Writing 101: The Backstory

Not all characters enter into the story fresh and pure. Dickens had a habit of starting his books with the birth of the protagonist, but not every author goes all the way to the very beginning to introduce a character. Sometimes, they've got a past. And if you want me to know about that past, you're going to need a tried-and-true literary device: the backstory.

The Story So Far...

The story-within-a-story is a well-used writing technique. When that story is a backstory, however, you've got to be careful. Many authors create a backstory for certain characters. I do it all the time to help make them seem more real; a character with a past is much richer. But when the audience needs to know that backstory, you've got some stuff to think about. Presenting a backstory is pretty tricky business.

• Prologue: Some authors like to show the backstory right up front at the start of the book, in the prologue. This is a very efficient means of presenting the past part of the story before the real action of the plot begins, but it's been done to death. Other authors try to mix it up a little by presenting the backstory in other ways within the meat of the novel.
• Flashbacks: Looking for an easy way to time travel back in the past? Flashbacks are well-used technique for doing this. Anything's acceptable inside some italics. With a flashback, you can easily insert backstory in the form of entire scenes right into the middle of the narrative.
• Dialogue: Need to reveal some past events? Pull out a character who wasn't involved in that past and put them in a room with someone who was. Make the character start asking questions, and draw the backstory out through dialogue. This is a great way to make the reader feel like a part of the story; the character who doesn't know what's going on is easy to identify with and relate to, because I don't know this mysterious past either.

The way you present the backstory is important, but the timing is essential. The reader needs to have this information, but when? Keep a few tips in mind while you're writing it. Don't offer too many hints or draw the suspense out for too long. If you keep a reader on the string for an extended period of time and stretch their patience, eventually they will break. They'll get to a point where they no longer care about the backstory. Tease it just enough, make them wait just long enough, and reveal all.

A good backstory makes characters even more interesting, and adds another layer to the story you're telling. Use it the right way, and that story will be a lot better. Use it the wrong way, and it's only going to take the reader away from the story you want to tell.

Writing 101: I Seen

Some grammatical errors become so common, they are integrated into language. Words like forever and alot are prime examples. But some mistakes are still wrong, no matter how often we hear them. I seen is the one I hate the most.

On the Grammar See-Saw

I don't care how you phrase it or use it, I seen is incorrect one hundred percent of the time.

The verb to see is irregular. It has several tenses, like any other verb. The present tense is simply see, as in I see you reading that blog post. The past tense of see is saw, i.e. I saw another blogger writing about that last week.

And then there's seen. It is the past participle of see. This means it's only used with another word, like have. For instance, I have seen better blogs. The word seen only works with other verbs, but it doesn't get along with nouns. To use it properly, it's got to have one of its friends. Words like have and has make seen a possibility. Without them, you've just got bad grammar.

Writing 101: Wrist Health

I've always used the computer mouse with my right hand. It's a little weird, because I'm left-handed, but I guess I was just confronted by two many computers with the mouse on the wrong side. So now I always use my right hand. Because I practice good wrist health, I always can. But if you don't, you're going to find yourself in a diner pressing a hot coffee cup against your hand at the age of 20. I know, because it happened to me.

Carpaling a Tunnel

Yes it's true. I used to order coffee, half-full, while hanging out with my friends in restaurants. I did not really drink the coffee; I pressed the back of my right wrist against it. As it cooled off, I instructed the waitress to pour just a little more in there to heat it back up. This is why I had to order it half-full, you see. I did this for a few months before I finally learned a few things about good wrist health...and carpal tunnel.

Everyone has a carpal canal, a small passageway inside the wrist that connects the palm to the arm. It's filled with connective tissues and nerves, not to mention a few tendons. When your wrist is habitually bent at an angle, this tunnel may narrow in size. The tiny bones in the wrist, the carpals, begin to move and shift. As a result, the main median nerve might become trapped in the tunnel. This causes terrible pain.

That said, it is possible to overcome the pain. I successfully manage mine. The secret? Good wrist health.

No Limp Wrists Here

If you're a writer, and you live in the modern age, you're going to be typing...a lot. This makes it highly likely that your wrists are going to be bent, instead of straight. If you want to avoid carpal tunnel syndrome, and the pain associated therein, you want to keep your wrists straight. 

