Jodi Picoult Month

Here we are at the polishing and agent-finding stages, during the month that I'm following a very exciting writer’s advice. Let me revise that a bit: "I'm following" should be changed to "I read"..."before packing up my entire house, husband, and toddler and moving from Maryland to Florida." To be honest, this blog is not my very first priority at the moment.

I'm also waiting on four or so people's feedback before I do any polishing.

But back to the point, please.

Jodi Picoult, who is a vivid, marvelous spatter of paint across the canvas of contemporary writers, has four specific people to read her chapters as she writes them. She incorporates their feedback in various drafts and says she's done when she just can't stand to look at the thing again.

Easy to understand. Revise until I can't stand it anymore. Got it.

It took Picoult three years to find an agent to represent her. She went about it in what she calls the traditional way, writing to a big publishing house to find which agents were accepting submissions and then contacting them. She emphasizes the importance of a thick skin and perseverance in this process.

Then, when she did find an agent, it took about three months to sell the book, which is a tribute to the quality and excitement of her work. Not sure that we should all expect that kind of turnaround (I type sarcastically).

In an interview with Writers Write, she says, "If it takes you 3-5 years to get published, you're still ahead of the game."

Though I get the feeling that with Picoult, it's always full steam ahead. It really is hard to fail like that. Even without her talent. For examples, just read a couple Hollywood biographies...

Three Dos From Three Great Authors - C. S. Lewis Month

This will be a different type of post. Instead of posting a summary of C. S. Lewis's wriing, revising, or publishing advice that I intend to follow, I will post here a brief essay I wrote (for myself) comparing some advice from Lewis, Stephen King, and Madeleine L'Engle.

Authors Stephen King, Madeleine L’Engle, and C.S. Lewis have a lot in common. Two were born in the 20th century and one just before it; two are natives of the northeastern United States (King and L'Engle); two are children’s writers (L'Engle and Lewis); and two were raised by a single parent from an early age (King and Lewis). Two liked to take long walks each day (King and Lewis); two were outspoken believers in God (L'Engle and Lewis); two reported they start writing by 9:00 in the morning (King and Lewis). 

The unifying thread to their work is the impact their stories have on literature and popular culture. So many people have read The Chronicles of Narnia and the Time trilogy and read and watched King’s novels and film adaptations that even in the Online Age most Americans can hold a conversation about these books. All three authors have received the highest honors for their work: among others, King received the National Book Foundation Award, Lewis the Carnegie Award, and L’Engle the John Newbery Medal.

Their published writing advice shows they don’t always agree with each other, but these three masters of the novel all consider the following three practices essential for serious writers: prodigious reading and writing every day, following a vision for the writing, and making use of inspiration that they unscientifically and unabashedly call magical.

According to King, “If you want to be a writer, you must do two things above all others: read a lot and write a lot. There’s no way around those two things that I’m aware of, no shortcut."* He is very specific in his recommendations to the beginning writer. “I suggest a thousand words a day, and because I’m feeling magnanimous, I’ll also suggest that you can take one day a week off, at least to begin with.” He advocates four to six hours of reading per day.

L'Engle urges writers to write every day, and have some fun with it. She doesn’t mean one should write only when it’s fun; she also stresses the importance of discipline and building up a body of work by writing consistently each day. "Many people in walks of life that do not involve creation are completely unaware of the necessity of discipline...few serious artists are able to live lives that are without interruption."** Writing is a serious business, at least in terms of settling down to do it. The same approach applies to reading: “Read at least an hour a day, something you feel you should read for most of the time and something just for fun the rest of the time.”

Lewis gives instructions about reading and writing in a letter to a child who wants to be a writer. He writes, in 1959, “Turn off the Radio... Read all the good books you can.”*** His own ideal day started with an early breakfast so that he could sit down to write by 9:00 in the morning on the dot. Reading was to occur at mealtimes and after dinner when not out with friends. 

L’Engle's concise direction, “Hold true to your vision,”** elevates the art of writing above a formulaic enterprise. Each storyteller, she asserts, gives the world something special. She supports Jean Rhys’s conception of all writing as an enormous lake into which flow tributaries ranging from small streams to mighty rivers. Regardless of size, each feeds the lake.

