All About Beta Readers

Quan

Sometimes you need an extra set of eyes looking critically at your story. Even the best writers can become blind to their own flaws, especially if they have been closely working on a story for a lengthy amount of time. Beta readers are a cost-effective, efficient way to get an honest assessment of your story that can be a valuable resource.

Where to find them

There are a lot of great resources available to help you land beta readers. I personally got mine from Facebook. There are groups dedicated to beta reading that I am a part of (like this one). There are also groups for fans of specific genres where you can find beta readers if you ask real nicely.

In addition to that, I did some digging and found a few other great links where you can find beta readers. Check these out.

www.helpingwritersbecomeauthors.com

www.findbetareaders.com

www.betabooks.co

How to secure them

The best way to land a beta reader is to personally contact one and establish a rapport. Try to find out what types of stories they enjoy, and see if they would be interested in giving yours a try. You also might want to ask whether they would be open to reading your entire sorry, or if they only want the first few chapters.

If you have time to do some beta reading yourself, you can offer to exchange stories. There are a lot of writers that are also avid readers, and sometimes the best critiques you can get are from someone that also has experience with the craft of storytelling.

What to ask a beta reader for

When dealing with a Beta reader, keep in mind that this is a prime opportunity to troubleshoot any questionable issues in your story. If you have any parts of your narrative, plot, setting, character development, believability, or any other issue you are unsure about, this is a great opportunity to get that addressed. Ask your reader to focus on specific aspects that you need some opinions about.

When you don’t get any timely feedback

This is actually something I struggle with often. Beta readers are people, too, and they have lives and agendas that can take priority over reading your story and giving feedback. Or maybe they’re afraid of hurting your feelings if they don’t like your story. Either way, you have to be realistic in your expectations of when you get your feedback from your readers. That being said, it couldn’t hurt to check in with your beta reader every now and then to see if there has been any update on their critiques. Just don’t be a pest about it.

Are beta readers truly necessary?

Many of the top writers in the industry and some of the writers I have interviewed don’t use beta readers at all. They simply rely on their instincts and experience, and maybe their publisher’s content editor to help refine their stories. Personally, I think that is only a wise option for established writers that have the credentials of being successful authors. This is for guys that have sold books and lots of them. For the rest of us, I think it is a wiser option to find someone to look your story over and find flaws we may have missed.

Don’t take criticism personally

This is the most important part of getting critique: expect to get stuff said to you that you don’t want to hear. It’s part of the process. Don’t be so in love with your own writing that people can’t point out flaws. And those flaws may come in unexpected areas of your stories. Getting defensive when someone is doing YOU a favor in taking time to read your story and point out ways you can make it better defeats the purpose. Even when the reader comes off in a negative way, you can still gleam things from even a totally negative critique that you can use. Be courteous and thank them for taking the time to read your story and tell you what they think.

If you can get good beta readers, they will be a vital resource for helping you tell the absolute best story you can tell. Check out the links I provided and see if you can land one for your work.

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Interview with Jennifer Fisch-Ferguson

Quan

I met Jennifer while I was exhibiting at a career fair at the high school my little sister attended. She’s a very personable and warm lady. But what drew me to her was that she was there as a self-published novelist. She was the first (of many) writers I met that found success via self-publishing, and she was an inspiration. Here is my interview with her. You can find out even more about her at her website, www.authorjff.com

What inspires your writing?

I love telling stories. Honestly real life is a great inventor. There are always real events put into the stories because what goes on around us is pretty amazing.

What is your process of developing characters?

I brainstorm a lot. I usually start with an idea of a normal every day person and see what I can do to shake their life up. Then I create a whole person- likes, dislikes, allergies, favorite foods etc. It helps me to understand them better.

Did you start with a story outline or did you make it up as you went along?

Both. I learned to jot down an outline- because sometimes I get great ideas but don’t have time to sit down and write the story right then. Having an outline is a great guide when I get back to it later, but I always reserve the right to not follow it.

How much research did you need for your story?

