Meditation and the Writing

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Life’s frustrations and issues are the biggest creativeblocks for me. I normally only write in the evening during the week, and by thetime I get home from the office—my brain is filled with blockage. The angryclient, the bizarre phone call, the search for the perfect babysitter are justexamples of the things that lodge themselves within the tunnel that allows theideas to flow to my keyboard. 

Many famous writers such as James Joyce, Edgar Allen Poe,and Ernest Hemingway are known for self-medicating with alcohol or othersubstances to help lubricate that flow of ideas. For many it is a way to shutoff the mundane chatter that goes on inside the head to allow the characters tobe heard.

“Do you drink?"
"Of course, I just said I was a writer.”
― Stephen King

“Write drunk; edit sober.”

-Ernest Hemingway

Though I am notaverse to drinking a glass of wine or two to shush out the day, I find that thebest way is to sit in a quiet place for ten minutes or so and just meditate.Meditation allows us to find those thoughts that are hiding beneath the pile ofproblems, excuses, and random brain chatter. Meditation can be much better thanalcohol for writing and for life in general due to the fact that meditation haszero calories, no side-effects, lack of a hangover, and it’s free. In fact,meditation is actually very good for your health and your spirituality.

Meditation is not a way of making your mind quiet.

It’s a way of entering into the quiet that’salready there –

buried under the 50,000 thoughts 

the average personthinks every day.

– Deepak Chopra

If you arehaving trouble accessing your creativity, give yourself a ten minute break inthe silence or with soothing music, focus on your breath, dismissing all theother thoughts that are stifling your prose. Let your body relax, soothe yournerves, and calm your thoughts. When you find yourself alone with your breath,then just listen. The characters are there waiting to tell their story. Yourjob is just to write it down.

The Five Senses in Writing

We experience the world through our senses. These experiences leaveimpressions and memories that can be triggered again via sight, sound, touch,taste and smell. In world creating, we have to show that our charactersexperience the world in the exact same way. The below list is not all inclusive, but hopefully it will trigger an idea.

Sight – This is the most basic,and every piece of writing tends to show what the character sees around them.  I won’t spend too much time on this, becausethis could be a post in itself – when to describe what is seen, to what degree, andat what pace. I touched on this lightly here.

Sound – The sounds a characterhears can show times of pleasure (laughter), feelings of mystery (stickscracking in the woods), or time of day (birds chirping). It is the music theyhear, their own internal fears, the beating of someone’s heart, or the thump ofsomeone collapsing. It is an excellent chance to show foreshadowing, conjure up memories, or set emotion.

Touch – Describing the feel ofobjects as the character glides their fingers along things such as velvet, corduroy,or silk can enhance a story and is an excellent opportunity for poetic license. But it is not just what the character touches withtheir hands. Pain, sickness, emotions, pleasure – these are things thecharacter feels internally, and need to be described as well. The feel of thewind on your cheeks, the feel of the instrument in your hands, or the feel oflips touching can show emotion and enhance character development.

Taste – New experiences and memoriesare a major part of taste, such as a character tasting an Indian dish for thefirst time or the taste of mother’s homemade chili. It could also be a calmingtaste such as chamomile tea or a jarring taste such as an unexpected pepper. Itis not just foods and liquids that we taste. There are also emotions that have aflavor such as fear, sickness, or love. The taste of a kiss, the taste oftears, or the taste of bile. Remember in your writing that your sense of smelland taste are deeply connected. A strong smell is often tasted, such as perfume.

Smell – Like taste, smell isdeeply rooted in memory. We use smell to identify clues such as walking into aroom that smells like blood, dust, or mom’s homemade cookies – each could bethe catapult for a story. There are things we don’t think of having a smell,but in fact have a very strong scent such as rain, fresh paved roads, or aclosed off room.

