Journaling

J is for Journaling 

I've got a confession to make. 

I've got to be the worst journaler in the world. 

Writing in a journal is something I really struggle with. For some reason, it takes an extraordinary amount of discipline for me to journal every day. (And if I don't do it every day, there's no way I'm going to do it every week or month or whenever. Honestly, if I don't make it a point to journal every day, I don't journal at all.)

I wish I were better at it—I used to be. In fact, before I actively started writing novels, I journaled a lot, simply about my day. When I go on vacation overseas, I journal because I don't want to forget a thing. Having a record of what I did comes in handy if I scrapbook the pictures. However, for my day-to-day life, I struggle with being consistent in journaling. I think I can manage to write every day I'm on vacation is because I usually end up taking a break from novel writing during that time, and journaling becomes my only writing outlet.

To get myself motivated, I've purchased a number of expensive journals, sometimes even new pens. And I cannot, for the life of me, stick with it. There's always something else that clamors for my attention. That unfinished first draft. Coffee. That WIP which needs more editing. Snack. That writing circle's critique I need to finish. Lunch. Exhaustion. Coffee. Dinner. Distraction. Snack.

It's all a distraction, I admit. I'm convinced of it. There's nothing which should keep me from journaling. I have no excuse. I can do it when I set my mind to it. But I don't.

Currently my journal technique is something I read about in a book called Finding Your Writer's Voice: A Guide to Creative Fiction by Thaisa Frank and Dorothy Wall. This was a great book, and not just about voice. In fact, one gem I picked up was to daily journal by picking a single memory that stands out to you from that day. Take that moment of the day and embellish it. Write about whatever you remember from that instant, the smells, the sights, the feelings you had. Whatever made it so real to you, like the rush of the traffic as you bustle down the street, the rain pouring from the sky. The fact that you forgot your umbrella and ended up all wet for your meeting. Don't worry about it being smooth and entertaining, this is more like freewriting.

Even approaching journaling this way—all it takes is five minutes!—I struggle to commit myself to it daily. I put it in my calendar, and like all things I'm not fully committed to, I move it around as I forget and do other things. Then at nine o'clock at night, when I'm wasted from the day and there's nothing more for me to give, my phone kindly reminds me to journal. And I promptly delete the reminder with a small pinprick of guilt.

Sigh.

Am I alone in my inability to be a consistent journaler? What are some tips you have found to be consistent in journaling?

~I.E.

Inspiration

I is for Inspiration

Sometimes the Muse is elusive. She's coy and temperamental. She likes to play hide-and-seek, and she prefers to tease rather than to promise.

So what do you do when the Muse hides from you? I can share a few things I do.

1. Walk the dog.

If you don't have a dog, get one. Just kidding. Well, sort of. The thing is, if you have a dog, the animal reminds you to walk him. If you don't have one, you can ignore the fact that exercise is good for your mental clarity. Anything which makes you step back from your WIP when you're tired and not thinking straight is good. And you need to take care of your body and get away from the computer. Walking is a great way to do this. You can step away for a few minutes or longer. You can listen to some music while you're walking, an audiobook, or just the sounds of nature.

2. Listen to some music.

I love writing to music, but that's not really when I actually listen to the lyrics. I cannot write and listen to lyrics. And the lyrics are what inspire me in my own writing. It's said that good writers borrow and great writers steal. Well, I like to steal lyrics. Not in the plagiarizing sense, but in the sense that the image or storyline of the song may inspire a plot or a character or it may suggest exactly what I'm trying to accomplish in a WIP. If the latter, I can apply it to my WIP when I return to it, refreshed after walking the dog. I'm working on making playlists for each of my WIPs, that way I can go to them when I feel lost and get refocused on what I thought I was aiming for.

3. People watch.

We, as writers, write about people. You need people to observe so that you can have realistic characters. You can use your friends, but that tends to be a limited field, and if your friends make constant appearances in your novels, you may start to have some unhappy friends… Go to a coffee shop, watch how people interact with each other, their looks, their clothing, their personalities. Eavesdrop. Listen to their tones as they speak to one another, their telephone conversation, the pitch and quality of their voice, etc.

4. Read a book.

Learn from the masters. The best way to do this is to read them. You can't be an author without reading.

5. Change your routine.

Feeling stuck? Step away from your routine, using any of the above options, or step outside your comfort zone. If you're a morning person, go grocery shopping at midnight. If you're a Metallica fan, go see an opera. If you're a coffee drinker, go to a bar. You get the idea. Go outside your comfort zone to get inspired. Maybe you just need a change of pace, a different environment to get you unstuck.

Where do you look for inspiration?

~I.E.

