Verisimilitude. What does that even mean?

This isn’t one of those 'word-a-day' calendars, and yet here I am throwing out words I’ve never used but plan to…in three…two…one--

Verisimilitude is the word that I’ve been avoiding in my writing…well not the use of it, but the effect of it. It’s believability, the appearance of truth, and it’s really getting under my skin.

Confession time. I’m not a very patient person. (Ok, whew, glad that’s off my chest.)One of the great things about writing fiction is that you can create worlds and if you write it, it happens. Right? Well, sort of. You can write about flying gorillas and worlds that exist inside of peanuts, but if you do like me and rush right into the thick of things without doing some research somewhere along the way, you’ll find yourself in a great big mess.

This is something that I’m learning as I type this.

I hear that J.K. Rowling had boxes of notebooks where she evolved her world on paper. Boxes?! And guess what? People of all ages love her story. They can’t get enough. Was it worth the plotting and planning? Absolutely. Is it totally necessary to create a good story? I don't know that we need dozens of notebooks full, but I’m realizing that without some research, we don’t know our world as well as we should to make it believable, and that is what engages readers…unless I want to write about a slightly nutty mother of three that lives in the Midwest. Interested? I didn't think so.

It will be a lesson in patience but it must be done.

It frustrates me to be in the mode to write yet sit down to the computer and scratch out meager tidbits about setting, characters, you know, the things that make a story fun? I want the entree- no potatoes, no parsley, just get to the story. Words on paper. Yet that’s not enough and I, like everyone else, must take the time and appreciate all parts of writing, even the slow ones that make us feel like we wasted our day doing nothing at all.

Verisimilitude. Research it. Own it. Make people believe (at least temporarily) that it could really happen. 

What's in a Name? How Do You Name Your Characters?

YA Highway's Road Trip Wednesday #161, What's in a name?

Road Trip Wednesday is a ‘Blog Carnival,’ where YA Highway's contributors post a weekly writing- or reading-related question that begs to be answered. In the comments, you can hop from destination to destination and get everybody's unique take on the topic.

We'd love for you to participate! Just answer the prompt on your own blog and leave a link - or, if you prefer, you can include your answer in the comments.

This Week's Topic is: The list of top baby names in 2012 had us talking about naming characters. How do you decide on names? Would you ever name a character after a friend/family member/ex?

When I began writing shorts and intro's to novels, I would always use the names of family and friends. My heart was in the right place, I thought, When this book becomes a world-wide best seller, [blank] will feel so loved because they are a character in my awesome story. And I tried it. I named characters after people I love, my kids, my friends, my family....but after trying this for many, many times, I realized that I had to break free of it.  The reason? Because it's limiting.

Primarily, this is because I find that if I name a character for someone I know, that character begins to act as the person I know would. Perhaps this is fine IF the character's nature is similar to the real counterpart, but often, I am melding various characteristics of many people or creating someone that I've never met and therefore, it becomes hard to keep the fictional person acting in tune when they hold the namesake of someone I know. So...sorry everyone, I love you but you'll have to settle for being in the credits and dedications.

Instead, I have used various methods. For main characters, I usually know their names as I am thinking about the concept for the story. They're as integral to the story line as the plot elements are. In my post-apocalyptic dystopian fantasy (unofficially referred to as "The Paragon", I chose the name "West Lambert" for the lead. Now, it is true that her last name is also the name of the airport in St. Louis and since I'm from Missouri that was a little bit of love for the Midwest, however, it has very little bearing on the story. West, however, does. The name invokes something a bit androgynous and strong. West is far from girly. She's brave and ready to blow where the wind takes her and for all her faults, she's a wise soul. It seemed fitting for her.

Some names, such as Laura "Lula" Fontaine, the character from my middle-grade fantasy novel, which I'm now calling "The Girl Who Lost Her Imagination and How She Came to Find It", had the right mix of somber and whimsy to make the plot elements work together. 

Sometimes it's trial and error- some of the supporting roles have names I change half-way through the rough draft, just to see how I like them when they're in use. For example, in "The Paragon," I changed Bastian's name from Benjamin about 20 pages in. I just got sick of writing it and it didn't feel right, so I switched it up. I have also looked up names from various eras and cultures and would consult a baby name website if I just needed a way to get the ideas flowing.

