Dusting Off Those Shelved Writing Projects

Pixabay.com

Last month we talked about finishing projects we had started or have half finished but never completed. I hope you were able to work on or complete some of those projects. As usual, I didn’t get as much done as I had wished, but finishing projects is still on my agenda.

Also last month in the June article, I promised this:

“If it’s a story of your heart that you love and want to finish, but it really needs a lot of work, leave it in the closet. We’ll talk about that project next month.”

So here we are in July, the middle month of summer. Do you have writing time?

Take Out that Story You Love, Dust It Off, and Finish Writing It!

Do you have a project of your heart that’s been put on the shelf? Do you remember why you shelved it? (Tweet that!) There can be a lot of reasons. Let’s talk about why writing projects get shelved. Then let’s consider taking them down, dusting them off, and finishing the stories of our hearts that we love (no matter what others say!).

It could be you didn’t have time.

Maybe distractions — whether from life or other writing projects — drew you away until dust collected on the project and, eventually, it got put on the shelf just for a little while, just until you got your desk cleared. And, um, that was years ago and your desk never cleared.

Possibly it was simply “life” that got in the way. The business of taking care of family and jobs and responsibilities… Am I ringing any bells here?

Or, maybe it’s on the shelf for another reason. Maybe you got discouraged with the project. That happened to me.

The Story of My Shelved Writing Project

Once upon a time I had a story I really loved. It was a supernatural thriller. I worked on it. I plotted it out. I developed the characters. I really loved that story.

And then the long days came when I wrote out that story as a novel. I worked hard, starting early in the morning and working late into the night. I wrote the entire novel. And I loved it.

I dreamed of sequels. I didn’t have all the plots worked out for the next two books, but I had characters who could fill them and a basic idea.

Then things started to happen. Three things, to be exact.

1. I talked with an agent who loved the idea of my story. He was a well-known agent who had “discovered” another author, one who had been rejected by everyone else. This agent helped him and that rejected writer not only found a publisher but became a best-seller, sold millions of books, and became very famous. This was the agent who was interested in my story! He asked me to send him my book proposal and sample chapters. I couldn’t wait to send it and I did.

2. Meanwhile, a friend and critiquer asked if she could read my story. I let her, eager to hear what she thought of it. When she started sending critiques, it became clear she didn’t like my main character. The farther into the story she got, the less she liked that character. This was not good.

I remember she did not like my character because this character was not great with all the new electronics coming out in the late nineties. If she can’t keep up with the times, the critiquer said, she’s not smart.

Well… But… Wait… The character’s inability to access a password-protected web site is critical to the story.

I think the intervening years have proved that not all people can keep up with today’s electronics, don’t you? Even smart people.

Her critiques became harsh and I was devastated. Eventually I quit reading her critiques. Partly because of her words, partly because  I so strongly disagreed with them. But it was just one person’s opinion, right?

3. Then I received an invitation to join a small group of writers who would meet with a professional editor and former publisher for several days. Part of the program was that we would all critique each other’s first pages. That meant each of us would receive critiques from the professional plus the other six or so writers. We would go over our critiques in class. I accepted that invitation.

I prepared by sending my pages and reading the others’ pages, gave them my best critiques, and looked forward to hearing what they had to say about mine.

The time came for the clinic. I was the last of the writers to be critiqued. I had given the others as much encouragement as I could along with feedback I felt would help them. I had contributed to the conversation. When it came my turn, I was so nervous!

But then the unexpected: Total silence.

No one said anything. What did that mean?

Finally the professional said he didn’t think the reaction of my main character to the supernatural event that occurred was realistic. Well, um, it was supernatural. That itself might not be very realistic, don’t you think? I still think my scientific-minded character would be freaked out by this personal, supernatural event.

And that scene sets the stage for the whole book. Without that scene and that reaction, the story doesn’t work. It can’t.

I thought we weren’t supposed to argue but were to just listen to the critiques, so I stayed quiet and tried to take this critique to heart. Besides, I was too nervous to think and didn’t have a clue what to say. I was shocked by his words.

Did I not write the scene well? (To this day I think I did.) Did they not understand what I was trying to accomplish? (I thought it was clear.)

Then the other writers in the room chimed in, agreeing with the professional, basically saying, Yeah...what he said.


Oh, and about that agent? Never heard from him again. I followed up several times but got no reply. (I found out a few years later he did that to everyone, not just me. Even his clients. He just dropped out of agenting, I guess.)

These three whammies came close together, hitting me like staccato beats. Discouragement set in. (Tweet that!)

I put my project in a box and literally put it on a shelf in my closet. It’s still there to this day. More than eighteen years later.

Do you have a story like this of your own? Did discouragement get to you? Do you have a writing project you love that was put on a shelf and is gathering dust? (Tweet that!)

I told you my story to encourage you. It's not just you. (Tweet that!) These things happen. So what do we do now?

The Bright Side

Well here’s a few more things about that project.

• I still love the story. It has never left me. I think of it often. I can’t get it out of my head. I know I must write this story. It’s just a matter of when. (Tweet that!)

• In the past eighteen plus years I’ve learned a lot about writing and stories and more. I’m a better writer now, so I can do a better job with it now.  (Tweet that!)

• I’ve started screenwriting, too, which has taught me a lot about story structure. I build better stories now. And, when I look at that story I structured it well, even before I knew much about story structure. That amazes me. 

• I know more about characters now. For example, even though I couldn’t articulate it at the time back in that group, I now know the main character has to react like that because she needs a character arc. I can’t start her off at the end of her journey, the end of her character arc. Now I understand that’s what that professional and those classmates wanted. They wanted her to already know what they know, to believe what they believe. That's because they don't know the story! I do. I couldn’t answer their protests back then, about why is this scientist at odds with Christianity? It doesn’t have to be that way, they said. Now I know the answer is because that’s her character arc. To start her out as they wanted gives her nowhere to grow! It destroys her character arc and so it destroys the story. I wrote about this in my blog post back on December 1, 2015: Writing Stories: What Your Story Needs - Part 2

• I’ve developed more skills. Since I have now studied writing feature films and writing for TV, I can now write this story not only as a novel but as a movie (with series potential) or a TV, cable, or web series.

• I’ve recently re-read that opening chapter and you know what? It’s not only not bad, I still think it’s quite good. Maybe not perfect, but even after it has rested this long and my writing has grown for this long I believe it doesn't stink. Re-reading it gave me encouragement and confidence. It’s a good story. I know it, regardless of what others think. 

• It’s a new time. Things are different now in America and in the world. I truly think this story was ahead of it’s time. I thought it was relevant back then. But oh boy it is even more relevant now. (Tweet that!)

