Visit from a favourite blogger - Paula Roe Writing Workshop, Pain-free Plotting (even for Pantsers).

Hi friends and visitors!

I've not found a spare moment to blog as I've been delighted to be hosting a visit from a favourite blogger friend and editor, Nas Dean and her lovely husband Rajesh, from Fiji. This of course entails much driving around, showing them our paradise.

Nas and Rajesh on Noosa's Main Beach

Yes, the same lovelies who insisted my husband and I house-sit while they went to the States last year. What a time we had in Fiji...and what a lot of writing I got done in such inspirational surroundings. My first novel, set in Fiji and in its final edits, is about to be subbed to Harlequin Escape (in Australia). I'll let you know how I go...

Meanwhile, Nas' main reason to visit was to attend the Australian Romance Readers convention, an international event, which is being held in a hotel about 3 minutes from my Brisbane apartment. This convention brings together romance readers, authors and publishers and provides opportunities to talk about all things related to romance fiction.  This year will feature heavy hitting award-winning authors Kristan Higgins, Anne Gracie and Rachel Vincent as keynote speakers.

Yesterday, I attended a Pain-free Plotting (even for Pantsers) workshop by Paula Roe with Nas and my writing group friends, Charmaine Clancy and Jillanne Harrison. Awesome time at the Carindale Library -- and it was FREE! 

Nas, Myself, Charmaine, Jillanne busily plotting

Paula Roe and Nas

Paula used the Hero's Journey as the basis of her Pain-free Plotting workshop. Note our colourful sticky notes above. Most of us are familiar with the Hero's Journey pattern of narrative which originates (as far as I know)  from Joseph Campbel's The Hero With a Thousand Faces in 1949. 

Most, if not all stories, follow this structure (even Harlequin romances!) up to a point. Paula is a visual teacher, and the way she had us plotting our hero's journey using different coloured Post-it notes for Act 1, Act 11 and Act 111 of our story made it just that little clearer. Those around me all decided we had the elements covered -- up to a point.

As Paula said, even if you're a pantser and rush headlong into your story after getting that fabulous story idea, the Hero's Journey checklist is a very useful tool to use when editing that first draft. 

For anyone who may not know the Hero's Journey steps, or who didn't click on the link above, they are below. I found it useful to think of a favourite story as we did this exercise--The Hunger Games is a good example that most of us probably know. I can easily visualise these steps...modernised with some Roe-isms and Covey-isms.

ACT 1: (The Setup) Pose a Plot Question.

1.  The ORDINARY WORLD of the hero--establishes the characters in their everyday lives--this may take pages, or just be a simple sentence. Can also be told using backstory, but don't clutter the beginning of your story with too much backstory. 

2.  The CALL TO ADVENTURE--showing an extra-ordinary character in an ordinary world, with the potential to embark on a quest. 

3.  The DENIAL of the call--a crisis point. Here you establish their external goal. Usually transplanted into another world. 

4.  ...followed by ACCEPTANCE--character fully focused on his/her external goal...then your hero walks through the door...into ACT 11...

ACT 11: (Where the story unfolds) 

All about tests--failing them, learning, failing some more...finally passing them.

5.  Hero enters the NEW WORLD/LEARNS THE RULES,

6.  ...then ALLIES/ENEMIES are revealed, 

7.  ...followed by FAILING TRIALS, 

8.  ...then the hero reaches the POINT OF NO RETURN. He/she wants to go back to his/her ORDINARY WORLD, but cannot.

This is the Midpoint of your novel. If your midpoint is saggy, problematic, as Paula said, your hero may not have come up against enough obstacles, or his goal may need to be revisited.

9.  There's no going back, so the hero is now FAILING, 

then finally PASSING TRIALS. This reveals your hero's resilience, yet he/she is not perfect.

10. Then we have TIME OUT/HERO'S MASK IS REVEALED--to him/her self. This is usually portrayed through Internal Dialogue, but not always.

11. GUT PUNCH TIME! OMG! The reader asks--is that really going to happen? It is not totally a Black Moment, but it seems like it. How will the hero act under pressure?

12. NOOOOOOOOOO! At the beginning of your story, you asked a question...now the reader wonders if this is the answer! But of course it isn't!

