Author: Elizabeth Spann Craig

I’ve gotten to that point in my manuscript where it’s time to include some secrets.

I love secrets in books. They work really well for mysteries—in fact, it’s fun for all of the suspects to have a secret they’re trying to protect.

Then the reader and sleuth are aware the suspect is throwing up some roadblocks. They’re just not sure why it’s happening. Are they covering up the murder they committed? Or are they just trying to conceal a personal secret from the investigators?

Secrets are great for a variety of genres and, to me, are really fun to create and include.

Who has a secret?

Protagonist—Has a secret that affects him…usually negatively. Ordinarily, this is a secret that’s an integral part of his past that’s hampering his future. Positive secrets? I haven’t seen so many of those. Maybe a few storylines involving characters who are secretly wealthy (won the lottery, whatever) and keep it under cover so friends won’t treat them differently.

Someone close to the protagonist has a secret that affects their relationship with the main character. This can propel the protagonist through the plot.

The antagonist has a game-changing secret. Darth Vadarish.

There’s an external secret—a historical mystery, a secret from the past (like the book The Photograph, etc.) that the protagonist is trying to uncover.

What are secrets good for?

Internal conflict. The protagonist at war with himself over a secret in his past that’s holding him back.

Interesting subplot. This could be a minor secret that’s something fun, revealed at the end of the book.

Cool plot twist. You mean he’s not dead?

Roadblocks (conflict) for the main character. Other characters present obstacles for the protagonist as he’s trying to reach his goals.

Does your character have a secret? Does he know someone who does?

I’m one of those writers who doggedly writes each day, no matter what.

Frequently? I’m not inspired.

I think that’s the dirty little secret of a lot of writers. We may get ideas. We may implement those ideas. But we may not be flying through books on waves of inspiration.

I do write every day. But I really have to write every day so I won’t fall behind on my deadlines. Plus, if I skip even one day, going back later is even tougher. It’s like a muscle that needs to be exercised daily or else it just doesn’t work as well.

Even on days where I know I’m writing stuff that’s definitely not going to make it into the final cut, I mush on.

But there is one area I do better in when I’m not feeling creative.

Making lists:

I don’t like outlines, but I really like making lists. I’ve got a program, Microsoft’s One Note that came with my Office 2007. I like the software because I can make a “notebook” named after my book title, then create a bunch of “pages” to go in that notebook. So it looks sort of like this:

Actually, it looks exactly like that because I did a capture picture of the screen. Although I do really like the software, you can do the same thing in a regular notebook with dividers.

On days where I seem to be creatively-challenged, I’ve found that I’m particularly good at making lists or at writing short bits that can be woven in later.

So I might make a list of the characters and what they look like.

I might jot down ideas for upcoming scenes.

I might make a list of things I need to research—this could be as simple as going to a name-generator site and picking out some good last names, or it could be more complicated—learning more information about police procedure in particular crimes.

I’ll make lists of favorite Southern foods for the Memphis series—along with ideas for where to include them.

Things to fix—that’s a fun one. I don’t stop and fix things that are wrong as I go—I’ll either highlight the problem with Word’s “highlighter,” or I’ll jot down a note in this section as to what needs correcting.

Short Sniping Snippets? That’s very specific to Memphis BBQ book 2 that I’m currently writing, so I guess I shouldn’t elaborate too much on that. :)

I can even do brain dumps to come up with possible subplots, clues, red herrings, short segments to develop particular characters, etc…those things seem to somehow come easier when I’m feeling more left-brained than usual.

If I make a lot of these planning lists? The writing goes a lot smoother the next day. It can even re-energize my creativity.

What do you do when you’re not inspired?

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Pop over to the Mystery Lovers’ Kitchen for a guest post by my fellow Midnight Inker, Lisa Bork (For Better, For Murder.)

One reason I don’t look back over the previous day’s writing is because I know what I’ll usually see:

Blah, blah, blah.

When I get an idea or have characters in a conversation, I can just milk the scene to death. Oh, I have my plan for the chapter (my mini outline.) I have a sense of how long my chapters are, although I don’t put in chapter breaks for the first draft.

But I will just keep on going. I know I’ll be editing out a ton for the second draft, anyway. And who knows what bits I’ll like best? So I’ll overwrite.

