Wake

Wake...

Do you remember who you are?   Do you recall your power?   You and I, We have created Gods. We have frozen oceans, filled jungles far and wide with beasts of great wisdom and immorality.   We have conjured suns, pulled moons from their orbits, and snapped the wires suspending Heaven, just to hear the enraged coiling as they spiral and whine across the sky.   We have bathed in moonlight and Consumed the Nectar of starshine -- then washed the world clean with rain. Do you remember?

On our off days we created kings, crowned their heads, then removed their heads with guillotine -- just as an exercise -- a proof of concept. And when the God we created became unworthy, we diminished his followers to madmen and extremists, then executed the God.

Did you forget Lilith? Ashera?... the poets of Sumer?

A chariot of pine-wood, a litter of box-wood.A bunch of fruits, a garland growing luxuriantly.A phial of ostrich shell, overflowing with perfumed oil.

Have you fallen so far that your powers are only dreams of  another era?. look around you, listen to the ether. We will be needed  to rebuild their myths, to set right their temples, and pull their humanity from the ash and skulls.. We are the wizards The story must not die...

...wake

Forensic Blunders #001 The Bleeding Corpse

The Bleeding Corpse: Your MC comes down the wooden stairway, that was old when he was born, and into the cellar of the house. He descends into musty smells, feeling layers of dust and dank as he submerges into the thick air. A single naked, low watt light-bulb hangs over the laundry area to the right, On the smooth cement floor inside that lonely pool of light lays the body of Mrs. Katt. Blood is dripping out of her eyes like tears...

Your character better rush to the phone and call Emergency help. Now! Go! Because Mrs. Katt is still alive!

FramingA Useful Tool For Fiction Writers

The Meaning of an Event 
Is Based on Where
We Experienced The Event

Framing has become an In-Demand field of study since 2000. While it has enjoyed  steady level of interest from researchers since its conception, the field has a  stronger following now, as enough studies have been performed to develop practical applications in:

• Persuasion, 
• Marketing, and 
• Decision Making 

Academic fields interested includes Psychology, Sociology, Neurology, Neuro-Psychology, Leadership Theories and any Behavioral Study area you can think of.

The quick n dirty explanation of what Framing covers, is :
Meaning depends on Context. So -- Control the Context.

Let there be Light

Light is both waves and particles, but is also something that can not be truly imagined. Physicists have noted that light tends to behave more like a classical wave at lower frequencies, but more like a classical particle at higher frequencies, but never completely loses all qualities of one or the other. Visible light, which occupies a middle ground in frequency, can easily be shown in experiments to be describable using either a wave or particle model, or sometimes both.

Sympathy Emotion Encyclopedia for Writers

Emotion Encyclopedia for Writers

EMOTIVE: SYMPATHY

TYPE: COMPLEX

DEFINITION: 'sym·pa·thy || 'sɪmpəθɪaffinity, understanding; compassion, pity, concern, commiseration, empathy; approval

DESCRIPTION

Sympathy (from the Greek words syn "together" and pathos "feeling" which means "fellow-feeling") is the perception, understanding, and reaction to the distress or need of another human being.

This emphatic-type concern is driven by a switch in viewpoint, from a personal perspective to the perspective of another group or individual who is in need. Empathy and sympathy are often used interchangeably, but are two distinct emotions with several important differences.

Emotional Motivator Maslow wasn't Correct

What is an Emotional Motivator ? What good is it? 

Symbolism is a effective
method of  demonstrating
emotional turmoil by
implying rather than describing

On the Emotion Description pages for the Encyclopedia Project there is a section titled Motivator. This post is to give you an idea of what that section supplies and some possible uses for the information.

There are several studies which have suggested over the century that emotions, and not logic drive our actions. Those who develop and utilized Marketing and Sales techniques accepted this as far back as -- well let's just say that Aristotle talks at length about it in his book Rhetoric (both 1 & 2).

Maslow created a rational, brilliantly thought out hierarchy of needs...

Phrase/Word Trivia Mad as a Hatter

Know any cool phrase or word trivia?

What's your favorite?

Have you any idea why 

a raven is like a writing desk?

MAD AS A HATTER is from 1829 as "demented," 1837 as "enraged," according to a modern theory supposedly from erratic behavior caused by prolonged exposure to poison mercuric nitrate, used in making felt hats. 

“I don't think..." 

"Then you shouldn't talk," said the Hatter.” 

Hatter: Have I gone mad?

