Work, work, and more work

To those who read here regularly I have to apologize for the lack of recent posts. Due to four major IT transitions in the last two months, I have been working 60-70 hours per week lately, which has not allowed any room for my fun activities like writing this blog.

I hope over the next few weeks I might have time to blog some more, and to get back to my book. That is just life. The bills must be paid first.

So for now I will just encourage you to press on in your writing. Do not let anything stand in your way. When life requires you to take a temporary detour, keep your chin up and jump back in the first opportunity you get. That is what I plan to do.

So if you can write, write. And if not, hold on to your story and wait until you can.

Best of luck.

www.jhughthomas.com
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Frustrated by Real Life

I have read repeatedly that the way you know if you are a writer is how much you write. If it is in your top three to five priorities, you may be a writer. Lately the extremely long weeks at my day job (although more nights are involved these days) have been making it impossible for me to move beyond my basic family and chore obligations into my writing.

Today I am trying to break out of that rut, but I know we have an office move coming up in a week so I will probably have a long couple of weeks. In reality, I think there does come a point where you have to realize writing will always be an extreme challenge while working a full-time job. Sometimes will be harder than others, but that is the point. You will never be able to really settle into a routine because your primary obligations will change your schedule.

While I am frustrated, I am trying to be an adult and recognize that it is just something to roll with and get over. I will try to write some more today, and hope to write more this week. If it does not happen, I know I will pick it up the following week.

Does it make continuity of plot and style and flow difficult? Absolutely! That leads me back to truth of life number 87, there is a reason that not everyone writes a novel… it is hard.

So wishing you all the best of luck in your writing, while sprinkling some luck in my direction as well, I bid you farewell to go write.

www.jhughthomas.com

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Preparing Plot Archs and Character Archs

One of the most satisfying plot twists in The Empire Strikes Back is the moment when Luke and Darth Vader are finishing and intense light saber battle and Vader reveals a life altering piece of information, “I am your father.”

For those of us that saw this in the theater before the information was leaked, it was a powerful moment that was emotionally jarring and instantly opened up new avenues for the plot and character development. You were left wondering what would this mean? How will Luke react? Is it true?

To me this is still one of the best examples of how a writer that plans into the future is capable of bringing more to the table than one who just writes in the moment. When you go back to the first movie, you see clues like when Uncle Owen responds to a statement that Luke has too much of his father in him by saying, “That’s what I’m afraid of.” I remember in the theater thinking this was an obscure thing to say but after Darth Vader’s revelation, it all made sense.

I wish I could say I know how to pull this off in a magical and compelling way, but as you know, I am only learning. Here are the things that do seem important to me when approaching a story which you are sure will span over several books.

1) Write Detailed Character Sheets. This helps when you only plan to write one book with the characters, but when the story will stretch on, it is critical. The more time you spend developing these characters on paper, giving them an interesting background, the more material you have to sprinkle through the books ahead.

2) Write History Overlap Sheets. Consider this an addendum to the Character Sheets. Here you will document the ways in which the various characters have crossed paths in the past, before the beginning of your first story. These interactions will provide insight to you as the writer to explain why Judy hates Steve, or Phil is tortured when he is around Judy.

3) Write a Goals Sheet for each Character. This is from the character’s perspective, and can include an old set of goals and then a newer set that changed due to some events that occurred. This gives you a clear starting point for motivations of your characters. Whenever you get stuck writing a scene with that character, go back to their goals and see if it helps you find the character’s next move.

4) Write an Author’s Goal Sheet for each Character. This is a guideline that you may have to scrap as your plots unfold, but it can be a useful guideline. Within each story, you want a character to make some movement as a person. It may be the realization that they will never reach their goal, or it could be the fulfillment of something unexpected. Whatever it is, if you write it down and modify it as you work on your plot, it will be a helpful reference.

5) Map the Big Pieces out for the Series of Novels. I don’t know how many writers actually do this, or have the time for that matter, but I can see how good initial planning will result in a richer more fulfilling plot. If you know which pieces of character background will be revealed in which book, and which major plot points will occur and when, it can allow you the freedom to fill in the blanks knowing that you have a strong overall story map for both plot and character development.

