Writers in the Storm

by Sandy Vaile

Have you ever wondered why pulling all the pieces of a novel together feels like such hard work? Me too.

Each author has a different process, but if you love feeling immersed in the lives and emotional dramas of fictional characters, then shifting your focus from external plot to internal state, could be the perfect way to allow your plot to be revealed organically.

While writing my third novel I had a revelation that changed my approach to scene planning forever.

Harnessing motivated characters helped me connect internal and external plot threads.

The Evolution of this Story Revelation

For a long time, I wondered why story structure was so difficult. I felt like I’d learnt the various storytelling techniques, but pulling them all together on the changing landscape of plot and character development was a different matter.

I started to doubt myself.

Was I the only one struggling to overlay their ideas onto beats and turning points? Everything I’d learnt about three acts, hero’s journeys and beats was still relevant, but there was some sort of disconnect when it came to pulling all the threads of a story into a cohesive and compelling plot.

Then it struck me!

If I shifted my approach from what external events needed to happen, to why the main character was there, suddenly all the pieces of the plot clicked together like DNA nucleotides, forming the unique genetic sequence for this story.

What Does this Look Like on the Page?

Don’t panic, it’s not as tricky as it sounds and you don’t have to be a geneticist to apply it to your own stories. All you have to do is tie each scene in the book to the character arc of one of the main characters.  

To achieve this perspective shift you need to:

• Develop complex and motivated main characters.
• Use situations to trigger information readers need to learn.
• Wring every last drop of conflict from each situation.

The Significance of Character Motivations

The struggles of characters are what leave a lasting impression on our hearts and souls after reading a book. So, we need to connect readers to them at every opportunity. Make the most of their psychological conflicts and show them struggling between what they want and need, or what they know they should do and what they are driven to do.

I can hear some of you saying, “That’s all well and good if you’re writing a character-driven story, but what about plot-driven stories?”

Even plot -driven stories have driven characters at their core. Take “The Lord of the Rings” by J.R.R. Tolkien for instance. Although Frodo is one of many main characters and the same world events would play out whether he was there or not, he still goes through personal struggles. We grow to love him and are eager to follow his journey and root for his success.

Benefits of Driven Characters

• Readers feel like they are more intimately involved in the character’s lives by peeking inside their thought processes and feeling the angst of their emotional drama.
• Shows character development through the way they overcome personal struggles.
• Has inbuilt conflict that drives their choices and reactions around external events.
• Character motivations naturally cause them to take action, which builds story momentum and helps steer authors away from stagnant narration.

When a character is suitably motivated, it makes their desire to reach their goal more desperate, which in turn pushes them right to the edge of their capabilities and principles.

In short, character motivations create story momentum.

How to Leverage Situations to Reveal Information

So, how do you shift your focus from external information to the character’s emotional state?

Go from WHAT to WHY.

When we focus on what happens next (external events) the choices around how that scene plays out are often random. Sure, there might be limiting factors to where the information is located, but it can usually happen in a variety of locations, e.g. a clue could be found in a house, the street or a library, and a fight could happen in a shadowy alley or deserted carpark.

Whereas, when we approach a scene thinking about where the character is on their emotional journey (their emotional state at that point in the story), it conjures specific locations, situations and other characters in our minds. Places, circumstances and people who are going to cause the character to struggle with why they want their goals, e.g.:

• What decision they are conflicted about;
• What universal truth they are denying; or
• To what degree they are ready to face the fears around achieving their goal.

Now, imagine putting your character in a situation that will force them to confront all of these things.

That’s powerful!

Write Compelling Scenes from Emotional States

Scenes are the building blocks of fictional stories and each one needs to pull its weight in raising the reader’s curiosity, sustaining tension, advancing the external plot and character arcs, creating an appropriate atmosphere and leading readers to the next scene.

Lets take a look at an example of how a character’s emotional state can translate to actions and a compelling scene.

Example – Emotional state to a compelling scene

In “Inheriting Fear” by Sandy Vaile, early on in the story I needed to show that the most important person in the main character, Mya’s, life was her mother. My thought process went like this …  

Mya’s whole life has been structured to enable her to provide the best quality of life for her mother. So, I need to show what this close relationship and how it came to be.