Hemingway

H is for Hemingway

"…All you have to do is write one true sentence. Write the truest sentence that you know." -- Ernest Hemingway, A Moveable Feast

Ernest Hemingway. Even if you've never read one of his books, you admit that he's written classics. 

As I struggle with week 2 of the A to Z Blogger's Challenge, I feel like I'm hemming and hawing simply to come up with something that starts with the letter "H." (And believe me, "G" was a challenge! Yikes. I waited until the last minute with that one, and wrote a few different posts before I finally settled on writing about Galahad.)

Anyways, back to Hemingway. I've procrastinated enough on writing this post.

I've had the honor of visiting Hemingway's house in Key West, Florida. The thing I most remember about that visit? The cats. I think most visitors remember those the most. Well, I also remember the warmth. It was December, and I was wearing a tank top. For a girl from the Arctic, that's pretty unusual. Usually, I'm bundled up in a down jacket, scarf, hat, boots and mittens. Oh, and it's about 120 degrees colder than Florida in December. 

Right, Hemingway. Hemingway Home. 

This is Hemingway House. It's full of cats. 

If you know nothing else of Hemingway, know that he liked cats. And, he made his home a haven for polydactyl cats—i.e., cats with a sixth digit on their paws (some have six digits on only two paws, others on all four).

But back to writing. Hemingway had a lot to say on writing, on many subjects. Here are some quotes of his speaking to different aspects of writing well.

1. Writer's Block

"I learned never to empty the well of my writing, but always to stop when there was still something there in the deep part of the well, and let it refill at night from the springs that fed it."

Ernest Hemingway 

Hemingway's clear method of avoiding writer's block is to stop writing before it happens. I've tried this technique and found it to be true. Essentially, stop writing for the day when you know what's going to happen next. Then, when you return to your WIP, you can pick up with confidence. Usually writer's block is avoided when you can get started writing. This is a technique that I am especially attempting to use this month as I partake in Camp NaNoWriMo.

2. Knowledge

"If a writer knows enough about what he is writing about, he may omit things that he knows. The dignity of movement of an iceberg is due to only one ninth of it being above water."

Ernest Hemingway

I think this is most obvious when a writer tries writing about something that he or she does not know. Often, those are the books so bogged down in unnecessary detail that the reader starts skipping pages. It's important to know where factual information is needed and where it can be skipped. Is that bit of explanation on which paintbrush a character chose and how he mixed the paint really necessary? Or do we just need to know that he chose the red paint?

3. Characters

"When writing a novel a writer should create living people; people not characters. A character is a caricature."

Ernest Hemingway 

"The hardest thing in the world to do is to write straight honest prose on human beings. First you have to know the subject; then you have to know how to write. Both take a lifetime to learn…" 

-- By-Line: Ernest Hemingway

This must be one of the thing a lot of writers struggle with. How do you create a character that is real, one that has flaws and strengths just like real people? How about one who speaks and thinks realistically? I think it's especially tempting to create "perfect" heroes and heroines in romance novels, but that's not reality.

4. Craft

"We are all apprentices in a craft where no one ever becomes a master."

Ernest Hemingway 

"There is no rule on how to write. Sometimes it comes easily and perfectly; sometimes it's like drilling rock and then blasting it out with charges."

Ernest Hemingway 

"For a long time now I have tried simply to write the best I can. Sometimes I have good luck and write better than I can."

Ernest Hemingway 

"When I have an idea, I turn down the flame, as if it were a little alcohol stove, as low as it will go. Then it explodes and that is my idea."

Ernest Hemingway 

Ah, Ernest. Wise words from a master of the craft. Or should I say "apprentice?" 

5. Editing

"…After you learn to write your whole object is to convey everything, every sensation, sight, feeling, place and emotion to the reader. To do this you have to work over what you write." -- By-Line: Ernest Hemingway

Editing has to be the single most important thing to good fiction. Certainly no rough draft ever became a masterpiece.

~I.E.

Galahad

G is for "Galahad, the Good Knight"

"My good blade carves the casques of men,
   My tough lance thrusteth sure,
My strength is as the strength of ten,
   Because my heart is pure."

Sir Galahad
Alfred, Lord Tennyson
Lines 1-4

Everyone knows the story of Arthur and his knights of the round table. Perhaps the most famous knight of the round table is Lancelot. But because today's letter is "G," this post will focus on Galahad, one of Arthur's other knights. Although he's not the most well-known knight, it's Galahad who epitomes the "good" knight.

According to Grail legend, Galahad descends from the line of King David of Israel (I.e. from the same line as Jesus Christ). His father is the more well-known knight, Lancelot. 

