I’m eager to see what the beholder thinks with these colorful characters

Wood Carving is like Writing – I Create Colorful Characters

Colorful Characters Come Alive

Woodcarvings play a colorful role in my Santa Keeper Mystery series. I write magical realism mysteries in which woodcarvings come to life. Magical realism is to accept magic in the rational world. Also, each unique piece is hand carved and next to impossible to duplicate. This is the magic of the unique figure.

Since I specialize in Santa Claus carvings, July is the time to prepare for my busy season. In August, I put all my other projects down and carve Santas and other Christmas holiday figures. I need to have a large inventory to fulfill the fall and winter markets. I use the summertime to design and create new pieces. By autumn I will have a good selection for the customers. This is much like finding time to start a new story.

Wood carving is an art, much like the art of writing stories. Let’s analyze to see if this is true.

Designing New Pieces

I create new designs to keep my inventory fresh, like brainstorming a new story. I can get ideas for new designs by observing other artist’s mediums such as their paintings, illustrations and photos. Observing other artist’s perspective makes the new design fresh and exciting. I look for color trends, decorative embellishments, repeated patterns and new techniques. I have other inspirations that come from many sources like: nature, wall paper, catalogs and others. Interesting, I also use so many points of observations to hone in a new character.

For example, I have a coffee mug sitting on my paint table right now so I can look at the pattern. The decorative border that runs around the mug also has an interesting pattern. I want to imitate the color and design on a Santa’s coat trim. It won’t be an exact imitation but more of an inspiration. Last year I purchased an old ugly sweater at a garage sale for two dollars. I examined a row of snowmen dancing across the chest. The sweater is ugly but the snowmen pattern is cute.

Once I have a design in mind I sketch it out with pencil and paper. I keep in mind the nature of wood to create a superb design. Once I have a design I create a pattern and cut it out to apply to the wood.

Wood

For most of my carvings I use basswood, also known as American linden. The wood is pale tan with fine close grain. A wood carver can cut into basswood with ease with hand tools and chisels. My basswood comes from northern Minnesota. The best time to harvest basswood is in February when it is cold and the sap is not running. The cut pieces are air-dried or kiln dried.

For my Santa carvings, I will find a piece suitable in size and carve-ability. Most of my Santa carvings are between 8 to 12 inches in height.

I attached the paper pattern with glue or tape and trace the outline of the pattern on to the wood. I then go to the band saw and cut out the rough shape. This would be like the drafting process. I know where the completed work needs to go from here.

Tools

Like a writer who has many tools to complete her story, I also use hand tools to carve such as knives, chisels, gouges and pencils. Some carvers use power rotary tools. I use power tools only when I want to carve harder woods like walnut, cherry, oak, maple, or ash. Keeping the tools sharp is important for the ease of carving and to make clean cuts. Tools must also be sharp for safety. I use a pencil to establish the center lines and mark the wood where I plan to cut. The center line shows the carver direction to make cut. If I ignore the center line the carving may come out lopsided.

There are many rules and guidelines to follow when carving faces. I want to keep the wood carved face anatomical correct to insure a balanced face. I observe the width of the eyes, how to place and shape the ear and the width of the mouth as a few points of measurements. There are many levels of reality when carving faces. Some faces are caricatures, realistic or distorted to achieve humor or fright. With Santa carvings, the expression is important. A carving with a Santa expression of a ‘jolly old elf’ is the most desirable. As in writing, describing the right expression will add realism to your character.

Painting and Finishing

Before I paint I clean the finished carving and give it a protective finish before I paint. Next, I use acrylic paints to color and enhance the wood carving. I have taken several painting classes to learn techniques to gain confidence. Some of my carving colleagues fear the painting process. They have storage bins of unfinished and unpainted woodcarvings. Painting a piece is a challenge and a pleasure, like creating colorful characters when I write. I can’t wait to try new color combinations and designs. Like a character for my stories, there are many layers to his personality and helps make the story have more depth.

