tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25256255366245427622024-03-12T21:53:25.784-04:00Jenn LidsterGet lost in romances set worlds away from our ownJenn Lidsterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13627302503897074744noreply@blogger.comBlogger51125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2525625536624542762.post-65531513463992477222009-11-24T13:12:00.001-05:002009-11-24T13:14:31.859-05:00I'm breaking up with BloggerI've exported my blog over to WordPress in preparation for a website launch in the next month or so. Please update your bookmarks and links to:<br /><a href="http://jennlidster.wordpress.com"><br /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://jennlidster.wordpress.com"><span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:180%;" >http://jennlidster.wordpress.com</span></a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Hope to see you there!</span><br /></div>Jenn Lidsterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13627302503897074744noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2525625536624542762.post-78927464781566017272009-11-23T19:38:00.003-05:002009-11-23T20:41:28.009-05:00My brush with a vanity pressWith all the hoopla surrounding the launch of Harlequin Horizons last week, Harlequin's new vanity press arm, I thought I'd share my own brush with a vanity press, which happened about fifteen years ago.<br /><br />I was in my last year of high school, which at the time in Ontario, was the OAC year (it came after grade 12, and was kind of like the qualifying year for university). One of the courses I'd been dying to take throughout my high school career was OAC English: Writer's Craft. That's where we really focused on learning how to write--though don't ask me to tell you what we actually learned. This was 1995, remember, and I'm getting old.<br /><br />I'd been writing since I was about 13, and I had completed a YA science fiction novel. For my independent study in the class, I proposed to my teacher that I edit the novel and send it out to publishers so I could undergo the process...not of publication (I wasn't that naive), but of rejection, feedback, etc.<br /><br />Looking back, I know now that I did everything wrong. But, again, the Internet was just a baby at this point. The World Wide Web had just bloomed. I got a copy of Writer's Market and went to town, mailing out my manuscript to anyone who took unsolicited submissions.<br /><br />Rejection. Rejection. Good luck with your project, but...rejection. Wait, acceptance???<br /><br />For anyone who hasn't had that amazing letter or call or e-mail that validates all those years of writing and slaving and trying, let me tell you: your heart freezes, then starts bumping along horrendously fast; your skin cools and heats, cools and heats; and your breathing becomes erratic. I was on cloud nine...<br /><br />For all of ten minutes. Until my dad read the letter a little more closely than I was capable of (being in cloud nine as I was), and found that this company would be happy to publish my novel--because it was so great and had real potential, and it was a wonderful story--as long as I would pay them $1500.<br /><br />Yep. Vanity press. And oh, it was tempting. But even then, my less-than-knowledgeable self knew that something wasn't right. And...I didn't have $1500. That was probably a good thing, actually.<br /><br />I remember going from that ultimate high, right down into the depths of despair, as Anne of Green Gables would say. It wasn't a fun experience.<br /><br />Since then I've learned one of the most important lessons any career-minded author needs to know: <a href="http://howpublishingreallyworks.blogspot.com/2008/06/yogs-law.html">Money flows to the author</a>, not away.<br /><br />And what was the novel? I called it <span style="font-style: italic;">Troubleshooters</span>, and it incorporated a cyborg, a psychic, aliens, a space war, time travel and a talking car. Here is an unedited excerpt from 1995:<br /><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;">I turned to help Andru and found him lying flat on his back while the second alien typed something into the Zanro'ide console. I took a few running steps and tackled the injured alien, but not before he'd struck the final key needed to start the bomb's timer. I got up off the floor and tried to stop the timer. Of course, I couldn't read any of the keys, so I had no idea what to press. The only figures I could read were the numbers, counting down, that I'd studied during my recovery.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;">"Tat! Start a total evac!" I screamed, tapping my comm. "We've got a bomb, ready to blow in five minutes!"</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;">"Forceshield standing by, Kasi," Tat replied. "We can't set it up till you're outta there. Once it's up, it won't come down until all explosive devices are destroyed."</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;">"Oh, isn't that great," I said sarcastically. "How big an area?"</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;">"All the hangars and outdoor displays."</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;">"Acknowledged." I tapped the communit to silence it.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;">I ignored the two Zanro'ides for now, knowing they would be invaluable to the WGSO, but unwilling to sacrifice Andru for them. Leaning down next to my partner, I noticed, with relief, that he was still breathing. I bent to sling him over my shoulder when something hit me in the back.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;">A laser shot.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;">"Oh, damn," I said.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;">Fortunately for me, the shot was from my own discarded gun, which was at one of the lowest intensities you could get. But it still hurt like hell. I turned to see the blond alien launching himself at me, but the shot had screwed something up, because I couldn't get out of the way. He landed on my back, and wrapped something around my neck. The world swiftly began to turn black and spin uncontrollably. Just before I blacked out, I swung my right fist up, and hit the alien firmly in the nose. His hands went slack and he slumped onto the floor. I held my throat for a minute, gasping for breath. I glanced at the alien to see what damage I'd done, and wished I hadn't. His face was a ruin, with dead, glassy eyes staring blankly, accusingly at me.</span><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;"> </span><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;">"It was you or me, buddy," I said.</span>Jenn Lidsterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13627302503897074744noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2525625536624542762.post-65630431411919844492009-11-20T08:00:00.002-05:002009-11-20T08:26:13.478-05:00Let's Talk About Sex, Baby: Romance isn't PornI was going to write just one post on sex in romance novels, but I think it's a topic that deserves more attention than that. So, look for this series to continue on Fridays, to get you all hot and bothered for the weekend. Oh, and thank you, Salt 'N Pepa, for <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mg1PEoQ_cq8">the title</a>.<br /><br />Romances have gotten a bad reputation in the past for being "porn for women" or full of filler to pad the pages between sex scenes. This categorization is unfair, and I would have to ask if the people who make statements like this have ever sat down to read a romance novel.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.rwanational.org/cs/the_romance_genre">Romance Writers of America says that</a>:<br /><br /><span class="default"><blockquote>Two basic elements comprise every romance novel: a central love story and an emotionally-satisfying and optimistic ending.<br /><br /><b>A Central Love Story</b>: The main plot centers around two individuals falling in love and struggling to make the relationship work. A writer can include as many subplots as he/she wants as long as the love story is the main focus of the novel.<br /><br /><b>An Emotionally-Satisfying and Optimistic Ending</b>: In a romance, the lovers who risk and struggle for each other and their relationship are rewarded with emotional justice and unconditional love. </blockquote>You'll notice the absolute lack of the word <span style="font-style: italic;">sex</span> anywhere in there. But romance novels include sex to varying degrees, because in a story about two people falling in love, it's going to come up (no pun intended). Whether the author leaves the bedroom door closed, or treats her readers to a steamy, pulse-racing scene, or just has sexual tension building through the story, sex is there.