It's Time to Tell Your Story 

Maybe it’s time to take your story down off the shelf, dust it off, and finish it. (Tweet that!)

If you’re still in love with your story, I encourage you to do it. Trust yourself. Trust your writing. Trust the story you’ve been given. Don’t listen to everyone else. This is YOUR story. Trust your instincts.  (Tweet that!)

That’s what I’m going to do.

That’s my story. And I’m sticking to it.

RELATED:

• December 1, 2015: Writing Stories: What Your Story Needs - Part 2
• Visit my newly revamped web site here: www.DianneEButts.com
• Find a helpful e-book for writers here: Dianne on Amazon

It's Time to Finish the Writing Project(s) You Started

Thanks Pixabay.com

Just so you know, this post is not so much for you but for me. I'm betting, however, it will have meaning for you as well. It's June and we're approaching the middle of the year, so to meet some goals by the end of the year we need to be getting things done. My question for you this month is, what writing project(s) have you started that you haven't finished? (Tweet that!)

I'm betting a bunch of writing projects just flashed through your mind, perhaps followed quickly by a flash of guilt. (Tweet that!) Writers have stacks of stuff piled in the "writer's closet" that we never seem to go through because, well, we're too busy writing. I'm talking about the closet of unfinished projects, not a literal physical closet in our house, although those are probably just as cluttered and in needed of a thorough cleaning out which we also never get to because we're too busy writing.

So let's try to sift through our writer's closet today and see what's there and which projects we might be able to finish. (Tweet that!) Hopefully there's an item or two we can finish well or finish quickly.

Now, mind you, I'm not talking about the failed projects that don't deserve more of our time. Not the novels or articles or short stories or NaNoWriMo works we started, or even wrote to completion, that have no potential. These are practice works. They have value because they taught us and trained us and helped us along our writing journey. But they are not worth investing more time and effort in. If you have one or more of those, or even if you're not sure about a project, leave it in the closet.

(If it's a story of your heart that you love and want to finish, but it really needs a lot of work, leave it in the closet. We'll talk about that project next month.)

If you don't have time this month, if you're already booked full, look at your calendar and decide which month isn't booked yet. Make that the month you're going to target as your time to finish this project.

For me, the project I keep saying I'm going to finish and then "life" happens and I don't get to it is my series of twelve e-books for writers. Originally I was going to release one a month and have them all done in a year. That was a couple years ago. I've completed and released four:

• Cutting the Passive Voice
• How to Get Published by Magazines and Book Publishers
• Query Letters
• Booksignings

As currently planned, I have eight in the series  left. I threatened some time ago, on this blog I believe, to finish them. I don't know what happened then but I remember getting some work done on one and then… Whatever. They still are not finished.

So I've been planning for some time to finish them (or at least some of them) this month. June 2017. Yet here it is the 5th of the month and I'm just now writing the post that should have been posted the first of the month. What can I say. I'm a little behind.

(I'll blame it on my short film that kept lingering on as I tried to finish it. It's done and was turned in on June 1 by the deadline on June 2. I still have work to do to turn in the final documents, etc., by June 9. See last month's post for more info on that. I plan to write more about my short film documentary in the upcoming August 2017 post.)

So what is your project you'd like to finish? Need some help deciding? Let's talk about it. (Tweet that!)

What to Finish

Now that you've thought of all those projects you could finish, how do we pick one to work on? First, don't think of it as picking one, just picking the one to finish first. You'll get to the others too.

Consider:

Closest to done

Which of your projects is the closest to being done? If you work on this project, it will be the quickest one to finish. It will give you a sense of accomplishment. It will give you a something to sell or share. It will be one project checked off the list.

On my list of e-books, some of them I already have the manuscript written. They just need formatted and uploaded to Amazon's Kindle. One is formatted and partially uploaded, if I remember right. Others I have not written yet. I have the outline and have taught the material as a workshop, but I need to write it out to make it an e-book. It would take me very little time to finish the one that is formatted and partially uploaded. Duh. I need to start there.

Smallest/ Shortest / Easiest

Perhaps you have a project that would take little work to complete. Maybe it's not the most important to you. That's why you haven't finished it — everything else is more important. But if you finish this one, again you'd have an e-book to sell or an article to submit. What would it take to finish it and check it off the list?

Again, my almost-finished e-book I mentioned above fits here. It needs the least amount of work to finish. I sometimes get caught up in feeling I need to finish the biggest and best. Keep it simple.

Will produce greatest income

Do you have a partially completed project that, when finished, you can sell as an e-book or a printed book (Tweet that!), an article you might sell to a magazine or a short story to a compilation book that pays well? Maybe this is the project for you to pick and complete.

Hopefully a new e-book in my line for writers will spark new interest in all of them, increasing my income.

Will produce greatest joy

Which of your many unfinished projects is close to being done and would give you great joy to complete? Maybe it's a project just for you — you never intended to sell it or share it — and everything else in your world has kept you from it. Schedule time and put it on your calendar to finish it. Maybe you will sell or share it. That's good too. Do it.

Yeah, sharing what I've learned in e-books brings me joy!

How to Finish

Maybe you haven't finished this project for a reason. You've set it aside because there's something there preventing you from finishing it. Perfect! This is the month to tackle that challenge. Stop letting it stop you! Consider:

Roadblocks

You might be procrastinating because of a roadblock that you don't know how to overcome. Well this month it's time to dismantle that roadblock. I've found that often roadblocks grow bigger with time, or at least they appear to. The truth is, when I start to tackle them they shrink to something that's far easier to step over than I ever imagined. So what do you need to make this roadblock disappear?

Ask someone. Find an expert in the field and see if they will help or mentor you, or at least point you in the right direction.

Ask a friend for help. Sometimes people are more willing to help us than we realize. The truth is, most often the people we know really want to see us succeed. Ask. They might help.

Hire some help or trade skills.

Perhaps more research will help?

Stumbling blocks

Or maybe it's not a roadblock but just a stumbling block: something that seems difficult or time consuming. Or something you just hate to do. Maybe one of the ideas above will help. Or can you possibly make a list of nearby friends who can help you, ask them to come, throw them a party, and let them help you?

Or maybe you just need time. Can these friends temporarily take some responsibilities for you to give you intensive, uninterrupted work time to finish? Ask.

Something needed

Perhaps you simply need something to finish it. What do you need? Where can you get it? Editing? A book cover? I recently reminded a friend of Fiverr.com and she found the editing she needed at a great price on that site. I had the e-book covers for my twelve e-books designed there and I think they're pretty awesome. (Now, if I'd just finish formatting some, and writing others, and getting them out there!)

Whatever you need, write it down. Write it in big bright letters on your big white board. Then go after it. Find it. Tackle it. Then finish your project and move on! (Tweet that!)