It depends on the story. When I first started writing about werewolves, I researched the heck out of wolves and spoke at length to a DVM about their habits and life cycles. I like having factual details in my work. When I wrote my one and only cowboy story, I researched black cowboys and spoke at length with a family friend whose family had been ranchers and cowboys for generations.

What researching methods did you use?

I love interviews with people who know about my topics/subjects. I also look for research or scholarly works done on my topics. Despite writing fantasy works, I like as many facts to be solid as I can. I think it helps build a stronger world.

Did you draw on personal experience?

Of course. Life is pretty fantastical.

How did your publish?

Self published.

Why did you do it that way?

I had sent the script around and had some positive feedback. The process was taking longer than I wanted, so I decided to move forward myself.

How long did it take to land representation?

While I have a work with an agent it still being developed.

Who did your cover and marketing?

One series I hired an amazing artist. The other sets I developed myself with the help of photoshop.

How many revisions did it take to get a publishable book?

Many, many, many. And when I read back through works I always find things that I would like to change or make stronger.

How did you approach bringing a unique take to a well established genre?

I focus on characters and what really drives them. I want the characters to feel honest and relatable. Sometimes even having the moments where the character is either foolish or not likeable.

What are you writing now?

I’m working on 3 pieces- partially because it helps me not get stuck. I am working on Book 3 from my STEAM series which is paranormal romance, a new stand alone work- urban fantasy and Book 2 in my UnRestricted series- YA urban fantasy

What is your advice to other writers?

Make writing a daily exercise. Even if you just write a short story- write something. Use a writing prompt or something to help you get in the habit.

Be sure to check out one of Jennifer’s books! Here’s one of her latest.

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The Point of No Return

Quan

In every story, there will be a time where the Protagonist has gone too deep into the progression of the narrative to opt out or turn back. This is a moment where things have developed so far that all other options of dealing with the problem outlined at the outset of the story are no longer viable, and the only way the protagonist can get through the ordeal is to continue down the path he or she is travelling on. I call this moment The Point of No Return. Every story has it. This moment has to happen early in the story, but it doesn’t necessarily have to happen right at the beginning or even in the first chapter.

Wizards of the Coast head of R&D Mark Rosewater has a prefect description of the three-act story structure: Act 1: get your protagonist stuck up a tree. Act 2: throw rocks at them. Act 3: get your protagonist down from the tree. In the 3 act structure, the Point of No Return happens somewhere in Act 1. That is when your character is firmly stuck up the proverbial tree. Or, at least, has climbed so far up the tree that it is pointless to go back down.

The benefit of knowing where your point of no return lies is that you can fully focusing on enhancing hat singular moment, and making it truly stand out dramatically. The Point of No Return for your protagonist should also be the point of no return for your reader, as well. This is the moment where the reader should be fully invested in seeing the protagonist through to the outcome of the story. So you really want to make that moment grip the reader and stick in their minds, leaving them wondering what is going to happen next.

When determining when your point of no return is for your protagonist, take a look at your narrative overall. It would help if you already have a story outline or a chapter-by-chapter synopsis, but those are optional. Look at how the story progresses and ask yourself at what point does the proverbial “sh*t get real”? This should be at an early point in the story. Ask yourself at what point do your central characters lose the option of turning back or changing course? There should be a moment where the protagonist becomes kind of locked in to the path they are heading down. It could be a crucial decision they make early on, or a particular situation they find themselves in, or a moment where they take responsibility for something or someone, or when they cross a line that they wouldn’t have otherwise crossed. A story I am seeking representation for as of this writing literally has my protagonist at the edge of the “wrong side of town.” realizing that his idyllic way of life has forever been altered and the only way to get back to some semblance or normalcy is to see his predicament through to its conclusion. This moment happens at the end of act one, and is his Point of No Return.

In my stories, I tried to keep my point of no return towards the end of Act One, and I made it pretty obvious. In Godmode, it was when Elijah learned that his family was being held by Claudius Webster. That upped the ante and made it so that he could no longer afford the option of letting those monsters kill him. In Double Entry, that moment was when Melvin asked Dana if he could meet his estranged son. That took their interactions from purely business into something personal, and there was no way things could go back to the way they were now that he had made that intention known. For The Hand You’re Dealt, three were two points because there were two narratives being told concurrently. In the past, it was obviously when Tika and Jay shared their first kiss. But in the present, it was when Tika met her absentee father for the first time. I tried to make sure all of these moments had extra emotional impact, so that the reader will understand how that moment has changed everything.

