tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-61077309149585781872024-03-18T12:27:06.700-07:00Word for Words Blog for Writers<p>Continuously Published Since 2008</p>"Sometimes the things that are wrong with something are the same things that make that thing great ... that’s the way art works."<p align="right"><i>Jon Landau — Music Critic, Manager, Record Producer</i></p>Adele Annesihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09062487338490687393noreply@blogger.comBlogger314125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6107730914958578187.post-77071216469649337892024-03-18T12:26:00.000-07:002024-03-18T12:26:32.130-07:00 Never the Same Place—Or Person—Twice"<p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Recently, I was listening to Saturday Cinema, with radio host Lynne Warfel. In
advance of the Oscars, Warfel was featuring academy-award winning films and
scores, including </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">The Way We Were,</i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> a 1973 film starring Robert Redford
and Barbara Streisand as two very different people who share time together. Listening
to the theme song and reflecting on the poignancy of the music and film, I was reminded
of Marcel Proust’s 1900s novel </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">A la Recherche du Temps Perdu,</i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> which
literally means in search of times lost. All of us return to places we’ve been
and people we’ve known, often in search of the past, and many of us write about
characters who, in real time or via flashback, are returning for the same
reason. How can writers make the most of a scene or story that features a
return?</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQJth8jMwaSdDmgKRvLg_NrevDhj7GwHW0XwSVdXtCWw-szFTRsY5rCvmci8vh0stF5HB6aM76ilTrIWB-bcSur8jDFxamjSKQghFFtYRKPcWOKo4HzIgJ1JXB0LpIgV96-9lWIUYIW2RjCbF-J4eB7Bom1PhkFGlC4XR6Qlr-NacVQh6pz2vwcGh8b9A/s624/Train.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="414" data-original-width="624" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQJth8jMwaSdDmgKRvLg_NrevDhj7GwHW0XwSVdXtCWw-szFTRsY5rCvmci8vh0stF5HB6aM76ilTrIWB-bcSur8jDFxamjSKQghFFtYRKPcWOKo4HzIgJ1JXB0LpIgV96-9lWIUYIW2RjCbF-J4eB7Bom1PhkFGlC4XR6Qlr-NacVQh6pz2vwcGh8b9A/s320/Train.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Most of us like returning to places we’ve enjoyed and people we’ve
enjoyed being with. Sometimes we go back because we have to. Since the same is
true of our characters, here are questions to consider when writing of a
return:<br /></span></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">What or who is the person returning to and why?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Are they looking
forward to the reunion? Why or why not?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Once they arrive, what are their first
impressions? What are these based on?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">How will their impressions evolve as time
goes by and reality sets in?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">What about the place or person is different or the
same and why?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">What’s different about your character and why?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Do others in the
story realize this? How and why?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">What are the effects of these realizations on the characters
and overall story?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">How will the return change the character and others in the work?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">What was the character hoping to find?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Did they find it? Why or why not?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">What
are the disappointments in the return?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">What are the benefits and surprises?</span></li></ul><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">If
you’re having trouble envisioning the differences in the place or people between
then and now, put the people in a scene together, either in an iconic setting
or one that’s off the beaten path. Also give them time alone to realize what is
different, and why and how this effects everyone’s lives.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">To add spice, consider
disruptors that would reveal who these people are today and how the place has
changed. For example, if you visit Italy, you’re likely to encounter a transit
strike—rail, taxi or both. What happens to your main character then? What do
they reveal about themselves as they handle the unexpected?</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Situations like
this also reveal the character to the character. For example, your main
character may take a schedule disruption in stride now, but when the person they’re
waiting for is late to dinner, they may unravel, wondering why the person is
late and what this says about their relationship. How does the character respond
when they realize they’re not as cool under this sort of pressure as they once
were?</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">On some level, we know we can’t go back and find the same person or place
we left. Yet, returning yields discoveries about the place and the people, and when
faced with the effects of time and change, our characters may respond in ways we
don’t expect. Instead of censoring them, let the scene play out, and see where
it takes you. Times and people past may be lost in one sense, but we can
discover a trove of treasures by searching for them all the same.</span></p>Adele Annesihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09062487338490687393noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6107730914958578187.post-72888166084979452602024-02-16T12:34:00.000-08:002024-02-16T12:34:13.393-08:00Try Before You Trust: To All Gentlewomen and Other Maids in Love - Historical Fiction by Constance Briones<p><i><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Try Before You Trust: To All Gentlewomen and
Other Maids in Love</span></i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">
(Historium Press, 2023), by Constance Briones, is an insightful work of historical
fiction that captures the best of the genre. Here is an interview with the
author on her writing journey with this novel.</span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY2zl7038TfSpH1MIHcCcke9zcKrHbo1OzNBkJoNw24mixzkCnTG7A3-b3n1EZbL420euvLowHSyNsPQV8sbAyNHfzMQ1xI3HP8sTM2F0_j_l28hRFDweNbGCSPJALY43HykZStRUZbEkxLJSEVrWKRb1vL5dcTZWzlSHleQxPCC_v9d7y3ei-Npp8CEg/s466/Briones%20Cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="466" data-original-width="311" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY2zl7038TfSpH1MIHcCcke9zcKrHbo1OzNBkJoNw24mixzkCnTG7A3-b3n1EZbL420euvLowHSyNsPQV8sbAyNHfzMQ1xI3HP8sTM2F0_j_l28hRFDweNbGCSPJALY43HykZStRUZbEkxLJSEVrWKRb1vL5dcTZWzlSHleQxPCC_v9d7y3ei-Npp8CEg/s320/Briones%20Cover.jpg" width="214" /></a></div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><b>What made you choose this
particular topic?<br /></b></span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">I discovered the protagonist of my novel, Isabella
Whitney, while researching my Master’s thesis on literacy and women in England
during the sixteenth century. Whitney is credited as the first English woman
believed to have written original secular poetry for publication in the
mid-sixteenth century. I admired her gusty character. She dared to write poems
exploring love relations between men and women at a time when religious
translations were the only acceptable writing endeavor for women.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Whitney was
in her late teens when her first volume of poetry concerning men-women
relations was published. </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">The Copy of a Letter</i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> (1567), with its adjoining
poem, </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">The Admonition of the Author to all young Gentlewomen and all other
maids being in Love</i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">, were love poems written in the personae of a jilted
lover. Whitney presented an unconventional woman’s perspective of how unfairly
men treat women in love, which played a role in the debates on women’s nature
in the sixteenth century. Her choice to defy the conventions of her day, both
in her thinking and actions, impressed me. And I couldn’t help but think she
would make a most engaging literary heroine. Another primary consideration for
going the fiction route rather than writing a biography is the scant
information about Whitney’s life, leading me to tell the story of her journey
from maidservant to unemployed domestic to her early success as a poet through
historical fiction.</span></p><p><b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">What were your greatest writing challenges and why?</b><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br />Getting
as close as I could to historically authentic language and striking a balance
between including too much history or too little history in the story.</span></p><p><b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">How
did you address these?</b><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br />My story takes place in Elizabethan England, so I
realized early on that I couldn’t write dialogue as if I were Shakespeare,
fearing it would turn people off. So, to promote a better understanding of
dialogue, I opted for authenticity, rather than absolute accuracy, to give the
reader a taste of the historical language of the period. If I wasn’t sure about
a word or a phrase, I used the Merriam-Webster dictionary, which has a word
history section. I also read historical fiction by well-known authors such as
Allison Weir and Philippa Gregory, who frequently write stories set in
16th-century England.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Since I taught history and am more comfortable with nonfiction
writing, my biggest fear has been that my novel would begin to read more like a
history book than a story. I followed the advice given to me: to use a
combination of narrative exposition, dialogue, and internal thought to convey
historical background. And to include it only when it felt pertinent to the
story.</span></p><p><b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">What did you enjoy most about writing the novel and why?</b><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">I enjoyed building scenes where the reader sees and hears what’s happening, like
watching a movie. It was an engaging endeavor to consider the actions and
dialogue of my characters in pivotal scenes, contemplating what I would have
them do and say that would reveal their true character.</span></p><p><b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">What other projects
do you have planned?</b><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">I’m researching a possible second historical fiction
novel based on the early life of Sarah and Angelina Grimke, the only Southern
white women ever to become leading abolitionists. It has long fascinated me
that these two sisters from a wealthy family in South Carolina united to oppose
the institution of slavery, which was the economic backbone of the South.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><b>What
else would you like to add for readers and writers to know?</b></span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br />As a writer
edging toward the goal of publication, I found a beta reader service very
helpful. The History Quill in London offers a beta readers service, which gave
me feedback on my manuscript from a team of real historical fiction readers I
didn’t know. The History Quill handpicked the readers based on a questionnaire
I completed. The feedback I received was detailed, honest, and very insightful.
I appreciate that The History Quill carefully vets their beta readers and
ensures that they are a good fit for the story, which means the feedback is of
good quality.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Additionally, I had to develop patience in querying agents. Many
didn’t respond and said upfront not to expect a response if they were not
interested, while others responded quickly with a standard rejection letter.
Then, after weeks and even months of waiting, when I least expected it, a few
took the time to craft a personal response. I appreciated those who gave praise
and encouragement to continue writing. Seeing a small wave of humanity within
the money-driven objective of the publishing world made me feel encouraged.</span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF5cXi1rXI-aMzp47lVA4djEQ1cmGjPOGeasacpqAG3Pi9c8x5A9XOOBCYIiSPIaHMcpxuOuD5V__lUv3h4PGRFw-BuRfeL6J1eAprqhLrEra6-2O2uNKqSAOG443FBw__Gnda6DaFxMSqkVdMbjXp1dqtTLQVXhQFVAzKBLpQUDxGCzdBPFvHsu96ZT0/s1695/author%20portrait2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1593" data-original-width="1695" height="141" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF5cXi1rXI-aMzp47lVA4djEQ1cmGjPOGeasacpqAG3Pi9c8x5A9XOOBCYIiSPIaHMcpxuOuD5V__lUv3h4PGRFw-BuRfeL6J1eAprqhLrEra6-2O2uNKqSAOG443FBw__Gnda6DaFxMSqkVdMbjXp1dqtTLQVXhQFVAzKBLpQUDxGCzdBPFvHsu96ZT0/w150-h141/author%20portrait2.JPG" width="150" /></a></div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Constance Briones has a Master's in Woman's History and seeks to highlight little-known
stories of women in history. She is a contributing writer to </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Historical
Times</i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> magazine, and when not writing lends her time as an educational
docent for her town's historical society. She lives in Connecticut with her
husband and sibling Maine coon cats, Thor and Percy. For more, visit </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Try-Before-You-Trust-Gentlewomen-ebook/dp/B0CPS6YR54/ref=sr_1_1?crid=26V4KHL4SGRLF&keywords=Isabella+Whitney+constance+briones&qid=1708114688&s=books&sprefix=isabella+whitney+constance+briones%2Cstripbooks%2C276&sr=1-1">Try
Before You Trust: To All Gentlewomen and Other Maids in Love.</a></i></p>Adele Annesihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09062487338490687393noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6107730914958578187.post-10046235855723371932024-01-08T11:56:00.000-08:002024-01-08T11:56:01.941-08:00The Best Stories Are Yours: Experience and Autofiction<p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Writers are often asked, “Where do you get your ideas?” Answers to
the question vary, but one common response is—experience.</span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRloNYbfzfutOwe55LfrixdVELQ6yBb7bC4JlgmipCE-7Rsy2-tePF56k1mhpUXe1TSNIHFi5O50Q53gD7hKxgrbxk5rtIbOyCXZNWmEcQvEkLMKBH4iHTRujUSml8vpaC4Tkiau2xsTGItIKu4SK9JrjDci8DXqsNpTj-Cm_qY8zZJX2H0VQ0AoR9gGA/s3680/Blog%20Window.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3680" data-original-width="2456" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRloNYbfzfutOwe55LfrixdVELQ6yBb7bC4JlgmipCE-7Rsy2-tePF56k1mhpUXe1TSNIHFi5O50Q53gD7hKxgrbxk5rtIbOyCXZNWmEcQvEkLMKBH4iHTRujUSml8vpaC4Tkiau2xsTGItIKu4SK9JrjDci8DXqsNpTj-Cm_qY8zZJX2H0VQ0AoR9gGA/s320/Blog%20Window.jpg" width="214" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Memoirists and
fiction writers have a lot in common. Besides the fact that most writers now
work in both genres, we share a foundation best described by memoirist Vivian
Gornick in <i>The Situation and the Story.</i> “</span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Every work of
literature has both a situation and a story. The situation is the context or
circumstance … the story is the emotional experience that preoccupies the
writer: the insight, the wisdom, the thing one has come to say [about the
circumstance].”</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">No
fiction genre captures this better than autofiction.<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Short for autobiographical
fiction, autofiction draws a lot from the writer’s life, especially critical
events, turning points, discoveries and lessons. But since autofiction writers
aren’t replicating our entire life to create the story, we have more in common
with memoirists than autobiographers. We have situations to explore, and we
usually have a lot to say about them.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Here are three key features of
autofiction:<br /></span></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Names: The names in our stories may be real,
including the name of the protagonist.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Parallels: There are key similarities
between the writer’s life and that of the protagonist. The protagonist may even
be a writer, and the story may explore the role of writing in the character’s
(writer’s) life.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Uncertainty: In a genre that already blurs reality, there’s an
organic tension over what’s real and what isn’t. This engages the reader in
thinking deeply about the work and the protagonist’s (writer’s) life.</span></li></ul><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Here are
three examples of autofiction and why the authors chose this genre:<br /></span></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><i>On Earth
We're Briefly Gorgeous</i> (2019): This work by Ocean Vuong is a letter from a
son to a mother that discloses a family history rooted in Vietnam; the story serves
as a window into aspects of the son’s life his mother never knew. Normally, our
parents (mothers especially, in some cultures) tell us our family history and
secrets. This work reverses that tradition.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><i>Every Day Is for the Thief</i>
(2015): This bestselling first novel, in diaristic form, by acclaimed
Nigerian-American Teju Cole, depicts a young man’s journey to Nigeria to
discover his roots. Discovering one’s heritage often generates epiphany, as we
suddenly recognize ourselves, for better or worse.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><i>A Death in the Family</i>
(2013): One of <i>The</i> <i>Guardian's</i> 100 Best Books of the 21st Century,
this novel series by Norwegian writer Karl Ove Knausgaard examines childhood,
family and grief. Even without knowing the details of the stories, the order of
the trilogy is telling.</span></li></ul><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">If you’re interested in mining your life to develop a
work of fiction, try the dreamstorming technique described in <i>From Where You Dream,</i> by Robert Olen
Butler. Here is Butler's general principle:<br /></span></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Go to your writing space, and give
yourself time to remember, to watch yourself move through your life. The
journey doesn’t have to be linear or chronological.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">As you recall your life, note
critical events, turning points, discoveries and lessons, and why they might
figure into your story.</span></li></ul><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">In each case, there is a situation and a corresponding emotional
experience that makes the situation memorable, even worth writing about. These
are the insights, the wisdom, the thing the writer has come to say about that
event. Only you can tell that story.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Resources:<br /></span></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><i>Elements of Fiction,</i> by Walter Mosley: How to master essential
fiction elements<a name="_Hlk98167683">.</a></span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><a name="_Hlk98167683"><i>From
Where You Dream,</i> by Robert Olen Butler: How to use dreamstorming to reveal
story and develop scenes.</a></span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><a name="_Hlk98167683"><i>Steering the
Craft,</i> by Ursula Le Guin: A craft guide to sailing the sea of story</a>.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><i>The Elements of Story,</i> by Francis
Flaherty: Nonfiction techniques that work for fiction.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><i>The Situation and the Story,</i>
by Vivian Gornick: How to compose and explore the events of life.</span></li></ul><p></p>Adele Annesihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09062487338490687393noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6107730914958578187.post-45398835357837379022023-12-08T13:33:00.000-08:002023-12-08T13:33:30.995-08:00When Story Speaks: The All-Important Development Draft <p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">It's impossible to build a house without a plan, and most architects need
more than one to achieve the results their clients envision. The same is true
for writers. No one can accomplish everything—story arc, character development,
smooth prose—in just one try.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIeeQ2-DM94-54jaajKDz-lCt33k2VG_ryiB5iD0hMA8LX2nrGMhO43r7iugP89xOnNH5MoyMFFT_5sRqUwYl3tPPRJdib_IZZgBBBV_tOJwrjJL-4VMdqBp9Y1bee2N3UlSAhyphenhyphenQgDJPjNfyO-My_g33QpJRBiDuQb39de2Dyt2j21fMBHvqYd9f9LzNY/s1920/Trail.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1920" data-original-width="1920" height="248" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIeeQ2-DM94-54jaajKDz-lCt33k2VG_ryiB5iD0hMA8LX2nrGMhO43r7iugP89xOnNH5MoyMFFT_5sRqUwYl3tPPRJdib_IZZgBBBV_tOJwrjJL-4VMdqBp9Y1bee2N3UlSAhyphenhyphenQgDJPjNfyO-My_g33QpJRBiDuQb39de2Dyt2j21fMBHvqYd9f9LzNY/w248-h248/Trail.jpg" width="248" /></a></div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">When writers say they wrote a story in one
sitting, they usually mean they did little or no revision while putting the
initial concept on the page. While this is a great feeling, a strong first or
early draft is still just a beginning. The all-important second or development
draft is when the real story starts.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">While a story or novel may undergo any
number of revisions, there are three basic types of drafts: rough, development
and final. </span><a name="_Hlk152591873" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">The main goal of a rough draft is to capture
the concepts emerging from the writer’s imagination while creative fires burn
hottest. The main goal of a final draft is polish. The development draft’s main
goals are exploration and discovery. Here’s why these goals are important and
how to achieve them.</a></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Many writers assume their initial story is the story
they’ll end up with. But seeing story this way eliminates opportunities because
writers don’t know to look for them. Like experienced hikers, skilled writers keep
their minds, eyes and efforts open. Stories can offer up gems if we’re looking
for them.</span></p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Step 1 — Mindset: Assume the story you’ve written isn’t the final
version. Also assume there are discoveries to be made, large and small. To that
end, think through your story and list which aspects you’d like to examine for
opportunities.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Step 2 — Explore: When hikers travel new terrain, they’re
looking to learn the surroundings. In familiar territory, they’re looking for
what’s different. It’s never the same river twice. Writers can take the same
approach by asking one simple question of their main and even secondary
characters. What secrets are you still keeping, from others, from yourself,
from me as the writer?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Step 3 — Observe: Practiced hikers know that all areas vary
by season, time of day and weather so watchful travelers pay attention to
changes in landscape and wildlife. Apart from the fact that vigilance could
save their lives, they’re alert to changes because variations enhance the
hiking experience.</span></li></ul><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Writers can take a similar approach by asking these
questions of their stories:</span></p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">What do I notice now that I didn’t before? How will
this impact the overall story and the people in it?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">How might I incorporate
these changes to advance plot and develop character at the same time.</span></li></ul><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">When
we’re open to opportunities, actively seeking them and turning over rocks to find
where they’re hiding, we’re usually (pleasantly) surprised at what we discover.
