Mike Angley

MA: Peggy Bechko is a multi-faceted writer. Some would say she’s far-stretched, others, multi-talented. Born in Michigan, raised in Indiana and Florida, she now lives with her husband in New Mexico, a beautiful state of mountains, pines, desert and cactus.

Fiction has been her passion from about the age of fourteen. Her only quandary was that she could never write anything short. So, in the course of things, she just kind of skipped over short stories and jumped right to novel length and submitted what she felt was her first marketable works when she was nineteen, to a literary agency in New York. They welcomed her into their ranks of writers, addressing her as Mister Bechko, which at that time went uncorrected as she was then submitting westerns and was told, repeatedly, “women can’t write westerns.”

Her first sale was to Doubleday, the editor with whom she dealt, was also greatly surprised to find himself talking to a young woman. But, over time, everybody adjusted. The book, THE NIGHT OF THE FLAMING GUNS, written it in the first person as a middle-aged man, was published when she was twenty-two. Doubleday went on to buy a total of five westerns from her.

Congratulations, Peggy, on your success as a writer, a career which began unusually early in life.  Most authors don’t publish until they are older, after experiencing life a bit and dabbling in different careers.  Given your quick start, I assume not much preceded your writing endeavors?

PB:  There’s not a lot to tell about the prequel of my writing career since it’s pretty much what I’ve always done: write.  I had my first novel published with Doubleday when I was 21.  After that I published on a fairly regular basis, westerns, then romance, and finally fantasy.  Along with that, as westerns rarely pay all the bills, I did frequently hold jobs as well.  I’ve been a bookkeeper, an administrative assistant, an assistant bookstore director at a college and legal assistant.  I took a few years off writing novels to be mentored in screenwriting, optioned several scripts domestically and abroad, wrote a script for an animated TV show airing in France and now work on script or novel – whichever appeals.  I’ve also written articles, reports and other commercial projects to help keep the bills paid.

MA: Talk about your passion for fiction, in particular novel-length stories.

PB: I chose to write novels mainly because I couldn’t stop.  Never did write short stories (though I did more recently and won an award for it).  First writings were simply novella length and they expended right into novels when I learned how to fill in the details.

I’ve written in several genres.  Western, romance and adult adventure/fantasy.  Western and romance are in hard copy format.  Fantasy is Stormrider, published at www.fictionworks.com as an Ebook.

MA: Do you find it difficult to write, especially the basic mechanics, plotting, character development, and the like?

PB:  Developing characters – protagonist or others, has always been a pretty natural progression for me.  I usually get a story idea first, then ideas for the characters flow into the mix.  It was all launched by the protagonist in my first western who was actually my grandfather in disguise.   The strengths of my hero or heroine are good character, solid resolve and adaptability…weaknesses are they’re human!

MA: As an accomplished writer, how much do you think an author’s personal life experiences should find themselves inside the plot of a work of fiction?

PB:  I think every writer’s real-life experiences are factors in every plot they write.  It’s life experiences that mold us and give us the grist for our collective mill.  It’s those experiences, life’s pain and triumph, defeat and victory that we instill into our characters.  Living life and being human is the basis of our experience and thus that of our characters.   Understanding by experience what it’s like to love, to hate, to fear – that’s all part of what we write.  Without that experience we’re empty and have nothing to put on the page.   I discuss just that in my book for new and young writers at http://www.newwriterguide.com

MA: Those are some powerful words, and spot-on observations.  So, what’s next?

PB: Beyond this – novel writing, which I am currently doing in the form of a new paranormal romance, I plan to write more scripts (have several ideas that need fleshing out) and do more ghostwriting and commercial writing.  I usually dedicate part of my day to my own projects and part to the projects of someone else to keep the bills paid.

MA:  Do you have any words of advice to aspiring writers?

PB: Writing, in any form, is my first love.  Unfortunately very few fiction writers can earn a living writing full time; it’s a small percentage who do.  Fortunately, there are other ways for writers to fill the gaps.  Think of everyday life.  What doesn’t include writing?  Who writes the newspaper articles serious or fluff?  Who writes screen or TV scripts?  Who writes magazine articles or the reports or instruction books or catalog copy or sales letters or the web content or the blogs?  If everyone suddenly stopped writing for a day what would be the result?  So all my writing life I’ve moved through different areas of writing and have loved every minute of it.  I recommend other writers who love to write, love to sculpt the sentence and paragraph, do the same.  You don’t have to do the shotgun effect, but find several areas of writing you delight in and pursue them.