But her mother is confined to a nursing home, so that is the natural location for the scene. From there I can picture what her room would look like, the gardens, the types of people who would be there. Now I have a vivid image of the setting in my mind.

When Mya vists her mother, it would be natural for her to worry about the cost of keeping her mother and how their roles have been reversed, being her mother’s guardian. That thought naturally leads to the tragic events that put her mother into care.  

See how starting with Mya’s emotional state at that point in the story, leads to a specific situation and raises questions that reveal her backstory, motivations and inner fears?

This makes for an emotive scene that tugs at reader’s heart strings, all the while exposing the deeper motivations and desires of the character.

Link Internal and External Plot Threads

Internal and external events are inextricably linked. Our inner desires, beliefs and emotions drive us to take external actions. Even when external events are out of our control — meaning we didn’t choose to do something but it happened to us — our reactions are driven by our emotional state.

How does this look when planning a scene?

Rather than trying to figure out how to get characters from one external crisis to another, use the character arc to drive their reactions and decisions.

Scene planning process

Note: This is just the way I do things; you should do what suits your process.

When planning to write a scene, I will have already:

• Brainstormed a lit of external events that could potentially happen, e.g. clues to find, information to discover, people to meet, obstacles to get in the way.
• Know the main character’s emotional journey, i.e. what they need and believe at the beginning of the story and the opposite state at the end of the story.
• Listed the gradual changes/realizations they need to undergo/face to enable them to transition from one emotional state to the other.

Then I:

• Determine the emotional state the character is in at that point in the story.
• Brainstorm situations I could put the character in, which would force them to face their emotional blindspot (inner struggle/false belief).
• Flesh out that situation with the setting and other characters (if relevant) that naturally evolve from it.
• Determine what external information/event would logically (the character would realistically choose or find themselves in) need to happen next, e.g. discovering information, finding a clue or meeting a person.

The way they react to that external event is based on their inner desires, beliefs and motivations, determining their reactions and decisions about how to proceed.

Example – Internal reaction leads to the next external action

The emotional turmoil from the above example from “Inheriting Fear” is all happening at the same time as the external plot is progressing. Mya needed to know her mother was okay, which leads her to think about her past and future. She discovers missing jewellery (external event), which triggers an emotional and physical reaction. She’s upset and wants to find who took the jewellery.

In turn, her emotional state informs her decision about how to proceed (the next external actions).  

The Ultimate Scene Planning Mindset

For easier scene planning, try shifting your focus from how to deliver the information readers needed to know, to how to show the emotional drama the character was experiencing. Let the situation they’re in grow organically from their emotional state, connecting their inner desires to external information/events and resulting in compelling reading that draws readers into the story.

They key is to put characters into action and give them good reasons to keep moving by ensuring they have desperate desires, strong motivations and tangible stakes.

You deserve to plan a cohesive novel you’re confident to finish.

How do you handle planning your scenes and does any part of it gives you trouble?

If you’re ready to develop complex characters, grab a copy of my free Character Profile template, which goes beyond appearance and personality, delving into backstory and questions that help you dig deep and figure out what is driving the character and how they would react in certain situations.

Sandy’s flexible outlining method suits plotters and pantsers.

If you are stuck in a rut of writing novels you never finish or aren’t sure how to fix, then it’s your lucky day. I’m offering the first 5 WITS readers a massive 20% discount on my 3-month Novel Navigation Program (use the code WITS-NOVEL-PLANNING-20 at the checkout).

About Sandy:

Sandy Vaile is a traditionally published author, writing romantic-suspense for Simon & Schuster US, with more than a decade of experience in the industry, who empowers authors to write novels they are proud to share with the world (and which get noticed by agents, publishers and readers), through coaching, courses and developmental editing.

Sandy is also a motorbike-riding daredevil who isn’t content with a story unless there’s a courageous heroine and a dead body. Living in the McLaren Vale wine region means lots of prosseco and cheese platters in her down time.

Connect with Sandy Vaile on her website or social media.

