So You Want To Write Mysteries . . .

By Mark W. Danielson

It’s been a while since I’ve addressed writing so here is a frank discussion on the subject.  Those of us who write murder mysteries have at some point all been asked the same question – where do we get our [warped] ideas?  The question seems reasonable enough, but the answer is far from simple.  Rather than speak for anyone else or say “I don’t know”, I must first state for the record that I had a wonderful childhood, my parents are still married after sixty four years, I have never done drugs or committed any acts of violence, nor do I have any plans to do either.  I have a graduate degree, have painted all my life, and had written non-fiction for many years before discovering fiction in the late eighties.  And so began my endless drafts of mystery and suspense novels that killed off people with traits I didn’t much care for.  Yup, that’s the beauty in novels – the ability to plug ’em and plant ’em at will.  Oh, what a stress reliever it is.

One of the more notable author/artistic traits is the power of observation.  We tend to hear and see things that others may not, and then transfer these details into a scene from a book.  Background noises, indistinct whispers, a clunking shoe, television, even a sneeze can all play important roles in a story.  Intentional or not, many storylines are stolen from one’s memory.

The power of perception is an essential sleuth requirement.  One must be able to understand multiple points of view in order to create believable characters.  This means we must get inside the criminal mind as much as those defenders of good.  Personally, I like to people watch, read, or watch news accounts that border on fiction with their sensationalism.  I happened to have been in LA when another car chase came on the TV.  LA car chases are so routine they are hardly worth my time, but this one was entertaining as Robin Hood tossed money from the car as he drove through neighborhoods with six police cars behind him.  Yes, sometimes the truth is stranger than fiction.  I hear the culprit was the bank manager’s boyfriend.  Go figure.

There are plenty of whacked out people in this world, and while the percentage of nut cases may remain the same, their numbers climb proportionally with population growth.  Newspaper and magazines can stir volumes of sinister characters and complex plots.  Just don’t get too carried away.  Every plots must be plausible.

Any author will tell you that you can’t write if you don’t read.  You don’t read other authors to emulate them, though.  Instead, you do it to get a sense of their pacing and character development.  Reading within your genre also gives a sense of what is topical and publishable.  In a society of requiring instant gratification, news, and texting, it is unlikely that Hemingway or Michener could get published.  Today’s audience simply doesn’t have the patience for their writing style. 

Scripting requires perseverance.  Unless you are a celebrity or some quirk of fate happens your way, the odds of publishing anything in a timely manner is remote.  I know far too many excellent authors who will remain unknown because most readers buy with name recognition.  Because of this, book stores tend to limit their books to known authors and publishers.  Of course, this stacks the deck against new authors, but if your novel is good enough, it may still hit the chart one day.    

If you write to get rich, you’re probably better off investing in lottery tickets.  Computers, internet, paper, ink, queries, editors, proof readers, promoters, all cost money.  Unless you are an established author, publishers won’t be sending money your way because they simply don’t have it.  Expect to spend whatever advance you receive promoting your work.  Sadly, you won’t see another dime until your sales have worked off your advancement.  I don’t recommend giving up your day job until you have stashed away a couple million.      

For those who are married or live with significant others, know that creative writing is a solitary task.  It’s probably easy to tell when I’m writing because I am thinking more about the plot than what’s going on around me.  When I finally sit down to write, I find myself in a different zone.  Stephen King likes to write with rock music blaring.  For me, silence is golden as I download my subconscious thoughts into a Word document.  If the dog barks or phone rings, I flinch.  Because of this and my preference to stay married, I tend to write more while on the road so I’m not ignoring the person most important to me. 

Writing is my passion.  It is something I need to do.  I strongly encourage others to put their thoughts down as well, and if you happen to make a few bucks along the way, consider it gravy.

Writing Basics

By Mark W. Danielson

A recent speaking engagement to a group of aspiring writers took me back to the basics of writing. Upon hearing their introductions, I soon realized these people were members of a critique group who were interested in hearing what published authors had to say.
Some in attendance were writing non-fiction while others were working on fiction. Still others were writing their memoirs. All wanted to know how to find a good editor or a good publisher. My best recommendation was for them to review blogs such as this one that include advice on those and other writing related topics.

Following this meeting, I decided to summarize some basic writing principles for the benefit of anyone who is seeking similar information. I’m hopeful that other authors will chime in with their own recommendations or experiences. Having said that, I’ll proceed with some writing basics.