In the letter to the young writer, Lewis insists she must write nothing that doesn’t truly interest her. One can imagine her enduring interests will lead her to what she is meant to write or at least make her writing more worthwhile for both writer and reader. To other people, he approaches the idea of vision more literally with descriptions of dreams and pictures on which The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is based. "Images of such things as a faun with an umbrella, a magnificent talking lion, and a queen on a sleigh, increasingly filled his mind."***

Though King doesn’t mention vision by name, he believes it is important to start with characters in a sticky situation, then plunge into the story without stopping long enough to lose the sense and the tone of it. He is a waterskier and the characters are the boat—he simply hangs on to the story as long and as well as he can. The story is in charge. There is never any question of that.

Perhaps the muse has a little control as well. King describes his muse as a cigar-smoking, grunting, bowling-loving “basement guy."* He sits plainly in awe of what the curmudgeon can do: “It’s right that you should do all the work and burn all the midnight oil, because the guy with the cigar and the little wings has got a bag of magic. There’s stuff in there that can change your life. Believe me, I know.” That "stuff in there" is the mysterious stuff of inspiration.

Lewis calls on something just as mysterious, his phenomenon of Joy (always written with a capital J), to explain the utmost reaches of what he yearns and works for. He acknowledges a formative passion for "Northern" literature and culture that went well beyond the leadings of preference and influenced his writing forever. As an adult, his continuing search for uncommon truth and beauty brought him to a belief in God that became the focusing point of all his fiction and nonfiction.

L’Engle’s inspiration is the basically spiritual belief that each human being, tiny in the scope of the universe, can make a difference through his or her actions. Faith is her muse. “Why does anyone tell a story? It does indeed have something to do with faith, faith that the universe has meaning, that our little human lives are not irrelevant, that what we choose or say or do matters, matters cosmically.”** The novels she wrote, though great fun to read, were written with the idea that they matter, that they make a difference in this world. 

Each of these three authors knew that there are some truths about writing that don’t go away no matter how much one wants them to: A published or aspiring-to-be-published writer will almost always have to sit down and write at regular periods and almost always have to revise, change, adapt, and revise again. Equally important, though, they knew that the work must have a purpose and leading higher than their own mundane consciousness.

What does the aspiring writer take from these observations? Knowing that Stephen King writes from approximately 9:00 to 1:00 each day in a room without a window, that C. S. Lewis took a daily long walk, and that Madeleine L'Engle read the Bible every day doesn’t make one into a great writer. These are simply facts to know about people who are great writers. Their greatness is not contagious; one can’t catch bestselling-author pox by reading their advice and following it to the letter. If only it were possible...! One can, however, learn what they believe is important in their life’s work, take encouragement from them, and get ideas for how to better practice one's art. 

If nothing else, one can gain an even greater appreciation for the authors' skill and vision, and the taste of magic they've left in one's mouth.

*King, Stephen. On Writing. New York: Pocket Books, 2000.
**Chase, Carole F. "Words of Wisdom from Madeleine L'Engle." The Writer Jun. 2002: 26+.
*** Lyle W. Dorsett, ed. The Essential C. S. Lewis. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1996. 
****Green, Roger L. & Hooper, Walter. C. S. Lewis: A Biography. San Diego: Harcourt Brace & Company, 1974.

copyright 2008 Kristy Shreve Powers

A King's Work Ethic

Stephen King worked several blue-collar jobs up to the time his novel Carrie sold: in a fabric mill, as a janitor, in a laundry. He's no stranger to a day (or night) of hard work.

Could that have something to do with his colossal creative output? When he approaches something as a job, you'd better believe he'll get it done and done well. He's written 48 novels, 8 story collections, and a screenplay. And that's not counting numerous short stories, the various roles he played in making many "Stephen King movies", and multiple other bookish and writing endeavors.

When he gives writing advice, notably in his book On Writing, he means it, by gum. Sit down and do it. There's no alternative except to give up altogether. If he says sit down and try to revise your novel all in one shot if possible, then you'd best do it. At the very most, do it in two sittings.

Ahem. Eventually I will post how it worked for me when I attempted this with my mini-retreat.

Stephen King Month

I've read Stephen King's book On Writing so many times I can almost recite from it. It'll be easy to sum up what I intend to do for Stephen King Month, in revision mode. (By the way, read On Writing. I don't know if it will improve your work, but I promise you'll enjoy yourself if you write fiction. Or read fiction. Or read nonfiction.)

