Writing Blurbs

Last week I covered the traditional synopsis and when I did I let you know that there is another type of synopsis as well as the blurb. From my perspective, the second type of synopsis is just a long blurb.

What is a blurb?

Think movies, advertisement and commercials. 

Those seeking an audience for their movies have half a minute of television commercial air time to sell you the desire to cast your money at the box office and see their film. Each commercial must condense a two to three hour movie into that time slot. They do so with carefully chosen scenes and words. How many times have you gone to a movie only to discover that what is played in the commercial isn't actually in the film? Or that the only interesting aspect of the film is what is played in the commercial?

As writers, we must portray our book in the best light. We must chose each word carefully to capture our audience which includes agents, publishers and editors. Several years ago I attended a writing conference where a successful author spoke about blurbs. He had each of us write a single sentence to describe our book. This is what I wrote.

Missie, a modern American University student is thrust through a portal into an alternate world where her flute has the power to heal and to defeat an evil tyrant, Renwyk, Lord of the Symberveen.

He didn't read everyone's blurb but he read mine and said it was very powerful. I got excited.

The synopsis which is like a blurb is designed to appear on the back cover of your book. I've been thinking about re-doing my blurb and synopsis on Amazon so I'll give it a try here. I'm doing so without any practice, just as I write this post. Hopefully I won't fall on my face.

When Missie, a modern American University student is confronted with a sudden entrance into a medieval world she attempts to find a way home. However, she soon learns that her coming is foretold in prophecy and that her flute holds the key to defeating an evil tyrant, Renwyk, Lord of the Symberveen. To make matters worse, Prince Healden has a thing for her. Now, her emotions war against her reason and soon she must come to terms with her situation. Will she find her way home? Or does true love win out and her flute save the world?

In short, what you must do is practice and edit until you have some of the best writing  you can produce.

What do you think of my blurb? How about the synopsis? Since my new book cover will be up soon I think I'll tweak my synopsis as well.
Nancy

Copyright 2013
If you need to email me, let me know it the comments. I have a new email address that I will send you.

PS. Today is my 31st Wedding Anniversary, where did the time go?

Nightmares

Nightmares. We all have them and in my experience they are totally bizarre, nonsensical and usually occur when I'm too hot. Just the other day I dreamt that I was in a run down Restaurant barefoot and when I went to the bathroom, green alien slime inched it's way toward my feet. I had to stick my feet, one at a time in the sink to wash away the green ooze. Bizarre.  No idea where that came from. It was like a bad 'B movie' from Hollywood.

However, nightmares can be a fabulous tool in your writing. I used it to add tension and foresight in my fantasy, 'The Treasures of Carmelidrium,' and had a lot of fun with it. In critique there was a member who was adamantly opposed to all dreams and nightmares, however, he didn't write fantasy but mainstream. So I guess genre is important when you think about nightmares. I know other writers who dream so vividly that they start a new manuscript based on what they dream.

How do you handle nightmares?

(I'm still going to numerous meetings with my daughter and don't have a lot of blogging time. I hope to be back soon and to reveal a new book cover for 'The Treasures of Carmelidrium.'

Nancy

Writing Synopsis'

Hi everyone.
Last week I asked you for writing ideas. Holly let me know she was thinking about synopsis and blurbs, so I thought I'd talk about these two writing problems today and next Monday.

Synopsis:

I must confess, the synopsis is something that I struggled with and that I put aside when I self published. But I did purchase several books on the subject and I did put together multiple synopsis'. Here's what I learned.

There are two types of synopsis. One is just a long version of a blurb. I didn't know this until I started blogging and read others synopsis' which they would post on their blogs. I initially thought the authors were posting the kiss of death, since telling someone the end or your story before they read it takes away the  pleasure and mystery of reading. I soon learned that they were not really posting a synopsis.

A synopsis is for the eyes of a publisher, agent or editor. Some will create one for their critique partners though I'm not sure why.

There are some rules.

1. A synopsis is single spaced with double spaces between paragraphs that are NOT indented. Like this post.

2. Be sure to read the synopsis guidelines for each publisher, agent, etc., they are all different. Some want a single page while others want three or five pages. You may think they want to make your life difficult but it's really a mystery why there isn't one standard for all synopsis. I've been told that they want to see if you did your research and followed their directions. This reminds me of English class.

3. Always start by introducing yourself in a single sentence. Give writing credits if  you have any. If not, do you belong to any organizations or groups that are dedicated to writing? Do you attend conferences? These can be in a second sentence.

4. Introduce the title and genre of your manuscript. The title should be in all CAPITALS but not the genre. Include the word count. We have computers. Be specific. Don't use the word, APPROXIMATELY. One agent I know said this is an automatic turn off for them and they don't finish reading the synopsis. Does your word count match their requirements? It had better.

5. Give the names of your leading characters in all CAPITALS. No more than three characters. Don't be dry, make this some of your best writing. Aim to show your writing skills. Many times agents, editors and publishers will base their decisions on the synopsis alone. Sometimes they ask only for a synopsis.

6. Get a strong drink. Iced tea may not be enough though it is my favorite. Okay, this one isn't in the guidelines but I bet you smiled.

7. No secrets. You must tell everything. Now is not the time for a cliff hanger. Some agents, editors, etc., ask for a chapter by chapter synopsis. I had nightmares over this one. We are back to that strong drink. I rarely indulge since alcohol gives me headaches that are brutal. We're talking one drink here. Oh yeah, I'm not an alcoholic. A funny movie works best for me. My favorite is 'Dick and Jane Have Fun,' since it mirrors my life. That is, the part about losing everything. 'Galaxy Quest' is another favorite.