When I was a kid, essays had to be a certain number of words. I remember bloating my writing with all kinds of junk just to hit my word count.

I’m thinking that today’s kids really know the art of brevity. Texting encourages it, and so does Twitter. Oh, and Facebook status updates can only be so long, too.

When my son came home sick from school a couple of weeks ago, I got a text from him: Help me.

What’s wrong?!? I texted back, with some alarm.

Sick.

And he did have the flu (again!), so it was genuine. But he knew how to rope me in and get me over to the school office pronto.

There was no rambling plea to be picked up, no over-the-top descriptions of fever, chills, or muscle weakness…nothing. The starkness of the message was enough to get me in my minivan and over to the school.

I think some scenes do well with a minimalistic approach:

Action scenes are great places to put short, choppy sentences and very little description.

Scenes where you’re including a shock or surprise to a scene.

Scenes that play a very functional, set-up purpose. (And you might want to analyze whether you need a whole set-up scene to begin with.)

Descriptive scenes (which I’m not all that crazy about to begin with.) It’s a little boring when an author waxes poetic in their basic descriptions of weather, a spring day, a pretty lady, etc. Short and sweet and clear, I’m thinking.

Do you write sparsely the first time around or do you edit out the bloat later?

First of all, thanks to my guest blogger, Charlotte Bowen today! Charlotte blogs at http://www.fictionette.org/, is revising her first novel and writing her second. She’s on Twitter at @acbowen.

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Historical Research.

Those two simple words can strike fear into the heart of any writer, be she ever so mettlesome otherwise. For those without much knowledge of a piece’s era, research often seems an insurmountable task.

The notions that research is difficult or intimidating and that historical fiction requires 100% authenticity (or else don’t bother) is perpetuated by academics, historical researchers, and — to be frank — novelists who can’t be bothered or are too frightened themselves to do research. These people have a lot invested in maintaining that untenable attitude. The academics and researchers are looking to put their profession (a noble one, admittedly) on a pedestal, and the novelists want to justify their laziness or pass on the fear others have instilled in them.

Don’t let them dissuade you from research.

The truth is that there is really only one reason to include authentic detail in your pieces: To strengthen and clarify the mental image your prose calls forth in your readers. Any advice you take and any detail you include in your pieces should be directed toward that end.

“Enough” Authenticity?

Writers perpetuating historical myths make knowledgeable people cry. If I ever again read that people in the Middle Ages bathed only once a year, for example, I might go postal.

Bad history throws your readers out of the text. If you call your Renaissance Venetian character Jennifer instead of the more authentic Ginevra, for example, many readers will shudder every time they read the name. Eventually these infelicities compound upon themselves to totally frustrate readers, leaving them less able to engage with your story and characters.

Take the time to get the basics right. Names, dates, and places should be nailed down first, as should titles if your book concerns the military, nobility, or holy orders. Branch out from there as far as your taste or plot calls for. Details of dress, occupations, and language are good places to go once the basics are in place.

How Authentic is Too Authentic?

Don’t respond by going the other way, however. While obsessive authenticity might allow you to pack a lot of interesting facts into your novel, facts without a purpose actually detract from your story by bogging readers down in endless descriptive window-dressing.

While it’s interesting that Constantinople’s cisterns were constructed with columns taken from ancient temples, turned upside down so that the Medusa’s heads lie submerged in feet of black water — for example — 10 pages of detail with the exact genus and species details of the mosses growing in the cistern is not.

This goes for details of language, as well. While a few sprinkled “good morrows” lend a pleasant historical air to your writing, having your hero cry “Thou dost me sle!” when his lady spurns him for another is simply overwrought — even if that is authentic straight-outta-Chaucer Middle English.

Historical facts are like movie special effects. They can really spice up the visuals when done well, but are too often used as whiz-bang puffery to showcase the director’s technical capabilities or (worse) to hide gaping plot holes. Don’t do that to yourself, your readers, or your characters.

Drawing the Line

The “sweet spot” between rampant anachronism and pedantry is different for every piece. The best advice (as with any other piece, historical or not) is to focus on your characters, your plot, and your storytelling. If the interesting tidbits you’ve found will advance one of these three things, use them. If not, don’t. Let the work tell you what it needs.