If this means we need to expand the story or flesh out the characters, we may
need to trim or remove other aspects.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Just as hikers want to avoid excess
baggage, so do we. So do readers. Whether growing our narratives or reducing
them, we can’t assume that a strong first or early draft means we’re done. Instead,
we can assume the opposite. The strongest drafts often yield the most precious
gems.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Happy writing!</span></p>Adele Annesihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09062487338490687393noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6107730914958578187.post-83257492841987645292023-10-28T13:38:00.002-07:002023-10-28T13:38:17.236-07:00The Role of Research in the Art of Fiction & Novel Writing<p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">One
reason I started writing fiction was to avoid research. It wasn’t long before I
realized that research is an essential tool and skill required for all writing,
including and perhaps especially novel writing.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">But what is the role of
research in fiction, particularly the art of it?</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKgtGBkrlvBOoR0sYFZbj481G5Ie67yWjYkSNWkRw3nF2rYedRJth1ArG2VnMDNQQXj20I5ziztJWu0ALyMEcsMv4zP-Sx1v3Ukc5ByjIISF4Bnq03bJyALLcreHrP4uB7AaPN2dbnf6cS3pfA6D1iwo-gwAQvGMdXjVAeiMp3dhkUip3GviuOOuZtQ6s/s2288/Chiaroscuro.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2288" data-original-width="1712" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKgtGBkrlvBOoR0sYFZbj481G5Ie67yWjYkSNWkRw3nF2rYedRJth1ArG2VnMDNQQXj20I5ziztJWu0ALyMEcsMv4zP-Sx1v3Ukc5ByjIISF4Bnq03bJyALLcreHrP4uB7AaPN2dbnf6cS3pfA6D1iwo-gwAQvGMdXjVAeiMp3dhkUip3GviuOOuZtQ6s/s320/Chiaroscuro.jpg" width="239" /></a></div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">One problem most, if not all, fiction
writers and novelists encounter is how to depict a difficult scene where what
is happening is illegal, immoral, offensive. How does the writer present the
reality, its causes, and its effects, especially when research only underscores
that what is happening is wrong?</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">One role of research is to inform the reality,
the verisimilitude, of a scene, a story, the characters. Why are they doing
what they’re doing? Where and how did their current actions originate? What
caused them? What will their outcome be? But what happens when research only
serves to underscore that the scene we are depicting will be difficult, even off-putting,
for the audience?</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">One option might be to discard research altogether and simply
write the scene. But when research is viewed as subordinate to and supportive
of fiction, particularly the novel, it can do more for the writer than simply
provide information. In order to create fiction, even long-form fiction at the
level of art, research can inform the writer, the story and the characters. But
research must not dictate the characters or the story. Nor should research dictate
art.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Rather, one intention of art is to reflect the reality of the world and to
elevate and underscore the truth of that reality, in all its beauty and
ugliness.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">As the Japanese filmmaker and painter Akira Kurosawa has said, “To be
an artist means to search, to find and look at these realities. To be an artist
means to never look away.”</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">A difficult subject or story, or difficult
characters, are not sufficient cause in themselves to discard their darker side.
For one role of art is to say, “This is what is.”</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">This does not mean that the writer,
the artist, should pander to the senses, the desire for stimulation. What it does
mean is making use of both light and darkness in our stories and the people in
them, as painters such as Caravaggio and Vermeer have done.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">The necessary outcome
of the use of light and shadow back to back, the chiaroscuro effect, is precisely
that we cannot see the extent of darkness unless light is right alongside it, nor
can we see the extent of light unless darkness is right alongside it.</span></p>Adele Annesihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09062487338490687393noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6107730914958578187.post-80273784383441114992023-09-06T10:47:00.002-07:002023-09-06T10:47:10.028-07:00World-Building Your Story: Four Key Components<p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Our
world has a lot going on. No surprise there. But stepping back, we could say
that our very big (or very small) world has four main components—people, place,
period, populace. Depending on the genres we write in, these may not look
anything like what we see on earth, but we still need to fully develop each part,
for ourselves and our readers.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTnbOB9dB1ez9zGKNj6P5vqmbZV33LgGTFfTyrxMUiKV_mKvc9LTR51ysynuD8HLfNKSPdvbhhFX59Qt7n4STcWYwCwyi8ARpGv761AiomWedTZ9ERTniG0bEhw5BNMPIoTIA31qyXVhAPDzbP_Puj8IpPsWu6JXHk8jF1KFXzBpU4ksFp1GqbjCYAuEk/s720/World.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="482" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTnbOB9dB1ez9zGKNj6P5vqmbZV33LgGTFfTyrxMUiKV_mKvc9LTR51ysynuD8HLfNKSPdvbhhFX59Qt7n4STcWYwCwyi8ARpGv761AiomWedTZ9ERTniG0bEhw5BNMPIoTIA31qyXVhAPDzbP_Puj8IpPsWu6JXHk8jF1KFXzBpU4ksFp1GqbjCYAuEk/s320/World.jpg" width="214" /></a></div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><b>People<br /></b></span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">While we’re using the word people
here, fiction can comprise any type of living being. One writer created a story
world where flowers were the life representatives. Ask these questions when creating
and developing the beings in your story:<br /></span></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">What types of beings will inhabit my
story world?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Which characteristics will they share and which will differentiate
them?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">What does “life” mean in my story and to those in it?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">How will my
characters depend on each other and themselves?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">To what degree will those in my
story change, evolve, grow, die, remain the same?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">What effects will these
realities have on them and their world?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">How will I address ethnicity, race, diversity,
and how does this connect to what my story is about?</span></li></ul><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><b>Place<br /></b></span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Where your
story happens can be cosmic and epic, small as a mouse hole, visible or
invisible, or anything in between. Here’s what to consider about the place(s) where
your story happens:</span></p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Where is my story set? Is it urban, suburban, rural, a
combination?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">How well do I know the setting(s)?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">What research do I need to do,
and where can I go to find approximations of my setting?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Why have I chosen
these places, and how will they impact the story and those in it?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">How does place
fit the theme of my story, what the story is about?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Does it fit the scope or
size of the story?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Does the setting serve as a metaphor for the theme?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">What is
the landscape of my story; what does/do the location(s) look like?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">How will I
connect place with those who inhabit it?</span></li></ul><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><b>Period<br /></b></span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">On the surface, the
choice of when the story is set seems simple. The three basics are past,
present, future. But there’s a lot to consider here, too, such as:</span></p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Will I
choose only one of these or work with more than one?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Why am I making these
choices?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">How will the time(s) when the story is set effect the characters and plot?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">How well do I know this era?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">If I’m not familiar with it or am constructing one
from scratch, what do I need to learn to accurately depict it?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">What does this
period look like, meaning the architecture?</span></li></ul><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><b>Populace<br /></b></span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">In this case,
populace means society and culture. Of all the components, this is perhaps the
most intricate and the one most shaped by and responsible for shaping the
others. Key components of society include education, freedom, maturity,
customs, traditions, languages, values, governance, styles of dress, art, and
how wisdom and information are passed along. Here are considerations when
building this very important aspect of your story world:</span></p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">What place does
education have in my story world, and how does it impact life in my story?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">How
free is the culture, and will this element improve or decline? How is freedom defined in this story?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">How advanced is
the culture, and will it evolve or devolve?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">What are the story’s customs and
traditions, and how do these impact those in my story?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Which languages are
spoken, and to what degree do these connect people, separate them, both?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">What
are the culture’s values, and where do they come from? Will they change? If so,
how? And what effects will this have on the story and people?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">What style of
governance does my story world have, and how does this impact life and story?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">What
are the styles of dress and art, and how do these reflect those in my story and
their values?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">How are wisdom and information passed along, for example, in oral
tradition, advanced technology, written form? What do these forms look like?</span></li></ul><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><b>Answering
Tough Questions<br /></b></span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">The aspects of our world are many and complex. The four
main categories of world-building—people, place, period, populace—and the questions
surrounding them are meant to stir our imagination as writers so that we create
detailed, believable story worlds that captive readers and make us better,
deeper writers.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><b>Tips<br /></b>To personalize and deepen your mapping strategy, add
questions of your own. When making choices, ask yourself why you’re making them.
The answers to this question, possibly more than any other, will help get you
where you want to go.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><b>Resource:</b> </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Steering the Craft,</i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> by Ursula Le Guin, </span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">a guide to sailing the sea of story.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Happy
writing!</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Adele Annesi is an
award-winning writer, editor and teacher. Her new novel is </span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/What-She-Takes-Away-Folios/dp/1599541947/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1IWLPEA7QQPLD&keywords=what+she+takes+away+adele+annesi&qid=1680642854&sprefix=what+she+takes+away+ade%2Caps%2C694&sr=8-1"><span style="color: green; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">What She Takes Away</span></a></span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"> (Bordighera Press, 2023). Adele was managing editor
of <i>Southern Literary Review</i> and has taught writing for Westport Writers’
Workshop. She received her MFA from Fairfield University. Adele’s long-running
blog for writers is </span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://wordforwords.blogspot.com/2023/01/use-techniques-from-film-to-enhance.html"><span style="color: green; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Word for Words.</span></a></span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"> Her website is </span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://adeleannesi.blogspot.com/"><span style="color: green; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Adele
Annesi.</span></a></span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"> For questions, email <span style="color: green;"><a href="mailto:a.annesi@sbcglobal.net"><span style="color: green;">Word for Words.</span></a></span></span></p>Adele Annesihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09062487338490687393noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6107730914958578187.post-67478842943009249012023-07-10T11:00:00.005-07:002023-07-10T11:01:35.023-07:00I Can See Clearly Now: Patterns in Long-Form Fiction<span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Sometimes writers don’t think much about the form a story will take
because stories often seem to take on a shape of their own. But writers of long-form
fiction should be aware that all stories have a shape, or pattern, and that they
can craft and mold that pattern to suit their vision for the work. First, what
do we mean by “pattern”?</span><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ5tTU9v81Kb2Hk9EnGJU38lAQOZ6q4YdcFpcUHDFx_AECSxVinspoEdt5kLmCFxkea5ZwOt9SG6QtZeUhu2fbxFLwmYjD76nZjpCU-oRI5pmMA5FfOVtaivaP-awPp1a_R0ojUPMwh9bSAAphL-f2inB2EEZd2d6cBtmRFYuhjlHSePQZHpV7PCx2bls/s3552/What%20She%20Takes%20Away%20Cover%20Swatch%203.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2000" data-original-width="3552" height="113" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ5tTU9v81Kb2Hk9EnGJU38lAQOZ6q4YdcFpcUHDFx_AECSxVinspoEdt5kLmCFxkea5ZwOt9SG6QtZeUhu2fbxFLwmYjD76nZjpCU-oRI5pmMA5FfOVtaivaP-awPp1a_R0ojUPMwh9bSAAphL-f2inB2EEZd2d6cBtmRFYuhjlHSePQZHpV7PCx2bls/w200-h113/What%20She%20Takes%20Away%20Cover%20Swatch%203.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">In the classic reference work <i>Aspects of the Novel,</i>
E. M. Forster refers to pattern as the shape a longer work takes because of the
choices the characters make. Here’s an easily recognizable pattern.</span></div><div><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Our
characters meet, their lives converge, then their lives ebb and recede, with
each going their own way. Whether or not we or our readers stop to note the
pattern, it draws us in because it's recognizable, and familiar patterns enable
us to feel comfortable with the story and the characters, as if we’re traveling
a familiar road but with a new group of friends (or enemies).</span></div><div><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Then there’s the story
pattern Forster calls the "grand chain," where characters appear in
short bursts then return for short bursts. Having our characters strut and fret
their brief moments on the stage then repeat the action works well in
humoristic pieces, where tone and timing are key.</span></div><div><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">No matter which pattern we
writers create, we need to be aware of the following:</span></div><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Whether or not a story’s
pattern is familiar, every story has one. Many stories have more than one.</span></li><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">One
way to know what our story’s pattern is and how we can discern it is to read
the work and mark each major decision the main character(s) make, then track
the results or effects of these decisions, asking these questions:</span></li><ul><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Do the choices
draw the characters closer to each other or disperse them?</span></li><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Do the choices
strengthen reader engagement or distance it?</span></li><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Which of these effects do we want?
