Hey, I’m busy with classes and homework, but I want to
share another writing tip. Somebody once said that the key to selling a lie is
in the details. The same is true in story. It’s the details that will capture your
reader will convince her to empathize with the characters and buy into the
scene you’ve described. Okay, so you
include details, but what kind of details?
William Strunk Jr., author of The Elements of Style,
gives us this advice, “the surest way to arouse and hold the reader’s attention
is by being specific, definite and concrete. The greatest writers… are effective
largely because they deal in particulars and report details that matter”
(30-31).
But how do you know if a detail is specific and concrete?
In Writing Fiction, Janet Burroway tells us details that are specific
are things we can touch, feel, smell, see or hear. In other words, make sure
that the details included in your scenes appeal to the senses (23).
Words
Cited
Burroway, Janet, and Elizabeth
Stuckey-French. Writing Fiction. Pearson/Longman, 2007.
Strunk, William. The Elements of Style. With Revisions, an Introduction., and a
New Chapter on Writing by E.B. White. Macmillan, 1969.
Janet Burroway’s Writing Fiction lists many great tips on writing dialogue. I’m sharing some of them on the Wisconsin Romance Writer’s blog at this link.
Opal Yong-ae, a graduate-mage whose spells backfire more often than work, owes the wrong people. She has to find money fast, so she becomes a cleaner, a person who bids on and then empties out foreclosed apartments. The job’s like Storage Wars with magic in the mix. In the past, Opal’s landed lucrative digs; however, in recent months her luck has changed. It’s like she’s cursed. Her most recent bid lands her a sub-basement apartment along with its last tenant—a dead wizard. The mysterious spell-working he’s left behind is different, and possibly priceless. Trouble is the esoteric magic caused his death and will likely take Opal’s life as well. Not that it will explode or anything, but a bunch of bad corporations-slash-villains want it. She should turn it over to city authorities, but she needs the money, so Opal teams up with a spunky AI, and Nickola Kos, a rival cleaner working off his own troubled past. Together, they dodge bullets, cyber-enhanced mercenaries, crackpot wizards, and over-controlling dragons in the Detroit Free Zone, which readers can think of a cyberpunk Wild West with magic, spirits and fantastic creatures.
I loved how complex the characters were, and the crazy twists the plot took, but my favorite part of this story was the world building. I bought this book on through an Audible sale and it was so good, I paid full price for the sequel.
If you like urban fantasy, I’m betting you’ll like this book as much as I did.
They say a picture is worth a thousand words, so instead of telling you how fun it was to talk writing with friends, I’llb just share a few photos.
Kristin Bayer, Joanna Jelen and Linda OlsonCarla Luna Cullen and Jennifer Rupp Carla and all the awesome treatsVicki Hinshaw, Laura Vietmeyer and Jennifer RuppKristin BayerTricia Penske QuinnesLaura Vietmeyer, Brenda Davis, Jennifer Rupp and Cathleen DeLong
I’m pleased to say Other Than will be part of the Red Carpet Fiction’s August Event. You can take part by following this link–www.redcarpetfiction.com)
Currently, I’m attending university in pursuit of M.A. in English, but even before I started the program, I’ve studied writing craft book in hopes of becoming a better writer. And because Facebook is a place where people post events, opinions and things that interest them, I thought I’d share writing tips I come across in my studies in hopes you’ll find them helpful.
Most readers want a story that moves, that has action, so one of the keys to crafting effective dialogue is to make sure it isn’t stagnant, that it has the possibility of affecting the characters and the plot.
“Dialogue is action when it contains the possibility of change… If in doubt, ask yourself: Can this conversation between characters really change anything? There needs to be an opportunity for change” (Burroway 47).
Works Cited Burroway, Janet, et al. Writing Fiction: A Guide to Narrative Craft. University of Chicago Press, 2019.
I always get a kick out of crossing the finish line! I’m a Camp Nanowrimo winner, and I’d like to thank family and friends for their tolerance and support.
In debt with the local lord, Mirianna and her father must locate bloodstones. To do so, they seek the only known source, the Shadow Man, who dwells in the Wehrland, a mountainous waste filled with cursed beasts. Even before they set out, she suspects it’d be dangerous, but once in the Wehrland, things turn deadly. She and her father are betrayed, lost in the wastes, and reliant on a man shrouded in darkness, a man under an impossible curse, but he’s also the man she’s dreamed about. He and the ruined castle he takes her to set up what could be a classic Gothic romance until the author switches things up with innovative and imaginative twists. I love it when stories surprise me! And this story which is as intricately put together as a Russian nesting doll has a lot of wonderful surprises–the castle ruins, the cave pool, the blind boy, the green-eyed lioness, and the meek heroine are more than what they seem. Mirianna’s inner steel is inspiring and how cleverly she manages to kick some villain butt and save all including her father and the hero inspired me to buy the kindle version of this story, so I could read along with the narration. Also, I loved the author’s take on the dragon—it’s unique and well done. I’d tell you more, but I don’t want to spoil the very reveals that delighted me. If you like dragons, this is a novel not to be missed. I received an audio version of this story for review, but in my humble opinion, it’s worth multiple reads, especially for readers, who enjoy fantasies about dragons, and classic Gothic romances where the sweet introvert awakens her inner heroine. My final rating 4.5 stars, which I’m rounding up to 5 because of well-plotted surprises!