But you're typing, so it's just not always feasible to keep them straight during your waking hours. So do what I do. Make sure they stay straight while you sleep. If your wrists are habitually bent during the day, it's not at all unlikely that when you sleep they resume this same hunched position. You want to keep them straight and flat instead, all night long whenever possible. This can be done with a special brace, but it can also be done by shoving your hands beneath the pillow. Remember you want your fingers out and splayed, and your wrists straight and flat. Make it a habit to sleep in this position. Otherwise, your fingers may curl inward automatically as you sleep and exacerbate carpal tunnel syndrome. 

Please note that I am not a doctor nor a medical professional. If you believe you have carpal tunnel syndrome, you should seek professional help.

Writing 101: Original Ideas

Want to write a story about two young lovers who fall for each other even though their families are at odds? Shakespeare already did it. How about a grittier tale, where one jealous brother coldly murders the other? Sorry -- that story's so old, it's in the Bible. There's a theory of belief out there that there are no more original ideas...and I happen to agree. If you're waiting for an original idea before you start writing that book, stop.

It's All Been Done

When it comes to basic plot, every single sort of love story has already been told. Every drama and comedy was written long ago...most of them by the ancient Greeks.  And mysteries? They're already solved. After all, there are only so many ways to kill. 

Read the Bible, the works of the ancient Greek playwrights, and Shakespeare...and you'll see that there's really nothing new in the world of fiction. It isn't your plot that needs to be original, but your take on it does. When you write, you should be doing so with your own unique voice and style. That's something that can never be duplicated by anyone else. Even Shakespeare didn't always write original ideas (you'll see it after you read the Greeks), but his work is revered because it's good. It's distinct because he made it his own. 

When you do the same, it doesn't matter how unoriginal your best ideas might be.

Writing 101: Reaching for Words?

If you've ever told anybody, at any point in your life, that you want to be a writer then you've probably heard one very shopworn piece of advice: write what you know. I've decided that they might not be talking about plot points and subject matter, however. I'm pretty sure they're talking about the words.

Reaching and Overreaching

Everybody has used a word the wrong way. But when you're an author, you're not really supposed to use them incorrectly. Do it in a book, and some savvy reader is definitely going to catch on. 

Don't use words you don't really know when you're writing. If you're reaching for words, you're just taking yourself out of the flow of writing the story. Use the words that come naturally when you're writing, and your writing will come to you a lot easier. 

If you find that you're using too many of the same words over and over, you need to learn new words. Expand your vocabulary by reading more books. Look for books in your genre and books outside of it, because it never hurts to broaden your horizons. You'll pick up more words naturally, and that will improve your writing. 

You don't need a whole lot of words to express a great story. Being overly descriptive will not serve your plot well, and it will only wear out your readers. Don't worry about using a lot of fancy words. Just use the ones that express exactly what you want to write.

Writing 101: Audio Books

If you've self-published, then you're already learning how to master the art of turning a manuscript into an ebook. Now, you've got to turn that ebook into an audio book.

Listening to Books

There's nothing new about listening to books. Lots of people have memories of family road trips with a book on tape or book on CD droning in the background. But now that so many people have a smartphone or electronic device of some sort, audio books are back...and they're digital.

Once you turn your book into an ebook, the next logical step is to have it read aloud to you so you don't even have to go through the hassle of looking at the screen. Converting to audio books is fairly simple, so don't miss out on this market.

With text-to-speech technology, convert any ebook into an audio book. Your software may already have text-to-speech technology. You can always open up your book and use the text-to-speech function to have it read aloud. Record this audio into an MP3 file that can be played on a smartphone or similar device.

It's much easier to use software, of course. Text2Go is a fairly user-friendly program for Windows users. It will open your ebook and convert it without lots of time and trouble. You will need your ebook in ePub, html or plain text format, so make sure it's properly converted first.

People can listen to an audio book while working out, cleaning house, driving in the car or doing any other activity that might make it inconvenient to look at a screen. Convert your books, and start selling them in a new market.

