New beginnings

My Independence Day is coming two days early—as of today, I will be a writer without a day job.

The last sixty days have been painful: shutting down the companies I work for, laying off friends, and trying to keep my sanity. I hope that everyone can land on their feet, and find a new job that will be more fulfilling, more promising, and more secure.

As for myself, I haven’t had much time to think about my future, until now. I feel a wonderful sense of freedom, and am not sure that I want to go back to lawyering any time soon. I’m looking forward to fall semester and getting to know new students, and reconnecting with prior students in my upper level classes.

In the meantime, my husband gave me a “honey-do” list (clean out the berry patches, put wells around the thousand-plus trees, and dig out weeds in the pasture), and I have a pile of books to read and a few unfinished manuscripts that are crying for attention. I’m looking forward to spending more time at my keyboard in a creative way instead of a work way.

I hope to find the fountain of prolific writing, that magical place where I write with wild abandon, and the words, sentences, paragraphs, and scenes easily flow out of me. I hope to power through the tough days when the fountain is dry, and keep writing whatever terrible words, sentences, paragraphs, and scenes find their way onto the screen. I hope to produce something every day, instead of a little here and there every few days.

I have the good fortune to be able to see what’s behind new doors, take on different adventures, and discover what I’m really made of. This is a chance for me to see how strong I am and how patient I can be. It’s an opportunity to reinvent my life.

Where this journey will take me is unknown. But I am ready to walk down a different path and see where it goes. If it dead ends, I’ll find a new trail to blaze. If a compelling attorney position or full-time teaching position comes along, I’ll weigh the pros and cons with my husband. I will do what makes sense.

I’m incredibly blessed to have this option, so I don’t want to waste the opportunity. It’s exciting, and a little scary, but it’s “life”. Onward I go!

What is Your Story About?

If you tell someone that you’re writing, or that you’ve written, a book, the inevitable question is always, “What is it about?”

I have a manuscript that I finished in 2006, but it’s a really terrible first draft. It goes all over the place and lacks focus. If someone asked me what it’s about, I’d have several different answers. I may never revisit this manuscript, unless I can figure out what the main point is.

Since writing that mess, I’ve read The Novel Writer’s Toolkit, by Bob Mayer (see my review here). I learned something from his book that I apply to everything I write—I condense the entire story down to three words.

My dusty manuscript has a main character who is naïve. She is married with teenage children, and is a God-fearing woman. Her best friend has never been married because she is caring for her ailing mother, but may as well be part of the family because they do everything together. One day my main character loses her job, and must go to work in another town that is much larger. She is only qualified for entry-level work, so she becomes a file clerk. She meets some edgy people and starts to change. She’s never seen this side of life before, and it’s intriguing.

Of course her family and best friend are wondering about her change in personality. She starts ignoring them, and her best friend sort of takes her place in the family. The main character is infatuated with someone she works with, but he may or may not be interested in her. Her co-workers think she’s odd, and they try to make her what they are. In the end, are they her friends?

What I’ve boiled the entire 90,000 words down to here seems semi-coherent, but if you had to read all 90,000 words, you’d see what muddled chaos is. I can’t tell you what the main point is in three words. It could be that “change isn’t good”, she should “stick with family”, it’s a “mid-life crisis story”, “friends are flighty”, etc. The only one that has any truth with me is the mid-life crisis, but that is so vague and doesn’t bring in the essence of the whole book.

As I said before, I may never go back to this manuscript. But who knows? Maybe I’ll have a great epiphany and it will all come together for me.

 

Characterization

I have a friend who is recently divorced. Last December when she told me that she and her husband were splitting up, I was shocked. They seemed like the perfect couple, but she told me that I only saw what was on the outside and not what was going on at home.

She seemed lost, and having to start over with a new mortgage, car payment, and furnishings made it that much more difficult. Being downsized to one income means picking and choosing what is a need, and what is a want.

Over the last few months, however, I’ve seen quite a change in my friend. She is branching out, and trying things she never would have before, and doing activities that she never showed interest in before. I was amazed when she emailed me and said she signed up for a blood drive. I’ve been telling her for years what a benefit it is to donate, but she’s always shied away from the needle. After her blood drive, she emailed all the details of how much she thought it hurt, and how queasy she felt, but said she’s going to sign up again.

Last night when I talked to her, she told me about the hikes she’s been going on with her co-workers, and the girls’ weekend they’re going on in a few weeks. She’s also going to drive part of the Alaska Highway with her dad this week.

This is a complete change of character for her. But she told me, that instead of sitting at home feeling sorry for herself, she decided that she deserved to have fun and get out and see what else was going on in the world.

I thought about how my characters change from the beginning of the story to the end. My characters have to make choices, sometimes good and sometimes bad, in order to grow. I have to put them into situations they must get out of and create tension that readers will care about. I have to show not only what is going on externally, but what is “going on at home” behind closed doors, or internally.

