Verisimilitude

  By Maris Soule | 15 May, 2013 - 10:16 am |
6 Comments

Lately I’ve had the opportunity to read and comment on some stories written by new writers. What I’ve noticed is these writers are so eager to get their stories written, they end up TELLING the story rather than drawing the reader into the story. Often what we tell these writers is you need to SHOW not TELL, but new writers don’t always know how to do this. And, of course, there are many ways to SHOW what’s going on. One way is to allow the reader’s knowledge to help paint the picture. We do this by creating a world that’s “familiar” to the reader. Words become our “paint brush.”

What a writer strives for is verisimilitude. The word comes from the Latin verum meaning truth and similis meaning similar. Even though the story may be fictional, we want the reader to feel what’s happening and where it’s happening is real. Writers do this by including items that most people either know about or can visualize.

Write a dog came running up, and I have a partial picture. Write a coon hound loped across the grassy field and I not only have a more complete picture, I know a little more about the setting and the characters. (We’re definitely not in a city and at least someone in the story either likes to hunt or likes hunting dogs.)

Take this opening line from David Morrell’s The Shimmer: “From fifteen hundred feet off the ground, the blue pickup truck looked like a Matchbox toy.” He could have simply said the truck looked like a toy, but by adding the word pickup, we immediately know what that truck looks like (he also gave us the color), and by using Matchbox to describe toy, we know the size comparison (this gives us a better understanding of what things look like from fifteen hundred feet off the ground).

In the initial process of getting the story down a writer might simply write dog or truck, but once that rough draft (be it a scene or the entire book) is down, it’s time for the writer to consider how important the information is and how it might be used to SHOW the reader setting, time period, or character.

Using familiar items eliminates the need for lengthy (wordy) descriptions. If I write: She drove up to the house, you know what she did but little else. If I said: She drove up to the colonial-style house, you have a better picture. Or maybe: She drove up to a McMansion. I don’t have to use a lot of words to describe each. Maybe I could add that it’s a two-story colonial-style house or a McMansion surrounded by dozens of other McMansions. Each addition increases your visual image of where “she” is.

Verisimilitude is cultural. We use places and objects that are familiar to our readers. When our books are translated, it’s often the job of the translator to use images that would be familiar to that culture. (Though with our American movies and TV shows now viewed in so many countries, many of the words/images that would have been foreign in the past are now known to all.) Years ago I had a case where one of my Harlequin Temptations (The Law of Nature) was translated into German. The story took place at a Boy Scout camp in Michigan Upper Peninsula. A coworker of mine at the time happened to be German, and I gave her the foreign edition of that book. She told me, in her edition, the story took place in a work camp. Why? Probably because at that time the German readers would not have been able to visualize a Boy Scout camp, not like they could a work camp.

So once that rough draft is finished, go through it and see if you can make your writing more “visual.” Make your story “seem” real.

(By the way, this topic must have been floating around lately because after I wrote this, I came across this blog that basically touches on the same subject. Catherine does an excellent job of explaining how to SHOW.)

http://authorvsnelson.com/blog/2013/05/14/dog-or-doberman-by-catherine-e-mclean/

I’m Brain Dead

  By Maris Soule | 8 May, 2013 - 1:56 pm |
11 Comments

brainz1

I don’t know when it happened, but sometime or another this month (or maybe it was this year) my brain ceased working. At least that’s how it feels. I thought I had a plot for my third Crows book, but evidently I don’t because I’m halfway through and I have no idea where to go next. It’s not even as if I wrote myself into a corner. It’s more like I’ve written myself over a cliff. I knew the beginning and how I wanted the story to end, and I thought the middle would work itself out. Well, surprise, it hasn’t.

cliff

My mystery lacks tension and suspense. There’s absolutely no reason for my protagonist to be involved in solving the crime. I just finished judging books for the Daphne contest and the criteria used to judge those books is fresh in my mind. Considering what I have written, if I were judging it today, I’d have to give it a low score.

In some ways I’d like to simply shelve the story and work on something else, but I ended the second book in the series with a situation that more or less requires a third book. (At least that’s what my fans tell me.) So if I walk away from this story, I’m letting them down. Heck, I’d be letting myself down.

