eBook and Traditional Publishing

Spectacle Publishing Media Group, LLC

Book Review: 90-Days To Your Novel

 

 

written by Nichole Canniff

Can you be a novelist in just 90 days? Many well-known authors write their novels in just weeks according to 90 Days to Your Novel – A Day-to-Day Plan for Outlining & Writing Your Book by Sarah Donet.

 

Can it be you? It all depends on your commitment to your project. 90 Days to Your Novel will require you to push yourself to invest two to three hours per day for the twelve weeks. At the end of the twelve weeks you will have a first draft of your novel but be warned, this book does not guarantee a great end product, only that you will have your draft finished.

 

Can reading a self-help book really create a bestselling book? Not a chance. What this book will do is breakdown how to create your outline as well as give you different techniques for writing. Do you know the difference between the Note-Card Technique vs. the Signpost technique? If you are new to writing novels, probably not and in the end, it really isn’t that important to know the difference. The most important thing you will take from this book’s Part I is figuring out how you want to start your writing process. What you are comfortable doing. What it’s called really doesn’t matter.

 

Part II is the “90-Day Writing Challenge”. The book advises you to not start reading the rest of the book until you can commit to the scheduled two to three hours a day for writing. When starting this book, your first three weeks are mixed with assignments that don’t necessarily pertain to your novel on the surface but if you really think about what you are writing, eventually you could incorporate those events, people or places into a scene of your story. An example of this is assignment #1, which is to brainstorm as many memories as you can on people, places and things from earlier moments in your life.

 

It’s important to remember in your first three weeks you are in the brainstorming, chart making and outline designing time period. If this wasn’t your first novel, you could probably skip over the first three weeks but really if you have already gone through the novel-writing process, you don’t need this book. It isn’t until week four that you start getting into your novel so you will need to have the patience to stick to your schedule.

 

Do you really need an assignment based, step-by-step guide to write your novel? Maybe, maybe not. It’s all about your commitment to your project. Your success of writing your novel has nothing to do with the how-to book you read. It has everything to do with the fact that you have committed yourself to sticking to the two to three hours per day of writing. If you can do that, why do you need a book to tell you what to write and when to write it? Well for those you are aspiring novelists who just don’t know where to begin, this book will help you organize each writing process to completing your novel.

Show Don’t Tell!?!?

 

written by Eric Staggs

Show don’t tell—at once the best and worst piece of advice a writer can hear. The first reaction is “But I’m telling a story!” The next thought in line is “this isn’t a screen play!”

A writer must balance their story with visual descriptors to avoid setting their story in a void. If the setting is not intrinsic to the story, then the audience will have a more difficult time sinking into it, melding with it. For example, while taking a writing class in my undergraduate program, I found myself in a discussion with a fellow student, about his work—a highly emotional tale about homosexual lovers in Nazi Germany. But he didn’t know anything about Berlin in 1938. His knowledge of the setting he’d chosen for his opus was based on WWII movies. Most of the story happened in very neutral environments that only happened to have a Swastika or Nazi flag in them. Without the Third Reich, his story could have taken place in New Jersey 1978 or Dubai 2001. It could have happened in space, aboard the starship Velvet. He was failing in his primary task of showing us, the audience, the world his characters lived in. His story happened in a void and made it unsympathetic to everyone.

Setting and place is just one aspect of “show don’t tell.” The other piece is engagement of the reader. Look at the following example:

A: He drank the whiskey. It burned and he coughed. His eyes watered. He sighed.

B: He jerked his head back and choked down the liquid gold. The smoky poison made his throat clench tight. His eyes, suddenly wet from the burning vapors, turned the piss colored lights of the dirty bar into watery snowflakes. As the chemical heat suffused his body, he let out a long breath.

Both A and B accomplish the same thing: they tell us that the character had some whiskey. In both A and B we get a sense for the characters comfort level with whiskey. That’s where the similarities stop.

