Character Confessions (Or, Where I Dig up My Characters)

Tip of the Day: Save copies of your book in several different places. You also might want to e-mail it to yourself just to have it in your inbox as well.

Characters are always one of the best parts of books. We like to identify with them, sympathize with them etc. Your characters may make or break your book. If you have a really sucky main character but a great plot people might not want to read it because they don’t feel for your character. So, how do you come up with your characters? Last week I confessed that I sometimes like to mush together characters from TV or film into one cool character. Here are a few more confessions:

Confession#1: Part of the reason I like to write in coffee shops is because all of the interesting people are in there! I can’t tell you how many innocent latte buyers came into Starbucks and ended up in one of my books. There is just too much material.

Confession #2: Lots of cute boys I’ve liked in the past have made it into my books. No, I’ll never tell you who they are and I doubt anyone would ever guess but it is like my own little tribute.

Confession #3: Sometimes I put a little bit of myself into a character in the book too. Stephen King always does a cameo in his movies so why can’t I in my books? Example—the school secretary in Revenge Queen that loved the gossip mags and was still trying to drop the 20 pounds after three kids? Uh huh. That was me. :-)

Confession #4: Yeah, sometimes I use people I actually know too. Shhh! But only a little bit about them and then I try to add some really different characteristics to them so that the real people don’t figure it out. Hopefully.

Confession #5: People I wish I knew. I like to think up people I wish I hung out with in high school (not slamming the people I did hang out with of course!! :-) ). I just try and make up really fun, cool characters.

Ok, your turn. How do you come up with your characters?

Kristina, Miss Soon-to-Pub

Professional Envy (or 10 Things I Hate About You)

Tip of the Day: Never doubt the authenticity of DILBERT. Ever.


I am envious of YA author Sarah Dessen. I admit it. Her book THAT SUMMER totally rocked my reading and writing world and cinched it for me that I HAD TO write YA novels. I devoured all her other books soon after. The relationships and characters she creates are just so...right and make me really really wish I could write like that. So yes, I am envious of her talent and success.


But that doesn't mean I wish her any ill will or anything bad at all. I think that's why I use the word "envy" like "covet" rather than "jealous" which to me has more of a negative thought process associated with it. In fact, I love reading Sarah's blog, was thrilled when I heard about her new novel's release date, and think she comes across as sweet, intelligent, and truly appreciative of her success. I wish her much continued success and happiness because I want to keep reading her books, and I know she worked hard and continues to work hard to get where she is today.


I think that is the key: Envy without unhealthy associations. To use envy as motivation for your own goals, not as a way to wish others less success.


Of course when you are working towards the same goal as someone else and they get there Sooner! Better! Faster! it's hard not to compare yourself to them, but because I am a generally positive person, here are 10 thoughts to Not Get Yer Hate On when jealousy comes out to pound envy on the head:


1. I don't wish I wrote the book that brought this person success. If I had, it wouldn't be the book it is today, and I have too many of my own ideas I need to get on paper!

2. My own books are as good as this person's, so I will find success, too.

3. My own books are better than this person's, so I will find success, too.

4. I work as hard as this person does, so I will find success, too.

5. I may love this person's books, but I wouldn't trade my life for theirs, as our own lives shape our writing.

6. It sounds like this person's path to success was easy, but of course they aren't airing the difficult personal parts of their past/journey that all of us have had.

7. This person got a huge advance, but my book will earn out its advance no matter what the amount, and I'll reap the royalties for years to come.

8. This person is younger than me and already sold their books, but I wouldn't trade what I accomplished when I was that age for what they have now.

9. Someone else already sold a book with a similar theme to my WIP, but that just means the market is open to that kind of book so mine will sell, too.

10. If I had what this person has, it wouldn't make me a better person than I am today.


I love writing. I will never stop. I love revising and seeing my works become more and more polished. I love re-reading my own books and the enjoyment I get from them. I will never stop trying to get them published. I love my life, and all this is enough for me.


How do you beat envy/jealousy?


Deena, Miss Recently Repped

Wanting “it” now or not?

Tip of the day: Want to have your first page read and a chance to win a query critique, partial critique, 10 minute phone conversation, or books from an agent? Or do you just want to read a bunch of first pages? If so, then check out Agent Nathan Bransford’s The Surprisingly Essential First Page Challenge! The current deadline for entries is this Wednesday.

A few weeks ago, I was talking with a co-worker about writing. During the conversation she asked me: “Are you the type of person that wants it to happen now?” Meaning: want to see my book in print.

Many days I feel like I am that person, but often those days are proceeded with something like:

• When I tell someone I “also write,” and some random person responds by asking me: “So where can I find your stuff?” or “Do you have a book published, yet?”
  
