News and Tips

I haven't updated my latest news here for a while so I'm going to do that before I post a few writing tips.

It is exciting to see that "Married While Intoxicated" (romantic comedy) is the # 1 BESTSELLER in short humor at Smashwords.com, and it is the # 4 Bestseller in short romance there.

Blurb: Ever do anything ill advised while under the influence? Melinda and Matthew did.

See the video for "Married While Intoxicated" at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sUmHlf6LwL0


"Married While Intoxicated" is available at major Internet E-Book Stores.

"Male Fraud," a romantic comedy novella is in the release stage. It is currently available at Amazon Kindle and is coming soon to B&N, Sony Books, I-Books, Kobo Books and more.

Blurb: Terry Fiscus disguises herself as a man in order to get a job as trainer for the pro football Chicago Cyclones. When Coach Dan Barringer meets Terry outside of work and gets to know her as the lovely "Teresa" he falls in love, and so does she. As Terry tries to manage her double life things get complicated and very funny.

See the video at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pPQ1CjnOZSI

"Male Fraud" has just started its own page at Facebook. I'd appreciate readers stopping by to "Like" it.

Here's the link: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Male-Fraud/156372621089642

This week's writing tips:

1. When rejection or unfair criticism rear their ugly heads, writers should take a moment to get out a piece of work which they believe they've written really well. They should read it and know their only defeat comes when they allow rejection or unfair criticism to stop them from writing. There isn't a writer alive, no matter how successful they are in every sense of the word, who hasn't been rejected, given a bad review or had their work otherwise disparaged.

2. It's a good idea for writers to make time everyday to write even if it's only a few minutes.

3. Writers need to take a little time to celebrate accomplishments before getting back to work, no matter how many deadlines are looming.

I hope everyone has a wonderful week, full of spring sunshine.

Fran

Fran Shaff, Award-Winning Author
http://sites.google.com/site/fshaff

Rewrites and Edits Step by Step

Completing a first draft to a novel is a huge relief. By the time an author has reached this milestone, she's spent quite a bit of effort on research, character and plot development and tons of little things which go into completing a novel. She may have spent weeks, months or even years on her first draft.

Unfortunately, the relief of first draft completion is often short lived because the savvy author knows rewrites and edits to a manuscript can take as long as it took to put together the first draft.

In order to minimize the time necessary to make a manuscript just right, it sometimes helps to follow a few organizational steps which can make rewrites and edits a bit less overwhelming.

1. Let the manuscript set for at least a month. Two months would be even better. Putting time between the completion of the first draft and the beginning of first rewrites can give an author better perspective toward his project.

2. When picking up the manuscript to give it a good read through, it can be helpful for the author to look at it as though it were the work of someone else. The more objective and critical he is of the book, the better he'll do in finding flaws and areas which need further work.

3. To keep things as simple as possible it helps to examine scenes one at a time. Does each scene have a goal? Does each scene drive the plot forward? Does each scene end in a way which compels the reader to want to read more?

4. It is important to notice the way characters behave in each and every scene. Are they being true to whom they are?

5. Do turning points, the dark moment and the climax come at appropriate points in the plot?

These are a few suggestions which may help in the initial read through and rewrites.

Later, after the rewrites of plot/character are finished, come the edits. Here the writer notices such things as:

1. Character inconsistencies (Joe's blue eyes on p. 25 and green ones on p. 152).

2. Poorly written sentences or paragraphs.

3. Redundancies--overusing a word.

4. Repetition of circumstances, words, phrases.

5. Any overlooked English errors (their for they're, two for too, etc)

It's a good idea to let time lapse between rewrites and edits so the author can maintain a high level of objectivity each time she reviews her project.

Completing a first draft does have its moment of bliss, but it is soon followed by the reality of the hard work it takes to get a novel into first-rate condition.

And nothing short of our best book is owed to our readers.

Happy spring!

Fran

Fran Shaff, Award-Winning Author
http://sites.google.com/site/fshaff

New Ideas and Inspiration

Sometimes we need to relax a little in order to get our creative juices going.

For a couple of weeks I've been looking for something new and different, something very creative, maybe even unique. I want a writing project which is totally outside of my typical writing projects, a task which is fun and humorous.

Though I knew what I wanted, I didn't know EXACTLY what I wanted. So I let the essence of what I sought simmer in the back of my mind.

