This is where you’ll find interviews with, and articles by, a range of publishing professionals.
Copyright remains with the contributor and the material cannot be reproduced without prior permission.
Contents
Alfiedog.com - An exciting new initiative for the epublishing of short stories.
Writing Fiction Is Nothing Like Your Day Job - Unlearning old habits and acquiring new skills.
Learning To Write The WWBC Way - How Warrior Writer Boot Camp can give you the ammo to win the battle for publication.
Archived Articles
Reading and Writing with ‘The Smiling Dog’
‘If downloads can work for single tracks of music , why can’t they work for short stories?’
My light-bulb moment was as obvious as that. Although, that rationale was combined with the thought that there are thousands of brilliant stories whose secondary rights are languishing in desk drawers. Once a story has won a competition, or been published in a magazine, it isn’t like a retired race horse, which needs to be put out to graze for the rest of its life. There is no reason that a story shouldn’t have an on-going life, earning money for the author and bringing satisfaction to the reader. Nor is there any reason why writers should be giving their work away for free on the internet. Fair enough, there are new writers who want to showcase their work, in the hope of being spotted and there are those who are writing as a hobby who just want the knowledge that their work is being read. However, many of us are trying to make our livings from our writing and that is hard enough at the best of times, without the number of traditional markets reducing.
Alfie Dog Limited is setting out to change the landscape of the short story market. We are not the same as many other electronic options. For a start, all stories are read and where necessary edited. Not all stories make the grade and many of those which are ultimately accepted are sent back for revisions prior to acceptance. We want our readers to keep coming back for more. We don’t want them to find countless errors in the work, grammatical, spelling or structural to the story. We want readers to trust that when they come to www.alfiedog.com they will be spending their money wisely and will receive great value reads in return. We also want to support our writers as best we can. Writing is difficult at the best of times. There is nothing more depressing, particularly when you are starting out, than sending your work out, receiving rejections and no one taking the time to tell you how to get your work to a publishable standard.
One problem with electronic publication is that there is no single format that everyone has adopted. For music, mp3 became the standard. In theory epub is the epublishing standard, but not if you use a Kindle. Whichever standard you use, the ability to vary the document according to screen size currently loses some of the specifics of formatting. If you are reading a story on a larger screen, such as a computer, then a format which maintains formatting can be beneficial.
One question I get asked is what are we looking for? There is no golden answer. A story needs a beginning, a middle and an end. It needs to be well written, paying attention to grammar, punctuation, spelling and tenses. The writer needs to determine the best point of view for the story and only change perspective during the story if there is a good reason for it. Children’s stories need to use age appropriate language and be written in a style that will engage the child. We have different editors for different genres. I’m in a privileged position. I decide which editor receives which story to read. I’m entirely selfish about the humour classification and try to keep all the stories in that class to myself! One thing I would, say when writing you need to be aware of the stories that have been told a thousand times before. It doesn’t mean they can’t be told again, but you have to make yours stand out as worth reading to be successful.
When I launched the project in February I set the goal of having 100 good stories by at least 25 different authors for our launch. After just two months of submissions I have had the privilege to accept over 180 stories from more than 50 authors covering every inhabited continent on our planet. Now I’m looking forward to bringing them together with an equally diverse readership.
Back to top
Writing Fiction Is Nothing Like Your Day Job
Unlearning old habits and acquiring new skills.
Roz Morris is a writer, editor and book doctor who lives in London. Roz has worked in book and magazine publishing for more than two decades, has nursed scores of books from a twinkle in a writer’s eye through to bound copies and has written multiple novels as a ghost writer, some of them best sellers. She is now coming out of the shadows with fiction of her own and is represented by two literary agents. She is the author of Nail Your Novel - Why Writers Abandon Books And How You Can Draft, Fix and Finish With Confidence). She blogs at www.nailyournovel.com and has a double life on Twitter; for writing advice follow her as @dirtywhitecandy, for more normal chit-chat try her on @ByRozMorris
Many of us have day jobs in which we might have to write. Not just journalists; a lot of us might have to write reports, presentations or other documents. But when you write your novels, you have a lot to unlearn.