The reader is left hungry for more...can't put your book down at this stage. So...the stage is all set for ACT 111.

ACT 111: (Climax/Resolution) It's a wrap! You must answer the original plot question asked at the beginning of your story.

13. THE ROAD BACK -- I wanna go home, cries the hero! He/she tries to leave, to go back to their ORDINARY WORLD.

14. TIME OUT -- again. Revelation. Decision time. The 'Ah-ha!' moment.(Internal dialogue...thinking...lull in action.)

15. PLOT CLIMAX/FINAL LESSON -- the gut-wrenching personal Black Moment for the hero. Boo hoo!

16. RESOLUTION -- Wrap up. Everyone's happy (at least in a romance). The hero returns. Others are affected by the changes in the hero. 

Paula recommended Michael Hague for some excellent articles regarding plotting. He is a very successful Hollywood screenwriter. 

Of course I learnt a lot more at Paula's workshop, but I'm sure you're worn out by now! Do visit Paula's website. She has some yummy stuff for writers.

• I hope you enjoyed The Hero's Journey. Do you use this pattern of narrative, or do you follow another method? I know there are several others, but I think, to a certain extent, most popular fiction follows The Hero's Journey. Do you agree/disagree?

RomanticFridayWriters are Driven to Murder in March. We want 1,000 words of prose or poetry on murder most foul. Go to the RFW Challenge Page for more details. Sign up soon! You'll see the linky here or on the RFW website.

Writers for Writers - Promoting Gwen Gardner and Melissa Bradley -- L Diane'Wolfe's latest book, How to Publish and Promote Your Book Now!

Have you heard of W4W? 

From author Stephen Tremp's blog --

Mission:

• Help writers bring awareness of their book(s) to tens of thousands of new people

• Help writers reach Amazon Top 100 in at least one category (i.e., suspense, free, whatever)

• Increase sales of their book(s) after the promo is over

• Drive new traffic to their blog and increase following

• Create verbal and viral buzz

W4WS targets friends and followers of friends and followers. I got the idea trying to think of ways to promote my books beyond my personal social network.

In A Nut Shell:  Each month we will spotlight one, two, or possibly three new authors through social media such as Twitter or Facebook.

Then, the good people in the Blogosphere will promote the author’s book to their Twitter followers or Facebook friends, that is, incredibly large new audiences the author could not reach on their own.  Example:

Facebook: There is a Writers4Writers Facebook page.  Authors will post an image of their book along with a short blurb and a link to Kindle on their blog. Visitors simply click the Facebook page, then share the link with their FB friends and Writers Groups.

Simple. Easy.

Please take a moment to check out our W4WS Facebook page. As an example, we have Mary Pax’s new release there now. We would greatly appreciate it if you also click the LIKE button. And if you feel so inspired, you can practice by sharing Mary’s link!

Twitter: The spotlighted author will post pre-written Tweets on his/her blog. At your convenience, simply copy and paste Tweets into Twitter. Or go to #W4WS on Twitter and Retweet other Tweets. 

Now Imagine: A hundred bloggers over a few days Tweeting and sharing links for author's book and reaching potentially tens of thousands of new people!

Finally: Mary Pax, C.M. Brown, and Christine Raines and I have a Linky List. We'd love to have you participate and show support for our fellow writers. Thanks again.

Writers4Writers (W4WS) Monday February 18th: W4WS is this Monday and Tuesday. Take a moment to stop by Gwen Gardner and Melissa Bradley’s blogs. They will be posting pre-written Tweets you can copy and paste into your Twitter page. They will also post a link on the W4WS Facebook Page you can share with your FB friends. (Gwen Gardner is giving her book away free for Monday and Tuesday.)

Denise says -- If, like me, you are a little leery of promoting books you haven't read, but wish to promote fellow blogger/authors, you'll have to sort out what works for you.

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RomanticFridayWriters have a love fest of a different style - fan fiction - story/poem of 1,000 words to be published between February 21 - 24.  Go here to sign up, or click on Submit in my top right-hand sidebar.


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Now while we're talking about promoting your book/s, by now you must have heard that L. Diane Wolfe has a great new book out:

Book Spotlight: L Diane Wolfe

HOW TO PUBLISH AND PROMOTE YOUR BOOK NOW!

