Author Archives: Amy K. Nichols

About Amy K. Nichols

Amy writes short stories and YA novels. She's the editor of Liminal, a literary journal for teens. Visit her site at www.amywrites.com.

500 Club (2/2)

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Hello. Welcome to today’s 500 Club. We’ll be taking off for our destination momentarily. Today’s cruising speed will be 500 words and we’ll be flying at an unlimited altitude. The sky is the limit. As we taxi away from the gate, we’d like to review the guidelines for flying with PLC airlines.

  1. Write a 500 word response to one of the prompts below.
  2. Post your story on your blog.
  3. Put a teaser in the comments below, and include a link to where we can read the rest of your story.

Now, please fasten your safety belts and secure your tray in its upright position.

Prompt #1: Write a story involving flying. The concept of flying is open to your interpretation. Focus on description.

…Or…

Prompt #2: Write a story about a missed flight. What is the consequence of missing the flight? Focus on emotional content.

We hope you enjoy your flight. And thank you for choosing PLC airlines.

Stuck in the Middle

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This week we’re talking about middles. Not middles as in waistlines. Middles as in that section of your novel that connects your brilliant beginning with your stunning conclusion.

Middles can get murky. They can catch you like quicksand and suck you down to oblivion. Stall you out like the doldrums. Cut you off at the knees.

Okay, enough dramatic cliches.

There are some telltale warning signs you’re headed into a swampy slowdown.

You might be in trouble if:

  • Your character stares out the window, thinking
  • Two characters pass the time talking about what’s happened up to that point, rehashing information they both know but are saying anyway for the reader’s benefit
  • You take up wide swaths of chapters describing the scenery in minute detail while your characters sits at a table doing nothing

Do you see a common denominator? No movement.

The key, I’m quickly learning, to getting through the murky middle is to keep your characters actively moving through the story. In order for them to do so, you’re going to need…

A plot.

I used to be a pantser. I would sit at the keyboard and wait for the story to land in my head and flow through my fingers. And too many times my novels fizzled about halfway through.

I had no plot.

And then I read Save the Cat, by Blake Snyder. And I learned how to map out my story before writing it.

Guess what? It worked.

I’ve written two manuscripts since I learned how to Save the Cat, and both times, I’ve zoomed right through the middle. My stories maintained their energy and the momentum carried them through to the conclusion. Yay!

Now, you might be shaking your head, thinking outlining and plotting aren’t for you. That’s fine. We all have our own processes. But the next time you find yourself stuck in the middle, you should consider evaluating where your character is, where you need him to be, and how to get him there before you write another word. It’s okay. Your character will wait for you. He’s not doing anything anyway. He’s just staring out the window.

500 Club (1/12)

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It’s Thursday! You know what that means. It’s time for the 500 Club!

Before we get to today’s prompts, here’s a quick recap of the rules.

  1. Choose one of the prompts below.
  2. On your blog, write a 500-word story or scene based on the prompt.
  3. Post a teaser to your story in the comments below with a link to where we can read the rest.

Easy, right?

Here are today’s prompts:

1. Write a scene where an outsider is revealed to be an insider.

…or…

2. Write the scene the comes after the character receives the life-changing news.

Happy writing!

Trust me. You’re going to want to read this book.

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Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve heard about Harbinger, the YA psychological thriller debut by Sara Wilson Etienne.

Just in case, here’s the description from Amazon:

Girl, Interrupted meets Beautiful Creatures in this fast-paced thriller

When sixteen-year-old Faye arrives at Holbrook Academy, she doesn’t expect to find herself exactly where she needs to be. After years of strange waking visions and nightmares, her only comfort the bones of dead animals, Faye is afraid she’s going crazy. Fast.

But her first night at Holbrook, she feels strangely connected to the school and the island it sits on, like she’s come home. She’s even made her first real friends, but odd things keep happening to them. Every morning they wake on the floors of their dorm rooms with their hands stained red.

Faye knows she’s the reason, but what does it all mean? The handsome Kel tries to help her unravel the mystery, but Faye is certain she can’t trust him; in fact, he may be trying to kill her – and the rest of the world too.

Rich, compelling writing will keep the pages turning in this riveting and tautly told psychological thriller.

It’s one of several books I am excited to see published this year.

