Time to Write

How to kick-start your early morning writing routine

 Mornings are not my time, I'm a night owl by nature, but some writers find that getting up before the rest of the household gives them the best opportunity to crank out some pages. If you've tried that but struggled, here are some tips:

1. Caffeine. I know that it's not a good idea to keep cranking up your system and then letting it crash by having too much coffee throughout the day, but starting with a cup can be a good way to get going. If you want to sustain your energy rather than jolt yourself periodically, sip coffee throughout the day (but make sure you're not taking in too much).

2. Cool water with a dash of fresh lemon juice. This is my drink of choice first thing i the morning, along with a green tea capsule. I find the effect similar to having a cup of coffee, but more pleasant.

3. Wake up to whatever kind of music gets you going. If there's somebody else in the bedroom who wouldn't appreciate this, just have an iPod or other mp3 player handy and wake up enough to jam in your earphones and then turn up the volume.

4. Set the thermostat so that your place will be warm when you get up (obviously this is seasonal and depends on where you're working, but when I first got to London and lived in a flat without central heating, facing the cold bathroom in the morning was a major incentive to stay in bed).

5. Get some quick exercise. Ten minutes of jogging in place and stretching should do the job.

6. Get everything ready the night before so you can get right to writing.

If the thought of working in the mornings fills you with dread, the next post will feature six tips for working at night after everybody else has gone to bed.
 

(There are lots more tips for how to use your time effectively using right-brain methods, in "Focus: use the power of targeted thinking to get more done." You can get it from Amazon and other online and offline retailers, and you can get more information at www.focusquick.com)

The two questions writers must answer to get an agent

 A couple of years ago, Steve Harrison, who runs www.howtogetaliteraryagent.com, hosted a panel of four agents including Jeff Herman (pictured). Herman said he wants the answers to two questions when he gets a query letter:

1. "Why, given all the choices that everybody has for their information [and] entertainment today, is somebody going to spend $25 on your book?"

2. "What about you and what you're doing, as far as your activities, that's really going to help support that book in the marketplace?"

If he likes your answers to those two questions he'll ask for a book proposal.

It's a good idea to have those two questions in mind right at the start and let them guide you during the writing process. For example, for question 2, you might want to set up a blog that relates to your topic and build up a following during the time you're writing the book. 
 

(For lots more practical tips on how to write and promote a book and get an agent, see my book, "Your Writing Coach," published by Nicholas Brealey and available from Amazon.com and other online and offline retailers. And if writing screenplays is your thing, check out my new site, www.ScreenWritingSuccess.com.)

A free-lance writer's guide to when to panic

(In case you'd rather not panic, you may find that my book, "Your Writing Coach," published by Nicholas Brealey and available from Amazon and other online and offline retailers, has a soothing influence.)                                  

Are these the shortest stories in the world? (And how you can use them)

A new book from innovative publisher Mark Batty is "Three Line Novels," written by Felix Feneon, illustrated by Joanna Neborsky and translated by Luc Sante. Here's the back story, from the publisher's web site:

"Felix Feneon – anarchist, art maven, literary instigator – edited Rimbaud’s Illuminations and was the first to publish James Joyce in French. He was also the author of 1,220 faits-divers that appeared over the course of 1906 in the Paris newspaper Le Matin. As stand-alone pieces, these concise, and often bizarre, three-line reports of death, naval exercises gone awry, petty theft and labor disputes are enigmatic fragments, but when viewed as a whole they form a mosaic of the era in France.

The New York Review of Books published Luc Sante’s English translation of these items as Novels in Three Lines, inspiring artist Joanna Neborsky to create illustrations and collages that vivify a selection of the trenchant vignettes."

Here are a few samples:

"Nurse Elise Bachmann, whose day off was yesterday, put on a public display of insanity."

"A certain madwoman arrested downtown yesterday falsely claimed to be nurse Elise Bachmann. The latter is perfectly sane."

"If my candidate loses, I will kill myself," M. Bellavoine of Fresquenne, Seine-Inferieure, had declared. He killed himself."

A bizarre collection that will amuse anyone into black comedy--but also a great source of prompts for any writer. If these ideas don't stimulate your imagination, nothing will. 

(Less strange but very useful and featuring lovely graphics is my book, "Creativity Now!", available from Amazon and other online and offline retailers. It also makes a great present...whose birthday is coming up?)

