Nanowriom Tips #3--The Beat Sheet

NOW it’s week 3 (my math/date/time troubles are infamous. Sorry).

This is the week when you are supposedly already 50% done, and there is a light at the end of the tunnel.

The trouble is, you might not know how to get to that light. Or which light to go towards. Or how to make a light appear.

The problem you might be having can depend on what kind of writer you are. Me? I’m a “pantser.” This is short for “Seat of your pants,” as in, I don’t write from an outline. I write to find out what happens. This is an exciting way to discover a story, but sometimes, I find that I have written myself into a corner. Or I’ve written myself into a dark corner. A very dark corner. What’s a pantser to do?

The “other” kind of writer does copious pre-writing and planning and follows her outline to the letter. Still, this kind of writer isn’t immune to getting lost, disillusioned, or finding  herself in a dark corner of a broken storyline. Sometimes the story you planned isn’t as interesting as the story that is being written, or wants to be written.

Enter the Beat Sheet. This is a mini-outline developed by Blake Snyder who wrote one of my favorite books on long-form narrative: Save the Cat. I know. It says “Screenwriting book” on the cover, but I believe that long-form narrative is long-form narrative. They all have similar “beats.” If you don’t believe me, ask Joseph Campbell.

Anyway, there are lots of ways to use this tool. Here are some ways I use it:

1.     I use it to give myself a little road-map when I start. I’m a pantser, but I like to see where my options lie.
2.     I love using the beat sheet to try out different endings or brainstorm scenes that need to be written. 
3.     If I’m stuck, I can look a the beat sheet and say, “Okay. I’ve written the midpoint…what should come next?” That way I can battle the writer’s block with a scaffold. Sometimes creativity needs a little restriction or structure to give it focus.
4.     Finally, I use it AFTER Nanowrimo as an organizational tool. I shuffle scenes around until they seem to be in the “right” place.

Blake Snyder argues that screenplays all must follow the Beat Sheet exactly. He is probably right about screenplays, but novels can be more loosely organized. However, the major “beats” should all be present, and should occur in approximately this order.

If you are writing a non-linear novel, then I would argue that the actual timeline of events in the novel should follow the beats, even if they occur in some other order in the book.

This is a tool to help with generation and organization. I do not see it as the end-all and be-all. But it really helps me.

I’ve pasted the beats at the end with approximate page numbers the beats should occur on. are. For a full explanation, go buy Save the Cat. It is a great read.

Below, I’ve posted a cheat-sheet chart explaining what the beats are.

Act I—first 25% of your work (page numbers are based on a 100 page work)
•  Opening image	The first impression of the “movie” or book
•  Theme stated 5	Someone (usually not the main character) will state the theme of the book.
•  Set-up first 10	The place to grab the reader. Introduce the characters, setting, etc. Establish the status quo.
•  Catalyst 15	The catalyst upsets the status quo.
•  Debate 12-25	Main character tries to decide what to do.
•  Break into Two 25	Moment we leave the “old” world and go into the new, non-status quo world.
Act Two—next 50% of your work
•  B Story 30	Usually the “love story.” Carries the same theme as the rest of the story
•  Fun and games 30-55	Think “movie trailer.” Promise of the premise.
•  Midpoint 55	Peak or valley in the main character’s story arc. The stakes are raised.
•  Bad Guys Close in 55-75	All seems fine, but the bad guys are temporarily defeated at the midpoint, but they regroup and come again. The good guy’s “team” begins to fall apart
•  All is Lost 75	Whiff of death. Things are so bad, the audience wonders how on earth the hero is going to survive.
•  Dark Night of the Soul 75-85	“Oh, Lord. Why hast thou forsaken me?” moment. The hero thinks it is hopeless.
•  Break into Three	Hazzah! The solution occurs to our hero!
Act Three—last 25% of your work
•  Finale 85-100	Apply lessons learned. Fight the bad guy. Reinstate status quo.
•  Final Image (end)	This image is the opposite of the opening image. Proof that change has occurred.

And here is the beat sheet, ready for you to fill out yourself!