1. Read through the manuscript as fast as possible making notes in the margins--mostly corrections of spelling, grammar, and things that don't work, like events that could not possibly happen now that my protagonist is female and a twin instead of an only child. Fix grammar and spelling and crappy sentences. Try to delete every single adverb. Have a go at some adjectives, too; why not? Ideally, I'll do this in just one or two sittings. When will I find these large chunks of time to go through the manuscript? Hunh. I'll get back to you on that one. (Probably one day--let's call it tomorrow--during my son's naptime and then a few hours after he goes to bed.)

2. Type up corrections and send off the manuscript to the people I choose for feedback.

3. Evaluate suggestions from those people and make any changes I want to make at this point. Think about theme and whether or not I can add in some meaningful frills or purposeful twists. Examine previous sentence and scoff, disdaining to even fix it.

4. Go through one more time and catch those remaining errors--I hope all of them.

5. Whew. It might be August at this point.

Sol Stein Month

It's Sol Stein Month in the No Shame Novelist Project. You can find out exactly what that means here.

I'm about to begin revising my novel draft, so I'm going to focus on what Sol Stein has to say about revising, though he gives plenty of advice on other aspects of writing in his book, Stein on Writing, and through the products of his company WritePro. The revision plan I summarize below can be found in his book.

Stein calls his approach the triage method of revision, because it attends first to the errors that most often cause editors to reject a manuscript. I'll summarize the steps here, but I refer you to Stein on Writing for a very detailed plan for revising fiction and nonfiction.

1. Think about your main characters first. Do you ever think about them when you're not writing about them? If not, they may need some work.

2. Think about your villain. Does the character have more than one side? Is there anything interesting or like able about him or her (or it)?

3. Take a look at your minor characters. Make sure they are characterized adequately.

4. Check the conflict between the protagonist and the villain for credibility.

5. Find the weakest scene in your book. Cut it. Then find the scene that used to be the second weakest but is now the weakest scene. Think about cutting it. Continue as long as necessary.

6. How are the main actions in the story motivated? Strongly? Weakly?

And that's the bare bones of Stein's triage method. When I begin to revise in two weeks, I'll use this method. In the meantime, I'll work on another project using the mix of L'Engle's and Lamott's suggestions that I've been focusing on: following my vision, sitting at the keyboard and letting images and phrases flow through my mind before beginning to type, and keeping an honest, everyday journal.

Ending Madeleine L'Engle Month, Beginning the Month of Sol Stein

Yesterday was the last day of Madeleine L'Engle Month for the No Shame Novelist Project. As I lay awake early this morning between episodes of putting my son back in his toddler bed every five minutes, I realized I need to take another piece of her advice that I haven't mentioned here before. She encouraged writers to keep an honest diary, one that will never be published. I've been writing this blog instead of the rambling, mundane, sometimes insightful, usually anal journal that I often wrote in prior to starting this blog. The problem is I have trouble knowing what I think, believe, and feel until I write it down. Going back to my journal can help me follow my vision by helping me figure it out.

My next post will summarize some of Sol Stein's writing advice. To get a head start, visit his website or the website of his company, WritePro.

Writing and a Spiritual Life

Madeleine L'Engle (author of 62 books and this month's No Shame Novelist featured author) did not separate her spiritual life from her creative life. I think she would say they are inseparable.

I think about this in terms of inspiration when I'm writing. I don't want it to be a purely rational process where I think about options, choose some and reject others, and write from an unchanging plan. I've been reading L'Engle and C. S. Lewis and Louisa May Alcott all my life. Out of many influences, they were the heaviest on my love of reading and writing. Each of them had strong spiritual or moral beliefs that affected their writing to the point that their works would never have been written without those beliefs.

Writers don't need to go to church or profess faith, but I think we do need to tap into something outside our normal experience in order to do the best work we're capable of.

Einstein and L'Engle

Whew. I did the latest writing exercise, and it led to some work getting done.

But on to L'Engle. One of her greatest inspirations was Albert Einstein.

In an interview with frugalfun.com, she said, "I was asking myself all the big questions about life and the universe and not finding the answers. Then I picked up a book of Einstein's and he said anyone who is not lost in rapture at the power of the mind behind the universe 'is as good as a burned out candle.'"

Later in the same interview, L'Engle said, "And particle physics says nothing is without a purpose, everything has an impact."