First and foremost, no one speaks to wanna-be writers better than Stephen King in his book, On Writing. King truly wants writers to benefit from his experience and even offers them an exercise that if you follow precisely, he or a member of his staff will offer their critique. To me, this book is as important as a thesaurus, dictionary, or style guide. If you don’t already own it, buy it. You’ll also learn some interesting things about King.

A key point made by every successful author is that writers must also read. As King bluntly says, if you don’t have time to read, then you don’t have time to write. How can you understand different writing styles if you haven’t read them? I’ve put many books down because I couldn’t force myself to finish them. Since I never want anyone doing that with my own books, I analyze what it was that turned me off in a particular story and learn from it. Conversely, if I like a story, then I try to determine why the pages kept turning.

People frequently tell me they would like to write, but don’t know what to write about. Certainly, everyone has at least one story in them, and that’s the story of their life. One of my fellow pilots just told me about his surviving a plane crash during an air show. He was one of two that survived. The other four died. His story was a remarkable testament about flying and survival. Burned over forty percent of his body, he made a remarkable recovery and was flying again in four months. Since them, he has performed countless blacked out landings with the Air Force in various parts of the world and is currently flying as an airline pilot. No one will ever know about stories like his unless they are spoken or written down. Writing your memoirs is a great way to re-live memories while developing a suitable writing style. The key is to write the story as if you were telling it at a family reunion. Don’t throw in an overabundance of detail for it will slow the pace. Deduct ten points for every unnecessary adjective.

Regardless of what you write about, you must read it out loud during the editing process. Doing so catches the majority of your grammatical errors and also flags bad dialogue. What may look good on paper may not sound believable when read aloud. Whatever you write about, keep it real.

Accuracy is equally important in both fiction and non-fiction because inaccuracies dissolve credibility. In non-fiction, inaccuracies may also warrant libel suits. No author can afford either.

There are plenty other important items worth passing on. Published authors, remember what it was like when you first started. Think about your mentors’ best advice and please offer it generously.

Music and Writing

By Mark W. Danielson

Stephen King may write with hard rock blaring, but I prefer silence. If I’m riding as an airline passenger, I’ll listen to instrumentals to block out the noise while I type. I can’t listen to lyrical songs when I work, because they draw me in. Once that happens, I’ve broken my connection with my subconscious thoughts and my writing stagnates. A good lesson comes from this, though, for a mystery novel must consume its readers just as a song’s lyrics should command their listeners attention. In this regard, song writers and mystery authors share an inseparable bond.

Music has changed dramatically since I grew up. In a very real sense, music grew up with me. During the Fifties, rock music was fun and care free, in spite of the daily threat of nuclear war. But the Vietnam War sparked a new era of music with powerful lyrics on making love, not war, and protesting Yankee Imperialism and flawed politics. As the war dragged on, the Beatles sang about strawberry fields forever. To this day, the answer is still blowing in the wind. Few would argue that the Sixties produced some of the most thought provoking music in history. Because of its timeless value, I will sometimes include musical references from this era in my stories.

Whether you’re novels include rock, rap, or country music, adding lyrical references not only enhances your characters, but your readers can’t help reminiscing over the tune. Think about the words, “All the leaves are gone”. If you’re old enough to remember, your brain will recall The Mamas and Papas tune before realizing it’s describing a scene. The same holds true for, “I can’t believe we’re on the eve of destruction”. Those lyrics are as meaningful now as they were during the Vietnam War.

Use caution with lyrical references, though. Inappropriate phrases can turn your readers off as quickly as they were turned on. Tease your readers with music to get them in tune with your character. If your reader is not familiar with a particular lyric, the reference may not be as affective, but if they do relate, adding music can be one of your greatest assets.

Men of Misery

By Mark W. Danielson

Recently, I attended the Men of Mystery event in Irvine, California. It has been my privilege to attend the last seven, and is my favorite author event. Over fifty authors gather to discuss mysteries and the writing business over lunch with five hundred guests. This year, Michael Connelly and Tim Dorsey were the key speakers. Michael was the Men of Mystery’s very first speaker, and graciously returned for its tenth anniversary. He offered some interesting comments on writing that are worth sharing.