Once the paint is dry I spray on another protective coat. Then I apply a stain or colored wax to achieve an antique look. I buff the carving when I’m finished. All that’s left is to enter the carving into inventory, price the carving and place that carving in the box ready for sale. I have a sense of accomplishment finishing a carving like finishing a story. I’m eager to see what the beholder thinks.

Time

Many times, people ask me how long it takes to carve a Santa. This question is difficult because there are so many steps involved to finish the carving. The answer depends on size, level of difficulty and my daily interruptions. And in my case whether the carvings speak to me or not – they can be so distracting.

Carving Santa characters is much like creating a story and the characters involved. With both, I start with nothing and create something alive and have meaning. Both should, and I hope give joy to those who possess my work. Well, back to carving the next.

The Writing Thief: Using Mentor Texts to Teach the Craft of Writing

 

A book in itself is unlikely to make or break you, but it is a powerful extension of your business or blog. More…

Tell everyone about your stories. More…

Need more help brainstorm the character traits in your story? More…

Don’t forget to edit your colorful character’s story. Do you use too many adverbs? Are you using the right words to describe them? More …

Start Writing Now – This book is for the dreamers who say one day they will write their stories and become a writer. Then they forget their dreams of writing. But they can write now – write those stories now. I mean right now.

How Not To Write A One Star Novel – Do you want to create a five star novel? Learn from other writers’ mistakes and prevent yourself from receiving any one star reviews for you hard work. Here is your free e-book.

R. M. Scott Author Site

On the cruise Cora and Willie meet two young English archaeologists.

The Missing Jackal Mystery – The Cora Chronicles

The Cora Chronicles

It’s 1926. Cora Gudmundson will not yield to the pressures of marriage and forced to settle down like a proper lady of the time. Cora wants a life of adventure. She saves her money and books a cruise to London on her own. Her mother becomes appalled but her father agrees to let her go. Cora’s travel coordinator pares her up with a woman named Willie who is on the run from her abusive husband. The two become friends.

On the cruise Cora and Willie meet two young English archaeologists. One is Archie Thorogood who becomes intrigued by Cora’s adventurous personality. Brandon Williamson catches Willies’ eye. They are returning to London with a valuable Egyptian artifact locked in a black case identical to the case Cora is carrying. Her case contains two of the magical woodcarvings her family has been honor bound to protect for over 600 years. These two live woodcarvings, Arve and Ola, known as villagers, have been Cora’s friends and confidants all her life. The two friends want to share her adventure.

Now Starts The Troubles

Upon arrival in London two ruffians run off with the two identical cases. From the docks Cora and Archie goes on a mad chase through the streets of London.  They return, without their cases, to find Brandon murdered. Armed only with wits and daring, Cora joins with the remaining archaeologist, Archie Thorogood. They hunt down their cases with the priceless treasures inside. Can she trust Archie? Can they avoid arrest by Scotland Yard for interfering in a murder investigation? Will they solve the murder without falling victims themselves, or worse, fall in love?

The Missing Jackal Murder is the first in the Cora Chronicles mystery series. Each standalone story features Cora’s adventures around the globe and always includes a devious and twisting murder mystery. If that’s not all, Cora encounters a mysterious magical or mystical creature to make the journey difficult.

The Missing Jackal Murder (The Cora Chronicles Book 1)

 

A book in itself is unlikely to make or break you, but it is a powerful extension of your business or blog. More…

Tell everyone about your stories. More…

Need more help brainstorm the character traits in your story? More…

Don’t forget to edit your colorful character’s story. Do you use too many adverbs? Are you using the right words to describe them? More …

Start Writing Now – This book is for the dreamers who say one day they will write their stories and become a writer. Then they forget their dreams of writing. But they can write now – write those stories now. I mean right now.

How Not To Write A One Star Novel – Do you want to create a five star novel? Learn from other writers’ mistakes and prevent yourself from receiving any one star reviews for you hard work. Here is your free e-book.