Top image by Tobias Brunner from Pixabay. Other images provided by Sandy Vaile.

by Kathryn McClatchy

Most writers have a love-hate relationship with social media. It’s consistently the best way to promote your author brand and books as well as build an engaged community of readers who love you and your work for little to no cash outlay. For many of us, though, the ever-changing platforms, algorithms, and best practices can be disheartening. Even on the best days, social media is often a distraction rather than a tool.

In 2023, 

• AI-generated content and tools took center stage as a trending topic and created change in how we use social media and create content.
• Twitter became X and has made many changes, both positive and negative, in the first full year with Elon Musk as owner.
• Meta launched Threads in July to much fanfare and record-setting, but since then its daily active user count has dropped 82%.
• YouTube video podcasts became the most popular talk shows, and often sources of news. As per YouGov: only “25% of US adults now say that TV is their primary news source, down from 31% in 2019. In the same time, Americans who say social is their primary news source have increased from 12% to 18%, while for Americans under 34, social has already usurped TV as the top new source.”

The Social Media Landscape for Authors

Here's a great resource for all kinds of internet and social media usage data for the last year, broken down by demographics, platforms, advertising, and more: “DIGITAL 2023 OCTOBER GLOBAL STATSHOT REPORT” from https://datareportal.com/. It might be a bit overwhelming, but it has great infographics to help one understand the online landscape better.

Google

Google has been talking about E-A-T for a few years now, but with the extensive use of generative AI, they have added another E. This is good news for us, as their requirements and Quality Rater Guidelines for good content will almost certainly exclude most AI-created content. E-E-A-T stands for Expertise, Experience, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness. To learn more about Google’s process for rating E-E-A-T, SEO, and more, read this article from Google. Fortunately for us, it’s what most authors already know and do, and will hopefully remove some of the fear of AI taking our jobs.

• Fun fact, I ran this article in sections through Writer.com’s AI Content Detector, and the various sections were rated between 35% and 98% human-generated. I personally wrote the entire article myself, but because I focused on the facts and data, rather than my personal E-E-A-T, some sections ranked lower

Facebook

Facebook has become more user-friendly over the past year and has reversed some decline that was being observed a year ago. The biggest changes, however, are in Meta Ads. Still one of the top options for paid advertising as far as cost and customizable targeting, Meta is currently rolling out AI assistance in creating ads, and has recently partnered with Zapier and HubSpot for CRM integrations. While these tools are exciting, what you need to know is that if you use Meta advertising, make sure your ads look and feel like a personalized post or Reel, and be sure to follow the Google E-E-A-T protocol.

Instagram

Instagram is probably the best at keeping its users up to date with changes. Adam Mosseri, the head of IG, posts regular weekly Reels letting us know what's rolling out, what’s in development, and why. He also has a Broadcast Channel for creators where he shares even more behind-the-scenes info that is relevant to us.

• The big takeaway for authors is that Instagram has reset the algorithm to rate reach and engagement based on the size of your account. There are five size tiers, so the small accounts (under 500 followers) are no longer competing with the Kardashians for impressions. And while Reels are still important, they are not all important. 
• Your IG strategy for 2024 needs to include a mix of Reels, Carousel posts, Stories, DMs, and Static posts– in that order of priority. Getting in the DMs with your readers and followers will very much help you in the algorithm and get your posts seen by more followers and new people. 
• The hashtag strategy is still adjusting. I encourage you to experiment. While some accounts are dropping hashtags altogether, others are finding the full 30 are still giving them the best exposure. Mosseri is currently recommending using, on average, about eight very specific and relevant hashtags at the bottom of your post to help the algorithm correctly classify who you are, what you do, and who your target audience is.

TikTok

TikTok, while still rather new among the leading social media platforms, is evolving quickly. They've released a customized-for-you feed, 15-minute-long videos, shut down their creator fund, and expanded “out of phone” TikTok ads to show on billboards, cinema screens, and elsewhere.

• Their more intrusive privacy policy released in early 2023 caused renewed censorship among many countries, businesses, and government entities. If you haven’t yet, I encourage you to read the privacy policy for yourself. TikTok updated it again on 24 January 2024. 
• One point of discussion among social media marketers is the issue of higher vanity metrics for creators and businesses, but lower conversion rates compared to other platforms. If you are not already, make sure you track your sales relative to the content you are putting out on each platform.

