A Super Helpful Flow Chart for Writers Who Like to Procrastinate

Flow charts are awesome. 

A post on Buzzfeed inspired me to create a flow chart for writers. But what would the topic be, I asked myself. And then it came to me. I can't be the only one who joins the procrastination club on occasion. There are times when the world of the interwebs or That One TV Show seem way more interesting than what I have to write.

So. I have created a flow chart for us. The next time you feel like procrastinating, you can be honest with yourself by asking these simple questions. 

Keep writing on, friends! ;) 

Farrah Penn enjoys staying up way too late and making up for it in large quantities of coffee. On top of her love for reading books with memorable characters, she also enjoys internet memes, yoga, and her adorably bratty dog. When she’s not rushing to complete marketing projects at work, she’s writing and daydreaming about traveling the world. Farrah writes YA and is represented by Suzie Townsend of New Leaf Literary.

You can also find her on Twitter @: https://www.twitter.com/farrahwrites
Drop her an email @: farrahnicolepenn@gmail.com
And visit her blog at: http://www.farrahpenn.com

Revision Tools from Alex's Nano Rebellion

Hey guys! Hope writing's going well, especially if you're doing NaNoWriMo. :)

For my NaNo project this year, I'm trying something new. Instead of writing 50k words in a first draft, I'm cutting and rewriting 50k words in the manuscript I've been revising.

It's been challenging to get through the first week, but revising under time pressure has taught me a lot about my own editing process, so I'm sharing what I've learned thus far. Whether you're rebelling and revising with me, revising as you write, or looking for ideas for December's edits, hopefully there's something in here that can help you out.

When I use a feeling by name, I double-check that I'm not telling in that sentence. 

One of the really awkward things about revising is reading over all the stuff you thought was super hot, and then cringing when you spot all the telling you're doing. Naming emotions tends to get me into trouble. Unless you're doing an awesome take on feelings like Kelsey and personifying emotions *obligatory Fear fangirl moment* or inside a character's head, dialoguing, or something to that effect, then chances are these emo-nouns are telling where there needs to be showing.

And when you start looking for them, it's kind of intimidating. Because they're EVERYWHERE.

oh god not you again

Most of the adverbs that I cut are things like "angrily" or "quizzically" or "vehemently"-- all of which aren't that needed if I'm making my dialogue convey the rage, confusion, or urgency it should. Sometimes it's fine (my rule of thumb is that in dialogue anything goes), but I don't want things like "His fear was becoming suffocating." or "Love wasn't something he had time for." making it to the next draft. That's the telling that I want to get rid off.

Minor characters are where it's at.

One of my CPs and I regularly geek out over how awesome minor characters are. Why? These are people you added to your story to accomplish a certain function, but in true writerly sleight of hand you can't let the reader know that. So, you do the only thing you can do, which is to make them utterly amazing and hilarious.

While my main pair is busy with their own problems:

My minor characters are also busy:

"I'm sorry, are you having an emotional conflict? I can't hear you over the sound of how awesome I am."

What's great about minor characters is the amount of freedom you have. Maybe you just need one around as a benchmark for how much your protagonist has changed, but don't let that stop you from making them awesome. My favorite dude in this manuscript is my main character's father-- I love snarky, angry people, and this guy is such a guilty pleasure to write that whatever scene he comes into he pretty much steals the limelight (and all the olives out of the fridge). 

Taking another look at diversity.

The story I'm revising is a contemporary taking place in the present. I want to be sure that my manuscript accurately reflects the people you'd find if you went there-- whether it's the race demographic or LGBT characters. And yeah, I'm a white, straight girl trying to write characters that aren't those things. I'm really nervous about messing up. I'm completely prepared for someone to tell me that I'm doing everything wrong, and that I am exactly zero, none, no good.

my feels

But more than I'm anxiety-attacking about offending every person ever, I know I can write human beings. I can write angry people (see hilarious angry father a few paragraphs ago). I can write serious, pragmatic, but secretly goofy people, and I can also write happy people hiding a deep sadness. I can research my heart out. And maybe (probably) I won't get it exactly perfect, but I'd rather try than stop myself because I'm too afraid I'll fail.

Revisions are my time to tighten up character identities and push myself. If you're also writing diverse characters, needing/wanting ideas or help, and not yet checking out the cool stuff that Diversity in YA is doing, get on that! They are awesome. :)

Beat management-- aka, no one shakes their head that much in real life. 

