty swanky now, if I do say so myself... but I digress.

I learned that she had the same agent, the same publisher and had toured with Kim Harrison, whom I really like, so I started reading.

Admittedly, it took me a while to get into the first book. It wasn't so much that there was anything wrong with it, but I've read quite a bit out of the dark/urban fantasy genre, and I couldn't quite tell where she was going with it. I was pleasantly surprised.

As it turns out, her world is one where superheroes and heroines exist, each gifted with strength, speed, the ability to see auras, and other various supernatural powers. They have a conduit - a weapon custom made for them, that channels their powers, oh, and heightened senses, especially scent - which pertains to the title. There are agents of both light and shadow, and in each house, there are twelve - one for each sign of the zodiac.

What I liked most about the world, was that she overlapped it pretty flawlessly with real life - setting it up in her home town of Las Vegas. I really get a feel for the city (even though I've never been there) and for the world underneath it that Vicki built. I especially liked the addition of 'manuals' which are actually comic books, about the Zodiac troops, telling their stories weekly, as they happen in real life. It was a refreshing twist, and introduces some interesting characters as the second book progresses. It also was a very clever way of filling in back story, and world-building elements. The first book promises 'non-stop action' and it owned up to it, though I felt after everything that had already happened, the ending was a bit anti-climactic - sort of 'more of the same'. (Mind you, that's because the whole thing was pretty action-packed.)

The main character is Joanna Archer, one of two daughters of a self-made casino millionaire. Admittedly, I had a very hard time connecting with her in the first book. She seemed aloof and bitter, and for reasons that were only annoyingly hinted at until much later. What kept me going through the first book was more that I wanted to know what was going to happen to her, what would finally make her crack. I was somewhat disappointed, because she didn't really have time to crack or break down, which I had been braced for. It made it harder for me to connect with her - but, to Vicki's credit - the supporting cast of characters was vivid and interesting - enough so to keep me reading in order to learn how things panned out.

But in the second book, Jo's character really comes through with some stronger introspection. My friend was right - she does keep screwing up. She's imperfect, and she knows it - which is always a good thing. She struggles, and makes perhaps not the best choices, but I was finally 'on her side' by about the halfway point of the second book. More of her past was revealed, and I could relate to her feelings about the events of the first book.    The premise of the second book was deeper, I thought - more about the battle waging both within and without between Jo's own shadow and light side. Also, the supporting cast of characters, again - was strong - though it was a different set. I really enjoyed the introduction of Jo's 'secret identity friends' and their dynamics, as well as the bunch first introduced in the comic book store in book 1. The villain, as well, was very well played out, very creepy, and the resolution with him was satisfying.

Vicki makes no secret about the fact that romance is not her forte and that the love story is a sub-plot. I have to say though, I wish it weren't so. I think she does a great job with it. And in the dryer middle of the second book, the love story kept me turning the pages. There are two potential love interests in the book so far, and I personally lean towards the one she keeps denying, but c'est la vie. It's definitely enough to get me reading the third book to see if she has a change of heart.

In summary, my favorite things were the unique twist on an old concept 'superheroes', great description of Las Vegas, terrifically sharp wit, and good characterization of everyone but the main character (which does improve). Also, ***slight spoiler*** I thought it was incredibly ballsy that she changed both her main character's name, and appearance a quarter into the first book - and I commend her for pulling it off.

Elements that could be improved are the personal connection with the narrator, and a stronger romantic element.

Overall, it was a good read, and I will be checking out the third book in the series, due out this May.

What's Your Point of View? Part III

Fri, 25 Jan 2008 19:37:49 GMT

NOTES ON THE FIRST PERSON NARRATIVE

We're all familiar with this one by default, because it's how a lot of popular paranormals are written. The first person narrative is telling the story from one, and only one character's point of view. It uses the pronouns 'I/me/us/we' instead of 'he/him/them/they'. You can shift from one character to another in first person, sort of like we did with third person restrictive, with one caveat - you MUST have a divider. Most likely, alternating chapters. But I have read stories that are accounts of the same events, told from two perspectives but smoothly woven together. It can be done, it's just difficult. The third person option is usually better in those cases.

