Vicki Batman: You are so Funny-- Really?

You are so Funny-- Really? 

I never knew. I grew up a shy child. Mom always said she could get my youngest sister to go in the convenience store and buy milk before I would. I couldn't stand being embarrassed and was uncomfortable about doing stuff. Yep, nowadays, we say immature and that was probably the case.

Eventually, I grew up and learned no doesn't mean no all the time and I wouldn't die doing things. I developed more confidence in my capabilities. I married Handsome. After kids came, two girlfriends and I went on an overnight getaway to a small town which holds a Christmas home tour. Après dinner and seeing the houses, we put on our jammies and settled in to good ol' girl talk. One friend said, "You are so funny."

 I had no words. That kind of compliment had never floated my way. Astonished, I replied, "Really?"

 "Yes, you are."

 I never knew.

So when I began writing, the funny stuff seeped into my work. I love writing witty banter. The greatest compliment I've had is when people say "you made me laugh out loud."

How do I do it? I'll give myself credit and say some is natural. Mostly, I work hard to pick the perfect word, words, phrase, sentence. I even make up words.

For example, in my latest story, "San Diego or Bust," the hero finally proposes to the heroine (only she doesn't want him after the trip from hell). Here's what I wrote:

I inhaled. “No, it can’t wait. We need to talk right now about you and me.”

Still staring down the street, he rolled his hand. “And?”

“We’re finished. Done. Over.”

Slowly, he rotated my way and removed his glasses. Confusion passed through his eyes. “Finished?”

He couldn't be this dense—could he? “Yep. Adios. Hasta la vista.”

“I don’t get it.”

I spelled it out. “We...are not...going to date...anymore.”

Davis cocked his head. “Is this because I didn’t propose?”

He really was that dense.

He dropped to his knee and removed something from his pants' pocket. “Jill, will you marry me?”

Oh. My. God. My hands clapped my cheeks. This was surreal. Three days ago, I’d hoped he’d propose; only now, I didn’t want it. Our marriage would have been one big, huge, horrendous mistake.

A quick look at the others in the holding area told me they were staring at the scene unfolding between us. My body sizzled with heat. “Davis, please get up.” When he shook his head and didn't move, I said, “Your pants will get dirty.”

You might note that Davis is a tad dense ('cause he's a little self-centered) and my heroine spells things out to him. She says "Yep" (not yes), Adios (not good bye), and for more emphasis "Hasta la vista." So three times. In design, three elements are more pleasing. I figured that could be so in writing as well.

Then Davis said, "Is this because I didn't propose?" And our heroine thinks, he really is that dense--something we already know-and where is this going anyway? Uh oh thoughts begin to surface.

Let's look at the phrase "big, huge, horrendous mistake." Again the three times and each word is bigger than the last. Can't you imagine someone holding their hands and letting the space between grow large and larger until…explode!

So Davis proposes. Our heroine says "no" and he still is down on his knee. Earlier, I painted the picture of Davis always looking perfect. On one knee for a long while, he might begin to look funny.  People are staring. And when he shakes his head and won't get up, the heroine said the one thing sure to get him to his feet, "Your pants will get dirty."

He-he-he. That sentence always has me in stitches. I have to say the line just hit me in the head when I read through (one of a bazillion times). I HAD to add it.

 

So riddle me this, do you write funny and if so, do you have tricks of the trade? Do you like to read romantic comedy?

 

 

Find Vicki Batman with a diet Coke and lately, gourmet malt balls, typing away and doing dastardly deeds to her characters at http://vickibatman.blogspot.com   OR at: http://plottingprincesses.blogspot.com . Find "San Diego or Bust" and "Store Wars" at: http://museituppublishing.com    .

 

 

Do You See What I See?

by Mary Waibel

I love being immersed into another world when I read. Whether it's a mystical place the author has created from deep in their mind, or a story set right in my back yard, the words used have the ability to carry me away from the real world and into theirs.