Finally

This Bible verse speaks to me. I've typed it up, printed it out, and pinned it to the bulletin board in my office:

Now finish the work, so that your eager willingness to do it may be matched by your completion of it…     1 Corinthians 8:11 NIV

Which writing project(s) have you started but never finished that's speaking to you saying, "It's time to finish what you've started"? (Tweet that!)

What are you working on to finish?

What did you finish?

Let us know in the comments section below. Include a link to your finished product if you want so we can check it out.

Related Articles:

If your unfinished project is making a Kindle e-book but a roadblock or stumbling block for you is that you don't know how, you can find help in the series I wrote on that topic. These posts walk you through the process:

1. How to Make Your Manuscript a Kindle E-Book on Amazon (for Free) - Part 1: Formatting Your Kindle Document
2. How to Make Your Manuscript Into a Kindle E-Book on Amazon (for Free) - Part 2 - Front Matter, Back Matter, and Images
3. How to Make Your Manuscript Into a Kindle E-Book on Amazon - Part 3 - Get Your E-Book Covers Here! (Not All Free)
4. How to Make Your Manuscript Into a Kindle E-Book on Amazon (for Free) - Part 4 – Uploading Your Ebook

Lessons in Beginnings for Writers

A swirl of books. How do you get into a story?
(VisualHunt.com)

As a writer, have you ever heard the term "throat clearing"? Over the years I've heard this term used when I met with editors at writers conferences and also in workshops. For me, this usually applied to a short piece I was showing them, like an article or devotional, but the principle applies to longer pieces like books and chapters also. The editors were telling me that I didn't really get to the heart of my piece of writing for several sentences or even paragraphs. (Tweet that!) In longer pieces, you may find your real beginning pages later.

I was reminded of this term recently by an article in the Christian Communicator:

…great beginnings often don't appear in the first draft. Or, if they do, they often aren't at the beginning. That's why the editing process is so important.

Many times you will discover that the first couple pages of your writing are no more than "throat clearing," and you get to your point somewhere around page 3. In a short piece, like a devotional or article, those first lines you type may not be the best beginning and will probably need to be deleted and replaced with a sentence currently in your fourth paragraph. 

("Your First Impression" by Linda Taylor, March-April 2017 issue of Christian Communicator, page 15.)

From my own experience, I find this principle very true for my non-fiction writing. And as I pursue writing fiction I find the same holds true. However I've learned a lot about beginnings and how to get started from working in screenwriting and making short films. (Tweet that!)

How do we get into the Story?

One of the first short films I produced was "Air Guitar." This was actually a practice film. I was preparing to shoot the first short film I produced on my own and I wanted to run through the whole procedure once just to perform the process from start to finish — including filming, capturing sound, then the film editing. I also wanted to run through the whole process with my small film crew — camera man, sound person, actors, film editor. So one day I gathered my camera man, sound, casting and acting coach with a couple young actors and we did a run-through. I'd worked with the camera man on a short film the previous year, so we both had that experience. He would also be my film editor.

In order to have something to shoot and practice with, I wrote a one-page script. It was actually a joke I'd made up and then wrote it to play it out with actors. I opened the script in a kitchen with my actors cooking brownies for a birthday party. We set up to film in my kitchen.

Then my camera man hit me with a question: Yes, it's a story about a birthday party, but how do you want to open up the film? What's our first image? What do we show?

Until then I didn't even realized that I had never considered how to get into the story. How do we get started? (Tweet that!) How do we introduce this world we're in and our story's characters. Thankfully my camera man also had a suggestion: he did a close shot of just our hands passing out festive-colored plates and napkins. In the editing he put jazzy music under the scene. And, of course, he added the title and opening credits. That's how we got started.

Had I left it as I had it, we would have just jumped into cooking and dialog. No title. No opening credits. The audience would not have known it was a party. We would not have set the festive tone with the jazzy music. My script probably would have stumbled around with some meaningless dialog — "throat clearing" — trying to get into the story.

If you'd like to see the short film we made that day, it's here: "Air Guitar" short film

Since then I've tried to think much more about how to start my stories, articles, and books — both fiction and nonfiction — as well as each chapter. How is it best to get into them?

Establishing shots

In film, it used to be popular to show what is called an "establishing shot." I'm sure you've seen them, you just didn't know what they were called. An establishing shot is usually a camera shot showing a city skyline or the outside of a building or house — something that shows, and establishes, where we are. The tone is often also given: a storm is brewing, or a sunny day, or scary bad-guy music. But there is no dialog or anything that moves the story forward.

For the film I'm currently producing, a documentary of a true-life event, so far my best thought for opening the film is to show an establishing shot of a certain street intersection in the small city where I live. Then we'll widen the shot to show more of the city skyline and mountains beyond. I'm thinking I may even superimpose the city's name, state, and population. Of course the audience won't understand the importance of any of this information at the beginning, but it's all important and relevant. It will tell them where we are (city and state). Then through the story they will learn that this busy traffic intersection is actually where the event took place, in a city of sufficient size that it's very interesting that so many people are connected to what happened that night. This establishing shot will help me introduce and get into the story. (By the way, I also plan to come full circle and end the film here at this intersection … with one important change that has taken place since the event happened.)

Films and television shows don't use establishing shots as much as they used to. In writing, it may be good to have a character in this "establishing shot" or something that moves the story forward, but that is one way to get into the story. (Tweet that!)

Thesis Statements

In non-fiction writing, whether articles or a chapter in a book, it's good to focus the piece of writing with a focus statement or thesis statement. I wrote on this topic in a previous post so you can find more help with that here:

• Keep Your Eye on the Ball: One Sentence that Can Elevate Your Writing to New Heights

The thesis statement typically goes near the beginning of the piece and then the rest of the article or chapter supports that statement. So finding an introduction that introduces or "gets to" that thesis statement is needed, and is the path to a good beginning. (Tweet that!) However finding that path is still challenging.

"Throat Clearing" is Necessary to Find Your Beginning

You may need to do a lot of writing, allowing yourself to do a lot of "throat clearing," before you find the best path into your article, chapter, or story. That's okay. Do it. (Tweet that!) Just be sure to let it rest (days, weeks if you have the time), and then go back and edit. Let it rest. Edit. It will most likely take several rounds before you get to a great beginning.


What about you? Do you struggle with great beginnings? Do you need to do some "throat clearing" in writing before you can find your best starting place? (Tweet that!) It's not bad or wrong to write this "throat clearing." I actually think it's necessary in order to find the best starting place. We just can't leave it like that. We need to edit all the throat clearing out and find our best beginning before we turn in a project or let a prospective editor or publisher read it.

That doesn't mean we can't let anyone read it. We often need the help of another writer. A friend and fellow traveler on the writing journey, because they understand what a great beginning is. And they can spot "throat clearing" in our writing far better than we can see it in our own.