Play with the senses in your writing. Explore ways toshow characters emotions, foreshadowing, or back-story.  Below is an excerpt from Iron Thirst.Felicity is visiting Christian’s office. She was told to meet him there. Shearrives to a dark building with an open door. I had to rely on her othersenses to tell the story since she couldn’t see much. See if you can count allfive – maybe even the sixth. ;-)

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The lobby is dark, but the streetlamps from outside gently illuminate it,casting a silver hue on the room. This place smells like Christian’s hugs, booksand vanilla. The faintest light is coming from the back area where his officeis located, but it’s too dark to just walk there. With random chairs and tablesthat I do not remember the location of, I’m sure to injure myself.

I run my hand along the wall by the door searching for the light switch.Ahh, there is something. No, that feels like a picture frame. My clumsiness knocksit unlevel, and it slides to hang from a corner of the frame. I try tostraighten it, but it falls from the wall and crashes to the floor. The crispsound of breaking glass pierces the air. 

The back room goes dark. I call out again. “Christian?”

I try the other side of the door. It has to be around here somewhere.Dammit, why is he not answering me?

“Ow!” I yelp, as I walk into a pole of some sort. A leafy pole. One ofthose fake trees sitting in a basket. Who would put a stupid tree right there?This is ridiculous. I’m going back to my car and waiting there.

The front door makes a loud bang, as it slams shut. I reach to grab thedoorknob, but when I try to pull it open, it does not move. I yank on thehandle, but it will not open. It’s stuck. The handle turns, but the door willnot budge. Panic starts at my ears and works its way down to my toes. I twistand turn at the handle. I pull and yank on the door. There is no give.

Anice-cold breath freezes the hairs on the back of my neck. “Not yet, my dear,” thedeep voice says. In the back of my mouth, I taste fear, thick with acid and bile.

Recycled: Turn Still Waters Back Into Babbling Brooks

When starting a new story, sometimes the words come slow, like the slow trickling spot of a river. When the story finds direction it feels like flying down rapids. But sometimes, as you are writing words slow back down, and sometimes you stumble upon still waters. The words haven’t stopped, but they are quieting down. For a writer, it’s unnerving. In the past when this has happened to me, my first response is to wonder if the writer’s block is around the bend.

It’s times like this that we have to remind ourselves that it is just a phase. I went through this before, and here are a few little tricks that I’ve learned to help get me back on the babbling brook. Maybe it can be of help to you.

*Go find it. Use slow writing periods for research. Whether it’s a name, a town, or a question that your character would have the answer to, research can often spark new ideas allowing you to pick up the pace. My stories tend to be heavy in research (read post) or (this one), but I think that every story requires a little. Digging deeper might open up a door that you didn’t even know existed.

*Re-explore backstory. Is the character fully developed? Is there something missing? Or is there a particular trait that is slowing you down? Whether adding another layer or removing a hang up, this can jump start your writing. If your character’s backstory and personality are complete, they will often walk and talk on their own.

*Fresh Subplot. Maybe you are in need of a bit of inspiration. A fresh fun subplot can wrap around the story and send you into a new direction. It may be just the thing your characters were waiting for, or the last thing they needed (depending on the type of story you are telling).

*Who’s the new guy? Introducing a character can spice up a story and give you more possibilities for subplots. Not to mention a new character often times can be very revealing of your other characters – how they react, what they think? Does this guy bring good tidings or buckets of drama? But don’t forget his backstory.

* Reread and Multiply.  This may not be too helpful for those who start at once-upon-a-time and stop at happily-ever-after, but for those like me who are page-hoppers, using a slow time to go back and fill in holes often sparks much more than what was missing. It gives you the chance to revisit what you’ve done and see what you’ve missed. What can you add, or where did you veer off in the wrong direction?

Most importantly, keep a positive attitude. I know easier said than done, especially for us sensitive writer types, but this is just a slow spell. Pollyanna attitude says, “You are just giving your arm a break for all those words that will be flying from them once the inspiration ignites your fingertips.”

What do you do to get through the slow spells? When inspiration doesn’t find you, where do you look for it?