Now, in the spirit of transparency, Sara is a friend of mine. She’s also been a guest blogger here at the PLC. And she’s an all-around amazing person. Which is why I want to help spread the word about her book.

Harbinger will be released on February 2, 2012. Which is, like, a couple of days from now.

Trust me. You’re going to want to read this book.

If the book description and my gushing about Sara hasn’t convinced you, maybe her book trailer will:

And because now you’re sitting up in your seat and really paying attention, you should read this post from Sara’s blog and then watch the Behind the Scenes/Making of the Book Trailer video she created:

Finally, you should read this interview Sara gave over at The Compulsive Reader, and this one at Distraction 99 to read Sara’s own words about Harbinger, her writing process and  what obstacles she had to overcome to write it.

Congratulations, Sara!

Start. Finish. Ship.

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This post is late. I blame our new puppy. If you read my personal blog, you’ll know what a big deal getting a new dog is for our family. Instead of writing this post, I spent the day keeping the little guy from doing his business inside the house. An adventure, to say the least.

Speaking of adventures, happy new year.

I’ve had a million thoughts racing around my head and have made a slew of lists outlining what I want to do and see and accomplish this year. And I’ve been thinking about what I learned last year about finishing what I start and dealing with ego and carrying on in the face of rejection. I feel like I have my track shoes on and I’m at the starting line, stretching and staring down the track.

Just need for that gun to go off. But the thing is…there is no gunshot to start this race. There’s only me. My own initiative. Which is a little scary. It would be so much easier to ignore the creative call and just play with the new puppy instead.

I just finished reading Do the Work, Steven Pressfield’s follow-up to the amazing War of Art. He talks about our fight against resistance, likening it to a knight battling a dragon. Without giving too much away (because really you should just read the book), he cites Seth Godin as having the secret for slaying the dragon: finish your project, and then ship it.

“Slay that dragon,” he says, “and he will never have power over you again.”

That sounds good. Really good.

I don’t want this to be a year of pining away at the things I wish I could do or watching others achieve what I’ve dreamed. Nor do I want this to be a year of talking about the work instead of doing the work. I want this to be a year of active creating, blazing my own trail toward my goals. The only way I’m going to do that is to ship my projects. Send them out the door and keep moving on to the next thing. And the only way I’m going to do that is to start.

Gun blast? Who needs a gun blast? I’m ready to run.

Confessional Classic: What Makes Me Put A Book Down

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We’re reaching back into the archives this week, reposting some of our favorite articles from the year. We’ll be back next week with a new year and new work. In the meantime, though, I hope you enjoy this post about what makes me stop reading a book. Happy New Year to you!

What Makes Me Put A Book Down

As I thought about our topic this week (3 things that make me throw a book across the room), I realized there’s only one thing that makes me do this.

Shock.

The only times I’ve ever actually thrown a book across the room, I was so into a character and story that an unexpected event upset me to the extent I lashed out at the author by throwing the thing they’d created–and made me love.

Which, when you think about it, is actually a good thing. Compelling characters I care about? Yes, please. Story that keeps me on the edge of my seat? Awesome.

So, for me, throwing a book across the room is actually a compliment.

Now, there’s another thing I do with books. It’s the opposite of throwing.

I put books down. And more often than not, when I put a book down, it stays down.

This is not a good thing.

What makes me put a book down? Aside from obvious bad writing, here are three reasons.

1. I’m bored.

Last year I read a book that rambled for thirty pages before it got to anything resembling a story. The writing was beautiful, but reading it was like wandering through a forest. By page twenty I was searching for breadcrumbs. By page thirty, I was done with wondering. Perhaps you don’t consider thirty pages a big investment of time, but I do. I don’t think it’s asking a lot to have a clue where a story is headed after investing thirty pages worth of my time. I’m all for beautiful prose, and I love literary fiction as much as I do commercial. I’m an equal-opportunity reader. But if I’m bored by what’s happening (or rather not happening) in a story, odds are I’m going to put the book down.

2. I don’t believe it.

There’s an unspoken contract between authors and readers that goes something like this: the reader pays (in money, time and emotion) for the author to take him on a trip through the imagination. The deal hinges on that trip being real to the reader. I don’t mean real as in literal/factual/nonfiction. By real, I mean the reader buys into the story. Accepts it as real in his imagination. This has everything to do with verisimilitude. If an author creates a real character and puts her in a vivid setting and makes her leap off the page, the reader will follow that character everywhere she goes, regardless of how outlandish the premise of the story is. Zombies on the moon? Sure, if the author makes it real to the reader.

