If you’re a writer I’m sure you’ve heard of NaNoWriMo, a catchy little title that stands for National Novel Writing Month. The month happens to be every November. This is the first time I have entered this, what should I call it? Race? It’s not a competition. At least you’re not competing against anyone but yourself. To write at least 50,000 words by the end of the month. That’s a tough call, but doable for those folks who do not have a day job and have the luxury of writing as much as they want to, or as little. I don’t fall into that category. So why am I doing it?

It motivates me. Since I still have a day job, my writing is sporadic, to say the least. Knowing that I have to try to keep up, gives me the push I need to write if only half a page, as I did this morning. The folks at NaNoWriMo say you should not stop to edit. Simply allow your thoughts to flow and get through the first draft. For me that is difficult. I love to ponder over every line, but now I have to train myself to simply put my thoughts down, then think about them later.

Link up with others. Writing can be a lonely business. NaNoWriMo is a good way to link up with other writers. I haven’t done it yet, but there are groups in my city that meet at certain times to give support and assistance. This also helps keep you motivated and you may make lifelong friends.

Free Giveaways. Writer’s Digest is also getting into the act with free giveaways. Check out http://bit.ly/RFgQkA every Monday – Friday in the month of November to access the content. They are also highlighting weekly themes to help you write your novel. So now I’m off to get some more writing done.

You have worked for months, maybe years, on your novel and now you are faced with the daunting task of writing the synopsis. Writers dread the work of condensing a 300-page manuscript into one page. Knowing what to include and how to include it is crucial to writing a compelling synopsis.

What a synopsis is not

It is not an author’s bio, nor the reason why you wrote the book. You can state this briefly in your query letter, but only briefly. It is not a character sketch, neither is it a list of plot points. Having said that, let’s take a look at what a synopsis is:

It is a summary of your book

Plain and simple. It contains the beginning andthe end with the high points of your story sandwiched between them.

It is compelling

Notice I use the word compelling because your synopsis should be as compelling as the story itself. And in order to do that you have to first start with a hook, just as you did at the beginning of your book. You want the editor to continue reading, right? Then in the body of your synopsis you write the salient points of your story in chronological order. This may not happen in your book, but for the sake of clarity, events should follow each other in order.

It uses strong verbs

Just as when you wrote the book, you chose strong verbs, used the active voice rather than passive and used adjectives and adverbs sparingly, do the same with your synopsis. And always write in the present tense.

It is concise

Leave out details that don’t matter. For example, if Anne confides in her friend, Susie, that she’s thinking of divorcing Jim, it’s not necessary to say Ann picked up the phone and called Susie and invited her to dinner and over a steak and lobster dinner … No, you are choking the details. Simply say what Anne tells Susie.

It includes action and reaction

Be careful to state how major characters react to events in the story – if their reaction helps to drive the plot. Let’s say Susie is thrilled at Anne’s news because she has had her eyes on Jim for a long time – then you must include that.

It follows the agent’s/editor’s guidelines

Some agents may ask for a one-page synopsis, some may simply say “short.” If they do not specify, limit your synopsis to two or three pages.

I heard someone say it’s a good idea to write the synopsis first. I don’t think that would work for me. My characters tend to change direction midway. But if you have carefully plotted your novel before you started writing your story, then you can give it a try. Either way, the more you practice, the better you will become. Why not try writing a synopsis for a story you have read?
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Resources

I’m sure you are familiar with the quote, “Write what you know.” Well, I came across another quote recetly: “Don’t write what you know—what you know may bore you, and thus bore your readers. Write about what interests you—and interests you deeply—and your readers will catch fire at your words.” ~~ Valerie Sherwood.

That’s what I did in one scene of my book when my protag and her love interest went fishing. After I finished the chapter, I felt dissatisfied. The setting was right, the emotion was there and the scene helped to move the story along, but to my mind it lacked that important ingredient – authenticity. I submitted the scene to my writer’s group with a little disclaimer that I had never, in the way-more-than-half-century in which I’ve lived, gone fishing, but it was something that interested me deeply and which I thought would fit well with the island setting of my book.