You can see her philosophy in the books she's written, perhaps most memorably in the five Time books: A Wrinkle In Time, A Wind In the Door, A Swiftly Tilting Planet, Many Waters, and An Acceptable Time. In these books, a child often plays a crucial role in events affecting entire worlds, from the cellular level to the outer environment.

Her philosophy is in her writing advice, too. In Madeleine L'Engle Herself: Reflections On A Writing Life, she said, "Why does anybody tell a story? It does indeed have something to do with faith, faith that the universe has meaning, that our little human lives are not irrelevant, that what we choose or say or do matters, matters cosmically."

She also liked Jean Rhys's description of the whole of writing as an enormous lake. Big rivers feed into the lake, but so do little streams. Each drop of water becomes part of the lake's composition.

Madeleine L'Engle's Places

Madeleine L'Engle was born in New York City and went to school there. She also went to an English boarding school in the French Alps and attended high school in Charleston, South Carolina. While there, she vacationed in a beach cottage in Florida. She studied English at Smith College. After she married and began having children, she and her husband moved to a country town in Connecticut. They eventually moved back to New York City but they always kept the country home.

If you've read many of L'Engle's books, you'll recognize most of the settings of her books in the places she lived.

Madeleine L'Engle Month

I was sad to hear that the wise Madeleine L'Engle (full name: Madeleine L'Engle Camp Franklin) had died September 6th, 2007. The world is lucky to have her books as lasting reminders of her contributions and thoughts.

Below are the pieces of her advice that I will be following for the month of January.

1. “Read at least an hour a day, something you feel you should read for most of the time and something just for fun the rest of the time.”
(excerpted from Madeleine L'Engle Herself: Reflections on the Writing Life by The Writer, June 2002 v115 i6 p26(4))

I follow this advice already, by reading every time I sit down to eat, every time I go to the bathroom for more than a minute, before bed, and other times throughout the day. It's what I do. As far as the material I choose, I've mostly read things for fun, but I've also read my share of things I thought I should. Right now I'm reading a book called Friends for 350 Years about the history and practices of Quakers that counts as both. For something I feel I should read, I will start Tortilla Curtain by T. C. Boyle.

2. Write consistently each day. Do this in the spirit of fun, too, but make it a discipline. It's the only way to "build up a body of work".
(from same source as above)

I wrote about the importance of vacations from writing in yesterday's post along with the importance of keeping at a story until it's finished. This month, I will write something every day unless I need a vacation for one of the legitimate, useful reasons I listed in the post yesterday.

3. "Hold true to your vision."
(same source)

L'Engle believed each of us has something unique and valuable to contribute to the universe. My interpretation of this piece of advice is that we must be careful to contribute what we are meant to contribute rather than what we decide to contribute on a solely rational basis (for example, by plotting everything ahead of time and writing to the outline). As writers or artists, we must explore our leanings and curiosities and processes while remaining open to inspiration that seems to be bigger than ourselves.

How will I do this as I sit down to write? I think I will actually turn to a piece of Anne Lamott's advice. She sits down, rereads what she wrote the day before, and muses about it. Actions, thoughts, and descriptions flit through her head. When they begin to form themselves into sentences and paragraphs, she types them down like she's taking dictation.

I've heard the writer described as a typist for another power from many great authors. Stephen King, C. S. Lewis, and Anne Lamott are just three of them I can think of off the top of my head. This is very different from Michael Palmer's advice, of course, and his advice did seem to work for me. Well, we'll see what really works when this project is ended.

So begins Madeleine L'Engle Month.

Bye Bye, Anne Lamott Month

Being December 31st, it's time for me to sum up Anne Lamott Month--what worked for me, what didn't. There were two things that made December especially challenging. One was Christmas and having guests at the house for a week. It seems that no matter how hard I try, I never keep my resolutions to write every day during holidays. The second was the fatigue following National Novel Writing Month. I need a week or two away from writing altogether after the frenzy of NaNoWriMo.

For those reasons and others, I don't feel like I spent much time on Anne Lamott's writing advice. Here are pieces of her advice that I like and will try to continue (or start) doing in the future:

1. Write a little every day.

This month, I've learned that days off can be good for creativity. I need time to recharge and just rest between projects. The danger is in taking days off to procrastinate because of fear or laziness. Days off for fatigue and celebration = good for me. Days off because I'm afraid my writing sucks = bad for me.