All of a sudden, upon awaking recently, the idea I'd been seeking came to me. I grabbed a pen and paper and began to flesh it out.

It's funny how many times inspiration comes upon awaking, while relaxing in the sunshine or while sitting quietly for a moment or two. It seems when we clear our minds of responsibilities and "to do" lists inspiration likes to sneak in and get us thinking about something exciting and new.

I guess I'd recommend doing a little sleeping or relaxing if a person is blocked while looking for inspiration. At times we just need some recharging to get the creative juices flowing again.

Have a great week, and a happy St. Patrick's Day.

Fran

Fran Shaff, Award-Winning Author
http://sites.google.com/site/fshaff

6 Steps to Creating an Internet Video

Making a book trailer or any video for You Tube, your website, etc doesn't have to be a daunting task. If we break down the steps needed to complete a video, it makes the job much easier. I'll use the making of my book trailer "Married While Intoxicated" as an example while going through these steps to help illustrate each point.

NOTE: If you have Windows Vista or Windows 7 your system probably came with Windows Movie Maker, so you already have the software you need to make videos on your computer.

1. Know what the video is about.

In my example, I basically wanted to deliver information about my Short Romantic Comedy "Married While Intoxicated" in a video format.

2. Write your script. Use words efficiently to keep your video as short as our attention spans are.

Here's my script for MWI: "Ever do something ill advised while under the influence?
Melinda and Matthew did. 1 snowstorm, 2 stranded people who have 2 much 2 drink get 'Married While Intoxicated.' Funny...Fun...Familiar? Get Married While Intoxicated. You'll be glad you did."

3. Choose the photos you want to use in a way which helps to create the mood you want to convey or in a way which helps to illustrate your script. Use photos and videos you own or have the rights to use.

4. Apply special effects and transitions which appeal to your viewer. Remember, this is a moving picture so things should move. Effects and transitions help to give motion to still shots.

5. When you've completed your video story, add music which plays well with your graphics and which conveys the mood of your story or video. Again, only use music for which you have the rights.

6. Upload your video to the Internet when you've completed it.

Take a look at "Married While Intoxicated" and see the end result to following these 6 simple steps.



Did you notice the humor and light tone in the video? Since "Married While Intoxicated" is a romantic comedy I wanted the video to be light and fun.

Notice I used lots of pleasant snow/frost photos to keep the "stranded in a snowstorm" aspect part of the story but in a pleasant, light way.

Near the end of the video I included information important to readers who may want to purchase the story--its cost, the format in which it's available and where interested readers may buy it.

Finally, the music, effects and transitions pleasantly blend with the humorous, light photos and text of the video.

And there we have it--one video trailer which informs and entertains.

Follow these six steps to make your next video composition a little easier.

Best,

Fran

Fran Shaff, Award-Winning Author
http://sites.google.com/site/fshaff

Character Creation--Putting it all together

Even with a framework for character creation in fiction it isn't easy to build compelling fictional characters. Having a guide definitely makes the job less challenging, though.

Summarizing the character creation posts of the last few weeks:

1. To nudge inspiration, begin your character creation exercises by writing a description of a real or fictional person and embellish where necessary. (See post on 1/17/11 at cavewriter.blogspot.com)

2. Show rather than tell facts about a person. "George was stupid." vs "The teacher explained four times the process of opening a jar of peanut butter, but George still did not understand the procedure." (See post on 1/24/11 at cavewriter.)

3. Compare and contrast to fully illustrate a character fact. "He moved as fluidly as Michael Jordon executing a perfect layup." instead of "He was graceful." (See post on 1/31/11 at cavewriter.)

4. Choices characters make give readers insight into their hearts. Read the post on 2/7/11 at cavewriter.blogspot.com to see how three different people react to a bus accident.

5. Whether or not a character lives up to his belief system can tell readers volumes about who he is. The preacher and the pregnancy illustration of this in the Cavewriter post on 2/14/11 shows exactly what I mean.

6. The hearts of characters are clearly illustrated by the way they treat others. Remember the example shown in last week's post at Cavewriter regarding Melanie and Belle from "Gone with the Wind?"

These six helpful ideas in character creation should go a long way in aiding writers struggling with characters as they hammer out their stories.

These points may also inspire fresh questions in the minds of writers such as "Do I use all of these ways of building characters in all of my works of fiction?" "When do I use them?" "Do I use them on all of my characters?"