I strongly recommend finding this singular moment in your story and emphasizing it. It will add to the drama of your story and help with keeping the reader engaged.

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Finding You Audience

Quan

I once was talking with a friend of mine who is writing a series of YA fantasy novels. But it had become clearly evident that the books she was writing had subject matter that was much too mature for a YA audience.

Sometimes finding your audience is as simple as doing a bit of market research. Looking up your chose genre and the demographics it serves is a well-traveled way to finding out who you should be writing for. You can also go the reverse route. Pick a demographic you are interested in and look up what those people are into, then see if you can craft a story that caters to their interests.

Asking around helps, too. If you have an idea of what genre your story fits under, try joining some social media groups dedicated to that genre. Pay attention to what they are posting about, and ask plenty of questions. You can get a ey good sense of what is popular with that group. I am a member of a few groups dedicated to science fiction and fantasy from the African-American perspective. So I have a finger on the pulse of what that audience is reading. It’s also a good networking tool for when I need beta readers (but that’s a topic for a whole noter post).

Another way to find an audience is to follow an example. Researching other top-selling books that are in the same vein as your story and finding out information about who is reading those books can give you a good ballpark idea of who would be drawn to your story. For instance, There was a good ten-year period where YA books were ntrenched in the Hunger Games formulas. Everything from the Percy Jackson series to the Divergent series to the Maze Runner Series followed the ragtag team of teenagers with special abiliies saving a dystopian world from adult oppressors. But the formula worked and many of those series were successful.

Once your research is done, you need to do this exercise. Take some time and describe, in your own words, what the target audience is for your story. Write it down so you’ll have a reference to go back to. Write the age range, gender ratio, racial and cultural background, average income, usual places of residence, social-political leanings, and any other hard data you can find on your target. Write down any interests, hobbies, attitudes and opinions these people might have. You can even list some of the books, movies, games and TV shows they might be consuming.

Now, with that data written down, ask yourself how exactly does your story appeal to this group of people? And how can you further develop your story so that these people will find it even more appealing?

That is the more business-like way of approaching this topic. There is a more organic way to do it, also. Just write the damned story you want to write, and then try to see what kind of audience would buy it. It’s a tougher, less organized way of doing things, but it allows you the freedom to tell the exact story you want to tell without having to make compromises or concessions for the people you think might want to buy the book.

This method will require a lot more legwork, however. You will have to find similar stories and look into who is buying them. Maybe dissecting elements of your story and looking up who finds those elements interesting may help. Utilizing beta readers and asking them which elements of your story stand out or that appeal to them may work.

Whichever way you choose to do your research, It would be beneficial for you to make the effort to find out who exactly you want reading your stories. That way you can better focus your writing, and you’ll have a better target for the next step of the process once you’ve gotten published, which is marketing your story. Give it a try.

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Finding Time to Write

Quan

In one of my very first posts on this blog, I wrote about eliminating your excuses to not write. If you have something you want to write about, you should be writing. No one is going to tell your story for you. (Okay, you actually can pay a ghost writer to tell your story for you, but you still ought to be an active part of the process.). When I tell people I’m a novelist, I still hear people respond with “I’d like to write a book someday.” I ask them why not now, and they say they can’t find the time to.

I call BS on that.

People will make time to do the things they truly want to do. And unless you are truly writing or a living (like a technical writer or a Journalist), then writing will not be a natural part of your daily routine. Only full-time writers can write when they want, but they have to because it’s their job. You have to make time to write, just as you make time to binge watch TV shows or make time to rant on social media. There are plenty of ways to eke out time to get your ideas out, you just have to be committed enough to do it. Here are a few techniques I utilize.

Wake up an hour early or go to bed an hour later

Sometimes making time to write means literally making time. If your story is worth the hours of lost sleep, then those moments are perfect fodder for writing. Heck, for some, the creative juices flow best right before bedtime or right when they wake up anyway.