Blake Snyder’s Beat Sheet

  Act I—first 25% of your work (page numbers are based on a 100 page work)

•  Opening image

•  Theme stated 5

•  Set-up first 10

•  Catalyst 15

•  Debate 12-25

•  Break into Two 25

Act Two—next 50% of your work

•  B Story 30

•  Fun and games 30-55

•  Midpoint 55

•  Bad Guys Close in 55-75

•  All is Lost 75

•  Dark Night of the Soul 75-85

•  Break into Three

Act Three—last 25% of your work

•  Finale 85-100

•  Final Image (end)

I hope this helps you tease out the important scenes in your story!

Until next week,

m

Nanowrimo Blog 2-- Locking up the editor

Hello again!

It’s the end of week 2 of Nanowrimo (or beginning of week 3, depending on if you are a “half-full” or “half-empty” kind of person). If you are “on track,” you are probably around the 25,000 word point in your writing. If you are trying to write a complete story arc in 30 days (which is only one way to do Nano), you are at, are approaching, or have past the story midpoint.

Wherever you are, congratulations! The second week is when it gets hard. The story building is done, and now characters have to do stuff. Your writing will probably slow down because you are now thinking and making decisions about where the story needs to go, etc. 

You will be very, very tempted to go back and edit.

Don’t do it!

One key to completing this challenge is to lock up the editor inside your head. One reason is impetus, that forward momentum you’ve built up. You need to write forward, with the assumption that you will go back and change the things that need changing later. I keep a file of To Do’s for revision (mostly because I can NEVER remember my character’s eye color).

Here are some other reasons to lock up your editor:

Reason 1—Editing is done during REVISION, not CREATION.

It can wait, no matter what she says.

I imagine my editor as me in a librarian-style getup. Pencils stuck in her hair, glasses, hair in a bun. She’s that girl in the Looong Jacket that Cake sings about. I love her, but…

My muse hates her. My muse is a hippie-chick in a flowy, guazy gown. She comes to the party late, but laughs the whole time she’s there. I love her, but as soon as the editor steps into the room, my creative muse slips out the back door.

I need them both, but I can’t have them both at the same time. So, during Nano or any time I’m writing a first draft, the Editor has to go.

Reason 2—the Editor often erodes our self-esteem.

We need all of that we can get to complete this challenge.

Most of the beginning writers I know have episodes of staring at the computer screen or blank page while their inner editor berates them.

This is the most wretched crap you’ve ever written. Who is going to care about this? No one! OMG, did you actually just write a sentence? That was terrible. Why don’t you just give up now and take nice nap?

Sigh.

I need every shred of self-esteem to write my nut every day. I have to convince myself that the hours I spend on these words make a difference…at least to myself. I have to lock the editor up so that I will write instead of nap. A nap does sound good, though. 

The thing is, many times, my editor is right. However, I can’t create and edit at the same time. I need to make a shapeless pile of mud so that I can carve out something beautiful. I need to make crap. Then it’s her job to help me make it lovely. Until then, she needs to shut up.

How to silence the editor.

These may seem tongue-in-cheek, but visualizing something like this can really help.

•Imagine locking her up in a cage and shoving a filing cabinet in front of it

•Imagine sending her on vacation.

•Acknowledge that she’s right, mark the thing in question, and MOVE ON.

Oh, you need a narrative example? Okay:

Writer #1 agonizes over one sentence for 15 minutes while she’s working on a first draft. Eventually, she finds the right wording, and moves on to the next two sentences, which only take her 15 minutes to compose. She completes 100 words in 30 minutes.

Writer #2 notices a couple errors as she’s typing, so she types “XX” nearby so she can search for the spot later. She writes at a rate of 1,000 words an hour. She completes 500 words in 30 minutes.

Notice which writer is more productive.

Guess which writer has higher writing self-esteem?

Keep going, Wrimos. You are half way there. You can do it.

The tips come from Book in a Month: The Fool-Proof System for Writing a Novel in 30 Days by Victoria Lynn Schmidt. The examples are mostly mine.

