Category Archives: Writing is Life

I love a bad boy. Love. I’ve written some great ones, my favorite being in a series of books that shall  never see the light of day…I think. I always redeem them in the end, because not only am I a sucker for bad boys, I’m a sucker for redemption. But I have a problem, and I blame my husband for it.

Writing the bad boy is fun, but he’s always a secondary character in my worlds. My main protags tend to be those noble heroes who always come through, and that’s why I blame my husband, because he’s who I love, and who he is–a noble hero. He has spent his life in service of others, always thinking first of what’s right for all, not just right for him. He is by no means perfect; gads that would bore the hell out of me. But Frankie D is a hero. He’s my hero. And he ends up in all my stories.

All my stories but this one…

I’m working on Waking Savannah the third Bitterly Suite Romance. From the start, Adelmo Gallegos–my male protag–was to be a bad boy. He’s a player who’s been played, bigtime, and hiding out in the relative anonymity of Bitterly, CT. He’s not a bad guy. He’s charming. He doesn’t set out to hurt people, but he’s not opposed to using them either. Problem is, though I started out with that in mind, he became the noble hero somewhere along the way, always saying the right thing, doing the right thing, putting others ahead of himself. (Dammit, Frank!) I ended up going back to page one and giving him a POV, as a way to get more of him into it.

Just like I knew I wanted him to be a bad boy, I knew I wanted him redeemed. This is a romance, after all. Giving him a POV helped, but it wasn’t completely cutting it. I was redeeming him way too fast. Farts. I went back to page one again, and magic happened.

I hadn’t boffed the first draft like I thought I did. On the contrary. It’s all there, just as it needs to be. What wasn’t there were the little nuances to show his evolution from faking it, to being sincere.

Ade’s scenes are not going to change much. His interactions with Savannah–my female protag–will remain largely the same. It’s the internal bits and pieces that will change. He’s a charmer, and she’s been alone a long time. Her vulnerability is, in part, what helps him to evolve, to become the person she believes he is. It’s that nuance I’m missing, that evolution from faking it to sincerity.

I started filling in those pieces this morning, and I’m finally out of noble-hero-mode and into bad-boy. Whew! Sometimes, it takes some wrestling to get my thoughts and intentions to align with fast-flying-fingers working somewhat on automatic.

I am fortunate. This I know. In all the years I’ve been writing, I’ve never lacked for a plotline, the time or the drive to develop it into a novel. I never have fewer than two ideas waiting for their turn in the spotlight. Again, I’m fortunate enough to have the time to go along with the imagination–something I never feel the need to justify, or would dare to squander. That’s why I write everyday.

The  original spark for Seeking Carolina started with a writing-group prompt a couple of years ago. The scenario was, “What do you do when someone else gets what you wanted most?” Up popped Johanna and her sisters, and the locket they were all promised. Once again during writing group, the very-talented Renee Paley-Bain told us that she needs to get her hands in the dirt. Gardening is her solace and inspiration…and up popped Benny, the young widow in Dreaming August, who plants a graveyard garden and talks to ghosts. Discussing with my son how awesome it would be to, one day, live in an old-folks-home populated by writers sparked Traegar’s Lunatics, a novel unconnected to any of the others; I can’t wait to write it, but I have to finish Waking Savannah, the third book in The Bitterly Suite, as well as write the fourth, Being Charlotte. Then, thought I, would be the old-writers-home book…maybe. Because last week, while reading the latest edition of RWR (Romance Writer’s Report,) most specifically, the article about series work, a new novel was born.

There are plusses and minuses to writing in a series. A minus is getting pigeon-holed, being stuck writing in one place, with one basic set of characters, because that’s what your readers want. Well, readers wanting more is fabulous, of course, but writing in the same place for too long begins to lose its shine–especially when one is writing about a small town. The antidote for that, the article said, could be a spin-off series…spark!

Out popped Tabitha, foil for a grown-up Caleb, who appeared in The Bitterly Suite as an incidental character. The bakery first introduced in Seeking Carolina is located in Cape May, New Jersey, a gorgeous little sea-coast, Victorian town. Bitterly, Connecticut and all her locals are still present, though nebulously. Transplanting Caleb to Cape May brings both series together, while giving me a new world to write in. Now, Charlotte and Peter’s story is no longer Being Charlotte but Cape Maybe, first in the Bitterly’s Bachelors series, followed by Caleb and Tabitha in Wayward Point, and Will and Vanessa in Ocean’s Edge. Once the first novel melds The Bitterly Suite to Bitterly’s Bachelors, I can move away from the Bitterly completely and settle in Cape May. How cool is that?? I’m pretty stoked.

