Curing Writer's Block: Unsagging the Middle of the Novel

Have you ever put a book down in the middle and never picked it up again?  Books are often begun with a burst of great enthusiasm, but by the time the middle is reached, the excitement may have worn thin for both writer and reader. 

The middle of the book is the longest section and often the most challenging part of a novel to write.  What was once new and exciting runs the risk of becoming redundant and ho-hum boring.  The writer must think of ways to keep the book entertaining to hold the reader’s interest to the end.
  
Below are some tips for keeping the middle from sagging. 

    

 Keep it Exciting by Upping the Ante

The middle is the place to up the ante.  If the protagonist is at risk, make him more so.   If he or she is in danger, make the main character sweat even more.  For example, if your hero is a professional gambler and has risked his own money in the first chapter, in the middle get him into even more hot water by risking money from the boss’s safe or his wife’s private account.  Now, if he loses again, he’s really got a problem. 

Add a Totally New Event

Spice the middle up with an entirely new event.  If you are writing a mystery, add a new murder. If another murder does not fit the storyline, then add a threat or warning.  A sinister phone call, a death note, or the taking of a hostage can heighten the suspense and keep the reader interested.

Add an Unexpected Twist

A twist or surprise in the middle can also be a pleasant diversion.  Perhaps the hero has figured out that the source of all of his problems is the next-door neighbor.  He goes to confront him, only to find the neighbor lying in a pool of blood.  Everything he has thought up to now has been wrong.  The hero must now re-think his angle and start from square one.  (plus, he must also now find out who murdered the neighbor.)    

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Further the Subplot

The middle is also the place to develop and deepen the subplot.  Create interest in the romantic subplot by making the hero and heroine temporarily separated for some reason.  Maybe the hero gets into an argument with his girlfriend or has a misunderstanding that is difficult to clear up.  Keeping them estranged for a few chapters can liven up the middle of the book and generate reader interest.

Writing the middle can be a challenge.  But don't give up now! Creating new problems and events for the protagonist to face and overcome can help make the middle as entertaining as the rest of the book.

Quick Tips to Unsag the Middle

*up the ante

*add a totally new event

*add an uexpected twist

*further the subplot

For more writing tips click: 

Fiction: From Writing to Publication

Check back for more tips on writing the ending!

Writing the First Chapter: How to Plan a Strong First Chapter

Developing a strong first chapter is often a matter of trial and error.  The first chapter is usually the one that is rewritten the most.  Here are some tips to help you get it right the first time

The first chapter is the most important chapter in the book because it is the first example of your writing the readers will see. It must have the power to draw them in and interest them in the rest of the book. The first chapter also determines the voice, tone, and atmosphere of the story.

Start with Conflict or a Point of Interest

While the first chapter doesn’t have to start with soap-opera drama, it must have enough action to interest the reader.  Many writers choose to begin their story at a point of conflict such as at a place where the hero is in immediate danger.  For example, the logical place to begin a mystery would be with the discovery of the body, not the detective commuting to work or reading the morning newspaper.

Providing Background Information

Many instructors habitually advise their students to throw away the first chapter.  Should you?  That depends.  Many writers make the mistake of including far too much background information in the first chapter.  This is because they are anxious to set the groundwork for the rest of novel. They want readers to know everything about their character from the start.

The first chapter should start where the action begins.  This action can be either physical, such as a fight or a boating accident--or emotional such as losing a love one or other trauma that might cause strong feelings. 

The first chapter should not start with a lot of who, what and where explanation about your character and how he got into this mess. The first chapter should provide only the bare essentials in background information.  For example, it might be necessary for the reader to know where your hero lives, but not, at this point, where he went to school, how many kids he has, whether or not he gets along with his mother.  These points can be introduced if and when they become pertinent to the story. Though additional information is necessary, it does not all have to be crowded into the first chapter.  If there is too much explanation, most of it can be discarded, and what is essential should be threaded into to a later part of the book.

What goes in the Middle of the First Chapter

Now that you have gotten their interest, you must develop the chapter by deepening the conflict.  If you have started with a point of action, now is the time to bring into focus the details of the event, and the character’s reactions to the event.    

If the chapter begins with a car accident, now the protagonist can react to the situation and a bit can be told about his or her reaction the the situation.

