Tag Archives: writing

Michael Hauge’s Six-Stage Plot Structure

Posted on May 17, 2012 by | 6 Comments

When I was offered a two-book deal in April, I was both thrilled and terrified. Thrilled the editor loved my story enough to buy it, and terrified she wanted the sequel, which hasn’t been written yet. Yikes! I’m such a slow writer. How am I going to get this book done in six months when it took years to finish the others?

Frankly, I learned two things: (A) Fear is a great motivator. And (B) I needed structure. No more wasting time writing, rewriting, and polishing scenes or chapters that only ended up getting changed or deleted altogether because the story veered off in a different direction. I had to know my plot, my character arcs, and what direction the story was headed from the moment I sat down to write. But what tool would help me do all that?

Hello, Michael Hauge’s Six-Stage Plot Structure.

I took out my notes from Michael Hauge’s workshop at last year’s RWA nationals and read what he had to say about character arcs and plotting. The following are my notes taken from his workshop, as well as his website and YouTube videos. I hope it helps you as much as it helped me. (It enabled me to clearly outline an entire 100,000 word story in only three weeks. My editor gave her approval the next day to start writing it with no suggested changes. Woo hoo!)

A character arcs when he moves from his identity to essence.

Identity = emotional armor (facade) worn to protect himself from some wound.

Essence = who the character is when the emotional armor is stripped. True self.

What is your hero’s wound? From the wound grows a fear. This fear gives IDENTITY (emotional armor) to the character.

The character should have a physical goal, but that goal is primarily a symbol. It represents an emotional need (the true goal). The end reward must satisfy the character’s emotional need.

The only way the character can get to his longing (his emotional need) is to step out of his IDENTITY (emotional armor) and into his ESSENCE (true self).

Once you’ve established your hero’s WOUND, FEAR, IDENTITY, ESSENCE, EMOTIONAL NEED and PHYSICAL OUTER GOAL, we can move onto The Six Stage Plot Structure. Note: Stages are the Inner Journey. Since I write romance, I’ve included two Inner journeys–one for the hero and one for the heroine. Turning Points are the Outer Journey (the physical goal).

Stage I – Set up: Living fully within Identity (facade)

  • Heroine:
  • Hero:

First Turning Point – Opportunity: Change from stable to unstable world

Stage II – The New Situation: This is where we…

  • Glimpse the hero’s essence (true self):
  • Glimpse the heroine’s essence (true self):
  • Introduce Nemesis:
  • Introduce Reflection character: (sidekick, mentor, partner who helps hero achieve outer goal)

Second Turning Point – Change of Plans: Something happens that makes the hero realize he must do “this” (a specific, visible, established goal).

Stage III - Progress: Moving towards Essence without leaving identity. Hero/ Heroine makes a plan to accomplish goal, which seems to be working until…TP3.

  • Heroine:
  • Hero:

Third Turning Point - Point of No Return: (in a romance this could also be the 1st kiss/date/sex) traveler is closer to destination than origin. Hero is so committed to his goal that there is no turning back. Character has changed so much she can’t go back to who she was at the beginning.

Stage IV – Complications and Higher Stakes: Fully committed to Essence but growing fear. It’s more important to achieve goal, but more difficult. There is more to lose than “failure,” they will lose their Destiny.

  • Heroine:
  • Hero:

Fourth Turning Point - Black Moment: All is lost (H/H will never be together)

Stage V – Final Push: Last attempt to achieve goal or die trying. Living one’s truth (ESSENCE) with everything to lose.

  • Heroine:
  • Hero:

Fifth Turning Point – Climax: Turns everything back to stability. “Wins”

Stage VI – Aftermath: The Journey complete. Destiny achieved.

  • Heroine:
  • Hero:

For more information on Michael Hauges Six-Stage Plot structure, please visit his website at www.Storymastery.com. If you will be at the RWA national Conference in Anaheim, CA this July, be sure to attend his workshop!

