Since I accidentally posted the first goal setting lesson on Friday...I thought we'd just keep going with the goals theme this morning. LOL
If you missed the Intro and Lesson 1 scroll down...They're there. :)
So...Here's lesson 2.
Session Two: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly…Motivation isn’t always a positive, happy thing.
After reading the first session and writing out a list of what you want and what you need, you probably realize that there’s a big difference between what you “want” and what you “need.” Wants are typically positive things. They are a way to gain pleasure. Needs are usually things you must have in order to avoid pain. (Like pay your mortgage so the bank doesn’t foreclose on your house!)
Needs drive us more, farther and faster, because most of us will do more to avoid pain than to gain pleasure.
Let’s face it, fear of busting the button on our slacks – in front of a group to which we are giving a workshop – at a writer’s conference where we are well-known – and at which our greatest competitor is also giving a workshop – will get us away from a second piece of fresh apple pie a lot quicker than the ambiguous, vague desire to “look good.”
Why? Because we can feel that fear. That fear is very real. The embarrassment would be very real. We cannot feel the accolades of looking good…Well, granted, we can envision a few people walking up to us saying, “Hey, you look great!” and for some of us that really is enough to motivate. But when it’s Susan versus the apple pie, the fear always motivates better.
Here’s a simpler example. When it’s a choice between using our mortgage money for a spur of the moment weekend in Vegas or paying the mortgage so the bank doesn’t foreclose, most of us wouldn’t go on the trip. We’d pay the mortgage. The fear of losing our house is much stronger than the desire for the pleasure of going on the trip.
But all of our choices aren’t that clear. Particularly not when it comes to writing. So let’s go back to the story of Lucia asking to see my manuscript.
I’m not the first writer to be asked to submit a manuscript to a specific editor. I’m not the only one who has been published because of this kind of encounter at a writer’s conference. In fact, I would be willing to bet that fifty percent of the published authors I know got published because of an editor appointment at a conference that resulted in a requested manuscript. Unfortunately, and sadly, I would also be willing to bet that fifty percent of the unpublished writers I know have also been asked to submit a manuscript and never submitted.
These people had the same kind of motivation that I had. An interested editor. A once in a lifetime shot. Yet they never submitted. Why?
I can’t say for sure, but I can speculate that most didn’t submit because their fear of failure was stronger than their belief that they would succeed.
Or (reversed) their fear of success was stronger than their desire for success.
Ah, now we’re getting down to the good stuff! Fear of success and fear of failure.
For these people who didn’t submit, fear – either fear of success or fear of failure – won.
But some people don’t succumb to the dual devils of fear of success or fear of failure. Some people use their fear to drive them.
Think this through with me…
Why was I able to go home, write a book in a short amount of time and submit it to Lucia? Because I was on my last chance. This was do or die for me. Fear of failure propelled me to do what I had been unable to do for the five years prior to that.
I used my fear. I didn’t succumb to it. I used it. Most people buckle under to fear of failure when they should be turning it to their advantage!
And that’s the bottom line. Fear either makes or breaks you. For some of us fear creates paralysis. For others of us, fear motivates. And for still others, it’s a combination of the two. These people live their own brand of confusion because what works in one instance does not work in another.
So what do you do if you’re dogged by fear of failure and paralyzed by fear of success?
The simple thing to do is determine what you are afraid of and figure out if it motivates you or paralyzes you. If it motives you use it. If it paralyzes you, get rid of it.
That’s right. If you have a fear that paralyzes you, you can not only get rid of it, you “have to” get rid of it. And right now I’m going to show you how.
We’ve said there are two major fears. Fear of success and fear of failure. So first lets get rid of fear of success.
If you’re one of those people who is afraid of succeeding, I want you to stop reading and make a list of reasons you are afraid to succeed. In fact, if you’re not sure if you’re afraid of success but you’ve been experiencing procrastination or a bad attitude or one failure after another, I want you to make this list too.
For me, on my list of reasons I was afraid to succeed, one of the biggies was that I wasn’t very good in crowds. I was an introvert. I didn’t want people to know me. (I’m not like this anymore, btw.) I feared that if I became successful I would be inundated with phone calls and visits and swamped at conferences.
If this is one of your fears, take heart. Not only can writers remain totally anonymous if they use a pseudonym, but you don’t have to go to conferences. Even better, however, unless you’re Nora Roberts or Sandra Brown, or one of the absolute writing greats, you don’t get inundated at conferences. A few well wishers and fans may approach you, but these are usually wonderful people who you will be very, very glad you met.
The Internet, Facebook, Twitter have changed that a bit, but not really. Your face might be on Facebook, but you aren't. You're at your desk, in your pj's just chatting. Granted, there are precautions wise people take, but basically, unless you're one of the truly greats, most people are "intersted" in you but not fanatics!
So there’s no reason to fear becoming “famous” as a writer. I just blasted that fear to heck and back. And that’s what you need to do with everything you put on your list.
You need to write out all the reasons you are afraid of succeeding and then write the counter argument.
If you’re afraid your husband won’t love you anymore if you are more successful than he is, write out a paragraph or two about why he will love you MORE if you succeed. (Start with listing your ability to buy him a boat, or a motorcycle or a new truck. Don’t be above bribery.)
If you’re afraid that your mother will be embarrassed by sex scenes in your books, write out a paragraph or two about why she will be proud of you. Or, if you can’t make an argument for your mother being proud that you can write sex scenes, write out a paragraph or two that talks about accepting that you may have to use a pseudonym and not tell your mother about your books! (And add in there somewhere how much fun it will be to have this delicious secret!)
Destroy every fear you have about becoming successful by making the case against it. Nine chances out of ten, when you put your fears on paper they will immediately look stupid. Because most fears are. They are consequences or possibilities we’re afraid will happen. Which means there is an equal probability they won’t happen. We cut them down to size either by realizing they are totally ludicrous, or by writing out the reasons we won’t let them happen, or ways we will handle them if they do.
You may have to make accommodations like a pseudonym, but that’s okay.
The point is for you to see, accept and then work with the knowledge that for every fear there is a response that obliterates it, and once you find it, you will free yourself to succeed.
Now, what if you’re afraid of failing?
That’s a whole different track. To handle that fear you must make a list of all the good things that will happen if you succeed. You must make this list of “things you will get when you succeed” big enough to keep you working and keep you trying when your desire to quit is strongest!
Here is where the difference between “need” and “want” really comes into play. If you only “want” the things that drive you, they will only drive you so far. But when you “need” something that need will frequently supersede fear.
One of my big motivators was (and continues to be) that I cannot make as much money in any other job as I make as a romance novelist. I live in a very small city with a high unemployment rate. If I am going to succeed financially, romance writing is my only option.
My ONLY option.
That’ll motivate ya!
So every time a deadline seems hard or impossible, when I feel the fear that I am wasting my time or going to fail, I tell myself, “You don’t have enough options to quit.”
That means that after you make your list of things you hope to get from reaching your goal, the next step is to see if you can turn those wants into needs. That might sound stupid but it’s not. Very often some very motivational “needs” come disguised as “wants.” Take a good look at your list of what you need and what you want and see if some of your items shouldn’t be switching sides!
For instance, before I was published, on my list of all the things I “could” do with the extra money that being published would provide I wrote things like send the kids to college. Get new living room furniture. Pay off mortgage. (Back when I had a smaller, cheaper house!) Get a bigger house. (Which has given me a larger, more expensive mortgage but also a better house!)
I pretty much thought everything on that list was a want. But each of them ultimately became a need.
How? Well, when your living room furniture falls apart beneath a guest it quickly goes from a want to a need. So it’s probably smarter to turn it into a need before it turns itself into a disaster!
Can you turn sending the kids to college from a want to a need? Sure you can. On the surface helping your kids with college looks like a nice thing to do, but, trust me, when college time comes around even if your kids get every loan and grant available, they will still need money from you. So having that money isn’t a want. It’s a need. Recognize it while your kids are still toddlers so you don’t find yourself penniless and doing without things like vacations, nice anniversary gifts, a new car, and even necessary home improvements when your daughter leaves for Penn State!