I trained as a journalist, and I'm often asked if it was hard to make the jump to novel-writing.
My answer, in a nutshell: yes.
When I started writing fiction, there were a number of journalistic habits I had to unlearn. And not just because in fiction I was allowed to make it all up (I was the well-behaved type of journalist with respect for the facts).
I’ll come to those journalistic habits in a moment, but first, here are two major differences between the way I approach fiction and articles.
Difference 1 - the reader’s journey
Journalists - and anyone who writes reports or presentations - learn this guiding principle: ‘Tell them what you’re going to say, say it, then tell them you said it.’
Fiction observes this three-step principle to an extent - themes and concerns are evident early on and the end seems to arise out of the beginning.
But the way fiction does this is not the same at all.
Reports and articles take the reader on a straightforward journey. In fiction, I do anything but. I use deliberate twists and turns. The character may start out thinking they want something, then decide they really want something else, then change their mind again, then decide none of it was important compared to the new problem that has arisen… and finally may end up back where they started and feel they have finally found the right place (or wrong place).
Draw a diagram of the reader’s journey through an article or presentation, and it will be a straight line. Statement, development, conclusion. Draw a diagram of the reader’s journey through a novel, and there will be ups, downs, reversals, circles. It may end up where it started.
A satisfying novel that really takes the reader on a journey will not be a straight line. (If it is, it’s known as a linear plot - and will seem plodding and predictable.)
Difference 2 - the relationship with the reader
In an article or report I present facts, issues and ideas. In a novel I am working on the reader at deeper levels - and not always straightforwardly. I can be subtle and manipulative. I might plant an ending, then misdirect like a conjurer so that the reader doesn’t see it. I might be biased or an unreliable narrator. I might make the reader love a character and then do something really unpleasant to them.
In a report or article, I attempt to be balanced, concise, reliable and authoritative. In a novel, I can, if I want, be anything but. Nya-ha-harrgh.
Two journalism habits I had to unlearn to write novels
1 I had to avoid condensing the process of change. In novels, change is gradual.
Journalism - and other types of report - tend to be very condensed. When I’ve critiqued first novels by journalists one of the key problems is that characters often change suddenly. For instance, an errant boyfriend is given a talking-to by a wise friend and in the next scene he’s changed his ways.
In an article or a report I might well show such a progression as a sharp contrast. But in a novel, I would make change gradual, spread out over the book. I would also have the character strenuously resist, which is why it is a challenge that makes a good story, with ups and downs. It’s the meandering journey in our diagram - and it takes some time.
2 I had to stop using scenes and dialogue to convey only a focussed message.
Reports and articles are written with a ‘message’ in mind. Quotes from sources and interviewees are used to back the message up. I had to forget all about this when I started writing scenes with dialogue.
The ‘reporting’ way to use dialogue is to cut to the chase - showing only what is necessary to back up an argument. For novels, I learned to add details that my journalistic brain would strike out as irrelevant. How the speaker behaved while saying the words, what the room was like, what complexities and contradictions give clues about the person. I might add details like what the weather was doing, or sounds that could be heard in the distance - anything that might externalize what the character isn’t saying, or thicken the atmosphere. All these details allow the reader to immerse and feel they are making up their own mind. Of course, you may want to direct the reader strongly - after all, some narrators are highly judgemental. But I’ve seen a lot of first novels that stop the characters coming alive on the page because they are presenting the action to the reader already digested.
If you’ve learned to write in a reporting or presentational kind of way, these principles are great for their purpose - but they can stop your novel being a rich, involving experience. Here’s how to liberate your prose:
1 - make the journey purposeful, but tangled
2 - be unreliable, biased and manipulative
3 - be lengthy
4 - make all the irrelevant details relevant
(See what I did there?)