~K.M. Fawcett

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The Value of Editing: An Editor’s View

Posted on April 23, 2012 by | 5 Comments

We’re please to have Denise Nielsen join us here today. Denise is an editor with Carina Press. She is also Melinda’s and my editor. Welcome Denise, we’re thrilled to have you.

*****

There has never been a better, more exciting time to be a writer. E-readers are growing in popularity and the world of publishing is exploding with new opportunities to see those books you’ve toiled so hard over get into the hands of readers. But whether you submit your polished manuscript to an agent or a publisher, or whether you decide indie publishing is for you, there is one step that all writers need to take seriously.

Editing.

I buy, on average, 10 books a month, both e- and print versions, both indie and traditionally published, and in all sorts of genres. And as a reader, nothing is more likely to turn me off a book—or an author—than something that is consistently badly written.

Because I am a book editor, working with the fabulous authors who choose to publish through Carina Press, perhaps it is natural that I think editing is crucial. But talk to other published writers and I would bet most of them will tell you the same thing: an edited book is a better book.

So what value does an editor bring to a book?

It’s not just about the grammar and spelling – you’d be surprised how many people think that.  As an editor that is just the last step in a long process. The first thing I do is look for manuscripts that I love, that I engage with, that I am excited by. They don’t have to be perfect, but they do have to have believable characters and voice.

If we decide to publish your book, that is when the editing really starts. Your book will go through a series of edits: developmental edits where we look at the overall work and ensure it all fits together; line edits where we go through line by line and word by word to make sure the best words are used in the most effective places; and copy edits where books are reviewed for grammar and spelling, syntax, and conformity with our style manuals.

The goal of all these edits is to take your manuscript from a great story to a great book. There are three primary goals that I strive to achieve.

  1. Balance: Your finished book is a labor of love. But we all sometimes have blind spots when it comes to the things we love. You might not notice non sequiturs that distract readers, or characters that say one thing and do another. As the author you know your book so well and probably don’t even see plot holes, or places where the hero’s motivation for doing something doesn’t quite make sense. An editor will look at your book’s plot and characters to make sure the information flow of the story works. Part of this is streamlining—taking out information that is unnecessary and playing with the story to ensure pacing is consistent—but the overall aim is to keep the story front and center so that the reader is pulled along into the world you have created.
  2. Depth: Why do characters act the way they do? Why did you have this event happen? And why did it happen here? These are some of the questions I might ask an author as I am reading. My job is to make sure there is depth to your story because depth gives meaning. This is also where I check facts to ensure the story has credibility. I might ask you to expand on a character, or even—in some cases—suggest that you change a character to make them more believable, more likeable, more edgy…take your pick of adjectives. Believe me, we don’t do this arbitrarily, but always with purpose and always bearing in mind the vision you have for your book.
  3. Polish: You’ve already done the hard work, the creative work. Together we have achieved balance and depth. Now we want to work with you to polish your story. Every word, every sentence, every paragraph should move your story forward in the best possible way. There should be no loose ends, no missed opportunities. Your words should be well chosen and precise and exactly right for each character and each scene without being overdone.

When you have balance, depth and polish, you have a good book. A book that flows well, that is fresh and that is true to your original voice. A book that you can be proud to publish.

Denise Nielsen is a freelance acquisition editor for Carina Press. She is open to submissions and is particularly keen to acquire new manuscripts in the contemporary, historical, gothic, and steampunk genres. Follow her on Twitter @denielsen or check out her Facebook Page Editor Denise Nielsen.

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Happiness is Validation – I sold!

Posted on April 16, 2012 by | 13 Comments

Two weeks ago, my agent, Michelle Grajkowski, of the 3 Seas Literary Agency sold my first book (a sci-fi romantic thriller) to Grand Central Publishing’s new digital imprint, Forever Yours. Thank you, Michelle! :)

I still can’t believe it! After eight years of writing, learning my craft and the business, and then submitting and receiving those dreaded rejections, I am finally going to see my story in print.

