When you have the wrong idea about story ideas by Alice Orr @AliceOrrBooks #AmWriting #AmEditing #MFRWauthor

Tell strong stories. That's what every writer longs to do.

What are strong stories anyway? To conquer an audience and make it your own you must tell a story that moves them. A story that moves them emotionally. Emotional Power is the impact your story must have.

Tell Strong Stories – How to Create the Most Important Person in Your Plot

The key to an emotionally moving storytelling is Character.

The success of your story hangs on the strength of the main character you create and the way you employ that character as a storyteller. Your main character must move your story forward emotionally.

Why is your main character so important?

Because your protagonist's story is what connects you with the reader. You draw the reader in and make her care. That's how you hook a reader. Mastering the art of the story hook is essential to writing a successful novel. You set that hook by creating a story in which the reader cannot help but become emotionally involved.

Which means that the reader must care about what happens to your character.

The reader must begin to behave as if the Protagonist of your story were a real-life person they know personally. Your character's defeats are the reader's defeats. Your character's triumphs are the reader's triumphs. When you make your readers feel this connection you have them hooked. And they will stay hooked from beginning to end.

For example, I was hooked by both Rick and Ilsa in the film Casablanca (the example I've been loving to use in these columns) and wanted both of them to triumph. The conclusion turned out to be more complicated than that. Which hooked me deeper still. Those screenwriters knew how to Tell Strong Stories.

Here's how to begin creating characters as real as Rick and Ilsa.

#1. First the character must hook you. You as author must be as emotionally involved with your character as you want the reader to be.

#2. Which requires that you as author must know your character intimately. You must know your characters – especially your main character heroine or hero – from the Inside Out. Which means you must understand as deeply as you possibly can what it's like to be your protagonist.

Why do you need to know so much about your protagonist?

In practical terms you must know enough to keep your readers reading. You need to know a lot about a character to make her sufficiently complex to carry the weight of your story from the beginning to the end of a book.

You must know enough about this character to bring him to life on the page and make the reader care about him. For example, Charles Dickens brought Ebenezer Scrooge to life on the page in A Christmas Carol, and made us care what happened to him as well. Dickens knew Scrooge from the Inside Out.

Here's an exercise for getting to know your character from the Inside Out.

Project yourself into your main character. Become your main character in your imagination. Then ask yourself the following five questions about that character.

#1. What does my main character want in this story?

Is this desire significant enough to make a reader also want this thing for my character? Is this desire significant enough to make a reader want it for my character all the way through the length of an entire book? Or at some point does this desire pale into "Who cares?" territory for the reader?

#2. How much does my main character want this thing?

Is this the most crucial need my character has ever experienced? Have I effectively communicated my character's sense of urgency? How in specific scenes, action and dialogue can I turn up the story heat on the intensity of my main character's desire?

#3. Why does my main character want this thing?

Are her reasons – her motivations – admirable? Are these motivations logical in this story situation? Are her motivations believable to the extent that a reader will accept them as legitimate enough to motivate an intelligent, independent, principled protagonist throughout the entire length of my story? Will a reader not only believe these motives but also adopt them on behalf of my character and root for her to achieve her desires?

#4. What does my main character not want?

Is my character running away from something? If so what is it and why is he on the run from it? Is my character avoiding something? If so what is he avoiding and why? What is my character afraid of? Why is my character afraid of this thing?

[Here's a secret to upping your story's ante in terms of drama, intensity and power.

Make sure every character fears something. Especially your main character. For example, what does Scarlett O'Hara fear in Margaret Mitchell's Gone with the Wind?]

#5. What's at stake for my main character in this story situation?

What will happen if she fails to achieve what she wants or needs? Are those consequences dreadful enough to make a reader dread them as well? Who in my story besides my main character could also be adversely affected? How in specific scenes, action and dialogue can I intensify these stakes by making the potential consequences more devastating, pervasive and far-reaching?

Brainstorm every possible response to each of these questions.

Always push yourself beyond the first, most obvious possibility toward less expected, more original ones. The farther reaches of our imaginations are the place from which we Tell Strong Stories.