<br /><br />In <a href="http://www.rwanational.org/cs/romance_literature_subgenres">romance and its sub-genres</a>, the degree to which sex is included in the story varies, depending on the publisher, on the author, and on the sub-genre. In an <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romance_novel#Inspirational_romance">inspirational romance</a>, for example, sex will occur only after the characters are married, and will likely not be described in detail. In <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romance_novel#Contemporary_romance">contemporary</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romance_novel#Paranormal_romance">paranormal</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romance_novel#Romantic_suspense">romantic suspense</a>, and other sub-genres, there are few genre-based restrictions on how much sex is included. It would typically be up to the author and/or the publisher to decide how detailed they should be. In <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romance_novel#Erotic_Romance">erotic romance</a>, you'll see graphic sexual encounters, but the driving force of the story is still the relationship between the main characters (which is different than <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erotica">erotica</a>, where the sex is the focus of the story).<br /><br />Sex scenes in romances can run the gamut from sweet and tender to hot enough to make you want a cold shower. But the thing they all have in common (or should, if the author's done her job correctly) is that the sex is a natural extension (again, no pun intended) of the relationship. The hero and heroine don't meet in chapter one and fall into bed in chapter two (usually). It takes time to get there. Sexual tension needs to be built to the point that it's inevitable for the characters to take that next step. We believe they're hot for each other because we've felt that tension and need rising for the last umpteen chapters, so when they do finally consummate their relationship, it's the start of that "emotionally satisfying and optimistic ending" mentioned by RWA above.</span><br /><br />So, do romance novels have sex? Yes, because relationships do. It's as simple as that. It's not dirty, it's not obscene, and it's not a reason to trash the romance genre. It's just a reflection of life.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Next Friday:</span> Sex as a Plot Device<br /><br />Happy writing!Jenn Lidsterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13627302503897074744noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2525625536624542762.post-22061713068654783532009-11-17T08:53:00.003-05:002009-11-17T09:33:51.375-05:00Learning from others' mistakesWhen you're writing a novel and you take a break to read one, would you rather read a really good book or a bad one?<br /><br />Me, I'd rather read a mediocre one. (Yes, I know that wasn't one of the choices, but it's my blog, after all.) A book that is enjoyable, but maybe not so out-there good that it makes me wonder what the hell I'm thinking, trying to write my own book. I can still learn from a mediocre book. Bad books just act as a cautionary tale, and I try to forget them as quickly as possible. Luckily, I haven't read too many <span style="font-style: italic;">really bad</span> books.<br /><br />I have read a few books lately that fell into the <span style="font-style: italic;">meh</span> category. They were enjoyable; the stories were pretty good, the characters were half-decent, but they just didn't resonate with me on a level that made me want to re-read them. (Which is the metre-stick of a good book for me.) But I learned from them.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">1. Watch out for repetitive sequences. </span>In one of the books, there was a lot of the same kind of action in the first half of the book: the MC goes out, discovers a snippet of information, and comes back to her apartment. Rinse, repeat. About three times. It got a little boring. When you have a lot of the same type of action, without really moving the story forward, it slows the pace.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">2. Don't beat readers over the head with narrative.</span> In another book, the author had a lot of repetitive narrative. Circular thinking on the part of the POV character, where she reiterated her motivation/goal over and over again. If a particular revelation/plot element is extremely important to the story, give it the weight it deserves and trust your readers to remember it without repeating it every five pages.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">3. In a romance novel, sex does not equal romance.</span> Anyone who's been on the WD Forums for awhile knows my thoughts on this, though I don't think I've ever had a full blog post on it. Hm. Fodder for another day. At any rate, romance novels are about the romance, not the sex. Don't get me wrong; I enjoy steamy love scenes (writing and reading them), but I'm seeing a trend in some paranormal romances to skip the relationship part of the romance and head straight to the sex. Sex should be a natural progression of a relationship that's developing, but emotions need to be engaged. And please, for the love of all that's holy, don't use sex as a convenient plot device, wherein the MC has to sleep with people to gain their abilities. Sigh.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">4. Make sure your characters' Happily Ever After feels real.</span> Even in a paranormal romance series, with loose ends flying about, you can give your readers a satisfying ending. But part of having an <span style="font-style: italic;">awww</span> moment in your ending is making sure your characters' relationship throughout the book rings true. You want your readers to feel like the relationship will survive, no matter what life throws at the characters next. In one of the books I read recently, I didn't get that <span style="font-style: italic;">awww</span> moment. Maybe because the characters didn't have a whole lot of one-on-one time; most of the time, there were other, secondary characters in the mix. Including the MCs from the previous book, who had a fair number of scenes to themselves.<br /><br />I'm trying to keep these lessons in mind as I revise TOPAZ SKIES. What have you learned from books you've read?<br /><br />Happy writing!Jenn Lidsterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13627302503897074744noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2525625536624542762.post-28002872511263185502009-11-13T15:05:00.000-05:002009-11-13T15:07:09.021-05:00Profiled!I am the subject of an author profile over at Emily White's <a href="http://steppingintofantasy.blogspot.com/">Stepping into Fantasy</a> blog today. Go <a href="http://steppingintofantasy.blogspot.com/2009/11/author-review-jenn-lidster.html">check it out</a>!Jenn Lidsterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13627302503897074744noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2525625536624542762.post-50763908984414340722009-11-12T10:59:00.003-05:002009-11-12T11:13:33.006-05:00My deep, dark secretI'm a writer.<br /><br />I write weird stories about people with strange powers.<br /><br />And it freaks me out to talk about it.<br /><br />There's an opportunity coming up, care of my RWA chapter, to pitch to an editor. The idea of sitting there and telling someone about my writing--selling it in person--is seriously freaking me out. I know that this is something I'll have to get over as I foray more and more out to agents, etc., but it just feels weird to talk about my stories.<br /><br />Like when I'm at my RWA chapter meetings, and someone asks me what I'm working on, I can feel the blush start to rush up my neck and into my pale, freckly Irish complexion. (World-class poker player, I am not.) I have this irrational urge to apologize for my stories being odd.<br /><br />Except...they're not really all that odd, considering that paranormal romance is a pretty hot sub-genre right now. I mean, are my stories any weirder than a <a href="http://www.carrievaughn.com/">werewolf named Kitty</a>?<br /><br />Does anyone else have this problem? Please?Jenn Lidsterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13627302503897074744noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2525625536624542762.post-86945800899915481812009-11-10T09:48:00.003-05:002009-11-10T09:55:31.154-05:00Short and sweetMy blog has been poking at me for a couple of days now. "Write something," it hissed. "C'mon. You have ideas."<br /><br />To which I stuck out my tongue and went back to working on my revisions of TOPAZ SKIES.