I've found an author engages as many of my senses as possible, it truly lets me feel as though I am there with the character.

So, how do you do this in your own writing?

Obviously, sight is the easiest. Colors, physical descriptions of objects and people are the first places I turn to set up my world. But, I try not to stop there.

*Sounds
*Smells
*Tastes
*Touch

These other senses can be incorporated to flush out your world.  Let's work with this example:

She stood in the middle of the woods. The trees moved with a gust of wind and she shivered. A hand clamped over her mouth.

Okay, not so very descriptive. So, how do we add the senses in to immerse our reader into this world?

Let's start with the visual description of where the girl is.
Trees surrounded her, their straight, wide trunks narrowing to thin points as they rose so high it seemed they would touch the sky.

Now, what does she hear?
A gust of wind blew through the grove and the branches creaked, their eerie moans sending shivers down her back. A twig snapped behind her. She jerked around, her heart thundering in her ears.

What does she smell?
The scents of pine and earth surrounded her. She took a deep breath. Beneath the comforting aromas  of the forest was another smell, something out of place, yet familiar.

What does she feel?
She stepped back, ramming into the tree behind her. Her palms stung where the rough bark bit into her tender skin. A heavy weight settled on her shoulder. Before she could let loose the scream building in her throat, a hand clamped firmly over her mouth.

What does she taste?
She jerked her head, trying to break free of her captor's hold. Her teeth scraped against her lip, cutting the soft flesh. The coppery tang of blood filled her mouth.

As more senses are added, it allows the reader to truly feel like they are in the story with your character.

I gave this a more sinister feel, but you could easily make it a happy moment, depending on your word choices.

Now, it's your turn. How would you have fleshed this out, using as many of the five sense as you can, to immerse your reader in the world?

You Think Your Book Is Ready, But It's Not!

What is the best part of writing a novel? For me it is the time when the book ends and I realize it might be ready for other people to read. With my first novel, when I got to the ending I felt very emotional. Even after many readings of my own book I still choke up a little at the ending. However, after writing my second novel I didn’t get that kind of feeling at the end. Instead I had a real exhilaration as if the character was finally free.

So I decided to give my novel to my daughter, who was so helpful with my first one.

Thinking it was finished I expected to get some criticism, since this was also critiqued and read by many people in the past. In fact, I spent an entire summer exchanging chapters with someone who helped me a great deal. Yet, even after that I didn’t think it was finished. It had all the right ingredients, but somehow I wasn’t satisfied. So I gave it to my daughter to read and she read it fast. As I said, I expected to get some comments, but I wasn’t prepared for what she said.

She told me she didn’t like the plot and that some of the characters were not strong enough. She said that the main character and the secondary character were not real. I was very disturbed, since I was not expecting to change much in this manuscript. However, after her comments, I realized that she was right. I had to change the plot and add something to the mix so it made more sense. I went back and rewrote some of the first chapter and than found I had to rewrite almost every chapter to fit my new plot. As I rewrote I saw what my daughter meant. My original plot had no drama, except for the main character and even that was fairly contrived. The new plot takes care of this problem and adds drama. It heightens every character and makes them more real. I even added a scene that showcases a secondary character who had been more in the background. Then I went back and reread the ending and it all made much more sense. 

Now, I’m sure you want me to tell you what I am talking about, but I haven’t sent it in to be accepted yet. The whole idea of this post is to tell you that you need to go back and have your novel reread by someone you trust before you send it out. Also, don’t be afraid to make changes, even drastic changes to your novel at any time. Nothing is finished until you truly feel it is the best you can do. If you have even one doubt about your work you should definitely get someone else to read it. As you can see, even having a critique group and a beta reader didn’t help me to see the flaws. I will say, though, that getting that criticism was like a punch to the gut. As I read all the things she had to say and then heard them again from her, I felt angry. However, as we both went over what she meant and bounced ideas off of each other, it gradually became less awful and I was happy she had been so honest. 

