Writers in the Storm

By Laura Drake

It sometimes seems that everything around us is negative: coworkers complain, kids whine, and don’t get me started on politics or the news. I think social media magnifies this. Hop onto Twitter and look right now – just look at the posts you can see without scrolling. We’ll wait.

You back? I’ll bet you found a liberal dose of complaints about everything from traffic, to weather, to rude people, right? Amping that is the latest trend to be snarky and deprecating. That’s okay, I guess – the pendulum swings to every point eventually.

If you follow a lot of writers, as I do, I’ll also bet that you also read people complaining about editing, submitting, and writing in general. ‘It’s so haaard!’

Well, I’m not here to be all holier than thou – I’ve done it too. I read a list of why you shouldn’t become a writer the other day (you can read it Here.) I couldn’t even argue with most of them.

I’m also not here to blow happy sparklies up your backside.

Writing IS hard.

But.  (You just knew there was going to be a ‘but,’ didn’t you?)

Yesterday I was writing and I had one of those rare moments – when you become aware of yourself and what you’re doing, from almost an omniscient point of view. When step outside your life and see yourself almost as others would see you.

There I was, creating something from nothing - playing with words, creating sentences that built to scenes that eventually become novels. I literally giggled. Is this not the best gig on the planet?

“Oh sure,” you say. “She sold. It’s easy for her to be content.” But I’m not talking about selling. I’m talking about loving the act of writing.

It took me a long time, but I finally bumbled my way onto what makes me happy, sixteen years ago. Nothing I’ve ever done has made me as joyous, as fulfilled, as complete, as creating one iridescently perfect sentence.

I’m not saying it flows out of my fingers. I’m not even saying it happens often.

But ah, when it does. You know the feeling. When you slave to capture an elusive complex emotion and you somehow manage write it fresh and new – that’s as close to heaven as I’m going to get on this earth.

I know, we all get wrapped up in the selling part. It’s the golden ring we all chase.

I live in Southern California, the land of the beautiful people. Home to 90210, the Housewives of Orange County, Hollywood. L.A., where money talks, and nobody walks. I see people every day who are trying to keep up to their neighborhood, conspicuously consuming themselves to bankruptcy. They buy into the illusion, and forget that money don’t buy you love. (wow, how many musical references can I fit in one paragraph?)

They’ve forgotten that the goal isn’t money – it’s to be HAPPY.

And the act of writing makes me happy.

I believe that if you don't love that, you'll never finish a book. If you do somehow struggle through one, it won't be saleable.

Can we all just take just a moment out of the snarkiness, the whininess, the it's-so-hardness, to rejoice in that?

I do love quotes. So I’ll leave you with a few pertinent ones:

If you don’t actually like to write, love to write, feel driven and compelled to write — then you’re probably better off abandoning your ambition in favor of a more legitimate career.” Tom Robbins

“Who wants to become a writer? And why? Because it’s the answer to everything. … It’s the streaming reason for living. To note, to pin down, to build up, to create, to be astonished at nothing, to cherish the oddities, to let nothing go down the drain, to make something, to make a great flower out of life, even if it’s a cactus.”
—Enid Bagnold

“Writing a book is a horrible, exhausting struggle, like a long bout of some painful illness. One would never undertake such a thing if one were not driven on by some demon whom one can neither resist nor understand.”
—George Orwell

“For your born writer, nothing is so healing as the realization that he has come upon the right word.”
—Catherine Drinker Bowen

“Style means the right word. The rest matters little.”
—Jules Renard

“Long patience and application saturated with your heart’s blood—you will either write or you will not—and the only way to find out whether you will or not is to try.”
—Jim Tully, October 1923

“Let the world burn through you. Throw the prism light, white hot, on paper.”
—Ray Bradbury, WD

“I think all writing is a disease. You can’t stop it.”
—William Carlos Williams

“The difference between the almost right word and the right word is … the difference between the lightning bug and the lightning.”
—Mark Twain

The role of a writer is not to say what we all can say, but what we are unable to say ~Anais Nin

Don’t tell me the moon is shining; show me the glint of light on broken glass. ~ Anton Chekhov

Fill your paper with the breathings of your heart. ~William Wordsworth

Laura's latest release, Her Road Home, is available at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and through Harlequin.

Romantic Times gave it 4 stars:

"A minor motorcycle accident leaves builder Samantha Crozier stranded in Widow’s Grove, Ca. While she recovers, she hires mechanic Nick Pinelli to fix her bike. But while recuperating in town, she finds the house of her dreams to buy and restore, and she realizes that Nick just might be the man to go along with it. 