R. M. Scott Author Site

This is the second installment of the Santa Keeper Mysteries with Julia

Julia’s Secret Mission

Julia Must Retrieve Magical Items

As an agent for M-3, a top secret non-government organization, Julia Halvorsen has completed numerous missions to secure dangerous magical items. But from the start her personal, secret mission was to find and punish Oluf. He is the man who used a magical item to kill her husband and father. However, an unexpected encounter with her estranged daughter, Christina, changes her mission’s obsession.

Will she reconnect with those she loved and abandoned years ago? Is it too late? Will Oluf take advantage of her lapse of vigilance to finish the job he started? Will he kill her and destroy the magic her family is honor-bound to protect?

This is the second installment of the Santa Keeper Mysteries.

New characters, new story. Julia must reevaluate her past relationship with her current partner Thomas Colson. Despite his hansom Native American features Julia finds their relationship impossible because of Thomas’ past. Will his friends and colleagues from M-3 help or hinder Julia’s path with Thomas and Oluf?

And let’s not forget Nicholas and Astrid’s meddlesome nature that will put one of them in danger. And what will Agar say about all this? Will Julia finally catch Oluf? Will her abandonment from Christina be worth it? Julia’s live will be turned up-side-down.

How To Write Magical Words: A Writer’s Companion

Julia’s Secret Mission

 

A book in itself is unlikely to make or break you, but it is a powerful extension of your business or blog. More…

Tell everyone about your stories. More…

Need more help brainstorm the character traits in your story? More…

Don’t forget to edit your colorful character’s story. Do you use too many adverbs? Are you using the right words to describe them? More …

Start Writing Now – This book is for the dreamers who say one day they will write their stories and become a writer. Then they forget their dreams of writing. But they can write now – write those stories now. I mean right now.

How Not To Write A One Star Novel – Do you want to create a five star novel? Learn from other writers’ mistakes and prevent yourself from receiving any one star reviews for you hard work. Here is your free e-book.

R. M. Scott Author Site

Christina's Secret Family

Christina’s Secret Family

Christina’s Troubles

Christina’s troubles started when she reluctantly inherited the 600-year-old family responsibility. The Norwegian title translates to ‘Daughter who cares for the villagers.’ The title became Americanized to ‘The Santa Keeper’ by an ancestral immigrant over a century and a half ago. Despite her desire for independence, she must take care of a miniature village of magical woodcarvings that hold the true secret of Santa. As Keeper, she faces challenges when Nicholas is mysteriously destroyed. High on her suspect list is her jealous estranged brother Justin who questions her every chance he gets. But she cannot forget an old family nemesis bent to destroy the village and take the magic to revive his family. This is Christina’s mother’s responsibilities, but she disappeared, without a trace.

To make things worse, her boss assigns an impossible project while she finds a woodcarver to replace Nicolas in time for Christmas. Despite Christina’s better judgment, Astrid, Nicolas’ wife chooses widowed woodcarver Ian Thoen to carve the new Nicolas. The busy body woodcarving villagers turn Christina’s life upside down.  And on top of that, Ian’s little daughter, Holly, tries to encourage romance. With help from Ian, Holly and the villagers, can Christina solve the riddle of the broken Santa, restore the magic and discover the true secret of family – or worse, love?

Christina’s Secret Family (A Santa Keeper Mystery Book 1)

 

Tell everyone about your stories. More…

Need more help brainstorm the character traits in your story? More…

Don’t forget to edit your colorful character’s story. Do you use too many adverbs? Are you using the right words to describe them? More …

Start Writing Now – This book is for the dreamers who say one day they will write their stories and become a writer. Then they forget their dreams of writing. But they can write now – write those stories now. I mean right now.

How Not To Write A One Star Novel – Do you want to create a five star novel? Learn from other writers’ mistakes and prevent yourself from receiving any one star reviews for you hard work. Here is your free e-book.

R. M. Scott Author Site

Writing a series based on living woodcarvings has been a challenge and a joy to my imagination.

Creating Characters in My Imagination and in Real Life

What an Imagination Does for a Creator

Do you find it difficult to come up with realistic characters to jump off your page? I wonder that all the time. I hope my journey to capture characters with depth will help you. The best part, I had fun discovering who these people are. They came out to tell their story.

