Quick Tip: Dialogue Tags

One thing that drives me crazy about children's books is how often they use the word "exclaimed." The other is that no one ever "says" anything. If they aren't exclaiming it, they're shouting it, or whispering it, whining it, declaring it, stating it, demanding it, groaning it or--my personal pet peeve--smiling it. (How the heck do you smile dialogue?)

The bigger problem is that we start off reading books like this, and sometimes those dialogue tags continue into our adult writing. Simple is better.

The point of dialogue tags (he said, she asked) is to make it clear who is speaking. It's not so we know how the character says something. That's what strong dialogue and actions are for. So use said and asked only, or nothing at all. Don't use a tag if you don't need one--slip in a beat (bit of action that will tell us about your character more than the dialogue tag will) instead. The dialogue should be able to stand up on its own, and if it can't, it's the dialogue and not the tag that needs editing.

When you go through your novel, give yourself $2 in quarters. Every time you come across a dialogue tag besides said or asked, or find a qualified said (said stiffly, said angrily) take away a quarter. Do you still have a few quarters left when you get to the end? If not, go back and beef up your dialogue and make sure that you can justify each of those fancy tags.

Links Tent: Market Directories

Are you looking for a home for you writing? Here are some great online resources to help:

WritersMarket.com, the online home of Writers' Market,  is a subscription based site that offers searchable listings for both fiction and non-fiction, a "MyMarkets" function that allows you to bookmark the markets you're most interested in, and an online writing community.

Peter's Place of Freelance Journalism has a huge database of Canadian markets, photography markets, American magazines, book publishers and more.

Duotrope's Digest has a database of fiction markets, searchable by genre, pay rate, length, etc.

The Writer Gazette has a Call for Submissions page that brings you over 600 paying markets for your work.

Places for Writers offers a listing of markets and contests.

Need more? About Freelance Writing offers these 5 Blogs with Writing Markets, Not Gigs. Check them out!

NaNoWriMo Winner?

The month of crazy (aka NaNoWriMo) is over. I took the challenge at the beginning of November thinking I had no chance of reaching the 50,000 word finish line, but I had a lot of other goals in mind. I wanted to get a good start to my novel, I wanted to learn to turn the inner critic off long enough to pound out a few thousand words, I wanted to get in the habit of writing a lot daily, and I wanted to remember how to have fun with my writing again, having spent the last year or so editing more than writing.

I had a blast writing this past month. My storyline took off in directions I hadn't considered at the start; ditto for complications that arose. I learned to write at the computer (I've always written long-hand before--but no time with this challenge) which increased my writing speed, and I fully practiced what I preach about squeezing writing in every spare moment. And the only way I could even come close to hitting the word count was to completely ignore the inner critic/editor and just let loose.

So I hit my goals--I was a NaNo winner in my books long before my word count was validated by the evil NaNo computer (evil because it knocked 500 words off my original, barely over the finish line submission), but I was still stupidly happy to reach the word-count goal as well. What can I say? I'm a competitive person and I find it hard to leave a challenge unfinished.

The problem is that by the end of it all, I was focused strictly on the word count, and that had never been what it was about. I wasn't even having fun anymore. I was stressed and half-panicked that time was running out and I was 500 words short (courtesy of the evil NaNo computer). James over at Men With Pens puts the whole thing into perspective with his post Did You Reach Your NaNoWriMo goal?

So . . . would I do it again? Probably not. I plan to take what I learned from this experience and carry it through my writing from here on in. Am I glad I did it this time? Absolutely.

Quick Tips: Find and Edit

Find and Replace is a handy little feature in Word, one that comes in especially handy when you decide to change a character's name halfway through a novel. It's also one of my favourite editing tools, because I can use it to eliminate unnecessary adverbs, remove at least a dozen or two usages of the word "just," and find out whether somebody is right and I really do start too many sentences with the word "And." And yes, I probably do.

You'll find the Find feature on the right-hand side of the Home tab in Word 2007. Click on it, type in the word you're looking for, and click on "Find Next" if you'd like to go through each instance. You probably knew that already.