That’s the simple formula for handling fear of failure. You put yourself in a position where there are so many things you “need” that you feel absolutely driven. Or maybe more precisely put…Put yourself in a position where there are so many things you need that failure is not an option.
Then, when you have a bad day, get a rejection or are just plain too tired to work, you won’t say, “It’s no use…” You’ll say, “I have no choice…” Or, like me, “I have no other option. I must make this one work!”
If you’ve done those two exercises with me, you’ve handled your fear of success and/or your fear of failure, or, at the very least, you’re beginning to understand them!
And that’s the key. That’s actually how you learn to use fear to motivate you. Once you understand your fears and decide if they motivate or paralyze, you can obliterate the ones that paralyze and use the ones that motivate.
Trips, money, prestige (of a sort), a good signature line will all motivate you, but you should never underestimate the power of negative consequences. They are as real in each of our lives as “good things.” And sometimes fearing a bad result will get you going a lot faster than wishing for some ambiguous “good” thing!
You need to look at yourself and understand what drives you!
That’s actually what I want you to do for your assignment. If you didn’t do the fear of failure, fear of success exercises, I want you to do them now. But I also want you to take a look at your life.
Are you motivated more by fear of loss or hope of gain? Do you have some genuine fears that drive you? Like a fear of looking awful in jeans that keeps you from dessert, or a fear that you’re not keeping up with your peers that drives you to quickly write five pages before your critique group meeting?
Write ‘em down. Get to know them. Snuggle with them. They will become your best friends. Because when the chips are down, these are the things that are going to save you!
susan meier
Don't forget KISSES ON HER CHRISTMAS LIST! (Seriously...)
Monday, December 12, 2011
It's Monday Morning...Do You Know Where Your Goals Are?
This is a lesson for both readers and writers so I hope none of my reader friends look at it and think...Oh, it's one of those Monday things for writers! Stick around...there's something for everybody!
Last month, to simplify my website, we took down the goal setting workshop. Yikes! It's darned near January...that was supid.
Well, yeah. Writing and teaching, creating an ezine, remodeling a kitchen, caring for a disabled son...I get a little overwhelmed sometimes and make snap decisions that don't always make sense. LOL!!! (:0
So here's the intro of the goal setting workshop and right below that will be lesson 1. I know...it's not January, seriously, you should be thinking of your goals for next year now...Goals should not be set in ten minutes while you're waiting for a latte. Or when you sit down at your desk January 2 and say, Hey, I should have goals. LOL
You need to give your goals, your career, your personal life, your finances, your relationships, your spiritual life, your health...some real thought.
So let's start thinking now. December 9...week one of December.
Here's the intro...
Goal Setting
A few decades ago when I decided I want to be "a writer" I had absolutely no idea what I was doing. Luckily, I was also working with a very forward thinking man, who pointed me in the direction of motivational tapes.
Many people think I should hang my head in shame at the admission that I listened to every tape in the corporate library. Most of us recognize those tapes are propaganda that bosses use to turn unsuspecting employees into overeager sycophants always working for the next promotion -- victims of the carrot and the stick.
But a funny thing happened. Because I wasn't thinking of these principles in terms of my day job, but modifying them to help me organize my writing life…The principles really helped me.
I've listened to the greats: Tony Robbins, Zig Ziglar, Earl Nightengale, Brian Tracy, Tom Peterson … and many others. I got several very good takes on goal setting, which I examine and explore in the upcoming lessons. But based on my own experience I've also sprinkled in other things I think will help you to understand what I call the "psychology" behind why you set goals and why the goals you've set to this point might not have worked.
Don't worry about the fact that this workshop is being given in increments. There's homework that needs to be done, so you will be glad for the time in between lessons. Also you may find yourself needing to think through some of the principles and really examining your life. The time in between lessons will be perfect for that.
So grab a cup of coffee and maybe a pen and tablet and let's talk a bit about organizing your life as a writer and setting some goals that will help you live your dreams!
susan meier
Session One: Introduction – Which came first the chicken or the egg?
We all love goals. In fact, it’s been proven that people who regularly set goals and “check up” on their progress accomplish something like fifty times more than people who don’t! It amazes me when I hear someone say he or she doesn’t set goals because I know they work.
But, my friends argue, that’s exactly why they don’t set goals. Their goals never seem to get accomplished the way mine do.
Hum.
Being a person who apparently has too much time on her hands or who is maybe a tad too curious for her own good, I wanted to know why. But, I also had to admit that not all of my goals were accomplished, either, and that made me doubly curious.
So I analyzed which of my goals were accomplished and compared them to the goals I had which were not accomplished to see if I could figure out why one goal comes to fruition yet the one right beside it, maybe even one that should have been simpler, doesn’t. And I made an odd discovery.
The goals I accomplished “fit” my life. The goals I did not accomplish did not fit my life.
What the heck do I mean by that? Well, I reached the goal of getting published and earning a few extra thousand dollars each year when I desperately needed it. I reached the goal of selling enough that I could write full time, quit my day job and stay home with my kids when they became teenagers and refused to have a baby-sitter anymore. Notice that I needed to achieve both of those goals!
Conversely, I haven’t reached the goal of keeping off my twenty pounds of yo-yo weight. I haven’t read any of the classics. I really don’t know anybody who has, so I wouldn’t have anybody to discuss them with anyway. So (aside from personal fulfillment) there’s no “reason” for me really to accomplish either of those goals. Which means that as soon as my doctor tells me that my extra twenty pounds is causing a health risk, I will probably lose it and keep it off.
In other words… We will find a way to reach any goal with a compelling “reason” behind it. And that means success or failure in goal setting all boils down to motivation.
Motivation (or need of a specific result) is what keeps you working when you would rather be watching Wheel of Fortune. It nudges you to read an hour a day when you think you don’t have time. It causes you to think creatively about your time, to find little blocks you didn’t realize you had and to use them. Because, let’s face it, we can all find the blocks of time…but do we always use them?
So, if we do what we are motivated to do – what we need to do – then why do most of us set goals then try to manufacture motivation? Or ,worse, why do we set goals with no thought to motivation at all?
Good question. And one that I can’t answer except to say that’s why we fail. We don’t “need” most of our goals and a goal is only as good as the reason you want to reach it.
Let me tell you a story that proves that. (And, by the way, here comes my usual disclaimer. I use stories about myself, not to promote myself, but because I don’t want to be sued. Please don’t think I’m an egotistical nutcase, just know that I’m someone who would rather not have to call her brother-in-law the lawyer and get a lecture about talking about other people on the Internet!)
Okay, here goes…
Years ago (probably close to 20, actually, but who’s counting) I went to my first writer’s conference. The trip was one of those last ditch efforts. I had been writing unsuccessfully for four years and I was depressed and defeated. Something either happened for me at this conference or I was quitting. So I packed my bags and left for the airport more depressed than excited. I felt I was walking through the last chapter of my writing career story. I was sure nothing good would happen and come Monday morning when I returned I would no longer be a writer.
Pretty darned sad, huh? I get misty just thinking about it.
Anyway, on Saturday morning when the workshops began I made the mistake of attending LaVyrle Spencer’s session on description. For those of you who don’t know, LaVyrle Spencer was the master when it came to description. She read passages from her books to illustrate her points and I swallowed hard. I could not write like that. In the first workshop I had attended I believed I had found the answer to my write/don’t write dilemma. I had no place in this world and no business calling myself a writer.
So I went back to my room in the hotel, drew the drapes and started repacking. (In the dark. When I get depressed, I pull out all the stops.) About fifteen minutes later my roommate found me. She was shocked. And a tad angry. She couldn’t believe I was leaving when I hadn’t really given the conference a chance! I explained that I had but she said I hadn’t and the next thing I knew I was promising to go back downstairs.
But I couldn’t face another workshop. So I took my cigarettes (back then I was a chain smoker. I no longer smoke.) and sneaked to the lobby seating area and settled in to “be at” the conference, but not really go to another workshop!