The biggest thing you give up with first person narrative is omniscience, that's the 'all-knowing' bit that comes in quite handy when telling a story with a lot of characters in it. Basically, the only way you have to relate to the reader what is happening is by having the narrator experience it. Unless the narrator is a mind reader, this cuts out the inner thoughts and feelings of the other characters. It also does something to 'discredit' the narrator, because they are only seeing things from a limited perspective. They could be wrong. Whereas, an omniscient narrator is trust-worthy. Sometimes, this room for doubt is good - for example, if there is a mystery to be revealed, or a twist or sudden 'Ah-ha!' moment planned for the reader.

The bonus: With the first person narrative, there is generally no switching, so the writer does not need to be conscious of transitions, other than tense, location, and time. For the reader, the advantage is that they get to be very intimate with the narrator, and generally become more quickly attached to at least the main character. They are more immersed in the story from the beginning because they become the character. You, as the writer, also have more control over how the audience thinks things, because you control their perception. It might be hard to convince the audience that your villain in a really nasty guy if you are limited to only describing his actions, or even his thoughts. But if you can have an instant feeling of hatred or dread swell up in the narrator, the audience will generally go along with it.

When making your decision about whether to use the first or third person narrative, just consider the scope of your story. Is it more important for your reader to be really up-close and personal, totally immersed in the action and emotion of what is going on, or for them to get a broader (even if more shallow) perspective?

***

There are several types of first person narrative 'voices' (this is the technical term, not meaning the same thing as voice in my earlier posts, so I will refer to these 'voices' as 'styles' from here on, to avoid confusion), and many of them have to do with the tense you are using to tell the story (See the 'Tense About Tenses' thread).

One such relation is the use of active vs. passive style. In general, avoid the passive style, because it's not engaging at all. This is usually reserved for more dry, non-fiction writings and is a very bad habit if you're trying to write fiction. The passive style means that the subject of your sentence does not take action, but is acted upon.

Example:
The spilt milk was licked up by the cat. (Passive)
The cat licked up the spilt milk. (Active)

Not only is the second one more clear, but it's also more correct, especially if you are in active style for the rest of the writing around it. A passive sentence out of nowhere can really break up flow.

Example:
I jumped in surprise when he spoke and jammed my lower back against the edge of the counter. Spinning on my heel, I knocked over the milk and cereal to splatter across the kitchen floor. I whirled back on him with a wooden spoon held high, ready to defend myself. The spilt milk was licked up by the cat as Drake stepped out of the shadows.

See what I mean? Re-insert the active sentence there, and it just sounds better. Moving on . . .

The other types of 'styles' you can use with first person narrative are not common, but you've probably encountered them. The narrator can be speaking directly to the audience, as if recounting the story. "My story begins on the far shores of Ireland . . ." This is a more auto-biographical style - but it can work for a novel, like Memoirs of a Geisha. There can also be a 'framed' story within the story. This is where the narrator begins to tell another story, within the story. There are plenty of others, and they get sort of complex, so I'll let you research those on your own.

Now, all that being said, you would wonder why anyone would choose the first person narrative. Honestly, I find it easier to write in. You are not pressured to make transitions, cover your bases, or make sure all the details are pointed out. It is also MUCH easier to keep a consistent voice in the first person, because there is only one. You can mix action, description and dialogue and reflection however you want - so you have a degree of freedom. In another way, however, you are setting yourself up for a challenge.

The hardest part of maintaining an interesting first person narrative is making sure that the other characters around the narrator come to life. This might not seem difficult, but it is. You can't just tell the audience what the supporting cast is thinking or feeling. The characters have to say or do something that indicates this, and the narrator has to perceive it. It forces you to come up with creative ways to convey how the other characters in the story are reacting.

Tense About Tenses?

