The Art of Seeing

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.

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?

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.

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.

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.

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.

In Unless It Moves the Human Heart: The Craft and Art of Writing, 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.”

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]

Application:

• Go to a place that enables you to see — a window, park bench, lakeside log, backyard.
• Stop. Look. Wait.
• Stopping means taking time.
• Looking means opening the eyes and the heart.
• Waiting means allowing what is taken in to become experience.

Adele Annesi is an award-winning author, editor and teacher. For questions on writing, email Adele Annesi. Adele’s new novel is What She Takes Away (Bordighera Press, 2023).

Use Techniques from Film to Enhance Your Fiction

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.

Cutaway
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:

• 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?
• 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?

Double Reveal
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:

• What kind of conflict do the characters in this scene need to spark a major revelation?
• What will they learn from this that they can’t learn any other way?
• How will these new insights change each person’s life and the overall story?

Dramatic
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:

• 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?
• Also ask yourself how the dramatic arc complements and/or contrasts with the character arc(s).

Jump Cut
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:

• Does the scene or section still feel complete, with all the essential elements?
• Is there still sufficient clarity to avoid confusing the reader?

Montage
A montage is an editing technique that orders a series of images to condense space, time and information to enhance drama. Types of montages:

• Metric montages sequence images to the beat of music, for example, to increase suspense.
• Rhythmic montages cut the images based on musical pacing.
• 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.
• Intellectual montages place different images together to prompt viewers to infer meaning from what they see and to respond emotionally.
• Overtonal montages combine all of the above to evoke emotions from the audience and compel deep thinking. 

Suspense
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:

• Where in the story can I organically enhance an existing scene by setting it up for one outcome and providing another?
• 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?

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.

To learn more about how film techniques enhance fiction, check out:
Cinematic Story & Character Techniques for Fiction and Memoir - Online and In-Person
With acclaimed director Joanne Hudson, founder of the Ridgefield Independent Film Festival, and award-winning writer and novelist Adele Annesi.

Cinematic Story & Character Techniques for Fiction and Memoir
Date: Saturday, February 11
Time: 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.
Venue: Hybrid in-person (at Westport Writers’ Workshop) and online (via Zoom)
Price: $80.00

For questions, email Adele Annesi. Adele’s new novel is What She Takes Away (Bordighera Press, 2023).

Seven Keys to Writing Memorable Genre Fiction

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 Now Write! Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror, plus exercises, for speculative fiction and all genre work.

Credibility
Credibility, by Vincent M. Wales
“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.”

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.

Creativity
Creativity on Demand, by Steven Barnes
“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.” 

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.

Beginnings and Endings
Begin at the End, by Michael Dillon Scott
“… 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.”

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.

World Building
Humming the Sets: World Building That Supports the Story, by Melissa Scott
“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.”

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 and clarify the picture.

Setting
Leaping into Landscape, by Wendy Mewes
“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.”

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.

Drama
Writing Is Seeing, by John Shirley
“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.”

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.

Adele Annesi is an award-winning author, editor and teacher. For questions on writing, email Adele Annesi. Adele’s new novel is What She Takes Away (Bordighera Press, 2023).

Can You See Me Now: Effective Description in Long-Form Fiction

Throughout the historical fiction novel workshop I’ve been teaching at Westport Writers’ Workshop 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.

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!

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, character descriptions, what to do?

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Last, we can recall what Janet Burroway said in Writing Fiction: 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.

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 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.

New Blog Focus: The Way Art Works — For Writers

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.

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:

“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.”

The quote first appeared on Word for Words in the post “Second Thoughts and the Way Art Works” on March 4, 2018.

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 Steering the Craft: A 21^st Century Guide to Sailing the Sea of Story.

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.

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 What She Takes Away slated for publication by Bordighera Press 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 and art of writing.

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.)

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.

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.

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.

For the full interview with Bruce Springsteen on The New Yorker Radio Hour, click on Bruce Springsteen Talks with David Remnick.

Improvisation and Fiction From the Heart

“Improvisation is an important element in the construction of any novel. You are 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.” Elements of Fiction, Walter Mosley

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.

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?

Crime fiction novelist Walter Mosley, author of Elements of Fiction, 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.”

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 Chronicles Vol. 1. When the writer reaches a fork in the road or a roadblock, it’s the right time to ask, “Now what?”

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.

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:

• 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?
• Conflict: In life and in fiction, conflicts abound. The question fiction writer may be what other 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.
• Dialogue: What happens when someone says something unexpected? To explore this, write a scene without scripting it first, and see where it goes.
• 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. 
• 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.
• Theme: A story’s main theme forms the backbone of the story. But what secondary themes might there be that inform the main topic?

When in doubt, consider Mosely’s advice: “… when the Voice of novel, asks Why not take this detour and see if we can get something out of it?—you should listen.”

Award-Winning Children's Book Author Talks Writing and the Writing Life

Valerie Bolling is the author of the 2021 SCBWI Crystal Kite award-winning and CT Book Award finalist Let’s Dance! (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 Westport Writers’ Workshop. Valerie has been an educator for almost 30 years. 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.

What current or past writing project presented you with a new writing challenge, and what was that challenge?
I set a challenge for myself with Together We Ride. I wanted to write a book that had fewer words than Let’s Dance! and used the same end rhyme throughout the text. I met both challenges. Together We Ride has only 30 words, half the number of Let’s Dance!, and all the words (except one) rhyme with “ride.”

What method(s) did you employ to work through the obstacle?
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 Wings, which has only 12 words (wow!), and I used rhymezome.com, a helpful tool for those writing rhyme.

What was the outcome?
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 Together We Ride (at the time called Bike Ride) sold at auction. Ultimately, I ended up with two two-book deals from two different publishers! The best outcome is that Together We Ride will release on April 26, and you may preorder it now from RJ Julia.

What did you learn from the effort?
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 everything – 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!

What one thing would you tell other writers that you hope they’ll really take to heart?
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.

Besides writing picture books, Valerie Bolling has published articles The National Writing Project’s Quarterly. She is a member of SCBWI, the Authors Guild, and NCTE. Valerie and her husband live in Connecticut and enjoy traveling, hiking, reading and going to the theater.

Picture Book Writer Addresses Diversity and Inclusion to Inspire and Empower Children to Success

Sherri T. Mercer is a writer and student of writing who is passionate about children's literature. 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. Here, Sherri answers questions on her current writing projects and future goals and plans.

In what genre(s) do you write?
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.

Describe a current project.
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.

What are your goals for your projects and in general?
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.

Are you facing any obstacles with your projects? If so, how are you working through them?
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.

What are your writing goals overall?
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.

What are your biggest challenges as a writer?
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.

What might you want other writers and/or writing students to know?
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.

What else might you want to add?
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.

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.

Contact Sherri at sherritmercer@gmail.com, or follow her on Twitter: @sherritmercer and Instagram: @sherritmercer_sincerelyyours.