Thick or Thin: Painting the Picture

There are times when I go through life, plowing through, never noticing some of the fascinating details in my day. Head is up, but the inner wheels are spinning and my brain has allotted just enough energy to my eyes to make sure that I don't slam my face into walls and such. I could drive down a street never noticing the colors of the cars surrounding me.

Sometimes, however, I am tuned in to only the out of place. Did anyone notice that all the cars surrounding me are all white? That's strange. Who stole the color? These nuggets are grabbed, stored, and will most likely reappear in a story just for a giggle or to give a sense of depth to the story. However, the world is just serving as a backdrop where all the action is taking place. At these moments, I am not noticing the tiny pink details in the drapes. I see that there are drapes, and if there is not a clown about to pop out from behind them--I pay them no mind.

Ah, but when I am on, when all the writer senses are fully engaged, I notice every little detail. The sheen of the grass from the morning due. The color of the tuft of fur on the kitten's front paw. The prickly parts of the mango scratching my tongue when it was cut too close to the flat, oval pit. Every possibility observed and recorded for future use. Words describing these details dance around my head, searching for the best way to recreate the exact same image in the reader's mind. These details from our everyday world give a story realism.

The problem is trying to avoid going into overload when relaying these details on paper. Do I really need to describe the orange that the character is eating, or can I just simply state the character is eating the orange? This is all part of the writing process. We must decide when to leave out the details, when to only pay attention to the nuggets that stand out, and when we should give an object a full, enhanced, description that works like a fancy 3D printer for the reader, providing the exact same image that we conjured when we wrote the passage. When should it be a pair of boots, a pair of muddy boots, or weathered, brown leather workman boots with tattered yellow laces?

The answer simply is -- it depends.

Let's look at the boots. My character walks into the room. I notice he is wearing a button up shirt, blue jeans, and a pair of boots. That is sufficient, if there is no reason that I might need to know more. I can picture that, and I can move forward with the story.

Ah, but I have spent all day scrubbing my house to perfection. I make a quick trip to the store. Upon my return, I am horrified to find that my sparkling kitchen floor is now caked in mud. Standing in front of me is an adorable four-year old boy, wearing a happy-to-see-me smile and a pair of muddy boots.  Mystery solved.

However, what if I was hiding under the bed from the criminal that was snooping through our estate, and the only thing I could see of the man who broke into my home, shot my beloved dog, and rummaged through my belongings was that he was wearing a pair of weathered, brown leather workman boots with tattered yellow laces? That is something I would never forget. I would hand that information over to the police in as great detail as possible.

http://www.tidyhouse.info/painting-the-walls-tips-238/

We paint pictures with our words, but we need to know how thick to apply it. Is it blue, is it crimson, or is it the soft pink hue of a baby's wind-chilled cheek? It all depends.

What is your take on details and descriptions? Do you believe less is more, or do you want to be able to picture precisely what the author is picturing? Is writing the descriptions in a story something in which you excel, or do you struggle?

Cycles of a Busy Writer

I honestly believe that once you accept the ebbs and flows of the writing world, the happier you’ll be. When I first started writing it was all I did. It was an all consuming absorption that pulled me away from other things such as fresh air and laundry. (Not minding the laundry so much.) But then it felt like my well was empty. I was terrified that it was writer’s block, or that the 60K words would never be completed into a complete book.

I went on with my life, feeling guilty for every moment that I wasn’t writing. After about a month, I got the bug again and cracked open the manuscript. Within another two months, it was finished. I immediately dove into another WIP, and about a month after that my mom came to visit for an entire week. Once again, I felt guilty for not touching the book, but knew I’d feel even worse to ignore her to spend time with imaginary people. She left, and once again the well was dry.

A month later, edits. I dove back into original WIP and ripped it apart. Once that was done, I started a third WIP. Two months in, school became so overwhelming that I didn’t have time to write anything but the papers that were required of me, leaving me in another period of ignoring my writing to take care of life.