This piece was first published on Roz Morris's writing blog, Nail Your Novel.
.
Back to top
Learning To Write The WWBC Way
How Warrior Writer Boot Camp can give you the ammo to win the battle for publication.
Three years ago, I made a decision. To step away from writing articles and write that ‘book’ I’d always planned to write.
Okay, that was the easy part sorted out.
I sat down, and for a couple of months scribbled in my note pad and tapped away on my laptop. I gave my finished novel to friends, all of who liked it, and began plotting the sequel.
Then I met Kristen Lamb.
Kristen stumbled upon the first chapter, which I’d posted on my blogger site, and proceeded to hunt me down. She pointed out where I was going wrong and offered to help me. Naturally, I jumped at the chance.
We stripped back my story to its very core, and I wrote a background for my antagonist - something I had never done before.
Kristen’s reply, after I nervously emailed it across to her. “Crap, do it again.”
And again I did. Several times in fact. Until finally everything clicked into place and I’d created a psychopathic alter-ego.
I’m very good friends with Kristen now. I’ve since written two television pilots, one of which I’m currently adapting into a novel at the request of my manager. I’ve plotted my second book and lead WWBC (Warrior Writer Boot Camp) Delta Team. I apply the Warrior Writer method to every story and script I plot and wouldn’t consider doing it any other way.
So, without further ado, here is the way to write - Warrior Writer style.
Your Story
First and foremost - you must have an idea of what your book is about. Knowing the genre is extremely helpful and what your protagonist wants and who’s trying to stop he/she from getting it will also make things a lot easier for you.
Log Line
Once you know the basis of your story, you can write that log line. Now, don’t be scared. They are easier to write if you follow this simple rule:
An ADJECTIVE NOUN (protagonist) must ACTIVE VERB the ANTAGONIST before SOME REALLY HORRIBLE THING HAPPENS (stopping the protagonist from reaching her goal).
See my post on Log Lines.
Character Backgrounds
A character background is a little like a biography. Imagine you are writing your own life story. You’d (at least) start from the moment you were born and take the reader up to the current day (or where your story begins). Well, a background is the same thing. Write all about your character from the moment they are born, right up to the moment you are about to start your story.
This is a fantastic way to get to know your character and give you time to flesh them out. Once done, you will have no trouble writing them or their dialogue.
Backgrounds - Who To Start With?
Antagonist - Why? Because it/they are the biggest problem. Without them in our story, we have NO story.
Protagonist - Yep, you’ve guessed it. Now do the same for your protagonist. Oh, and don’t make them too perfect. Flaws are good! Flaws make us human.
Love Interest and Supporting Cast - Mentors, Minions, Allies and Love Interests all fit under this section. Note: These are characters that aid your main characters. I’m not talking about the guy who shows up in one scene and delivers the post.
Your Story
You need to ‘bullet point’ your story from beginning to end. Walk yourself through your story step by step. It’s better to hit your dead ends now so you can re-plot, rather than get 40k words in and realise you have to axe 10,000 of them.
Start with:
Normal World
Inciting Incident
Turning Point Act I into Act II
Turning Point Act II into Act III
Darkest Moment
Dénouement
Get to this point and voila! You have a story to write.
I know most of you may read this and think “Huh? What a waste of time.”
I’ve met people like this and guess what? They are still at the same stage they were a year or so ago. My team mate Piper Bayard and I are living proof this method works. Agents have requested fulls on both our manuscripts - and mine isn’t even finished yet!
It’s like building a house. Do the prep-work: dig footings, add cement, lay bricks, and your building will be standing for decades to come.
Good luck with your writing.
Back to top
Copyright remains with the contributor and the material cannot be reproduced without prior permission.
Contents
Alfiedog.com - An exciting new initiative for the epublishing of short stories.
Writing Fiction Is Nothing Like Your Day Job - Unlearning old habits and acquiring new skills.