<br /><br />The revisions aren't done, not by a long shot, but I'm feeling pretty good about them. I have a better handle on my characters, I've gotten rid of some coincidental elements that were bugging me, and things are looking up.<br /><br />So, short and sweet blog post today. Do you have any news to share?Jenn Lidsterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13627302503897074744noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2525625536624542762.post-31928386036797267922009-11-03T10:49:00.003-05:002009-11-03T13:21:59.815-05:00OriginsInterests and fascinations in one's life generally have roots in something. I didn't wake up one day and shout from my rooftop: "I'm going to be a paranormal romance writer!" If I'd done that, my neighbours might have called the cops. My section of town is pretty quiet.<br /><br />Books inspired me. And isn't that how it should be, for writers? We read something and it triggers within us a desire to create.<br /><br />Which books? These ones...<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Science Fiction and Fantasy</span><br />I remember discovering the sci-fi/fantasy genre when I was about 11. Oh, I was in heaven. If you have budding sci-fi readers in your house, you might want to check out:<br /><ul><li><a href="http://www.amazon.ca/Mail-Order-Wings-Beatrice-Gormley/dp/059515204X">Mail Order Wings</a> by Beatrice Gormley: (from Amazon) "In Mail-Order Wings, nine-year-old Andrea orders wings--guaranteed to fly!--through an ad in her comic book. Incredibly, they work. This is the beginning of her exciting and disturbing adventures with the wings, culminating in a long flight and a difficult decision."</li><li><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Birth-Firebringer-Trilogy-V-1/dp/0142500534">Birth of the Firebringer</a> by Meredith Ann Pierce: (from Amazon) "Jan, the prince of the unicorns, is high-spirited, reckless--and the despair of his mighty father, Korr. Reluctantly, Korr allows Jan to accompany the other initiate warriors on a pilgrimage. Soon Jan's curiosity leads him, along with his friend Dagg, and their mentor, the female warrior Tek, into the greatest dangers--deadly gryphons, sly pans, wyverns, pards, and renegade unicorns. Yet time after time they are rescued, leading Jan to wonder: Am I the heir to a special destiny?" <span style="font-style: italic;">And in doing this post, I just discovered this was the first book of a trilogy! Time to order me some books...</span></li><li><a href="http://www.mcclelland.com/catalog/display.pperl?isbn=9780887767920">The Isis Trilogy</a> by Monica Hughes: This was the first series I ever read about colonizing a planet and it really stuck with me, especially the second book.</li></ul><span style="font-weight: bold;">Paranormal</span><br />I discovered the paranormal during my teens (who doesn't?) and found it even more intriguing than the fantasy/sci-fi books I'd been reading. Maybe because the paranormal genre tends to happen in the "real world".<br /><ul><li><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Remember-Me-Christopher-Pike/dp/1416968199/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1257265074&sr=8-3">Remember Me</a> by Christopher Pike: (from Amazon) "Shari is dead, and she knows that she didn't kill herself. So rather than merging with the cosmos as other spirits do, she lingers near the world of the living, determined to find her murderer. ..." Yes, it's a Christopher Pike book, but it stuck with me. It's not a happy book. I mean, the MCs are dead through the whole thing, so there isn't going to be a happily ever after, not really.</li><li><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Third-Eye-Laurel-leaf-books/dp/0440987202/ref=pd_sim_b_2">The Third Eye</a> by Lois Duncan: (from Amazon) "High school senior Karen, who worries that her psychic powers will make her seem different from other people, is frightened at first when a young policeman asks her to use her gift to help the police locate missing children."</li><li><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Diana-Tregarde-Investigates-Children-Burning/dp/073947703X/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1257265645&sr=1-2">The Diana Tregarde Investigates series</a> by Mercedes Lackey: (from Amazon) "Diana is a Guardian charged with saving innocents and destroying evil wherever she finds it. Because if she doesn't, evil will find her--and kill her first." Unfortunately, Mercedes Lackey left this series a little open and never wrote another book due to <a href="http://www.mercedeslackey.com/features_laststraw.html">some wackos with the misconception that her books were real, which was bad enough...but apparently she and her family also received death threats.</a> </li></ul><span style="font-weight: bold;">Romance</span><br />Like a lot of people, I turned up my nose at the romance genre way back when. I mean, with books like V.C. Andrews' <a href="http://www.amazon.ca/Flowers-Attic-V-C-Andrews/dp/0671729411">Flowers in the Attic</a>, how could you take it seriously? (Even though I read almost the whole series. It was like a terrible addiction to me and my pre-teen friends.) (And, on a side note, <a href="http://www.completevca.com/bio_bio.shtml">V.C. Andrews died in 1986</a>...and yet her books keep coming out. I hope I have that kind of longevity.) My mom actually got me more interested in romance about ten years ago, or maybe a little less, by lending me some amazing books.<br /><ul><li><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Phantom-Waltz-Catherine-Anderson/dp/0451220684/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1257271463&sr=8-1">Phantom Waltz</a> by Catherine Anderson: (from Amazon) "Handsome rancher and reputed rake Ryan Kendrick and the beautiful paraplegic Bethany Coulter seem an unlikely couple, but, after one date and a passionate kiss, Ryan can't stop thinking about Bethany. ..." This was the first romance I read with less-than-perfect MCs and it was engrossing. I highly recommend this and <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Annies-Song-Catherine-Anderson/dp/0380779617/ref=pd_sim_b_10">Annie's Song</a>, a historical about a woman who is deaf, but whom everyone thinks is mentally challenged.</li><li>The Irish Trilogy (starting with <a href="http://www.noraroberts.com/books/jewelsofthesun.html">Jewels of the Sun</a>) and the Born In Trilogy (starting with <a href="http://www.noraroberts.com/books/borninfire1.html">Born In Fire</a>) by Nora Roberts: These two trilogies were the first Nora Roberts books I'd ever read, and they continue to be some of my favourites. With just a splash of magic to them, they are great examples of what romance trilogies can be. </li></ul>Okay...and considering my WIP is a superhero romance, this list wouldn't be complete without mentioning a comic book. I adored <a href="http://marvel.com/universe/Power_Pack">Power Pack</a>. (Still do.) I was the perfect age to enjoy Power Pack during its run in the 1980s, and the idea of four kids with superpowers resonated with me. Who wouldn't want to be able to fly or disintegrate things or float or turn into a cloud? When I had a little more disposable income, I hunted down the series...every issue except the Christmas Special that ended the run. I need to get on eBay...<br /><br />While I see what exorbitant prices they're charging for childhood nostalgia online, tell me: what are some of the books that inspired <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">you</span> to write?<br /><br />Happy writing!Jenn Lidsterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13627302503897074744noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2525625536624542762.post-23780486678102095802009-10-29T13:56:00.006-04:002009-10-29T14:42:27.184-04:00Pacing...and not the back and forth kindProblems with pacing can kill your book. Ever get halfway through reading a novel, put it down to do something else, and never pick it up again? That probably had something to do with the pacing. You want to create the <span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">must...turn...the...page</span> desire in your readers and render them incapable of closing your book until they finish that last chapter.<br /><br />It was recently pointed out to me that I had some pacing issues in the first few chapters of TOPAZ. I had some scenes where little happened to move the story forward, or where my heroine was acting passively instead of taking charge, or which had repetitive actions.<br /><br />As all authors know, it's often difficult to evaluate your writing objectively, but for fixing pacing issues, it's essential. Here is the plan of attack I used. As always, your mileage may vary.