My friend is a great example of characterization in real life. So far, she’s making good choices. Even though she’s having great adventure and is happy with her life, for a reader, her story will get boring after a while. You can look at the tabloids or newspapers for examples of those that are doing more controversial things. Whether they change for the better or not remains to be seen, but those bad acts make for more interesting reading.

My point is that characters need multiple dimensions in order for a reader to care about them. Mix the good with the bad, and show how they change over time, despite the odds. Make them relatable so they have issues, that at their foundation, everyone can understand and connect with. If your reader doesn’t care about your characters, they won’t keep reading.

Kindle Direct Publishing

I saw an advertisement in Hope Clark’s Funds for Writers newsletter (read my review here) that caught my attention. It was a free report to teach writers how to make their book number one on Kindle. The lead says:

Did you know that with Amazon’s Kindle you could become a worldwide known bestselling author in 10 days or less?

Of course that piqued my curiosity, so I downloaded the free book, How to Sell 100 Books a Day, by Ryan Deiss. My first thought was, some of the self-published books I’ve read are full of typos and grammar and punctuation errors, and that harms credibility for the author, and may one day cause readers to distrust all writers in general.

But cynicism aside, I watched Mr. Deiss’s video (noting some typos), and then read his report (also with typos). The short report includes basic information about Kindle Direct Publishing, and I learned about writing short nonfiction pieces (although this apparently works for fiction as well) to sell for $2.99 a copy.

Over the next few weeks, I received several emails from Mr. Deiss. There was another report to download, How to Create Your First Kindle Book This Weekend, and three more videos. These demonstrate Mr. Deiss’s method for writing books, complete with 3x5 notecards, which works well for many writers.

Mr. Deiss formed “The Number One Book Club”, and opened it up for membership. It appears to be a community of writers who have joined his “Kindle Revolution”, to support each other as they publish these Kindle books. I’m not saying this is going to happen here, but I’ve seen other authors who have published books on how to succeed at Kindle Direct Publishing get “fake” reviews that push the books to the top.

Does every author ask friends and family for votes to push their books to the top of lists? Absolutely.  Do people write reviews without having read the book? Absolutely. Do authors pay for reviews? Absolutely. These are some of the reasons that Amazon no longer allows authors to write book reviews.

Although I declined to join Mr. Deiss’s club, I find Kindle Direct Publishing intriguing. I have saved the information page as a favorite, and plan to read it and see if I’m interested in pursuing it any further. Maybe my concerns are unfounded, and the books that are available through Kindle Direct Publishing are quality books that don’t dilute and damage the publishing industry or the authors who work hard to put out excellent, error-free books. All I know is this: I will keep working hard to be a good author, no matter where I sell my work.

Stonger than the Struggle

On Father’s Day, I spent time thinking about my dad. He’s been gone for three years now—some days it seems like it’s been much longer, other days it seems like a fresh wound. Either way, he’s not here and didn’t get to see my first book, 2012: The Rising, published.

Speaking of that first book, I started writing it in 2009. It should have been out to agents and publishing houses in 2010. But when my dad died in May 2010, my life stopped. I didn’t run well that year and I didn’t write much that year. 2010 was the only year since I started NANO that I failed to make my fifty thousand words.

I kick myself for not persevering. Since my book is specifically about whether or not Earth would end on December 21, 2012 (which it obviously didn’t), I should have given it the attention it needed so it could have been published earlier and not on December 14, 2012. I often wonder if sales would have been better, had I not shut down.

I remember all the times in my life when I wanted to quit. My dad told me that the Hirase mind is stronger than the struggle, so I must keep going. That’s why I kept taking swimming lessons,  that’s why I’ve never had a DNF (did not finish) in a race, that’s why I finished law school, that’s why I completed my book in 2011.

Thanks to my dad’s advice, I am a strong athlete, I have a satisfying career, and I am a published author.

“Stronger than the struggle” is a great mantra that lifts my spirits when I’m ready to quit, and keeps me driving forward.

Thanks, Dad.

Writing Nonfiction

I love to read nonfiction: how-to books, biographies, autobiographies, and true crime. How-to books give me information about topics I’m interested in and want to know more about. Some are better than others, but I have yet to read an informational book that hasn’t taught me at least one thing.

As for biographies, autobiographies, and true crime, I also learn from them, but what I’ve been trying to learn lately, is the craft of writing nonfiction. A well-written nonfiction book seems effortless, although I know better than that. A lot of work goes into producing nonfiction, and maybe that’s one reason I don’t write more of it.

If I think about all the research and interviewing that takes place, it’s enough to make my head spin. I had to do a lot of research when I wrote The Internment of Japanese Americans: The Constitutional Threat Fifty Years Later for the University of Utah’s Journal of Contemporary Law. I spent months reading books, articles, and court cases (the topic was interesting to me, however, because my parents were interned in the relocation camps during World War II).

I’m talking about digging and digging and digging even more to find those interesting and colorful nuggets of information. After finding those nuggets, it was about discovering whether or not they were true or legend. Items get lost, minds fade, and every avenue must be explored to find the truth, if it exists. The truth may be different for each person who experienced the event because of bias or perception.