Alice Orr – adapted from my blog at http://www.aliceorrbooks.com.

ALICE ORR is the author of 16 novels, 3 novellas, a memoir and No More Rejections: 50 Secrets to Writing a Manuscript that Sells. A former book editor and literary agent, Alice now lives her dream as a full-time writer. Her latest novel is A Time of Fear and Loving: Riverton Road Romantic Suspense - Book 5. Alice has two grown children and two perfect grandchildren and resides with her husband Jonathan in New York City.
Author Website: www.aliceorrbooks.com
Author Blog: www.aliceorrbooks.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aliceorrwriter
Twitter: https://twitter.com/aliceorrbooks
Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/Alice-Orr/e/B000APC22E

It's Retweet Day Come share a tweet with fellow authors #MFRWauthor @MFRW_ORG

It's Retweet Day for MFRW on Twitter. All Marketing for Romance Writers are invited to set up tweets for their books.

Go into Twitter and create a tweet. Make sure to use #MFRWauthor or #MFRWorg You can share up to 280 characters per tweet.

Once the tweet has been posted, click anywhere in the white background of the tweet. This will open it and allow you to highlight and copy the URL.

Navigate back to here and paste the URL in the comment section of this post.

Each month, the RT post goes live the Monday before RT day. You can post your tweet until Wednesday of the same week.

Retweet Day is on the second Wednesday of each month. Retweet everyone on the list who uses one of the hashtags.

HINT:

To help people find your tweet, click the the white background and then the down arrow (found on the right side). Choose "Pin to Your Profile Page." This will keep the tweet at the top of your Twitter feed so more people can find it.

Retweet Day Rules

1. Must have #MFRWauthor or #MFRWorg in the tweet. (This retweet day is to promote each other and our group.)

2. Do not use profanity or sexual explicit graphics. Keep it for all age groups.
3. Please do not use adult topics for this one tweet.
4. Limit hashtags to three (3) per post.

5. Return on Retweet Day and click each link in the comments.**

6. On the tweet, click the heart and then the retweet button.

** To share a tweet, highlight the url, right click, and you will see an option to open the link or go to the url. Do that, and it should open in a new window and take you there.

Come back after sending the tweet and go through the entire list. 

PLEASE NOTE: If a tweet doesn't fit your stream, you are under no obligation to share it.

Here's to a great day of retweets!

Kayelle Allen writes Sci Fi with misbehaving robots, mythic heroes, role playing immortal gamers, and warriors who purr. She is the author of multiple books, novellas, and short stories. She's also a US Navy veteran and has been married so long she's tenured.

https://kayelleallen.com

How to Write Characters Inside Out: The Exercise by Alice Orr @AliceOrrBooks #AmWriting #MFRWauthor #AmEditing

My Holiday Gift for You is an Alice Orr How-To! Write in the first person, using "I." Answer as your character. Speak with her voice from her experience. Record the ways you feel (as her) about how each exercise item relates to you. Answer from your gut, not your head. Be specific.

My Full Name is….

I was born in (place name)…. My heritage is (racial, ethnic),,,,

My birth (or adoptive) family's financial situation was…. Their community status was….

The family I grew up with consisted of (member names and relationships)….

The family member I am closest to is…. because….

The family member of my family I am most distant from is…. because….

As a Child.

I would describe myself as…. My most memorable childhood experience was….

As an adolescent, I was…. My most memorable adolescent experience was….

My first sexual experience was…. My attitude toward sex then was…. And now is….

My Appearance.

What I like about the way I look is…. What I hate about the way I look is….

I believe that other people think I look like…. My style of dress is…. because….

If you ask me what I am like as a person, I would say I am…. because….

My religious or spiritual beliefs are…. My political beliefs are….

My overall attitude toward life is….

My Self.

The most significant thing I have ever discovered about myself is….

I feel that my greatest talent is…. The thing I believe in most strongly is…. because….

The thing I have enjoyed most in my life is…. The thing I disliked most is…. because….

My most important goal in life is to…. because….

My Emotional Life.

My biggest inhibition is…. because…. My superstition is…. because….