I can only hope these steps will prove true as I work on my story and characters. If you read this blog regularly, I am sure will find out if I was right or wrong about my instincts.

Until next time, let’s keep on writing.

www.jhughthomas.com

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Writing Contests and Some Good Blog Entries

I have been busy lately so as usual, unpaid activities like blogging take a back seat. I’ll try to make up for it with some great links to great writing contests, articles, and blog entries on writing.

WRITING CONTESTS

Halloween Writing Contest

Submit a 300 word Halloween story and if you make the top three, win a prize. Age categories from Kindergartners all the way to Adults.

Short Writing Contest

The struggling Writer points to an interesting 500 word writing contest, any genre, that must use three out of a list of ten words.

Teen Writing Contests

A great resource if you are a teen looking for some street cred as a writer.

Winter Short Story Fiction Competition

This one comes with a $15 entry fee, but you can win up to $500 for a 1000-3000 word story.

Science Fiction Writing Contest

Poetry, one act play, or short story up to 5,000 words for this contest.

WRITING BLOGS

How To Write Action Scenes
Nice blog post by Author James Scott Bell on writing a good action scene.

5 Excellent Writing Blogs
Enough said.

Writing That First Draft
A good reminder to just write.

How To Write A Novel In Three Months
Sound crazy? You be the judge.

How To Write A Novel
Nice detailed article on the topic.

Until next time, let’s keep on writing.

www.jhughthomas.com
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How To Handle a Character’s Thoughts

I recently received the following email question from one of the blog readers. Below is our exchange in case anyone else has the same question. As always, this is just my amateur opinion.

Hugh,
How do you show what a character is thinking in a novel? I don’t want to write (he or she thought) every time. Can I place a character’s thoughts in single quotation marks, and then place a character’s words in the traditional double quotation marks?
Thanks

My first reply:

Joe,
All I can give you is my perspective. I think the best way is to shift seamlessly into the character’s thoughts without attribution. In other words, allow the perspective to simply become closer to the character, reflecting thoughts as they happen. This can be tricky but it seems to be the best method of keeping the reader engaged. If you require a directly quoted thought, I would recommend italics followed by “he thought.” I think that most often the simple method is best, just as “he said” is better than “he shouted.” Writing “he thought” does not take the reader out
of the reading flow, which is the real goal. You want it to be invisible. Hope that helps some. Best of luck.
Hugh

Joe Responded:

So if a character is thinking, write their thoughts in italics?

I Replied:

Here are two examples. First is one where you are communicating thoughts without attribution.

Jake walked into the room slowly, guarded. The single bulb cast shadows across the table. The smell was strong and rancid. A dead animal? Or… no, probably just an animal.

He continued through the room.

The second one uses attribution.

Jake walked into the room slowly, guarded. The single bulb cast shadows across the table. The smell was strong and rancid.

A dead animal? Jake thought. Or… no, probably just an animal.

He continued through the room.

In my opinion, the version without attribution is better. As you read the passage, you more directly get the thoughts of the character without really noticing the deepening perspective. I am not saying that I really know how to do this well, but I definitely think it is the right approach when it is done well.

I see it as creeping perspective. You may start out with simple observations, more narrative description than written from a specific perspective. Then slowly, as the emotion needs to ramp up, you make it more clear that the perspective is from the character, maybe drawing in life experiences as part of the context for the current events. Finally, you begin to slip into the thought process, the emotions, and even some specific thoughts of the character. When done properly, the reader never realizes the shift is taking place, the reading flow is not broken, and at the same time the reader is becoming more emotionally connected to the events taking place, and to the character.

Hope this helps those of you struggling with this issue. If you have other opinions, please share them will us all in the comments.

Until next time, let’s keep on writing.

www.jhughthomas.com
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Articles, Blogs, Cover Art, and a Writing Update.

I am sorry for the delay in my post. Things have been crazy lately and I just could not find the time. Because I am starting a technical blog on SQL Server, it just means I have more to juggle, and I have not learned how to juggle yet. In addition, I just wrote my first technical article that will appear in the September 3rd newsletter from SQLServerCentral.com. This is an exciting new avenue for me to expand my professional profile, but it once again takes more time.