Of course, now that the plot is changed, I have to go back and rewrite the synopsis too. Also, my daughter hasn’t reread the finished manuscript, so I think it’s finished, but there may be more rewriting. I am hoping, though, that it is where it should be and I can send it in to my editor. Changes to the title were suggested too, but I like it and will keep it the same: When My Life Changed. Here is  some of the first chapter of it, if you are interested. Remember, it is still a WIP, so there may be more changes. 

Excerpt from When My Life Changed:

The phone rang as the ball left the pitcher’s glove and in a second as I saw Mom’s tears, I forgot all about the game. My life changed while the TV blurred and turned into a nightmare kaleidoscope. The moment it changed has been indelibly pressed in my thoughts. 

My sister, Diane, was upstairs hunched over her computer as usual. She’s not a baseball fan at all. But I lived and breathed for the Mets that Fall. They had such a great chance of getting the pennant and maybe even winning the World Series. I obsessed about the Mets and of course, Joey. 

Joey, my best friend from kindergarten, was always there for me. It’s hard to imagine a recess without him by my side. He’s bigger than me and always looked a little older than he was. Mom liked Joey, because he reassured her he would obey her rules. Maybe it’s his easy smile or his clear gray eyes.  

Lately, though, Joey and I weren’t so close. It happened during the summer when he was a counselor at this camp and  he hooked up with this girl Amber who goes to our school. So now he spent a lot of his time with her and we barely saw each other. We used to watch the Mets all the time together too. So I missed him being there with me, and his comments about the players. 

But all that was pre-phone call. Pre-pc my deepest thoughts centered on the Mets and finding the sweet spot for the ball in my new baseball glove. Pre-pc my world was worrying about homework getting done and wondering what lunch would be like on Monday. Oh and of course thinking about how to beat the next team we were up against in softball. I’m a starting pitcher this year and I want to show my coach she can believe in me. I’m only a sophomore, but I hope someday to play college softball so I can get a scholarship to go. My parents have already told me they can’t swing it without one.

Let me go back and tell a little bit about myself. First of all you might be thinking I’m a boy, but you’re wrong. My name is Lauren. I’m 15, and my sister is 17 and I’m one hundred percent female. We learned about stereotypes in social studies and thinking sports can be only a boy’s thing is one of those. The teacher used blondes and how people think they’re dumb or playing dumb. We had to come up with a few stereotypes of our own as our ticket to leave that day. It was then I realized that my own parents thought in stereotypes. 

I go against the stereotype for girls. I’ve always loved baseball and Joey loves it even more than I.

Our friendship goes against the stereotypes too. He and I clicked in kindergarten when on the first day of kindergarten Joey and I sat together and didn’t stop talking the whole morning. My parents told me when the teacher tried to separate us we both put our feet on the ground and refused to be moved. She let us sit together for the rest of the year. But the next year the teachers were onto us and separated Joey and me for the whole year in different classes. We’d see each other in the hallway and wave. Sometimes I’d have a little tear in my eye when I saw Joey and it didn’t go away for a long time.

Before the pc there I was, eyelids drooping, in front of the TV about to go upstairs to bed. Mom joined me for the last couple of innings. It looked like the Mets might do it.  Though I tried, I couldn’t keep my eyes open and raised my tall, lean body off the sofa placing one foot on the floor when the phone rang. Dad usually called Mom late when he worked nights, so I handed the phone to Mom and started upstairs. I didn’t get far. As soon as my foot touched the first step I heard Mom screaming into the phone. 

My first novel, If I Could Be Like Jennifer Taylor is available at the Muse Bookstore, Amazon, Barnes&Noble, Kobo and Smashwords. 

Check out my blog, Barbara's Meanderings for interviews with many Muse authors and some who are not.:)

Grabbing the Editor’s Attention: Is the attention you’re attracting positive or negative.