With realistic emotions and nicely depicted characters, this is a powerful story."

Today I'm proud to welcome to WITS a debut historical author, Alina K. Field. You may not have heard of her yet, but trust me,  you will! Take it away, Alina!

Thanks to the Writers in the Storm crew for inviting me today.

You’ve probably heard of “thinking outside the box.”  For many years I worked in a highly structured, byzantine business culture. “Thinking outside the box” was a pleasant activity for team-building days, but my sad, cynical heart knew it wasn’t at all a realistic endeavor in that rule-bound bureaucracy. When I could finally lift the lid, climb out of that particular box, and sit down to fulfill a dream of writing fiction, the great yawning freedom made me giddy.

But what to write? My goals weren’t limited to writing stories; I wanted to sell them as well. The empty page stared back at me.

Embracing the Box

I soon learned that in writing fiction, boxes can be good. Boxes can be liberating. As author Andrew Knighton says, “We underestimate the value of limitations in art. If I sit down without any restrictions, without a word count or a genre to work towards, I can do anything. But that doesn’t give me any focus.”

Last year I took author Laura Baker’s class, The Fearless Writer: Discovering your Story, and learned, among other things, the concept of creating a Story Box. In the simplest terms, a Story Box is a limit, a framework, or a set of specifications for your story.

The conventions of a genre create a story box. The characters and setting of a sequel create a story box. A writing prompt creates the simplest story box.

Laura’s approach is a little more in depth.

From Story Box to Story

I took the results of the first few homework assignments—favored themes and emotions, preferred characters, and conflicts—and zeroed in on an idea I’d been thinking about for some time and, with Laura’s guidance, built a box.

1)      I started with a story idea:

A recently retired FBI agent visits a bitter undercover cop's widow to remove the bugs he himself planted in her home, and warn her that someone (the agency, a rogue agent in the agency, a criminal - maybe all three) is seeking something of value that her husband hid from his handlers, as insurance.

Obviously, this is noodling out an idea, not writing a logline!

2)     Next, I looked at the list of my compelling themes and emotions and assign one to each of the three main characters:

For the villain—Greed: The villain is seeking money or power.

For the hero—Redemption: The hero is seeking redemption for his inadvertent participation in the villain’s betrayal.

For the heroine—Betrayal: The heroine feels betrayed, possibly by her husband, possibly by the government.

3)      Then I looked at premise. What is a premise you ask? In logic, a premise is a proposition helping to support a conclusion. My premise states the conclusion of the story’s conflict:

Seeking redemption defeats betrayal.

(This is a romance. If you’re writing a tragedy, swap the themes.)

4)      I defined hero and heroine’s roles in terms of their emotions:

The heroine will show what it looks and feels like to always wonder if people can be trusted.

The hero will show what it looks and feels like to have his trust in his own judgment shaken and to seek to redeem himself for his errors in judgment.

5)      I identified some ways in which the roles can create conflict:

The heroine resists the hero’s attempts to communicate with her.

She needs his help to find the truth, but she doesn’t trust him.

This is his personal quest, so he is not always willing to share information with her.

6)      I identified what the heroine, the protagonist, must learn:

She learns that by opening up and relying on someone else, she can find the truth, learn to trust, give forgiveness, heal wounds, and find true intimacy with another person.

Was this easy? No. But Laura provided invaluable feedback at every step. It was helpful on more than an intellectual level. When my fingers hit the keyboard, some things changed, but this Story Box was the genesis for my NaNoWriMo project that placed first in the FabFive contest this year! (First contest win; pause for a SQUEE!)

But does a Story Box Have to be Long and Complicated?

Shortly after the Fearless Writing class ended, a friend shared a publisher’s call for submissions for novellas, each one with its own specifications and a deadline that would put a rambling writer like me into cardiac arrest.

I decided to brave the call for a Christmas novella with a three month deadline. Besides the Christmas theme, there were two more must haves: a) a historical setting; and b) a ring that played a central role in the romance.

Three things: Christmas, historical setting, and a ring; that was the short and sweet Story Box for my new release, Rosalyn’s Ring, pretty much written organically in eighteen days.

Making your own Story Box

If you’re writing genre fiction, you’ve already embraced a framework. And if you’re writing a series about, hmmm, say, biker chicks, or bull riders, you’ve raised the sides of your box a little higher.

But if you’re facing a frighteningly blank page, why not set some specific limits? A compelling theme, a particular setting, a certain prop, a stock character. Restrictions can narrow focus, force us out of our comfort zone, and create new challenges that make us grow.