Which work best for the story?</span></li></ul><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Patterns can be shaped. For instance, maybe our
characters make a lot choices early in the story but few later on. In a case
like this, readers may engage with the work early on and lose interest.</span></li><ul><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">One way
to avoid this is to recalibrate our characters’ choices and where they make
them. Think of your car or cell’s GPS. Choosing a route that differs from the
GPS’s instructions can alter your entire journey.</span></li></ul><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Patterns make a difference—to
the characters, the story, the reader, everything. To get a sense of this, we
need to give our stories time and distance then come back and read them through,
asking:</span></li><ul><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Where does my story sag (low interest), lag (lose pacing), pick up
speed (mover faster, maybe too fast)?</span></li><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">To correct these common problems,
consider what different choice(s) your character(s) could make at these crucial
junctures and how the choices impact the rest of the story.</span></li></ul></ul></div><div><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Patterns appeal to our
aesthetic sense because they provide symmetry and enable us to discern the
story as a whole. While we writers continually make decisions about what our
characters do, the place to rethink our choices and theirs is in revision.
Here, we can do what Nathalie Goldberg referred to </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Writing Down the Bones</i><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">
as “re-seeing” the work and making organic adjustments that enhance the story,
maybe even raise the stakes.</span></div><div><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">So in the classic pattern noted above, what if instead
of having the characters meet, converge and go their separate ways the writer
decides that the characters never meet. Instead, the main character spends their
life seeking the object of their desire. If the story is about someone with selfish
motives, thwarting their efforts and showing how the character responds can
reveal (show versus tell) just how self-centered they were in the first place.
A classic film with this theme is <i>All About Eve.</i></span></div><div><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">So how do writers work
with pattern in long-form fiction? Consider these questions:</span></div><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Have you planned your
story’s pattern or simply plotted the story?</span></li><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">At which points in the story do
your characters make life-altering decisions?</span></li><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">What happens to the characters and
the story as a result of these choices?</span></li><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">How can you tighten the story to
strengthen the pattern, for example, by eliminating an unnecessary character or
plot thread?</span></li></ul></div><div><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Whether or not we writers plan our story patterns, we certainly
have a plan for our stories. The key is knowing that patterns exist and how to
shape those patterns for what we want to achieve. Like us, our characters make
decisions, then their decisions make them—and more.</span></div><div><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">For questions, email </span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="color: teal; font-size: 11pt;"><a href="mailto:a.annesi@sbcglobal.net"><span style="color: teal;">Word for Words.</span></a></span></div><div><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Happy writing!</span></div><div><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Adele Annesi is an award-winning writer,
editor and teacher. Her new novel is </span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="color: teal; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/What-She-Takes-Away-Folios/dp/1599541947/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1IWLPEA7QQPLD&keywords=what+she+takes+away+adele+annesi&qid=1680642854&sprefix=what+she+takes+away+ade%2Caps%2C694&sr=8-1"><i><span style="color: teal; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">What She Takes </span></i><span style="color: teal; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Away</span></a></span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"> (New York: Bordighera Press, 2023). Adele was
managing editor of <i>Southern Literary
Review</i> and received her MFA from Fairfield University. She teaches for <span style="color: teal;"><a href="https://www.westportwriters.org/adele-annesi"><span style="color: teal;">Westport Writers’ Workshop.</span></a></span> Her website is
</span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="color: teal; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://adeleannesi.blogspot.com/"><span style="color: teal; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Adele Annesi.</span></a></span><div><div><br /><br /></div></div></div>Adele Annesihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09062487338490687393noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6107730914958578187.post-81349740011769048002023-06-12T08:31:00.003-07:002023-06-12T08:31:16.718-07:00Yearning and an Impetus for Art<p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Fiction and
nonfiction writers frequently push the boundaries of creativity, even those set
by Pulitzer Prize-winning writers like Robert Olen Butler, author of </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Where-You-Dream-Process-Writing/dp/0802142575">From
Where You Dream: The Process of Writing Fiction.</a> </i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Yet, Butler offers practical
methods for going from craft to art, especially with the oft-missing element of
yearning.</span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisdy97p6I_ET3i--XjY-yJPFAMeAgL4wtGK-8gPomMfP2hu4BPGvzgTCvc16CXMJKB-me1zTW7Z3Ooy6GtklhxG_bzaJbzz9dAa3Cy8UdwOtCqt8MvoSLJ_6ibQeNqIXrt3Mui_iFMAt8_uFGon4eqfRmbJ01al9jKzSTNlOURHDMDk5lWa_87b3B-/s960/Blog%20Dream.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="960" height="156" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisdy97p6I_ET3i--XjY-yJPFAMeAgL4wtGK-8gPomMfP2hu4BPGvzgTCvc16CXMJKB-me1zTW7Z3Ooy6GtklhxG_bzaJbzz9dAa3Cy8UdwOtCqt8MvoSLJ_6ibQeNqIXrt3Mui_iFMAt8_uFGon4eqfRmbJ01al9jKzSTNlOURHDMDk5lWa_87b3B-/w234-h156/Blog%20Dream.jpg" width="234" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Some form of desire exists in most stories, real and imagined. But
depictions of what a person or character desires often fall short because they’re
rendered through unartistic forms, such as abstractions, analyses,
generalizations, interpretations and summaries. These have their place in
writing, but not so much in storytelling, where there are better ways to go
from heart to art.</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Yearning, per se,
isn’t story, but it often drives story, or good stories anyway. When readers
are invited inside a character, they start caring about what that person wants
and whether she’ll get it. And the deeper the yearning (more in type than
intensity) the more artful the story and the higher the stakes. So how does a
story reach these goals?</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Butler offers the example of James Joyce, who used
"epiphany" to refer to the moment in a story when its essence
appears. Butler suggests that stories actually have two epiphanies—one at the
climax (the type of epiphany Joyce referred to) and one that should happen near
the story’s start. Cluing the reader in to what the main subject of the work
yearns for adds interest and momentum. And it can raise the stakes. Given these
realities, here are two considerations:<br /></span></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">A person may yearn for one thing at the
start of a story or novel and find out by the end that he has grown enough to
want more; whether or not he gets it is another aspect of the story. The
reverse may also be true.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">A character may start with specific desires, peruse
them and get exactly what she wants. There is also the possibility of desire
within desire, similar to what in journalism is called the "real
story." So what a person may seem to want or thinks she wants isn’t what
she really wants, and her journey of realization becomes part of the storyline.</span></li></ul><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Both of these considerations involve discovery and generate natural
opportunities for conflict, the lifeblood of story, real or imagined. And the
stronger the yearning, and the tougher the obstacles, the more tension and
conflict.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">One way to raise the stakes in a story and the level of writing is to
reveal and explore a person’s intangible longings—for example, for respect, a
sense of self as distinct from others, for recognition, permanence or legacy, a
place in the world or in the heart of someone else.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Examining these deeper desires
in a book or novel opens the door to artful writing. For this, Butler advocates
tilling the soil of the writer's imagination and past experience. This allows events,
turning points and discoveries—as well as imaginings—to emerge from the compost
of memory or from sheer imagination into the light of day before they’re dismissed
by the writer's internal editor or shaped by craft before they’re fully
realized.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">This is where Butler's “dreamstorming” technique comes into play. Here,
Butler suggests that writers find a writing space away from distractions and
let their minds wander within the context of the story. Instead of immediately
stopping to write what emerges, Butler recommends that writers keep pen and
paper handy and only jot down a word or phrase to describe what comes to mind
so as not to stem the flow of what they’re remembering or imagining.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Later, writers
can amplify their notes and recollections into scenes without worrying about what
each scene means to the overall work. These revelations usually come in draft
two anyway. This is where the writer sees a character's real yearning and can
portray it more artfully because the writer’s vision of who the person is and
what she wants is clearer. "The point of revision is to find meaning,"
Butler notes.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Revision also enables writers to recognize and remove the
vagaries of abstraction and generalizations, as well as those enemies of story—analyses,
interpretations and summaries—in favor letting the people in the story reveal who
they are and what they really want, whether they get it all or not.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Happy
writing!</span></p>Adele Annesihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09062487338490687393noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6107730914958578187.post-51907616628888619782023-05-10T11:47:00.006-07:002023-05-10T11:51:07.363-07:00Write to Remember, Discover and Learn<p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Sometimes we write to
remember. Sometimes as we write and remember, we discover. </span></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">A writer often
intuits when a character in a novel isn't fully realized. And since characters are
like actors in that there are no small characters, only insufficient depictions, it’s important to make sure all characters, especially main
characters, are their fullest selves. With a little imagination and strategizing, writers can glimpse more of who characters are and render them
more fully.</span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAeUmVYd4_IY6XvXpj7FaRhdxBdZSKvfVBWDRKPFftvjnDa04W3dbazwPv84bE_0YpSOJemdFWhoQdrt88a8JxeS5Mt621EZJkVBA83R5nCLqx9qYPt2L-jHSqQsJHZeFKfvlvbu6m81DbNtxQ6oGMDSIl8LV7EmGB_rkReiAYqkBeHQpkrEzp-Iw0/s4275/Blog%20Photos.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2872" data-original-width="4275" height="136" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAeUmVYd4_IY6XvXpj7FaRhdxBdZSKvfVBWDRKPFftvjnDa04W3dbazwPv84bE_0YpSOJemdFWhoQdrt88a8JxeS5Mt621EZJkVBA83R5nCLqx9qYPt2L-jHSqQsJHZeFKfvlvbu6m81DbNtxQ6oGMDSIl8LV7EmGB_rkReiAYqkBeHQpkrEzp-Iw0/w203-h136/Blog%20Photos.jpg" width="203" /></a></div><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">One way to flesh out a scantily drawn character is to put the person
in two scenes back to back, the first facing a tough situation alone, then next with others who know the circumstances.</span><p></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">How the character acts and reacts, what they
think and feel, in both settings reveals them. You don’t have to retain this
order in the final version of the story; it’s more of an exercise to open the
character to the writer and, ultimately, to the reader.</span></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">This approach also
helps the writer determine which aspects and how much of the character to show
through what happens internally and how much is better shown through how they
act outwardly.</span></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Striking a balance between internality and externality is
important. Showing what’s happening to a person on the inside gives the reader insight
into the character, sometimes even before the character reaches the same
awareness.</span></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">When writers face the unknown in developing a story or someone in that
story, they can think back to when they were in a similar situation and ask themselves these questions:<br /></span></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">How did
they react?</span></li><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">What did they reveal about themselves when alone?</span></li><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">What did they
reveal when faced with the reality that someone else knew?</span></li></ul><p></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Answering these more
personal questions gives the writer a place to begin. From there, they can ask
themselves how the character is similar and how the person is different.</span></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">If the writer decides to incorporate these personal experiences into their fiction, they may find the task difficult. One way to accomplish this
is to write quickly through the memories and moments.</span></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">In situations like these,
writers are free to break the rules, for example, in these ways.<br /></span></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Tell the story instead of showing
it, and use awkward sentence structures.</span></li><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">If you’re writing in first person and
feel too close to the story, try writing what the character is thinking and
feeling in third person.</span></li><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">If you feel too far removed from the character or are
writing in third person, try first person.</span></li><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">To more fully realize scenes, add stage
directions. You can remove the scaffolding later.</span></li></ul><p></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Once you’ve gone through these
steps, put the work aside for a few days. Then, go back and chip away the
plaster and dismantle the framework.</span></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">You’ll usually find clearer characters,
scenes and even settings. And if the story has some basis in fact that is hard
to write about, time and distance will help.</span></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Realize, too, that
there really is no such thing as going back to the past, even one’s own. It’s
never the same river twice. Your story is going someplace new, with new people.</span></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Remember also that the same principals apply in stories as in life. New
relationships, especially deep ones, are hard to form. And they take work. And time.
And, oftentimes, they're awkward.</span></p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Lessons like these harken to William
Zinsser's <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Writing-Learn-William-Zinsser/dp/0062720406">Writing
to Learn.</a></i> In this classic, Zinsser addresses how writing helps people
learn difficult subjects. The more clearly a writer can speak to a topic or
depict a person or story the more clearly the writer reveals these elements to herself
and her readers.</span><p></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">We writers often know when a character isn't fully realized
and sometimes tell ourselves they’re only a small character who’s not en scene very
often. But these are missed opportunities to enable characters to be their fullest selves.</span></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">We owe readers our best. We owe it
to ourselves as writers, too.</span></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Happy writing!</span></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Adele Annesi’s new novel is <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/What-She-Takes-Away-Folios/dp/1599541947/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1IWLPEA7QQPLD&keywords=what+she+takes+away+adele+annesi&qid=1680642854&sprefix=what+she+takes+away+ade%2Caps%2C694&sr=8-1">What
She Takes Away</a></i> (Bordighera Press, May 2023).<br /></span></p>Adele Annesihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09062487338490687393noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6107730914958578187.post-56377837259333377572023-04-10T13:28:00.000-07:002023-04-10T13:28:35.232-07:00The Subtle Persuasion of Poetry in Prose<p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">“I'm a
failed poet,” wrote twentieth-century novelist and short-story writer William
Faulkner, author of <i>Light in August</i> and winner of the Nobel Prize for literature.