My greatest disappointment in life is…. because…. I was most joyful when…. because….

My greatest frustration in life is…. because…. My biggest regret in life is…. because….

I was most enraged in my life when…. because…. I was most terrified when…. because….

I was most humiliated when…. because…. I was most heartbroken when…. because….

My deepest fear is…. because…. My darkest secret is…. because….

The biggest lie I ever told was…. I told it because…. I yearn most for…., because….

More Areas to Explore.

Friendships. Sexual history. Romantic history. Professional history. Educational history. Hobbies and leisure time activities. Health issues. Plus, anything else you should know to get inside your character and write her from that very intimate place.

Use the Above to Dig Deep into Each of Your Big Three characters.

Protagonist (hero), secondary protagonist (mate, sidekick, foil), antagonist (villain) – and any other character you need to know Inside Out. Do this and you will create the most compelling characters who have ever flowed from your imagination onto the very powerful pages of your best stories ever.

For more insights into writing and publishing, visit my blog at www.aliceorrbooks.com.

Alice Orr is author of 16 novels, 3 novellas, a memoir and No More Rejections: 50 Secrets to Writing a Manuscript that Sells. A former book editor and literary agent, Alice now writes full-time. Her latest novel is A Time of Fear and Loving – Riverton Road Romantic Suspense Series Book 5. Find all of Alice Orr’s books at amazon.com and other online retailers. Alice has two grown children and two perfect grandchildren and lives with her beloved husband Jonathan in New York City.
Author Website www.aliceorrbooks.com
Author Blog www.aliceorrbooks.com
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/aliceorrwriter
Twitter https://twitter.com/aliceorrbooks
Amazon Author Page https://www.amazon.com/Alice-Orr/e/B000APC22E

Share a tweet with another #MFRWauthor member @MFRW_ORG

It's Retweet Day for MFRW on Twitter. All Marketing for Romance Writers are invited to set up tweets for their books.

Go into Twitter and create a tweet. Make sure to use #MFRWauthor or #MFRWorg You can share up to 280 characters per tweet.

Once the tweet has been posted, click anywhere in the white background of the tweet. This will open it and allow you to highlight and copy the URL.

Navigate back to here and paste the URL in the comment section of this post.

Each month, the RT post goes live the Monday before RT day. You can post your tweet until Wednesday of the same week.

Retweet Day is on the second Wednesday of each month. Retweet everyone on the list who uses one of the hashtags.

HINT:

To help people find your tweet, click the the white background and then the down arrow (found on the right side). Choose "Pin to Your Profile Page." This will keep the tweet at the top of your Twitter feed so more people can find it.

Retweet Day Rules

1. Must have #MFRWauthor or #MFRWorg in the tweet. (This retweet day is to promote each other and our group.)

2. Do not use profanity or sexual explicit graphics. Keep it for all age groups.
3. Please do not use adult topics for this one tweet.
4. Limit hashtags to three (3) per post.

5. Return on Retweet Day and click each link in the comments.**

6. On the tweet, click the heart and then the retweet button.

** To share a tweet, highlight the url, right click, and you will see an option to open the link or go to the url. Do that, and it should open in a new window and take you there.

Come back after sending the tweet and go through the entire list. 

PLEASE NOTE: If a tweet doesn't fit your stream, you are under no obligation to share it.

Here's to a great day of retweets!

Kayelle Allen writes Sci Fi with misbehaving robots, mythic heroes, role playing immortal gamers, and warriors who purr. She is the author of multiple books, novellas, and short stories. She's also a US Navy veteran and has been married so long she's tenured.

https://kayelleallen.com

The Wrong Idea about Story Ideas by Alice Orr @AliceOrrBooks #MFRWauthor #AmEditing

The major misconception about story ideas has to do with what they can and cannot accomplish. Let me illustrate with a cocktail party – or family barbecue or writers' event – scenario. The Author, maybe you or me, stands at edge of the crowd to maximize observation potential. We're eavesdroppers and surveillance experts after all. We know, as Nora Ephron said, that everything is copy, so we're always on the lookout for glimpses of story fodder.