Fri, 25 Jan 2008 19:28:40 GMT

This is a continuation of my posts on writing/craft - mostly compiled from my modest experience as a beta-reader. The same disclaimer as that in 'What's Your Point of View?' applies.

This is one of the most common errors I stumble upon in things that I beta, and it's understandable - because it's also very confusing.

There are several tenses you can use to tell a story, and what you choose to use can have a huge effect on your writing. You can also switch tenses fairly often, even by accident, and there are TONS of rules, especially in English. The biggest thing that changes depending on tense is the form of the verbs you use. I'm not going to turn this into a grammar lesson though, and list all the fancy names of verb forms. This is a simplified overview on selecting, sticking to, and also switching tenses in the course of telling a fictional story. As with the POV notes I posted, the same disclaimer applies.

Past, present, or future?
This is the first question you ask yourself, and a simple one. Did it happen? Is it happening? Or, will it happen? In 90% of cases, no matter the point of view, you're telling the story in the past tense: It happened. The form of using the present tense used to be very popular and even the standard for fiction, but that is not the case anymore. Personally, I find a story written in the present tense harder to follow, but that could just be me. I'm not going to talk about the present tense in detail, because I don't use it - but here is an example: I walk down the stairs, holding the candle high so that I can see a few feet ahead in the dark. The floorboards creak underneath my feet, and I shiver with cold, and fear.

So - it happened. Now what?
The simplest way to think about it is - where in time is the person that is telling the story? Are they at the very end of the tale, or many years after, reflecting back? (Believe it or not, this is usually the case, though it's only implied, not specified). Are they at the halfway point of your story, looking further back into the past as they move forward in the present (which is still the past). I know . . . I said it's confusing. Let's try some examples:

The simple past tense:
I walked down the stairs, and held the candle high so that I could see a few feet ahead in the dark. The floorboards creaked underneath my feet, and I shivered with cold, and fear.

Here, the narrator is telling us what happened. It already happened, it's in the past. But just because it's in the past, doesn't mean you don't build suspense, or that the reader isn't along for the journey. They still don't know what's going to happen next - or, rather... what's going to have happened next ...

The progressive past tense:
I was walking down the stairs, holding the candle high so that I could see a few feet ahead in the dark. The floorboards were creaking underneath my feet, and I was shivering with cold, and fear.

Here, the narrator is telling us what was happening. It's still in the past, but it's leading up to something that happened. You can also mix the two:
I walked down the stairs, holding the candle high so that I could see a few feet ahead in the dark. The floorboards were creaking underneath my feet, and I shivered with cold, and fear.

There is also a perfect version of each of these, which uses a form of the verb 'to have', as follows:

The perfect simple past tense:
I had walked down the stairs, and held the candle high so that I could see a few feet ahead in the dark. The floorboards had creaked underneath my feet, and I had shivered with cold, and fear.

The perfect progressive past tense:
I had been walking down the stairs, and holding the candle high so that I could see a few feet ahead in the dark. The floorboards had been creaking underneath my feet, and I had been shivering with cold, and fear.

Okay, now that we've got that out of the way - you want to know how the heck this applies to your writing, right?

So, basically - once you decide where in time your narrator is, you use it as a gauge to determine which tense to use. I will go into the most common, and in my opinion, the most useful example here, and if there are more questions, we can research them and help each other out. This is especially important when switching points of view, too.

Let's look at another example:

In our story, we are using the past tense - it happened. But we want to go back in time even farther, outside the scope of the current place in the story - to backtrack, essentially. To do this, we will use the perfect simple or perfect progressive leading up to the pivotal point, where we will transition to the simple past or progressive past tense.

Example:

Julia wanted nothing more on her birthday than to see Beau. A simple bouquet of flowers and sweet kiss on her lunch break would be enough. But instead, he left her a text message that he was flying out to London on the six o'clock, and he wouldn't even be there for their planned weekend getaway. At first, she was heartbroken. And then she moved on to pissed, and then depressed. She didn't even rate a voicemail?