X/Twitter

X/Twitter has been in the news for over a year, and Elon Musk has been a controversial figure for several reasons. I’ve always coached my clients to focus on the 2-3 platforms they enjoy and where their people are. If you still like Twitter, and your community is still active there, then stay. The pendulum seems to be leveling out, and a lot of good things are happening on that platform.

As of the last six months, ROI on advertising has been the best of all social media platforms. It’s cost-effective, gets great results, and is outperforming both Facebook/Meta and TikTok. As of this month, X/Twitter is still one of the top 15 platforms (out of over 250 social media sites) in the world based on monthly active users.

• If you have left X, or are looking for a comparable platform, you might want to consider IG Threads, Mastodon, or Bluesky (still in Beta and by invite only). The stated goal of Threads is to become part of the Fediverse (of which Mastodon is a part) so many people have just jumped straight over to Mastodon.
• Starting April 2023, X/Twitter began winding down its legacy blue check verified user program in favor of a pay-to-play premium option. This stirred up a lot of ire; however, Meta and other platforms are now following suit. Is it worth it? The reviews are mixed, and there is no definitive answer yet.

YouTube

YouTube is a perennial favorite among users, creators, and businesses. It’s only been considered a social media platform over the last few years, as it’s technically the second largest search engine in the world, owned by Google, the largest search engine in the world. With the addition of improved commenting options, community features that mimic other traditional social media platforms, and the introduction of YT Shorts, this platform is currently getting the most use by viewers and creators, and has the best direct correlation between content and sales.

• If you are already creating TikToks and Reels, make sure to add them to YouTube. However, just like readers have genre expectations, users on various platforms have different expectations also. What performs well on one platform may tank on another. Data from Pew Research shows that YouTube is again the most used platform. 
• In the last half of 2023, YouTube added Video Podcasts which are now treated separately from other videos in the algorithm. If you are podcasting elsewhere, make sure you upload to YouTube podcast, which will be absorbing Google Podcast in the days ahead.

LinkedIn

LinkedIn changed pretty dramatically through the pandemic with people working from home. It has become less of an online resume site and more like old Facebook for the professional set. It boasts the highest average level of income and education among its users of any platform. If you are targeting well-educated readers who have discretionary income, love to travel, and are interested in thought leadership, then make sure you are active on LinkedIn.

• You can find specialized interest groups, articles, audio and video events, and a wealth of resources. There are also many useful rather than “salesy” webinars and weekly interview shows that live on this platform.
• In 2023, LinkedIn incorporated a creator account that is perfect for authors. It lets you have followers separate from connections and gives more useful analytics. 

Reddit

Reddit has released an API in preparation for its upcoming IPO, that will allow users to get actual analytics, and soon we will be able to use scheduling software to plan posts ahead of time. This venue is already one of the top social media platforms and is also preparing to level up its advertising capabilities.  This is a channel to consider as you look to build community with your readers.

BeReal

BeReal is the fastest fastest-growing emergent social media platform. This is an interesting app that is building amazing communities based on candid photos showing you and where you are. Currently, there are no advertising options. If you miss the days when Instagram was purely a photo-sharing app, this might be a good option for you.

Substack

Substack is disrupting how we write newsletters and blog posts. Founded in 2017, it now boasts over 500,000 users, a 5-year search growth of 7,500%. It also introduced Notes in 2023 which is a cross between old-school Twitter and Instagram.

Best Current Practices for Engaging Content

• Variety is key: Utilize different content formats like text, images, videos, and live streams to keep readers engaged. And it can’t be repeated enough, don’t post and ghost! If you are not going to engage with your audience in the comments, DMs, in groups, or on their posts, then you will not be successful.
• Storytelling power: Leverage storytelling techniques to connect with readers on an emotional level. As authors, we should excel in this. Make sure every post has a beginning, middle, and end. In marketing terms, that’s a hook, points, and a call to action. Even on Instagram Reels, you need captions so that the algorithm has words, especially keywords, to evaluate.
• Authenticity matters: Be genuine, and transparent, and let your personality shine through. Embrace your weird, tell your personal experiences, and document what you are doing. This is our superpower that cannot be duplicated by AI. 
• Community focus: Encourage interaction through polls, questions, and conversations. Consider POV, and make sure everything you post is attracting your ideal readers. Don’t be afraid to repel those who would dislike your work or leave one-star reviews. This is the beauty of social media. Don’t forget to cull your followers. You do NOT need 10,000 followers! Those followers who do not engage with you through comments, reactions, saves, or shares are hurting your engagement, as the equation is based on followers for all platforms.