He began with the description that the authors in attendance were actually “Men of Misery”. Not in the sense of Stephen King’s thriller, Misery, but rather in the dedication that it takes to create suspenseful mysteries. He spoke of writing several manuscripts where he was well into them and then shelved them because he “wasn’t feeling it”. He also spoke about his spending hours on a paragraph or two. In this regard, the misery he was referring to isn’t in the writing process, but rather in its re-writes.

Another item Michael stressed was daily writing. One of his mentors said you should write at least fifteen minutes a day to mentally keep you in the loop. Fifteen minutes doesn’t sound like much, but I agree with the principle. When I sit down at the computer, I hope to be there for at least an hour or two.

What I found most interesting about Michael’s presentation is in spite of his success and years of perfecting the craft, he still deals with the same writing issues as the rest of us. Although he writes numerous sequels, he is not a formula writer, so every book requires the same scrutiny as the first in his series. And while his readers may skim through the pages, every word has been carefully chosen, every setting has been visualized, and every breath from his characters has purpose. In writing, it is never acceptable to say, “It’ll do”. There may not be a prescription for successful writing, but Michael’s is as close as it gets.

There are plenty of successful authors among those attending the Men of Mystery or Women of Mystery events. Some are also screen writers and producers. Some names are more familiar than others, but every author there is equally dedicated to writing quality material. If you wish to check out some new material, try browsing the names of these other authors by visiting the Men of Mystery link: http://64.23.9.69/mom/ Most have their own web sites with chapter previews. Their mysteries are waiting.

Thankful for Readers

By Beth Terrell

In one of this weeks' blog posts, Nathan Bransford asked his readers (I started to say followers, but that sounded just a little too messianic) what they were grateful for as writers. As you can imagine, the responses ran the gamut, from the ability to write to supportive spouses to paper clips. My list of things to be thankful for hasn't changed much since last year. I'm still grateful for my loving husband; the support of my mom, my brother, in-laws, and countless friends; our dogs (two papillons and a Tibetan Spaniel); my laptop; my terrific critique group; Night Shadows Press, the small press that believed in me enough to reissue my iuniverse mystery; and readers--everyone who has read my book and liked it, and everyone who hasn't read my book, but reads the books of my friends and my favorite authors, thereby enabling the publishing industry to keep on rolling, warts and all.

There is nothing like hearing from a person who says, "I read your book and loved it." One of my favorites came from a woman who said she was so anxious to see what happened that she was sneaking in paragraphs at stop lights. Another said, "When I'm not reading this book, I'm thinking about the people in it and wondering what they're doing." It just doesn't get any better than that.

We need the encouragement, because, as most of us know, few writers can make a living with their writing. I read somewhere that the average income of writers falls just above that of migrant workers. Thank goodness for the likes of Stephen King, Dan Brown, and John Grisham, who pulled the average up! Otherwise, we'd be at the bottom of the heap. One writer, responding to Nathan's blog, said she'd calculated her hourly wages and come up with a figure of approximately seven cents. It's hard to retire to Maui on that.

Then one day you're working out at Curves, and the chatter among the exercisers turns to books. The woman at the next machine, a woman you've never met and who has no idea you're a writer, says, "You know what book I love? I just read it, and it's terrific." And she names your book. You carry that glow home with you. Years later, you can still pull it out of your pocket and bask in it.

So on this beautiful (albeit chilly) Thanksgiving Day, I'd like to take a moment to thank you, the readers. You're the ones who make this crazy business work.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Authors and Musicians

By Mark W. Danielson

Authors and musicians share a variety of tribulations. On the one hand, both groups possess an innate creative urge, which for most part, extends beyond any profitable merits. On the other, most musicians and authors will always struggle for notoriety in these popularity-based businesses. Sadly, neither group has much say in how their work can get noticed.

In a book store’s defense, authors must realize that managers base what books will be carried on their sell ability, thus name recognition is essential. Furthermore, when publishers don’t offer returns, there is no incentive for book stores to stock unknown authors’ works.

Not surprisingly, this same bias applies to musicians where radio station managers determine what songs receive air play. In spite of their nauseous repetition, disc jockeys must constantly replay the same songs in order to appease their station's sponsors. Unfortunately, we all lose where there is no musical or reading variety.

