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Guest post: Douglas Skelton – Getting it Done

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Douglas Skelton specialises in non-fiction and fiction from the darker side of our world. His non-fiction charts the true life exploits of murderers, criminals and cause celebres. HIs fiction focuses on the underbelly of Glasgow – Scotland’s biggest, industrial and working-class city; with a history of tobacco barons, Victorian elegance, manufacturing, gangs, culture and the Commonwealth Games. It’s a hard but sentimental city. It’s a city with a fierce and abiding heart.  

Okay, so 14 published books in, what have I learned?

Well, first if you don’t write it, the book won’t happen.

Sounds simple, doesn’t it? But you’d be amazed how many times I’ve thought of something, started it then abandoned it. The poor things lie there, half-formed, never seeing the light of day.

Perhaps they were never worthy in the first place. Perhaps they were too ambitious. Perhaps they just weren’t good enough and I knew it.

I speak to so many people who have begun one book, got so far, then been side-tracked by another idea which they felt they just had to get down.

And they didn’t finish that one either.

Here’s my tip number one – finish what you start. If it’s working, if you’re stimulated by the original notion, if the words are flowing, keep at it. Yes, you’ve had another great idea but don’t let it lure you away with its seductive wiles. Write the idea down but keep on with the job in hand. That other idea isn’t going anywhere, you’ll get to it.

The best bit of advice I’ve ever been given was from the late Jack Gerson, who’d had a successful career in TV scriptwriting and was also a prolific author. All he said was, simply, ‘Get it done.’ That’s it. He said that there were so many distractions to writers – and back then social media was watching the telly with pals in the pub – that it sometimes seems as if there are mines and mantraps around your desk. We don’t need to complicate our lives by trying to spin too many plates because it’s certain they’ll all crash.

He told me to get a draft done, no matter what. Hemingway said all first drafts are crap and he was right. Don’t believe those writers who say their first attempt is what ended up on the shelves.

A first draft is a little more than a blueprint. Yes, there can be passages that you wrote in the blistering heat of inspiration that you may not need to touch. Well, maybe not much. But overall, a first draft is little more than getting the spine of your story straight. There may be gaps. There may be whole sections that won’t make it to the final draft. There may be trouble ahead. But keep going until you have that first draft complete.

Because then the work really starts.

Tip Number two? Never be afraid to cut.

Newsflash – you’re not perfect. Not everything you do is wonderful, no matter what your mother/wife/husband/budgie says. Some things, things you love, might not work. William Faulkner called it killing your darlings and we all have to do it. You might not have the stomach to do it yourself but it if really isn’t working then a good editor will do it for you.

Tip number three is try to stay positive.

Those who know me are smiling now because I am prone to periods of self-doubt, if not self-loathing. Being a writer is, by necessity, a solitary occupation and that’s when the black dog can come padding in and tell you that you’re useless, your work is rubbish, you’ll never amount to anything.

You may pat that dog on the head, embrace him and tell him he’s right.  But eventually you have to throw a stick far into the bushes and let him look for it.

If you don’t have self-belief you ain’t got nothin’. Yes, you’ll be knocked down, knocked back and just plain knocked. And you may lie down for a while, you may even vow that you’ll never write again but sooner or later you’ve got to pick yourself up, dust yourself down and start all over again. Because the urge – the need – to tell stories is something that never dies.

In the end there is one truth.

Everyone will talk about how they have a book in them.

Writers write theirs.

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Get in touch with Douglas …

Website:
Twitter:
@DouglasSkelton1
Facebook:

 

 

 

 

 

Do You Have Weird Writing Habits?

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How do you write? Any weird habits?  A favourite position? Do you need complete silence, or do you rock out to Black Sabbath? Or can’t you even think about it until you have 3 coffees, melba toast and a wee dod of caviar?

Truman Capote, who arguably wrote the best true crime “novel” ever, couldn’t write unless he was lying down, in bed or on a couch with a cigarette and a coffee. As the day progressed he moved from coffee to mint tea to martinis. As he described it, he had to be puffing and sipping.

Hemingway used to write 500 words every morning, to avoid the heat. Living in Scotland, I SO don’t have that problem.  He is quoted as saying he wrote one page of masterpiece to ninety-one pages of shit and that he aimed to put the shit in the wastebasket. (I’m thinking the toilet would have been preferable.)