The memorable romance between Lancelot and King Arthur's wife, Queen Guinevere, is complicated when a sorceress gives Lancelot a potion which makes him believe the grail bearer, Elaine, is Guinevere. Lancelot beds Elaine and from their union, Galahad is born. After his birth, Elaine places Galahad in a nunnery to be raised. When Galahad grows up, he will become the knight who rescues the kingdom from a powerful, destructive enchantment.

When King Arthur's knights pass by a sword stuck in a rock, they learn of the legend that only the most pure knight can pull the sword from the stone. They seek out Galahad, who is pure enough to remove the sword. Later, it's revealed that Galahad has been chosen as one of the three knights who go on a quest to find the Holy Grail.

Galahad is seen as the "perfect knight." He is courageous, gentle, courteous, and chivalrous. In Tennyson's poem, Galahad begins by being pure knight, fighting for "sweet…looks" from ladies, and ends by being on a mission for the holy Grail. 

"The clouds are broken in the sky,
   And thro' the mountain-walls
A rolling organ-harmony
   Swells up, and shakes and falls.
Then move the trees, the copses nod,
   Wings flutter, voices hover clear:
"O just and faithful knight of God!
   Ride on! the prize is near."
So pass I hostel, hall, and grange;
   By bridge and ford, by park and pale,
All-arm'd I ride, whate'er betide,
   Until I find the holy Grail."

Sir Galahad
Alfred, Lord Tennyson
Lines 73-84



~I. E.

Applying the DISC Personality Test to Your Character

"Character gives us qualities, but it is in actions—what we do—that we are happy or the reverse...All human happiness and misery take the form of action."

- Aristotle

Over March, I've posted a break-down of the DISC personality test in terms of each type of person values. This is a personality test that is used by psychologists today, and I'm convinced that using it in my novels can create dimension to my characters that I otherwise might not have considered. Since the A to Z Bloggers' Challenge gives us Sundays off, I figured I'd use the first Sunday of April to address how we might use the DISC personality test to apply to our fictional characters. 

Characters are the most important thing in a novel, I think. Some of the more plot-driven novels might get away with a cardboard cutout of a character, but even those benefit by character development. Unless you're in it only for the action, the character is vital to the novel and must be fully fleshed out.

This fleshing out of characters should include the author knowing much more about their characters than ever gets put into the novel (see April 1st's post for a character worksheet). It's not necessary that the reader know what happened the first day of second grade for your protagonist (unless, of course, it pertains to the plot), but it may be nice for you to know how that day shaped your character. 

Most novels cover a very short span of the main character's (MC's) life, and the rest of the life doesn't matter to the plot. That doesn't excuse the author from knowing their characters' pasts though.

I mentioned in the first DISC post here, that a person can fall into multiple DISC categories. This leaves endless variations of characters to create. 

So how you use the DISC test may depend on how you write. Personally, I need to see my characters before I can start writing a story. I may have a general outline in my head of what is going to happen to this character, but before I put my first word down on the page, I need an idea—even a loose one—of who my main character is. DISC can help with that.

Let's say I'm going to have my MC save the world in one way or another. Perhaps it's a crime drama, where the heroine single-handedly defeats the antagonist, an evil, drug-lord mastermind. It's unlikely that a high C or S personality, who would avoid or acquiesce in response to confrontation, would make a good protagonist. (Keep in mind that they could always start out that way and change in their character arc throughout the novel.) So we look at the D or I personality, who either becomes autocratic or attacks in the face of conflict. In this circumstance, the latter would probably be best. 

But let's look at the D personality a bit more…the D is results oriented (that could help save the world) and tends to be impulsive (well, that could cause a lot of conflict), they are driven to action (definitely needed in such a plot), they are persistent (that might be good), and like to have control (that wouldn't hurt—if they're the good guy or girl). While most of the above are the positive traits of a D, some of their weaknesses would be insensitivity, impatience and inflexibility (well, those could hurt a save-the-world mission, couldn't they?).

Looking back at the I personality, we see that while they attack under tension, they are motivated by recognition and approval (all right, well, the adoration of the people they save could be good), they are optimistic (that could help in facing down death and overcoming the odds), while being personable and enthusiastic (that might not be bad, either, they could charm people with their enthusiasm, perhaps?), and they, most of all like to have fun (maybe they'd find saving the world fun?). Some of their weaknesses would be a tendency to over-sell themselves, manipulate others, jump to conclusions, and not follow through. (The ability to manipulate others wouldn't seem like a weakness with this plot, but jumping to conclusions and lack of follow-through certainly would be. What if Frodo got halfway to Mount Doom and decided he just didn't want to do it anymore?)

Both Is and Ds, depending on how you spin the character, seem innately qualified to save the world. If you wanted to make a superhero, you could pick only the best for your character and there'd be no chance of failure. However, people aren't really like that, and people undoubtedly fail at some point in achieving their goals, so we need to create a well-rounded person.