Never lacking for a story is a wonderful thing; keeping focused on one while the others nudge you in the back isn’t quite as wonderful, but it’s still pretty fabulous. I never know when inspiration is going to strike, but I love when it does. What about you? Where does your inspiration come from?

I was so anticipating weekly posts here on Modesty is for Suckers, and while I did okay for a few weeks, I’ve slacked off. Oh, so many reasons why from my son’s illness to exciting writerly goings-on to the holidays; and yet here we are, almost February. My son’s illness resolved, the writing going smoothly, the holidays long gone, and hardly a peep out of me. So..peep, peep!

On the writing front, there is fabulous news most who actually follow this blog out of love and loyalty already know. For posterity’s sake, I’ll post it up anyway: I signed another two-book contract with Kensington/Lyrical to publish what were formerly titled Walk with Dreams, and Unremembered Wings, books two and three in The Bitterly Suite. Formerly? Why, yes, formerly, because the powers that be weren’t mad about my artsy titles, taken from a poem, from which I lifted chapter headings for the books.

“I really like the title SEEKING CAROLINA but I’m not as crazy about the above titles, so please just mention to the author the possibility of changing them.  I wonder if each title could be SEEKING “Something”? ”

I saw his point immediately. From a marketing standpoint, you want the titles in a series to go together in a recognizable way. Because “Seeking Carolina” can have a dual meaning, I thought, “Well, ok. Then how about Seeking August, and Seeking Savannah?” They both do the same thing, carry the possiblilty of two meanings. In each case, they are names of characters within the story, as well as linked to the month and place. But…meh. I didn’t hate the titles, but I didn’t love them either. They seemed so lacking in creativity, and they smacked of lazy marketing. Over the course of a few days, I came up with titles I liked better–Dreaming August, and Waking Savannah.

Seeking, dreaming, waking–they go so well together, and do what the powers wanted them to do, just more creatively. My fabulous editor, Penny Barber, submitted the request and it was approved! Woohoo! Huzzah! Hip-hip-horray! And now I have the name of my fourth book in The Bitterly Suite–one not yet sold but planned in a more nebulous way–Being Charlotte.

A fine progression, if I do say so meself. I am not absolutely certain I’m going to write the fourth one. I have a whole new beastie bumping about in my head, as well as a fantasy novel that needs to be finished. I’ve woven in threads leading to book four through books 2 and 3, and I’ve an outline, so it would be a shame not to. If my publisher wants the fourth book, I will provide it. With books coming out in October of this year, March of 2016 and September 2016, I’d say there’s plenty of time to decide, on both our parts.

A friend put this up today, on the other blog I do with a group of authors, Heroines of Fantasy

“Here’s to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently. They’re not fond of rules. And they have no respect for the status quo. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them. About the only thing you can’t do is ignore them. Because they change things. They push the human race forward. And while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do.”
― Apple Inc.

Though the magic of the internet can’t tell me if this is actually an Apple construct or Jack Kerouac, whoever wrote it, I love it. I have many, many quotes on the walls of my house, in a notebook, tattooed somewhere on my person, but this is one of my all-time favorite quotes, by the amazing Ray Bradbury.

“If you want to write, if you want to create, you must be the most sublime fool that God ever turned out and sent rambling. You must write every single day of your life. You must read dreadful dumb books and glorious books, and let them wrestle in beautiful fights inside your head, vulgar one moment, brilliant the next. You must lurk in libraries and climb the stacks like ladders to sniff books like perfumes and wear books like hats upon your crazy heads. I wish you a wrestling match with your Creative Muse that will last a lifetime. I wish craziness and foolishness and madness upon you. May you live with hysteria, and out of it make fine stories — science fiction or otherwise. Which finally means, may you be in love every day for the next 20,000 days. And out of that love, remake a world.”

What about you?

On the ever-wise Facebook last week, I saw a meme going around–What is your word for 2015? Nothing popped out at me in any clarifying ah-ha! moment. 2014 was a crazy, tragic, yet wonderful year. It started out with major upheaval for my beloved Hadley Rille Books, upheaval that had me scrambling to figure out how to run a small press when I didn’t even have passwords for any of the accounts. With the help of my Hadley Rille Books family, and the associated entities we work with, I figured it out. WE figured it out, and held the fort quite competently.

During that time of upheavalishly figuring things out, my life was consumed with all things HRB. I needed something outside of it, and so wrote my first contemporary romantic fiction. It was nothing short of breathtaking–magical, even. I started Seeking Carolina in February, finished it in May, and sold it in June (to Lyrical, the newest imprint of Kensington Publishing.) I’ve since written another book for the series, and am at work on yet a third. Let’s hope Lyrical wants them!