  
  
• My family/one of my friends/co-workers, etc asking me: “So where can I find your stuff?” or “Do you have a book published, yet?,” which is followed by me responding “no,” then a sad/"oh poor her” look on their faces, followed by a “haven’t you been writing for, like, 2 years?” followed by a sympathetic, “I’m sure it will happen soon.”
  
  
• When non-writing people feel they are being helpful by giving me unasked-for advice, such as: “Man, I just heard of this author who got published really fast. It was with this publishing company called Lulu. Maybe you should try them.”
  
  
• Or when I get a rejection.

Those are the days when I like to eat excess Moose Tracks Ice Cream and really want it to happen quickly, and the days I constantly convince myself that I shouldn’t tell anyone else “I write.” The days when I feel ashamed to even say, “I’m a writer,” despite the fact I want to tell people, since it is a large part of my life. And those are the days when I yearn to be able to officially tell people, “I AM A WRITER,” with a traditional publishing contract in hand, and not feel bad that I’m still working on publication.

But most days when I’m alone writing or talking with writing friends—the people that actually get this business—those are the days when I realize that everything I’m writing is helping me to publication. I might not be moving fast, but I’m definitely moving forward.

And frankly, I’d much rather have a book worth reading than a sub-par book that’s not.

So, to answer the above question: “Yes, I want it to happen. And happen now. But not if that means my current work-in-progress isn’t ready to be published, yet.”

How about all of you also waiting on a contract, a finished deal, an agent, or anything else. Are you the type of person that wants it to happen now?

--Emily, Miss Awaiting an Agent

My First Repeat Conference

Tip of the Day: Possibly my best tip ever. In the winter, wear loose shoes to conferences and tuck a pair of slipper socks in your manuscript bag. Then, if the rooms are cold, you can walk around in fuzzy socks and nobody will know but you and your toasty toes.

The first writing conference I attended was in January 2007, and it was the Syracuse SCBWI New Years’ Resolution conference. This is a small conference: one editor, one illustrator, and one author. The authors have been stellar: last years’ author was Linda Sue Park. I had absolutely no idea what to expect. My friend Deena, aka Miss Recently Repped, carpooled with me and told me to be ready to be inspired. Linda Sue Park told us she wrote two pages a day, every day, and encouraged us to make that our own resolution. Yes, I thought, all fired with enthusiasm. Yes, I definitely will!

Two days ago, I atttended the January 2008 New Years’ Resolution Conference. I did not write two pages a day every day in the interim. You probably figured that out, didn’t you? But I did keep writing regularly, even if it was only a paragraph a week sometimes.

Novel writing moves at a glacial pace, I think. Sure, those pages and paragraphs add up but I’m an impatient person. I want instant gratification. When my feet are cold, I want my slipper socks and I don’t want to wait until I get home. So publishing is definitely a great fit for me, right? Anyway, it was a great experience to reattend an annual local conference and realize how different my writing life feels this year. For example, there’s a first pages session at this conference, so I brought the first page of my novel in progress. I have worked and reworked this damn first page so many times, it feels like I’ve been writing it forever. You know that Greek legend of the guy who pushes the same boulder uphill every day until the end of time? That’s me and my first page.

Only … this was a different first page than I brought last year! I have a different novel! I haven’t been working on this one forever; it only seems like it. I feel much better now.

This year’s keynote speaker was Tamora Pierce, and she spoke about how important it is to keep going. Her advice was to learn to tell yourself “I’m good” until you believe it. She had to learn to psych herself out, tell herself that since the story was taking over her brain, she might as well let it out on paper, and then once it’s on paper, she might as well polish it, and then she might as well send it out. I brought a camera to take a picture of her, but I’m the world’s worst photographer and I forgot. The woman in front of me drew an impromptu sketch of Tamora Pierce that I think came out much better than any picture I would’ve taken—sad but probably true.

[Imagine nice sketch or photo not taken by me in this spot]

Deena came with me again, and we loved how Ms. Pierce told us about calling her husband when she gets stuck on a plot point. Just like we email people! Maybe my next post will be a list of my potential plot problems and I’ll invite readers to post suggestions. Not that I’m using you or anything. C’mon, it will be fun.

So it was great to go to my first “second time around” conference. I realized I got a lot done this year. New stories, new skills to work on. Am I a better plotter? I think I am. (I need to work on setting and description this year. I hate writing setting and description!) Most importantly, I see myself as a working writer now, producing and improving year after year after year. But Tamora Pierce also reminded me that I started writing because I enjoy it. Those stories stuck in my brain can be fun, not just work. So I’m going to try to have fun with it this year. Sure, my impatient self wants X number of polished pages in hand ASAP. But you know what? I’ll still be writing decades to come, God willing. There’s enough time to write the silly, the plotless, the devoid of description if it makes me happy. Someday I might read it and think “It’s here so I might as well polish it.”

