Author Archives: mary

If you’re one of our newer readers, you might not know that the Fictorians were formed at the first Superstars Writing Seminar in 2010, or that our regular members are all alumni of the course.

There are lots of writing courses out there. I took a creative writing course in university, which was a great way to explore new ideas, work outside my previous comfort zone, and receive feedback from both my fellow students and my course instructor. But this course didn’t do anything to teach me how to sell the stories that I had written.

Superstars is not a course on how to write. It is a course on how to write as a career.

The best way to learn career craft – how to get an agent, how to read a contract, how royalties work, how to present yourself, how to create buzz about your work, how to turn your hobby into a career – is from the people who do it for a living. That’s what Superstars is all about. The instructors are not making a living from instructing; they’re making a living from writing.

Superstars Writing Seminars took me from a fanfic writer with a desire to publish original fiction, to a multi-published short story writer who now has a book contract.

I was able to go thanks to the generosity of those who helped me afford the trip. We know that not everyone is able to afford the tuition fee, and not everyone is lucky enough to have people in their lives who are able, or willing, to help.

That’s why WordFire Press and Superstars Writing Seminars, with Lisa Mangum as editor, launched the Unicorn Anthologies. Inspired by a quote from Kevin J. Anderson – “if you agree to write a purple unicorn story, write the best purple unicorn story you can; that’s professionalism” – the proceeds from these anthologies goes towards a scholarship fund, named for Superstars alumnus Don Hodge, to assist writers who want to go to the seminar and need help affording the tuition.

One Horn to Rule Them All: A Purple Unicorn Anthology was the first. Now A Game of Horns: A Red Unicorn Anthology is available!

The second anthology focuses on stories involving strong conflicts. Red is the colour of war; the colour of blood; the colour of passion and will. Conflict is an essential aspect of plot. It drives the story forward; it takes place when characters confront obstacles.

My contribution, Queen of the Hidden Way, is the story of Anpu, a royal daughter whose kingdom is under another’s rule. A third player wants to take the throne by capturing and ensorcelling a karkadann, a desert unicorn. With death and treachery all around, Anpu must choose her conflicts wisely, and in the end, decide what battles are truly worth fighting.

You can pick up A Game of Horns on Amazon in either paperback or ebook. Proceeds will help provide Don Hodge Memorial Scholarships for future Superstars attendees in financial need, and provide you with a showcase of the excellent talent of the Superstars.

The Customized Writer

January 21, 2016

mary

Mary Pletsch The Writing Life 2 Comments

Writers are not one-size-fits-all.

That can be the problem with getting writing advice from someone else. One person’s tried-and-true method is an unstustainable nightmare for another.

Many new writers think they’re “doing it wrong,” or there’s “something wrong with them,” if their chosen mentor’s writing advice doesn’t work for them.

Writing advice is an idea. A suggestion. Something to try. If it works for you, great! If it doesn’t work for you, put it back in the pot and try something else.

Most writing advice has a nugget of truth in it, a sort of “moral of the story,” and as long as you keep this “moral” in mind, you’ll know both the reason the rule exists, and the times when you need to break it.

Write every day.

The “moral of the story” is to make writing a habit. Writing careers aren’t born of people who “wait for inspiration to strike” and only get around to actually writing a couple times a year. But every day? For some people, it works well to set aside an hour or two in the evening (or morning) every day to write; for me, getting home from 13 hours at work, I’m burned out. Staying awake to write yielded me 500 words of garbage, and too much fatigue to do well at the next day’s writing. I’ve done much better going straight to bed after a long day, getting up the next morning on a day off, and writing straight through to dinnertime. I get more done writing once in two days than I did when I tried to write every day.

I’m still writing regularly. I’ve still made writing a habit. But I’m not increasing my fatigue by writing on days when I’m sick, or exhausted from long workdays. Running myself into illness is not good for long-term productivity.

Finish what you start.

The “moral of the story” is that you can’t sell unfinished works, and generally speaking, this advice is sound. The writer who’s got 40 partially completed stories on his hard drive, but never submitted anything last year because nothing was done, isn’t learning his craft.

But on the flip side, I know writers who’ve sunk years into struggling to fix a novel that wasn’t working. If you know you’ll be better off cutting your losses and starting on something new, don’t keep running at the brick wall because a piece of advice makes you feel that you should/must. Those writers would’ve done a lot better accepting that their first novel was a “trial run” and taking what they’ve learned into a new creation.