To create a realistic character, we should give them a mixture of strengths and weaknesses. If we gave our I-D character impulsivity, a drive to act, a need to control the situation and lack of follow-through, they'd have a fighting chance while being their own worst enemy. Presto, an "I-D" character outline to go with my ever-so-brief plot outline.

But to give the novel even more conflict—since pages turn with conflict—we could pair them with a sidekick who is a by-the-book C personality. This C character would be outraged by the I-D's impulsivity and demand that the protagonist think about that cliff they're going to jump off. The C sidekick would shrink in the face of conflict (unless the C character is convinced he/she is right). But when C is convinced of the I-D protagonist's world-saving course, they would be a wonderful sidekick who lends their support. They just have to believe in the cause first—and that might be a problem with our impulsive, results-oriented, controlling I-D protagonist who doesn't get bogged down with the details.

Although this method far from develops every aspect of a character, it doesn't touch on hobbies or history, I think there's much value in knowing the personality traits of your character and how they would react to a situation or another type of person. 

~I.E.

Favorites

F is for "Favorites"

I'm notoriously difficult to please. So every time I read a new book, I hold it to impossibly high standards. Five star books are rare. 

Some of my five-star books are: 

Caleb's Crossing by Geraldine Brooks
Set in Puritan New England, this novel read even better the second time around.

The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova
A retelling of the story of Dracula with a historical twist, this book was a complete surprise for me.

Phantom by Susan Kay
A retelling of The Phantom of the Opera, this is a much more intimate view of the Phantom and how he becomes the maniacal killer he is. Well worth the read.

The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas
I love this book for the intricate plot. There are so many character to keep track of, and so many subplots, but everything comes together in the end to create a beautifully crafted read.

Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov
Given the subject matter and the narrator, I didn't expect to like this book at all. I wanted to read it because it was famous, and I'm glad I did. I found the prose quite evocative.

A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens
If you haven't read this book, the twist in the end is what clinches the deal for me. I'm not a romance reader by any means, but the romantic storyline in this novel strikes a chord with me every time.

These are a few of my absolute favorite books. What are some of yours?

~I.E.


Day 1: Absolution

Day 2: Biography

Day 3: Confidence

Day 4: Daphne

Day 5: Exposition

Exposition in Fiction Writing

Simply put, exposition in fiction writing is anything which conveys important background information to the audience. In other words, exposition could be considered an information dump. 

The problem with exposition is that a large chunk of it stops the plot cold. 

What could be more boring than interrupting a page of witty dialogue between protagonist and serial killer in order to describe that vital moment in the killer's life where his mother left him and his father beat him? Even if that's what made your character turn into a killer, untimely exposition can ruin a book. A reader won't have enough patience to reach the end of the story if you keep interrupting for an info dump—no matter how vital to the plot.

So how do you get around exposition? There are four main ways, outlined below.

Dialogue:
You can try to weave it into dialogue, but this can make your dialogue long and unrealistic. You could introduce a character who asks questions that the reader might be asking, I.e. The dumb friend, but that can sometimes be too obvious (and annoying). 

Flashbacks:
Flashbacks have fallen out of vogue to some extent, but this is an efficient way to give a lot of vital information. A flashback is a scene where the character experiences a flash back to a previous time in their life, usually connected in some way to the scene at hand. This experience could be triggered by a smell or sight or something another character says. The only problem with these are that they significantly interrupt the plot and take you back into the past—whether minutes or years, it's out of the action.

Memories:
Similar to a flashback, but shorter, memories look at the scene from the present, rather than experiencing it as it happened like in a flashback. Again, these could be triggered by a scent or sight or a comment. Since these are shorter, they could be considered less of an interruption than a flashback.

Sprinkle:
Perhaps the best way is to sprinkle it throughout dialogue and narrative. A sentence here, a sentence there, a little bit of setting, a little bit of backstory, but keep the focus on the action. 

It's sometimes hard to know when you're writing what is distracting backstory and what is crucial to the plot. I find I recognize exposition for what it is when I set my first draft aside for a few weeks, or a couple of months, and then do a quick read through in one or two sittings. During that read-through, I highlight the offending scenes and edit them later. (Yes, I've finally learned how to do this! My iPad is vital for this, because I cannot edit as I read.)

Striking a balance of exposition is difficult, and something that even best selling authors can get wrong. Of course, it's also something that readers have varying opinions on. So what to do? Well, definitely get second (and third and fourth) opinion, but try to keep the focus on the here and now. After all, the "here and now" is the story you're trying to tell, right? 

~I.E.

Day 1: Absolution

Day 2: Biography

Day 3: Confidence

Day 4: Daphne