Author: Elizabeth Spann Craig

In the middle of the chaos that passed for my life last week, I screwed something up royally.

I have the absolute worst memory of anyone I know. I can blame it both on genetics (thanks Daddy) and the writing fog that permeates my brain most of the day.

I write everything down. The dog’s heartworm pill. The items I need at the store. What I like to put in my children’s lunchboxes (I could forget, over the course of a long weekend.) I even make step-by-step reminders for things: RSVP for the birthday party, buy gift, buy card, wrap gift, Mapquest directions….

But last Monday, in the midst of Doctor Mom duty, I didn’t look at my appointment book. See, that’s the inherent problem with lists. You must look at the list to remember what you’re supposed to do.

So I stood my daughter’s teacher up. It was parent conference day and she waited for me to come to the school and talk with her about my child for our 20 minute spot. Yes, she stayed after school was out, when she could have been on her way home or doing other things.

ARGH! It was a horrible screw up and I felt terrible. My daughter’s teacher was very nice, though, and we rescheduled for another day.

Isn’t it awful when we do things like that?

Do our characters do things like that?

I have one series where my protagonist, Myrtle Clover, messes up all the time. She burns dinners, forgets things, creates awkward moments in conversations…the works. My other series has a protagonist, Lulu Taylor, who hasn’t actually made any mistakes. She’s dealt admirably with what she’s confronted with. She makes good decisions. She’s cautious.

I think I’m going to have to mess with Lulu a little bit.

I don’t have to make Lulu as mistake-prone as poor Myrtle, but I’m ready for her to make an error in judgment. Or forget an appointment. She’s definitely wasn’t this perfect person in my first book, but she was very well-behaved. This may change a little in book two.

Do your protagonists make mistakes, either accidentally or by using poor judgment? What’s the right balance for successes and screw-ups, or is there one?

I’m a huge fan of art in all its forms, although I try to keep my little obsession under control on the blog. Okay, I do like to post these great paintings online. But other than that, I’m not usually going off into spacey artist territory. But I love all of it—drama, visual, musical, written. To me, it’s a celebration of the human spirit—art sets us apart from the rest of the creatures.

One thing I keep running into lately (and I don’t think it’s because I’m looking for it) is poetry. Yes, poetry. I’ve been noticing it lately in unusual places—snippets in commercials, on Twitter, on Facebook, on Spongebob Squarepants. I’ve read it in the newspaper, even. The NewsHour on PBS now has a recurring segment on poetry and features poets reading their work.

Hmm!

I love poetry, but I wouldn’t have said there were many non-writers who share that view.

Poetry—could it be making a comeback?

I love the fact that I’m reading poetry on social media. That tells me that people are saying, “This is relevant to the 21st century. These aren’t archaic sonnets or iambic pentameter verses. This is modern and relevant to today.”

One of my favorite modern poets is Billy Collins. He has a website, from which you can listen to him read some of his poems. He’s made the change to the modern day—he’s networking on a computer, instead of being cooped up in a writer’s garret like the poets of yore. His poetry is relevant and he’s accessible. And…he seems to be making money. From poetry!

I figure, if poetry can survive (despite the fact that not many of us are out there buying chapbooks), then the rest of us have more than a shot at it. Heck, we’re a shoo-in for longevity, despite market shake-ups.

We hear dire predictions. I think, though, if we work on staying relevant by embracing social media, ebooks, networking, and the rest of the changes coming down the pike, we’ll do a lot toward ensuring our survival.

Think about it—haven’t books been making a splash in the media lately? People have been talking about books. There are big name authors releasing big releases, there are price wars at big stores—books are in the news. They’re relevant.

Maybe poets, considering the challenges poetry faces, have to work harder and more consciously for relevancy. Poetry could have ended up being something our kids read about in English class—at the same point they’re reading about obscure literary forms like kennings. Instead, the art form seems poised and ready for the 21st century. Are we?

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And now, since I really can’t help myself, I’ll put a couple of links to some poems I’ve enjoyed lately. :) And a snippet from Billy Collin’s poem, Forgetfulness:

The name of the author is the first to go
followed obediently by the title, the plot,
the heartbreaking conclusion, the entire novel
which suddenly becomes one you have never read,
never even heard of,

as if, one by one, the memories you used to harbor
decided to retire to the southern hemisphere of the brain,
to a little fishing village where there are no phones.

Summons—Robert Francis
On Turning Ten—Billy Collins

It was one of my wild mornings last week. Sick child at home and I needed some groceries. It was right after 9:00 in the morning when I arrived at the store, hair completely out of control, no makeup, and wearing an outfit I pulled together in the closet without even turning on the light.

At first I didn’t really notice her, this blonde woman. I was having a conversation with some elderly ladies about the best types of trick or treat candy when I first caught a glimpse of her. She was peering intently at me, but not meeting my eyes.

I was deep inside a freezer, reaching for some frozen pasta when I turned around and saw her again. Again she was studying me closely. Hmm.

The third time was at the cash register. I was really ready to get out of there by this time. I was at the grocery store very early, my child had coughed up a lung all night, I looked like hell, and I had this woman staring at me as though I’ve just escaped from a coven.

I ran a hand through my crazy hair. “Oh!” she said. “You’re not wearing earrings at all. I was looking for someone that might have just one earring in….I found one on the floor. Your hair is so long that I couldn’t tell what you were wearing.”

Well, for heaven’s sake. I wish she’d just told me that back at the trick or treating candy. And here I was feeling all self-conscious and icky. It would have been nice to know what her intention was.

When I’m reading the book, I feel the same way. What is the writer’s intent? For me, as a reader, I’d better be able to tell the direction they’re trying to go in pretty early.

