Nail on the head

I just read this article about the principles of making your novel compelling and I could not agree more. For those too lazy to follow the link, I will emphasise and reiterate what every good novel should contain:

1. A good hook - if the story doesn't grab you from page one, you're doing it wrong.
2. A strong voice - if the voice of the novel has its own style, you're half-way there to an interesting read
3. A good/interesting story - that should go without saying
4. Compelling characters - strong, relateable and believable characters (not just 16 year-olds with strong desires for centenarian vampires)
5. Commentary on the human condition - something that resonates with the reader

Maybe I have rose-coloured glasses on but I know I followed those principles when writing my novel (even if I didn't know them at the time). Feel free to disagree, though, as that's what makes us human after all :)

The art of blurb

The blurb, or selling point: there is a dark art to giving enough to entice a prospective reader while not laying out the whole story in the process. A lot of authors I see write too much or miss the point of what a blurb should be. To help my fellow authors I shall now divulge the rules I follow when writing a blurb:

1. What is it about?
   Set the scene - who is the protagonist, what is the tone or gist of the story.
2. Why should I read it?
   Give a hook as to why the reader cannot pass up the chance to read it.
3. What makes it unique?
   What makes it unique from all the other vampire stories (say).
4. Why should I read more?
   Provide some unanswered questions that would compel the reader to want to discover more.

The other point is it needs to be punchy and to the point. This is not a prologue so don't treat it like one.

To drum in the points, I'll blurbify a few well-known classics:

Spongebob Squarepants:

(1 & 3)His pants may be square and even though he lives at the bottom of the sea and his friend may be a star, his life is far from ordinary. (3)Even if his viscous and porous yellow body has no need for Krabby Patties, he follows his dream to be the world's best fry cook. (2)With the help of Squidward and Mr Krabs, they have been able to stop Plankton's desires to gain the secret of the Krabby Patty ... up until now. (4) Will he be able to thwart Plankton's nefarious plan and will he be able to save the beautiful surface-dweller named Sandy?

Aliens (the film):

(1)Ripley wakes with a dull ache - her head throbs; disoriented with the familiar after-effect of an extended hyper-sleep. (2) Her mind is still clouded with thoughts of the alien; one alien deadly enough to end her crew within 24 hours. (3) In the years it took for her escape pod to be rescued, colonists had been sent to LV-426 to begin terra-forming. The only problem is they have lost contact. With a hardened military troupe and Ripley on point as a 'subject-matter expert,' she will have to return to the planet where it all began.  (4) No matter the weaponry, she knows it won't make a difference against them but she has unfinished business: she needs to kill her nightmare.

I'll leave it there, but that should give a good basis for any blurb. Blurb and be well. 

Too good to be true?

So, in the search to get my book into as many hands as possible, I have stumbled upon a service called booktango.

Note the beta. This is definitely a work in progress and isn't as polished as smashwords, although the rates are definitely attractive (0% cut for sales on booktango, 10% for external retailers)! The main thing I can see that is missing is a slightly clunky search facility for books listed on their site, a missing sales reporting facility and an overly manual process for submitting your novel.

The positive to this service is that it distributes to a tonne of electronic retailers (the list is here). Colour me impressed. Especially for barnes & noble, which doesn't allow non-US residents to submit their novel via their pubit website.

Although,
it has been about two weeks since I've submitted my book and it is still in the process of being validated / approved / verified / distributed, rather than 'auto-vetted' in comparison to smashwords. All in all, I'm happy to allow a little down time between publications just as long as more revenue comes my way and my book is distributed to as many possible readers as possible. My experience with their representatives have been positive and as soon as it becomes a little more automated, it will be a must use for every independent writer.

If anyone has had any prior experience with this service, or a better one, leave a comment in the post. It's good to know what is out there!

Compunctions

Apologies for the drunken ramblings in the near future:

This is a shorter post relative to the previous, although no less poignant.

Why is it that you have a greater compunction to help if you're inebriated?  Why is it that you require alcohol to feel compassionately towards your human man?  Why is it that you only feel compassionate once you've had a few?

I really don't know.  Could it be that your ability to rationalise overrides your ability to rationlise.  Could it be that your rational self thinks too much.  Is it only if you're inebriated that everything becomes clear?

I think it's relative to your ability to empathise.  Your abilities to relate to your human man override your need to understand why they need money.  You give because it's the right thing to do.

Is that so wrong?  I personally don't think so,

At least in this state of mind...