That’s how it happens. We only have so much time in the day, and we can’t do it all. Well, we can do a little of all of it, a lot of some of it, or be submerged in one thing. When I am submerged in writing, my house looks like it has been ransacked by villains, mail piles up into leaning towers, hanging laundry equals piling it on top of the chest in my room, and dust bunnies learn to hop and help themselves to the carrots in the fridge.

Then something happens—life. I’m normally pretty good at balancing family, school, work, and writing. But sometimes unforeseen circumstances (and heck, sometimes planned events) throw my schedule completely off kilter. This time it was a combination of finals, a car wreck, and the removal of a wisdom tooth. No one was hurt in the car wreck, but it did total my car, leading me to car shopping and negotiating with insurance companies. However, the wisdom tooth was a great deal more pain than I had expected, and the meds were not the best for concentrating on writing. Just sayin. Any of these alone, and I probably would have continued plugging away at the newest WIP and the pile of revisions for Iron Thirst, but combined forget it. I lost.

In the past, I would let the guilt eat at me. But I have been doing this long enough that I have learned to trust that I will come back. I will write again. Stopping in order to catch up on life doesn’t mean that I have flaked, it means that other things require my attention more. Then once all is taken care of (including my own sanity), I can continue.

If you are the type of writer that has a full time job and other responsibilities, give yourself permission to stop and take breaks to make sure the rest of your life is not falling down. Writing can become an obsession, and you have to know when to stop long enough to make sure that you are nourishing your relationships, paying your bills, and cleaning--I don’t know--something. (Preferably before you stop showering, the electricity gets cut off, and your dog packs up and leaves.)

You have to be confident in your writing and the ebbs and flows of a writer’s cycle. They are different for each of us. Trust your instincts, and don’t be so hard on yourself if you need a week or two off. But do come back to it. That is key. The book will forgive you when you come back with an invigorated breath and a fresh vision, but it will not forgive if it’s left to collect dust, because you feel that it’s just too hard.

As for me, I wrapped up the line edits for Iron Thirst, and now I’m going to continue my little hiatus in order to put myself back in a good place. After my house and home life is back in order and I find that fresh vision (normally tucked at the bottom of either a great book or warm cup of coffee), then I will embark on the next writing journey. I think next on my list is to pick up either Craving Copper or The Fate Thieves, which have been in time out for a while. They are ready for some TLC. My most recent WIP, The Hunting Moon, is ready to take a little nap so it can work some things out. Two characters are fighting for the role of co-star. Iron Thirst has been fully revised, and is ready to be queried once I am mentally ready to embrace the no’s.

I pray that one day I can give my life to my writing. But until that day comes, I have to share my time with the many hats that I wear. And I’m ok with that. Because I would rather write a little – than not be able to write at all.

So, how do you juggle all that life throws at you and maintain your writing schedule? Do you allow yourself to take mental breaks? How do you motivate yourself to go back to your writing when the break is done?

Watcha Say Wednesday: First Draft

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I am in the happy newlywed stage with my first draft. We hold hands when we go out in public. I want to spend every free minute together. I think about it all the time. Aww! We’re in love.

So, it got me thinking about you guys. Why? Well, cause I love you too. But I’m not holding your hand in public. If first draft gets wind of it, she’ll stop speaking to me for sure.

This week on Watcha Say Wednesday I want to know how you tackle a first draft.

Does your first draft read like an actual book, or does it resemble more of a splotchy outline? Do you start writing at “once upon a time” and end with “happily ever after”, or do you bounce all over the place?

Is there a certain philosophy or style of writing you follow? Or do you make it up as you go along?

Do you plan out the book before you ever begin -- complete with bios on all main characters? Or do you sit down and channel your muse, and fly by the seat of your pants?

Answer what speaks to you, and ignore the rest. But do tell – I’m quite curious.

