Beginnings–Watching Movies
We all have our little quirks. You probably have one or two that you may find hard to explain to someone else. My quirk is one that I share with Woody Allen’s character in “Annie Hall
In some respects, Woody is dead right. You can see this with books as well. Today’s society wants action right away. A book from yesteryear would begin setting the scene for the exciting bits that might not happen for a hundred pages. Today’s movies and books tend to begin with a scene to grab your attention from the start. With so many entertainment choices, a movie or book has a tougher job getting its audience.
So, the upshot is that you might indeed be missing something significant if you miss those first few minutes. The plot might not getting around to explaining its meaning until the end, but you can be sure it will play some role in the conclusion. The intrigue a good opening scene creates will influence your viewing and interpretation of the work. In essence, you may be missing half the movie–or at least what may be a pivotal plot point.
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve re-watched a movie in which I missed the beginning only to have an ah-ha moment seeing what I didn’t see. My advice then to you is that in order to fully enjoy a movie or book, you must watch it or read it right from the start. Don’t miss out on the special opportunity the piece has to offer you.
Story Ideas in the News
I had to laugh the other day. I was doing some research on an article, trying to find a statistic. Dead end. What I did find was a news story using a similar plot convention that I used in my own mystery. Just goes to show that there are story ideas in the news. Change a few names and details and you have your plot.
It’s an unfortunate thing that the news shows you the dark depths of human nature. I’m not sure if it’s a good thing or a bad thing to be shocked by the next news story. Is it good that I haven’t thought of it, that I have faith in humankind? Or is it bad that the lower threshold keeps falling? Either scenario is sobering.
One of my favorite mystery writers is Ed McBain. His books never failed to shock me. I’m speaking as a small-town girl who knows nothing of urban crime, drugs, or any of it. His 87th Precinct novels are suspenseful as much as they are shocking. I think that if he were still alive today that the news would furnish him plenty of ideas for Detective Steve Carella.
People have an infinite capacity to surprise, whether it is for good or evil. As a writer, you can glam onto this aspect of human nature. You’ll never be at a loss for a story again.
Writing Tip–You’re Not Done When You Think You’re Done
I scaled a major hurdle with the completion of my rough draft. If I can say anything, at least I can say that I can write a book. I can plot it, populate it with characters, and present a problem with its solution. In my mind, that’s a huge feat.
I am in the process of submitting my book to agents. Having the book completed puts me at some advantage in that I’m not scrambling to complete a work if I’m called to duty. It’s done. I have a new goal now.
Just because I’m done with it doesn’t mean I’m done. There’s the next important task–starting on the next one. Fortunately, I have a good idea with an interesting plot twist. I know my selected setting well.
To guide my next project, I’m using a book that I found extremely helpful the first go-around, Hallie Ephron’s, “Writing and Selling Your Mystery Novel.” I admit: I’m still new at this. I need the direction that this book provides. The direction is good too. It encourages the writer to consider the background and backstory of the characters and settings. It raises the questions we may not know to ask and gives us fodder that will percolate in our subconscious when writing. It is an invaluable tool.
The task of creating a new novel is daunting. I’ve struggled to remember how I got to this place. With Ephron’s kind guidance, my next book will become a reality.
Hallie Ephron’s, “Writing and Selling Your Mystery Novel.”
Writing Software
Different software programs have helped me stay organized and on track with my writing. There’s the spreadsheet I use to organize my scenes. For this task, I rely on Microsoft Excel. I also used Excel to do time lines on my characters, noting important dates in their lives.
For my writing, I use Word Perfect. I know, it’s not as popular as Word, but having grown up with Word Perfect, I prefer its logic, its set up. Besides, the Reveal Codes feature is priceless in my thinking. Sure, if need be, I’ll export as a Word file, but for the writing part, I prefer WP.
I came across another software through an ad in “Writer’s Digest” magazine called WriteWay Pro. Sure, it’s a word processor like the others, but there are some added features that I really liked. The character profile section has the usual prompts for age, interests, eye color, etc., but also the ability to add an image. I have very particular ideas of what my characters look like. Seeing them alongside their name and history was very powerful for me.
Another nice feature is the storyboard section. You can add screen cards with master templates as your model for Plot, Suspense, Setting, among others. A great way to organize the action of your work. Additional tools provide a word count, word count analysis and tracking. Now you can see for sure if you’ve used that favorite word of yours too much.Some may call it a glorified word processor, but for my part it made the last bit of my writing that much easier.
So as I wind down here with the revision of my work, I’ll muse about the next one and where my detective will find himself next.
Making the Writing Easier
I have used several tools to help me organize my work. Using Robert Ray and Jack Remick’s The Weekend Novelist Writes A Mystery, I followed their advice of using index cards to organize my plot. Maybe a bit dated in this computer age, but I did find that moving a scene to here or there very easy. This was important for me to establish my acts, the dramatic events and the general sequence of events. More than once I flipped back and forth with my choices.
From index cards, I built a spreadsheet. Frankly, the printed word from my laser printer is a lot neater than my own writing. I created a line of main headings: Scene, Time, Characters, POV (point of view), Place, and Description. And since this is a mystery, I also wanted to keep track of what my sleuth was learning in each scene and who was he suspecting at different points in the book. I identified that main plot points and the acts. Subplots I highlighted.
For me, outlining worked. Not everyone works that way. Some prefer to immerse themselves in the creative process and follow in its path. For me, spending weeks developing my characters, plotting my mystery in the end made the writing easier. My book had direction. Next time, useful software.
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