Material worth

One of the mantra's that I live by is a quote from the film Fight Club:

At first it doesn't seem to make sense, until you start thinking about it. The more you do, the more it becomes 'relevant', the meaning becomes clear.

My interpretation is that, alongside the accumulation of possessions, your freedoms are compromised. Take the scenario where you buy a nice white sofa which fits in perfectly with the rest of your decor. With this 'great sofa', the following concerns come to mind:

• 'Scotch guarding' your couch to protect against marking
• Avoiding *anyone* putting their feet up on it
• Maybe getting a plastic cover / throw rug to protect it from wear
• Avoiding drinking red wine / eating anything that could stain it.
• Being reticent to move, as the sofa now fits in 'so nicely' in your current home
• Getting insurance to ensure that if it's stolen / damaged in some way, you can get a new one
• Paying the sofa off before the interest-free period expires (possibly)

It seems like a lot of things to consider just for a 'new sofa'. Now, take that new car. You now have to worry about parking, fuel, scratches, other drivers, your driving, servicing your car, keeping your miles down for high resale value, choosing the right colour also for high resale, choosing the right model for high resale etc. So much is geared towards not losing money, or maintaining the items that you purchased so they remain 'new' for as long as possible. Outside of the basic function of sitting on the lounge, or driving the car to get to point B, how much of the other things consume your mind? Maybe I just think too much, but I'm sure at least a few of the things on the list have crossed your mind at one time or the other.

The other Fight Club quote that seems fitting is:

"It's only once you have lost everything that you are free to do anything"

There seems to be some value in that quote, too. Even though those mantra's are high on my thoughts each day, I don't follow them to the letter. I am human, after all. I have things, I have things that consume my mind. At times I feel as if there would be merits in removing these items from my life, but as long as I live in a society that can't work without these things, I will always be shackled by a need to have things. I wouldn't be able to blog unless I had computer of some kind. I wouldn't have a job unless I could dress appropriately, I wouldn't be able to make a coffee without a kettle. All things that you 'need'.

I think at some point, there will need to be a change; either from choice or necessity. What will happen if, and when, that time comes? What things can you truly not 'live' without? What is your material worth?

Hope for the future

The inspiration for the post today:

Who would think that one speech from a comedian, of all people, would be deemed within the world of youTube, as the 'greatest speech ever made'? It definitely propels you to do 'something', what you interpret it to be is probably more of a subjective thing, as it's not 100% clear.

The speech is rousing, but I feel like the overall message somehow gets lost, although it's hard not to well up in the carousing words of Mr Charlie Chaplin playing, what looks like, some kind of fuhrer.

He starts out saying he doesn't want to be an emperor or rule but then goes onto to tell you what you should do.


He talks about the things we should work against; greed, bigotry, the alienating advancements in technology and displacement of the human connection.


He then states that we need to reconnect with fellow man as those that oppress are pushed to the side. You as an individual will need to make personal choices, choices to fight for those that attempt to oppress, those that attempt to treat us as cattle, those that destroy blindly, those that put up barriers.


He then states that we have the power to create happiness, the power to reconnect and create a future through advancements in technology.

At the most basic interpretation of the video, it seems to be both an argument for and against technology, which seems kind of funny. By my assessment of the current day world, we're still at the introduction to the speech - no change has occurred outside of the back-patting antics of those that tell you they care. And who are we to question?

Spending my time in a big city, I come across a good number of homeless people begging to get through the day, let-alone the week. A lot of them are grizzled, a lot of them are in need of a fix, but some are different. There is one in particular that appears to be the happiest person I know. He doesn't have an iPod, he doesn't have a stock portfolio, but he always seems to be smiling. He smiles with his eyes, which is rare these days. I'm a firm believer that you can tell a lot from the mouth and the eyes, and his seems to encompass pure happiness.

He doesn't beg, exactly, but he does make those around him aware that he is in need. The only thing he does say is 'have a good day', while smiling at you. He might be the world's best con artist, but it's hard to pass him without a strong desire to give him everything in my wallet. Other homeless people that beg almost get incensed if you pass them by without giving something; like it's 'their right' that you provide for them. Not him. He doesn't appear to be in need of anything other than a hot meal and to provide for his partner in life: a dog. That dog probably takes the compunction to help further, as it's the most devoted animal I've seen. Always looking towards her master with undying focus. I can tell it's a she because she's got pink toe nails and is wearing a tailored coat that looks like it cost a lot more than the man's entire wardrobe.

The thing that motivates and inspires me that there is still hope is not technology, it's a homeless man.

