Don't Forget the Plot! by DL Larson

The other day a gentleman returned several books to our library. He's a regular, friendly and we usually converse at the circulation desk. I'd say he is in his mid forties, and an avid reader of various styles. He orders many books from other libraries and enjoys series. So I was quite surprised when he said he had grown tired of a particular series after the second book.

"Why?" I asked. "Did you not like the story-line?"

"I did in the first book. But the author forgot the plot in this last one. It turned into erotica with no purpose."

"Oh. Too much detail?" I laughed, surprised at his honesty.

"No. It just didn't have anything to do with the story. It became ridiculous and I lost interest."

Ouch.
That statement revealed a lot.

When a writer writes, a few things are expected in every story: plot, character growth, and involving the reader in the unfolding story. No matter what genre, plot needs to be strong and purposeful. Plot moves the story from the beginning all the way to the end. Plot is the anchor in every book, no matter how many sex scenes.

Good to know.

Til next time ~

DL Larson
www.DLLARSON.com

How Do You Like Your Romance?

It's easy for readers to get confused by the variety of romance books available.

Here are some broad categories:

Historical
Contemporary
Sweet
Spicy
Erotic
Paranormal
Futuristic
Humorous/ Romantic Comedy
Inspirational
Time Travel
Romantic Suspense
Romantic Element in a Mystery

A sweet contemporary romantic comedy
http://amzn.com/B0097EVXBK

However, there are a great many subgenres, such as combining a sweet with a time travel going back in time, which could also make it historical. Or, you might see a paranormal featuring vampires, taking place centuries ago, making it historical as well. Or, you could have a humorous paranormal vampire book. Then, there are all sorts of contemporary romances, ranging from sweet to spicy to erotic, some combining humor, some combining inspirational messages, some containing mysteries.

It's a confusing, yet exciting time for those who love to read or write romances.

I used to enjoy historicals, but for some reason that phase passed. My favorites these days are contemporary sweet romantic comedies, which I also enjoy writing. I also like reading cozy mysteries with a bit of romance thrown in, but so far I haven't written one myself.

What about you? How do you like your romance?

Find all of  Morgan Mandel's romances & mysteries

at her Amazon Author Page:

http://www.amazon.com/author/morganmandel

 

Excerpts are all at:

http://morgansbooklinks.blogspot.com

 

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/morgan.mandel

Twitter: @MorganMandel

 

 

You've Gotta Work Your Way Through! by DL Larson

I found or rediscovered a note on the side of my filing cabinet. I don't remember where it came from, the pages aren't curled yet and the paper has not turned yellow, so chances are I found it on Facebook. But for those writers struggling - something every writer does - this is for you.

These are not my words ... I'm simply sharing what I found ...

'Nobody tells this to people who are beginners: I WISH SOMEONE HAD TOLD ME.
All of us who do creative work, we get into it because we have good taste.
BUT THERE IS A GAP.
For the first couple years you make stuff, just not that good. It's trying to be good, it has potential, but it's not. But your taste,the thing that got you into the game, is still killer and your taste is why your work disappoints you.
A LOT OF PEOPLE NEVER GET PAST THIS PHASE, they quit.
Most people I know who do interesting, creative work went through years of this.
We know our work doesn't have this special thing that we want it to have.
WE ALL GO THROUGH THIS.
And if you are just starting out or you are still in this phase, you gotta know it's normal and the most important thing you can do is: DO A LOT OF WORK.

Put yourself on a deadline so that every week you will finish one story.
It's only by going through a volume of work that you will close that gap.
AND YOUR WORK WILL BE AS GOOD AS YOUR AMBITIONS.

And I took longer to figure out how to do this than anyone I've ever met.
It's gonna take awhile. IT'S NORMAL TO TAKE AWHILE.
YOU'VE JUST GOTTA FIGHT YOUR WAY THROUGH!'


Now go write something!