B also tells us that the character is in a bar (not a void), more about what the character is experiencing and feeling. The character is more real because we can more easily imagine his discomfort. His eyes are burning; he’s fighting back a knee-jerk cough from a shot of hard liquor. We also get the impression that the character is under stress—but we don’t know how or from what. In fact, while B gives us huge amounts of information, it leaves us with many questions. Not to mention the fact that it tripled the word count.

The question now becomes, “How about situations where there’s a lot of telling naturally?” That is, what about dialogue? It can be argued that dialogue is naturally expository—we talk about things. But in reality, contrary to what George Lucas believes, most characters, people, monsters, aliens and animals do not say what they feel. Example:

C.
“I am hurt. You are doing things to hurt me.” She said.
“You’re uncommunicative.” He retorted.
“I shouldn’t have to tell you how I feel.” She said.
“But how will I know then?” He asked.

D.
She wouldn’t face him. He moved around the kitchen, trying to make eye contact, but she always found something else to occupy her attention. Finally, he stopped moving.
“What’s wrong?” He said softly, hoping his desperation didn’t come through in his voice. He felt a pressure in his chest, almost an ache.
“Nothing.” She pulled some carrots from the fridge and cut them slowly and firmly, feigning intense concentration.
“Can I help?” He reached out to take the knife from her. She recoiled in mid stroke and hissed as the silvery blade chewed deep into her finger.
“Look what you made me do!” She held her hand up accusingly, the crimson droplet growing bigger by the second. He glanced from her hand to her eyes, noticed they were red-rimmed and puffy.

C and D tell the audience there is a conflict of an unclear nature between the man and woman. C tells us there are hurt feelings and frustration.

D tells us (or implies) the couple lives together and that they have a ritual and routine of preparing a meal and eating it together. It tells us that they are both emotionally bound to one another, but are unable to communicate their emotions for some reason or other. The cut finger is a convenient (and heavy handed) metaphor for the woman’s emotional state. While D is predictable, it is still far better than C.

A rule of thumb, when writing to show and not tell, is to stop and look around. Center yourself in your characters eyes and look around. What do they see? What do they feel? Can they feel the soft padding of a high back leather chair? Maybe it’s the hard vibrations of a metal bench on a rattling subway car? Put yourself in their skin. Is it raining? Do they feel raindrops or stinging pellets of heavy water, splashing down with incredible force and fury, soaking their coat and clothes?

Think about it.

Friday the 13th

Walking under ladders. Black cats. Open umbrellas indoors. A mirror falls and crashes. Stepping on cracks in the sidewalk. And let’s not forget, it’s Friday the Thirteenth.

Sure, lots of people have their own superstitions, but what about writers? Many writers feel their surrounding environment must be a certain way in order to release the creative muse. Some writers prefer quiet, sparse and hidden spaces. Others can’t write without that one little plastic soldier standing guard at their desk, facing the south. When it comes to writing spaces and routines, there is no one-size-fits all or ultimate answer. Each author’s writing routine is as varied and unique as the writer who chooses it.

Does that make these habits… weird? Maybe. But a little bit of writing-scripts-while-obsessively-listening-to-the-Inception-soundtrack-on-repeat may not be all that bad for the writing process. Having a safe, comfortable environment that balances stimulation and the banal may just be what your brain craves. But if that black cat just happens to knock your little plastic soldier off the desk onto an umbrella setting it off into a mirror which shatters pieces under a ladder, don’t dismay. This tiny bit of chaos or break from your normal routine may stimulate your brain to work in details it to which it wouldn’t have been privy otherwise.

Just remember, a little break from routine doesn’t have to be the end of the world. And speaking of the end of the world, did you know that our deadline for submissions has changed? That’s right, we are looking for YOUR 2012 doomsday short story. So send us one, today!