Today I decided to start a chapter by chapter outline of what I have written. I’m hoping as I go through what I already have I’ll stimulate my creative thoughts and will come up with a new direction. If that doesn’t work, I’m hoping my critique partners (I’ve sure missed working with those ladies while I was in Florida) will help with some brain storming.

This being brain dead sure isn’t fun.

Self-Published Books

  By Maris Soule | 1 May, 2013 - 1:51 pm |
18 Comments

I’m having trouble discarding a preconceived notion. I’ve always considered books that were self-published as inferior, work that didn’t meet traditional publishing standards, books that lacked the qualities that make for a good read: tight writing, proper punctuation and sentence structure, and good story telling.

More than once over the years I’ve been talked into purchasing a self-published book only to wish I hadn’t wasted the money. I always felt I knew why the writer had to resort to paying to have the book published. When I read an article about an author’s first book being published and realized it was self-published, I mentally scoffed and felt superior. I, at least, had been able to convince a legitimate publishing house (4 different publishing houses over time) to publish my books. I didn’t have to pay someone to print it.

Well, times have changed, and I guess I’d better change my attitude. This past month I’ve been judging published books for a national contest. Three of the five books I’m judging are self-published. I groaned when I first received the package, but then I started reading. The two books that have blown me away…

Yep, they’re self-published.

I will say the authors of these two books weren’t complete novices. One mentioned the help of her agent (along with her critique partners and the fact that she’d had the book edited) and the other has had several short stories published. But for some reason or another, these two writers chose to self-publish their books.

I also noticed last week that two of the top ten best sellers on the USA Today list were e-books published through Amazon. Another two self-published e-books were listed in the extended list of best sellers.

E-publishing and many of the print-on-demand digital publishers are changing how books are published. In many ways that’s great. Being the writer and the publisher takes out the middleman, gives the writer more control. It’s also giving us more variety. With major publishing houses worried about the bottom line and afraid to take chances on the new and untried, bookstores and stands are loaded with the same well-known authors. Self-publishing is an opportunity for those new voices and new categories or genres to be published.

Oh, I’m sure for every good self-published book there will be dozens of not-so-good to terrible books. But you know, not all of the books published by traditional publishers are that great. The old adage is: “You can’t judge a book by its cover.” Well, I guess, you can’t judge it by its publisher either.

(I’d tell you the titles and authors of those two books I loved, but I can’t. Not until the contest is over.)

Writing is Easy. Right?

  By Maris Soule | 24 April, 2013 - 12:46 pm | ,
10 Comments

I think most writers, at one time or another, have met someone who said, “When I retire, I’m going to write a book.”

They make it sound as if all they need is more time and they, too, will be able to accomplish what I or other published writers have accomplished. And maybe some of them will, but I’m betting most might start a book and that’s as far as it will go.

Why?

Because most of them don’t realize that writing isn’t easy, at least not for most of us. It takes more than time, more than simply being able to write a decent sentence and spell words correctly. Writing is more than TELLING what happens, it’s storytelling as was practiced long ago (and is still practiced around a campfire), where the storyteller pulls the listener into what is happening. It’s using words to create a world, time, and people that come alive for the listener.

For me the most difficult part of writing is making sure everything in a story makes sense, is logical, and accurate. It means I can’t simply end a mystery by saying the villain was crazy and that’s why he or she did all of those terrible things, or end a romance with a hero who’s been a cold, domineering male, suddenly saying he loves the heroine and they’ll live happily ever after. I have to give my characters motives for what they do. I need to show the reader a character’s personality, not simply tell the reader someone is good or bad, hot tempered or calm and collected. And if I’m writing a mystery, I need to figure a way to make several people look guilty (whether they are or not) so the reader doesn’t immediately know whodunit.

I have a feeling most of these people who are “going to write a book someday” have no idea how much research goes into writing. I remember one told me she was going to write a historical because no one really knew what happened back then. I don’t believe she ever wrote that book, but if she had, I’m sure she would have been surprised by how much readers do know about each and every period of history. Same with Scifi books. A writer can create a new world, but it better be logical. Vampires. Werewolves. Those readers have expectations, and they’ll let a writer (and a publisher) know if the writer gets it wrong.