Naming characters is fun though. Once they have a name, they come to life. There's a lot in a name and if affects their personality, their actions, and the way other characters relate to them...just like in real life. 

If you want to share your process, tell us about it- create a post on your blog and post a link in the comments or, share what you decided to name your child and why...perhaps it was a family namesake, perhaps you liked the meaning? It's all creative wordplay and I love hearing from you!

My Rough Draft is Crappier Than Yours!

So you get to the end of your rough draft! Yay! Congratulations! Sure, it's rough- I wonder if that's how it got its name...yes. It is because rough drafts are supposed to stink like last month's dirty diapers. Thank goodness mine doesn't disappoint.

Okay fine. So maybe I'm being overly critical (or dare I say it...dramatic?!) but I haven't been able to take my eyes off of it since I completed it and since it's been hard to concentrate on anything else (see date of last blog post for confirmation), and the more I look at it the more I feel like taking a red pen and marking out every. single. word.

Then I "talk" to my Facebook writer's group- a collection of people from whom I receive a huge amount of support (which is something fantastic indeed since a lot of online writer's groups post a lot of self-promotion and not a lot of writer-to-writer talk)- and I read about what to do next, and I'm told by anyone who has walked this path to step away from it for a good long while- 4 to 6 weeks to be exact- which may seem like a small task, even a blessing, but when you are wholly vested in the 60,000+ words of your story and you have a date in mind when you want to see it on your shelf (summer 2013), you don't have time to dilly dally with letting your story marinate and your eyes see it fresh. Fresh. I can look at it with fresh eyes after only 4 days- just watch me. Oh wait, go back to previous text...It stinks. Mark out every word. Start all over again.

Seriously, people, at this point, I've totally rewritten about 2,000 words with a totally new voice, a new story line in mind, and you guessed it- a new working title. Know another way to describe this...yeah- writing a NEW BOOK. I don't know if that is covered under the guise of editing but I'm about to find out.

If you clicked on this post hoping to get a tidbit of advice from an old pro- back up in your browser and try the next article- this girl is as green as green bowl full of green peas in the green grass covered in moldy green mint cookies. Green, green, green. However, if you clicked on this hoping to commiserate, laugh at a completely disillusioned writer, or perhaps feel a little better that you only want to mark out every. other. word, then let's hug and have a good laugh because that's what I'm here for.

If you think that this is a sign of me giving up. Forget it. Not happening. If you think that this is the sign of me reading any and everything regarding editing, rewriting, and bugging every person I know that has published a book for sage-like advice, then ding-ding! you're totally on target. (And no, I am not feeling aggressive, just passionately convincing myself that failure is not an option.)

Get your red pens ready...in 4 to 6 weeks.

Uh-huh- I've cartooned myself editing without a shirt on. I work from home, aren't you glad?

Cherry On Top Tales #3: Bad Career Day

Photo Courtesy of my friend, Rachael Garneau

Bad Career Day

Lorelei lived in the shadows like everyone else, but for some reason, she never fit in. 

She tried and tried, but whether she wore her black outfit with white accents or her white outfit with black accents, you could always pick her out in a crowd.

Aside from making her terribly uncomfortable, it never mattered much, until the day they went to war with the Nighttime. And then, she realized, she should have chosen a different profession.

I WON NaNoWriMo 2012! Now What?...

I can't believe it. After 30 days of writing abandon, we made it through. A relatively small number of us won the challenge and wrote a jaw-dropping 50,000 words during the month of November. Pat yourself on the back, raise a toast, eat a whole chocolate cake by yourself- what ever it takes to make you feel the weight of this accomplishment. That's a lot of work, people. It's 150 pages in a paperback novel- it's 100 times the length of the average college freshman English paper, and it required a daily commitment to put writing at the top of the list. Really. Wow.

But now what?!

You know you love my little naked stick person sitting at her 2D laptop. Hush!

Now we have ourselves 50,000 words (or more- you overachievers) but where do we go from here? Most of us are only half way up the ladder at this point. 50,000 words, although a trial to produce in a month's time, is not quite what most consider a full-length novel. But it's close! In the book Scene and Structure by Jack Bickham he states that the average novel is between 60-90,000 words finished to meet both minimum standards of most readers and maximum costs for publishing- though I'd wager those figures aren't set in stone...you're losing us A.B....

