The End is Near . . . or is it?

The majority of the stories and novels I write start with an image. Occasionally, I hear a few lines of description, narrative or dialogue, but it's usually visual, my own silent movie scene. This moment, while often the impetus for the work, is not always the opening scene. Sometimes it falls in the middle or even at the very end. It can change slightly but it rarely disappears. It's sort of like a hidden mental hook I hang the whole story or novel on.

The Camp NaNo novel I'm continuing to work on has that. It's got lots of characters, too many plot threads to count, and some scary (I hope!) blood-and-guts-but-not-too-gory scenes. What it doesn't have? An ending.

I pretty much always have some idea of how the work is going to end. It might be vague, but it's there. Not this time. I've got loose and frayed plot lines that need to be knotted up. I've got characters moving toward an end point . . . but none of us know what that end point is or what will actually happen when we get there. And I don't like it. I like to know where I'm going, how long it will take to get there, what happens once I do. (Why, then, am I a writer, with all its unpredictability and uncertainty? Probably a post for another day.)  

So, as my characters and I move toward the cliff's edge with no rope bridge in sight, I ask what you all do with your stories and novels. How do you start? Does a character speak to you or does the plot present itself first? Do you know the ending ahead of time? Or is it always a surprise to you?

Motivational Monday

...I CARE WHAT MY READER THINKS. THERE IS NO FANCY RECOMMENDATION YOU CAN GIVE ME THAT WOULD MATTER TO ME AS MUCH AS MARY JANE FROM YOUNGSTOWN WRITING ME A LETTER. THERE IS NOT ONE. 

DON'T NEED IT, DON'T WANT IT, DON'T REQUIRE IT, DOES NOT FILL UP MY SOUL. 

IT'S ABOUT HER, NOT ABOUT THE REST OF IT.

(Adriana Trigiani, Writer's Digest July/August 2012)

My goal as a writer has always been to affect people with my writing the way I was, and still am, by what I read. I want to make people laugh or cry or run screaming from the weird noise coming from their closet that might just be the house creaking but, well, it also might not be. 

Don't get me wrong - money and awards and accolades are very much welcome - but whenever I've gotten an email or a comment about something I've written - a story, a blog post, etc. - it's a vindication, a validation, a fist-pumping yes! that I am on the right track, that I am doing what I am meant to be doing, that I am reaching that goal again and again and again. 

So, whenever you all take the time to leave a comment about a story I've written or a blog post that moved you, please know that you are aiding in the achievement of a life's goal and it is so greatly appreciated.

Thank you!

Contest Reminder and Update

Hey, everyone - just a reminder that the Writer Unboxed Flash Fiction Contest Week Three is going on right now! Head on over and check out this week's prompt. You only have until early Wednesday to sub your entry so don't wait too long . . .

And, I am thrilled to say, my story, "In Pursuit of Pretty Things," made the Top Four for Week Two! This means it will go on to compete in the big final vote in early August. (If you'd like to read it, you can find it here, at about #64.)

Call Out For Submissions: Writer Unboxed Summer Flash Fiction Contest

I can't remember how I first came across the Writer Unboxed blog but I'm so glad I did. Run by novelists Therese Walsh and Kathleen Bolton, it is informative and inspiring, with amazing author interviews and guests posts (I recently read one by none other than literary agent and author, Donald Maass!)

And in addition to all that good stuff, Writer Unboxed is running their Summer Flash Contest. You can find all the information and rules here, but I'll give you a quick rundown:

- Each Sunday (until August 5th) they'll provide a visual prompt
- You have 72 hours (until Wednesday, 7 am EST) to create a story (250 words or fewer) and post it in the comments section of that week's contest 
- The top three stories from each week will be chosen based on "Likes" and the judges' discretion
- On the seventh Sunday, there will be a roundup of all the top stories 
- First, second, and third place winners will be announced and awarded some pretty nifty prizes

Weeks One and Two have come and gone but there's still time, so make a note to check every Sunday to see that week's prompt. Good luck!

[I missed Week One myself but my entry for Week Two is here (about #64) - it's called "In Pursuit of Pretty Things" if you'd like to check it out. If you enjoy it, or any of the other stories, go ahead and "Like" them! It would be much appreciated.]

