Writers in the Storm

by Louella Nelson

There's no time like January to dream the so-called "impossible dream" and get organized for the year.

We use all kinds of tricks to maneuver ourselves into a better us, a more orderly us, a more fulfilled us.  We lie to ourselves and say we’ll get this or that done and don’t do it.

• We’re going to diet and lose 30 pounds.
• We’ll get dive-certified; take that trip to Thailand; then we’ll get over to Tuscany and see the clear light all those painters raved about in the Renaissance.
• For sure we’ll write two books, find an agent, get The New York Times to write reviews for us, blog till our fingers are numb, and launch that writing career.  (Or, in my case, re-launch it.)

But how???

Perhaps the answer lies in community.  What is more giving, stimulating, and supportive than a writing community?

Writer Deborah Gaal hosted a splendid Vision Board-building seminar last Sunday night for 10 of my student writers.  We examined six adult passions—Personal Mastery, Achievement, Intimacy, Play and Creativity, Search for Meaning, and the last, Compassion and Contribution.

Our goal was to select three of these passions to focus on as positive outcomes for our energies.  Deb took these passions and their definitions from the work of Frederick Hudson and Pamela McLean in LifeLaunch: A Passionate Guide to the Rest of Your Life.  Mind you, it wasn’t easy to narrow the field to three categories.  But Deb had some tricks up her sleeve to help us.

Just as I assert to writers that all stories and characters reside in your subconscious and need only be drawn out through auto-writing, meditation, or long showers—Deb’s introductory remarks reassured us we already knew The Plan for our lives-to-come.

She guided us in a brief meditation in which we accessed our subconscious and gave confidence to our dreams.  If that sounds a little woo-woo, it is—but it's an effective way to unlock ideas.  I often suggest that writers tell themselves three to five nights in a row before sleep that they know exactly what to write about, how to fix a character, where to go next in plot, and so on.  Deb did something very similar.

Here’s a paraphrase of the process:  Essentially, eyes closed, imagine yourself in a beautiful, peaceful place; breathe there for a bit; wander down a path and see your spirit-guide (an ancient savvy version of you) waiting for you; ask for what you want, what you wish to know, and then gently ease yourself back to the conscious world.

After the meditation, Deb urged us to either use a special deck of cards, Planning on Purpose Card Deck, to get more ideas about our passions and goals and then categorize them into the three key passions; or go directly to magazines and cut out pictures that represent the three areas.  A last option was to draw a mandala (a Sanskrit word that means "circle") and fill in the pie-wedges of the circle with our passions or goals.

http://www.ptecovillage.org/mandala.html#layers

Minutes later, a whole gang of us were snipping images and words from a collection of magazines we'd brought along and pasting them onto large foam-core boards—our Vision Boards—or drawing a mandala.

The action unfolds

It was interesting to see the work styles of some ten writers.  Four or five of us worked at the table and gabbed; others found spots on the floor throughout the downstairs of Debby’s beautiful home.

Each of us got something different:

• Fiona covered an entire 20”x30” board with words but there was an organized madness to the layout.
• Bev kept at her board until the very very end, nearly four hours later, and ended up with concrete ideas and three distinct areas of focus (which was the goal!)
• A few of us had a cup of tea and a chat to relax our overtaxed brains.
• Cynthia had the most amazing luck finding outstanding pictures that captured freedom and joy and a kind of splendor (example: photo of a gorgeous woman, eyes closed, head thrown back, arms reaching up to a cascade of water from a fountain, the water and the woman golden because backlit by the sun).
• Alison drew a colorful sun-mandala and I got to read some of the sensitive, beautiful things she put on it.

Initially I used the deck of cards and came up with a list of values, or things important to me:  being visionary, making a difference, more recognition, career satisfaction, a positive retirement, staying healthy, more freedom for me, playing/playful, simplify, sex (three letters that say so much!), sexuality, and committed to a significant other. Reviewing the list, Deb pointed out that I was heavy on Achievement (no big surprise there).

← Goal-mapping, an alternate-style vision board using images and deadlines.  See “Resources” below.

Here is how she helped me organize my list of values: “Being visionary and making a difference should fall under Compassion and Contribution,” she advised.  “Recognition, career satisfaction, and positive retirement sound like Achievement.  Health, freedom, simplify—these seem like Personal Mastery, and playing is Play and Creativity.”

