On Writing

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    A different point of view …

    On Saturday, I got the chance to hear novelist Stephen Hunter talk at the Bristol Public Library. Hunter writes action-adventure/thriller types books about a sniper named Bob Lee Swagger, among other colorful characters.

    I always like to go and hear authors talk just because everybody has different inspirations and different processes. It’s always good to listen to a different point of view. And Hunter was very funny, which always helps. I loved the way he described one of his books — as being full of meetings and gun fights. Who doesn’t love a good gun fight? 😉

    One of the most interesting things Hunter talked about were the skills that a writer needs. He talked about how writers need to be able to work with words, to avoid cliches, and to know what words will make a sentence sing — without putting too many words in it and having it fall flat. He also talked about how writers need to be able to see the big picture — how every scene falls in with the overall flow and the story arc(s) of the book.

    These are things that I’m thinking about more and more these days. Is a scene necessary? Does it advance the story the way that I want it to? Is crucial information revealed? Does it pack an emotional punch?

    I don’t necessarily think that every sentence in a book needs to be a great one. Because, let’s face it, that’s just not going to happen. If you want realistic dialogue, you’re going to have to write some ordinary sentences because that’s just how people talk – “Okay,” he said. “I’ll call her right now.” Not the most interesting sentence, but it is what someone might say in a given situation — and it does advance the action.

    But I do think that every overall scene needs to be important and advance the story. It’s kind of like juggling, I suppose. You start out with all these balls in the air, then, one by one, you decide which ones to keep in your act and which ones to throw away.

    Anyway, those are my deep thoughts for Monday. Enjoy the rest of your day!

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    Amazon and other fails …

    I don’t know if you’ve been following all the talk about Amazon deranking books, but Dear Author and Smart Bitches have some interesting commentary up, as usual, and lots of links to other sites. So go forth and read, if you want.

    Whenever I hear stories about something like this or even horror stories about authors behaving badly, I always wonder what people were thinking. Seriously. Did Amazon think no one was going to notice what they were doing? Did they think the authors and publishers affected wouldn’t complain?

    The same thing goes for authors behaving badly. Yeah, we all get bad reviews and snarky comments. But posting your own snarky comments and arguing with reviewers or telling your fans to attack them or whatever isn’t going to help you any.

    Because someone somewhere is going to find your comments and bad behavior on the World Wide Web and point them out. Other people will see this and blog about it. And then, it’s going to go viral and be everywhere. And then, you’re going to look like the dumbass you are.

    And it’s not just Amazon or authors or folks on the Internet. I work at a newspaper, and you wouldn’t believe the calls we get just for reporting the news. Seriously. I’ve gotten calls about everything from my poor grammar skills (one guy told me I needed to take an English class) to those who wonder why we put so much bad news in the paper. Um, well, because the economy’s in the crapper right now, and it’s hurting a lot of people.

    Sigh. Can’t we all just get along? :rolleyes:

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    ‘Tis done … for now

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    So I finished writing/editing/polishing my young-adult fantasy, Quiver, this weekend. Now, it’s time to send it to my agent to read.

    Quiver word count: 74,000. I’m not quite sure if this is the right length for a YA or not. I’ve been reading some YA lately, and it seems to me like the length varies wildly from book to book. I wonder if maybe Quiver needs to be a little longer — 85,000 words or so. But then again, I didn’t want to bog the story down with needless description. 

    We’ll see what my agent says. She might tell me that the story sucks out loud and that it’s not even the sort of thing editors are buying right now.

    Up next? Well, I think I’m going to write a contemporary romance while my agent reads Quiver and another proposal I’ve sent her. I’ve already got my title in mind — Blackberry Falls.

    I’ve never written a contemp before, but I’ve been wanting to try ever since I read Sugar Daddy by Lisa Kleypas. If you haven’t read Sugar Daddy, do yourself a favor and go out and buy it. Yes, it is that good. 😉

    What about you guys? Anyone working on anything interesting right now? Share in the comments.

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    Just a reminder …

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    That I’ll be doing a Q&A on writing and signing books tonight, April 13, starting at 7 p.m. at the Bristol Public Library in Bristol, Va. The event should last about an hour or so and is part of the library’s celebration of National Library Week, April 12-18.

    Even if you can’t come to my event, I hope you’ll go to your local library this week and check out all the wonderful books and programs that the library has to offer. And be sure to tell your librarians how awesome they are. Because they really do rock.

    Especially you, Super-Librarian Amy! :ww: