H - Hook

This post will be about hooking the reader. :) I have asked several friends of mine to write for this post, so here are their thoughts on the matter of hooking the reader. (Thanks girls for doing this!)

Writers, make sure to leave a comment sharing your thoughts on the matter. :)

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By Stephanie

H is for Hook.
No, not this kind of Hook. :)

So what is a hook?
And how does one “hook” the reader?

Well, according to the dictionary, hooked is:
Hooked |ho͝okt| 
adjective
1 having a hook or hooks: a hooked gold earring.
2 captivated; absorbed: he was hooked on a video game.
3 (of a rug or mat) made by pulling yarn through canvas with a hook.

And to hook a reader, it’s quite simple, really. The first part is explained by the above definition... you captivate the reader. You make the reader be intrigued and want to read your book. The next part would be how to do captivate/hook the reader. And it all depends on the opening/first chapter of your book.

What would be the best way to captivate a reader at the beginning of a book? Well, DON’T start it out like this (and yes, I’ve done this before when I was a kid):

“The Smith family has 5 kids, and Mom and Dad. Mom and Dad’s name is John and Jane. The kids are Sarah, who is 12, James, who is 10, Mary, who is 8, Tim, who is 6, and Beth, who is 4. They have two dogs, Spot and Buddy. Buddy is all golden color and loves to chase a ball. Spot is old and lazy.”

Kind of uncaptivating, right? Let these kind of details come out naturally in the story. It would be okay to do a sentence like “As soon as twelve-year-old Sarah came downstairs that terrifying morning, she knew something was wrong” in the first paragraph, instead.

 You want the reader to want to know what is going to happen, wonder how this will affect the character, and to feel suspense. Just think, “what kind of opening would get me hooked on this story?”

Cheers,
Stephanie

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by Natalie Noel

I'm the type of person who doesn't like to read unless it's a really good book. As a high school student, writer, and part-time athlete, I just don't want to waste time on a book that is both dull and nonprofitable. So what causes me to pick up a book? What causes me to continue reading it? 
When walking through the library, the number one thing I am drawn to is the title. Once I find a title that looks intriguing, the back cover blurb is the final deciding factor. For me, I will take the book home if it seems to have a strong Christian message, a cute love story, and/or topics that are problems in the current world (abuse, suicide, etc.). 
It takes me a long time to decide which book to read, when I'm ready to start a new book. Often, I decide this by the first sentence. If the book doesn't have something interesting happen before the end of the second chapter, I most likely will put it down--unless the book was recommended by someone; then I'll read more of it.

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by Adriana Gabrielle

What hooks me as a reader? Hmm, thats a hard one because if a book is good, I just continue to read. If a book really doesn’t hook me, I just put it down without any regrets… So I guess I’ll say that what hooks me as a reader would be The story itself.

The plot of the story is one of the things to hook me first. I guess thats not too specific, huh? Maybe it is, I don’t know.

But the plot and how the story starts and where….all that stuff…hooks me instantly if it’s good. You can have great characters and setting and everything but I will usually put down a book if the plot isn’t very good.

So, yeah, as a reader, the plot hooks me the most.

Hi Friends!

Quick note to say that I'd like to get this blog going again, so look for a post in the next week. :)

-Cari

Every Good Word - a blog

Hey guys,

I'm sorry that this blog has kinda... fizzled out. I don't think I'm at a place to pick it up again and keep it going so for now it will just sit here.

Please check out a blog by a fellow writer, called "Every Good Word". I think you'll find some useful posts there. :)

http://www.everygoodword.com/

Long Overdue Update

Hi Writers,

Sorry it's been so long since I posted! Unfortunately, this blog is going to be on vacation for a while. In the meantime, head on over to the newly-formed YA Writers Alumni. :)

-Cari

G - Genre

Hey Writers! Today we have Jonny talking about genres! Enjoy, and don't forget to leave a comment! :)

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G - Genre
by Jonathan

First thing's first. What is a Genre? Merriam Webster's dictionary defines Genre as:

a category of artistic, musical, or literary composition characterized by a particular style, form, or content.

Of course, we're talking about literary genres, since we're writers.

Now, there's a lot of complicated stuff out there about genres, subgenres, and subsubgenres... Technically, there are about five or so literary genres, including fiction, nonfiction, poetry, etc... But, since this blog series has been mainly about fiction writing, we're going to be talking specifically about the subgenres within fiction, such as fantasy, sci-fi, romance, etc.

So even though the post is about Genre, keep in mind that we're technically talking about subgenres within the realm of fiction writing. Now that we've gotten the technicalities out of the way, let's get on to the fun stuff.  

