All Write Already: Year Of Your Book
Page 18
Your assignment: Write roughly 250 words for your novel.
Day 214
Adding Flavor To Character-Speak
Dialects can vary from town to town, city to city, state to state. Research common words and phrases for the location of your story.
Caution: Less can sometimes do more. Sometimes authors demonstrate their love of research here, but too much of a good thing can often overwhelm. We may love reading a good Scottish brogue or the lilt of a Cajun accent, but too much can take a reader out of a story or turn our characters into caricatures.
Your assignment: Write roughly 250 words for your novel.
Day 215
Pedal to the Metal
You’ve come so far. You are working to make your dream of becoming a published author a reality. This isn’t the time to pump the brakes. Floor it! Keep going!
You should have around 200 pages of story written. That is a rough draft of about 50k words.
GENA: I’ve written a 60k word rough draft and turned it into a 100k novel. It just depends on how many scenes you are missing. I’ve also turned a 60k word rough draft into a 40k word novella, because I over-explained things.
If you’ve finished your rough draft, congrats! But this still isn’t the time to pump the brakes. Think about any elements that might be missing from your story. Do you need to add scenes?
Remember to keep reading the daily lessons in All Write Already, though. We have tips to consider before you dive into the revision and editing process.
Your assignment: If you haven’t finished your first draft, write roughly 250 words for your novel.
Day 216
Be Aware of Old Stereotypes
The human brain tends to sort things into patterns. That is how we learn both math and reading. We can also box people into patterns or stereotypes that come out in our writing. For example, the old lie that females are always catty to each other and they can never maintain a true friendship in real or fictional life. We prove that idea wrong every day.
GENA: As a teen, every book I read had girls being cruel to each other. That wasn’t my personal experience, yet I began to believe that was the way things must be. When I started writing, I fell into that trap. I thought, For excitement and entertainment, the girls must strike out at each other. Then I read Divine By Mistake by PC Cast. The females were—gasp!—supportive of each other. In that moment, I realized I had perpetuated a stereotype. Now? Each of my heroines has a best friend who will never, ever betray her.
Characters can battle stereotypes, too. Let them appreciate the things that make another different while also discovering what they have in common. If they made assumptions about another character, how did that affect their relationship? How did they grow?
Sensitivity readers can help you identify stereotypes in your writing.
Your assignment: Write roughly 250 words for your novel.
Day 217
Reflect and Catch Up
Find Your People
Second-guessing, doubts, and uncertainty can be brutal in a field like ours where rejection plays a pivotal, yet unwelcome, role.
When negative thoughts get in our way or stop us from making headway with our work in progress (WIP), we can react in different ways. If you’re like me, I’ll be honest, there’s probably some chocolate eating involved, maybe some ice cream or fro-yo binging. Or both. But, a chica can only eat so much, and I know what really helps is talking out the problem with writer friends and mentors who understand the industry’s ups and downs and who often battle the same Imposter Syndrome beast.
You see, it doesn’t matter if you’re working on your first, your fifth or your fiftieth novel…odds are, you’ll face this sneaky villain at some point. But good news, you can silence it, often thanks to a pep talk or kick in the pants from writing buddies.
That’s why it’s invaluable to find that group of people in Romancelandia who will celebrate good news, hold you accountable when you need it, brainstorm an idea, and “get” you when it seems like non-writers in your close circle don’t. So, consider joining a professional writers’ organization, look for a local or online chapter, seek out a local writers’ group, hop onto social media and connect with fellow authors, attend writers’ conferences or a NaNoWriMo event in your community. Make connections—doing so can help immensely, in both business and personal ways.
I’ll be honest, a writer’s life can be hair-pulling and emotion-wrought at times, but with the right people on your side, part of your community, it’s also absolutely rewarding.
–USA Today Bestselling author Priscilla Oliveras
Day 218
You Make The Cake
Language is always evolving and changing. The most popular dictionaries release a new version every year. Word nerds eagerly await the list of new words that have been added.
You’re an author. You can invent words, or use old words in new ways. It’s totally cake. You can even take common words and phrases and twist them for added flare.
Baby back ribs = baby back bitch
Vegetarian = pleasuretarian
Polka dots = poke-me dots
You can also turn a noun into a verb. Math = mathing.
Today, have fun with words and look for an opportunity to give an ordinary word new meaning.