Til next time ~

DL Larson
www.DLLARSON.com

Chris Karlsen Reveals the Inspiration for Her Mystery/Suspense Book, Silk

Please welcome mystery/suspense author, Chris Karlsen, to Book Beat Babes today. Morgan Mandel

Chris is a Chicago native. Her family moved to Los Angeles when she was in her late teens where she later studied at UCLA. She graduated with a Business Degree. Her father was a history professor and her mother a voracious reader. She grew up with a love of history and books.

Her parents were also passionate about traveling and passed their passion onto Chris. Once bitten with the travel bug, Chris spent most of her adult life visiting the places she'd read about and that fascinated her. She's had the good fortune to travel Europe extensively, the Near East, and North Africa, in addition to most of the United States.

After college, Chris spent the next twenty-five years in law enforcement with two agencies. Harboring a strong desire to write since her teens, upon retiring from police work, Chris decided to pursue her writing career. She currently writes three different series. Her historical romance series is called, Knights in Time. Her romantic thriller series is Dangerous Waters, and he latest book, Silk, is book one in her mystery/suspense series, The Bloodstone series.

She currently lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband and five wild and crazy rescue dogs.

Website /  Facebook / Pinterest / Trailer 

ABOUT CHRIS KARLSEN'S MYSTERY/SUSPENSE BOOK, SILK 

London-Fall, 1888

The city is in a panic as Jack the Ripper continues his murderous spree. While the Whitechapel police struggle to find him, Detective Inspector Rudyard Bloodstone and his partner are working feverishly to find their own serial killer. The British Museum's beautiful gardens have become a killing ground for young women strangled as they stroll through.

Their investigation has them brushing up against Viscount Everhard, a powerful member of the House of Lords, and a friend to Queen Victoria. When the circumstantial evidence points to him as a suspect, Rudyard must deal with the political blowback, and knows if they are going to go after the viscount, they'd better be right and have proof.

As the body count grows and the public clamor for the detectives to do more, inter-department rivalries complicate the already difficult case.

Purchase on Amazon

Next, Chris reveals her inspiration for Silk.

When A Setting Is Perfect by Chris Karlsen

I was in the middle of writing another book, part of my Knights in Time series, when Rudyard Bloodstone came to me. As a character he was that rare protagonist who was crystal clear in my imagination from the start. But I pushed him to the back of my mind until I finished the other story.

When I started my latest release, Silk, a suspense thriller with Rudyard as the protagonist, I had much of killer drawn out as well. I didn't think twice about the setting either. It had to be Victorian England. I would be hard pressed to name a more atmospheric setting for a murderer. Growing up my parents were big fans of horror films. The films then weren't the gruesome Freddy Krueger or Michael Myers Halloween-slasher types of the 1980's. We watched the typical Hammer Film horrors. Those were the ones where a young Englishman in deep debt agrees to spend the night in a haunted house somewhere in the moors or countryside away from London for a large sum of money. All those movies were set in either Victorian or Edwardian times, which were perfect for a scary movie. Having visited England many times, I was familiar with the Victorian influences, especially in London. So, what better setting for my murder suspense than Victorian London?

I knew with Detective Inspector Rudyard (Ruddy) Bloodstone I make him a veteran of the Zulu Wars of 1879. Eleven Victoria Crosses (the equivalent of the Medal of Honor) were awarded after the Battle of Rorke's Drift (Jan. 1879). Rudyard is a recipient of the VC, but he's a war hero who doesn't believe himself one. To Ruddy, he only did what was necessary in battle. A civilian now, he is a down to earth, determined and clever detective, a keen observer with a droll sense of humor.

The killer, William Everhard, is a wealthy nobleman, a member of the House of Lords, and friend to Queen Victoria. I wanted to hold a mirror to the society of the period, the difference in classes and attitudes but without being too Dickensian. I wanted to show both the good and bad. Mostly, I wanted to use the "feel" of the city. To me, this is the perfect setting: the cold fog, the beautiful carriages pulled by handsome teams of horses, the gardens for strolling, the grittiness of Whitechapel, dark allies and the terror Jack the Ripper sent through the population.

