Sagging Middle Syndrome

I have been tromping through this draft with all the grace and delicacy of a grasshopper stuck in tar this week month. It finally occurred to me that what I'm dealing with is Sagging Middle Syndrome.

All writers face this, I know. I don't need to preach to the choir.

I decided to read up on some tips for fixing a sad, saggy middle, and in an effort to internalize the pointers (and avoid my story for *that much* longer), I'm going to share them with you.

Tip #1: When blogging about Sagging Middle Syndrome, don't make jokes about your own saggy stomach. Because everyone else who is blogging about SMS has already made that joke.

Tip #2: Tension. Build it. It's like blowing up a balloon: don't let it go too soon or it will skitter across the room making fart noises and land in a rumpled heap. Or something. Someone make that work. *delegates someone*

Tip #3: This is where your subplots get to take center stage. For just a little while, at least. This is where you change gears and let other bits of the story, besides the main conflict, come out to play.

Tip #4: Raise the stakes. This is kind of like building tension. And kind of not. Make your protag fail. Rain consequences down upon their head! Let relationships form and strengthen, and then make trouble for them.

So now, I beg. Someone who has seen the other side of SMS: what advice can you give us floundering grasshoppers?

What's Really Important

I recently came across an old notebook, the one I was using when I wrote the first draft of my current WIP (the WIP fondly known as "The Story That's Trying to Kill Me") (more on that another day). Along with some utterly embarrassing story snippets that I thought back then were pure gold, I found a list I wrote called "The Important Points of the First Ten Chapters."

The reason I made this list was because I had just realized my story started at the wrong place. I'd read a blog post that suggested making a list to see what really needed to be included and going from there. So, with that brilliant idea, and my equally brilliant and creative list title, I did that.

Guys.

It's been over a year since I made that list, and my beginning is finally (hopefully) where it should be, but on a list of over twenty important points, guess how many are still in the story?

Four. Yes, four little things that have survived the hacking and slashing and ugly weeping of six more drafts. It was amazing to me to see how much my story had changed. And it's not just changing, it's improving. Very encouraging.

It made me think of this post by Natalie Whipple about the malleability of stories. Things might feel so important and key to our plot, but if they're not working out, you know, it's okay. It's okay, guys.

Now. I'm going to chant that to myself as I go back to kneeling in front of my laptop, begging this WIP to cooperate. Malleability. I got this.

Guest Post-age!

I'm over at Shelly and Chad's blog today, sharing my love for these guys

Disclaimer: This Night Fury isn't mine. But I wish it was.

and sharing how they helped me shape my story's beginning. So go, check it out. (Please?)

In other news, I've decided I'm going to paint my piano. Like this:

Nice, yeah?

Or maybe this:

*drool*

Any color suggestions?

Links and A Thought Frenzy

Let's DO THIS THING!!

GUYS.

I don't know what's come over me this week. Suddenly, I'm making plans. And setting ginormous amounts of goals. And writing out lists and charts to make said goals and plans actually happen!

I think this is a good time to write out my goals, too, because I just found out about March Madness happening over at Denise Jaden's blog. It starts today, which is perfect, because I'm totally in a goal making/bashing/dominating mood! It's all about accountability and encouraging each other, so here are my goals:

• Write 1500 words a day**. Since I have about 3 hours a day I can block off for writing, I have to average 500 words an hour. That means no Internet or fridge breaks during that time. I will also drink lots of water and refuse to take potty breaks in an attempt to write faster.
• Blog twice weekly. And think of things to blog about. Speaking of, I read an excellent post about this very thing yesterday.
• Keep up (and catch up) on CP critiques. YOU HEAR THAT, LADIES? I'M ON MY WAY! *clicks on editing tools* *cracks knuckles* *spits*

Aaaand, in the spirit of blog linkage, here is one more: Elodie is giving away two books to one lucky person, one for you and one for someone younger than you, so you can share your love of reading. How awesome is that?

So, that's how my March is shaping up. How about you?

**This goal will help me get halfway to my goal of finishing this draft of my MS by May 1st, so that I'll at least have something to work with if I decide to go to the LDS Storymakers Conference. (Any thoughts on this conference? Would it be worth the five-hour trip? Are any of YOU going? *friendly creepy eyes*)

Dirty Houses and Messy Manuscripts

In the past six months, I've had the chance to meet two awesome women, my CP/BFFs Christine and Julie.