MA:  That’s some great advice.  Peggy, thanks for visiting with me today and sharing your insight and inspiration with my readers.  Peggy has several websites and social media sites which I encourage everyone to visit:

http://www.PeggyBechko.50megs.com
http://www.PeggyBechko.blogspot.com
http://www.twitter.com/PeggyBechko
http://www.newwriterguide.com

Interpreting Amazon Rankings

by

Mary Deal

For book buyers, as you watch any book’s trek through the Amazon charts, it’s best not to base your buying decisions on those rankings alone.

Authors, ever wonder how to interpret book rankings on Amazon?

One sale can drop your book very low, even down below 100K. (That’s actually RAISE your book toward #1). It all depends on how many books are selling at the same time as yours. See it this way:

If you sell one copy, then everyone selling 2 or more copies will represent those sales between your ranking and the #1 slot.

Those selling fewer books than you, or no books at all, will place AFTER you out to infinity.

No real way exists to tell how many of your books sold at one time. Your book may languish at a certain position. That means no books are selling, not even yours. Any books that sell more copies than yours will continue to push your book’s ranking out, away from the #1 position, even if you’re selling well.

Sometimes just one sale of your book can take you nearer toward #1, but all that means is that no one else bought a book at the same time you did.

Amazon rankings are calculated every hour, so if no one bought a book during the hour yours sold, your ratings look real good. But watch, the next hour your rankings start to slide again due to sales of other books.

No real way exists to evaluate those ratings. Neither authors nor book buyers should give them much importance. An author could be selling a book an hour and if someone else sells two books per hour – especially if someone sells multi-copies in that same hour – though you’re making great sales, your rankings will slip.

Please visit Mary Deal’s website for more wonderful articles like this one: Write Any Genre.

Mike: Melanie Atkins a multi-published author of suspense and romantic suspense, a fan of crime dramas, and an avid reader. Writing is more than an escape for her—it’s a way of life. She grew up in the Deep South listening to tall tales and penning stories about her cats. Now she writes gripping stories of love, suspense, and mystery with the help of her furry little feline muses.

I love your genre, and I also know you have some connection to the law enforcement community.  Tell us about your background and what brought you to writing your novels.

Melanie: I’m the former wife of a police officer, and even though we divorced I admire all the brave men and women who protect and serve–and I love to write about them. Fiction grabbed me at a young age and I can’t stop writing. In an effort to “make it real and get it right,” I’ve completed two local Citizen’s Police Academies and have attended numerous writing conferences with law enforcement sessions taught by professionals, including Forensic University sponsored by the St. Louis chapter of Sisters in Crime. Some of the professionals there have turned out to be excellent resources who are eager to help. Even though I’ve sold many books, I know I’ll never stop learning.  I’ve written a good many short stories and even a little poetry (which no one will ever see) over the years but I tend to write long. I love the escape books provide and I hope to give my readers that same pleasure.

Mike: I was in law enforcement for over 25 years, and I know the sacrifices the spouses make, so thanks for your support to the troops.  Tell us about your novels.

Melanie: PRIME SUSPECT is a suspense set in New Orleans. In this story, New Orleans Assistant District Attorney Marisa Cooper prosecutes murderers for a living, but the tables are turned on her when her ex-husband is found dead in her garage. To prove her innocence, she must team up with her former fiancée, Slade Montgomery, the detective who risks his career–and his heart–to help her find the real killer.

SKELETON BAYOU is s single title romantic suspense set in south Louisiana. In this book, Savannah Love is emotionally and physically battered, but is determined to survive after escaping the hellish imprisonment imposed on her by her psychotic cop-husband. After seven months in hiding, she resurfaces at Mossy Oak, her ramshackle family home on a Louisiana bayou, and attempts to restart her life. The empty house provides shelter, but isn’t the fortress she needs when her cruel ex comes calling.

Mack O’Malley, former cop turned handyman conflicted over a bad shoot on the job, comes to Savannah’s rescue when the psychopath draws them into a deadly game of cat and mouse. Fearful of Mack at first, she soon discovers that beneath his steely exterior lies a resolute defender with a heart hungry for love. Will their alliance save them, or will they fall victim to the Legend of Skeleton Bayou?

