Writing Circles and Walk-On Characters

by Molly Noble Bull

Circles and walk-on characters might seem like unusual writing terms. But they are important if you want your book or story to succeed. Here’s why.
Walk-on characters, in movies and novels, are never given names, and they never says much. For example, the waiter or waitress in a cafe could be a walk-on because all he or she does is hand each character a menu and say, "Are you ready to order?" Other walk-ons might be the person at the checkout counter at Wal Mart, the ticket person at the movies, the maid or butler in the home of a wealthy character, etc. The author might refer to these characters in the story as the waiter, the waitress, the checkout lady, the maid or the butler.
Waiters and waitresses, maids and butlers can also be important characters in a story. If they are, the author must give them names—like Mr. Jones, Sally Brown, Pastor Wilson. Characters with names are described and engage in conversations rather than merely speaking a few words.
But have you ever heard of the writing term “Full Circle?” Full circle means that what happened at the beginning must happen again near the end of the story.
I remember seeing a movie once where at the beginning of the story birds flew south for the winter. Near the end of the movie, spring had come, and birds were flying north. This is a perfect example of full circle writing.
When a character speaks a lot and is given a name other than a general name like the ones listed above this character must be mentioned again before the end of the story in order to come full circle. Let us say that near the beginning of the story the heroine is robbed by a man with tattoos all over his body. She calls him Tattoo Man, and he is never found. At the end of the story, the heroine picks up a newspaper and reads that a man who sounds like Tattoo Man was arrested for stealing a woman’s purse at a shopping mall.
And the heroine thinks, Tattoo Man. I always hoped he would be brought to justice. Now he has.
That is really all that is needed to make a story full circle. But it must be done. Otherwise, the story is likely to be rejected.
Circles and walk-on characters might sound like strange writing terms. But they are very important if you want your story or novel to sell.

Running to the arms of God

Tuesdays with Tiffany
by Tiffany Colter

Sometimes I get scared.

Do you ever feel that way? Learning all the different parts of living the writer's life can be VERY scary. You're putting yourself out there daily to rejection and pain, with splatterings of victory.

Not trying to sound negative; it's just part of the writer's life.

A few nights ago I was in bed, sound asleep, when our 5 year old came in. She was scared. She'd had a bad dream and something bothered her in her room. She was on my husband's side of the bed and I heard her say, "Daddy, can I sleep with you?"

He made room for her, hugged her, kissed her, and brought her in to bed. For some reason I instantly thought of all of you blog readers. I saw something in that moment, that one mundane act...

When we are going through our lives there are moments when we become afraid. We feel lonely. We need reassurance. During those times God brings us beside Him and comforts us. We stay warm and close to him for a season. But we can't stay there forever. Just like happened with my 5 year old, after a bit God takes us back to where we were and let's us try again. Our daughter stayed in bed with us for an hour or two and then we carried her safely back to her bed. She needed to try doing it again, but she knew we were right down the hall if she needed us.

The same is true with God. He is there waiting for us if we need Him, but He knows it is safe for us to return...

Even when we're unsure of ourselves.

So if in your writing or marketing you feel unsure, you're scared...get close to God. Find your place of comfort...then trust Him when He carries you back to "your bed" and tells you to try again.

Your Coach for the Journey, Tiffany Colter

Laughter rests your soul

In the last two days, our family has had several silly moments. Not one or two, but many.

I've found out how badly I needed a laugh.

We've had such a stressful summer that life was getting overwhelming. We were feeling heavy-hearted and like all we were doing was climbing uphill.

Then starting Friday, little things just kept happening. We started to giggle. We slept in on Saturday. We giggled at more unexpected silly things. A word here, a surprise there, a funny show...the laughter kept coming.

None of it planned. Little moments of blessings.

Now, two days later, our shoulders are relaxed and we laughed ourselves onto the floor at dinner. Our poor guest (who had never eaten a meal with our family before) was completely befuddled. At the end of the evening and weekend, our hearts are much lighter. We feel rested and refreshed.

Are you feeling overwhelmed and exhausted?

Start with a giggle from a funny show. Look for reasons to tell humorous stories. Be deliberate. Laugh.

I promise you'll be on the road to a refreshed outlook and a rested soul.

Angie
Please visit me over at God Uses Broken Vessels.

Revisions...When is enough, enough?

Posted by Eileen Astels
www.eileenastels.blogspot.com

This is a question I personally struggle with day in and day out. I pray that once I reach a certain point in my learning curve, that the number of required revisions for my work will be exponentially less than where it stands now. I honestly cannot tell you how many times I have revised my very first novel that I wrote nearing four years ago. Way too many, is the answer that comes to mind. And yet, I'm still seeing improvement with each pass through, so it can't be too many, can it?

Since that first novel, I have written two others. But I continually bounce back to my very first baby, in an attempt to freshen it up with what I've learned along the way. I want that first novel to really come to life. But why? Why can't I let it go? Will I ever be ready to say: Enough is enough?

What do I keep revising that causes so many run-throughs, you might ask?

Well, there's the fleshing out of my characters, there's the trimming of unneeded backstory, word tightening (how I love to search for adverbs and adjectives that replace a grouping of insignificant words), invoking all the senses wherever possible, improving the general flow of my sentences and paragraphs (this is a biggy for me), infusing emotion, building more conflict, adding a sprinkling of humor where it is lacking, discovering redundancy and fixing it, the list goes on and on. I'd add being a grammar police to this list too, but I fear what I am fixing might still be wrong, since grammar isn't my strong suit. That, I'll have to leave for a professional to help me with once I'm finally satisfied with my work.