Faulkner also said it might be true that all novelists start out wanting to
write poetry and when they find they can't, they try the short story. Then failing
that, they finally try writing novels. Regardless of a writer’s interest or genre, there’s much
to learn from the precision, imagery and persuasiveness of poetry.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeoWm6peNezyoff2DsvYCu23a7PxcOVkbdfZsre6km9gtkgeiFrCi6rmLMTckT67IkOgJMzmDRIP36Zfum_HGeiR9qq3VFK2CuKLr0lRrn2fNYvE3afl8SaAWIveBgwQPltibtwTzAYZWOnhwieHHSWqfnSkTcrW_ZJSZ22yEKOx07cFRJVgrf5B-P/s2288/Poetry.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2288" data-original-width="1712" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeoWm6peNezyoff2DsvYCu23a7PxcOVkbdfZsre6km9gtkgeiFrCi6rmLMTckT67IkOgJMzmDRIP36Zfum_HGeiR9qq3VFK2CuKLr0lRrn2fNYvE3afl8SaAWIveBgwQPltibtwTzAYZWOnhwieHHSWqfnSkTcrW_ZJSZ22yEKOx07cFRJVgrf5B-P/s320/Poetry.jpg" width="239" /></a></div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Like most
people, writers don't have a lot of spare time, and when they do, they may not naturally
gravitate toward poetry because they have other projects that take precedence. And for the writer immersed in prose, a poem can feel too
much like an alien landscape, an inaccessible world. Yet, poems often have an
elemental, Edenic quality that invites readers in and bids them stay a while.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">On
particularly harried days, writers can find the clean, spare language of poetry to
be a balm. Yet, poems can also provide lessons and examples. For instance, one
evocative noun can replace a string of adjectives and create a clear picture
that opens the door of story for readers. A writer who makes deliberate word
choices says, in essence, "I want you to know what this is about, who the
people in this story are."</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">This isn't the same as giving away the entire premise
or plot upfront. Instead, it creates an atmosphere of trust that engages
readers and encourages them to read on.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Poets often say that poetry is all
about imagery. At first blush, may sound like poets craft
their pieces only for the senses, not for substance. But when an image
accurately conveys what the poet intended, substance is implied.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">The corollary
for the writer is a well-grounded scene that reveals character and advances
plot, preferably both at once. Even misleading scenes, when done intentionally and
well, have their place. Where would mysteries and thrillers and thrillers be
without them?</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">One surprising aspect of poetry that's just as useful to prose writers is
the artful ability to persuade. Small, subtle words like "so"
and "for" and "since", unobtrusive in their commonality,
are woven into a poem’s fabric to draw the reader to the poet's perspective. From there, the message conveyed through language is conjured by words that rise gently from
the page to form a picture in the reader's mind.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">And for poets and prose
writers alike, if there is no image, there is no scene, and if there is no scene
there is no story.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Often accused of being inaccessible, poetry isn't always
understandable. Neither are people, or life. Yet, even when
understanding doesn't arise, images still appear, with the intentionality
of the chosen words giving those images substance.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Whether we read or write poems,
prose or both, less is often more, and in such simplicity one often
finds rest. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">To see a world in a grain of sand,<br /></span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">And a heaven in a wild flower,<br />Hold
infinity in the palm of your hand,<br />And eternity in an hour. <br />"Auguries of
Innocence,"<i> William Blake</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Happy
writing! Adele Annesi is an award-winning author, editor and teacher. For
questions on writing, email </span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="mailto:a.annesi@sbcglobal.net?subject=a.annesi@sbcglobal.net">Adele
Annesi.</a></span><span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Adele’s new novel is <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/What-She-Takes-Away-Folios/dp/1599541947/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1IWLPEA7QQPLD&keywords=what+she+takes+away+adele+annesi&qid=1680642854&sprefix=what+she+takes+away+ade%2Caps%2C694&sr=8-1">What
She Takes Away</a></i> (Bordighera Press)</span></p>Adele Annesihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09062487338490687393noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6107730914958578187.post-29156989606851660342023-03-13T12:18:00.003-07:002023-03-13T12:18:40.584-07:00The Use of Braided Narrative in Novel-Writing and Memoir<p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Whether you write fiction or memoir, you’ll eventually need more
than one person to help tell your story. Here are considerations for using a braided
narrative approach to create a point-counterpoint storyline that’s informed by and
greater than the sum of its parts.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx4ysSBkpSiTOiNbVaDmljwi0HkMNOs1UBfJnPoSofbXj_3pRpOveZPLfZDNpqZ6_vvSnaTLspUm8UesTOgKBYkyVwWu9I7juaXSrO0m2zCb11kFwLCbpljlp5CjPOqyl2mEY2cPaglQaHnx-Zh8eFc8IjhQmJ-GcovyX9iUq1nRs6bu0_KIrGKLSu/s604/Braid.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="340" data-original-width="604" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx4ysSBkpSiTOiNbVaDmljwi0HkMNOs1UBfJnPoSofbXj_3pRpOveZPLfZDNpqZ6_vvSnaTLspUm8UesTOgKBYkyVwWu9I7juaXSrO0m2zCb11kFwLCbpljlp5CjPOqyl2mEY2cPaglQaHnx-Zh8eFc8IjhQmJ-GcovyX9iUq1nRs6bu0_KIrGKLSu/s320/Braid.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">A braided narrative is when more than one
primary person is involved in telling a story. As with the concept of a braid,
the number of people telling the tale usually is limited to two or three. This
approach differs from the use of multiple perspectives in these ways:</span></p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Each person’s
contribution to the story is roughly the same length as the others’.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Each person’s
role in telling the story is generally equal in importance to the others’.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">There
is a clear alternating pattern in who’s telling the story. For example, Person
A may present the first three sections, Person B the second three, and Person C
the third three. Then the pattern repeats.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Although the perspective in memoir won’t
change from first person, the story can still be structured based on who else
besides the writer figures prominently in the work.</span></li></ul><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">To use braided narrative effectively,
consider these steps:</span></p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">List the individuals who will figure most prominently in
the story.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Next to each, note which part of the story the person will tell, for
example, backstory, current events or future outcome, or a combination thereof.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Also next to each, note how the person will relate to, compare with and
contrast to the other individuals.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">For fiction, decide the perspective of each
character—first, second or third person.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">For both fiction and memoir, decide
whether each person is reliable.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">As a note, even in memoir, people may have a
strong perspective but still be undependable in what they think, feel, say and
do.</span></li></ul><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">As you develop your story, consider how the overall function of your
braided narrative:</span></p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Will some parts of the narrative slow the story (pacing) to
give the reader time to get to know the people in the story (progression)?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">If
so, how and where will these points occur?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">How will gender figure into telling
the story?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">For example, how will one person’s perspective and personality
illuminate the others’ perspectives and personalities?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">How will the narrative
braids draw the reader in and offer a more complex and satisfying reading
experience?</span></li></ul><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Last, consider how and where in the story the narrators’ lives will
intersect:</span></p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">At what points in the story will their lives traverse?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">What forms will
these interactions take, for example, chance meetings, arranged unions or
reunions, indirect connections?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">How will these interactions inform the story
and reveal the other people in it?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">How will the narrators’ thoughts,
recollections, emotions and plans effect each other?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Where will they diverge,
and what will the divergences look like?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">What will each person learn that wouldn’t
have been possible to know without the others?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">How and where in the story will these
revelations occur, and what will their outcome be?</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">What surprises will there be,
especially at the end of the story, that wouldn’t have come about without the
narrators’ involvement?</span></li></ul><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">For both fiction and memoir, the use of a braided
narrative can heighten the contrast between one person’s perspective and
another’s, especially when dealing with pivotal life events. A braided
narrative can also add diversity in setting, theme, ethnicity, culture, social
mores and identity to yield a story rich in nuance, texture and depth, and,
most especially, a story that is memorable for the right reasons.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">More on Adele’s new novel is </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/What-She-Takes-Away-Folios/dp/1599541947/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3QDYVZQSOI6BN&keywords=What+She+Takes+Away+Adele+Annesi&qid=1678734460&sprefix=what+she+takes+away+adele%2Caps%2C958&sr=8-1">What
She Takes Away</a></i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> (Bordighera Press), on the warp and weft of family and
inspiration:</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">The weaver's shuttle turns when fabric designer Gia Falcini
receives a gift from her estranged father in Italy that sparks a journey to
Milan, her father’s hillside village and new stepfamily, and a local fabric
mill that could shred Gia's aspirations or offer a legacy worth taking away.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">For Adele’s new novel on Amazon, click on </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/What-She-Takes-Away-Folios/dp/1599541947/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3QDYVZQSOI6BN&keywords=What+She+Takes+Away+Adele+Annesi&qid=1678734460&sprefix=what+she+takes+away+adele%2Caps%2C958&sr=8-1">What She Takes Away</a></i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> (Bordighera Press).</span></p>Adele Annesihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09062487338490687393noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6107730914958578187.post-21588904615815057292023-02-07T10:40:00.003-08:002023-02-07T10:40:47.898-08:00 The Art of Seeing<p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">A chill
winter morning brings a dusting of snow like ashes, a blush across the clouds, a
roseate tinge to the bare branches of the maples, as if the world has come into
being for the first time, in a long time.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBFdO5M1T6FBToU8_9UO-H30DdLeceC7WUcco16sPjPaHAFfAF2_7VHwFWIkdKlQIfXTv-uuVUyyXS1vLsnbVpeJTarMAoiIuE_fGjpV0fqlrwjXzgDduqKCddrUMU_am73zan2u3LJ1qFpTAwOVMPPYUeDHBCx072GN9Z5UrC7Wg6oCdxvo7BP3ZV/s1600/Snow.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBFdO5M1T6FBToU8_9UO-H30DdLeceC7WUcco16sPjPaHAFfAF2_7VHwFWIkdKlQIfXTv-uuVUyyXS1vLsnbVpeJTarMAoiIuE_fGjpV0fqlrwjXzgDduqKCddrUMU_am73zan2u3LJ1qFpTAwOVMPPYUeDHBCx072GN9Z5UrC7Wg6oCdxvo7BP3ZV/s320/Snow.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">These days are often lived in a fog
of activity, a blur. Yet, the writer, as continually aspiring artist, is called
not only to look but to see. What is the difference, and why does it make a
difference?</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Looking is the beginning of seeing, but only the beginning, the
precursor, the prelude, as if looking were more concerned with the pragmatic than
the soul, the heart.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Seeing takes in — the sting of winter, the dusting of snow
on cartops and rooftops, the glow of sunrise — and transforms it into
experience. This taking in enables the writer to experience. And experience,
when inspired, can become aesthetic, can become art. Without experience, there is
insufficient influence on the depths of the creative being.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">During a recent
meeting with a colleague on the privileges and perils of writing and publication,
it quickly became clear we agreed. We don’t sell our wares. We offer our art to
the world, however large or small, as a child offers a drawing that can speak
more than words of the realities of life.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">At the close of the meeting, my
colleague and I agreed that despite the woes of bringing a book into today’s
world, we will still do readings, seek reviews, attend festivals, speak at gatherings.
But we will do these things not in the consumptive manner of today but with the
mind and heart of the continual apprentice of the artists’ guilds that produced
the master crafters and masterworks still esteemed after the passing of time.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">In
<i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Unless-Moves-Human-Heart-Writing/dp/0061965618" target="_blank">Unless It Moves the Human Heart: The Craft and Art of Writing,</a></i> author
and teacher Roger Rosenblatt noted, “For your writing to be great…it must be
useful to the world. And for that to happen you must form an opinion of the
world. And for that to happen you need to observe the world, closely and
steadily, with a mind open to change. And for that to happen you have to live
in the world, and not pretend that it is someone else’s world you are writing
about.”</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Rosenblatt’s challenge to the writer, the artist, is to not only love
and care for the world, broken as it is, but to love the world because the
world is worth loving. And for this to happen the writer must not only look but
see, not only see but experience, even if experience brings pain, for, “Nothing
you write will mater unless it moves the human heart…” [Rosenblatt, att. A.D.
Hope]</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Application:<br /></span></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Go to a place that enables you to see — a window, park
bench, lakeside log, backyard.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Stop. Look. Wait.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Stopping means taking time.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Looking means opening the eyes and the heart.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Waiting means allowing what is
taken in to become experience.</span></li></ul><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Adele Annesi is an award-winning author, editor
and teacher. For questions on writing, email </span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="mailto:a.annesi@sbcglobal.net?subject=a.annesi@sbcglobal.net">Adele
Annesi.</a></span><span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Adele’s new novel is <i>What She Takes Away</i>
(Bordighera Press, 2023).</span></p>Adele Annesihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09062487338490687393noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6107730914958578187.post-50075412269836017132023-01-10T11:52:00.004-08:002023-01-10T11:53:21.850-08:00Use Techniques from Film to Enhance Your Fiction<p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">If you watch movies on venues like Amazon Prime,
you’ve probably seen the X-Ray feature that includes information alongside the
film to help viewers understand the story and how the film was made. Paying
attention to filmmakers’ techniques also can invigorate your stories,
characters and scenes. Knowing a few basic film concepts will further enhance
your viewing experience and your ability to use these same concepts in your
writing.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjsdUuQ0mdCOk6G4gs2wodgT_ExXZdo19-xkM2_vSfnG6tuSvYjOxprPozNwQyDbJZqzDtgLiLqws56nzhf8Sdm_liYaymo093Ho9qvfP9sYhi-r8gO1qkHD1TYmexXAMS_pS1ZFIVIailsK6NWSX2LKb1l_LJSgkVH8nptRv-85RLOjryf2SoPCIq/s2624/Film.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1476" data-original-width="2624" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjsdUuQ0mdCOk6G4gs2wodgT_ExXZdo19-xkM2_vSfnG6tuSvYjOxprPozNwQyDbJZqzDtgLiLqws56nzhf8Sdm_liYaymo093Ho9qvfP9sYhi-r8gO1qkHD1TYmexXAMS_pS1ZFIVIailsK6NWSX2LKb1l_LJSgkVH8nptRv-85RLOjryf2SoPCIq/s320/Film.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;"><b>Cutaway<br /></b>A cutaway is a shot that steps away from the main action of
the moment. The aim is to create suspense, add information and/or pose a
question. To implement this technique in your work, ask yourself:<br /></span></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">At what point
in a scene or the overall story can I organically use this technique to enhance
the overall work and the reader’s experience?</span></li><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Did I remember to return to that
moment at the right place later in the story to complete the scene and/or
answer the question?</span></li></ul><p></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;"><b>Double Reveal<br /></b>A reveal is an insight, a revelation or new
information that impacts the characters and the direction of the story. A
double reveal propels plot and reveals characters the way a solid rocket
booster thrusts a spacecraft from initial launch through ascent into orbit by
allowing the protagonist(s) and the opposing character(s) to gain crucial
insights into themselves and each other through direct conflict. To implement
this technique, ask yourself:<br /></span></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">What kind of conflict do the characters in this
scene need to spark a major revelation?</span></li><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">What will they learn from this that
they can’t learn any other way?</span></li><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">How will these new insights change each
person’s life and the overall story?</span></li></ul><p></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;"><b>Dramatic</b><br />Arc Dramatic arc is the shape,
path and direction of the story’s action and conflict. The aim here is to
create a framework for the development of the story and the characters. To
implement this technique:<br /></span></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Chart the action of your story, and ask yourself what
shape you see, for example, a bell curve or a sharp initial rise in action then
a long, steady decline. Where is there a lag?</span></li><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Also ask yourself how the
dramatic arc complements and/or contrasts with the character arc(s).</span></li></ul><p></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;"><b>Jump Cut<br /></b>A
jump cut is a scene cut in two, with a section removed, that enables the story
to move forward faster and/or smoother than if all the information were
supplied. To implement this technique, ask yourself:<br /></span></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Does the scene or section
still feel complete, with all the essential elements?</span></li><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Is there still sufficient
clarity to avoid confusing the reader?</span></li></ul><p></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;"><b>Montage<br /></b>A montage is an editing
technique that orders a series of images to condense space, time and
information to enhance drama. Types of montages:<br /></span></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Metric montages sequence
images to the beat of music, for example, to increase suspense.</span></li><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Rhythmic
montages cut the images based on musical pacing.</span></li><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Tonal montages cut the images
based on their emotional tone and the emotional tone of the overall scene to
create a mood and/or spark emotions from the audience.</span></li><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Intellectual montages
place different images together to prompt viewers to infer meaning from what
they see and to respond emotionally.</span></li><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Overtonal montages combine all of the
above to evoke emotions from the audience and compel deep thinking. </span></li></ul><p></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;"><b>Suspense</b><br />Suspense
creates sense of excitement, fear or uncertainty about the events or characters
in the story in a way that enhances viewer interest and sets up what comes
next. To implement this technique, ask yourself:<br /></span></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Where in the story can I
organically enhance an existing scene by setting it up for one outcome and
providing another?</span></li><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Where in the story or a scene can I create a concern or
question in the reader’s mind and withhold the outcome or answer to the
question?</span></li></ul><p></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">If you enjoy films, you can enjoy them more and make better
use of your viewing experience by learning how the film was made. Learning more
about the craft and art of moviemaking can also give you new direction as a
writer and breathe new life into your stories, characters and scenes.</span></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">To learn
more about how film techniques enhance fiction, check out:<br /><b>Cinematic Story &
Character Techniques for Fiction and Memoir - Online and In-Person<br /></b></span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">With acclaimed director Joanne
Hudson, founder of the Ridgefield Independent Film Festival, and award-winning
writer and novelist Adele Annesi.</span></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;"><a href="https://www.westportwriters.org/product-page/cinematic-story-character-techniques-for-fiction-and-memoir-hybrid"><b>Cinematic Story & Character Techniques
for Fiction and Memoir</b></a><b><br /></b></span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Date: Saturday, February 11<br /></span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Time: 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.<br />Venue: Hybrid in-person (at
Westport Writers’ Workshop) and online (via Zoom)<br />Price: $80.00</span></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">For questions, email
<a href="mailto:a.annesi@sbcglobal.net">Adele Annesi.</a> Adele’s new novel is <i>What She Takes Away</i> (Bordighera Press,
2023).</span></p>Adele Annesihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09062487338490687393noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6107730914958578187.post-39743551940497815822022-12-08T12:47:00.001-08:002022-12-08T12:47:57.611-08:00Seven Keys to Writing Memorable Genre Fiction<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF-uAv-bSYOuVbKFEcMtMpg_9fqxPq8-X-v9x9NlaRBOhL3XFF6kzRIn9TbASEygYTZIryx9kQJjwaZwNsRxIrCoMq4_8vk8f9m_-knxwErK6X745SiUk9Yks2f3_LSGUuxv2mFkUBwhcDZuUdi0PQOPrvNd4NEMYYSZlYYXRD7GVHT2k1ji36AbeP/s720/Keys.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="540" height="197" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF-uAv-bSYOuVbKFEcMtMpg_9fqxPq8-X-v9x9NlaRBOhL3XFF6kzRIn9TbASEygYTZIryx9kQJjwaZwNsRxIrCoMq4_8vk8f9m_-knxwErK6X745SiUk9Yks2f3_LSGUuxv2mFkUBwhcDZuUdi0PQOPrvNd4NEMYYSZlYYXRD7GVHT2k1ji36AbeP/w148-h197/Keys.jpg" width="148" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Seven key elements of writing
genre fiction are character, conflict, dialogue, plot, setting, theme and world
building. Here are points to ponder from sections of and contributing writers to
</span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Now Write! Science Fiction, Fantasy, and
Horror,</i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> plus exercises, for
speculative fiction and all genre work.<br /></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><b>Credibility<br /></b>Credibility, by Vincent M.
