Time to Write

The books that can't be pirated

I hope I'm wrong, but I have a strong feeing that digital piracy is going to have just as harsh an effect on publishing as it has had on music.

One alternative, not right for every book or author of course, is to do the opposite of what everybody else is doing: go hard copy. Books with pages, covers, etc. But I think it's only the ones that have something different to offer that will succeed. Recently I've run across two examples: 

Penguin's cloth-bound classics. Bound in cloth and with covers designed by Coralie Bickford-Smith, these may do best as gift items but will appeal to anybody who loves the feel of a traditional book. There are 29 of them at this point, titles like Mansfield Park, Persuasion, Dracula, and Great Expectations. They cost £14.99, about $23, each.

More of a gimmick and much more expensive at £125 (about $190) is a limited interlocking edition of Mrs Bridge and Mr Bridge, by Evan Connell. It was designed by Thomas Heatherwick, the man who also designed the Cauldron for the Olympics. The Penguin site says, "In a series of comic, telling vignettes, Evan S. Connell illuminates the narrow morality, confusion and even terror at the heart of lives of plenty. Hilarious and heartbreaking in equal measure, these two novels - told from both perspectives of the marriage - deserve their place amongst the classics of American twentieth-century fiction. 

I think there's scope for independent authors to come up with creative ideas along these lines. It does raise the price and if you want to get economy of scale you'll have to print quite a few copies at a time--bringing us back to the pre-digital danger of a garage full of unsold books and the need to pack and post. However, for authors who can figure out how to appeal to the affluent members of the reading public who want something beautiful or unique to hold in their hands, it could be a solution. 

(Whatever you're writing, you'll get help from Your Writing Coach, published by Nicholas Brealey and available from Amazon or your other favorite bookseller.)

 

The motto that can help you plot your novel or screenplay

There's a motto that can give you the key to coming up with a stronger plot for your novel or screenplay. John Lennon put it into his song, "Beautiful Boy," but the first person to have said it seems to have been a cartoonist named Allen Saunders, back in 1957. The saying is:

"Life is what happens to you while you're making other plans."

How does that help the writer struggling with a plot?

Well, often the problem with a plot is that the protagonist doesn't have any other plans. He or she is there, apparently waiting for the story to start, and then it does. It continues, and it concludes. Lots of things happen but we feel somehow it wasn't real. It's like eating cotton candy for dinner. 

THE MOTTO IN ACTION

I'll give you an example. Here is a very brief description of a plot:

A woman tries to find the son she gave up when he was an infant, 35 years ago.

OK, interesting situation, plenty of scope for drama and even some comedy. Now try this one:

A woman trying to find the son she gave up when he was an infant, 35 years ago, is diagnosed with inoperable cancer and given only one month to live.

Of course it's much darker, but I think it's also a lot more interesting. Now there is a ticking clock. She has to find him very soon or it will be too late. There's also a dilemma--assuming that he would be happy to reunite with her, would it be fair to do that knowing that she will once again abandom him so soon?

The thing that doesn't fit in with our plans doesn't have to be terrible. A light romantic comedy version might be:

A woman trying to find the son she gave up when he was an infant, 35 years ago, falls in love with a man who is only a few years older than her son.

Now her concern is how both the new lover and the son would react to each other. And does she want to bring a complicated emotional situation into her life just as she's finally found love again? Would having her son around constantly remind her new lover of their age gap? Maybe she's lied about her age in her dating profile and her new beau thinks she's 45, not 55.  

IF IT'S TOO BIG...

In some cases you may feel these kinds of complications would overshadow your core story or turn it into a melodrama. There's definitely danger of that in the cancer version of the story. That element is so big that it could detract if you want to explore the more subtle feelings that come with her search for the son she gave up. 

Option One: Flip it. In the version above, her plan is finding her son and the unexpected life event is the terminal cancer. You could flip it around so that when the story opens, she is planning to continue to lead her normal quiet life for the little time she has left. Then something happens--either she learns the son is trying to find her, or in the process of getting her papers in order she comes across a picture of the boy just after he was born and that triggers her need to see him before she dies. 