The more real a writer makes a story, the more it draws the reader in. Make a big mistake (I almost put a silencer on a revolver once), and the writer loses credibility. The reader begins to doubt other parts of the story.

So yes, I’m sure some of those people I’ve met who’ve told me they’re going to write a book after they retire will give it a try. So far I’ve only received one announcement regarding where I could buy a finished book. Maybe the others are slower writers…or maybe they discovered writing wasn’t easy.

Hmm, maybe I’ll try being a surgeon after I finish this next book. What do you think?

New-Adult

  By Maris Soule | 17 April, 2013 - 3:12 pm | ,
9 Comments

Tuesday’s USA Today had an article in its LIFE section about a new category of novels: NA (New-Adult) (http://www.usatoday.com/story/life/books/2013/04/15/new-adult-genre-is-the-hottest-category-in-book-publishing/2022707/)

These books feature protagonists in the 18-to-early-20s age range. The stories have the emotional intensity of YA (young adult) novels, but include more mature themes—the freedom of living away from home, discovering who they are, and finding their way in the world. Of course they also include sex, but that’s not the main focus of these stories.

Though I remember those years of angst and emotional turmoil (as I discovered who I was away from the constraints of my parents, what I truly wanted to do, and what sort of man I wanted to live with), I have no desire to write these books. On the other hand, I’m delighted to see others are writing them. Not only are they writing NA novels, those novels are doing great. And even better…it was writers who saw the need for this category and created it, not publishing houses.

Writers often know what the public wants way before the publishing industry catches on. In the past it’s been frustrating for writers who want to offer something new. All too often they would have their stories turned down. We used to joke that editors said they wanted something new and different, but in reality they didn’t want anything too new or too different. In fact, for years writers have complained about editors writing back that they loved the submitted story, but they were going to have to reject it because “marketing,” or a senior editor, or some unknown but powerful entity said there was no market for “that kind” of story.

Those attitudes, in the past, sometimes led frustrated writers to become publishers themselves. Many of the small, niche publishing companies that exist today were formed simply so “those kinds” of books could be published. It certainly happened with vampire and erotic novels.

Nowadays, however, frustrated writers have another outlet. Rather than having to start a publishing company, they’re able to e-publish. Those books the publishing houses turned down don’t have to be put in a drawer or rewritten so they “fit” the market. And if the writer is right, if there is a demand for a certain type of book, it’s the readers who make the determination.

Only a small percentage of self-published books (either in print or e-book format) will become gigantic successes, but when the writing is good and the time is right, they now have a chance to make decent sales or, in a few cases, make best sellers lists. And, lo and behold, when a book or a category of books sells a hundred thousand to a million copies, traditional publishing houses take note…and offer contracts. That’s certainly what happened with the books mentioned in the USA Today article.

For me it’s exciting to see some of the control of who and what becomes a success taken out of the hands of big business and put into the hands of writers and readers.

Who’s the Boss?

  By Maris Soule | 10 April, 2013 - 1:32 pm | ,
15 Comments

man loungingOne of the neat things about being a writer is basically you’re the boss. You can set your own hours, decide what you’re going to work on, and plan how you want the project (story) to turn out.

 

 

One of the worst things about being a writer is you’re the boss.

Yes, you can set your own hours, but it’s way too easy to let other things, events, people nibble up those hours. Your spouse or significant other sees you staring at the computer screen, not typing, and assumes it’s okay to interrupt. Or friends call and ask you to do something, either with them or for the school or an organization, and how do you say no? As far as they’re concerned, you don’t work, so you must be available. Right? Or you’re working at home and you know the family needs clean clothes, or the refrigerator is empty, or your cat just knocked over the gold fish bowl. Can you really ignore those needs and keep typing?