Choosing a Genre
Now there are a few ways you could go about this. One would be to write that story that's been hiding inside of you, and when you're done, see which genre it fits into.  Another would be to choose your genre beforehand, and come up with something cool to write in that genre.

The first one sounds a lot better, but in my personal experience, both can work great. Sometimes you'll know right away what genre you're writing in, and sometimes it's not until the very end after you've done some research that you know what genre your story falls into.

Sometimes it's better to choose beforehand, otherwise you could end up writing all over the place, spanning multiple genres (I did this!).  By choosing a genre first, you know exactly where you're going to be going and what you're going to be doing.  Sometimes it's good to set boundaries for yourself.

But on the other hand, sometimes it's better to just write away and pick a genre later. This allows you to have more freedom in your writing, because you're not tied to down in one genre and restricted to certain types of content.  It's just up to your personal preference, whether you choose your genre before or after. In my personal experience, both work very well.

So, why do you need to choose a genre?  There are several reasons.  

Finding a genre for your writing is important for publishing, selling, and distributing your work. Where will librarians and bookstore owners put your novel if they don't even know what genre it's in? Will it go with mysteries, or with science fiction? These people need to know this stuff. And let's just say that if you don't know what genre your book fits into, you either have a really interesting book, or publishers aren't likely to take you seriously.

Then of course, there's your readers.  Some people only like to read in certain genres, and they won't pick up your book if it's not in the genre they like because it's not in any genre at all. If you write a fantasy story and label it as science fiction, then sci-fi readers might not like it and fantasy readers might not read it.  This scenario may be unrealistic, but the principle still stands.
So not only is it important that you find a genre for your book, it's important that you classify it in the correct genre.

But keep in mind... Genres tend to overlap one another a lot.  So, don't be worried if your story fits into several genres.  It can make your book difficult to classify, but it will definitely make your book interesting if it spans multiple genres.  There are a few hybrid genres out there such as science-fantasy (a cross between sci-fi and fantasy) which are gaining a lot of popularity, so you may want to look into those. I'm currently writing a science-fantasy, and it's really fun.

Though your book needs to fit into a specific genre, you don't have to limit all of your writing to that one genre. You can write books in as many genres as you want. I'm writing historical fiction, science fiction, and fantasy, and I plan on writing in other genres as well. Sometimes it can be wise to stick to writing within certain genres because that's what you're good at, but don't feel restricted to specific genres.

Common Genres
So what are some common genres? Well, there are actually so many genres out there, it's not even funny. I'm going to talk about a few of the more popular ones.

As we saw in our definition, one of the things which characterizes a genre is content, and that is typically the case with fiction writing. Fiction genres, specifically, can be divided into two types: Genres based on setting, and genres based on theme.  Let's start with genres based on setting.

Historical Fiction
Historical fiction is fiction which takes place in a historical setting (pretty straightforward, huh). Historical fiction can be difficult, because you have to do a lot of research about the time period and location in which your story will take place. If you get anything wrong, then some if not all of your readers will notice, and you'll lose credibility.  You want your story to be realistic and believable, and part of that is accurately portraying the time period and location which you're writing about.  You also need to develop your characters really well, because they're supposed to reflect the culture of the century and country in witch they live. Their food, clothing, habits, likes, dislikes, and morals will all be affected by this.

Historical fiction has got to be one of my favorite genres, and I'm a big fan of historian and fiction writer G.A. Henty (you should have heard of him).

Henty wrote 122 works of historical fiction all told, and the majority of them involve a young man experiencing many adventures when he is thrown into the midst of some great historical event; from the building of the pyramids, to the battle of Agincourt, to the Boxer rebellion.

Fantasy
Not to be confused with science-fiction (even though it is all the time), Fantasy stories usually take place in imaginary worlds with imaginary creatures and usually employ a lot of supernatural forces or magic in the plot.  A such, a lot of Christians don't like the fantasy theme, because of the magic.

Easily some of the best-known fantasy books of all time, are J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings series (and don't forget The Hobbit!). They are classified as fantasy because they all take place in the mythical world of Middle Earth, and like Narnia, "magic" plays a vital role in the plot. Tolkien was a Christian, like us. 

Fantasy can be fun because you can basically do whatever you want, and let your imagination loose. but you need to be careful. If you make your story too unbelievable, it will turn some people off.  But you don't want to go off the other end and restrict your imagination, making for a mediocre story.

Science Fiction
Definitely my favorite genre, science fiction is special because it features scientifically conjectural societies, environments, and/or technology heavily in the plot.  Science fiction can actually be a setting genre or a theme genre, or both.  So it's kind of in between.  It can be a setting genre because science fiction books tend to take place in the future, in alternate realities, on other planets, etc. It can be a theme genre because of the heavy use of speculative technology, life-forms, or powers.

Science fiction is a lot like fantasy, but is usually a lot more believable because it usually relies on technology instead of magic to further the plot in interesting ways. But that doesn't mean supernatural powers are completely exempt from sci-fi (Jedi, anyone?).  Like fantasy though, you can pretty much do whatever you want, but again, you have to make it believable.  You may need to brush up on astronomy, physics, or chemistry (I know I had to when writing my sci-f) to help make your sci-fi more credible.

H.G. Wells' War of the Worlds is a good example of classic science fiction. It tells the tale of an invasion of the world (but specifically, of London) by aliens from Mars who use highly advanced tripod walkers armed with death-rays. The use of the speculative aliens and technology is what makes it a science fiction novel.

Moving on, here are some genres based on theme.

Romance
Not my favorite genre, but that's probably because I'm a guy. Romance novels revolve around love and relationships, and usually follow the story of two people and their feelings for one another.

Romance can be difficult to write, because most people (at least, from what I have observed) don't know much about how the opposite sex thinks when it comes to love, and they end up incorrectly portraying the opposite sex. If we apply "write what you know" to this genre, we find that you should probably have experienced a close relationship for yourself before you start writing about one.  If you don't know how the opposite gender 'ticks' when it comes to relationships, and you've never been in love yourself, then any romance you write will probably show it, much to your discredit.  I personally don't like romance, because so much of it promotes sensuality and lust.  But there are some good ones out there, for example:

Jane Austen is probably the most popular romance writer among young Christian writers, and her books are considered classics of romantic fiction.  They fall into the romance genre because they center (for the most part) around the love lives of English ladies a long time ago. Yes, I admit that Pride and Prejudice is the only Jane Austen book I've read... (I know it shows)

Mystery
Another of my favorite genres. Works in this genre almost always revolve around the solving of a mystery (duh), usually a crime case. If unraveling a secret or finding the solution to a crime is central to the plot of your novel or story, then it most likely fits into the mystery genre.

Mystery can be tough to write, because you (usually) don't want your reader to solve the mystery before your character does. So the solution shouldn't be obvious, and the main character shouldn't be an ignoramus (actually, sometimes that can be really funny).  But at the same time, you don't want you character to be unrealistically smart. As always, make it believable.

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes series is easily the best example of mystery fiction. The series follows the life of Doctor Watson as he "helps" detective Sherlock Holmes in solving some of the most puzzling mysteries in England.

Other theme genres include horror (where the purpose is to give the reader a good scare), Thriller (where the purpose is to give the reader a... thrill, duh), Comedy (where the purpose is to give the reader a laugh), and so on.

As you may notice, these "theme" genres can occur within any of the "setting" genres. You can have a science-fiction mystery, a historical romance, a political thriller, whatever. So you could pick two genres: setting and theme. You don't necessarily need two genres; you could have one genre that covers setting and theme or you could have many genres that cover both.

A Cool Genre that young Christian writers should look into...
Apologetics fiction!  Apologetics fiction is distinguished from other genres in that it takes arguments and evidence which supports the Christian faith and presents them through the action and adventure you expect from most fiction genres. It's a theme genre, but transcends most other genres, both theme-based and setting-based. Apologetics fiction can be a useful tool for evangelism, because not a lot of non-Christians want to pick up non-fiction Christian books.

It can be difficult to write (this is becoming a cliche...) because you need to package the apologetics arguments in a way that's not too preachy or that doesn't stop the plot. You aso need to do a lot of research, because hello, you're representing Christ here. Do a good job. You also need to do a lot of research if you're dealing with views opposed to Christianity, because you want to represent them correctly. If you write a book which deals with refuting Evolution, but you don't even know what evolution really is, you will lose tons of credibility -- not only for yourself, but for other Christians. 

 

Keith A. Robinson is a writer of apologetics fiction, and I actually go to hear him give a talk on how to write apologetics fiction. His bookLogic's End presents a story of what life would be like on a planet where evolution and survival of the fittest was played out to it's logical end, showing that the theory evolution just wouldn't work and that Creationism is a superior model. You can learn more about Apologetics fiction here: http://www.apologeticsfiction.com/

So what genres do you write in? What are your favorite genres to read? Share in the comments! :)

F - Forshadowing

This post is by Ana Belen. Thanks sooo much Ana Belen! I really appreciate you writing this! :)

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F- Foreshadowing

by Ana Belen

Foreshadow:

Verb: To show, indicate or present in advance.