Write during your lunchbreak or downtime if you can

I admit I’ve snuck pieces of scrap paper onto the floor when I worked at factories. When the machines are down I’d jot a few quick notes down before picking up my broom to clean the area (Not something I recommend, though). Mostly if I had a long enough lunch break, I’d write ideas down then.

Jot down notes

This is something every writer should do. You should always keep a means of recording ideas handy at all time, whether it be a pen and some scratch paper, a note taking app on your phone, a notebook you carry around, or whatever. Inspiration can strike any time and anywhere under any circumstance, and when it happens you need to write it down, and yes, even jotting down notes counts as writing.

Vocal recorders

If you don’t have access to pen and scrap paper, or like me you find thumb-typing ideas onto the note app on your phone to be too tedious, you can always turn on your vocal recorder and dictate your ideas onto your phone. I personally haven’t tried this because I just like the feeling of writing or typing my ideas out better and it allows me more freedom to better organize my thoughts. But if it works for you, then go for it.

Email yourself

A good way to record ideas is to send them to yourself via email. You can write as much as you want, and they will always be in a place where you can retrieve them. I’ve done this plenty of time. In fact, I’ve backed up entire manuscript drafts be emailing them to myself. I actually trust that more than The Cloud.

Write instead of doing something else in your leisure time

Instead of watching the game, or going out partying, or hanging with the crew, or playing video games, or watching cat videos on YouTube, how about taking a half hour to write about what’s on your mind? You would be surprised at how must time you spend a day on mindless entertainment. That time can be spent writing. Or you can even multitask. Keep your laptop or tablet handy and type while you’re watching TV, or in between gaming sessions.

Write when you don’t feel like writing

This is a big one. Oftentimes you just don’t feel creative. It could be fatigue from the daily grind, or you’ve been through something particularly discouraging. The thing is, this is a perfect time to vent out your feelings of despair or frustration or fatigue. You can pour those negative feelings onto the paper, and into your stories. My negative feelings about my life at the time were the genesis of my book The Hand You’re Dealt. The emotions you get as my characters struggle with their careers and relationships are very, very real and were things that I was dealing with when I concocted the story.

Write when something major happens to get the feeling and reactions while they are fresh in your mind.

Likewise, when literally anything of importance happens in your life, that is a perfect opportunity to record it and put it into a story. Take note not only of what happened and why, but how everyone reacted to it, and how it made you feel personally, and even speculation what comes next. This is a great exercise to help develop your skill as a writer, and may provide material fr future stories.

JUST WRITE!

Like I said, if you really wanted to do it, you’d find a way. For writers, the ideas and revelations will churn inside us, nag at us constantly, and pretty much drive us insane if we don’t get them out of our heads and onto some recordable form. It’s an unexplainable thing that drives us. If you have that type of creative passion, you get everything I’m saying. If you don’t, then you won’t. But you can generate that passion by taking the time, even making the time, to cultivate that germ of an idea you’ve got until it consumes you like our ideas consume us. Even something as simple as writing a sentence a day counts. And there’s no better time to get started than RIGHT NOW.

So what are you waiting for?

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Interview with Jessica Cage

Quan

I had the pleasure of being introduced to bestselling author Jessica Cage via a Facebook support group for African-American fans of Sci-fi and Fantasy. This immensely talented author is a prime example of what a write can achieve with enough drive, discipline, and the proper resources. You can view her Amazon author page here for more information about her.

What inspires your writing?

Randomness. There isn’t one thing. I find inspiration in life, dreams, nature, colors, sounds, energy. I like to keep myself open to any form of inspiration. I was recently talking to another creator who said his idea for an entire world came from looking at the moon and seeing it as an eye. This sparked something great for him. That’s how it works for me. I once saw a broken lamp on a train platform and that inspired the story for Last Stop. I had a dream about a mermaid and that inspired Siren’s Call. I loved the willow tree since I was a young girl and that inspired The High Arc Vampires. There is inspiration in every part of life. You just have to stay open to receiving it.