It takes a lot of willpower to set aside a block of time or set of days when you won’t let anything interfere with your writing. I’ve often seen the quote: “Writing is 5% talent and 95% persistence.” (Or hard work.) Over the years I’ve come across many very talented writers (far better writers than I’ll ever be) who never get beyond the desire to write a book. They have the talent, but they don’t have the self-discipline or will to treat their writing as if they had a boss who would dock their pay if they didn’t come into the office at a specific time and not leave until they’d put in a full day of work.you are fired

It doesn’t have to be an 8-hour day. One hour a day has worked for many fledgling authors. The writer simply has to make it clear (both to herself/himself and others) that this is writing time…no interruptions, please. (When my children were small, they knew I wasn’t to be interrupted unless there was blood or a bone sticking out. They still remind me of that.)

Deciding what you’re going to work on also has its drawbacks. Oh, it’s nice to be in control of what you write, but I’ve seen many beginning writers start one book, get a ways into it, run into some problems or get a different, more exciting idea, start another story, get another new idea, start that story, then another and another. Now they have several stories started, but nothing finished, and because there is no “boss” demanding a project be completed, they never will have a story that could be published.

Even established writers don’t always have control over what they’re going to write. Some have a series or character that their fans adore. As much as that writer might want to try a different genre, unless s/he writes more than one book a year the fans have become the boss. You will write what I want, not what you want.

And, of course, we may all like to think we have complete control over what we’re writing, but unless we self-publish, if we want to be published, we do have a “boss.” Publishers determine genres they’ll accept, along with lengths, and to some extent, content. Editors often see the story in a different way and request changes. We, as writers, can always say no: it’s my way or I’m pulling it. After all, it is my name on the cover of the book or as a byline on a story. But refusing to make those changes may mean the book won’t be published, and if the change isn’t that great, or if I can fit my idea into the publisher’s guidelines, am I going to refuse?

Sometimes I think I’m the boss. Other times I know it’s an illusion. ☺

Take a Walk/Write a Book

  By Maris Soule | 27 March, 2013 - 2:36 pm | ,
16 Comments

Zuri in woods

As some of you know, I’m trying to lose weight. I’ve lost a little, but it’s a slow process (we go out to eat way too much here in Florida), so I’ve started taking walks with my husband on the days I don’t go to yoga class. Today I had a rough time convincing myself to go. Although it’s sunny, the temperature is only in the high 50s and the wind is blowing, making it seem colder. And I stayed up late last night, so I’m tired. And my back hurts. And…

Well, you get the point. I was making excuses, which I also do when it comes to writing. (I can’t write because I’m not sure how I want this scene to go. I won’t have enough time to really get much written, so why start. I’m tired…and so on.)

Starting a book and starting a walk are very similar. With both you have to decide where you’re going and what direction you want to take to get there. Once I get started walking, I usually find a comfortable pace, my muscles warm up, and I begin to enjoy the scenery. With a book, once the characters have been introduced and I’ve indicated the setting and time period, and introduced the major conflict, if only as a hint, I’m eager to tell the story.

As with writing, it’s the middle of the walk where I slow down. (We have a 1-mile loop we walk here in Florida.) I’m now at the halfway point. I must go as far as I’ve come in order to get back home. Can I make it?

My husband mentioned that when he was in training as a Marine, if they had a march, they often didn’t know where they were going, so he never knew if he was halfway there or not. I told him that reminded me of the difference between writers who are plotters (I tend to be one, though I do wander quite a bit.) and pantsers (who start out with characters and maybe a conflict or an idea and simply let the story unfold.) Pantsers may know where they want to end up, but they have no idea how long it’s going to be before they get there. Or maybe they don’t even know if they’ve reached the end until they do get there.

Today when we reached the last third of our walk, my husband yelled at me to slow down. I didn’t realize I’d picked up speed, but I guess I had. I knew I wasn’t far from the end of the walk, I knew exactly where I was headed. Again, this is similar to when I’m writing. Once I get past that middle (that’s where I’m stuck right now) and I can see the ending in sight, I’m eager to get to the computer and write. My fingers don’t type fast enough to keep up with the words running through my head.

And when I type THE END, I’m tired and happy and a little sad that I’ve actually reached the end of the story and have to say goodbye to these characters and their adventure. I have a similar reaction at the end of a walk. I made it. I’m a little tired, but the fresh air and the exercise were exhilarating. I accomplished what I set out to do.