In writing, foreshadowing would be to hint at something beforehand. It may be that the author foreshadow s the true colors of an apparent “good-guy” to be anything but!  Or perhaps through foreshadowing, the author may hint at the fact that nothing is what it seems…

For example an example of sinister character foreshadowing:

 In the movie, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, Jadis, the Queen, appears to Edmund to be a kind lady who offers him the position of heir to her throne. But her sudden loss of temper by shouting at him, followed by her quick recovery of a smile and smooth words, foreshadows she is simply manipulating him for her own gains.

As an example of plot foreshadowing:

The movie, National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets, foreshadows its sequel by ending the film with left our information. In it, the President asks Ben Gates to bring him a photograph of page 47 in the fictitious “President’s Secret Book”. The viewer knows nothing of the content of the page and waits in suspense for it to be revealed, but the movie ends with the President saying to Ben “Let’s have a look at that page.” So, (and this isn’t a perfect example) this foreshadows the fact the next movie will be about that page.

As a better example of plot foreshadowing, the book, The Mysterious Benedict Society, begins by telling of a so-called “Emergency” which is published everywhere and everyone seems to believe it. This idea has everyone in complete panic because it says that the entire world system and economy is messed up and needs to be changed completely! But a few, who happen to not listen to the news by watching television or listening to the radio, know this is not true.  This foreshadows the fact that someone is making this up, and sending that idea by way of TV and radio.

Foreshadowing is a difficult topic to write about as it is very dependent on the personality of the author, the genre of the book, as well as its mood and theme. In addition to that, there are MANY variations of it.

For me, (and as may be the case with many teen authors,) I have, so far, never used foreshadowing with conscious purpose in the storyline, but rather, my imagination and the storyline itself weaves it in subconsciously.

For those who write “by the seat of their pants”, as they say, fore shadowing tends to take great precedence in their work. I have written a few things in this way, and noticed that I give little hints at what is truly going on, or who the real ‘bad guy’ is, but, because the story develops as it goes, I give the reader only little bits of information at a time, until, suddenly, it all comes out!

I have also, after finishing my first draft, gone back and wrote in foreshadows, to enhance the work and give it depth.

Because of the little amount of experience that I have in pre-planning to foreshadow certain things, I have been searching around for examples and opinions on this subject.

The following was taken from grammar.about.com:

Note: I have not read the books these excerpts are taken from.

FICTION:

-Foreshadowing can be, in fact, a form of 'back writing.' The writer goes back through the copy and adds foreshadowing to prepare the reader for later events. . . .

"This does not mean that you are going to give away the ending. Think of foreshadowing as setup. The best foreshadowing is subtle and is woven into the story--often in multiple ways. In this fashion, foreshadowing helps build tension and gives resonance and power to the story."

(Lynn Franklin, "Literary Theft: Taking Techniques from the Classics." The Journalist's Craft: A Guide to Writing Better Stories, ed. by Dennis Jackson and John Sweeney. Allworth, 2002)

NON-FICTION

- "With nonfiction, foreshadowing works well, so long as we stay with the facts and not impute motivation or circumstance that never happened. . . . No 'he should have thought . . .' or 'she might have expected . . .' unless we back it up factually."

(William Noble, "Writing Nonfiction--Using Fiction." The Portable Writer's Conference, ed. by Stephen Blake Mettee. Quill Driver Books, 2007)

PERSUASIVE WRITING:

"Foreshadowing can work not only in narrative forms, but also in persuasive writing. A good column or essay has a point, often revealed at the end. Which details can you place early to foreshadow your conclusion?"

(Roy Peter Clark, Writing Tools: 50 Essential Strategies for Every Writer. Little, Brown, 2006)

I will close on a note of warning: Be careful not to reveal too much information! If you do, your climax won’t be as grand and you will kill much of the reader’s suspense. On the other hand, be creative, and think much about how to please your readers as much as possible.

Though, as I have already stated, I am not the most proficient in writing with  foreshadowing, it is for me the thing that makes a book GREAT and thrilling to read, versus simply good.

So USE IT, but carefully!

Go Teen Writers book giveaway at Rachelle Rea!

I don't know if you all know about it, but Go Teen Writers authors Stephanie Morrill and Jill Williamson co-authored a book for teen writers. There's a giveaway going on right now at Rachelle Rea's blog. Go enter! It ends in 6 days! :)