Option two: Think smaller. In this case, forget about the cancer as a story element. Instead, maybe the woman's closest friend passionately believes she's being foolish to dig up the past and it begins to disrupt her relationship with the person she assumed would be her best friend for life and who is her main source of emotional support. 

Or maybe the search interferes with her work and she's in danger of losing the job she loves and planned to keep doing until she retired.

Or perhaps in the process of looking for her son she meets another person from her past who she'd planned never to see again. 

Match the nature and scope of the unplanned event to the genre and style of the story you want to tell. 

HOW TO USE THIS METHOD

A good way to use this method is to start with the core story you want to tell and then brainstorm the answers to these questions:

* What development would make it much harder for the protagonist to reach the goal?

* What development would test the protagonist? That could be on the physical level, the emotional level, the moral level, the spiritual level.

* If the core story is very dark, what unerexpected development might give you some opportunities for comic relief? If it's a comedy, what might help you expose the deeper side of your protagonist?

* Which of your ideas best fits the core story the way you want to tell it--complicating it but not overwhelming it? Do you need to make it bigger or smaller?

THE COINCIDENCE RULE

Some writers worrry that this leads to events that seem too coincidental, but I think the old rule works: you can use coincidence to get your characters into trouble but not to get them out of trouble. All of my examples are about getting the characters into trouble. 

LOOK FOR THIS AS YOU WATCH AND READ

Try watching a few movies or TV episodes or reading a few novels with this in mind.

Do the more involving ones use this kind of structure?

Do the ones that feel less real or satisfying ignore it?

Of course the most important question is how you can use it to make your plot stronger. If you're just starting on a project, build this in from the very beginning.If you've written a first draft that's missing this element, it could be the key to a second draft that gains power and really works. 

I hope this is helpful, let me know how you get on!

(For friendlly writing guidance from the greatest authors in the Western world, people like Twain, Dickens, Austen, Chekhov, get my book, Your Creative Writing Masterclass. It's published by Nicholas Brealey and available from Amazon or your other favorite bookseller.)

Dramatic conflict in Reality Shows: how they cheat - (part 3 in Reality Shows series)

In reality shows as in drama shows and novels and plays, it's conflict that's at the heart of the story. Reality shows use editing tricks to create conflict even when it's not there. I think you'll find this Videojug.com amusing look at reality show editing interesting (there are some good tips in here for any kind of fiction writer):

You may also be interested in the previous post about the business of Reality TV (what networks look for, how such series are bought, etc.) and the one about storytelling in supposedly unscripted shows. 

(For friendly guidance in writing your own book, screenplay, or even semi-scripted Reality series, see my book, "Your Writing Coach," published by Nicholas Brealey and available from Amazon or your other favorite bookseller.)

Marketing Your Writing: It's not just Facebook (no. 6 of ten things you must do)

If you want to market your book you may think Facebook is the way to go. Most authors forget that there are other ways that may be better, depending on where their target audience likes to hang out. Here are a few of the less-used strategies and methods--using these may help set you apart from the competition:

Buzz buddies - a collaboration between a group of authors who agree to promote each others’ work. You will find a useful article about this here:http://bookmarketingmaven.typepad.com/book_marketing_maven/2012/08/book-promotion-buddies-5-ways-for-authors-to-help-each-other-out-.htmlhttp://bookmarketingmaven.typepad.com/book_marketing_maven/2012/08/book-promotion-buddies-5-ways-for-authors-to-help-each-other-out-.html

Podcasts - these can be audio or video programs on a schedule you decide, listed on iTunes without cost. This is a video that will give you the basic facts: http://www.videojug.com/interview/podcasting-the-basics

Squidoo.com - a site where you can post expert information about any topic. Check out the site itself and also this article on how writers can use Squidoo: http://www.squidoo.com/10-ways-writers-can-use-squidoo

