UNFORGETTABLE'S Blog tour begins tomorrow. The schedule for the review tour is listed below. Please check them out and enter the following Rafflecopter giveaway  a Rafflecopter giveaway .

Schedule:
May 14th: https://brightlystreet.com/ and  http://mybookaday.com/

May 15th: http://gettingyourreadonaimeebrown.blogspot.com/ and http://empowermoms.net/ and https://www.rockinbookreviews.com/

May 16th: http://lisaisabookworm.blogspot.com/ and  https://joyinthemoments.wordpress.com/ and http://www.blogginboutbooks.com/

May 17th: https://www.singinglibrarianbooks.com/ and https://ldsandlovinit.blogspot.com/

May 18th: http://whynotbecauseisaidso.blogspot.com/and  http://www.wishfulendings.com/ and http://literarytimeout.blogspot.com/ and http://booksaresanity.blogspot.com/

Chapter Blocks that Keep Readers Reading by Ronda Hinrichsen

Most writers know the protagonists of their novels must have an overall goal that propels the length of the novel. Without it, their story falls flat and readers stop reading. But what we authors sometimes forget is that the protagonist in each chapter/scene also needs to have a specific goal he wants to accomplish in that scene or chapter. Furthermore, that goal needs to be related to the character's main story goal, and the scene/chapter must have an obstacle to that goal. 

CHARACTER GOAL + OBSTACLE = CONFLICT and CONFLICT ENCOURAGES ACTION. Action is the cornerstone of great stories. 

Keep this formula in mind as you begin your chapter, Better yet, figure out each element before you write your chapter. A quick outline of the main points of the struggle between your protagonist and his opposition (it's often another person) can not only help you organize your story and keep your characters moving toward their goals, but it can also help you hasten your writing process. I've always found it much easier to write quickly when I know beforehand what I want to accomplish and/or write. Figuring it out as I go always leads to more rewrites.

Finally, according to Evan Marshall's The Marshall Plan for Novel Writing (and I've found it to be true), when you reach the end of your scene or chapter, make sure your character does one of these three things as it relates to his current goal:

1. He fails to accomplish his goal,

2. He fails to accomplish his goal and learns of a new, even larger obstacle.

3. He succeeds in accomplishing his goal, but he also learns of a new, even larger obstacle. 

Each of these endings will keep your reader wanting to know what will happen next. On the other hand, if your character only succeeds, your story ends, and your reader closes your book.

(This article was originally posted on September 10, 2015 on the Author's Think Tank blog.)

Suspense-Building Decisions

Today, I'll share a post from my blog, Suspense Secrets:

The main character of every story, no matter the genre, must have a goal he or she is trying to achieve or there is no story. I emphasize the word trying because that is the key to the suspense. Without effort, characters may have bad things happen to them, but if they simply defend against those obstacles, they appear dull and passive. Interesting characters, on the other hand, choose a path and deal with the tightening noose that follows. For example, if Pinocchio hadn't gone looking for his father, he wouldn't have been swallowed by the whale. And if Frodo, in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, hadn't decided to trust Spiegel instead of his best friend, he wouldn't have been lured into the spider's den.

Even worse, we, the audience, wouldn't have been on the edge of our seats, wondering how--or if--the character was going to get out of his peril.

Suspense Secrets

Since I write a lot of suspense, and since I've been studying up on the subject, I thought I'd start a blog where I not only share some of my own tips in relation to how to build suspense, but I also collect and post other articles on the subject. My blog is just getting started, and my first post is a link to information on how Hitchcock created suspense in The Birds. Here is the link: SuspenseSecrets.blogspot.com.

My Writing Must Haves #1--Brevity

A couple of years ago, I posted about how I use lists to help me stay focused on the nuts and bolts of writing. One of the most important of those lists I keep for easy reference on the wall directly behind my computer monitor. I've simply titled it: "My Writing Must Haves," but in actuality, I adapted it from an article I read several years ago by acclaimed author, Gary Provost. It was titled "The Seven Beacons of Excellent Writing."