I sat next to a woman who gently told me she was taking a break and didn’t want to talk about writing. To her surprise, I said, “Great. I’m sick of writing, too.” Feeling I had found a kindred spirit, I proceeded to chain smoke while we chit-chatted about nothing in particular. After about a half-hour of discussing anything but writing, she asked if I wrote. I told her I used to. I explained that coming to this conference I realized I knew nothing about writing. I didn’t know all the “rules” everybody kept talking about…
Heck, I didn’t even know there were rules. All I knew was that I read two books a day for five years and loved them so much I wanted to write them, but apparently I couldn’t because everything I sent in got rejected.
She said, “Hum. Are you writing what you know?”
I told her I was writing what I liked. Marriage of convenience, secret babies, and larger than life heroes. She said, “Can you somehow take the stories that you like but infuse them with your life experience?”
I said I didn’t know but what she said made sense.
We chatted some more about my kids and husband and her family and what it was like to live in NYC. Then she rose. She really had to get back to things. But she also handed me her card. She said, “I’m Lucia Macro from Silhouette books. Send me your next manuscript and we’ll see if you really should quit.”
I was surprised, but my friends almost fainted. I was so out of the loop I didn’t realize Lucia was an exceptional editor and that most writers would climb Everest to work with her. I wasn’t even going to send her anything. I thought she was just being kind by asking me to submit to her.
Well, technically, she was just being kind, since she had never seen my work. But through our conversation she recognized that I loved the genre and love for any genre frequently translates into good stories for that genre. And she made the fair assessment that if pointed in the right direction, I could write good books.
So, that night my friends and I set about to figure out a plot for a new book. (Since all my others had been rejected.) And that Tuesday night, after work, after the kids were in bed, when I could have been watching television, I was back at my computer.
I had a reason to write. After years of getting form rejections, I had someone willing to give me more than a cursory glance, maybe even someone who was willing to help me. If I didn’t send her something I would miss what other people considered to be the chance of a lifetime.
That’s motivation.
Now, the rest of the story is that I couldn’t use the plot my friends and I came up with because it wasn’t “me.” It was a reflection of a combination of their life experience and mine, and as Lucia said I had to figure out a way to take the well loved story lines and infuse them with my own experience. I did that, sent the book to Lucia and Silhouette bought it, ultimately launching a career that I love.
Motivation, I think, is the promise of something good or the fear of something bad that compels us to take action. Without action, we don’t reach our goals. So when you’re thinking about setting goals, you should be trying to figure out the things you are willing or eager to take action to achieve.
And that means that when you set goals, you should be looking at your life. Not just randomly deciding that within the next year you would “like” to publish a mystery or learn to rock climb. You should be looking at your life thinking: I need exercise so I’m going to …
You fill in that blank.
Learn to rock climb might be the answer, but it might not. It might not be a realistic way to get the exercise you need and might actually prevent you from accomplishing the goal of getting exercise. Conversely, if you’re a person who bores easily and likes to do interesting, exciting things, you may have missed the mark on your goal of “exercising” every year because running, video aerobics and floor exercises bore you. So, “learn to rock climb” might be exactly the kind of answer you need to your exercise dilemma.
There needs to be a link between real life, your personality type, and your desires. And, that, I think is where most of us miss the boat.
And that’s also the end of our lesson today as well as today’s assignment.
Dig out last year’s New Year’s resolutions or think of the last goal/s you set and examine them. Do they fit your life? Do they fit your needs? Are they YOUR resolutions or things you think your husband, your mother, or your writer’s group wants you to accomplish?
What do you want? What fits your life? Who are you?
Next answer the question: What do you need? You cannot leave behind parental responsibilities, marriage responsibilities, or your day job just yet. There are things you want and things you need. Responsibilities you must meet. Make a list of both.
susan meier
Please don't forget to get a copy of KISSES ON HER CHRISTMAS LIST! This is one of my best books to date. I want everybody to read it. LOL
Last month, to simplify my website, we took down the goal setting workshop. Yikes! It's darned near January...that was supid.
Well, yeah. Writing and teaching, creating an ezine, remodeling a kitchen, caring for a disabled son...I get a little overwhelmed sometimes and make snap decisions that don't always make sense. LOL!!! (:0
So here's the intro of the goal setting workshop and right below that will be lesson 1. I know...it's not January, seriously, you should be thinking of your goals for next year now...Goals should not be set in ten minutes while you're waiting for a latte. Or when you sit down at your desk January 2 and say, Hey, I should have goals. LOL
You need to give your goals, your career, your personal life, your finances, your relationships, your spiritual life, your health...some real thought.
So let's start thinking now. December 9...week one of December.
Here's the intro...
Goal Setting
A few decades ago when I decided I want to be "a writer" I had absolutely no idea what I was doing. Luckily, I was also working with a very forward thinking man, who pointed me in the direction of motivational tapes.
Many people think I should hang my head in shame at the admission that I listened to every tape in the corporate library. Most of us recognize those tapes are propaganda that bosses use to turn unsuspecting employees into overeager sycophants always working for the next promotion -- victims of the carrot and the stick.
But a funny thing happened. Because I wasn't thinking of these principles in terms of my day job, but modifying them to help me organize my writing life…The principles really helped me.
I've listened to the greats: Tony Robbins, Zig Ziglar, Earl Nightengale, Brian Tracy, Tom Peterson … and many others. I got several very good takes on goal setting, which I examine and explore in the upcoming lessons. But based on my own experience I've also sprinkled in other things I think will help you to understand what I call the "psychology" behind why you set goals and why the goals you've set to this point might not have worked.
Don't worry about the fact that this workshop is being given in increments. There's homework that needs to be done, so you will be glad for the time in between lessons. Also you may find yourself needing to think through some of the principles and really examining your life. The time in between lessons will be perfect for that.
So grab a cup of coffee and maybe a pen and tablet and let's talk a bit about organizing your life as a writer and setting some goals that will help you live your dreams!
susan meier
Session One: Introduction – Which came first the chicken or the egg?
We all love goals. In fact, it’s been proven that people who regularly set goals and “check up” on their progress accomplish something like fifty times more than people who don’t! It amazes me when I hear someone say he or she doesn’t set goals because I know they work.
But, my friends argue, that’s exactly why they don’t set goals. Their goals never seem to get accomplished the way mine do.
Hum.
Being a person who apparently has too much time on her hands or who is maybe a tad too curious for her own good, I wanted to know why. But, I also had to admit that not all of my goals were accomplished, either, and that made me doubly curious.
So I analyzed which of my goals were accomplished and compared them to the goals I had which were not accomplished to see if I could figure out why one goal comes to fruition yet the one right beside it, maybe even one that should have been simpler, doesn’t. And I made an odd discovery.
The goals I accomplished “fit” my life. The goals I did not accomplish did not fit my life.
What the heck do I mean by that? Well, I reached the goal of getting published and earning a few extra thousand dollars each year when I desperately needed it. I reached the goal of selling enough that I could write full time, quit my day job and stay home with my kids when they became teenagers and refused to have a baby-sitter anymore. Notice that I needed to achieve both of those goals!
Conversely, I haven’t reached the goal of keeping off my twenty pounds of yo-yo weight. I haven’t read any of the classics. I really don’t know anybody who has, so I wouldn’t have anybody to discuss them with anyway. So (aside from personal fulfillment) there’s no “reason” for me really to accomplish either of those goals. Which means that as soon as my doctor tells me that my extra twenty pounds is causing a health risk, I will probably lose it and keep it off.
In other words… We will find a way to reach any goal with a compelling “reason” behind it. And that means success or failure in goal setting all boils down to motivation.
Motivation (or need of a specific result) is what keeps you working when you would rather be watching Wheel of Fortune. It nudges you to read an hour a day when you think you don’t have time. It causes you to think creatively about your time, to find little blocks you didn’t realize you had and to use them. Because, let’s face it, we can all find the blocks of time…but do we always use them?