So how do you know what to write? Whose truth do you tell? How much can you leave out? How much should you put in? What is the actual story you want to write?

One of the best how-to books on writing nonfiction that I’ve read is Writing for Story by Jon Franklin (see my review here). I used Mr. Franklin’s techniques when I wrote “Give Caring”, for the Voices of Caregiving book published by LaChance Publishing in 2008. Because the story was personal, I didn’t have to delve into deep research or conduct any interviews, but I had to find the story I wanted to tell. There were so many thoughts running through my brain, and I couldn’t focus on one thing. Once I narrowed my thoughts down, the story flowed.

I’m not saying that fiction requires less effort than nonfiction, because fiction writers also do research and conduct interviews. However, I enjoy writing fiction more because I can make things up to produce a better story. I can’t do that with nonfiction. Nonfiction is about truth, and about humanness and the emotions that come from being human.

Writing a nonfiction book about a topic that intrigues me is on my “one-day-before-I-die-to-do-list”. I hope it happens.

A Wonderful Moment

My pit bull has an eye disease called pannus, and goes to an eye specialist in Salt Lake City. When we arrived the other day, I was surprised at all the cars in the parking lot. Zeb loves going to the doctor, so he ran for the door.

Now, most people are probably frightened when they see a pit bull running straight for them. He’s a happy and friendly dog, so I don’t worry much about what he’s going to do as I worry about the reaction from others. He whined and cried when I wouldn’t let him explore and make new friends, so he rolled on his back and wagged his tail. At least he made people smile, and a few came to pet him, telling me they’d never been that close to a pit before.

I asked what was going on, and found out that the vet was having an animal blood drive. People were bringing their dogs in to donate blood for animal emergencies.  Amazingly enough, a lot of the dogs coming in to donate were pit bulls (that are much better behaved than Zeb, I might add!)

A television camera was there, so I watched the interview as they taped it. The doctor was so passionate about his love of animals, and the need for blood in emergencies. I never thought about that need, and would never have known that they have a blood bank for animals. The requirement for donation is that the dog be between the ages of one and seven, and weigh at least fifty pounds. Zeb fits the criteria, but because he didn’t eat before we left, he didn’t donate (he will at his next appointment).

 

My point is really not that I have a wonderful dog, but it’s this: I had one of those moments that every writer loves—finding something new, interesting, and unique. I may never use this information in my writing, but it’s there if I want it. And now it’s there if you want it as well.

Plot & Structure

A plot is technically defined as a “sequence of events that moves a story forward”, which doesn’t in itself sound difficult. But when you put those events down on paper for your reader, it must done in the proper way. Plot and structure is so integral to our work as writers, and I love the James Scott Bell book by the same name (see my review here).

I’m critiquing some short stories, and most of them have a plot with proper structure. Every once in a while, I run into a story that has a sequence of events, but doesn’t move the story along. Just because something happened doesn’t mean you report it, if it is insignificant. I have to remind some writers that we only need to set forth the sentences that will make a difference, and we don’t need a blow-by-blow account of what Ann did from the moment she opened her eyes until she got to the office and found her boss dead.

Who cares that she measured her coffee, put the water in the coffeemaker, turned on the machine, put bread in the toaster and buttered it when it popped up? Who cares that she got in the shower, blow-dried her hair, put on mascara, eyeliner, and blush before brushing her teeth? I don’t, unless she is doing this because this routine is her post-kill habit.

It’s a good reminder for me as well. I’m still editing the second book in my science fiction trilogy, and after I read a scene, I ask myself what its purpose is. Does it need to be there? Or is it a passage of pretty words that the reader will have to slog through? I’m cutting and slashing my hard work, but doing so makes my novel that much better. The plot moves, the scenes and overall storyline are structured, and the book is more enjoyable.

By taking a hard look at my plot and structure before I write, I end up with a better result when it comes time to edit. Every scene seems important at the time, but after careful consideration, I realize some do nothing for my audience. Keeping my readers happy is the goal, and paying attention to the sequence of events that matter makes that happen.

Plot and structure are two of the most basic foundations of writing, so review your own work to be sure that you’ve done it just right!

Mindlessness

It’s hard to believe June is upon us already. I remember on January 1 thinking that a new year started and summer was a long way off.

For some people, it’s more difficult to write during the months when it’s warm outside and there are more activities to do. I know I spend more time running and weeding my berry patches than I do in front of my computer. But those times away from my keyboard aren’t wasted either.

It’s during those “down” times that I am most creative. Doing something rather mindless tends to fire up the juices and gets me thinking. To me, brainstorming, plotting, and resolving character issues comes easier when I’m not actively attempting to be a writer. Those “wow” moments strike at crazy times, but it doesn’t matter as long as I don’t forget them by the time I finally sit back down at my desk.

Unfortunately, sometimes I do forget. Even though I keep a pen and paper in my running pack, I don’t stop to jot things down anymore. I don’t even pull out my phone and dictate my thoughts into the recorder. When I’m outside pulling weeds, I could easily run into the house and put some notes onto paper, but I don’t.