And that's how she ended up sitting on her couch, on her thirtieth birthday, alone, watching Sex and the City re-runs, and cuddling up with a half-pint of B&J Fish Food ice-cream. She wished she had been there to receive the message, so she could tell him to go to hell.

Now, revising using the perfect tense for the first part:

Julia had wanted nothing more on her birthday than to see Beau. A simple bouquet of flowers and sweet kiss on her lunch break would have been enough. But instead, he'd left her a text message that he was flying out to London on the six o'clock, and he wouldn't even be there for their planned weekend getaway. At first, she'd been heartbroken. And then she'd moved on to pissed, and then depressed. She didn't even rate a voicemail?

And that's how she ended up sitting on her couch, on her thirtieth birthday, alone, watching Sex and the City re-runs, and cuddling up with a half-pint of B&J Fish Food ice-cream. She wished she had been there to receive the message, so she could tell him to go to hell.

See the difference? It helps the reader distinguish the difference between earlier, and now - even though the whole thing is in the past tense. There's a lot of other hokey stuff going on with the tenses in these sentences, and like I said - loads of rules, most of which I have no clue about. For the most part though, I wanted to demonstrate the uses of these two tenses. Since most narrative fiction is told in the past tense, it comes in handy.

The other thing that is important to remember is not to switch tenses too much, just like perspectives. And you definitely don't want to go back and forth in time too often. Anything that makes the reader think too hard is risky, and there's another thing to consider: the difference between telling and showing. Usually, if you are using the perfect tense, you are telling, not showing. To keep your story engaging, you want to limit the telling vs. showing as much as possible.

You wouldn't want an entire chapter in past perfect - because in addition to all of the needless 'have/had'-s, all you're doing is telling. Use the perfect tense to get the reader caught up to where the narrator currently is in the story, and then switch to the correct past tense. If you find yourself going on and on in the past perfect, consider moving the part of the story you are writing to someplace earlier so that it fits better in your timeline. It's often easier to do this, even if you need a POV change and some transitions, than to try to track down every stray verb and make sure it's in the correct tense.

Send a Diva to San Francisco!!

Wed, 23 Jan 2008 18:19:28 GMT

Anyone who knows me, knows how much I love that city. So, I'm all over the opportunity to put my favorite photo from there up for your viewing pleasure:

And to ask you to help send an aspiring writer to the RWA National Conference this spring, in ... you guessed it - San Franciso.

Here's the information on an auction that will fund one lucky Diva's trip - hopefully. Go bid!!

Charity Silent Auction on Romantic Inks
Did Santa leave you cold? Romantic Inks has just the thing to warm you up!

RI is going to help send some lucky aspiring author to the 2008 RWA Conference and we’re looking for your support! For our Silent Auction we’re offering fabulous books including books from many genres, critiques from authors who will make your toes curl, web designs and even promotional space. Take a look at the list we have…

Romantic Inks Auction

Bidding begins January 20th!

Ohm

Thu, 17 Jan 2008 20:24:43 GMT

Well, just about every one of the dozens of writing-centric blogs I wade through every day have mentioned that it's important to set goals. I'm a firm believer in this as well, and I have actually set up a one-year and five-year plan for my 'writing journey' already. Last year, I didn't anticipate becoming a writer - but I did. Like a caterpillar that doesn't know that it's destined to be a butterfly, I chomped away (or typed away, rather) and before I knew it, a tiny voice emerged in the back of my head. I got encouragement and ego-boosting reviews from my tiny little web-forum community of writers/readers and the voice got louder. I gained my very own mentor/fair-godmother of writing, and the voice screamed: "Writer - get thou onward to the road of publishing!"