Because I can only choose three passions to develop, I move “being playful” into Personal Mastery.  Sex, sexuality, and commitment to a significant other normally fall into the Intimacy category.  But I’m limited to three categories.  So I put these into Personal Mastery too.  The categories are flexible and I’m taking advantage of that!

In addition to “values” and “passions,” I have “goals.”  Where do those fit into the visioning process?  Deb listened to me articulate some of my goals, commenting, “Re-releasing your published novels, writing and selling the writing text, and tripling your outreach to writing students are action steps for Achievement.”

The action steps are to be written on Post-It Notes or directly on the Vision Board.  For example, near Star Maker, a phrase I pasted on my Vision Board, I need to place a Post-It that says, “Triple my outreach to writing students.”  I could also post “Write and sell my writing text” near Star Maker, because when students read the text, they’ll be on their way to becoming a writing star.  This is how goals intersect with values and passions.

The climax

As easy and enjoyable as it was at first, I struggled with the imagery part of the process.  I simply could not find images (other than a lovely home on the beach) to represent my ambitions.  In fairness, the magazine collection was heavy on beauty and lifestyle.

As mentioned, I did find the one stark phrase that captures my goals for the writers I mentor:  Star Maker.

Most astonishing, however, was that my half-finished board ended up full of images of the natural world.  I admit that I relate there most strongly.  So I must need to “fill the well” in nature, right?  Vacation!!!

But no.  Deb said we are visioning to draw other things to us that we want but haven’t yet attained. So my board is not finished.  It has huge open spaces, and only a fraction of the messages I put on the board are Achievement oriented.

Debby gave me hope, though.  She recommends I find images on the Internet; that I look at Forbes or other biz journals; and of course, The Writer, Writer’s Digest, Poets & Writers, the UK’s Writing Magazine, and the U.S.’s bible for the industry, Publisher’s Weekly, will offer words and images that make sense to me.  (An aside: check out PW’s articles on self-publishing.)

The denouement

Several of the writers praised the seminar.  “Deb opened up to us about her own vision-board and the things she had learned from the project,” says Alison.  “For me this was the most valuable part of the whole experience—I was getting some insight into the personal journey of a fellow writer and friend I really admire.  Such an inspiring moment.”

Fiona wrote this morning that the time she put into her Vision Board has already paid her back.  She had placed on her board a piece of a brochure for a screenwriting seminar that was sold out.  “But I was still dreaming of going,” she writes, “and I found out today I’m in!”

Lest readers think the Vision Board is strictly for business goals, Fiona clarifies a personal goal well-met:  “I cut out a picture of a globe/passport/jet with the words "family vacation," "discover the world," and "great travel" glued on top. Today I booked a trip for Easter Break, first toLondon, then by train to Glasgow, Scotland, to see my Granny and show my kids the motherland! I have been trying to do this for ages!”

I loved the sense of community among the writers—one slipping a magazine image across the table to me and saying, “Can you use this?”  Another murmuring encouragement to me and then articulating her dreams for publication.  And always, Deb’s subtle support, her calm guidance, her ability to cut through confusing lists and drop them into categories that didn’t seem obvious to the writer.

My “scene goal,” if you will, was to put together a Vision Board that clarified my goals and priorities and gave me direction for 2012.  That’s only partially how things turned out.  Today, for instance, because of my work with Debby, I sent off four of my novels to be scanned and translated into PDF files, eventually to be launched in online bookstores.  In large part, however, my board reflects my inner-most passion:  nature.

In my home-office at the moment is a Vision Board filled with natural images—beaches, stones, sea shells, horses tossing their manes and traveling through fields of yellow deer weed.

I had to think about this outcome.  Although I strive for achievement in writing and teaching, my soul is all about the natural world, which knows nothing about money, career, goals, Achievement, or even visions.  Instead it is wild, chaotic, sublime, serene, unpredictable, subtle, endlessly replicated, endlessly unique, cruel, hungry, changing....

For me, it’s an ongoing process, this business of “visioning” my future.  Meanwhile, I remind myself that a thing nature does not have is regret.  Carpe diem.

