Stand Alone vs. Series

What is better: a stand alone novel or a series?  I used to have a strong opinion about one or the other, but now it doesn't matter.  I'll tell you why.  The reasons we love a book are these: we are drawn to the characters and we like the plot.  Those are the basic reasons anyone enjoys a book.  No one says, "I loved the language, but I didn't care about the characters and the plot was unbelievable and boring.  But the way the author wrote it was worth the read..."  It doesn't matter how you tell your story so much as what you have to tell.

So regardless of whether it is a ten book series or an 80,000 word novel, the most important elements of your story are character development and plot.

I already spoke about character development when I posted about character sketches.  Knowing a character's motive and ultimate goal is the first step to great character development.  You then know how that character is going to react, regardless of the situation that occurs.  It also draws the reader to your character because the character is constant and knowable.  A character sketch will be the single greatest tool for you to develop your characters.

As for the plot, that stems from character development.  Once we understand the motives of all the major characters, even the minor characters, we can see how some characters goals will contradict other characters, which gives us plot elements and twists.  Along with Hannah's last post, there is opportunity to weave strategy and twists into the plot.  There are connections to make between characters, plot points, and action sequences.  And that all comes once you know your character.

So instead of including plot, let's just say that character development is the most important thing you can do to write a great story.

At least that's been my experience.  If you've had a different experience, let me know and tell me how it has worked for you.

Ignite your passion

Like Jayne said in last week's post, anyone can write. No one thinks they can do it when they first start. Heck, I hadn't read a book in almost a decade before I finally picked one up and got hooked on the romance genre. What right did I have to write one? When I started typing up my first book, I really hadn't planned on anyone seeing it except for family and a few close friends. Little did I know, I was about to write an entire novel. I ignited that passion for writing by continuing to do the two things, which, to this day, motivate me more than anything else:
Listening to music and reading those incredible books I fell in love.

So if you're not sure you can write, or you think it'll suck, just remember that everyone goes through that. Whether you're green or a seasoned author, those doubts will happen no matter what. Just make sure you continue to do things that motivate you. Cultivate your passion and see where it takes you.

Here are a few authors and songs I've used to motivate me (in no particular order):
Authors
Kresley Cole
JR Ward
Gena Showalter
Richelle Mead
Karen Marie Moning
Diana Gabaldon

Songs
Muse - Exogenesis: Part 1 (and, well, pretty much any song)
Christina Perri - Almost any song, but mostly Tragedy and The Lonely

What songs and authors/series motivate you?

I Came, I saw, I... Failed

Well, I heard back on the HOW Writer's Contest, and although I figured I wouldn't be a finalist, the truth of it stung a little. But, all in all, I'm glad I tried, and I won't let this hinder me from continuing on.

On the 1st novel in my series, I got the following scores (the max each judge could give is 135):
129
124
57

On the 2nd novel in my series, I got:
124
100
53

I could tell that the same three people judged both entries. They all gave feedback that I can work with in my many, many revisions that are sure to come. Some of their comments contradicted each other, so I'll just have to be sure to go with my heart on any changes I make. Because, really, my characters are in charge, not me. :o)

I just can't keep up

I got yet another idea for a series last week, and I'm really tempted to start writing it. For anyone who knows me, you know that this is killing me. Not only do I need to keep writing in my Romance series, but I also have a YA series that I've started. There is another YA series that I started and haven't looked at for a few months now, knowing that I had other projects ahead of it. And now, another YA series.

Sometimes I really wish I could stay at home and focus on writing all the time, then maybe I could keep up with myself. I'm still editing book number two, but I've also started writing this new series.... Ugh, what to do, what to do?

Goals

In my first book, I stopped writing once I reached 80,000 words, thinking that I was done. Well, as it turned out, I was wrong, and I've ended up adding more than 20,000 words since then. In my 2nd book (which is a part of the same series), I've just reached 60,000 words, which means that I'm really close to my original stopping point on the original. My goal for the 4th of July weekend is to get 5,000 words so that I'm that much closer to an end product.

Last year, all four of the Writer Chics went to an RWA Conference in October. My goal then was to have my 1st book completed. This year, I'm switching it up a little. Do I want my 2nd book completed by then? Umm, yeah! But, I want even more. Not only do I want my 2nd book completed, but I want to have started on my 3rd. The only thing I can't decide on is if I want my 3rd book to be the 3rd book in the same series, or if I want to work on one of my YA novels.

Luckily I still  have time to decide. All I know is that I want my 3rd project well on its way before this year's conference.

Lucky Curse

Anyone who knows me knows that I'm a multi-tasker. I keep pretty busy at work everyday, but I'm also constantly thinking about my books. Some days, I feel lucky that I can do that; other days, it feels like a curse. Because of this lucky curse, my mind doesn't know how to shut down. Like I said earlier, I keep really busy at work, and even though I'm working on reports or trying to troubleshoot a system issue, my mind constantly plays out the stories that I need to write (or parts I've already written). I have the same problem at night when I'm trying to sleep. I'll lay in bed, close my eyes and try to drift off, but instead scenes will start playing in my head. And sometimes those scenes just keep on going, its like my own personal  movie that I can't type fast enough to keep up. Many scenes are from future books that I haven't even started writing yet, my characters are just getting impatient and want me to get with the program.

And that's not even the worst part!

My Paranormal Romance series is the main one that I'm trying to write - let's face it, they characters in that series are the loudest - but, I have two other series that I started writing months ago. They're both YA, and they only randomly pop into my head. Well, now they're pushing really hard, and I'm afraid that being pushed in three different directions, by oh, so many characters might just make my brain go on strike. Here's to hoping that I don't go crazy. Why aren't there more hours in the day?