Hmm... I thought, there might be something to this. But I wasn't completely sold on the idea of myself actually writing something serious. After all, I was having fun. But, I said - if I am going to spend every waking minute dedicated to this addicting hobby, and have such a great time forgetting the world outside of my own head, maybe I should set some goals. Before that, the only ones I had were to finish my monster of a plot-bunny. About 200K words into it, I decided that there were some things I wanted out of it. One of them (this will sound shallow, but hey - at least I'm being honest) was to get on the top-ten list of the most reviewed stories on that website. The other one was to be picked for an 'author interview'. Now, in the big lake of writing, this is small potatoes indeed, but for our little corner of the web, it's a big deal.

I kept writing. And writing. And writing. Somehow, I managed to hold down a job, get good grades, volunteer teach 3rd graders twice a week and not get divorced in the process. I'm still wondering how the heck I pulled it off. I finished my monster of a series: 500K words. Half a million words. And, by the end of it, the voice in the back of my head could no longer be separated from me. I was a believer. I was a writer. Goal 1: check. It was November, and I was walking on air, along with oodles of well-wishes from readers telling me 'you can do it!'.

As for my other goals? Well, last time I checked, I hold the number one, two, five and eighth places on the top-ten list, and the series as a whole can't be touched. I got the interview too - for November. *dreamy sigh*. Isn't it nice when you get exactly what you want? And I didn't even set those goals until the year was halfway over!

This year, I'm getting a head-start. But now, I know I'm a much smaller fish, in a much bigger pond. So . . . my dreams are not to dominate or to sail straight to the top, knocking down all other wannabes (yes, I have a competitive streak, if you couldn't tell). Instead, it's very simple: write stuff, submit it to publishers, and get something published somewhere before the end of the year. I think it's doable, and I dove into January full steam ahead - submitting three pieces to three different publishers. We're in week three, and I have one rejection letter to show for it, but hey - it's only JANUARY!

This post is a way of holding myself accountable for these goals, which all these writer-blogs confirm are necessary if you really plan to make it. I tend to agree - you gotta hang yourself out there. I could secretly hope for this 'golden ring' while pretending to just enjoy the merry-go-ride, but that's not my style. I'm gonna shout it from the rooftops, and I'm going to reach for that ring with all my might - and if I fall off the bloody horse a few times, I'll get right back on and keep reaching because . . .

THIS YEAR I'M GETTING PUBLISHED!!!

What's Your Point of View? Part II

Fri, 11 Jan 2008 10:35:31 GMT

NOTES ON SWITCHING POINT OF VIEW

So, you decided that you want to use the third person restrictive, and switch between characters. This is a great way to tell a story - but it can get tricky. There aren't really any strict RULES about how to do this. After all, this is creative writing. But here are some general guidelines, based more on my opinion than on anything else - so take them or leave them.

The most important thing to remember when you're writing is that, most likely, you're not writing just for yourself - but for an audience. You have to consider who your audience is, and do your best to make your message as clear as possible and easy to follow. One of the surest ways to confuse people is by switching points of view too often, or randomly. If you do a read through and note that you are jumping around from person to person too much, the third person omniscient might be a better choice for you - and usually requires only minor adjustments.

How much is too much? You have to use your best judgment. Generally, more than once every five or six paragraphs is too much for me. Remember that every time you change points of view, you're holding up the reader, asking them to make an adjustment in their mind. Doing this too often will tire and frustrate them, and they might stop reading because of it. Obviously, line by line shifting is a no-no, and even a paragraph at a time is exhausting. But if you really must, I strongly advice that you make the shift clear in the very first line of the very first paragraph from the new POV. You don't want to sneak up on the reader and make them backtrack.

My general advice is this: decide on a system. Your readers will pick up on patterns, even subtle ones, without even knowing it. Here are some examples:

- Pick a divider or sign that the point of view has changed, like a " *** " or a line break.
- Write one chapter in one characters POV, then switch for the next chapter, and continue to alternate.
- Always start a chapter in one POV, and jump through the others in the same order, ending with the final POV.

As you gain more experience toying with this, you will find other ways to do subtle, smooth transitions. Here are a few tricks that work for me:

Overlap
This is where you backtrack a little bit in the new point of view. It allows the reader to make the switch comfortably, going over something they already know, instead of being asked to take in something new along with the POV shift.