Feel like sharing this? Here’s a quote you could post:

“Locking up the editor:  Editing is done during REVISION, not CREATION. It can wait, no matter what she says.”

Claiming your writing time--NaNoWriMo Blog 1

Hello Writers!

There are lots of writers and teachers posting how to “Win” NaNoWriMo this month. (Click the link if you don't know NaNo.) Some of my favorite Nano blogs are Mur Lafferty, and this Tumblr.

I’m not one of them.

Daily? Who am I kidding?

However, I can commit to one post a week with some very useful tips for you. Plus, I will link to some of the more industrious writers who ARE posting daily, God help them.

Let’s start this post with some tips on claiming your writing time.

1.     Make writing the first thing. That is, do the writing BEFORE you do the other things. If you have a free hour and you hope to get 20 minutes of writing and 40 minutes of online holiday shopping done, DO THE WRITING FIRST. Then you won’t have worry about not ending your shopping in time to do your writing. The writing will be done!

2.     Adhere to the Pareto Principle.To over-simplify, the Pareto Principle say that 20% of your time and effort generates 80% of the results. So, try to eliminate the 80% of stuff that is a waste of our time and effort. Things like:

                             i.     Negative friends

                            ii.     Expectations (i.e. cleanest house on the block, etc.)

                          iii.     Busywork that gets you nowhere

Also, try to simplify your life. For example, my kids get one after-school activity each per week. That way I’m more than a human taxi, and I can get more writing done. They seem okay with this.

3.     Keep track of your writing time. Be accountable to someone, even if it is just yourself. This will motivate you. The word-counter on the Nanowrimo.org website is excellent for this. 

4.     Don’t ask for time. If you ask, people can say “no.” So, don’t ask. Just take the time. It’s the difference between, “Honey, can I please have an hour to write?” and “Honey, I’m in my office for an hour. See you at dinner.” The first invites the listener to consider the options; the second does not offer options.

5.     Make appointments with yourself. It sounds silly, but it works. I have a writer friend who writes over the dinner hours. Her friends would invite her to dinner, and she would always say, “No, I’m working between 5 and 7 p.m.”  Eventually her friends stop inviting her for dinner. They go to lunch, instead. Practice saying, “I can’t. I have a previous appointment at that time.”

6.     Buy your time (figuratively and literally). I practice what I preach. I have a housekeeper. The kids go to daycare an extra afternoon a week. I literally buy about 10 hours a week  of alone time so I can write. If you can’t afford that, trade babysitting with another mom for next month. Or, trade yard work for tutoring with kids. Be creative!

7.     Get out the ax! This link leads to a form that breaks the day into 30 minute chunks. I have my students track their actual time usage over a week in order to find time to write regularly within their normal day. Things that people normally cut (for the month at least) include:

a.     TV and other time-sucks

b.     Lunches out (I know a writer who wrote all his books during his lunch hour with a sack lunch)

c.      Favors for other people

d.     Cooking dinner (take out for a month won’t kill anyone)

8.     Just say “No.” This one is hardest for me. I can hardly say “no” to another project, another person asking for help, whatever. However, during NaNoWriMo, the answer has to be “no,” or I won’t finish. Also, I can’t say “maybe” to new stuff, either, because many people think this means “keep pestering me until I cave.” Writers should practice saying, “No, not until next month when I am finished with a current commitment. Please feel free to check in with me next month.” 

I'll see you in a week. By then you will have written 12,500 words. Amazing, huh? 

The tips come from Book in a Month: The Fool-Proof System for Writing a Novel in 30 Days by Victoria Lynn Schmidt. The examples are mostly mine.

Have a weekend writing prompt on me.

The whole weekend stretches before you. Need a writing prompt? Here you go. You're welcome.

You get the opportunity to talk to a famous deceased person, but you end up with someone you don't think you will like. How is this conversation accomplished? Who do you chat with? What do you talk about? What does s/he say that surprises you? Definitely try to write the answers in the person's (creepy dead?) voice.

5 tips for what to do with a publishing contract (besides sign it)

As you may know, I have signed a contract to publish my book Fuzzy Logic for a release of on or before eSummer 2015. I’m still doing my happy dance, which looks a little like the  Cabbage Patch performed by a nervous wallflower. (yay!)