Motivational Monday

PEOPLE UNDERESTIMATE THEIR CAPACITY

FOR CHANGE. THERE IS NEVER A

RIGHT TIME TO DO A DIFFICULT THING.

(John Porter)

It amazes me how the word 'no' is so small yet so powerful. It is fraught with tension and problems and discord, but it's also full of opportunity to change, to grow, to discover, to explore. I've learned over the last few years that the more I say 'no' to other people and to unhealthy (mentally, physically, emotionally) situations, the more I'm actually saying 'yes' to me. I'm saying 'yes' to my dreams, to my goals, to my priorities, to my body, to my health and well-being.  

It's far from being easy. I don't enjoy hurting other people, of causing pain or anger. Before I say 'no' to something, I try to look at all the angles, take everything into consideration, devise a compromise, something, anything to ease the gush of guilt that usually comes with it. But I keep saying 'no' anyway. I have to. It sounds extremely selfish and, I suppose, in a way it is. But I've only got one shot at this amazing, incredible life and if I don't change, if I don't get stronger, if I don't start swimming, I will drown while never even leaving the shore.   

Don't underestimate your capacity for change. This week, let's all make a change - however small, seemingly silly or difficult - and stick with it in the weeks to come.

The Off The Shelf Challenge: June Progress and Recommendations

Well, here we are, moving right along with The Off The Shelf Challenge. I've buckled down - somewhat - and I'm tackling the piles of books waiting patiently to be read. Since summer seems to be the season of reading for so many, here's a question for you - how's your summer reading going? Tackling any big reading projects? Waiting anxiously for a new title to come out?

Challenge Books read in: 
January:  4
February:  5
March:  1
April:  2
May: 2

*****

Challenge Books read in June:  3
Non Challenge Books read in June: 3
Total Books read in June: 6 

*****

Total Challenge Books read so far in 2012:  17
Total Non-Challenge Books read so far in 2012:  16
Total Books read so far in 2012:  33


Standouts in June include:


Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn - I've already raved about it in this post but I just wanted to add a side note here. One of the things I liked about this book was the fact that the protagonists were not the, um, most likable people in the world. And yet I still wanted to know what happened in the end. My husband, on the other hand, couldn't get past his distaste for the characters and couldn't care less what happened to them. (They didn't pass his "elevator shaft test" = would he care if the characters fell down an elevator shaft? In this case, no, he would not.) He did agree with me regarding the writing and the plotting (though he missed out on some great twists!)


The Last Bridge by Teri Coyne - this dark novel has a rawness to it, and a desperate, ragged edge to the protagonist that makes you want to shake her and save her at the same time. I'm not giving you a spoiler here when I say there's hope in this novel - I'm offering you a lifeline; hold onto it as you wind your way through this heartbreaking, complex, layered story. Believe me, you'll need it.


Left Neglected by Lisa Genova - I wish I knew what took me so long to read this book. It's a wake-up call, a how-to on survival and being positive and forgiveness, with a few laugh out loud lessons about living and thriving when everything, and I mean, everything, changes. I've already put this author's other book, Still Alice, on my TBR list.

Motivational Monday

THE MOST BEAUTIFUL THINGS ARE THOSE

THAT MADNESS PROMPTS AND

REASON WRITES.

(Andre Gide)

Well, I don't think I'd call my Camp NaNo novel 'beautiful' but I would definitely say the idea was prompted by some sort of madness. Sometimes the roads my imagination wants to take me down are twisty and dark, and I balk, afraid. I scare myself. A lot. My wonderfully supportive husband - in the role of the person in the movie/book who wants to open the door to the basement to prove that it's really only a mouse making those blood-curdling screams - encourages me to let myself go, to not hold back, to dive in and delve under. 

And so I do. 

Because there's a reason why my imagination goes where it does. I don't know what the reason is but I have to trust that there is one.

Because as big a chicken as I am, I like to be scared. Just a little.

Because - and this is the biggest 'because' of them all - I know that when I come crawling back up that sinister road, when I am mentally scarred and bruised and somewhat broken, there is goodness waiting for me - my husband, our home, the tortoises, photos of my niece and nephew, sunshine and a sandy beach.    

So, let go this week...but let's make sure there's someone or something - a lifeline, a map, a compass - around in case we get a little lost and need help finding our way back.