What is your process of developing characters?

I typically let my characters come to me in the raw. I will observe the idea of them inside my head for a while before I start to flesh out anything about them. Its weird when I’m asked this question because I don’t necessarily feel like I develop them. I watch them develop as the story unfolds. It feels more natural that way. But this is typically just my main characters. Supporting characters tend to take a little more work and often times I have to write full profiles on each before I can really implement them into the story or they will go off the rails.

Did you start with a story outline or did you make it up as you went along?

I typically do not start with an outline. If it is the first book of a series especially. I will write the first few chapters before beginning any structural work. I feel it helps me get into the world of the characters a lot better if I don’t have any preset limitations.

Did you draw on personal experience?

Not intentionally but I believe that as a creator, bits and pieces of myself tend to land in the pages. I’ve seen an evolution of my stories as I evolve as a person so its hard not to see myself in the stories.

How did you publish?

I self-publish all of my works.

Why did you do it that way?

I like having control over my message right now. My brand is Characters of Color in Fantasy. The few times I attempted to work with another company for my books, they attempted to change that brand. I won’t allow that to happen.

How long did it take to land representation?

I currently represent myself. I haven’t looked into any as of yet but soon.

Who did your cover and marketing?

I have an awesome list of designers that I work with. For The Sphinx, I worked with Christian Bentulan. Currently, I handle my marketing.

Did you use beta readers? How did you secure them?

I did use Betas for this book. I have had a list of readers that I’ve worked with over the years. I find that it is a lot more rewarding to have Betas who have already been invested in my work. I cultivate that list from those readers, the ones who come to me with a pure interest in my work and I offer them the opportunity to join the team.

How many revisions did it take to get a publishable book?

Countless. The initial book took a bit longer than average to write because of the research and developmental side of it, but I stop and revise along the way maybe three or four times typically. Then after the book is complete there are multiple revisions before beta and then editing. After it comes back from the editor I do another read through.

How much research into Greek Mythology did you put into writing your Scorned By the Gods Series?

There was a lot. I spent about a week just trying to get the timeline correct for Asa’s (the main character’s) back story. Because I was essentially blending two characters into one, I had to make sure I didn’t mess up anything about the timeline. I also had to be sure that the character didn’t do anything that would create a negative impact on another character’s storyline outside of this book.  Also, the characters that I created had to intertwine easily into the story and feel as though they were always there.

What were your research methods?

I did the typical online research, I also checked out a few books on certain characters, but the best part of this was the human interaction. I spoke to several people who are well versed in Greek mythology and have studied the works. My idea was that if they accepted my concepts, then everything I did was solid. It wasn’t until I got those thumbs up that I moved forward with writing the book.

What are you writing now?

Currently, I am working on the seventh installment of my Djinn Rebellion Series. After this is complete, I will begin work on the third book for the Scorned by the Gods series. Getting my 2020 releases ready for the readers!

What is your advice to other writers?

There are so many amazing resources out in the world. Use them. Don’t be afraid to ask for help. That was something it took me far too long to realize for myself. Your work will not suffer for it. 

Check out Jessica’s book “Daughter of Medusa” Here!

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Do Your Research

Quan

It is a very rare occasion where you as a writer are able to create a complete story based on just your own creativity and inherent knowledge. Whether it’s getting a more accurate setting, or more detailed historical knowledge, or being able to reference how certain things work, at some point in time, your story will require you to do some research. There are many, many ways to gain the information you’re going to need to properly write your story. But here are a few that I’ve utilized for some success.

Libraries

This is the oldest, and still one of the best, ways to get pertinent information on anything you want. There is just something about being in a library, where it’s quiet and you’re surrounded by books, that is conductive to the creative process. At least that’s how it was for me. I spent a great deal of time in the Library looking up African myths to use as the basis for The Leopard Man. Here you can find books about darned near anything, and you can be pretty sure that the information is vetted and can be verified.