The reason may seem silly, but with every passing year, I get older. I’m trying to play brain games to keep myself sharp. My mother has dementia, and I would like to prevent the same fate for me, if I can.

The first time I had an “aha” moment and didn’t write it down, I cursed myself. Now I realize that whatever thought I had that was so brilliant, apparently wasn’t, otherwise I wouldn’t forget. How do I know this? I have a NANO plot brewing in my brain that started on a long run last fall, and I haven’t written down one word of it. It’s significant enough that it won’t leave me alone, so to me, this is an idea worth keeping.

As time goes on, I find myself remembering more and more of these random thoughts. A lot of it turns out to be garbage and unworkable, but I feel like my mind is sharp and I’m more focused. These feelings also instill confidence, and the belief that I can defy any mental deterioration.

 

I want to be a writer in all seasons, even if the writing isn’t always a physical act of typing or dictating. Writing in all seasons also means that I have to exercise my cognitive abilities, for without my mind, I cannot write.

Market Research

For me, one of the most difficult aspects of writing is finding a home for my work. I’m not a patient person, so sitting and doing research is painful. Keeping the information organized is also not fun, but necessary.

Some people study the various books that come out every year, looking for the right match. I have to keep the bookmark or the legend that comes with it nearby, otherwise I can’t keep those symbols straight. Others use online tools, putting in keywords, and hoping they’re the right keywords. Yet others pay a service to do it for them.

Before online searches were available, I purchased two different market research books each year. I read the listings, highlighted certain ones, crossed out some that were definitely out of my genre, then the books sat, and I usually didn’t go any further than that.

When market research became available on the Internet, I bought a subscription. I poked around a bit, saved some searches, and never did anything else with them. Maybe I’m a dinosaur, but I missed my big books. I felt incomplete because I didn’t see every listing.

One day, I ran across Writer’s Relief (see my review here). I signed up for their newsletter and I saw the services they offered, but didn’t pay much attention. I paid attention when I won a contest, and my prize was free market research.

I probably didn’t do a great job filling out their form, but they still managed to find twenty agents for me to query. It was fast, it was painless, and I didn’t have to do the research myself. And because they have a huge, up-to-date database, the search was, I imagine, fast and painless for them as well. They also sent a tracking sheet they prepared, and my submissions went right out.

These days, I still struggle with market research. I haven’t bought the books in years, I let my subscription to the online service lapse, and I haven’t purchased services from any company. I find myself reading the random listings for agents and publishing houses in the newsletters I receive. That’s how I found Musa Publishing, my current publisher.

In the end, I suppose it doesn’t matter how it gets done.  As long as it gets done.

Being Independent Isn’t Always Good

Independence.  Children look forward to it. Parents look forward to it. Readers look forward to it—sometimes. Wait, what does a reader have to do with independence?

I’m talking about independent clauses. Independent clauses have a subject and a verb, and can stand alone as a sentence.  For example:

                Lucy is my dog. She is a pit bull. People are afraid of her. I don’t know why. She is gentle.

If you had to read an entire novel made up of independent clauses, you may not finish it. Just because a sentence is grammatically correct, doesn’t mean it should stand alone. Short choppy sentences have their place, but having too many of them is distracting.

How do you get away from too many independent clauses? Add punctuation and join the clauses together, or rewrite the paragraph.

A semicolon is a great way to express two independent clauses that are related. It creates a bit of tension or anticipation by letting the reader know there is something more to say:

                People are afraid of her; I don’t know why OR

                I don’t know why; she is gentle.

Here, I’m telling you that from my perspective, my dog isn’t scary. Joining two sentences makes the statement clear.

You can also use a comma with a conjunction:

                Lucy is my dog, and she is a pit bull.

                People are afraid of her, but I don’t know why.

A comma shows the reader that I’m not done letting them know what I think, and it shows that the two sentences have equal emphasis. Neither sentence is more important than the other.

I can also rewrite the sentence:

                Lucy is my gentle pit bull. I don’t know why people are afraid of her. OR

                People are afraid of my pit bull, Lucy. I don’t know why because she is gentle. OR

                I don’t know why people are afraid of my pit bull, Lucy. She is gentle.

By revising my words, I’ve put all of my thoughts into two sentences instead of five. I can also rearrange the independent clauses and change the emphasis from my dog to people to me.

Pay attention to independent clauses and make sure they highlight the point you want to make. If not, join them with another sentence or rewrite them so you have flow and clarity for your audience.

Being Likeable

Have you ever read a cringe-causing rant or comment online? Have you ever vented publicly on your social media sites? Have you ever been the recipient of online rudeness?

It seems with the advent of immediacy in sharing thoughts, especially if it is anonymous, people sometimes act/react badly and maybe later regret their words. If you are striving to be a professional, being likeable on social media is a must.

Does being likeable mean that you can’t be honest and open about your thoughts and feelings? No. Does being likeable mean that you can’t disagree with someone else? No. Does being likeable mean that you have to be meek and passive? No.