Mike: How did you develop the ideas for the stories?

Melanie: I come up with a basic story premise, then develop my characters using character diamonds that include their four main traits–putting my two main characters at odds with each other and the villain. Everything they say and do must come from one of the corners of the diamond. I’ve found that it’s an effective way to build my heroes and heroines.

Mike: Tell us more about your heroines and heroes.

Melanie: My heroes tend to be loyal, brave, and trustworthy–but they are afraid to trust, to risk their hearts. They give their all to save the heroine and defeat their adversary, even if it means being hurt or even dying, but usually they intend to walk away in the end so they won’t get hurt. In PRIME SUSPECT, Slade is afraid Marisa will leave him again. She did once before, so why not now? He fights his attraction to her but finally gives in and together they bring down a killer.

Mike:  And the bad guys?

Melanie: Each of my books has a different villain. PRIME SUSPECT has an entire family of them, allowing for enough red herrings to keep the reader guessing. SKELETON BAYOU is a bigger book with a secondary storyline that has its own villains. It’s a complicated story.

Mike: Since you grew up in the Deep South, I bet your early experiences there shaped your writing, correct?

Melanie: As far as the settings go, yes. As for the plot, not exactly. My love of New Orleans plays a large part in many of my stories. I’m fascinated with the city, and I believe that comes out in PRIME SUSPECT. As for SKELETON BAYOU, I’ve visited the Louisiana swamp, and it scared me–which gave me the idea for that book. The plot of each of my stories comes totally from my imagination–even though I might get an idea from a dream, a newspaper story, or an event I witness. All of life is material, and I try to keep my eyes and ears open.

Mike: What are you working on next?

Melanie: I’m working on a gritty single title suspense set in my hometown. I’m hoping to shine a light in a very dark place and keep readers guessing.

Also, in my six-book New Orleans Detective series (PRIME SUSPECT is the 2nd book), I introduce the hero for the next title in each book, then bring them back from time to time. They all work together, and I love revisiting the characters and seeing how they’ve grown.

Mike: Sounds like some fun reads!  Please visit Melanie’s website and blog for more information about her and her books: http://www.melanieatkins.com and http://melanieatkins.wordpress.com

A Writer’s Self-Esteem

by

Mary Deal

When ego gets in the way.

My very first short story sent out received rejection after rejection. I always had faith in my writing and kept producing new pieces. Eventually, I sent out all of my stories, but they received rejections as well. I was crushed.

I began to feel that as a writer, I must not be writing anything that anyone wanted to read or know about. Maybe my writing wasn’t entertaining enough. I convinced myself that I wasn’t knowledgeable enough to have anything worth writing about to say to the world. Deflated, I set my stories aside.

After months of not writing, but still feeling the urge to do so, I received one of my SASEs in the mail. I thought sure I had already received as many as anyone cared to return.

To my surprise, the hand-written message on my cover letter, being returned, read:

“I’m sure this will fit into the issue we’re planning for next June. How does $20 for 1^st Rights sound to you?”

The Senior Editor of that magazine sent a personally written note! I was stunned that my story fit in one of their planned issues. You bet I agreed. The next June was over seven months away, but that little note told me so much and plumped up my writer’s ego once again.

The story that had garnered the most rejections happened to fit into their future. So it wasn’t really a matter of whether or not my story was good enough. It simply had to fit somewhere.

I began to write again and the flood of pent up stories poured out.

I mailed them all. Christmas was quickly arriving, but I sent out a Christmas story anyway, knowing it would be too late to make it into any magazine in the next three weeks. My writing was good and I just wanted people to know it. At that point, I would have sent anything out.

To my surprise, in the second week of January of the New Year, I got a note back saying a magazine accepted it, saying:

“Thank you so much for submitting this piece far enough in advance. We’re working on this year’s Christmas issue now and would like to have it. Christmas is almost a full year away. Would you be willing to sign an agreement giving us FNASR anyway?”

Timing is everything. Not timing as in getting the stories submitted fast, but getting them sent at a time when a magazine can use them.