Heron’s Path by Alethea Eason: (sample)

Check out this sample from the upcoming young adult fantasy novel Heron’s Path by Alethea Eason:

— — —

On a hot day in September I found Celeste’s clothes scattered all over the barn, one shoe upside down next to Papa’s forge and the other inside a milking pail. Her yellow dress hung from a ladder like a bird suspended in midair. I pulled the dress down by its hem and three tiny blue feathers, nearly the same shade as my sister’s eyes, drifted down to the dusty floor.

I caught one of them in my hand; I stood there puzzling over what might have happened that morning to make her run off again. I felt alone, as though a wind had come up and peeled Celeste from the earth. I told myself that she was playing the same old game she’d scared us with so many other times, but this loneliness—so odd and new—followed me like a ghost as I ran outside and shouted for Papa. I was afraid he wouldn’t come; I’d find our cabin gone, and I’d be without any family at all.

Papa searched the woods. I took our dog, Rufus, and ran up and down the river bank. When I found no trace of her I followed Papa into the trees where there were more shadows than seemed right. I didn’t dare go in very far and kept circling the places Celeste and I knew well.

I heard Olena’s voice in my head telling me stories. Her words dripping slowly the way honey falls from a spoon. Her stories always made me uneasy. She believed in ghosts, the last traces of the Old Ones, who were a part of the breath and spirit of the rocks and trees, of the river Talum, and the surrounding woods. But the wei-ni-la, the darker ones, were the shadows to really fear. They were ancient too, and lived in the empty spaces of the woods, filling them with whispering.

All afternoon Celeste’s name echoed through the trees as Papa and I called for her. Finally, his shouting changed and Rufus started to bark furiously. I was so tired my legs were shaking. I was running on legs that wouldn’t work.

When I finally found them, Papa was half way up a steep gully with Celeste draped over his shoulder. Her hair, a skein of golden thread unraveling almost to the ground, was the only thing that covered her. I thought she looked newly born or newly dead.

“Is she all right?” I asked. My lips were dry and hurt when I spoke, and my words felt like spittle as they came out of my mouth.

All Papa could do was to keep climbing. A couple of times he lost his footing. I was afraid he’d slide all the way back down, but he finally got close enough for me to offer my hand, not that a twelve year old girl was much of an anchor for all that weight. He took my hand anyway and with a last push hauled Celeste over the rim of the gully, collapsing next to me.

He took a moment to catch his breath and then said, “Katy, take your sister.”

I pulled her off of him and held as much of her in my lap as I could. She breathed in the shallow way she did every night, as though she were dreaming peacefully, oblivious to all the fretting she’d caused. Rufus, his red coat full of stickers, licked her face. I shooed him away. A couple of small blue feathers stuck to his fur.

“Papa, if Celeste fell all the way down the gully, how come she doesn’t look it?”

There wasn’t a scratch or bruise anywhere on her body. Papa didn’t answer; he was still catching his breath. He finally stood up and carried her to Gruff, our mule, who was tethered to the branch of an old madrone tree. He got the quilt that was tied behind the saddle and wrapped her in it.

“You run home. Tell Mama we found her, that I think she’ll be fine.”

“What are you going to do?” I asked.

“Never mind. Just go,” he said. He wet his handkerchief with water from his canteen, bathed her face, and then tried to get some into her mouth.

I wanted a drink, too. My tongue was like a piece of felt, but I didn’t want to ask for the water. Celeste had always been the favorite—a fragile lamb in my parents’ eyes. She was also beautiful, everyone said so; even now with her face burned red from the sun she was beautiful.

But I knew differently. Celeste was anything but frail. I took one last look, and I thought I saw her eyes flutter for a second, then close again. I called to Rufus . . .

 

— — —

Coming soon to a mobile device near you!

But wait, there’s more!

I have fantastic news for those of you dreading a return to the doldrums of every day life as this holiday season comes to a close. The twelfth day of Christmas isn’t until January 6th. That is when a very special (and in some countries, a quite epic) celebration called El Dia de Los Reyes takes place. Known in English as Three Kings’ Day or The Feast of the Epiphany, this is a holiday steeped in traditions, stories, music, culture and presents. Did I mention presents?