Web Searching

I can attest that Search engines are your friend. A lot of information I’ve picked up for Godmode, Double Entry and The Hand You’re Dealt came from online sources. True, you may have to do some cross referencing and self-verification to make sure the information is 100% accurate, but it is worth it. And sometimes, it might even be better for your story in select circumstances if the information isn’t accurate. But Search engines like Google and Bing, and reference sites like Wikipedia are an extremely valuable resource for gathering pertinent information.

Interviews

If you can find someone that knows a thing or two about what you are trying to write about, then you should by all means get in contact with that person to pick their brain about it. There is nothing like getting information about a topic directly from an expert, or someone that was an eyewitness. They can offer personal insights and antec dotes that you might not be able to get from any other source. A very crucial moment in The Leopard Man came as the result of interviewing a lady about her experience in that same situation.

Observation

Yes, being nosy also counts as research. Oftentimes to get a feel for how people behave, you have to actually observe and take notes of people. Especially when you are trying to chronicle a culture of a particular region or group of people. You will be taking notes on speech patterns, slang, language, customs and body language. Pay attention to habits, and personality tics. There are also reference books like the one I have listed below that can give some great reference points for behavior.

Observing also extends beyond individuals. Watching groups of people behave can help, too. Groups behave differently than individuals, and there is a lot of interaction between people within groups. Heck, you can learn a lot even by just watching traffic at an intersection for a few minutes.

Touring Locales

When writing The Leopard Man, I wanted to have a major part of the book happen at Flint, MI’s Forest Park. Since I wanted everything to be accurate, I actually went to Forest Park, looked around, and mapped out a route through with the events in that scene transpire. I was able to take notes on all of the flora, fauna and landmarks, and record as many details as possible to make the scene that much more believable. This is the advantage of actually visiting a locale you want to use for your setting. Take as many notes of everything your five senses encounter as possible. You can use this to really put your readers where the story is at.

Researching History

Historical research can come in handy whether you’re writing historical fiction or not. Often times it helps to understand the whys and hows of certain elements of your stories. And your research into the history of that element can oftentimes reveal historical details that can be mined for new elements to your stories, or for new stories altogether.

Technical research

If your story has gadgets in it, then chances are the believability of your story will be aided by some explanation of how they work. And furthermore, if you have a better understanding of how a mechanism works, then you can more accurately write about it in your story. I honestly can’t remember the first time I fired a gun, so I actually consulted with a buddy of mine that was a gun enthusiast about what first-time gun users experience. He gave me a veritable treasure trove of technical information that proved to be very valuable for a crucial moment in my story.

Research for style and technique

Sometimes you will need to research for HOW you write more than for WHAT you are writing. If your story requires a particular writing style or a different voice, you will need to do some delving into how to pull that off believably. For a story I am currently seeking representation for, one of the minor characters speaks entirely in iambic pentameter. So to make sure I got the cadence of it correctly, that meant a lot of reading and rereading of Shakespeare, Milton and Browning.

Parsing the Data

Now that you’ve collected a bunch of data for your story, the next step is organizing it all and deciding what to use and when. A lot of that will come down to your instincts for your story. You will inherently know what information is useful and which isn’t. But creating an appendix for yourself is a good exercise because you can organize the information into a format where you can easily get to what you need when you need it. And from there it’s just a matter of integrating the information seamlessly into your story (something I wrote about earlier at this post).

These are a few of the techniques I’ve employed to get the information I needed for my stories. To be honest, the process of researching is a never-ending one, as you will always be on the lookout for new data you can integrate into your stories. But if it will lead to more believable, engaging stories, then I think it would be more than worth he effort.

Here is a cool reference book about facial expression and body language that I’ve used before.

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When Characters Hijack the Plot

Quan

If you are a writer that prefers to know exactly what is going to happen in your story before you start writing, then I assume you spend a lot of time outlining and hammering out your plot. You know exactly where your characters are going to go, what they are going to do, and how they are going to do it. You know all of the major plot twists beforehand, as well as how your characters should react to them. You have everything set up neatly and ready to go.

But then you start actually writing.

What happens when you write your characters and develop them within the story, and their development takes you in an entirely different direction? Or what happens when you introduce a new supporting character, and whatever that character wants to do totally derails your carefully planned and outlined plot?

