The Character doesn't have enough say in what happens (FBB #2)

First Book Blunders #2

The Character Doesn't Have Enough Say in What Happens

As an opposing point to what I wrote about in the first First Book Blunders post, many authors take too much control over the plot and narrative.

I have nothing against planners (people who plan their stories in advance). In fact, I've started to adopt this method more and more often. I think, in many cases, it can be very useful. They point I'm trying to make is that sometimes your characters want to veer from your plan, and you have to let them.

There was a book I read last year. It wasn't the author's first book, but it was their first series of books, and therefor, their first ending of a story arc. The way a certain character's arc was working, the character was going to have to die, and the author didn't want to kill this character. Many authors go through this, and it becomes a crucial decision. This was a decision she stumbled over.

You have to give your characters room to breathe. If their arc ends in such a tragic way, you're going to have to let it happen, or your book will suffer.

The author I was talking about kept trying to avoid the ending. You could feel her desperately clinging to reasons that character could live, but in the end, she realized it had to happen. Because of her trying to avoid it for so long, the book had a forced quality to it, and when it did get back on track, it felt sudden. The change was quick and jarring. It lost a lot of it's believability. Character-wise, it made perfect sense, but the book was not set up in a way where that ending fit anymore. She'd written herself into a corner.

I mean no offense to this author in any way. This was something I struggled with myself when I was younger. I still do sometimes. I don't want to make certain things happen, but they have to. It feels right.

An example in the work I'm currently writing, is when one of my characters runs away from home. In the outline, I said that they would be out one day, then they would find a shelter, because they hadn't brought food. As I wrote the story though, my character came out as this very intelligent person who would never forget something that important.

I didn't make the outline work. I let my character take the reigns, but I held her hands, pushing her gently back on track and letting her wander as she got there. It took longer than expected. I had to introduce characters that weren't originally there. There are now more subplots to weave into the rest of the book, but I don't regret it in any way. I can tell, already, that it was a beneficial move.

As for the response of readers to that author previously mentioned? She got a lot of hate for that ending, and some people seem confused. They don't understand why authors like John Green get praised for killing characters, and this author gets hated. I don't think some of the readers even know why they hate it so much. They say the obvious ("I loved her! How could you?"). Then some just don't know. They didn't like the book. It seemed, in some ways, worse than the others. I think it was because of that FBB that she included,

There's nothing wrong with straying from your outline. Your outline, in the end, may be completely incorrect, and that might be the best writing decision you ever make. The important thing is not that you stick to the original plan, or what you want; it's that your story and your characters make sense.

What is FBB?

First Book Blunders are mistakes that I notice in many first books. I call them mistakes because they may jar the reader, confuse them, or give the writing an amateurish feel. Many times, if you see these mistakes, they are in the debut novel written by the author, so I've grouped them together under this name. I have yet to see anyone else do this, and since I am myself trying to find these so I may avoid them in my own fiction, I thought they may help some of you.

Please check back in soon for the next FBB!

Why YA Isn't Evil

On YA

Why it's Not Evil

YA novels are great, in my opinion. Some are the type that aren't very useful, I'll admit. But I'm not reading YA for those. I'm reading for the knowledge that comes with seeing another person's life. I, being in the US, will likely never see how high schools are in England, but I can read about it. I, being visually impaired, will never know people's eye color before asking, but apparently other people can. I've never known the negatives to popularity from my own experiences, but I know them from YA books.

You might be thinking, you can get most of that from adult books! But it is easier for me to identify with a 16 year old because I AM 16. And sure, I will read an adult novel if it sounds good. Right now, though, that's hard for me because I don't know what it's like to live alone, to have a husband, to have kids, to be in a career, to run a business, etc. I tend to feel distanced from the characters, just as I did when I tried to read YA when I was ten. Yeah, it was good. Yeah, I appreciated it. But no, I didn't know what high school felt like, or even switching classes, so I felt distanced.

The other thing about YA is, it has limits on certain things. I don't care about reading the F-bomb on every page, but I don't like reading sex scenes. YA has a few, but I have only come across one that has made me uncomfortable, and not nearly as uncomfortable as the one I found in an adult book (which by the way did not alert me there was going to be a romance involved at all.) So, for anyone who doesn't wish to experience that yet, YA is quite the savior. Because I do like romance, but not that kind.