I wrote three mystery novel series based on the premise of woodcarvings that come to life.

The first two in a series is The Santa Keepers Mysteries, set in the present day. The stories are about balancing family life with work or other outside responsibilities. My second series is The Cora Chronicles set in 1926.  Cora yearns for adventure, meets interesting people and sometimes gets into trouble. Maybe it could have something to do with mystical, mythical magical creatures that walk across her path.

Writing a series based on living woodcarvings has been a challenge and a joy. The woodcarvings in my stories form a village. They all have names, occupations, relationships, and lots of secrets.  The villagers, what I call them, are fun and funny.  They are village elders and village troublemakers; adults and children.  I have written descriptions and backgrounds for each of the characters. You can read a short description of how they came to be here on The Santa Keepers blog site www.santakeepers.com.

I’ve Been a Woodcarver For Over 15 Years

I carve most human figures.  You can see my work at www.scottcarvings.com.

For me, to get to know my characters I carved each of them in basswood.  So, not only do they have an imaginary presence they also have a physical presence in my house.  Do I believe they are real and that they come to life?  No, I’m not that crazy – yet.

But having them on my bookshelf, looking back at me has been a source of inspiration. Their stories are easier to write. I can look over to remember the color of their hair, eyes, clothing, shoes, etc.  I arrange the families’ groupings so I can remember their relations.  They are portable so I can move them around and arrange them in different order or put them in odd places.  I can take them along with me any time I want. I’ve taken them to the Minnesota State Fair – as part of the woodcarving competition – they earned a red ribbon.

Sometimes I feel like a child playing with dolls as I make up stories about them. However, my behavior is no worse than authors who use Pinterest to create fictional worlds.  I’ve even read about writers who built dollhouse-type models to create fictional worlds. They have gone to great lengths to decorate, paint and carpet to generate their visions for a story.

One of my woodcarvings, Lars, is a herder who manages a group of eight tiny reindeer that play vital roles in the stories. However, time has not allowed me to carve the reindeer yet. But I will before Christmas Eve Night, maybe. It all depends how full my summer will be. One villager is Astrid who often mettles in and hopes to bring humans together for romance.  The beauty of creating fictional characters is that I can add more of them to the line up any time. But then, I will also have to carve them.

Isn’t writing and creating fiction a blast?  As authors, we get to create anything we want from our imaginations.  But in my case, I’ve also created them in real life.

More on Creating Characters in my Imagination and in Real Life

Creating Character Arcs: The Masterful Author’s Guide to Uniting Story Structure, Plot, and Character Development

 

Tell everyone about your stories. Show them where they can buy your novel. Lure them in. More…

Need more help brainstorm the character traits in your story? More…

Don’t forget to edit your colorful character’s story. Do you use too many adverbs? Are you using the right words to describe them? More …

Start Writing Now – This book is for the dreamers who say one day they will write their stories and become a writer. Then they forget their dreams of writing. But they can write now – write those stories now. I mean right now.

How Not To Write A One Star Novel – Do you want to create a five star novel? Learn from other writers’ mistakes and prevent yourself from receiving any one star reviews for you hard work. Here is your free e-book.

R. M. Scott Author Site

What do your characters like to do? Why do they do these things? Keep watching what they say and do.

Bird watching at 65 miles per hour

Bird Watching is Like Writing

Yes, texting while driving can be dangerous to your health. If you’re not watching the road, looked down at your cell phone, the best that would happen is that you land in the ditch. Distractions caused disasters. That is something we all know. Then, why do we allow ourselves to become distracted?

Most of the time I drive down the highway I find myself distracted. For me, I like to count birds every year. I have this desire to count different bird species. This is a fascination I had ever since I was a teenager. I’ve created lists of different species each year and watch the list grow when I see a new bird. This strong desire could prove difficult while I drive on the highway.

