Where Short Stories Come From

Ever since my first (failed) attempt at marketing my my first novel I have tried a few other times to drum up "buzz" for my work with near-zero success. Is it because my novel was terrible? Absolutely not. I put a lot of time and effort into creating a story I loved to read, so I know there are hundreds of others who would also love my book. But you wouldn't know it by the scant reviews and bottom-of-the-barrel ranking on Amazon. So what's wrong?

So many stories to choose from

I have read more books on marketing than I would care to list, and each one tells me something different about what I could have done better. But no matter what the experts say, patience, perseverance, and purpose are not enough. In an online world infused with millions of different kinds of content that bombard us every day, my novel is just one story trying to be heard among the multitude of other stories vying for your attention.

And that set me to thinking - what if I had a bunch of shorter stories to share with readers, stories that would only take up a few minutes of their time but be entertaining enough to make readers want to try out my longer works? So I got super excited and started thinking about all the stories I could tell. Until I realized every story plot I came up with would morph into something that would take more than a few minutes to read through. As good a writer as I believed myself to be, I was not good enough to tell a short story.

I tired writing prompts, I tried poetry, I tried photo prompts, I even tried to write a 100-word story to submit to an online literary magazine. None of it was working. I couldn't get a story to fit within two 8.5x11 pages. And then one day I browsed through Facebook. A friend of mine would put funny little quotes her son would say on an e-card and post them to her page, which would make their way onto my feed. I had threatened in the past to use her great quotes in a story, but never got around to it. But on this particular day she posted a quote that inspired a humorous story about the power of imagination and friendship.

It took me a couple of weeks of on-and-off writing and editing, but I managed to get the story under 800 words. I had my own son read it and give me feedback before I finally published it on Wattpad. I've discovered that I can write stories that are both short and entertaining, and my inspiration comes from the everyday lives of people. So now I would like to ask you, my readers, to help me find inspiration for more short stories that I can share with you. If you hear a funny or odd quote, or see a picture of something interesting, message me on my Facebook account, tweet your inspiration to my Twitter handle, or just post it here in the comments section.

Question: How do I inspire my child to write?

It starts with a simple sentence.

Some of my most enjoyable moments were teaching a five-session writing class to elementary students. This is an age where their imaginations are getting broader and more inventive. This is the best time to get them to write those wonderful thoughts down on paper. But not every child I had was very excited to write.

My very first class had nine students, one of whom did not want to be there. On his first day he was adamant that his parents signed him up for the wrong class. I assured him that he was right where he should be and that he would have a great time writing. I could tell he didn’t believe me. The first and second classes were unproductive with respect to this student. While every other student was in their second drafts, he still hadn’t created a single sentence.

And then during the third class meeting, something amazing happened. There was a break in the lesson plan and all the kids were having conversations about their stories. One child made a joke about something, and another child elaborated on it. I let the conversation continue into lesson time, because the joke had somehow morphed into a communal story, with every child adding to the plot – including my writing-resistant student. In fact, he was the most ardent adder to the story, and his fellow classmates would encourage his input by complementing his version with their own.

I finally called the class to order and had them continue working on their current drafts. I then knelt beside my reluctant student’s chair and said, “You added incredible elements to the story you were all sharing. I would love to hear the end of it.” His eyes lit up and he started to talk about his ideas, but I interrupted him. “Wait, wait, I’m going to forget this great story. I need you to write it down so that I can remember it.” And with that, he wrote his story, first draft to finished product.  And it truly was a wonderfully imaginative story with much humor and adventure.

If you have a child who absolutely hates to write, it’s because they haven’t yet found the story that demands to be remembered. And the more you push them to write, the more they may not want to do it.  So what can you do?

Let’s take this from a reluctant writer’s point of view. Writing is boring. There are so many other things he or she could be doing than sitting at a desk with a paper and a pencil. The reluctant writer has not yet discovered the meaning of writing, which is to have fun with your imagination, to go places you haven’t been. But it all starts with a simple sentence.

