Tag Archives: Writing Tips

Today’s Writing Tip

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What kind of car does your protagonist drive? Use the make, style, and color to further define his or her personality. James Bond drove an Aston Martin, not a Volkswagon bus. Think about it.

Think about your friends and what they drive. What does it say about them as a person? Do they lease a new car every year or so or, conversely, drive one that’s over a decade old? Is it in good condition or beat up? Is it clean inside or littered up with fast food containers? What color is it? They say that red cars are targeted most often by police. Why do you think that’s true? If you’ve had a variety of different cars throughout your life, how did you feel driving each one? Was it simply a means to get from point A to point B, or did you feel omnipotent, or perhaps even vulnerable in it? I sure felt differently driving a Porsche than an aging Suburban.

One example from the TV show “The Big Bang Theory” is how Penny’s “check engine” light was on. What did that tell you about Penny? What about Sheldon, who didn’t drive at all (at least for the most part) and had his friends chauffeur him around? What about the Ferrari in “Ferris Buhler’s Day Off”?

You can tell readers a lot about your characters in so many ways. Their favored mode of transportation is definitely one of them. Even if you write historical fiction, horses and carriages can be used in a similar manner. Science fiction, likewise. Think of Luke’s land-speeder in the original Star Wars.

Today’s Writing Tip

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Little details like street names help bring a story to life, even if it’s purely fictitious, i.e. an imaginary street or restaurant in a nonexistent town. If it’s set in a big city, however, feel free to use the names of actual streets and other landmarks. Anyone familiar with that area will get a real kick out of it and relate more closely to the story. If they live there, they may even tell their friends about it, which is even better.

I remember years ago when I visited Chicago for a conference. When I got home, I made it a point to watch a few movies set in that city, such as “Ferris Buhler’s Day Off” and “The Fugitive.” I really got a kick out of the fact the climax of the latter took place in the hotel where I stayed.

Just make sure you do so correctly or this could backfire. Don’t say someone turned west on Broadway if in reality it only runs only north and south. Assuming your reader knows otherwise, this will commit that cardinal sin of throwing him or her out of the story. Do it right or not at all.

Today’s Writing Tip

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One thing that makes a story more vivid is a 360 degree sense of place. This includes place, time, scenes, location, weather, and all those things that are apparent when you walk into a room or outside your front door.

This doesn’t mean that you should slow down action and dialog with constant description. One technique is to describe the setting earlier or you can essentially sneak in little bits throughout. If two characters are having a lively conversation, think about what else is going on. Are they just standing there, head to head, staring at each other? Or is one walking around, engaged in some activity, or pondering a bird outside the window? Such things not only add to the atmosphere you’re trying to create with the setting, but the mood as well.

It’s been said the we perceive more from visual clues during a conversation than the words alone. Anyone who has even found themselves in trouble because someone misread something they said in an email should know what I’m talking about. Details should be used to help round out the story to one that feels real, similar to how you perceive the world around you.

Today’s Writing Tip

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The judicious use of pronouns is a skill every author must master. Knowing when and when not to use them to achieve clarity without undue repetition is essential. Use them too much and the reader gets confused, especially if there are several characters of the same gender interacting. Unless the action or dialog clearly fits a specific character, they may get lost as to who’s saying what. This throws them out of the story, usually to back up several paragraphs or even a page to sort things out.

On the other hand, using a character’s name too often is annoying as well. When that happens in something I’m reading, I tend to roll my eyes and think “Okay, okay, I know who it is already!”

In most cases, there’s no need to use a character’s name more than once in any given paragraph. If there’s interaction with someone else, then in some instances you may have to clarify. When a single character is the only one “on stage” at the moment, however, you can go for paragraphs and in some cases, even pages, without repeating their name, particularly if it’s written from their point-of-view. How often to you call yourself by your first name?

Today’s Writing Tip

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Think for a moment which stories you’ve read that are the most memorable. If you had to pick a favorite for the last year what would it be? What was your favorite story as a child? Now take it a step farther: Why?

A well-written story takes you to another world, into “the zone” if you will, where you can at least temporarily escape the mundane. It may be somewhere in the past, in a world that only exists in the imagination, or full of thrills and excitement. Your favorite genre will provide you with a clue regarding what you crave to experience, albeit vicariously. Think about that old advertisement from years past that left you with the words, “Take me away, Calgon!”  Where would that be?

The next time you’re loving a story, one you hate to put down, when you step back to reality think about why you find it so appealing. Which part of you does it strike with a responsive chord? Understanding what you like in a story can help you enhance your own with similar traits. Is it strong characters? Exotic settings? A complex plot? Excitement your own life lacks? Details that make it come alive as opposed to strictly action and dialog?