Well, hey, what if a bird flies in front of me? What if I see a bird through my side window? If I look in the rearview mirror and see no cars followed behind me, I will put on the brakes, slow to stop, get out my binoculars and look. And if need be, I would back up the car on the highway to get a better view.

Why do I do this? Is it just me?

What are the personalities of your characters in your stories? You know what they’re all about? For me, my behavior process shows a persistent, maybe close to obsession. What do your characters like to do? Why do they do these things? How obsessed are they?

When I was a teenage bird watcher, I spotted my first redheaded woodpecker. I was with friends. The bird flew into an occupied campground. Two men, who owned that site, sat on their lawn chairs, enjoyed the scenery and the nice weather.

“Excuse me,” I said and walked in without invitation and looked through the binoculars up the tree to see the bird. They smiled and allowed me to watch. When the woodpecker flew away, I walked back to my friends. They looked at me as if I was nuts.

“What?” I asked.

“You just walked into another campground just to see that bird? They looked at you as if you were some kind of stupid.”

What’s my character in this situation? I became determine despite onlookers who thought I was an oddball? All I wanted to do is to see something important. No harm, no foul. What was the character of my friends? Reserved, with no inner strength, to take chances for something they wanted?

One of my favorite movies was ‘The Big Year’. It stars three dynamite male actors obsessed with bird watching. Though the film, I understood because I also found myself in trouble when I count birds.

Let’s get back to storytelling. Someone told me that stories are stories about people. Writers create the story as they go along. Each came from different upbringing. Their back-stories help makes the character come to life, and with more realism. And/or how they would hinder the process of the story, the plot line? What resulted from their actions?

Maybe I’m not the best example for a character in your story. It is true. You can find your character by watching your friends and colleges. Like the birds of the world, each species has characteristics specific to them.  This is the same as humans. If one example does not fulfill your character’s personality and traits, then mix and match. A little of what he is and what she does is the heart of your story. Maybe he slammed on the brakes just to look for birds. If you find yourself behind him, just slow down and go around. It’s what all writers have to do to make their character’s characteristics fit.

Tell everyone about your stories. Show them where they can buy your novel. Lure them in. More…

Need more help brainstorm the character traits in your story? More…

Don’t forget to edit your colorful character’s story. Do you use too many adverbs? Are you using the right words to describe them? More …

Start Writing Now – This book is for the dreamers who say one day they will write their stories and become a writer. Then they forget their dreams of writing. But they can write now – write those stories now. I mean right now.

How Not To Write A One Star Novel – Do you want to create a five star novel? Learn from other writers’ mistakes and prevent yourself from receiving any one star reviews for you hard work. Here is your free e-book.

R. M. Scott Author Site

Having Other Arts and Crafts Help You to Become a Better Writer

Santa Carving and the Writer

Having Other Arts and Crafts Help You to Become a Better Writer

My woodcarvings play a major role in my Santa Keeper Mystery series. Because of my artistic creativity in wood carving I decided to become a writer. I write magical realism mysteries in which woodcarvings come to life. The genre of magical realism is to accept magic in the rational world.

As a woodcarver who specializes in Santa Claus carvings, July is the time to prepare for my busy season. In August, I put all my other projects down and carve Santas and other holiday figures. I need to have a large inventory to fulfill the fall and winter markets. I use the summertime to design and create new pieces. By autumn I will have a good selection for the customers. This is much like finding time to start a new story.

Designing New Pieces

I create new designs to keep my inventory fresh, like brainstorming a new story. I can get ideas for new designs by observing other artist’s mediums such as paintings, illustrations, glasswork and photos. Observing other artist’s perspective makes the new design fresh and exciting. I look for color trends, decorative embellishments, repeated patterns and new techniques. Inspiration comes from many sources: nature, wall paper, clothing, catalogs, rugs, architecture, and others.

I have a coffee mug sitting on my paint table right now so I can look at the pattern and color of the decorative border around the bottom. I want to imitate the color and design on a Santa’s coat trim. It won’t be an exact imitation but more of an inspiration. Last year I purchased an old ugly sweater at a garage sale for $2 to examine a row of snowmen dancing across the chest. It is ugly but the snowmen pattern is great.