Story Fodder

Since we are also savvy Authors, our glasses contain sparkling water, diet cola, tonic with lime or something equally nonalcoholic. We know that keeping the head clear is essential to keeping the perception sharp and the memory intact for later notetaking. We are further aware that every foray into the world holds the possibility for sighting a publishing pro, and we must be ever ready to do some sober impressing. Like I said, we're savvy.

Meanwhile, a fellow partier sidles over to you, but is unfortunately anything but a publishing professional. In fact, this guy or gal is a civilian, as in not a publishing person at all, and especially not an Author. Soon he or she discovers that you however are the real thing, an actual bona fide Author in the flesh. At which point, your new-found companion from the non-pub world suggests some variation on the following.

"I've got a terrific idea for a novel. Bestseller for sure. How's about I tell you my idea, you write the story, then we split the take fifty-fifty?"

More than one misconception is in play here. First off, this non-practitioner of the writing arts completely underestimates the writing process. Legendary sportswriter Red Smith once famously said, "There's nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at the typewriter and open a vein." Of course, your sidekick with the bestseller idea, who has now glommed onto you like an overboard sailor in search of port in a storm, knows nothing about the bloodletting aspect of a writer's work. Worse yet, he does not understand that an idea is not a story.

An idea is only a kernel. That kernel may possess the potential to grow into the next Nora King Mary Higgins Grisham opus, or it may not. Either way, tons of nurture, strain, frustration, doubt and, ah yes, bloodletting must be applied between the planting of that seed kernel and its sometimes quite long-distant future harvest. A clever idea may be a jumping off place, but, without the sweat equity required, the storyteller is in for a hard fall and a lean crop.

Let me make very clear that not only non-writers are susceptible here. I have myself experienced the exhilaration of a Technicolor idea strike. Here's how that phenomenon generally goes. A story concept, or maybe just the flash of a scene, appears unexpectedly out of the blue, like lightning in the mind. And, in that instant, I am immediately certain something entirely new and previously unimagined has been revealed.

"This is it," I cry out in creative ecstasy between heart palpitations. "This is the story I have to write."

The problem is that I don't really have a story. I only have an idea, and an idea is only a beginning. A story, particularly in the commercial publishing arena where so many of us practice our craft, requires a plot with a beginning, a middle and an end. At best, my dazzling epiphany of inspiration will get me through the opening scene, maybe even the first chapter. Sadly, on the other hand, without a lot more work, the story tumbles downhill from there.

Any editor worth her blue pencil will see straight through the Technicolor bit to the lackluster follow-up. Even if she is impressed by the story's start, she'll have figured out the truth long before the probably nonexistent finish. Which did, in fact, happen to me with the proposal for a suspense novel tentatively titled Live Burial. I must admit I was as blindingly dazzled by that title inspiration as I had been by the initial idea strike. Until my then-agent leveled her critique straight at me.

"Sorry, Alice," she said, and she actually did look sorrowful. "You've got no second act."

My own twenty-twenty hindsight eventually leveled its critique as well. I had no subsequent acts at all, only a wham-bam opening scene. What had been buried alive, by me, was my story, along with my chances of making that all-important boffo first-read impression on my agent. The object lesson here is this. Follow my advice, not my example. Tell your partytime buddy, "Thanks, but no thanks," and never let The Wrong Idea about Ideas enter your storyteller's mind ever again.

For more insights into writing and publishing, visit my blog at www.aliceorrbooks.com.

Alice Orr is author of 16 novels, 3 novellas, a memoir and No More Rejections: 50 Secrets to Writing a Manuscript that Sells. A former book editor and literary agent, Alice now writes full-time. Her latest novel is A Time of Fear and Loving – Riverton Road Romantic Suspense Series Book 5. Find all of Alice Orr's books at amazon.com and other online retailers. Alice has two grown children and two perfect grandchildren and lives with her beloved husband Jonathan in New York City.
Author Website www.aliceorrbooks.com
Author Blog www.aliceorrbooks.com
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/aliceorrwriter
Twitter https://twitter.com/aliceorrbooks
Amazon Author Page https://www.amazon.com/Alice-Orr/e/B000APC22E