Example:
Sarah and Jack leaned over the precipice before them, and Sarah trembled with dread. They gazed down into the long, dark, bottomless pit, and she wondered if she could really do it. She had just found Jack. What if they didn't survive? Could these really be their last moments? The bats were screeching overhead, claws scratching on the wet rock anxiously as she contemplated their doom. The earth rumbled underneath them again and they turned to each other in unison. Jack's eyes were wild and searching. Were they actually going to jump?

Jack took hold of her hand and gazed down at her with a soft expression. She was thankful that, at least, in their last few moments, they were together. "Are you ready?" he asked her.

Sarah took a deep breath and held it, forcing herself to calm and face the certainty of their future. She gripped Jack's hand tightly, and nodded. With a death grip on each other's hands, they turned to face the cavernous emptiness, their shared fate and newly discovered love giving Sarah courage. They leapt off the ledge.

As they turned to face the open air before them, the ground gave another heave, or so Jack thought. It could have been his stomach. He squeezed Sarah's hand and pressed his eyes closed as they leapt from the ledge. And then they were falling. He tightened his grip on her when she screamed and pulled her closer, wrapping her in his arms as they plummeted, faster and faster into the pitch black. The cold, dank air whooshing past him felt like death's embrace, and his whole body pulsed with adrenaline. They were going to die.

Before continuing on, in the very first sentence, you are telling the reader what they already know, but also that you've just switched points of view. It gives them a short breathing space to adjust, without breaking up the narrative.

Inner Dialogue
Quick and dirty, it's exactly how it sounds. The instant you switch point of views, jump into the new character's head. This lets the reader know immediately what you've done and eliminates any confusion that might have arisen in the next few lines.

Example:
Sarah and Jack leaned over the precipice before them, and Sarah trembled with dread. They gazed down into the long, dark, bottomless pit, and she wondered if she could really do it. She had just found Jack. What if they didn't survive? Could these really be their last moments? The bats were screeching overhead, claws scratching on the wet rock anxiously as she contemplated their doom. The earth rumbled underneath them again and they turned to each other in unison. Jack's eyes were wild and searching. Were they actually going to jump?

Jack took hold of her hand and gazed down at her with a soft expression. She was thankful that, at least, in their last few moments, they were together. "Are you ready?" he asked her.

Sarah took a deep breath and held it, forcing herself to calm and face the certainty of their future. She gripped Jack's hand tightly, and nodded. With a death grip on each other's hands, they turned to face the cavernous emptiness, their shared fate and newly discovered love giving Sarah courage. They leapt off the ledge.

Oh, holy crap! We're going to die, Jack thought as his feet met nothing but air. His stomach lurched at the feeling of gravity taking hold of them. He squeezed Sarah's hand and pressed his eyes closed as they leapt from the ledge. And then they were falling. He tightened his grip on her when she screamed and pulled her closer, wrapping her in his arms as they plummeted, faster and faster into the pitch black. The cold, dank air whooshing past him felt like death's embrace, and his whole body pulsed with adrenaline. That was it - they were going to die.

Note: This is where it comes in very handy to still have a separate 'voice' for each of your restrictive points of view. It allows the reader to get a feel for the individual character voices and know instinctively that you've made a shift. The less you ask them to think, the better.

Splicing
This is a longer transition, that involves interspersing the objective or omniscient POV between two restrictive points of view. It guides the reader comfortably, first away from the one POV and then into the next. The overall point is that you don't want to jar the reader or interrupt their logic.

Example:
Sarah and Jack leaned over the precipice before them, and Sarah trembled with dread. They gazed down into the long, dark, bottomless pit, and she wondered if she could really do it. She had just found Jack. What if they didn't survive? Could these really be their last moments? The bats were screeching overhead, claws scratching on the wet rock anxiously as she contemplated their doom. The earth rumbled underneath them again and they turned to each other in unison. Jack's eyes were wild and searching. Were they actually going to jump?