8. Concentrate and stop getting off the subject. Remember those surprise quizzes in English? Ugh!

9. Edit. edit. critique it and edit. How many times? This is open to debate. Edit some more.

10. Did I mention that your manuscript should be completed. What if they call you and want you to send the whole thing tomorrow and your on chapter three? Nightmares again. I actually know someone that had this happen. By the time they had finished the story, two years later, the publisher wasn't interested anymore.

11. Remember to ask them to contact you at the end of your synopsis. Something like, I'm looking forward to hearing from you or I'm thrilled to work with you. Don't just sign  your name and mail it. 

I have no idea what the current publishing world is looking for. If you write romance or cozy mysteries there are formulas that each house is looking for. If you are like me, good luck. My story didn't fit into the standard formula for anything, though I did write a powerful story, my characters where too old for YA and my voice was too young for mainstream. In others words, I didn't curse enough or have explicit sex scenes. I don't think you need those things to write a great book.

Any questions? Did I miss something?
Nancy

Writing

Hello all.
Happy Martin Luther King day.

Today is Monday and I usually have a post on writing. But.....I am fresh out of ideas. I guess my brain is somewhere else at the moment.

So...is there a writing challenge in  your life? Something you struggle with or would like more information in mind? Share in the comments and I will write about it next Monday.

Nancy

Educational Blog Award Nominee

eCollegeFinder has nominated my blog and my blog post on The Writing Craft for a Top Blogger Awards. eCollegeFinder began to award deserving blogs in early 2010. Their goal in hosting the awards is to enrich students while giving high-quality blogs the recognition they deserve. Award winners are listed on our site; you can view the awards we’ve given in the past at https://www.ecollegefinder.org/award-series.aspx.

To accept the nomination they have asked me to answer two questions:

How would you describe your blog to readers of our site?

I started this blog as a way to connect with other writers and readers and progressed to include not just information about my own writing but how to reach your personal goals as a writer. I love helping others and I have expanded this idea into a series of classes that you can read more about at my other blog. http://nrwilliamsthewritingcraft.blogspot.com/

·    What advice can you offer students aiming to improve their writing acumen? 

      I am a fantasy author. So this question will be answered as a writer of fictional material. First and foremost there is no substitute for paying your dues. What do I mean by that? With the simplicity of self publishing through e-books on multiple sites, I have witnessed many would be authors publish their work before it was ready. I believe each writer has a unique voice and a story to tell, but you must invest the time to learn to write well. As with everything in life, there are rules. As an example I will use POV (point of view.) You can have one POV or many, but to change POV in the middle of a paragraph is confusing to a reader and will lead to frustration. I spent years honing my craft, attending conferences and workshops and I belong to an in person critique group. When I learned to control where and when I changed POV, I saw my writing improve by leaps and bounds. That is only one are of expertise. There are many. 

      You may search many blogs and read many post all of them excellent and knowledgeable. But if you are new to fictional writing, I urge you to take classes, either from me or someone else. There are many online resources for this. If you are an aspiring writer, I hope you let me know in the comments and I will follow you to watch you progress. 

      Happy Writing, Nancy

 I

#RomanticFridayWriters: Whispers

Romantic Friday Wrtiers is hosted by Francine Howarth and L'Aussie. This is a writing challenge that will fine tune your abilities. Every Friday there is an opportunity to participate in the challenge with a romantic flash fiction piece between 300 and 400 words. Not to worry though, you can skip a Friday if  you need to and you can post early or any time over the weekend. Please hop on by, Romantic Friday Writers to read the other creative post and or to join. It's worth it.

This challenge is called: Whispers:

Small towns. Elizabeth watched several women line up for an available cashier. None came to her register. They leaned close, covered their mouths and whispered while looking at her. Whispers. They followed her, ever since she left Fred. Fred, his money, his name. Fred and his wandering eye and clenched fist that she could still feel a year later.

Small towns.

Elizabeth turned to stare the opposite way. She'd put in a transfer request to a store in Denver. That would be far enough. It was time to check in with her manager.

"Spp…" someone whispered behind her.

Elisabeth rubbed the moisture from her hands and turned, expecting one of the women. Instead the strong scent of motor oil reeked from the young man's jacket. The name over the pocket was Tim.

"Are you open?" He referred to her checkout line.

"Yes."

"How come no one is in line? The rest have three or more ladies waiting."

"They aren't ladies."

"I beg your pardon?"

He looked as confused as Elizabeth was irritated. She smiled.

"That's better," he said.

He had steak, potatoes and broccoli. No surprise there. She checked his finger for a wedding ring. There wasn't one. Fred didn't wear his either. For five years he left it on top of his chest of drawers.

"Aren't you---"

"Elizabeth." She didn't provide her last name. Fred's last name until she could legally change it. The divorce was final two months ago.

"Elizabeth," he lowered his voice to a whisper. "I sure would like to grab a cup of Joe with you."

"Coffee," she said. Numb, could she ever feel for another man? "I'm off at five."

"Great, I'll pick you up here?"

"No!" Too quickly she rejected that idea. "I'll meet you at Starbucks. Seven okay?"

Elizabeth pushed open the door to Starbucks dressed in blue jeans and a red sweater that hugged her waist. Tim stood. His dark hair hung low over his ears and his brown eyes crinkled slightly when he smiled.

"For you," he said and thrust a spiky cactus at her. "If I ever get out of hand you can poke me with it."

Elizabeth smiled and took the potted plant. She came close enough to smell the Ivory soap he had bathed with.

"You are so different," she said.

"Glad you like it," his whispered breath tingled her ear.

Whispers.


Word count: 397 includes the title.


Critique only misspelled words or punctuation. Thanks.

Need a little help? I'm offering affordable writing classes. N. R. Williams, The Writing Craft.