Once I have a design in mind, I sketch it out with pencil and paper. I keep in mind the nature of the wood and how I will convert the two-dimensional design to a three-dimensional woodcarving. Once I have a design, I create a pattern and cut it out to apply to the wood.

Wood

For most of my carvings I use basswood, also known as American linden. The wood is pale tan with fine close grain. A wood carver can cut into basswood with ease with hand tools and chisels. My basswood comes from northern Minnesota. The best time to harvest basswood is in February when it is cold and the sap hides deep in the roots. The cut pieces are air-dried or kiln dried.

For my Santa carvings, I will find a piece suitable in size and carve-ability. Most of my Santa carvings are between 8 to 12 inches in height.

I attached the paper pattern with glue or tape and trace the outline of the pattern on to the wood. I then use a band saw and cut out the rough shape. This would be like the drafting process. I know where the completed work needs to go from here.

Tools

I use hand tools to carve such as knives, chisels, gouges. And don’t forget the pencils, a writer’s tool. Some carvers use power rotary tools. I use power tools only when I want to carve harder woods like walnut, cherry, oak, maple, or ash. Keeping the tools sharp is important for the ease of carving and to make clean cuts. Tools must be sharp for safety. I use a pencil to establish the center lines and mark the wood where I plan to cut. The center line shows the carver direction to make cut. If I ignore the center line, the carving may come out lopsided.

There are many rules and guidelines to follow when carving faces. I want to keep the wood carved face anatomically correct to insure a balanced face. I observe the width of the eyes where the ear is placed and the width of the mouth as a few points of measurements. There are many levels of reality when carving faces. Some faces are caricatures, realistic or distorted to achieve humor or fright. With Santa carvings, the expression is important. Remember Santa is a ‘jolly old elf’ so a happy expression is the most desirable. As in writing, describing the right expression will add realism to your characters.

Painting and Finishing

The finished carving is cleaned and given a protective finish before I paint. I use acrylic paints to color and enhance the wood carving. I have taken several painting classes to learn techniques to gain confidence. Some of my carving colleagues fear the painting process. They have storage bins of unfinished and unpainted woodcarvings. Painting a piece is a challenge and a pleasure. I can’t wait to try new color combinations and designs. Like a character for my stories, there are many layers to his personality that give the story more depth.

Once the paint is dry, I spray on another protective coat. Then I apply a stain or colored wax to achieve an antique look.  When that is dry I buff the piece and initial my name at the bottom. The carving is now finished, priced, labeled and added to inventory and marketed. I have a sense of accomplishment. Finishing a carving is like finishing a story. I’m eager to see what the beholder thinks.

Time

People ask me how long it takes to carve a Santa. This question is difficult because there are so many steps involved to finish the carving. The answer depends on size, level of difficulty and my daily interruptions. And in my case whether the carvings speak to me or not – they can be so distracting at times.

Carving Santa characters is much like creating a story and the characters involved. With both, I start with nothing and create something alive and meaningful. I hope both give joy to those who possess my work. Well, on to carving the next.

Tell everyone about your stories. Show them where they can buy your novel. Lure them in. More…

Need more help brainstorm the character traits in your story? More…

Don’t forget to edit your colorful character’s story. Do you use too many adverbs? Are you using the right words to describe them? More …

Start Writing Now – This book is for the dreamers who say one day they will write their stories and become a writer. Then they forget their dreams of writing. But they can write now – write those stories now. I mean right now.

How Not To Write A One Star Novel – Do you want to create a five star novel? Learn from other writers’ mistakes and prevent yourself from receiving any one star reviews for you hard work. Here is your free e-book.

R. M. Scott Author Site

Use clarity. Don’t assume your readers will see what you see

Tighten the loop! Bring Clarity to Your Writing

Use Clarity in Your Stories

Today, I’m thinking about fly-fishing and writing; two unrelated topics. You have may have seen fly fishermen with their funny hats and vests covered with tackle, standing knee-deep in a brook. Their long rod bows waving high in the air as they pull their line back and forth. The fly follows the line and drops, hopefully, in front of a trout’s mouth. If the trout does not take the bait, the stream carries the fly back to the fishermen and the cast starts over again, back and forth.