I do believe that a story gets away from me if I take frequent days off in the middle of writing it, so I will continue to write a bit every day on current projects unless my health or creative process demands something different.

2. It's much more fun to write based on characters than on a devised plot line.

This is a paraphrase. I think a project has more life in it when it's based on a character that seems real to me. Sometimes I do need the structure of an outline, but I want to continue to experiment with Lamott's way of letting characters and their relationship develop the plot.

3. Write "shitty first drafts".

This is a must. I would never finish any piece of writing if I didn't let myself write utterly boring, confusing, and lustreless drafts to begin. The problems can (and must) wait until the revision stage. Besides, this piece of advice lets me just go at it. Write whatever. Get something down on paper. And as Lamott and others point out, the act of writing is what we really crave and the only true, unblemished reward we'll get.

4. Write "short assignments".

I don't have to do this one consciously. I think it's something I do automatically when I start writing. I start at one particular place in the story and stop when I run out of steam, which is usually quite soon. If I've only been writing for a few minutes, I try to sit back for a few and get myself going on the next small section. Writing a whole chapter in one sitting is hard for me and something I do rarely.

5. Write the truth.

I think this is the most important piece, but I don't know exactly how to do it. It takes bravery and insight to write the truth in fiction. I know it when I come across it in someone else's book: It's that moment when I think, Oh my god, I know this character! Or, This has happened to me, this tiny instant of [blank]! How did she know to describe it that way?

Because writing the truth still seems like such a mysterious and difficult maneuver, I think I'll reread the chapter titled "Plot" in Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life. I know at least one other Featured Author in this No Shame Novelist Project addresses the same topic, so it will be revisited.

After I reread that "Plot" chapter, I'll be moving on to the next featured author, Madeleine L'Engle.

Say True, Anne Lamott

I was reading a Powells.com interview with Anne Lamott today and found out about her sixth novel, Blue Shoe. Apparently it's about a mid-thirties woman who is raising children and caring for an ailing mother whom she's "still mad at." I must read this book.

The main character, Mattie, says, "It was not facing what life dealt that made you crazy, but rather trying to set life straight where it was unstraightenable."

This is the main crazymaking factor in my life and, I dare say, the life of my whole family on one side. Lamott always dishes up the good stuff, the real stuff. The stuff that makes a difference in life.

I'm going to the library very soon to check out Blue Shoe.

Tidbit, Tidbit, Tidbit! Say it Three Times Fast--Much Easier than Typing it the Same Amount of Times

Time for a tidbit about our December featured author.

Anne Lamott's first novel, Hard Laughter, was published when she was twenty-six years old. This is according to the blurb in the back of her book Bird by Bird. It sounds like she graduated from college and began to write in earnest. Of course it was not all as neat and tidy as that, she'd tell you.

In fact, she only felt like she had a real story to tell when her father began dying of brain cancer. That was when she wrote her first book which would be published a few years later.

What a hard thing to do. To search her soul and watch her father die and get it down on the page. My parents are not dying and I would still find it an almost impossible task to set down their true stories. Maybe I don't have the story to tell yet. I don't have a large enough blanket of optimism to protect me from what I see as the cold truth.

I admire Lamott's ability to write the truth even when it's not flattering and still produce a work of writing that helps people out of their darkness instead of pushing them further in. That's a gift.

Anne Lamott Month

If you're new to the No Shame Novelist Project, find out what it's all about here. Otherwise, read on for some of Anne Lamott's ideas about writing.

Her book Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life is hilarious and helpful at the same time. No one that I know of can tell an anecdote like Anne Lamott. It's a thin book, 237 pages, but it's chock full of good stuff. I hate to have to pick just a few points, but I must.

1. She says to get settled in and write at about the same time each day, so your mind becomes conditioned to doing the work at that time. Fine. During Michael Palmer Month (yesterday, in fact) I mentioned how that didn't seem to work for me. But if Lamott says so, I'll try it again. Nighttime. About 8:00 - 10:00.

2. Lamott gives herself short assignments when she sits down to write: Instead of sitting down to write a novel, she goes to work on a description of the setting in one scene or on one small event at a time. Sounds like something I already do.

3. A friend of hers told her that the first draft is for getting everything down, the second is for fixing everything up, and the third draft is for checking every last detail. I'm almost done with the getting everything down part. After that, I want to let the thing air out for a while before I try to fix it up. Most likely, I'll be starting on a new book, getting everything down again and not worrying about how bad it is--yet.