<br /><ol><li>I started by reading through the problem chapters and jotting down a list of events, minor and major.<br /></li><li>With the list complete, I highlighted the essential events, the ones that were absolutely necessary to the development of the story.<br /></li><li>Next, I reviewed the list to identify patterns of repetitive actions, or areas where there were few actions. For example, I had two phone conversations in a row. Definite pace killer.<br /></li><li>Then I asked myself some questions. Did the heroine need to meet up with the hero three times, or would one meeting suffice? What would happen if I moved this essential event up half a chapter? What if I changed this four-page-long in-person meeting to a half-page phone conversation?</li><li>And...the rewriting commenced.</li></ol>One of the things I've realized I need to watch for during my revision is ensuring that each scene has a point, a hook, something to propel the reader on to the next scene. As a pantser, I don't plan my scenes, so it's far too easy to have scenes that have no point.<br /><br />Happy writing!Jenn Lidsterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13627302503897074744noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2525625536624542762.post-70744196852661989712009-10-27T15:29:00.003-04:002009-10-27T15:40:07.680-04:00The all-important first pageThis past Sunday, the Writer's Digest SFF Critique Forum was lucky enough to have a visit from <a href="http://www.floggingthequill.com/">Ray Rhamey</a>, author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Flogging-Quill-Crafting-Novel-Sells/dp/0578009358/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1256671886&sr=8-1">Flogging the Quill: Crafting a Novel that Sells</a>. Ray offered to go over the first 16 lines of a number of our WIPs, including three of my own (TOPAZ SKIES, BADGE OF THE SENTINEL and THE HIDDEN) to judge whether or not he'd turn the page.<br /><br />He gave some really good, detailed feedback. One of the things I realized through this exercise was that, while I start my novels at the right spot (generally), I tend to be a bit too wordy at the beginning. My set-up and characterization, while good, needs to be better connected to the overall theme of the novel and/or the impending conflict.<br /><br />For the record, I got an "almost" for TS (with some very encouraging comments), a "no" for BotS (which doesn't surprise me as it needs to be revised still), and a "yes" for TH (which is cool, considering it's in a very early draft stage).<br /><br />Back to revisions! I'm about to tackle Chapter 11.<br /><br />Happy writing!Jenn Lidsterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13627302503897074744noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2525625536624542762.post-60042680148854889122009-10-23T09:48:00.001-04:002009-10-23T09:51:22.830-04:00Deadline!You may have noticed the cute little countdown timer I added to my blog today. It's counting down to the deadline I've set myself for the TOPAZ SKIES revisions: November 30 at 11:00 p.m.<br /><br />So, between now and then, I have to revise Chapters 5 to 38 plus the epilogue. It's doable!<br /><br />Wish me luck! And happy writing!Jenn Lidsterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13627302503897074744noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2525625536624542762.post-59169777858739943372009-10-22T09:26:00.002-04:002009-10-22T09:43:14.200-04:00Revision HeckI'm not quite in Revision Hell. It's more like Revision Heck. I'm not loving this stage of creating a novel, but I'm dealing with it. I'm battling my impatience to<span style="font-style: italic;"> just have the damn thing done already!</span> and instead focusing on making sure it's the absolute best piece of work that I can make it.<br /><br />I had the pleasure of attending a workshop by <a href="http://www.evesilver.net/">Eve Silver</a> back in September, courtesy of my RWA chapter. She talked about plot and pacing in that workshop, which was invaluable. She also gave us a list of online resources to check out. One of the best so far is <a href="http://hollylisle.com/">Holly Lisle's website</a>.<br /><br />Holly Lisle has a ton of free resources for authors of all levels, but especially ones just starting out. She has free online workshops, articles, and more. A workshop that stood out for me was the <a href="http://hollylisle.com/fm/Workshops/one-pass-revision.html">One Pass Revision</a>.<br /><br />I found the first steps of the process (identifying theme(s), writing a 25-word description of your story, and so on) very helpful. As a pantser, I didn't have these things planned out when I wrote TOPAZ. The story and theme just kind of naturally developed. But formally identifying that theme solidified the purpose of the story in my mind and gives me something to refer to as I revise.<br /><br />What's my theme? Everyone Can Be A Hero<br /><br />My story in 25 words or less: A woman who believes she's a useless freak becomes a hero and finds love and acceptance in the process.<br /><br />Some of the other aspects of the workshop I'm having a little more trouble with, like revising only once. Maybe it takes practice, but I've revisited Chapter 1 a few times now. I'm getting a little sick of it. I've moved on through to Chapter 4, which I completed revising last night. Maybe. I'll need to have a look over it to be sure.<br /><br />Happy writing!Jenn Lidsterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13627302503897074744noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2525625536624542762.post-50710928066895025682009-10-20T15:44:00.003-04:002009-10-20T18:42:06.397-04:00Ground rules for your worldPart of the fun of writing SFF is creating characters that have abilities beyond the norm. In TOPAZ, my heroine has wings and my hero can create wormholes from the shadows. In SENTINEL, my heroine is a powerful sorceress in charge of protecting her city and my hero is the knight who has to protect her. Each one of my characters has some kind of extraordinary power. It's fun, it creates new storylines, and provides different opportunities for solutions to problems.<br /><br />And it can also cause much hair-pulling.<br /><br />If you're not careful, you can make your characters TOO powerful. That doesn't sound like such a bad thing, does it? Except where's the conflict if your hero or heroine has gotten so supremely omnipresent that all they need to do to get out of a jam is to snap their fingers?<br /><br />There have been plenty of examples of over-powered heroes. Some include:<br /><br /><ul><li><span style="font-weight: bold;">Willow in <span style="font-style: italic;">Buffy the Vampire Slayer</span>. </span>Buffy's best friend and witch extraordinaire became so powerful by season 6, bringing Buffy back from the dead, that an obstacle was written in to prevent her from using her magic: an addiction to magic that increased its hold on her with every spell. Personally, I thought this was the easy way out for the writers. Instead of Willow battling a drug-like addiction, I would have liked to see her dealing with an absolute power corrupts absolutely–type situation. It certainly would have foreshadowed the final few episodes of that season, making it a little more believable.</li></ul><ul><li><span style="font-weight: bold;">Peter in <span style="font-style: italic;">Heroes</span>. </span>Peter started out in Season 1 with the ability to absorb any Hero's power, just by being in the same general area. How cool is that? After a lame attempt at limiting his abilities that season (he ends up in a coma because his body can't handle the stress of all the abilities), it was like the writers said "screw it" and let him absorb powers left, right, and centre. But…when you can fly and turn invisible and have super strength and can shoot lightning and, and, and…you're pretty much invincible. So in season 3 they took away his abilities for most of the season, and when he got them back, he could only absorb one power at a time. Which sucks! Sigh. Funny how they haven't limited Sylar, though…</li></ul><ul><li><span style="font-weight: bold;">Dr. Manhattan in <span style="font-style: italic;">Watchmen</span>.</span> Dr. Manhattan is the ultimate over-powered hero. One line near the end of the movie pretty much sums up his god-like abilities: This world's smartest man means no more to me than does its smartest termite. His powers are limitless. He's an eerie, odd character and not terribly likeable because he is so detached from humanity. Rather than limit his abilities in the graphic novel/movie, he leaves Earth…which, I suppose, has the same effect.