-- Kate, Miss Apprentice Writer

How One TV Show Sums it All Up

Tip of the Day: Make sure you remind your family to be at the book signing *when it starts* if they want to hear your talk.

Yes, despite the fact that my mother didn’t get to hear me practicing for the Oprah show, the book signing went well.



The heart-shaped cookies I brought were delicious, I made it through the talk without throwing up, and we sold about 40 books. Not bad, I suppose.

If you recall, my talk was comparing writing to a TV show. I know you've lost sleep all week wondering WHAT TV show this could be. Project Runway, perhaps, where we might compare cutting fabric to cutting words? Nope. Maybe American Idol, where we might say a good critique group is more helpful than Simon could ever be? Not that one either.

No, I compared writing to the show, The Biggest Loser. Have you watched that one? This season, twelve couples are working their tushes off and eating cardboard so they can weigh in each week and see who lost the most weight and who lost the least amount of weight. I know, you're thinking I must have some really whacked writing routine or something.

Let me tell you how this show is a lot like my world of writing:

• With 200+ rejections to my name and counting, there are days I often feel like The Biggest Loser. I took a trip down memory lane, and shared a few of these with the audience.
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• The people on the show had to get over their fear of whether they might fail and just DO IT. That’s what I had to do when I first started writing and submitting. It’s scary. You have to tell that negative voice to shut up, which isn’t an easy thing to do.

• They count calories like I count words. Yes, I know, the difference being, they cry tears of grief if they go over 2,000 calories in a day while I’m crying tears of joy if I get that many words! Still, we’re setting goals, keeping track, and counting. And when we have a bad day, we get up the next day and try again.

• They have trainers who know what it takes to get them back on that treadmill when they want to quit. Fortunately, my writer friends don’t yell like they yell, but when I’ve had a bad day or a bad week, my “trainers” know just what to say to get me back to the keyboard. Like this show, a good support system is crucial to my success.

• These people struggle with not comparing themselves to those around them. I’m sure it’s gotta be hard, knowing your working just as hard as someone else, and seeing them drop more pounds than you. In the writing world, I struggle with not comparing myself to others too. I finally decided awhile ago that I can’t do that, because so much of this crazy business is out of my control. What I can control is the writing. I can work hard to write the best book I can, and the rest, well, I have to keep the faith that I am on the right path for ME.

• The most amazing part of the show is when these people have to get on the scale, in front of the whole world, and show us their weight and how much they’ve lost or gained. Can you imagine? I think writing is a lot like that. We grow to love our characters. Our stories are personal, and to share them with the world is scary. What if people laugh and it’s not funny? What if people don’t see all of the hard work we’ve put in?

• The current season of The Biggest Loser doesn’t end for awhile. I don’t know who wins. But what I do know is that as each person leaves the show, he/she is a changed person. Most of them continue to work out and follow the path of a healthier lifestyle. And each of them is thankful for the time they spent at the campus.

It’s the same for most writers. Every story is not a winner, unfortunately. We get rejected far more than we get accepted. But we continue on the path. We keep writing. Because that’s what writers do. And when we’re in that zone, and the words, and yes, probably some sweat too, are flowing, there is nothing else like it in the world.

And regardless of whether we win or not, like those people who get kicked off and continue to work out and lose weight, we understand there is no going back.

Because words give us life.

~Lisa, Miss Pinch Me I'm Pubbed

TV Shows that Inspire My Writing (aka Stuff I Like to Watch)

Tip of the Day: Keep a notebook on/in your nightstand for late night inspirations.

A couple of weeks ago my tip of the day was to tell your significant other that your TV watching was research. Well, I wasn’t totally kidding about that—I find lots of inspiration from my favorite TV shows. From little things like what the current fashions are to current slang. And sometimes I like to pick three or four characters off of different shows and mush them all together to make a new character for one of my books. Like, one part McDreamy + one part Pacey Wither + one part Brandon Walsh= ??? Ok, I’m not sure about this particular combo but that’s an example of what I like to do at times.

So here’s a list of some of my favorites. And yeah, some of them are in reruns. But there is good stuff to be found in old shows too!