I love my dialogue tags, but a lifetime of watching TV shows has made beats an integral part of my writing. I swear, most of the things that I am cutting out of this manuscript are "She nods." or "He blinks." Don't get me wrong, I love beats. But relying too much on the quick, two-word ones sometimes makes your poor characters end up like this:

"But you need to know it's me doing the speaking, so here you go."

I feel like I'm writing the reaction gifs of my characters sometimes, and sometimes that needs to get pared down or re-modded. I really like having my characters do things while they're talking, so I can use the beats to have them accomplishing different tasks-- like putting a straw into a juice carton or climbing up trapdoors-- instead of always nodding along or staring incredulously.

Research is fun. Also, addictive. Also, the internet is scary. 

I've never been to the city where my manuscript is set, but I have Google Maps'd that place and gotten an idea of the local layout. I've researched weather conditions, local landmarks, and cool places for the characters to explore. Have I gone on streetview along neighborhoods to get an idea of what it looks like to walk through it? Yeah. Have I picked out a real house I think would be totally perfect for my main character? Yes. 

Is it creepy and insane that we have the technology for me to do this?

Cut the superfluous stuff and get to the magical cookies. 

Susan Dennard has a great post on this-- pretty much, if you're not excited to write a scene, your readers aren't going to be excited to read it either. It's like you're constantly at war for being the most awesome thing on your reader's mind. 

Kill every darling. 

Slay them. If it sounds cute, it gets cut. I keep my cuts in a separate document (which is how I'm keeping track of my word count for NaNo), so it's not like any darlings are killed forever. But more often then not, when I read through things in my cuts doc I can see why they were too weak to stay in the draft. If it can't hold its own in the manuscript, if my liking it is the only reason it's in here, then it has no place in the final version. It's tough love, but it's making the story better. 

Any darlings left must be at least this fabulous.

And that's my report from revision land. How are your NaNoWriMo projects going, guys? Or if you're revising like me, share your favorite tricks for gettin' it done. :)

When Alex Yuschik isn't writing her next YA novel, she's working on someone else's as an intern at Entangled Publishing. She writes about lock picks, ghosts, the abandoned places in cities, and how not to strike bargains with stars. Between sneaking in time to game and rocking out to indie music, Alex spends the rest of her free time working towards her PhD in mathematics. You know, as one does.

You can find her on Twitter @: http://twitter.com/alexyuschik

Or drop her an email at: alex.yuschik@gmail.com

And also visit her website @: alexyuschik.blogspot.com 

Author Interview: April Tucholke

I couldn't wait to interview one of my amazing friends and author of the beautifully creepy gothic horror: BETWEEN THE DEVIL AND THE DEEP BLUE SEA. April Tucholke's novel has been one of the most sought after books since it was announced, and people who were lucky enough to read it before its release have praised this book insane amounts. Of course, it is now available for purchase and if you haven't got it yet, you need to rectify this, immediately! 

I absolutely loved everything about BETWEEN and seriously cannot wait for its sequel. Read on to learn more about April's brilliant mind.

What inspired you to write BETWEEN THE DEVIL AND THE DEEP BLUE SEA?

I read this crazy article when I was living in Scotland: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/8574484.stm and it really inspired me. How did this rumor about the vampire spread so fast? Who started it? Did it all trace back to one brilliant little liar of a kid? 

Has the editing/writing process for BETWEEN THE SPARK AND THE BURN been any easier than book one? 

Definitely. Learning to draft and edit is an acquired skill like anything else. I’m better at it now. I’ve got the melody down. It’s still hard. Brutally hard. Especially drafting. But I’m slowly getting the hang of it. 

People sometimes tweak their writing process with every manuscript to find new ways that work for them. Has being published changed the way you plot/outline as you jump into book two? 

Not really. I still do pretty much the same thing. Spend days and days thinking about the plot. Discuss it at length with my husband. Read things and watch things and go places to get inspired. The write a 2 or 3 page outline…and begin. Generally about 2/3 of the way through I’ll take a step back and look at what I’ve got so far and then try to figure out how to make the ending a lot more cool than it was in the outline.

What do you do when you get stuck? Do you wait it out or do you have strategies for getting unstuck?

