Post #254 April 26, 2021 “Copy, Paste and Modify?” Two weeks ago, I started the first draft of a new novel. It’s called The Farpool: Plague and it’s a continuation of my original The Farpool Stories. In this novel, I have been making liberal use of text and story elements from the earlier tales. In other words, I’ve been doing copy, paste and modifying things I’ve already written. Reusing text from previous stories, not all of them Farpool related. I do have over 60 stories online, with an approximate word count of nearly 5 million words. Surely, it’s okay to steal from myself to move a new story along by re-using old text? To answer this question, I’ve listed the pros (Yes) and cons (No) of this move below. You can decide for yourself whether I should be doing this. YES: 1. I don’t want to re-invent the wheel. If there is an existing scene that might work in a new story with some modifications, why not use it? 2. Copying and pasting with modifications can increase my productivity, literally, the number of pages I can complete in a day. 3. Often, I’ve found that only basic modifications are needed 4. When I do this, the effort sometimes suggests additional plot elements or complications that I hadn’t considered. 5. Re-using from earlier tales in my original series helps with continuity. NO: 1. The reader may have seen and read this text before. Re-using old text and re-purposing it could end up confusing a reader, if they recall it from somewhere else. 2. The modifications may turn out to be extensive. The new scene could be easier if I just write it fresh. 3. Writing a new scene from scratch can keep your head and your literary engine engaged and mentally in the story better. This is often underappreciated as a tool for getting pages and stories done. I have a host of tips and tricks for keeping my head in the game, like ending a day’s writing right in the middle of a sentence so as to jigger my brain back into the story universe the next day by the necessity of completing the sentence. Try it. It works. 4. Text copied and pasted and modified from another story may have unintended or unexpected effects on a reader’s understanding of your current story. The tone may be just enough different, or jarring enough to cause the reader to step back and say “Whoa…what’s happened here?” If this causes the reader to suspend their belief in the story universe, then you’re losing the reader and you never want to do anything to cause that. Ultimately, re-using old text in a new story is a judgment call. Your call should be based on… 1. The time and effort required 2. Analyzing and balancing the Yes and No factors highlighted above. 3. Doing what’s best to create an engaging and compelling story 4. An understanding that writers sometimes get a little too enamored with their own words, to the detriment of the greater story. Don’t fall into that trap. If the old text works in a new story or can be made to work, do it. Otherwise, write it new. The next post to The Word Shed comes on May 3, 2021. See you then. Phil B.

Post #253 April 19 2021 “Continuity in Series Fiction” This post covers a subject that is a little more technical and specific than many of my earlier posts. The issue today is stated in the title: how do I deal with continuity when telling a continuing series of stories. Should I even worry about this? What the hell is continuity anyway? One good definition is this: continuity is consistency of plot, characters, settings and other details in a story. Why worry about this? In series fiction, which I have done a lot of, there are three reasons why you should worry about continuity. 1. Believability and credibility. Imagine James Bond ordering a martini that wasn’t ‘shaken not stirred.’ If you write stories with characters that continue from one tale to another, you don’t want Bob to have blond hair in one story and green hair in the next. Flub-ups like that can destroy the connection that the reader makes with the author and damage the verisimilitude (resemblance to the truth) that every storyteller depends on. 2. Familiarity. If you’ve had any kind of success with a series (as an example, the five novels in my series The Farpool Stories have collectively garnered nearly 6600 downloads), you want your readers to feel comfortable with the characters and the settings and plot details if you are adding additional stories to the series (I’m doing this with The Farpool Stories). Being familiar with some of the details from earlier in the series takes some of the cognitive workload off the reader. It’s been said that some of the most successful series are infinite variations on the same theme. Another word for this is formula. Why have they been so successful? Familiarity, especially if your heroes are particularly engaging and likeable and readers can identify with them, is one reason. Of course, it doesn’t hurt to tell a crackling good story too. 3. Early success. I have had several pretty successful series (Tales of the Quantum Corps, Quantum Troopers, Time Jumpers, The Farpool Stories). You don’t necessarily want to mess with success. Maybe just tweak it a little. Sometimes, early success can seem like a straitjacket and you want to breathe a little as an artist. That’s okay. Just remember to attend to the needs and details of story continuity or you’ll lose some of those loyal readers. I’m in the middle of writing the first of three follow-on stories in my series The Farpool Stories. How do I (and or you) go about maintaining continuity in such an endeavor? 1. From the start, I made the decision to review all previous stories in this series. I re-read everything. This helped me get my head back into the story universe I had already created. It also had the secondary benefit of suggesting plot twists and turns I could craft onto my new stories. I even re-read all the character bios and details of settings, to help this process. This has worked well. 2. I had to decide how much my main characters had changed or grown. I saw some of this change in the original five stories. How far should I carry this change? Should I introduce new characters? How are they related to the original characters? What kind of trajectory of change do I envision for the main characters? Consider all these factors when attending to series continuity. 3. Keep copious notes on details. I have dozens of files, even paper notebooks, on all kinds of details involved in The Farpool Stories. Which details should I change or update? Which remain unchanged? Know your details, inside and out. Don’t describe a tropical island one way in Story 1 and a completely different way in Story 5, unless there is a good reason for that change. In series fiction, continuing details populate all the stories and readers notice inconsistencies. Plus your chance of making laughable errors goes up with each new tale. 4. Consider reprising earlier plot scenes. I do this a lot, to avoid re-inventing the wheel and to help maintain consistency. Often, when writing a scene, there will be an earlier scene that is similar. Don’t be afraid to copy and paste, but be sure to modify the new scene to make it fit the new story. You may feel that readers will grow tired of seeing scenes they have read before, slightly updated. While this is undoubtedly true, readers also appreciate familiarity at least as much. And remember, no matter how much you change or update details, and no matter how much current scenes resemble earlier ones, you still have to tell a complete and engaging story anyway. 5. Finally, consider the time frame of your new stories. Do the new ones occur in time right after the end of the original stories? Years or centuries later? This one aspect will affect a lot of what you decide regarding points 1-4 above. In the case of me re-starting The Farpool Stories, my main character in the first of the new tales is actually a granddaughter of my original heroes in the first five stories. The time frame made that necessary, but it also opened up new possibilities. Dealing with and respecting the needs of continuity in series fiction is a balancing act. You’re juggling the need to respect what has gone before and the reader’s desire for some familiarity in order to get into the story with the need to tell a fresh and engaging story in a compelling way. Maybe that’s why they call writing and storytelling an art. The next post to The Word Shed comes on April 26, 2021. See you then. Phil B.