Alice:   I'm afraid so. You're entirely bonkers. But I'll tell you a secret. 

            All the best people are.

I've been considering words that start with the letter M. Moron. Mutiny. Murder. Mmm-malice. ~HATTER

Marketing Tips For Writers Get them Talking

.

If you write a book worth talking about, you won't be able to keep people from discussing it with their friends. If your book is not worth talking about, nothing you do will get people to do so.

TIP: Write a book worth talking about.

That sounds like a jibe, it is not. Incorporate subject matter into your book which offers discussion points -- then have several characters present differing views on the subject. It's that simple.

Make sure that at least One of the view points is going to piss people off. -- no, I'm not kidding about that part. Studies over the last 20 years have shown conclusively that  people are motivated to discuss matters that piss them off. Visit mainstream news media and look into the comment sections. Neutral, Good and Basic Information articles rarely get comments. Opinion pages with bias and controversial subject matter get 100s, sometimes 1000s.

TIP: Don't over think this. It is easy.

My latest book-- coming out soon (as soon as I quit writing Tips and get back to finishing my edits) brings up several topics, which are inline with the plot, the characters and the tone of the book. One such topic  is the World Court finding the USA guilty of being a Terrorist Nation. Many people don't know anything about this. It was given only minimal news time in the United States. The US is in fact the Only country who has ever been found guilty of being a Terrorist Nation -- we're also the only nation who has used nuclear weapons during a period of war -- or against another nation. yay for us.

In the book I  have this point come up in a natural manner between two characters. Two others then give the reader their points of view later on. It is used in a way that moves the plot forward. You don't have to sacrifice anything to utilize this tip, and it should help with making your novel an interesting book to read.

After deciding on this subject, I then searched for opinions on this subject.  These were not difficult to find. Gathering at least three differing opinions which express views on the subject is a minimum. Two, won't cut it. You need at least three. -- and again, three plus one that is going to piss people off, is optimum.

And... back to writing. 

Are You Legit? What makes you Qualified to Write?

"What Qualifies you to be a writer?" is likely the most negative question I've experienced since I began writing at 17.

I use to answer, "I passed 9th Grade English" or "Because English is my First Language"  In my 30s I was a little meaner -- "What qualifies you to breathe?"

Now that I'm 50 I don't answer at all.

Doubts plague every writer, as fierce as the Furies, as terrible as the Harpies. This particular doubt should never bother you.

Writer Tips: Pain

Q: How would you describe in dialogue, someone talking while they'er in pain. Like, "My phone... arg... It's.. uh.. In my back.. pocket..." Or would you do it in dialogue tags. "My phone--" He gritted his teeth, his voice breaking as he groaned in pain. "It's.. uh.. in my back... pocket..."

Pain happens in novels. People get shot. People break things like bones, people get cut. There is also emotional pain. Pain of loss, pain of betrayal. Lots of pain.  So you might be surprised when you go looking for tips on conveying pain and find very little out there, or in books about fiction writing. There is a good reason for this.

Too Much Dialog?

"Too much dialog?"

"What?"

"She asked if there's a thing with too much dialog."

"Too much dialog? What's that? You mean like no description at all?"

"She didn't say that..."

"How can you write a story with no description?"

"She didn't say there wouldn't be any description. She just asked if there was a limit for how much dialog ...."

"How are  you going to know if it's raining or not?"

"That you could take care of  with dialog, no biggie, and if you didn't mention it then it probably isn't an issue."

"Like implied facts. If I walk from the front door to the the kitchen to get a beer, and I don't mention that a white ape flying a small plane crashed into the house, it probably didn't happen."

"Exactly."

"How you going to know if I'm at a door though? Do I have to mention everything I do?"

"You're back on the description thing again, and she didn't say anything about that."

"Well -- it's important."

"Right -- I'm getting the message. So, you agree that there is probably a limit."

"I would think so, yes"

"Since all things have a limit, I'll agree."

"We could figure out a percentage or a ratio, maybe."

"You got a D in math."

"Oh, right. Want a beer?"

"No, you already drank five for me. I think I'm good."

"Fine, I'll just get one for myself then."

"Watch out for white apes."

Something I would argue however is that the other side of that equation doesn't work out. I've read a few attempts at stories, even short stories, going for the "no dialog" goal, and imo each failed as a 'story'. To Build a Fire (London)i is the closest I've encountered, but even Jack breaks down and has the man talk to his dog. Without exchange of some kind involving the MC is nigh impossible to make a connection with the MC and therefore the story.