First let me say that while I am a Senior Acquisition Editor and author at MuseItUp Publishing, everything within is my own opinion. We all bring to the table our experiences and life baggage and for this I am forever grateful to you all.

I’ve been thinking on this topic for a number of weeks, even started writing a few days ago. However, here I sit at 8:23 p.m. the night before I’m to upload my piece and I don’t have anything finished. Adding here that at 9:38 a.m. the day this is due, I’m still writing and tweaking.

The first piece started with guidelines and checking you’re submitting your genre piece to the correct genre publisher, but that should be common knowledge by now. And if you’re following the rules then surely your manuscript and opening email is grabbing the editor’s attention…positive attention, right?

Wrong.

I’ve read submissions which were perfectly composed, followed every guideline to the “t” and still left a sour note in my mouth. There have been a few submissions which did a hit and miss…and totally out of the ballpark no idea about guidelines…and they sang to me.

So, what was the difference?

Attitude.

Yes, that’s the word I’ve been searching for…attitude. Your positive, believing in your dream, faith in you’re taking a chance attitude. I’m not talking ego. I don’t mean a stiff professional voice that has me picturing a formal boardroom meeting. I mean the simple “Hi, I’m so-so and…”

And, no, not the “Hi, I’m so-so. Please read my manuscript.

The submission emails I remember were all ones where the author talked to me, not at me. They didn’t drone on like a form letter…oh how I hated sending form letters when I was a secretary. Now, some form letters like…congrats here’s your contract…those I don’t mind. I love sending those.

You’re introductory email speaks volume. Your personality, creativity, passion, even future work habits do show through; they should shine through.

You don’t need to embellish or get all fancy. We want you. We want you to talk with us, be friendly. Give us what we’ve asked for, but share yourself, too. Whether you’re a newbie or an author with hundreds of books under your name, we’re here waiting to yell “Welcome to MuseItUp!” We want you as part of our family.

That’s it? That’s what it takes to grab positive attention from an editor? It’s been a common denominator in conversations I’ve had about submissions. Even when we’ve had to send out a decline (rejection, but that’s such a harsh word) the impact of the author’s email has left its imprint on us.

Those who have left that sour taste, I don’t remember their rejections. No they were not rejected for a bad introductory email attitude. But how one comes across in this first contact is a pretty sure gauge of how their manuscript reads. Allow me to rephrase, their voice of this first contact is a pretty good gauge. Not whether they’ve rambled or were concise or missed a detail…their voice.

Quickest way to put me in your corner? Follow the guidelines (hey, you knew that was coming). Be polite (no, not as common as you might think). Be friendly professional (I know you’re not a robot and neither am I). Share your nerves…been there, too. Actually, I get those excited nerves opening each and every submission.

Be yourself.

As I look at my current word count…754 and growing…I’m going to stop here and ask you three questions.

Question 1: Whether regarding writing or not, what attitude has anyone’s email or social media comment, directed to you, left that sour taste for you?

Question 2: Has there ever been an email or social media comment you have made, which you now believe may have caused that sour taste?

Question 3: What do you, as authors, believe are assessing editors’ pet peeves.

 

And, thank you for reading.

Chris Speakman

The writer: Christine Irene Steeves – writer: http://christineisteeves.blogspot.ca/
ChrisChat Talks Creativity http://chrischattalkscreativity.blogspot.com/
ChristChat Indulges: http://chrischatindulges.blogspot.ca/
Editor Chris Speakman lives here: MuseItUp Publishing http://museituppublishing.com
Reviewer Chris Speakman, well, the easiest address is ChrisChat Reviews at http://www.freewebs.com/chrischatreviews/
Still reading, you can always reach her at MuseChrisChat@gmail.com

Writing with Strong Emotion using Music or Movies

Welcome to this One-Day Workshop.