2014 also saw my son’s ongoing medical issues get worse, and then infinitely better. Infinitely. After years of life-saving but mind-numbing medication, he is coming off all of them one at a time, and his amazing personality and brilliant mind are finally freed. It is a daily joy, seeing him be HIM, in ways he hasn’t been able to be in almost ten years.

2014 was a year of being responsible for things outside my own, personal world. Between Hadley Rille Books and my son’s medical stuff, I’ve dedicated a good portion of my time. Combine that with my writing group, my reading group and my family at large, and it’s amazing that I’ve gotten as much writing done as I have. But it’s all a bit of a blur. Sheer will got it done. 2015 is going to be different. I don’t want to force myself though my life. I want to experience it.

So I’m streamlining. That’s my word for the year. Streamline. With my stint at running a small press no longer a necessity, I’m going to back off and let the pieces fall together in whatever fashion they will. I am editing two books this year, no more. Editing, not producing and getting out to press. If my book club chooses a book I really have no interest in reading, I’m not going to read it. This, “I must read all book club books” mentality has to go. It’s keeping me from the many books I have been dying to read. Life is too short, and reading time too limited, to waste on stuff that doesn’t tickle my fancy.

I am going to learn the word “No,” and hold it as precious as I do “Modesty is for suckers.” I am going to stop being the mom of every group I encounter. I am going to streamline my life so that I can be IN it instead of flying somewhere above it, hoping to catch up. Call this my resolution, call it my goal; whatever it is–streamline–it’s my word for 2015. What’s yours?

Hope to raise a few grins with this one. 🙂

Stage 1: Denial
This story is awesome. My hipster ballerina who fights crime with her indestructable tutu and her magic finger is like no other heroine I’ve ever seen. Screw the sparkly vampires. THIS is going to be the next new thing! My crit group just doesn’t get me. And I just know that new chick is going to steal my idea. I’d better copyright this story pronto! I’m only getting rejected because I’m an unknown writer–but how can I become known if no one will give me a chance? The publishing industry is just so unfair. I’m going to play World of Warcraft.

Stage 2: Anger
Writing sucks. No one understands me. Why is he getting published when I can’t even get a decent rejection? My stuff is just as good. So my grammer isn’t always perfect? What the hell are agents and publishers looking for, anyway? A good story? Or good grammer!? My story is f**king amazing! It’s ridiculous that I can’t get anyone to work with me on this. Fine! When I finally do get published, I’m going to make sure all the idiots who rejected me know what they missed out on. They’ll be sorry, just like all those publishers in England are sorry they didn’t take Harry Potter! A couple hours of WoW will make me feel better.

Stage 3: Bargaining
Form rejections suck. If I can have one personalized rejection, I’ll write a new story. Just one. Is that so much to ask? I’ll tell you what I won’t do. I’m not going to write another new word until I sell my hipster ballerina story. Not one word, do you hear me? Why would I waste the time on something new if I can’t sell the old one? It’s just logic. And don’t start the, “why don’t you try revising” crap. This is what I wrote, the way I wrote it. It stays. I’ll be playing WoW until my demands are met.

Stage 4: Depression
I am never going to be published. Why do I even bother trying? The publishing world is against me. I don’t know the right people. Hell, who am I kidding? I suck. My story sucks. Any future story I write is going to suck even worse. I’m an embarrassment to the word writer. I can’t even claim to be a scribbler! Scribbling is too good for me. My toddler has better grammer. My dog barks better dialog than I can write. Why was I even born!? Oh, yeah…to play World of Warcraft.

Stage 5: Acceptance
I’m never going to be published if I don’t improve those things getting me rejected. I have to learn how to spell the word grammer–erm, grammar–before I can even hope to understand the many concepts that make the written language the thing of beauty I aspire to create. I have to write, and rewrite until my work is the best I can make it, and if it’s still not right, I have to do it again. I have to keep my mind and ears open, really listen to those who know more about the craft than I currently do. I have to believe in myself, my talents, my stories. I have to write what’s inside instead of trying to catch a wave, or start a new one. Most of all, I have to sit my ass down in a chair and write. THEN I can play WoW…just for a little while.

*Elisabeth Kübler-Ross introduced this model in her book, On Death and Dying, 1969.
Note–I have nothing against World of Warcraft. I’ve never played. In its place, you can insert ANY activity you do instead of using the time to write.