Sobering up Your Muse

Ever notice that being a writer is hell some days? Of course there is the daily doubt contest between your imagination, your internal critic, the internal editor and that bastard up in the seats. You get use to that -- learn to tune them out. But, then there are those special moments when you've been pushing a two ton rock up hill -- only to find that it is the wrong hill, and that's not the right rock.

This Feels All Too Familier

“It comes from a very ancient democracy, you see..."

"You mean, it comes from a world of lizards?"

"No," said Ford, who by this time was a little more rational and coherent than he had been, having finally had the coffee forced down him, "nothing so simple. Nothing anything like so straightforward. On its world, the people are people. The leaders are lizards. The people hate the lizards and the lizards rule the people."

"Odd," said Arthur, "I thought you said it was a democracy."

"I did," said Ford. "It is."

"So," said Arthur, hoping he wasn't sounding ridiculously obtuse, "why don't people get rid of the lizards?"

"It honestly doesn't occur to them," said Ford. "They've all got the vote, so they all pretty much assume that the government they've voted in more or less approximates to the government they want."

"You mean they actually vote for the lizards?"

"Oh yes," said Ford with a shrug, "of course."

"But," said Arthur, going for the big one again, "why?"

"Because if they didn't vote for a lizard," said Ford, "the wrong lizard might get in. Got any gin?"

"What?"

"I said," said Ford, with an increasing air of urgency creeping into his voice, "have you got any gin?"

"I'll look. Tell me about the lizards."

Ford shrugged again. "Some people say that the lizards are the best thing that ever happenned to them," he said. "They're completely wrong of course, completely and utterly wrong, but someone's got to say it."

"But that's terrible," said Arthur.

"Listen, bud," said Ford, "if I had one Altairian dollar for every time I heard one bit of the Universe look at another bit of the Universe and say 'That's terrible' I wouldn't be sitting here like a lemon looking for a gin.”


― Douglas Adams, So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish

Pixar has skilz - and Here they are

Love Pixar and these tips have been around for a few years now, originally Tweeted in '12 by Emma. I happened on them again today and find them just as valuable now as they were the first time I read them through. -- Keep in mind though - These are not Gospel, nor were they meant to be. Laying them out on your desk and checking them off is not their purpose, nor how Pixar views them. They are tips from collective experience, and you should find plenty of room to add to the list from your own experience.

Authoring Tools and A Sadistic utility You'll probably try Anyway

Over the last couple of weeks I've been deep delving into linguistics and grammar parsing. Learned some great stuff about Sentiment Programming, and analysis strategy. In doing all of this I've gathered up a long list of software utilities which I'm now trying to catalog and comment on in case you would like to try some of these out. They were an amazing help, and I certainly would not have learned as much as I did  in the short time I gave myself to understand these areas of research.

What did I learn? Well I learned that the last couple of weeks was spent deep delving into areas of research about exactly the wrong areas. However, I never would have found the right area if I didn't go there.

I also learned some useful aspects of Sentiment, and Big Data, both of which I'll be posting on as well over the next couple of weeks.


This first list is a collection of some Authoring software which I have enjoyed on various levels. Gir will show you the ones I find most useful.

The Malleable Variance of What We Call Time

In his Rhetoric, Aristotle acknowledges that it would be better if we could make our case without either browbeating or flattering the audience; nothing should matter except "the bare facts." He laments, "other things affect the result considerably, owing to the defects of our hearers."

Your perception of time does not adhere to "world time." You might have the opinion that I should have said, 'does not always adhere to world time', but that's a lie. Your sense of time is as easily disturbed as a puddle of mud, and just as transparent.

If a man with a bass voice reads a script at exactly the same speed as a man with a tenor voice, the bass voice feels slower, by a notable degree.

When your body temperature is high, your sense of time is also slowed. In one experiment, subjects with fevers were asked to count to 60 at one number per second. Without exception, they counted much faster.

Having a low body temperature  you would count slower, as the sense of time moves much faster.

Under the influence of blue light, time is underestimated -- which is why nightclubs use it, to give you the sense that you really haven't been there that long.

Under the long wavelengths of red light, time is overestimated and every thing feels like it is in slow motion.

Tools for Writers -- and a few for World Domination

These are a bunch of things that you didn't need until I listed them.

FreeMind  A mind mapping program which I find very useful.

Scrivener     This is the all-in-one planning, research, drafting, writing, and publishing tool you've probably heard a lot about.