Your assignment: Double your daily word count! Write roughly 500 words for your novel.
Bonus assignment: Create a new word for one of your characters to use. It doesn’t have to end up in your final manuscript, but can give you new insights into your character while giving your creativity a boost.
Day 219
Don’t Drop A Dropped Clue
If you drop a clue about something, don’t forget to expand it at some point in the story.
Think of the movie Dirty Dancing and the oh, so famous lift between Johnny and Baby. How cheated would you feel if they hadn’t executed the perfect lift at the end of the movie?
Your assignment: Write roughly 250 words for your novel.
Bonus assignment: Go through your manuscript, making note of every clue and loop you’ve crafted to ensure they’ve been closed.
Day 220
Plant The Seeds For Tomorrow’s Work
Once you finish today’s scene, spend some time thinking about what comes next, preparing your mind. Jot down ideas or make bullet points.
The next time you open your manuscript, you already have a blueprint for where to go next.
Your assignment: Write roughly 250 words for your novel.
Day 221
Nodding
He Nodded, She Nodded, They All Nodded
You might catch yourself reusing the same actions, facial expressions, and physical reactions. If you notice, readers will notice. Consider highlighting the repeats or keeping a list and fixing in editing.
Here are some of the most common overused actions, expressions and reactions we’ve noticed in our own writing, with a possible alternative:
Grated → Rasped
Growled → Rumbled
Swing (a sword) → Brandished
Frowned → Glowered
Scowled → Glared
Reeled → Lurched
Your assignment: Write roughly 250 words for your novel.
Day 222
Today Is The Day: Raise The Stakes!
What does your main character have to lose? Is today the day to take it away? Magnify their pain. Plant the seeds for how they’ll triumph.
Your assignment: Write roughly 250 words for your novel.
Day 223
Imagination Flow
Keep going! You’ve got this! Forget about only writing what you know. Write whatever you can imagine!
A petting zoo, with humans in the cages?
A new way to fly?
A society that never touches due to fear of a mutant flu virus?
An otherworldly animal?
A sentient house?
A new currency?
The perfect drug?
/> If your story has a need for something that doesn’t exist, invent it!
Your assignment: Write roughly 250 words for your novel.
Day 224
Reflect and Catch Up
As a new author I often heard, write what you know. It's so true. Write what you know. When I first sold to Harlequin, I sold a medical romance. By training, I'm a nurse practitioner, so pulling that knowledge and emotional experiences into my writing just made sense. When I sold to Hallmark, I'd gotten a couple of rejections from them, and when I sat down to write a new proposal, I went for emotion. What emotions does watching a Hallmark movie make me feel? How do they make me feel that way? Why do I like those emotions and keep going back for more? Then, I looked at what made me feel that way in my real life. I love to quilt and knew I wanted my heroine to be a quilter. My son was in the process of enlisting in the Army and the military was heavy on my heart. Thus, my military hero was born. I'd been to a quilt show several years before where quilts were made for and given to foster children. That program hit me deep inside. I always knew I'd use something along those lines in a book someday. Why not have my heroine's church group donate quilts to wounded warriors and my hero be one of those recipients? From there, I just kept brainstorming ideas on paper, trying to remember that I was going for emotions foremost. Every idea had to elicit an emotion. When I was through, I pulled my ideas together into a synopsis, sent it to my agent, and after revising a few things, Wrapped Up in Christmas, sold to Hallmark and became my first book to hit a major list.
–Bestselling author Janice Lynn
Day 225
The Flaws Come Out
Remember Day 29? We talked about flaws. Have you made sure to show/reveal flaws in your main and secondary characters, as well as at least one good characteristic about your villain/antagonist/monster? Magnify them!
Your assignment: Write roughly 250 words for your novel.
Day 226
Realistic Expectations
It is important to set realistic expectations for yourself. Many writers dream of hitting bestseller lists and seeing their books made into movies. But it wasn’t until Gena’s 7th book, The Nymph King, that she hit the New York Times. Jill was over ten years into her writing career before Naked Pursuit was produced as a TV movie for Lifetime Movie Network.
To put it succinctly, it can take years to be an overnight success. Give yourself time. Create logical and achievable benchmarks of accomplishment that are in your control. Movie options and bestseller lists have variables you can’t plan for or anticipate.
Is the quality of your writing continuing to improve?