Hi,

I'm Wendy Laharnar, a MuseItUp author.
I hope you'll enjoy the workshop and that you will join in and get quite emotional :)


 

The aim  here, is to use strong emotion to hit a universal nerve in your reader.

 

There are many means to do this, but since time is limited, I'd like to suggest an effective way you might not have considered, that is to draw on your readers’ knowledge of music and movies to make your reader experience the emotion your characters feel at that moment.

 

To begin, we’ll concentrate on the primary emotions:

Love; Joy; Surprise; Anger; Sadness; Fear.

   

[For secondary and tertiary emotions see:

http://changingminds.org/explanations/emotions/basic%20emotions.htm ]

As an unrelated extra, I found this link to exclamations that help express emotion in dialogue

http://www.vidarholen.net/contents/interjections/
 

Choose one emotion for now

With this in mind think about the mood you wish to create in your scene by asking some basic questions.

• Who is it about?               --  which character owns this scene. POV
• What happened?              --  story
• When did it take place?   --  era
• Where did it take place?  -- place
• Why did it happen?          --  theme
• How did it happen?          -- plot

 Also consider:

Who is my target audience?

Next

Which music and movies affect you most?

 

Do any give you goose bumps,

Or make you smile or laugh out loud.

Bring tears to your eyes or make you sad.

Elicit memories or make you cringe.

Remind you of a moment of fear.

Remind you of being in love -- ‘our song’.

Or do you dislike them so much you never want to hear another word about them.

 These are the songs and movies stored in your emotional memory.

 

Would the majority of your target audience be familiar with any of them?

For you to hit the universal nerve, you need to draw on the songs and movies with the most universal appeal or reaction. Just the mention of the title should alert the reader to awaken a particular emotion.
 

 

Wait! Remember copyright laws.

For music you can use the title and the artist's name, but you need permission from the copyright owners to use any of the lyrics.

For movie quotes, under 'Fair Use' you can use a short phrase but not direct dialogue.

 

I wouldn't use direct quotes, rather refer to scenes or characters in their moment of emotion.

For example:

 Alone, in the pre dawn light, I stood proud, like Scarlett surveying my Tara, and willed the sun to rise on a brand new day.

 

My golden rule for copyright. If in doubt, don't.

 

This link is helpful regarding copyright and Fair Use.

http://www.splc.org/knowyourrights/legalresearch.asp?id=114 

 

 

Thus armed we will see how our character reacts.

 

Okay, let's go.

 You are the creative artist targeting a universal nerve

 

My emotion is Joy

Since I love the era of the movie musicals my target audience will need to be familiar with the 50s movies.

 

Who is it about?               --  a young female,  Cindy.

What happened?              --  she fell in love

When did it take place?   --  any time

Where did it take place?  -- Anywhere

Why did it happen?          --  for the purpose of this scene: to show

                                                     the joy of young love.

 

How did it happen?           -- Cindy's emotion came from                  

                                                    a satisfying date.

 

 Which movie:

 Although totally different, the movie that inspired my medieval time travel novel, and from which I drew for emotional effect on several levels, was The House on the Square - otherwise - known as I'll Never Forget You (1951).
But when  thinking about this 'young love' scene filled with joy and expectation, the movie 'Carousel' (1956) came to mind, even though my story is  unrelated.

Which song affected me?

I love the cheerful song from Carousel, This Was a Real Nice Clambake.

 Just  hearing the title has me singing the chorus and humming for ages after.  My guess is that those who know this tune might even add ‘we’re mighty glad we came’ in their mind.

  I'll see if I can use this title to create
a joyful mood. The  reader should feel warm and happy. 