Nancy

Plot: Ascension and Descension

This post concludes my study of plot. If you wish to reexamine any of the plot post you can find the links at the bottom of my blog under plot. One thing that we have learned overall is that a plot drives your story like a road map. The plot defines if the driver is action, event, or any number of things or if the driver is the character, better known as character driven. For the two plots, ascension and descension we will study characters. In these plots it is your job to introduce your character and allow the reader to know them before the events of the plot kick in to either make them heroes or villains.

Ascension and descension are opposites in every way. Ascension introduces a character that is either deformed in some way yet ordinary on the inside or is ordinary and will make extra ordinary choices by the end of the book. Think about a monster, visually gross on the outside, someone we wouldn't want to get to know, someone that is certainly stereo typed yet when the reader, through the eyes of another character, gets to know this person realizes that; hay, this is a wonderful person. Think, The Elephant Man by Sir Frederick Treves, or The Hunchback of Notre Dame by Victor Hugo and others. For an example of the ordinary character we can study, The Death of Ivan Ilyich by Tolstoy. I must confess that I haven't read this story so I am going on Tobias description entirely. I am so impressed however, that I plan to make this a must read. We meet Ivan at his funeral and learn that he is an ordinary man through the dialogue of the other characters who are not so sympathetic to Ivan. Again, I haven't read this. What draws me to this story is that he is ordinary. My favorite characters are as real as I can make them plus whatever talent or circumstance I can devise to make them great. Psychology is a good place to start when developing characters.

In descension we have the ordinary character usually who is faced with an extraordinary event that changes him or her for the worse. Once again, you must introduce us to the character so we see them before the event. Often times the event is greed, like winning the lottery or coming into some money. It may be that the character spends a lifetime in a job or marriage and becomes disillusioned to the point of doing the wrong thing. Money and power are the greatest forces of corruption that we know of. Most of these stories have one or both at the center of your characters downfall.

In both plots you are dealing with human psychology and it is all the more important for you to have a goal for your characters and a message that you want to drive home. How does the character respond to the forces around him or her.

As with all other plots there are three acts.
1. We meet the character before the big change.
2. We experience the change with the character. It may be immediate or gradual.
3. Your character overcomes or is overcome by his or her flaw.

In both cases, what is the purpose of the story? What do you as a writer want to say about life? Can we control our fate to create a better future or does greed, power, wealth get the better of us?

In both these plots, your character is the central focus. All other characters are drawn into the plot by him and react to circumstances because of him. For better or worse, give the reader a strong, forceful character. Even the ordinary man cannot remain so under these two plots.

For a further study of this plot and others I recommend, 20 Master Plots and how to build them by Ronald B. Tobias. It is a great read, as I have taken from this book for all these post.

Next week I will start a new series based on the things we should all learn about writing. If you need further help, I am offering classes for just $25.00. Each class will study various writing techniques plus a critique of your work. Go to my other blog, The Writing Craft to learn more.

I hope you all enjoyed this series.
Nancy

#RomanticFridayWriters: First Love

Romantic Friday Writers is hosted by Francine Howarth and L'Aussie. To join us or to read more wonderful post go here.           

Today's challenge is: First Love

Winona ran to the bathroom, her make-up bag tucked under her arm. With haste she scrubbed her face, glared at the black-head on her nose and applied concealer before spreading the foundation over all. Last she highlighted her blue eyes with mascara. God, why didn't she wake up sooner? She threw on a sweater and slipped into her tennis shoes before running out the door to catch the bus. Would Alex be on board? She hoped so.

The edge of her finger tips felt ice cold in the autumn breeze. A cascade of golden leaves blew all around her and she felt them stick to her dark hair. Yanking one out she boarded the bus and caught her breath. There, in the back row was Alex. A smile tugged at her mouth. An obnoxious ring sounded in her ear.

"Sit already," the bus driver admonished.

Winona moved; eyes locked on Alex's. Patricia stuck her leg out and Winona stumbled, catching herself in an awkward fall and landed in Ryan's lap.

"Hay babe, you finally noticed," Ryan said, his aftershave left a tangy tickle on her nose.

Alex laughed. A weight settled over her mind and heart. Inspiration wasn't Winona's usual skill, but in an insane move she gazed at Ryan's chocolate eyes and said. "Yes." Then she planted a kiss full on his lips. The laughter around her died. An unexpected thrill stung her heart. She opened her eyes to see warmth spread over Ryan's face. He kissed her back and held her so tight she moaned. A moment later she sat on the seat with Ryan and his hand held hers. Gone was all thought of Alex. Why hadn't she ever noticed Ryan before this? She would never forget him after his kiss. A giddy sensation filled her and when they arrived at school, they walked hand in hand to their first class.

Word count 314





First Love isn't my forte; I hope I did it justice and that you all enjoyed it.

Friday is insane for me with a lot of errands. If I don't see you today I'll be by tomorrow.

Do you need help with your writing? I'm offering affordable classes online. Go to The Writing Craft to learn more.

Nancy

Plot: Wretched Excess

What do you think of when you see this title, Wretched Excess? For me I think of over eating. I have a weight problem and things translate into that for me rapidly. But I don't over eat. I tend to eat the wrong thing. Too many carbohydrates. My body says…ooh, I get to store more food. But I digress. Wretched Excess in the form of a plot is when the normal character is pushed by circumstance to act in a manor that isn't socially acceptable or when the abnormal character does the same thing.

Let's start with the normal. It shouldn't be too much of a stretch in today's economy to imagine the couple who has fallen on hard times. After years in a good job one or both lose their job, then their home and are thrust on the street to stand in line at a homeless shelter or to live in unfavorable conditions. In this dire situation one or both begin to live outside what is acceptable behavior in society.

This has actually happened to me. Though my husband is gainfully employed he makes half his previous income and we have lost our home. As a result, I live in a two bedroom apartment instead of a home paid for by years of mortgage payments. So far, I haven't reached the level of wretched excess, but I can imagine it with depth and detail because of my own experience.