Reviews - if you review books in your genre for a newspaper, magazine, web site, blog, or other outlet, your name will become known to fans of that type of book. Of course reviewers are not always popular! Here’s a candid article on the art of book reviews: http://oneminutebookreviews.wordpress.com/2012/06/04/how-to-write-good-book-reviews-when-publishers-toss-you-their-worst/

Wattpad.com. Figment.com and similar sites - Wattpad is a site on which writers post short chapters of a book, serial-style. Some have had their stories accessed millions of times and a few have landed traditional publishing deals after success on a site like this. You could released your book this way, or a spin-off from your book (e.g., a prequel). However, the main function might be to get feedback on your material before you release it in book form. This article talks about a young author who had 15 million “reads” before her book was published, and give some advice on using sites like this: http://savvybookwriters.wordpress.com/2012/01/30/15-million-readers-before-her-book-was-even-published/

Experiment with different ways to reach your readers. It's not how many friends you have on Facebook that counts in this context, it's  how many of them actually buy your book. You may find that using more targeted marketing strategies lead you to smaller groups but ones far more likely to become customers.

(For more on marketing your book, see Your Writing Coach, published by Nicholas Brealey and available from Amazon or your other favorite bookseller. It includes a chapter on traditional marketing and one on guerrilla marketing for the writer. I also do a very limited amount of consulting for authors who need help working out their author platform strategy. If you're interested in that, email me at [email protected] for details.)

52 Tips for Writing Success - 25: Comedy comes from drama

 

Comedies are always in demand, especially in the realm of screenplays. Even serious novels benefit from the occasional lighter touch to vary the tone.

How do you come up with a good comedy or a good comedy subplot? Here's what actor/writer Jason Segal said about that:

“The best way to write a comedy script is to write a drama. I’m not joking. That was the first advice I got from Judd Apatow, and I think that’s why his movies are so brilliant. He told me when I was writing Sarah Marshall, that the first draft he wanted from me was a drama. He said, ‘We’ll make it funny, it’s going to be funny because we’re funny, and we’re going to add jokes, and the cast will be funny — but the people will see it and keep seeing it and connect to it because it’s a drama.’"

That's the same thing comedy writing master Danny Simon taught me years ago, and I've followed that advice ever since. Make it real first, then find the funny. The person who taught Danny that was veteran comedian Sid Caesar (look him up). 

Of course you don't have to write the whole script or novel as a drama, you just need to work out a storyline that works dramatically. Then the attitudes of your characters will make it funny. Nobody outside of the business will understand this. They think you have to start with the jokes. Big mistake! 

(For friendly and helpful guidance on writing your novel or screenplay, see my book, Your Writing Coach, published by Nicholas Brealey and available from Amazon or your other favorite bookseller.)

 

An inspiring story of doing what you want to do before you die (video)

In the Spring of 2006 a poem inspired a group of four young Canadian men to write 100 things they wanted to do before they died. They didn't censor anything--big goals or small. They decided to try to accomplish all the items and for each one they attained to help another person accomplish something they wanted to do. 

They went on the road with a borrowed camper van and got a company to pay for their gas. They called it The Buried Life and started getting media attention and offers for help and requests for help. What started out as a two-week project has now gone on for six years and turned into an MTV show. (The first time they were approached by MTV they turned it down because they felt it wouldn't be done the way they wanted; eventually MTV came back to them and said OK, why don't you just make the show your way?)

There were quite a lot of silly goals (streaking), but overall it's an inspiring story that shows that many things are possible when we remove our own concept of limits. 

I like the quote they feature: "Today you are the youngest you'll ever be."

On the group's Facebook page, http://facebook.com/tbl, people post what they want to do before they die. 

So..what do you want to do before you die?

How to get better at estimating how long things will take

Most of us are terrible at estimating how long tasks will take. Previous research has shown that we underestimate how long it will take us to do large tasks, but overestimate how long it will take us to do small tasks.