I’m happy.

(Now, if I can just get through the middle of this book I’m working on.)

Further or Farther?

  By Maris Soule | 20 March, 2013 - 10:27 am | ,
15 Comments

I’ve always thought I knew the difference between further and farther. You could further a discussion or further a career, but you had to go farther if you wanted to get anywhere.

That’s what I thought, but I’ve heard and seen the two used almost interchangeably, not only with new writers, but also with seasoned writers, highly educated speakers, and those less adept with the English language.

So I decided to see what Webster had to say. (I’m using the Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary.) Webster, it seems, has several definitions for further. There’s the adverb that means in addition, moreover, or to a greater degree or extent. When further is used as a verb, it indicates to help forward or advance, and used as an adjective, the word indicates going or extending beyond.

But wait, isn’t that last one farther?

Sure enough, Webster says (right after the adverb and adjective definition) that you can also use farther in these cases.

So I looked up farther.

Farther, according to Webster, when used as an adverb indicates at a distance or a more advanced point. As an adjective it stands for more distant, remote. And farthest is at the greatest distance.

I’d still be confused (and maybe I still am), but there’s a note included with the farther definitions regarding usage. It seems further and farther have been used more or less interchangeably throughout most of history. BUT—and I think it’s this “but” that has influenced me—currently they’re showing signs of diverging, and when there’s no notion of distance further is used while farther is used to indicate distance. Back to further when we need to go no further.

So I’m right.

Or maybe I’m not.

Whether you use one or the other, even if it doesn’t sound right to me, according to Webster, you’re probably correct. Therefore, for all of those writers whose work I’ve critiqued and where I’ve stated the word further (or maybe it was farther) was incorrectly used—I apologize.

Moreover, I’ll take this discussion no further.

Back up, Back up!

  By Maris Soule | 13 March, 2013 - 3:35 pm | ,
15 Comments

I’m sitting in front of a time bomb. No, not a real bomb, but I can practically hear it ticking away.

Bomb

I’m talking about my computer. It’s not that old, but almost from the day I purchased it, that imaginary bomb has been ticking away. I first realized there might be a problem when computerthe computer was set up in South Haven. All at once, for no discernible reason at all, colored lines would appear on my screen, sometime in horizontal bands, other times in vertical bands. The only way to get rid of them was to physically turn off the computer, either by holding the on/off button down or pulling the plug.

While in Florida last winter I bought a new, touch-screen computer (no need for a tower) and decided to take it to South Haven when we returned. We did, and in turn, we brought the computer I had in South Haven down to Florida this winter…which was probably a mistake.

Most of the time this is a wonderful computer. Lots of memory, fast, and the monitor is easy to read. Most of the time it works great. But every so often, it goes crazy, and last night was one of those times.

Which brings me to the topic of this blog.

Ever since I started using computers I’ve backed up my files. I’ve told others to do the same. “One of these days your hard drive is going to die,” I’d say. “Make sure it doesn’t take your manuscript with it.”

And I do back up as I type. Whenever I pause, I automatically hit Control S (I started with DOS, so I still use those key strokes), and I also have Word programmed to do automatic saves. But that really isn’t enough.

Sitting in front of me are three flash (Thumb) drives. I actually have four. When I reach the end of a day’s work, I save to a flash drive as well as a hard drive, and I try to rotate those flash drives. Often I have one in the purse I carry. Another one goes with me in the car. I even have an external hard drive that I take back and forth between Michigan and Florida. Am I overly obsessive about this? Maybe, but I remember a Mid-Michigan Retreat I attended several years ago when one of our members returned home after the retreat to discover her house had burned down and she lost everything, her computer and the files it held, discs, hardcopies, books, etc. Everything.

I’ve also heard too many news reports where robbers have broken into a house and stolen the computer.

So I have a flash drive in my purse, a flash drive in my car, and one in the computer, ready to use. Except, last night I wasn’t quite finished for the day, and it was when I returned to my computer, prepared to look up something and then save my day’s work, that nothing worked.

Aagh!