Orchestrating aid

Self-help sites and articles - they seem to be everywhere you look for every possible issue you could have. Whether the help they provide is of any use is really down to whether you feel motivated to use it. I think if you're motivated to fix what is broken, then they've achieved their goal. If you follow their advice and it fails and you fall in a heap because of it, it's your own damn fault.

I'm not saying you 'failed' at the instructions, but 'anyone' can go to a website and write a few paragraphs that sound credible (just like me). It doesn't mean they should be qualified to be doling out advise, though (just like me).

This article seems to be an example in misdirection.

From the title, it would seem that this is to help you write a great synopsis or perfect the spruiking of your book to potential readers. It turns out that the article is actually trying to teach you how to 'sell' the scenarios in your book so your reader is willing to travel with you through the implausible scenario you've concocted. Maybe there's a title in there somewhere that you can make into a soundbite. Possibly:

'Tips on how to suspend disbelief through implausible scenarios
...oh, and make readers enjoy your book nonetheless'

This seems more representative of the article, unless I'm missing something. I'll summarise this 'lengthy' article into what those four points actually are:

1. Identify the things you need to sell and don't sell the thing that your reader is already sold on
   Which translates to 'identify the unrealistic aspects in your book and sell those'
2. Identify the things in your novel that are not coming across when read by someone else
   Which translates to 'you need to write more, or, elaborate on the cues the reader is missing'
3. Do you really need to sell the reader on those things that no one seems to understand?
   This one basically says get rid of that aspect of your story that is incapable of being saved
4. Go and actually 'sell' the concept now. Go on, my job is done. Nothing left to see here
   This is where the article should have started, in my opinion.

The previous three steps are classifying aspects of your novel and are not about 'selling'.

I would write it as this:

If it's terrible, get rid of it. If it's unclear, rewrite it and/or elaborate on it.

This seems like 'Writing 101', even for me. By the time you're at point four, it's a wonder that you still know what this was actually about. Was it about trying to sell the poorly-conceived aspects of your badly-written novel whereas, in fact, you should really just delete that crud and start again? No? That wasn't it? I actually liked some of the things written after point four. It was nice to have my ideas twisted towards the concept of writing as if you are the composer of a symphony.

Let's go through the aspects that go into composing a 'good symphony' :

(played out to an 'action-comedy theme')

• Catchy melody
  The tune needs to get stuck in your head. i.e. the concept needs to be something the reader wants to read. Something that will resonate after the book has been put down.
  e.g. 'Saving the city from destruction ... but is the evil genius really just attempting to save the world from us?' - cheesy, I know, but you get the point.
• Set the tone of the piece
  The tone needs to be established in the first chapter.
  e.g. 'The hero is walking along singing puppy love to his one-week old puppy who has a tag with 'rusty' on it and then gets into a shootout because someone doesn't think his puppy is the cutest' - Ludicrous, but it does set the tone.
• Evoke an emotional response
  It doesn't matter whether it's affection, anger, sadness or laughter. Whatever your focus is, ensure that your theme stays true to the intended emotional connection. Those that aren't emotionally invested in your 'music' won't listen to it again, or simply skip to the next track.
• e.g. 'The evil genius just killed a puppy => He needs to be punished for this act of depravity'.
• Repeat the underlying theme in various ways throughout piece
  e.g. 'Hero needs to seek revenge for the poor puppy and drinks because of it' - the cliche's keep coming!
• Continue the tone throughout the duration of the piece, although vary it
  It's perfectly fine to focus more on action in some, comedy in other, but if it turns into a grisly novel, you've lost your reader. On that point, it's probably not wise to destroy the puppy in a grisly way. It would ruin the tone of action-comedy. It needs to be both comical, action'y and villainous. So maybe the villain gives the dog an exploding chew toy or something. Action and comedy - brilliant.
• Get the pacing right
  It's important that there are lulls between action/comedy set pieces. Too much funny or action and it no longer has any impact. You sometimes need to hold off on giving what the reader wants.
• Make sure the instruments in your orchestra work together
  In other words, all the plots and characters and scenarios should combine together towards the intended tone you wish to convey.
  e.g. If you have a plucky sidekick, then don't make him work against the tone. If he's suicidal, make him a pathetic suicidal character that always fails within the action-comedy theme. You could even play off references to other action flicks like 'Loaded Weapon'.
• Solo parts
  This should fall to the hero / villain, although more than likely the hero. You want your reader to relate to him and understand the pain / comedy of his thoughts towards the evil genius.

And that's about it. To me, this guide seems to be far more useful than pretty much everything in the article I linked above ... and I'm not even published.