Randomly Delicious & Blogfest: First Pages

Tomorrow is the last day for the The Keep It Going Contest. Post a comment tallying your entries. Add to the story if you have time. There are multiple ways to win. Don't miss out. Act now. Supplies are limited. Wait,what were we talking about? Oh, yea - sorry, I was momentarily possessed by an infomercial. I'm better now.

BLOGFEST!! Yay!!  Kelly over at Kelly's Compositions has come up with a wonderful idea for a blogfest. As she says, in most blogfests we post excerpts from the middle of our novels. This is a great opportunity to start in the beginning.

This is perfect timing, because I've been thinking about beginnings. This week I started a new WIP, a YA paranormal. And as I tweeted last night (FOLLOW ME), I've had to remind myself not to stress about the beginning in the beginning, because I write a better beginning in the end. That's the only nugget of wisdom that I can share today. Beginning a new WIP, always leaves me feeling quite humbled and terrified. It's like a first date. Is this the one? Do I want to spend all my free time with these characters, this plotline? Is there a better one out there for me? Is this the best for me now? But the answer is quite simply, you'll never know unless you try. Tell the voice of doubt to shut the hell up, and write your heart out.

Back to blogfest. I'm pulling this from my finished WIP, Iron Thirst. The novel has two beginnings: prologue and chapter 1. This excerpt is from chapter 1 where we meet Felicity Johnson. Hope you enjoy.

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Who knew two tiny fangs could be so hard to find? I bought the pair nearly five months ago, and I specifically remember thinking to put them somewhere that I could find them. My room is a complete and utter disaster. I have been through every drawer, emptying the contents onto my bed in search for the last thing needed to complete my costume. I can’t be a vampire without fangs.

            I plop down on the bed, and close my eyes. Where did I put them?

            “Bathroom, second drawer, along with the red contacts,” I say aloud to the ceiling.

             I leap from the bed. Christian will be here any minute, and I want him to see the complete look. I slide open the drawer, and there they sit. I can’t believe I forgot the contacts too. They set me back nearly a hundred bucks.

            I insert the teeth, and begin trying to attach the colored plastic to my eyeballs. I should’ve waited on the eye makeup. I run back to my closet to grab shoes.

Zipping up the knee-high leather boots, I stop by the mirror for one last look. The struggle was well worth it. My eyes glow a bright crimson with black around the edges, as if the fire inside has burnt the curved periphery. I bounce my palm off the spikes of my black pixie wig. The menacing grin is complete with two sharp fangs over my scarlet red lips that look poised to wreak havoc amongst the unsuspecting city of Atlanta.

            Well, the town won’t be that unsuspecting, considering the rest of the people at DragonCon will also be dressed in costumes ranging from Star Trek to Night of the Living Dead.

As I darken the shadows under my eyes to give myself the true undead look, the doorbell rings. I slide down the banister to get to the door--safer than taking the stairs in these boots.

I fling the door open, and there he stands. We both let out a scream and begin cackling at each other. Christian is a yicky-ucky zombie, complete with a tattered, stained, once-white shirt, suspenders, and pants that look as if they had been buried. His normally perfect hair is dirty and a total mess. His skin is painted a weird grayish green, and his mouth is bloodstained. No one would recognize this scary critter as my clean-cut best buddy.

 “Felicity Johnson, you look a-freakin-mazing. I would have never thought that you, of all people, could pull this off.”

I should be offended, but he is quite right. Everyday “me” is not sexy, not scary, and definitely not a vampire.

Can't. Stop. Reading.

What makes a page turner? What about a book keeps you from sleeping?

At some point, each of us has come across a book that has grabbed us by both eyes and not let go. We’ve fought to put it down, and failed horribly. They’ve left us walking into work with dark circles under our eyes. Forced us to spend our lunch hours tearing through as many chapters as possible. Turned us into complete addicts.

Twilight did this to me, and though I loved them, it wasn’t the stellar writing – it was something else. Hunger Games is another that kept me up at night. Let’s go old school – Bridget Jones Diary. So what is it about these books? Are the pages lined with crack?