The Big Picture

You know, I"ll admit, there are some really bad YA books. And yeah, some of them are getting hype. (I'm not naming names here. Some hyped books are amazing. Some not so much in my opinion.) But there also bad adult books.

You know what YA books did teach me? There's good in EVERY group of people and bad in EVERY group of people. Adults, children, teens. No group is all good or all bad. Same in genres. I'm sure you've picked up a terrible book in the adult shelves before.

And as Maggie Stiefvater pointed out, if you're looking for something, you are always going to find it.

The Character's Voice Takes Over (FBB #1)

First Book Blunders #1

The character's Voice Takes Over

This sounds counter-intuitive: calling this a bad thing. Your character's voice is supposed to take over. Right? Well, to an extend, this is true, but it should be natural.

I am currently reading a book -which shall remain unnamed- that has a very distinct character. The way she talks is really interesting, and I like it for her, but I think the author went too far in milking the voice from the girl. Every sentence is dripping with this voice to the point where I become confused at some points. I know this isn't the author's normal voice either. I've read her other things. It's similar, but it's much more forced.

You should let your character decide what their voice is. Consider how they were raised, what kind of people they like, what kind of education they have, what they like to do, etc. But you also need to keep your own voice. If you find yourself having to open a thesaurus every time your character speaks, it's going to sound forced.

This can also sometimes stem from authors trying to imitate other authors. They look at their favorite author and say, "Hey! I want my book to sound like Emily Dickinson wrote it!" (Which wouldn't happen, because she wrote poetry... but just an example.) Or "You know who my character kind of sounds like? Tris from Divergent! maybe I should write it like Veronica Roth!"

I don't want to kill your hopes here, but I have to say it.

If all you do is copy, all you'll do is fail!

Sorry, but you were going to find it out the hard way if I didn't warn you. And it makes sense when you think about it. Would you come home from a five star resturaunt and say, "I'm going to make our family dinner tomorrow look exactly like dinner at this fancy, five star restuaraunt even though I've never cooked professionally!" Okay, maybe some of you would, but I'm sure you'd find quickly that your cooking wasn't quite up to par with your expectations.

The point is, let your characters decide your voice, but don't let them control it unless it feels natural, because if it doesn't feel natural to you, it won't feel natural to the reader.

What is FBB?

First Book Blunders are mistakes that I notice in many first books. I call them mistakes because they may jar the reader, confuse them, or give the writing an amateurish feel. Many times, if you see these mistakes, they are in the debut novel written by the author, so I've grouped them together under this name. I have yet to see anyone else do this, but since I am myself trying to find these so I may avoid them in my own fiction, I thought they may help some of you.

Please check back in soon for the next FBB!

The Idea Drawer

The Idea Drawer

Most writers will tell you to keep a notebook so you can write down your ideas. I've done that a few times. (All three have a permanent residence in the idea drawer) Yet, my inspiration to do so always dwindles. Or I lose the notebook, because a squirrel can organize better than me.

So I started writing things down everywhere.

I used note cards, back pages of notebooks, the back of homework sheets. ("Who's Scarlett?" asks my math teacher. "Uh... I'm writing a novel. She's a character." "Ah. I see... Please focus when you're doing your work.")

I started keeping them in a shoe box in my closet. I called it my idea box. But after four years, it was getting pretty beat up. It no longer had a cover, the sides were falling apart. It had survived moving houses and somehow ending up under a pile of binders, clothes, and other closet based things. So I decided my ideas needed a better home.

I cleared out a drawer in my desk and put every paper in there, looking through them as I did. I look through there a lot: when I know I had an idea in there and just can't remember the details, or when I want to work on that novel I've been building up note cards for since sixth grade. Sometimes, just because I like to do it.

The key to an idea drawer (or box) is just to get your ideas down. It's for people too chaotic to manage a notebook and too forgetful to write nothing down at all. As long as you look through it when you need it, or at the least every 1-3 months, you'll get use out of it. I promise.

Drafting Methods

First Draft Methods

Some people are inherently good at writing a first draft. They can just say, "Oh, that's a cool story!", sit down, and write it.

