Joe Konrath Made $15,000 dollars over 7 days using Amazon Select

It looks like Joe Konrath has returned to blogging. And what a return! He writes:

In the past seven days, on Kindle, I've made about $15k. I currently have two ebooks in the Top 100 Free list--the same ebooks I blogged about two days ago. Dirty Martini and Trapped are #3 and #4, and Tiemcaster will hit Top 100 later today. I also blogged about four other ebooks by my friends Barry Eisler and Blake Crouch. Both of Barry's ebooks hit the Top 100, peaking at #3. One of Blake's did, and it is still #1 in the UK.

In the past 60 hours, I've sold 2200 ebooks in the US, and had over 400 borrows.

Why?

I have a hypothesis.

Here's Joe's Hypothesis: All things being equal, when you're looking for a book "You're going to take what is right in front of you, currently under your nose". He writes:

I have no doubt that bestselling authors have a lot of fans. But it's one thing waiting for the next Harry Potter book to come out, and its another seeing the latest Patterson on the new Release table and picking it up because it is there.

I'm not knocking Patterson. The guy is a genius, on several levels. But how many fans have read every Patterson book vs. every Potter book?

Joe Konrath's Secret For Selling $15,000 in 7 days

Joe attributes his huge bump in sales to Amazon KDP Select. He writes:

So what am I doing differently? I have no new releases out. Yes, I self-pubbed my Jack Daniels series for less money than my previous publisher had, but during the first few days those sales were steady, not explosive like they've been.

What's changed has been making titles free using the Kindle Select program.

To wit: there are millions of people with Kindles, and the majority of them haven't heard of me, haven't come across my titles, haven't read me before. So by getting three ebooks on the Top 100 Free list, I am making myself known to them.

I am a tasty, free morsel directly under the nose of hungry readers. And they snatch it up.

Not all will read the free ebooks they download. But I still benefit, because the more ebooks I give away, the higher the bounceback will be on the paid bestseller lists. And when I'm on the paid lists, I'll be seen be those who have never seen me before.

Also, I have a hunch some people are reading the freebies immediately. This is why my sales are booming. A rising tide lifts all boats, and some people snatching up the freebies are also buying some of my other ebooks.

Whiskey Sour is #529. Bloody Mary is #411. Rusty Nail is #1121. Afraid is #586.  Endurance is #1439.

Last week, most of these were ranked at #10,000 or higher.

That's quite a bump!

Joe Konrath's Tips For Independent Authors

Here's Joe's advise for how indie authors can improve their sales:

1. Publish books with Amazon Publishing. They do a lot to announce their ebooks to readers.

2. Use KDP Select to make your ebooks free. I suggest using all five days at once. The more ebooks you give away, the higher the bounceback.

3. Have a lot of IPs. The more ebooks you have available, the more virtual shelf space you take up, the likelier it is for a customer to see one of your titles.

4. Cultivate fans. Have a newsletter, a Facebook page, a Twitter account, so people can follow you and get the announcement when you put something new on sale. But remember this will be supplementary, not primary, and no one will follow you if all you're doing is advertising.

5. Announce via third parties. I found BookBub.com to be effective in helping me give away freebies. So is Pixel of Ink.

6. Keep at it until you get lucky.

I can't stress #6 enough. It is easy to get discouraged with promotion, because it may not get the results you seek. You have to have the right book in the right place at the right time, and cross your fingers.

Publishing books through Amazon KDP Select can be intimidating! You worry about whether folks will hate your work, whether anyone will download it, whether you'll get horrible reviews. Don't forget, though, you can publish anonymously and, even if the whole thing's a disaster, use your failures to hone your writing and publishing skills.

Have you ever published through Amazon KDP Select? If not, has Joe Konrath's experience of making 15 thousand dollars over 7 days through Amazon Select changed your mind about the program?

Other articles you might like:

- Screenwriting Software: Adobe Story
- Chuck Wendig's Flash Fiction Challenge: Write What You Know
- Writing A Feel Good Story

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Screenwriting Software: Adobe Story

Adobe Story

Most people I've talked with don't know Adobe has developed Sreenwriting software: Adobe Story. Of course, saying Adobe Story is screenwriting software is a bit like saying a smart phone can make phone calls. The statement is true enough, but it barely scratches the surface.

 Here are a few things Adobe Story can do:

 - Reduce shooting time. Adobe Story works with other Adobe tools--programs such as OnLocation and Premiere Pro--to speed up production time. For instance, Adobe Story can automatically generate shot lists, dialogue, and so on.