End with a Question or Cliffhanger

Just as the first chapter begins with a bang, it should not end with a whimper.  The final lines should pose a question that draws readers into the next chapter.

If your book is a mystery, have the detective discover an unusual lead or clue he plans to follow up on.  If your story is a romance, cut the first chapter off at the point where the boy asks the girl for a date, not after the reader already knows her answer.  If you are writing a thriller, stop the first chapter with the hero hanging onto the ledge of the building, not after he has jumped to safety.

By the end of the first chapter the reader should

*be introduced to the main characters

*know where the story takes place

*Have a feeling for the atmosphere of the book

*be introduced to the main problem or conflict and some kind of mental or physical excitement

  More Writing Tips:  Fiction: From Writing to Publication

Check back for more tips on writing the middle part of the novel and the ending!

Generating Suspense in a Mystery

A few unexpected twists or surprises can make a story come alive. A few novels begin with an unusual twist. Many good novels end that way.
The elements of Question, Sitation and Irony can make a story more exciting and add a twist to any tale. Examples from three masters of "the twist in the tale" follow.

Intriguing Questions

Robert Goddard is often called the "master of the tale with a twist". His novel Caught in the Light begins with an enigma. Ian Jarrett, a photographer, encounters and falls in love with Marian Esguard, a woman he met on a chance encounter in Vienna. After a brief affair, he leaves his wife and daughter for this new lover, but she does not show up at their designated meeting place. He goes in search of her, only to find she might either be the ghost of a woman who died long ago, or a troubled psychiatric patient. From the first page the reader is filled with questions. Who is this mysterious woman? A ghost or an impostor? And what impact finding her will have on Jarrett’s life?

Unusual Situations

In Patricia Highsmith’s Strangers on a Train, two total strangers meet, share idle and drunken conversation, and agree to “exchange murders.” Since they do not know each other, neither one will be suspected of the murder they commit. One of the parties in this insane agreement is joking; the other deadly serious. When Guy Haine’s wife is murdered, he seems the most likely suspect. And then when Bruno comes to exact payment—by having him commit murder for him—he is in a double bind. Not only is he a suspect in his wife’s murder, now a complete stranger wants him to commit another. So how’s he going to get out of that one? The reader has to continue to find out.

Use of Irony

The use of irony is perhaps the most effective kind of twist. Irony happens when things appear one way but because of a flaw in the viewer’s perception are really much different. For example, in The Open Window by Saki, a visitor is told stories by a teenaged girl that changes his perception about the purpose of an open window. An innocent object now fills him with apprehension and terror.

Another excellent example of irony is the short story The Gift of the Magi by O. Henry. Because of acts of unselfishness, gifts intended to please are rendered useless, yet the gifts become even more important because they symbolize the love and generosity of the givers.

Adding intriguing questions, creating unusual situations, and including a touch of irony are all ways to put a new slant on an old story.

How to Find Ideas for Fiction: Short Stories or Novels

Ideas for novels and short stories are everywhere. The secret is to organize your ideas and find the perfect one to fit the story you want to tell.

Where do Ideas Come From?

Here are some places to look for ideas:

True Crime and Murder Cases in The Papers or on Television
Actors and actresses, politicians and other high profile people are always making the news. The newspaper and television are both good places to find mystery plots or those involving intrigue and scandal. If you get ideas from a news source, it is best not to use real names and to slightly change the events and the settings.

History, Travel, and Nonfiction Books

History repeats itself. History books are always a good source for ideas, especially obscure books that few people have read. Personal accounts and journals will give you a better perspective for writing fiction than books filled with dry facts. For example, if you want to set a story in the civil war era, with a female heroine, a book with a title like “One Woman’s Account of the Civil War” will provide more human detail than “General Lee’s Campaign Strategies.” Books about local legends and ghost stories can also generate ideas for fiction. Accounts of travel are also interesting places to search for ideas.

Find Ideas by Eavesdropping

While riding a bus late at night, I heard one drunk say sadly to another, “You know, you never forget your first love.” He was obviously thinking back to a happier time, a broken romance, filled with the bittersweet regret of losing someone through time or circumstance. What a start for a novel or short story!
Once, I overheard someone boast, “Everyone knows all the good deals are made in bars.” I didn’t make a story out of it, but I gave my crook that line in a current novel.

