The importance of good punctuation.

Today is Friday so you know what that means: it's Writer's Friday. This is a funny post that was given to me a few years ago by a writer friend of mine. I hope you enjoy!

Dear John:
I want a man who knows what love is all about. You are generous, kind, thoughtful. People who are not like you admit to being useless and inferior. You have ruined me for other men. I yearn for you. I have no feelings whatsoever when we're apart. I can be forever happy--will you let me be yours?
Gloria

Dear John:
I want a man who knows what love is. All about you are generous, kind, thoughtful people, who are not like you.
Admit to being useless and inferior. You have ruined me. For other men, I yearn. For you, I have no feelings whatsoever.
When we're apart, I can be forever happy. Will you let me be?
Yours,
Gloria

What the heck does Showing Vs Telling mean? And how can I tell when I’m telling when I should be showing?

It's Writer's Friday. So Write right, today!

I struggle with this. Honestly I think most writers do, to some degree. What I understand is that universal emotions shouldn’t be told. We should show how the character reacts to their feelings. We all feel nervous, sad, happy, or angry. These are universal emotions, everyone has them. But we all react differently to those emotions.

If a writer just tells you a character is angry, that’s boring and uninteresting. We’re reading the story. We see what caused him to be angry. Someone ran into his brand new sports car. I’d be angry too! More interesting is how he reacts to seeing his dream car smashed. Does he jump out of the car yelling and cursing? Does he calmly and methodically take out a gun and shoot the offender? Or does he just sit there and cry?

Even in a first person narrative the character knows he’s angry. It’s more interesting for him to show what he is feeling or what he’s thinking, instead of saying “I was angry!”

Showing applies to descriptions and relationships too. It’s boring to hear that someone was ugly. What makes them ugly? Show it! It’s boring to hear that two people are close. How are they close? What do they do together? Show it!

Your Character is a Failure!

It's WRITING FRIDAY!
Your protagonist has to fail. You need to show that she isn’t perfect. We aren’t perfect, so neither should our characters be. Perfect characters make for uninteresting stories.
When you create your characters create a small place in them where they hide their deepest, darkest secrets, desires and the feelings they don’t want to deal with. Now fill that place with the wickedness of their heart.
We all know about that, so this should be easy. Really it should, but it isn’t as easy as we might think. When creating well rounded characters, the author has to dig deep into themselves. Not always a pretty picture, but it can be a very healing experience.
Now pile on the character’s strongest weakness, until everything starts to shove against her. The she will have three choices. 1) She can choose to give up and fail. 2) She can choose to live up to her own expectations of herself. Or 3) she can answer the call for greatness, and do the right thing.
The stench of the filth of her wretchedness begins to invade her seemingly perfect life. It will upset the apple cart of how she sees herself, and force her to face her true self. This is how the reader knows she is real. Readers can relate to imperfection, and inner struggle. They will root her on and what her to have victory.
Someone shared this example with me: “Consider Woody in Toy Story. He enjoyed being the leader of Andy’s toys. He saw himself as the best until Buzz Lightyear came along. Then layer upon layer is pulled off Woody, until we see him (and he sees himself) for what he truly is. But we still love him. We want him to come out of the hovel of Sid’s room, a better toy, no longer driven by jealousy and pride. The story becomes more than just about two toys finding their way back to their own. The story really becomes one about someone learning to accept who he is and overcome it with greater and stronger character traits.”

Tighten up Your Writing!

Today is Writer's Friday! Here are 8 thing that will make your writing better.

1)Get rid of as many adverbs as possible, especially the “ly” words. What is an adverb? It is a word that tells more about a verb, adjective, or another adverb. It tells “how”, “where”, “when” or “to what extent”. Examples of adverbs are: “quietly”, “sometimes”, “very”, “too”. Are these words necessary in your writing?