Try this though: Click on Find and then type a word. Let's use "just," because, unfortunately, it's one of my bad habits. Now click on Reading Highlight and then Highlight All. Yup, there's the bad news. Word highlighted 193 instances of the word "just" in the 44,008 words in my NaNoWriMo piece. And no, I'm  not deleting any of them yet. That would be editing, which I am not doing until at least December, plus it would lower my word count by 193. Time is short. Instead I might throw in a few more "justs" just (oops) to get my count higher.

Want to see how many times you've started a sentence with "and?" Click on Find, and then type in "And"--with the upper-case A. Now click on More, and tick the Match Case box. Click on Reading Highlight and Highlight All . . . 133 sentences for me. Wow.

You can also use the feature to find out how many "ly" adverbs you've used in a piece. Type in "ly" into the Find box. Or you can use it to find any other overly used word--really, very, etc. to see if you have a bad habit to worry about. One or two instances is probably no big deal. 747 . . . Time for some serious editing.

Now you can hit the Find Next button and decide on a case-by-case basis if you are going to keep the over-used word, of if you can use a stronger word instead.

Links Tent: Editing

My apologies for being missing in action over the last couple weeks. I'd tell you that it was due to the fact that the other rings in my life took up my time and left with me none for posting blogs, but I hate excuses and refuse to make them. Instead, I'll tell you I had sick kids, a sick me, a move to complete and NaNoWriMo to catch up on (and, yes, I'm still behind but finishing it is still a possibility).

Louise DeSalvo sums up my logic about not giving you these excuses (ahem) in her guest post on Christina Baker Kline's A Writing Life blog: Why Having Kids is No Excuse. I think this should be required reading for any writer who can't find time to write.

Chuck at the Guide to Literary Agents Blog shares these 7 Reasons Agents Stop Reading Your Chapters. These include some big picture problems that you'll want to take care of.

A. Victoria Mixon has some more big picture advice for you in her post Developmental Editing. She writes a developmental editing letter for an imaginary client, Xavier, who is actually a composite of several real clients and offers suggestions about theme, backstory and characters.

Writing Forward presents 10 Helpful Editing Tips that will work whether you are writing fiction or non-fiction, a novel or a business letter.

C. Patrick Schulz focuses on the pesky adverb in his post: Tips on Eliminating Unnecessarily Overused Adverbs. You know you're not supposed to use them!

Finally, Janet Reid, Literary Agent has some sure-fire, undisputable advice for How to get no more rejections, EVER!

NaNoWriMo Success

Yes, it's only Day 10 and yes, I am a day behind in my word count for NaNoWriMo, but I am ready to declare it a personal success. Already. My goals, when I started this little project, were to have fun, get in the habit of writing a lot (of fiction) every day, and make some progress on my novel.

What can I say? I am having a B-L-A-S-T writing. Who knew that turning off the inner critic would be so much fun? It's like the grown-ups have left the kids at home alone for the first time. (For that matter, who knew I was capable of turning off my inner critic? Certainly not anyone who knows me!) And who knew it would result in so many words appearing on my screen?

Ask me again in December, when I'm trying to pull this pile of--I mean, when I'm rewriting those words into something that my inner critic can live with, and I might not be so excited. But for right now, I'm enjoying the ride.

If you've signed on for NaNoWriMo, are you having as much fun with it as I am? If you haven't signed up, try turning off that critic/editor for a while, and play with fiction again.

Quick Tip: Write from Beginning to End

There are four types of writers, I think.

1. Dash Drafter dashes off a first draft of a novel in 30 days (You knew there'd be a NaNoWriMo reference in here, didn't you?), checks it over for typos, and considers it done. It's painful to read.
   
2. E.D. Itor is at the other end of the spectrum. This one writes the first scene in 30 days, stopping and rewriting till every freaking word is absolutely perfect. It's painful to watch.
   
3. Author Interruptus never makes it to the finish line. Maybe he starts off like Dash but runs out of steam, or edits himself to death and never makes it past the first scene.
4. The fourth writer, we'll call the Published Author, and that's who we all aspire to be. This author is part Dash and Part E.D. Itor--he gets to the finish line, but then realizes the work has only begun.