I'm not like that. I am too easily distracted by shiny new ideas. Or I just forget to open the document... and start something else before I remember. (Okay, yes. That is the same thing...)

To try to get out of this, I've tried many methods. So far, they all have potential, and some have even worked. But it's different with every book for me. Feel free to make your own methods and put them in the comments. Or blend together some of these.

The Tale of Two Cities method

This is the method I'm trying now. The alternate name is the Fanfiction method or the Wordpress method. (Wordpress is a thing right? I believe that's the name... I'm too reluctant to share my work virtually to get into that.) I haven't finished a novel through this method, but I have finished fanfictions, so I am hopeful.

Anyway, Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens was published chapter by chapter in a magazine. (Or maybe a few chapters at a time? I'm not sure. My English teacher said this to me about two years ago now.) That's where the main title comes from.

What you will need: a story idea and at least one person who is interested in reading your story (and that you will be able to get your story to). This person can be brutally honest (I'd actually suggest this) or really nice. I'd say they have to be able to give you honest feedback, if a little sugar coated. Go for the person who will give you the hardest critique you can get without getting discouraged. The discouraging critique is for the editing phase! *note: I'm half kidding. If you're new to critique... I'm full kidding.*

Now, write your first chapter. You might have an outline, or maybe you're pantsing it. Either way, write the whole first chapter. Then, edit it. You can use any method. What I've been doing is reading it over silently and editing the big stuff, reading it out loud to myself to catch strange dialog or word choice, and finally having the computer read it to me for awkwardness. You can do this by using yWriter or by copy and pasting it into google translate. Once it's edited, send it to the person and have them read and review it. Consider fixing problems they bring up, but remember it's your choice.

Now repeat. But make sure you tell them the specific interval of time there will be between each chapter. I'm doing ten days, but yours might be one day or one month. Don't give yourself too much free time!

The NaNoWriMo method

Google NaNoWriMo. Must I elaborate? Only tip: DO THE WORD SPRINTS

What you need: Chocolate, a story idea, the ability to type quickly (optional but helpful)

The Just Go For It Method

This is how I got my first first draft written. (That looks so grammatically incorrect...) Just write on it every day. It's driven by passion, and gives ace procrastinator me too much leeway, but 13 year old me wrote 199 pages by hand using it.

What you will need: a story idea, passion!!!!!, self motivation!!!!!!!

The Clean Method

You don't want all that bloodshed in the editing phase and you don't like the Tale of Two Cities method? You're probably a planner. I'd spend some time letting my idea "marinate" as I say sometimes. But don't walk away from your idea! Check it over and over again. Add some more salt to the seasoning. (Um, does that fit with the analogy? I don't really cook...) What I'm saying is, still work on the novel. Just don't write it until you're confident in it.

For example: Betty get's an idea for a novel. It will be about a girl named Nina who loves to race cars, but then, irony much, she gets in a terrible car crash and must then get over her fear of driving again!

Now, maybe the beginning would sound the same either way. (This will be in more of an outline format, but you get it.) Nina races. She's having fun. Loves it. Later, she is trying to get home from after-party. Rain is making it hard to see. Has headache from all the noise and fuss. Because distracted, crashes car. Almost dies.

Now you reach a problem. She is scared to drive? After all these years? What makes her so frightened?

If you'd just started writing, you might just wing it and say: After, she was scared to drive. You might not give a good reason at all! If it doesn't come to you, you still have to keep writing, right?

But if you've worked it out already and don't have to worry about it, you can write the more coherent version: After, she was scared to drive. What if something happened like that and she hurt someone? She'd rammed into a pole in front of someone's house. What if there was a kid there? She had nightmares of it.

And oh! Now, you know that when you write it, you have to include the fact that she crashed into a pole in someone's yard so that this can happen.

These are just the ones I've tried. Maybe you have more? Maybe you have better ones? Leave them below!

Why Fanfiction is not Evil

Why Fanfiction is not Evil

Go on. Admit it. You've written fanfiction. I've written fanfiction! I still write fanfiction! I've got two going right now. Even if your not on the site, you've made up a story about some star you liked or some show you watched.

He, he! Then, get this, then Troy Bolton will kiss me! And... oh! And then Gabriela walks up, and sees us!

Oh, eleven year old me. I know you had a thing for characters that were starting to go out of date, but really.... the same story again?