2)Get rid of adjectives. Just like adverbs, adjectives are over used. Often two or three are used, when one or none are needed. What is an adjective? It is a word that tells more about a noun or pronoun. It tells “what kind” “how many” or “which one”. Examples are “this”, “that” “good-looking”, “Irish”, “beautiful”. Are you using too many adjectives?

3)Be aware of “ing” words. They can make you sentences cluttered and wordy. Ask yourself these questions: Do I really need it? Can I make the verb simpler by getting rid of the “ing”? If so does it change the meaning? Does the sentence move quicker and smoother without the “ing”? Can I eliminate the phrase with the “ing” in it?

4)Get rid of any unnecessary back-story. Does the reader really need to know this? Is it relevant to the story? If not get rid of it!

5)Get rid of passages that tell the reader what they already know. No need to be redundant!

6)Get rid of passages that are overly descriptive. Readers don’t need to know the exact dimensions of a room or the exact description of a character.

7)Get rid of or edit passages that describe the character’s thoughts and feelings in too much detail. Example: long sections of internal dialogue or long narratives.

8)Get rid of passive voice when active voice will work better. What is active voice? What is passive voice? In Active voice the subject of the sentence is actually doing something. Example: Brenna hugged Scott. Brenna is doing something to Scott. In passive voice the recipient of the action is moved to the position of the subject. Example: Scott is hugged by Brenna. Scott becomes the subject, but he isn’t doing anything. He is receiving a hug from Brenna.

What’s keeping you?

Fridays here at MNM will be Writing Fridays, for awhile. So for those who don't write, please bear with me.

Here are ten conquerors, deterrents, and defeaters of writing, and ten simple ways to defeat them.

1) New Toys: It looks like new ideas and projects. This conqueror has held me captive a few times, but no more! I have many ideas, but little time. I’ve made a “writing schedule”. On Monday I work on one project, Tuesday another, all through the week; working at least two hours on each project each week, until the projects are complete. Then I make another schedule and follow the process through.

2) No Deadline: “You have all the time in the world to write,” this defeater will say. If you have no deadline, make one. Make a goal and work to achieve it. You will feel so much better about yourself. Example: I know some writers who set daily word count goals. Write 500-1000 words a day. You’ll have your story complete in no time!

3) Inner Critic: He/she can be very harsh, or can be gentle and kind, depending on the day. Some days he/she can have some really good advice, but more of the time, just ignore what she/he says. We tend to be too hard on ourselves, when it comes to our writing.

4) Lack of confidence: This deterrent will whisper “Whatever made you think, you could write a book?” Honestly, who does this sound like? That voice is not coming from the One who called you and who had Paul write Philippians 4:13. This deterrent is evil, and will, if not locked away, destroy a writer.

5) What are the Odds: This looks similar to the last one, but a bit more localized. The odds are stacked against you, but a great book will sell. So who better to write that book, than you!

6) A Collapsing Story: It happens! Nothing is working right in the story! Just keep writing! Push through it! That’s why we have rewrites. One of the books I’m working on is on rewrite number three!

7) Finances: You may have to go get a “real job” to pay the bills. Don’t fret! If you seriously write one hour a day, one short hour, you will be writing more than one book a year.

8) Genre Pain: You are working on an “Amish” novel, but your friends start hacking on the “Amish” flood of books on the market. The type of writing (genre) doesn’t matter, the quality of the writing does! Don’t second guess yourself! There may be a lot of those types of books out there, but none will be like yours. Which leads us to:

9) Competition: You are still working on that “Plain folk” novel. There are lots of these types of novels out there, but like I said before, no one will be telling your story.

10) On the flip side of this is Market Chasing: If you are writing the “Amish” novel, just because that’s what’s popular, your heart won’t be in it. Or if you are writing “Chick Lit.” and someone says “Chick Lit” is dead. Don’t buy into that! If your story is stellar you will get published. So write from the heart, not what is popular, just for the sake of popularity.

I borrowed this idea from another blog, but made it my own.