I was inspired a couple years ago by a blog post I read on Murderati, written by Tess Gerritsen. A smart person would have bookmarked that post; unfortunately, I did not and now I can't find it despite my strong Google skills. She wrote about how she writes: from beginning to end, no matter what changes in the storyline. If she decided to change a character's name, she made a note of it and moved on. If she decided to get rid of a character, she made a note of it and moved on. When she edited her first draft, then she worried about all those pesky details.

I'm using her technique to get to the finish line of NaNoWriMo. I'm hoping that with my natural E.D. Itor tendencies, I'll eventually be able to chisel a finished novel out of the process.

Joely Sue Burhart has some other great tips for hitting the NaNoWriMo finish line--and, of course, like Tess Gerritsen's method of writing, these tips can help you get to the end of your novel whether you're doing NaNoWriMo or not.

So what type of writer are you?

Links Tent--NaNoWriMo Style

What every NaNoWriMo writer needs: ideas and inspiration sprinkled with some good writing tips.

Are you short on ideas to get started or keep moving? Heather Wright's Needles and Yarns blog has a collection of writing starters to get you going.

Is it inspiration you're lacking? Find the magic and power of yet on Finding Your Voice.

Need something a little more substantive? Writing Forward brings you Creative Writing Tips from Around the Blogosphere.

Happy NaNoWriMo!

On the weekend, under the effects of a  sugar rush of Hallowe'en proportions, I signed up for NaNoWriMo, aka Crazy Writer Month. The official goal is to write a 50,000-word novel in 30 days, or approximately 1667 words per day for a month.

I don't have time to write 1667 words a day. There is no way I can find time to write that many extra words every day, but an impossible goal has never stopped me from trying--or even succeeding.

So why am I doing it? I've been really focused on the non-fiction side of my writing life for a while now--queries, articles, editing other people's writing--and I thought this would help me take the plunge into the novel I've been kicking around in the back of my head. I'm hoping to shut off the inner critic for 30 days and just write...and write...and write...and at the end of it all, I will have a pretty good start to my novel, and a well-developed habit of writing a lot every day.

There's no finding time to write, especially not a novel which doesn't provide an immediate (or even a likely) cash payout. It's all about making time to write. And so it's easy for the love of writing to get buried in the to-do lists that fill our lives. NaNoWriMo is, for me, an opportunity to dig my love of writing out from under the pile of laundry, dust it off, and put it to good use again.

Quick Tip: Search and Highlight in Word

On Monday (okay, it was Tuesday--my Internet was down on Monday), I shared some common editing foibles, including the use of words such as "just," "usually" and "very." Here's a quick Word tip to help you see if you have a problem with overusing these types of words:

1. Click on Find. (In Word 2007, this is located at the very right of your Home tab).
2. Enter the word or phrase you're looking for. 
3. Click on "Reading Highlight" (at the bottom of the Find and Replace box) and then "Highlight All" from the drop-down box. Word will highlight all the incidences of the chosen word AND tell you how many times you've used it.
4. Now you can use the "Find Next" button to move to find and delete or replace the overused word.

This technique works well with finding adverbs too. Type LY in the Find box, and then go through your adverbs and decide which ones you can delete or replace.

Links Tent: Editing Helpers

Here are some resources that will help you edit your writing:

Ask.Oxford.com has a whole "Better Writing" section on their website, including spelling and grammar tips. Do you ever use "adverse" instead of "averse"? (*See note below). Or are unsure if you should write "effect" or "affect"? Check out their commonly confused words page.

Cliché Finder will help you find just the right cliché...or search using keywords to make sure what you've written isn't a cliché. If you're a word geek looking for a time waster, you can also generate ten random clichés.

Writers Free Reference has a wealth of useful links on their site, including sections on grammar and common errors.

Purdue University's Online Writing Lab (OWL) offers over 200 free resources including style guides, grammar and mechanics and even a Grammar Blog. There is also a section devoted to Workplace Writing and Creative Writing (see the navigation links on the right).


