What Makes a Scene Magical?

For me, this usually involves a bit of suspense or romance. Gotta love a handsome hero, or a heroine being wooed by that handsome hero. But generally, a scene is made up of a few more basics. A list of elements you want to aim for to make your scene complete and useful to your story as a whole.

Just like your overall plot, scenes need to have a beginning, middle, and end. Here are some elements to incorporate into a scene.

Beginning Hook

Here's our chance to draw the reader into the story or scene with one simple line or paragraph.

Setting

This doesn't have to be extensive, but it's essential to each scene to develop a sense of time and place.

New Revelation, Character and Plot

This is done through revealing new aspects about a character or useful information that helps reveal the plot. As a rule, I try to include one of these (at least one revelation about a character or the plot) in each scene or chapter otherwise I have to evaluate whether or not the scene is necessary to the story as a whole.

Advance Plot

It's our goal as the writer to make our plots fluid and keep up a good sense of pace. Like above, we can do this by revealing information to the reader and make sure that each scene we use is to keep the plot moving for the reader.

Ending Hook

As with the beginning hook, the ending hook is our chance to make the reader want to turn the page and keep reading the next scene or chapter.

Sure, a magical scene has more depth than those basics above. There's dialogue and a good story and that something special that makes you fall in love with the character, but you can't create a full and useful scene without attending to the basic elements.

When you break your story down into scenes, are there specific elements you try to include to make sure that specific scene is useful to your story?

So Long, Farewell…

I could start singing as I imitate Fraulein Maria in the scene where she’s swinging her luggage, then I could break out into a squeaky rendition of “I have confidence in me.” But I won’t.

No, I wouldn’t do that to you. Have you heard me sing?

But I am leading up to something. I am saying good-bye. It’s time to leave the Alley. Alley, not Abbey. I stopped referring to The Sound of Music way up there.

But now I’m going to refer to it again. I’ve loved the support I've felt at the Abbey, er, um, I mean Alley. I’ve enjoyed connecting with fellow authors here, but for the past few months I kept hearing a whisper. (It’s okay, no cause for alarm. We are writers; we can say this without needing to be carted off to the funny farm. Our characters “talk” to us all the time. Don’t yours? Bueller?)

Anyway, the nudge I continued to feel was that I need to let go of some commitments. Instead of Maria facing her fears as a governess, I need to face my fears and go this blogging road alone for now. However, I’m still deeply invested in moving thoughts on my blog.

So wish me well. I’ll miss writing here. And please, if you decide to follow my journey, no frogs on my chair. Those are not one of my favorite things.

So long, farewell, auf Wiedersehen, adieu…to you all!

*photo from Flickr

How to Be a Better Blogger, Part 1

For those of us who are serious on this writing journey, we've probably realized by now that a blog is important to our platform. But the blogging waters can be murky, and jumping into them even murkier.

Recently a blogging friend asked me some questions about my personal blog. (In addition to The Writers Alley, I blog over at my website.) And I realized that her questions were no different than mine when I first started out.

So today, I'm sharing a few things I've learned (sometimes the hard way) that have helped me build a stronger blogging platform.

1) Figure out the right pace for you. Whether it's once a week or five days a week, don't worry about what your fellow bloggers are doing. Understand your schedule and do what's reasonable. (Most blogging experts recommend a minimum of once a week.)

When I first started blogging, I jumped right in to five days a week. And learned very quickly it was too much. Before I landed my agent, I had scaled back to one day a week, listening to the advice of publishing professionals who say a fiction writer should focus on polishing their book more than their blog. In the current stage of my writing career, I've now gone up to three times a week and it works for me. But when circumstances demand it, I'll probably tweak again.

It doesn't matter if you have to tweak your schedule, as long as you communicate and stay consistent.

2) Don't be afraid to change your blog content over time. Study your site stats and figure out which posts are resonating with readers. And especially think about the topics that most fuel your passion.

Kristen Lamb, a social media expert for writers, says most writers should avoid blogging about writing. It's different advice than what we'd expect, isn't it? I found that once I freed myself from that trap, the blogging became fun. I now post about things I'm passionate about outside of writing, and it has drawn in dialogue with people other than fellow writers, which I love.