Of course, this may be any number of situations. Our examples for this post is Shakespeare's plays, Othello, King Lear, Hamlet and Macbeth. In each play the protagonist is driven to break the rules of society. It's been years since I read King Lear and Macbeth, but I remember well that both Othello and Hamlet were driven 'mad' by their situations.

On a more modern note, I thoroughly enjoyed the movie, 'Dick and Jane Have Fun.' Perhaps I have lost some of you. And maybe I liked it because our home was in jeopardy when I saw it. Here is a movie where the protagonist loses his job because the CEO is a crook and Dick is an unknowing fall guy. To make matters worse, he had encouraged his wife to leave her job. This leads into a job search for Dick that is less then productive and totally embarrassing. Meanwhile Jane is desperate to keep the truth from the neighbors. After many embarrassing moments they start to rob stores and banks' making ridiculous what is a serious offense in society. At one store they force the staff to make them a coffee at gun point. In the end, they save the day for all the ex-employees and to avoid a spoiler in case you haven't seen the movie I will not tell you how.

The point of this little excursion into a modern movie is that you as a writer do not have to cast this plot, Wretched Excess, into tragedy but you can make it a comedy. It is up to you. Just remember, good writing starts with believable characters. Whatever the catalyst for your plot is, it must be believable.

Act 1:
We see our characters in a normal setting. The event strikes a blow that will begin to change who and what they are.

Act 2:
There is a gradual loss of control for your character. The reader witnesses his or her spiral out of control. Don't hide your characters struggles. You want the reader to have sympathy for the character no matter his crimes. The villain however, is another matter. The villain must be bad with no redeeming qualities or at least very few. The villain in the movie, 'Dick and Jane have fun,' is the CEO who is rich and flaunts it while his ex-employees suffer the consequence of his actions.

Act 3:
This begins at the point where the character loses control and spirals downward breaking the rules of society. At the end you almost always have, murder or mayhem, or on a lighter note, the protagonist pulls it together for a spectacular finish that leaves the reader cheering.

Now for the question. In my current whip, the secondary plot is Wretched Excess. Because it is the secondary plot, the protagonist doesn't lose control but must save others as the villain intends to destroy many of them.

Next week the plot will be Ascension & Descension. My spell check doesn't like the spelling of descension, but that is how it is spelled in the book, 20 Master Plots and how to build them, by Ronald B. Tobias. Next week's plot is also the last one.

Do you plan to use, Wretched Excess in any plot form?

Nancy


Do you need help with your writing? I'm offering affordable classes so come by and let me know what burning questions you have about your writing at The Writing Craft.

(This is post 300).

Plot: Discovery

Human nature. We as a group of mammals are distinct in that we struggle to learn who and what we are. The plot today, discovery, is about this struggle. Because of that it is a character driven plot at its heart as well as an important plot.

This plot differs from Maturation because it is about the process of discovery. In maturation, we have a character that grows up into themselves. In discovery, we have a character that learns who they are.

Many children's books, young adult, are based on this plot. Young people more than adults are constantly asking the questions about who they are, what is their purpose, why this or that. As adult writers, are greatest struggle with a plot such as discovery is the temptation to preach. Make sure you tell your story through your character to avoid such an outcome.

Character driven: Your task as a writer is to make that world and the people in it so real that the reader can bridge the fantasy or words with the reality of belief. Ronald B. Tobias, 20 Master Plots and how to build them.

Act 1:
Establish who your character is but don't spend much time on this. Get to the catalyst quickly. Flashbacks are an important tool in this plot. But don't give us a hundred pages at one sitting or you risk losing the reader. Yes, there are some gifted writers who can do this, but if you are new to the craft, avoid lengthy flashbacks or back story.

Act 2:
The middle of any plot can get bogged down. In this plot, discovery, it is important to delve into your character's personality. Who are they? What is the struggle, the challenge? What is the character flaw that puts them into the current situation? What must they learn? In Death of a Salesman, by Bowman. (The book not the play). The character learns that he led an incomplete life because he never loved anyone or married. What ever the revelation is for your character, it must be BIG. Don't make it trivial. If your character is a peacekeeper, don't give this revelation after a family argument. It must be bigger than that. Avoid melodrama.

Act 3:
Your character begins to fully understand what and who they are. In Death of a Salesman, the character understands what he has lost and learns to appreciate the love of a young couple who has given him shelter. He understands that he is dying. If your character is a peacekeeper as I mentioned above, they must understand the nature of their true calling and its cost.

While I was reading the section in Tobias book, 20 Master Plots and how to build them, about this plot, discovery. I couldn't help but think about Harry Potter. In the first chapter of the first book how much time did J. K. Rowling spend in Harry's past? Zero. We are presented with an infant who is delivered to relatives and left on the doorstep in a wicker basket by some rather odd people. Two wizards and a giant. We learn about Harry's past in flashbacks handled with the use of dialogue and visions. Harry is a baby. He doesn't remember his past until a vision reveals bits and pieces of it over the course of seven books. Masterful.

Over many years of learning the craft of writing I have attended conferences and workshops and in all of them I have heard the advice that states, no back-story in the first three chapters. This is excellent advice and I follow it, but…what I have learned after reading many books by talented authors is that this is a base guide that occasionally must be broken. How you break it is crucial. There is no substitute for excellent writing. If you are new to the craft, don't despair, the act of writing will develop the necessary skills you need to move forward. I am developing a line of classes to help if anyone is interested and will announce it soon.

Next week the plot is: Wretched Excess                                                   

Are you plotting a book with discovery as the main plot?

Nancy

Romantic Friday Writers: Fearful Heart

 Romantic Friday Writers is hosted by Francine Howarth and L'Aussie. To read their entries and others or to join this fun and rewarding writing exercise please visit, Romantic Friday Writers.