In honor of El Dia de Los Reyes, Spectacle is offering a very special bilingual children’s book called “La Caja Basia/ The Empty Box.” This book features hand-drawn illustrations by Freddy Sanchez with a Spanish storyline by Maria Goretti Sanchez, translated into English by me. A labor of love, come see what Manuel and Maria are up to this Dia de Los Reyes and join in the magic from my family to yours.

Read Stuff: Huldredrom – Dream of the Hid-Folk

Huldredrom – Dream of the Hid-Folk by Christopher R. Knutson

 

written by Eric Staggs

Review by Eric Staggs

 

This unique piece of literature came to my attention through pure chance. Since I have found that the best pieces of literature often do arrive via unforeseen channels, I agreed to read and review it.

 

I’m glad I did. The style of writing at first seemed simple, unsophisticated, but as I progressed, I found I was drawn into the unfamiliarity of the culture, the complexity of Norwegian proper nouns seemed to help heft the weight of their folklore and a new found Christianity.

 

The story takes place in a picaresque rural village; imagine fens and glens and heathers, buffered on all sides by brooding mountains whose caps are white year round. These snow caps help to anthropomorphize the mountains, giving them an ancient and wise presence. Within these mountains and valleys lives the Hid-Folk. Fey and spritely, these trolls, changelings and their kin live out long and mischievous lives just under the nose of the villagers. The Hid-folk have a habit of stealing human babies and raising them as their own.  The author opens with a classic I-told-you-so moment and the tragic disappearance of a baby.

 

The plot is at once simple and convoluted – the rules that govern the interaction of mortals and hid-folk are complex and not always logical, but offer a vivid peek into one of Europe’s oldest mythologies. Hid-folk live a semi-parasitic life, stealing lovers and food and cows and whatever else strikes their fancy from mortal villagers, who in turn have developed a whole array of protections against such incursions.

 

At times almost comical, these cultural clashes between the Hid-Folk and the Villagers carry with them a deeper sub-text. The old ways are under siege by the new Christ-God whose representatives have banned the worship of the Old Norse Gods. Yet, for our characters, the reality remains: Hid-Folk could be any stranger you meet while tending the sheep and elemental spirits might easily burst forth and offer you knowledge or simply wish for company. The only evidence of the truth of Christianity is the agony the cross and tolling bells causes the Hid-Folk.

 

Vivid imagery and thorough understanding of the culture push this story forward at a comfortable pace. Descriptions of place and time help bring to the reader’s mind concrete imagery and paint each scene in fluid detail – allowing for just enough personalization to make each reader’s experience unique.

 

Not quite a love story and not quite a fairy-tale laden with moral and metaphor, Huldredrom: Dream of the Hid-Folk­ by Christopher R. Knutson is an entertaining read for all ages and serves as a powerful reminder that there are beliefs in the world far older than those we commonly cling to.

Gifts For Writers Part IV

by Jared Saathoff

When providing gifts for writers one of the key elements is playing to your writer’s sense of curiosity. Let’s face it, writers are worse than cats. Hours of useful time can be lost to something as simple as a squirrel or a website featuring only animated dancing robots. So, logically the best gift for a writer would be something to keep them on track and influence a more efficient manner of production— something like horse blinders or a dog’s shock collar.

But, as I found out the hard way it violates several labor laws to force workers to wear those shock collars. So unfortunately I don’t think your beloved writer will enjoy it much either.

Alas, the best way to appease your non-shock-collar-wearing writer is to get them something they’ll actually like. Truth is you can’t ever go wrong with Lego. But, you can go more awesome with this:

— Awesome Link — it’s big, it’s motorized, it’s Star Wars, and it’s Lego. Guaranteed* to amaze and dazzle at cocktail parties. But, in this particular case you’ll have to do some digging to find something like it. Lego, because they’re awesome and Danish, release the majority of these beautiful sets in a limited run. So, there is this: — Awesome Link — but it’s not motorized, you’ll have you use your imagination.