Naturally, the writer is the creator when it comes to his or her stories. When, how or if writers use these techniques is totally up to them. I would suggest, however, that it might be most effective to use the type of character illustration which best suits the scene being written.

I'd also suggest interspersing these techniques throughout the story, using the most appropriate technique for each part of the story.

One more suggestion--as writers flesh out their characters before they write a word of their stories, it might be a good idea to consider answering questions about each of the character's belief systems, life choices they've made prior to the beginning of the story, how they'd treat another person given a certain situation, and things of this nature. It's very helpful to know the characters' hearts as well as their overall personalities, their connections to other people and the way they look.

Remember, the better a writer knows her characters, the more believable they become to readers when they react in ways true to who they are as they face the challenges presented to them in the plot of the story.

Still sound complicated? As I said, character creation isn't easy, but all the work necessary in building believable characters is worth the effort. It truly is.

Fran

Fran Shaff, Award-Winning Author
http://sites.google.com/site/fshaff

How Characters Treat Others

Words of wisdom such as "Actions speak louder than words," "These people pay me lip service" and "Do unto to others as you would have them do unto you" come to mind in thinking about this week's discussion of character definition. We're talking about defining fictional characters by the way they treat others.

Melanie Hamilton Wilkes pops into my mind when I think of a character being defined by the way she treats others. Remember how kindly she treated the prostitute Belle in "Gone with the wind?" Remember how generously the prostitute treated Rhett, Ashley and Dr. Mead when they were trying to escape the Yankee soldiers after having burnt out a dangerous encampment?

In both of these instances the attitudes these characters have toward fellow human beings goes a long way toward defining the hearts of Melanie and Belle.

In my book "Stephanie's Surprise" there is a married couple who has taken in the mentally handicapped sister of the wife. Showing this act of kindness in the early 20th Century when mentally handicapped people were often hidden in shame or institutionalized makes these folks look as though they've behaved heroically. The protagonist, Dr. Aaron Wesley, however, discovers the poor woman has been badly treated, and her sister and brother-in-law have taken her in merely to get their hands on her monthly stipend.

Showing readers the hearts of characters by revealing how they treat fellow human beings, especially in private, is highly effective in defining fictional characters.

I hope your week is beginning to show signs of spring.

Fran

Fran Shaff
http://sites.google.com/site/fshaff

Characters and their Belief Systems

Whether or not characters in fictional stories live up to their belief systems tells readers a lot about what kind of people they are.

Consider fictional character Alvin Pastorini, a beloved preacher in Mapleton, a beautiful fictional Midwestern town.

Preacher Pastorini has a lovely, kind sixteen-year-old daughter who has become pregnant.

As a respected Christian pastor it would seem this man's reaction to his child's situation would be one of compassion.

Readers would expect this beloved and respected man to stand by his daughter and help her find Christian solutions to her challenges. Some of her options would include raising the child on her own, marrying the father and raising the child with him or placing the child for adoption.

What if, however, Reverend Pastorini secretly forces his daughter to have an abortion because he doesn't want his congregation to learn his daughter behaved immorally?

What if his daughter is so emotionally scarred by being forced into the abortion she turns to drugs and the preacher hides her away in a clinic and pays for her treatment with church funds?

Every character in every story has a belief system. As writers we can more thoroughly flesh out our characters as "real" people by showing how they live up to their belief systems.

While it may be adequate for a writer to simply tell a reader, "Reverend Pastorini was a hypocritical, cold-hearted, thieving SOB" the reader gets a much clearer picture of who Pastor Alvin Pastorini is when she sees first hand how the reverend does or doesn't live up to his belief system during challenging times.

Accountant Annie who considers herself an honest person but frequently takes home office supplies can't hide her true nature from the observing eyes of readers. The "Thou shalt not steal" sign on her desk fails to keep her on track with her belief system.

Second string Steve who secretly works after hours with first string Frank night after night to help him become the best quarterback in the conference is a shining, heroic star in the shadows of the readers' minds. Steve obviously lives by the simple motto written on a piece of notebook paper and taped to the inside of his locker door "Team work."

Showing whether or not characters live up to their belief systems is an excellent way of illustrating characters in fictional pieces.

(For more on character development, see previous posts on use of comparisons, actions and illustrations in fleshing out fictional characters.)

Fran

Fran Shaff, Award-Winning Author
http://sites.google.com/site/fshaff