But when a character makes choices outside of who the author has established her to be, or when a setting morphs to cardboard cutouts or the walk-on characters show up from central casting, the book takes an unbelievable turn. The zombie on the moon turns out to be Frank the Plumber in a bad Halloween hand-me-down.

And I put the book down.

3. I just don’t care.

This one’s a toughy. At its essence is character. An author can craft the most amazing plot and create an amazing setting, but if I don’t care about the lead character , then it doesn’t matter to me what happens with the story. And that’s not good. The character can be a bad guy. Bad guys are totally fun to read as long as they’re compelling and real. But if the lead’s just a cardboard cutout or someone without anything redeeming about them, well, I don’t want to read it. And down goes the book.

This all sounds really harsh I suppose. But really, is it asking too much?

A book worth the investment of my money, time and emotion should be real and compelling and grab me by the heart. That kind of book may get thrown across the room, but it certainly won’t be put down.

500 Club (12/22)

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Most of you are probably running around doing holiday things, but maybe there are some out there who are taking a little time today to write. Well, here are some 500 Club writing prompts to help you out. Our little gift to you.

Before we begin, here’s a recap of how to drive this snowmobile:

  1. Write a 500 word response to one of the prompts below.
  2. Post your story on your blog.
  3. Paste a teaser in the comments below, along with a link where we can read the rest.

Got it? Good. Here are today’s prompts:

1. Write a story about the shortest day of the year.

…OR…

2. Describe a winter scene without using the words winter, cold, snow, ice or frozen.

Remember, no pressure. This is for fun.

Happy writing. And Happy Holidays!

Confessional Classic: A Lesson From My Dog

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We’re reaching back into the archives this week and next. I decided to do some cross-pollinating and reach back into the archives from my own blog, Amy Writes. Here’s a post I wrote a long time ago (in a galaxy far, far away) about a lesson I need to relearn today. And tomorrow. And pretty much every day. I hope you find it helpful. Happy Holidays to you and yours!

A Lesson from My Dog

I took last week off from blogging and…well…everything for two reasons:

  1. It was Spring Break.
  2. We decided to landscape our yard.

By “landscape our yard” I don’t mean we came up with a design and hired a crew to do the work. I mean WE landscaped the yard.

It’s been a week in the trenches. If we’d added barbed wire, we could have filmed a WWI war movie in our yard. Seriously. I’m not kidding.

And of course as I was digging and raking and scraping and planting and plugging and piping, etc., my brain was buzzing with thoughts about writing and creativity and life, etc., because…well…that’s what I do.

I learned a lot this week out there in the trenches. And the biggest thing I learned, I learned from my dog.

I have a really cool dog. If she should could talk (other than saying “mama”, which she can do), I’m pretty sure she’d tell me her favorite quote is from Winston Churchill:

“Never, never, never, never give up.”

My dog is obsessed with fetch. If she’s awake, she’s thinking about fetch. And if she could speak (again, other than “mama” <– I’m really proud of that one), I think she’d tell me she dreams of a world where humans do nothing but play fetch with dogs 24/7. It doesn’t matter if there isn’t a ball around. She’ll find a substitute. A toy. A shoe. Anything that can be thrown is worthy of being fetched. And she is always at the ready.

So, this week we’re out there in the trenches, digging and digging and digging and it’s just crazy work; and the dog is always there with the ball. I dig a hole. In goes the ball. I pull the ball out. In goes the ball. I throw the ball, dig really fast before she could get back, and…in goes the ball.

I should teach her golf. She has terrific aim. Hole. Ball. In. Voila!

We’d get frustrated with her, of course.

“No,” we’d say. “Go lay down.”

In goes the ball.

“NO. Not now.”

In goes the ball.

All day. Every day. All week.

That’s tenacity.  That’s endurance. That’s whole-hearted belief that at some point that ball is going to fly and fetch will be played.

If my dog could type (we’re working on that one), she’d have at least fifty novels published by now. I just know it. She has the tenacity it takes to stick with it. To not lose faith. To not stop at no.