Six sources of fresh inspiration for writers

Most writers have blah days. Not actual writer's block, but the ideas aren't flowing the way you'd like them to. Here are six ways to get our brain working better:

1. MOVE AROUND. Get some exercise, even if it's just walking up and down a set of stairs or jogging in place for a few minutes. Getting blood flowing to your brain helps.

2. DRINK SOME WATER. You don't have to be as obsessive about this as some people are, who seem to be afraid to be anywhere for more than 5 minutes without their bottle of water, but I've found that a glass of cool water with a dash of fresh lemon juice first thing in the morning really helps me wake up quickly.

 3. GO TO A MUSEUM OR ART GALLERY. What stimulates your imagination? Images? Artifacts? Take a break, feed your head with things you don"t normally see.

4. TAKE A TED BREAK. Ted.com has a wonderful collection of talks on an amazing variety of topics. Pick one in which you think you don't have any interest, you might be surprised.

5. TALK TO SOMEBODY. Call a friend you haven't seen for a while or go to a shop where the person behind the counter isn't busy and seems friendly. Do more listening than talking. Find out what's going on in their life. Sometimes that gives you a whole new perspective.

6. WRITE SOMETHING DIFFERENT. If you normally write short stories, write a scene for a screenplay (see my site www.screenwritingsuccess.com for some pointers), and vice-versa.

Bonus suggestion: Get a copy of my book, "Creativity Now!" (you'll find the chapter bonuses behind the yellow cover at www.jurgenwolff.com

Writing tomorrow's books--bells, whistles, and the kitchen sink

 I have just been reading about the first interactive book release from the Penguin Group, Kenn Follett's "The Pillars of the Earth." 

It's a joint effort with entertainment company Starz and includes: 

* Video clips and original music from the Starz 8-hour TV version of the book (released on July 23). The clips are updated over the eight weeks the series runs.

* A Character Tree that Penguin says "provides a remarkable aid to keeping the story's myriad characters straight, yet prevents plot spoilers." This Tree is "housed in a virtual stained glass window, which grows as characters are introduced in the book..." I had a look...it's a little weird to see actors enshrined in a stained glass window, although it suits Donald Sutherland.

* the author's multi-media diary with "the author's on-set impressions of bringing [the book] to the screen."

* Behind the scenes interviews with the actors, director and producers.

* Sketches of the 12th century costumes and sets.

* A sneak preview of his next book.

It's optimized for the iPhone and available from iTunes for $12.99 It's called "The Amplified Edition." 

I can't shake the feeling that what I'm getting is the extras on the DVD of the series, one of which happens to be the book.

(My book, "Creativity Now!" is fully interactive--when you turn the page, new words appear, and you are able to add you own commentary by writing in the margins. It's published by Pearson and available from Amazon and other online and offline retailers.)

Is it time for your writing to evolve?

The Chicago Tribune reported an example of an entrepreneur who supercharged her business by changing directions. I think there may be a lesson in it for us writers. Here's the story:

"Like most small businesses, Blue Buddha Boutique started as a one-person show, with Rebeca Mojica making and selling chain-mail jewelry. But Mojica, who created her first pieces eight years ago when she couldn't find a chain-mail belt she liked in the marketplace, soon saw a larger opportunity in selling chain-mail supplies to other jewelry-makers. So she adjusted her business model, launching an online jewelry supplies store that has drawn customers from more than 30 countries and propelled her company's annual sales to an expected half-million dollars."

Right now, the marketplace for writers is tough. Newspapers are dying or cutting back, as are most of the general-interest magazines. We have to be alert to where the opportunities are and at the  moment these areas seem to be most promising:

* articles for niche publications

* niche books that you self-publish

* downloadable information products based on your expertise (or piggybacking on someone else's)

* screenplays for low-budget, independent films

* copywriting, especially for websites and online marketers

* plays for amateur productions (a hidden market that I'll write more about another time--it's small money per production but can add up to a lot over time)

If you're finding that the markets for your writing have disappeared, consider whether any of the above might be your next step. You'll find more tips in my book, "Your Writing Coach," published by Nicholas Brtealey.

Exercise your mind with the Mind Gym

"The Mind Gym," reviewed by Jurgen Wolff from jurgen Wolff on Vimeo.

The writer who put blood, sweat and tears into a book (well, at least blood...)