So, if we do what we are motivated to do – what we need to do – then why do most of us set goals then try to manufacture motivation? Or ,worse, why do we set goals with no thought to motivation at all?
Good question. And one that I can’t answer except to say that’s why we fail. We don’t “need” most of our goals and a goal is only as good as the reason you want to reach it.
Let me tell you a story that proves that. (And, by the way, here comes my usual disclaimer. I use stories about myself, not to promote myself, but because I don’t want to be sued. Please don’t think I’m an egotistical nutcase, just know that I’m someone who would rather not have to call her brother-in-law the lawyer and get a lecture about talking about other people on the Internet!)
Okay, here goes…
Years ago (probably close to 20, actually, but who’s counting) I went to my first writer’s conference. The trip was one of those last ditch efforts. I had been writing unsuccessfully for four years and I was depressed and defeated. Something either happened for me at this conference or I was quitting. So I packed my bags and left for the airport more depressed than excited. I felt I was walking through the last chapter of my writing career story. I was sure nothing good would happen and come Monday morning when I returned I would no longer be a writer.
Pretty darned sad, huh? I get misty just thinking about it.
Anyway, on Saturday morning when the workshops began I made the mistake of attending LaVyrle Spencer’s session on description. For those of you who don’t know, LaVyrle Spencer was the master when it came to description. She read passages from her books to illustrate her points and I swallowed hard. I could not write like that. In the first workshop I had attended I believed I had found the answer to my write/don’t write dilemma. I had no place in this world and no business calling myself a writer.
So I went back to my room in the hotel, drew the drapes and started repacking. (In the dark. When I get depressed, I pull out all the stops.) About fifteen minutes later my roommate found me. She was shocked. And a tad angry. She couldn’t believe I was leaving when I hadn’t really given the conference a chance! I explained that I had but she said I hadn’t and the next thing I knew I was promising to go back downstairs.
But I couldn’t face another workshop. So I took my cigarettes (back then I was a chain smoker. I no longer smoke.) and sneaked to the lobby seating area and settled in to “be at” the conference, but not really go to another workshop!
I sat next to a woman who gently told me she was taking a break and didn’t want to talk about writing. To her surprise, I said, “Great. I’m sick of writing, too.” Feeling I had found a kindred spirit, I proceeded to chain smoke while we chit-chatted about nothing in particular. After about a half-hour of discussing anything but writing, she asked if I wrote. I told her I used to. I explained that coming to this conference I realized I knew nothing about writing. I didn’t know all the “rules” everybody kept talking about…
Heck, I didn’t even know there were rules. All I knew was that I read two books a day for five years and loved them so much I wanted to write them, but apparently I couldn’t because everything I sent in got rejected.
She said, “Hum. Are you writing what you know?”
I told her I was writing what I liked. Marriage of convenience, secret babies, and larger than life heroes. She said, “Can you somehow take the stories that you like but infuse them with your life experience?”
I said I didn’t know but what she said made sense.
We chatted some more about my kids and husband and her family and what it was like to live in NYC. Then she rose. She really had to get back to things. But she also handed me her card. She said, “I’m Lucia Macro from Silhouette books. Send me your next manuscript and we’ll see if you really should quit.”
I was surprised, but my friends almost fainted. I was so out of the loop I didn’t realize Lucia was an exceptional editor and that most writers would climb Everest to work with her. I wasn’t even going to send her anything. I thought she was just being kind by asking me to submit to her.
Well, technically, she was just being kind, since she had never seen my work. But through our conversation she recognized that I loved the genre and love for any genre frequently translates into good stories for that genre. And she made the fair assessment that if pointed in the right direction, I could write good books.
So, that night my friends and I set about to figure out a plot for a new book. (Since all my others had been rejected.) And that Tuesday night, after work, after the kids were in bed, when I could have been watching television, I was back at my computer.
I had a reason to write. After years of getting form rejections, I had someone willing to give me more than a cursory glance, maybe even someone who was willing to help me. If I didn’t send her something I would miss what other people considered to be the chance of a lifetime.
That’s motivation.
Now, the rest of the story is that I couldn’t use the plot my friends and I came up with because it wasn’t “me.” It was a reflection of a combination of their life experience and mine, and as Lucia said I had to figure out a way to take the well loved story lines and infuse them with my own experience. I did that, sent the book to Lucia and Silhouette bought it, ultimately launching a career that I love.
Motivation, I think, is the promise of something good or the fear of something bad that compels us to take action. Without action, we don’t reach our goals. So when you’re thinking about setting goals, you should be trying to figure out the things you are willing or eager to take action to achieve.
And that means that when you set goals, you should be looking at your life. Not just randomly deciding that within the next year you would “like” to publish a mystery or learn to rock climb. You should be looking at your life thinking: I need exercise so I’m going to …
You fill in that blank.
Learn to rock climb might be the answer, but it might not. It might not be a realistic way to get the exercise you need and might actually prevent you from accomplishing the goal of getting exercise. Conversely, if you’re a person who bores easily and likes to do interesting, exciting things, you may have missed the mark on your goal of “exercising” every year because running, video aerobics and floor exercises bore you. So, “learn to rock climb” might be exactly the kind of answer you need to your exercise dilemma.
There needs to be a link between real life, your personality type, and your desires. And, that, I think is where most of us miss the boat.
And that’s also the end of our lesson today as well as today’s assignment.
Dig out last year’s New Year’s resolutions or think of the last goal/s you set and examine them. Do they fit your life? Do they fit your needs? Are they YOUR resolutions or things you think your husband, your mother, or your writer’s group wants you to accomplish?
What do you want? What fits your life? Who are you?
Next answer the question: What do you need? You cannot leave behind parental responsibilities, marriage responsibilities, or your day job just yet. There are things you want and things you need. Responsibilities you must meet. Make a list of both.
susan meier
Please don't forget to get a copy of KISSES ON HER CHRISTMAS LIST! This is one of my best books to date. I want everybody to read it. LOL
Monday, December 5, 2011
Genres, Subgenres and Hybrids
Sort of like lions and tigers and bears, oh my.
I have a list of five things that I have people in my classes use to test out their "idea" for their next book, (which I've had them condense to one paragraph).
1. Is your paragraph clear. If it isn't, try again. Cut out all extraneous explanations and get right to the point. What's really going on in your story? Is it a bodyguard story, an older man/younger woman story, a mystery, a thriller? If it is, just say that!
2. From this paragraph, can I (or could an editor) tell your story is interesting, consistent, credible and compelling?
3. Is something -- strong conflict, compelling goals, gripping motivations -- "missing" from your story?
4. Could you add something in your summary that might shoot your story over the moon?
5. Should you rewrite your paragraph to incorporate the shoot-over-the-moon idea? And if you did, could you see yourself changing your book to match the new story summary? (Just in your head! Never start rewriting until you've tested things out first in a storyboard, story summary or with a could, might, must and should list!)
Okay...If you read all of those with your current story in mind, you were probably fine until #4...THE SHOOT THE STORY OVER THE MOON IDEA.
There's a lot, lot, lot we could talk about in terms of shooting your story over the moon, but for the purposes of today's blog GENRES, SUBGENRES AND HYBRIDS (oh my), we're not going to tell you how to get these ideas. But rather, we'll talk about when they're good and when they're bad.
Bad? A great idea can be bad?
Yes. All because of genre conventions and reader expectations.
Oh, and did I mention that these shoot-the-story-over-the-moon ideas might be either why you get published or why you don't?
Lots to talk about.
Okay, so let's start with genres, subgenres and hybrids. In Susan Meier world, genres are obvious: Mystery, Suspense, Romance, Thriller, Sci Fi, Western (etc.)
In Romance we have tons of subgenres. Romantic Suspense, Romantic Mystery, Sci-Fi Romance, Romantic Thrillers, Traditional Romance, Sweet Romance, Medical Romance, Small Town Romance...you get the picture. (Mysteries, Thrillers, Sci-Fi, Westerns [etc] also have lots of subgenres or types.)
These subgenres actually came about because somebody was bold enough to write a HYBRID.