Resources:

As I was writing this blog post, I discovered that, in fall 2011, Roger Parker posted a fascinating article A.K.A. blog, “Using an Author’s Mandala Chart to Write & Publish a Book,” which, obviously, helps authors find their way to publication.  He adapted a “flexible focus” mandala developed by Active Garage, which carries syndicated content and hosts guest bloggers.

You can get “Planning on Purpose” cards from Hudson Institute  inSanta Barbara.  The organization focuses on “Life Renewal, Coaching and Leadership Development.”  800-582-4401

See also Brian Mayne’s “Goal Mapping” site.  It’s fabulous—so organized and helpful.  http://www.liftinternational.com/Goal_Map_templates.pdf

Materials List:

√ A foam-core board from an office supply store that measures whatever size you want to display in your writing area (most of us used a 20”x30” size);

√ scissors or an Exacto knife
√ post-its
√ pencil or marking pen
√ glue stick

√ Other creative tools as you wish:  sparkle-glue, theme stickers, sheets of colored or patterned paper to place behind images—whatever makes the board come alive.

Achieving Your Vision Step-by-Step

How fun would it be to gather your writing partners or best friends, some great eats, and your materials and host your own vision seminar?

To recap what you can do at home, here are the steps:

1. Gather your materials, including a well-rounded selection of magazines if you plan to do a Vision Board rather than the Mandala.
2. Find a calm meditation/work area and put all your materials in easy reach.
3. Do a brief meditation, such as the one I mention in The Stage is Set above, to calm and focus your mind.
4. Using the cards or simply brainstorming, make a list of your passions and goals; organize  them under only three of the six adult passions listed in paragraph three of my blog.
5. Then either draw a Mandala or cut out pictures and words to make a Vision Board.
6. Think about the action steps you’ll need to take to make your passions come to pass.  Use a marker or sticky notes to list these steps and include them in your design.
7. Place your passions and steps where you see them daily.
8. While you do the action steps, watch the magic happen.

   

About the Author:

A former president of Orange County RWA (California) and coordinator of a past RWA national conference, Louella Nelson is the author of five romance novels (Days of Fire, Mail-Order Mate, and others), short stories, a novella, as well as award-winning trade magazine editorial features, articles, and technical reports.

A professional writers' mentor, Lou has conducted successful author promotions and has been a guest on radio and television talk shows; she has led writing retreats and taught writing courses at the University of California, Irvine Extension (current); Orange Coast College (current); California State University, Fullerton Extension; and Learning Tree University. Many of her students are agented, published, and award-winners.

Lou received the 2010 UC Irvine Extension Distinguished Instructor Award. She is at work on a textbook for writers and is currently re-releasing her novels and writing short stories.  Follow Lou on Twitter @LouellaNelson or visit her blog.

Margie Lawson

A heartfelt THANK YOU to Laura Drake for inviting me to be her guest today!

The title should read: Kiss Some of Your “As”s Goodbye. But including the words, some of, diluted the power. No way I’d opt to dilute power.

If you’ve taken my Big Three writing craft courses, you know how to analyze and add power to a sentence and a scene. If you took my craft courses before 2011, you may not know about what I call the Pesky As Construction.

But there are times when “as” makes me smile. “As” is welcome when it represents “like.”  It’s also welcome when used as a comparison. It’s as sweet as agave.

A few positive “as” examples from multi-Margie-grads.

Debbie Kaufman, The Doctor’s Mission, 2011

Hannah Jansen was as plump and well-rounded as her husband was spare.

Julie Rowe, Icebound, 2011

The first step forward surprised her; she didn’t sink into the snow, the white stuff was as firm as concrete.

Robin Perini, In Her Sights, 2011

Face to face with her past, and she was just as ignorant now, as she had been then.

 Darynda Jones, Third Grave Dead Ahead, to be released January 31, 2012

I didn’t have the energy to argue with him. The pain leached it out of me as fast as my body could produce it.

Okay. Time to switch to when “as” is pesky on the page.

There are two ways “as” is used that do not make me smile.

“As” is less desirable on the page:

1.  When it connotes simultaneity
2.   When it spotlights a stimulus/response reversal

I’ll clarify.  :-)

Simultaneity on the Page:

Dwight Swain, Techniques of the Selling Writer, cautioned writers about simultaneity, things happening at the same time. He recommended having “A” happen, then “B.”