I know what you're thinking.

Yes, they are as awesome in real life as they seem online. Yes, I am actually taller than Julie. Yes, Christine does make the most a-MAH-zing scrambled eggs.

And no, I didn't watch them sleep (tempting) or hold them hostage in my crawl space when it was time for them to leave (also tempting).

When Julie came, I had just moved into my new house (living there for over a month still counts as JUST moving, right?) and there were still boxes everywhere. Within five minutes of our meeting, I had her and her husband helping me stuff boxes in a closet so we'd have room to hang out.

When Christine was here, she did my dishes on more than one occasion. She also babysat my kids while I picked my husband up from work.

Although our visits were--overall--super fun, I mention these lame things because inviting your best friend into your disheveled house is kind of like turning over your disheveled MS to a crit partner. It's not perfect. There are rough spots. There are embarrassing parts. There are things that don't work. But it's okay, because they are your friend, they love you, and they're there to help.

Turning a rough draft over for anyone to read is hard, but giving it to someone who cares about you takes away some of the pain. They have your best interest at heart. They don't want you to strain your back carrying those heavy boxes by yourself. They want you to try eating crab that's cooked right so you can get over your seafood phobia. And they want your story to be the best it can be.

It might be mortifying at times. It might make you feel like a dork. But, when the boxes are cleared, the dishes are dry, and the manuscript is fresh and tight and beautiful, you see that the most daunting tasks are better with a friend or two.

Signs You're Not Ready to Query

Way back when I was riding on a high of finishing my first draft, aka ohmylandsthebeststoryEVER, I took the next obvious step and began researching agents.

Because, you know, I was ready. Heh.

I found an agent who was looking for my book. She didn't know it, but I had EXACTLY what she wanted. I planned to do a read-through, catch grammatical errors and misspellings, and send my manuscript on it's merry way to the bestsellers list.

Thankfully, at about the same time, I met my first critique partner, Christine. If you don't know her, go check her out NOW. My words can wait. She's brills for reals, guys. (I just made that up. Is it funny to anyone else?) More on the awesomeness that crit partners are later, but to sum up, after I sent her some of my perfect story, she very kindly but very firmly sent me back a "This isn't working." It wasn't ready yet. I had a lot of changes that needed to be made.

Since then, my first draft has been relegated to the File of No, where all first drafts belong. And even though it's painful to read now, I'm glad to be able to see all I've learned since I wrote it. Hopefully, I'll know when I'm ready to query for real someday.

So, compliments of my first draft (and a few other stories), here are signs your manuscript isn't ready to be queried:

• Your own mother doesn't even finish reading the entire draft.
• It starts with waking up.
• Your protagonist has to look in the mirror and reassess that she still has sparkling blue eyes just a shade darker than the Mediterranean, white-blonde, wavy hair with that one crazy kink by her right ear, and the slight dimple in her chin.
• The climax is a very earnest discussion with the antagonist where everyone politely agrees to disagree.

What are some ways you knew you weren't ready to query?

I've Been Writing. Just Not Here.

When putting the new button for Julie's Oh, The Early Work blogfest/giveaway (now extended to October 28th!) on my sidebar, I noticed my blog archives, and the sorry amount of posts I've written for September and October. (Don't look. Seriously.)

It's just that, after months of feeling like this:

O_o

about my WIP, I suddenly feel more like this:

Which is creepy, but exciting, right?

So, with my newly sprouted mini-hands, I've been writing about this:

 and including some of this:

set someplace like this:

Not forgetting some of this:

And for dessert, THIS:

Because seriously. Good. Heavens. YES.

BUT!!!!

On Friday, Bilbo and I have an announcement!

 Come back and find out more about my Eleventy-First Follower Giveaway Extraordinasticganza! It will be all sorts of awesome and preciousssss....

Until then, I will be staring at that kissing picture WRITING!!

Fantasy Casting Call: Who Would Play Your Love-Interest?

*If you missed the rest of this series because of a little thing called WriteOnCon, you can find my fantasy MC pick here and my villain here.


This one is so easy for me.