• Hashtags and discoverability: Use relevant hashtags strategically to reach new audiences. But across all platforms, this is becoming less and less important as the apps are now able to read and evaluate the captions, audio, and video for keywords. If you are using video, make sure you have books in the shot! Your background matters, especially on TikTok and YouTube.

Questions?

What are your biggest challenges with social media in 2024? How do you feel about the changes?

Want to know more?

I realize this article was pretty dense. If you made it this far, you are my people! I have a monthly newsletter, Unleashing, that provides digital marketing updates, suggestions, current best practices, and more that you might enjoy. It is designed for those who would rather practice their craft than keep up with the marketing side of their art (authors, artists, musicians, artisans, designers, etc.).

About Kathryn:

If you are interested in knowing more about me or Unleashing the Next Chapter, here you go:

Kathryn McClatchy has been writing since childhood, working in marketing since the 80s, and blogging since 2012 as Unleashing the Next Chapter. She is also the founder and facilitator of the annual Writers Guild of Texas Flash Fiction Contest and host of the Authorpreneurs Unleashed podcast.

Unleashing the Next Chapter has grown into a boutique digital marketing agency serving creative entrepreneurs and their communities through coaching, strategy, and management. UtNC focuses on holistic marketing with an emphasis on Brand, Content, Email, Research, and Social Media. Kathryn is passionate about helping writers and writing organizations learn how to use digital media to build their brands and serve their communities.

Kathryn is a wife, mother, stroke survivor, and service dog partner. She is happily addicted to books, tea, chocolate, D&D, and houseplants (not consistently in that order).

Wishing you a creative and productive 2024!

All images provided by Kathryn McClatchy are either her original work or are linked to their source.

By Dr. Diana Stout

When a baby goes from crawling to walking to running, rarely does she do it in a day. It’s a process of practicing over a number of days, sometimes weeks.

First, she learns to stand by hoisting herself up while clinging to something sturdy. Then, she takes a step or two around the object, all the while grasping it.

Then, she graduates to holding onto a baby walker or some other object that moves as she steps. Even as this new toddler takes her first steps without aid, she’ll fall on her behind once or twice before crossing the entire room successfully.

Is that failure? Not at all. It’s progress. It’s learning. We cheer at her success and ignore the falls. She’s practicing. In time, she’ll be running. All because of repeated practice attempts.

Practice is learning, not failure.

It’s the same process when learning to play any sport, musical instrument, or learning a craft like sewing, welding, or cooking. No one is a master on the first day. The process of learning creates muscle and mind memory, often requiring a mentor, teacher, or a master of that skill. And, more importantly, a cheerleader!

So, why is it when writers receive a critique, get rejected, or don’t know certain grammar rules, they feel like failures? That they’re not good enough? Why do they call critiquers mean? That the publishers aren’t making good decisions? Why is the self-talk so destructive?

Have you ever considered that you might not be practiced enough? That the critiquers aren’t being mean, but that they’re providing you truth and that there’s still more learning to do? Or, that you’re learning from others who might not be qualified enough for you to grow? That you haven’t found your best cheerleader?

Like any new skill being learned, the amount of time spent practicing, the type of practicing performed, and who you practice with determine how fast the skills are mastered.

Writing, like any skill, is a craft that requires practice.

So, you may be asking yourself: how can I practice more? I’ve got a full-time job and children at home, or I’m home all day as a caregiver with little time as my own. I have no money to spend on classes and conferences.

            Answer: Any writing or writing related task you do is practicing. It’s about finding places you can plug writing into that works for you, where writing becomes more of a priority than it might be right now.