One hour and several SYSTEM RESTOREs later, my computer did come back to life and the first thing I did was make back-ups of everything I wanted to make sure I didn’t lose, cause who knows when this computer is going to do it to me.

bomb explodid

Are We There Yet?

  By Maris Soule | 27 February, 2013 - 3:19 pm |
12 Comments

Are we there yet? We’ve heard that question from our kids and sometimes from our spouse. Whenever I teach a class on writing, I hear a similar question: How do you know when you’re finished?

What the writer is asking is how do you know when the story you’ve written is the best it can be? When is it ready to send out?

Unlike a road trip, with writing there’s no absolute answer. The story may be the very best you can write today. Tomorrow you may learn something new or see something in a new light. Most writers I know—after the book’s published—can still find something they wish they’d changed or written a different way. That or someone points out an error. If we all waited until we were 100% sure that there was absolutely nothing in a manuscript that could be or needed to be changed nothing would ever be published.

Writing is a craft and we are always learning. We learn by doing, by reading how others have written a scene (or dialogue), and from critiques. We learn from our failures and our successes.

I used to use a red pen to edit the printed pages of my mss. I told others, “When I see mostly black and very little red on the page, I know the story is ready—or nearly ready—to go out.

Does that mean I’ve caught all of my errors? No. It’s amazing how the mind works, how I can see words as I know they should be written rather than what I actually typed. Or how I can miss the the in a sentence. My mind sees only one “the.”

This is why it’s good to have beta readers, and why I keep hearing others say writers need to hire editors before sending out (or self-publishing) their work. A fresh set of eyes will find typos, repetitions, and errors that the writer no longer sees. It’s also why it’s good to take time after you’ve finished writing something and simply set it aside and do something else for a while. When you come back to the piece, you are more apt to see what is actually on the page rather than what you “think” you see.

I’m experiencing this right now. I’ve had a request for a book I finished last year…or thought I’d finished. Over the last twelve months I’ve sent the ms (or parts of it) out to three agents and entered it in two contests. Each time, prior to sending the ms, I’ve taken time to re-read it, and each time I’ve done that, I’ve found errors and parts that I decide to reword or rewrite. The same is happening this time. I’m a third of the way through a re-read and so far I’ve moved two paragraphs, found two spelling errors (where instead of were and or instead of of), and reworded several sentences. I think the changes I’ve made have improved the flow of the story, and I think I’ve found all of the typos and spelling errors, but am I 100% sure? No. Nevertheless, when I finish this re-read the ms will be sent out, and I’m willing to bet, if this editor does decide to take the story, she will suggest more changes.

So are we there yet? Probably not…but I’m getting as close as I possibly can.

SOS-All you needed to know about writing/editing/publishing a book

  By Maris Soule | 20 February, 2013 - 8:56 am | ,
11 Comments

The SOS stands for Sleuthfest on Saturday which I attended last Saturday. First of all, it was close by, just a little more than 20 miles away. Second, some of my writer friends were speaking. Two good reasons to go. 

Sleuthfest logo

I arrived at the Hyatt Regency in Sarasota, Florida a little after 8:00 a.m., picked up my name badge and packet, and grabbed some coffee. At 8:50 Sharon Potts (Florida Mystery Writers of America Chapter president) welcomed everyone and set the workshop in motion. The first session was presented by Elaine Viets who told how she researched her novel, FINAL SAIL. (The information she gave about life on a yacht was fascinating, especially since she was covering the tasks the crew must perform.) She also went over the revision letter she received after sending in her completed ms. Her editor, it seems, didn’t consider the story ”completed.” (Ah, I’ve been there before. The letter that starts with, “I love the book…” then goes on to tell everything that doesn’t work and needs to be changed.)

 The next session was a Q & A for the editor (Terri Bischoff of Midnight Ink) and agent (Nicole Resciniti who’s with The Seymour Agency). After that session, Terri and Nicole took prearranged pitches from attendees.

The session from 11:15 – 12:30 covered characterizatiosn. Patrick Kendrick, Diane Stuckart, Joanna Campbell Slan, Deborah Sharp, and Julie Compton covered the goals, motivations, and conflicts that protagonists and villains must have as well as how to write good dialogue and create vivid settings.