Learning To Write The WWBC Way - How Warrior Writer Boot Camp can give you the ammo to win the battle for publication.
Archived Articles
Reading and Writing with ‘The Smiling Dog’
‘If downloads can work for single tracks of music , why can’t they work for short stories?’
My light-bulb moment was as obvious as that. Although, that rationale was combined with the thought that there are thousands of brilliant stories whose secondary rights are languishing in desk drawers. Once a story has won a competition, or been published in a magazine, it isn’t like a retired race horse, which needs to be put out to graze for the rest of its life. There is no reason that a story shouldn’t have an on-going life, earning money for the author and bringing satisfaction to the reader. Nor is there any reason why writers should be giving their work away for free on the internet. Fair enough, there are new writers who want to showcase their work, in the hope of being spotted and there are those who are writing as a hobby who just want the knowledge that their work is being read. However, many of us are trying to make our livings from our writing and that is hard enough at the best of times, without the number of traditional markets reducing.
Alfie Dog Limited is setting out to change the landscape of the short story market. We are not the same as many other electronic options. For a start, all stories are read and where necessary edited. Not all stories make the grade and many of those which are ultimately accepted are sent back for revisions prior to acceptance. We want our readers to keep coming back for more. We don’t want them to find countless errors in the work, grammatical, spelling or structural to the story. We want readers to trust that when they come to www.alfiedog.com they will be spending their money wisely and will receive great value reads in return. We also want to support our writers as best we can. Writing is difficult at the best of times. There is nothing more depressing, particularly when you are starting out, than sending your work out, receiving rejections and no one taking the time to tell you how to get your work to a publishable standard.
One problem with electronic publication is that there is no single format that everyone has adopted. For music, mp3 became the standard. In theory epub is the epublishing standard, but not if you use a Kindle. Whichever standard you use, the ability to vary the document according to screen size currently loses some of the specifics of formatting. If you are reading a story on a larger screen, such as a computer, then a format which maintains formatting can be beneficial.
One question I get asked is what are we looking for? There is no golden answer. A story needs a beginning, a middle and an end. It needs to be well written, paying attention to grammar, punctuation, spelling and tenses. The writer needs to determine the best point of view for the story and only change perspective during the story if there is a good reason for it. Children’s stories need to use age appropriate language and be written in a style that will engage the child. We have different editors for different genres. I’m in a privileged position. I decide which editor receives which story to read. I’m entirely selfish about the humour classification and try to keep all the stories in that class to myself! One thing I would, say when writing you need to be aware of the stories that have been told a thousand times before. It doesn’t mean they can’t be told again, but you have to make yours stand out as worth reading to be successful.
When I launched the project in February I set the goal of having 100 good stories by at least 25 different authors for our launch. After just two months of submissions I have had the privilege to accept over 180 stories from more than 50 authors covering every inhabited continent on our planet. Now I’m looking forward to bringing them together with an equally diverse readership.
Back to top
Writing Fiction Is Nothing Like Your Day Job
Unlearning old habits and acquiring new skills.
Roz Morris is a writer, editor and book doctor who lives in London. Roz has worked in book and magazine publishing for more than two decades, has nursed scores of books from a twinkle in a writer’s eye through to bound copies and has written multiple novels as a ghost writer, some of them best sellers. She is now coming out of the shadows with fiction of her own and is represented by two literary agents. She is the author of Nail Your Novel - Why Writers Abandon Books And How You Can Draft, Fix and Finish With Confidence). She blogs at www.nailyournovel.com and has a double life on Twitter; for writing advice follow her as @dirtywhitecandy, for more normal chit-chat try her on @ByRozMorris
Many of us have day jobs in which we might have to write. Not just journalists; a lot of us might have to write reports, presentations or other documents. But when you write your novels, you have a lot to unlearn.
I trained as a journalist, and I'm often asked if it was hard to make the jump to novel-writing.
