I have no good excuse for taking so long between posts. It does help if I have something to write about, and there's been very little.
One of the most important rules of writing is: Show, don't tell. I usually keep this in mind and seldom fall into the trap of telling. A really good example of showing a situation instead of telling appears in my novel, Prophecy of Honor. If I was to tell it, I would have said that the five Keeps in the Free Lands are named, and the man that is in charge of the keep is titled the same as the name of the Keep. So, the main character, Connor, has the title of Honor because he is the leader of Honor Keep.
But I never told the readers that. I showed them. First, we see almost immediately that his subordinates address him as "Honor." Later, when his friend, Lars, visits, Connor greets him as "Fair" and we find out later that Lars is the leader of Fair Keep. Later still Connor greets the leaders of the other three Keeps by their titles before the ritual is finished and they address each other by name. I showed the custom, gradually. One of the traits of the new or inexperienced writer is to be in a hurry to establish any new or unusual customs, technology, or linguistic characteristics. They do that by telling the reader about them right away instead of having the patience to show the readers in the natural progression of the story.
Apparently I have suffered a regression in my skills because that is exactly what I did.
I was re-reading the first few chapters of Saving Atlantis in preparation for submitting those first chapters to an agent. And I realized I was reading something where I was telling instead of showing. No wonder the agents have all declined. Of course, that might not be the only reason...
So now I must go through the manuscript, make sure that is the only occurrence of this crime, and then fix it.
And, if the word subtraction is enough, I might be able to add one of the subplots back in.
On the reading front, I finished The Waste Lands and have started Wizard and Glass, Book 4 of The Dark Tower series.
And on your reading front, I have Just Lucky, Book 2: Love and Hate available for those that want a signed copy. I've sold several already and answered demand for a few more, including one to Hawaii. And no, it's not going to the volcano.
Thank you for reading, and please continue to do so...my writing or someone else's. If you like humorous mystery, try Anne R. Allen's novels. If you like crime fiction, C. Hope Clark's stuff is very good. If you like fantasy, besides my two novels, Anthony Wedgeworth's Altered Creatures fantasy novels are worth the price and the time. I'm reading one of his most recent creations right now.
Be well.
One of the most important rules of writing is: Show, don't tell. I usually keep this in mind and seldom fall into the trap of telling. A really good example of showing a situation instead of telling appears in my novel, Prophecy of Honor. If I was to tell it, I would have said that the five Keeps in the Free Lands are named, and the man that is in charge of the keep is titled the same as the name of the Keep. So, the main character, Connor, has the title of Honor because he is the leader of Honor Keep.
But I never told the readers that. I showed them. First, we see almost immediately that his subordinates address him as "Honor." Later, when his friend, Lars, visits, Connor greets him as "Fair" and we find out later that Lars is the leader of Fair Keep. Later still Connor greets the leaders of the other three Keeps by their titles before the ritual is finished and they address each other by name. I showed the custom, gradually. One of the traits of the new or inexperienced writer is to be in a hurry to establish any new or unusual customs, technology, or linguistic characteristics. They do that by telling the reader about them right away instead of having the patience to show the readers in the natural progression of the story.
Apparently I have suffered a regression in my skills because that is exactly what I did.
I was re-reading the first few chapters of Saving Atlantis in preparation for submitting those first chapters to an agent. And I realized I was reading something where I was telling instead of showing. No wonder the agents have all declined. Of course, that might not be the only reason...
So now I must go through the manuscript, make sure that is the only occurrence of this crime, and then fix it.
And, if the word subtraction is enough, I might be able to add one of the subplots back in.
On the reading front, I finished The Waste Lands and have started Wizard and Glass, Book 4 of The Dark Tower series.
And on your reading front, I have Just Lucky, Book 2: Love and Hate available for those that want a signed copy. I've sold several already and answered demand for a few more, including one to Hawaii. And no, it's not going to the volcano.
Thank you for reading, and please continue to do so...my writing or someone else's. If you like humorous mystery, try Anne R. Allen's novels. If you like crime fiction, C. Hope Clark's stuff is very good. If you like fantasy, besides my two novels, Anthony Wedgeworth's Altered Creatures fantasy novels are worth the price and the time. I'm reading one of his most recent creations right now.
Be well.
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