So when will I be satisfied? If ever?

My husband keeps telling me to think "good is better than perfect" when I drone on about how tedious a job writing has become. I have difficulty accepting that in this hugely competitive publication world. I don't believe we writers have that luxury. We better revise until we feel it's as perfect as we can possibly make it. But then, there's the serious writerly commitment to never stop learning, always keep studying the craft of fiction writing to keep improving. With that logic, I have to wonder if there will ever be a point when I'm able to say enough is really enough, and release my baby into the submission phase.

I'm left to prayer, here. Prayer is the only answer I feel I have to release me from this writerly conundrum. I pray that when God feels my writing is good and ready for me to be proud of, He'll give me a sense of peace, and a drive to begin submitting to publishers and/or agents in a serious attempt to reach the culminating goal of publication. He has much to teach me along the way, perseverence and commitment are just a couple.

So, what about all of you? How do you come to the decision to submit your babies? What sound advice can you all offer? I would love to hear your thoughts on how to know when enough is enough.

Blessings,

Eileen
www.eileenastels.blogspot.com

What is this blog anyway?

Tuesdays with Tiffany
by Tiffany Colter

For those of you fairly new to writer's rest you may not be sure why exactly you want to spend your Tuesday with Tiff. In fact, I couldn't even get my beautiful graphic to load to today so why should you care what I have to say?

Well, it's because this is where I market myself, My Writing Career Coaching products, my homeschooling lessons that will be released July 27th, and my upcoming books.

That's why you came, right?

Oh, it isn't?

Well, how about this. You came because you were told by someone else that I share from my heart tips to build your writing business?

Is that closer to the truth? I hope it is. Otherwise, I'm failing miserably.

My point in that opening was two fold.

First, no one wants to come to your blog to be manhandled. They don't want to be forced in to buying a product or service. They don't want to feel like they've stumbled on to an infomercial.

They also want to know WIIFM!! What's in it for me!! That's because ALL of us, myself included, won't stop at a blog-or if we do stop, we won't stay long, if the blog doesn't provide us with SOMETHING. That may be as small as a small laugh or as big as a life changing principle.

The SECOND is if people find something in your blogs or articles that give them something they will develop a RELATIONSHIP with you. They will see you as someone they can go to and they will trust you. Don't violate that trust by throwing every imaginable option at them. Treat them like a friend. Tell them what you've found that helps, and what doesn't. Then, as a friend, they will recommend you to others when your book releases.

So focus your conversations, blogs and articles on the needs of others. Seek to fill that need by developing relationships. That is how you grow as a person and as a marketer.

Check out my other blog to find out how I learned a great deal about marketing by reading a ketchup bottle and watching a horror flick.

Your Coach for the Journey, Tiffany Colter

Rest for Health

You might have noticed that this message is back posted to my regular Sunday time.

Unfortunately, I had to deal with bronchitis for the last week.

Guess what?

You guessed it!

The doctor prescribed rest, lol.

My schedule had become so out of control on business travel, classes, pageant work, family, etc...

I hadn't taken time to rest in several weeks. And my body let me know in NO uncertain terms.

Isn't it funny that we think we are absolutely indispensable until we are of no use to anyone? sigh.

So last week I let everything possible go. This week, I'm working back into only the most important things.

That is my lesson. My very humbling lesson! I am not so important that the world can't get along without me.

My job is to do God's will and to slow down on the busy overkill. Why do I have to relearn that over and over?

UGH!

Take a look at your schedule. Is it really what you are supposed to be doing or is it more busy stuff?

Would your body appreciate a break?

Mine did.

On the mend,
Angie

The Five Senses

by Molly Noble Bull
www.mollynoblebull.com

The speaker at a writers’ conference gave a testimony about the five senses once, and I will never forget what she said. Though I didn’t actually attend the writers’ conference where she made these amazing discoveries, I purchased the tapes, and I have played them again and again.
Here is what she said.
She explained that the first few novels she wrote didn’t sell. She would send them to editor after editor, and all were rejected. She wondered why and made a decision to find out. As a result of her research, she began to do things differently.
Somehow, she concluded that when she had at least four of the five senses on almost every page of a manuscript, the book sold. When she did not, the novel was rejected.
Here are examples of the kind five senses I am talking about.
Sight:
Linda’s sky-blue eyes set off her dark hair. In fact, he’d never seen a woman with hair that black—unless it came from a bottle.
Hearing: He stood at the water’s edge, listening to the rush of the sea against the rocks and the whoosh of a salty breeze.
Touch: Seated on the blue velvet settee and waiting for Jim to join her there, she traced the carving of a bird on the oak arm with her fingertips.
Smell: As soon as she entered the door, she smiled, breathing in the scent of gingerbread and cinnamon and stewed apples.
Taste: The milk was so sour it almost made warm buttermilk sound good.
Sometimes it is almost impossible to get more than one or two of the five senses on a page of manuscript. Therefore, I suggest combining two or more in the same sentence.
Examples of Combinations:
Salty breeze
Warm buttermilk
White sheets of a frozen clothesline
The vapors from the oily solution his mom had rubbed on his chest made his nasal passages open and his eyes water and burn.
Fiction novels that contain the five senses on almost every page sell, and if you can put two or more in one sentence, you might sell even sooner.