I don’t often get stuck. I just push myself through it. It’s like cooking. Some days you’re inspired, other days cooking feels loathsome and tedious and hateful. But either way you have to eat. And either way you want the food to be good. If I absolutely need to I’ll take a long walk or read some pages of a book I love and hope to get my spark back. It always returns.

The phrase “kill your darlings” comes up a lot during editing and revisions. What are the hardest scenes for you to cut or edit out but that you’re glad you did?

Hmm. I’m kind of a lean writer so I almost always need to add, not cut. Sometimes I have to tone down violence. And madness. I try to transform the scene, rather than cut it entirely though. 

What’s better: a kickass villain that you almost want to cheer for or hilarious minor characters? Tell us why!

Kickass villain. Always. Gothic horror plots thrive on passionate antagonists that both seduce and repel at the same time. Byronic heroes—what’s not to love? See: Wuthering Heights, Dracula, Dragonwyck, The Phantom of the Opera, Interview with a Vampire, Jamaica Inn…

Do you have any secret writing habits?

Just coffee. Coffee and a snuggly Bichon and maybe a quick weekend trip somewhere lively and cool to get my muse going. 

Bio below from Goodreads:

April Genevieve Tucholke is a full-time writer who digs classic movie, redheaded villains, bit kitchens, and discussing murder at the dinner table. She and her husband––a librarian, former rare-book dealer, and journalist––live in Oregon. Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea is her first novel. 

The Secret Life would like to thank April for taking the time to answer our questions. We are so looking forward to the sequel: BETWEEN THE SPARK AND THE BURN, and can't wait to see what other awesome book ideas she has in store for the future. 

The Secret of Being an Awkward Author

So, one of the things that happens once you've worked your butt off getting that novel ready for publication and it comes out and everything is awesome is author appearances! This past weekend I attended the Louisiana Book Festival at the state library down in Baton Rouge. And I wasn't just there to walk around and look at all the pretty books. I was invited to do a panel AND a signing!

The night before the festival was the super exclusive author party where I met some awesome authors like Claudia Gray, Ashley Elston, and Aimee Agresti.

This is one of those experiences that I daydreamed about before I was published. The whole rubbing elbows with NYT bestsellers and being asked to speak to crowds of people.

Ashley and me talking to a room full of people about writing.

Not to mention signing my very own book. Saying that very professional sentence: "Who do I make it out to?"

Now, in my daydreams I was always smooth, confident, and knowledgeable, but in real life? Yeah, not so much. At the author party, I felt so awkward and out of place among all these very hip and experienced people. It's really weird. Writing is such a solitary venture most of the time then once you're published you're expected to go out into the world of actual people *gasp* and be, ya know, normal. When really I'm all:

The cool thing was everyone there was so nice and supportive. I realized that these people I'd been afraid of were just like me. They are big-time authors, sure, but they're just people. People who geek out over the upcoming X-Men movie (Claudia and I had a super fun convo about that). People who are just as nervous as I am (Ashley and I fully admitted to each other that we were nervous as hell over that panel).

So, I guess what I'm trying to say is just relax. We're all regular people who love reading and writing. And that's a beautiful thing.

A Winner! Also, Why You Should Participate in Contests Like These

Happy Monday, Secret Lifers! First things first: thanks to everyone who  participated in our spooky flash fiction contest--both the ones who entered, and the ones who read the final entries and voted. And without further ado, the winner is....

Entry #1! Which would be A MAN SCORNED, written by Rebecca Barray. Rebecca, please send your choice of books (from the ones featured here)  along with your mailing address to secret.life.of.writers@gmail.com, and I'll get your prize in the mail!

So at this point, I know a lot of you are probably in the throes of NaNoWriMo (hooray! go you! write write write!) and so contests may be the last thing on your mind, but I figured as long as we were on the subject, I'd give you my top three reasons or so for entering contests like these. We had a great turnout for this last contest, but for those of you still hanging out in the wings, undecided on whether to go for it or not (no shame there; that used to be me), here are said reasons: 

1: You learn to lose. I'm guessing most people don't enter contests with the intention of losing. Actually, the thought of losing is probably what keeps most people from hitting the send button on a contest entry email. Generally that was my excuse too: publishing is so full of rejection--why invite more? (Hint: this is one of those times when the answer is in the question). Because that's just it: publishing is full of rejection, so contests are a fantastic way to build up that tough skin you're going to need. And what's great about building it through low-stakes contests as opposed to, say, query rejections, is that you aren't necessarily burning any bridges with agents or editors you might want to work with. 