Because "My Writing Must Haves" list has been so helpful to me, I've decided to write a series of blogs discussing each point on it. The first is Brevity.


Gary Provost began his discussion of brevity (tight writing) with this statement: "When you write and rewrite, don't think about what you can put in. Think about what you can leave out."


Since magazines require writers to say a great deal in very few words, I initially believed this advice mostly applied to that media. However, after Missing was accepted and later as I went through an extensive revision process, I learned that brevity is also important to novel writing. Think about it. Haven't you read novels in which you were at least tempted to skip over sections, sometimes even pages, of an author's prose because it was boring or redundant? I have, and every time it wasn't because the author's story line was boring; it was because the writing was too bogged down with words that didn't carry their weight. So on my list, next to "Brevity," I've written this definition: "include only words that are necessary."


How do we do that? Again, borrowing from Provost, I'll end with three, "brief" tips:

1. Stick to your subject matter; i.e., the specific slant of your article or the goal of your story. Don't wander down unimportant paths or dally in unnecessary information.

2. Begin at the beginning, where the story takes off or where your character's life changes in relation to the plot, and not a moment sooner.

3. Eliminate unnecessary words. I've discussed one way to do this here.

So that's it. Write tight and check back soon. My next post in this series will focus on "Clarity."

My Book to Be Published!

It's finally happened. Two days ago, a publisher offered to publish Flip-Flop. THIS YEAR! This title will change, however, which I don't mind because they've had some of the same concerns about the title that I've had.

The biggest concern, to me, was the fact that "Flip-Flop" seemed too lighthearted for the suspenseful, romantic book that it is. I've suggested my other favorite title, Distraction (I think I referred to it under this name in an earlier post), but I'll just have to wait and see what the publisher says.

Now, as far as the publisher goes, I think I'll keep who it is a secret for now because I haven't yet signed a contract with them. Be sure to check back, though. I'll most definitely reveal their name when that time comes.

And by the way, during the coming months, I'll also post my steps to publication here for you. In doing so, I'm hoping it will help you, my readers, be a bit more prepared when your book publishing opportunity rears its grateful head.

Happy writing and publishing!

James Dashner--What He Did Right

In a previous "promotion" post, I advertised author James Dashner, and he, in return, gave me a copy of his new book, "The 13th Reality." And guess what? In "reality," I was quite pleased with how well written it was. Besides that, my fourteen-year-old daughter couldn't put it down.

But I digress. What I'd really like to talk about is three of the techniques Dashner used to create his well-done suspense.

1)-He added a puzzle to the story, or in this case, a bunch of mysterious letters which contained clues that both the main character, Tick, and the reader wanted to figure out. True, some of the answers were mildly obvious, but I felt that those that were didn't detract from the suspense; they only served to make the reader feel smart.

2)-Every chapter ended with a cliff hanger, such as an unanswered question, an unresolved conflict, or the threat of future harm to come.

3)-He used Hitchcock's "bomb under the card table" technique. In fact, one of his most suspenseful sections had a threatening, mechanical device attached to the bottom of the main character's car. The main character didn't know it was there, but the reader sure did!

So, again, well done, J. Dashner.

What They Did Right #2

SAVAGE TWISTS

Plot twists are unexpected elements or events that not only take the audience by surprise but also increase a novel's suspense. Jeffrey S. Savage's novel, "Dead on Arrival," illustrates this technique very well.

First off--and that's just it--first off, right on page 6, Savage begins with a twist: an odd character, Pinky, tells the protagonist, Shandra Covington, his dead wife is trying to kill him. Then, on page 8, Pinky tells her he's dead. Quite a twist! Savage continues to use this "dead on," ploy throughout the rest of the book (leaving a string of bodies along the way, I might add), thereby leaving the reader in a constant state of questioning and guessing. A good thing.