The Hills

Love, love, love it. The romance, the fights, the glitzy glamour of the teen fashion magazine industry, I love it all. Ok, I know 90% of it is scripted (I mean, how many times can sworn enemies run into each other at dinners/parties/clubs) but it’s brilliant. Good source for writing those fight scenes—I mean, don’t you love Lauren’s face each time Heidi does something to piss her off? Her eyes get big like she’s shocked out of her mind, her jaw drops open, and then you see fury flash across her face. And the best line ever was when Heidi asked for forgiveness and Lauren said, “I want to forgive you. And then I want to forget you.” Ooooh burn.

American Idol

I mean, OMG, what a wonderful bunch of characters they troop across that stage each year! There are so many little personality things you can pick up from watching these people and use in your books. Endless opportunities. And lots of the latest fashions once the competition starts on the stage. And the singing is groovy too of course.

Big Brother

You know that thing about when you don’t know what else to write throw something at your characters that will mess with their lives? Ok, Big brother is like 80 days of that. Messing with people continuously. It’s so inspiring. J

Grey’s Anatomy

Yeah, I don’t get much from all the medical mumbo jumbo as far as writing for teens, but the romance problems are always abundant.

Gossip Girl

Truthfully, I have a handful of episodes on DVR that I haven’t caught up on yet but when I do watch it I like it. Do I think it is realistic as far as your average teen? Not so much. But the roller coaster relationships between friends and boyfriends/girlfriends seem dead on.

Dawson’s Creek

I LOVE the creek! The constant love triangles! Drama, drama, drama. Although I’ve yet to meet real teens that talk like the kids on that show did. Let’s start a petition for a Dawson’s Creek reunion eh?

90210

I tend to like the college years better than the high school years but the drama was heavy all 10 years the show ran. The styles are of course, completely out of date (construction boots on girls anyone?) but the boyfriend stealing and relationship problems are timeless.

Little House on the Prairie

Yeah it’s old. Real old. And I’ve seen each episode like 63 times. But come on it has Nellie Olson. The original mean girl.

Ok, I’ll stop there or you guys will think I do nothing but watch TV. But just on the chance that I can somehow squeeze in a little extra TV time somewhere in my busy schedule, what shows do you find inspiring to your writing?

And just for fun, I’ll throw out a little trivia question: What current reality tv show host appeared on 90210?

Kristina, Miss Soon-to-Pub

Agented = More Writing Time (or How Internet + Me = Black Hole)

Tip of the Day: Spend $80 to get your studded snow tires on your car to ensure that it never snows again.


I didn't always want an agent. In 2005, when I was writing Novel #2 and querying editors on Novel #1 (bef0re I realized it was: (a) not good, and (b) without plot), I stuck my nose up at the publishing houses who would not dare to even glance at a query from me because I was unagented. I mean, who needed them let alone the specialized people in the industry to send my manuscripts to them? I could print out my own queries, throw some stamps on an envelope and keep my 15% when I got an offer for my books thankyouverymuch! Boo yeah! "Suckers!" I said about those agented writers.


Ha ha ha on me.


After about a year of this thinking and spending some more time on Verla's chat board, I learned the errors of my thinking. And there were many of them. Not only did I realize the benefits of having an agent to do contract negotiations (a language I will never speak), and their ability to get better book deals than I could get on my own, but I also learned that I could get some great reactions out of people by responding to them with, "Um, yeah, you'll have to run that by my agent."


OK, OK, that last part I only realized AFTER I signed with Chris, but the important thing that I gleaned is that agents do research on editors so they know where to send your book! Ding ding ding! Brilliant and important, folks!


This doesn't mean that I am no longer curious as to which editors worked on what books, but all that time I used to spend online and in books looking up editor names and what house they were at and their submission guidelines, I can now do something else.


I can WRITE!


I've heard authors say that a writer should spend their time in percentages something like (*not a direct quote; I don't remember who said it or the exact numbers, but bear with me here*):

Reading: 45%
Writing 45%
Submitting (and related research): 10%


Generally, I agree with these numbers and their application. Yet, before I had my agent, my own percentages were more like:

Reading: 50%
Writing: 20%
Submitting (and related research): 239%


You may notice some skewed percentages here, and I hate to admit that a lot of the 239% was because it was a good way to procrastinate on writing. I told myself it was an acceptable form due to its direct relationship with getting published. For as much as I suck lying to others, I am great at lying to myself.


But now that I am agented, I can't even lie to myself about that because seomeone else is helping me research where to send my novel! And what writer doesn't wish for More Time to Write? So now my percentages are something closer to this:

Reading: 40%
Writing: 40%
Emailing the A2A girls on random topics: 136%


As you can see, I AM improving, and all because I got an agent. Though I am recently repped, I already feel like this relationship will be more productive for me in the long run.


How about you? What are your percentages?


Deena, Miss Recently Repped