Tag Archives: Writer

The Reviews I Don’t Write…

In January I decided to blog about every book I finished. This commitment made me aware of how many books I begin but never finish. I really wasn’t aware of it.

Many things entice readers to want to read a book. A friend might talk incessantly about a story, or a book cover might catch our attention, or the blurb on a back cover might create an interest.

But when a reader delves into chapter one, something has to happen so the reader continues to read, and that is what this post is about.

First of all, the first chapter needs to deliver on promises a ”blurb” might have made.  I don’t care what happens in chapter two,  the writer MUST deliver on promises they make in the blurb. If the writer promised a mystery, don’t start off with a romance. If the writer promised a romance, don’t begin the story with a dead body.

Secondly, only write what is necessary to move the story along. If a murder takes place, make sure it is not “blood for blood’s sake” but blood that is necessary in the plot. If the main character’s grandparents are relevant to the plot then, by all mean, mention them. But there is no reason to tell us everything about a character’s past. That is snoozeville. Readers only want details that are relevant.

Thirdly, it’s the characters we invest time in and learn to love (or hate). But we don’t need to know everything about their past, and every time they change clothes we don’t need to hear every detail about their clothing, and we don’t need to know what they ate for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

There are many characters in novels but the writer only needs to name or describe the important ones. The doorman might be named Henry Smithers and he might be obese with warts on the end of his nose but, if the only thing he does is open the door in one scene, then just call him the doorman. Don’t give him a name and make him so colorful that he distracts from the story or main characters.

When I begin reading a novel I want to lose myself in the story. But, time is precious, and I’m not going to spend time reading something that doesn’t deliver and, I’m definitely not going to write a review about something I didn’t read.

This is why my reviews are usually positive. If I read the book, it’s because I liked it.

If I don’t read a book, it’s because I didn’t like it. And those are the reviews I don’t write.

Writers Beware!

It is imperative that writers take appropriate steps to protect their creative writing. We all  know about the cold cruel world out there,  but this weariness needs to extend to cyberspace. Writers protect your work. If you upload it to the internet, make sure you upload it to reputable sites.

It has recently come to my attention that a fellow screenwriter had a “short script” stolen. This is what happened: the screenwriter uploaded the script to several sites. An unscrupulous person read the script “online”, downloaded it, and offered it ”for production” as his creation. He found someone to make his screenplay into a movie but, when the project was advertised online, the caper and theft was uncovered.

One of the places this screenplay was uploaded was at MoviePoet.com. Now this isn’t where the theft took place but, by being part of the MoviePoet.com community, this “theft” was thwarted. A fellow MPer saw the advertised project and brought it to everyone’s attention.

The writer contacted the director and was furnished a copy of the script. There was no doubt the script was stolen and the writer was able to prove he had written it. This short script will still be filmed BUT THE REAL WRITER will get all credit. I have read this script. It is excellent and I am glad it was resolved to the writer’s satisfaction.

I’m told investigation has resulted in discovering at least eight other scripts that were “stolen” by this no-good thief. The name of the thief is Oz Rudd but no one knows for sure if this is his real name. Apparently he is from Serbia but we can’t be sure about that either.

This time someone tried to steal a short screenplay. But it could have been a short story or a feature length script or a novel.  In any case, WRITERS, TAKE STEPS TO PROTECT YOURSELF.   Make sure you have dated records of your work. Some of the things you can do include: (1)  registering it with the WGA, (2) copyrighting it with the federal government, (3) posting it on a (reputable) website.

Do something to protect yourself. Never forget that it’s a cold cruel world out there…

“Library Books at Police Headquarters”

Update to this post on 2/16/12

Stefan Simonovic is aka Oz Rudd

If you would like further information about this, please check  with SimplyScripts.com, Stake Productions (http://www.facebook.com/pianotheshort), MoviePoet.com, and Stage32.com.

Blocking or Beating a STORY…

This week my writing has focused on two stories. I’m blocking out the sequel to Windfall (Windfall is currently for sale on Amazon.). And I’m in the middle of writing a new novel, Finding Verity.

Another word for “blocking” a story is “beating” out a story. In essence, I’m working on a type of outline. I block out a story by writing a paragraph about each scene. Writer’s choice! The paragraph can be  detailed or general. I  think of blocking as a kind of map. I have a starting point and an ending, but I need to list the steps that get me from Chapter One to “The End.”

Blocking Windfall’s sequel has been interesting. Because I know many of the characters I’ve been able to focus more on the plot. While I plot the story, I let the new characters “bake a little in my brain.” Like I did with Windfall, I will write the screenplay first and follow that screenplay with the novel.

As I write a paragraph about each BLOCK or BEAT of the story, I ask myself several questions. The first two questions are: WHO will be in the scene and WHAT will happen in the scene. The next question is: what is the scene’s PURPOSE. Why is the scene necessary?  If the story can be told without the scene, then maybe it’s not needed

The scene might introduce a new character or locale. It might create conflict, provide a transition, or do any number of other things. But, in all cases, each scene should (1) reveal something about a character or (2) move the story forward.

The way I write will not work for everyone. Many writers “write by the seat of their pants.” They start with a vague idea or a colorful character and then begin.  If this works for you, then HOORAH you don’t have to do as much work as I do. I’ve tried to write this way but find, without some kind of an outline, I get confused, my writing becomes unfocused, and I eventually get frustrated and lose interest in the project.

My progress on Finding Verity is steady because I know the story and it’s just a matter of getting it into my laptop. And, I know the story because, before I began writing, I blocked it out, and now I’m using that work as a guide. Every day I try to work on Finding Verity for two solid hours. I begin each day of writing by editing the previous days work so, in some ways, I’m working on the first and second draft at the same time. Right now the word count on Finding Verity is 29,347.

I’d love to hear how other writer’s approach their projects. Do you do a lot of prep work? Or do you write by the seat of your pants?

1910 – Reading in a Fire Station