Fearful Heart:                                                          

Rosemary sensed his attention before she turned her head to look. The restaurant was filled for the noon hour with business men and women all wanting a quick meal. She was no exception. The crowd around the salad bar prevented her from seeing the booths just past it so she examined the further corner. There, blue jeans and black cowboy hat that rested on the table was Benjamin. How long had it been? Three, maybe five years since he married Amber. Rosemary had moved to the city after that. What was he doing here?

Benjamin tipped his head to acknowledge her. Rosemary turned her back. She felt the color leave her face, her eyes blurred momentarily as the memory of his parting kiss lingered. The ache in her heart was physical. She had never wanted to see him again. Apparently 500 hundred miles wasn't far enough.

She stood abruptly and threw down the money to pay for her meal. Before she reached the door he stopped her.

"You’re a sight for sore eyes," Benjamin said.

"And you still rely on clichés to express your feelings." She moved around him and he raised his arm to block her escape.

"We need to talk."

He smelled of green grass and wild flowers. She longed for the open country.

"I have nothing to say to you. Kindly move your arm."

He grasped her elbow and escorted her outside where the sun and heat beat against the cement and the air was filled with exhaust fumes. 

"How is your wife?" Rosemary asked more to put distance between them and not because she cared. Amber had been her high school nemesis.

"I didn't come to talk about Amber," Benjamin said.

"So like a man. Look up the old flame and have an affair. I'm not interested."

"Now who is speaking in clichés?" he asked.

Rosemary knew her heart wouldn't survive another long term romance with Benjamin. Hell, she hadn't even dated any of the men who had expressed an interest. There was nothing for her here. She needed to go.

"What do you want Benjamin?"

"You. I want you. I want a second chance. Amber moved to Florida. Ranching wasn't her thing, but you---"

"You made your choice. Why should I be second? Every morning I'd wonder where your heart is."

"Rosemary."

"Good bye Benjamin." She marched off and didn't look back.               

Word count 398. I hope you enjoyed my selection.

Plot: Forbidden Love

Plot: Forbidden Love

Hurray! I'm back. We're moved. My Mom is doing well. I have story ideas from two months of packing and moving and not getting to write. But…I am having trouble with the internet connection. It won't let me visit any of you. Please be patient, I haven't forgotten you and I am working to fix the problem.

Monday's theme, plot.

Today we are talking about Forbidden Love. This is the tragic romance. As many of you might have guessed, forbidden love and other love plots may be interwoven into any book as a sub-plot. It isn't necessary for you to think this is just romance, though romance certainly uses all these plot devises.

What is forbidden love? Today we live in a society much more tolerant of forbidden love and equally less tolerant of what the ancient people thought about forbidden love. For example, many ancient societies tolerated adultery more than our society. Personally, I think that is a great achievement that we are less tolerant, especially for women. Time past, a man could do anything he wanted but a woman couldn't. Although, Ancient Rome and Greece encouraged multiple partners and homosexual love for both men and women. And, the Ancient Egyptian Pharaohs married their own siblings to keep the kingship in the family. Don't get me wrong, I am not advocating for anyone to break a personal moral code. We are talking writing and crafting a story to be compelling and to deal with issues that may not be the writer's personal experience. Yes, in this case friends, write what you don't know. LOL

On with the plot.

There are several types of forbidden love.

Adultery:
You're married with another partner.

Incest:
You have a thing for your sister or brother, mother or father, and you act one it.

Homosexual love:
Men with men and women with women.

May - December romances:
Either sex is retirement age or older and the other is just out of their teens. Of course, it isn't necessarily that extreme. I'd say a good twenty to thirty year gap between the two is traditional.

In every example you don't necessarily have bedroom scenes. Sex isn't the only component.

Ask yourself this:
What is it that drives my character into the arms of the antagonist or minor character in forbidden love?

This is about tension, psychology, inner turmoil, what the partners give to one another, or don't give. The characters should learn something about themselves and the world. In each case, 99% of stories written about forbidden love end in tragedy. One or more of the characters die or are injured to the point of disability.

Act 1:
Establish your characters and introduce the future lovers to each other. What is it that draws them to one another? What society taboo are they about to break.

Act 2:
We enter the reason for each other, the heart of their interest. All is well. By the end or act 2, something happens to drive a wedge between the two. Either the world begins to interfere, their families and friends, or something with each of them or one of them affects the relationship.

Act 3:
One or both die or are permanently disabled by someone or something. Society has stepped in or a spouse. Something is preventing their relationship from continuing. Of course, you can break this rule and write a happy ending instead.

There are many stories out there about forbidden love. Oedipus, who ended up killing his own father who was king and marrying his own mother who is queen because it was prophesied he would and the king had sent him away as a child. Romeo and Juliet and similar stories. Their families are feuding. Quasimodo and Esmeralda in The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Adultery; we have, Madame Bovary who seeks love outside her marriage. The Scarlet Letter and Anna Karenina to name just a few. Death in Venice is the tragic end of an older man who loves a young boy. Harold and Maude is an example of May - December love where the woman is older than the man. A real life example is Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore. Ask yourself this, will this love end in tragedy? Probably not unless you are into children. Ashton will never have his own unless they elect a donor Mom.

I could go on, but I am sure you're well aware of the boss and secretary scenario and the unfortunate student/teacher affair that seems to pop up yearly in the news.

Next week we will explore the plot: Sacrifice.

To read more about this and any other master plot pick up the book, 20 Master Plots and how to build them, by Ronald B. Tobias.

Are you writing about forbidden love or do you plan to add this tension packed plot idea to a future work?

Nancy

Hump Day Improvisation

Good morning everyone. No picture today, I keep getting error messages. So let's use our imagination.