The important thing to remember is that we're all losers at some point--myself included. Want to know a secret? You guys know this fantastic blog over here? There's a big, annual contest that I'm sure a lot of you have heard of. I entered it in the months prior to writing the manuscript that landed me an agent, and then a book deal, and I didn't even make it through the first round. I remember waiting for the "you've been picked!" email, and waiting, and waiting...and then it didn't come. And I was pretty sure my career as an author was over and all was lost (I'm also pretty sure I'm overly dramatic sometimes). But I survived. And this morning I got an even cooler email from my publisher that told me my book would be up for sale in about 8 weeks. So. Yeah. Life goes on even after you lose. It's pretty awesome like that.

2. You meet people. Quite often, really cool people. And many of the people that I remember making the contest rounds with are now soon-to-be-published authors, in case you needed any more proof that contest-enterers is a crowd worth running with. I know a lot of people, too, who have met CPs, beta readers, and just generally awesome and encouraging writing buddies through contests. Writing can be a very lonely endeavor, but it doesn't have to be. And having walked both the lonely road and the surrounded-by-the-warm-fuzzy-writing-community road myself, I have to say that I prefer the latter (this coming from someone who's still a pretty hardcore introvert). 

3. You gain experience. Didn't win this time? Maybe pay attention to the ones who did. What are they doing that readers, voters, judges etc... are responding to? Can you bring more of that into your own writing? Assuming you want to, of course. Because I'm in no way trying to say that the people judging contests are always right, or that you should give up your own unique style to create a more "crowd-pleasing" one--if that's not what you want to do. But I personally feel like my own style is always changing and evolving, and I think contests provide a great opportunity to see clearly what readers like and don't like, and ways I might be able to grow my own writing to at least somewhat account for these things. 

So, there you have it--three quick reasons. What about you guys? Do you like entering contests? Why or why not? What are your favorite types of contests? Do you dislike the word contest? Because I'm starting to. I think it's because I've typed it too many times and now it looks like it's spelled wrong. Anyway, leave your thoughts in the contest comments!

Stefanie Gaither writes YA novels about killer clones and spaceships, with the occasional romp with dragons and magic-users thrown in for good measure. Said writing is generally fueled by an obscene amount of coffee and chocolate, as well as the occasional tennis and/or soccer break. She's represented by Sara Megibow of Nelson Literary, and her debut novel, FALLS THE SHADOW, is forthcoming from Simon and Schuster Books For Young Readers in 2014. You can add it on Goodreads here!

You can find her on Twitter @: https://twitter.com/stefaniegaither

Or drop her an email at: stefanie.gaither@gmail.com

And also visit her website @: www.stefaniegaither.com 

October Updates from the Writing Community

Hi, guys!

October flew by, yes? And I bet November will be the same with so many of us participating in NaNoWriMo. I know I sure missed a lot of awesome stuff that happened in October! So if you're like me, here's a little snippet of what's been going on the last couple of weeks around the Twittersphere.

• Our Secret Life buddy, Gail Nall announced her book deal for her middle grade debut, DON'T FALL DOWN! For more updates from Gail, check out her site (linked above) or follow her on Twitter.
• Amy Lukavics also announced the sale of her YA book, DAUGHTERS UNTO DEVILS, to Harlequin Teen! You can follow Amy on Twitter here.
• The finalists for our Spooky Flash Fiction contest are up and ready for your vote. There are only three days left to vote, so help us hook one of these writers up with some swag and pick your favorite! 

NaNoWriMo:

Ah, the topic du jour. Here on the Secret Life blog, we have some of our own golden posts chock full of tips and tricks for surviving NaNo. (You can find them all here, linked at the bottom of Farrah's post). But I've done a little perusing myself in prep to conquer NaNo again this year, and I've found some gems in case you're looking for some extra support this November: 

• A word of advice from agent Sarah LaPolla on NaNoWriMo, and how to go about making your NaNo novel sparkle before you query it.
• Practical advice (like how to guarantee you'll take pee breaks!) during NaNoWriMo from Angi Black. 
• Gearing up for NaNo tips from Pen and Muse. 

• And this guest post on the NaNo blog, from me. It's one of my favorite blog posts I've ever written, and I hope that it'll keep you going when you hit Week Two sludge. 

Happy writing!

xo. 