- Collaboration. Often more than one person is involved in the creation of a script. Adobe Story allows everyone involved to collaborate online by tagging and tracking whatever changes are made.

This shortish video (7 minutes and 54 seconds) gives a great overview of what the software can do:

Instant Adobe Story Starter by Christopher Tilford

One of the reasons I'm posting about Adobe Story is that Packt Publishing asked me to review Christopher Tilford's book, "Instant Adobe Story Starter" (they sent me a review copy of the book). Although I normally don't do reviews, I have fiddled around with Adobe Story and it seemed like the sort of tool I would want to consider using if I were a screenwriter. That said, I don't know how it compares to other screenwriting programs (for instance, Final Draft or Movie Magic).

As computer programs become increasingly complex I sometimes find myself wishing I had a manual, but these days comprehensive users guides don't come with software programs, you have to buy them separately.

This is where Christopher Tilford's book, Instant Adobe Story Starter, comes in. Christopher has written a nuts and bolts guide to navigating Adobe Story. His book gets right to the point and doesn't include a lot of filler (here's an example).

I feel I should mention that Adobe Story has an online manual that, from what I've been able to see, covers everything that Christopher Tilford does and it's free! (See: Using Adobe Story)

The Bottom Line

I wish I could have been enthusiastic in my endorsement of Instant Adobe Story Starter but the bottom line is that Adobe puts out a free document that covers the same information. That said, Instant Adobe Story Starter isn't a bad book--I would give it three out of five stars--it just needs more original content. I look forward to reading Christopher Tilford's next book.

Have you used a screenwriting program? What did you think of it?

Other articles you might like:

- Chuck Wendig's Flash Fiction Challenge: Write What You Know
- Writing A Feel Good Story
- How To Write Short Stories

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Chuck Wendig's Flash Fiction Challenge: Write What You Know

I was going to post an inspirational quotation having to do with writing but then I saw Chuck Wendig's latest Flash Fiction Challenge (Flash Fiction Challenge: Write What You Know) and it was just too good not to post about!

Here's the challenge:

I want you to grab an event from your life. Then I want you to write about it through a fictional, genre interpretation — changing the event from your life to suit the story you’re telling. So, maybe you write about your first hunting trip between father-and-son, but you reinterpret that as a king taking his youngest out to hunt dragons. Or, you take events from your Prom (“I caught my boyfriend cheating on me in the science lab”) and spin it so that the event happens at the same time a slasher killer is making literal mincemeat of the Prom King and Queen.

Length: 1,000 words

Due by: Friday, February 22nd, noon EST.

How to enter: Post your story on your blog or website and leave the link in a comment to Chuck Wendig's post.

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Writing A Feel Good Story

Occasionally I set out to write a certain kind of story--a horror story for Halloween, an inspirational feel-good story for Christmas or Valentine's Day--one where I'm interested, above all, in creating a certain kind of emotional response in my readers.

I've been thinking and writing about short story structure lately so, after I read Sophie King's chapter, How To Write Feel-Good Stories or Tug-At-The-Heart Tales, I thought I'd do a post on this.

1. Getting the Idea

Think about the state you are attempting to create in the reader at the end of the story. To help fix this in your mind think of either a real life situation that made you feel good about life in general or think about a movie which made you feel this way.

It's corny, but for me that movie is It's A Wonderful Life (1946) with James Stewart. If I was going to write a feel-good story I would watch that movie again and pay special attention to how the movie accomplished this effect.

2. Topics

You could write a feel-good story about anything but a few topics seem tailor made to bring out the emotions.

- Christmas
- Valentine's Day
- Graduation
- The big game
- Reuniting with a loved one
- Finding Mr. or Ms. Right

3. Conflict: There Are Two Sides To Every Coin

Often the conflict required by a feel-good story is contained in the premise. Here are two examples of what I mean by this.

a) Christmas

Christmas is heart-warming because it's a time for friends and family to renew their friendships, to feel that they are a part of something larger than oneself.

The flip-side of camaraderie, of community, can either be the character's beginning state or what she will face (or fear she will face) if she fails the guest.

b) Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day presents the hope of finding 'The One', the person one fits with, like a key in a lock. The one person, in all the world, who can make like complete.

The flip side of this is the fear that the protagonist has (let's call her Jane) that there is no one for her. Or, more concretely, that when she goes out on a date she'll either meet a creep or, what's worse, someone she thinks could be her special someone but who really just wants to use her for their own ends.