Be a role model. If you are a reader and a writer, then your child will be, too. Start with a sentence. Sit with him or her and write a letter to a far-off family member, write a journal entry about what you did today. Write a grocery list. Find as many excuses as you can to model writing behavior.

Encourage writing. Encourage your child to write down his thoughts whenever he has something exciting to talk about. Tell him that something so exciting should be written down so it isn’t forgotten. Start with a sentence. And then have him read what he wrote to you, even if it is only one sentence. Never mind if the grammar or spelling is not perfect. It doesn’t have to be, until he is ready to share it with a critical group (such as his class or for a writing contest). My mantra is “as long as I can read it.”  Let your child know that it’s okay to have imperfect writing. He will have time to improve on his writing as he learns to revise and edit his work. And if only he will see his work, what does it matter if he didn’t spell “especially” right.

Embrace technology. Lastly, teach your child to use a computer. When a child has lots to write about, it can be discouraging when her hand starts to hurt. Teach her to type so she can write her story using a word processing program. Teach her how to save her work, and teach her to create new drafts to edit, instead of editing her original work.

Start with a simple sentence. Your child may only want to write a sentence or two without grumbling. But as writing becomes a daily adventure rather than a chore, those sentences will come together into a story of his or her own. Be a writing role model and give encouragement any chance you get. Your child will eventually have that “aha” moment and will want to write about it.

The commitment to write

A conversation with a friend

It's just after lunch and I am multitasking my time between completing an outline, cleaning (more like finding) my office, and figuring how to create an interactive On Air Hangout on Google+. Amidst all of this I find time to sneak onto Facebook every so often to check in on my feed.

First of all, if you want to be a successful writer, Facebook needs to go away while you are in writer mode. However, I was able to catch  a Messenger notification from an old friend from my anime convention days. Although we keep in touch through Facebook posts, we rarely use private messaging so I was curious to see what was up.

Writing: With a little bit of help from my friends

Mystery Cover!

I am in the mad-dash-final-draft-edit-before-my-editor-edits-and-I-need-to-edit-the-final-version-to-publish stage of my novella. It was supposed to be ready for readers by the end of September, but unfortunately I was not able to follow my editing calendar. What is it with me and calendars? Anyway, A Demon Born will be ready by the second week of October and I look forward to many comments and reviews!

Which brings me to today's post. I can write to my heart's content, but if I want to share my work I understand that my story (while it makes perfect sense in my head) must make sense to other readers. So I would like to thank the beta readers that helped locate all sorts of character development flaws, continuity issues, and other random things I would have normally not caught on my own. And now that I have reworked nearly the entire piece and practically rewrote two whole chapters, I hope I didn't create more problems. I will leave that to my editor to decide.

I was a little stumped on a discriptive problem I was having in a scene, and so took to Facebook and Twitter to ask for inspiration:

Not easy to get responses on Twitter, especially when you have 200+ tweets coming at you every hour, but I got a couple of responses from FB and I would like to say thank you, I was inspired and you shall see your suggestions in action (if you get my novella). Again, thanks to my friends I was able to improve my writing.

I'm going to ask for more inspiration now - You walk into a cafe where the wait staff are dressed as Victorian maids and butlers. Your attention is drawn to one thing, what is it?

My goal is to create stories worth reading. First, it has to be a story worth telling, so if I don't like to tell it who's going to want to read it? But once I discover a story I feel compelled to share, I want it to be the best possible reading experience. Every writer should have a band of friends with the guts to tell you where your story went south. Or north. Winter is coming, after all. They don't need to be best friends, or even good friends, but they need to be readers.

Review: A little book about making books

Little book of Book Making: Timeless Techniques and Fresh Ideas for Beautiful Handmade Books

By Charlotte Rivers, 2014

Publisher: Potter Craft

Binding: hardcover

Summer is still trying to hold on in the Pacific Northwest, but September is here and fall is sneaking in with cool weather inserting itself more often between hot, sunny days. It may seem a little early to be thinking about Christmas, but I'm actually a bit late. August is when you are realizing school is around the corner and you only have a few weeks to get all the school supplies in order. So "Christmas in July" is my shopping motto.