Andrea Hannah is a YA writer represented by Victoria Marini of Gelfman Schneider. Her psychological thriller, OF SCARS AND STARDUST, debuts from Flux in Fall 2014. She writes stories about criminals, crazy people, and creatures that may or may not exist. When she's not writing, Andrea teaches special education, runs, spends time with her family, and tries to figure out a way to prevent her pug from opening the refrigerator (still unsuccessful). 

You can find her on Twitter @: http://twitter.com/andeehannah

Drop her an email @: andreahannahbooks@gmail.com
And visit her website @: http://www.andreahannah.com/

Spooky Flash Fiction Contest Finalists!

Happy Halloween, Secret Lifers! We've been getting in the creepy holiday mood ourselves by reading through some of your awesome entries for our Spooky Flash Fiction Contest. Thanks so much to everyone who submitted a story! It was incredibly difficult to pick just three to showcase on the blog, but we finally did, and they're listed below!

So, fabulous readers, if you would be so kind, show some love and support to these writers who have shared their work with us. Read through the entries, and then be sure to VOTE on your favorite in the fancy little poll thing at the bottom of this post. Votes will be accepted through the weekend, and the winner will be announced on Monday!

Entry #1

A MAN SCORNED

“I never meant to hurt you. Please, believe me.” Joe ignored Marcy’s pleading. “I’m sorry. It was only the one time. No more secrets, I swear. And it will never happen again.”

Joe looked through her.

“Joe, I’m sorry. Please, say something.” Marcy stepped forward, her hands moving toward his shoulders. But when he still didn’t respond, she stopped just shy of contact, her arms falling back to her sides. “I love you,” she whispered, “so much.”

Then, he stepped right through her. Confused, she turned to see him kneel beside her body and start to clean up the blood.

Entry #2

UNEARTHED

Being the new guy in school always sucked at first, especially when everyone asked where you'd transferred from and why. From Pick-A-City, USA. Mom's always wanted to live here. I'd mastered the art of lying—psychiatric wards were like prisons: highly educational. No more hallucinations, Dr. Fields/Mercer/Kravock. Well, practice makes perfect, and after years of study I'd graduated with a clean bill of mental health. Now the only thing locked away was my file, and the secrets it contained.

Nightmares I hoped stayed buried this time.

Eight months in Savannah and things looked good. Normal. Like tonight's kick-ass party at the abandoned Bouchard Mansion. Booze flowed, music raged, and Stacey's hand slid to the bulge in my jeans and squeezed. I groaned against her neck.

“Let me tell Mac we're leaving,” I said.

“Okay, but hurry.”

I took the stairs two at a time, hoping they wouldn't collapse. Fucking things were dry rotted. I passed Jake and Alissa in the hall.

“Where's Mac?”

Jake pointed to the room at the end. I opened the door and froze, icy shards of terror pricking my skin. Mac's body lay face down in a sea of blood. Oh, God, please, not again.

My murdered sister sat at a small table decorated with plastic tea cups. “Anna did it,” she said, pointing to the doll sitting next to her.

Anna fixed her glassy black eyes on my face.

You left us behind and now look what happened.

Entry #3

BODY AND SOUL

It wasn’t hard to imagine their eyes following her.

They weren’t, of course, that would be ridiculous. The shrunken stoat frozen and crouched on its tree stump, the fox with its dried black mouth stretched over fake yellow teeth, the hare with its glassy eyes and stiff brittle whiskers. They stared at her from inside their display cases, and that was just the smear of children’s fingerprints on the glass, not the fog of angry, living breath.

It was just the hospital next door that gave her the creeps. She hated it, its sour-faced NHS nurses and cold, impatient doctors. Her mum had died in that hospital, alone and shrivelled with cancer. The nurse’s voice on the other end of the phone had been dry and empty. She’s dead, it had said. Your mother. And we need the bed. 

A siren wailed in the distance. The stoat gazed at her, the dull museum lights making white starpoints in its dead empty eyes.

The siren screamed, getting closer and closer. Louder. Louder. The sound of it made her feel sick, her heart choking inside her chest. Then in at the gates next door, its scream so loud and intimate she could feel it shaking inside her bones. The museum lights flickered, and the spark in the stoat’s eyes danced and blinked. Its tail twitched.

She stared blindly out the window at the paramedics rushing the body inside the doors, and the stoat glared at her, showing its tiny yellow teeth.