Wales<br />“One of the most important aspects of a story (and of an author) is
credibility. This is an important trait that’s not hard to gain, but easy to
lose. And few things can ruin credibility like factual inaccuracy.”<br /></span></p><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0 0 0 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Exercise:
Select a favorite novel or short story that includes facts about the story
world. Note how these facts impact the story world and help create it.</span></p></blockquote><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><b>Creativity</b><br />Creativity on Demand, by Steven Barnes<br />“The key to brainstorming is that you
must give yourself specific permission to come up with absurd answers.
Otherwise you will think only in a direct, linear path, and miss the chance of
a high-level breakthrough.” </span></p><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0 0 0 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Exercise:
Ask yourself which aspects of your story you’re grappling to present because they
seem to fantastical to include. Then consider which characters the story
elements impact and how. Begin weaving the realities into a plot list to
concretize new directions for your story.</span></p></blockquote><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><b>Beginnings and Endings<br /></b>Begin
at the End, by Michael Dillon Scott<br />“… in my experience, even those [writers]
who do not plan their stories have an ending mind and will work toward that
particular conclusion … All writing is a journey toward a destination, that
final page in the story. Like any journey, it makes perfect sense to begin with
a destination in mind. The entire story becomes a lot easier if the ending is
written.”</span></p><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0 0 0 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Exercise: Your story may
already have a beginning and an end. If so, ask yourself how the two inform
each other. Then consider ways to deepen both. If you’re stuck for a beginning,
ending or both, consider starting the story in the middle of a scene. To create
the scene, sit for a moment, eyes closed, and allow yourself to imagine the
scene, no matter how strange it may seem. Let it play out a bit before taking
notes.</span></p></blockquote><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><b>World Building<br /></b>Humming the Sets: World Building That Supports the
Story, by Melissa Scott<br />“There’s an old joke about musical theater that seems
perennially relevant to discussions on world building … no matter how good a
designer you are, no one leaves the show humming the sets … This is part of
persuading readers to suspend their disbelief: the buildup of solid, consistent
details that seem to follow logically from the choices you’ve made; and to make
it work, you have to know your imaginary world inside and out. The other reason
for knowing your world in detail is that it helps you learn about your characters
… The more you know about the world, the more fine detail you can add to your
picture, the better you understand how to shape your characters’ lives and
choices.”</span></p><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0 0 0 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Exercise: Ask yourself which
aspects of your story or characters is least clear. Then consider why this is
and what might be missing that would fill in </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">and</i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> clarify the picture.</span></p></blockquote><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><b>Setting<br /></b>Leaping into Landscape, by Wendy Mewes<br />“Take forest, with a dual
personality fruitful for fantasy … Shelter also becomes concealment, and the
forest’s semi-magical powers of transformation and regeneration challenge our
very sense of self. Hidden from the sun, we literally lose direction and the
balance of life suddenly shifts. [However] Forest is never destination, but a
step on the path, a setting for adventure and challenge.”</span></p><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0 0 0 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Exercise: List the various aspects of your
story’s setting. Next to each item note its metaphoric values. Keep the list
handy as you revise your work.</span></p></blockquote><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><b>Drama<br /></b>Writing Is Seeing, by John Shirley<br />“Verisimilitude,
believability—that’s a key to persuading a reader that what you’re describing
is real. Where do you get it? From observation—from observing yourself, people
around you, the world around you … Being ‘in the moment’ helps you see things
as they are—and it may bring you insight into the human condition … A good
writer can find the human dilemma, the human condition, in any situation,
because it’s always there, if you’re really looking closely.”</span></p><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0 0 0 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Exercise: List the main character(s) in your
story. Next to each list the dilemmas the person faces. Next to each dilemma
note the possible outcomes that could result. Consider these realities as you
revise your work.</span></p></blockquote><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Adele Annesi is an award-winning author, editor and
teacher. For questions on writing, email </span><a href="mailto:a.annesi@sbcglobal.net?subject=a.annesi@sbcglobal.net" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Adele
Annesi.</a><span class="MsoHyperlink" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Adele’s new novel is </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">What She Takes Away</i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">
(Bordighera Press, 2023).</span></p>Adele Annesihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09062487338490687393noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6107730914958578187.post-61422428278425618602022-10-22T11:08:00.003-07:002022-10-22T11:08:37.613-07:00Can You See Me Now: Effective Description in Long-Form Fiction<p><span style="color: #26282a; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Throughout the historical fiction novel workshop I’ve been teaching at </span><span style="color: green; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://www.westportwriters.org/"><span style="color: green;">Westport Writers’
Workshop</span></a></span><span style="color: #26282a; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"> we’ve been focusing on the seven elements that appear in all fiction
but are hallmarks of historical fiction: character, conflict, dialogue, plot,
setting, theme and world building.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK9KpnJVtgzEWn6Z6SWS2J4h-dHXADEZCpPcoqi7uZLNsG1czmD6Da5JoDftVXRet4AGgDJwMbxtb_epXiAUiW-eq56B2JVGtobTSOJ2Al3HwN-DsbojyOXSNC7uMGsJt_i5hwDmI7lvJ3N_Fj2jdkpY0gJ_U4H4b6Rry3QHw_r67TKmiKjEDkHFgL/s980/Mirror.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="980" data-original-width="766" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK9KpnJVtgzEWn6Z6SWS2J4h-dHXADEZCpPcoqi7uZLNsG1czmD6Da5JoDftVXRet4AGgDJwMbxtb_epXiAUiW-eq56B2JVGtobTSOJ2Al3HwN-DsbojyOXSNC7uMGsJt_i5hwDmI7lvJ3N_Fj2jdkpY0gJ_U4H4b6Rry3QHw_r67TKmiKjEDkHFgL/s320/Mirror.jpg" width="250" /></a></div><p></p><p><span style="color: #26282a; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">About halfway through our fall workshop
series, one of our writers realized that after weeks of reading her colleagues’
submissions she didn’t know what the characters in the various stories looked
like. Nor was she sure that she had rendered her own main character thoroughly
enough throughout the story so that her colleagues knew what her main character
looked like. We knew what the character was feeling and thinking, but as to physical
characteristics—oh, my!</span></p><p><span style="color: #26282a; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">The more we considered the notion of how to depict a character’s
physical description, the more we realized how hard it can be to get a sense of
how our characters look, not just at the start of the story when we may still
be working those details out but also in the key moments of their lives and
over the passing of time. So</span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">, character descriptions,
what to do?</span></p><p><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">First, to be fair, it has been a busy season for all our novelists,
with some lack of continuity in workshop participation and submissions. This isn’t
unusual with busy writers who have, well, lives. But one very real downside to lack
of continuity is that we sometimes forget how our colleagues’ characters look. Since
readers rarely read a novel in one sitting, this is a problem for them, too.</span></p><p><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Second,
if you’re working in long-form fiction — novel, novella, novelette — at some
point you’re in the process of generating pages. This usually means placing a
priority on moving the story forward. While this makes sense, one causality of word
count and trying to get the plot down is description. Scant descriptions are a
reality not only for characters but settings, too.</span></p><p><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">One way to address description
is to consider in the context of two craft elements: characterization and
setting. Both of these — who people are (and how they look) and what the story
world is (and how it looks) — need to be established from the start of the
story. It’s also important to describe characters and settings as they evolve
over the course of a story in general and how they appear in key moments in
particular. This will draw readers further and further into the story as it
unfolds, a key point of reader engagement.</span></p><p><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Ongoing description also enables writers
to better understand and depict their characters, settings and stories. So,
what if we find ourselves with scant descriptions? If we’re working on a first or
an early draft of a novel, we can keep in mind that detailed descriptions are
often more easily developed in second and subsequent drafts. By then, we’ve
made progress in page and word count, and we know the story, setting and people
better.</span></p><p><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Given the realities of life and rather than break momentum, it’s sometimes
best to make notes to ourselves about the importance of characterization and
setting as we’re writing. We can do this right in the text as we’re writing or
keep a separate list. Then as we revise our work, we can find those places where
we need to amplify descriptions of people and places, as appropriate for that
point in the story.</span></p><p><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Last, we can recall what Janet Burroway said in <i>Writing
Fiction:</i> Details are the lifeblood of fiction. To use this craft
element well, we must remember two things. Details must be concrete, and they
must be germane to what the story is about, its theme. This is why details are
often easier to fill in after the first draft.</span></p><p><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">When it comes to developing our
description skills, we can thank our colleagues for their attention to detail
and their powers of observation. We can also thank them for not ignoring </span><span style="color: #26282a; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">what
may seem obvious but often gets back-burnered for the sake of expediency. This may
be the right thing for a first or an early draft. But physical descriptions,
especially throughout a longer work of fiction, are critical because they show the
passage of time and its effects and the effects of events of the story as well.
This will keep readers — and writers – engaged and learning the whole way
through.</span></p>Adele Annesihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09062487338490687393noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6107730914958578187.post-29387366133327339892022-09-03T13:08:00.002-07:002022-09-03T13:08:14.704-07:00New Blog Focus: The Way Art Works — For Writers<p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">For the past fourteen
years, Word for Words blog has focused almost exclusively on writing from an
editor’s perspective. The focus is now shifting from an editor’s perspective on
writing to a writer’s perspective on writing. Here’s why.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOXGL4dyBLREreQBjbWQ0c4l502v3lafaio0nNtpSw1nZkcpXuN5sZkNRIcSIi34GIsmCAOR3glRZplJn8qQuCSYbPO7bLwgEkkfhL0M8EkKLL-iPijFGhOauMZ_7xMNu4bOOLK2q1LNWAJt2ZYqFVw8UogEGsmDACt_aaBXpLIyLpPQA8_R6yxWbP/s1920/Art.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1440" data-original-width="1920" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOXGL4dyBLREreQBjbWQ0c4l502v3lafaio0nNtpSw1nZkcpXuN5sZkNRIcSIi34GIsmCAOR3glRZplJn8qQuCSYbPO7bLwgEkkfhL0M8EkKLL-iPijFGhOauMZ_7xMNu4bOOLK2q1LNWAJt2ZYqFVw8UogEGsmDACt_aaBXpLIyLpPQA8_R6yxWbP/s320/Art.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">First, you’ll notice that
the title of the blog looks a bit different. It’s still called Word for Words,
but the tag line is a quote from music critic, manager and record producer Jon
Landau on the subject of imperfection and art. Here’s the full quote:</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">“Sometimes
the things that are wrong with something are the same things that make that
thing great. That’s the way it is in life, and that’s the way art works.”</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">The
quote first appeared on Word for Words in the post </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><a href="https://wordforwords.blogspot.com/2018/03/second-thoughts-and-way-art-works.html"><span style="color: #c00000; font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Second Thoughts and the Way Art Works”</span></a></span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> on March 4, 2018.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">But the blog’s focus isn’t
shifting to writers’ second thoughts about their work (though the concept will
likely appear in a future post). Instead, the focus will be on the artistic
side of writing, what that means and how we go from writing project to work of
art. We’ll still cover craft. We have to, because “Craft enables art,” as noted
by speculative fiction pioneer Ursula K. Le Guin in </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Steering-Craft-Twenty-First-Century-Guide-Sailing/dp/0544611616"><i><span style="color: #c00000; font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Steering the Craft: A 21<sup>st</sup> Century Guide to Sailing
the Sea of Story.</span></i></a></span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">But when we cover craft, it won’t be primarily from an editor’s perspective,
since editors often focus on “fixing”. Instead, we’ll consider how a writer
sees (or perhaps should see) writing and its varied components, especially those
awkward moments and places in our work: as both art and opportunity for
exploration and discovery.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">The change of focus reflects a change in my own focus,
from editing and teaching to writing. I still edit and teach, but with the debut
novel </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><a href="https://news.hamlethub.com/westport/events/48176-award-winning-italian-american-writer-reads-from-forthcoming-novel"><i><span style="color: #c00000; font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">What She Takes Away</span></i></a></span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> slated for publication by </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><a href="https://bordigherapress.org/"><span style="color: #c00000; font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Bordighera Press</span></a></span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> in
June/July 2023 and other novels in the works, I find that my focus is changing,
too, because it has to. Here’s an example of an observation on the craft <i>and</i>
art of writing.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Recently, a writing student was lamenting the fact that some
days their novel-in-progress read like Proust and some days it read like poo. Who
hasn’t felt that way? But rather than shut the conversation down with an
offhand comment like that, I thought about what the writer said and why most,
if not all, writers feel this way at times. (It’s the “why” questions that,
difficult though they often are, usually yield the most fruit.)</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">One reason for
the emotional swings we writers go through is that what many of us are actually
aiming for is artistry, and we spend a lot of time, energy and budget on that
goal. Whether we always articulate it or not, most of us want more than words
on a page and a story—we want our words and stories to be memorable, and for
the right reasons.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Apart from the fact that artistry comes at a price, not the
least of which is the cost of all the opportunities we give up in order to put ourselves
out there, some days we don’t recognize that the things that are “wrong” with our
work are the things that can make that work great.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Take, for example, live
performance. Live performance of any type isn’t perfect, despite our best efforts.