</li></ul>In both TOPAZ and SENTINEL, part of my world-building was determining limits for my characters' abilities. For example, Faith can fly, but she needs a running start to get lift. Jason can create wormholes, but only to places he knows and not if he's injured. Every time Callie, in SENTINEL, uses magic, it breaks down her mental shields and she has to rebuild them…which gets harder as time passes. Derrick, her Knight, can only access his abilities if he's bound to a sorceress.<br /><br />Limits are essential to creating a believable world. You have to have rules, and you have to stick with them, even if it would be easier to solve a problem if your heroine could just…summon a storm. Or extinguish all the lights in the city. Or something else equally as impressive. But if she's powerful enough to do that, then what's to prevent her from easily defeating the bad guy? If there's no challenge, there's no conflict, and if there's no conflict, there's no story.<br /><br />Happy writing!Jenn Lidsterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13627302503897074744noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2525625536624542762.post-50258172816165642012009-10-19T09:29:00.002-04:002009-10-19T09:37:44.238-04:00A firstThe other night, I had a writing-related dream for the first time. Not about my characters, but the actual writing itself.<br /><br />I dreamt I'd provided the first few chapters of my ms to the critique coordinator of my RWA chapter (which I'm planning on doing this week). In my dream, she met with me in person (which I doubt will happen; everything will be through e-mail) and admonished me for not having enough conflict in the book. "There are only four points of conflict in the first chapter!" she shouted, smacking the paper.<br /><br />I woke up thinking, "What the...?" and then mentally reviewed the conflict(s) introduced in the first chapter. And proceeded to tell my brain to shut up and concentrate on SLEEPING while sleeping instead of worrying about writing.<br /><br />Brains are funny things. I know mine was just trying to tell me that I'm worried about getting TOPAZ perfect now that it's complete, but still.<br /><br />Happy writing!Jenn Lidsterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13627302503897074744noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2525625536624542762.post-14243881198756377812009-10-16T09:20:00.003-04:002009-10-16T10:05:52.829-04:00The struggle of SFRA recent post over on <span style="font-weight: bold;">The Galaxy Express</span> (<a href="http://www.thegalaxyexpress.net/2009/10/does-science-fiction-romance-need-gene.html">"Does Science Fiction Romance Need a Gene Roddenberry?"</a>) got me to thinking. Science fiction romance (SFR), as a sub-genre, has been around for awhile. Science fiction on TV has been a popular genre for many years (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Trek:_The_Next_Generation">Star Trek: TNG</a>, how I miss you). I know a ton of women read sci-fi/fantasy. So why hasn't SFR taken off in popularity like paranormal romance?<br /><br />Disclaimer: I wouldn't call myself an avid SFR reader. I lean more toward the paranormal side of things. But I've read a few. I've read the backs of even more and put them back on the shelf at the bookstore. Why?<br /><br />They seem too fluffy.<br /><br />I'm not saying that the authors didn't put a lot of time and effort into writing the books. That's not what I mean. I think what it comes down to is world-building. Science fiction, to me, is all about the world the writer has created and what's happening in that world. That's what the focus is of the best sci-fi I've read.<br /><br /><a href="http://books.google.ca/books?id=9lQ8tdyS5IMC&dq=dragonsdawn+anne+mccaffrey&printsec=frontcover&source=bl&ots=Jy0WOhyczH&sig=1N5eZckNEolb0mdSo9gwtZQ9G64&hl=en&ei=oXXYSrvwKMzi8Ab8pfy2BQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CAoQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=&f=false">DRAGONSDAWN</a> by Anne McCaffrey is the science fiction prequel that tells the origins of the Dragonriders of Pern. It is hands-down my favourite Pern novel. The entire book is about the colonization of the planet and the incredible challenges the colonists encounter. You've got space travel, genetic engineering, exploring an alien planet, dealing with an alien threat—a sci-fi cornucopia. All that and a smidgen of romance.<br /><br />If you were to turn it around and focus on the romance, it wouldn't be the same book. It couldn't be. Something would have to be sacrificed from the story. By definition, a romance is the story of two people meeting, overcoming obstacles, and falling in love. You can have other plots (hence the various sub-genres of romance) but the main storyline is always the romance. Following this definition, the main conflicts in DRAGONSDAWN would have to take a back seat to the romance plot. The world couldn't be as rich because it wouldn't be the focus of the book.<br /><br />In a lot of the SFRs I've picked up, the world-building has been diminished to focus on the romance. And that's okay, because (like I said above) the romance is the main focus of the story. But this doesn't work for me all that well. I can't speak for any other readers, but when I read sci-fi, I want an intricately planned world and odd, interesting characters to be the focus. When I read romance, I want characters I can fall in love with so that, when they fall in love, I can experience their happiness. Stitching those two genres together is incredibly difficult. (For an example of how <span style="font-style: italic;">not</span> to do it, look at <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Defying_Gravity_%28TV_series%29">Defying Gravity</a>. Ugh.) I'm not saying there aren't SFR books out there that do that; I, unfortunately, haven't read them.<br /><br />Now, let's look at the success of paranormal romance. Most of the most popular authors set their stories in the modern world, with a twist. So, except for the proliferation of vampires, witches, werewolves, etc., the world in the book is the same one we live in. I think this is a important factor in the popularity of paranormal romance versus SFR. The reader doesn't have to learn all about a new planet, new cities, new technology, new cultures, new creatures, and so on. The reader knows the world already; all they need is a crash course in what's different. It makes it much easier to relate to the characters, to put ourselves in the heroine's shoes, because the reader sees a version of the character's world every day.<br /><br />Can SFR match the popularity of paranormal romance? Eventually. But I think that the breakthrough novels that start the shockwave of success will be novels set in the modern world with a sci-fi twist. That's what worked for paranormals. <br /><br />Happy writing!Jenn Lidsterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13627302503897074744noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2525625536624542762.post-71579894022102512922009-10-15T11:22:00.003-04:002009-10-15T11:33:13.071-04:00TOPAZ...is done!I finished TOPAZ a couple of nights ago. It clocked in at 394 pages and 106,000 words, by far the longest piece I've ever written. It felt really, really good to write those last words. This was the first novel I've written where I wasn't worried it would be too short. The story just kind of kept going...and going...naturally. And it's the first novel I've written that feels like a Big Book. You know. <span style="font-style: italic;">Publishable.</span><br /><br />It really is an awesome feeling.<br /><br />And now I have to do revisions. I have a running list of major items that need to be addressed, so I'll tackle those first. For example, I'm moving the setting of the story to a small city in Canada instead of being in the US. Why? Well, I'm Canadian. Write what you know, and all that. Setting TOPAZ in an imaginary city in the US was an experiment, one that didn't really work for me. Other stuff I need to address includes strengthening the reasoning behind some of the early scenes. I'm a pantser, so I didn't really know what was going on when I wrote some of the first scenes where Faith meets up with Ezekiel and Urim. Now I do. And the list goes on...<br /><br />After the big stuff, I'll focus on tightening up the writing. And then I think I'll release it into the wild of my beta readers' hands and see what suggestions come forth.<br /><br />Happy writing, everyone!Jenn Lidsterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13627302503897074744noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2525625536624542762.post-41779733286312779392009-10-08T14:36:00.003-04:002009-10-08T15:04:55.176-04:00The Art of ProofreadingI know for a lot of writers, the editing and revising phase is the most painful. And then, to twist the knife a bit...just when you think your work is ready to be released into the wild, you have the dreaded proofreading stage. No more, I tell you! No more!