Hope you
have a happy Fourth of July. If you’re like me, you will probably see a ton of
fireworks. There’s something fascinating about those splatters of light in the
sky –something that tugs at the emotions and captures the imagination.
Everyone
in my family has a favorite. A nephew especially enjoys the salutes. My aunt
likes the ones that twinkle as they fall.
Ever
wonder how these displays came about? Here’s what my research turned up:
1. Most people trace the invention
of fireworks/gunpowder to an unfortunate Chinese alchemist who unintentionally
heated sulfur and salt peter (potassium nitrate). It was an explosive discovery.
2. The Chinese call gunpowder
“huo yao,”
which means fire chemical.
3. Early fireworks gave off more
bang than light. As they exploded, people saw only a brief golden light.
4. Apparently the Chinese made the
first fireworks by shoving gunpowder into bamboo reeds. They exploded them
during their New Year’s celebration in hopes of frightening away evil spirits.
5. It’s believed that Marco Polo
introduced gunpowder to Europe.
6. Around 1830, Italians began to
add trace amounts of metal into the gunpowder, which “colored the explosions.”
7. Copper, for example, creates
blue tinted light.
8. Aluminum and magnesium make a
golden light.
9. Not surprisingly, other metals
make other effects. Zinc creates clouds of smoke and titanium causes sparks.
10. Although onlookers have always
enjoyed fireworks, they continue to be dangerous. May 16, 1770, is the date of
one of the biggest fireworks tragedies. A fireworks display celebrating the
marriage of King Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette went awry and caused a
stampede, which killed some 800 people. Not eight or eighty but 800!
11. Even in recent years, the
danger element hasn’t disappeared. The U.S. Consumer
Product Safety Commission reports that “fireworks devices were involved in
an estimated 8,800 injuries treated in the U.S. hospital
emergency departments during the calendar year 2002.”
12. Here’s an interesting statistic.
Three times as many males are hurt in fireworks-related incidents than females,
according to data from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.
13. Although I enjoy watching
fireworks, I don’t encourage people to set off their own. My suggestion:
Consider attending fireworks displays put on by professionals in local parks or
on lakefronts.
Correctly handled, fireworks can be
a stunning way to celebrate special events. In the United
States, we’ve used
fireworks to celebrate Independence Day since 1776.
That’s when John Adams
declared, “The day (Independence Day) will be the most memorable in the
history of America.
I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the
great anniversary festival. … It ought to be solemnized with pomp and
parade…bonfires and illuminations (fireworks) from one end of this continent
to the other, from this day forward forevermore.”
But I’d like to hear about your
holiday. Are you planning to see the fireworks? Which ones impress you most?
Lately, I’ve had fun watching
geese parade goslings around our local park. Perhaps you have some geese near
you, and you might be interested in the facts I’ve gleaned about them.
In 2015, the geese population in North America 2015 was between 4.2 and 5.6 million.
Geese like to eat grass, but they’ll also wolf down seeds, berries, skunk cabbage, and eel grass.
Believe it or not, but more than one site reported that geese really enjoy blueberries.
Many experts believe Canadian Geese mate for life.
After they hook up, they like to build nests on the ground in a slightly elated area that is near water.
Many times, they make their nests on lawns. You might see them on golf courses. They prefer short grass heights because it gives them an unobstructed view so it’s easy for them to spot predators.
Their nests are bowls of weeds, grass, and sticks that they line in down.
Goose moms lay about 2-8 creamy white eggs.
Mom incubates these eggs for 42-50 days, while Dad guards her.
Hatchlings are born with their eyes open and covered in yellowish down.
After only a day or two, they can toddle out of the nest.
At about four weeks old, the gosling’s wing and tail feathers sprout. They’re black, but the gosling hasn’t lost the fluffy yellow down on his back.
A baby goose won’t be about to fly until they are seven to nine weeks old. At which time, he’s lost his yellow feathers, and grown. He resembles his parents. Even though he looks like mom and dad, he will likely remain with them until he’s around a year old.
Do you like to watch geese? Or do
you find them annoying? I know several of my neighbors do. They ask me not to feed
them. Don’t worry. I don’t, but I will confess to photographing them. Here a
few of my favorite shots.
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