My first attempt at a novel reached 100,000 words. At that point, I was ready to begin Chapter One.

The lesson I learned? I didn’t have a novel. I had five protagonists, six plot lines, and three separate series. I had laid so much ground just establishing the characters, conflicts and setting that I’d run out of book for them to do anything in.

Almost all of the characters and plots in that novel have been “harvested” and used in past and current projects – but not all at once. That first attempt taught me a lot about writing a tight story arc and focusing a book on one or two main characters. And I’ve gotten a lot farther using those lessons and re-using those characters and plots than I would have if I were still trying to write my original vision of an epic space opera…and find a market for it.

Get up early each morning and write.

I am the opposite of a morning person. It takes me a couple hours to wake up enough to not stumble into things, let alone develop the dexterity to type. There’s no way I’m going to be at my best if I: get up at 2 am…wait a couple hours to become alert enough to type…start writing at 4 am…be out the door to work at 6. On this schedule, I’d have to be going to sleep before leaving work if I wanted 8 hours of rest.

If you’re at your best first thing in the morning–then get up each morning and write! For me, I can produce better work in one hour in the midafternoon than in two in the early morning…and I feel healthier besides.

The “moral of the story” is that the best writing time is when you’re at your most alert and when you’ve got some privacy to focus on your writing. Find that at the time of day that works for you.

By all means, look to your favourite writers to find out what they do. You might find a new method that boosts your productivity, or an idea you hadn’t thought of before. But if that tip isn’t working, it’s time to think about why that person uses that tip, and whether there’s a way to adapt it that makes more sense for you. There is no one way to be a writer. You need to find the way for you to be a writer–the method that works for your unique needs and style.

I don’t want to know that sometimes it’s who I know.

December 11, 2015

mary

Mary Pletsch Networking The Writing Life 1 Comment

I’m an introvert. Growing up, I liked to believe that I could accomplish my goals via my own efforts, and I didn’t need anyone else’s help (for fear it would only come with strings attached). So when I first started hearing about “networking,” I cringed. I was sure that professional writers were tired of being pestered by newbies who wanted favors, and I feared that my fellow authors were “competition,” the people I would have to beat if I wanted to be published.

My experiences with networking haven’t been like that at all.

Firstly, it takes more than one writer to fill an anthology. And more than one writer to contribute to a magazine. And more than one writer to fill a publishing company’s needs. Writing is not a race that will only be won by the first person past the finish line. In fact, when you’re a writer and you need a hand, the people you’ll turn to – the people who can offer you contacts and introductions and support and advice – are your fellow writers.

I’m here writing on this blog because I went to Superstars Writing Seminars in 2010. I went to Superstars because another friend of mine, a published author, recommended it to me. I’ve published short stories in “Game of Horns: A Red Unicorn Anthology” and “One Horn to Rule Them All: A Purple Unicorn Anthology,” and I still can’t believe I’m seeing my name on the list of contributors along with Peter S. Beagle, author of “The Last Unicorn,” a movie I’ve loved since childhood.

None of that would’ve happened if I hadn’t known the right people. And I would never have known them if I hadn’t talked to my fellow writers.

“Knowing the right people” can be frustrating. It takes more to make friends and contacts than simply the desire to have them. You need to go out–preferably not with the mindset of “catching a contact who can do things for me.”

Put yourself out there with the intent of getting to know some people with the same interests as you. You might not click with everyone, and that’s okay. Everyone has some people who are close friends, some people who are casual acquaintances, some people they have little in common with — and that’s okay. Keep going. Keep meeting new people. Keep reaching out.

Reaching out might not always involve face to face socializing. The person who recommended Superstars to me was someone I’d first started chatting with on an online message board. Face-to-face is often easier, but if health, money, or other factors make it difficult, online contacts can get you started.

Look for writers’ groups in your area. If there aren’t any that meet your needs, consider starting one. Go to conventions, if you can afford to do so–and affording gets a lot easier when you have friends who will let you stay and/or travel with them (thanks Marie and Kerri!)

If you’ve got a friend who’s a big-name author, remember first and foremost this person is your friend. Not your “awesome inside source,” not a name-drop to impress people, not Santa Claus (write them a wish list and wait for them to fulfill it). Treat your contacts as people first.

