Pushing Forward - the joy of diagramming plot points

Sometimes it's hard to write. For those of you that think it's a simple matter of putting words on paper - NOPE. The hard part is what words to put down, and sometimes it's coming up with the words.

One of the things I struggle with is called "the black moment." Otherwise known as "that really bad thing" that happens to your hero/heroine or to their relationship in the story. You have to deliberately put your characters in harm's way. Characters you have gotten to be friends with. Characters you connect with and love. Deliberately.

While I've been working on the release of Living Canvas, I've managed to put off (procrastinate) new chapters in the work in progress (heretofore referred to as "Quiet" until such time as I think up a more appropriate title). But I now have hard copies of Living Canvas in hand, so I'm out of excuses, at least until the reviews are in. Out of excuses. So last weekend I sat down at my computer and stared at the screen.

And stared some more.

It's hard to put your friends in harm's way, even if they are figments of your imagination. But that's part of writing. So rather than develop chapters, I started with plot points.

Character A needs to do this.
Character B needs to do that.
The danger is this.
The conflict is that.
The outcome is such and such.
What am I missing in order to accomplish these threads?

You know what? It works. Immediately upon organizing my thoughts and where I needed to go, I was able to push forward. The chapters took shape, the plot moved forward. The first draft of Quiet is now at least 90 percent completed. First draft? you ask. That means the story is down. I need to apply some spackle - fill in the holes. Flesh out the characters and the settings a little more.

Whether we use story boards or outlines, at some point in time, every author (especially us "pantsers") has to know the outcome. So while it's fun to let the characters carry us along and work their way out of the corners we write them into, sometimes it's good to see where we're going.

As a reminder - the giveaway for a free copy of Living Canvas is live at Goodreads.com until the end of the week. Throw your name into the hat to win an autographed copy! (or click on a link to the right to buy one).

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Living Canvas

by Karla Brandenburg

Giveaway ends July 21, 2012.

See the giveaway details
at Goodreads.

Enter to win

Thanks for stopping by.

Production!

And finally, the paperback edition! click here to buy it at Amazon.com.  After much hard work, Living Canvas is DONE.  Buy a copy for yourself and tell all your friends to buy one, then they'll tell two friends, then they'll tell two friends (wasn't that a television commercial at one time?).  I'm also doing a giveaway at Goodreads.com next week, five copies selected randomly by the robotic fingers (eenie, meenie, miney, moe method) at that website.

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Living Canvas

by Karla Brandenburg

Giveaway ends July 21, 2012.

See the giveaway details
at Goodreads.

Enter to win

The "next great project" is still under construction, and although progress has slowed considerably while I attend to the release of Living Canvas, the new book is in the final stages of first draft.  Still at least 10,000 words to go, but direction has been clear and direct, so although I've struggled a bit with certain aspects, its more or less a matter of getting it down on paper at this point and then going back to make sure it's visual and engaging, not to mention a bit of fact checking to keep me honest.  The original inspiration was a song title in relation to an experience, but as I was explaining the story to my hairdresser, I realized that the song probably won't make an appropriate title.

And speaking of that (here comes the rambling part), my hairdresser asked me "where do you get your ideas for stories?" At which point I explained the experience, and then the song title, and realized that these two things are almost entirely unrelated to the story as a whole, merely a jumping off point. I "saw" something, then it made me think of a song (I may have mentioned this in previous posts, my affliction to associate a song with nearly every situation I encounter), and then I started with the "what-ifs," which took me on a journey of "so if what I saw was more than what I saw, and what if it was really x, and then y, and then suppose this, then that . . . " and so the conception of the story. Did I ever mention my overactive imagination?

So while I'm finishing the new story (which I am merely referring to as Quiet for the moment until I focus my energy on a more appropriate title), go out and buy a copy of Living Canvas!

This message has been brought to you by a rambling author in progress.  Thanks for stopping by.

And now, back to our regularly scheduled program

Did I mention that Living Canvas is now also available for the Kindle? (Click here for the Kindle Version) And the paperback version is "close."

Funny how pop culture will change one's perceptions. When I think of Independence Day now, I think of the movie with Bill Pullman and Will Smith, and yet the message is the same.  A loud thank you to all our veterans who saved us from being taken over by bogies, and our forefathers for their insight into building a strong governmental system. It's lasted over 200 years, and although it could definitely use some overhaul, the principles are still sound.  In the tech industry, we would call this user error. The hardware works fine, its the people using it that are broken.  But I'm not going into politics today.  Off that soap box.  I'm an author!  The reason I write books is the same reason other people read them - to escape from the real world, even if only for an hour or two.

I had an interesting conversation with an old friend yesterday, in which I told said friend about the new release. "Where does this one take us to?" was the question. I was pleased to offer a vacation spot! My first novel, Touched by the Sun, travels to Italy, to Pompeii. Intimate Distance does some traveling through the United States, but far less exotic locales. Chicago. New York City. So in answer to the question, Living Canvas travels to Scotland, briefly. It also goes to Fort Lauderdale (briefly) but my home base generally centers around the Chicago area.