According to Likeable Social Media by Dave Kerpen (read my review here), being likeable means that you are genuine with your customers. Think about that for a moment. You are who you are. You write what you write. Not everyone will like you or your writing.

Even best-selling authors are who they are and write what they write knowing they have a specific audience. Within that audience, there are some who will hate the next book. I love Patricia Cornwell’s “Kay Scarpetta Series”. When Ms. Cornwell went away from the “Scarpetta” books to Isle of Dogs, Southern Cross, and Hornet’s Nest, I had the same one-star reaction that most readers had. Ms. Cornwell is who she is, wrote what she wrote, and thankfully left those books behind.

Is it because she listened to her critics? Could be. Her audience is her most important asset, and if she’s paying attention to her customers, then yes, she responded appropriately.

Reading a terrible review hurts. How you respond matters. Fighting back doesn’t usually help, but trying to understand the person’s point of view, if it’s constructive, may. Unfortunately, few people are constructive in their online criticism. I think I fall into the camp of “ignore”, because it’s impossible to please everyone.

I can only be who I am, write what I write, accept whatever comments come my way, and be what I think is likeable. It may help me win readers or it may cause me to lose readers, but if I can sleep well at night, that’s good enough for me.

The Function of Conjunctions

Some people believe that there are only three conjunctions: and, but, or. These are called coordinating conjunctions; however, there are other coordinating conjunctions: for, nor, so, yet. Coordinating conjunctions are the small words that bring attention to two or more grammatically equal words, phrases, or clauses. They also let us vary the length of sentences.

Equal words: Today I will run, bike, or hike.

Equal phrases: The company policy effectively 1) states its purpose, 2) provides guidance for employees, and 3) establishes penalties for violations.

Equal clauses: The people of Colorado voted to legalize marijuana, but the federal government still considers marijuana to be an illegal drug.

Adding variety original paragraph: Thunder rattled the windows. Lightning flashed across the black sky. There was no power. The wind found its way through the drafty house. The candle’s flame threatened to go out. It didn’t. Her shadow danced on the wall. It was eerie. She wasn’t scared.

Adding variety with conjunctions: Thunder rattled the windows and lightning flashed across the black sky. There was no power. Even though the wind found its way through the drafty house causing the candle’s flame to flicker, it didn’t go out. Her shadow eerily danced on the wall, but she wasn’t scared.

There are also correlative and subordinating conjunctions. A correlative conjunction has the same function as a coordinating conjunction, but the difference is that they pair up: either/or, neither/nor, not only/but also, whether/or, both/and. Just be sure you don’t try to match a phrase with a clause.

              Incorrect: He was not only a bachelor, but also he had a lot of money.

              Correct: He was not only a bachelor, but also a rich bachelor.

Incorrect: She couldn’t decide whether to wear a mini skirt, or if wearing a pair of pants was more appropriate.

            Correct: She couldn’t decide whether it was more appropriate to wear a mini skirt or pants.

A subordinating conjunction is used when the words you are joining together aren’t equal. In other words, you are using a subordinate clause to explain the main clause. The most common subordinating conjunctions are: after, as, as if, as long as, because, before, even though, if, in order that, now that, rather than, since, so that, than, that, though, unless, until, when, whenever, where, whereas, whether, while. Subordinating conjunctions help the writer emphasize an idea:

             She can go to the concert as long as she’s home by midnight.

Even though there was overwhelming evidence that he committed the murder, he maintained in his innocence until the day he was executed.

Conjunctions are an important part of sentence construction. They provide clarity and flow to your writing when you join words, phrases, and clauses together. Try different combinations, but leave some short sentences in as well to keep your writing interesting.

On Writing

It’s no secret that I love to read books about writing because I’m lifelong student of the craft. I also love to read autobiographies and memoirs because I like to get to know people that I’ll probably never get the opportunity to meet in real life.

If you read Stephen King’s book On Writing (read my review here), you’ll get both. I remember reading Carrie, Cujo, and Pet Sematary and wondering who could create such horror and suspense. Now I know that and so much more.

Mr. King is one of those authors that you imagine has never had to struggle, so it was encouraging to me to read about his life, how he began writing, and how he keeps going. He’s human and has the frailties, emotions, and misgivings we all can succumb to.

I think about my own writing journey, and dream often of the success enjoyed by the most popular authors. I know that some people have a natural talent for writing, while others have to work harder. But I also know that we all have the same tools at our disposal to be the best writer we can be.

If you have trouble with punctuation, grammar, dialogue, setting, description, plot, or characters, there are several books, classes, and websites available to help you improve. It’s a matter of finding the book, class, or website that speaks to you, that you can understand. What works for one, may not be right for someone else.

Even the best authors have beta readers, proofreaders, copy editors, line editors, and substantive editors to make their book as flawless as possible. But the best authors also have learned how to use punctuation, grammar, dialogue, setting, description, plot, and characters so that their editors are only cleaning up minor errors. No publisher is going to want to work with an author who doesn’t learn from his or her mistakes, no matter how good the story is.