I like to think about Christmas gifts early because I want to give personal, handmade gifts and it takes me a few months to actually figure out what I will make, how I will make them, and what I need to make them. When I don't give myself time to plan my gifts, Thanksgiving becomes less thankful and more stressful. It was shortly after I finished my son's back-to-school shopping that I discovered Charlotte Rivers's Little Book of Book Making. Its subtitle, Timeless Techniques and Fresh Ideas for Beautiful Handmade Books hooked me into thinking, "Hey, here's something that will give me ideas AND show me how to make them!" (Disclaimer: I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.)

Upon first opening the book, I was a little disappointed. More than half the book is is filled with "ideas," beautiful examples of book art that I could never hope to duplicate in the space of a few months. Not until the very end of the book do you find instructions on how to make basic versions of the masterpieces showcased. Momentarily disheartened, I returned to the beginning of the book. After reading the "Foreword" and "About This Book," it was clear this book was meant to provide more inspiration than instruction.

I skimmed the first section and stopped on a piece that looked simple enough and read the short write-up on the creator's process. At the end of the write-up was a notation, "See also," which gave the page for instructions to make a similar piece. I went to the page and upon closer read discovered detailed directions that were easy to follow. The art showcased in this book goes far beyond the simple techniques in the how-to section, but the instructions are written to allow you to get the basic idea of making a particular book, and then letting your imagination add to that basic structure.

This how-to section is titled "Bookmaking in Practice." Here you will find a comprehensive list of tools and materials needed and offers illustrated step-by-step instructions to produce a variety of handmade book designs. I tried one of the very basic folded binding techniques first with a scrap piece of paper. Once done, I could visualize what such a simple folded piece of paper could become. I was surprised to discover the possibilities!

My creation: an anniversary card!

Readers should not come away from this book feeling intimidated by the complex creativity highlighted in the book. After all, every artist started as a beginner, and any creative soul can see a masterpiece in the simplest of forms. Do browse the first four sections. Not all showcased art has a "See also" attached to it, but most of them do, so if you find an interesting piece, go ahead and look at it's corresponding instructions if it has one and give it a try. I give this book a four out of five stars for the beautiful pieces it showcases and its easy-to-follow instructions.

4 reasons why Pete Carroll inspires me

Now, I am not a fan of football, I would rather watch soccer or hockey. But ever since the Seattle Seahawks organization took a chance on USC coach Pete Carroll, I have been inspired as a writer by the happiest coach in the NFL. Well, what does an NFL coach have to do with writing? Let me give you four reasons.

From espn.com, look at that smile!

1. Coach Carroll is a writer. He did write a book, Win Forever: Live, Work, and Play Like a Champion. But that isn't what I am referring to. He is the author of a young, undeterred team that big names in the NFL said would not make it. The Seahawks took a coach no one else believed in and basically told him to have at it - write the story of a new team. And he did.
   
   He chose his characters with as much care as any author looking to tell a great story. He picked a quarter back that was too short, a legally deaf fullback, and other "inexperienced" players. This band of misfits (to loosely quote Richard Sherman) became the driving force of the story's plot - players that other teams didn't want, coming together with chips on their shoulders and ready to prove something.
   
   There were the requisite hardships that the characters had to overcome, like injuries and not making the first cut. And then there was the build up to the climax: an exceptional 2013 season that took them to the Super Bowl and did what everyone thought they couldn't - they won. Pete Carroll wrote a story that had all the elements of a must-read novel.
   
   Every writer starts off as undiscovered talent. A few get noticed by the big names in publishing, but many accomplished writers make their living in the "little leagues" of small presses and self publishing. And a few of them, most often having been passed up by the big names, do so well that it takes the publishing world by surprise and the big guys are left to wonder "What did we miss?" Pete Carroll is my inspiration that one day, I will have a story that will make everyone notice.
2. Coach Carroll is enthusiastic about his story. From the first day I saw this man through my TV, I was captivated by how different he was from other NFL coaches I observed (when I was actually watching a game). Where other coaches have severe looks permanently plastered to their faces, or throw the biggest fits that put my 8-year-old to shame, this man always had a smile on his face. Even when he looked concerned, he never looked angry at his team. And when he spoke to his players, he always seemed encouraging rather than demeaning. When things were going their way, he jumped and whooped and celebrated with the rest of them.
   