While I was developing the story, I was working with a critique group through RWA which was frequented by a British woman. I was so looking forward to her feedback to make sure I got my details correct because, although I've been to Scotland and England, it was a short trip and I didn't want to misrepresent anything. Imagine my surprise when she told me I should visit a place before I wrote about it! And her comments struck me odd.  She expected me to write about the mall in Manchester, England (which Audrey is passing through, but not stopping, especially for the purpose of going shopping) and to write about the glories of the train station in Glasgow and its architectural wonders. And I definitely should have written about the Lake District.  These are all fabulous tourist places and certainly noteworthy, but I wasn't writing a travelogue, and Audrey is a seasoned traveller, and perhaps a bit jaded to some of these things. I was hoping for more on the things that Audrey did note, and the accuracy of those details. My British critiquer did spur me on to double check some of my other facts, and indeed I included the Angel of the North (which wasn't there when I visited) and the train station in Edinburgh (there are two!). I can only guess that since she skipped over the things I did address, that I got those right.  Fortunately, I have a British critique partner in another group who helped me to correct some of the things I wasn't quite sure about.

It's nice to have a point of reference, especially when you haven't visited a place. For instance, Italy.  I did a ton of research and interviewed a lot of people to make sure I got that right.  It's on my list, but I haven't actually been there (should I admit that?).  One of the ladies I interviewed, who scolded me soundly for writing about a place I hadn't visited, gave me her seal of approval on the final product, however, so I guess I did enough homework.

The story I'm working on now is based in the Chicago area again (surprise!) but it has definite German ties.

Am I rambling again?  Then again, that's kind of what this blog is for.

Happy Fourth of July!

Politics - Apologies ahead of time. Rough waters ahead.

Yes, I'm tackling this issue today.

I'm not one to discuss politics on a daily basis. In fact, I tend to be fairly apathetic. And then I stumbled on a blog by a fellow author concerning the Wisconsin recall elections, and his words resonated with me.

I believe in the right to free speech. We live in a country where that is a freedom we have been given and daily exercise. Along with the right, we have the right to disagree.  So with this political firestorm going on about Obamacare, I want to comment more on political process than on the decisions.

I live in Illinois.  We have seen more corrupt politicians than I care to admit to. And the last one who was convicted honestly didn't believe he did anything wrong, because that's the way politics works.  Unfortunately, he didn't understand that "under the table" meant "under the table," and not out in public.  Does that make it right? Absolutely not. But he was too naive to believe that people wouldn't condemn him for openly subscribing to a corrupt process.  Such is the state of politics in our country.  We are governed by politicians who no longer have the best interest of the people at heart (in my humble opinion) but their own interests and the interests of those people/interests who give them money. It's bribery, pure and simple. And so our government is hopelessly gridlocked.  Only by shaking off our apathy can we make a difference.  Republican or Democrat or Independent, we need to step up and vote for honest people with integrity and get rid of the good ol' boys club who is no longer looking out for John Q. Public.

Along with the right to free speech, I saw a post today comparing Obama to Hitler. It was inevitable, but to me, it was the height of ignorance. Obama didn't get his health care plan signed into law single handedly. And there are seven justices on the Supreme Court who upheld the decision. To compare our president to a man whose main goal was to eradicate entire races of people is ludicrous.

Where do I stand on the issue? Okay, going out on a limb. Have you seen a hospital bill recently? Within the last 10 years? Have you seen the cost of services before insurance tackles it? And have you then seen the cost AFTER insurance tackles it? So tell me. Who was paying for the poor and indigent before? Seems as if those health bills are highly inflated to cover the costs for people who can't pay - the same way credit card interest rates are there to cover the deadbeats who don't pay their bills. It always impacts the "responsible" people. So now we have a president who wants to help the poor and indigent. We have high unemployment. Increasing numbers of people without jobs. Their health care has to be paid for, one way or another. It's already coming out of my pocket as higher rates. I don't know what the right answer is, but I can't fault the president for trying to help. Does this make him Hitler?  Let me think. A man trying to kill Jews vs. a man trying to help poor people pay for their healthcare. Where is the parallel to Hitler? This type of inflammatory remark is referred to as Godwins Law. Is that the best argument you can make? Rather than offer an informed opinion on the matter, you have to stoop to that level? To me, that's like children on the playground, when they can no longer make a reasonable argument one steps up with, "Yeah, and your mother wears army boots." (This is an antiquated expression, I know, and one that currently can be offensive to our women in the military - my apologies, I mean no disrespect.)

I don't claim to know the right answers, but I do not believe there is any comparison between Obama and Hitler. The one thing I can say about the political climate in America right now is that it is getting people's attention.  I am better educated politically than I ever have been.  I'm looking for the correct answers rather than believing someone's repeated rhetoric, so that I can make an informed decision, rather than vote based on what someone else said, that someone else said, who was paid by some corporation who has a vested interest in the outcome of the election.