Jack took hold of Sarah's hand and gazed down at her. "Are you ready?" he asked her. She took a deep breath and held it, then nodded. With their hands clasped together, they turned to face the cavernous emptiness, and leapt off the ledge.

We're going to die, Jack thought as they started to fall. His stomach lurched at the feeling of gravity taking hold. He squeezed Sarah's hand and pressed his eyes closed as they leapt from the ledge. And then they were falling. He tightened his grip on her when she screamed and pulled her closer, wrapping her in his arms as they plummeted, faster and faster into the pitch black. The cold, dank air whooshing past him felt like death's embrace, and his whole body pulsed with adrenaline. That was it - they were going to die.

You can even slip in and out of the restrictive to narrate in the omniscient for a while, and then go back to the restrictive. In fact, some writers even switch back and forth from first person to one or more of the third person perspectives, but that gets trickier, and almost ALWAYS demands a set system or designator so that the reader understands what's going on. You can even tie POV shifts into shifts in tenses (my next topic). However, as a general rule - the less you change POV, the better - so pick something that fits the bulk of your story and stick to it.

Remember, every time you change the POV, you distract from the story. If you have to do it, or simply want to - just make sure you keep the reader in mind, and be as clear as possible about what you're doing.

What's Your Point of View? Part III

What's Your Point of View?

Fri, 04 Jan 2008 01:02:33 GMT

I compiled a few 'Writing Tips' essays for a forum I frequent, and decided to make them available to a more general public. I figure I will use this 'less official' blog for more non-fiction commentary and not so much self-promotion (read: ranting and rambling). So we begin . . .

In my experience, both writing and editing, there are some common confusions, and POV (point of view) is one of them. So, I decided to do a short write-up on them to share what I've learned. [

Disclaimer: I'm not an English professor or expert by any means. To the best of my knowledge, this is how it works, but I am not immune to mistakes or misinformation. If you want to double-check me - a simple Google search yields a wealth of information on this topic. If I made an error, I apologize in advance. And if you have something to add or correct - please, speak up!

***

When beginning to write a story - point of view can be one of the most important decisions you make. A lot of us make this choice without even thinking about it - but it's worth some consideration. Point of view determines the voice you will use to tell the story and has a huge effect on the mood of what you're creating. So, in case you didn't know, or like me a while ago, only have a vague idea, I'm going to outline the different points of view available to you.

Basically, there are two viewpoints: first person, and third person.
(There is a second-person point of view, but it's uncommon and very difficult to use, so I'll skip it.)

Third person point of view means the story is being told from a narrator, who is zoomed out and looking down at the story. This is the most common way of telling a story, and also the easiest and most flexible. There are a few different ways to use the third person perspective, and they are:

- third person objective
- third person omniscient
- third person restrictive/limited

Note: An important thing to remember is that even when using the third person 'narrator' voice, this is not your (the author's) voice. You will very seldom find an author's voice interjecting in a fictional story, and I personally find it very distracting. So, make sure you try to avoid this.

3rd PERSON OBJECTIVE
This is a narrator simply explaining the action and dialogue of a scene. The only thing described is what is actually done and said - there are no references to what any of the characters are thinking or feeling. Basically, you cannot get into any of the character's heads. This would be how you would describe things if you were simply an invisible observer of someone's life, and could watch it happening, but had no idea what anyone around you thought, felt or perceived. It's very simple to use, but it does limit the reader somewhat - or leaves them to draw their own conclusions based on what they observe. It sounds boring, but it doesn't have to be - it can still be very descriptive.

When to use:
Generally, if you have a lot of action and not enough time to interject thoughts or feelings, this can work well.

Example:
Sarah and Jack leaned over the precipice before them and gazed down into the long, dark, bottomless pit. The bats were screeching overhead, claws scratching on the wet rock anxiously. The earth rumbled underneath them again and they turned to each other in unison with wide eyes. Jack took hold of Sarah's hand and gazed down at her. "Are you ready?" he asked her. She took a deep breath and held it, then nodded. With their hands clasped together, they turned to face the cavernous emptiness, and leapt off the ledge.