My brother tried to teach me the art of fly-fishing. I went through the motions to bring the line back and forth. My teacher kept an eye on my learning progress and shouts, “tighten the loop, tighten the loop” (scaring away the fish in the process). In layman’s terms when the bait moved one way and the pole switched and the line went the other direction, the line created a loop overhead. It was important to make a pinched loop, so the wind did not take the fly and send it off course. I knew all that, but what I didn’t know was how to tighten the loop. How should I handle the pole? How should I stand and everything else necessary to create a tight loop? To this day, I don’t recall him ever explaining how. He kept shouting, “Tighten the loop. Tighten the loop.”

Learning how to write, like learning how to fly-fish requires clarity from the teacher. A writer needs to learn how to lay out in a logical order to become understood and followed by a reader. Readers are not willing to work too hard to follow your story. If they become frustrated, they will give up as I gave up on fly-fishing.

Here are some techniques for improving clarity in your writing:

  • Don’t assume your readers will understand your intentions for your story – Produce clear statements. I do not believe in the philosophy of “let the readers fill in the blanks.” I want my readers to understand the story from my mind. If you cannot lead readers to your creative thoughts you will lose them.
  • Don’t believe your story will make sense without your focus – You came up with the characters, setting, and plot. You can see the story unfolding in your mind. If you want your readers to see what’s in your mind, you must give details. Do not write a few words assuming the reader will “get” what you mean. Consider your story from the reader’s perspective as he reads from scratch with no preconceived ideas.
  • Don’t assume your readers will see what you see – Use the five senses in your stories. See the color, write the color. Hear the sounds, write the sounds. If possible, smells and tastes will add a greater dimension to your story and put the readers deep into your scenes. If you don’t use the five senses in your writing what you see (and sense) you will lose your readers.

Remember, “Tighten the loop! Tighten the loop!”

More on Bring Clarity to Your Writing

Use this formula to bring clarity to your writing

25 Ways to Improve Your Writing in 30 Minutes a Day

 

 

Tell everyone about your stories. Show them where they can buy your novel. Lure them in. More…

Need more help brainstorm the character traits in your story? More…

Don’t forget to edit your colorful character’s story. Do you use too many adverbs? Are you using the right words to describe them? More …

Start Writing Now – This book is for the dreamers who say one day they will write their stories and become a writer. Then they forget their dreams of writing. But they can write now – write those stories now. I mean right now.

How Not To Write A One Star Novel – Do you want to create a five star novel? Learn from other writers’ mistakes and prevent yourself from receiving any one star reviews for you hard work. Here is your free e-book.

R. M. Scott Author Site

Shadows show the depth of the piece.

Depth in Wood – Depth in Writing

Carve Out the Depth in Your Writing

I have been a woodcarver for over 15 years and a fiction writer for over five years. I’ve read Dean Wesley Smith’s articles about the depth and Stages of a Fiction Writer. His post led me to a comparison of the stages of a woodcarver.  In stage one Smith says fiction writing is all about sentences, grammar and punctuation.

In the first stage of woodcarving is all about the knife, the wood and making those first cuts. There is a level of fear involved as you try to avoid cutting yourself and bleeding all over. You fear the knife and fear making cuts that are too deep. The fear causes you to carve deep.  You nick the surface without a strong impression. To your eyes you feel you have created a masterpiece of art. To others the piece is boring and lacks depth. After years of experimentation and development of skills you no longer fear the knife and cut away with confidence and create pieces with depth and emotion.

The Same Holds for Fiction Writing

At first you fear going too deep into your characters’ point of view. Then you fear making your characters bleed on the page and you end up with a shallow piece of writing that nicks the surface and give shallow emotions. You don’t want to hurt your characters or have to struggle too hard to fix their wounds. You might think your piece is a work of art. But your readers feel no spark of emotion and the characters all end up in shallow, happy lives. It’s boring and lacks depth.