When I think about how my self-esteem felt squashed by rejection, how egoistic! It had nothing to do with my ego. Acceptance is about writing the kinds of stories that various magazines can use. It is about getting our stories into the right hands. Of course, the stories must be the best that we could produce, but the rejection itself is never meant to tear down faith in our abilities.

Please visit Mary Deal’s website for more wonderful articles like this one: Write Any Genre.

MA: Dianne Ascroft is a Canadian writer, living in Britain. She has been freelance writing since 2002. Her non-fiction writing focuses on history, arts/music and human interest stories. She particularly enjoys interviewing music personalities and has had the pleasure of chatting with a variety of people including former Bay City Rollers lead singer, Les McKeown and the classical singing trio, The Priests. Her articles have been printed in Canadian and Irish newspapers and magazines including the Toronto Star, Mississauga News, Derry Journal, Banbridge Leader, Senior Times and Ireland’s Own magazine. She has had several short stories published in Irish magazines. Hitler and Mars Bars is her first novel, and it is an Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award quarter finalist!

Dianne started life in a quiet residential neighborhood in the buzzing city of Toronto and has progressively moved to smaller places through the years. She now lives on a small farm in Northern Ireland with her husband and an assortment of pets. If she ever decides to write her autobiography the working title will be Downsizing.

It sounds like you’ve had a variety of writing experiences that no doubt led you to your first novel, but that all seems to have begun within the last eight years. What else have you done that may have contributed to your writing career?

DA: Like many writers, writing has never been my primary occupation. I’ve always held a day job and written in my spare time. I’ve held a variety of jobs over the years. In Canada, after I graduated from university, I focused on the information management field. I worked as a library clerk in a corporate library and as an archives clerk in the public sector. When I moved to Northern Ireland, in 1990, I landed every booklover’s dream job – an assistant in a bookshop. Needless to say, that was heaven for an avid reader like me and I stayed there for several years. Since 1998 I’ve held various clerical positions on short term contracts. I like this flexible approach to employment as breaks between assignments give me a chance to spend some extra time writing. It also allows me time to enjoy country life with our animals on our small farm.

MA: With all your experience writing non-fiction, what inspired you to write a novel?

DA: I had toyed with the idea for ages before I began Hitler and Mars Bars. I had ideas for plots but I couldn’t decide which one to start – until I found a tale that I had to tell. And it was a much bigger tale than I could tell in a short story so it pushed me into writing a novel. I heard about a Red Cross humanitarian aid effort, Operation Shamrock, which brought German children to Ireland to recuperate after the Second World War. The story of this endeavor opened up a new aspect of Irish and German history for me – one that has been overlooked in the history books. It aroused my curiosity so I waded into researching the project. Fascinated by what I learned about this little known episode in history, I wanted to bring the events and the era alive for readers. The novel was born from that. I found it exciting and a challenge to create a story that was entertaining and also recounted real historical events.

MA: You certainly have an interesting title for the novel, as well as a fascinating historical backdrop for it.  Tell us about the story.

DA: Hitler and Mars Bars is the story of a German boy growing up in war-torn Germany and post war rural Ireland. Set against the backdrop of Operation Shamrock, a little known Irish Red Cross initiative which helped German children after World War II, my novel explores a previously hidden slice of Irish and German history. Erich, growing up in Germany’s embattled Ruhr area during World War II, knows only war and deprivation. His mother disappears after a heavy bombing raid leaving him distraught. After the war the Red Cross transports Erich and his younger brother, Hans, to Ireland, along with hundreds of other children, to recuperate from the devastating conditions in their homeland.

During the next few years Erich moves around Ireland through a string of foster families. He experiences the best and worst of Irish life, enduring indifference and brutality and sometimes finding love and acceptance. Plucky and resilient, Erich confronts every challenge he meets and never loses hope. Hitler and Mars Bars is the tale of a boy who is flung into a foreign land to grow and forge a new life.

MA: Obviously since you live in Ireland you understand the culture there, so I imagine that helped you shape Erich as a character.  What else did you do to bring him to life?

DA: It was a challenge for me to develop Erich’s character and understand how he sees the world. Erich’s viewpoint is very different from my own. It isn’t his nationality that is ‘foreign’ to me as much as his gender. Some emotions and responses to our life experiences are universal but there are differences between male and female perceptions of the world. I used the recollections of a German man who was part of the initiative to help me understand how Erich might feel about what was happening to him and to decide how he would behave.