Here’s another quote I bet my dog likes. This one’s from Amelia Aerhart:

“The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity. The fears are paper tigers. You can do anything you decide to do. You can act to change and control your life; and the procedure , the process is its own reward.”

Tenacity and writing go hand in hand. Tenacity and creativity go hand in hand. Tenacity and life go hand and hand.

OK, and fetch, too.

How To Live With A Writer

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This week we’re looking at the writing life from the perspective of those who deal with the writer’s neuroses, insecurities and ego on a daily basis. To get a true insider’s perspective, I interviewed an actual person who lives with a writer. My husband. He had a lot of insightful and encouraging things to say. Here’s the transcript of our chat.

Me: Our subject is what is it like to live with a writer. I’d like to start by asking you, what is a writer?

Him: A writer is somebody who writes.

Me: Am I a writer?

Him: Yes, but I think you spend more time being a writer than writing.

Me: Interesting. What is the difference between being a writer and writing?

Him: Doing all of the things that are trappings of the profession than the actual profession.

Me: Like what? What are those trappings?

Him: I would say mostly being online, doing things like blogs and facebooking and networking with people. That seems to happen far more of the time than actual writing.

Me: (gulp) Right. So how do you think that impacts a writer?

Him: What impacts a writer?

Me: Not writing.

Him: (laughs) Well, not writing would impact a writer by the fact they’re not writing.

Me: What’s it like to live with a writer who isn’t writing?

Him: Well, it can be frustrating when you do things to make room and time and all sorts of things for the writer, and they choose to spend the time doing things not writing. Especially when they simultaneously complain they’re not writing.

Me: And what is your advice to a writer who isn’t writing?

Him: Write.

Me: Have you ever tried writing?

Him: Sure.

Me: And what did you think of it?

Him: It’s not a whole lot of fun. It’s fun to be done with it.

Me: What is it like living with a writer who is writing?

Him: Well, when you see them (laughs), it’s good because they’re excited, they’re energized by it. Mostly it’s they’re somewhere else, writing. Mostly it’s not seeing them. But when you do see them, they’re fired up and energetic and energized by it, so it’s good.

Me: Do you think it takes a special kind of person to be married to a writer?

Him: You know, I think it takes a special kind of person to be married to any other person. Everyone’s got their quirks, and a writer is just one way to be quirky.

Me: Do you like the artistic quirks, or are they annoying?

Him: Yes.

Me: What’s your favorite quirk?

Him: (laughs) I like the part where you finish something creative that you’ve been cussing at for a long time and then you say something to the effect of, “Oh look! I made a unicorn.”

Me: What is your least favorite quirk?

Him: Probably just the whole focus on publishing, getting known, all that stuff. I don’t know. I realize I’m not the one doing it, so I don’t really have an intelligent stance, but it seems to me any artistic endeavor is about the art, not about the — it should be primarily about the art, not about the recognition about the art. So all of the drama that comes with that piece of it is kind of irksome to me.

Me: So what is your advice for the writer dealing with that part of it?

Him: I think you focus first on just getting the writing done. You do that and just that. Put your energies into that. All of your energies into that. And then when you’re satisfied with it,  focus on those other things. I don’t know whose quote it was, but the quote that said, write and then keep sending it out to people until someone sends you a check. But see, the first part was write. And the second part was sending it out.

Me: Was that Annie Dillard?

Him: I don’t have any idea.

Me: Do you think it’s difficult to live with a writer?

Him: Yeah.

Me: Would you prefer that I not be a writer?

Him: No, that would be worse. (laughs) I love the artistic part of you, and I would love to have the artistic part of you doing art all of the time and being happy about doing the art all of the time. The part I don’t like is the everything else that goes with it.

Me: The business side of it?

Him: Yeah.

Me: Do you think most writers would agree with that statement as well?

Him: I don’t know.

Me: What advice do you have for people who live with writers?

Him: I think the trick is to find balance. Say, this is your writing space, and when you’re not in that space, then you have to come out of that space. You can’t keep one foot in both worlds and try to be happy at all times. You need a sequestered time to work on it, and then you need a time when you’re going to interact with the planet.

Me: Are there times when I have a foot in both?

Him: Most of the time, I think.

Me: Wow.