Simply put, a hybrid is a combination of two things that create a third. Romance with Suspense = Romantic Suspense. If that third thing catches on with readers, it becomes a subgenre. Publishers even push this. (Taking advantage of the excitment over a new thing they publish lots of that thing until it becomes a subgenre or sadly fizzles from oversaturation.) [By the way, I'm not talking fancy here. Just down to earth so you "get" what I'm saying.]
So it almost seems that we're saying if you want to become wildly successful write a hybrid.
Yes and no.
Hybrids are fun. They are fun to write. They are fun to watch when they come out to see if readers love them ... or to see if they create a new subgenre. But hybrids are hard to shelf. And before the days of over-the-top self-publishing, lots of publishers didn't want to touch them. Why? Just because they are hard to shelf? Yeah. Basically. Except there's another bugaboo in there. YOU may like the combo you've chosen, sweet paranormal romance...but will anybody else?
Sexual tension, sexual curiosity, great sex and general weirdness [read: great imagination on the part of the writer] typically sell paranormals. Readers of "sweet" romances generally don't like weird or unusual things. They want the writer's imagination spent on unique twists of their own particular subgenre, not weird things.
I can't see a true "sweet" romance reader liking paranormals. And if you water down the paranromal aspect enough that it's a "sweet" romance, then I can't see paranormal readers liking it. And if you don't water down the paranormal elements, then you don't have a sweet romance.
Get the picture?
So, writing hybrids is fun, but you can't say for sure your particular hybrid would hit a mark or find an audience...At least not one big enough for traditional/legacy publishing. Which means you might make some money self publishing but I think that's another blog! LOL
So when does a hybrid catch on? When you mix the right two genres (obviously) but also when you target an audience and reach them.
What do I mean? Years ago I wrote a book called IN FOR LIFE. It was a romantic suspense written for Intrigue. Intrigue was a category romance line. So my first responsibility (yes, it is a responsibility) to readers was to give them a category romance. I had to hit all the conventions of a category romance to satisify readers and I used the suspense of the story to further the romance. Why? Because it was a category romance. I was writing for category romance readers so I was pleasing them. Plus, it was a nice [easy, fun] way to up the sexual tension as well as the general tension of the story.
The suspense and the romance drove the story equally. The suspense and the romance braided together. Each impacted the other.
I did my job by knowing my audience and giving category romance readers what they wanted. Now, the book might not have pleased straight suspense readers as much as it pleased category romance readers. But I was writing for category romance writers. It was my job to please them.
And that's another risk of a hybrid. You won't necessarily please all the readers of the original subgenre. But the interesting thing about romantic suspense is that if written well, most romance readers will love you.
So the trick to writing a hybrid is to pick an audience and speak to them.
But that's also the trick to writing a category romance, building an audience and becoming successful. It's also the trick to writing a great single title romance, building an audience and becoming successful. It's also the trick to writing a great ANYTHING and becoming successful.
And it's also why you could have written a truly WONDERFUL story that won't be bought because whatever you chose to shot the story over the moon shot it right out of your genre's, subgenre's or line's conventions.
So you have to be aware when you're coming up with your idea of what your genre's conventions are. Will what you're considering to shoot your idea over the mood actually shoot it out of contention?
Hum...something to think about!
If your publicity material says, my book will appeal to EVERYBODY I cringe. My mother does not like romance novels. [Sad for me, huh?] She will tolerate a romance [like in romantic suspense] but it had better take second place in your story and not be too sappy. If you appeal to her by watering down the romance or not having a romance, then you're not going to appeal to me because I only seem to like books that have romance in them. And I want the romance in front. Most important. With a nice helping of sap, thank you very much.
Do you see your quandry?
You cannot appeal to EVERYONE. But you can appeal to a large audience. My mom and I don't fit into the same subset. But there are plenty of other people who like romance and sci-fi being 50/50 in a book. [I'm one of them.] There are lots of people who like romance and thriller being 50/50 in a book. There are lots of people who like romance and military [new subgenre in my opinion] being 50/50 in a book. There are lots [and lots and lots] of people who like romance and paranormal being 50/50 in a book.
My mom just isn't one of them! So you're not speaking to her. Don't let that trouble you. There are plenty of romance readers out there. She'll find her own books. LOL
So the trick to a good hybrid is to pick a good, stable, solid audience and speak to them, spicing up your story with something else that you can easily give 50% of your story to without taking away from the romance that will draw the audience. In fact, a hybrid works best when the romance enhances the "other" story and the "other" story enhances the romance.
And that takes us back to when a shoot-the-moon story idea is bad. And why having too good of an idea might get you rejected.
Lots of writers tell me they use the question: What's the worst thing that can happen right now? And that's what they create as the next scene in their book.
I remind them that full-scale nuclear war is the worst thing that could happen. Aside from planet-destroying asteroid strike. But that doesn't fit every book.
Actually, the whole planet-destroying asteroid strike would immediately end your book. :)
Anyway, the question 'what's the worst thing that can happen right now' needs to be tempered by your genre's conventions. Just as a sweet paranormal doesn't make sense [though right now I can see eight of you deciding to prove me wrong! :)] if your shot-over-the-moon idea doesn't fit your subgenre, story type oe line, it won't make your book better.
Especially, if something about your shoot-the-moon idea alienates readers. Or doesn't fit the conventions of the line, subgenre or story type.
So when shooting your idea over the moon, really think about your story. Think about your AUDIENCE. Think about reader expectations for your line, subgenre or story type. Don't put an asteroid in the middle of a category romance, unless it's a small one that's needed for the external conflict and you can somehow use it to up sexual tension and strengthen the internal conflict!
Think about whether your shoot-over-the-moon idea enhances the story or takes over the story ... or makes the story feel irrelevant.
If you have a mysterious brother come home about 2/3rds of the way through your historical and even the heroine thinks he's hot and he's the one who reveals the hero's secrets and maybe even the one who saves the day...you've just blown what might have been a very good story out of the water. Sure, having the brother come home might have been exciting. But if he upstages your hero, he failed. He didn't enhance the story. He ruined it.
Think through your shoot-over-the-moon idea the same way. Make sure you don't come up with something that's outside the realm of what readers want and make sure the idea enhances the story...doesn't overshadow your story or make it irrelevant.
And that's about all the time I have today. I do have to write this week. (Though my poor body is trying to catch a cold and would like nothing better than to lay about in bed watching reruns of Gilmore Girls.)
So, try to give your story something wonderful, something with umph (like a shoot-over-the-moon idea) but respect your readers and what they want to read and also don't ruin your original story with it.
Make it something that flows naturally from the story/conflicts you already have going.
That's the real trick to a shoot-over-the-moon idea, and readers will love you for it. [So will editors.]
Don't forget my two contests. Post a happy holidays comment in my Thanksgiving post and be entered to win a $25 Amazon gift certificate. Post a comment on the December ezine and be entered to win a copy of KISSES ON HER CHRISTMAS LIST!
And don't forget you're always welcome to post questions or comments on this blog.
susan
Oh, and go by KISSES ON HER CHIRSTMAS LIST! :)
I have a list of five things that I have people in my classes use to test out their "idea" for their next book, (which I've had them condense to one paragraph).
1. Is your paragraph clear. If it isn't, try again. Cut out all extraneous explanations and get right to the point. What's really going on in your story? Is it a bodyguard story, an older man/younger woman story, a mystery, a thriller? If it is, just say that!
2. From this paragraph, can I (or could an editor) tell your story is interesting, consistent, credible and compelling?
3. Is something -- strong conflict, compelling goals, gripping motivations -- "missing" from your story?
4. Could you add something in your summary that might shoot your story over the moon?
5. Should you rewrite your paragraph to incorporate the shoot-over-the-moon idea? And if you did, could you see yourself changing your book to match the new story summary? (Just in your head! Never start rewriting until you've tested things out first in a storyboard, story summary or with a could, might, must and should list!)
Okay...If you read all of those with your current story in mind, you were probably fine until #4...THE SHOOT THE STORY OVER THE MOON IDEA.