What’s interesting is seeing how rock icons like Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty, and John Fogerty are facing these same problems. Although all three have released interesting albums in the last two years, few receive airplay among conglomerate radio stations. Springsteen's lyrics in his song Radio Nowhere echo his frustration: “I was spinin’ round a dead dial, just another lost number in a file, dancin’ down a dark hole, just searchin’ for a world with some soul. This is radio nowhere, is anybody alive out there?” Imagine singers like Bruce, Tom, or John finding themselves suddenly too old or outdated to compete with The Jonas Brothers, Lady Gaga, and Kid Rock. Then again, authors like Tom Wolfe would probably face similar difficulties in getting published in today’s market. Whether we’re talking about books or music, we have minimal input in what’s available to us.

This means that consumers must step up to preserve their freedom of choice. Readers must support their independent bookstores before they’re all gone, and music lovers must support PBS and satellite radio. All over America, independent book and music stores are closing because of a down economy. Add to that the Kindle electronic readers and IPod downloads and it's a wonder how any of them can stay in business. E-book sales are up 150% and climbing because people prefer downloading to strolling a bookstore’s aisles. Some may call this progress, but I’m sure we’ll be sorry when book and music stores are gone.

Although some say published novels will soon become relics of the past, I remain cautiously optimistic, for many people still prefer holding a book. Printed books can be loaned, read in direct sunlight, and their pages flipped and marked to their owner’s desire. They do not depend upon external power, and they can dry after being dropped in water. And while these electronic readers provide endless no-bulk libraries, I’m not convinced that Kindle’s advantages outweigh its disadvantages. So even if Amazon’s dream of cataloging every book ever printed comes to fruition, there will still be a demand for real books. The only difference is these books will be printed on demand, so the only thing sold in book stores will be really expensive coffee, Kindle batteries, and IPod earphones.

Ultimately, writers and musicians will continue producing because they love doing what they do. Recall that Stephen King has retired more than once, but he’s still writing today. The same can holds true for Springsteen, Petty, and Fogerty because performing is in their blood. So, perhaps authors and musicians should write and/or perform for the love of it, remembering that having a small following is as important as a large one. But most of all, if your creation has brought fulfillment to yourself and your fans, then your efforts have been worthy.

On Writing

For those who enjoy writing fiction, I recommend Stephen King’s book, On Writing. It is rare for a best selling author to share his secrets, but Mr. King does that in this very personal and insightful hardback. As he puts it (referring to his childhood and near-fatal accident), “I came through all the stuff I told you about . . . and now I’m going to tell you as much as I can about the job . . . It starts with this: put your desk in the corner, and every time you sit down there to write, remind yourself why it isn’t in the middle of the room. Life isn’t a support-system for art. It’s the other way around.” If that doesn’t convince you that Mr. King is a guy who loves writing, nothing will. He couldn’t stop if he wanted to.

I don’t know of any other author who offers you free feedback on your writing. If you follow the writing assignment in On Writing, Mr. King, or one of his staff, will give you their impressions, no holds bared. His book is truly a bargain, and no, he knows nothing of my promoting it.

Mr. King encourages us to bang out our manuscripts and then hide them for months. Only after they’ve had time to ferment can you can view them objectively and determine whether its content is what you really intended. I’ve found this advice useful in all of my writing, whether it’s fiction, non-fiction, or business related. Repeatedly reading over the same document can give a myopic view.

The one thing Mr. King doesn’t emphasize in his book is reading your work aloud. Call it the acid test, but reading aloud reveals errors you may not otherwise find. It also confirms whether your dialogue is realistic. Be aware that even this may not reveal inaccuracies that will instantly destroy an author’s credibility. For example, one of Tom Wolfe’s books described El Cerrito, California, as a “warm and sunny” place. Clearly, Mr. Wolfe never spent any time there, for the fifteen years I spent growing up there, the fog headed straight for our house, spread, and then retreated in the reverse order. It’s been years since I read Mr. Wolfe’s story, but that inaccuracy is all I remember of the book. So, whatever you write, make sure it’s accurate and plausible. You only get one shot with your reader.

But writing novels is the easy part of the business. Becoming a household name is the result of dedication and a series of fortunate events. I accept that, and offer this final thought by comparing writing to ice skating. Ice skaters spend years perfecting their sport to make it look graceful. A well-written story flows effortlessly, like the ice skater. And while every author strives for Olympic Gold, only a few will place. But like the athletes, we must analyze any set backs and keep going. I’m sure Mr. King would agree.