Writing 101: The Commitments You Make

The commitments you make as an indie author matter. They matter so much, I could leave this blog post at that sentence alone -- there's really nothing more to be said. You can't blow them off, you can't pass them off, you can't change your mind. I don't even have to tell you a bunch of reasons why your commitments matter...there's just one that trumps them all.

Ready for Commitment

I got an email recently, and it got me to thinking about the commitments we all make as indie authors. 

Commitments you've got to follow through on, when you make them. It doesn't matter if you're busy, or if you're tired, or if you're hungry and cold and you haven't had any free time in weeks. Because as an indie author, all you really have is your name. Why associate it with someone who disappoints, and back peddles, and fails to follow through? 

If you agree to review it, review it. If you agree to be there, be there. If you say you're going to write it, then that's what you do. I've been reading through my TBR list very slowly, but I'm working on it. I'm not going to write to those authors and say sorry, I've got too much work and I can't even write my own books right now. And no one is forcing me to continue blogging Writing 101 tips, but I committed myself to a certain (insane) posting schedule. 

The commitments you make, and break, could break your reputation. Any little thing can actually affect readers, and as an indie you can't afford to alienate even one. I got an email from another author asking me to review a book they agreed to review. I saw that same author asking for help at large on a popular authors' forum (clearly, this author doesn't read the blog or they would know all about me and the author forums). And it looks pretty bad, I think. No excuse can be good enough for failing to meet the commitments you make.

Because as an indie, your name is what you have.

Writing 101: Are Children's Books Easy?

It's easy to get a little snobby when you're an author, and that also goes for me. The writer who does years of research for that in-depth biography might smile condescendingly at the author who writes lightweight fantasy fiction. I, too, am guilty of author prejudice. I learned it in the worst possible way: I caught myself turning up my nose at another author recently...a children's book writer. So now I have to ask: are children's books easier to write?

A Day in the Life

For the record, I don't have kids. I'm not good with kids, and I haven't really spent any time around them. I also don't write children's books. YA books are as close as I get. I remember being a teenager. I don't really remember being a kid. 

So when it comes to writing children's books, I don't really have the experience to know what it's all about. I went on a journey to learn more.

I began with Carrie A. Pearson, a children's book author. One look at her "about" page humbled me right away. Pearson has a ton of education and experience when it comes to kids, and she's a mother. I have also learned, in reading her blog, that she makes frequent trips to schools and other places where children convene. I hate nightmares in which I participate in the same behavior. But instead of being fidgety and frightened around the kids, as I would be, Carrie is engaging and informative with them. She holds their attention and keeps them from full-scale rioting, which makes her a truly brilliant woman. She does a lot of promotion and she puts herself in a lot of situations to do it. Her blog is also packed with fun stuff that makes me feel like a hack. 

Clearly her life and her career isn't easy. She described one event involving children that would have left me in hysterics. So I moved on. I went to a trade blog instead, one specifically about children's book writing and publishing, a collaborative affair. I ran straight into a post about all the things you can't write in children's books. Did you know you have to be mindful of slang? Even metaphors, the author's favorite tool, are a no-no. When writing for children, you must be forthright and direct. Apparently, children's books are highly story-driven. That means I can't bring all my best puns to the writing table. 

Now thoroughly embarrassed by my own snobbery, I continued. I found a post written by an author named Ree, aka the Pioneer Woman, and became increasingly more flabbergasted as I read about all the work she put into her illustrated children's book. I was sweating bullets by the time I got to step 4. The post was a big eye-opener for me; I never considered just how much plotting goes into creating illustrations based on something in an author's mind. I'm not sure I could ever work so closely with an illustrator without just losing it altogether. 

I continued on to a blog written by an author named Tara, who writes children's books and raises children so all I can say is yowzah. Her blog is so good, I almost didn't get back to writing this post. She puts a ton of thought and care into her craft, focusing on subtle messages and giving kids fun, what kids do and do not like, and writing very helpful blog posts. She's a true specialist, and that takes a lot of hard work. 

Granted, looking at a few blogs doesn't make me an expert on writing children's books. But I think I learned a lot, and I also think I've got an answer to my question. Children's books are not easier to write. In fact, in some ways it might be harder to write a children's book than one intended for adults. For me personally, I'm sure it would be. So today I celebrate you, children's books authors. You've got a hard job to do.