I intend to use my newsletter and my blog to let my readers know 1) that it is possible to get a book published and 2) what my book’s publishing process is like.

I’ve only experienced a couple things so far. The first is that elated feeling when reading an email that begins: “Thank you for sending us your book. I think it is delightful. I’d like to offer you a contract.”

The second is the fear and bewilderment that accompanies reading that contract when it arrives.

So, here are a five tips for what to do when confronted with a new publishing contract.

1) Don’t sign it until you read it. Really. This is important.

2) Pay someone else to read it for you. Unless you are an IP lawyer, an agent, or a lawyer in the publishing industry, you need someone to read the contract for you. That someone should be an IP lawyer or a very experienced literary agent. Legalese is very dense for a reason: like iTunes contracts, you aren’t meant to read every word, nevertheless understand those words. Find an advocate whom you trust to read and explain the rights you are selling before you sign anything.

3) Publishing companies usually try to grab as many rights as possible. They have watched what happened to the music industry, and they are understandably trying to cover as many bases as possible as cheaply as they can. There are exceptions, like my publisher (more on who they are later). But don’t count on it. See #2.

4) Get a book like Copyright Handbook, The: What Every Writer Needs to Know, and familiarize yourself with copyright law, with what rights you own as a writer, and what you can sell.

5) Network with other writers, publishers, editors, agents, etc., and learn the business. Publishing is always changing. Keep up with the business so you aren’t caught flat-footed.

I hope these help you in the future…mostly because I hope all of you reading have the pleasure of reading the words “We want to send you a contract to publish your book.” That’s the best feeling.

m

Quotes to Combat Writer's Block from Writer's Circle

This might be really useful for those of you who are floudering in the third week of Camp Nanowrimo. Enjoy, and follow Writer's Circle!

-m


http://writerscircle.com/2013/09/quotes-to-combat-writers-block.html

Quotes to Combat Writer's Block 

Every writer's been there. The blank white screen and the pulsing cursor. The empty notebook and the pen poised to write. The tools are there, there's ample time... but the words refuse to flow. If you're locked in writer's block mode, there are a few time-tested methods to help you break free. Stop what you're doing and take a break. Go for a walk. Put down your work for an hour, a day or a week, then come back to it. Start writing whatever comes to mind, free from any judgment. Tell your inner critic to hush. You can edit later. Go someplace that inspires you. Read a book. Basically, shake up the dust in your head like a snowglobe. Eventually the particles will settle back down, but everything will have shifted, rearranged itself. Finally, those trapped words will start spilling out.

If you're battling writer's block, it's also helpful to read some inspiring words from authors who have been there. Here are a few gems:
 
"One of the most difficult things is the first paragraph. I have spent many months on a first paragraph, and once I get it, the rest just comes out very easily." - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
 
"The secret of getting ahead is getting started. The secret of getting started is breaking your complex overwhelming tasks into small manageable tasks, and then starting on the first one." - Mark Twain
 
"I've often said that there's no such thing as writer's block; the problem is idea block. When I find myself frozen--whether I'm working on a brief passage in a novel or brainstorming about an entire book--it's usually because I'm trying to shoehorn an idea into the passage or story where it has no place." - Jeffrey Deaver
"If I waited for perfection, I would never write a word." - Margaret Atwood
 
"What I try to do is write. I may write for two weeks ‘the cat sat on the mat, that is that, not a rat.’ And it might be just the most boring and awful stuff. But I try. When I’m writing, I write. And then it’s as if the muse is convinced that I’m serious and says, 'Okay. Okay. I’ll come.'" - Maya Angelou
 
 "I think writer's block is simply the dread that you are going to write something horrible. But as a writer, I believe that if you sit down at the keys long enough, sooner or later something will come out." - Roy Blount, Jr.
 
"Close the door. Write with no one looking over your shoulder. Don't try to figure out what other people want to hear from you; figure out what you have to say. It's the one and only thing you have to offer." - Barbara Kingsolver