For instance, Jane could met two men, Adam and Darren. One of them, Darren, wants to use Jane for his own ends and he bends over backward to charm her, saying what he thinks she wants him to say regardless whether he means it.

At first Jane can't see through see Darren is being fake. The man who genuinely likes her--Adam--bungles things and makes mistakes.

At the 2/3 point--the All Is Lost or Major Setback plot point--have Darren propose marriage. The reader should know by this time that Darren is the wrong guy. Have Jane accept. At the climax of the story--the 3/4 point--Jane recognizes her mistake and chooses Adam (Mr. Right). Jane and Adam live happily ever after.

4. Make It Universal

Whatever topic you choose to base your story on, make sure the emotions are based on life experiences most people can relate to. Events which mark significant life experiences like a graduation, a wedding, or holidays like Christmas or Valentine's Day. The possibilities are endless.

5. The Test: Is The Mood Right?

When I write a horror story if I'm not even a little bit scared then I know I need to step the tension/conflict up a notch or three. It's the same with feel-good stories. If I don't feel at least a little bit warm and cozy thinking about the ending then I need to ratchet up the conflict. Perhaps this means adjusting the stakes (what the protagonist will win and what they'll lose if they fail), perhaps it means adjusting the characters, making the antagonist a bit more callous, making the good guy or gal just a bit more heroic.

Tomorrow I'll talk more about short stories and their structure.

Have you ever written a feel-good story? Was it a novel or a short story? Did you succeed in eliciting emotion in your readers? If you had it to do over again would you do anything differently?

Other articles you might like:

- How To Write Short Stories
- Fate Core And The Creation Of Magical Worlds
- Roleplaying Games, Writing, And The Creation Of Magical Systems

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How To Write Short Stories

I've been reading How To Write Short Stories for Magazines--and Get Published! by Sophie King. She gives wonderful tips on how to develop characters so I thought I'd share my notes.

Thumbnail sketch of a character

Goal: give each character a unique voice, something that will make that character stand out in a reader's mind.

In a couple of paragraphs we need to communicate how a character
- thinks
- talks
- behaves
- interacts with other characters

First Layer: Behavioral Quirk

In real life you know people you'd describe as a "character", people who you might not like but who you can't stop thinking about.

Make a list of these people and one quirk that stands out in your mind. For instance:

- A woman who looks in the mirror every time she passes one.
- A person who has a strange voice, either too high and squeaky or too deep.
- A person who is always dropping names.
- Someone who is always telling stories, jokes.

Second Layer: Dialogue: Trademark phrase

Have one or more of your characters overuse a figure of speech. For instance, a character who says "know what I mean?" after each sentence.

Third Layer: Characteristic Mood

For instance, one character might be a worrywart, another might be kind to a fault, and so on. (This is also known as a Trait. See: Tags, Traits and Tells.)

For a list of mood words, click here: Mood Words.

Fourth Layer: Helping Characters

For instance, your main character might take her dog everywhere she goes. It could be small and yappy or huge and friendly (or vice versa). This also creates opportunities for conflict with a character who hates animals.

The helping character doesn't have to be a pet, it could be a child or a needy neighbor, or a moody teen, the possibilities are endless

Number Of Characters

Sophie King advises that in a story of 2,000 words or under to try and keep the number of characters to three or four.

Make sure every character is essential to develop the story

Here's an exercise to help determine if a character is essential to the story:
- List all the characters in the story.
- Beside each character list their role in the story.
- If you took this character out of the story what would you lose? If the answer is 'not much' then cut them or combine them with another character.

Pacing

Something significant should happen every three or four paragraphs.

- A change of scene
- A character makes a discovery
- Character talks with someone new

Other articles you might like:

- Fate Core And The Creation Of Magical Worlds
- Roleplaying Games, Writing, And The Creation Of Magical Systems
- Analyzing Story Structure

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Part of the storytelling ability is simply the anticipation of boredom and the introduction of a sudden surprise

Part of the storytelling ability is simply the anticipation of boredom and the introduction of a sudden surprise. To be a good storyteller you need to have first internalized the audience: that subvocal groan that says, “Okay, get on with it.” Not that you always have to cater to the audience’s expectations: you can cross them up, frustrate them, prolong their tension, though that too can be a way of entertaining them. In any case, you have to be aware of their demands, whether you satisfy them or not.

To Show and to Tell: The Craft of Literary Nonfiction
PHILLIP LOPATE

I came across this quote on Advice To Writers.