The more important thing here: Be yourself!

3) Provide something for your reader and initiate a conversation. People are selfish. They visit blogs to gain knowledge or to receive encouragement or to laugh. Figure out what you have to offer blog readers and then offer it. As you're consistent in that offering, you will also be building your brand.

4) Build relationships with other bloggers. This is the most time-consuming part, but the most worthwhile! Reach out to other blogging friends and comment on their blogs. Consistently. Cultivate these online relationships as genuine friendships because that's what they are!

I try to view blogging as I would an in-person friendship. If someone talks to me, I respond. If someone invites me to their house for dinner, I accept the invitation. Now I'll be the first to admit that I can't always visit everyone who ever visits my blog. I have two kids under the age of five who tend to usurp my time when I least expect it. But the key is to do your best and make an effort to reach out.

So let's talk...What stage of the blogging journey are you in? How do you handle your blogging schedule and content? Do you have any examples of friendships that have grown from your blogging journey?

*Blog photo by digitalart / FreeDigitalPhotos.net
**Dialogue photo by Master isolated images / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

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Sarah Forgrave is a stay-at-home writer-mom who feels blessed to pursue her calling and passion. She writes contemporary romance for the inspirational market and is a regular contributor to the webzine Ungrind.

To learn more about Sarah, visit her personal blog at:
http://www.sarahforgrave.com/blog

Scriptures to pray for writers...

Ephesus view from Bay

Lord, give me the power to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ (Ephesians 3:18). Allow my words to show others how wide, long, high and deep your love.

For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. (2 Peter 1:16). Father, help our fiction to point to your Word and demonstrate that Your Word is true. May we esteem your Word above all other words, not allowing writing to become an idol in our lives but only using our words for your glory to minister to others. Give our words clarity that others may see a true vision of you, so that we may see a true vision of you.

That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life. (1 John 1:1). May our Words portray Him who was in the beginning as the origin of all our words, our entire being. As you enliven all our senses, I pray that what we hear, see, touch, and taste would be pleasing to you. As we endeavor to make our stories sing with multi-sensory descriptions I pray that we would allow all in our story's world to point to you, the Creator of earth. 

Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in one spirit, contending as one man for the faith of the gospel. (Philippians 1:27). Lord, I pray in our writing and in all our lives we would conduct ourselves in a manner worthy. I pray that we would act in love towards other writers and that we would stand firm in the faith. I pray that in our writing and our life we would not waver.

In Jesus' name,

Amen

Julie Lessman has a wonderful list of Scriptures to pray for writers on her site: Julie Lessman From the Heart

Do you have favorite Scriptures you pray for your writing? Or share a favorite verse that encourages you in your writing in the comments....

Julia enjoys writing women's fiction whenever she can find a chair free of smushed peanut butter sandwiches and lego blocks. She is a wife and homeschooling mama of two littles. She also enjoys reading and reviewing books for The Title Trakk, a Christian review site.

Author Naomi Rawlings on Genesis

I had the pleasure of meeting Naomi Rawlings during “contest season” last year. We both semi-finaled in the historical romance category of Genesis, and Naomi went on to finals! Along her journey she was quick to catch the eye of an agent and sign a publishing contract before ACFW conference in September. Her first book, Sanctuary for a Lady, comes out in April. I am excited to have the opportunity to get some great tips on Genesis from such a successful lady!

Text Copyright: 2012 by Naomi Mason

Cover Art Copyright: 2012 by Harlequin Enterprises Limited

Permission to reproduce text granted by Harlequin Books S.A. 

Cover Art used by arrangement with Harlequin Enterprises Limited. 

All rights reserved. Trademarks owned by Harlequin Enterprises Limited 

or its affiliated companies, used under license.

Naomi, thanks for stopping by the Alley! I loved reading your submission for the Genesis contest last year. And I am so excited to read it in “print”! Tell us a little more about your novel.