Whether you’re writing a first draft—which should be the messiest of all drafts—or are editing or proofing a final draft, it’s all practice.

One important lesson I learned was to stop comparing my progress to other writers. My process and progress are my path, and no two writers’ paths look the same. So, I could see my progress, I learned to chart it, to record hours spent.

Here are other things I did and still do to increase my practice time, some of which might work for you:

Write in the moments, rather than in the hours.

When I had day jobs and was raising a family, I had little writing time. Back then, I wrote in mere minutes: at stoplights, airports, while eating lunch, in waiting rooms, even while standing in line during the holidays. Surprisingly, the busier I was, the more writing I got done.

Carry your work everywhere.

I carried a piece of my work everywhere: pages that needed editing, a beta read I was doing, writing a character journal, or dictating the dialogue for a scene. Small chunks of work that didn’t require deep thinking are perfect for writing in moments.

Today, I carry my Kindle everywhere. If nothing else, I can read how-to books. When editing, I email my final manuscript to my Kindle, where I can read it like a regular book, highlight errors and make notes, and then send those highlights to my email.

Consider reducing other activities.

There came a point where I had far too many other activities that swallowed up my free time: quilting, sewing, painting, socializing, clubs, volunteer work, family tree history, etc.

To determine which activity I’d rather be doing, I made a list, then compared two activities at a time, choosing one and crossing off the other. By the end of the comparison, writing came out as the winner.

Today, I still partake in other activities because I can’t write 24/7, but those activities occur after I’ve practiced writing each day.

I made writing a priority.

Take part in writing sprints.

One thing I learned over time is that when I had a deadline, I wrote faster. Writing sprints can function as mini deadlines. Using a timer, write for 15 minutes with no editing allowed. Stream of consciousness writing only. I found it a great way to start a project or a scene I was dreading. The time allotted becomes a mind dump for getting the idea(s) on paper, which can be edited later.

Even if all you do is write 5-15 minutes a day, it’s practice! And, you’re creating a habit. After a while, you’ll crave those 15 minutes.

Attend write-ins or create your own.

Every day for three hours a day, I meet with a small group of writers in Zoom. We chat for about five minutes at the top of the hour, then mute our microphones and hide our screens, while we write. At the top of the hour, we meet again, state how successful we were in that hour, and then repeat twice more.

That’s not to say that we don’t go down rabbit holes, because we do. It happens. We laugh, and then try again in the next hour. These write-ins are about accountability.

Several participants, myself included, have said that without these write-ins, we wouldn’t be writing as much as we are. Accountability works, even if it’s only a couple times a week.

Twice a year, I participate in a weekend write-in, where we rent a home originally meant for quilters with long tables. We usually have 8-10 participants. At the last write-in, another writer and I plotted out seven books—four of mine and three of hers.

Other times, I’ve written first drafts, outlined, or edited. My current or upcoming projects dictate what I take to the write-in.

More ways to practice writing.

Growing your writing skills involves more than putting new words on paper. It’s finding a balance of learning and practicing. Various things I do:

• Watching webinars, taking classes – looking to learn something new.
• Blogging – Even short non-fiction needs a beginning, middle, climax, and ending.
• Journaling – venting or thinking on paper.
• Becoming a beta reader – we learn faster by teaching, helping others improve.
• Reading – as a writer observing how they create tension, voice, Deep POV, etc.

 Mastering any skill requires practice.

The more practice you achieve, the quicker you’ll master the craft, the skill of writing.

And, even after having achieved master status, I’m still learning and require practice. Ask any musician or any athlete; they’ll tell you the same thing:

Never stop practicing.

What is your favorite writing practice?

About Diana

Dr. Diana Stout just finished teaching her Grammar and Punctuation Made Easy class, where participates said that she had sharpened their skills and made grammar easier, where they excitedly provided examples of their rewrites, showcasing their learning.

With the recent publication of her Gothic historical novelette, Harbor House: Say You Will in the Unlock My Heartanthology  she is practicing writing as she crafts on the sequel, Harbor House: Last Blood, a psychological thriller novel, where the story continues one-hundred years later.

To learn more about her work, visit her website: https//sharpenedpencilsproductions.com.