:D Happiness is validation. :D

All the hard work, blood, sweat and tears (yes there have been a few over the years. What can I say? I’m a sensitive martial artist) have finally paid off. Someone not related to me loves my story as much as Michelle and I do. In fact, they love it so much they’re willing to pay me for it!

And if that wasn’t exciting enough, my editor, Lauren Plude, wants the sequel. That really blows my mind. I can understand her wanting a book she’s read, but she wants a book I haven’t even written yet! I’m honored and thrilled that she enjoyed my writing and story enough to want more.

But I must admit, I’m also nervous about writing and delivering book two to her in nine months. I’ve never had a deadline before. So I got out the calendar and figured out what I needed to do each month, and how many words I must write per week in order to have this book done on time. I feel better having a plan. Of course, I probably haven’t thought of everything I needed to add to the calendar.

It’s strange being a newbie all over again, but I wouldn’t trade it for the world. I am incredibly excited to learn what happens now, after the sale, and to go through the stages of making a book. And most of all, I can’t wait to see my name on the cover of the finished product, which hopefully will be available at the end of the year. We’re aiming for a Nov/ Dec publication date.

I want to give a big shout-out thank you to my awesome critique partners, beta readers, contest judges, law enforcement officers who answered my questions, and of course my agent for helping me get this book ready to sell. Thank you Amy Pierpont and Lauren Plude for loving this story as much as I do! I look forward to working with you.

Thank you Attacking The Page community for sharing in my joy. If you have any advice for me, please let me know in the comment section.

~K.M. Fawcett

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My Scrivener Update

Posted on April 9, 2012 by | 2 Comments

I promised an update on my switch from manual story-boarding to the oh-so-organized Scrivener.  I started my new project on the new software two weeks ago.  And got absolutely nowhere with it.

My lack of progress was only partly due to the software, which has excellent capabilities but felt very cumbersome to me.

Corkboard was awesome. I love the way it interacts with the document.  My story-board and desk are always a complete mess by the time hit the middle of a book. Unfortunately, corkboard was the only thing I liked about Scrivener. Maybe it was the PC version, but the software was annoyingly laggy on both my desktop and my brand new laptop.  I’d type a sentence, but the words wouldn’t appear on the screen for a second or two.  This drove me crazy.

Next, I assumed that sticking the basics wouldn’t involve much of a learning curve, and that only advanced features would be difficult. I was wrong. Doing any sort of formatting was overly complicated.  I’d need to take a course or buy a book and devote several weeks to learning how to use the program. Keep in mind that I’m a geek. I alter the CSS stylesheet of my WordPress website. The formatting difficulties made my document appear messy. This also drove me nuts. Yes, I realize I sound very, uhm, particular, but I like to look at a tidy document. I like a certain font. I like to know exactly how many pages I’ve written, etc. What can I say. I am what I am.

OK, now here’s the weirdest thing. Frankly, I missed my color-coded note cards. I missed scribbling on them. I missed pinning them up on my story-board. The electronic experience just wasn’t the same as shuffling through the cards manually or moving them around on the wall board. Maybe it’s the tactile experience or the movement involved, but the virtual corkboard didn’t prompt my brain activity the same way.

All in all, during the first two weeks of working on my newest book, I wrote very little. Since switching back to my sloppy and seemingly chaotic but actually very organized system, I’ve roughly outlined the first three chapters, from inciting incident to first turning point. I’ve also identified the mid-point and defined much of the resolution. (The book’s climax was always clear.)

So, I know many, many people who LOVE Scrivener, but it’s not for me. I’m back to scribbling on index cards and appreciating them more than ever.

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Looking for Action

Posted on April 1, 2012 by | Leave a comment

Passive voice. It’s every writer’s enemy. If you’ve ever had to write book reports or term papers with any degree of regularity, the telling style of writing is something that is hammered into you. With the analysis type papers we write in school it’s all about tell, tell, tell. Writing in passive voice can become so automatic we slip into it in our fiction. All that manages to do is create a very slow ,tedious read.