I don’t have an official copy of the blurb, but here’s an earlier version I was given. It should be pretty close to what appears on the back of the book.
Running to freedom, she found love . . .
The injured young woman that Michel Belanger finds in the woods is certainly an aristocrat, and in the midst of France’s bloody revolution, sheltering nobility merits a trip to the guillotine. Yet despite the risk, Michel knows he must bring the wounded girl to his cottage to heal.
Attacked by soldiers and left for dead, Isabelle de La Rouchecauld has lost everything. A duke’s daughter cannot hope for mercy in France, so escaping to England is her best chance of survival. The only thing more dangerous than staying would be falling in love with this gruff yet tender man of the land. Even if she sees, for the first time, how truly noble a heart can be . . .

Wow, sounds like a powerful story! So exciting to see more books coming out that are from different time periods and settings! So, most Genesis entrants have a tiny spark of hope that entering the contest will be a possible step towards their publishing dream. I am dying to know how entering Genesis and being a finalist, helped you along the path to publication?

Entering Genesis put my writing in front of some great judges. With my manuscript polished, my philosophy was to enter any competition where the finalist judges were editors or agents who I thought might be interested in my writing. That philosophy paid off, though not in the manner I was expecting with Genesis. A best-selling, popular author was one of my first round judges. She liked my opening so much that she sent my entry to her agent and then the judge told me to email her.
As you can imagine, I could hardly breathe when I got my judging sheet back. God worked everything out better than I ever expected, and I did end up signing with the agent, Natasha Kern. I also had an editor who judged a different competition request the first half of my ms. So Personally speaking, I did a lot better with entering contests than I ever did with querying or conferences, but some people do well with querying and others with networking at conferences. It works differently for different people.
 
What a great story of getting your stuff in front of an agent. Just one set of eyes is all it takes...and a really polished manuscript. We have a lot of readers out there that are preparing their entries for Genesis. How many revisions did you go through before you sent the entry to Genesis?

Oh goodness, a crazy, unbelievable amount. On the opening scene, probably about 15. My subsequent scene which was also included in my entry didn’t go through nearly that many revisions, maybe 4 or 5. I had a really hard time figuring out how to get the reader’s rooting for my heroine by the end of the second page and I went through endless revisions..
I looked, but I don’t have a copy of my original beginning (probably because it was so bad I couldn’t stand to look at it anymore). It went something like this, though I can’t be exact: “Isabelle Cerise de La Rouchecauld walked down the middle of the road, glancing at the forest and wondering if she should harbor in the trees’ thick branches.”
By the time I finished my revisions, I had an opening that I loved:
“Silence surrounded her, an eerie music more haunting than that of any chamber players. It soaked into her pores and chilled her blood.
Isabelle surveyed the shadowed trees of northern France, so different from the wide fields she’d grown up with in Burgandie. The woods lay still, most animals caught in winter’s slumber. Her breathing and the crunch of her shoes against the road formed the only human sounds amid acres of forest and earth and animals—or the only human sounds of which she knew.
She clutched her cloak and glanced behind her. Did someone follow?”
I wish I could say I came up with that the first time I sat down at my computer. But I didn’t. It took hours of hard work and banging my head against the computer screen until I found something that worked the way I wanted it to. And it works that way for most people. Occasionally a writer might sit down and come up with the perfect start to a story, but more often than not, a good beginning means hours of hard work. So if your slogging through your first 15 pages right now, don’t give up! I understand how hard it is, but the effort might well be worth the pain. 

Great advice. I don't even think I can count the amount of times I've changed the beginning to my story...and I am sure I will still tweak it up until I hit send. What was the most helpful thing you did to prepare your submission?

Two things. First, have one or two awesome crit partners who don’t mind reading and rereading a chapter until you get it perfect. For every time I revised my opening, my poor crit partners, Melissa Jagears and Sally Chambers, reread it. They deserved to final just for putting up with me.
Second, I entered the ms in the Great Expectations RWA contest. Genesis was the second contest I ever entered, Great Expectations was the first. I would have never finaled in Genesis had I not gotten and applied the judges’ feedback from Great Expectations. In the draft I sent to Great Expectations, I had the heroine walking in the woods for seven or eight pages before the soldiers showed up and attacked her. Way too long!!! In the Genesis version, I had the soldiers show up on page three. But I never would have known to move the action up without getting the judging feedback from Great Expectations.
So before entering Genesis, I would advise contestants to get some professional advice on the manuscript. Whether it comes from a contest, a paid critique, or a published friend returning a favor, you’d do well to get some advice beyond your crit partners.
 