**Note: I know that in my post yesterday I wrote "PITQ: punctuation in the quotation marks. Always." Well, there's always an exception to the rules, and this is an example one. Question marks only go inside the quotation marks when they are part of the quote, so the closing mark in this case belongs on the outside. I was trying to simplify things. Most of the time, you'll find even question marks inside the quotation marks.

Editing Tips

I've been doing a lot of editing over the last week or so, and have found some common mistakes in not just my writing, but that of others. I thought I'd share a few simple rules that I've repeatedly seen broken.

• Keep it simple. Don't use four words, or even three, when two will do. And don't use 12 letters when 5 will do. Big words don't impress anyone, except perhaps the people who publish dictionaries and the judges of grade three spelling bees. 
• Get rid of qualifiers. Actually, really, sort of, very, just (that's my big one) do nothing to improve your writing. 
• Get rid of all--or at least most--of your adverbs. You know, those pesky "-ly" words. Use a stronger verb instead. Not "she said haltingly," but "she stammered."
• Get rid of most of the adjectives. Used sparingly, adjectives can add rich details to your prose, but piling them on will lessen the impact of your description.
  

And a few bonus proofreading tips:

• PITQ: Punctuation inside the quotation marks. Always.
• You're all right, not alright. Always.
• It's till, not 'til. Till is a perfectly good word (as is until), but 'til is just plain old-fashioned.
  

Quick Tip: Brainstorming

The other day, a couple of my freelance writing friends and I got together online to brainstorm ideas and markets. I brought two ideas to the table and left with a pageful of notes, mostly spins on those same two ideas and potential markets for them.

Why not do the same with your fiction writing? Try getting together online, by phone or in person with a friend or two and brainstorm new story ideas, plot twists or solutions to problems.

Links Tent: Speaking of Writing Groups...

In my last post, I wrote about the importance of a writing group for even a beginner writer. If you don't belong to a local group--or even if you do--check out these useful online writing communities.

Stop by the Absolute Write Water Cooler. Whether you write novels, scripts, poetry or non-fiction, Absolute Write has a forum for you. Read about other people's experiences with an agent you're considering, find a critique partner or share freelance writing markets.

Querytracker.net's community also includes lots of information about writing, agents and getting published. There's a whole section devoted to critiques: the first five pages of your novel, your query letter and your synopsis. Be sure to check out the World's Worst [fictitious] Query Letters forum for a sampling of what not to do in your query letter.

Writer's Digest and The Writer magazines have useful online writing communities as well. In addition to "the usual" types of forums, Writer's Digest includes the Writer's Block Party and Success Stories, while The Writer has a forum for Unpublished Writers and an online Book Club.

Women on Writing lists several critique groups and writing organizations as well as lots of other resources and information. Take a look around their site.

If you have a favourite online writing community I haven't mentioned, please leave a comment and I'll add it to the list.

The 5 Cs of Writing Groups...+1

I finally made it out to one of my creative writing group meetings yesterday, and was reminded of all the reasons why I joined the group to begin with. I think it's easy for professional writers to see why they need a group or association—networking, resources, etc. But what about before becoming a professional writer? Here are the five top reasons I joined a creative writing group a few years ago.

A Commitment to my writing. Even though I am a disciplined person, I have five children and it is easy for my commitments to them to completely fill my every moment. Joining the group kept my writing in the forefront. If you are a less disciplined person, the group can help you stay focused. You’ll want to bring something to read to every meeting and you’ll probably begin announcing your goals—and then you’ll work hard to accomplish them.

A Challenge to grow as a writer. When another writer finished her novel, it motivated me to finish mine. I started doubling my targeted word count each week. If she could do it, so could I. It was as simple as that. You might also challenge yourself to try a new genre or a new form of writing, or simply to put your work out there.

A Community of writers. My husband is supportive of my writing, but if I told him I slept with my characters, he’d look at me like I had two heads. (For the record, I do not). He, like many non-writers, just doesn't get the process. It’s freeing to admit that I dream about my characters and have others tell me they do too.