This man’s recollections, as well as information I gleaned from my research about other children’s experiences as part of Operation Shamrock, helped me create my character. I tried to create a character that is believable – one who acts and thinks like a real child.

The book is set in 1940s and 50s Ireland where the people had deep Christian beliefs. These beliefs, and the actions they prompted (living their lives in keeping with their beliefs), are clear in the novel’s main characters.

MA: Describe Erich some more.

DA: Irrepressible and impulsive are good words to describe Erich. These characteristics can be either positive or negative aspects of his personality depending on the situation he finds himself in. He frequently gets into mischief but he doesn’t mean any harm. Erich is a fighter in the courageous rather than the brawling sense of the word. Before he’s even school age he has already survived a war and circumstances most adults never face, yet he remains hopeful and resilient. His spirit borders on brashness which annoys some people he meets. But it serves him well as he’s not easily cowed and doesn’t give up even when life just seems to get worse.

He is fiercely loyal to the people he loves. Because he feels so intensely he is also easily hurt by any perceived betrayals. This can cause him to misinterpret situations and overreact. He finds it hard to forgive and can hate as intensely as he loves. Readers have told me they like Erich because he isn’t romanticized; he behaves like a real child.  He will awaken the reader’s parental instincts to love and discipline him in equal measures.

MA: Given the nature of the story’s setting…post-war…I suspect there are one or two antagonists in the novel.

DA: There are several adversaries in this story. People and events both conspire against Erich. The most significant event that affects him is the Second World War. Erich’s early years are difficult and deprived because of the devastation caused by bombing raids. He spends nights huddled in the cellar of the Children’s Home where he lives to shelter from the threat of bombing. He is constantly hungry due to the food shortages. His mother disappears after a bombing raid and he must leave Germany without learning what has happened to her. The war affects every aspect of his life. Several people are also his adversaries.

Erich encounters uncaring, even brutal foster parents at two of his foster placements. The first one is Aunt Rachel, a widow with one daughter. She fosters Erich and his brother, Hans, to earn some extra money to meet her bills and she really isn’t interested in the boys’ welfare. She is cross and cruel, making the boys’ lives a misery. Erich hates every minute he spends at her house and seethes with anger at her treatment of them.

The other one is quick tempered, harsh Uncle Bob. Although Uncle Bob plans to adopt Erich, his main reason for wanting the boy is to have unpaid farm labour. His priority is to get as much free labour as possible and he is abusive and unconcerned about the boy’s welfare. Erich has a place to sleep and the basic necessities for existence but he does not have a real family with Uncle Bob and his wife, Aunt Annie. How Erich overcomes his situation is the climax of the story.

MA: Living in working Europe no doubt helped you frame the story, but did any real life experiences manage to squeak into the plot?

DA: A lot of my writing is inspired by my own memories and experiences. But I sometimes hear an interesting story about someone else’s life and it sparks an idea that forms the basis for a story. As I’ve mentioned earlier, in the case of Hitler and Mars Bars, my research about Operation Shamrock and tales I heard from people who had participated in it sparked the ideas for my novel. I used material I discovered during my research about the project to create a story that was as true to the real events as I could make it.

MA: Are you working on any new project, perhaps a follow-on to Hitler and Mars Bars?

DA: Hitler and Mars Bars was released in March 2008. During the following months I didn’t have much time for new writing as I was busy promoting the novel. After the initial whirlwind of promotion I had a chance to put pen to paper again. I contributed fiction and non-fiction pieces to the Fermanagh Authors’ Association’s yearly anthologies in 2008 and 2009 and I’ve also been writing non-fiction articles about a variety of subjects for several magazines. Most recently articles I wrote based on my interview with the classical singing trio, The Priests were printed in four Irish and Canadian magazines. I enjoy non-fiction writing, especially profiling people in the arts and plan to continue interviewing interesting people I meet.

I’m also doing some short story writing and have begun research for the sequel to Hitler and Mars Bars. Many people have asked me what happens to Erich after Hitler and Mars Bars ends so I will have to answer that question in the next book. The sequel will follow Erich and his adventures. Several of the major characters from the first book will also re-appear. Their lives will have moved on from where we left them in Hitler and Mars Bars but they will be the same people readers loved or loathed. People often ask me where I got the idea for the book’s title. A couple amusing incidents in the story sparked the idea for it. So I linked the words that represented each incident together to form the title. But I won’t tell you anymore – you’ll have to read the book to figure out exactly where the title came from.