By L. Diane Wolfe

Publishing and promoting made simple!

Have you always dreamed of publishing a book but didn’t know where to begin? 

This book walks you through the steps of identifying markets, budgeting, building an online presence, and generating publicity. Get the whole story on:

·         Traditional publishing,   Self-publishing

·         Print and e-book setup, formatting, and distribution

·         Finding your target audience

·         Generating reviews and media interest

·         Networking and developing an online presence

·         Promotional materials and appearances

Uncover your ideal publishing path and numerous marketing options before you begin. Writing is your dream. Give it the best chance for success!

Available February 5, 2012

Publishing/Marketing, 214 pages, Dancing Lemur Press LLC

$14.95 Trade paperback ISBN 978-0-9827139-5-2

$4.99 Ebook ISBN 978-0-9827139-9-0

Barnes and Noble - http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/how-to-publish-and-promote-your-book-now-l-diane-wolfe/1113516811

Amazon - http://www.amazon.com/How-Publish-Promote-Your-Book/dp/0982713959/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1359139094&sr=1-1&keywords=9780982713952

Amazon Kindle - http://www.amazon.com/Publish-Promote-Your-Book-ebook/dp/B00B8X5WEM/ref=sr_1_8?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1359715649&sr=1-8

Halloween House of Horrors - Is there love beyond the grave?

My entry for the RomanticFridayWriters Halloween House of Horrors is taken from Chapter Three of my WIP, a 16,000 word ghost story novella, Paradise Can Wait, set in Afghanistan and the US in 2009. The protagonist, Delbar, has lost her husband Alam in the ongoing war against the Taliban. She has escaped her country, but can she escape the dead? 

As I am seeking publication for this story, I would appreciate all feedback.

***

Trick or Treat?

The flames of the fire flickered and died. The room plunged into darkness. The chandelier's crystal droplets clinked against the draft that crept into the room like a stealthy ghost. Trees moaned against the walls, a lament of damned souls.

A white flare fizzed through the room.

Delbar leaped from her chair in front of the fire. Rough hands clamped her mouth. Her arms wrenched behind her. She was thrown onto the couch where she lay on her back, juddering with terror.

Damp enveloped her in a watery cloak. What is this? Water boarding?  My hiding place discovered so soon? 

She struggled to see her assailant through the dark shadows…she saw no one…then…a kaleidoscope of color swirled at the top of the staircase. It spilled onto the stairs like molten metal tipped from a cauldron. Colored shadows glinted as the liquid dripped downwards, then puddled at the bottom of the stairs.

“Mmmh...mmmh…ughh...” Delbar fought against the invisible hand that pressed her lips together. Water continued to drip. Blinking through the damp, she stared at the man who arose fully formed from the puddle–face…limbs…body…hair…clothes. The garments were bright white as if lit from within–baggy trousers, tunic, turban.

“Yaa Ilaahee!”*

Delbar struggled against the invisible ropes. She jerked from side to side, moaning. Abruptly the binds loosed, the dripping stopped and she could speak.

“Al…am? Is…you..?” Water dribbled from her mouth. She brushed her hand across her face. “No. You are dead! You died in the mountains! The Taliban killed you… I’m dreaming…why was my mouth stopped and my arms tied…why did water nearly drown me? Why..? Why..?”

He stepped forwards, knees high, like he waded to shore from a turbulent ocean. He stopped a few meters from her. Delbar smelt rosewater and spices, the strong scents of her homeland. Hair escaped from under his turban, long and lustrous. The gray streaks in his beard had gone as had the scars on his hands from that hideous time when he’d been imprisoned and tortured during the Mujahedeen wars.

“So you could feel me die.”

‘That was cruel…I feared…for my life.” She reached for the rug that had fallen from her shoulders, dabbed her mouth then hugged the soft wool to her chest and sobbed.

 “But you live. I’ve been waiting. So long. You’re here. I need you to trust this.” He pointed to his body. “See me. Your Alam?”

She turned away.

“Delbar...Delbar…Delbar…”

She spoke to the room. “I’m dreaming, I know. What I see isn’t real. My husband is dead. He’s in Paradise. A demon uses a husband’s body to trick a wife.”