Fiction writing is all about the active voice. We want to show not tell so that our readers are in the action, seeing it unfold. Writing inactive voice is all about crafting the scene so that it comes to life in the readers mind.  We don’t want narrators to run amok explaining the events that unfold.  After all, this is a book not a dissertation. With that being said, I’m going to use an excerpt from my current WIP to demonstrate my point and give you a before and after shot.

The Original Scene

Thank god for decent night vision, Adrian thought as he navigated his way to the suite’s bathroom. Lee slept soundly and he didn’t want to turn on a bright room light and awaken him. Closing the door behind him, he flipped on the bathroom light revealing a sizable room that had black granite counters and floor tiles, a jacuzzi tube that could fit three people, and a little alcove for the toilet. He took a minute to study himself in the mirror that covered the wall from counter top to ceiling and stared in amused wonder at the variety of markings that Leland had left on his body. Lee had always been a territorial sort. He used the bathroom, then exited to go check in with North since he’d been out of touch all afternoon. The blow came out of the darkness. He heard the rustle of clothing mere moments before the blow landed and was able to deflect the first blow, but didn’t react in time to completely block the second. The knife his attacker wielded sliced his forearm. Pain radiated up Adrian’s arm from the slice, in the at instance he knew something wasn’t right. 

Rather blah if I do say so myself. Lots of telling, internalization, and unnecessary description.  I’m telling the reader about the action instead of putting the reader in the middle of it. The scene was full of he felt, he saw, he heard. All of this is telling which distances the reader from the story and slows the overall pace. That’s certainly not something that you want especially not when it’s building toward a fight scene and you really don’t want to slow the pacing of the actual fight scene with telling. Now try the scene again after two rounds of rewrites.

The Edited Version

“Thank  god for decent night vision.” Adrian padded to the suite’s bathroom. The hinges gave a soft squeak and he cringed, frozen in place. He glanced back over his shoulder toward the king sized bed. Lee’s face stayed buried in the pillow. Adrian let out the breath he’d been holding. He really didn’t want to dive into round two of messed up relationship discussions. Sleeping with Lee wasn’t one of his better ideas, but once Lee had kissed him he couldn’t have stopped if he’d wanted.

He eased the door shut and flipped on the lights, squinting as the over bright blast assailed his eyes. He took a minute to study himself in the mirror that covered half of the wall.

“Damn Lee,” he murmured. The cold granite pressed into his stomach as he leaned in to the counter as he poked at the variety of markings that Leland had left on his body. “I look like the victim of a vacuum run amok.”  He turned trying to get a look at the injury on his back. No more pain, but the flesh remained a bit raw and pink.

 He used the bathroom, then washed up. He needed to call Chris. He hadn’t checked in all afternoon. He eased the door open and reached to flick off the light, as he did a rustle of fabric caught his attention. He whirled in time to see the glint of a blade as it arced toward him. He deflect the first strike, but he didn’t react in time to completely block the second . The knife his attacker wielded sliced his forearm.

“Leland. Grab your phone and get the hell out of here. Now!” He yelled. His strength seemed to wane and an odd tingling sensation grew with every blow he landed. Something wasn’t right.

See the difference? Instead of telling you what Adrian heard, you’re hearing it with him,  feeling his emotions with him, etc. I’ve also sped up the pacing, made the scene flow better,  and made the page easier to read by having smaller chunks of text instead of massive paragraphs.

What other tips and tricks to you have for shifting a scene from passive to active. Believe me I need all the help I can get.

~Rayna

 

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Book in a Week Update

Posted on March 22, 2012 by | 3 Comments

So…

I don’t think Book-in-a-Week is for me.  I’ve spent the last three days writing and deleting a lot of words only to decide the story didn’t begin in the right place.  I need to start over. Maybe BIAW would work after I’ve established my 1st three chapters, but to start off with the pressure of typing many, many words each day, no matter how wrong my brain knows they are, just doesn’t work for me. I have discovered that I am NOT a pantser. I need structure. I don’t need to know everything that’s going to happen in the book. Subplots might arise as I move alone, but I need a clear direction and story goals to get off to the right start.