Time reports that Indian cricketer Sachin Tendulker has put his blood into a new book--literally. Publisher Kraken Opus is selling a limited edition of the sportsman's autobiography in which the signature pages are made of a mix of paper pulp and a pint of his blood.

Each of these ten volumes cost $75,000 (proceeds to charity) and they've sold out.

Time says that "to many, Tendulkar is a religious icon."

Hmm, a step too far for me. But if it helps, I'm willing to put some used chewing gum into the next edition of my book...

Two ways to get your book published in today's tough market

Want to get a great book deal? 

Easy, just become a Russian spy and get caught.

 The New York Post reports that Anna Chapman, recently outed as a 'sleeper' spying for Russia, is asking $250,000 for her memoirs, with the money to go into a friend's Swiss bank account.

In the plea bargain that allowed her to be swapped with some US spies, she agreed not to profit from her crime. But now that' she's back in Russia, good luck going after that money.

It's not a new development that the big money in publishing goes to people in the news and to celebrities (they use the word loosely in publishing). The problem is that in today's tight economy publishers are even more determined to go after the 'sure thing' deals, which means less money for newcomers.

There are two solutions for those of us who haven't gotten into selling state secrets or being the last to be eliminated from "Celebrity Big Loser Island." 

One is self-publishing (which also means self-promoting and self-distributing). Lots more work, but also a much bigger chunk of any profits.

The other is to focus on "high concept" books in which the topic or the way you deal with it is novel enough to make publishers take notice.  Often the title will reveal this strategy. Twenty years ago a book might have been called, "The Economics of Everyday Life." Now it's called "Freakonomics: a Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything." Notice the "rogue." A rogue economist is much more exciting than a regular one.

The follow-up to that book has upped the stakes even more. It's called "Superfreakonomics: Global Cooling, Patriotic Prostitutes and Why Suicide Bombers Should Buy Life Insurance." My hat's off to Steven J. Dubner--anybody who can get prostitutes, suicide bombers and global warming or cooling into one title has my respect.

I'm not knocking his books--I've read the first one and enjoyed it; I'm just pointing out that to get any attention in today's publishing space you need to make your title and your approach freaky or even superfreaky.

(You'll find a treasure trove of tips in my book, "Your Writing Coach," published by Nicholas Brealey and available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other online and offline retailers.)

Writers: beware of quoting lyrics!

Can you quote song lyrics in your book? Sure, if you're willing to pay. 

 Author Blake Morrison knows this to his cost. In his novel, "South of the River," he had a party at which the hosts played a number of songs and he felt it was important to cite some of the lyrics. He thought since he was using only a line or two from a handful of songs, he didn't need to bother getting permission (or paying for it).

Ooops.

At the last minute, his publishing house realized the permissions had not been secured and got them. Here's his account of the bill (for US readers, £1 = approx. $1.50), as relayed in an article in the Guardian:

"For one line of "Jumpin' Jack Flash": £500. For one line of Oasis's "Wonderwall": £535. For one line of "When I'm Sixty-four": £735. For two lines of "I Shot the Sheriff" (words and music by Bob Marley, though in my head it was the Eric Clapton version): £1,000. Plus several more, of which only George Michael's "Fastlove" came in under £200. Plus VAT. Total cost: £4,401.75. A typical advance for a literary novel by a first-time author would barely meet the cost."

Doesn't seem fair, does it? As Morrison points out, it's free advertising for the song and it's not like you're pirating an actual recording. But the record companies have lots of lawyers, so in this case it's better to be safe then sorry.

Morrison's solution: "[the] next time I need songs I'll make them up myself."

(For information about protecting your literary material, go to my timetowrite.com site where you'll find a helpful report on this topic.)

How not to write historical dialogue

For an education in how NOT to write historical dialogue,  watch the very bloody "Spartacus." 

It's full of lines like, "He speaks out of turn but the truth falls from his lips."

One tip: don't write lines that call up a comical image. 

I have no idea whether people said that kind of thing around the time that Spartacus was alive (c. 109-71 BC, according to Wikipedia), but they sure shouldn't talk like that now. 

Of course you don't want them to sound like they've just stepped out of Los angeles, either, and that's where we writers face a dilemma. How different to make historical characters sound? A lot of times regardless of the period, historical dialogue sounds like a poor imitation of Shakespeare.