A Cheering section. The writers in my group understand how disappointing a rejection can be, and they battle their inner critics too. We offer each other ideas, encouragement and support. And when that fails, I just need to look around the room to see an inspiring group of people who manage to write despite full time jobs, children and chronic illness.

A Coaching circle. Our group has members who write in various genres, both fiction and non-fiction, with varying degrees of experience and success. Some have been published, some have books to their credit, and others are beginners. But all of us have knowledge to share. The newcomer might have tips from a workshop, the veteran a contact.

There's one more reason to join a writing group, the +1 that I mentioned, but it's not a regular part of my group and I've turned elsewhere to find it.

Critique. Encouragement and praise can keep us going when we're writing, but critique will get us published. We need to know what's not working in a piece of writing, and we're often too close to our projects to see for ourselves. I have a wonderful critique partner who isn't afraid to tell me when my characters are immature or too angry, when a scene is weak, or when something is missing. I value her opinions, especially when they're hard to hear, because they make my stories richer.

Quick Tip: Do Less

I've been running on fumes lately and have had a tough time getting motivated. So, this morning, instead of trying to get anything done, I met some writing friends for breakfast, and then headed off to my daughter's school for an absolutely fabulous Thanksgiving feast. Filled with turkey, stuffing, the best potato salad I've ever tasted and a decadent eclair, I returned home to, well, do nothing. I read a bit, played Snakes & Ladders with my youngest son, knit a few rows (I picked up a knitting project again after bragging the other day that I do nothing but write. Guess I'll have to rewrite that post now!) ... In other words, I relaxed. Not something I do nearly enough of.

And now ... I feel refreshed and ready to tackle the next batch of queries, the rejection in the inbox and the rush article that's waiting on my desk, not to mention preparations for our big Thanksgiving feast, complete with the typical ridiculous assortment of desserts. Sometimes by doing less, we find the energy and motivation to do more.

Links Tent: Time Savers

Here are a few free tools that will save you time.

PDF Tools:

• PDF 995 allows you to easily convert your Word files to PDF files by clicking on your "print" command. A companion product, PDFEdit 995, allows you to combine PDF files or extract pages from a PDF. Both products are free, but sponsor pages will display when you use them. You can also purchase a key if you would prefer to not see the sponsor pages.
• PDF to Word converts your existing PDF files to Word or RTF files.

Time Tools:

• Online Stop-watch offers an online stopwatch and timer. You can keep track of how long you are spending on a project, or set the timer to ring when it's time to move on to something else (or collect the kids from the bus stop).
• Google Calendar allows you to create several calendars to manage all the rings in your circus, assign each of them a different colour, and then view them separately or all together. You can share part or all of a calendar with others and you can easily set up events from your messages in Gmail. 

Timelines/Days in History:

• Josh Hosler presents The #1 Song on Billboard on this Date in History.  
• WhoWhatWhen will display a timeline of events that occurred in a fictional character's or actual person's life from 1000AD to the present. 
• Any-Day-in-History lists the major births, deaths and events of any given day. On this day (October 7th) in 1950, the NY Yankees swept the Philadelphia Phillies in the 47th World Series, and in 1985, Lynette Woodward was chosen as the first woman on the Harlem Globetrotters.
• Writer's Dream Tools includes Today in History and History by Decades at no charge. Other databases, including clichés, slang and quotes are available with a one-time subscription fee.

Words, Words, Everywhere There's Words:

• Reverse Dictionary lets you plug in the definition, and it will tell you the word you need.
• Dictionary.com includes an online dictionary, thesaurus, encyclopedia and translator.
  

No More Excuses

Like everyone, I'm busy. On any given day I can be found knee-deep in paint and plaster (literally, unfortunately and embarrassingly), tied up with my kids (figuratively--thankfully) or chasing an uninvited squirrel or bird around my house. I have dozens of reasons for not spending more time writing. But I don't let that stop me.

I treat the freelance end of things like a job and put in the hours every week--writing, research, querying, digging up new markets--through rejection, discouragement and frustration. No excuses.