But impromptu moments are precisely what make a live experience memorable,
moments where an actor ad libs or a musician doesn’t stick to the sheet. It’s
these moments, and what they’re made of, that we’ll explore here, including from
the perspective of artists in fields besides writing. Because the more I see of
other fields like music, the more I’m learning about the craft and art of
writing, and other areas of the arts as well.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">For the full interview with Bruce
Springsteen on <i>The New Yorker</i> Radio
Hour, click on </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><a href="https://www.newyorker.com/podcast/the-new-yorker-radio-hour/bruce-springsteen-talks-with-david-remnick"><span style="color: #c00000; font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Bruce Springsteen Talks with David Remnick.</span></a></span></p>Adele Annesihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09062487338490687393noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6107730914958578187.post-69739901835741193072022-06-03T13:56:00.004-07:002022-06-03T14:00:15.288-07:00Improvisation and Fiction From the Heart<p style="text-align: left;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">“Improvisation is an
important element in the construction of any novel. You </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">are</i><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;"> making up a
good deal of the story and its environs. In this way novel writing is closer to
jazz than it is to the mathematical precision of the modern interpretation of
European classical music.<span style="font-size: 14.6667px;">” </span></span><i style="font-size: 11pt; text-align: right;">Elements of
Fiction,</i><span style="font-size: 11pt; text-align: right;"> Walter Mosley</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-13ON4z2NnnSA-sDY2jZpvV7ccDVWKVIxQS3RQe4zlfF1xYjNjPCzuBuiImxoGJtracavTHKL8ZfreWjiAHIFn1gbk618MrLbTVZd580f_C9QBK2d_R71RL_9--GS4sHuFZ-ELorMnkzmX3oYTSajEtEa0KFHjj-HRMRiCvOqYD2xZ49U34gr05Y4/s1800/Sax.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1800" data-original-width="1200" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-13ON4z2NnnSA-sDY2jZpvV7ccDVWKVIxQS3RQe4zlfF1xYjNjPCzuBuiImxoGJtracavTHKL8ZfreWjiAHIFn1gbk618MrLbTVZd580f_C9QBK2d_R71RL_9--GS4sHuFZ-ELorMnkzmX3oYTSajEtEa0KFHjj-HRMRiCvOqYD2xZ49U34gr05Y4/w178-h267/Sax.jpg" width="178" /></a></div><p></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">In fiction, as in music, improvisation is a critical
element, because if the writer isn’t surprised by what happens in the story,
even one based on real events and people, the reader won’t be either.</span></p><p></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">One of
the scariest things writers face is the blank page. So it’s usually a relief
when the writer knows where a story is going and sets off down that path. So
why, then, would the writer take a detour for parts unknown or a dead end?</span></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Crime
fiction novelist Walter Mosley, author of </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Elements
of Fiction,</i><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;"> says that one reason to take the risk is that “… the story
we’re writing is a living thing and has opinions of its own. As the writer, we
are part of these decisions, but that doesn’t give us, or our conscious minds,
complete control.”</span></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Fiction writers need both insight and inspiration. When we start
a story, we may have a good sense of the plot and the characters. But it
doesn’t usually take long to realize we don’t know everything. “Creativity has
much to do with experience, observation and imagination, and if any one of
those key elements is missing, it doesn’t work,” per Bob Dylan in </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Chronicles
Vol. 1.</i><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;"> When the writer reaches a fork in the road or a roadblock, it’s the
right time to ask, “Now what?”</span></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">It’s also a great time to ask, “What if?” In
fiction, as in life, what-if questions can be vexing because they force us to
face uncertainty, the unknown. In fiction writing, these moments offer the
prospect of discovery. This means the writer can use what-if queries as
catalysts to develop and deepen the work, even if it means exploring a trail
that doesn’t follow the existing storyline.</span></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">So, what if the road less traveled
leads to wasted time and energy? Mosely anticipates the question: “… a novel
attempting to rise above the level of mere story does not get there because of
our knowledge and certainty, our education and intelligence alone. The novel
flourishes when its author begins to take risks.” So how do we take risks, and
what sorts of risks can we take? Here are questions to ask, based on key
elements of fiction:</span></p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Character: What if a character wants to do something
apparently not in keeping with who that person is (or as we envisioned them)? Why
not craft a scene and find out?</span></li><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Conflict: In life and in fiction, conflicts
abound. The question fiction writer may be what </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">other</i><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;"> problems, besides
those we’ve anticipated, naturally arise from the story. As a reminder, the
three main areas of conflict are: the character with other characters, the
character with the character, and the character with nature.</span></li><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Dialogue: What
happens when someone says something unexpected? To explore this, write a scene
without scripting it first, and see where it goes.</span></li><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Plot: Instead of going in
the expected direction with a particular plot point or event, what if the story
took a left turn? While uncertainty is uncomfortable, where there is uncertainty
there is opportunity. </span></li><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Setting: While you may already know where your story is
set, setting includes everything from weather, location and geography, era,
society—everything that makes up your story world. Even the slightest change
can dramatically affect and layer the story and characters.</span></li><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Theme: A story’s
main theme forms the backbone of the story. But what secondary themes might
there be that inform the main topic?</span></li></ul><p></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">When in doubt, consider Mosely’s advice:
“… when the Voice of novel, asks </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Why not take this detour and see if we can
get something out of it?</i><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">—you should listen.”</span></p>Adele Annesihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09062487338490687393noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6107730914958578187.post-70475433363065027632022-04-08T13:16:00.010-07:002022-04-08T13:27:52.891-07:00Award-Winning Children's Book Author Talks Writing and the Writing Life<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiebzBw9EzbkqlBixMaGItP9H-BGaGlUuBinlGB9n1kM1D4bKglGNFQo1ayVQx48akZRohoI9iU6CgurLboumqQHRud5J1UKayhlPc_aj_W7eRUe6O7_Woxl45yDWbkxdIfK0c4JUVjhKl0WsRO0n4M1yRQ4ibZPG4y8XhBIcXCU3_b2_yyvYviVCgp/s2049/Author%20Photo.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2049" data-original-width="1606" height="217" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiebzBw9EzbkqlBixMaGItP9H-BGaGlUuBinlGB9n1kM1D4bKglGNFQo1ayVQx48akZRohoI9iU6CgurLboumqQHRud5J1UKayhlPc_aj_W7eRUe6O7_Woxl45yDWbkxdIfK0c4JUVjhKl0WsRO0n4M1yRQ4ibZPG4y8XhBIcXCU3_b2_yyvYviVCgp/w170-h217/Author%20Photo.jpg" width="170" /></a></div><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Valerie Bolling is
the author of the 2021 SCBWI Crystal Kite award-winning and CT Book Award
finalist <i>Let’s Dance!</i> (March 2020). A graduate of Tufts University and
Columbia University, Teachers College, Valerie is an Instructional Coach for
Greenwich Public Schools and is on faculty at </span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;"><a href="https://www.westportwriters.org/valerie-bolling"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Westport Writers’ Workshop.</span></a> </span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Valerie has been an educator for almost 30 years</span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">. </span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">When
she taught elementary students, it was difficult to find diverse literature for
them. Thus, she is passionate about creating stories in which all children can
see themselves and feel seen and heard, valued and validated. Here Valerie answers
questions about writing and the writing life as a children’s picture book
author.<br /></span><p></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;"><b>What
current or past writing project presented you with a new writing challenge, and
what was that challenge?<br /></b></span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">I set a challenge for myself with <i>Together We
Ride.</i> I wanted to write a book that had fewer words than <i>Let’s Dance!</i>
and used the same end rhyme throughout the text. I met both challenges. <i>Together
We Ride</i> has only 30 words, half the number of <i>Let’s Dance</i>!, and all the
words (except one) rhyme with “ride.”</span></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;"><b>What method(s) did you employ to work
through the obstacle?<br /></b>What helped me most with the challenge was my own
determination. After all, I had set my own challenge, and I wanted to succeed.
For inspiration, I consulted Cheryl Klein’s book <i>Wings,</i> which has only
12 words (wow!), and I used rhymezome.com, a helpful tool for those writing
rhyme.</span></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDM9svp1-KPratCDR563Gk1GlQ6T_rMoGe2looY-Js0qakEjE2zRAMc7x977OXWZ_P_STcJ4tS1YIDBcN-a_DKfmtY4JWuZWMoBVX8WteM1ly-dR5DNSScoarm_xwohYIj325tOgUiLJkHLKgistpor-cGmqam9N0ChDZpf21kjjjJgau5uiOI7b7P/s2929/Together%20We%20Ride.COVER.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2716" data-original-width="2929" height="187" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDM9svp1-KPratCDR563Gk1GlQ6T_rMoGe2looY-Js0qakEjE2zRAMc7x977OXWZ_P_STcJ4tS1YIDBcN-a_DKfmtY4JWuZWMoBVX8WteM1ly-dR5DNSScoarm_xwohYIj325tOgUiLJkHLKgistpor-cGmqam9N0ChDZpf21kjjjJgau5uiOI7b7P/w202-h187/Together%20We%20Ride.COVER.jpg" width="202" /></a></div><b>What was the outcome?<br /></b>The outcome was that I met the challenge.
Further evidence of my success was that when my agent went on submission,
immediately after signing with him, with the manuscript for <i>Together We Ride</i>
(at the time called <i>Bike Ride</i>) sold at auction. Ultimately, I ended up
with two two-book deals from two different publishers! The best outcome is that
<i>Together We Ride</i> will release on April 26, and <a href="https://www.rjjulia.com/book/9781797212487"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">you may preorder it now from RJ
Julia.</span></a><p></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;"><b>What did you learn from the effort?<br /></b></span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">I learned that writing is
like life. There are ups and downs, bumps in the road, and rollercoaster rides
that can seem as if you’re about to fly off the track! So, be sure to celebrate
your successes. Even the little ones … like a completed draft or half of a
draft, revisions, or a rejection. Yes, a rejection. A rejection means it wasn’t
the right time for you, but you’re that much closer to a “yes.” Celebrate </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">everything</i><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">
– a class you took, a conference you attended, your critique group members, new
followers on social media, winning a giveaway. These are all things that can
bring joy when you’re feeling discouraged. The best way to experience success
(whatever success means for you) is to set goals and work hard to achieve them.
You will definitely have more successes to celebrate!</span></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;"><b>What one thing would
you tell other writers that you hope they’ll really take to heart?<br /></b></span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Besides
what I’ve mentioned, I’d add to make sure they enjoy every moment — even the
challenging parts because that’s how you grow — in writing and in life.</span></p><p><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Besides writing
picture books, Valerie Bolling has published articles The National Writing Project’s <i>Quarterly.</i> She is a member of SCBWI, the Authors Guild, and NCTE. </span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Valerie and her husband live in Connecticut and enjoy traveling,
hiking, reading and going to the theater.</span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span></p>Adele Annesihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09062487338490687393noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6107730914958578187.post-87469677785229421542022-03-14T10:35:00.001-07:002022-03-14T10:38:31.643-07:00Picture Book Writer Addresses Diversity and Inclusion to Inspire and Empower Children to Success<p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Sherri T. Mercer is a writer and student of writing who is passionate about children's literature. </span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14.6667px;">Sherri also participates in the Black Creatives Mentorship Program and is a recipient of a BIPOC Scholarship Award to attend the 2022 SCBWI Winter Conference.</span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14.6667px;"> </span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Here, Sherri answers questions
on her current writing projects and future goals and plans.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjN5bDDbcdYFMqBfzsWV0GG8IDUIIur53pa7f66vRUh6NhMziNJ9wxAskumI-QInXk9JF-xWHnKsEUKjKX5dp13tWdZ88_wZ633ws8C3HpzCDeMfZHyLj68iMkqazw_M1kD-bjKyD-QJt5zS_38JnX20PF4W7G_t2Oqp7O3TwRGJP91AVIT6tU78r7j=s611" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="611" data-original-width="513" height="246" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjN5bDDbcdYFMqBfzsWV0GG8IDUIIur53pa7f66vRUh6NhMziNJ9wxAskumI-QInXk9JF-xWHnKsEUKjKX5dp13tWdZ88_wZ633ws8C3HpzCDeMfZHyLj68iMkqazw_M1kD-bjKyD-QJt5zS_38JnX20PF4W7G_t2Oqp7O3TwRGJP91AVIT6tU78r7j=w207-h246" width="207" /></a></div><p></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><b>In what genre(s) do you write?<br /></b></span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Currently,
I am writing fictional picture books, both Christian and mainstream. I also
enjoy writing Young Adult Sunday School curricula and devotionals for kids and
adults.</span></p><p><b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Describe a current project.<br /></b><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">I have several picture book
manuscripts at varying levels of completion. Most of my manuscripts address
diversity and inclusion, written with the underrepresented in mind, characters
who are not represented, who are too small or unfairly judged. I hope children
will feel empowered to overcome the barriers and distractions impeding their
success. In addition, I have two manuscripts based on Christian principles—those
in God's creation are enough to overcome what others perceive as hindrances.</span></p><p><b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">What
are your goals for your projects and in general?<br /></b><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">I hope my stories are acquired by an agent/editor
this year for traditional publication. And I plan to read 500 picture books by
December 31.</span></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;"><b>Are you facing any obstacles with your
projects? If so, how are you working through them?<br /></b></span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">I am not facing any
obstacles, but I am working within the constraints of traditional publishing.
It's a subjective process with many unwritten rules. Publishing traditionally
takes patience, timing, and connecting with the right people. Through classes,
webinars, and conferences, I am honing my skills. Once I complete the tasks I
can control, I'll begin looking for an editor/agent who is receptive to my work
and willing to position it rightly in the industry.</span></p><p><b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">What are your writing
goals overall?<br /></b><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">My lifetime writing goals are: to publish children's books
that foster hope and empower, to publish
devotionals to encourage the brokenhearted and discouraged to look beyond their
daily struggles because DAY 41 IS COMING, and to write a novel based on
childhood memories of my father—BIBLICAL TRUTHS FROM A DADDY'S GIRL.</span></p><p><b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">What are
your biggest challenges as a writer?<br /></b><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">My biggest challenges as a writer are
letting go of my work and remaining focused. It's easy to get caught up in
honing your skills, lose focus, and not apply the skills you have learned.
