We had a couple of calls come in during the last minutes of the Blog Talk yesterday and I wanted to make sure we follow up on those ideas:
1. What do I look for with a 1st person submission? These are always tough ones to write. I know a lot of people think this type of writing is easier, but I honestly have to say, I think the only reason is we can deal with the dialogue. What we often find missing in 1st person stories is the depth of introspection and storytelling. We forget that the characters who are telling the story will take a lot of things for granted. Heck, they are in the middle of the story and suddenly jumping into a description of what they are seeing is not something that is natural. Needless to say, I want to feel like I am right in the middle of the action. I want to feel the emmtion the character feels. I don't just want to hear about it.
2. Future of paranormal? This is one I have talked about before. I think a lot of people love paranormal writing because of the added layer of the unknown we can add to the story. Where is it going though is a tough call. Right now we see a ton of teen vamp stories but personally, I haven't seen anything new with these stories. These are simply the re-doing of other stories already out there. On the adult line-up, we are now seeing a ton of angel and demon stories. Again, I haven't seen anything new. These are simply vamp/werewolf stories that are using new names.
As for the future, I think we are desperately looking for something new out there. What is it? At this point, I really don't know. My personal bet is someone will work out some of the big binds with ghost stories.
3. What should a writer do when they suddenly find they hate the story they have been working on? This one is really a normal occurance and one that a little bit of time can work through. Sometimes that hatred of the project is simply due to too much time spent on it. Take a break. Start something new and let this one breathe a little. You might find when you return to it, you will enjoy it. If that doesn't happen, you might want to do a diagnostic analysis to figure out what it is that bugs you. This might reveal a huge problem in the story you have over-looked.
4. What about the Pros and Cons of working on multiple manuscripts? Writing two or more stories at one time really takes a great deal of effort. What I do recommend is that while you are working on one project, you should be in a drafting and planning stage for future projects. This prevents a huge gap after the completion of one and the beginning of another.
Think that covers it.
Although I was unable to enjoy your radio show live, I listened to both shows at a later time. Very educational and entertaining. I just wanted you to know your efforts aren't wasted. We are listening. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the information on first person. I've always written in third, and my last book was in omni--but my next wants to be in first. I kept going back and forth on the viewpoint because I felt like the introspection was not something I should have. So I'm relooking at first person again.
ReplyDeleteMy personal bet is someone will work out some of the big binds with ghost stories.
ReplyDeletePleased to see this. I think I have.