I'm more flexible with my fiction writing, but I still make time to write every day. When my hands are busy but my brain is not--when I'm vacuuming or folding laundry, for example--I write in my head. That way, when I have a free moment to put pen to paper, I always have something to say.

I figure I have two choices: I can make time to write, or I can make excuses not to. So I make time to write.  I don't go out often, I don't watch much (if any) TV, I don't surf You Tube, I don't pursue a bunch of hobbies. I've even cut back on my volunteer commitments. Instead, I write.

So that's my big secret, how I manage to fit my writing life into my busy home life. 

Don't make excuses. Make time to write. It's much more rewarding.

Friday Quick Tip: Google Reader

The blogs I list to the right are not the only blogs I follow, they're just some of the best ones--the ones that offer good information and advice on a regular basis. Others only have new posts once in a while (but those posts are worth the wait), some only have relevant (to me) information occasionally, some are friend's blogs, and so on.

I don't have a lot of time, and I definitely don't have time to waste sifting through blogs to see if there's any new information on them. Which is where Google Reader comes in.

If you're looking for a technical explanation of what Google Reader is, well, you're in the wrong place. Basically, Google Reader provides you with a list of new posts for the blogs you subscribe to. Then you can quickly skim through the posts, label the ones you want to easily find again, and discard the rest.

You can also receive news feeds from your favourite news sites in the same fashion. Just look for the "RSS Feed" button or a "subscribe to" link. You'll then be able to choose which feeder you want to subscribe with, and you're done.

You can even add Google Reader to your iGoogle page, making it faster and simpler to keep up with your favourite blogs.

If you're not yet sold, take a tour of Google Reader and try it out. And for more information about RSS, check out the What is RSS? RSS Explained site.

Links Tent: Must-Read Agents

The links to all of these blogs are found on the right, but I know you probably haven't clicked on even one of them. So here's a bit more information about each of these must-read blogs to hopefully entice you to visit them.

I was disappointed when Miss Snark, anonymous agent and snarky blogger extraordinaire, discontinued her blog. Luckily the archives are still up, and the posts are labeled for easy reference. Informative, with just enough added sarcasm to keep it fun, her blog is a great resource for aspiring novelists.

Janet Reid, aka Query Shark, is just about snarky enough to make me wonder if she might be related to Miss Snark. Her no-nonsense, no BS advice makes her agent blog a must read. Recent posts include questions to ask prospective agents, and her helpful list of links includes a query checklist.

Query Shark, Janet Reid's alter ego, offers biting (groan...I know, bad pun) critiques of query letters. If you are in the process of writing a query letter for your novel, or even just nearing completion of your novel, take the time to go through the posts.

If Shark or Snark are not your thing, literary agent Nathan Bransford's blog is just as informative but with a lot more "nice" thrown in. His list of Essentials are a great starting point, and especially his impressive Writing Advice Database and the FAQs.

Also make sure to stop over at Pub Rants, the blog of literary agent Kristin Nelson of the Nelson Literary Agency. Make sure you check out the terrific links on the right (you'll have to scroll down a bit) including Agent Kristin's Queries: An Inside Scoop (of queries that worked) and Agent Kristin's Query Pitch Workshop on the Blog.

Last, but not least, is the BookEnds, LLC blog. The Must-Read Posts listed on the right of the blog are, well, must-reads. Check them out.

What about you? What's your favourite agent blog?

Welcome to my three-ring circus.

In the centre ring, we have my family--five spirited kids aged 4-14 and my self-employed husband--as well as our wayward cat and the roughly 100-year-old renovation project we all call home. In the ring to my right is my freelance career, where I write articles and essays for a growing number of publications, including The Globe and Mail, Today's Parent Baby & Toddler, New Beginnings and The Writer, and provide editing and proofreading services to businesses and other writers. And in the ring on my left you'll find my fiction writing dreams, where my works-in-progress currently include a novel and several short stories.

Keeping it all together is definitely a bit of a circus act, and making time to do it all sometimes requires feats that defy the laws of science. That's what you'll find here: the tricks I've found to manage time, sanity and the writing process.