There will always be a great webinar, conference, or new way of breaking into
the industry. But, it's essential to get what you need, then write—application
results in an end product. I also struggle with "making my work perfect."
I want to be sure I'm putting out fun and entertaining stories/materials that offer
healing and help build (empowering) and rebuilding (offering hope) the lives of
my readers.</span></p><p><b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">What might you want other writers and/or writing students to
know?<br /></b><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Writing is not easy. It carries with it responsibility. Even the most
humorous and entertaining story should positively impact the reader's life. If
you wish to publish traditionally, invest time learning the industry and becoming
your best writer. Be patient and stay the course. Until your book publishes, do
as our fore-parents did: Tell your story orally. It's more about the message
than the platform.</span></p><p><b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">What else might you want to add?<br /></b><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">I am thankful to the
writing community, especially the KidLit community. It's such a giving and
supportive body of people. I am here answering questions on your blog because
of your generosity. Return the generosity shown, reach back, and lift another—wait!
Your day is coming.</span></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">Sherri T. Mercer is a retired educator (30+
years) passionate about children's literature. She is especially drawn to
stories that inspire hope and give voice to what matters to children. She has a
work-for-hire leveled reader that will publish with Benchmark Education and a
young adult Sunday School curriculum in September 2022 with the Sunday School
Publishing Board—National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc. Sherri is also a
wife, mother of adult children, a writer and caregiver who resides in South
Fulton, TN. Sherri is grateful for the opportunity to participate in the
Black Creatives Mentorship Program. She is honored to work with Natasha Tarpley
as a 2022 mentee and to be a recipient of a BIPOC Scholarship Award to attend
the SCBWI Winter Conference 2022.</span></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><i>Contact Sherri at sherritmercer@gmail.com, or follow her on Twitter:
@sherritmercer and Instagram: @sherritmercer_sincerelyyours.</i></span></p>Adele Annesihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09062487338490687393noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6107730914958578187.post-71215196238698195962022-03-07T11:09:00.001-08:002022-03-07T11:09:11.195-08:00How to Create Compelling Scenes in Fiction - Seminar<p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><b>Scene
by Scene: How to Create Compelling Scenes in Fiction<br /></b></span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">With Adele Annesi</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj5izFrgxXR4EtPvXsV7JY7RxJfAKBntgTTG8gOAotmtU5RTmnK2L1vUjnELFX5T2UWSEez6A_10dW9Lx7cn9h9YUC3_LC8TrOn9zw-I0zmpioCC5ShK7ao5PBKx-U7azAk2Gkj_jX6H3dfAROR8SZ1guW24lS0j9TPM_HQ-9BTgzU-rhXmaULnW-EW=s236" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="41" data-original-width="236" height="41" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj5izFrgxXR4EtPvXsV7JY7RxJfAKBntgTTG8gOAotmtU5RTmnK2L1vUjnELFX5T2UWSEez6A_10dW9Lx7cn9h9YUC3_LC8TrOn9zw-I0zmpioCC5ShK7ao5PBKx-U7azAk2Gkj_jX6H3dfAROR8SZ1guW24lS0j9TPM_HQ-9BTgzU-rhXmaULnW-EW" width="236" /></a></div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><b>Manhattanville College<br />March 12 </b></span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;">—</span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><b> Via Zoom<br /></b></span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">From 10:00 a.m. to 12 noon<br />Registration $45</span></p><p><a href="https://www.mville.edu/scene-scene-how-create-compelling-scenes-fiction-adele-annesi" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Scene by Scene: How to Create Compelling Scenes in Fiction with Adele Annesi</a><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> </span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Scenes
are the building blocks of fiction, but what makes a scene strong, fully realized
and effective, and why do some scenes fall short? This Manhattanville College seminar-workshop via Zoom explores all
these aspects and more. </span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">We’ll consider such key elements as backstory, interior
and exterior dialogue, the role of setting, and how to develop character and
advance plot at the same time. We also examine how to structure scenes in a
section or chapter to make the whole greater than the sum of the parts. The
workshop is suitable for short and long-form fiction of all genres. We’ll also
explore aspects of scene revision so writers should bring their current
projects to share and for Q&A, examples and discussion.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">The registration fee is $45. </span></p><p><a href="https://www.mville.edu/scene-scene-how-create-compelling-scenes-fiction-adele-annesi" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Scene by Scene: How to Create Compelling Scenes in Fiction with Adele Annesi</a><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> </span></p>Adele Annesihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09062487338490687393noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6107730914958578187.post-84819904752596698912022-02-07T09:37:00.003-08:002022-02-07T09:40:08.134-08:00UK-Based Author and Publisher Dawn Bauling Chats on Submissions and the Writing Journey<p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Author
Dawn Bauling is editor of </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><a href="https://www.indigodreamspublishing.com/magazines"><span style="color: red;">The Dawntreader</span></a></i><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">
quarterly, the highest circulation magazine of </span><a href="https://www.indigodreamspublishing.com/" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: red;">Indigo Dreams</span> <span style="color: red;">Publishing (IDP),</span></a><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">
based in the UK and formed by Dawn and her and her partner, Ronnie Goodyer, in
2009. Here, Dawn answers questions about what she looks for in submissions to </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">The
Dawntreader</i><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;"> and about her own journey as a poet, writer, author and publisher.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi6kNdMwOsMSyFZTlyAETarehbHFoUdhj2kTlG1J3wBXMpvkoNQcTybCoXPPUy3UFgSVDLRlxKBnskTHxs-V5O3joAjgTjBEHcCu7PsutkF0Ll3QdfiCul1YnhRznzn3il3b-5fKaNitEaQqkFclX-ryN1rmwTPcy4ye4hrkzcl6jEUa6nsxKt6pR_x=s896" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="881" data-original-width="896" height="254" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi6kNdMwOsMSyFZTlyAETarehbHFoUdhj2kTlG1J3wBXMpvkoNQcTybCoXPPUy3UFgSVDLRlxKBnskTHxs-V5O3joAjgTjBEHcCu7PsutkF0Ll3QdfiCul1YnhRznzn3il3b-5fKaNitEaQqkFclX-ryN1rmwTPcy4ye4hrkzcl6jEUa6nsxKt6pR_x=w258-h254" width="258" /></a></div><p></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;"><b>What do you look for in submissions to </b><i><b>The
Dawntreader?<br /></b></i></span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">It’s quite an alchemy of things, really. Initially, I like
the courtesy of someone emailing and contacting me by name, and getting it
right! I’m enraged by being called Sir, Balding and/or Dennis! A brief covering
letter is always good, too. You can tell a lot from that, even before you open
the submission – arrogance is not winsome, and poems as attachments with no
introduction makes a publisher think there’s no thought; overly long and
detailed isn’t helpful to a busy publisher either. I need to know that the
person sending knows what the magazine is all about and wants to be part of it.</span></p><p><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">The Dawntreader</i><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;"> is themed to the spiritual, nature, myth and legend,
love and the environment, so work must meet that [criterion] first and
foremost. This all happens before I even read the work. I do read every
submission, however, as I know how much effort and nerve may be needed to send
work out. That’s important to us as IDP. I do, therefore, read a lot of poetry!
When I read, I want to be surprised. I want fresh language, new insights, space
to contemplate and walk with the writer. I need to know that the writer has
taken care with their craft, spent time selecting words, like a painter chooses
color. I want to be challenged, too, not to sit too comfortably. It’s
disappointing to be led into a piece of writing and then to finish with a
feeling of, “So what!” Equally, I don’t want to be berated, or given a lecture.</span></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">And … as a cheeky tip … I’m a pushover for a good title! It’s like an
irresistible “come hither” to me. All that said, lots of people do get it
absolutely right. I have so much good work on file, waiting to appear in </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">The
Dawntreader</i><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;"> – prose and poetry – a lot have real fire attached, simmering,
ready for publication. Who can refuse work like that!</span></p><p><b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">What writing projects
are you working on at the moment?<br /></b><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">At IDP, we are taking a more bespoke
approach to 2022, with mostly competitions and commissioned projects ahead:
collaborations with Leeds Trinity University, an anthology aimed at supporting
the work of The League Against Cruel Sports (my partner, Ronnie Goodyer, is
their Poet in Residence), and those authors whose work we love and want to
showcase. I won’t name them, as I’m bound to miss one off. Please visit </span><a href="https://www.indigodreamspublishing.com/" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: red;">Indigo Dreams Publishing</span></a><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;"> to
have a look.</span></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">2022 is the first year we haven’t had an open window for
collection publications, so we are seeing where that leads us. We also wanted
to make time for our own writing, which has been put on something of backburner
over the last two years. Personally, as a poet, I have a several embryonic
writing projects on the go. I have been asked by my Twitter followers to pull
together some of my Twitter posts (@wavelace) into a pamphlet. Ronnie and I are
joining forces again, after the success of our collaboration in Forest moor or
less. We love France and Corfu, and have quite a few scribblings from our times
there. We are told that our poetry voices make quite a nice harmony, so it’ll
be nice to sing again along together. We’ve still not settled on a title so, or
finished 50% of the work so, more on that story later.</span></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;"><b>What are some writing
challenges you've worked through, and how have you addressed them?<br /></b></span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">My main
writing challenge is time. As well as being a publisher, I work part-time for
the NHS [National Health Service], in our local surgeries. You can only begin
to imagine what the last two years have been like, so juggling shifts and
poetry, publishing and vaccination clinics has been a real challenge. I love
both but knew that I had to make a change last year, to get a bit of balance
back.</span></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">I broke my leg at Christmas 2020 and spent the first part of 2021
recovering and learning to walk again. It gave me time and perspective. So,
thanks to my incredible NHS managers and colleagues, I am now only working two
days a week as the local Primary Care Network media officer. I have more time,
less stress and am just beginning to feel like a writer again, picking up my
own pen, rather than helping everyone else sharpen theirs.</span></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;"><b>What one thing
would you want writers to know that could make a difference in their writing
and/or writing life?<br /></b></span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">I went on an Arvon Course about 20 years ago when I
first started taking my writing seriously. My tutor was David Hart, who sadly
has just passed away. He told me to take my work and cut it by 50%, read it
again and then cut another 25%, if possible. That way you get parfum and not
eau de toilette! He told me to dare to be dangerous that way. It’s not always
easy, as I’m a naturally shy kind of person, but as a quiet person, he also
gave me the confidence to dare to shout. I try to pass that on to lots of
people – in my NHS work as well. It has certainly helped me. Don’t give the
reader everything, let them walk with you, give them space to wander in your
words and don’t ever be afraid.</span></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;"><b>What else would you like to add?<br /></b></span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Without
a shadow of a doubt, I have “met” some of the most wonderful people in my
poetry life. I found Ronnie through poetry, by reading one of his collections
and word-wooing him until he said yes! I have also found some of the closest
kindred spirits through being an editor. It feels less of a job and more of a
lifestyle, as necessary as a limb. We live in a beautiful forest in Devon, but
when I open my laptop I find the world and its people and all the reasons I
need!</span></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Author Dawn Bauling and her partner, Ronnie Goodyer, formed </span><a href="https://www.indigodreamspublishing.com/" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: red;">Indigo Dreams Publishing</span></a><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;"> in
2009. They offer a breadth of knowledge and understanding about what it means
to be a published author today and how to enjoy it to the max. They live in a
wooden house in the middle of Cookworthy Forest, Devon, with their rescue blue
merle collie, Mist. </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><a href="https://www.indigodreamspublishing.com/magazines"><span style="color: red;">The Dawntreader</span></a></i><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">
quarterly is IDP’s highest-circulation magazine, with an international
readership that offers writers and readers a chance to let the imagination run
free.</span></p>Adele Annesihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09062487338490687393noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6107730914958578187.post-61873780472444840992022-01-04T12:00:00.001-08:002022-01-04T12:02:42.528-08:00Award-Winning Author, Poet, Instructor Kalafus Talks of the Downs and Ups of Writing, Life and the Writing Life<p><span style="color: #26282a; font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Award-winning author, poet and Westport Writers’ Workshop instructor Christine Kalafus talks
about the downs and ups of writing, life and the writing life, from an honest insider’s perspective.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9Twmp3UEjGkZ7unr_LkOibgENoM8wgmvIsAWO4kHo9osCW29PC_py0SquQFc0bQCSRfhJJgPtouPgj0i1o0N5oVqtxAAA29lNanBa2b9SqQYkUhkZV-B7ur_XBORoZJvt-5DS51psDlE/" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="229" data-original-width="251" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9Twmp3UEjGkZ7unr_LkOibgENoM8wgmvIsAWO4kHo9osCW29PC_py0SquQFc0bQCSRfhJJgPtouPgj0i1o0N5oVqtxAAA29lNanBa2b9SqQYkUhkZV-B7ur_XBORoZJvt-5DS51psDlE/" width="263" /></a></div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: red;"><b>What current or past writing project presented you with a new writing
challenge, and what was the challenge?<br /></b></span></span><span style="color: #26282a; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">I think every
writing project is a writing challenge; it’s the challenge that draws me to it.