My answer, in a nutshell: yes.
When I started writing fiction, there were a number of journalistic habits I had to unlearn. And not just because in fiction I was allowed to make it all up (I was the well-behaved type of journalist with respect for the facts).
I’ll come to those journalistic habits in a moment, but first, here are two major differences between the way I approach fiction and articles.
Difference 1 - the reader’s journey
Journalists - and anyone who writes reports or presentations - learn this guiding principle: ‘Tell them what you’re going to say, say it, then tell them you said it.’
Fiction observes this three-step principle to an extent - themes and concerns are evident early on and the end seems to arise out of the beginning.
But the way fiction does this is not the same at all.
Reports and articles take the reader on a straightforward journey. In fiction, I do anything but. I use deliberate twists and turns. The character may start out thinking they want something, then decide they really want something else, then change their mind again, then decide none of it was important compared to the new problem that has arisen… and finally may end up back where they started and feel they have finally found the right place (or wrong place).
Draw a diagram of the reader’s journey through an article or presentation, and it will be a straight line. Statement, development, conclusion. Draw a diagram of the reader’s journey through a novel, and there will be ups, downs, reversals, circles. It may end up where it started.
A satisfying novel that really takes the reader on a journey will not be a straight line. (If it is, it’s known as a linear plot - and will seem plodding and predictable.)
Difference 2 - the relationship with the reader
In an article or report I present facts, issues and ideas. In a novel I am working on the reader at deeper levels - and not always straightforwardly. I can be subtle and manipulative. I might plant an ending, then misdirect like a conjurer so that the reader doesn’t see it. I might be biased or an unreliable narrator. I might make the reader love a character and then do something really unpleasant to them.
In a report or article, I attempt to be balanced, concise, reliable and authoritative. In a novel, I can, if I want, be anything but. Nya-ha-harrgh.
Two journalism habits I had to unlearn to write novels
1 I had to avoid condensing the process of change. In novels, change is gradual.
Journalism - and other types of report - tend to be very condensed. When I’ve critiqued first novels by journalists one of the key problems is that characters often change suddenly. For instance, an errant boyfriend is given a talking-to by a wise friend and in the next scene he’s changed his ways.
In an article or a report I might well show such a progression as a sharp contrast. But in a novel, I would make change gradual, spread out over the book. I would also have the character strenuously resist, which is why it is a challenge that makes a good story, with ups and downs. It’s the meandering journey in our diagram - and it takes some time.
2 I had to stop using scenes and dialogue to convey only a focussed message.
Reports and articles are written with a ‘message’ in mind. Quotes from sources and interviewees are used to back the message up. I had to forget all about this when I started writing scenes with dialogue.
The ‘reporting’ way to use dialogue is to cut to the chase - showing only what is necessary to back up an argument. For novels, I learned to add details that my journalistic brain would strike out as irrelevant. How the speaker behaved while saying the words, what the room was like, what complexities and contradictions give clues about the person. I might add details like what the weather was doing, or sounds that could be heard in the distance - anything that might externalize what the character isn’t saying, or thicken the atmosphere. All these details allow the reader to immerse and feel they are making up their own mind. Of course, you may want to direct the reader strongly - after all, some narrators are highly judgemental. But I’ve seen a lot of first novels that stop the characters coming alive on the page because they are presenting the action to the reader already digested.
If you’ve learned to write in a reporting or presentational kind of way, these principles are great for their purpose - but they can stop your novel being a rich, involving experience. Here’s how to liberate your prose:
1 - make the journey purposeful, but tangled
2 - be unreliable, biased and manipulative
3 - be lengthy
4 - make all the irrelevant details relevant
(See what I did there?)
This piece was first published on Roz Morris's writing blog, Nail Your Novel.
.
Back to top
Learning To Write The WWBC Way
How Warrior Writer Boot Camp can give you the ammo to win the battle for publication.