Your character is writing something. A letter, a grocery list, a to do list. Is it a dear John letter, a I miss you letter, or a list of some kind. Perhaps she is the reporter of the gossip column. Anything goes. Make sure we are in the characters head and feeling the reason for the letter. What internal conflict accompanies this?

For those who are new to my blog, write something in the comment section. Even if your not a "writer," you can still participate.
Nancy

Plot: Transformation

We continue our exploration of plots with transformation. This is a character driven plot. What does that mean? It means that as the writer you need to understand your character. His weaknesses, his strengths, his fears, and his desires. It means that you must be able to effectively let the reader see this character and experience those character traits and it means that you need to know what will happen to the character to change him.

Transformation is related to metamorphosis. If you missed the discussion on metamorphosis you can go here to read it. Metamorphosis is how the character changes literally to become something else. Think in terms of a human becoming some type of other creature from vampire to werewolf and more. Or maybe the character is an animal to begin with that becomes human.

Transformation is about the human character and what happens that causes a person to grow. Examples of catalysis that you might use are:

A comfortable childhood and how the lessons of adulthood change this person.
War…need I say more?

The search for identity. I remember as a teenager asking many questions along this line of thought, trying to discover who I really was and what I should do with my life. This underlying reason may take your character into the dark places of his mind.

The character that is forced to deal with the dramatic moments in life; divorce, death, job loss to name a few.

These are all intense moments in a characters life. But, you need not have such a dramatic crisis; you may choose a simpler event. Your character may have low self esteem and the event that changes them may be the attention of another character, real or imagined.

The list of examples is long:
The Last Picture Show, by Larry McMurtry
The Paper Chase, by John Jay Osborn
Indian Camp, by Ernest Hemingway
The Red Badge of Courage, by Stephen Crane
Catch-22, by Joseph Heller
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, by Robert Louis Stevenson
Kramer vs. Kramer, by Avery Corman
Pygmalion better known as, My Fair Lady, by George Bernard Shaw (The play didn't have a happy ending).

Act 1:
The incident that begins the change in the protagonist life. Remember, we need to know who your character is emotionally.

Act 2:
We see the full effects of the inciting incident of the first act. How does this event change the character? How do they feel? What do they think about it? What is the internal process the character is going through?

Act 3:
You're not done. There is yet another incident that defines the result of the character's transformation. Now we see the lessons that your character has learned, has experienced and how this has changed him. This process allows your character growth.

Oh yes, this can be a sub-plot just like all plots can be.

There you have it. Do you have a character in your WIP that is undergoing transformation? If not, do you have a favorite transformation based book? What is it?

Based on information found in: 20 Master Plots and how to build them, by Ronald B. Tobias. You can find this book in most book stores or on Amazon. I highly recommend it.

Next Monday is July 4, a rather big deal in the USA. I will not be blogging that day. I'll be back on Wednesday, July 6 next week too. This week I will have a post on Wednesday and Friday.
Nancy

Hump Day Improvisation

Snakes...love em' or hate em.' It's a snakes tale for this Hump Day Improvisation!

Picture source:

Late last night my daughter came home and her son came running in to my office. I was in the middle of reading something and editing. Plus I was tired so I had my hands up on my face and didn't see what he was holding. I turned and there in my face was a cobra. "Oh my God," I cried. He gave me a four  year old sad face that I didn't appreciate his new toy. I wondered if my heart was still in my body. So that inspired this challenge.

Your character is confronted with a snake, real or toy or even imagined. Does he love em? Does he hate em? Oh yeah, he can be a she. Leave a comment describing his or her reaction and don't forget to tell us what kind of snake is occupying your sentence.

No pressure, if your new to my blog you can leave a comment too and if you don't think you're a writer give it a try. You never know what kind of creativity lurks within you.

Cheers,
Nancy

Plot: Underdog

Now I'm feeling my age! Every time I think 'underdog,' I see a cartoon dog flying. But regardless of our past, there is a plot that is based on the idea that the protagonist isn't equal in strength, power, wealth, or any number of things you can think of, with the antagonist. Did I lose you? Let's just say, the antagonist has the upper hand in more ways than one.

Your underdog character is the average person in type. That means the reader can relate to him. In real life, many of us have experienced some kind of overwhelming obstacle. It may be a health issue, or a disagreement with a parent, sibling, teacher, anyone in your life. They have the upper hand, something they can use to control the circumstances. It could be a job that is changing rapidly, or a requirement that you are morally opposed to. Regardless of the challenge, the obstacle, the issue, you feel that there is nothing you can do. This is one character trait of the underdog. Put that character in harms way.

In, 20 Master Plots and how to build them, Tobias uses the fairy tale Cinderella as the example to illustrate the underdog plot. He mentions Disney's version but believes the Grimm story titled, Aschenputtel, is a better example since the step-sisters are also beautiful but lack Cinderella's moral convictions. Rather than repeat what Tobias said I will use another Cinderella story, my favorite, the movie 'Ever After,' by Andy Tennant and starring Drew Barrymore, Anjelica Huston and Dougray Scott. We won't quiver over the details that this film has a medieval servant who is totally Americanized and way too independent for her time. It was a charming tale and one we, or I, would like to believe was possible. In this movie there are no fairy godmothers or magic birds, no dancing rats or North American pumpkins.

Cinderella does suffer at the hand of a step-mother who is driven by jealousy more than by rank, though she uses her title to justify what she is doing. Cinderella has one excessively spoiled step-sister and one who has sympathy to spare. She is clearly the underdog, made into a servant with attitude. She hasn't lost her compassion for those around her and because of this she is driven to rescue a servant sold into slavery by the king, by dressing up as a lady of the court. All dressed up with servant shoes on, she meets the prince and tries to hide from him. But like any good man, he pursues the one who isn't interested in him. (In my epic fantasy, my prince does the same thing with my heroine; I wrote it before this movie came out.) But that sub-plot isn’t new to me or to the movie. It's based on reality.