Newer studies suggest that it's the opposite if you estimate how much you can achieve in a given time period. In other words, if someone asks us how much we can achieve in 90 days, we will tend to overestimate; if they ask us how much we can achieve in 90 minutes, we will underestimate.

To come up with a more accurate estimate you can combine the two.

Let's say you want to figure out how long it will take you to write a chapter of a book, which includes doing research, outlining the chapter, and writing a first draft. That's a fairly large task. First you could estimate how long you think that would take. Perhaps you would say 20 hours. Typically that would be an underestimation--most likely it will take longer.

Next. start with 40 hours as the given. Think about how much research, outlining and writing you could get done in that time. Then think about the amount you need to do for your chapter. You might conclude it would take 40 hours. Typically that would be an overestimation--most likely it will take less time. 

It's likely that the actual time required will be somewhere inbetween, perhaps 30 hours. 

You can test this method yourself; if it works for you, use it when setting time targets for getting things done.

(There are many useful time and self-management strategies in my book, Focus: Use the Power of Targeted Thinking to Get More Done. It's published by Pearson and you can get it from Amazon or your other favorite bookseller.)

How storytelling works in TV Reality Shows (part 2 of series)

Recently I featured a Videojug video of reality show producer Marc Cronin explaining the business of reality shows. In the video below he addresses the questions of most interest to writers: what are the essential elements of a great reality show, to what extent are such shows written, and how do you create a "set piece"? He also talks about how the story department at his company (Mindless Entertainment) shapes the storytelling. 

I think you'll find it interesting even if you don't want to get involved with such series:

 

Three ways to inject new life into your writing

Some years ago designer Bruce Mau created a Manifesto for how to make sure you keep growing. Below are three of my favorite ideas from that, and suggestions for how you can apply them to make sure your writing also keeps growing:

• Love your experiments (as you would an ugly child). Joy is the engine of growth. Exploit the liberty in casting your work as beautiful experiments, iterations, attempts, trials, and errors. Take the long view and allow yourself the fun of failure every day.

In your writing, experiment with starting the story at a different point than is your first instinct. For instance if you're writing a romance the logical first chapter might be when the potential lovers meet. What would the story be like if you started when they have their first argument? Or when they narrowly miss meeting each other and then another decade goes by? Or when they meet for the first time after they've broken up a year before? Have fun exploring the possiblities and don't pressure yourself to find "the right one." There may be lots of right ones. There will also be a lot that don't work, of course--so what? Stay playful and those just become part of the game. 

• Capture accidents. The wrong answer is the right answer in search of a different question. Collect wrong answers as part of the process. Ask different questions.

Don't throw away ideas that don't work. Maybe you have a protagonist who is rich and you think about having a lottery win be the source of her money. Perhaps you decide it would make her a stronger character if she got the money through hard work. Might a lottery winner be an interesting person for her to meet? Or could the lottery winner fit into a totally different story? If something catches your interest make a record of it in a journal or a computer file and go back over those ideas from time to time.  

• Imitate. Don’t be shy about it. Try to get as close as you can. You’ll never get all the way, and the separation might be truly remarkable. 

Of course I'm not talking about plagiarism, but about identifying the essence of what makes the writing you most admire so appealing. For instance, I like the novels of Carl Hiaasen. His trademark is bizarre, larger than life characters (mostly criminals who come to a bad end due to their stupidity). In the kids' book I'm writing at the moment I am bringing a bit of that surreal take to my characters, especially to my protagonist's nemesis. 

(For more ideas on how to write well, why not turn to the best writers of all time? I mean authors like Austen, Dickens, Hemingway, as well as modern masters of the craft. You'll find their writing advice in my newest book, Your Creative Writing Masterclass. It's published by Nicholas Brealey and available from Amazon or your other favorite bookseller.)