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Fate Core And The Creation Of Magical Worlds

Yesterday I talked about role playing games and how they could help authors develop their fictional worlds.

The discussion was inspired by the delivery of the first set of files from Fred Hicks Kickstarter project, one of which was beguilingly entitled: Magic System Toolkit.

Anyway, as I said, I went into full-on geek mode and started to write about how Fate Core can help authors develop magical systems for their fictional worlds.

As I mentioned yesterday, the Toolkit breaks this down into 5 aspects or questions: Tone, Craft, Limits, Availability and Source. Let's go over them.

Tone: Neutral, Flavored & Opinionated

I discussed tone yesterday (see: Roleplaying Games, Writing, And The Creation Of Magical Systems) but, briefly, tone is about the very nature of the magic system you are creating. Will it be neutral (have no mind of its own--no opinions) or will it be biased--flavored--in certain ways? One common way for magic to be flavored is for it to come in light and dark varieties and, depending on whether it is light or dark, it will behave differently.

Another way magic can have tone is by being opinionated. That is, it originating from an agent, someone with intelligence and will. (For more on this see my article from yesterday.)

Cost: Price vs Risk

There are two kinds of ways one can pay a cost for using magic. One can pay a price or take a risk.

Keeping in mind I've never gamed with the Fate Core system, it seems to me that the main difference between a price and a risk is when the cost is paid by the magic user.

The PRICE would be known well before the magic was invoked so the character would have time to think about their choice and prepare themselves. Often the price paid would also be whatever it was that powered the magical spell (burnt herbs, etc). In this sense, the price paid would be a condition of the magic being kindled and would therefore be paid before any magic stirred.

A RISK, on the other hand, would be paid either as the magic is being kindled or as it is unleashed. (If the price is paid while the magic is being Kindled the spell itself has a chance of misfiring.) Also the magnitude of the cost for kindling the spell is unknown to the caster until the process has begun. Once they find out what the cost will be it's too late to change one's mind. (I can imagine a story where the twist at the end is that the cost of the spell was so high the protagonist won a Pyrrhic victory.)

When there is a risk to using magic then each instance of magic use must be carefully considered. Just because your last three casts went well--sure your rosebush died but you didn't like it anyway--doesn't mean your fourth will too.

Costs: Rules of thumb

The TOOLKIT mentions that magic systems which choose price over risk often have the subtext that "power has a price".

The TOOLKIT mentions, also, that price lines up well with flavored magic and risks line up well with neutral magic. For instance, you could have it that 'light' spells had a price which could be paid by the energy released from burning dried plant material, and so on, while dark magic required blood to be shed, lives to be extinguished.

Or, perhaps, the price would be the twisting, or tarnishing, of one's very soul (Kim Harrison's Hollows series is a good example of the later.)

Perhaps I'm wrong--it has been a while since I read the books--but the world of Harry Potter seems to be one that tends more toward risks. Think of all the times Ron's spell comically backfired.

The TOOLKIT mentions that both price and risks work equally well with opinionated magic. One of the main risks inherent in using opinionated magic is that you'll come to the notice of some very grumpy, very powerful, beings.)

Some Questions

- How common is magic in your world?
- Is the source of magic abundant? For instance, are there lots of lay lines and are they at full strength?
- Independent of how common magic is, there may not be many people who have the ability or knowledge to access the magic. Can anyone, potentially at least, access magic? Does accessing magic take ability or knowledge? Or both? Does everyone have the ability required or only a few?

Limits

If magic can do anything it becomes uninteresting. What limits magic, and magic use, in your world? What can't magic do?

Can it do anything you could do in a more conventional way?

Are there certain kinds of magic that won't work in your world? What prevents magic users from casting powerful spells all the time?

Availability

Will everyone in your world be able to use magic or only a few?

For instance, it's a fairly common setup to have only a few individuals who are able to do truly spectacular magic--and then a lot of folks who do lesser spells, spells of convenience to help cook dinner or herd sheep. Kind of like a pyramid with one or perhaps two amazingly powerful spellcasters on the top and a lot of people on the bottom who can use magic to do things like pick locks and kindle fire.

There would need to be some sort of explanation about why only a few people can do amazing magical spells. One way of explaining this would be to say that it had to do with the amount of energy a person could channel. Those born a certain way--genetic mutants or members of a particular race--could channel a lot of energy while the ordinary person could only channel a little.

Which brings us to our next magical aspect: the source of magic in your world.

Source

It doesn't matter what your explanation is for where magic comes from but it is extremely important than you have one and that it makes sense to you.