Ok, sorry- so what do you do now? The point of the previous paragraph was to let you know that if you're not quite done with your novel, then you're probably right on track. If you are done- well, that's fine too because next is....

That's right, ol' buddy ol' pal, when you finally get to "The End" you'll have to start over again at "Once Upon a Time" and rewrite your baby from start to finish again. This part is often dreaded, but I'm looking forward to it....perhaps I'm nuts. But I've gotten a lot of inspiration from fellow writers including Veronica Roth, Liz Schulte that are super first draft cheerleaders. "Just get it on paper," they say, "then fix it!" And I'm looking forward to fixing this one, because let me tell you- it's a MESS! 

I changed characters'  and places names half-way through, wrote scenes out of order, and flat out skipped portions that I didn't fully realize yet in favor of those that I did- all in a mad dash to scrape out my 50K- which worked, so I have no hard feelings but the re-read may just leave me scratching my head on where to begin. But for that, I have help- authors that have come before me and detailed their struggles and their tried and true ways to attack that monstrous first draft and make it a lovely best seller.

So, for those of you that have post-NaNo letdown and lots of free time now that you have cleared your calendar and created for yourself some mighty fine daily writing habits- enjoy a few days of free time, reconnect with your loved ones, feed your pets (actually, you should have done that the whole month, I forgot to tell you), or even write to fill that aching void, but come back. 

We can't just leave seedling masterpieces to rot in the dungeon, freeze in the rain, or collect dust like an old relic. They still need babying and lots of love to get where they want to be, CAN BE, and WILL BE-- on our book shelf in hardback!

Lots of writing love, A.B. Harms

Traditional or Self Publishing? That Is the Question...

I have found myself asking this question recently, perhaps it's because I have been talking to illustrators, cover artists, and editors, people who routinely are hired by the Traditional Publisher to do these tasks for you. And as I ponder the expenses and the process of becoming published, I have to wonder what is going to be the best route? Traditional or Self?

Image courtesy of Master isolated images at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

First, let's just assume we will get published- regardless of the route, becoming a published author is within our grasp.

Second, let's define traditional v. self publishing. When I'm talking about traditional publishing, I'm talking about the route of having a publishing company offer to produce your book. I won't get into the nitty gritty, but in the most basic sense this involves submitting queries, possibly getting an agent, negotiating a contract,  and earning between 5-15% royalties on each book sold. Boom. This process can take literally years to accomplish (something that is hard to stomach in a world of instant gratification), but is the route that nearly all authors took up to recent history.

Self publishing, however, is where you glean the control and therefore all of the accountability of your books production. There are many "self-publishing companies" (here's one selfpublishing.com) that make an arm and a leg producing your book. These companies can cost the author anywhere from $1500 to $10,000 and though your book will indeed be printed, most stores will never see them because they get lost in the sea-of-books-that-never-make-it-to-the-surface. These companies will edit, illustrate, and print your book.

Then there is what I consider self-publishing in the context of this article, having our own hands in the pot with every step of the way. WE write the best manuscript we can, WE have a test audience read it, WE hire a editor to professionally critique and proofread it, WE hire our cover artist and/or illustrator, WE format it for eBooks and print, WE set the price, WE are in complete control over every step in the process, and we earn a lot more for each sale- up to 70%! Plus, our out of pocket costs are generally less because we can shop around for the services we hire out, something that is important for those that are just starting out.

But is it worth going through a traditional publisher when we can do much of what they do without waiting for them to come around? Great question.

Image courtesy of Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

I think, and not to totally wimp out of offering any real advice here, but it really depends. It depends on how patient we are. It does take a lot of effort and time to query publishers or to win an agent. It takes thick skin to persevere in the face of rejection letters, and there's sacrifice, less control over editing, design- even the title can be changed. Plus we earn less money from every book sold. When the downsides are spelled out, it's no wonder that more and more authors are leaving the traditional publishing world with many others going straight to self-publishing.

But, if you do have what it takes to live through the process of getting a traditional publisher to notice your manuscript, then it has a better chance of ending up on the shelf at your local Barnes and Noble. Though, a self-published eBook can easily be sold for the Nook, it takes more to get a space in a brick and mortar shop.  Some people may also argue that marketing is easier or better from a traditional publisher. However, I have heard that this is not necessarily the case. Most successful authors will report that they didn't wait for the publisher to market them, they stepped in and did it themselves.