There's a lot, lot, lot we could talk about in terms of shooting your story over the moon, but for the purposes of today's blog GENRES, SUBGENRES AND HYBRIDS (oh my), we're not going to tell you how to get these ideas. But rather, we'll talk about when they're good and when they're bad.
Bad? A great idea can be bad?
Yes. All because of genre conventions and reader expectations.
Oh, and did I mention that these shoot-the-story-over-the-moon ideas might be either why you get published or why you don't?
Lots to talk about.
Okay, so let's start with genres, subgenres and hybrids. In Susan Meier world, genres are obvious: Mystery, Suspense, Romance, Thriller, Sci Fi, Western (etc.)
In Romance we have tons of subgenres. Romantic Suspense, Romantic Mystery, Sci-Fi Romance, Romantic Thrillers, Traditional Romance, Sweet Romance, Medical Romance, Small Town Romance...you get the picture. (Mysteries, Thrillers, Sci-Fi, Westerns [etc] also have lots of subgenres or types.)
These subgenres actually came about because somebody was bold enough to write a HYBRID.
Simply put, a hybrid is a combination of two things that create a third. Romance with Suspense = Romantic Suspense. If that third thing catches on with readers, it becomes a subgenre. Publishers even push this. (Taking advantage of the excitment over a new thing they publish lots of that thing until it becomes a subgenre or sadly fizzles from oversaturation.) [By the way, I'm not talking fancy here. Just down to earth so you "get" what I'm saying.]
So it almost seems that we're saying if you want to become wildly successful write a hybrid.
Yes and no.
Hybrids are fun. They are fun to write. They are fun to watch when they come out to see if readers love them ... or to see if they create a new subgenre. But hybrids are hard to shelf. And before the days of over-the-top self-publishing, lots of publishers didn't want to touch them. Why? Just because they are hard to shelf? Yeah. Basically. Except there's another bugaboo in there. YOU may like the combo you've chosen, sweet paranormal romance...but will anybody else?
Sexual tension, sexual curiosity, great sex and general weirdness [read: great imagination on the part of the writer] typically sell paranormals. Readers of "sweet" romances generally don't like weird or unusual things. They want the writer's imagination spent on unique twists of their own particular subgenre, not weird things.
I can't see a true "sweet" romance reader liking paranormals. And if you water down the paranromal aspect enough that it's a "sweet" romance, then I can't see paranormal readers liking it. And if you don't water down the paranormal elements, then you don't have a sweet romance.
Get the picture?
So, writing hybrids is fun, but you can't say for sure your particular hybrid would hit a mark or find an audience...At least not one big enough for traditional/legacy publishing. Which means you might make some money self publishing but I think that's another blog! LOL
So when does a hybrid catch on? When you mix the right two genres (obviously) but also when you target an audience and reach them.
What do I mean? Years ago I wrote a book called IN FOR LIFE. It was a romantic suspense written for Intrigue. Intrigue was a category romance line. So my first responsibility (yes, it is a responsibility) to readers was to give them a category romance. I had to hit all the conventions of a category romance to satisify readers and I used the suspense of the story to further the romance. Why? Because it was a category romance. I was writing for category romance readers so I was pleasing them. Plus, it was a nice [easy, fun] way to up the sexual tension as well as the general tension of the story.
The suspense and the romance drove the story equally. The suspense and the romance braided together. Each impacted the other.
I did my job by knowing my audience and giving category romance readers what they wanted. Now, the book might not have pleased straight suspense readers as much as it pleased category romance readers. But I was writing for category romance writers. It was my job to please them.
And that's another risk of a hybrid. You won't necessarily please all the readers of the original subgenre. But the interesting thing about romantic suspense is that if written well, most romance readers will love you.
So the trick to writing a hybrid is to pick an audience and speak to them.
But that's also the trick to writing a category romance, building an audience and becoming successful. It's also the trick to writing a great single title romance, building an audience and becoming successful. It's also the trick to writing a great ANYTHING and becoming successful.
And it's also why you could have written a truly WONDERFUL story that won't be bought because whatever you chose to shot the story over the moon shot it right out of your genre's, subgenre's or line's conventions.
So you have to be aware when you're coming up with your idea of what your genre's conventions are. Will what you're considering to shoot your idea over the mood actually shoot it out of contention?
Hum...something to think about!
If your publicity material says, my book will appeal to EVERYBODY I cringe. My mother does not like romance novels. [Sad for me, huh?] She will tolerate a romance [like in romantic suspense] but it had better take second place in your story and not be too sappy. If you appeal to her by watering down the romance or not having a romance, then you're not going to appeal to me because I only seem to like books that have romance in them. And I want the romance in front. Most important. With a nice helping of sap, thank you very much.
Do you see your quandry?
You cannot appeal to EVERYONE. But you can appeal to a large audience. My mom and I don't fit into the same subset. But there are plenty of other people who like romance and sci-fi being 50/50 in a book. [I'm one of them.] There are lots of people who like romance and thriller being 50/50 in a book. There are lots of people who like romance and military [new subgenre in my opinion] being 50/50 in a book. There are lots [and lots and lots] of people who like romance and paranormal being 50/50 in a book.
My mom just isn't one of them! So you're not speaking to her. Don't let that trouble you. There are plenty of romance readers out there. She'll find her own books. LOL
So the trick to a good hybrid is to pick a good, stable, solid audience and speak to them, spicing up your story with something else that you can easily give 50% of your story to without taking away from the romance that will draw the audience. In fact, a hybrid works best when the romance enhances the "other" story and the "other" story enhances the romance.
And that takes us back to when a shoot-the-moon story idea is bad. And why having too good of an idea might get you rejected.
Lots of writers tell me they use the question: What's the worst thing that can happen right now? And that's what they create as the next scene in their book.
I remind them that full-scale nuclear war is the worst thing that could happen. Aside from planet-destroying asteroid strike. But that doesn't fit every book.
Actually, the whole planet-destroying asteroid strike would immediately end your book. :)
Anyway, the question 'what's the worst thing that can happen right now' needs to be tempered by your genre's conventions. Just as a sweet paranormal doesn't make sense [though right now I can see eight of you deciding to prove me wrong! :)] if your shot-over-the-moon idea doesn't fit your subgenre, story type oe line, it won't make your book better.
Especially, if something about your shoot-the-moon idea alienates readers. Or doesn't fit the conventions of the line, subgenre or story type.
So when shooting your idea over the moon, really think about your story. Think about your AUDIENCE. Think about reader expectations for your line, subgenre or story type. Don't put an asteroid in the middle of a category romance, unless it's a small one that's needed for the external conflict and you can somehow use it to up sexual tension and strengthen the internal conflict!
Think about whether your shoot-over-the-moon idea enhances the story or takes over the story ... or makes the story feel irrelevant.
If you have a mysterious brother come home about 2/3rds of the way through your historical and even the heroine thinks he's hot and he's the one who reveals the hero's secrets and maybe even the one who saves the day...you've just blown what might have been a very good story out of the water. Sure, having the brother come home might have been exciting. But if he upstages your hero, he failed. He didn't enhance the story. He ruined it.
Think through your shoot-over-the-moon idea the same way. Make sure you don't come up with something that's outside the realm of what readers want and make sure the idea enhances the story...doesn't overshadow your story or make it irrelevant.
And that's about all the time I have today. I do have to write this week. (Though my poor body is trying to catch a cold and would like nothing better than to lay about in bed watching reruns of Gilmore Girls.)
So, try to give your story something wonderful, something with umph (like a shoot-over-the-moon idea) but respect your readers and what they want to read and also don't ruin your original story with it.
Make it something that flows naturally from the story/conflicts you already have going.
That's the real trick to a shoot-over-the-moon idea, and readers will love you for it. [So will editors.]
Don't forget my two contests. Post a happy holidays comment in my Thanksgiving post and be entered to win a $25 Amazon gift certificate. Post a comment on the December ezine and be entered to win a copy of KISSES ON HER CHRISTMAS LIST!