I read a piece by P.J. Reece (Story Structure Expedition: Journey to the Heart of a Story). In this article, he discusses finding the heart of your story as a writer.  He talks about writing to a depth to which your protagonist has reached the “pits of despair”. Only then will he be able to experience a “subsequent change of heart.”

Reece says: Down there, that’s where we discover the truth about our human condition. The best protagonists glimpse the ugly truth and see a way to rise above it–above themselves.

 In my experience writing a romantic comedy I had all the elements of a good story. But it fell short of shining as the piece I wanted it to be. Going back over it I realized I had not caused my protagonist to suffer enough, even though this was a romantic comedy. I feared going too deep into the character so focused on the words, grammar and punctuation more than the story itself. I went back in with a sharper knife and made deeper cuts. The protagonist reached the pits of despair to lost her love, lost her job, lost her old way of thinking and being.

Reaching the bottom freed her to see what was possible and what would make her happy again.  The protagonist now had room to change and grow and the story took on a new depth and possibility.  Reaching the bottom did not lessen the humor of the story but enriched it through more intense contrast of despair and joy.

Like the finished work, a wood carving shows shadows in its cuts. The more cuts, the more shadows. Shadows show the depth of the piece. As we say in the wood carving world – keep carving. So, also, to you writers – keep carving.

More on Depth in Writing

Add Flair and Depth to Your Writing!

Dr. JAC’s Guide to Writing with Depth 

 

Tell everyone about your stories. Show them where they can buy your novel. Lure them in. More…

Need more help brainstorm the character traits in your story? More…

Don’t forget to edit your colorful character’s story. Do you use too many adverbs? Are you using the right words to describe them? More …

Start Writing Now – This book is for the dreamers who say one day they will write their stories and become a writer. Then they forget their dreams of writing. But they can write now – write those stories now. I mean right now.

How Not To Write A One Star Novel – Do you want to create a five star novel? Learn from other writers’ mistakes and prevent yourself from receiving any one star reviews for you hard work. Here is your free e-book.

R. M. Scott Author Site

Does collaborative fiction writing work

Lucy Watches Me When I Write

Your Collaborative Team is There For You

Really – Does collaborative fiction writing work? Do those you collaborate with impede your writing? Do they squash your creativity?

Maybe so, but most likely not.

Soon I will post ‘Does Collaborative Fiction Writing Work’. This may be true for those who have collaborators who cooperate with the writer. ‘Writing is usually a solitary endeavor.’

But then, when my cat Lucy jumps up and sits next to my keyboard it’s hard to shoo her away. She calms my nerves when she sits still. I gently rub my hand on her soft fur and gently call her name. That’s fine. But when she wants to lie down and make herself comfortable her paws find the keyboard and extra letters jump onto the screen. So much for having a cat around to calm the nerves.

Now the Nerves Settled

It’s time to stop procrastinating. Set goals. Regular meetings will make sure everyone is in agreement and focused. Keep writing.

Having a special friend around makes the days seem brighter? In writing, could collaborative writing help your story? Would collaborative writing help you to be a better writer?

Find more interesting and informative writing blogs here at: RMScottWriter.com

More on Lucy Watching Over Me

Collaborative Learning/Learning with Peers

Collaborative Writing Strategies

5 Benefits of Collaborative Writing

 

Tell everyone about your stories. Show them where they can buy your novel. Lure them in. More…

Need more help brainstorm the character traits in your story? More…

Don’t forget to edit your colorful character’s story. Do you use too many adverbs? Are you using the right words to describe them? More …

Start Writing Now – This book is for the dreamers who say one day they will write their stories and become a writer. Then they forget their dreams of writing. But they can write now – write those stories now. I mean right now.

How Not To Write A One Star Novel – Do you want to create a five star novel? Learn from other writers’ mistakes and prevent yourself from receiving any one star reviews for you hard work. Here is your free e-book.

R. M. Scott Author Site