 

 

Want to create or write a reality show? Here's a guide to the Reality TV Business (part 1)

Reality shows are getting less real all the time. Often it's obvious that there are scripted elements--sometimes it is a fairly light intervention, other times the participants are coaching in how to create conflict, sometimes they're even told what to say and the show may involve actors posing as real people. The Writers Guild of America has won the right to represent such writers (often called "producers" rather than writers in the credits because they don't want to let the audience know how much the supposedly real events are manipulated).

 Despite the popularity of such formats, there hasn't been a lot written about how these series come about, which I why I was delighted to find a great series of videos by Mark Cronin, founder and producer of Mindless Entertainment (the name of his company shows he has a good sense of humor…). 

 In the video below (about 12 minutes long), he answers the basic questions you are likely to have about the business of reality shows: what networks look for, what the production company does, creative control (or lack thereof), some trends in funding, and what qualities a good reality show producer should have. I'm not particularly interested in working in this genre but I still found his information interesting.

 In tomorrow's post I'm featuring Cronin explaining how pilots are made.

 

Marketing Your Writing: Don't forget the real world! (no. 5 of ten things you must do)

Writers who want to market their books often get so focused on using social media that they forget the real world and traditional media still offer some excellent ways to get the word out. Here are a few:

Public speaking - if you are an entertaining speaker, giving talks can be a good way to reach large audiences in person. This is one author’s take on it: http://jeanoram.com/blog/2012/06/11/public-speaking-writers-afraid/

Radio - both traditional and radio programs sometimes interview authors and review books. This very brief article has some further useful links: http://bookmarketingmaven.typepad.com/book_marketing_maven/2009/07/promote-your-book-on-radio-talk-shows.html

Television - if you have expertise or are outrageous enough you may find that local or even national TV shows are open to having you as a guest. It may seem a high goal, but see how one author did it: http://writerunboxed.com/2012/07/23/7-23/

Sponsorship or special edition - is there a natural association between your book and a business or group of some kind? They may be willing to work out some kind of collaboration. For instance, the Institute of Chartered Accountants sponsored a special edition of 8000 copies of my book, “Do Something Different” (Virgin Books) and gave a copy to each of their members. Here are some good tips on hunting for corporate sponsorship: http://publishingperspectives.com/2011/04/authors-take-advantage-of-corporate-sponsorships/

Book signings /events - it’s quite difficult to set up a book signing unless you are a celebrity; even if you do, the likelihood of attracting a significant number of strangers is low. However, if you can create an interesting event your odds will be better. Some authors have joined with musicians and poets to create an entertaining evening, during which the author reads a bit of their book or gives a short talk. If you manage to get a slot, here are tips to remember: http://theharperstudio.com/2009/07/an-author-walks-in-to-a-bookstore-for-a-signing/

(For more on marketing your writing, see Your Writing Coach, published by Nicholas Brealey Publishing and avaiable from Amazon or your other favorite bookseller. It has a chapter on traditional marketing and another on guerrilla marketing. I also do a very limited amount of consulting with authors who need help developing their platform strategy. If you are interested, please email me at [email protected] for details.)

 

 

 

52 Tips for Writing Success - 24: Go beyond stereotypes

Do any of these sound familiar from the novels you've read or the TV shows or films you've seen?

• The cop whose marriage broke up because he could never switch off his work
• The hooker who is only doing that kind of work because she’s a single mother
• The young bully who turns out to be bullied or abused by his father

Probably they do, because they’ve become stereotypes. Stereotypes are based on facts--a lot of police officers’ marriage do break up, a lot of prostitutes do have a child to support, a lot of bullies were themselves bullied. But when we see only these aspects of these characters they feel predictable and not that interesting.

First let’s see how NOT to go beyond the stereotypes, and that’s to go for the exact opposite of what people expect. When you do that you just create new stereotypes: the grandmother who rides a Harley, the boxer who loves poetry, or possibly the earliest version of this, the sad clown.

A more effective method is to make sure you give the characters enough attributes to reveal them as individuals. These don’t have to be exposed through exposition, sometimes you can use the setting, or the character’s appearance, or who he or she hangs out with, to give clues. 