This attitude also makes it much easier to compile a list of things to begin researching. Create a basic plot outline and work from there. If the denouement of your novel involves a sword fight in a chapel, for example, you should research the date and layout of possible chapels, swords from the era, and sword fighting technique. These are still broad categories, but it’s easier to work with these than something even broader, like “Scotland, 1543.”

Breaking the research down into manageable parts reduces overwhelm and leaves you with a better finished product.

Where To Start

Art – This is one of the easiest ways to get a feel for an era. Not only do paintings, drawings, and photographs give you an idea of what people wore and how they lived, but each era has a certain spirit that comes alive in the artwork.

Period literature – Even in translation, period literature can provide a wealth of information on social customs and mores, clothing, decor, and — of course — language. Look for poetry, novels, and (especially) letters from your era at the local library or online. Since most period literature (and the Victorian-era translations thereof) is in the public domain, you should have little trouble finding something that suits your purpose.

Other historical novels – Some authors include a selected bibliography at the back of their books, or on their website. Other authors — Dorothy Dunnett, for example — have spawned reference books of their own. If there is a living author you particularly admire, seek him out. He might be able to point you in the right direction. Novelists with extreme attention to authenticity and detail (like Dunnett and Patrick O’Brien) are also your best models for how to incorporate into a compelling narrative all the facts you do find.

Historical research societies – Find these through Google or the phone book. These research societies tend to focus on one place, time, or thing. For example, the Association for Renaissance Martial Arts is a fantastic resource on swords and sword fighting in the Middle Ages and Renaissance. The Academy of St. Gabriel helps historical re-enactors to choose authentic Medieval names. Even if your topic is obscure, it probably has some enthusiasts or associations dedicated to its study.

Colleges/Universities – See if your local college will let you audit a class on your era of interest. Not only will you learn a lot but you’ll also get access to the college library, which will have a greater number and quality of research resources than any public library, and to other professors who, by and large, will be thrilled to go on with you at length about their favorite subjects.

Online mailing lists – Google Groups and Yahoo Groups host many historical research mailing lists aimed at re-enactors. Re-enactors are a fantastic resource for writers. Not only do they have a good overview of the available research literature — they’ve actually done and eaten and worn some of the things you’ll be writing about. Don’t be afraid to approach a mailing list with some of your questions or search the archived messages for relevant material.

eBay and Etsy – There’s nothing quite like holding a piece of history in your hand. If your piece falls somewhere after the 1810s, there’s a good chance that you’ll be able to find old photos, clothing, and household items on these websites. Even if you don’t purchase anything, the auction pictures and descriptions will give you a feel for what real people saw and wore every day.

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Thanks so much for such an informative post on researching, Charlotte! I have a historical saga in my head for “someday,” (when I don’t have kids at home, probably!) and will definitely cut and file your tips for researching.

Our antagonists sure do like to cause a lot of trouble.

They’re working against our main characters at every opportunity, trying to make sure they don’t reach their goals.

My antagonists sometimes even like to kill people. I have others that discourage my protagonists, send them off on tangents, or divert their focus.

They keep stories from getting too pat by creating conflict and standing between our protagonist and their goals.

What makes a good bad guy?

Attitude—These folks are usually brash, not shy.

Intelligence—No idiots need apply.

Opposing Goals—They don’t share the protagonist’s worldview.

Drive—They’re not ones to just drop their vendetta ten pages into the book. No, they’re going to try to get the best of our protagonist, or trip him up, through most of the novel.

Deviousness—They might lie or cheat–or kill–to reach their goal.

Limited contact with the protagonist—I could be persuaded otherwise for the right circumstances….but it’s awfully fun to have the antagonist be a person of mystery. An ominous force working against our main character.

And…ultimately? It’s someone who makes mistakes.—Unless we want our protagonist to fail, or have a less-than-happy ending, our protagonist should be able to trump our antagonist by the end of the novel.

Got a good bad guy? What makes the bad guy so good?

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Hope y’all will drop by tomorrow..my guest will be Charlotte Bowen from the Fictionette blog, with an interesting post on the research side of the writing process with her post on “Historical Research.”

And—it’s Super Bowl time! I don’t care for football, but I do like some of the things that make up the party. Pop by the Mystery Lovers’ Kitchen for my look at beer. :)