 

Or. There’s this really neat book. It’s a collection of the old engravings that used to grace the pages of the dictionary. Back when the dictionary was really cool and not online: — Awesome Dictionary Link — I am going to set mine right next the the Unabridged Oxford English Dictionary, which is also a really interesting and neat gift idea for anyone interested in words, but be warned it weighs more than a toddler and unless you feel like rubbing your nose against the pages, it requires a magnifying glass.

 

Writers, even those without shock collars, write. So why not make writing awesome with this: — Awesome Pen Link — Quite possibly the greatest pen I have yet to write with (I ordered mine yesterday (actually I ordered three)). Guaranteed* to help you make new friends and influence people to buy you beer. The only thing that could, maybe, be more awesome would be a sword-in-cane that also had a pen—but that just doesn’t seem practical.

 

And finally, if your beloved writer is annoyed with the boring people being the only ones that come over to watch movies there is this solution: — Magic Link — guaranteed* to keep boring people out of your life and make TV and movie watching 98% more enjoyable.

 

* Guaranteed by me. Guarantee not from the manufacturer or the distributor or anyone else for that matter, except for my cat—my cat agrees with me 100% most of the time.

 

Gifts for Writers Part III

written by Eric Staggs

Every year it hits like a tidal wave – a rush of panic – what will you buy for the writer on your list? If you’re anything like me, the very idea of Black Friday sends chills through your bones. Here’s a handy guide to help select the perfect gift for writers (a notoriously difficult group to buy for) and most item can be ordered online. The best part is most of these things can be ordered online, allowing you to get some serious shopping done without the battle scars of yet another Black Friday Shopping nightmare!

Like any profession, writers need tools to do their job effectively. These tools vary widely and depend greatly on personal preference, but there a few gadgets that every writer shouldn’t be without.

 

Books
Reference books are a must for any writer. My top five desktop reference books are: A Dictionary of Theories, Dictionary of Astronomy, Medical Dictionary, Latin-English Dictionary and a Dictionary of World Mythology. That covers most of the basics for day-to-day writing.

 

Voice recorder
Micro-voice recorders are an excellent gift for any writer. It takes some time to get over the self-consciousness of talking your ideas out to a little machine, but after a while not only do you get used to it, but you feel like you’re in a sci-fi movie, making secret plans in case you’re captured by some galactic nemesis. The only “must haves” on these mini-voice recorders are USB output and a mini-jack for earphones. The slew of other features are just bells and whistles.

 

eReader
This little piece of technology is about the slickest thing next to pop-rocks we’ve come up with. There’s about a thousand flavors of them now. The Nook, the Kindle, Kindle Fire, iPad offers apps for all .epub and .mobi files. many publishers are offering their own version of what I refer to as the miracle bookshelf. Do you research, make sure the titles your Giftee wants on available on the platform you chose. As well, some folks like the e-ink display better than the backlit LCD. You can’t go wrong with this gift.

 

Anthologies
Writers must read! This is necessary to stay inspired, to keep up with evolutionary changes to their favorite genre and to see how techniques and methods are working for other authors. However, often the selection of fiction piece can be random and a big commitment, for someone who wrestles with time management anyway. Anthologies on the other hand, are filled with dozens of short stories, already filtered and of top quality, in easily digestible, bite size chapters.

 

iPad2
Okay, I’ll admit it. I’ve got a Kindle and an iPad2 and the iPad trumps it hands down. Not only can it play games (because when I’m not writing like I should be, I am most certainly screwing off and playing games), but it’s an email-browso-dictaphono-notebook-o-meter. That thing does everything. It does things for me that I didn’t know I needed done. For example, when I’m not writing, it mocks me. When I am writing, it times me. When I’m upside down, it tells me. When I’m uneven it tells me. I can watch movies in bed AND read books. This thing IS the ultimate writer’s gift, technophile or not.