When you reflect on your own writing, think about what you’ve learned along the way and what more you can learn. If you were to write a memoir/writing advice book like Stephen King, what has your writing journey looked like up until now, and what do you need to master to be a best-selling author? What do you know that you can pass on to others?

 

Those questions make me sit up and pay attention because I always want to do the best I can and continually improve.

UFOs

I just picked up my latest quilt top from my friend, Kathy, who put it together with the batting and backing since I don’t have a long-arm sewing machine. She does a great job, and I’m excited about the way my quilt looks.

However, I have a UFO—an unfinished object. I still need to finish the binding to make it complete. I know it will get done because it needs to go to Salt Lake City for a quilt contest at the end of this month, but sometimes the thought of finishing it seems daunting.

With my writing, I have several UFOs. Sometimes I lose interest in what I’m writing, sometimes I don’t feel like finishing it so it sits, sometimes I have an idea but it doesn’t go anywhere, and sometimes I forget that I started the story in the first place.

To me, having UFOs isn’t always a bad thing. For example, UFOs are okay if they are a way to get me to write every day, or at least several times a week. I might wake up with an idea and write a few paragraphs to see how it feels, to see where it heads, to see how interesting it is. It’s amazing how many abandoned stories or blog posts I have that started with a strange thought. It’s also amazing how many of those abandoned stories or blog posts have later been finished or in the case of stories, fleshed out in more detail for future writing.

I am also okay with UFOs that aren’t done because they require more research. This is mostly because I only do research when I’m in the mood. I’m not one to sit still for long and patiently try to find the information I need. I have to be in the right frame of mind.

Many of my UFOs are undone because they need editing. I love to edit, but it requires bigger blocks of time, and I’m often short on that. I have to purposely schedule editing into my schedule otherwise my UFOs remain UFOs for much longer.

The biggest problem with UFOs is that too many false starts may start to trip you up. You might begin to think that you can’t write, that you don’t have it in you to finish a novel, or that you are a miserable failure because you can’t finish anything you started. If you have several UFOs, take a long look at them and ask yourself why they’re unfinished. Is there anything worth resurrecting? Are they UFOs for a good reason? Can you muster up the enthusiasm to complete them?

Sometimes UFOs can be remedied by finding a contest to enter—then you have a deadline. Sometimes they can be remedied if you ask new “what if” questions and send it in a different direction. Sometimes they can be remedied by tossing them out with the garbage.

 

It’s up to you how to manage them!

To-Do Lists

I’ve been busy lately. My day job is unrelenting, my mother has been ill, and I sometimes I feel overwhelmed. I could put more pressure on myself by making a huge list of every task that needs to be done, but I won’t. Why? Because I found a to-do list method that keeps me going, but doesn’t add to my anxiety.

Time management is a topic that most people are familiar with. Some people like the long lists because they work better when they have that type of pressure. And they like the satisfaction of checking things off as they get done. Others don’t make lists, but take on items as they come up. Somehow they still manage to get the critical tasks done, along with handling smaller issues.

I used to be a hybrid of the two. I made lists so I wouldn’t forget to do certain things, but I also found myself stopping to address minor annoyances just to “get them off my plate.” My problem was that there were too many minor annoyances, and I felt like I wasn’t making any headway on larger projects. Then the stress built up, and it stopped my work.

If you have a system that works for you, that’s a huge plus. If you’re still looking, try Michael Linenberger’s The One Minute To-Do List (see my review here). I was skeptical at first, but after reading his book, I realized I knew the information, but wasn’t applying it effectively. It took a few tries for me to get in sync with Mr. Linenberger’s techniques, but once I got into the groove, it came naturally.

The system is flexible, and works on several platforms. I can plan ahead and easily change plans if I need to. But I always know what I’m doing, where I’m headed, and how I’m going to do it. Why wouldn’t I love that?

Do I always follow the process exactly? No. But I’m not a robot either. When I get off track, it’s easy to get back on—all it takes is a little bit of thought on my part. What is important, what can be put off for a short time, what can be put off for a longer time? It’s as simple as that! It puts the power back into my hands and gives me the control I need on my terms.

Time management doesn’t have to be a waste of time if it’s done right.

Verb Tense vs. Voice

Sometimes writers get confused by the difference between tense and voice. Hopefully this simplistic description will help: Tense is about time (past, present, or future), while voice is about action (active or passive). Our readers need context in order to understand when something is happening and who is doing something or whom something is happening to.

Now to go past the simplistic. Within each verb tense there are four more aspects to look at.

	PAST	PRESENT	FUTURE
SIMPLE—action at a particular point of time or happens repeatedly	I wrote yesterday.	I write every other day.	I will write tomorrow.
CONTINUOUS—action takes place over a period of time	I was writing when my agent called.	I am writing now.	I will be writing tomorrow.
PERFECT—action has already occurred, or will occur before another action takes place	I had written two short stories.	I have written several short stories.	I will have written a novel by the end of the year.
PERFECT CONTINUOUS—action is present has been occurring over time	I had been writing for years before being published.	I have been writing for one hour straight.	I will have been writing all day.