You need to know what magic can do and, more importantly, what it can't do.

You don't have to tell anyone what the source is and perhaps it's better if you don't.

You're under no obligation to share this explanation with the players, and in fact this is an area where I actually encourage a little discretion. Not because you can't trust players with this information, but because your magic system is going to feel a hell of a lot less magical after you've explained it all. A little bit of mystery is essential to the magical feel. (Magic System Toolkit)

What Does Magic DO?

Although we've finished discussing the five aspects of magic we still haven't addressed the most important question:

What does magic NEED to do in your world?

Why does there need to be magic in your world? What does it do? What do you need it to do?

Well, that's it! Of course that's just the tip of a very large iceberg but I think it was enough to get me started crafting my own system. This is going to be fun!

Have you ever constructed a magical system? Were you inspired by gaming? By folklore? What did your magical system do?

Other articles you might like:

- Roleplaying Games, Writing, And The Creation Of Magical Systems
- Analyzing Story Structure
- The Trouble With Adverbs

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Roleplaying Games, Writing, And The Creation Of Magical Systems

A few weeks ago I invested in my first Kickstarter project.

I did it because, even though I've never had the good fortune to be part of a weekly gaming group, when I was a teen I wanted that very much (even more than I want it to be March 5th!). But none of my friends gamed and the local gaming store was always filled with guys who knew a lot more about gaming than I did.

Anyway, for many of my teenage years it was this thing I wanted to experience, but I never could figure out quite how to make it happen. I think that was probably the reason, initially at least, I was drawn to MMORGs (Massively Multiplayer Online Roleplaying Games).

Recently I've noticed that a lot of my favorite science fiction and fantasy authors also game.

When I saw Jim Butcher's announcement that Evil Hat Productions was having a Kickstarter campain I thought it was the perfect opportunity to indulge the kid in me and learn something about gaming and perhaps figure out why so many awesome authors (especially fantasy, urban fantasy and horror authors) game.

Today I received my first batch of .pdf files from Evil Hat Productions and one in particular caught my eye: the Magic Systems Toolkit. (Yes, when I read that title I actually grinned and rubbed my hands together.)

A few months ago I wrote the first draft of a novel about magical creatures who are often mistaken for Fae, but who have a magic all their own. That meant I would have to create a magical system for their world but I had no idea how, so I put the project aside. Now, after skimming through the Magic Systems Toolkit file all I can say is thank goodness I invested in that Kickstarter!

I'm beginning to understand why fantasy writers love gaming, or why they grow from gaming. It's probably a chicken and egg thing: does gaming produce fantasy writers or are fantasy writers attracted to gaming because it helps them create and populate their magical worlds?

What Is Magic And How Does It Work?

While it's true that magic is a convenience of authors, those who use it willy-nilly produce typed, mushy, fantasy. Giving magic rules is not just good gaming, it's good fiction. If you can find the spot where those two priorities overlap, then you've got the workings of a great magic system. - Magic System Toolkit

It may sound odd, but when I wrote about magic in the past I hadn't asked the question, "What is Magic and how does it work?" I'd never considered what rules might govern magic in my created world. So, lets!

What is magic?

Before I read the Magic System Kit I had no idea how many different sorts of magic systems were possible. For instance, you could have what for lack of a better term I'll call scientific magic.

Scientific Magic

Arthur C. Clark thought that any sufficiently advanced technology would be indistinguishable from magic. On this view magical forces are, fundamentally, physical forces that we don't know much about at the moment. However because they are physical forces they could be expected to behave something like the physical forces we know about.

Mathematical Magic

Or we could think of magic more like a "system of prices, risks and rewards". For instance, magic could be like an algebraic equation where, because both sides have to balance, if (on the one side) you use magic you have to take something from the other. Energy, a sacrifice, dead plants, whatever.

The nature and existence of magic

Where does magic itself come from? Are there fundamentally different sorts/kinds/types of magic? Is some magic light and some dark? Does the flavor of magic depend on who is using it or what the source is?

The Magic System Kit breaks magic down into 5 aspects:

1. Tone
2. Cost
3. Limits
4. Availability
5. Source

I won't have time to cover all these today so let's just talk about Tone.

Magic Tone: Neutral, Flavored or Opinionated

Neutral Magic

Is magic a mindless, unthinking, force like the electromagnetic force? If it is, then its action will solely be determined by a thing's physical properties. In this case, casting--using magic--could be like a recipe. Get the right physical ingredients together, do the right things, say the proper words (preferably in Latin), and presto! Magic will happen.