Take a look at the beginnings of your previously written stories or articles. Can you see any "throat clearing" going on? How would you now edit that beginning?

Then take a look at your work(s) in progress. Have you found the best beginning yet? Or do you need to do some "throat clearing" to find a it? (Tweet that!)

When you look at your previously written projects and your current works in progress, what lessons in beginnings can you learn?

Related Article and Link:

• Thesis statements: Keep Your Eye on the Ball: One Sentence that Can Elevate Your Writing to New Heights

• "Air Guitar" short film

The Fear of Writing

© Maxim Golubchikov
Dreamstime Stock Photos

It was one of those email newsletters from authors for authors. I had just signed up for it and got my first edition on the first of the month. I opened it. But the lead article stopped me in my tracks.

The feature article was by a well known author. I like her writing and I've even met her in person. But the title of the article screamed that I dared not write if I was "behind-the-times." If I wrote, and if I wasn't up-to-date in my understanding of how things are done today, I might as well not write or else I'll become a laughingstock!

I tried reading the article. I really tried. But the first few lines told me I was doing it all wrong. (Tweet that!)

You're Doing It All Wrong!

My punctuation. My point-of-view. All wrong.

If I'm doing that wrong, what else am I doing wrong that I don't know about? And where do I go to find out?

The idea of having to figure out how to research in order to find out all the things I'm doing wrong and learn the current "right" way to do it seemed like such a huge, mountainous learning curve. I was overwhelmed.

Then I Felt Angry

Then I felt angry. Who was this author to tell me I'm doing it all wrong? (Tweet that!) I've been writing for publication since the late 80s. It angered me to have someone telling me I don't know what I'm doing. I've fallen behind. Get out of the way and let the younger people do it right.

What about the novel I wanted to start writing? The one I've wanted to write for years. The novel of my heart. Is it going to be a waste of time? Because I'm so old-fashioned and out of date and times have changed so much that I'm doing it all wrong? Good grief. Why even start?

I don't have a chance.

I Don't Have a chance?

For heaven's sake I don't want to write the novel of my heart and then find out it has made me a laughing stock. Nobody wants to be a laughingstock, right?

Can someone please tell me where does an author go to learn the so-called "right" way of writing?

The fear of doing it all wrong stopped me. I was dead in the water. I feared writing a single word. (Tweet that!)

Never thought that would happen to me.

But I'm a Good Writer

But wait a minute. I'm a good writer. I know I am. I've been off on other adventures the past few years: screenwriting and filmmaking and all kinds of exciting things. Now that I want to come back to write one of the novels I've always wanted to write, I'm told I'll never make it because I'm "behind the times"?! (Tweet that!)

Have you ever felt like that? (I hope not.) But have you ever feared writing? (Tweet that!) Maybe you've experienced it for a different reason. Like fearing what people will think of your story. Or fearing putting yourself out there. Or fearing something else.

Fortunately I have a friend who calmed me down and offered to help. "Just write your story the way you want to," she said. "Forget all that stuff. Write it and show it to me and I'll show you how to fix whatever is needed. I'll help you."

I melted. What a relief. What a great friend.

After she talked me down off the ledge, I could see that I'm not that behind-the-times. The few things that are different from twenty years ago are easy to change. I can make the transition. I'm going to be okay!

When the Fear of Writing Strikes, What Can We Do?

Looking back on my time of fear, I can see three things that can help in our time of panic when we feel afraid to write. (Tweet that!) I hope these will help you when you need it:

1.) Find a Friend

Writing is a lonely business. Writers spend hours at a stretch alone with our stories. When we finally come up for air, we can discover others don't "get" what we're doing. Or they don't "get" our story. Or they think they have better ideas.

Critiquing is good. It's a good way to grow and learn and help each other. But we also need a friend who isn't going to rip our writing apart. We need a writing friend who can help us.

My friend and I meet regularly -- at least twice a month. (Tweet that!) We talk about what we're working on, what difficulties we're having, and what we want to accomplish before the next time we meet. We help each other. I've been helped over stumbling blocks. I've been encouraged to try big things. I've offered her ideas which I hope help her. More than anything, I'm not in this alone. Someone is there with me, struggling along beside me. And on the rare occasion when I really need it, she talks me down on off the ledge.

2.) Write it Your Way

This takes courage. It takes daring. But I dare you! Do it. Go for it. Try it. (Tweet that!)

I learned a great lesson last fall when I had a new and exciting adventure. A film crew was filming a feature movie in a town about 30 miles from me. I applied to work as an extra on the film and was hired to work two days. What a great opportunity!

The film was based on a novel titled Our Souls at Night by Kent Haruf. Of course I had to find out more about this book and how it became a movie. In my research I discovered some interesting information.

The author was actually born in the city I live in now. He lived in Colorado and wrote several novels about a fictional Colorado town.

He also wrote without quotation marks.

"No quotation marks – ever. He said he liked the way it looked on the page,” according to an interview with the author's wife in The Mountain Mail (Salida, Colorado).

His wife did his editing before it went to his publisher, Vintage / Penguin Random House. I thought that meant she would put in the quotation marks. But when I ran over to Barnes & Nobel to get the book I discovered no, she did not put in any quotation marks. Nor did the publisher. There isn't a set of quotation marks in the book.

To spoof a line from the movie Back to the Future: "Rules? Where we're going, we don't need rules!"

This is what I mean when I say "write it your way." Ditch the so-called rules.

3.) Don't Let It Stop You!

The other thing I learned when I researched Our Souls at Night is that when the author wrote the book, he was dying. (Tweet that!) Kent Haruf learned it was terminal in February. Previously it had taken him six years to write a book. But he decided to write another story. He didn't tell his publisher.

By August 1 he had a draft. By September 15th he was ready to send it to his editor at the publishing house, as a surprise. In late November the publisher sent back a surprise: a mock-up of the book so Kent could see it. He died the following day, on November 30, 2014. His wife finished the final edits the next day.

You can read more about this story in the article, "'Our Souls at Night': Interview with Cathy Haruf reveals insight into author's work," The Mountain Mail, August 31, 2016.

This author knew he was dying and yet he wrote another book. And now his book is being made into a Netflix movie, Netflix's first theatrical release, starring Robert Redford and Jane Fonda.

Now that's a writer who didn't let anything stop him.

Writing for Publication and . . . Servanthood

I had some "life" happen recently that meant I wasn't able to prepare the post I had planned for August 1. So a wise friend asked if I had something I could re-run. Yes! I remembered this article I wrote a few years ago, back when this blog was a newsletter for subscribers only. I thought this might be a really good article to run this month. Sorry it's a bit late, but life happens. And when life happens, it's important not to miss it.