Nabokov wrote his novels on index cards – they would then be paper-clipped together and stored in wee boxes. In the Paris Review he said he liked lined Bristol cards and well-sharpened, not too hard, pencils capped with erasers. We call erasers rubbers in these here parts. Which could cause all kinds of confusion and does cause all kinds of sniggering in classrooms around the country.

Thomas Clayton Wolfe, the early 20th century novelist (no, I’ve never heard of him either) was so tall he used to write leaning over a refrigerator.

Ben Franklin liked to write in the bath.

Voltaire used to place his parchment on the back of his naked lover.

John Cheever only had one suit, so he would go to his writing space, hang his suit up and write in his boxers.

So go on, fess up – when your creative juices start flowing what weird habits do you have?

Special Guest: Marnie Riches talks about creating memorable characters …

I’ve just observed an interesting feed on Facebook which debated whether a person who is not minority ethnic could write ethnically diverse characters with any kind of integrity. George McKenzie, the star of my debut crime thriller, The Girl Who Wouldn’t Die is mixed-race, so the discussion seemed pertinent to me at first. Should you only write what you know, as the handbooks say? White people, writing white people? Black people, only telling stories with a Black cast? Men-only books for men?

Hell no! If you wrote only the familiar, the bookshop shelves would be fairly empty. Harry Potter? Forget him! Lisbeth Salander? You’re joking! And as for the ethnically diverse and often criminal-as-hell cast of The Wire…not on your nelly.

Fact is, a writer should never limit the scope of the stories available to them. Write whatever takes your fancy! Create the characters that speak to you. But the veracity of your characters does matter. So, make sure your research is spot on, because if you don’t do your characters justice, your story will be weak. Then, your writing will lack integrity!

Switch on your senses. Go out into the world. Notice the component parts that make people who they are…

Dialogue

Building great characters on the page relies heavily on great dialogue. You should strive to reproduce the rhythms of natural speech as faithfully as possible, injecting just a little stylistic flair. Elmore Leonard was renowned for his blistering dialogue, as is Quentin Tarantino – a heavy influence on my writing. Watching great TV and films is perfect for learning about great dialogue.

Idiosyncrasies

How do your characters behave? What do they like and dislike? Do they have quirks and foibles? George McKenzie is borderline OCD. Her Dutch side-kick, Senior Inspector van den Bergen is a hypochondriac. Flawed characters are more believable because none of us are perfect.

Back-story

A character without a back-story is 2D. Even if you don’t incorporate it into your novel, it’s worth writing a separate piece, revealing your characters’ back-stories. If you know them, you can convince your readers that they are real.

Physical limitations

How does your character look, dress, walk, eat? What are their physical capabilities or disabilities? Does it ring true, that they can abseil off a building? It is far better to describe your characters’ visual appearance by dripping details gradually into the narrative, than to dump it all on the reader in a paragraph. Avoid exposition! It’s lazy.

Interaction and character arcs

Create a grid of your characters and make notes for your own reference on how each interacts with the others. This will help you to maintain consistency throughout the story. Then, do a little diagram, showing what your main characters’ arcs will be. How will the journey change them, as they face hurdle after hurdle? How will it change the way in which they interact with the others? Get these basic elements right and you’ve got strong foundations for your novel.

Now, go!  Make shit up but strive to make it the best shit you’ve ever read!

Marnie Riches grew up on a rough estate in Manchester. She learned her way out of the ghetto, all the way to Cambridge University, where she gained a Masters degree in German & Dutch. She has been a punk, a trainee rock star, a pretend artist, a property developer and professional fundraiser. Previously a children’s author, now, she writes crime and contemporary women’s fiction.

Her debut novel The Girl Who Wouldn’t Die went straight to the top of the charts and has already garnered stellar reviews. Links to the books and how to connect to Marnie below …

The Girl Who Wouldn’t Die

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Amazon UK:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Girl-Who-Wouldnt-Die-ebook/dp/B00U1K18VY/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1433089335&sr=1-1

Amazon Australia:

http://www.amazon.com.au/Girl-Who-Wouldn%E2%80%99t-Die-ebook/dp/B00U1K18VY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1428589822&sr=8-1&keywords=the+girl+who+wouldn%27t+die

Website: www.marnieriches.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Marnie-Riches-author/196117983745658
Twitter: @Marnie_Riches

Special Guest: Sarah Hilary

Getting an Agent by Sarah Hilary

Sarah Hilary has worked as a bookseller, and with the Royal Navy. Her debut novel, SOMEONE ELSE’S SKIN, is nominated for the Theakstons Crime Novel of the Year. It was the Observer’s Book of the Month (“superbly disturbing”), a Richard & Judy Book Club bestseller, and has been published worldwide. NO OTHER DARKNESS, the second in the series, was published in April 2015. The Marnie Rome series is being developed for television.

Here’s what I learnt five years ago, at the beginning of my journey to publication. I hope it helps if you’re at this stage. If you’re beyond it, maybe you’ll share a wry smile at the memories. NB: the bits in brackets and italics are the bits that tell you How NOT to Get an Agent. But you know that, right?


How to Get an Agent (or not)

  1. Write a damn good book. (Convince yourself it’s word-perfect; show it to no one who might cast doubt on this conviction)
  1. Pitch the book to the right agent in the prescribed manner. (Or not. Don’t let submission guidelines get in your way; this book can’t be pinned down in a paragraph)
  1. Practice patience. (Chase after two weeks. That’s plenty of time for the book’s brilliance to have penetrated)
  1. Submit a full ms on request in the prescribed manner. (Convince yourself this is it: your genius is about to be universally acknowledged and rewarded)
  1. When a rejection comes, accept it with good grace. Put it to one side if necessary until you’re in the right frame of mind to read it as the valuable information you need to get better at what you do. (Curse and pity the poor fools who didn’t have the wit to recognise genius when they read it; do not entertain the idea that they know more than you do about books and publishing. If you really want to go to town, tweet about their ridiculous rejection in the hope that other agents will take note)
  1. Start a new book, keeping close at hand the rejection letter that contained vital information about what you needed to do to get further ahead this time. (Start a new book ignoring that ridiculous rejection, which you’ve torn up in any case)
  1. Pitch and submit as earlier. (Dont forget to mention the idiots that turned down your previous work of genius)
  1. Accept the rejection with good grace, learning from it all that you can. (Wonder what is wrong with a world that can reject you twice. Storm. Rant. Flounce. Better: do it on your blog, naming and shaming those who thwarted you. Alternatively, curl up in a ball and never come out)
  1. Repeat steps six to eight, as required. (Give up. Tell yourself it’s because you’re too good to get published)

When I was lucky enough to be signed by Gregory & Company, a fantastic agency that specialises in crime and thrillers, it was with the full knowledge that my book needed work, of course it did. Thanks to a brilliant team at the agency, and an editor who knows exactly how to lead a writer through what’s needed, I felt enthused rather than daunted. In fact, I was dying to get stuck into the changes.

‘You’ve been trying us for some time,’ Jane said when we met.

‘I’m famed for my stamina,’ I confessed.

Not to mention bloody-mindedness, but also as it turns out, the ability to listen to what I’m told and to know that a good writer can always — ALWAYS — be a better writer.

Keep the faith, take advice from the experts, never give up. (Or, you know, not)

You can reach Sarah on Facebook

Twitter – @sarah_hilary

Or over at her website – www.sarahhilary.com

Life’s a Pitch – Alexandra Sokoloff

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I’m often asked to speak to groups and classes of aspiring writers, and recently I was speaking to a college writing class, and I realized something that I’ve known for a long time, but I’ve never actually put into words.

Life is a constant pitch meeting.

There were a few dozen kids in this advanced class. Okay, not all kids! I talked for about forty-five minutes, my whole story of breaking into the film business as a screenwriter and then moving on to write novels, all the usual, and for the rest of the two-hour class I was just taking questions.

Out of the whole class, only five of the students asked questions, although more did answer when I asked them questions to draw them out. And out of those, only two people voluntarily told me what they were working on, in detail. And those were two out of the three who continued to ask questions throughout the class.

Guess which students I remember from the class?

Not only that, but these two guys caught my attention from the very first moment they walked into the class. They are attention whores. One walked in with a Nerf — Uzi, it looked like, in violent neon colors. At the slightest prompting he pulled that puppy out of his backpack, loaded a clip of Nerf bullets with awesome efficiency, and fired several lethal rounds into the whiteboard at the front of the class. It was a thing of beauty.

The other shuffled in, collapsed into his seat in a posture of abject and total martyrdom, made sure everyone could see the bruise under his eye, and proceeded (again with the most minimal prompting) to tell a woeful tale of being assaulted by his girlfriend over the weekend. She subsequently harassed his roommates, who called the cops and had her arrested.

Now those are entrances. Those are characters.

I don’t know if either of those guys can write worth a damn; I don’t know if they’ve got the drive and dedication to do what the job is, but I would give them a chance to show me more, just because they’re standouts — and because in two hours I learned so much more about them and their writing than I did about anyone else in the class. They moved themselves to the top of the theoretical list just by being forthcoming. They put the spotlight on themselves.

Furthermore, the guy with the Nerf Uzi draws and writes comic books, and the guy with the out-of-control love life is writing a wacky romantic comedy.

Do we see the pattern here?

They were illustrating the kinds of writers they are, in clothing, props, actions, and their entire personal presentations. They were pitching their writing with everything that they did that night. And oh, do film executives love visual aids. Who doesn’t?

At twenty-two or whatever, these kids already have it down.

In screenwriting, because so much of the job is pitching, you have to stand out for simple job survival. Film executives will take six or seven or ten pitch meetings in a day. Of course you have to have a great story to tell, but you equally have to make sure they’re actually awake enough to pay attention.

And it’s a lot the same if you’re an author. The more interesting character is going to get more attention from the media (essential for an author’s job survival). You will get more attention from your publisher if they sense you will get extra attention from the media. That’s just reality.

Take a look at successful authors you admire. There’s something beyond their amazing writing, isn’t there? They’re also fascinating people. They have star power in person. You can always find them in a room, and once you spot them, you can’t take your eyes off them. Watch Lee Child smoke a cigarette, for example, and tell me that’s not a living advertisement for the Reacher novels.

Now, that is not at all to say that you can’t make a bestselling career as a recluse. It’s happened throughout the ages. Great writing finds a spotlight, even when the author can’t. But I suspect it’s a lot harder to make a career that way, especially these days.

Even though I wasn’t handing out jobs in that class that night, I am a highly connected industry professional who was right in front of those students, at their disposal, for two hours. That’s an opportunity that doesn’t get handed to most people every day. There is no reward for being shy in that situation. You need to milk an opportunity like that for all it’s worth.

But the fact is, the Universe is always handing us chances to get exactly what we want. It’s a matter of whether or not we’re prepared enough, professionally and emotionally, to take the chances we’re given.

Sometimes we’re just not ready.

Those two guys I’m talking about didn’t know who I was or that I was going to be in class that night. They didn’t put on those little performances for me. They are clearly people who are always performing. But the point is, you never know when someone who can help you is going to be watching, or who might take an interest in you and your career simply because you’re interesting.

If you are ready… and that’s a big if — you need to put yourself out there so that people can see who you are. You need to talk passionately and specifically about your work. My friend and literary idol Margaret Maron calls it “sparkling,” and Margaret truly does. You have to sparkle.

This really goes double and triple if you attend writing conferences. Conferences are expensive investments in your career, and you need to make the most of the hundreds of opportunities that will present themselves to you over a conference weekend.

You aren’t ever going to be on all the time, let’s just be realistic about that! But you can talk passionately and specifically about your newest projects (without dominating the conversation to the point of being obnoxious and a turn-off) so that editor or agent on the sidelines of the group will make a mental note (“Read that author” or “Keep track of that person”).

You have to sparkle, whatever that means to you.

And if you find yourself resisting this idea, perhaps you might consider this question: Do you not present yourself at full power because somewhere inside you don’t feel ready?

I think that’s an important question for all of us to consider, and regularly. Because when it feels like we’re being held back, it’s usually something inside ourselves that is putting the brakes on.

So think about the last time you were in a group of authors or aspiring authors. Who stands out? Who stood out? Who presents an intriguing sense of the kind of writing that they do? Who sparkles? Who makes you want to know more

Let’s hear it, so we can all learn something!

    —- Alexandra Sokoloff

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Alexandra Sokoloff is the bestselling, Thriller Award-winning and Bram Stoker and Anthony Award-nominated author of eleven supernatural, paranormal and crime thrillers. The New York Times has called her “a daughter of Mary Shelley” and her books “Some of the most original and freshly unnerving work in the genre.”

As a screenwriter she has sold original scripts and written novel adaptations for numerous Hollywood studios. She also teaches the internationally acclaimed Screenwriting Tricks for Authors workshops, based on her Screenwriting Tricks for Authors workbooks and blog.

Her Thriller Award-nominated Huntress Moon series, following a haunted FBI agent on his hunt for a female serial killer, is out now. Huntress_Moon_TM_CVR-FT

 http://alexandrasokoloff.com

http://www.screenwritingtricks.com

@AlexSokoloff

https://www.facebook.com/alexandra.sokoloff