justine_currie | Recent Entries

In 500 words or fewer, write three separate versions of the same scene. Each scene must have a different rating, but the same setting and characters. Write to your comfort level. There will be no judging - just fun with writing. :)

Choose your own scene, or if you'd like a suggestion, here goes:
Character A walks into the office in a bad mood on a Monday morning.

An incident (car accident, embarrassment at a bar, other confrontation, whatever) between Character A and Character B ruined the weekend.

Character A finds Character B sitting behind a desk - in Character A's office!

Character B doesn't work there and has no business being there. In fact, Character A is going to tell Character B just that.

Keep in mind you may use the same words, only replacing the parts that would change the rating (piece of cake, right?) Original fiction is encouraged and welcomed, but not required. Include disclaimers and warnings as appropriate, please.

The challenge will remain open until the end of September. Reply with a comment here that includes a link to your journal (or wherever you post) and the highest rating of the scenes. I'll post a wrap-up early October.

Current Mood: curious

Last week I posted about villains. This week I link to a more general article with some interesting tips, including a couple of suggestions regarding protagonists.

From Janet Fitch, Ten Writing Tips That Can Help Almost Anyone:

7. Smarten up your protagonist

Your protagonist is your reader’s portal into the story. The more observant he or she can be, the more vivid will be the world you’re creating. They don’t have to be super-educated, they just have to be mentally active. Keep them looking, thinking, wondering, remembering..

So ... any words of wisdom you have or that you've read? If you could come up with one to five tips on writing, what would they be? What works best for you? On the flip side, have you read/heard tips that you think are a load of crap, or that just don't work for you?

Personally, I found that two books in particular are excellent.

The First Five Pages: A Writer's Guide To Staying Out of the Rejection Pile by Noah Lukeman.

Manuscript Makeover by Elizabeth Lyon.

Both of these get into the nitpicky details as well as the big-picture issues. I own both books and have referenced them a lot. No, not alot, but a lot. ;D

Current Mood: curious

Libby Drew wrote recently about villains, and whether or not they have to have a redeeming quality. Here's a related (and timely) article on the subject of villains and how to craft a better one.

From Writers' Digest - 3 Techniques For Crafting a Better Villain:

CREATE A VILLAIN WORTH PURSUING
You can’t just throw all your suspects’ names into a bowl and pick one to be your villain. For your novel to work, the villain must be special.

So ... what do you think makes a good villain?

I just returned from collecting the mail, and what did I find there? A package for MEEEEE! Thank you soooo much to

blamebrampton for the OMG Aussie goody package! Mmm. *glomps you* I shall resist the urge to gobble down the yummy candies, and instead bring them with me to share at Inbrynnitus in less than a month. It seems appropriate. ♥
[But just in case I can't resist, shhhh ... don't tell Bry. ;) Kthx.]

And a new discovery: I'm sure most of you are familiar with the term "slush pile" but for those that are not, it is the term used for unsolicited queries/manuscripts received by the publishing industry. Thanks to a link from an agent's blog, I have discovered Slush Pile Hell, a collection of excerpts from some choice submissions and the agent's somewhat amusing/sarcastic/caustic/LOL-worthy responses.

In the mood for a laugh? Read 'em all. Seriously. They only started May 28th, and there's just one post each weekday. My personal faves are July 6th, June 28th, and June 13th.

Here's a sample from June 10th, also amusing:

Hi. Are you a visionary agent who wants to take the stagnant fiction literary marketplace to new heights?

No. Not really.

*snickers* Enjoy!

Current Mood: amused

From the Guide to Literary Agents blog, here's a link to a recent article on Urban Fantasy you may find interesting:

Urban fantasy has become a catchall phrase for contemporary-set fantasy and magical realism. It draws on many traditions of fantasy, horror, hardboiled crime fiction and even romance, blending them together in differing degrees to give us new stories with old tropes. It first really broke out with Laurel K. Hamilton’s Anita Blake series in the 90s and has been growing by leaps and bounds ever since, cross-pollinating additional genres as it goes, including of course young adult. By this point, it’s a mature subgenre and very crowded. So can a new author still hope to break out? Of course!

Here are a few things to keep in mind as you go about breaking out ...

From the awesome agent, Nathan Bransford, some general writing advice to keep in mind:

Writing isn't about capturing real life as it actually happens. We have, well, real life for that.

Instead, writers have to elevate life and add spices and all the rest. Writers interpret real life, elevate it, reorder events, and serve up something perfectly balanced and ready for public consumption.

Your thoughts?

People write in such varied ways, and I know that outlines are an integral part of some writers' process, while they stifle the creativity of other writers. Out of curiosity, I thought I'd post a poll. (I swear I don't plan to spam your friends page like this all the time, but I seem to be on a roll today). Humour me, would ya? Thanks. :)

( Click to complete the poll ... only 5 questions )

Until recently, I did not do a lot of pre-planning, but rather started out with an idea, jotted some scenes down, then expanded upon it based on what I had written and where I was going. Now I plan more, but there's a bit of play involved. I have a basic outline when I start, then as the story evolves, I can fill in more details and revise as I go. And - big surprise! - there are spreadsheets involved. I look for things typical in my own writing as well as overall issues with plot, character and word usage.

How about you?

Current Mood: curious

Ever wonder if you focus too much on the nitpicky details when you're writing? Ever lose sight of the story while stressing over grammar? I'll admit I'm ridiculously picky about grammar, spelling, etc., but I do try not to let that interfere with the flow of writing when I'm getting words down for my first draft.

Here's some great advice, from Agency Gatekeeper (click for link to full post):

If you write with the constant fear of being wrong--if your sentences evidence a word-by-word, micromanaging quality--if we can picture you writing with a normal pen in one and hand a red pen in the other--your nervousness will come through. We'll get antsy. And then we'll start looking for tiny errors, too.

We don't want to be looking at what's wrong--we want to be dazzled by what's right.

You can always go back and correct errors. You can't go back in and add awesomeness.

I dunno ... I figure you could always go back and add in a sparkly vampire or two. ;D

You have to laugh or you'll end up crying:

Current Mood: amused

Justine's Writing Journal

Recent Entries

A writing challenge!

From Villains to Protagonists and More

Villains and Scoundrels

THANKS!!! and Slush Pile Hell

Five Tips on Writing Urban Fantasy

Writerly Advice #2

Poll #1 - Planning

Writerly Advice #1

Great book, BUT ...

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