Monthly Archives: August 2013

If you are going to be a serious writer you have to master one skill above all others…the art of saying NO! This is perhaps the hardest of skills to master for any writer, especially if you are one of those part-time partner – parent types.

Personally, my days get hijacked often. I set a schedule, grab my morning coffee, sit down at my desk, and lift my fingers above the keyboard…..and the phone rings. I know in my heart that I shouldn’t answer it. I often spend several rings sitting, staring at it like I am making a life or death decision – answer or not answer. In my head I hear, “cut the red wire, cut the red wire” and then my mind goes to that place all parents go when a phone rings…maybe one of them is hurt, maybe they are being held hostage at the local Starbucks and all they need to be freed is my Gold card. Maybe, maybe, maybe eventually wins out and I pick up the phone….my day has then officially been hijacked.

Yesterday went very much that way. My middle son called to complain about the ex, my friend Tara then called to say she saw my youngest son pushing his car through an intersection because it had stalled, my oldest son called to discuss a roommate problem and the spouse rang through to tell me that today was the worse day EVER at work. As soon as I got through all that, the mother of my grandkids called to see if I could sit them. (They are 3, 2 and 6 months) At the end of the day yesterday I had clearly lost….family drama -10, writing – 0.

Here’s how yesterday should have gone….I should have never picked up that phone the first time. At the end of the day my son’s ex is still his problem, the youngest got to work after all, the oldest has to work out his own issues and my spouse could have texted me the statement, “worse day EVER”. As for the grand kids…well, I have to set some ground rules there too. The problem most of us writers have is that our families see two major things when they see us and what we do…(a) that we are at home, making us accessible and (b) that we have all the time in the world, because we are accessible. Either way, being accessible is the problem.

The key to solving this problem is simple…just say no. Don’t answer your phone between the hours of ? and ? and let everyone know that unless someone is bleeding, actually gushing blood, you aren’t accessible. If you don’t control the situations, the situations will control you and your writing which makes for no actual writing at all. I do understand that some of you have small children and it’s a bit harder but, once again, if you choose your writing time carefully and then set the parameters in such a way that everyone else “gets it”… you will be a much happier and productive writer. So say it with me folks…..noooooooooo……

© The Writer’s Advice, 2013. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited.

It’s here. The days are trickling to a shorter length….the smell in the air has gone from heat to that sort of smoky scent that reminds us of brightly lit fireplaces and mom is hauling out the crockpot and the big chili pot. Summer, my fellow writers, is coming to an end.

I don’t know about you all but Fall (autumn in some places) is my favorite time of the year. I love the fact that the world changes from broad daylight to the dusk that is the Fall season. I love the coolness in the air and that skip most parents get in their step because school is back in session. Yep…Fall is my time of the year…and you know what else it is? It is the perfect time to begin a mystery.

Admittedly I am a mystery writer by nature but I know a lot of writers who get into the Fall season and suddenly get the urge to write a story about something mysterious or even scary. It’s because this is the perfect time of the year for it. The ghost and goblins come out to play and everything dark gets to come out and play.

I know that many of you think that you are stuck in your own genre…I’m here to tell you that just ain’t so. A writer is a writer and a story is a story. When you pigeon hole yourself into one genre it’s like going to the playground and making yourself play only on the swings…that’s no fun….you have to at least try out the monkey bars.

So my challenge to all of you this Fall season is to step out of your comfort zone and play on the monkey bars. Invite some mystery into your life and play off the season…who knows…you might actually enjoy it. BUT you will never know if you don’t at least get off the sing for a minute.

© The Writer’s Advice, 2013. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited.

We are looking for a white male, 6 ft. 4 in., about 340 lbs. who walks with a limp and has one blue eye. Now let’s be honest, there are probably NOT a lot of 340 lb. one blue-eyed people on the planet. White males – yes, 6 ft. 4 in. males – yes, even those who walk with a limp may number more than a few but when you put the entire description together….well there is probably only one guy like that. And do you know why….because that is how the world works.

I have read many a book where the characters are like cardboard cutouts, one dimensional pretend people. The writer tells you nothing about the character, no description, no past, no reason why he/she likes to eat Twinkies in the shower or feels the need to hide when a sales person comes to the front door. You, the reader, get no insight to who the character is. It takes away from the story.

So how do you give your character…well…character? The answers lay in the condition we refer to as human nature. If you want your readers to connect with your characters you have to make those characters real and by real I mean:

• Give them a description – Weight, height, eye color, skin tone…breathe life into your character.

• Make him/her stand out – Does your character have a scar, a tattoo? Something that makes them different from every other person with their general description? Make them special in some way because, truth be told, we are all special in some way.

• Mannerisms – I act differently than my brother and sister. In fact my mom talks a lot these days about the differences between is because it is part of what makes each of her kids different.

These are just a few of the ways that you can give your character, character. Part of what makes a good story is those people who populate it and make it some place your reader either wants to go or introduces them to people they want to meet. Your characters like it or not, are “the” story. Make em memorable and your reader will not only enjoy your story but will demand you tell them another story and that’s what being a writer is all about.

© The Writer’s Advice, 2013. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited.