Details Make (or break) Your Novel

I know you’ve heard the saying “it’s the little things that count,” or “the devil’s in the details.” Well, never has that been more true than when writing a novel.

Finely crafted details develop the reader’s world and keep them under your story’s spell.

Too many details or using the wrong ones, and your readers are flipping pages in bored and confused frustration as they search for meaningful information and a return to the plot.

If you want to talk about the omelet the sexy chef is making, we probably need to know about the ingredients but not intricate details about the pan. We may need to know about the stove if it is extraordinary (wood burning?) but not the convection oven. See?

Here are rules I’ve learned on what details to include, how much and when:

DO include details that support your character’s life as long as it helps us understand the personality or motivation. Maybe an assassin once won an award in archery in school.  DON’T describe looks that have no importance. We want to identify the villain soon as possible but maybe all we need to know about is the odd scar on his neck or tattoo on his finger. No need to get into detail about the gray eyes if we never see them or they don’t matter to the story.

DO concentrate on emotions. When people speak, they move. Eyebrows go up. Lips purse. Jaw muscles tighten. DON’T spend so much time emoting that we forget what we’re supposed to be doing or where we’re going. Emotions need to fit the scene and the people important to the moment. Forget the shock of the bus boy and consider the robber’s shock when he realizes he’s been captured. DO interject humor or pathos whenever you can. DON’T assume that because you don’t feel it that we will. If you don’t, we probably won’t either. Your passion must translate to the story and if it does the readers will feel it.

DO go for details that set you above the fray. Be original. Be unusual. DON’T be afraid to break tropes and set your world apart from what’s out there. Every witch has the same items and the same spell book. But instead of a cat or a gargoyle, who has a pet moth? The soaps show women always walking around their homes in high heels. What if your thing is a pair of 60’s go-go boots?

Most often forgotten are the senses. We readers love to know what the world is like, but how does it smell, or what colors are there? How does it feel? Silk or sandpaper? DO give us a complete sense of what the world is and DON’T give us more than we need for the moment. Share the rest of the details as we move through the story and experience what we need when we need it.

Too many details can be your story’s undoing. Give your readers richness and make your readers crave more. Give them too much and the gluttony will drive them away. Being sated on details is good. Being bloated is bad. (and they don’t make a Gas-X for that).

It is very true that details are the key to everything: a good suit, a tasty lasagna, and a book you can’t put down. Choose your details wisely and use smartly. And the result might produce a bestseller (I’m still trying!).

Thanks for coming by and keep writing!
Yours Between the Lines,

Sherry

Are You Using the Wrong Slang?

Writers are a quirky lot. We love to learn new things. Our web browser search histories are filled with oddities like phrases in Klingon, odorless poisons, how to build a rocket and where are most of the bodies buried? (Not really but it sounded good).

One mistake we writers often make, despite our best efforts, is we forget to use the appropriate language defined by the era we’re writing in. Many writers have confused Edwardian dress with Victorian, Asian with Roman, Slavic with Visigoth. Worse, were dialogue lives and makes our writing truly sing, we select the wrong words for our chosen timeline.

I know I’ve done it. I’ve referenced movies that hadn’t been made yet or used a slang term that was before my character’s birth.  In our effort to be real, we sometimes forget and use the words we are familiar with or words we’ve become accustomed to using, forgetting they were long before our time or our story’s.

Today I’m giving you some examples of slang terms from different eras, terms that NO ONE should be using anymore unless you need them for your stories. My advice to you is to be sure of your timeline and check yourself. Ask your beta readers to check too.

The age of your readers will determine how your language is absorbed. Old slang for young readers and you’re losing them (or worse, they know you are out of touch). Old slang for older readers and you’ve hooked them with your savvy. New slang for old readers and you’ve lost them as they turn pages looking to be grounded again. Words matter.

Here are some examples of things NO ONE SHOULD BE SAYING these days and words you should only use in the decades where they were born. Make your stories have truth and validity and be sparing.

From the 1950s where we used terms that were wordy, wanting to be heard and clever, pencil skirts, poodle skirts:

made in the shade
burn rubber
pad (not with an “I”
ankle biters
beat feet
cruisin’ for a bruisin’
wet rag
downer

From the 60s with Vietnam, the Beatles, bell bottoms and hippies:

far out
bummer
foxy
can you dig it
old lady (as in wife)
hang loose
lay it on me
split (as in leave)

From the 70s with pet rocks, Watergate, shag carpet and disco balls:

catch you on the flip side
The Man (meaning the police)
cool beans
spaz
chill pill
space cadet
out to lunch (meaning not right in the head or spacey)
keep on truckin’

From the 80s with shoulder pads, still smoking on planes, and sneakers without laces:

gag me with a spoon
Phat
gnarly
have a cow
Word!
tubular
bounce (as in leave)

From the 90s with slap bracelets, flannel and Skechers, and Pearl Jam:

schwing (Wayne’s World anyone?)
kick him to the curb
talk to the hand
as if!
booyah
Not! (took the place of “Psych!” which is also a no-no)
What-EVER
getting jiggy (thanks Will Smith)
you go girl!

You may find that you say many of these phrases. Sometimes we get them from growing up, the variety of our friends or simple habits from traveling. Use what you will but don’t do it when you write.

I find that I cross a multitude of decades. Must be my age. Or I’m well-traveled. Or I do it to confuse you. HA!

Remember, what you say dates you, your stories and your characters. Keep it real, dude (um, from the 90s!)

Thanks to Best Life online for the references!

Thanks for coming by,
I remain, Yours Between the Lines,

Sherry

Good Things to Know

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Welcome to the Midpoint National Novel Writing Month

A personal letter to every participating WriMo,

3…2…1…you lifted off on 1 Nov 2018 for a writing journey that is unlike any other. First time doing the National Novel Writing Month? Feeling a little lost? Long time writer but wondering, “now what?” As you stare at your journal or computer….

Imagine what it was like for the first Apollo astronauts on their way to the moon. How exciting the liftoff was, how nervous they were with all the hype, how there was so much to do in the beginning and then —

Then they managed to get halfway to the moon, and it was dark and cold and the excitement was there but doubts and worry snuck into their dreams. What were they doing? How did they think they could do this amazing thing? What if they failed? What waited for them when they got to the moon? The questions filled their minds and maybe they were just a little bit afraid of the dark, of the unknown, and even of themselves.

This is how it may go for some writers when they hit the middle of NaNoWriMo–it is dark and cold and unknown. Doubts have set in, excitement has waned and now becomes more work than fun. And there is wonder about what they are doing, if it is even worth it, if the story matters, if they can finish, and so on. It is like being in the great vacuum of space, dark and cold.

I’m here to tell you that the mid-point of the month is called a lot of things by lots of authors (my favorite is Jim Butcher’s the Great Swampy Middle), but overall it is the same for everyone. Doubts and fear create a bit of nervous uncertainty as the shiny glow of the month wears off. What now, you ask? Here’s a little advice from a WriMo veteran.

   –First, Trust Yourself. You had a plan, even if you are pantsing it. You have tales to tell. So keep telling them.

   –Next, Focus. Don’t deviate from your path. Imagine what would have happened to the space program if the astronauts chickened out? So whether you are in the middle age, middle of the book, middle of a race, keep focused. Otherwise you will veer off course and lose your way like so many before you.

   –Then, Understand. The middle is necessary. Nothing is achieved by starting and finishing without something in the middle. The astronauts probably felt tension and nervousness. They expected it and didn’t fear it. So it must be for you. Let your characters feel this uncertainty but don’t you fear it.

   –Finally, Believe. Don’t make excuses. Don’t look for a way out. The best way is always through according to Robert Frost. Like those astronauts, you need to steer straight ahead. When you believe you can, you will. Eventually the distance to the moon closed and suddenly the astronauts were there and winging their way back home. Climax and ending.

You signed on for a cosmic journey this year, becoming your own astronaut in an adventure of literary and personal exploration. I have every faith that you can succeed. Believe in yourself and your project and you will be splashing back down to Earth in two weeks, beginning with one heck of a tale to tell about your journey. And that tale is one we are all hoping to read.

It all began with 50,000 words.

Today you’re hitting around 20,000 or maybe you’ve done a slingshot around the moon and are cruising at over 25,000. Even if you’re floating at 15,000, great work! I believe you can do it. The astronauts believed and look how far we went: Apollo, Space Shuttle, Space Station. Let this small cold moment in the middle of space be the momentum for your amazing finish! Next stop, Mars!

The midpoint? The name is only a marker. Like saying the cup is half full. We both know you are going to finish now. You’ve come this far, seen the dark side of the moon and now you turn your face to the home. Your Earth. Good luck explorers. I can’t wait to read about your adventures.

Hang on tight! The Earth’s gravity is pulling you back and your trip is almost over. You can do it!

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Next time we meet here, let’s talk turkey…and gratitude. Thank you!

Yours Between the Lines,

Sherry