<br /><br />Proofreading doesn't have to be torture. Honest. I worked as a professional proofreader and copy editor for a number of years, and there are some simple tricks I used when reviewing copy over and over again.<br /><br />1. Read the text backwards. And no, I don't mean sounding out the words in reverse. Instead of reading the first word in a sentence and moving through to the last, read the last one first. This technique allows you to focus on each word instead of skimming over a sentence you've read a thousand times before.<br /><br />2. Print out the text and review it on hard copy. There's something about proofreading on screen that just doesn't work well.<br /><br />3. Read the text out loud. Don't rush through it. Really focus on each word and the punctuation. Does anything sound stilted? <a href="http://jmeadows.livejournal.com/">Jodi Meadows</a> uses a variation on this technique: she has a program on her iMac that reads her text aloud so she can identify problems.<br /><br />4. For your own convenience, get to know <a href="http://www.merriam-webster.com/mw/table/proofrea.htm">some basic proofreader's marks</a>. It's a lot easier to scribble "#" for a space than "space".<br /><br />5. If you have a reliable, knowledgeable friend who can proofread for you, by all means ask them to. But notice the keywords <span style="font-style: italic;">reliable</span> and <span style="font-style: italic;">knowledgeable</span>. For a proofreader, you want someone who knows their grammar, punctuation, and spelling rules. You need to be able to trust that if they add a comma, they're fixing a problem and not creating a new one.<br /><br />Proofreading isn't hard, not really. It just takes time and patience and a willingness to look over your work one...more...time.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">~~~~<br /></div><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">TOPAZ status:</span> I've been posting some of the rewritten chapters on my writer's forum to moderate reception. I think the general consensus is that the chapters are better than the previous ones, but there haven't been any screams of adoration for the new versions. I'll have to contain myself. :) Writing continues!Jenn Lidsterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13627302503897074744noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2525625536624542762.post-68808057211494639932009-09-30T15:16:00.002-04:002009-09-30T15:24:49.255-04:00Sorry, blog!I've been a little neglectful lately, blog. I'm sorry. Unfortunately, my attention has been gobbled up by my actual paying job (projects, deadlines, meetings, the usual) and my free time has been spent on rewriting TOPAZ instead of writing blog entries.<br /><br />On that note, things are going well! The rewrite of chapter 28 onward of TOPAZ is turning out quite good, actually. I'm much happier with the sequence of events. The logic/repetitive event issues that were bugging me are no more. I'm also loving that I'm getting a little deeper into Jason's psyche with this rewrite. The poor guy has been through hell and back, and I think I kind of glossed over that in the original version. I'm spending more time on it now.<br /><br />On the re-post of Chapter 28 on the WD Forum, I got the comment that my direction seems a little tighter, less all over the place. It's funny—even though I'm adding pages and possibly extra chapters, I agree with that sentiment. I hope that sticks through the rest of the book.<br /><br />~~~~<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">TOPAZ status:</span> Working on Chapter 34 tonight. Love scene! (Chicka chicka bow bow)Jenn Lidsterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13627302503897074744noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2525625536624542762.post-86396311958669560142009-09-21T10:51:00.002-04:002009-09-21T11:13:08.983-04:00But that would be highly illogical, CaptainFor all that I'm a writer and therefore relatively creative, I have a highly logical side of my brain. You might remember that <a href="http://jennlidster.blogspot.com/2009/09/writers-education.html">I considered becoming a veterinarian</a> instead of an editor/writer. Science fascinated me. (Math...uh, not so much.) One of the most challenging aspects to writing, I think, is meshing that creativity of a writer with the logic of real-life situations and people.<br /><br />Sure, I'm writing a sci-fi romance with superheroes. Anyone reading it is going to suspend their disbelief somewhat, or they'll be rolling their eyes through the whole thing. Or throwing the book at the wall. But despite the fantastical characters and extreme situations in my book, events and reactions and solutions <span style="font-style: italic;">have to make sense</span>.<br /><br />I do that mostly by putting myself in my main character's shoes. If I were a mid-twenties woman with giant bat-like wings who found out that she was a result of a government experiment...how would I react to discovering there were others like me? How would I react to being "outed" on national television? How would I react if a really hot guy started paying romantic attention to me, despite my unflattering daytime disguise? I take my reactions and colour them through my main character's eyes, using bits of her personality that maybe are a little foreign to me. That's how they become real.<br /><br />Actions and reactions and solutions to issues have to have the same ring of truth. If they don't, it grates on me. The last few chapters of TOPAZ, for example, started setting off my lack-of-logic alarms. It's not that the events were so out there they were implausible. In fact, a beta reader mentioned that she didn't see a problem as she was reading it, not until I specifically asked her about it. Then she agreed that yes...there was an issue. When you're caught up in the story and invested in the characters, you are willing to overlook some problems with logic. But I don't want to write a book that after you finish you say, "That was really good. Except...wait a minute...that last part didn't make sense." I'd rather write a book where you leave off that second sentence.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">~~~~<br /></div><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">TOPAZ status:</span> I've rolled it back seven chapters to Chapter 28 and I'm trying a different direction for the climax of the book. We'll see how it goes. I'm hoping it will alleviate the logic issues I mentioned above AND provide a more satisfying character arc for Jason.Jenn Lidsterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13627302503897074744noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2525625536624542762.post-61885972627245297122009-09-17T13:07:00.002-04:002009-09-17T13:14:20.024-04:00Obama Kenobi?You've all probably seen this pic floating around today:<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_ME8JRqsuVsw/SrJs7Z9W51I/AAAAAAAAABw/GFHoVaUyjmw/s1600-h/500x_Obama2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 274px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_ME8JRqsuVsw/SrJs7Z9W51I/AAAAAAAAABw/GFHoVaUyjmw/s400/500x_Obama2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382484272497485650" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:78%;">(<a href="http://gawker.com/5361101/the-empire-strikes-barack">Gawker.com</a>)<br /><br /></span></div>Who would have known the US President was a closet geek? Check out the comments below the Gawker post for some cool photoshopping.<br /><br />The Canadian Prime Minister? Not quite as cool.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://punditkitchen.com/2009/03/10/political-pictures-harper-obama-levels-fame/"><img src="http://punditkitchen.wordpress.com/files/2009/03/political-pictures-harper-obama-levels-fame.jpg" alt="stephen harper and barack obama" class="mine_3552787" title="political-pictures-harper-obama-levels-fame" /></a><br /></div>Jenn Lidsterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13627302503897074744noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2525625536624542762.post-27834962048764376082009-09-11T15:36:00.002-04:002009-09-12T09:49:30.089-04:00I'll read your stuff, but...There's an <a href="http://blogs.villagevoice.com/runninscared/archives/2009/09/i_will_not_read.php">interesting article on criticism</a> by <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0399146/"><span style="font-style: italic;">A History of Violence</span></a> screenwriter Josh Olson floating around the interwebs this week. (Be warned: the language is a tad blue.)