Act 1:
We meet our hero when his life is normal just before the protagonist enters or is made into a protagonist by events that take place. Within a paragraph or page or by the end of the first chapter events go down hill rapidly for our hero. The antagonist has the upper hand and things don't look too promising.

Act 2:
The hero moves into a position of strength. The tide has changed for the better and he has the upper hand. In 'Ever After,' Drew Barrymore is secretly dating the prince, Dougray Scott. They are sneaking around just like American teenagers. She speaks her mind and he thinks it's great. She feels empowered by his affection and attention. After all, he's the prince and heir to the throne of France.

In the underdog plot, act 2 is developed in 3 stages: In the movie, 'Ever After:'

A). Prince and peasant meet. He likes her and it's obvious which is great for her self esteem. She begins to move toward a stronger position.

B). She receives support from the other serving staff at her father's estate.

C). They get lost and are surprised by gypsies. Drew saves the prince's life and then they befriend the gypsies and share a kiss. It's getting hot!

Act 3:
This brings the rivals into an equal competition with each other.

In 'Ever After,' the spoiled step-sister wants to wear Cinderella's mother's wedding dress and shoes to the ball. Cinderella loses it and punches the step-sister in the face. She goes flying over the bed and later throws Cinderella's beloved book in the fire.

Cinderella gets caught with spoiled step-sisters lovely gown sneaking back into the estate after her clandestine meeting with the prince. She is punished and locked up. (Leonardo da Vinci saves her).

Cinderella attends the ball in her mother's wedding dress and is exposed as a servant by jealous step-mother and spoiled step-sister. This is the 'black moment.' She is rejected by the prince and later sold into slavery by her step-mother.

Cinderella wins her freedom and leaves the estate of her capture only to discover that the prince has had a change of heart.

The rivalry is over. When wicked step-mother and spoiled step-sister arrive at the palace they learn that Cinderella has got her man. The king makes them servants at Cinderella's request. The underdog has won and we are all cheering. Hurray!

For a more in-depth look at this plot, please read 20 Master Plots and how to build them, by Ronald B. Tobias, available through Amazon or your local retailer.

Next week: Master plot, Transformation.

Do you have an underdog in your current manuscript or do you have an all time favorite underdog?

Romantic Friday Writers: Up, up and away

Romantic Friday Writers if the brain child of L'Aussie and Francine Howarth. It is a blogfest of the highest order followed by RWA. Each week a different theme is presented and you can take up the gauntlet or pass if life has made you too busy. You do not have to join RWA, but it might be a good idea. I haven't done that yet for financial reasons. There is a link that you can follow at the end of my post.

Today the theme for Romantic Friday Writers is up, up and away. We are to write our character having a change of heart or direction in 400 words or less. This doesn’t mean a balloon ride in Kansas or a trip to the moon, just life changing with a romantic undercurrent or over current depending on your point view.

I present for your enjoyment an excerpt from my book, The Treasures of Carmelidrium, chapter 26. I had to tweak it to make it less than 400 words. It comes in at 399 words.

For those who don't know, Missie is a modern American flutist who has been thrust through a portal to an alternate medieval world.


**

Thoughts of Healden clouded Missie’s mind and her lower lip began to tremble.

“My Lady, are you crying?” 

Missie’s pent up frustration unleashed a torrent of emotions. She covered her face with both hands and sobbed.

“What’s wrong with me?”

Vevina came around the chair, knelt and gave her a handkerchief. Missie wiped her eyes and noisily blew her nose. Then she studied Vevina’s freckled face.

“One minute I’m fine, the next I’m in tears. I love this place and I hate it. I want to be with…Healden.”  Her voice broke. “And at the same time…” 

Vevina took her hands. “You are in love, my Lady.” 

“In love?” The words choked from Missie as if forced by an excess of air.

“Everyone can see it but you. When his highness is near, you glow. And the way he looks at you—”

Missie pulled her hands away and cupped them in her lap to quell the tremors that made them shake.

“But…how can I be in love?  We aren’t from the same world?”

“You speak as if you’re different creatures and not human.”

“The king hates me. He doesn’t speak to me and when he does, he’s always gruff.”  

“The king loves you. He spent hours at your side while you were ill. He cares for you, my Lady, as a king over a favored subject.”

Missie searched the girl’s face. “But, what about my home…my family?”

“Does not a woman leave her home when she meets the man she loves?”

“But, you can always visit.” The tears spilled over Missie’s cheeks and she wiped her eyes with a clean cloth.

“My Lady, I have a cousin who loved a man from the south of Gil-Lael. She married him and moved away.
We have not seen her since.” 

“But…”

“You believe that you will return home someday.”

“Yes.” 

Vevina stood, moved behind Missie to brush her hair. “My Lady, you already know that some have arrived from different lands and places, as you did.”

Missie watched Vevina’s reflection in the mirror, her tiny brows pulled together as she worked.

“About seventy-five years ago, a man came to Terrel. It is said he had a great talent, but no one remembers what he could do. He traveled everywhere looking for a door back to his land. In the end, he died having wasted his life, in pursuit of the impossible.”

I hope you enjoyed that. (399 words).         

To read the other great entries or to join and write your own romantic post go here.

Nancy

P.S. Catie at Hidden Passions Book Review is giving away over 40 books. She is a wonderful lady and good blogging friend. Go check it out. Link.

Hump Day Improvisation

If you're here for the first time, hump day improvisation is a fun post to test your imagination. You don't have to be a writer to participate. Below is a picture and a challenge.

Picture source:

Your character has reached a door. Does s/he go through, hesitate, turn away? Show us in a few sentences what they do and if they go through, what do they find.