Draw from Your Own Past

A quote from FlanneryO’Connor goes, “Anybody who has survived his childhood has enough information about life to last him the rest of his days.” In the words of Frank McCourt, “When I look back on my childhood I wonder how I managed to survive at all. It was, of course, a miserable childhood; the happy childhood is hardly worth your while…” Both authors make the same point—if you get through childhood you have enough material to write about for the rest of your life. The authors of books such as Angela's Ashes and Running with Scissors are examples of writers who took lemons and made lemonade,so to speak.

Start your own X-Files

The best way to collect ideas is to record them. That is why authors always run around with little notebooks. Get in the habit of collecting notes and then putting them in a computer file. (There are a lot of interesting things in “Vickie’s X-Files”, some which will be made into novels and short stories, others that probably never will.) Create sort of a running journal filled with interesting stories you’ve thought of or heard that might make a good plot twist or idea. Don’t hold back, write anything down that seems worthwhile. This is the place where incomplete stories go. Thoughts incubate. Sometimes, years later, you may find the perfect ending to a story idea you had started years ago. When you feel depleted, you will always have a backlog of random thoughts, character sketches, and plot ideas for inspiration.

Check back next month to learn about turning ideas into stories.

Does Your Novel Need a Facelift?

Wouldn't it be great if manuscripts sold the minute they were printed out and sent off to a publisher? More often than not, publishing is a long process.

There can be a delay, sometimes a big delay, between the completion of the story and the actual sale of a novel. If a manuscript doesn't sell right away, you might have become discouraged. At that point, it may have ended up in the bottom of your desk drawer.

Then one day, you discover the manuscript, dust it off and re-read the entire thing. It doesn’t sound half bad. You decide to send it off again. But before you try round two, make sure your book doesn’t sound dated. You don’t want publishers to suspect they have a vintage book on hand, one that you’ve been sending out and haven’t sold since Elvis was king.

If it has been more than a year since you sent off your novel, it might pay to run a checklist and make necessary changes. If it has been more than five years (and yes, it’s more common than you think) it is essential. To update an older manuscript, make a thorough search for these points and use find and replace to make necessary changes.

Content Cheklist

Slang and Language:

Slang:Nothing dates a book more than old slang. “Gag me with a spoon?” Only if your book is set in the 1980s. Phrases like bling-bling and “think outside the box” will date your novel at 2007. But by the end of 2008 they will be history. If it is important to your book to use slang to “add color” be sure to keep it current.

Launguage Use: Language usage may also change as new words are added to the general vocabulary and old words decline in popularity. Some words, too, over the years change in meaning. For example, the word “gay” has an entirely different meaning than it did in the 1950s.

Money:Money values are always changing. For this reason it is important to go over your book and check places where money transactions, especially important ones, have taken place.

Ransom: Bring 20,000 in unmarked bills to the park if you ever want to see little Debbie alive again.” Well, that used to be a lot of money, but these days it’s hardly a dent in the old Mastercharge. Though a million dollars isn’t the high stakes deal it used to be, it is still a fair ransom amount. Anything under that is an insult.

Home Prices: Home prices fluctuate so much it’s better not to even mention them in your book unless it is an important plot point. A book from the late 1960s tells how a woman purchased a nice home in a good neighborhood for $25,000 dollars. In the 1990s you could still purchase a house for $50,000. Today, most homes sell for over $100,000.

Food and Lodging:Check any part of your novel where transactions of this kind take place. Just a few years ago you could get a room at a hotel for around thirty dollars. Those days are gone. A ten dollar meal might have been a luxury at one time, now it is a cheap date.

Clothing and Social Habits:Clothing styles are constantly changing. Red lipstick, stockings, and mirrored compact are all reminiscent of a bygone era. Let’s hope your book doesn’t date back that far, but even a few years can bring about a change in wardrobe and social habits. Smoking, for example, only a few years ago was socially acceptable. Now, only the villains dare to light up a cigarette in public.

Car Models:Vehicles are another item that are susceptible to change. It is much better to mention a general brand name rather than a specific model of car unless that car is integral to the personality of the character or important to the plot. For example, if your manuscript contains a Ford Falcon, time for an update, while the more general term Ford should last for decades.