I went back and looked at some of the books that have done this to me to see what it was that made me cling to them, and choose reading versus a night out on the town.

Characters you genuinely care about – Becoming emotionally invested in a character, will keep you coming back with every spare minute you can muster. You know if it ends poorly—you will need to take a few days off to mourn. A character that you relate to and desperately want to see succeed.

Cliffhangers at the end of chapters – We naturally want to close a book at the end of a chapter versus the middle, but when the chapter ends with a car wreck—we HAVE to know who lives, who dies, and how the heck’s the Ferrari. So, we start the new chapter, and darn now we are back in the middle. Keep reading. Now, the body is missing. Well, where did it go? Next thing you know it’s 3:00 am, and you’re hiding in the closet with a flashlight trying not to wake the rest of the house.

Reverse Arc – A story has a natural arc. Each chapter is generally designed the same, building to the climax and then slowly bringing the reader back down. The reverse arc throws all that out the window- starting with action, covering slower parts in the middle of the chapter, and planting you back at the top of a climax at the end, propelling you into the next chapter.

Forget the drapes - Now, I personally have a tendency of skipping past the pages of beautifully written prose discussing the tiny butterfly pattern that is woven into the blue wallpaper. Couldn’t care less. I want to know where the heck did Hot Guy go, and is he the one holding the bloody knife? Maybe that’s just me, but a book that leaves a reader quivering for more is not doing so because of the mass amount of description. I couldn’t tell you what Bella’s room looked like, but I can tell you there was a vampire hanging out in there.

This can not end well – A storyline that appears to have a definitive ending, one that will crush your soul, but the writer gives you the tiniest inkling of hope--will pull you to the end. You may be reading it while peering through your fingers, but you are reading forward. I give it up to Stephanie Meyer on this one for sure. Breaking Dawn! Hello! ‘Nuff said.

Make ‘em laugh – A book that is just fun to read will make a reader cling to it, and heck, even come back for more. It’s not the same Zombie response of, “Must finish book, have to finish book, Boooook.” But the pages flick by just the same. You know the saying – time flies when you are having fun – well so do the chapters. Bridget Jones Diary was one of the first books that did this to me. I hoped things would work out for her, but laughing out loud alone in the dark is why I could not put that book down.

This list is not complete, but I think it’s a good start. So you tell me ...

What are some other things that glue you to the writing? Do you use any of these page turning techniques in your writing? What’s a book that grabbed you and wouldn’t let you go?

Whatcha Say Wednesday: Indulgent vs. Inspirational

I want to start by saying thank you to everyone that has participated in the contest so far. This story has more twists than a bowl full of s’ghetti. Is Tommy still alive? Will Paw kill Sonya? Is there three legged wooley boogers after all? It’s all up to you.

To add even more fun, I am adding a more defined plus system that will give everyone a chance to enter the contest. DETAILS

VOICE OF DOUBT: You can’t change the rules halfway through the game.
ME: I’m not changing the rules. I’m just giving everybody extra entries and better odds.
VOICE OF DOUBT: Oh, ok. See ya later. Hey, what time you doing revisions?
ME: ‘Bout 9:30 or 10. (Slaps forehead)
VOICE OF DOUBT: Cool. See ya then. I’ll bring wine.

Ok, on with today’s post.

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Whatcha Say Wednesdays are about you. Your thoughts and feelings on a particular subject. Dig in as deep as you wish, or veer off in a new direction. For the comfort of those who would prefer to express their opinions with a sense of privacy, I have turned the anonymous comments back on.

MR. OBVIOUS : Um, you call it Watcha Say Wednesdays, but you’re posting it Tuesday night.
ME: Yes, but that’s so it will be up all day on Wednesday.
MR. OBVIOUS: You could just call it Tell Me Tuesdays.
ME: Yes, but then it would be posted now and there’s barely any Tuesday left. Now, shhh, I’d like to get to the point.