Him: I think there’s rarely a time when you’re interacting with the family when you don’t have the laptop on your lap.

Me: (cringe) I’m not going to put that on the blog.

Him: Okay, be a liar.

Me: Fine. I’ll put it on the blog. I really like my laptop. Okay, so… what about the advice for people who live with writers. You talked about balance, but more from the writer’s point of view. So, what about the person who is not the writer in the relationship?

Him: I don’t know. I think the two have to work that out. And it comes down to personalities. If you’re non-confrontational like me, you just don’t worry about it. It might be better for some other personalities to confront it and have some boundaries.

Me: You don’t want to be a writer?

Him: No.

Me: But you do come up with story ideas.

Him: Yeah. I have ideas. But I have no intention or desire to do anything with them other than give them to you.

Me: And I appreciate that.

Him: I don’t know if it’s true of other writers or just you, but you have lots of artistic abilities in many, many other areas. You are the Queen of All Media. And this particular media seems to be far more time-consuming and self-consuming than other kinds. I would love to see more balance with other kinds. Because I think you’d get the same kind of energy and same kind of satisfaction out of something that could take an hour instead of a year. Every now and then that might be good thing for balance.

Me: That is interesting and I will take it under consideration.

Him: If you’re frustrated or fed up with whatever part of the book you’re dealing with, take an hour and draw a picture. You might get energized by it.

Me: Any other parting words?

Him: Nope. That was it.

Me: Thank you for your time.

Him: (laughs)

Fill Out The Space You’re Already In

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I’ve been doing yoga for a number of years now (some years more diligently than others). And believe it not, yoga has taught me a number of things about writing. For example, how to Focus, Breathe, Wait.

Lately, though, it’s been teaching me how to fill out the space I’m already in.

I was moping around the other day, ruminating about where I am and where I want to be. Ever do that? Spend your time casting your thoughts into everywhere but the present? Makes for a discontented kind of day, sort of numb to the world, eyes open but not really seeing what’s around you.

There’s a lesson in there, but for another post, another time.

Anyway, I’m not sure what triggered it, but I thought back to when I first got into yoga. About fifteen years ago, I picked up a copy of Yoga, Mind and Body with Ali MacGraw. It’s gorgeously filmed and set to cool music. Here’s a clip:

At one point in the routine, moving (if I recall correctly) from warrior II to triangle, the yogi says, “Fill out the space you’re already in.”

That’s what I thought about when I was moping around. Fill out the space you’re already in.

Now,when you’re moving from warrior II with your legs strong and your arms outstretched, filling out the space you’re already in feels pretty cool. It feels powerful, like you’re about to take flight.

But when you’re in a crummy mood, wondering why you aren’t where you want to be yet? Well, that doesn’t feel so powerful. It feels like…*sigh*. Waiting. Wondering. Killing time. And feeling like that gives your ego an opportunity to throw a pity party and invite over all of those good-for-nothings like jealousy, pride, bitterness and fear.

So how do you fill out the space you’re already in when you’d rather be in a different space?

I’m certainly no expert, but I’ll tell you what’s been helping me.

1. Focus on someone other than yourself.

The quickest way to end a pity party is to do something for someone else. Doesn’t have to be grandiose, though that works, too. It can be as simple as holding the door open for someone, or saying something kind to the checkout lady at the store. Or try one of my favorites: buy the order for the person behind you in the drive-thru. Gets the focus off you and your sad self and makes the world a bit brighter.

2. Reach out to a trusted friend.

Sometimes we all need a shoulder to cry on or a listening ear. I needed one yesterday, so I emailed a friend I’ve known forever and trust. As usual, she knew the right thing to say to help me through the tough spell. Thankfully, it was also the honest and true thing as well. Don’t be afraid to ask a friend to listen or help or offer advice. Sometimes we just need some perspective or a kick in the pants. That’s what friends are for, right?

3. Remember you are moving from one space to another.

Sometimes you can’t see the movement going on behind the scenes. But that doesn’t mean it isn’t happening. Your job as a creative is to keep writing, keep learning, keep doing your part, and trust that those behind the scenes movements are taking you to your next space.

You and I, we won’t stay stretched between warrior II and triangle forever. We just have to make the most of the space we’re in while we’re in it. In time we’ll look back and see how all those in-between times got us where we wanted to be all along.