And don't forget you're always welcome to post questions or comments on this blog.
susan
Oh, and go by KISSES ON HER CHIRSTMAS LIST! :)
Wednesday, November 30, 2011
Dear Readers...I haven't forgotten you!
I spend so much time in this blog giving writing tips that I think readers might think I've forgotten them. Exactly the opposite. I love helping writers get published and/or improve their craft because I'm also a reader. So when I help writers, I'm helping all of us who love to read! LOL!!!!
Lately, I've been bouncing back and forth between paranormals and Jill Shalvis. So this week, I bought a romantic suspense. Just for a change of pace.
But it's also the season for holiday books and movies. My son, who is a huge lover of holiday movies, has already begun taping and watching them. Home Alone started it. My husband and I can be sitting downstairs watching TV (with the volume up) and we'll hear him howling with laughter over that movie.
But we love that. Christmas is a season of hope and joy. And I think laughter's a part of that. In fact, I'm a big fan of laughing. I love to find humor in simple things and I just like to laugh. Not to stress.
So this holiday season, when things are getting stressful...maybe when you're shopping or trying to find a parking space in a crowded mall...find something to laugh about. Ask God to bless the person who sneaks into your parking space or in front of you in the checkout line. Don't let an insensitive lout spoil your joy! We all deserve joy. Keep yours! LOL
For the writers among us, scroll down...there are lots of how to write blogs.
And for my readers...Merry Christmas. Post a comment (a seasons greeting) in my November 24 blog and be entered to win a $25 Amazon gift card!
If it strikes your fancy, buy a copy of my Christmas book KISSES ON HER CHRISTMAS LIST. That's definitely one of those laughing through your tears book. Finley, the hero's daughter isn't one of the kids on Santa's "nice" list. In fact, she doesn't believe in Santa or Christmas because her mom left on Christmas day and she hasn't seen her since. The heroine has a big job ahead of her getting Finley to believe again...what she doesn't expect is that in the process she'll fall in love with Finley's dad, the one man she can't have.
Happy Reading!
susan meier
Lately, I've been bouncing back and forth between paranormals and Jill Shalvis. So this week, I bought a romantic suspense. Just for a change of pace.
But it's also the season for holiday books and movies. My son, who is a huge lover of holiday movies, has already begun taping and watching them. Home Alone started it. My husband and I can be sitting downstairs watching TV (with the volume up) and we'll hear him howling with laughter over that movie.
But we love that. Christmas is a season of hope and joy. And I think laughter's a part of that. In fact, I'm a big fan of laughing. I love to find humor in simple things and I just like to laugh. Not to stress.
So this holiday season, when things are getting stressful...maybe when you're shopping or trying to find a parking space in a crowded mall...find something to laugh about. Ask God to bless the person who sneaks into your parking space or in front of you in the checkout line. Don't let an insensitive lout spoil your joy! We all deserve joy. Keep yours! LOL
For the writers among us, scroll down...there are lots of how to write blogs.
And for my readers...Merry Christmas. Post a comment (a seasons greeting) in my November 24 blog and be entered to win a $25 Amazon gift card!
If it strikes your fancy, buy a copy of my Christmas book KISSES ON HER CHRISTMAS LIST. That's definitely one of those laughing through your tears book. Finley, the hero's daughter isn't one of the kids on Santa's "nice" list. In fact, she doesn't believe in Santa or Christmas because her mom left on Christmas day and she hasn't seen her since. The heroine has a big job ahead of her getting Finley to believe again...what she doesn't expect is that in the process she'll fall in love with Finley's dad, the one man she can't have.
Happy Reading!
susan meier
Monday, November 28, 2011
How to Come Up With A Great Story, Part 2
Last week we talked a bit about ten-book syndrome (which might be 2-book syndrome or 12-book syndrome for you since all of our careers are different!).
I suggested that you keep your old synopsis and start taking notes on your editorial comments in order to springboard yourself into becoming a better writer more quickly.
But today, the rubber meets the road.
We're going to discuss the lowest common denominator qualities I have found in all great books, regardless of genre.
Story, theme and vehicle.
I discovered that no matter what your genre, you have a story for your book …
Like: Boss falls in love with secretary. Werewolves invade a small mid-western town. A widow learns to live again after her son dies. A shy engineer finds love when she uncovers her wild side. (I call this a one-line summary by the way. You can use this as an elevator pitch at conferences. An editor says...What's your book about and you say, A widow learns to love again after her son dies. Now, note, it's not high concept. For it to be high concept...Oh, wait. There's too much there for me to try to explain that quickly. We'll talk about that in another blog. Just know that editors and agents know that YOU know your story, when you can boil it down to that one line! And believe it or not that's about all they need to hear to know whether or not what you're writing would work for them.)
I'm sure you already know you need to have a story, but what you might not know is that in addition to your STORY you also need a THEME. (Yes, even for something small like a category romance.)
Like: Forgiveness is hard. Or you won’t ever find yourself if you don’t take risks. Or sometimes you have to come out of your comfort zone. Love conquers all. Don't judge a book by its cover. Live and let live. (To just touch on a few themes...)
Why? Because themes unify. They give a story direction. And, as a writer, you will appreciate having a little direction! LOL
I suggested that you keep your old synopsis and start taking notes on your editorial comments in order to springboard yourself into becoming a better writer more quickly.
But today, the rubber meets the road.
We're going to discuss the lowest common denominator qualities I have found in all great books, regardless of genre.
Story, theme and vehicle.
I discovered that no matter what your genre, you have a story for your book …
Like: Boss falls in love with secretary. Werewolves invade a small mid-western town. A widow learns to live again after her son dies. A shy engineer finds love when she uncovers her wild side. (I call this a one-line summary by the way. You can use this as an elevator pitch at conferences. An editor says...What's your book about and you say, A widow learns to love again after her son dies. Now, note, it's not high concept. For it to be high concept...Oh, wait. There's too much there for me to try to explain that quickly. We'll talk about that in another blog. Just know that editors and agents know that YOU know your story, when you can boil it down to that one line! And believe it or not that's about all they need to hear to know whether or not what you're writing would work for them.)
I'm sure you already know you need to have a story, but what you might not know is that in addition to your STORY you also need a THEME. (Yes, even for something small like a category romance.)
Like: Forgiveness is hard. Or you won’t ever find yourself if you don’t take risks. Or sometimes you have to come out of your comfort zone. Love conquers all. Don't judge a book by its cover. Live and let live. (To just touch on a few themes...)
Why? Because themes unify. They give a story direction. And, as a writer, you will appreciate having a little direction! LOL
Then you need a VEHICLE. This is what most people refer to as an external conflict.
Like: A boss falls in love with his secretary when they are stranded in a cabin in a snowstorm.
Do you see how being stranded facilitates the hero and heroine falling in love? It’s the “vehicle” that keeps them together long enough that they stop and really notice each other.
How about: Werewolves invade a small Midwestern town and when the heroine is captured by the leader and used as their source of information to take over the town, she and the Alpha fall in love.
Her capture is the vehicle. It gets and keeps the heroine and the Alpha together long enough to fall in love.
How about: Learning to care for his infant half-brother the hero falls in love with his co-guardian.
Learning to care for the infant is the vehicle.
How about: Investigating the murder of his brother the hero and heroine fall in love.
Investigating is the vehicle.
You can’t have a great story without a vehicle…something that gets them together and keeps them together. Without a strong, worthy vehicle, your book will read as episodic.
Now, reading those examples above, any one of them could be a category romance. How would we turn them into single titles?
Now, reading those examples above, any one of them could be a category romance. How would we turn them into single titles?
By having enough threads connected to the vehicle.
Let’s take: Werewolves invade a small Midwestern town and when the heroine is captured by the leader and used as their source of information to take over, she and the Alpha fall in love.
To make this a single title, you could show his pack becoming disgruntled as he goes soft on the heroine, and mutiny when he officially makes her his mate.
You could also add that her father organizes a search party to find her…because he has an agenda of his own.