 

Voice depends upon the subject of the sentence. If the subject is acting, then the verb is active. If the subject isn’t acting, the verb is passive. To find passive verbs, look for 1) the “to be” verbs and a past particle of another verb (a past participle verb ends in “d”, “ed”, “n”, “en”, or “t”), or 2) a combination of two verbs.

ACTIVE	John wrote
TO BE + PAST PARTICIPLE	The story is being written by John
TWO VERB COMBINATION	The writing was done by John

Tense and voice need to match up so our story makes sense to our audience. Thinking about when something occurred and what the subject had to do with it will make our story clear. After all, we don’t want to confuse our readers, otherwise we’ll lose them.

Platform

Social media has taken the concept of “platform” to a new level. As writers, we know we need to have one, but sometimes it’s hard to figure out what to do. After all, there’s Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Shelfari, Goodreads, Pinterest, YouTube, and several other sites that you can use to promote your work. You also need to have a website, and a blog doesn’t hurt either.

I’m sure you’ve heard before that publishing houses like writers who already have a platform and established followers. Does that mean you can’t get your book published without a platform? Absolutely not. But as Christina Katz points out in Get Known Before the Book Deal (read my review here), a platform takes a long time to develop, and it’s a good idea to work on your platform before you are published.

I’ve heard that publishers rarely put big money into book promotion for authors, and expect the author to do most of the legwork. That is why it’s so important for us to get busy, get ourselves out there, and get known. If you’re a non-techie like me, that spells instant trouble. And if you’re like me and have a life that involves work and family, that spells double the trouble.

My solution was to find help. I could not have done my fantastic author webpage on my own (www.JoanneHirase.com), nor could I have figured out how to make a Facebook author page (https://www.facebook.com/Author.Joanne.Hirase), or optimize my Twitter (www.Twitter.com/@JHiraseStacey), and LinkedIn (www.linkedin.com/in/joannehirasestacey) accounts. Thanks to 2 Rivers Communication and Design, my name is out there. I haven’t delved into the other social media sites yet, but it may be in my future.

Yes, we need to put the time into self-promotion, but we also need to make room for writing. After all, if we don’t produce something, there is nothing to promote. Self-promotion can be difficult, but in this digital and fast-paced world, it is necessary.

If you don’t have the time, energy, or know-how to have a strong online presence, ask for help. There are several experts out there that you can hire, or who can give you the guidance you need. You don’t have to have a presence in every social media site, so target the ones you think will be most valuable for you. After all, you can always jump into another site later. Just start somewhere and see where it takes you.

Writing Humor

My husband made an interesting observation the other day. He said, “My life would be funny if it wasn’t my life.” If I told you some of the stories about his family, you would laugh and either: 1) wonder if it is really true, or 2) be thankful your family is normal, comparatively speaking.

I’ve tried to write short stories that incorporate some of his family’s antics, but they never come out right. I try to disguise the characters, change the setting, alter the words spoken, but somehow those adjustments make it so it isn’t funny anymore.

Writing humor is hard. I admire those who can put wit onto paper and make people laugh, or at least smile. It doesn’t always have to be a belly laugh kind of funny either—sometimes subtle humor can also make your day.

In my quest to “write funny” I found a few pointers:

1.       Humor comes from pain or embarrassment. As with my husband, his family isn’t funny to him because he lives it in real life, but to others it’s a laughfest. Like the time my mother-in-law started screaming at a waiter in a restaurant on a Friday night and the room went silent…

2.       Humor can’t be forced. I think this is my problem. If I tell the story out loud, people laugh. When I write the same story, I’m trying hard to make it funny because people can’t hear the inflection in my voice or see my facial expressions. Like the first time I went to my mother-in-law’s house and she handed me a wooden box and told me to meet her mother…

3.       Humor is relational. If people can’t relate to the situation, it won’t be funny no matter what. But who doesn’t have a family? Even if the family does and says all the right things, people understand familial dynamics. Like the Christmas my mother-in-law sent me one tealight candle, a “free gift with purchase”, and an extra-large tee-shirt that said, “Trucker From Hell”…

I dare write these things because I know my husband’s family doesn’t read my blog. Hopefully today isn’t the day they start.

WOW! Women on Writing

 

WOW! Women on Writing (http://www.wow-womenonwriting.com/) is an e-zine that began in 2006, and has evolved into a global website that has over 10,000 visitors a day. Angela Mackintosh, the Founder and CEO, is an incredible artist and writer who has put her heart and soul into creating a friendly place for writers to come and learn more about the craft (read my review here: http://www.readablewriter.com/Reviews.html).

Ms. Mackintosh has run WOW! the smart way—by surrounding herself with other women who have stepped up and taken ownership of the site. These women are dedicated to putting out quality information, issue after issue, and it has paid off.