My sentences will appear in the comments later tonight. 

Have fun,
Nancy

Plot: Love, part two

Last week in part one of  Love, the plot; we looked at sentimentality and sentiment. Today we are going to look at happy and unhappy endings. Any romance author will tell you that happily ever after is a must in this genre. The readers expect it and the publishers require it. But not all romance novels are happy.

Let's take a look at some happy endings. Hollywood loves happy endings. When I think of romance I think of When Harry Met Sally, Sleepless in Seattle, While You Where Sleeping and many more. These movies are all about when boy meets girl, throw in some silly obstacles, and overcome them to create a fabulous marriage, at least we assume they get married. In When Harry Met Sally, he drove her nuts and vice versa. It wasn't until they each had been deeply hurt that they discovered the things in each other that were positive and supportive. In Sleepless in Seattle it was the distance from each other. In While You Where Sleeping it was the false engagement to one brother while the two characters struggled to understand their feelings. You could also qualify that as a lie.

I love happy endings too. Life can be fraught with loneliness, disappointment, despair and many other negative things. It is so cheerful to go to a movie, relax, have a laugh and remember when love touched your heart.

However, some stories have tragic endings. I brought up Romeo and Juliet last week. Both committed suicide when they were unable to figure out how to be together. In real life, there are stories of how married couples or college sweethearts fall out of love with each other. Perhaps the obstacles in life destroyed their love instead of bringing them closer together. Perhaps one of the characters has an obsessive personality and is abusive. The world is filled with tragic endings. All you need for inspiration is the latest newspaper. Horror films sometimes delve into this sort of relationship or a Suspense Novel might do so. There's a list of films that come to mind for this group too, like Psycho, Virginia Wolf, and many more.

Regardless of which love story you want to tell, a good plot is developed in 3 acts.

Act 1:
We are introduced to two main characters that either meet for the first time or have known each other. They may have been married for years, especially in the sad love story. It is important that you avoid clichés here. It is so easy to rely on a cliché since the love story is as old as man.

Act 2:
The lovers split. Something happens to drive them apart either by design or by the loss of love. One character may go off to a new location for a job or school. A villain may interfere by kidnapping one of the characters or presenting a challenge that the character is drawn into. Perhaps an accident occurs that either cripples one of the characters or causes their death. In the case of love lost, it is the on going story of why the characters no longer love each other and may even hate each other.

Act 3:
The lovers are reunited in the happy ending and in the unhappy ending they have completed the split. If the lovers have overcome an obstacle to be together, then you must demonstrate that their love is stronger than before. If they have made the final split then you must show how that split has affected the lovers. Did one of them die, or did they divorce. Is one of them going to declare, "Free at last…?"

To recap:
The love plot is a character driven plot. You will either write it with a sentiment or sentimentality view. The first is more original than the last which relies on well established types. 90% of love stories have a happy ending. If this is for the romance genre a happy ending is required by both the publishers and the readers. About 10% of love stories are written about how the characters fell out of love with each other, which can take a very dark twist.

There you have it. Next week the master plot is, Underdog. No, we are not talking about a cartoon character. LOL


For more on this plot and others please read, 20 Master Plots and how to build them, by Ronald B. Tobias, available from your local retailer or at an online store. Or click on the link to Amazon's site and get it there.

Are you writing a love story? What type of story is it? Do you love to read love stories? Which type is your favorite?

(Winner of one of Edie Ramer's books if  L. Diane Wolf. Congratulations Diane.)

Have a good week.
Nancy

Romantic Friday Writers: Forgotten

 Featured writer winner. Thank you, thank you. Nancy

Romantic Friday Writers is a blog fest every Friday. The creative genius behind this is L'Aussie and Francine Howarth. You can click on the link at the end of my story to check out all the other great writers participating in this fun event or join and add your talents to the blog fest. There is a winner (the prize is recognition). If you are a member of RWA then they are following this too but you don't have to be.

Today's challenge is 'Forgotten' in 400 words or less. Forgotten implies back story.  A no, no in writing. Let's see if I can meet the challenge.

Forgotten:

I've lived my life as a bull charging forward, head down, anger my support. I have no regrets. I achieved my goals while stepping on a few toes. What are toes to a bull?

Oh, you think you know better? I have children to support. It's not my fault that I needed to feed and clothe them on my own. I refuse to even think of the reason for this. I have slapped on my business attire like a soldier in the field of battle. No looking back, the enemy is straight ahead.

What you say, a soldier relies on others? So does a business woman. Yes, I have many at my back. Fulfilling the orders I promised our clients. I took care of them. I complied with all the Federal rules. Many have been with me from the beginning.

Did I thank them? They got a paycheck. They had a Christmas bonus. We held holiday parties. What more thanks could I give?

I refuse to cry. Don't even ask. I refuse to shed tears. Even now, holding the notice that you died. Who were you to me? You promised to love me, to cherish me, to hold our marriage as a treasure. I believed you. We had three children together. Don't you know how much they missed their father? One day you were gone. A note mailed to me a week later. "I've had enough," you said. Enough? What is enough? You missed all the moments that a father should prize.

At night now I dream. I dream of your black hair and the stubble from your beard that tickled me when we kissed. I remember the spicy cologne you preferred. My heart soared in your embrace. I loved you beyond words. We waited until you had your law degree before we had children. Don't you remember how we held our son when he was born and then the twin girls three years later? They were only six months old when you left. Six months!

I am tortured by the memory of our love making. I never tired of you. Why did you tire of me? Am I free to remarry? I have always been free. I don't trust any man. I must deal with men every working day. I have experienced their lies. I have watched their betrayals. No, I will never forgive you. 

Word count: 397

Just so you know. This is not my life. I'm still married with grand kids. I hope you enjoyed it. To read more Romantic Friday Writers post go here.