Aiden is sixteen. He's Tenny's next door neighbor and best friend. He's funny, hotheaded, cute, an excellent liar, and...he can't sing like Blake. Or CAN he?

The obvious choice, because his voice inspired my entire story, is Asher Book.

Guys, have you heard him sing??

Not that Aiden sings. I mean, maybe he does. It's a mystery...

Aiden is also an Eagle Scout. These are his badges. He loves to hike. And rock climb.

And he's always more than willing to help helpless people cross the street.

He's a deep-thinker. And he communes with nature on a regular basis.

And if that's not enough, guys, have you heard him sing? This is the scene that started it all.

Who would play your love-interest?

Fantasy Casting Call: Who Would Play Your Villain?

The villain in my story is a seventeen-year-old boy named Blake. Blake is HOT, you guys. He's charismatic. Remember how music is important in my story? Well, Blake sings. Awesomeness seeps out of his pores.

Also, he's a total poser.

That's right. He may be hot and charismatic and able to sing angels to shame, but he's a creep.

Since music is such a big part of my story, I went off the beaten path and cast this one with my ears.

I would choose Kris Allen.

Because really, you shouldn't trust someone who's that nice AND that good-looking.

Amiright?

Nice try, Blake, but I know better.

Now, we know he can do charisma, but can he do mean? I'm thinking yes. You wouldn't believe how impossible it is to get a picture of this guy not smiling or looking goofy, though.

This will have to do:

What dastardly plans are you forming behind that pretty face, Blake? Don't make me send Tenny after you!

*ahem* I'm not flirting with the villain. I'm not.

So, who would play your villain?

Fantasy Casting Call: Who Would Play Your MC?

This series shamelessly yoinked from Christine Tyler.

I'm sure I'm not the only person who daydreams about who will would play their characters when if their book ever forthelove gets published and makes it to the big screen.

Am I?

Nope, didn't think so. In fact, I waste a lot of time Googling pictures of different actors, agonizing over the different choices so much you'd think it was my sworn duty to find actors IMMEDIATELY to fill the roles of the characters in my...thus far rough, rough first draft story. *cough* Don't worry, I'm working on it. Any day now.

My main character is a sixteen-year-old girl named Tenny. She loves music, and music is a huge part of the story. She's friendly and level-headed, with a girl-next-door vibe, but also naive and yeah, a bit spoiled. She also has an ethereal look about her that makes her freaky at all the right times.

For her I would choose Annasophia Robb.

Not only is she lovely, she's tomboyish, too!

And, she can bring the attitude. BRING IT.

Don't mess with her when she's in this mood. Or if you're the bad guy.

I think Annasophia (did you guys know she pronounces it "AHH-nuh"? I didn't, but it makes me like her even more.) could do it all.

The pretty:

The quirky:

And the cool:

Who would play your MC?

The Fortune-Telling Monkey On My Back

Did you know there is no fortune-telling monkey in the newest Disney movie "Tangled?"

You did? Me, too.

BUT.

Did you know there used to be?

So THAT'S who drank my caramel-apple cider.

I was watching the special features on the DVD the other day, and one of the deleted scenes was a quirky bit where they run into a gypsy and her pet monkey, who just happens to tell the future. It was cute. It was entertaining. But, I could see the parts of the story that it told, and I thought, "Huh. They don't really need that monkey."

I kind of held my knees up against my chest and rocked back and forth in excitement, because my story used to have a fortune-telling monkey, too!

No, not really.

But kind of.

My first draft had some scenes that I reallyreallyreally liked. Only problem is, they didn't drive my plot forward. They were simply episodic. Cute, funny banter, or thoughtful, empty prose. Sure, if I turned my head a certain way and squinted my eyes, they served a purpose. I guess...

I've cut most of them, but it wasn't as painful as I thought it would be. The funniest banter finds its way back in, one way or another. The details that made those scenes "important" in the first place have usually been shown somewhere else.

So if you notice a cute, fortune-telling monkey in your story that doesn't quite fit, don't be afraid to cut it. Your story will be great without it, I promise!

Now lanterns, on the other hand...My story must.have.floating.lanterns.

The truth about first drafts.

Next time I start the first draft of a story, this is going to be my opening line:

Dear Jeigh,

Because I've noticed that a lot of the things that I write seem to be more a conversation between me and my characters, or me and my voice (aauugghh, the vooooices!) as we pound out this story.  I can almost picture myself lounging in the sand with A and T, and T is like, "Oh, remember how this is a theme throughout the story?  So I'll just mention it here so we remember."