Example:
Tomorrow! He'd kissed her and said he'd see her again, tomorrow.
Cindy hugged herself tightly, twirling and swirling around the room.  This Was a Real Nice Clambake throbbed in her veins. She hummed softly at first and then, throwing her head back, burst into song,  allowing the lilting melody to take her breath away.  Clambake, she sang between gasps.  Giddy, she slumped to the floor. Tears spilled onto her smile. Tomorrow she'd summon the courage; she'd say those three little words. #

 I could have used The Hills Are Alive with The Sound of Music or some other well known joyful song. 

 

 Or reverse the emotion

Drawing on the same joyful song title, you can have your character show an altogether different emotion.

Example 

Huddled under the bridge, her clothes in tatters, her innocence destroyed, Cindy hummed through clenched teeth. This Was a Real Nice Clambake throbbed in her veins. Clambake, clambake, she thumped, madly drumming the rhythm on her bruised  thighs and breasts, humming louder. Tears pricked her eyes but she squeezed them away. Tomorrow, she thought, when I'm stronger, he'll pay. #

 

You can be like Donald O’Conner in Sign’in in the Rain and Make ’em Laugh,  or like Roy Osbison and have them Crying while they are Walking In The Rain .

 

In my Historical Novel, The Unhewn Stone, I use the song Money, Money, Money by Abba to create joy through ironic humour. I loved having medieval peasants follow my modern Swiss time traveller  in the ancient  square of  Altdorf,  singing those words. Soon this 14th century crowd was happily humming and whistling along with 21st century Stefan.

So, over to you!

Which music or movie will you draw on to create your strong emotion and  put your reader in the mood?

I'll be popping back regularly to comment on your examples.

 

Location, Location—Where (Why/How) To Set Your Story

By Linda Lovely

Author of FINAL ACCOUNTING, a romantic thriller set in Atlanta and Jamaica.

Choosing a setting for your story is more than a matter of window-dressing. It impacts:

• PLOT: Every location offers a unique cornucopia of potential challenges and resources. In a suspense/ thriller novel, location factors are often tightly woven into the plot fabric. Think Deliverance or Hunger Games. In a romance or drama, the setting’s social milieu influences plot by defining what behaviors are (or are not) acceptable. Think The Help.    
• CHARACTERS: Setting also plays a role in defining characters—how they think, act, and talk. It would be very difficult to extract New Jersey’s “DNA” from the Stephanie Plum, Janet Evanovich’s loveable character. Even if your heroine is a stranger/newcomer to your setting, how she reacts to the “natives” and their customs will tell the reader a great deal about her character.  
• MOOD: The scenery and weather peculiar to a location can set the mood throughout a book. Blue skies, oppressive heat, dense fog, numbing cold, tropical downpours, urban decay, unspoiled beaches—these are just a few of the many elements used to signal optimism or foreboding and communicate sadness or happiness.
• SALES:  While selling books is seldom an author’s prime consideration in selecting a novel’s location, it is worth mentioning. People enjoy reading novels set in their hometowns or in places they’ve visited. Of course, there’s also a danger. Readers may be highly critical if a book’s descriptions fail to match memories or photographs.

I’ve published three books. I followed the “write what you know best” dictate in selecting the locations for both of my Marley Clark Mysteries (Dear Killer and No Wake Zone), set in the South Carolina Lowcountry and Spirit Lake/Okoboji, Iowa, respectively. I have intimate knowledge of both locations—people, geography, history, culture—and could weave key details into my plots.

I changed tactics for my latest romantic thriller, Final Accounting, and set it in Jamaica—an island I’ve only visited. Despite a lack of detailed Jamaican knowledge, I couldn’t resist sending my characters there.

Jamaica is a study in stark contrasts. Paradise and poverty. Lavish resorts and urban violence. Soaring mountains and deep, dark caves. These contrasts give an author everything she could ask for to make setting another character in the story—from fairytale beaches that provide perfect backdrops for a romantic embrace to steep mountain roads where danger seems to lurk around every corner (even when you’re not being chased by a determined assassin).