My group was wonderful. They helped me fix the factual errors I’d made – despite my research – and I rewrote the scene. But I still wasn’t satisfied. So last weekend, I thought it was time. I talked one of my buddies from work into going fishing with me. We went out on one of those charter boats with six other people, including the captain and his mate. There was not much room to move around, but who cared? I was going fishing. I watched as the guy baited the hook then gave a rod to each of us. I suddenly felt self conscious, but he was patient, showing me how to cast the line until the bait could no longer be seen. Everything went fine for the first hour or so. I leapt with excitement when I felt a tug on my line, but when I reeled it in, there was no fish, and half of my bait had been bitten off.

At our second stop, the waves were choppy. The boat moved up and down, and so did my insides. I was going to be sick! When I couldn’t hold it any longer, I made a dash to the lower deck where I was sick in the tiny, not-very-well-kept bathroom. That ended my fishing experience. Excited yells from the other fishers went unheeded as all I could think of was how sick I felt and how much longer my ordeal would be. Three hours later, I heaved a sigh of relief as we pulled up to the marina and I climbed shakily out of the boat.

So I ask again, to what lengths would you go as a writer to make your work authentic? I guess it depends on what you want to achieve in your story and how much it would cost you. Today, with the internet and television, we can easily do research from the comfort of our homes, but for me, I wanted to put myself in my character’s shoes. Was it worth it? I think so, even though my character had a much more exciting time than I did. She caught three fishes; I only caught sea-sickness. Will I do it again? Let me think about that.

I always shuddered at the thought of pitching my novel to an agent, so when the opportunity came to pitch my novel Coming Out Of Egypt at a writer’s conference recently, I made sure to prepare myself well beforehand. I researched the agent online to see the kinds of books she was interested in, then I read as much as I could about how to pitch before creating my pitch. I even blogged about it. See http://angelasfreelancewriting.com/blogging-about-my-book-the-pitch/. Then I created three versions of my pitch and sent them to my critique group, who was already familiar with my novel. I was happy when they picked the one I preferred. I practiced and practiced, recording it on my cell phone and by the time I got to the conference, most of my nervousness had disappeared.

I happened to meet Ms. Hardy in the ladies’ room during one of the breaks. She told me who she was and my mouth fell open. She seemed so friendly and down-to-earth, I took the opportunity to introduce myself and let her know I would be pitching my book to her that afternoon. That meeting helped to remove any lingering nervousness I still had. I had another contact with her during her workshop on, what else, how to find a literary agent.

By the time I faced her in the chair that afternoon, I felt I knew her quite well and was able to speak confidently about my novel. She took notes while I spoke and asked questions about the characters – their age, occupation and, since my book is Christian fiction, their religious beliefs. Then came the question I expected, but dreaded: What section do you see your book fitting into in the bookstore?

The fact is that every book in a bookstore has to fit a particular genre perfectly. Even though I consider my book to be a Christian romance, it does not fit the mold exactly and I explained that to Ms. Hardy. My book has multicultural and police sub-genres, which give it, to my mind, more substance than the usual boy-meets-girl, they fall in love, then boy-loses-girl, then he gets girl back. All of this happens in Coming Out Of Egypt, but with more depth. After I’d explained this to Ms. Hardy, she asked me what percentage of the novel I would say is romance. I told her about seventy-five percent, which I believe to be accurate. Apparently, romance readers are more interested in the romance aspect of the story than anything else.

The session ended with her saying she liked my story idea and I should send her my proposal. I had walked with the synopsis and three sample chapters, but she said it’s easier for her to read it electronically, so I e-mailed it to her a couple days later. And now I wait.

Have you pitched your book to an agent? What was the experience like? How long did you have to wait before he/she replied? Please leave your comments below.

I have been away from my blog for a few weeks, reason being that I was at a conference the first week, then I went on vacation and now I’m trying to reignite my brain to pick up where it left off. I must confess that during my vacation I broke one of my rules, which is to write every day. But even the best of us slip up sometimes, don’t we?. So on to the conference.

Before I signed up, I’d never heard of the Black Writers Retreat & Conference. But since it was in my backyard, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, I thought I should take advantage of the proximity. It turned out to be a good investment in time and money. The seaside location proved to be ideal, the workshops practical and helpful and the presenters knowledgeable and inspiring.