For instance, maybe our cop’s marriage did break up because he brought his work home too much. Instead of being a broken man who now drinks too much (more stereotyping) maybe he’s looking for somebody new among the ranks of the female police officers. Or maybe he has a new girlfriend who loves being with a cop (maybe she is just that bit too interested...)

If you have problems doing this, take a minute to consider to consider the complexity of the people around you and use that for inspiration.

(For lots more on creating memorable characters, see my newest book, "Your Creative Writing Masterclass," in which I share the writing advice given by greats like Dickens, Checkhov, Austen and current masters as well. It's published by Nicholas Brealey Publishing and you can get it now from Amazon or your other favorite bookseller.)

What makes a story great? Video by Bobette Buster

Storyteller Bobette Buster gave a lecture at this year's "Do Lectures Festival" in Wales on the nature of storytelling. She came from a place where storytelling was natural, went on to Hollywood and worked in development and teaches how to create stories for cinema. 

The lecture is 23 minutes long, so get yourself a coffee or tea and settle in. If you don't want to watch the video, I've written some of her key points below it.

Key points:

To create a great story: Take us to a world we've never been to before. Take us on a quest. Show us how the ordinary becomes extraordinary. 

Cinema has evolved into the story of transformation. 

The key moment in a story is when the character has to cross a threshold, leave the world in which he is comfortable, and do something he's never done before. Follow the character's greatest fear and magnify and expand the moment when he seizes control of his life. 

It's often by daring to examine your own darkest times that you will discover your best story. What was the one moment that you had to leave your comfort zone? Even if it was a failure, the fact that you survived could embolden someone else to take their step.

Some of the greatest stories are tales of people who finally wake up and dare to resist the status quo and take a step toward their true destiny. 

(If you want friendly guidance in telling your story, get a copy of my book, "Your Creative Writing Masterclass." It gives you writing advice from some of the greatest writers of all time and helps you apply it to telling the story you want to tell. It's published by Nichoals Brealey and available from Amazon or your other favorite bookseller.)

Need to research a topic for your book? Try this 60,000+ videos source

When you're writing a novel or screenplay, sometimes you need a character to know how to do something that you don't know how to do. When that happens, check whether there's a short video about it at videojug.com.

For instance, let's say your character is a magician and he does the trick in which someone picks a card, the magician shuffles the deck, looks at the deck and says the chosen card is missing and then throws the deck at a nearby window. Miraculously, the chosen card is sticking to the inside of the window!

Although it's bad form to give away how tricks are done, it's important to your plot. You're in luck! Videojug features a video on "How to Throw a Card Through a Window."

OK, that one may be a bit esoteric but with more than 60,000 free how-to videos there's a good chance that there will be one about whatever you need to know.

Admittedly they are basic--there's only so much you can explain about more complicated topics. I know that because they asked me to do twenty videos on topics like "how to write well"…with a time limit of three minutes. Here is one of mine:

 

(For a deeper look at how to write well, get my newest book, "Your Creative Writing Masterclass," published by Nicholas Brealey and available from Amazon or your other favorite bookseller.)

The incredible price of quoting song lyrics

I've mentioned before that you have to be careful when quoting a song lyric in your book because the rights-holders charge for the privilege. I just read an inteview with an actor who played a character who was pretending to be in a relationship with a woman and blanked when someone asked him how they met. The only thing that came to his mind was a paraphrase of the song lyric "You were working as a waitress in a cocktail bar when I met you." It's from the Human League hit song, "Don't You Want Me?"

Care to guess how much it would have cost them to have the actor SAY that (not even sing it)?

Time's up....£5000 ($7500)!

They changed the joke.

PS: I'm not a lawyer but I doubt that this charge would have held up in court--surely a character quoting one line as part of a joke, and not even singing it, would be fair use? 

PPS: If you care to quote lines from any of my work, get in touch. My rates start at £5.