4. Lamott is adamant that plot comes from the characters. The writer should worry about the characters and their relationships (to themselves, each other, and their situation) instead of plannning a plot line. As readers (and writers), we must be able to believe the characters and believe what they do.

This means that when I start my next book, I won't be working from a detailed outline, even though I just posted about how the outlining technique worked for me. I'll be getting into my characters instead, letting them breathe and walk around and get into trouble.

5. And although I came up with five pages of notes just from re-browsing the book, this is the last piece of Lamott's advice I'll post today: Make space and stillness for the writing to happen. Rather than giving up after a few minutes of blank staring, give it some time. Let the writing come. I don't think Lamott is a fan of the just-sitting-down-to-the-computer- for-15-minutes-today scheme. Very good. I will follow her with full faith...for this month, at least.

[I'm adding one more commitment to my list. Anne Lamott acknowledges that there are days when we are almost completely empty, when the funk takes over and we have nothing to say. She recommends committing to a certain number of words per day so that on the truly blank days we can get those words down as a matter of practice and principle before quitting. Right now, I'm committing to 500 words a day. Even when my whole family is in town for Christmas and staying at our house. And if that really happens, it will be the first Christmas week that I've been able to work through. That's a goal almost as lofty as NaNoWriMo itself.]

Wrap-Up of Michael Palmer Month and National Novel Writing Month

It's December, which means I've completed two things: the month of following Michael Palmer's noveling advice and National Novel Writing Month.

Results: I wrote most days, mostly in the evening. I attribute that result to both Michael Palmer's advice and the fact that I only had the month of November to write 50,000 words if I wanted to win NaNoWriMo.

I wrote 50,301 words toward my novel, and I attribute almost all of that progress to NaNoWriMo and the encouragement and guilt trips from writing buddies. (Thanks, Aynne, Bill, and Eric!) Eighteen of the twenty-three current chapters of my book have been completed.

I also wrote a short story that I like. I find that when I have a lot on my plate, I eat a lot more. By that I meant to illustrate that a busy writing schedule spurs me to write even more than I scheduled. It is also a true statement when taken literally.

The outlining method used by Palmer was helpful to me. To clarify, I used a detailed outline that summarized the action in every chapter up to the final ones, which were left (tantalizingly?) spare. This kept me moving forward rather than looking back all the time at what I had already done. It also made me feel bored some days. But when I sat my butt down and wrote as fast as I could for good chunks of time, my characters took over for me and usually steered me in a slightly different direction. I let them. They're the real story. So I think I'll use this technique again.

On the days when I got the most done, I sat wherever the hell I wanted to at whatever time of day I could. Thus, I give Palmer's 8:00 - 10:00 pm writing schedule a tentative thumbs down. I should point out again that I'm not sure that's his actual writing schedule. I think I remember hearing it during an interview in which he described his busy days of doctoring, writing, and daddying.

After my son's bedtime, I know he won't interrupt me and I don't have to think about what he's getting into. That's the plus side of an evening writing schedule. The negative side is that I might easily settle into a movie or game with my honey after a long day of whatever it was a long day of.

I think Palmer's advice that every writer, even one without an agent or publisher, should write a proposal was good advice for me. I did end up with a stronger grasp of my story before I began it. More dimensions were added. It was a good thing.

The next month is Anne Lamott Month! Love her! If only she could stay at my house while we work through December. Tomorrow I'll post the Lamott suggestions that I'll be following. I own her book Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life, so I will be perusing that again along with some interviews.

Then, over the month of December, I'll fill in the final chapters of my gnome novel and let the draft rest for a while before getting into revision. While this one is resting, I'll start on the next book or short story.

Summary: Yay NaNo! Yay non-excessive outlining! Boo my desk/vanity table! Boo diaper-changing! (Just thought I'd throw that one in there.) Yay Lamott!

Where the ladies at? Right here!

I am going to post again today because: 1) I am excited, 2) I am taking a NaNo break, and 3) I didn't post last night so this will make up for it.

This year, NaNoWriMo has given me a precious gift. (The last two years, it gave me the gift of just over 50,000 words in one month, all typed by me! However, many of those words were suspect if not downright lame.) I followed the NaNoWriMo link to pep talks by famous authors, which led me to the blog of Deanna Raybourn, who I raved about two days ago. The outstanding pep talk by Sara Gruen mentioned Joshilyn Jackson. I've seen Jackson's name before, but this new sighting prompted me to read her blog. Wonderful irreverence! The funny comments on her blog led me to another author: Cornelia Read.