Second, Savage adds twists to his minor story lines, too, as delineated by the fact that Covington's long time, "best" friend, a handsome cop, suddenly becomes engaged to a slinky, and in my opinion, quite suspicious female. Not a good thing, as far as Covington's concerned, but a very good thing for increasing tension and conflict within the protagonist. It also, again, leaves the reader questioning. Will he really go through with the marriage?

Third, Savage takes us on a "who's really who" journey; i.e., one day, Pinky's dead, and the next day he's not. Back and forth, back and forth, until we don't know who Pinky is at all. In fact, he might even be Covington's father. Now that's twisted! And worse, who really is the bad guy? Or is "it" a girl? Only Savages mind can unwind that mess.

Suspense Block

You've heard of Writer's Block? Well, now there's "Suspense Block." Just kidding. But seriously, it's not always easy to tell the difference between mystery and suspense or how to create that suspense, and since this is something I'm currently trying to learn, I thought there might be other writers struggling with the same thing. So I thought I'd share. Most, if not all, my information has come from Carolyn Wheat's book, "How to Write Killer Fiction."

To begin with, the difference between a mystery novel and a suspense novel. Mysteries are puzzles, generally about who murdered whom, and the protagonist already has the necessary skills to solve that puzzle. Think of Miss Marple or Sherlock Holmes. A mystery's story structures is also based on myth.

Suspense books, on the other hand, has its background in fairy tale; i.e., its protagonist faces tests and learns skills which not only prepare him for the final showdown with the enemy, but also increase his maturity level. In essense, the hero "grows up."

Next, there are several tools we writers can use to create suspense. I will mention three.

First, suspense, unlike mysteries which are meant to challenge the mind, are emotional rollercoaster rides. At the beginning of the story, the protagonist is plunged from her safe world into a frightening, larger-than-herself world. There, she is driven from one extreme problem (test) to another and threatened with the "ultimate" danger.

Second, suspense relies heavily on information given to the reader but not necessarily to the protagonist. Edgar Allen Poe described this element as a bomb hidden beneath a table of men playing cards. The game may be even more boring than we can stand, but because we, the reader, know there's a bomb there, just waiting to go off at any minute, we watch on the edge of our deliciously terrified seats.

And finally, because suspense is an emotional experience, the reader must feel what the protagonist feels; the writer must take great pains to create an exciting, emotional, vicarious experience for the reader. If he doesn't, our rollercoaster will flatten into a merry-go-round. Or worse, a slow train through the zoo.

Like I said, there are more suspense tools, but I won't list them here. I'll simply tell you they're out there, give you a few tools, and let those nuggets work on your mind until you act.

Hmm. Is that a form of mystery or suspense?

What They Did Right

Josi S. Kilpack's "Sheep's Clothing"

There's no doubt about it. LDS writers "write" many things right. In previous posts, I've mentioned the importance of studying other writer's (and their publishers) work, so I thought it would be helpful to begin an occasional post titled "What They Did Right" which highlights the book of an LDS author and "celebrates" one writing tool he or she used well. This does not imply, however, that this one element is the only noteworthy element in their work. It only means it's something I thoroughly appreciated about it.


My first entry highlights the suspense in Josi S. Kilpack's book, "Sheep's Clothing." Suspense, by definition, is the state of being uncertain or insecure with a high dose of anxiety; so, since "Sheep's Clothing" is about a teenage girl (and her family) who is "attacked" by an internet predator, Kilpack wisely chose to include the predator's frequent e-mails to the girl as a constant anxiety-boost to the reader of the "Clear and Present Danger" that is lurking around every corner. Of course, as in all Josi's books to date, she also used this technique to provide the "true" information about how a predator can weild so much power over his victim, but that information was incorporated so skillfully that many unwary readers were only aware of the suspense. Not only a good thing, but also a sign of a good writer.