I will begin with a writing update on my Novelette/Novella. I am currently at 11,689 words which means I am making some progress but not at the speed I would prefer. Anyway, I am trying to finish the first draft by the end of September so I can have it edited by the end of the year. I may not reach that goal, but I will try to have my book available in 2009.

I am pretty sure I have the title locked down as well, “Closing Gitmo,” which is the first book in a series named “Within Our Borders.”

At the same time, I have started to work on cover art so that hopefully by the time the book is done, the cover art will also be done. I will risk posting a first draft for feedback, so please be brutally honest if you leave feedback. Otherwise I will not be able to use your comments to make improvements.

Next time I hope to have more written words to report and some helpful tips.

Until then, let’s keep on writing.

www.jhughthomas.com

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Some Good Writing Articles and Blog Entries

Here are some more links to interesting blogs and articles I found on the web.

Tweet a novel?
http://blogs.reuters.com/india/2009/08/09/writing-a-novel-just-tweet-it/

Approach the blank page.
http://writeanything.wordpress.com/2009/08/09/approaching-the-blank-page-part-3/

Fifth time’s a charm.
http://hubpages.com/hub/NaNoWriMocom-Can-You-Write-a-Novel-in-a-Month

For young writers.
http://www.examiner.com/x-19400-NY-Gifted-Education-Examiner~y2009m8d10-Gifted-Education-101-Expert-advice-for-the-aspiring-young-author

Road to publication getting harder?
http://www.zeriously.com/1412/get-a-book-publishedthe-roadto-publication-might-be-getting-a-little-rougher-3/

Great article about podcasting novels.
http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2009-08/07/novels-by-podcast-how-to-make-money-from-free.aspx

9 ways to promote your books online.
http://www.examiner.com/x-16045-Portland-Writing-Examiner~y2009m8d5-9-ways-to-promote-your-books-on-the-internet

Hope these help you out.

Until next time, let’s keep on writing.

www.jhughthomas.com
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Novel Setup in Lulu.com and Choosing Book Size

I am making good headway on the Novelette/Novella, and as I started thinking about overall page length it led me to thinking about the book size. So I logged into Lulu.com and started setting up my book.

Here is a quick run down of getting started in Lulu.

1) Setup an account if you don’t already have one. This part is a pretty straight forward sign up process.

2) Start a new project. You can choose paperback, hardback, or a host of other formats. In my case, I choose paperback.

3) Add the title, author name, and you can set the work as private or public. When you are just getting started and playing around, just make sure it is private. Then click to Save and Continue.

4) Choose the paper type and size. You can choose Publisher grade (only ships from the US) or Standard for the paper type. The size options are too many to list here, but all the standards are available. You also pick the binding: Perfect-bound (traditional for novels), coil-bound, or saddle-stitched. You also get a neat floating calculator in the top right of the screen that shows you the cost of your book based on your selections. You also choose black and white or color, but the black and white option does include a color cover.

Play with the combination of these features to determine the best combination of size preferences and cost. I only started checking, but also consider the ISBN option you will want. If you choose the free option of publishing with a Lulu ISBN, your print sizes are more limited. If I decide to purchase my ISBN (for $99.99), I like the Digest size (5.5″ x 8.5″). Due to the print size, this allows for the least amount of paper waste and therefore the best price. For a 300 page Digest book the cost is $7.00 per book. For a 300 page Pocket book (4.25″ x 6.875″) the cost is $10.50 per book. Obviously that means a smaller book with less words costs more money. That is why I like Digest for a first book without an established audience.

5) Upload your file. I uploaded a Word document but you can use a PDF and I think there are more options than that.

6) Design your cover. There is a great wizard for designing a simple cover. I will probably end up designing a custom cover but it is nice to have something setup in the meantime.

You can then generate a print-ready PDF to see what your book will look like in layout. I am very impressed with the ease of setting up a book in Lulu. I’ll give more details as I evaluate the different parts of Lulu.

