Empathizing With Your Character

Two senior men talking at an outdoor table at a restaurant.

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

Every once in a while, I’ll grind to a halt with my story.  I’ll either want to flesh out a subplot or develop the main plot a bit more, but I won’t be sure which direction to go in.

I always manage to muddle my way through and solve my problem, but I’d never sent a lot of time thinking about how I solve it.

I read a post by Steven-John Tait recently and one of his tips really resonated with me. Tait said, “Find empathy. If you can empathize with a character, you can get into their head. Once you’re in their head, you can fill in the blanks.”

Tait’s tip was intended to help with developing a protagonist, but it works well with all of the characters in the story.  This is one of the main methods that I use when I’m ‘muddling’ through the book to find my way.Continue reading

A Tip for Building Your ARC Team

A man reading in an elaborate library.

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

I have been building my ARC team (Advance Reader/Review Copy  team) organically for years. Organically as in…I didn’t do the building myself.  If a reader reached out to me and asked to be on my list (a list that I never mentioned and never promoted), then I agreed to the add.

But recently, I’ve been more interested in increasing the number of ARC readers . I do like the early reviews and social media mentions and I think they help spike interest in a new release.

Since I’m a pretty late adopter, I decided to make it very simple on myself.  Instead of putting something on my website, I reached out to my most dedicated readers–my newsletter subscribers. When my last release came out and I sent an email to my subscribers to notify them,  I included a special section in my newsletter:

Would you like the opportunity to read new Myrtle Clover and Southern Quilting mysteries before they are published (and for free)?  I have a limited number of spaces on my ARC team (that’s an advance reader copy team). Applicants must be able to read ebooks (on Kindle, epub, or PDF since there won’t be any print galleys).  I would love honest reviews submitted to Amazon, Goodreads,  or other retailers/reading communities .  ARC members receive an early copy 1-2 weeks before the book is published. ARC team members are also eligible to get signed, printed copies of my books at a reduced rate (just the cost of printing and shipping) when purchased directly from me. If you’re interested, click this link to fill out a short form for consideration. Thanks!Continue reading

Developing Your Cozy Mystery Story Concept

Blank sheet of paper with a coffee cup nearby.

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

One of the questions I’m most asked when I speak is how I come up with my ideas.  This,  of course, is probably the number one question that all writers are asked when they’re public speaking.  At least I usually am asked a variant of the question because they want to know how I come up with mysteries.

I usually say that I start with the victim.  And that’s true … about 75% of the time.  It’s an easy way to start out a cozy mystery.  You can develop someone who’s either really hateful and has plenty of enemies or create a character who seems too good to be true…and is.

Once I have a good idea who my victim is, it’s easy enough to come up with my suspects. Who would most want this person dead?  An ex-wife?  A neighbor he’s had disputes with? The husband of the woman he’s having an affair with?  The suspects come together naturally when you really know your victim.Continue reading

Recaps in Mysteries

Apartment building with repetitive pattern of windows with two that stand out.

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

Recently, I was looking over my customer reviews on Goodreads (I know…I rarely read my reviews there, although I always read them on Amazon) and one of them stood out to me.  A reader said that he especially appreciated the way that I handled recaps because he was able to catch back up when his Kindle malfunctioned and skipped ahead.

The Best Way to Recap:

I think the best way to handle recaps (especially in a cozy mystery) is to have them between the sidekick and the sleuth.  Otherwise, you end up in a situation where you have a lot of interior dialogue.  That makes your sleuth engage in too much thinking and not enough doing.  Even for the slower pace of a cozy mystery, that can slow the story’s pace down a little too much.

Although:

I find it’s also helpful for the sleuth to think private editorial comments  while interviewing suspects.  Especially if something a suspect says directly contradicts something that another suspect said. I keep it very brief and keep things moving in the interview. It’s the sleuth registering contradictions (which helps the reader notice them, too). Continue reading

Developing a Bad Idea into a Better One

Busy city street crosswalk with 'do not enter' signs facing viewer.

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

I work on story subplots two different ways.  Sometimes I write them in as I go, including them in the text.  Sometimes I write them out separately on a different document and weave them in after I’ve finished the mystery.

This time I’d written in the subplot as I went.  But, after finishing the book and reading back through it, I was unhappy with the subplot.  It seemed too much of a contrivance to me. Plus, it meant that I was adding in another recurring character when my series already had quite a few.

But there were parts of the subplot that I liked. I was pleased with the way it developed a character in the story.   I decided to rework it instead of scrapping it completely.

Here are my tips for reconstructing a story element.  There are other approaches, but this was the way I was able to do it without making my head spin too much:

First off, remove (cut) the offending storyline completely.  I searched for the character’s name, but you could also reread the draft and cut as you went.

Next, save the cuttings. Paste them into a separate, saved document.

Then reimagine the storyline.  Can the character/subplot serve the story in another capacity?

Additional considerations: can you connect this story element in a meaningful way to the main plot?  Can it be used to develop a recurring character?  Bonus points, if you can.  I found a way for the character to impact two separate subplots.

Open a fresh document and save it.  Mine was “Subplot Text.”   Write out the reimagined storyline, using any bits and pieces from the cut storyline as possible to save time (for instance, I could use the character’s description and some of her dialogue).

Reread your draft.  Weave in the storyline as you go, pacing it throughout the story for better impact.

Is it a pain?  It is.  I haven’t done this in a while (I usually don’t have any major revisions because I’ve gotten very used to my pattern for writing), and it took some time.  But I’m pleased with the finished project and I know that I haven’t created a problem for myself with future books.

If you’re not sure exactly what doesn’t work in your story or need more help staying organized with your revisions, I’m linking to some articles that might help.

The Art of Revising: Macro Revision by R.L. LaFevers

Want to Make Revisions Easier? Create an Editorial Map by Janice Hardy

How to Stay Organized During a Revision by Janice Hardy 

Decisions: What and How to Revise by Darcy Pattison

Do you ever rework bad ideas into better ones?  How do you go about replacing storylines that don’t work?

Tips for revising story elements that don't exactly work: Click To Tweet

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