The first workshop I attended was titled “Writing Faction.” Now this got me, as I thought it was a typo, but, of course, the organizers were too professional to make that kind of error. The subject had to do with research methodology and presenting the facts in your memoir, biography or even in fiction. The presenter, Dr. Heiss, who hails from Sydney, Australia showed us how to gather and include facts in our stories.

Dr. Heiss cautioned that in preparing to write we should first consider:

1. What do I want to do with my novel and
2. Why do people need to read my story

She then went into the importance of research methodology. Now this is a topic that, unless you are a history buff or someone like that, most writers may not find very exciting. But as Dr. Heiss spoke about the research she conducted for her novels, I saw how research can add depth, richness and authenticity to any story. Most of what she said the average writer already knows, but it is always tempting to skip a few things in our enthusiasm – or lack of – in carrying out our research.

Here are some reasons for doing proper research:

1. Authenticity – especially important in historical fiction or a memoir
2. Ethics
3. Truth
4. Accountability
5. The Hippocratic Oath – first, do no harm
6. Respect for those you are writing about
7. Avoiding litigation
8. Readers deserve the best product

Once you have identified your sources you need to:

1. Communicate and consult with them and obtain consent – in writing, of course.
2. Be accurate in your note-taking.
3. Obtain approval/confirmation of facts from your sources. You do this by sending them a copy of the relevant pages once you have completed your first draft. This would ensure that everything is accurate.
4. Be flexible. People may change some of the information, or they may remember something important that was left out.

Now that you have received confirmation from your sources and your book is complete, you need to acknowledge contributors, unless they asked to remain anonymous. You also need to address any copyright issues that may arise. You can always go to the library or online to gather material for your books, but think how much more impactful it would be if you can attribute your facts to a person or persons now living.

How do you conduct research for your books? What issues/challenges did you face? How has your research methodology helped to make you a better writer? Please leave a comment below.

Is marijuana harmless?

A few weeks ago a young man in Miami, Florida was shot and killed by police after he chewed off the face of a homeless man. Only in Florida, right? Anyway, the story made international news. It was first rumored that the man might have used bath salts to get high. Bath salts? However, when doctors examined the dead man’s system for drugs, all they found was marijuana. This has prompted researchers to want to conduct more research into the effects of marijuana. For those of you who think marijuana is just a herb that has gotten a bad rap, think again. Marijuana (which comes from the cannabis plant) is a hallucinogen. Got it? A stuff that makes you hallucinate. If I ever get an update on the research I’ll pass it along.

Fifty shades of gray

By now you have heard of it. Everyone has heard of it, but just to make sure, a London hotel recently removed the Bible from its rooms and replaced it with that book. A publicity stunt, some said. Maybe, but I haven’t seen their occupancy rate.

Legitimate rape?

As a writer I’m always looking for ideas for my next breakout novel. This week I think I may have stumbled on one. Picture this scenario: Young woman walking through dark alley hears footsteps behind her. She stops and so do the footsteps. She starts again and the footsteps sound once more. Scared, she begins to run. Footsteps pound closer and before long, the young woman’s neck is held in a vise-like grip and something pointed sticks her between the shoulder blades. A bone-chilling voice says, “What kind of rape do you prefer? Legitimate or ill-legitimate?”

A few months later a judge faces the rapist. “You have been found not guilty because you raped the woman legitimately.” The rapist pumps his attorney’s hand and scuttles out of the courtroom to find his next legitimate victim. In other courtrooms similar scenes are played out. A judge pounds his gavel. “The defendant is found not guilty of legitimate theft.” “This was a legitimate murder. Case dismissed.” And somewhere in Missouri a senator sits sobbing over his tea: “it’s not the words … but the heart that I hold.”

I have to hurry and write this thing before John Grisham does. It could be the next Oscar-award movie.

More laughs

Phyllis Diller died yesterday at the age of 95. She was one of the earliest successful female comedians and, get this, an ad copywriter. She attributed her long life to laughter. Here are a few of her popular lines:

You know you’re getting old when –

Your rocker comes with an airbag
Your birth certificate is written on a scroll
Someone compliments you on your alligator shoes and you are barefooted.