If inert, neutral, magic lies on one end of the spectrum what lies on the other? According to the FATE system, two things: flavored magic and opinionated magic.

Flavored Magic

Flavored magic can come in varieties, such as dark and light, and may operate differently depending upon which end of the spectrum the magic user draws from. On this view the spells themselves--the magic used in the working on them--would be dark or light, though this could be a matter of degrees.

Flavored magic isn't intelligent, but it does have tendencies. Just as fire tends to burn and earth tends to be stable, flavored magic tends toward certain things but what sorts of things those are is up to you.

For instance one way magic could be flavored is by being either light, dark or some combination of the two. What's great about the FATE system, though, is that it doesn't have to be flavored light or dark, you can let your imagination go wild. Perhaps instead of being tied to our conceptions of good and bad it could be tied to emotions, or passion, or times of the year. The possibilities are endless!

Opinionated Magic

Opinionated magic comes from someone. It requires an agent, someone with both intelligence and the will to wield it. Often the magic users I write about are like this. They are born with magical ability, they just need to learn how to access and control it.

On this view the agent/being might use neutral magic or flavored magic. Also, the magic itself could be shaped by the casters thoughts, personality or will.

Magic Tone And The Fiction Writer: Examples

I think examples make everything clearer. (cross fingers!)

A group of tipsy teenagers invade their crotchety neighbors house--the ancient one that looks haunted--on a dare and steal an odd looking book which turns out to be (surprise!) a book of spells.

Neutral magic: On this view anyone can work magic if he or she has the right ingredients and follows the spell. Therefore, in our little example story, any one of the teenagers could use the book of spells to work magic. The spells wouldn't be good or bad, it would all depend on what the magic user(s) did with them.

Flavored magic: To write a story about flavored magic we need to, first, specify what the flavor is. I'm going to use the concepts/ideas of light and dark to flavor my magic. So, what does this mean for our example story? Let's see ...

A group of tipsy teenagers invade their crotchety neighbors house and steal an ancient book bound in leather. The writing is faded and the ink used seems ... peculiar. 

In this version of the story the teenagers would find out the book was bound with the skin of torture victims and that the spells were written in their blood. This sets the stage for the use of dark magic. (I think of dark magic as powering spells that do ethically dubious things like raising the dead.)

On the other hand, imagine that a being of light drifted down from the heavens on Sunday morning as the same group of teens were nursing their hangovers, promising never to drink again. Imagine the angel hands the group a glowing book. I would expect those spells to be milder and not as ethically questionable, depending on the inventiveness of the magical practitioner. (I think any spell is an invitation to misbehave.)

Opinionated magic:  The teenagers break into the creepy house and meet its even creepier owner, a crotchety old man. The old man turns out to be a powerful wizard and turns all of them, except for one, into purple chickens.

The one he spared, let's call him Kevin, he did so because he recognized the boy had the potential to become a powerful wizard. The old wizard makes Kevin kill and cook all the chickens for his evening meals but spares one, the one that was Kevin's girlfriend. The wizard promises Kevin that the day he is able to transform his girlfriend back the way she was that he'll be free to leave.

In this version of the story there's no spellbook. The old man doesn't need one, the magic lives within him. That's convenient but the downside is he hasn't been able to find a worthy apprentice because working magic takes more than intelligence and determination; raw skill is required. That's what Kevin has.

However learning magic, having it come alive inside one, changes a person and the old man knows that by the time Kevin has the ability to make his girlfriend as she was he will not be the same person. Will he still want his girlfriend back or would he rather have a nice, light, snack?

Well, that's it! At least, that's it for magic tone, tomorrow we'll go over cost, limits, availability and source.

Have you done any old school (something requiring a pencil and paper) role playing? If so, tell us about it!

Other articles you might like:

- Analyzing Story Structure
- The Trouble With Adverbs
- 8 Tips For Finding The Motivation To Write

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Analyzing Story Structure

We've all heard the advice that to become a better writer we must first become better readers. I'd like to take this advice seriously.

I want to read and analyze more flash fiction so I can ... well, I think of it almost like pulling back the curtain on a magic trick. When I read a story I'm caught up and transported into the story world. Because of this I usually don't read critically, I'm happy to be whisked away and entertained.

This will be a challenge.

Here are some guidelines, some questions, I've come up to help me analyze narrative. I haven't made any attempt to provide a complete list of questions so if you see something missing please do let me know in the comments.