(And A is like, "T, you're so dang hot."  Because A can never concentrate when T is around.)

When I start to revise my first draft, I read these reminder things and think to myself, "T would never talk like that.  Or think about that in such a conscious way.  Let's make that more subtle, shalllll we?"

And there's always the stuff that's just thrown in at the end, because I remember how I wanted this really cool element or that sparkling prose, but really it just looks like I threw it in there offhandedly.  Which I did.  But move it over here, and oooh, look how that opens everything up!

So remember, first drafts are for writing notes to yourself, and letting your characters grow into themselves and add their input.  Then you can go back and see what really needs to be there.

And A, you're not looking too bad yourself.  Just sayin.

Critique Partners

So, you've finished your first draft, eh?  Ready to send it to agents, you think?  Because it's free of grammatical errors?  Eh?  Should I write this entire post in questions?  No?

Fine.  But one more question...

What is the next step after you've written a whole, entire book?

If you haven't already, find some critique partners.  Seriously.  And in fact, if this is the point you're at, you should go to Natalie Whipple's excellent blog, where she's organizing a sort of critique partner classifieds.  Hurry, though, because she's only accepting applicants through Saturday!

Now, I've heard many people balk at the idea of finding critique partners online.  I get that.  There is a certain creep-factor to it.  How do you know who you're really talking to?  Can you trust someone else to read your work without pirating it?  Leaking it?  Laughing at it??

Slow down, champ.  You can.

First off, I would start by checking out other people who are reading and commenting on the same blogs as you.  Read comments.  See if something they say resonates with you, if they take the words out of you mouth, or seem like a cool person.  Most people checking out writing blogs have their own blog, and you can usually click on over and check them out.  This is how I found my first crit buddy.  My second crit buddy found me the same way.

If you find someone who seems like they might be on the same page as you, or in the same stage of writing as you, speak up!  Leave a comment on their blog.  Contact them via email.  You don't have to send a sample of your work, and in fact, I wouldn't.  Get to know them.  See if it would be a good fit.  You should be able to tell after a conversation.  If not, you still have a new writerly friend, and those are important, too.

If you both agree to try critiquing, send a sample of your writing and a summary of your plot.  This is important, to make sure you feel a connection with their book.  You don't have to fall completely, head-over-heels in love with the sample, but if all you think is, "Meh." then you probably won't be able to give them the kind of feedback they need.  At this point, if things don't work out and one of you wants to back out, don't take it personally.  There's lots of different genres for a reason.  Not everyone likes to read the same things. 

So, if things work out and you have a new, shiny crit buddy, what should you look for in a critique?  That can vary, depending on what kind of critique you're looking for, but I'll share what I look for.  I feel it's possible to get a tough critique that doesn't leave you feeling terrible about yourself.

In the first crit I got, my crit buddy actually hated my main character by the end of the chapter!  She told me as much, but then she gave me very specific reasons and pointed out that it wasn't so much the character as it was her reactions to certain things.  In my quest to make her seem flawed, I went a tad overboard, to say the least, and it didn't translate well.  My crit partner didn't tell me what to change.  She just showed me what wasn't working and trusted that I would know what to do about it.  It was hard to swallow.  I liked the character.  I still like her.  But seeing someone else's perspective on it was eye-opening, and now the character is better for it.

Also important is that they point out what does work.  We all like to hear that the sentence we love to read over and over is as awesome as we thought, right?  Or that certain character traits, subplots, plot twists, etc., are smashing?  Crit buddies don't just have to be critical.  They can ego boost, too.

I mentioned that my crit buddies point out what isn't working and trust me to know how to fix it.  This is big.  If you get a crit partner who tells you exactly how you should change your story and has a tantrum if you don't do it their way, run.

On the other hand, take their suggestions seriously.  They like your story, but they didn't birth it, so they're able to give you a more objective point of view.  And they can read it with fresh eyes, as someone who doesn't have the rest of the plot stuffed in their brain.  If your crit partners are invested in your story, their feedback will be for the good of your story.  

So, go!  Find some critique partners!  Your first draft will thank you.