To sum up, NaNo has given me women to read! Yes, I adore Neil Gaiman and Tom Robbins and Stephen King and Douglas Adams, but come on, enough testicles already. The women I just mentioned are intelligent and entertaining storytellers and, unlike many of my favorite female authors, alive--and that's what I know just from reading their blogs! Now I must acquire and read all their books.

For handy reference so that you too can read all their books, here are the new women in my life:

Deanna Raybourn
Sara Gruen
Joshilyn Jackson
Cornelia Read
Oh, and Juliana Baggott! also of NaNoWriMo pep talk fame and author of The Anybodies Trilogy

How It's Working - Michael Palmer Month

Hmmmm. I want to be honest to the point of pain, if necessary. How's the plan working for me? How's Michael Palmer Month working for me?

The plan may benefit me more in the long term than the short term. My NaNoWriMo word count is suffering, although I like what I've done a hundred times more than the other NaNoWriMo drafts I've written. I feel like I'm spending too much time blogging and too little time getting on with the novel. On the other hand, I'm not likely to ditch this book in the middle of a rough spot, never to be heard from again. And I'm definitely not going to post a "hey-there-I-know-this-was-all-about-noveling-but- I'm-not-really-doing-that-anymore" update. I don't spend a large chunk of time writing the novel every night, but I do sit down to work on it most nights. That's a huge improvement in itself.

Now how's Michael Palmer Month working for me? It'll be easier to judge in hindsight. Right now, I'm pleased. After I went back to redo my outline in more detail a la Palmer, I had less trouble battling doubt in the middle of writing a paragraph. If a question popped up--Hey, what's she doing in this scene anyway? Wasn't she supposed to be at school? Is this summer?--I could find out the answer by looking at the outline and keep plugging away. Sure, sometimes the answer wasn't there and I really had forgotten about a contradiction of plot points, but I was less likely to want to scrap my whole book. I'm writing a little more slowly and a little more meticulously. It's slower than NaNo but I'm happy with what I've done.

With that said, if February rolls around and I haven't finished a full first draft, I'll be a lot less enchanted with the Palmer method.

Love for the Un-fantastic

Michael Palmer has written eleven books to hit The New York Times bestseller list.

He knows how to write medical thrillers. He knows how to impart just enough insider information about medicine to let people feel they're getting in behind the scenes. And he knows one particular style to write these thrillers.

I would never argue that he was one of the Great Authors, and I'm pretty sure he wouldn't disagree with me. He gives the reader a very specific experience the way that Janet Evanovich provides the specific type of story her fans look for.

It's fun to read books like that. You don't have to put your brain to work to follow where they take you.

I say this because on my list of (to-be-)Featured Authors, there are some I consider fantastic, inspiring writers, and some that competently write entertaining books. No matter which category they fall into, I believe they all have useful lessons to teach me.

P.S. I'm not too shy to say which featured authors strike me with the despair of knowing I can never do it like they do: L'Engle, King, Lewis, SARK. Feel free to disagree.

All the Palmers

If you ever look for biographical information on Michael Palmer like I did, make sure you've got the right one. One Michael Palmer is a poet and a Guggenheim Fellowship recipient. Another one is a painter and another an ecard artist. Imagine if we got them all together in one room and didn't let them out until they collaborated. We'd get some thrilling ecards out of it, not to mention pithy paintings. I'm really starting to think this is a good idea.

A Note on Author's Rights

As a freelance writer and aspiring novelist, the rights of authors are important to me. I want authors to be paid for their work and protected from plagiarism. In this blog, I intend to respect the authors I talk about by following the letter and the spirit of copyright law regarding fair use of written material. Fair use guidelines allow the use of other people's material for certain purposes, like parody, commentary, or criticism. Whether or not anything new is created through the use of the material is particularly important. (Here's a good summary of fair use from Stanford University.)

So when I summarize advice from writers whose books I've bought or whose websites I've visited, I'll be careful not to reveal a substantial portion of their materials. I won't be quoting their words to excess. And I'll be pointing you in the direction of their books and websites so you can read more of what they have to say.

Oh, the picture is just for fun. If only my son were still young enough to be propped up next to me while I work.