The Upsides to Fanfiction

Fanfiction is good in a few main ways.
1. Practice: You can get practice for the real writing here without actually having to sit down and try to be profound on the first try.
2. Experimentation: Also, this is great for children who don't yet know how to make their own stories (or adults). It's great for experimenting in different styles. Never written in 3rd person? Write a fanfiction. Go ahead! Post it! As long as it's spell checked you out did at least a few of the fics there.
3. Fun: And they're fun! You get to put characters that already seem so real into situations they've never been in before. And it's different, because they're fixed. You can't just decide. "Oh, actually.... so-and-so is no longer allergic to peanuts. It's getting kind of annoying to keep mentioning it." So you have restraints to push at.
4. No pressure.  And there's no pressure since you won't have to publish it. (Don't try. That's illegal. Unless it's on fanfiction.net)

The Downsides to Fanfiction

Some people get too wrapped up in fanfiction. They forget to work on their own stuff, or they lose the ability to. Yes, fanfiction is good practice for writing your novel, but you have to write it some time.

Some authors don't like fanfiction. Maybe they don't like other people messing with their plots and characters or something. If I ever get published though, which is the plan, I will be totally okay with it. Because fanfiction isn't about ripping off someones characters/plots/story/work. It's about exploring someone else's world because you love it that much that you don't want to leave.

Fanfiction is not evil. You can take it that way, but that is not the intention of the writer, so I wouldn't. If someone is spending the time to write 2,000 words every week about your characters, they probably fell in love with them.

So don't feel inferior. Try it. You probably already have.

Making your Characters Real

Making your Characters Real

Well before I start, sorry it's been a while since I posted! I had finals, then I was engrossed in many a writings, but I'm here now, and ready to get back into it!

How do you make your characters real?

Everyone wants their characters to feel so real that their critique partners will call them up and be like, "Why is Mary so mean to Bob? God, I hate her!" or "Bob so deserved that! I hate him! Good for Mary!" (If the story is eventually published, you will likely hear both about the same character if you wrote them well.)

Believe it or not, it isn't that hard.

Is Good and Bad good or bad?

The most important thing to do is to make sure they aren't a pure breed. You don't want someone to point to a character and be like "Mary is bad." or "Mary is good." You want them to think about it and say, "I think I like Mary, but I didn't like it when she yelled at Bob." In other words, your good characters need to have a bad side and your bad characters need to have a good side. Every character that is in your novel for more than a few pages should be double sided. Writing is where the mutts rule.

Make them human.

Then you need to make your character human. What's the first thing you want to know about a person (after if they're nice or not/what they look like.)? You probably want to know what they like/dislike and they're hobbies. And you can't just say watching TV. Then you want to know what shows. Think of your characters like your friends (that you'll later torture). 

And make sure you give them a specialty. That could be anything as specific as being able to name every star on a star map or as general as music. It just matters how well we know the character and how broadly they think. But keep in mind, just because two characters like the same thing doesn't mean they have to connect. If two kids each like playing Barbies, you might think they'd get along. But one girl likes doing their hair and picking outfits for them. The other likes acting out stories.

Voice: the hard part made easy

Now for their voice. Think about it. You already have their voice. How did they grow up? Here, watch.

Take the sentence, "That movie was great! I loved the part where they kissed!"

Say your character is a 15 year old who likes watching youtube and doesn't really like to read. They might say, "Wow! That movie was awesome! I loved the part where they made out! It was so cute!"

Say your character is an English major who is teaching their first year of English at a local high school. She loves to read and has been writing since she was very young. She's also a bit show-offy. "That movie was magnificent! I especially enjoyed the moment where the two protagonists kissed by the lake. It was quite well done."

Or your character is a film student. She grew up watching movies and has wanted to be a director forever. She likes reading, but mostly about film and loves watching movies to learn to be a better director. "That movie was so well done! The part where the two main characters kissed was lit really well! The lens flares were placed perfectly. I wonder if they were in camera? And the sound was done perfectly! I should take notes next time."

See? Find what your character knows and that's how they talk. This will especially come in handy if you're writing first person or close third person, but will come in handy no matter what. More times than not, a character will need to speak at some point.

Now, go forth, and create new people! Ah-hem... I mean, characters....