Yesterday I abandoned any attempt to write actual scenes and began a synopsis. Today I’ll continue to work on that, plus work on my character sketches. Deb Dixon’s GMC: Goal, Motivation, and Conflict will likely be addressed, also my personal favorite story structure guide, Syd Field’s The Foundations of Screenwriting.

Does anyone else know of any beginning-the-book resources?  Books on plotting or character development that maybe I haven’t read yet.  What’s your go-to tool for story structure?

 

 

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Off to a Rough Start

Posted on March 19, 2012 by | 9 Comments

I turned in a book to my editor last week.  Yay!  I also completed the first round of edits on Midnight Exposure, my June release.  There was much rejoicing in my household.

Now for the rub. I have to start my next project, and it can’t be the usual willy-nilly-whatever-pops-into-my-head.  Midnight Exposure ends with an open thread.  It’s begging for the sequel to be written.

But ready, set, write doesn’t always work for me.  I sat down to start a rough outline. A few ideas have been rumbling around in my head.  Thanks to book 1 in the series, my villain’s character arc jumped up and waved at me.  I also know the event that will comprise the black moment.  My main characters already exist, though they must be fleshed out.  I know what needs to happen. It’s the how that’s eluding me.

I like to start a book with action, jump right into an event that gets the whole ball rolling, so to speak. Unfortunately, the beginning of the book has eluded me for the past week. Part of the problem is rooted in the final weeks of the last project.  I was working till midnight every night, so caught up in the flow that I couldn’t stop until the book was finished. My brain is fried.

Enter outside help. Like magic, an email from Kiss of Death (the romantic suspense chapter of Romance Writers of America) appeared in my in-bin. An online Book in a Week class was forming.

An imaginary bright light illuminated my office. A choir of angels burst into the hallelujah chorus.  I signed up on the spot.  24 hours later, I receive a two articles, one with a cliffnote summary of Deb Dixon’s all time classic Goal, Motivation, and Conflict (GMC). The other was a quick plotting guide.  I immediately print them out and read. With some focus, my reluctant brain cells chug into action. Ideas form. Not great ones yet, but better than nothing.

For the uninitiated, Book-in-a-Week (BIAW) is an insane attempt to write an entire book in seven days. I know I don’t write that fast, but I’ll be happy if I can just jump-start this project. I’ll spend the next couple of days completing a GMC chart for each main character and doing the exercises in the speed plotting article.  I’ll post my progress on Thursday, day 4 of the BIAW.  Cross your fingers for me.

Has anyone else fried their brain finishing a project?  Does anyone else have any ideas for getting a new book off the ground?  And how many writers belong to writing organizations and NEVER take advantage of the resources they offer (sheepishly raising hand)?

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Elements of a Good Critique Partnership

Posted on March 12, 2012 by | Leave a comment

I am very fortunate. I have an awesome critique partner. Melinda won’t hesitate to tell me when I’ve gotten it right, and at the same time she’ll tell me when I’m stinking up the page. I like to think I offer the same to her. What makes our partnership work? There are many factors involved in finding the right critique match, but here are just a few things that work for us.

First, and most important, is trust. Without that you’re finished before you start. You’re putting your work in your partner’s hands in the hopes of receiving honest feedback and help in improving not just your manuscript, but also your overall craft. Bottom line trust is vital.

Complimentary skill sets are a plus. Both Melinda and I bring something different to the table. Things that I tend to be completely escape my notice she’ll pick up on and vice versus.

Have a thick skin. Being in the publishing industry, you’re going to need one anyway. You’re going to need to be able to take constructive criticism whether it comes from your critique partner or your editor. On the other hand, a good critique partner won’t try and tear you down or make you feel bad about your work. A good critique partnership is about mutual respect and honest input.

Be honest with each other. When I send pages to Melinda, I’ll tell her to tear it to shreds. Why? First, because the only way I’ll improve the story and my skills is if I have someone combing through it with a critical eye. Second, I know that the dissection will be done thoughtfully and with respect. Third, because she may have suggestions that would never occurred to me.