Three years ago, I made a decision. To step away from writing articles and write that ‘book’ I’d always planned to write.
Okay, that was the easy part sorted out.
I sat down, and for a couple of months scribbled in my note pad and tapped away on my laptop. I gave my finished novel to friends, all of who liked it, and began plotting the sequel.
Then I met Kristen Lamb.
Kristen stumbled upon the first chapter, which I’d posted on my blogger site, and proceeded to hunt me down. She pointed out where I was going wrong and offered to help me. Naturally, I jumped at the chance.
We stripped back my story to its very core, and I wrote a background for my antagonist - something I had never done before.
Kristen’s reply, after I nervously emailed it across to her. “Crap, do it again.”
And again I did. Several times in fact. Until finally everything clicked into place and I’d created a psychopathic alter-ego.
I’m very good friends with Kristen now. I’ve since written two television pilots, one of which I’m currently adapting into a novel at the request of my manager. I’ve plotted my second book and lead WWBC (Warrior Writer Boot Camp) Delta Team. I apply the Warrior Writer method to every story and script I plot and wouldn’t consider doing it any other way.
So, without further ado, here is the way to write - Warrior Writer style.
Your Story
First and foremost - you must have an idea of what your book is about. Knowing the genre is extremely helpful and what your protagonist wants and who’s trying to stop he/she from getting it will also make things a lot easier for you.
Log Line
Once you know the basis of your story, you can write that log line. Now, don’t be scared. They are easier to write if you follow this simple rule:
An ADJECTIVE NOUN (protagonist) must ACTIVE VERB the ANTAGONIST before SOME REALLY HORRIBLE THING HAPPENS (stopping the protagonist from reaching her goal).
See my post on Log Lines.
Character Backgrounds
A character background is a little like a biography. Imagine you are writing your own life story. You’d (at least) start from the moment you were born and take the reader up to the current day (or where your story begins). Well, a background is the same thing. Write all about your character from the moment they are born, right up to the moment you are about to start your story.
This is a fantastic way to get to know your character and give you time to flesh them out. Once done, you will have no trouble writing them or their dialogue.
Backgrounds - Who To Start With?
Antagonist - Why? Because it/they are the biggest problem. Without them in our story, we have NO story.
Protagonist - Yep, you’ve guessed it. Now do the same for your protagonist. Oh, and don’t make them too perfect. Flaws are good! Flaws make us human.
Love Interest and Supporting Cast - Mentors, Minions, Allies and Love Interests all fit under this section. Note: These are characters that aid your main characters. I’m not talking about the guy who shows up in one scene and delivers the post.
Your Story
You need to ‘bullet point’ your story from beginning to end. Walk yourself through your story step by step. It’s better to hit your dead ends now so you can re-plot, rather than get 40k words in and realise you have to axe 10,000 of them.
Start with:
Normal World
Inciting Incident
Turning Point Act I into Act II
Turning Point Act II into Act III
Darkest Moment
Dénouement
Get to this point and voila! You have a story to write.
I know most of you may read this and think “Huh? What a waste of time.”
I’ve met people like this and guess what? They are still at the same stage they were a year or so ago. My team mate Piper Bayard and I are living proof this method works. Agents have requested fulls on both our manuscripts - and mine isn’t even finished yet!
It’s like building a house. Do the prep-work: dig footings, add cement, lay bricks, and your building will be standing for decades to come.
Good luck with your writing.
Back to top
Guest Spot
Donna Newton is a writer, author, screenwriter. Having written articles for UK magazines she switched to novels two years ago and now mainly writes thrillers, crime, and paranormal stories. She has co-written two TV pilots for the American market and is currently working on her third novel, a paranormal story set in Cornwall. She also teaches online Warrior Writing classes (WWBC).
She can be found on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Blog, Website, and Linkedin.
She can be found on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Blog, Website, and Linkedin.
Rosemary Kind of www.alfiedog.com talks about their exciting new initiative for epublishing short stories.