Having one event follow another, is a smoother read. A more direct read.

Readers read linearly. They read one thing happening then another. It’s a cognitive speedbump to adjust thinking to accommodate things happening simultaneously. 

I’m not saying to never have things happen simultaneously.

I am recommending checking your manuscript for simultaneity, and deciding if you want to keep it or change it.

I’ll share an example from Writers in the Storm’s Laura Drake.

That’s multi-Margie-grad Laura Drake.

Also, recently contracted Laura Drake!

LAURA -- CONGRATULATIONS on your THREE BOOK DEAL!

Laura is currently taking one of my online classes, Fab 30: Advanced Deep Editing. Here’s an example she posted in class.

Before: 

A clock ticked in her head, matching the cadence of her feet as she pounded through the barn.

After:

She pounded through the barn. The clock ticking in her head matched the cadence of her feet.

Laura added this comment: Like the fix better - ups the tension.

I agree. Nixing the simultaneous action, and making it two sentences, made it much stronger.

BLOG GUESTS:  Please read both versions out loud. Here they are again:

Before: 

A clock ticked in her head, matching the cadence of her feet as she pounded through the barn.

After:

She pounded through the barn. The clock ticking in her head matched the cadence of her feet.

Hear the difference?

The AFTER has a stronger cadence. It carries more tension. It is a more compelling read.

Here’s a common “as” structure that connotes simultaneity.

As I flicked on the light, he tackled me.

What’s stronger?

I flicked on the light. (Here – show someone coming at him, knocking him down.)

Stimulus Response Reversals:

Sometime “as” spotlights a stimulus/response reversal. The response is in front of the stimulus.

When “as” spotlights that the RESPONSE is in front of the STIMULUS, most of the time I recommend flipping it, so the stimulus presents first.

A common example: She turned toward the door as she heard a knock.

The knock happens first.

There may be a compelling reason for leaving a sentence with the response presenting first. If so, no worries.

Do you need to nix every AS?

No!

When “as” is used as a comparison or as “like,” it works well. It’s a sweet “as.”

I recommend doing a FIND on “as” (space bar, as, space bar) and seeing how many you have in your full manuscript. Check them.

Nixing any “as” that connotes simultaneity or spotlights a stimulus/response reversal is likely to make the read stronger.

I hope you’re willing to kiss your as goodbye!

POST A COMMENT – AND YOU MAY WIN a Lecture Packet or an online course by Margie Lawson, or Tiffany Lawson Inman, from Lawson Writer’s Academy!

Online Classes offered by Lawson Writer's Academy in February:

1. Taking a Book from Good to Sold, by Shirley Jump

2. Kills, Chills, and Thrills: Writing the Thriller Novel, by C.J. Lyons

3. Taming WordPress: Create and Maintain Bolgs and Websites, by Tamela Buhrke

4. Platforms Aren't Shoes.  Start Marketing BEFORE You Finish That Book, by Tamela Buhrke

5. The Triple Threat Behind Staging a Scene:  An Actor's Take on Writing Physicality, Choreography, and Action, by Tiffany Lawson Inman

6. Empowering Characters' Emotions, by Margie Lawson

I’ll post the winner’s name tonight, 9PM Mountain Time.

Thank you again!

Margie Lawson—psychotherapist, editor, and international presenter—developed innovative editing systems and deep editing techniques used by writers, from newbies to NYT Bestsellers. She teaches writers how to edit for psychological power, how to hook the reader viscerally, how to create a page-turner.

Thousands of writers have learned Margie’s psychologically-based deep editing material. In the last seven years, she presented over sixty full day Master Classes for writers in the U.S., Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.

For more information on Lawson Writer’s Academy, lecture packets, full day master classes, and the 5-day Immersion Master Class sessions offered in her Colorado mountain-top home, visit:  www.MargieLawson.com.

by Jenny Hansen

A while back, I was doing social media for the accounting firm I work for part-time and I came across the following tweet:

Leadershipfreak Dan Rockwell - A no string attached book giveaway on today's post: 9 Questions that enhance engagement" http://bit.ly/rtNRQO

Hmmm…I’m a writer. I’m interested in "engagement"...particularly as it relates to my characters and potential readers. So I forwarded the blog to my personal email to share with all of you.