We then grabbed box lunches and something to drink and by 12:45 we were back in the lecture room learning about Indie Publishing, presented by Christine Kling. That session naturally segued into the workshop presented by the Florida half of P.J. Parrish (Kristy Montee) which covered how she and her sister took one of their earlier books (Dark of the Moon) and revised it before putting it up as an e-book. (I was glad to see I wasn’t the only one to take a book written early in my career and see glaring errors.)

By 3:30 p.m. I was reaching brain dead level, but the day wasn’t over. Chris Jackson, Sandy Balzo, Miriam Auerbach, Terry Griffin and Sharon Potts all contributed to the session on THE PLOT, including openings, sagging middles, unsatisfying resolutions, pacing, twists, and red herrings.

The book…I mean the workshop ended at 5:00 p.m. and we all moved to the “Boat House” for a free drink, a chance to buy the presenters’ books, and general conversation. Since I wasn’t staying at the hotel, I limited myself to one glass of wine and headed home around 6:00 p.m.

One of the best things about this one-day workshop was the handouts. There was one from each of the presenters. Although most of the material presented was information I’ve heard before, I always find it’s good to hear these things again, and I usually leave with one or two new ideas. More than that, it’s always great to have a chance to connect with others who share my interests and understand some of the frustrations of being a writer.

Next year Sleuthfest will be back to its usual three-day platform and will once again be held in Orlando, Florida. (Orlando’s only two hours away. Hmm.)

For more information about the Florida MWA Chapter or Sleuthfest, go to: http://www.mwaflorida.org/index.htm

Are You Listening?

  By Maris Soule | 13 February, 2013 - 4:39 pm | ,
8 Comments

I go to the pool to use the hot tub for my back and to listen to people talk. I admire writers who give their characters distinctive voices. Word usage, sentence structure, even the tempo of the speech can distinguish one character from another without the addition of dialogue tags or mentioning their names.

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Since my P.J. Benson mysteries take place in the mid-west—Michigan—it’s not surprising that many of the characters in those stories sound similar. But even though these “people” live in the same area, that doesn’t mean they should all sound the same. When I lived in Climax, Michigan (which has many similarities to my fictitious Zenith, Michigan) I was surrounded by friends and neighbors who came from different economic and/or educational backgrounds: the hardware store clerk who also taught chemistry at Western Michigan University; the housewife who didn’t have indoor plumbing until the 1980s and who left school after the eighth grade; and the farmer who graduated from Michigan State.

As I work on the third book in this series, I know it’s once again my job to make my characters sound natural but different.

So here I am, at the swimming pool. (Yeah, I know. It’s a rough life.) There’s Ed, who’s from Massachusetts. He packs his caa by the gate. (I love how he talks.) And there’s Kathy, from New Yack. Yah know wad I mean? Quite a few people come here from Canada. Eh? (A lot of them sound like my friend who grew up in Michigan’s U.P.)

Besides the way people from certain regions pronounce their words, there are differences in the quantity of speech. We’ve all met the person that just won’t stop talking. It’s hard to get a word in around them. And there are those who hardly say anything, at least not at first. (Maybe not until they’ve had a drink or two.)

Using those speech patterns can easily identify one character from another as well as tell the reader something about the character’s personality.

Writers often mention that men and women talk different with men using shorter sentences and offering suggestions on how to resolve a problem rather than simply listening to a woman’s rant. Yes, men do like to “fix” things, but as far as the shorter sentences or conversations, have you ever listened to a man describe his golf game? Or talk about his car? The two men in the pool in front of me are into baseball. They’re sharing way more information than I care to hear.

Actually, today it’s a woman’s seated nearby who has captured my attention. Her laugh is loud, hardy, and erupts often. It has a definite rhythm. Ha, huh, huh. She’s also a talker. She’s said something to everyone here at the pool, including me. And she worries about others—about their comfort. She’d make a wonderful secondary or tertiary character. All I would have to do is have her dominate the conversation with words of greeting or concern, have her give a laugh or two, and I could eliminate most of her dialogue tags.

So I’m here at the pool doing research. Ha, and you thought I was just loafing.