<br /><br />Some of my favourite bloggers have talked about it <a href="http://carriev.wordpress.com/2009/09/11/links-with-stories/">here</a> and <a href="http://arcaedia.livejournal.com/210727.html">here</a>.<br /><br />A couple of quote-worthy snippets:<br /><p></p><blockquote><p>It rarely takes more than a page to recognize that you're in the presence of someone who can write, but it only takes a sentence to know you're dealing with someone who can't. </p> <p>(By the way, here's a simple way to find out if you're a writer. If you disagree with that statement, you're not a writer. Because, you see, writers are also readers.) </p></blockquote><p><br /></p><p>And:</p><p></p><blockquote>I was dying to find something positive to say, and there was nothing. And the truth is, saying something positive about this thing would be the nastiest, meanest and most dishonest thing I could do. Because here's the thing: not only is it cruel to encourage the hopeless, but you cannot discourage a writer. If someone can talk you out of being a writer, you're not a writer. If I can talk you out of being a writer, I've done you a favor, because now you'll be free to pursue your real talent, whatever that may be. And, for the record, everybody has one. The lucky ones figure out what that is.</blockquote><p></p><br />Sadly, the people who need to read this article never will. They're too busy hunched over their computer typing madly away, convinced beyond rational thought that the words on the screen are absolute gold. As soon as another writer, agent, publisher, celebrity, <span style="font-style: italic;">anyone</span> reads them, the heavens will open, angels will serenade the world, and utopia will once again be real. Praise will be heaped upon them, as well as millions of dollars, and this dream will be fulfilled. Tomorrow, they'll rewrite the Bible.<br /><br />Anyone who's frequented any kind of critique group has run into this type. Inevitably, when they're told their writing is, uh, garbage, they get defensive or they insist you can't tell just from reading that tiny bit. Really, you need to read a whole chapter. Or better yet, the whole book.<br /><br />No, I really don't. Like Mr. Olson says, I can tell within a sentence or two whether something is worth reading. Maybe that's from my background as an editor, but more likely it's because I'm an avid reader. I don't care if your story is the greatest idea since <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lord_of_the_Rings"><span style="font-style: italic;">The Lord of the Rings</span></a>, bad writing shows up immediately and a great idea is worth nothing if you can't get it down on paper with style and flow and finesse.<br /><br />If you're a writer looking for critiques, <a href="http://jennlidster.blogspot.com/2009/08/tell-me-everything-i-need-to-know-to-be.html">remember what I said before about doing your homework</a>. And <a href="http://jennlidster.blogspot.com/2009/08/critiquing-and-being-critiqued.html">don't forget the dos and don'ts</a>.<br /><br />I should add another: Don't bite the hand that critiques you.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">~~~~<br /></div><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">TOPAZ status:</span> Working on Chapter 33. Two or three more chapters to go, I think. Hubby's volunteered to be on kid duty today so I can get closer to the end...Jenn Lidsterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13627302503897074744noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2525625536624542762.post-58991247884715230862009-09-11T09:09:00.002-04:002009-09-11T09:25:19.779-04:00September 11For those of you who don't know, my hometown is Ottawa, Ontario. I've never been to New York City. Hell, I get heart palpitations going to downtown Toronto, which is about half the size of NYC. But I can clearly remember where I was and what I was doing when I got the news eight years ago about the horrible, unbelievable events happening south of the border. 9/11 really was something that was felt around the world.<br /><br />I had been laid off from my job as a website quality assurance specialist with a small marketing agency the previous Friday. The dot-com bubble had burst about six months or so before, and the company I worked for was trying to stay afloat while all of its major clients in Silicon Valley North tried to do the same. I recall that over the weekend, there hadn't been any likely jobs in the paper, nor on the Monday, so on the Tuesday, I drove my husband to work, came home, took the phone off the hook and crawled into bed feeling sorry for myself.<br /><br />I got up a few hours later to find frantic e-mail and voicemail messages from my husband about planes that had crashed into the World Trade Center in NYC. At that time, they had thought 50,000 people had died in the attacks. I turned on the TV and watched the footage of the planes striking the towers over and over again; the realization that people were jumping from the buildings; the horror on everyone's faces as the towers came crashing down.<br /><br />And I cried.<br /><br />Suddenly, this small-town Canadian girl who'd never been to NYC, wished she could be there. I wished that I could help, that I could do SOMETHING instead of just watching the news replay those horrible images. But reality is reality. I didn't have the means to get there, or the skills to help, so instead, I prayed.<br /><br />I'm not a religious person. But that was a day to test anyone's faith.Jenn Lidsterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13627302503897074744noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2525625536624542762.post-8972015006835310232009-09-06T15:38:00.003-04:002009-09-06T16:10:42.786-04:00Showing vs. tellingMy husband and I recently started watching the first season of <a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.fox.com/dollhouse/">Dollhouse</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joss_Whedon">Joss Whedon's</a> new series. For those of you who don't know <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joss_Whedon#Television_work">who Joss Whedon is</a>, you may go back under your rocks now. When the series started last year, neither of us were too interested in the concept: a woman who works for an agency that wipes her memories clean and imprints on her any personality that is requested by the client. She can be an assassin, a negotiator, a thief—whatever. Even though it starred the fabulous <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eliza_Dushku">Eliza Dushku</a> (who played <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Faith_%28Buffy_the_Vampire_Slayer%29">Faith</a> in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buffy_the_Vampire_Slayer_%28TV_series%29"><span style="font-style: italic;">Buffy the Vampire Slayer</span></a>), I never tuned in because the idea of watching what I thought would be essentially a different main character every week just didn't appeal.<br /><br />I should have known Joss Whedon would do a better job than that. My bad.<br /><br />Episode seven of <span style="font-style: italic;">Dollhouse </span>prompted this blog entry. In it, there was a perfect example of showing vs. telling. Up to this point, we've only seen bits and pieces about how Echo (Eliza Dushku) came to be a "doll". In episode seven ("Echoes"), a little more of the picture is filled in. (For those of you who haven't seen the series and might rent it, stop reading now.)<br /><br />Echo is drawn from an engagement to a college where an experimental drug has been released into the student populace. The drug plays with the brain's memory centre, so the actives are supposed to be immune from it. However, it's discovered that the drug will eventually break through the memory blocks the Dollhouse puts in place, and the actives will revert back to a traumatic memory.<br /><br />Echo flashes back to the events that led her to become a doll, events that happened in one of the college's labs. She and her boyfriend broke in, hoping to videotape animal abuse, but they discovered much more than that—the company affiliated with the college was also doing human experiments (for what, we're not sure yet). But she and her boyfriend got caught, her boyfriend got shot, and, as far as we see, he died in her arms on the lawn of the school.<br /><br />As Echo is bombarded with these memories, Joss Whedon could have had her expound on her feelings, <span style="font-style: italic;">telling</span> us that this was why she acquiesced to having her memory erased. But he didn't. He let the images from her memories stand without any explanation or dialogue from Echo, which made them all the more powerful. He trusted his viewers to get it.