“Delbar. It is me. Look. This is no dream. I drowned. The portal opened, the angels came. I turned back. I was to enter the Door, but I answered, no, I’m not ready for Paradise.”

“Daabí Ashkun!”**  She clamped her hands over her ears.

“My Paradise is being with you.”

“No. Jannah awaits you. If it is indeed you? My Alam would obey the angels. Go to your reward.” She pointed to the door.

“My reward is to be with you.”

“No. Jannah awaits the righteous.”

“The things I’ve done were not righteous. I’ve no business in Paradise with killers of women and children. Scoundrels like me deserve to wander the earth, hungry, never satisfied.”

“A soldier under orders obeys orders. You tried to ease the suffering of the Afghani people. Go to your blissful, happy life.”

“My blissful, happy life is here. In my new body. You need me…”

“I need Alam, but not this way. Continue your journey.”

“My journey ends here.”

“No. Leave. This is a trick. Go back to the portal if you are man, not demon.”

He dropped to his knees as if shot. “Let me stay. One night?”

Dreamy sensations flowed through her as she floated into a fantastical world. He has cast some spell over me. A spell that holds me entranced. Her heart cried out for Alam. A tidal wave of power suffused her–where before she was weak, now she was strong–where before she had mourned, now her heart danced.

Alam is here!

He saw her thoughts.

He reached down, tore the rug from her hands. He stroked her shoulder, testing her–chilly hands, icy fingers. He sat on the edge of the couch. Embraced her.  Pressed her warm flesh against his coldness. Oh, the chill! Icy lips found hers. 

Water rushed down her throat–spurted out her nose–her eyes filled–overflowed. She panicked. Pulled away.

“Stop!”

She cried. Scrubbed her face with the rug.

“Relax,” he said, “Control your fear. The drowning sensation will vanish. I promise.”

“Who are you? Which demon has stolen Alam’s body?”

“I am your Alam.” He kissed her again. “My precious wife.” His garments disappeared as if by magic. Naked, he covered the length of her warm human flesh with his otherworldly coldness.

 “I am so cold. The fire...” she said.

“This new body has an enemy–fire.” He turned and blew into the fireplace. Flames lit up the space. “But I can try to bear it…for you, my love.”

Her heart leaped into the flood of pleasure offered by his arms. Do I care whether he is dead or undead, cold or warm, ghost or demon?

They lay side by side. Stroke for stroke they sought remembrance of times past…but...something jarred...

Delbar felt it creep along her nape. Something frightening, more frightening than what she’d already experienced. She sensed absolute evil.

Too late she saw the malevolent glint in eyes turned red. The beautiful face melted into a hideous mask. The body bunched, the back humped, hands curled into claws that raked her face. Pain stole her breath. The mass twisted into a formless black that blasted putrid air over her like a toxic cloud. Hands forced her arms behind her back. Filthy water poured down her throat. Life squeezed from her.

The flames flickered…and died.

GLOSSARY OF TERMS:

* Yaa Ilaahee! (Oh my God!)

** Daabí Ashkun!”* (No!)

©DeniseCovey2012

***L'Aussie Image edited in PicMonkey.com

WORDS: 986

FULL CRITIQUE ACCEPTABLE 

If you'd like to add your Halloween story/poem to the list, submit in the right top sidebar or wherever you find the linky list...open until October 21 AEST.

This challenge is being judged by venerable bloggers, Ann Best and Nas Dean, who are on a quest to find the Featured Writer.

Denise

Genre Favorites Blogfest, September 17, 2012 - Alex J Cavanaugh

Click to read more entries...

Alex J Cavanaugh has the simplest of blogfests, so very easy to enter, and he even reminds you so you don't forget. It sounds easy to pick your favourite genre of anything, but when it comes down to it, it's jolly hard. I still think of favourite songs I didn't think of for his Favourite Music Blogfest. Anyway, they are always heaps of fun and informative at the same time helping us to get to know more about each other in this great blogging community. Here's the guff:

Genre Favorites Blogfest, September 17, 2012

One blogfest, four favorites!

List your favorite genre of:

Movie

Music

Books

And a guilty pleasure genre from any of the three categories!