An Analysis of Narrative

Characterization

- Who is the protagonist? Antagonist? Who are the main characters? What are their names? 
- What do the characters look like physically? What do they wear? What are their quirks, their idiosyncrasies? What tags, traits and tells are associated with each main character?
- What point of view is the story told from?
- Map out the character arc for each main character.
- What are their goals? What object or state-of-affairs do they seek? (For instance, Indiana Jones in Raiders sought the ark.)
- Conflict. What is preventing the character from attaining their goal?
- Who is the antagonist? The protagonist? Is there a helper character? A foil? A mentor?

Story elements

- What is the setting?
- Is there a theme? If so, what is it?
- Is the story mainstream or genre/category? If the latter, which genre? Which sub-genre? (Wikipedia has a list of genres and sub-genres as well as a list of literary genres.)

Plot

- Describe the original world of the protagonist
- What was the inciting incident/call to adventure?
- Describe the new situation/special world.
- How is the protagonist tested?
- Is there a point of no return to mark the halfway point?
- How were the stakes raised in the second half of the story?
- What was the major setback (also sometimes called the 'dark night of the soul') toward the end of the story?
- Resolution. Was the main arc completed?

Note:

- When listing the facts of the story take note of who the information came from. You may find out later they were lying or, for whatever reason, it wasn't accurate.

Comments

These questions are intended to be suggestions only. Not every story has the same structure, nor should it. For myself, my goal is to simply pay closer attention to how the stories I read are constructed so I can continue to improve my own writing.

What questions do you ask when reading? What elements of story structure do you pay special attention to?

Other articles you might like:

- The Trouble With Adverbs
- 8 Tips For Finding The Motivation To Write
- Describing Character Reactions And Emotions: She Smiled, He Frowned

Photo credit: "shachihoko" by EmreAyar under Creative Commons Attribution 2.0.

The Trouble With Adverbs

I believe the road to hell is paved with adverbs ....
- Stephen King, On Writing

Why do many writers hate adverbs?

When I first read Stephen King's On Writing I confess I thought his stance toward adverbs a tad harsh. How could a part of speech be categorically condemned? As Jeff Chapman writes:

Adverbs shade the meaning of the words they modify. They are grammatical and an accepted part of speech. I've seen them used by well-respected writers. So, what's behind the injunctions against adverbs? (Why No Adverbs?)

As I investigated the roots of the prejudice against the adverb (I was tempted to write "the lowly adverb" but restrained myself) I came to agree with the admonition to eschew the use of adverbs, or at least to try. This blog post is my attempt at a partial explanation of why we should treat the adverb with caution.

Much of what follows has been drawn from Charlie Jane Anders' article, Seriously, What's So Bad About Adverbs?

1. Adverbs Often Express A Redundant Meaning

Jeff Chapman writes:

Adverbs are redundant when paired with strong verbs. For example: "clenched his teeth tightly"; "moped sadly"; "screamed loudly"; "whispered quietly." In each case, the adverb adds no additional meaning to the verb. There is no other way to mope than with sadness and when someone whispers, they are being quiet.

But what about something like, "He yelled angrily"? It doesn't feel right, but the notion of being angry isn't directly implied by yelling.

For instance, you might yell to tell someone they're in trouble ("Look out! A bus!") or because you're in a nightclub ("I said, 'What would you like to drink?'"). In these cases, though, one shouldn't have to use an adverb because the context should make it clear whether the person yelling was angry.

2. Adverbs Are Sometimes Used To Bolster Weak Verbs

The idea being that the weak verb should be replaced by a strong verb rather than propped up by an adverb.

Before I get into this I feel I should say a few words about what is a strong, as opposed to a weak, verb. I looked this up and, apparently, strong verbs are irregular verbs and weak verbs are ... well, here's a quote:

A weak verb (or regular verb) is one that forms its past participle and past form by adding "-ed" or "-t". (Weak Verbs)

For instance:

Look at the most famous adverb in science-fiction history: Captain Kirk's "To boldly go where no man has gone before." What do you notice? Okay, yes, it's a split infinitive. But look past that. The verb is "go," which doesn't really tell us much in itself.

What would happen if you took the adverb out of that sentence? You get: "To go where no man has gone before." Which sounds bland, and a little apologetic. ("Hey, we're, uh, going, ummm, somewhere that we haven't gone before." "Oh. Are we there yet?" "No.")