Instances like these are what I consider “hijacking” the plot of your story. The characters’ personalities, histories, goals and makeup dictate a different reaction than what you had originally planned, and it almost mandates you taking the story in an entirely different direction. It’s like in many episodes of The Simpsons, where the episode starts off seeming to be about one story element, but then something gets introduced which changes the plot of the episode drastically and makes the rest of the show about resolving the new development.

How you resolve this really depends on how flexible you are as a writer. For some writers, the plot outline is just a bare framework or suggestion of how things probably should go maybe, and if any element comes around to change things, they are perfectly okay with going with the flow. There are inherent issues that can come from that, but they are willing to deal with that. At the other extreme, there are writers that are determined, or obligated (in the case of ghostwriters or people under contract for franchises), to stick to their original plot outline no matter what. These writers now have to face the possibility of forcing their characters to act against their true nature for the sake of following the plot. There are also dangers with this approach, too. Chances are if you’ve faced this issue, you fall somewhere in the middle. Here are a few options on how you can handle it.

Make the new arc a subplot

You can take this new direction your character wants to go in, and make it a side story that you visit as a break from your main plot. This can actually add more depth to your core story as it allows room fr character development and exploration you might not be able to get to within your main plot. And it will be even better if you can tie this new side story back into the central plot.

Make it into a spinoff, and finish the core plot with new characters

If what this character wants to do is totally out of the realm of your originally story, you could just make a separate book dealing with that story. And if that character simply is no longer a good fit for the plot you have in mind, then you’ll have to create new characters that are better suited to your original story. In that case, you will need to create your character with the needs of the plot built into their makeup and backstory.

Change details about your characters to make them compliant.

If you really don’t want to craft an entirely new story around your characters’ new developments, you could just modify and tweak your character’s personality and backstory to be more compliant with your plot. This is actually something I’d recommend against. Once your characters discover their voice and perspective, I believe it would be a disservice to try to neuter or change their voice for the sake of a plot. Interesting plots are great for one story, but memorable characters can be utilized for multiple stories on end.

extend the story.

My solution with my story was that my characters would go off on this wild side adventure, and after that was resolved, then they still had to deal with their original problem. But now they were armed with more experience, new allies, new skills and a better understanding of the world around them. Of course, this meant that the story would take more than one book to be completed. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, by the way.

So these are different methods and approaches you can take when your characters start pushing you in directions you hadn’t intended, and start taking you away from the plot you had so carefully planned. It’s nothing of panic over, and happens often when you take time to truly develop characters. But there are ways for you to b true to both your characters and your plot, and if handled correctly, can add that much more depth to your overall narrative.

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Everyone Has A Story

Quan

Writers are nosy. It’s just a fact. My wife often berates me for paying attention to the conversations of others. What she doesn’t understand is that it is part of my makeup as a storyteller to have an interest in the stories of others. One can never tell what tidbit of info will generate new inspiration for a new story, or a way to enhance an existing story. Many of the more interesting elements of stories that I have written have come from observing…or even flat out eavesdropping…others as they talk and interact.

A favorite scene from my book The Hand You’re Dealt came directly from watching people while waiting in line to sell my blood plasma at a clinic in Flint (Yes, that actually happened). The speech and body language of the people was so colorful, it would have been a waste to not use that material in a book. It also added the the authenticity of the region represented in the book, which helped with achieving the feeling of “city as character” I wrote about a bunch of months back.

Be Observant.

One of my all-time favorite TV shows was The Mentalist, about a Charlatan sleuth who’s main claim to fame is “reading” people. He can tell hidden details about people by the way they dress, the way they talk and the things they say, their body language and by other behavioral quirks that might escape the casual observer. These are techniques you can learn to employ. By being able to see beyond a person’s outward facade, you can gleam great details about that person’s life that you can mine for story details, or even full stories within themselves.

Be a good interviewer.

You don’t have to formally conduct interviews like I do in my monthly author interview series. But when talking to people about things they have experienced in their lives or are experiencing, be sure to ask them questions about it, and get to the core of what they are dealing with and how they are reacting to it. You’d be surprised ad what people will reveal about themselves and their world just by talking to you.

