| Caridad Pineiro® Romance Author

March 10, 2009August 18, 2009

The Dreaded Info Dump

dump I was rewriting a chapter yesterday and when I read it to my critique group, I didn’t need them to tell me what I was doing wrong.

I knew I was doing the Dreaded Info Dump.

What’s that? you might ask.

Well, if you’re a reader it’s something you hopefully will not see in a book. It goes something like this:

Mary realized that it was Dr. Smith. He had treated her for bunions three years ago. Then again two years later for a heel spur. Now she was there to see him for an ingrown nail, but suspected it was much more than that. For two weeks her toe had been hurting. It had first been a slightly pink color. Then a few days later a little brighter red. Then after a week it had started getting really nasty. Finally a day ago she realized it was time to go see her favorite foot doctor.

Yes, I know we wouldn’t be interested in a story about her feet, but imagine that the story was a romantic suspense and all that information was about what had happened to the heroine in the last three months – an info dump.

Much like the person in the photo I posted, info dumps inundate a reader with too much info at one shot and in general, are boring. It’s like reading an encyclopedia entry for your hero or heroine.

If you need to provide the reader some backstory, it should be layered throughout the chapter and provide subtle hints and information about what’s put the protagonists in their current situation. In fact, the less you say and make the reader intuit, the more they will be drawn into the story you are writing because the reader is participating in the story.

Of course, don’t make it so confusing or obtuse that the reader will say, “I just don’t get it,” and disengage from the story.

The hints should be clear and lead the reader toward an understanding of what’s happening. They should be like the breadcrumbs that Hansel and Gretel leave behind, enough so they can be followed to a particular point where you, the writer, are leading them.

How do you know you are doing the dreaded info dump as a writer? Look for long paragraphs filled with too much information. Dense paragraphs like that are a clear sign that something is up that you should revisit.

I hope you found this Tuesday Tip helpful.

Also, don’t forget this week’s b’day bash. Just visit any of the blogs listed below this week and leave a comment and you’ll be eligible to win a prize from me! At Barbara Vey’s blog, there are tons of other prizes as well!

I’ll be visiting all of these blogs and if you’ve left a comment at any of them, you’ll also be eligible to win a $25 Godiva gift card! The more times I see your name at the different blogs, the more your chances improve to win the gift card. So take a moment and stop by one or all to improve your chances of winning a prize.

The contest ends on Friday, March 13th at midnight EST, so be sure to get your comments in there on time!

Barbara Vey’s Beyond Her Book Blog for lots of fun and giveaways!
http://www.publishersweekly.com/blog/880000288/post/1240041524.html

Fresh Fiction: http://freshfiction.com/page.php?id=1602

Harlequin Paranormal Romance blog: http://paranormalromanceblog.wordpress.com/

Liberty States Fiction Writers (leave a comment on any of the blog posts): http://www.libertystatesfictionwriters.com/blog-read-around-the-world/

Long and Short Reviews: http://longandshortarchives.blogspot.com/search/label/Caridad%20Pineiro

February 24, 2009August 18, 2009

Characters are Plot

writingheart At the February meeting of the Liberty States Fiction Writers we were very lucky to have my friend and fellow author, Anna DeStefano, do a wonderful workshop on revisions. During the course of the workshop, Anna mentioned something which I truly believe – Characters are plot.

Why do I believe that? You may read a book that has a good plot – pacing works, premise is interesting. But if the characters leave you flat, you will forget that book almost as quickly as you read it.

Writing emotionally developed and interesting characters is, IMHO, key to creating a memorable book and plot. Why plot? you ask. Because it is the development of the characters and how they resolve their internal conflicts that creates the story arc of your plot. It is your job as a writer to craft scenes in which the characters are challenged to deal with their conflicts and advance until at the end of the novel, the characters have resolved those internal conflicts (or maybe just one of them if you are creating a series with the same characters).

For this reason, I totally believe that characters are plot. When you define your characters and how they need to grow, you can then build a story around that. When you do, you will have a book where your readers are always on the edge of their seats wondering whether or not the character will rise up to the occasion or fail. Readers will cheer for them and their hearts will break when the characters encounter problems.

When your readers finish your book, not only will you have given them a story that engaged them, but you will have touched them and created characters they will remember long after the books are sitting on a shelf.

Characters are plot. Remember that before you get started and your story will almost write itself.

December 16, 2008August 18, 2009

Writing Goals

Pecking Away Old School That big sigh of relief you heard this morning — that was me! I finished the manuscript for my November 2009 release, SINS OF THE FLESH, and sent it to my editor at Grand Central Publishing. A big woo hoo since the novel had gotten moved up in the production schedule which meant I had to finish it way earlier than expected.

Which leads to this Tuesday’s Tips about writing goals, namely, how to set them and how to keep to them.

When I first got the call about the available slot in November 2009, I thought WOO HOO which was followed by OH MY. Could I finish a book in that time frame? I asked myself which quickly led to a plan — X number of pages a week would lead me to a finished book by X date. That was the plan.

Why haven’t I given you any numbers there, like 60 pages a week? For starters, and as I tell every writer who asks me, there is only one right way to write a book — sit down and write. Whether you write one page a day or five, it’s only wrong if you’ve made a plan for yourself and don’t keep to it.

Why didn’t you keep to it? Too busy? Not in a creative mood? Unrealistic expectations? A combo of all of the above.

While I am now a firm believer that if you fail to plan you plan to fail, the most important thing to keep in mind when setting a writing goal is that your plan be reasonable. Don’t say you are going to write 5 pages a day when you know that in a typical day you only have half-an-hour to write. Unless of course you are going to find more time in that day.

How many pages should you strive to do in a day? Again, there’s no right or wrong. I generally write anywhere from 4 to 10 pages a day during my weekday commutes to my job. More on the weekends when I can get a few more hours of writing done. The key to your success is finding what you can do each week and that’s the key — committing to a reasonable weekly goal.

For example, if you know you can’t write on Mondays and Wednesdays because of family demands, set aside time on the other days and make it part of your regular schedule just like anything else. Let the family know that on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 6 am to 10 am, you’re writing. Stick to it. If your family sees how committed you are to your writing, they will support you. If they think you’re not serious about it, it will be difficult to get them to respect your desire to write.

Say to yourself, in those two or three days that I write this week, I want to write X pages. (A reasonable X pages remember). Before you know it, the pages will begin to pile up!

I mentioned finding more time to write. How do you do that? Well, what time do you get up now? 8? How about getting up at 7?

Do you write at night? I don’t normally, but when deadlines demand it, I come home from work and after dinner, write for another hour or so to meet the writing goal I’ve set for myself.

How about weekends? If you sleep in late on Saturday or Sunday, could you pry yourself out of bed a little earlier?

You would be surprised at how much time there is for you to get back if you think about your “lost” time each week.

Finally — find a critique or support group and tell them your goals. Tell them how you are doing on your goals and ask them to help you stick to them. As with anything else, a strong support group will help keep you motivated and moving forward.

I hope today’s Tuesday Tip helped!