So, I hope you enjoy this re-run article.

Writing for Publication and...Servanthood

I had a couple of interesting conversations with writers lately. One lady contacted me because she noticed the local writers group and she was thinking she might like to join. Though I encouraged her to come to the writing group, she seemed shy and uncertain. Finally she confessed what was really on her mind:

She said she wasn't sure it was right to call attention to herself through writing. She was concerned about becoming prideful about writing in a way that would be unbecoming for a Christian. (Tweet that!)

I had to be careful in my response, because I didn't want to laugh out loud. That might have come off as rude.

Will You Be a Famous Writer?

I asked her what she meant about calling attention to herself. She looked confused. I asked her if she thought if she started writing that everyone would then know her and she would be famous. (Tweet that!) She kind of, sort of indicated yes.

I asked her if she had read any magazine articles lately. She said yes. I asked her who wrote them. She said she didn't know. 

I wondered if she'd read anything else lately. Articles online? Newspaper? Book? Would she have remembered any of these writers' names? My bet is if she could have remembered any, it would have been the name of a book's author.

Then I told her, Look, if you start writing, chances are extremely thin that you'll become famous. Most people won't even notice your name on a magazine article. I'm convinced the only people who read bylines are other writers. (Tweet that!) ("Oh, look! My friend Linda got an article published in here. Good for her. Wait a minute. How'd she do that? I wanna to do that.") (Tweet that!)

Publishing is Like the NFL

This lovely Christian lady was all worried about calling attention to herself and becoming sinfully prideful. But what are the chances of her actually drawing that much attention? I told her it's like playing in the NFL. A lot of kids start out wanting to be a star in the National Football League, but first you have to make the team. Then you have to make the high school team, the college team, and then win a spot on a professional team. Only a few people actually make it that far. And when you do make it that far, there are only so many slots on a team and only so many players can be chosen to fill them.

Publishing is similar. There are only so many slots available for writers. There is only so much room for so many articles in a magazine. (Tweet that!)

There are only so many slots in a publishing house for so many books to be published. (Tweet that!) 

And when you get to that level, you're competing with professionals.

So where is your level of skill in writing? Are you at a professional level? If yes, then keep submitting. 

If not, what do you need to do to get there? Work out more in the gym? (Write more.) Get with a Trainer? (Find a writer or group who can teach you?) Practice your skills? (Practice your skills?!)

Why Do You Want to Writer?

After I told that nice lady that she would probably never have to worry about becoming sinfully prideful because she'd probably never be famous, I ask her why she wanted to write. I don't think she really knew how to answer that question. (Tweet that!)

Will it Serve?

I had a second conversation with a different writer who, basically, wants to write what she wants to write. She has something she wants to say. It's important stuff to her and she wants the whole world to know it and so she wants to tell the whole world. 

Well, okay, that's all good and fine. But is it something anyone else wants to read?

Will it help the reader? Will it serve the reader's wants or needs? Or is it just a demand that somebody listen to what she has to say? (Tweet that!)

You see, so many people think the reason to write for publication is to become really famous and to make a lot of money. Other people want to be heard, to be listened to. But all of these reasons are filled with "I wants":

I want to be famous. 
I want to be rich. 
I want to be listened to. 
I want to tell. 
I want to be known for telling you this. 
I want to be heard. 

If you're writing for publication, this is never going to work. When we write for publication, we're not writing for ourselves; we're writing for someone else: our reader. (Tweet that!)

The way to write for the reader is to SERVE the reader. 

You think you have something to say? Okay, will it serve the reader? Is it something the reader wants or needs to hear or know? If not, then the writer is only serving him/herself.


I know what you're thinking: "Yes, but I'm writing because I have something to say! And it's important."

Yes, of course it is. It's on your heart, or it's in your mind, and you want to share it so badly. And that's fine, because often we want to share what we know because we know it will serve other people. It's a fine line, but it's a line.

I know what some of you are thinking: "But I don't have anything important to say. I just want to tell stories [or write articles, or fill in the blank ______ ]."

It's About the Reader

Listen to me. Are you listening? You do have something important to say. Especially if you are a Christian. You do have something to say that people in the world out there need to hear. (Tweet that!)

So what's the difference? When writing for publication (not for yourself--your journal, your exploring, your own benefit), our writing should be about the reader.  Not, "What do I want to say that I want everyone to hear?" But, "What do I have to offer that will help my reader?" (Tweet that!)

This is the Servanthood of writing. (Tweet that!) And you can sum it up in this question: "How can I SERVE my reader?"

As an example, my aim with this e-zine [now a blog] is to serve those who read it. It's not about me. Sure, there are times I mention what's going on in my writing life... That's because I believe many of you are interested in what I'm up to--and if you're not you can skip that part. But the main purpose of this [blog] is to help you, to serve you, to help you become the writer you want to be--whether that's published or just a better writer or whatever you're longing for.

If you're not getting published, maybe you can take a look at this area of your writing and see if there's room here for improvement. Editors are interested in serving their readers. You need to not only serve your reader, but serve your editor. But I guarantee you, if you're serving your reader, then you're serving the editor.

How Do You Want to Serve Your Readers?

So this month as you write, how do you want to serve your readers? What do you have to offer that will help your readers? (Tweet that!)

Now don't give me that "nothin'" answer. I know better. Especially if you're a Christian--because you have a knowledge of the One. 

But Christian or not, you have information for a magazine article that would help someone. You have an experience that taught you something that would help someone else. You have a story with a message that will bring someone closer to God. (Tweet that!)

The delightful thing about writing is that our serving can be done in infinite ways, unique to each of us--which satisfies the longings of our souls to write and be heard. (Tweet that!) But in the end, it needs to be for and about the reader, not the writer.

If you have this attitude of Servanthood, you'll never worry about becoming sinfully prideful, because it's not about you. It's about the reader. And for the Christian writer, it's about Christ.

Tweetables:

If you are a #writer, it's all about serving your reader.  Click to Tweet

The "Servanthood" of #Writing.  Click to Tweet

The way to write for the reader is to SERVE the reader. Click to Tweet

Writing Stories: What Your Story Needs - Part 2

iStock © AlbanyPictures

Last month we talked about four things that your story needs to have to be an effective story or a story that "works." This month we're going to go further in story telling and talk about Main Characters that are not effective and how to make them work. But first...

Special Note:

Before we get to this month's topic, however, I want to tell you I've found a fantastic product for writers that has helped me so much it's incredible. I'll tell you more about it at the end of this post, or if you don't want to wait, visit the new page on this blog: click the tab above or click here: Amazing Product for Writers.