Always take notes.

You never know when you will see or hear something from somebody that will be worthy of inclusion into a story. So always keep a means of recording these moments handy. Most cell phones have access to vocal recorders you can use to record conversations or observations. In the absence of a phone, there are portable vocal recorders available for purchase, too. It is also good to keep a pen and notepad handy in case you can’t use a vocal recorder.

The key to collecting these little gold nuggets of information and inspiration is to always have you antennae up, and be ready for them to come at any time in any circumstance. And it does require a bit of training to be able to catch them. I advise taking a bit of time to just do people-watching. Go to a public place, have a seat, and just watch & observe the people there. And take notes on what you discover. You’ll be surprised at the cool tidbits of usable information you get from that.

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Interview with Renee Scattergood

Quan

I owe much of the success of my sci-fi/horror book Godmode to book marketing guru Renee Scattergood. She offered a series of promotional programs that really allowed me to get some exposure for the book. But in addition to that, she is also a writer in her own right, with many dark fantasy books to her credit. Check out more about her at www.reneescattergood.com.

What inspires your writing?

I have a very overactive imagination. I get so many ideas for stories that I really don’t need any more inspiration! 

What is your process of developing characters?

I have a step by step process for developing the characters as well as the entire story. It’s 30 steps in all and the character development is Steps 1, 2, 4, and 10 (and there is a reason for breaking it up, but there’s too much detail to go into here). Basically it’s a process of answering specific questions that help develop the stories while developing the characters.

Did you start with a story outline or did you make it up as you went along?

I always plan and outline my stories.

How much research did you need for our story?

My story didn’t need much in the way of research, though I did use generators to help with names for characters, places, creatures, and objects.

Did you draw on personal experience?

The magic in the world is (loosely) based on shamanism. I studied shamanism for several years, so I used that experience to create the magic that exists in this world.

How did you publish?

I self-published.

Why did you do it that way?

I’ve always wanted to be self-published. I have an entrepreneurial spirit, so it was a natural step for me. I enjoy being in charge of all aspects of publishing my work.

Who did your cover and marketing?

My cover was done by Katie Jenkins at Magical Designs. I do my own marketing (marketing is my second love).

Did you use beta readers? How did you secure them?

Yes, I do use beta readers. For Shadow Stalker, I found most of my beta readers on Facebook. Now most of them come from readers of my newsletter.

What is your process for worldbuilding and developing backstory for your fantasy and sci-fi settings?

Most of the world-building takes place in step 21 of my writing process. I do the world-building after the first draft has been written by going back through the story and making notes about things that I need to expand on to bring the world to life. Then I add those things to my world-building files. World-building is generally an ongoing process for me, however, because I will keep adding stuff to my files as needed.

The backstory comes during the character development stage. The backstory is mainly based on the characters’ backgrounds and what was going on in the world around them. I only add or include a backstory if it’s central to the story.

How many revisions did it take to get a publishable book?

With Shadow Stalker, it took many revisions because I didn’t have my current writing process to fall back on. With my new writing process, I cut out a lot of the revisions by working out the kinks before I start writing.

What are some cost-effective strategies for cash-strapped authors to promote their books?

There are a lot of free options out there. I think the best things authors can do is have a presence on social media (for connecting to readers, not selling to them); a blog to build a presence on the internet; doing interviews (like this one), guest posts, and podcasts can also help increase your visibility; and most importantly, you need to have a mailing list so you can promote your new releases to your readers.

What are you writing now?

I’m working on several projects at the moment. I’m writing a novel series called, A God’s Deception. I’m also starting a new serial called Emergence (it’s a prequel to my Shadow Stalker serial), and I’m also working on a fantasy romance novel series under the pen name, Kahlan Richards. 

What is your advice to other writers?

There’s really so much advice and info out there for authors, but when it comes down to it not everything will work for you. Everyone is different, so focus on what works for you and don’t worry about the rest. And don’t be afraid to experiment with new ideas. Use your readers as a sounding board. They love feeling included in your process!

Be sure to check out one of her books here!

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