From that, you might conclude that the adverb is necessary. But actually, it's more that the verb is weak. "Go" just doesn't give us much, and it definitely doesn't have the swashbuckling feeling Captain Kirk's ringing voiceover demands. So the best bet is to replace it with a stronger verb, like "venture," or "explore." Or how about: "To walk where no man has walked before"? It's evocative and calls to mind men walking on the Moon. (Seriously, What's So Bad About Adverbs?)

I love Star Trek so just let me say that I think, here, the flexibility of the verb was a good thing. After all, we don't want to say, "To fly where no man has flown before," "To dive where no man has dived before," "To walk where no one has walked before," "To run where no one has run before," "To crawl ..." well, you get the idea.

But, point taken. Most of the time weak verbs are insideous. They creep into one's prose and weaken it with clutter. Jeff Champman writes:

Adverbs are used to prop up weak verbs. A better solution is to replace those weak verb/adverb pairings with a stronger verb. For example: replace "frowning angrily" with scowling; "running quickly" with sprinting; "petting softly" with caressing; "moving slowly" with creeping. (Why No Adverbs?)

3. Using Adverbs In Dialogue Attribution

For instance,

"Get out of my house!" she said angrily.

From the dialogue itself it's probably clear the speaker was angry. Yes, it could be that there was a fire spreading through her house and she wanted everyone to evacuate but the context should make the meaning clear.

4. The Adverb And Purple Prose

Charlie Jane Anders gives "He smiled thinly" and "He grinned wolfishly" as examples of adverbs aiding and abetting purple prose.

Of course she's right. Adverbs are likely present in a lot of prose that could be described as purple (that is, excessively ornate prose that does not further the story).

That said, it's interesting only one -ly adverb occurs in Edward Bulwer-Lytton's famous first sentence:

It was a dark and stormy night; the rain fell in torrents — except at occasional intervals, when it was checked by a violent gust of wind which swept up the streets (for it is in London that our scene lies), rattling along the housetops, and fiercely agitating the scanty flame of the lamps that struggled against the darkness. (Purple prose, Wikipedia)

Are Adverbs Irredeemable?

Charlie Jane Anders concludes:

But adverbs aren't necessarily all bad, and they can spruce up your writing if you use them judiciously. Here's a test you should apply before using an adverb.

1) Does it change the word it modifies? Does it make the verb or adjective mean something drastically different?

2) Does it convey some vital piece of information in a way that's better or more evocative than real description or a stronger verb by itself?

If the answer to either or both of these things is "Yes," then go ahead and use an adverb. There's nothing wrong with an adverb, if it conveys new information or provides a distinct slant on something.

I couldn't agree more!

Professor Quest has written a wonderful article The Betrayal of F. Scott Fitzgerald's Adverbs in which he talks about Fitzgerald's use of adverbs to, "create internal tensions or to emphasize points-of-view". He writes:

[In The Great Gatsby] People intrude deferentially; their eyes roam speculatively across empty ballrooms. At one point, Gatsby's house is lit like Coney Island at night, every door and window wide open. As Nick turns away, he speaks of the house "blazing gaudily on."

Charlie Jane Anders writes:

For example, "horribly fatal" doesn't tell us anything new. "Hilariously fatal" does. So does "moderately fatal." So does "arguably fatal." I will never quibble with anyone who wants to use phrases like "statistically significant number of maimings." An adverb can signal a certain tongue-in-cheekness by undermining or tweaking the adjective it goes with, like: "the savagely handsome first officer." Or "the obnoxiously sexy co-pilot."

I'll give Jeff Chapman the last word:

So, should you ever use an adverb? They are permissible in a few cases. It's reasonable to employ them in dialogue. People use them when they talk. In other cases, an adverb is adequate to create a mental image and rewriting makes the prose wordy. Consider this example: "The man stood silently at the window" versus "The man stood at the window making no noise." The instance with the adverb is more concise. The rewrite is longer and draws unnecessary attention to the phrase "making no noise".

It is very easy to fall into the adverb traps. The good news is that they are easy to find. Search your manuscript for "ly" and consider each instance. You will be surprised how much richer your writing will be when you eradicate those adverbial weeds from your prose. Happy weeding.

A Disclaimer

None of this adverb hate applies to your first draft. When you write, ignore everyone except your own muse. On your first draft you're birthing a story so it's going to be messy. Use all the adverbs you want. You'll start cleaning things up on your second draft.

Other articles you might like:

- 8 Tips For Finding The Motivation To Write
- Describing Character Reactions And Emotions: She Smiled, He Frowned
- Tags, Traits And Tells (Podcast)

Photo credit: "?" by Bruna Schenkel under Creative Commons Attribution 2.0.