Now, let's talk about Main Characters that are not effective. (Tweet that!) Last month I mentioned "passive characters" -- characters that are victims. They have sad stories and a lot has happened to them, but they are not active in wanting something. Passive characters have no movement so they don't carry the story forward.

Another problem character is the main character who is too good. For example, what if your main character has already "arrived," meaning he or she seems to already "know it all."  (Tweet that!)

One example of a character who has already "arrived" is the character many Christian writers want to put in their stories. That is, the Christian character who is already "saved." This character wants to share what they have and show the rest of the world that they need to be saved too. This is a formula for a preachy, overbearing story. (Tweet that!)

What do you need to do with these problem character to save your story?

Back Up Your Main Character

For know-it-all characters who have already "arrived," and for passive characters, you need to back that character up to a place or point in time before s/he knew that information, before s/he learned it, before s/he "arrived." (Tweet that!)

Then, let your character coming to that knowledge be part of the story. (Tweet that!) Showing your character acquiring this knowledge also allows you to show that growth in the character. When your audience sees that character learn it, they will also learn it and you will achieve the "theme" or "message" of your story (see previous post) without coming off as preachy.

Including this part of your character's story will also help you flesh out the middle part or Act 2 of your story, which is often a problem area. Some call it a middle that "sags."

How to Back Your Main Character Up

Just how do you back a character up like this? How can you use this to help improve your story and your character? What do you do with them?

Here are four ideas. This is not necessarily a "pick one" list. It may be best to do all of these!

As an example, I'm using one of my recent stories. It's a story about forgiveness. My main character could not move forward and do what she needed to do until she forgave a certain person in her life. But how does she come to that knowledge?

First, I gave her some common (but wrong) ideas about forgiveness, including these thoughts:

•  "That can never be forgiven." 
• And "Somethings are unforgiveable."

Then, I used these four ways to help her discover more about forgiveness:

1.) The Character Has a Need for It or Needs to Know It

I gave my character something huge in her past that she needs to be forgiven for, although she doesn't know that is even possible.

2.)  Another Character Models It

Then, my main character witnesses another character in the story forgiving someone else (not the main character). In seeing this modeled, the main character becomes aware that some people are willing to forgive, even though a big part of her distrusts that it's for real.

3.) The Character Experiences It for Her/Himself

Then, my main character experiences being forgiven. She is forgiven by someone other than the character in #2 above.

Had she not seen that other character (in #2 above) forgive someone else, she would not have known or believed it were possible. But because she witnessed it, the closed door in her heart opened just a crack and so when she herself is forgiven, though it is "unbelievable" (according to her former self), she believes it (this is her new, changed self).

4.) S/He Wants To Do That Herself

Because she has experienced forgiveness for that huge secret in her past, she now not only believes forgiveness -- and forgiving -- is possible, but has also experienced the unbelievable feeling of freedom from that burden. This has opened in her a freedom to love and so much more. She now knows it as only someone with first-hand experience possibly can.

With this new-found knowledge and experience, she now knows what she must do -- and she is determined to do it.

In 3-Act structure, this point is the end of Act 2 and the beginning of Act 3. This is the point where she moves forward to the climax of the story, where she puts everything on the line and everything is at stake. She will either gain everything or lose everything. But either way, she moves forward to the climax of the story and there's no looking back, no going back.


All of these different learning experiences become subplots utilizing your secondary characters to carry them out. This, then, fleshes out your story and gives strong support to the middle of your story.

If you're having trouble with your story, I suggest you take a look at your main character. Make sure that their learning and changing is ahead of them, not behind them. Back them up if you need to. Then use the four ideas above to find a way for them to learn what they need to know. You audience will learn with them. Then you can move ahead with your story!

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To learn more you can click the tab at the top of this blog or click here: "Amazing Product for Writers"

To go straight to the product page to learn more about it, click here:

PLOT CONTROL

My Christmas book on sale this month:

I have a limited quantity of my popular Christmas book still available. This book makes a great Christmas study and a great gift. If you'd like one, please order through Amazon's "See All Buying Options" and choose "Connect Books":

Prophecies Fulfilled in the Birth of Jesus
by
Dianne E. Butts
Please order from Connect Books.

(Tweet this please!)

Also available, e-books for Writers:

Cutting the Passive Voice

How to Get Published

Book Signings

Related Article:

• Writing Stories: What Your Story Needs - Part 1

Writing Stories: What Your Story Needs - Part 1

iStock (c) Albany Pictures

Recently I participated in the 168 Film Project's "Write of Passage" contest as a Development Executive (DE). This is a volunteer position which is a sort of "mentor" for those participating in the contest. This is the third year I've mentored writers in this contest as a DE. Serving as a mentor has put me in an excellent position to see what stories need in order to "work." (Tweet that!)

The 168 Film Project is an organization that runs two contests: one for film producers, the other for writers. Both contests run one week (which is 168 hours, hence the name). Both contests require contestants to base their stories on an assigned Bible verse. Once the verse is assigned, that marks the beginning of the 168 hours of the contest. In the 168 Film Project contest, participants produce a short film (limit 10 minutes) in 168 hours. Teams write the script as well as accomplish all pre- and post- production. In the "Write of Passage" (WOP) contest, each writer (or team) writes a short film (limit 12 pages) in 168 hours.

In the WOP, a Development Executive is assigned to guide a group of six writers, who work individually, through the week. The DE reads and critiques their scripts multiple times throughout the week. It's a great learning experience for writers if you have any interest in screenwriting. It's also valuable for learning how to tell an effective story because story structure is crucial in a short story or short film.

I hope no one tuned out at the words "story structure." Even if you're a writer -- whether for print for for screen -- who, as they say, writes "by the seat of your pants" (meaning, no outline, no synopsis, you just follow the characters and see what they do), you still must have structure to your story for it to work. Okay, I can hear the arguments swarming, but I believe that wholeheartedly. No story structure = no effective, working story. You can argue among yourselves while I move on.

Being the mentoring guide, the Development Executive, for six writers in each of the past three years has taught me a lot about what a story needs in order to be effective, or to "work."

Now, one interesting thing is, these are things we all probably already know. We've heard them in writing classes and workshops. We've read them in books. But when you see it in practice, you learn it better. That's what has happened for me. I keep telling my writers whom I mentor through the contest that I learn at least as much from them as they do from me. It's true, whether they believe me or not.

Even so, let me share some of the things I have learned about what a story needs to have. Even if these sound familiar, I'm sure I'll say them in a different way and hopefully they will help you grow in your story telling, whether you're writing fiction for print, writing for the screen, or even writing nonfiction that uses story-telling techniques.

This is by no means an exhaustive list, or a complete formula, of what a story needs. These are just four items I've seen that a story need to have in order to "succeed."