Writing Assignments and Life

The other day I read a fellow home school mom’s blog. She was talking about teaching her children a Bible memory verse. Well, as I read what verse it was. I thought “We may have learned it, but I think it’s time to revisit it”. So instead of relearning the verse, I had the boys read it and write a short paragraph as to how they could apply it to their lives.

One particular son has gotten into the habit of arguing and complaining about anything. So, we(he and I) are working to help each other.

BTW my last post was an interview with Mary DeMuth. In the next few weeks I will be posting book reviews for 2 of her books. One of which will be releasing very soon.

Mary DeMuth/Daisy Chain

I met Mary DeMuth on Twitter. Her inspiring words, have helped to motivate my writing habits. Her book, Daisy Chain, was released on March 1, 2009. Mary is an expert at breaking the cycle of destructive family behavior patterns. She has written many parenting books including: Authentic Parenting in a Postmodern Culture, Building the Christian Family You Never Had, and Ordinary Mom, Extraordinary God. Mary has written novels that inspire people to take their trials and turn them into triumphs. These novels include Watching the Tree Limbs, Wishing on Dandelions, and now Daisy Chain. On top of being an award winning author, wife, and mother, Mary, somehow finds time to do speaking engagements in the US and in Europe. To find out more about Mary, please visit, http://blog.myfamilysecrets.org/.

Here is an interview with Mary about her writing:

How did you get involved in writing?

I’ve been writing since college when the bug hit me. I wrote my first short story about a missionary going to Russia (when it was firmly encased behind the iron curtain) and having to do all these clandestine things to share the gospel. I’m embarrassed to write this, but the piece started with these four words: Thump, thump, thump, thump (representing the protagonist’s heartbeat, of course).

I’ve been actively writing since 1992 when my daughter Sophie was born. I created a newsletter that helped moms manage their homes. I bought my first computer from the proceeds. I also designed and edited church newsletters, wrote homeschooling curriculum, and even wrote a script for an ultrasound training video. Soon after, short stories started flying out of me. When we moved from East Texas to Dallas for my husband to go to Dallas Seminary, I decided to get serious. I met my friend Sandra Glahn then, a professor at the seminary and a published writer. She shepherded me through the query-letter-writing process and has been an incredible cheerleader.

In 2002, I wrote my first novel. In 2003, I signed with an agent, then signed two nonfiction books. Since then, I’ve had five books published (those included), Daisy Chain being my sixth book. The first novel I wrote is yet to be published.

How do you find time to write?

I make time to write. I give myself word count goals every day. While my children are at school, I work full time. Lately I’ve been writing and promoting like a crazy woman, pulling 10-12 hour shifts. Even so, it’s a priority for me to have a sit-down dinner with my family every night. It helps that I love to cook.


What do you enjoy most about the writing process?

I love the initial flurry of words on the page where I’m uninhibited. I love fleshing out a story as it comes to me. I see my novels on the movie screen of my mind, which may account for the visual nature of my narratives.

What was the most difficult aspect of the writing process?

I am not in love with rejection. I also don’t cherish rewriting. But it’s a necessary and important evil.

What would you say to someone who wants to become a published author?

Here’s the analogy you need to memorize and internalize: Beginning the publishing journey is like wearing a sweatshirt and toting a sack lunch at the base of Mount Everest, thinking, Hmm, this should be a breeze!

In addition: know you are called. Know you have talent. Know you’re full of tenacity. All three things will help you succeed along the journey.

Another idea is hang out at The Writing Spa and its corresponding blog WannabePublished. I tackle nearly every question a new writer would have. I offer weekly free critiques and I have guest authors cameo there. I evaluate the saleabilty of a book idea. Hop on by at http://www.thewritingspa.com.

Here is a link to Daisy Chain at Amazon.com http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0310278368 Check it out. If it sounds good, buy it. :0)
And don't forget to check out Mary's website Blog.myfamilysecrets.org