CoSchedule  CoSchedule is an editorial calendar, task manager, and social media planner for WordPress.

Evernote  I store my brain in Evernote. This is an amazing notebook tool for research. Another is ...

Google Keep     Fast, easy, light and backed up on your Google Cloud. Never loose any note again.

iA Writer  Minimalist writing app for iPad. Using Dropbox, you can sync writing in iAWriter between your devices and Scrivener.

TweetDeck  MarketingTweetDeck is the easiest way to keep track of your social accounts without needing to log in every time.

Buffer  Buffer is a lifesaver. It posts automatically, using a queue-like list of your scheduled updates.

AWeber   It's the #1 mailing list provider, and I use it for all of my newsletters.

MailChimp   "Sexier" than AWeber,  because there is a Chimp, easy-to-use, and free (up to a point), it's only #2 because of feature limitations.

MindMup is a mind mapping tool, like FreeMind, but different. It's super easy to use, but limited.

Feedly RSS reader to keep up with all of your blog reading.

Skype  Skype is my phone -- no, seriously, it is what I use for most of my communications That and ...

The Right Word, not The Most Interesting

Oscar Wilde is my hero. Ever since I learned his last words. This quote is so bloated with meaning I could have gone to hero-worship on it alone.

People only hear, what they understand.

That's a maxim that should be taped to the desk right beside the keyboard, and never covered. People do not ask what a word means. Even though they could right-click the mouse and ask Google to define the word for them, they don't. What they do, is ignore the whole sentence and make something up. This is true. Read "Predictably Irrational". The whole sentence -- just gone..Your pitch is useless from there on.

Why are sex scenes in most books unrealistic?

Who wants real sex? I mean, seriously. First time sex is always a little awkward. Someone's foot always winds up in someone's face. Hands flutter into each other. Takes a while to get a good rhythm going with each other. It is fun. God yes, but seriously. Write a first experience down and then read it out loud. If you aren't one of the participants, it is dull stuff. Like watching golf. It is not sexy. It is not a turn on. It is certainly not visual and more often than not it breaks the Willful Suspension of Disbelief -- that last being why I never go for realism. 

Yes, yes, it is unrealistic and be as critical as you would like, but it is a turn on. If you are going to have a sex scene that doesn't turn the reader on, I would ask, WHY? Why bother. First off, they are difficult to write, even for seasoned erotica writers. You mess up on them, they turn into a lurid low-budget snafu -- just add one wrong moment, or bad line. It takes some practice to get them down and a great deal of editing. 

Second, if the reader doesn't like sex scenes, she'll skim. If she does like them, she will feel cheated if he jumps out of bed to take a piss, doesn't flush and leaves the seat up, before running back to bed to try to get her warmed up again, but she's not really in the mood because she's thinking about the fouled toilet water... so, why bother?

 

Build Readership? or Finish the novel First?

This is just my opinion, but after a couple decades doing this, I would worry about finishing the novel first.

Marketing is a full time job, and you want to be a writer. So, Write.

Seriously. Get the novel done, beta read, edited, and then the cover completed.

Now, this is a fast easy way to get your novel going so you can get back to writing. Because that is what we do, we write novels, right?

1. Write three short stories that go with the novel. Each between 10k-15k words. Craft them with all the skills you have, and tie them directly to the novel you just finished.

2. As a cycle, putting out one short story every week, on Wednesday morning -- Go on to Amazon, e-publish one of those short stories. List them for $0.99 but use the Special pricing of FREE for the four days they will allow you. One per week, and in-between start mapping out and researching your next novel.

3.  At the end of the run, publish your novel at $3.99 on amazon, no free option.

4. Once your novel is up, go to SmashWords, and run the same schedule.

5. Then, write another novel.

Never read or reply to your reviews.

...just saying.

The only thing I would add is a blog, but only if  you are going to commit to posting something every day. That is where you can answer questions or comment if someone gives you an opinion on your novel. But if you aren't going to commit to a post every day, then don't do it. A dead blog is death to your marketing.

Look at the list of my activity over on the side of this blog. See those first two years? Three? Yeah... I had a huge problem getting a readership "Back". Most of my readers (the ones from the writing I've done under my own name) had come and gone, a long time ago. Since I was ghostwriting these series novels, I didn't really give this blog much thought. And I'm grateful that when I came back to it I didn't need to get a readership up in a hurry, because my readers are only just now beginning to trust me enough to trickle back in.

And thank you for the chance. 



#amwriting #writerslife #write