And for more information on Laura Baker’s approach, visit www.fearlesswriter.com.

How about you? Have you ever found limits or story requirements inspiring? I’d especially love to hear from the absolute pantsers, the folks who set their fingers to the keyboard and ask the muse “what comes next?”

Alina K. Field earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree in English and German literature, but she found her true passion in reading and writing romance. Though her roots are in the Midwest, after six very, very, very cold years in Chicago, she moved to Southern California and hasn’t looked back. She shares a midcentury home with her husband and a blue-eyed cat who conned his way in for dinner one day and decided the food was too good to leave.

Visit her at AlinaKField.com.

Hey, all just a quick update: The person who won an LWA online class is ——- Selena Fulton  CONGRATULATIONS !!!! Please email Margie::::: address is:  margie (at) margielawson(dot) com

Sorry to step in, Susan - go for it!

by Susan Spann

Last month’s #PubLaw guest post on WITS asked the question “Do you Need a Literary Executor?”

This month we’re following up with a look at how to choose one—which an author needs to know how to do, even if the estate isn’t large or complex enough to require a separate literary executor.

Here’s why:

If the estate is large or complicated enough to merit a separate executor (or trustee, in the case of a trust) to manage the literary works, it’s important to choose a qualified person to fill that role.

If the estate doesn’t need a separate literary executor or trustee, the general executor will have to manage both the standard estate and distribution of the author’s intellectual property. That means the general executor needs the basic skills of a literary executor to fulfill the dual role.

In other words: regardless of the size of your estate, you need to make sure the person handling your intellectual property rights is qualified to act as a literary executor or trustee.

This is particularly true where the author’s will or trust splits ownership and/or the financial benefits of creative works between two or more heirs. Appointing a qualified literary executor helps prevent disputes, streamline administration, and facilitate the transfer and management of intellectual property rights after the author’s death.

Some points to consider when choosing a literary executor:

1. Pick someone familiar with solid business skills and familiarity with the publishing industry.

A general attorney may not have much familiarity with publishing contracts and intellectual property issues. Family members may not have the business skills required to handle your intellectual property rights effectively.

Picking someone who understands publishing helps minimize costs and conflicts, and also maximizes the benefits from your works. This is true whether or not the literary executor will manage the works long-term or merely supervise collection and distribution to your heirs.

2. Select an executor young enough to survive you and still be young enough to manage your copyrights. Also, name at least one secondary choice.

Most copyrights last for 70 years after the author’s death – so it’s a good idea to select a literary executor young enough to serve a substantial part of that time. This often means picking someone younger than you (or changing your choice as you age). Remember: you can always amend a will or trust to change the executor’s name without having to rewrite or revise the rest of the document. The amendment is called a “codicil” in the case of a will and an “amendment” in the case of a trust.

3. Provide for a successor executor – or a method for choosing one.

Since your copyrights may outlive your selected executor’s career, your estate planning documents should name a successor literary executor or include the method for choosing one. Common methods include the majority choice of your heirs, selection by the attorney administering your will or trust, and arranging for a court-appointed successor.

Other methods are permitted, too. You may want to consult a local estate planning attorney to learn more about your options.

4. Select someone with patience and good communication skills.

In addition to negotiating contracts and managing copyrights, the literary executor will need to communicate with your heirs – the people who will receive the financial benefits of your literary estate. Select a literary executor who communicates clearly and effectively – someone who solves problems rather than creating them.

5. If possible pick someone who gets along with your heirs, particularly if the literary executor will need to serve for an extended time.

Never underestimate the value of cooperation. Your literary executor may need to work with your heirs for many years. That process is always easier when personalities mesh.

This isn’t an all-encompassing list of the factors you’ll need to consider, but it’s enough to get you started on the road.

Remember to consult a licensed attorney in your state or country to ensure your estate planning documents comply with local law and to ensure that you know about any local rules governing the selection of executors and trustees.

Thank you for joining me for today’s #PubLaw guest post on literary executors! We’ll continue our Authors’ Estate Planning series next month – I look forward to seeing you then! And remember, if you have questions about this or any other topic related to publishing law or authors’ estate planning issues, please feel free to ask in the comments. I love to hear from you.

About Susan

Susan Spann is a publishing attorney and author from Sacramento, California.

Her debut mystery novel, CLAWS OF THE CAT (Thomas Dunne Books, July 2013), is the first in a series featuring ninja detective Hiro Hattori. Susan blogs about writing, publishing law and seahorses at http://www.SusanSpann.com. Find her on Twitter @SusanSpann or on Facebook.