1.) A Story Needs to Have Conflict

No conflict = no story. If there is no conflict, then it's just a list of facts:

"Johnny went to the story. Johnny saw Suzy. They went for coffee. They spent the day together..."

B o r i n g. This leaves the reader asking, "So what? Why am I reading this?" A story always has to answer the "so what?" question. Otherwise you're wasting the reader's time. (Tweet that!) The only way to have a "so what" in your story is to have conflict ... something that needs to be dealt with, a problem that needs to be overcome. That's conflict. The bigger the conflict, the better the story.

When you're designing your story (yes, seat-of-the-pants-writers, I mean you too), avoid "internal conflicts," especially when writing for the screen. Yes, there can be stories with internal conflicts but external conflicts -- meaning involving other people -- are easier to portray and to write. You can have internal dialog to convey internal conflict in a written story but, as you know, it's far better story-telling to "show rather than tell." For internal conflicts you must tell the reader what is happening by telling the character's internal thoughts. It's just better to show the story through action.

But if you are writing for the screen, you really need external conflict. Suppose I'm your producer and/or director. If all you have is internal conflict going on, how am I supposed to put that on the screen?

If you've studied story structure, you may have heard these terms:

• Ordinary World
• Inciting Incident

A story starts by showing the main character's ordinary world -- things as they are before any conflict happens.

Then something happens that changes the ordinary world and sets the story in motion. That incident incites the story.

That's conflict. Don't leave this out of your story or else you don't have a story.

2.) A Story Needs a Theme or Message

I know what you're thinking. You've always heard or been taught, "Don't start with the message." You've heard when we start with the message, the story comes off "preachy" or at least cheesy.

You know me. I tend to go rogue. So I disagree with this. If I don't have a message or a theme, what's the point of writing the story? (Tweet that!)

I'm not completely sure about this, but I think perhaps if you're writing ONLY for entertainment, then it's okay to not have a theme or a message. And it is okay to write solely for entertainment if that's what you want to do. But still, the really good stories, the ones that we love and that stick with us and that we want to see over and over, have a theme or a message.

And if you are like me, a Christian who writes to make Christ known, then why write something "only" for entertainment? It's a waste of my time here on earth. (Tweet that!)

Your theme or message answers the questions: What are you really trying to say through your story? What important points are you communicating? What is the message of your story?

You may not start with the message. Your theme/message may come out and become clear to you as you develop your story.

If you start with a message and develop a story around it, you may have to work double-hard to develop and authentic story so it's not simply preaching a sermon. But that's okay. You can do it.

I'm just saying, in my opinion, it's best to have a message. Tell it well. Through story.

And here's a hint: When you've nailed down your theme/message, have a secondary character state it early on in your screenplay. I think that might work well for novels, short stories, and novellas, too. (Watch for that in your favorite movies and see if you don't discover it.)

3.) A Story Needs a Main Character Who WANTS Something

Here's one I struggle with every time I design a story. This is something I've been learning and when I realize this is what I'm missing in my story, it helps me tremendously.

The main character in the story needs to want something. This want gives forward motion to the story. There also needs to be something that prevents your main character from getting what they want. This creates conflict. (You remember #1, right?)

Thanks Morguefile.com 

If your character does not want something, you may have a character that is too passive. A passive character is one who is not doing anything but has everything done to them. For example, the abused character, the crime victim, or the widowed character. A passive character is a problem because there is no forward motion to carry the story forward. (Tweet that!) Give your character a "want," then let them go after it.

A character's "want" could be revenge, justice, or new love. Or his or her want could be wanting to move up in his company or own her own business.

Now, this "want" is different from what they are going to actually get through the story. But what they get in the story is infinitely better for them, they just don't know it at the outset of the story.

When, through your story, the character gets this better thing instead of what they originally wanted, they are a changed character. They have changed. Which leads to #4...

4.) A Story Needs a Character to CHANGE

If you do not have a change in a character, then you do not have a story. (Tweet that!)

Most often the changed character is the main character, however in some stories the main character does not change but instead changes others around them. As I was trying to think of an example of that, I thought of the story of Jesus.

When Jesus came to earth, He wanted people to know the one true God (which He was -- God come in the flesh) and He wanted to bring salvation to the world through His sacrificial death for sin on the cross. Jesus had a lot of opposition -- both from enemies and even from His friends and family. These things could have changed Him, but they did not. Instead, Him coming in flesh changed all the people around Him -- some for good as they followed Him, others for bad as their evil hearts were revealed. In the end, And the world has been changed ever since.

This change is your story or character arc. This arc makes the story. It means it is all going somewhere. This somewhere the story is taking us gives the story meaning and purpose and answers the question, "So what?"



Next month we'll talk more about what stories need to be successful. Specifically, we'll talk about what to do when your main character is already too good or has already "arrived." What do you need to do with that character to save your story? I have some ideas and I'll share them in my next post.

Writing from Your Core Message - How to Create Fantastic Fiction or Nonfiction that Reaches the Heart of Your Audience

I recently wrote a "new" story that is getting some great attention. I put "new" in quotations because in reality the story isn't a new one for me in the sense that I've been developing this story for around ten years. But I only recently wrote it. When I did actually write it, I've been pleased with the positive attention it has been getting. By that I mean the kind of attention that may result in bringing it to a large audience. But I wanted to stop to evaluate why this story is getting this attention. Obviously I'd like to repeat the experience and create another story or two (or ten) that get positive attention. (Tweetable) So why do I think this story is receiving such attention? I'm so sure in my gut this is the answer: Because this story comes from the core of my being, the core of what I know to be true. In other words, this story required me to write from my core message.

There are stories that are created just for the sake of telling a story, to entertain. But a story from your core message goes deeper.  (Tweetable)

Defining What I Mean by "Core Message"

I so remember where and when this idea became solid for me. The idea of it floated in the back of my mind, and I think that's true for every writer. But it was when I attended the Act One Writing for Film & Television Program* in 2010 that co-founder Barbara Nicolosi put it into words. She not only presented the idea to us but also challenged us to create a story from our core truth -- a credo from our life -- and present that story to the class before we left that program.

Act One trains Christians for write for film and TV
in order to influence film and television
for Jesus Christ.

Barbara called it our "Credo story." I'm calling it a "core message." You may have another name for it. I can't remember much more about how Barbara explained this, so from here on this idea is filtered through my own thoughts and understanding.

But I do remember that I knew immediately what mine would be because I had the "credo" or core message in my heart. I already knew it. I was working to build a story to express it. I just was still learning how to structure a story to work out expressing it.

What Barbara called a "credo" I'm calling a "core message." It is a deep truth from your life that you know in the depths of your heart to be true. (Tweetable) I'd say it's most likely something you've learned through the hard knocks in life. It didn't come easy. (If it did, it's more a cliche everybody already knows.)