You could also add that the town bartender knew the werewolves were coming and wants to join the pack now before the townspeople find out and he becomes a liability.
Do you see how those threads take a simple, one-note story and turn it into something richer, more textured?
Now, you can’t just add threads willy-nilly. Notice how all of the above threads connect to the main story of the werewolves invading town? That’s how you keep a story tight and connected!
And one final point...the vehicle for a mainstream or thriller or straight suspense or science fiction or women's fiction doesn't act as a way to get and keep the hero and heroine together so they can fall in love. Rather, the vehicle in books other than romance is the "thing" that tosses your protagonist into the story in the first place.
Like: When faced with bankruptcy after her son is killed, a widow is forced to get a job at a daycare and learns to live again.
Getting a job at a daycare is the vehicle that helps her to learn to live again. (Going bankrupt is the inciting incident.)
Or: When terroists take over Texas (sure, why not? LOL), Colonel Art Mongtomery faces not just an unexpectly terrifying threat to the world but also his own personal demons when he's the one charged with taking back the state.
Being charged with the job of taking back the state is the vehicle that not only introduces him to the bad, bad terrorists, but also forces him to face his personal demons.
So there you have it.
Coming up with story ideas might be a very natural thing for you at the beginning of your career. But learning how to sort through them and pick the best ideas is a skill you need to acquire. It’s also wise to do a little analysis in your genre or subgenre to see what elements make the most successful stories successful.
And it doesn’t hurt to learn how to build an idea! You may not use the story, theme and vehicle model. You can create your own model for making sure you have enough elements to write a strong, rich, textured tale.
Happy Monday!
Oh! Don't forget to scroll down to my Thanksgiving greeting and add a comment. I'll be chosing a person from those who comment to receive a $25.00 Amazon gift card.
susan meier
Thursday, November 24, 2011
Holiday Greetings Blog!
Happy Thanksgiving!
I wish you a blessed and happy holiday season. I love Thanksgiving. I really have been blessed.
I also love all the weeks leading up to Christmas. I love shopping and drinking hot drinks at Starbucks with friends, talking about the gifts we're buying our kids.
This year, I have a book KISSES ON HER CHRISTMAS LIST released on December 1, which will make the whole holiday season sweeter for me.
Because I'm feeling so lucky, I'm having a contest. To thank you all for a great year, I'm giving away a $25.00 AMAZON GIFT CARD. Post a comment to this blog...wish me a happy holiday, Merry Christmas, Happy Thanksgiving, Seasons Greetings, Happy New Year...anything...just post a comment and you'll be entered to win A $25.00 AMAZON GIFT CARD.
Happy Holidays...Seasons Greetings...Merry Christmas...Happy New Year!
Comment to be entered to win!
Winner will be drawn December 15.
susan meier
I wish you a blessed and happy holiday season. I love Thanksgiving. I really have been blessed.
I also love all the weeks leading up to Christmas. I love shopping and drinking hot drinks at Starbucks with friends, talking about the gifts we're buying our kids.
This year, I have a book KISSES ON HER CHRISTMAS LIST released on December 1, which will make the whole holiday season sweeter for me.
Because I'm feeling so lucky, I'm having a contest. To thank you all for a great year, I'm giving away a $25.00 AMAZON GIFT CARD. Post a comment to this blog...wish me a happy holiday, Merry Christmas, Happy Thanksgiving, Seasons Greetings, Happy New Year...anything...just post a comment and you'll be entered to win A $25.00 AMAZON GIFT CARD.
Happy Holidays...Seasons Greetings...Merry Christmas...Happy New Year!
Comment to be entered to win!
Winner will be drawn December 15.
susan meier
Monday, November 21, 2011
How to Come Up With A Great Story, Part 1
I have a lot of writer friends. Lots. LOL
One of the saddest things I’ve seen most of us go through is what I call ten-book syndrome. The inability to sell that tenth book.
Now, lest you miss my point, ten-book syndrome doesn’t have to happen exactly at book ten. But it happened to me at book ten. It also happened to most of my friends either right before (book 7 or 8) or right after (book 11 or 13) book ten. And it will probably happen to you too.
So what is the reason for this hellish, horrible torment I call ten-book syndrome?
Lack of a good idea.
What? Lack of a good idea? Preposterous. I have three million ideas. I have notes. I have workbooks. I have slideshow presentations of all the great ideas I'm coming up with!
No, you don't. (LOL) Right now you have three million ideas jumping around in your head. But as you write them, and editors criticize them and reject some of them, you will come to see that some of the ideas you have aren’t really good. They don’t work. Or some of them are partial ideas. Maybe good enough for a novella, but not whole books. And some might even only be good as story threads or secondary romances in better stories.
Ouch.
A good idea has to be strong enough to sustain an entire book.
If you’re writing a category romance, that means the story of how your hero and heroine fall in love has to have a conflict strong enough that readers won’t be sure these two can have a happy ending for at least 50,000 to 75,000 words.
If you’re writing a single title romance, there must be a bigger, broader story added to your romance, with enough story threads to create a rich, textured tale of around 80,000 to 100,000 words.
Now, tack onto this the fact that readers (and editors) expect you to become a better writer (better with words, better with scenes and better with plot) with every book and you will see that an idea that might have worked around book #3 might not work as book #11 because it’s not as strong as it needs to be to sustain the reader expectation that you’re going to get better with every book.
Sheesh! It’s no wonder so many people flounder and fail.
You bet it is.
So how do we get around this?
Well, the easy answer is to learn what it takes to have a great idea.
I know readers of this blog come from several different genres and write for multiple publishers, so no one answer that I give you will fit all.
But I can tell you this. After writing for awhile, most of us get a sense of “how much story” we need to have for whatever publisher, line or genre we're writing. So most of us are pretty good with that.
But how do you know the “better” stuff? How do you figure out what it takes to make your next book “better”?
Two tips...
1. Keep all your synopses. I didn’t do this and I was sorry. When I struggled, my then agent, Alice Orr, said, Go look at your last synopsis. See what you did. See what they liked.
And, well, I didn't have that old synopsis. (This was back before I had a computer!) So I was stuck!
The purpose of keeping your synopsis is to see what book 2 looked like, book 3, book 7…book 22. See what you did at a glance…and, suggestion…if you didn’t end up with a good synopsis…write one. Just two pages. That way, you can go back, review what you did…see if you are getting better, and your books are getting stronger. But more than that, see who you were as a writer. What you wrote. And also see (be honest) what you could have done better.
Because, remember, your goal is to be getting better all the time!
2. Start taking notes on your editor comments. I took a bundle of notes when I fell into ten-book syndrome and those notes became my most popular workshop CAN THIS MANUSCRIPT BE SAVED. I focused on editing as I was working my way through 10-book syndrome because that’s the angle I was getting from my [then] editor. She wasn’t helping me come up with ideas but was helping me to “fix” my stories. But even those glory days were over. She wanted me to be able to work more independently. (I hang my head in shame that it took me that long to realize that! LOL)
So I took tons of notes of what she was telling me I was doing wrong, what needed to be beefed up, what wasn’t working, and the next time I hit a bad spot in a book, I figured out why myself!
But more than that, I boiled the qualities of a great book down to story, scene and word, and, later (because I kept studying!) I discovered the lowest common denominators of a great story. Not lowest common denominators for what makes a great “category romance” but lowest common denominators for a great story. Because at their hearts great books do have a few things in common (no matter what the genre). And, again, I got a workshop out of it. STORY, THEME AND VEHICLE.
But that's where we stop today. We'll talk a bit about those lowest common denominators next week!
By the way, if you're one of my regular readers and you want to thank me for being so candid about writing...you could pre-order KISSES ON HER CHRISTMAS LIST! [LOL...not really shameless self promotion...just an honest request...since I do need to pay my mortgage! :)]
By the way, if you're one of my regular readers and you want to thank me for being so candid about writing...you could pre-order KISSES ON HER CHRISTMAS LIST! [LOL...not really shameless self promotion...just an honest request...since I do need to pay my mortgage! :)]
Happy Monday!
susan
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