MA: Well, we’ll have to let that remain a mystery that people will have to explore on their own by buying the book.  For more information about Dianne and Hitler and Mars Bars, please visit her website and her blog: www.dianne-ascroft.com and www.dianneascroft.wordpress.com

MA: My guest today is the author of The SIN of Addison Hall, Jeffrey Onorato.  In 1968, at the age of 5, Jeffrey Onorato used construction paper and Elmer’s glue to create what he believes was the world’s first graphic novel, Feelings in Baseball. During his high school years he tried to woo girls he liked by penning them haiku poems; however, they were awful and his attempts were largely unsuccessful. In 1982 while attending Lehigh University, Mr. Onorato wrote an award winning essay, The Rapes of Grath and followed it up in 1984 with another award winning essay, Baseball is an Ass. The seed for his debut novel, The SIN of Addison Hall, was planted in the fall of 1999. While in his twenties, Jeffrey visited the gym religiously, and one Sunday morning, as he pulled into his gym’s packed parking lot, he noticed that the lot of the church next to his gym had more empty beer cans than cars. It occurred to him that toning his body was more important to him then nurturing his soul, and obviously he was not alone. Seven years later, writing primarily in overpriced coffee houses and Irish pubs, Jeffrey finished a novel that warns of the dangers of carnality. Mr. Onorato lives in Westchester County, NY with his wife and two young children.

Welcome, Jeffrey.  You obviously have enjoyed writing from an early age, but it wasn’t a career until later.  What did you do leading up to writing your first novel?

JO: I spent most of my adult life in sales, traveling lots.  Waiting for planes and sitting on planes gave me ample time to write.  According to my tally I spent time writing it in 23 US cities, four European cities, and three Caribbean resorts.

MA: I can see how your essay writing experiences evolved into novel writing.  Where there any other influences that led you to it?

JO:  I chose to write novels because I enjoy reading novels and I am a big fan of dystopian literature.  I like stories that are darkly humorous and provocative and stories that make my reader’s reflect upon their own value systems. After reading my first novel, The SIN of Addison Hall, one reader told me she cancelled a botox appointment and threw her Crest Whitestrips in the garbage.

MA: Tell us about the story.

JO: Residing in a country where beautiful people are considered superior, Addison Hall is an anomaly. A mildly repugnant man, he is forced by the twisted hierarchy of his dictator to live in less than adequate living situations. The days become increasingly arduous as he toils in an unpleasant job, stricken with the disappointment of his current situation. Besides the dark comedy of his disastrous attempts at romance and his friend’s antics, Addison’s life is fairly dull. Then he meets Otka, a beautiful woman who owns the local coffee shop. After witnessing a chance encounter where Addison risks his life to save the life of a dog, Otka takes an obvious interest in him. Addison is perplexed by her reciprocated intrigue. Past experiences with such a valued creature of the opposite sex has left him tainted and doubting her motives.

The SIN of Addison Hall entrances the reader with delicious conflicts of human wanting and wavering uncertainty with an ending that will leave you begging for more.

MA: You told me earlier that your protagonist is a bit autobiographical, but did any real life experiences factor into the story line at all?

JO: Not my real life experiences, but The Holocaust was the underpinning for the story.  My wife and I visited Auschwitz in 2003, so a lot of the imagery came from that visit. I also lifted verbatim from Nazi propaganda.  My reasons for doing this is to convey the message that whenever a society devalues a segment of its people, horrible things can accrue.

MA: That’s a good message we should all keep in mind.  Do you have any future novel-writing plans?

JO: I am currently on my third re-write for a novel that lampoons overt materialism. The working title is Betty Boop’s Skirt is Frayed. I expect to send the manuscript to my publisher by beginning of May 2010.

MA: You do come up with some clever titles for essays and books!  So, there won’t be a sequel to The SIN of Addison Hall?

JO: I am also working on the first draft of The Redemption of Addison Hall, an obvious sequel to The SIN of Addison Hall.  My goal is to have the manuscript off to the publisher by Christmas 2010.