 It's hard to give rules, much easier to study writers who have done it successfully. One example is the Robert Fagles translation of "The Odyssey." To my mind, he gets it right. Here's a little excerpt chosen at random. It's Odysseus relating the reception he got at the court of King Aeolus:

"So I pleaded--gentle, humble appeals--but our hosts turned silent, hushed...and the father broke forth with an ultimatum: 'Away from my island--fast--most cursed man alive! It's a crime to host a man or speed him on his way when the blessed deathless gods despise him so. Crawling back like this--it proves the immortals hate you! Out--get out!"

It doth sound most pleasing to the ear, and that's the truth that just fell from my lips.

(Truth also falls from the pages of my book, "Your Writing Coach," published by Nicholas Brealey Publishing and available from Amazon and other online and offline retailers.You can find out more about it at www.yourwritingcoach.com)

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What happens when a writer has time to think

In an interview with Goodreads.com, crime novelist Tana French offers a good example of how even very ordinary things feed into a book when that's on your mind. The book she's talking about is "Faithful Place" and the character is undercover cop Frank Mackey:

"In front of a house being gutted I saw a huge dumpster. Among all of these horrible broken lamps and rolls of ripped up, moldy wallpaper there was a battered old blue suitcase. I started thinking, "I wonder how that got there and how long it'd been in that old house and what's inside it?" That tied in with how I'd been thinking about Frank. What would be so crucially important to him that he would be backed into a corner? I thought the discovery of a suitcase [could reveal] that his first love, Rosie—who he thought had run away on him—may not have left him after all. Frank thought he had left home and family behind. Then he starts to be drawn back by this discovery."

To me this is a great demonstration of how important it is for writers to have time to wander, undistracted by phones, mp3 players, etc.--so there is space to be distracted by other things that can connect with and contribute to whatever you are working on. 
 

(There are also ways you can coax inspiration to visit--for instructions, see my book, "Creativity Now!" published by Pearson and available from Amazon and other online and offline retailers.)

How did Christopher Nolan write "Inception"?

 I've recently seen "Inception" (instant review: great effects, interesting ideas, too long by half an hour, especially the snow scenes). Writer-director Christopher Nolan told MTV about his creative process:

"It felt like there's a world here that I'm just trying to understand and put together for the audience. ... You feel like it already exists, and you're kind of uncovering it."

I think we've all experienced that--but never enough.

Inception has a complex (some might say convoluted) structure but Nolan says he didn't create a bible to keep track of all the characters and story strands. "I kept thinking about doing that," he said. "But what happens is, you come up with a rule set, then you're writing the script, and you need the story to go somewhere else, you don't want to go back in and change the rule set...the rules are sort of evolutionary in a film like 'Inception.' You have to be true to them. There's no question about that. You can't cheat with them. But you don't want to sit down and put one to 10, 'OK, these are the rules."

He added: "Writing is a strange thing, because sometimes it's cart before horse," he added. "Sometimes you know there's a scene that's going to happen, but you don't quite know how you're going to get there. And that's one of the things that I really enjoy about writing."

About halfway through, I gave up trying to keep track of which dream we were in and just sat back and enjoyed it, although, as I said, the last 45 minutes drags. The other issue for me is that the idea that they were trying to implant in their target's mind never came alive as being all that important. But as summer blockbusters go, Inception has more interesting ideas underlying it than all the others put together.

One simple step to being more creative

A study at the University of Georgia found, not too surprisingly, that when you tell people "Be creative!" often they freeze up. It's like telling a comedian you encounter on the street, "OK, make me laugh!"

 The researcher, Mark Runco, found that it was much more effective to tell people, "Do something only you would come up with--that none of your family or friends would think of." He says this doubles the number of creative responses.

This seems like a strategy that could be transferred to specific creative activities. For instance, if you're creating an idea for a TV series, your instruction to yourself could be, "Do something that existing TV series don't do." In the case of "Dexter," this was making the protagonist of the series a serial killer. For "24"and other recent series, it was killing off major characters in the middle of a series.

The next time you sit down to be creative in your realm, try giving yourself that instruction and see what effect it has on the flow of ideas. 

(For more ideas on how to be more creative, get my newest book, "Creativity Now!"--it gives you 25 ways to get into a creative state, 25 ways to generate new ideas, 25 ways to help you turn those ideas into reality, and 25 inspirational mini-case studies of creative projects. You can get the book from Amazon or your other favorite online or offline book seller.)