The current issue couldn’t have come at a better time. I sent the second book of my trilogy to my publisher, and it came back with requests for edits. I thought I had edited it to death before, so I decided to read what other people did in the editing and revision process.

After reading Devon Ellington’s article, “The Layered Edit”, I am more excited about tackling my edits. She uses a color-coded system, which I’m going to try. I generally edit and fix as I go, but using colors will most likely help point out areas that need extra attention. She also uses what she calls “purpose sheets” where she analyzes the characters and each scene to decide whether it stays or goes. It seems labor intensive, but I see how her method will help me cut words. I am certainly glad that WOW! published this piece.

Katherine Higgs-Coulthard also has a great article, “Help! I’ve Frankenmonstered My Manuscript”. If that title doesn’t catch your attention, her article will. I can relate to several of her examples, and have even created a frankenmonster a time or two myself. I managed to write myself out of them, but only after serious revision. Her tips are great, and I can see how they can help.

The column, “10 Questions” by Elizabeth Maria Naranjo is relevant. The two editors who were interviewed, Kelly Lynne and Annette Rogers, provided valuable advice. I especially appreciated their answers to questions four, five, and seven.

WOW! has been one of the Writer’s Digest “Best Websites for Writers” since 2008, for good reason. It provides fresh, interesting, and varied, content that is applicable to today’s writers. It's definitely one of my go-to places when I need suggestions and guidance.

 

Copyright Infringement

Thanks to the Internet, copyright infringement is on the rise. If you have copyrighted information that is being wrongfully used on the Internet, there are steps you should take to protect your work.

Often, people think they just need to send a “cease and desist” letter, but you may have to worry about the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) takedown notice as well. A cease and desist letter is for the owner of the website, as well as the server that hosts the site. The DMCA takedown notice is for any website owner, server, or search engine that has a DMCA agent. It is also for a website owner that allows third parties to post content, and the third party is the one who is infringing (think of your social media sites).

A cease and desist letter should include the following:

1.       Your name

2.       The work being infringed

3.       The copyright registration number if you have registered the copyright with the Copyright Office in Washington D.C.

4.       The infringing website URL

5.       A statement demanding that the work be removed from the Internet with all copies destroyed

6.       A statement that you will seek damages for the infringement

7.       A date by which the recipient should comply

A few notes about the cease and desist letter: if your work is not registered, your claim for damages will be small, and the likelihood of a quick response from the infringer is low because they probably don’t have a lot to lose by failing to comply. Also, if you are dealing with a website or a host server in a foreign country, the likelihood of success is minimal unless the country has signed onto the Berne Convention.

For a DMCA takedown notice, you should include the following:

1.       Your contact information and signature (the signature can be electronic)

2.       The work being infringed upon

3.       The infringing website URL

4.       A statement indicating that you have a good faith belief that the use of the material is not authorized by the copyright owner, the copyright holder, or the Copyright Act, and that under the penalty of perjury, the information you are passing on is accurate and you are the owner and have the exclusive rights to the work

You do not request damages in a takedown notice; however, if the content is not removed within a reasonable amount of time, then you can send the cease and desist letter demanding damages. Also, if your takedown notice is going to a search engine, you should send instructions on where to find the infringing content in the website as well as a screenshot of the search query you made that led you to the website.

It is always a good idea to send these letters by mail or other courier service so you get notification that the recipient received it. That way you can prove they had notice, and it shows you are serious about making an infringement claim against them.

Although pursuing claims for infringement isn’t fun, it’s necessary. If websites, website hosts, or website servers think they can get away with posting your content for free, they’ll continue to do it.

 

Breaking Rules

Being a lawyer, I generally like to follow rules. Doing so makes my life easier, and keeps me out of trouble. The legal term “precedence” means to follow what has come before, and when a court uses precedence in deciding a case, it makes the outcome relatively predictable.

In my non-legal world, I love to break rules if there are no dire consequences. There is something about defying authority that has allure. Remember breaking your curfew? Remember driving over the speed limit and not getting caught? Remember cheating on a diet?

Who is making the rules anyway—parents, government, yourself? If you break a rule and don’t hurt yourself or anyone else, is that a bad thing? Rules have a purpose in every aspect of our life. They keep our society functioning, they guide us in the right direction, and they tell us what is acceptable.

What about the rules of writing? At one time, it was taboo to start a word with “and” or “but”—your high school teacher put big red marks on your paper if you did. But the rules have changed. And you even see best-selling authors doing the previously unthinkable.

Some writing rules should never be broken, but there are several that can be. Robert Masello has his own set of rules (see my review of Robert ’s Rules of Writing here) that will make you think about what you’ve learned or heard along your writing journey. When you read his book, sometimes you’ll feel validation because you’ve already experienced his rule, and other times you’ll feel like you’ve got to try playing his way because it sounds like more fun than you’ve been having.

I always thought my writing rules were basic: 1) get something onto paper, 2) edit, 3) submit. After reading Mr. Masello’s book, I realized my rules go deeper than that, but just never put much consideration into what they are.

Maybe you have your personal set of writing rules that work for you. If so, please share them!