   

   from News-record.com

   
   It soon became clear that Carroll thought of the Seahawks as family. And like any fatherly (or motherly) figure, when you are proud of your family's accomplishments, you want to share them with others. I would see snippets of pre- or post-game interviews on the news and I just could not help emulating his contagious smile! Even when a game did not go well, this man never disparaged his team or ever looked angry - just disappointed. Even in the face of defeat, he always found something positive to say.
   
   Writers should be enthusiastic about their craft. You worked hard to create a compelling story. You suffered through the butchering edits, the harsh critiques, the late nights of writer's block to make a plot work or a character believable. Share the experience of your story with everyone! It's your baby, your family member, and it has grown and changed and ready to make you proud. Carroll has inspired me to be able to share my experience as a writer and introduce my work to people with as much enthusiasm and positivity.
3. Coach Carroll embodies perseverance. You have to believe in something so wholeheartedly that you would be willing to stick to your guns even when the road is difficult and the reward seems so far away. If forming a team that "experts" said would never make it, and standing with that team every day until every one of them believed they deserved respect, and then proving the "experts" wrong in spectacular fashion isn't the embodiment of perseverance, I don't know what is.
   
   The first time he became a head coach for the NFL, first for the Jets then the Patriots, both teams eventually fired him after short stints because he did not produce immediate results. After a successful run at USC that ended badly, Carroll was hired on by the Seahawks and given a second chance. And four years later, look at his accomplishment. Through the difficulties and triumphs he went through in his coaching career, he made it to the end result he was looking for. And he isn't anywhere near done yet.
   
   A writer must believe in the story he or she has to tell. Writing the story isn't always the hard part, but rather what must be done after the it is written. You have to make readers believe in your story just as much as you. There will be times when no one is listening, times when someone gives you bad press. But if you believe in the world you've built, others are going to believe in it too. I want to be like Coach Carroll, to persevere through the difficulties of being a writer so that I can be recognized for my work.
4. Coach Carroll has a following. Since its first use in 2002, Centurylink Field has been considered one of the most difficult stadiums to play an away game in because of the noise. There are a lot of die-hard Seattle fans out there, many of whom have been season ticket holders for years. But when the Seahawks hired Pete Carroll, the team wasn't the only thing evolving.
   
   I only started seriously watching Seahawks football just to see the happiest coach ever do his job. But I did notice that the stands gradually seemed more crowded, more Seahawk blue, more vocal, and more into the game. In 2011, I got to watch Marshawn Lynch make an amazing 67-yard run that caused fans to shake the ground so hard it registered on the seismograph at the University of Washington. But all I cared about was how Carroll walked the sideline giving every one of his offensive players high-fives and then giving Lynch a hug. He was happy and you knew it. And I became a 12 that day because I wanted to see this team and the coach that believed in them succeed.
   
   

   

   honoring the 12th man

   The 2013 season was the year of the 12's. Never before have I experienced an entire community of fans so ardent in their support for a team. But I believe it is because the team acknowledges that they are nothing without their fans. The 12's have their own page on the Seahawk website, and they are publicly thanked at the end of every game. As a writer, I don't want just a bunch of people following me on Twitter or Facebook. I want to engage with them, hear from them, and feed off their energy just like the Seahawks and their happy coach feed off the 12's. I am inspired to acknowledge the contributions of my fans, no matter how small, so they will continue to be my support. 

So, there you have it, four reasons coach Pete Carroll is my role model as a writer. The story he has written for the Seahawks franchise will always be a memorable one. His real-life characters inspire me to create characters of my own that readers will want to root for - to become my story's 12's. He has taught me to be patient and push through, to "always compete." Thank you Coach Carroll, and congratulations on winning the Super Bowl!