On Friday, I saw a wonderful video on Notes from the Writing Chair. Watch it here. The song and the video touched me very deeply. I believe this is something that we writers and artists often struggle with. After showing the video to many of my friends and family, a line of dialogue opened that led to a light debate on the strength and responsibility of words. And I would love to hear your thoughts and beliefs on the subject.

When is expressing your opinions through your work indulgent vs. inspirational? We all have opinions and beliefs, and authors and artists tend to see the world differently from the rest of the planet. We are given the ability to see our environment with both a bird’s eye view and also the detail of a microscope which makes us that much stronger in our craft.

The question is – when is this expression for us or when is it truly for the benefit of others?

Two extreme contrasts are Lennon’s Imagine vs. when another rock star tells me whom I should vote for in an upcoming election.

Secondly, is there a place for it in Fiction? George Orwell’s Animal Farm comes to mind.

What are your thoughts?

Designed for a Second Reading

*Before I get started on today’s topic, I wanted to inform you that I have been forced to close Anonymous comments. The spam was getting ridiculous. I was starting to receive about five or six per day, and I was deleting them as fast as you can say, “Act now!” But enough is enough. I’ll give it some time, and then try again. We now return you to your irregularly scheduled broadcast*

 (This video can still make me cry laughing)

I am one of those people who only reads books or watches movies once. (With the exception, of course, of TV repeats such as Breakfast Club.) I hardly ever buy DVDs, and could live with only my library card – but my need for “now” and my future dream employment leads me to still buy my books. (Karma thing)
But there are a few books and movies that are specifically designed for a second reading/viewing. I’m going to focus on movies for this post, because it’s more likely that we have all seen my examples rather than books that I might mention.

Two great examples of movies designed for a second viewing are “Fight Club” and “Sixth Sense”. Movies where the ending left you screaming, “Oh. My. God” -- “No Way!” –or-- “Shut the front door!” If you are like me, you started the dang thing over to catch all the clues sprinkled throughout the movie that you couldn’t see before. Clues that were so subtle you wouldn’t have caught them, but now it’s right there like a neon sign.
All of these examples include a big flip. Big Flip = Change that switches the perceived reality of the situation. I love this style, and to be honest – it’s what I want to be when I grow up. If you’ve read my short stories, they have this in common. My manuscript, yep – you guessed it, falls right in line.

The trick is wording and subtlety. The clues must be there, but they need to be invisible and only seen when your readers go through the book the second time. As if by finishing the book, they are handing a special decoder pen that unlocks all the hidden secrets you have tucked inside. An example of where this is not done well is “Hancock”. There are no clues leading up to the big flip. It’s just there. Like the writer said, “Ooo, this would be cool”. You have to appreciate and respect your audience. People will pick your work apart looking for holes and inconsistencies. The entire novel/movie must support the big flip.

But you can’t be too obvious. If people see it coming like a giant flying booger then the effect is lost. It will plop on the page, and your readers will be very disappointed. Superman Returns is a great example of this. The big flip of the boy being his son. My reaction - Duh! That movie is a great representation of plot holes and inconsistencies. You want a lesson on what not to do – watch this movie with a critical eye. Seriously. Sorry, rambling…

I was very fortunate to have the same person read my manuscript twice to help prevent this. (Thank you, Beej! You’re still the best.) The first time she read it, I wanted to know when and if she figured things out or if she had guesses as to what was coming next. My favorite answer was on one particular surprise, “Not until you revealed it in the book.” (Giggle, giggle, girl dance.) Then for round two, I wanted her to see where I put the clues – and she got ‘em. It was awesome to see her draw a big red smiley face by one in particular. (Woohoo! Success.) Sorry that was vague, but I hope that one day you will all read it – and I won’t be my own spoiler.

Have you used this style in any of your work? What’s one of your biggest flips? What’s the worst you’ve ever seen? (Be vague; we don’t want to be spoilers.)