<br /><br />As writers, we have to do the same thing: show what we mean, and trust our readers to get it.Jenn Lidsterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13627302503897074744noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2525625536624542762.post-74499528910430732372009-09-04T09:31:00.003-04:002009-09-04T10:05:08.678-04:00A writer's educationIn my last year of high school, I was faced with a monumental decision: what was I going to take in university? Should I be a veterinarian, like I'd planned since I was about five years old? Or should I pursue my love of reading and writing?<br /><br />Much to my parents' dismay, I chose the latter. Oh, it's not that they thought taking a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature was necessarily a bad idea. It's just that I'd planned for my whole life to be a vet and they worried I was giving up that dream for all the wrong reasons. The fact was, though, that I wasn't five years old anymore. I'd done a co-op term at a veterinarian's office in high school and decided that it just wasn't for me. And, I'll be honest, another ten years of schooling was not something I wanted to sign up for.<br /><br />So off to university I went. And, as much as I hated it (I'm not a fan of lecture-style learning), over the course of my three-year program, I learned a lot. How to think critically when looking at a short story or a novel. How authors of different time periods have shaped our literature through history. How foreign some of the "English" literature from early periods really is.<br /><br />Do you need to have a B.A. in English Lit to be a writer? No, not by any means. If you're a high school student thinking about making writing a career, it's a good idea to consider an English Lit degree, or some other kind of communications program, like Journalism. But if you're established in another career and don't like the idea of going back to school, you don't have to. Your classroom is all around you.<br /><br />I've already expounded on the virtues of reading as a learning tool <a href="http://jennlidster.blogspot.com/2009/08/paranormal-reading-list.html">here</a> and <a href="http://jennlidster.blogspot.com/2009/08/tell-me-everything-i-need-to-know-to-be.html">here</a>. Read books on writing. Read books on non-fiction topics that interest you. Most importantly, read books in the genre you want to write in, but read them like a writer. Pay attention to the techniques the authors use, the punctuation, how the book is formatted, and so on.<br /><br />What's next? If you've never set a pen to paper for creative writing in your life, take a course that introduces you to the basics. Your community college probably offers part-time courses, or there's a ton of online courses you can take, through <a href="http://www.writersdigest.com/">Writer's Digest</a>, for example. (Before you ask, no, I haven't taken any of their online courses, so I can't attest to their quality. But they are a recognized name in the industry, so take that as you will.)<br /><br />Another step is to join a writer's association. For example, I'm a member of <a href="http://www.rwanational.org/">Romance Writers of America</a>. Members often get access to online courses or other resources not available to the public. To be a member of the RWA, you only need to be pursuing a career as a romance author, you don't need to be published; however, for other organizations, like <a href="http://www.sfwa.org/">Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America</a>, you do need to be published. Check the member requirements.<br /><br />Finally, after you've taken all these steps and have written a few things, you can seek out a critique group. Online or off, it doesn't really matter. Why do I say this is the last step? <a href="http://jennlidster.blogspot.com/2009/08/tell-me-everything-i-need-to-know-to-be.html">Because you need to put the work in</a> before you can expect other people to help you. It will be obvious when you ask for critiques that you're new, and that's okay. But it will also be obvious to the more experienced writers in the group that you've been seriously working at your writing before coming to them. And that always sets the stage for a meaningful, useful relationship.<br /><br /><div align="center">~~~~</div><br /><strong>TOPAZ status:</strong> Working on Chapter 31. Only two to three more chapters to go, and they're taking longer than the previous ten!Jenn Lidsterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13627302503897074744noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2525625536624542762.post-79176098461387930792009-08-31T11:20:00.004-04:002009-08-31T11:54:28.011-04:00Paranormal reading listIn <a href="http://jennlidster.blogspot.com/2009/08/tell-me-everything-i-need-to-know-to-be.html">my last post</a>, I suggested that new writers should read as much as possible in the genre in which they want to write. If you're aspiring to be a paranormal romance or urban fantasy writer, here are some authors you might want to check out.<br /><ul><li><a href="http://www.katiemacalister.com/"><strong>Katie MacAlister</strong></a> – She writes funny, engaging stories that border on the silly but are always emotionally fulfilling and enjoyable. I study her books for her use of dialogue—light, airy, but with impact. If you like dragons, check out her <a href="http://www.katiemacalister.com/booksAG.php">Aisling Grey, Guardian</a> series; for vampires, her <a href="http://www.katiemacalister.com/booksdarkones.php">Dark Ones</a> series.</li><li><a href="http://www.tgarey.com/"><strong>Terri Garey</strong></a> – She's a relatively new author to me; I just discovered her Nicki Styx books in the spring. I found them highly enjoyable and in some parts, laugh-out-loud funny. That series, about a woman who suffers a heart condition and wakes up with the ability to see the dead, starts with <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Dead-Girls-Easy-Terri-Garey/dp/0061136158/sr=1-1/qid=1171396400/ref=sr_1_1/002-5261133-9987242?ie=UTF8&s=books">DEAD GIRLS ARE EASY</a>.</li><li><a href="http://www.lynsaysands.net/"><strong>Lynsay Sands</strong></a> – I've read a number of Lynsay Sands' vampire <a href="http://www.lynsaysands.net/books/index.html#argeneau">Argeneau</a> series, and one of the best things about her take on vampires is their origin. It's refreshingly new. I'll let you read it for yourself.</li><li><a href="http://www.carrievaughn.com/"><strong>Carrie Vaughn</strong></a> – While not a romance, Carrie Vaughn's Kitty the werewolf books are must-reads for paranormal authors. The arc she's explored with her main character from the first book to now is phenomenal. I love how she blends the wolf characteristics into Kitty's everyday life. The series starts with <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Kitty-Midnight-Hour-Norville-Book/dp/0446616419/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1251733102&sr=8-1">KITTY AND THE MIDNIGHT HOUR</a>. Also, do yourself a favour and <a href="http://carriev.wordpress.com/">follow her blog</a>. Her geekiness will make you smile.</li><li><a href="http://cemurphy.net/"><strong>C.E. Murphy</strong></a> – She seamlessly blends Celtic mythology with Cherokee spirtuality in her <a href="http://cemurphy.net/writing/">Walker Papers</a> series. Her character is a reluctant shaman who barely believes in the magic that's suddenly revealed all around her, and, because of that, she's very relatable. The books are also subtlely funny. <a href="http://mizkit.com/">This is another author whose blog I highly recommend</a>. Her blog posts never fail to make me think, or smile, or both.</li><li><a href="http://www.kelleyarmstrong.com/"><strong>Kelley Armstrong</strong></a> – Another urban fantasy author I highly recommend. She writes fabulous, strong female characters, very conflicted, but very likeable. Her <a href="http://www.kelleyarmstrong.com/mSeries.htm">Women of the Otherworld</a> series is not to be missed. </li><li><a href="http://www.sfsite.com/charlesdelint/"><strong>Charles de Lint</strong></a> – The lone male author on my list. He's one of the first urban fantasy authors I ever read. I found he blended the magical with the mundane so effortlessly, I half-expected myself to stumble across the things he wrote about. Check out <a href="http://www.sfsite.com/charlesdelint/moonheart-desc01.htm">MOONHEART</a> and <a href="http://www.sfsite.com/charlesdelint/giant-desc01.htm">JACK THE GIANT KILLER</a>.</li></ul><p>Have you read any of these authors or books? What do you think? Do you have any authors you would recommend as well?</p>Jenn Lidsterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13627302503897074744noreply@blogger.com5