I have an exciting project that will be the focus of my writing in 2016. I’m not yet free to talk about it (contractual obligations) but once again, it’s a project that has come to me because of who I know. Being able to write the kind of stories I tell is important too–don’t get me wrong! Two of my previous short stories in particular were very helpful in proving that I’d be up to this project. But in the end, it was the recommendation of a fellow writer that first brought me to the attention of the project lead.

Stay tuned – I’ve got big news coming in 2016 ! Have a great holiday season and a prosperous New Year.

Blurbs: Baiting Your Hooks

November 12, 2015

mary

Mary Pletsch Non-fiction writing The Writing Life No Comments

Have you ever seen an interesting-looking book cover and turned the book over to read the bit on the back? Or have you ever been browsing online and scrolled down to the paragraph that tells you what the book’s about? Those short paragraphs are called “blurbs,” and they’re almost as important as the story itself. Readers check them out to decide if your book is the sort of story they’d be interested in reading.

If you’re self-publishing, you’ll definitely need to learn how to write an enticing blurb. But even if you’re hoping to be traditionally published, it’s a useful skill to have. When I made my most recent novel pitch, I was asked to provide a blurb that would introduce the main characters, the principal conflict, and a “hook” that would make my audience want to read more. If I couldn’t get the publisher (agent, editor, etc) interested in my story, how could I convince them that readers would be interested?

I want to emphasize that a blurb and a summary are not the same thing. If you’re asked to provide a summary, the publisher/agent/editor wants to know your entire story, including how the plot will be resolved at the end. Unanswered “hook” questions (“how will Ali save the kingdom now?”) are frustrating and unprofessional in a summary.

Blurbs, directed to your potential readers, are different. If the blurb explains how the story ends, it will be the opposite of enticing–why bother reading the book if the back spoils the surprise? The point of the blurb is to give the reader some basic information about the start of the story you’re telling, let them know what kind of story it is, and make them eager to find out what happens next. Blurbs and summaries serve different functions, even though both describe “what the story is about.”

I learned to write blurbs thanks to the folks at Dreamspinner Press, who published my short story “Ace of Hearts” in their steampunk romance anthology, “Steamed Up.” Dreamspinner requests that authors provide blurbs for short stories as well as novels and novellas. Even though the blurbs aren’t used “on the back of the book,” they do provide the company with material they can use to market the story and the anthology.

Blurbs need to be tightly focused. Dreamspinner suggests approximately five sentences: long enough to give an idea of the story’s flavour, short enough to skim. Blurbs aren’t a place for world building, minor characters, or other small details. Keep your focus on the most important factors:

Who is/are your main characters?
What is their primary goal? What major challenges do they face in achieving that goal?
Where is the story set? Sometimes the setting hints at the genre (a spaceship might be science fiction, for example, and a magical kingdom is definitely fantasy). If it doesn’t, be sure the blurb gives some clue as to the genre.
What kind of story is this (action, romance, horror, mystery, etc)? This may be different then genre. It’s possible to have a romance about werewolves, or a fantasy story where the plot revolves around a murder mystery.
What will the reader feel: Fear? Romance? Excitement? Curiosity?

If your book has a specialty theme, let your readers know! (ie, if it’s a historical romance but also a pirate story, the blurb should make that clear. You want readers looking for pirate stories to know that your book qualifies!)

When you edit your blurb, ask yourself:

Do I have a feel for who the main character(s) are – not just names, but who they are as a person?
Do I know where these characters are “starting out from” and what they hope to accomplish?
Do I know what obstacles are in their way?
Do I know what sort of story I’m about to read – not just genre, but tone (rollicking adventure? Dark and gritty? Scary and creepy? Humorous? Tragic?)

Most importantly: does this blurb make me want to read more?

Here’s my blurb for “Ace of Hearts.” “Ace” is a romance between a pilot and a mechanic, told in the tradition of the old British boys’ adventure stories. The story’s set in a steampunk alternate universe during the time of the First World War.

Barred from serving as a professional pilot due to a childhood injury, aircraft mechanic William Pettigrew nevertheless finds himself caught up in the political conflict between his home nation of Albion and the enemy Boche. When he meets dirigible ace Captain James Hinson, William can’t quite muster the courage to confess his attraction, nor does he have the self-confidence to interpret James’ advances as anything more than friendliness. Then James is shot down over enemy territory, and squadron command seems reluctant to go to his rescue. William finds his courage put to the test as he is forced to decide between loyalty to his chain of command, or taking a gamble on love.