Until next time, let’s keep on writing.

www.jhughthomas.com
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How and Why To Use Google Alerts

When you take off your writer’s hat and put on the marketing hat, consider Google Alerts. They can be your best friend in both driving your marketing efforts and in showing you new avenues to explore.

One of the m0st difficult aspects of marketing is knowing how to reach people who might be interested in your content. Sure you can invest time in good search engine optimization, joining common interest groups on the Internet, and social networking with the right groups of people. In fact you should do all of these.

But how well is it working? Other than Google alerts, you should be monitoring your website/blog stats through a service like Google Analytics or Statcounter.com to see where the referring traffic is coming from.

I will start with the “how” of using Google Alerts.

Go to http://www.google.com/alerts and if you have a google account, login. If you do not have a Google account, then signup here. Once you are logged in and on the alerts page, you will see a form where you can create alerts that looks like this:

In the “Search terms:” blank, just fill in the words, phrases, or an exact website URL that you want to search for. Effectively, Alerts do the same thing that happens when you go to the Google search page and type in a search. One big difference is that if you do daily or weekly alerts, it will only include NEW results since the last time. You decide if daily or weekly works better for you. Then choose the email address to deliver to and you are done. You will begin getting alerts.

Also, just as with regular web searches, make sure you qualify your search as needed. If you want to search the exact phrase Till death do us part, you must use “Till death do us part” to do an exact phrase search.

So now that you know how, why use Google alerts?

1) Google Alerts can show you who is linking to your website/blog. Why do you care? I hope you can come up with lots of reasons, but here are a few. The person who added a link to your site did you a huge favor! They are directing traffic from their site to your site. It is good Internet manners to go to their site and post a “thank you” comment and perhaps put a link to their site on your site, if it is appropriate.

You also care because the more links there are to your site, the more your site will be optimized in the search results from Google. That is just a free bonus which requires no extra effort on your part.

2) Google Alerts can show you where you should be marketing. You can setup alerts for search phrases that people might use who would be interested in your subject matter. For example, setup a daily alert for “teenage vampire fiction” if you have a YA vampire book. Then look at all the links that come to you in your email, and click on every link. If the page seems to have users that might be interested in your fiction, leave a comment on the page if you can and include a link to your website.

You just directly marketed to your target audience. If you do this on five links a day, seven days a week, 52 weeks in the year, it will result in 1,820 unique links to your site from locations on the Internet that are part of your target market!

Seems like an easy choice to me. Hope this helps propel you from Internet anonymity to cyber-stardom.

Until next time, let’s keep on writing.

www.jhughthomas.com

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New Google Voice

I am seriously geeking out about Google’s new Voice service. I signed up to be part of the early testing period and after about an hour, I am hooked and amazed.

First of all, notice at the top of the right-hand column on my Blog homepage the new “Call Me” link with a phone icon. You can type in your name and phone number, Google Voice will call your phone, and when you answer you will be connected to my voicemail (or my phone if I had it set that way). You don’t even have to dial the number!

I was able to choose a phone number in my area code and to search for a phone number with a word or series of letters that I would like to appear in my phone number. The Google Voice page does a search to see if a number with that word is available and if so, it appears on the screen. I tried “hugh” and “jhthomas” but finally I found that “thom” was available, so now I can use the phone number 205-677-THOMAS, which is really just THOM but it looks better with my whole last name. Pretty cool.

You get voice mail which can convert your received messages into text and email the text of the messages to the email address of your choosing. I tested this and it works surprisingly well. You can also make outgoing calls to anywhere in the continental US for free. That’s right, FREE! You just initiate the call from the website, it calls your phone, and when you pick up it connects you to the other party with no long distance charges.

I can call my phone number from any phone to check messages, to call another phone number, check Google411, or change my settings.

I would recommend getting a Google Voice account as soon as you can even if you just use it like I plan to use it, for connecting with my blog readers, fellow writers, and future fans.

On the writing front, I have almost reached 10,000 words in my Novelette so I am getting there.

Until next time, let’s keep on writing.

www.jhughthomas.com

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