Post #252 April 12 2021 “Kickstarting the Motivation Engine” Every writer needs to attend to his or her own motivation. There must be a million motivational tricks you can use to get going and write that story, article, essay or poem. Recently, I found a website called masterclass.com, which offered the following tips for motivating yourself to get going on that best-seller. 1. Set writing goals. If you want to complete a novel but are intimidated by the thought of writing 65,000 words, set goals that are easier to tackle. Give yourself a minimum daily word count you need to reach. At the end of each writing session, record your word count in a writing diary. If you’re blogging, set an analytical goal of how many people you want to reach with your next post. Goal setting is a good strategy for getting to work. 2. Set deadlines. There’s no better motivator than a deadline. Look at your calendar and set a due date for each chapter of your book and a completed first draft. This will light the fire and force you to put the time in every day. If it helps, pretend this is for a client. 3. Write now, edit later. An essential part of creative writing is to just get your story down. When the words are flowing, don’t stop to edit. You’ll forget your thoughts and ideas and you’ll lose momentum. Get the story down first. You can go back and edit later. 4. Find the perfect writing space. Find a spot where you do your best writing. Make sure it’s away from distractions. Turn off the TV and put away your phone. Some people find music helps their state of mind when they write. Try it, but if it’s more distraction than inspiration, keep it off. 5. Remember that the journey is the destination. The thought of writing an entire novel can be overwhelming and paralyzing. Try focusing on the writing process rather than your ultimate goal. Be in the present and enjoy the experience of writing. 6. Commit to a regular writing time. Getting into a writing habit is easier when you use time management skills and schedule a specific time to write every single day. Honor the appointment like you would any other meeting, and show up at your computer at the time you set aside, no matter what. 7. Change your thought processes. Procrastination gets the best of every writer, but bestsellers don’t write themselves. Remind yourself that the only way to become a better writer is to sit down and write. Strengthen that will power to keep temptations at bay. Stop saying, “I’ll write tomorrow,” and instead commit to writing today. 8. Join a writing group. Sometimes, writing for yourself is simply not enough motivation. Join a writing group that meets regularly so you are accountable to other people to turn in what you write. Your peers can also be a great resource for free writing advice. Join NaNoWriMo—National November Writing Month. Every year, on November 1st, people around the world commit to writing 50,000 words over the course of the month. 9. Take five. If you have writer’s block, step away from your writing routine. Go for a walk or a jog. Sometimes just getting exercise helps open the creative floodgates. If that doesn’t work, come back to it the next day. Watch TV or listen to podcasts. Tapping into other creative outlets might trigger an idea. When inspiration hits, get back to your keyboard and start typing. 10. Switch up your setting. Changing where you work can get you out of a creative rut, give you a new perspective, and kickstart your writing motivation. Get out of the house, away from your desk, and sit in a coffee shop or a library every once in a while. You might even find writing inspiration by people-watching. 11. Switch directions. When you stall out during the middle of a writing project, change what you’re working on. Switching to a new writing style can refresh your thoughts. If you’re tired of novel writing, work on a short story. If you’re a blogger, try writing blog entries or a guest post for another website. If you just need a short break, head on over to social media and write a creative tweet. Sometimes you just need to switch directions and force your brain to think of something else before you get started again. 12. Try writing prompts. A fun way to find motivation is to use writing prompts to ignite a story idea. Prompts are most often a short text passage that a writer uses as fuel to launch into a bigger story. You can also use a real-life writing prompt simply by recalling a moment from earlier in your day. Story prompts are easy to find online, but you can also be inspired by reading a newspaper or magazine to mine for inspiration. 13. Reward yourself. Using bribery for a little motivation now and then never hurts. Promise yourself a sweet treat, a cup of coffee, or some little reward for reaching milestones throughout your writing session. 14. Read a book. If you’re having a hard time finding motivation, pick up something to read. If you’re writing fiction, try a non-fiction book. Reading will turn off your creative engine and give your mind a rest. Absorbing the work of other authors can also serve as a source of inspiration and motivation for your own writing. 15. Remember why you started writing. Remember why you started writing in the first place and refocus on the story you set out to tell. Visualize your idea as a completed novel with characters and a world you created. Imagine the feeling of accomplishment when you finish. Then, sit back down and start typing. Motivational tricks are as varied as writers are. It also helps for me to realize that I’m a firmly obsessive/compulsive person. But, after I read this piece, I realized I actually do quite a lot of these things myself. Only one person can write that story you’ve had percolating in your head for the last six months. And if you don’t write it, the world will never have a chance to appreciate your genius as an artist. Get cracking. The next post to The Word Shed comes on April 19. See you then. Phil B.