Mine was a lesson I learned, a truth that came from hard places and tragedies in my life. I lived it. I learned from it. I grew from it. And I found a truth that helped me when I lived it. That truth has become part of my core being. And I believe that our core messages can help others in the same way they help us -- if we'll share them.

Our core messages may be hard to share because they are so deeply personal. They are hard-fought and hard-won. But they are truths of life. (Tweetable) And that means they apply to others, not just to us.

Core messages are also positive in nature. At least I demand mine to be, because there's no sense in taking an audience to a negative place and leaving them there. If a core message is negative, then you haven't lived through to the positive outcome yet and it's too soon to try to share the message. (Tweetable)

So the question is, how do you come to your core message?

*If you apply to attend Act One, please note on your application that you heard it from me, Dianne E. Butts. Act One would want to know. Thank you for remember me when you contact them.

How to Discover Your Core Message

You may know yours immediately. You may already have lived it and discovered it and stated it in words that you know and remember in your heart. Now is the time to write it down.

If you aren't to the place where you can write it down, then I'll warn you it may be harder than you think. (Tweetable) But you can:

• Brainstorm. Collect words that express your core message. Work until you can form a sentence. Don't stop there, but massage and tweak the message until you know that you know that you know it is hitting the target exactly. 

• Mind Map it. Use a large piece of newsprint. Write your collected words you brainstormed on it and then group other ideas around each word. The purpose is to get to the point where you can articulate your core message in a sentence.

• Articulate it. Write it down. Make it a statement. A Credo statement. This is much like writing a Thesis Statement which I wrote about in my December 2014 article. A Thesis Statement is any core message (even an assigned message) you want to express in an article or story. A Core Message statement is a truth or deeply held belief from your own life.

• Give yourself permission to own more than one Core Message. (Tweetable) I find if I limit myself to the core message, or one core message, I then have this battle raging about which one is most important. As if I only get one! No, you can have more than one. Just pick one for each story. Articulate it. Write about it, whether in fictional story or in nonfiction memoir or other. To write another story, pick another core message.

Develop Your Core Message Into a Story

Whether you're writing fiction or nonfiction, short pieces or long, you can develop a meaningful piece of writing out of your Core Message. (Tweetable) Please understand when I use the word "story" here, it could mean either fiction or nonfiction.

For mine, I wanted to express my "Credo Story" in a long story, meaning a novel, a feature-length screenplay, or both.

So I wanted to build a fictional story around my Core Message to express that message. This is where learning about story structure really helped me. In order to build your story around your core message, think about these points:

• Create a story that expresses all sides of the issue involved. (Tweetable) Doing so allows you to show what happens when life is lived in contradiction to your core truth.

• Develop story lines that look at the issue from all sides. This gives your story conflict in different views.

• Use these different views to create "B stories," which are subplots.

In my opinion, as writers we don't just write a story. We have to build a story. We build brick upon brick. We journey through life step after step. We build or develop a story in the same way. (Tweetable)

• Let it percolate. Let your story cook long enough to be fully cooked. You can't rush this anymore than you can rush growing up. You can only "rush" the expression of it by forcing yourself to do the hard part of articulating a fully-cooked core truth. If you never sit down to do this hard work of putting it into words, it can cook forever and you still won't have your core message in a concrete form. It will be there, but it will be in the mush that's cooking.

Tips for Developing Your Core Message Story

Along the way of my own writing journey, I've picked up some tips I've learned from mentors. Let me share some with you:

• Don't be afraid to say it out loud in your story. I've often heard or been taught in workshops or writing articles that we should not start with a message. I think that's nonsense. (Tweetable) If we want our writing to be meaningful where else would we start? (For contrast, I've heard over and over in workshops and such we should start with an interesting character. Fewer teachers allow us to start with an interesting plot.) I say, start with something you really want to say. A core message.

• Don't be so subtle no one "gets it." Again, we are told to keep it subtle, but from what I've seen subtlety often means the message is either missed or misunderstood. (Tweetable) I'd rather we simply state our message outright. Done well, it works.

• Don't be preachy. The above cautions are so we don't come off as "preachy." Of course we don't want to be preachy. That turns off an audience. I'm sure you can figure out for yourself what preachy is. You already know not to do that. Sometimes we have to start preachy and then work through it to find a way to work out of it while leaving the message. It can be done. Take careful steps to make sure your final product is not preachy. (Some will call you preachy even when you're not.)

• Let a character state your core message at the beginning.  Besides Act One, I've attended many other screenwriting and story-building workshops. I remember in a screenwriting class taught by Dr. Ted Baehr that he encouraged us to go ahead and state the theme (I consider that our core message) outright and up front. That is the direct opposite of what I've been taught elsewhere, but I agree with this! Ted taught that in movies, a character (often not the main character) states the theme of the movie or story in the beginning of the story. (Tweetable) I'd never notices that. But when I did, I then saw that the story develops and "lives out" that theme, and at the end we come back around to that core message, which is now a "truth." Watch for this the next time you watch a well-written movie.

• Don't be afraid to have an agenda. Again, this is from Ted Baehr. Again, this is the opposite of what we usual are taught. However I remember him encouraging Christian writers to go ahead and have an agenda. He reminded us that everyone else in Hollywood has an agenda! Christians can too. (Tweetable) Others are not afraid to let their agenda be known. Christians can too. So go ahead and have an agenda...and let it be known in your story. This is not wrong. This is, instead, freeing.

Core Messages Reach the Heart of Your Audience

I believe writing from my core message produced a story that is reaching hearts on a deep level, and that is why it is gaining positive attention from people of influence. (Tweetable) There are stories that are written solely to entertain. But stories from our core, from the deepest part of our heart, that speak the deep truths we've learned from the hardest places in our lives, hold truth and meaning that connects with other people in a way that is far beyond just entertainment.

Stories from our Core not only reach hearts and minds, they change hearts and minds. While an audience may not be able to understand why some stories stick with them, hold onto them, and will not let them go, it is because that story is burrowing deep into their souls. (Tweetable) That causes change. That is what story, in its true purpose, is for.

That's the kind of story I want to write. Again and again.

Please Note...

• New E-Book! Check out my newest e-book coming soon. If you have a book out, or plan to, you'll want to find ways to let people know your book exists. One great way to do that is to hold a book signing at a book store. That can be intimidating...until you do a few. In this new e-book I share what I've learned, what I've done right and wrong, and how to make a book signing work for you.

Releasing soon. Pre-Order yours now here:

Book Signings: 

How to Set Up Your In-Store Author Event and 

What do Do While Your're There!

• Colorado Christian Writer's Conference. It's coming soon! May 13 - 16. Sign up now!