My favourite genre - Movie

Drama with a historical and romantic element - a la Gone With the Wind - in case you don't know this one (yeah, highly unlikely) - it is a sizzling love story set against the backdrop of the American Civil War based on one of the biggest selling books of all time by Margaret Mitchell, American author and journalist. So many timeless themes...

**

My favourite genre - Music

Industrial Rock a la U2 - I love their lyrics, their music and their overall political, at times 'save the world' style. What other high school garage band is still going strong after all these years? I've visited their hometown on the outskirts of Dublin, Ireland, and I can see some of where their inspiration came from. Seeing some of their album cover settings was pretty awesome for this die hard fan.

**

My favourite genre - Book

Realistic Fiction a la Jodi Picoult - I love so many book genres, there' s very few I don't read and enjoy, but my favourite will always remain big, fat, print books of realistic contemporary fiction exploring the issues humans are grappling with. Jodi seems to keep one step ahead of the NEXT BIG THING and researches and writes a powerful story every year. I also love how she travels to Australia, so far away for a 'mom', on a regular basis, to visit her large fan base Down Under (and sell the odd book or two).

Jodi and me at Noosa when Change of Heart was released

Guilty Pleasure for any category -  Movie - BLACK SWAN

2010 American psychological thriller and horror film

**

I love thrillers in both Movies and Books, but not usually horror. This was the most amazing movie I'll never forget! The horror was handled lightly until the very end...

** I have no right to use the  images ((slaps hand)) marked with ** so I will be deleting them as soon as this blogfest is over! Do be careful of any stolen images you may have used for this blogfest. Hard to source free images for genres.

• What is your favourite genre of Movie, Music or Book?

Click on the badge at the top to go to more entries...Thanks Captain for the opportunity to wax lyrical about my favourites.

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For any writer - prose or poetry - who'd like to write 400 words or less for the next RomanticFridayChallenge, here is the prompt and this Friday is the day! Hope to see you there...

for more details of this and projected prompts, go to the Challenges Page...

TODAY on RomanticFridayWriters we have an Author Guest Post from much-awarded author Linda Gillard. Pay us a visit to learn more about where characters come from...

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#RomanticFridayWriters challenge for August 5 - My story, 'Annabel!'

Romantic Friday Writers is a blogfest every Friday co-ordinated by myself and Francine Howarth. It is a fun event, showcasing the work of many fine writers, and encouraging honest editing as stories must be a maximum of 400 words. Click on the icon in my sidebar or the link at the end of my post to check out others participating today or join the blogfest yourself. You will be most welcome. We are also found on twitter. We are @RFWER A winner is awarded the recognition of being the week's Featured Writer.


Today the Romantic Friday Writers challenge is Voices. I'm sure this will lead to many and varied stories. However, my story ended up being a poem. I'm currently studying poetry with my students and poor Edgar Allen Poe's voice got into my head. I'm no poet as you can see, but I've attempted a little take on his poem, 'Annabel Lee.' 

By the sea 

Annabel!

The waves smash against the rocks

The seagulls call your name

The moon beams and is bringing me dreams

Of you

and me

by the sea.

By the sea

we laughed, we played, we loved

Until they came

and took you away -

away from me.

Annabel!

 Your beauty was such that the angels in heaven were jealous -

Jealous of our love

As I held you tight on the grassy banks at night

I could hear their voices on the wind -

‘You will not keep her! You will not have her!’

The voices mingled with the crash of the waves

I held you tight, tighter

I crushed you close to me.

They can never dissever our love.

‘Don't leave me, Annabel!’

I cried

My voice ripped away by the wind.

Annabel!

Where are you?

Where have they taken you?

I hear the waves

I hear the gulls

I hear you!

My name is a whisper on the wind.

The sea is cold, so cold

My legs tremble with the chill

The moon threads the waves with its silvery fingers

Enticing

Drawing

me to you.

I am so cold Annabel

as the night tide carries me

to you.

Yes, my darling!

I hear you

Your voice is an angel’s call.

The ocean is chilling yet

my heart is thrilling

at the sound of my name on your lips.

Soon we’ll be together

for eternity

The angels will smile at our love -

a love that was more than love

In our Kingdom by the sea.

The beautiful, wild sea.

©DeniseCovey2011

I hope you enjoyed my poetry. Read some more Romantic Friday Writers stories here or find us on twitter here.