Saturday I’ll be in Sarasota, Florida at Sleuthfest on Saturday. If you’re there, say hi.

Love is Murder

  By Maris Soule | 6 February, 2013 - 2:26 pm |
3 Comments

Others have given summaries of the LIM conference held last weekend (Feb. 1-3) in Chicago, so I’ll just touch on a few points. If you’re on Facebook, do a search for the Love is Murder page. 245 pictures were posted covering the three-day conference. Pictures do tell a story.

On Friday, there were Master Classes (Writing for Television with Lee Goldberg and Writing Poisons by David Ciambrone) as well as MWA track session (Dialog, Characters, Manuscript submission, and Promotion). There were sessions for new writers, seasoned writers, and writers interested in learning more about guns and shooting, money laundering, and a variety of other topics.

On Saturday the panels continued, covering a variety of topics, the day ending with an author signing, dinner and the presentation of the Lovey Awards.  Entertainment Saturday night was provided by Those Were the Days Radio Players. Those who didn’t go listen to the radio show met in the bar. Even if you’re only drinking soda, that’s where writers often end up.

On Sunday morning, after a hot breakfast, and a panel presented by the Deadly Dames, there were more sessions and finally a Mystery Writers of America (MWA) meeting.

The conference isn’t cheap. This year the three-day event cost $349.00, but that included two dinners, two lunches and two breakfasts. The hotel isn’t cheap, either, but by using the conference code the cost was less than the normal fee, and if you shared a room, it was reasonable.

Someone in the Mid-Michigan RWA chapter I belong to asked the value to attending a conference. That’s something every writers, no matter where in his/her career, must decide. LIM had experts in screenwriting, the military, law enforcement, and weapons. These people were easy to approach and could answer all sorts of questions. There were editors and agents who were taking pitches. Award winning authors gave promotional advice as well as writing basics. Panels discussed the promotional ideas, the merits of the various e-book publishers, and how to format an ebook. A conference brochure gave attendees a chance to list their books as well as see others writing in the same genre. The bookstore on site willingly sold copies of attendees’ books.

Was it worth it for me to fly from Florida to Chicago to attend? I hope so. I know I was certainly glad I was flying back to the warm weather after the conference. Brr, it was cold up north.

Heading North

  By Maris Soule | 30 January, 2013 - 3:18 pm |
2 Comments

Thursday a cold front will hit the area where I spend my winters. That means the temperature is expected to drop from 80 degrees to the high 60s. Brrrrr. Right?

Wrong, of course.

So what am I doing tomorrow? I’m getting on a plane and heading north to Chicago where it truly will be cold. And why? Because Friday, February 1, 2013 is the first day of the three-day Love is Murder XIV conference. http://www.loveismurder.net/

Lee Goldberg, Michael Harvey, Bob Mayer, and David J. Walker are the featured speakers, but there’s something for everyone, from discussions about writing and the future of publishing to chances to give pitches to agents and editors. Friday evening, from 5:00 p.m. to 6:30 p.m., at the conference site, (Intercontinental Chicago O’Hare Hotel, 5300 N. River Rd. in Rosemont) there will be a meet-and-greet book signings by featured and attending authors, giveaways, and more. And best of all, the book signing is FREE and OPEN TO THE PUBLIC. So, if you live in the area, but haven’t registered for the conference, you are welcome to attend the author signing.

On Saturday, there’s the MWA (Mystery Writers of America) Tea, and on Sunday there will be a MWA meeting (MWA members do not have to be registered for the conference to attend Sunday’s meeting.)

I’ll be at the conference. At least I hope I will be. I’m not worried about taking off from Florida, but I do hope the weather in Chicago-land is friendly enough for my plane to land. I’m really looking forward to visiting with writers I haven’t seen for months (or years), re-charging my creative juices, and remembering why we drive 1200 miles in December to get away from the cold.

If you’re there, do stop me and say hi. I may have forgotten your name (I’ve never been good at names, and I’m even worse now.), so please don’t be insulted if you catch me squinting at your name tag (I do hope they print those names large). You’ll probably recognize me. I’ll be the one in the corner, shivering.

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