MA: That’s good to hear.  If you would like to read more about Jeffrey Onorato and The SIN of Addison Hall, please visit: http://www.blockislandbooks.com/

Thanks, Jeffrey, for stopping by!

What’s Your Book About?

by

Mary Deal

How to capture a potential reader’s interest with few words.

In our day-to-day lives, our simplest personal actions say something about our motivations, temperament, and mind-set. Stories and their plots reveal much more that can be stated by quoting the story synopsis when a potential buyer asks, “What’s your book about?”

In my adventure/suspense novel, The Tropics, the plot is about the dangers of island living, cloaked from tourists by balmy breezes and swaying palm trees. It’s about people fighting for survival and finding inner strength to go on in spite of life-threatening situations in which they find themselves. It’s about inner strength.

In my paranormal Egyptian suspense, The Ka, the story is not just about archaeologists discovering a tomb and becoming affected by mysterious spells and magic. What it’s really about are two characters who, in spite of having intense mental and intuitive capabilities way beyond the norm, struggle to maintain lives in a setting that threatens to forever alter their understanding of sanity.

Once you know what your story is really about, you will easily distill it down to very few words.

If someone asks me what The Tropics is about, I don’t begin to reveal the plot synopsis. I say it’s about the ability to survive against all odds. Or I say it’s about the myths of stereotypical islands of paradise being shattered.

Readers want to know what they will get from a story. They want upbeat endings. If I tell someone The Tropics is about survival in spite of all odds, the reader knows these characters face some life threatening and dire situations before they save themselves. In surviving, the reader then looks forward to an exciting storyline knowing they will get their happy ending.

When potential readers ask what the The Ka is about, I tell them that it’s about believing in yourself even though the rest of the world thinks you’re nuts; even in the face of knowing you are different.

These can be distilled down to still fewer words. The Tropics is about “the desire to live.” The Ka is about “knowing when you’re right.”

As you can see, some of the descriptions have nothing to do with the plots. When people ask What’s your book about? they want to know what knowledge or lesson they will derive from reading the book.

In my award-winning thriller, River Bones, about a serial killer terrorizing residents in California’s Sacramento River Delta, when people ask What’s it about? I say, “It’s about forgiving old hurts and making a new life.” Or I say “It’s about renewal.”

My newly released thriller, Down to the Needle, is about a woman facing lethal injection for a crime she didn’t commit. When asked, I say, “It’s about standing firm when you’re right.” Or I also say, “It’s about the justice system gone wrong.” The shortened version of what I might say would be, “It’s about justice.”

Readers need to know what they will derive from your story. Instead of telling them the story synopsis, which may be lengthy and cause them to lose interest, give them a few words first to spark their interest. Then, elaborate by telling them what the story is about.

Please visit Mary Deal’s website for more wonderful articles like this one: Write Any Genre.

Naming Characters

by

Mary Deal

When naming your characters, the moniker you give them should agree with the role they play in the story.

Think about some of the Classics you adore, or even recent releases. You probably not only love the stories, but the character names as well.

When it comes to naming your characters, try not to make up names that are too far-fetched. In other words…

A writer-friend wanted to name all her characters with names she devised in order to help make them different from every character in other books with similar names. She came up with names like Tracford, to be nicknamed Trac. Or Analoon, nicknamed Loony because her (character) mother knew at birth she would be a little zany.

When I asked her how she expected her readers to feel any empathy for these characters, she said she would explain in the story how the person got their name.

This is not a great thing to do. Whether you write two or twenty books, you might get away with describing what’s behind a strange name once, but twice or more? And in each book too? It just won’t fly. If you are the type of writer with an old-fashioned story telling bent, then you might describe all your characters personalities and their names, like an old geezer spinning a yarn. But no one really writes like that anymore.

Readers must feel a connection with story characters. Names can attract or repulse. If you want your lady character to be loved, don’t make her loveable but give her a name like Analoon and call her Loony. And here’s something that can backfire. If you have a silly nonsensical lady in your story and name her Analoon and call her Loony, it comes across as entirely unbelievable and contrived by the writer. Naming characters is vitally important.

My suggestion is to get a name source dictionary, one that defines what each name means. Find the right sound in a name and the meaning for each character you create. You will be more than safe and you as an author will viewed as serious about your craft.

Please visit Mary Deal’s website for more wonderful articles like this one: Write Any Genre.