I’ve probably already read the back cover copy and likely a blogger review, too. I know what should be happening, plot-wise, in the book.

But if the author seems to be dillydallying around, they’re going to lose me.

It’s a mystery. It’s been billed as a mystery. It’s been promoted as a mystery. Where is the body? Who is going to be the victim? I’m at chapter six and there’s no body? How much set up is really necessary—I’m ready to start figuring out the puzzle.

Or—it’s a fantasy. It’s meant to be a fantasy and I was told it was a fantasy. Why are we still in a modern day, ordinary, urban setting in chapter four? Where’s my fantastical escape? I want to be transported!

Yes, I’m a demanding reader. :)

Editors like authors to start right in the middle of the action, or for us to have action soon afterwards. If I don’t have a body at the very beginning, I’m going to allude to the fact through some foreshadowing that there is a body to come! If the reader just holds on, then I’m going to completely satisfy their expectations.

How about you? If you don’t put your action or introduce your main plot at the beginning of your book, how do you keep the reader’s interest—Humor? Tension? Foreshadowing?

I had an unusual week for me in that I was in my Doctor Mom role the entire week. Ordinarily, I do a bang-up job being Doctor Mom—for three days. I’m the Best Mom Ever in my children’s eyes, the house still seems reasonably intact, and I still manage to look spiffy enough to make a quick run to the grocery store and not look like something the cat dragged in.

Not so much this past week of nursing Mr. H1N1.

For one thing, the dynamics have changed a little bit. The last time my son was this sick was several years ago. Then he wanted to be pampered and have me check up on him frequently. He even rang a little bell when he needed me.

No more! This was more the scenario with my twelve-year-old:

Me: “How are you feeling?”
Him: “Fine.”
Me: “Really? Because you’re covered with sweat and you’re sitting here in nylon shorts with no shirt. And it’s a chilly day. That’s not really all that normal for you.”
Him: “I’m fine.”
Me: “Let’s take your temperature. You’re flushed! And your eyes are watery!”
Him: “Mom. I. Am. Fine.”

Although his temperature was 102.

He was unhappy with my nursing attempts until I went more with the flow. He clearly wanted to be left alone and crawl into a hole and die. He did not want his mother hovering over him at all times. I was not ready to accept that he had changed and needed some more breathing space.

My characters sometimes want me to go with the flow, too, and accept some changes. Are yours the same way? (Non-writers will think that statement a little wacky.) Sometimes I get a character in my head. He’s a Walter. He looks like a Walter, talks like a Walter. He’s an accountant or an engineer and somewhat overeducated.

Suddenly, Walter wants to be an animal rights activist. No, no, no, no. I’ve already mapped Walter out. He’s busily crunching numbers during the murder—and very greedy and killed for money.

But then it turns out that Walter doesn’t want me hovering over him, expecting him to behave a particular way. No, Walter is having a mid-life crisis and wants to rediscover his childhood love of animals by becoming an activist. And, by the way, he’s in love with the murder victim’s wife. So there!

Walter’s alter ego can be doodled on scratch paper. It can go on a separate Word file that never sees the light of day. But it needs to happen.

Sometimes we should just go with the flow. Accept a few changes along the way. Not expect someone to be a particular way all the time…even for characters.

I owe it to the story. And, possibly, to Walter.

First of all, a big thanks to all of my wonderful guest bloggers this past week! It was fun for me to have some fresh insights and ideas to read about.

I did not get H1N1. But I did start feeling horrible Sunday night. Discovery #1: Something I took helped me fight off the swine flu that my son has had for over a week now. The only problem is that I took so much stuff, that who knows what it actually was! In the mix was Airborne, herbal tea, Vitamin D, Vitamin C, zinc supplements, and some products that claimed they had antioxidants in them.

Discovery #2: Fumes from Clorox wipes,Lysol, and all the other cleaners I was desperately using to keep the rest of the household well, apparently make it impossible for me to blog, write coherent emails, or pen anything longer than 140 characters.

Discovery #3: Hello, Twitter. I cozied up to Twitter and Facebook when I needed a stress break and once I realized that 140 characters was my writing limit.

Discovery #4: Twitter lists. This is apparently a beta that Twitter is letting some users try out. I wondered why they picked me as one of their beta users and worried this means I tweet too much. Anyway, ‘Twitter lists’ means that you can sort out your followers on Twitter’s app and head them under lists (like you do on TweetDeck.) It also means that someone who is interested in following writing industry types can just follow your entire list in one fell swoop, if they’re interested in your labeled follower group.) I predict this is going to result in a huge writing community on Twitter. I’ll admit to being excited by the idea.

Discovery #5: Blockbuster. Thanks to everyone who gave me suggestions on movies for my sick son who is still contagious but bored to death.

Discovery #6: I needed to add 10,000 more words to my WIP (the Midnight Ink one due today.) This was a bad thing to discover on a week where my productivity and coherent thought dropped to an all-time low.

Discovery #7: If you read back through your entire manuscript, it’s amazing how many unfleshed-out ideas you’ll find. Easily 10,000 words worth, without needing to add filler. Whether it’s a scene that ends a little abruptly, a conversation that could turn into an argument, a red herring that could be dropped—there are usually multitudinous opportunities to elaborate and in a way that doesn’t result in too much flab.

Discovery #8: If your child has H1N1 and has been sick for over a week, they do want you to check back in at the doctor. But they may want you both to wear a face mask. People will stare at you at the doctor and carefully move away. Then you’ll discover that swine flu frequently leads to bronchitis and more days of quarantine for your child. But at least you can get antibiotics for bronchitis. Now he’s much better.

Discovery #9: The most important discovery? The writing community is incredibly supportive. I knew it already, but it was really demonstrated to me in so many ways last week. Thanks so much everyone!