As a writer, one of the biggest joys of writing historical settings is living the period, experiencing the culture, if only on the page. I enjoyed walking Victorian London with the characters in Silk: sitting with Ruddy while he visited his friend's pub, walking around a crime scene taking in every detail with him, or simply strolling through the park with him, and his adopted stray, Winky, on a Sunday afternoon. I even liked sharing the dark and dangerous places I took them when needed.

Setting is more than scenery. I think of it as a living, breathing thing, another character. Like fashioning a character exactly the way you envision him or her, finding the perfect setting is one of the best parts of storytelling.    

Connect with Chris Karlsen at: www.chriskarlsen.com
Please welcome Chris by leaving a comment below.

 

Using Music in your Writing! by DL Larson

I have a character, an alien, who loves rock 'n roll. His personality is perfect for searching out old tunes and singing and dancing to the beat. He is also extremely forgetful which causes trouble for me, the writer, to be sure credit is given to the musical artist inside my story.

The music industry has placed severe restrictions upon writers. Using a line of a song is taboo. Writers may use a title only, if they give credit to the artist who owns the song. Or the performer more accurately. Yet a writer's work may be used without permission if credit is given for their words. It doesn't matter how many words are used as long as credit is given. The credit may appear in the middle of a paper, at the end in a bibliography or in footnotes. Whole paragraphs have been used. Yet music artists retain their works completely.

Writing a book takes considerable time, probably longer than it takes a musician to write a song. A nonfiction book may take years of research before being published. Yet no one expects the general public to site the title only of a book when they want to share some bit of information inside the pages. The lopsided thinking is unjust and in my opinion selfish of the music world.

I'm all for giving recognition to artists of the written word, in any form. But I am frustrated the music industry has hog-tied writers in such a way. Many editors/agents shy away from stories with music in it for this reason.

I don't want to go into piracy issues, that's a different topic all together. And I realize money is behind all these restrictions. But it is also a cloak of injustice to writers. Most writers offer accolades to another artist when using some snippet of their work. No one wants to be charged with plagiarism. But not being allowed to use a line from a song when credit is stated for all to see, is wrong, in my opinion.  

I'd love to see these restrictions lifted.

But I won't hold my breath for it to happen.

Til next time ~

DL Larson
www.DLLARSON.com

Better Dialogue! by DL Larson

I wrote pages and pages of notes when I attended the workshop with writer/agent Donald Maass. He spent a great deal of time on dialogue. He mentioned the 'he said/she said,' days are over. 21st Century writing requires more with less words.

During the workshop, each participant chose a scene in their WIP to rewrite the dialogue. He requested we create a scene that conveys anger, insults, unhappiness, dissatisfaction, etc.  The scene below is what I wrote:

Tracy peered out the window. "I don't see anything."
"Hmm, If you'd only look. It's happening right there."
"No, it's not. There's nothing there. Is this a prank?"
He tossed her the binoculars. "Here. Hurry. I have to go to gone and departed."
"What?"
He cleared his throat. "Look again."
"Oh good, Lord. What is that?"
"You asked to see and now you have. Now go home."

Then he asked us to delete more from the scene. I thought this was a pretty tight scene already. But I slashed away and came up with this:

"I don't see anything."
"It's happening right there."
"There's nothing there."
He tossed her the binoculars. "Look again."
"What is that?"
"You asked to see. Now leave."

Is this better? I don't know at this point. But I understand the exercise to create tension and emotion in the dialogue without using obvious direction. I may never use this scene in my WIP, but I will use the tool in future dialogues. I don't need to say, 'he said/she said,' after every spoken word. Editors have become sticklers for tighter dialogue and this exercise will help in creating fresher scenes.

If you find a scene in your WIP that drags, try this exercise. Think of a sculptor nicking away the clay or marble to reveal the sculpture he wants to create. The tension is in your writing, it's merely hidden beneath too many words.

Til next time ~

DL Larson
www.DLLARSON.com