Are you doing your best, not just what’s good enough?
Are you gaining new readers and keeping the ones you have (aside from some natural attrition)?
Are you losing money by self-publishing?
Are you getting requests from agents and editors to edit and resubmit?
Are agents and editors giving you an invitation to submit additional work?
Is your self-publishing income providing enough to hire cover designers, editors and personal assistants?
If you need to make adjustments, make adjustments. If you just need more time to take off, patience is your best friend.
Focus. Magnify. Accomplish. Triumph!
Your assignment: Write roughly 250 words for your novel.
Day 227
Make the Connection!
Did you mention something in an earlier scene but it hasn’t come up again? You could have a dropped thread on your hands.
GENA: In The Glass Queen, the heroine unwittingly strokes her dead mother’s ring for comfort. The more I wrote, the more I forgot to have her stroke the stupid thing LOL I either needed to remove it or go through the book and look for places to organically mention. Since I planned to use the ring as a plot point at the end, I ended up putting in the extra work and adding the mentions.
Your assignment: Write roughly 250 words for your novel.
Day 228
Today Is The Day: Screw Ups
No one makes the correct decision every time. People make mistakes. Is today a good day for your character to screw up?
Here are some questions to keep in mind while crafting a scene with a screw up:
Did your character know they were making a bad choice and continued with their decision anyway?
Do they blame themselves or others?
How does this mistake reflect their growth?
What have they learned?
Does the opportunity to make a similar choice appear later in the book?
How will they react knowing what they’ve learned?
Your assignment: Double your daily word count! Write roughly 500 words for your novel.
Day 229
Red Herring
A red herring is a clue meant to mislead your readers.
Have you ever read a story and been 100 percent certain you’d figured out the big secret? Were you right or wrong? Did you fall for a red herring?
Adding a red herring is a way to keep your readers surprised when the big reveal of truth happens. Both M. Night Shyamalan’s The Sixth Sense and Christopher McQuarrie’s The Usual Suspects give us multiple red herrings to keep us guessing throughout the movie until the surprise ending.
You can use red herrings in any genre, not just murder mystery and suspense. A switch from one romantic lead to another can throw both your character and reader off balance.
Misleading readers is one of the perks of the job. Have fun with it!
Your assignment: Write roughly 250 words for your novel.
Day 230
It’s A Love/Hate Thing
Some days you will love your book. Other days you will hate it. These feelings are normal and happen to writers at almost every stage in their career. In fact, writing can sometimes feel like you are shoving a hook into your brain in an attempt to fish out every little word and idea. And a good portion of those words and ideas should be thrown back!
Don’t worry, most of us feel that way at some point. Press on. You’re closing in on the reward!
JILL: After that first blush of romance with a new story fades, the real work begins. The work of staying seated in my chair. The work of not firing up my favorite social media pages. The work of digging deep in my emotional well. Holding that finished book in your hands or scrolling through the words on my iPad make the extra effort worth it.
You can’t have the days you love it without dealing with the days you hate it. Just remember, emotions can be fleeting, and they are always subject to change.
Your assignment: Write roughly 250 words for your novel.
Day 231
Reflect and Catch Up
Things I wished I'd known when I first started writing...
1) I would start to predict endings to TV shows, movies, and books.
2) Writing is addictive! The more I write, the more I want, nay, need to write.
3) How many amazing friends I'd make along the way.
4) The exhilaration of starting and publishing every book.
5) The good feeling I'd get when readers find hope and happiness between the pages of my books.
6) The thankfulness and gratitude I have for everyone who supports my work.
7) How indebted I feel to all who are excited for the next book.
The naysayers don't matter. What truly matters is what I feel inspired to write, and do. It amazes me how people love books I write that I think won't go over well.
Honestly, I never thought I'd be a writer, but now that I am, I don't want any other occupation. Being a mom is my greatest privilege. Being a daughter of the Most High King is beyond words. I'm thankful for every book, and never want to take what I get to do for granted.
–By acclaimed author Cathy Jackson
Day 232
Finish What You Start
We began writing before self-publishing was an accepted thing, so we had to find other ways to get our names in front of publi
shing professionals. Often we opted to go with three chapter writing contests, because editors and agents would judge the final round. In fact, Jill’s first published novel, Never Naughty Enough, was purchased by the editor who read her manuscript in the final round of a contest.