Here’s the full article, if you wish to read it – Dan Rockwell writes really  good posts. In this particular article, Rockwell examines the principle of open listening from the book, "Coaching for Engagement: Achieving Results through Powerful Conversations," by Hancox, Hunter, and Boudreau.

According to Dan, "open listening is rigorous work not passive silence. Fools can be quiet but they can’t listen." Below is the line that made me decide to write about this post:

Listen and you’ll know what to ask.

I’ll confess that I’m not half the listener I’d like to be. I come from a family of boisterous people that love to tell stories, finish each others’ sentences and talk all over each other. Two-way communication can get a little daunting in a family like mine. (I'm sure those of you that know me well find that shocking.)

Plus, I’m impatient. Far too often, I think I’ve got the gist of something my husband says only to have him stop and tilt his head (looking very aggrieved) and say, "I wasn’t finished yet."

Oh. Whoops. Um, go ahead…Sorry!

Yeah, it's embarrassing. Especially because I want to be a great listener all the time.

Our group of founding writers meets every Thursday night to go over chapters or plot out books. Over the time that we've been doing this, I've learned to watch my fellow writers' faces as we go over their book. If they get that deer-in-headlights look when I start throwing out suggestions, I've learned to back off and start asking them questions.

My favorite brainstorming technique is an "oldie but goodie" called The List of 20 that requires you to list twenty things (no matter how crazy) that could happen in your book. Doing this as a group is particularly awesome because the ideas fly in from multiple points of craziness.

While brainstorming and plotting are fun and enormously important, I believe the real magic happens when you take a moment to STOP and listen to what your characters have to say. When I shut my pie-hole and get out of the way, my characters tell me the damnedest things!

 

Listen and you’ll know what to ask.

This is what all the meditation, writing practice, walks, and showers are about for creative people.

They’re about shutting off the faucet of continual life-chatter long enough to listen to your characters.

When you listen hard enough, your characters will let you climb right down into the heart of them and discover what makes them tick.

In his blog, Mr. Rockwell shared the "9 questions open listeners ask that create engagement." He was focusing on business and leadership.

Today, I'm going to use his 9 questions to focus on character development. What would you find out if you stepped into your fictional world and asked your characters the following questions?

1. What are they focused on?
2. What does this mean to them?
3. How are they measuring success?
4. What values are they expressing?
5. What emotions do you hear in their voice?
6. What values or beliefs are behind their words?
7. How is this impacting them?
8. What strengths have they articulated that could be acknowledged?
9. What are they really asking for?

I’ve never had this particular list of questions before, and I like it. My characters really like it. When I pondered the Big 9 above, my fictional peeps started shouting out their answers. (I know all you writers know what I'm talking about! Don't try to act like this schizo-sounding stuff doesn't happen to you...)

Rockwell also discusses some pitfalls to open listening, which nicely enough also apply to writing:

• Jumping for quick solutions – you’ll solve the wrong problem.
  
  This ties back to the List of 20. ALWAYS list all twenty!
• Discomfort with other’s frustration while they find their own answers. Let others struggle.
  
  Writer translation: Quit saving your characters from the crap pile. They’ve got lessons to learn, you helicopter creator, you.
• Assumptions, beliefs, and judgments.
  
  Writer translation: Don’t start thinking this is your book. It’s only partly yours. The rest belongs to your fictional people and they don’t need you butting in with things that don’t apply to them.
• Getting caught up in the details of the story. Keep the big picture in mind.
  
  Writer translation: "Whoa, Sparky. Watch that backstory!"
• Discomfort with silence. Shhhh!
  
  Writer translation: There are pages for fast-paced riveting action and there are pages where some introspection would not be out of line. If you convey those quiet moments well, they’re far from boring.

So, what techniques do you use to get those characters to open up and tell you their secrets? Do you have questions of your own you like to ask? What are they?

Jenny

Jenny fills her nights with humor: writing memoir, women’s fiction, chick lit, short stories (and chasing after her wildly teething Baby Girl). By day, she provides training and social media marketing for an accounting firm. After 15 years as a corporate software trainer, she’s digging this sit down and write thing. In addition to being a founding member here at WITS, Jenny also hangs out on Twitter at jhansenwrites and at her other blog, More Cowbell.