Characters, whether the novel itself is character or plot driven, are a book’s best assets. Through them, we see the story, the setting, the conflicts, the tragedies and the triumphs. Toned down to props or larger than life, characterization is crucial to any work of fiction.

There are many ways to draw effective characters. These are simply the most basic points.

1: Dialogue. Internal, external, dialogue is tied for the most important part of creating a character. Giving a character his own voice, a distinct, easily recognizable voice, is crucial. For example, same gist, worded differently:

“I didn’t do nothing! It was Jaybird what did it!”

-vs-

“I did no such thing, for pity’s sake. It must have been your no-account cousin, Jay.”

You get quite a different image for each, no? Simply by the way they speak.

2: Tied in with dialogue is how your character responds to situations. Is she given to fight? Or flight? Does your character speak out? Or speak when spoken to? Is he a clown in large gatherings, yet quiet in small groups? How a character behaves is as important as how a character speaks.

3: What is your character’s story? Character needs to grow out of a sense of place. Setting plays a huge role in Oliver Twist’s character. There are plenty of wretched orphans in literature, but where Oliver comes from creates who he is. Where do your characters come from? Rich or poor? Loved or abandoned? City or country? Knowing these things will give you insight to his dreams, her fears, and how they came to be dreams and fears. Your character’s story will tell you how she will react to the plot you throw at her.

4: Names. What you name your character will set a tone your reader may never be aware is being set. Does the name have a short sound? A hard sound? A long, luxurious sound? Does this sound work to cement your character’s traits, or contradict? For example: Giladriel is lovely, lyrical, cultured. The sound of her name fits her character. Frodo is a Hobbit–sturdy, practical, short and to the point. Yup, fits the name. But what if the character of Giladriel was instead called, Gertrude? And what if Frodo Baggins was Beauregard Gardersmythe? See what I mean? Whether you name your characters appropriately, ironically, purposely contradictive, even invisibly, know why you’ve named your character as you have. You will know more about your character, and be better able to show that to the reader.

5: Description (IMO, the least important part of characterization.) We need a few details of what the character looks like–blond, short, stocky, a wonky eye. Unless their physical appearance lends something to the story, keep them as nondescript as possible. Captain Hook’s hook is part of the story, part of his character, but the exact shade of his eyes really isn’t.

Each one of these simple steps will lead you into another, more subtle aspect of characterization. Just remember–writers, can never know too much about their character; a reader can. As much as you love knowing that your character got her first kiss after rolling down a hill with her best friend, if it doesn’t pertain to the plot, your reader isn’t going to miss it.

Don’t eat caramel apples when you have a loose crown.

I learned this lesson long ago, after biting into a caramel apple knowing, like Snow White and her fateful apple, it would end in disaster. Why? Oh, I don’t know. Why do any of us step onto that pretty path, knowing it’s the wrong one to tread? Is it the exhilaration of tempting the Fates? Thinking maybe, this once, they won’t be looking?

It seems to be a recurring theme in writer-world–one I’ve fallen into time and again. In fact, I did it recently with the novel I’m working on Walk With Dreams. “You’re going too far with this plotpoint, Terri!” I heard my inner-editor murmur. She didn’t speak loudly enough when she should have hit me with a 2 x 4. I ended up delete-delete-deleting.

D’oh! If you suspect that what you’re doing is going to lead you into peril–Don’t do it!

“Oh, look at the shiny plot bunny!” Don’t do it!

“I’m going to switch around the motives of my protag and antag in the middle of the book! What a killer twist that would be! Don’t do it!

“I’m continuing with my story about Lucas Moonwalker, an orphaned boy seeking his destiny, and the half-man, half-machine villain who is really his father. I’ve never seen Star Wars. It’s not copying if I’ve never seen it.” Don’t do it!

“I’m going to nudge that agency I sent my manuscript to last week. They’ve had it long enough.” Don’t do it.

“Ooo, look! A hairpin. Ooo, look! An electrical socket. I wonder what’ll happen if…ZAP!” Don’t do it!

Though I used to do it quite a bit, I’ve learned to recognize it and back away from the electrical socket sooner, rather than later. When I did it with A Time Never Lived, ended up with 30K words of a manuscript in the recycle bin. With this last time, only about 2K words ended up wasted time–but it was still a day of writerly-time I’ll never get back.

Many writers hate deleting work so much that they won’t do it at all, and end up going in circles. I betcha dollars to donuts that most stalled work has more to do with a plotline winding out of control and an author unwilling to ditch it than anything else. I am the queen of delete, I have to say. It doesn’t bother me to toss a week’s worth of work into the recycle bin. Ok, that’s a lie–it does bother me, but I do it anyway.

Do you? Can you?