suspense Archives - L.J. Taylor Books

Writers Resources: Audio Downloads of Writers Seminars

Posted on July 22, 2010 by LJ

You might think of me as Johnyta come lately, but I recently discovered a wonderful resource for writers: audio downloads of writers seminars. The Romance Writers of America (“RWA”) offers audio downloads of the seminars given at its annual conferences in 2008 and 2009. www.rwa.org The seminars are given by bestselling authors, editors of large publishing houses and the like. The topics of the seminars run the gamut from seminars on the craft of writing to seminars on writers' careers (i.e. networking, building an audience, surviving tax audits) to seminars on getting published (i.e. genre jumping, what editors seek, what bestsellers have in common). There are also downloads available of seminars on how to do research for your book and the writers life (critique partners, finding your muse, etc.). The downloads are $8.00 each ($12.00 for two-hour seminars) and are a great value. Those who can't afford to attend the conferences can take advantage of one of the main benefits of attending for a fraction of the price.

The seminars are not limited to how to write romance novels either. The craft seminars are applicable to all genres of fiction. They cover such topics as how to write good dialogue, how to set the pace in a novel, how to build suspense, points of view, how to effectively edit the novel, the art of backstory, etc.

I downloaded a seminar on how to do successful re-writes that will prove invaluable in reworking my romantic suspense novel and editing my second book. The author fully explained and helped me to understand some basic concepts of novel writing that I didn't know about. Some examples of the things I learned from the seminar are: (1) every scene in a novel should have a purpose, (2) every chapter of the novel should have a hook to make the reader want to continue to the next chapter, (3) if you start the book with too high a level of tension, you will have no place to go afterward, and (4) it's a good idea to ratchet up the tension in the book by increasing the stakes. These concepts are extremely basic for experienced writers, but are not so second nature to novice writers like myself. Hearing the author who gave the seminar talk about how much work her novel needed before it finally got published and became a bestseller made me feel better about my works in progress.

Check out the seminars on the RWA site and let me know what you think.

Peace.

In a Frenzy About Scriptfrenzy

Posted on March 29, 2010 by LJ

Aaaah! It's back again and so soon after last year! I'm talking about Scriptfrenzy – that twisted sister event to National November Writing Month.

Every year, people from all over the world sign up on the Scriptfrenzy website and vow to write a 100 page script during the month of April. It could be a script of an episode of your favorite television show, a movie script or a play.

I typically write movie scripts. I say that as if I were a longtime Scriptfrenzy veteran. The truth is that I am a one-time Scriptfrenzy veteran. I wrote a movie script during Scriptfrenzy in 2008 using a storyline I had developed for a suspense novel I planned to write that is set mostly in Liberia. I knew that writing a script would force me to plot out the entire story from beginning to end. I drafted most of the script during Scriptfrenzy (it was 130 pages so I still “won” even though it wasn't finished).

Even though that was the first script I had ever drafted in my life, it was pretty decent. I had a friend read it and she really enjoyed it. She also wanted to strangle me for not finishing the script and leaving her hanging at a very suspenseful point in the story.

I wrote the suspense novel using the script storyline during National November Writing Month in 2009. The script served as a great outline for the story.

For those of you who want to try Scriptfrenzy this year, the website – http://www.scriptfrenzy.org – has a lot of great information on everything from how to write a script to where to find free scriptwriting software that will format your script for you. It also has forums and chat rooms where you can interact with and get support from other Scriptfrenzy participants and learn where the write-ins will be held throughout the month. One book that proved to be an invaluable resource to me was “Save the Cat – the Last Guide to Scriptwriting you will Ever Need” by Blake Snyder. The book lives up to its name.

Best of luck in creating your new script. I'm off to plot my storyline now.

Peace

The Benefits of Attending a Writers Conference

Posted on March 6, 2010 by LJ

A couple of weeks ago, I attended the San Francisco Writers Conference. It was a great experience. I had been to the Maui Writers Conference several times before. I always came back from those trips refreshed and renewed and having learned a lot about the craft of writing.

I didn't have high expectations for the San Francisco Writers Conference. I doubted that it would be able to compete with the wonderful experiences I had in Hawaii. Boy was I wrong. I don't know if its because I have now written three novels and I am at a different stage in my writing journey (the godforsaken land of editing), but I got so much out of the San Francisco Writers Conference that I came back fired up and with an action plan that I have already started to set in motion.

I learned about the need to have a platform (an audience who would look forward to reading your work) and how to go about developing one. I learned how to best to pitch my work to agents and editors. I learned how to find the agents and editors who would be most receptive to the type of books I write. I even learned that my romance novel would be difficult to place because it is short (57,000 words) and that if I want it to have a greater chance of getting published, I need to expand it to at least 75,000 and preferably 90,000 words.

I got very helpful feedback on the first few pages of my suspense novel – Dreams Deferred – from an independent editor and invitations from six well-known and respected agents to send them my manuscripts for consideration. Now if I could just finish editing the darn things and get them out the door . . . But that is a topic for another day.

The point is, there are numerous benefits to attending a well run, well attended and very well put together writers conference – from the writing seminars to the ability to consult with independent editors to the ability to network with and pitch to top agents and editors, to the fellowship and inspiration one gets from mingling with other creative minds. I will definitely be back next year – not to find an agent, but to learn more from the seminars and to pitch my next book.

Peace.