Technology:Ah,ever-changing technology. The past few decades have brought about a plethora of new gadgets—computers, cell phones, music CDs. These are constantly changing and since no one can foresee the future, if mentioned in your book, these items must be constantly updated. The bane of the mystery or spy thriller author: what is the hidden information concealed on these days—tape, disk, or cd?

Tips for Updating your Manuscript:

* Slang and Language Usage: Look for and avoid if possible “trendy” slang that won’t be here tomorrow. If using current “buzz words” is essential to the story, be sure to update your draft if the book does not sell within a year.

* Money values: Be general when mentioning money values that are not important to the plot. For example, there is no need to be specific about the dollar price of a meal or hotel if you describe it as being upscale.

*Clothing and social habits: Look for changes in styles and in social habit such as smoking that reflect current times and attitudes.

*Vehicles: Make sure your vehicles haven’t become vintage.

*Technology: Keep current with the latest changes in technology by checking your manuscript for outdated phones, computers and other electronic devices that change in short periods of time.

Must-Have Books about Writing

In order to be a good writer, certain elements of the craft of writing must be learned. Here is a list of helpful books for the prospective writer.
This selection of six excellent books for writers are especially helpful to have on hand for character development, plot structure, grammar, and all-around great writing.

1. The Writer's Journey: Mythic Structure for Writers by Christopher Vogler

This book is often recommended reading for storytelling and scriptwriting classes and is useful for plotting novels as well. Based on Joseph's Campbell's philosophy about the hero's mythic journey, and tailored specifically for writers, this book outlines the stages through which the hero must pass to obtain his goal. In most stories the hero makes an epic journey which includes passing through a series of tests and trials and experiencing a dark moment on her way to redemption or resolution. Using key elements of this theory can help bring a weak, unstructured plot up to par.

2. 20 Masterplots and How to Build Them by Ronald B. Tobias

This book helps generate plot ideas by detailing how to structure a plot around a particular theme or human emotion, such as revenge, escape, rescue, rivalry and many more. Thousands of plots can be created based on these twenty timeless themes.


3. The Complete Writer's Guide to Heroes and Heroines by Tami Cowden, Caro LaFever, and Sue Viders

This book adds a little psychology to character development by putting together sixteen master archetypes which detail personality traits common to heroes, heroines and many colorful side characters such as the Waif, the Bad Boy the Seductress, etc. By using the suggested archetypes as a guide, a writer can create and develop characters with believable motivations according to suggested personality traits as well as mixing and matching them to form conflict. (How does a Bad Boy react to a Waif)?

4. Writing the Breakout Novel by Donald Maass

If one had to choose just one how-to book, Maass' would be the one. Written by an top literary agent, it gives insight into what publishers and editors want. This book is especially helpful for the advanced writer who already knows the basics and wants to polish his skills.

At the same time, pick up a copy of the companion workbook, Writing the Breakout Novel Workbook which is even more helpful than the book. Chances are many writers won't be able to complete the 591 step checklist at the end, but don't worry. Even following a small portion of these recommendations, will guarantee a stronger, more marketable book.

5. The Romance Writer's Phrase Book by Jean Kent and Candace Shelton

Ever get stuck on a phrase? Ever have trouble describing a character's particular body movement or emotion? You don't have to be a romance writer to benefit from this compilation of 3,000 descriptive tags. Organized into categories including "Physical Characteristics, Body Movements, Facial Expressions, this handy reference can help a writer find just the right word or phrase to describe how a character is feeling or reacting. It is best to use this as a base to make up personal descriptive tags rather than using the ones listed, but the listed phrases will get the imagination going.

6. The Elements of Style, Fourth Editon by William Strunk Jr. and E.B. White

Every well-stocked writer's bookshelf should, of course, contain the usual references of dictionary, thesaurus and at least one book on the elements of style. The first edition of this book came out in 1957 and later editions have been published consistently since then. Recommended by Stephen King, this concise book is a helpful reference to have on hand to improve sentence structure or to refer to in case a question arises concerning the general rules of good grammar. A well-edited book with a minimum of grammatical and spelling errors will help encourage a publisher to take a manuscript seriously