You don’t have to write in the same genre, but it helps to be a familiar with the genre your partner writes. A critique partner who is not familiar with your genre may be able to offer suggestions on the basic technical skills of writing, but not the nuances of the genre.

Communication is key. If you don’t feel that you can offer a helpful critique you need to let your partner know. For example, I write M/M romance. I realize it’s not going to be everyone’s cup of tea. Before I started sending chapters to Melinda or before I send to a Beta reader I let them know up front the nature of the story. I never want to send someone something they are not comfortable reading. Also, if life has gotten crazy, you need to let your partner know what kind of turn around time you can give them.

Celebrate each other’s accomplishments and be supportive when disappointments happen. Your partner will most likely be the one you turn to when things happen along your publication journey. It’s nice to have someone one to support you who also understands what you’re going through.

These are just a few suggestions of what makes a good critique partner. Do you have any other to add to the list?

~Rayna

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Thinking About Scrivener

Posted on March 1, 2012 by | 45 Comments

I’m finishing up a work-in-process and looking toward my next project.  In the interest of speeding things up and keeping my desk, uhm, just a little neater. (It currently looks like a mini tornado blew across the surface.) I’m thinking about switching to Scrivener. The picture below was taken mid-project.  I’m not going to post a picture of my desk’s surface right now because my storyboard filled up at the 50% mark.  The rest of the cards are strewn everywhere. It isn’t pretty.  Frankly, the mess is embarrassing and probably hinders my productivity.

There’s a lot going on in my books.  Action, action, action. Somehow I have to keep track of it all.  But in general, I’d like to turn this:

Into something neater, more organized, and more interactive. This looks very appealing:

Has anyone else made the switch?  Does it help?  Can I, for instance, print an outline?  In Word, one of my big beefs was that I couldn’t print the document map.

Is the learning curve for scrivener steep? Tell me. Tell me everything.

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Editing That Action

Posted on February 27, 2012 by | 8 Comments

This weekend is being spent editing.  I have a work-in-process on its second round of revisions with a deadline looming.  I also have first round edits on my June release due soon.  Keeping my head in two books at once is trying, especially for those action scenes.

I’ve found two specific areas where I tend to go astray when working in multiple books.  Timeline and character details.  Scene by scene I am able to write and edit without difficulty.  For example, I realized on the billionth reread of my WIP that, in the final climax scene, I forgot that it was nighttime.

Duh.

Now I have to go back and figure out how my heroine does what she does in the freaking dark. It matters. It really matters. High action scenes are tight to keep the pace flowing. Not a lot of room for description here. Instead, action is built around the setting, which is wrong. Ahhhhh!

At the same time, I’m working on edits for my next release when I discover that once again, I’ve slipped in the time of day.  Thank goodness I have an excellent editor to point out that my heroine is commenting on the sunset which occurred more than an hour ago.  Big mental smack for me. And the most annoying factor?  I distinctly remember looking up the sunset times for Maine in December.

So what does a slightly OCD writer do? I create a chapter by chapter timeline as I read thru my editor’s comments. This way, I can be sure I have the time of day correct not just in the current scene, but from scene to scene as well.  It’s the time between the scenes and chapters that are slipping through the cracks as I move back and forth between books. Live and learn.

The second major issue was character details, especially those secondary characters. I wrote the June release a long while ago. What do those people look like anyway? I found the original note cards that I kept while I wrote the book (told you I was OCD), but flipping through the stack repeatedly got annoying. Fast.

I know some writers who fill out details character sheets for every person that appears in their books.  Then I’d be flipping through pages or files while I edit. Instead, I’ve put together a quick spreadsheet to keep track of basic physical descriptions and anything special about each character. This way, I have one sheet on hand that contains all those really important details. It’s become very handy as I move back and forth between projects.

Since I’m recently published, I’m fairly new at the whole juggling projects thing. Do you have any tips to help writers stay on track when working in two or more books simultaneously?

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