The next step is to apply similar characteristics to your own writing.

Today’s Writing Tip

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We perceive our world through the five senses and sometimes a 6th. Be sure to use them all in your stories. Sight, hearing, smell, taste, touch, and intuition each provide different types of information. If you’ve ever had any of them compromised or perhaps even lost, then you realize how important they are. For example, if you have a head cold and can’t taste or smell anything, that definitely adds to the discomfort. Those who have had sinus surgery often have their sense of smell and taste altered, sometimes for years, others permanently. How would you like it if suddenly your favorite food tasted horrible?

Some people are visual learners, others auditory or kinesthetic, i.e. “hands-on.” Think about which one fits you the best. Then consider that readers who favor a certain type of learning or channel their perception of the world through preferred sense will want to do so in a similar way through fiction. One example that comes to mind are the novels that include recipes. What does that tell you about using the sense of taste and most likely smell?

Once you decide which one fits a particular scene, then you get to figure out how to “show, not tell.” Simply saying “the bread baking in the oven smelled really good” really doesn’t do it. A slight improvement would be “the aroma wafting through the kitchen transported her back to coming home from school to a loaf of home-baked bread with strawberry jam.”

How would you describe it?

Today’s Writing Tip

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A while back I saw a blog that named the main reasons that a book’s reviews were less than 5-stars. These were a great condensation of writers tips. When you’re doing your final edit, keep 1, 2, 3, and 9 in mind. When you’re constructing and writing your first draft, keep 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 in the forefront. As a reviewer, these are great suggestions of issues you can point out to help the author improve future works.

1. Spelling errors

2. Too many he said/she said

3. Overuse of person’s name

4. Characters all the same

5. Too many characters

6. Main character forgotten

7. Similar names

8. No challenge

9. Too many adverbs

Today’s Writing Tip

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Including other cultures and their respective norms in your story provides additional texture. Just make sure you get it correct, either through research or, better yet, consulting with someone who knows it well.

One of the best examples I’ve seen where this is done beautifully is the movie “My Big Fat Greek Wedding.” You may be part of such a culture and not even be aware of it.

Many years ago when I worked for NASA I attended a class that addressed getting along with people from other cultures. This was essential because we were working with Japan, Russia, Italy, and various other countries with the International Space Station. One thing they told us that I’ve never forgotten is that right and wrong can have entirely different definitions in different cultures. They are what they are, having evolved separately and under different circumstances.

Cultural microcosms are all around you, whether you notice them or not. If you’re an author, you should pay attention to such things. Every city, even section of a city, has its own personality and culture. This is perhaps more noticeable among the different states of the USA and certainly between other nations. Cultural clashes surround you on any given day. If you don’t believe me, just watch the news. Remember that conflict is essential in fiction and this is another area where you can work it into your story.

Pay attention to such things as an essential ingredient to life and therefore has a bearing on fiction. Capture it properly and you can become an outstanding author.

Today’s Writing Tip

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Avoid blatant stereotype characters, especially for the good guys or bad guys. This is especially advisable for those that carry a racist spin. Challenge your own prejudices and you’ll do the same for your readers. There are good guys and bad guys of all races, religions, nationalities, and so forth, so be fair. Furthermore, if you character has overcome the negativity associated with a particular group and thus invited the rejection and possibly the ire of his peers, you have some built-in conflict to work into your story.

I’m not saying that you should always be politically correct. Like Steve Jobs supposedly said, “If you never want to make anyone mad, then sell ice cream.” Some of the funniest books I’ve read have been quite politically incorrect, but they have done so under the guise of satire, which can get away with a lot of blatant rudeness. Satire is a very special case and not always easy to handle. More on that some other time.

Today’s Writing Tip

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The more you know about human behavior and psychology and incorporate it into your writing, the more convincing your characters will be. These are things you should pick up from the people around you and your life experience. If personality types like Myers-Briggs (I’m an INTJ, by the way) and various other behavioral descriptions absolutely aren’t your thing, then a viable alternative that I’ve mentioned before is using the characteristics of the various astrological signs as a character template.

If you’ve paid the slightest attention to those around you, you’ll undoubtedly recognize the characteristics that fit the various signs. Then, if you find out which ones do and don’t get along, you have a ready-made formula to introduce conflict.

WGTA216x324If you read these tips on a regular basis, then you know I don’t usually use them for self-promotional purposes. However, since I have actually written a book about astrology that describes the signs, I feel it’s my duty to mention it here. You can pick up a copy on Amazon or just about any other retail sales channel here. For a quick overview of how different signs get along, you can find that for free on my website here.