Gifts for Writers Part II

The Twelve Days of  the Season

by Tam Albright

 

Of all the many gifts you could give the writer in your life this holiday, there is really only one thing that writers want.

 

On the first day of the season,

Oh yeah. You are SO going into my novel for this.

my loved ones asked of me:

“Are there enough ideas for your WIP?”

 

So, on the second day of the season,

my loved ones gifted me, with

Two back up hard drives,

And enough ideas for my WIP.

 

On the third day of the season,

my loved ones helped some more, with

Three unrelated plot bunnies,

Two back up hard drives,

And enough ideas for my WIP.

 

On the fourth day of the season,

the blinking cursor mocked:

(Many four-letter swear words,)

Three unrelated plot bunnies,

Two back up hard drives,

And enough ideas for my WIP.

 

But mom, it was all my work from NaNoWriMo this year!

On the fifth day of the season,

my loved ones distracted me:

Five times I forgot to hit “SAVE!”

(More four-letter swear words,)

Three unrelated plot bunnies,

Two back up hard drives,

And enough ideas for my WIP.

 

On the sixth day of the season,

I wrote my loved ones in:

Six doomed characters,

Five times I forgot to hit “SAVE!”

(F-dash-dash-dash word,)

Three unrelated plot bunnies,

Two back up hard drives,

And enough ideas for my WIP.

 

On the seventh day of the season,

I vented to the Net:

Seven writing #hash-tags,

Six doomed characters,

Five times I forgot to hit “SAVE!”

(Still swearing swear words,)

Three unrelated plot bunnies,

Two back up hard drives,

And enough ideas for my WIP.

 

On the eighth day of the season,

We'll see who needs to keep their day job, Aunt Melba.

my loved ones gave me advice:

Eight clichéd phrases,

Seven writing #hash-tags,

Six doomed characters,

Five times I forgot to hit “SAVE!”

(*eye-roll* Four-letter swear words,)

Three unrelated plot bunnies,

Two back up hard drives,

And enough ideas for my WIP.

 

On the ninth day of the season,

my “hobby” was discussed:

Yeah, nine old trunked novels,

Eight clichéd phrases,

Seven writing #hash-tags,

Six doomed characters,

Five times I forgot to hit “SAVE!”

(“I’m a sailor” swear words,)

Three unrelated plot bunnies,

Two back up hard drives,

And enough ideas for my WIP.

 

Then they'll quest for the seven magical keys of Ventoozler. Hey, I can make it a series!

On the tenth day of the season,

I became quite desperate:

Ten magical McGuffins,

Nine old trunked novels,

Eight clichéd phrases,

Seven writing #hash-tags,

Six doomed characters,

Five times I forgot to hit “SAVE!”

(Swear words just to say them,)

Three unrelated plot bunnies,

Two back up hard drives,

And enough ideas for my WIP.

 

On the eleventh day of the season,

with my loved ones fast asleep, I had

Eleven cups a-coffee,

Ten magical McGuffins,

Nine old trunked novels,

Eight clichéd phrases,

Seven writing #hash-tags,

Six doomed characters,

Five times I forgot to hit “SAVE!”

(Four-letter swear words,)

Three unrelated plot bunnies,

Two back up hard drives,

And enough ideas for my WIP.

 

On the twelfth day of the season,

Finally, peace and quiet. Now for my next dilemma--WIP or Facebook?

my loved ones got the drift:

Twelve uninterrupted hours,

Eleven cups a-coffee,

Ten magical McGuffins,

Nine old trunked novels,

Eight clichéd phrases,

Seven writing #hash-tags,

Six doomed characters,

Five times I forgot to hit “SAVE!”

(I still can’t believe I did that,)

Three unrelated plot bunnies,

Two back up hard drives,

And enough ideas for my WIP!

 

Happy Holidays, Everyone!