In my previous career as a seamstress, I got to the point where I could look at
anything sewn and mentally deconstruct it: window valances, wedding
gowns—everything. When this happened, I knew the end was near. I wasn’t
learning anything new, and I couldn’t imagine a work life without a bit of a
razor’s edge.</span></p><p><span style="color: #26282a; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">With writing, I got my wish! Although I couldn’t have avoided
writing if I tried. It was like a magnet. I closed my business, earned an MFA,
wrote a memoir, and by a miracle of happenstance, landed an agent. I’d
published a few essays and a poem and felt confident (too confident), that the
memoir would be published. Beware easy success! I was, and still am, an unknown
writer — I don’t have millions, or even a thousand, followers on any social
platform, and I wasn’t an archetypal underdog, rising from the ashes. I was a
forty-six-year-old woman who’d survived some bad shit and wrote about it. Even
if the memoir was well-written, it soon became obvious that not one of the Big
Five was interested.</span></p><p><b><span style="color: red; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">What method(s) did you employ to work through
the obstacle?<br /></span></b><span style="color: #26282a; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">I am not too proud to say that I cried. More than once. But, really, who
did I think I was? I’d been living in a bubble. As a seamstress, I was a big
fish in a small pond. Now I was a minnow in the ocean. A few months later, I
was in Manhattan and made an appointment to see my agent. I was raised to send
thank-you notes. But even a note on vellum, hand-written in calligraphy and
sealed with wax wouldn’t have been personal enough. No. I had to see her, shake
her hand, and say something like, “It’s been nice knowing you.”</span></p><p><span style="color: #26282a; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">The poem
I’d had published had also won an award. I figured I’d focus on poetry and
never make another dollar again. But then, I sat there, in [the agent's] bright white,
cramped high-rise office, books and manuscripts everywhere, sweating through my
lucky blouse, and told a lie as white as the room: I said I was working on a
novel. From the dregs of memory, I pulled a paragraph of fiction I’d written
years earlier in a Westport workshop and stretched it into a pitch as if I hadn’t
published essays or won a poetry contest, but like I was auditioning to be a
writer. I don’t know if she believed me, but she said to send some pages after
New Year’s. I wrote like my life depended on it. I just sent the finished draft
this year, a few days before Halloween, three years after that meeting.</span></p><p><b><span style="color: red; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">What
was the outcome?<br /></span></b><span style="color: #26282a; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">I’ll find out this month!</span></p><p><b><span style="color: red; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">What did you learn from the effort?<br /></span></b><span style="color: #26282a; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">I
learned I could write a novel. Whether it’s any good or not, remains to be
seen. But I had a kick-ass time doing it.</span></p><p><b><span style="color: red; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">If you could tell other
writers one thing that you hope they'll pay attention to, what would it be?<br /></span></b><span style="color: #26282a; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Writing
is an art. Publishing is a business.</span></p><p><span style="color: #26282a; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Blueprint for Daylight,</span></i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"> Christine’s award-winning
manuscript, a memoir of infidelity, cancer, colicky twins, and the flood in her
basement, was excerpted in Connecticut’s Emerging Writers. Essays have appeared
in <i>Longreads, PAGE, </i>and the<i> Woven Tale Press,</i> among others. Her
poem “Horses” was the recipient of The Knightville Poetry Award, featured in <i>The
New Guard,</i> and nominated for a Pushcart Prize. “I Hear You Make Cakes,”
recorded before a live audience at Laugh Boston, was chosen for The Moth. “Look
Inside a Woman for the World” appeared in The <i>Connecticut Literary
Anthology,</i> Vol. II in October 2021 Christine is also facilitator of the
Quiet Corner chapter of the Connecticut Poetry Society.</span></span></p><p><span style="color: #26282a; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">For more about Christine, visit<b> </b></span><b><span style="color: red; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://christinekalafus.com/"><span style="color: red;">ChristineKalafus.com.</span></a></span></b></span></span></p>Adele Annesihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09062487338490687393noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6107730914958578187.post-41835485166841908222021-12-15T11:32:00.004-08:002021-12-15T11:32:46.958-08:00Winter Workshops and Programs for Writers<p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">If you’re starting to plan for the holidays
and/or the New Year, consider giving yourself the gift of writing. Enclosed
below are upcoming workshops, classes and programs for writers offered through </span><span style="color: green; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><a href="https://www.westportwriters.org/"><span style="color: green;">Westport Writers’ Workshop.</span></a></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiZblfLjBjrw6wCeawi06-jp5bI9W2lFjgw5QAN7pfJJL6BnO5JJ2n4IHFv6yW7ey6YLxItM-UbejqLxtiB8Z8TilIO34PN6NlYLi1wxGoRy4X4BWi4gb-wjqOQEg8GBL6UQisKsD9HRWZgCQk09Ek1nsfpsmxYpY8J36CR1Coed1oAhefWvIeEShVz=s2674" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1785" data-original-width="2674" height="177" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiZblfLjBjrw6wCeawi06-jp5bI9W2lFjgw5QAN7pfJJL6BnO5JJ2n4IHFv6yW7ey6YLxItM-UbejqLxtiB8Z8TilIO34PN6NlYLi1wxGoRy4X4BWi4gb-wjqOQEg8GBL6UQisKsD9HRWZgCQk09Ek1nsfpsmxYpY8J36CR1Coed1oAhefWvIeEShVz=w264-h177" width="264" /></a></div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #006600;"><b>WRITE HISTORICAL FICTION<br /></b></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">If you enjoy stories
like </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Beneath a Scarlet Sky, Downton Abby, Medici </i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">or</span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> Street of a
Thousand Blossoms,</i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> or have your own real or imagined tales to tell, this
workshop is for you. In this workshop writers learn how to conduct focused
research, create authentic characters, and immerse readers in detailed
descriptions and settings. Subgenres include fantasy, hybrids, mystery,
romance, saga, spiritual, thriller and traditional. Each writer can submit up
to five pages weekly for group feedback and detailed instructor comments.
Handouts are included. Suitable for writers seeking to fictionalize real life
experiences.<br /></span><i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">For more, visit </span><a href="https://www.westportwriters.org/product-page/write-historical-fiction-intro-to-intermediate-with-adele-annesi-w22" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><b><span style="color: #006600;">Westport Writers’ Workshop — Write Historical Fiction —
Starts January 12.</span></b></a></i></p><p><b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #006600;">NOVEL-WRITING MASTER CLASS<br /></span></b><span class="MsoHyperlink" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: windowtext;">This master class offers detailed, constructive feedback
for writers completing a novel or memoir. Each week two writers will submit up
to 25 pages to the instructor and group who will read the submissions outside
class and share insights in class on what works and what needs clarity. The
class is suitable for current drafts and robust generative efforts, and to hone
revision skills. A bibliography of resources and a detailed list of craft
elements are included. Limited to six participants for writers to complete a
substantive revision to finalize their manuscript.<br /><i>For more, visit, </i></span></span><a href="https://www.westportwriters.org/product-page/novel-writing-master-class-manuscript-class-with-adele-annesi-w22" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><b><span style="color: #006600;"><i>Westport Writers’ Workshop — Novel-Writing Master Class —
Starts January 13.</i></span></b></a></p><p><b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #006600;">MENTORING
PROGRAM FOR FICTION<br /></span></b><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">This
innovative, one-on-one program combines personalized instruction in the craft
and art of fiction with inspiration toward your writing goals. Based on the
mentoring segment of the MFA in creative writing, the program provides support
for your project and you as a writer from a writing professional who
understands publishing and the writing life.<br /><i>For more, visit </i></span><a href="https://www.westportwriters.org/product-page/mentoring-program-for-intermediate-to-advanced-fiction-with-adele-annesi" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><b><span style="color: #006600;"><i>Westport Writers’ Workshop – Mentoring Program for Fiction
– Ongoing.</i></span></b></a></p>Adele Annesihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09062487338490687393noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6107730914958578187.post-61949757836397570782021-11-24T15:17:00.006-08:002021-12-02T05:27:09.801-08:00Autumn and More: Perfect to Explore Mood, Motif, Setting, Story, Theme<span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The hours of daylight decrease, the varicolored
leaves fall and skitter in the autumn wind. What we might otherwise see as
downsides of a different time of year mark this hauntingly lovely season as
worthwhile for writers.</span><div><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div><div><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">There is much about autumn to inspire. The changeable
light and variable weather, along with the approaching holiday season, make
fall the perfect time to explore the essential craft elements of mood, motif,
setting, story and theme. Here are ways to make the most of these indispensable
artistic writing tools.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifnPBL63Q4xfhla5WuISZ-q0T7TEKKLcYTaz4cSY-hMwaRpd5zt5KhObSUootCHX0klP7bM_jUmqpEKPC34C2p02ABjk5xdNVtn_IvR0JijqNIeHCmlq54E6fyAiVadoTxYJe0Q1IXLZ8/s1920/autumn+trees.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1920" data-original-width="1280" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifnPBL63Q4xfhla5WuISZ-q0T7TEKKLcYTaz4cSY-hMwaRpd5zt5KhObSUootCHX0klP7bM_jUmqpEKPC34C2p02ABjk5xdNVtn_IvR0JijqNIeHCmlq54E6fyAiVadoTxYJe0Q1IXLZ8/s320/autumn+trees.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><br /></span><div><b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Mood</b></div><div><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">One definition of mood is the story’s emotional
setting or atmosphere. When considering mood, ask yourself these questions:</span></div><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">How might
the reader feel while reading the piece?</span></li><li><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Does the mood of the prose complement
a particular scene, the chapter and the overall story?</span></li></ul></div><div><b><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Motif</span></b></div><div><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Motif could be
described as a concept or an idea, usually repeating, that conveys the story’s
theme in a subtle way. When using motif, ask yourself these questions:</span></div><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Do my motifs deepen the story and its theme with each repeated mention?</span></li><li><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Do the repeats
vary sufficiently in wording and/or subtlety so as not to be obvious to convey something more about the story with each mention?</span></li><li><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Do the types
of motifs complement the story’s theme? For example, if your story is about a
struggling musician, you might mention timing, the sound of the wind or scaling
a mountainside while on a hike.</span></li></ul></div><div><b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Setting</b></div><div><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Setting is a broader category of
craft element than writers may realize. Setting includes the story’s time or
era, its place, and the conditions wherein the action takes place and establish the
story’s context. When using setting, ask yourself:</span></div><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Is my setting sufficiently
developed?</span></li><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">Does it include the timeframe, location(s) and broader landscape of
the story?</span></li><li><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">How does the setting mirror and/or contrast with the plot and/or
character(s) for which it forms the backdrop?</span></li></ul></div><div><b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Story</b></div><div><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The definition of
story is actually simpler and more straightforward than most writers realize.
It could be described as what happens in the story overall. When working
out your story, consider these questions:</span></div><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Are the events presented in an
original way?</span></li><li><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Do the events reflect the writer’s knowledge of the plot without
overshadowing the story?</span></li></ul></div><div><b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Theme</b></div><div><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Theme is what the story is <i>really</i>
about, not what it seems to be about on a surface level. Theme is all-important
and should be conveyed upfront, in the first paragraph, if possible. When
working with theme, ask yourself:</span></div><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">What is my story really about?</span></li><li><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Does the subject have both universal and individual appeal?</span></li><li><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Is the theme conveyed in an original way that
shows what’s at stake?</span></li><li><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">What are the consequences of the characters’
choices, and how do they impact the story?</span></li></ul></div><div><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt;">People
often find that when the seasons change, their mood changes, too. And the decreasing
daylight hours of autumn usually mean a period of adjustment, maybe a dip in
energy levels, changes in routine and some missteps in modifying our lives to
match the time of year. Given this reality, it can take a couple of weeks to move through the
continual light of summer to the growing darkness of fall. Yet, throughout the
transition, writers can embrace the changes and even use them in their
writing while adjusting their lives accordingly.</span></div><div><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div><div><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The changes in weather, and even
the increase in darkness, can serve to inspire writers — and not just those who
write dark stories. It’s the mood. It’s the magic. It’s change itself, to
cooler climes and pristine skies, and the shushing sounds of falling leaves.</span></div><div><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div><div><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Happy
writing and happy and safe holidays!</span></div><div><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div><div><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Adele Annesi is an award-winning author, editor
and teacher. For questions on writing, email </span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><a href="mailto:a.annesi@sbcglobal.net?subject=a.annesi@sbcglobal.net">Adele Annesi.</a></span></div></div>Adele Annesihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09062487338490687393noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6107730914958578187.post-27296628479003720652021-09-09T13:53:00.000-07:002021-09-09T13:53:04.804-07:00A Different Sort of Writer’s Conference - What's Right for You?<p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">What do you look for in a writer’s conference?
Workshops, feedback, panel discussions, agent-editor talks? That’s what I
usually look for. But not this year. As a writing instructor, I wanted the immersive
experience and sense of community I found while studying for an MFA at Fairfield
University here in Connecticut. I’m pleased to say I found it.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAUs1wlkz3NHRcNESDdiX-J4bHDoKY-U_woQlAD48ijSBeLwQNlDrJ1tzFjc6CAeH4jExZVD93hYW3OEMTZjjNR3QzhMDmUskquGUukxNM5guwMWeoJqPzKCcQRxferfigaBtabPIetCA/s2048/Italy+2006+114.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1532" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAUs1wlkz3NHRcNESDdiX-J4bHDoKY-U_woQlAD48ijSBeLwQNlDrJ1tzFjc6CAeH4jExZVD93hYW3OEMTZjjNR3QzhMDmUskquGUukxNM5guwMWeoJqPzKCcQRxferfigaBtabPIetCA/s320/Italy+2006+114.jpg" width="239" /></a></div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">As a writer, an
educator and an advocate of lifelong learning for diverse writers, I found
myself longing for a summer writing experience that included three key
components: pedagogy, craft and community. And I wanted a certain level of experience
in those elements. What I found was the Postgraduate Writers’ Conference (PWC) at
Vermont College of Fine Arts (VCFA).</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">When you’re looking for a writer’s
conference, you often get a lot of advance hype that isn’t fully realized in
the actual event. That wasn’t true here. Described as a “haven for serious,
emerging practitioners seeking to connect, recharge, and lift their process and
craft to new levels,” the PWC at VCFA was exactly that.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">I have to admit I hadn’t
heard of the conference before this year. One reason is that over the past
eight years I’ve been involved in planning the Ridgefield Writer’s Conference. Since
the Ridgefield conference ended its run last year, this year I was free to find
an event that offered the same core elements. I started the search in May.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">While
looking through the </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Poets & Writers Magazine </i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">classifieds</span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">,</i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> I found a
listing for the PWC at VCFA. While the August 9 through 14 timeframe worked with
my summer teaching schedule, what drew me most was the conference model description
of small workshops of five or six writers led by a faculty member. I recognized
the format because it was the same as the MFA at Fairfield and the Ridgefield conference.
But the PWC didn’t stop there.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Besides five days of workshops, each writer had
an individual instructor consult. And there were faculty and participant readings,
craft talks, generative writing sessions and social events. The PWC was so community-oriented,
the fact that it was held remotely didn’t detract from the event. For me, it
was a plus because it enabled me to attend the conference while working on projects
here at home. The other benefit of a virtual event was that the writers and
instructors came from across the country.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">The one aspect of most writing events
that wasn’t part of the VT conference were agent, editor and publisher panels. Honestly,
I didn’t miss them. I already keep up with this aspect of the writing life and cover
it in my own instruction so it was a breath of fresh air not to have to focus
on the industry side of writing for a change.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Another affirming differentiator of
the PWC was its focus on writers with graduate degrees. It was a significant benefit
to be in workshop with experienced writers who respect each other and offer high-level
critique. A further positive was that the conference instructors are both gifted
writers and compelling teachers. And teach they did.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">As I searched all those online
and print conference listings this spring, I was hoping for a safe place where
I could improve my writing and connect with other writers. The Postgraduate
Writers’ Conference at Vermont College of Fine Arts offered exactly that. While this type of conference may not
be right for everyone, whatever your needs, it’s important to know what you want
before you sign up. Of course, research helps clarify what you’re looking
for and what's out there. Just make sure you don’t settle for less. With
all the venues available, you shouldn’t have to.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">For more on the conference I attended, visit <a href="https://vcfa.edu/postgraduate-writers-conference/"><span style="color: #990000;">Postgraduate Writers’
Conference at Vermont College of Fine Arts.</span></a></span></p><p><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">For more on events and conferences for writers, visit:</span></p><p><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://www.awpwriter.org/wcc/directory_conferences_centers"><span style="color: #990000;">AWP Directory
of Writers' Conferences & Centers</span></a></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://www.newpages.com/writers-resources/writing-conferences-events"><span style="color: #990000;">NewPages
Big List of Writing Conferences and Events</span></a></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://www.pw.org/conferences_and_residencies"><span style="color: #990000;">Poets & Writers Conferences
and Residencies Database</span></a></span></span></p>Adele Annesihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09062487338490687393noreply@blogger.com0