3rd PERSON OMNISCIENT
Omniscient means 'all-knowing'. This perspective is probably the most popular, easiest, and most versatile point of view available. Like above, the narrator is observing the situation slightly zoomed out, but can actually hear some thoughts and speculate at feelings of the characters. This is how you would describe things if you were an invisible observer of someone's life, but could also hear other's thoughts, or sense their feelings. It's easy to use, but it is also easy to slip from this point of view into the 3rd person restrictive, so be careful that you are not focusing too much on one character's perception. If you are, the 3rd person restrictive might be better. What's nice about this, is that you get to see more in-depth into several characters, while maintaining one, fluid voice (the narrator's).

When to use:
Anytime you want the reader to know the thoughts or feelings of multiple characters without switching points of view.

Example:
Sarah and Jack leaned over the precipice before them, filled with dread. They gazed down into the long, dark, bottomless pit, and Sarah wondered if she could really do it. The bats were screeching overhead, claws scratching on the wet rock anxiously as the two of them contemplated their doom. The earth rumbled underneath them again and they turned to each other in unison, with wild, searching eyes. Were they actually going to jump?

Jack took hold of Sarah's hand and gazed down at her lovingly, thankful that in his last few moments, he would see her sweet face. "Are you ready?" he asked her.

Sarah took a deep breath and held it, forcing herself to calm and face the certainty of their future. She gripped Jack's hand tightly, and nodded. With a death grip on each other's hands, they turned to face the cavernous emptiness, their shared fate giving them courage. They leapt off the ledge.

3rd PERSON LIMITED/RESTRICTIVE
This is another 'narrator' point of view, but it limits the scope of what the narrator perceives to one character. The narrator can still observe what other characters are doing and saying, but cannot mention things that the character they are limited to would have no way of knowing. This is how you would describe things if you were trapped inside someone's head and could hear their thoughts and feelings. This is very close to a first person point of view, except that the pronouns that are used are third person ('he/him' instead of 'I/me'). What's great about this one, is that you can give the reader a greater sense of intimacy with one character, then switch to another character's limited point of view and tell another side of the story. In that way, it's still a lot more versatile than first person narrative.

NOTE:When using the third person restrictive, it is important to consider the voice of the character, not just the narrator. Especially when switching points of view, the specialized voice helps the reader with the transitions. See below for more advice on switching points of view.

When to use:
Anytime you want to maintain the third person, but get more intimate with the characters, one at a time.

Example:
Sarah and Jack leaned over the precipice before them, and Sarah trembled with dread. They gazed down into the long, dark, bottomless pit, and she wondered if she could really do it. She had just found Jack. What if they didn't survive? Could these really be their last moments? The bats were screeching overhead, claws scratching on the wet rock anxiously as she contemplated their doom. The earth rumbled underneath them again and they turned to each other in unison. Jack's eyes were wild and searching. Were they actually going to jump?

Jack took hold of her hand and gazed down at her with a soft expression. She was thankful that, at least, in their last few moments, they were together. "Are you ready?" he asked her.

Sarah took a deep breath and held it, forcing herself to calm and face the certainty of their future. She gripped Jack's hand tightly, and nodded. With a death grip on each other's hands, they turned to face the cavernous emptiness, their shared fate and newly discovered love giving Sarah courage. They leapt off the ledge.

(Next . . . 'Notes on Switching POV' and 'The First Person Narrative')

What's Your Point of View? Part II

New Website Launch!

Wed, 02 Jan 2008 18:50:18 GMT

I launched my new website gwenmitchellfiction.com (unofficially) over the holidays. I'm still working on it, but it's up, it's there and if I do say so myself, it looks pretty darn good for my first time out.

Here is a link banner for the site:

Happy New Year!

Testity test test

Tue, 18 Dec 2007 22:33:10 GMT

Just want to see how this looks... Don't mind me.

*pokes around*