It's tough sometimes to take the criticism, but it pays off in the end!

Thank you so much for sharing your wisdom! I am looking forward to applying your advice to my own submissions. Can't wait to read the rest of your novel!

Thanks Angie, I enjoyed being here. This is my first ever blog interview, so I find the whole thing a little intimidating!

My pleasure! I am sure you have many readers who thank you for such great advice. Looking forward to reading more from you, Naomi!!
Visit Naomi at:

Website: www.naomirawlings.com

Blog: makinghomeworkblog.blogspot.com
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 Angie Dicken first began writing fiction as a creative outlet during the monotonous days of diapers and temper tantrums. She is passionate to impress God's love on women regardless of their background or belief. This desire serves as a catalyst for Angie's fiction, which weaves salvation and grace themes across cultures. She is an ACFW member and CEO of a family of six.

What's Up The Street For Next Week?

Photo credit

Sometimes the time comes to say goodbye. We have to expect it in a way, because it's the cyle of life. We either have to move on or priorities need to be rearranged.

And while we are sorry to make this announcement, we wish our fellow Alley Cat, Wendy the very best in her writing life. In the plans God has for her. Plans of good and not of harm to give her a hope and a future.

So, please leave a comment wishing Wendy well and know we will be watching for monumental success from you, Wendy!! ;-) She'll be back once in a while for a guest post, so we aren't completely losing her.

Wishing you the BEST, Wendy!

New year, new week on the Alley. What's up??

It's the contest season and Angie has guest Naomie Rawlings on the Genesis contest. Check back on Monday.

Prayer is an intricate part of the writing life. Julia brings this topic to the blog on Tuesday.


Sarah brings tips on how to be a better blogger on Wednesday.


Thursday will be Wendy's final post for the Writer's Alley.

Cindy explains how to make a scene truly magical, by breaking down specific elements on Friday.

Sidewalk Talk

You can keep up with Wendy on her blog: Thoughts that Move, Twitter and Facebook.

You can now email the gals at the Writer's Alley and hear back directly from one of us! (not that we think ourselves celebrities or anything...) AND if you have a question, do share at this email: thewritersalleys(@)gmail(.)com We have some fun surprises in store for the questions you send, so don't be shy. ;-)

Hang in with us, we're still the same blog and will be proactively looking to bring in a new face as God leads.

What now?

You type "The end."

You sit back in your chair, close your eyes and take a deep, cleansing breath.

....
......
..........

You open your eyes back up. Everything on the screen is a little blurry. Your brain hurts from the tens of thousands of words you've just finished squeegee-ing out of it. You can barely remember your family member's names, or what day it is.

Now what?

Never fear... KRISTA'S TWELVE STEP PROGRAM is here!

1.) Push Save.

2.) Close your document.

3.) Run around the house, dancing with joy.

4.) Eat some celebratory chocolate

5.) Make you hubby (or wife, or parent, or significant other, or your own wallet) take you out to dinner.

6.) Tweet your fun news!

7.) Play on Facebook, catch up with what all your friends are up to while you've had your mind on your book and characters.

8.) Actually make your family dinner instead of the endless nights of frozen/takeout meals they've had.

9.) Sleep. A lot.

10.) Go to the store and stock up on chocolate and your choice of caffeine pleasure.

11.) After at least a week but up to a month, open your manuscript back up.

12.) EDIT. (And when you're done... lather, rinse, and repeat steps 1 through 12!)

Discussion: What do YOU do when you finish a novel? If you haven't reached this point... it's dream time!!

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Krista is a follower of Jesus, a wife, a mother, and a contemporary romance author. She recognizes that life can be frustrating and just plain not fun sometimes, but believes that laughter and smiles can make the not-so-fun a little better! She blogs about the amazing things God has been doing and her journey as a busy momma of 4 and caregiver to a daughter with a rare congenital heart defect at http://reflectionsbykrista.blogspot.com. She is also a contributor at www.wordservewatercooler.com. She is represented by the fab agent, Rachelle Gardner, and her debut novel, Sandwich, With a Side of Romance, releases in September 2012.