But being published traditionally doesn't mean that you're going to be a success, that takes an indeterminable combination of things such as a good book, great word-of-mouth marketing, and a whole lotta' luck. There's no shortage of advice out there, but what works for one author may not work for another. Some of it is being a well informed entrepreneur who makes good choices along the way, some of it is just timing, being at the right place with the right story. The right answer isn't always the first one we pick. Through experience we will learn what works for us.

If you have a burning desire to be traditionally published, then do it right. Do your homework and find out how the process works, and don't give up easily. If you know that you want to give self-publishing a try, then again- do it the right way. Get your manuscript edited professionally, be choosy about your cover art (we do judge a book by its cover by the way), pay attention even after your book is available- like how pricing affects your sales.

Some people will advise that it's better to start with self-publishing to have real sales to show a traditional publisher that you're a good investment. Others will say the exact opposite, to start with a traditional publisher then, if you want to self-publish, you have a fan base ready to buy your books. Yet others stay consistently either traditionally or self-published. People have been successful in all these ways, and not. 

If we accept that we will not be successful overnight, and that even with a lot of research, we understand we still have a lot to learn, we just may find the right niche for what we have to offer the world. In the end, it is a personal preference and something that we are allowed to decide for ourselves. There is more than one way to skin a cat.

Image courtesy of Grant Cochrane at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Win or Lose, NaNoWriMo is Chicken Soup for the Writer's Soul

This month has been a fog of 4:30 a.m. writing sessions and coffee induced hallucinations. I've been neglecting my blog, getting up before the rooster (I assume anyway, I don't have one), staying up late, avoiding wine, keeping my "thinking pad" with me at all times, and all for what you ask? For NaNoWriMo, duh!

In case you are not already aware, NaNoWriMo is something that I am doing for the first time this November, which is National November Writing Month (hence the catchy acronym, which I often shorten to NaNo, which often makes me think of Mork of Mork and Mindy, but I digress...)  In this month, it is my goal to write 50,000 words (that's like a paperback novel of at least 140 pages, people!) before midnight on November 30, which is truly hard to accomplish because this month my stomach also has very important plans involving turkey, pie, and family coming in town.

But what does NaNo really do? What do I win? Well, oh ye writer-who-feels-the-need-to-get-paid-before-producing-a-final-product, here is my answer to you. (I know this answer because I am just now finding out myself) You get lots.

For starters, it's fun. We writers, well, we like to write. Whether we win or not, we get to write the beginning, middle, end, or some variation thereof of a story that began as gray matter, no matter how great or awful it is. Like musicians live to play, writers live to write. Having a reason to write just makes it all the better and joining in a worldwide writing challenge is a GREAT reason.

Secondly, our book could be the next big thing! Perhaps in that part of us that believes that we are the awesomest writers ever and we just need our chance to shine, we hold out that hope that ours can become one of the wonderful books started during NaNo. It could end up on the shelf of Barnes and Noble, get a movie deal, or have actual merchandise like bookmarks, popcorn tins, and scrunchies (my hair is too short for them, but I still remember) that become ads in SkyMall. How sweet would that be?

I personally believe that the best reason is that it makes us better writers. The more you write, the more your skills develop, and by writing 50,000 words in a single month (or at least trying to), you create some hardcore writing habits that may pave your way to success. Statistically, if you keep trying, it has to happen eventually, right? That's my thought anyway. 

Before NaNo, I was lucky to write 500 words a day, if anything at all. But now, if I write less than 1500 words, the day is a wash. Seriously, 1500 words?! That's a lot- but I raised the bar for myself because now I have achieved over 4,000 words in a day (while raising kids and cooking dinner- though arguably, not doing dishes). Whew!

Image courtesy of imagerymajestic at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

So far, I have pressed myself farther than ever this month- and it's barely half way through! Even if there's no movie and no scrunchies, I feel that the benefit that it has brought me will last forever.

For anyone that is doing NaNo with me this year or has done it in the past, let us know what you think, how does it benefit you, if not just for bragging rights, what makes you strive to be a part of the winner's circle?

"NaNo NaNo" everyone!