Though similar contrasts can be found throughout the world (the U.S. included), Jamaica offered my readers a number of exotic and unexpected extras. Many Jamaican tourists never step foot outside all-inclusive, walled resorts. However, my husband and I had the advantage of being shown around the entire island by expert guides—my sister, Rita, and brother-in-law, Hank. They lived in Jamaica for seven years. Hank, an engineer, headed a major highway construction project, and his work took him to virtually every part of the island.

During our visit, we accompanied Hank to a number of locations. On one sojourn we drove into the hinterlands in search of gravel pits. En route, we bought coconuts (but not the ganja/marijuana) offered by roadside entrepreneurs and ate jerk chicken at stands where one hoped the fiery spices killed germs. In Kingston, we marveled at the number of goats and machete-carrying pedestrians holding up traffic. Of course, we also ate at five-star mountain-top restaurants, visited ritzy resorts, and went for an unforgettable evening cruise on Jamaica’s bioluminescent bay.

In Final Accounting, my heroine and hero visit many of these same places. They also descend into Dragon’s Throat, a fictitious cave modeled on real caves in the Cockpit region. Since I’m slightly claustrophobic and don’t like heights, I’m happy to report I didn’t rappel into a mile-deep cavern for a first-hand look. But I did try to capture what my characters experienced. How? Thank heaven for the Internet.

Internet Research, Asking for Local Help

My brother-in-law gave me the idea of using caves in my plot, suggesting they’d be “a great place to hide bodies.” His observation launched me on a research project back home, and I found the Jamaican Caves Organisation (JCO) and Ronald Stefan Stewart, JCO’s founder. After I viewed the JCO’s extensive library of cave exploration videos, I wrote a first draft of my cave scenes and sent them to Stefan for review.

In my experience, individuals like Stefan are more than happy to share their expertise with authors. They’re willing to read relevant scenes to see if physical settings are portrayed correctly and to give their opinion on whether the dialect, dialogue and mannerisms of locals are true to life. Such resources may be just a Google, Tweet, Pinterest or Facebook post away.

In my case, Stefan’s expertise was invaluable. He’s visited more than 250 caves and sinkholes in Jamaica and discovered more than 50 new ones, which he’s added to the nation’s Register. If there are any errors in my descriptions of the fictional Dragon’s Throat cave, caving, or the Cockpit region, rest assured the mistakes are mine. If you have any interest in caving and the JCO’s important conservation initiatives, please visit the JCO website: http://www.jamaicancaves.org/main.htm.

What my research taught me is that authors don’t have to personally visit every location included in a novel—if they commit to doing the research and asking for help. Writing fiction exercises the imagination.  Taking our characters beyond our own geographic boundaries give us a chance to visit new, exciting worlds. Even if we never leave our computer screens.

How/Where To Find Information

Talking in-person with residents of the selected area is an obvious starting point. However, there are many additional ways to glean information.

·        Contact Chambers of Commerce and search their websites for member organizations that might offer unique insights. Examples run the gamut from historic foundations and B&B owners to deep sea fishing charters and popular restaurants.

·        If your location is a vacation destination, contact travel agents and or local tour guides.

·        Search out and read relevant magazine articles and books (fiction and nonfiction, history and contemporary) for ideas.

·        Scan rosters of professional writer organizations to see if fellow members (or book sellers) reside in the area.

·        Try to establish contact with a librarian at a community or college library.

·        Ask for help on social networks and conduct searches on Google, Facebook, Pinterest and Goodreads.

Research can be half the fun of writing a book. The only danger is that you may get so wrapped up in research you neglect your writing.

Have you written about a place you’ve never visited? Have you read a book that made an unfamiliar location seem so real you felt you’d spent time there? What are your favorite settings for novels?

About the Author: Linda Lovely was a journalism major in college and has always made her living as a writer, working predominately in public relations and advertising. She now focuses on writing stand-alone thrillers and the Marley Clark Mystery Series. For more information, visit her website: www.lindalovely.com.