Politics. We are each entitled to our own viewpoints, and that's what makes America great. We all have a vested interest in the outcome of the upcoming elections, different reasons why we support one viewpoint over another. My only request is that you research your facts instead of jumping on someone else's bandwagon.  And slinging mud or drawing diametrically opposed parallels only confuses the issue. Make your decision based on the facts that are important to how you live your life - and more power to you. That's what makes America great.

Living Canvas - are you an e-reader or paperback?

It's finally here!  Living Canvas is now available on the Barnes and Noble Nook e-reader. This is the Link to the Nook version!  So far, it is only available in this version, due to the fact that they have a marvelous program to promote new releases.

This, however, begs the question.  What is your preferred method for reading?  Are you a Nook reader? A Kindle reader? ibooks? Or do you like paperback? For myself, I like paperback or Kindle. I tried to resist the ereaders, but I've discovered that having a Kindle is like carrying a library with me. I still like the feel of paper, I still like to know I have "this much" left to read or that I've read "this much."  I know the Kindle measures it in percentages, but it isn't quite the same. On the other hand, I don't have to worry about losing my place on the Kindle and it's much less cumbersome to carry several books around - takes up less space - and I'm a very spatial type person. My bookshelves can only accommodate so many books. AND the pages get yellow and brittle with age.

I'm excited that Living Canvas is finally available!  The paperback version is in production and should be available soon. Likewise the Kindle version, et. al. I'll keep you posted.

And now, back to the work currently in progress.

Vacation without a Schedule

Last week I took a holiday from work-a much needed break from the everyday grind.  It always amazes me when I take those types of weeks, weeks without scheduling anything, that suddenly I have a lot to do!  But last week was a good one.

You can never fit in everything you'd like to do. I wanted to visit my daughter (she lives an hour away). I wanted to visit my son (he lives three hours away). I wanted to get more chapters down of the latest work in process. I wanted to visit my folks. I had chores around the house that I'd been putting off. I did schedule a day away with my sister. See? and suddenly a "free" week isn't so free anymore. And yet, by the end of the week, I'd finally achieved my main objective. Let go of the stress and breathe. (Thanks to my sister for a relaxing day at the lake).

I did manage to squeeze in some extra writing time. I'm on the last third of the work in process - this is another milestone that slows me down. There's a little bit of not wanting to say goodbye to the characters, knowing that you're nearly done with them (although I may have mentioned this story lends itself easily to a series!), and a little bit of writing the climax of the story, which can be challenging as far as pacing. You don't want to go too fast through it, you don't want to drag it out. I guess that means I got down the chapters I needed to while I was on holiday from the day job. So mission accomplished there!

All in all, it was a nice vacation. That being said, there is still so much that I need/want to do!

Research

Yesterday, I had a conversation with one of my coworkers about training. She had mentioned a particular program that she'd taken a course on and I got carried away, completely hijacking the conversation with my enthusiasm not only for the program but by how it was one of those things that you continued to learn long after you became relatively profficient. Then I caught myself and apologized, stating the obvious. You can tell I enjoy learning new things.

That's one of the attractions to writing. As I push forward with a new story, I create situations for the characters to get themselves out of, challenges for them to face, plot points, suspense. In my current work in progress, I went the route of fire. Then I had to stop. What do I know about response time and procedures in the event of fire? Not much. So I tapped a firefighter. I gave him my preliminary vision and the things I wanted to avoid, things that would hamper the story's continuity. I picked a good firefighter! He had a brilliant imagination and was very helpful in giving me a scenario that would fit (Thanks, Mike!) I was so excited, that I started to envision using fire more often as a crisis point in future stories!  So often we choose murder, or a life-threatening situation involving other forms of violence. Fire can be equally insidious.

One of the other research points in this story involves food. I love to bake, ask my son. I don't do much baking these days as a result of having less people to devour my creations and a conscious effort to avoid eating them by myself. I always love searching out new recipes, and I needed an ethnic one for this story. I'm very excited to report that I found one, in fact I made it last weekend to test it out. While it was very good, it wasn't exactly the way I expected it to be, so I'm going to play with it some more, and then I promise to share. It's called Ofenschlupfer, and its a Schwabian dish (think Germany, Bavarian, Black Forest . . .) and it's apple bread pudding.  The recipe I made was heavy on the apples and light on the bread pudding, which is probably the better way to go, but I like a little more balance. The good news, DH liked it and has done a wonderful job of saving me from eating it all by myself. The bad news, he prefers his bread pudding without apples, so my next batch likely won't disappear so quickly. I need test eaters!

The thing about research - when you find the things you're looking for, it's a lot of fun, but when you don't, it can be very tedious. Fortunately for me, this story has been the former so far.

For those moments (and there are MANY) when you say, "what's the point?" while you're writing a story and you're sure no one else will ever read it or appreciate your imagination, stories like this make it worthwhile.  The answer to the question?  Because I'm having fun! And maybe, just maybe, someone else will enjoy reading it just as much.