I’ve had numerous careers along the way to becoming a fiction writer. Among
them were English teacher and Editor-in-Chief for a cultural publication in Abu Dhabi. Additionally, I wrote a couple of newspaper articles and many, MANY government proposals. So, I pompously thought that writing all those great fiction ideas in my head in book format would be a breeze – I’ve always been a good writer. I was wrong. Writing a book is so different from anything else you might ever write, and, like me and every writer before and after me, you will see improvement in your work from book to book. Five ways you can aid that improvement are:
1. Read about fiction writing. You may know your grammar and have great ideas but books on fiction writing help you to see your work from an outsider’s perspective. You not only learn what to do, but more importantly you learn what to avoid and how. For example, you’ll learn to notice overdone tropes, flat characters, cheesy conversations, overuse of adjectives that don’t help the reader actually visualize anything, ego trips disguised as fiction etc…
A couple great books (in no particular order) are:
• Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott
• On Writing by Stephen King
• Storyteller by Kate Wilhelm
• Writing Fiction by Janet Burroway, Elizabeth Stuckey-French and Ned Stuckey-French
• About Writing by Samuel R. Delany (this one is a bit hefty and I found Part 1 the most useful
2. Read fiction. Not necessarily in your genre. A lot of people start with this point when giving writing advice. I would assume that as a writer, you are already a lover of reading and have been reading your entire life. So, I place this point second because if you are at the point of wanting to improve your writing, you should take a break from reading fiction and read some non-fiction on writing. Then go back to reading fiction. You’ll be surprised how much more you will notice. You may have read a book in the past and thought “this sucks” but now, after reading a couple books about writing, you’ll be able to clearly describe why it sucked and that sucky aspect will be there, nagging at you when you write, telling you “you saw how badly this turned out for that other author, don’t do it.”
I specified that you don’t need to read in your genre because any genre can show you great and non-existent character development, good and bad plot twists etc…
3. Take a course. Preferably on self-editing. The best course I ever took was on how to self edit fiction writing. After I finished the course, I re-read the book I had written and practically ripped it apart and rewrote it. It was oddly cathartic.
My course was a fourth year university course, part of the literature degree program, so I spoke with the university and got professor permission to take it as a non-degree student (yes, you can do that).It was offered online so I could take it while working full time. I also have a child and am doing a doctorate and I still found the time to complete the course. So, most of you reading this can too, if it means enough to you.
4. Write a book. A complete book. It’s time. You’ve taken courses. You’ve read books on writing, so do it. Your writing can only get better if youactually write. And no, fifteen attempts at Chapter 1 don’t count. You need to force yourself through the book process from start to finish. Only when your book is complete can you see it as a whole, re-read it as a whole and edit it as a whole.
5. Go to a literary conference where you can pitch your book to agents in-person, and pitch it. Even if you think it’s not ready to be pitched.
This is probably the most expensive piece of advice I am giving you. But, if you can afford to do this, you won’t regret it. I did this very randomly, not really realizing how useful it would be and how sucky my book still was. I honestly thought it was ready to be pitched. That’s because I went to that conference before taking that self-editing courseor reading those books on writing that I mentioned above. So, I probably made an ass out of myself but, it was worth it.
Obviously the agents I chose to pitch declined my literary masterpiece (cough, cough) but, because I was there with them in person, they discussed with me why and how I could improve the story and make it more sellable. The experience was slightly painful to the ego, but honestly priceless.
Book 1
MtG
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy
Publisher: Friesenpress
Date of Publication: July 23, 2020
ISBN-10 : 1525572016
ISBN-13 : 978-1525572012
ASIN: B08DWQ4FHK
Word Count: 135, 430
Cover Artist: Friesenpress
Tagline: Everybody dies but only few of us manage to live
Book Description:
Evangeline is living the life of a normal teenager until mysterious, severe symptoms begin appearing. After passing out in the middle of a party, life as she knows it spirals beyond her grasp. She is then diagnosed with a rare, genetic blood disorder that causes her body’s white blood cells to kill the red ones. In the delirium of her deteriorating health, a door to a parallel world opens before her; however, once she steps through it, the portal closes, and she is unable to return to Earth.
The place Evangeline now finds herself in is called Terra Nova, a world wherein vampires rule supreme, with no traces of humanity left to speak of. Curious but afraid, she quickly learns that Terra Nova is not the shadow-side of Earth, but rather the tragic result of government experimentation. In order to survive, she must keep her mind open and accept the changes her body is undergoing; soon enough, those who she initially thinks are murderers become her trainers, whose help she must enlist if she ever hopes to return home—and soon enough, a romantic bond begins to bloom.
Meanwhile, Evangeline’s brother and friends back on Earth try to figure out what happened to her, how the government is involved, and how to bring her home. Unbeknownst to any of them is the mysterious outcast Bambi, whose secrecy disguises her power in making a devastating choice: save one world at the risk of destroying the other.
Excerpt:
Evangeline stood
up and sighed. She started to walk down the street in the direction of the
Duke’s house, done her trailing for the night, when she heard a voice behind
her, “Did you expect to track someone who is already tracking you?”
She turned to see Josepina standing in the middle of the road in a blue gown
with blue and gold embroidery along its hemlines and birds of all sizes and
shapes embroidered into every spot and space on it. Looking at the dress
Evangeline wondered how Josepina stalked her so inconspicuously. Did she go
around town hiding in holes?
“Yeah, I guess I
was a little optimistic in my skills,” Evangeline said.
“Not a little,”
Josepina said, “You must know something about me now. I could lead his highness
in eternal circles, Evangeline. You would have more chances tracking him,
actually. So why is it that you hoped to find me?”
“Well, I guess I
was just practising tracking...” Josepina was looking at her with an amused
smile. Evangeline knew that Josepina could sense if she was full of shit. Obviously
Evangeline could have practised on anyone. She changed approaches,
“Well, I guess
I’ve never known a lady of...pleasure?”
Josepina’s smile
grew broader, “And what do you hope to learn from me?”
Evangeline’s
face turned red, “Nothing, actually. I guess I was just curious about you
because you have so much more life in you than most people here. You still talk
about everything and seem to think about everything. It’s…. rare. And your
clothes...how do you do it?”
“That is a much
more interesting question than I thought you had,” Josepina said, “the
dress...well, I create them out of hunger during the day with whatever
materials I find. Crocheting and embroidering is time consuming. A perfect
activity. Dressing up is also time consuming. Another perfect activity. Though
I think most find the contrast of the bright clothing and their own ugliness
something of a depressing reality.”
Josepina looked
up at the night sky and then at Evangeline, “I will walk with you to the
Duke’s” She began to walk and Evangeline stepped up beside her.
“The way we are
now,” Josepina continued, “vampires as you like to call us, is a stagnant way.
We cannot change, on the outside or the inside. You have seen that Ehvan can
memorize facts, but his mind will always be that of a child. The inner
maturation of his brain is related to the physical changes that happen within
it. Something that cannot happen in this state. Someone whose mind was not
very...developed...before, will not develop much now. They will know more
facts. Learn skills. But they will not grow inside as humans.”
“And you?”
“I suppose my
goal was always to understand other humans and through that to understand and
know myself. I never considered that it was anything unusual, but looking
around me now, I see that it is a rare goal.”
“I wonder what I
would be like as one of you,” Evangeline said offhandedly.
“An odd thing to
wonder after seeing us,” Josepina said, “though the fact that you actually
thought to ponder this means that you would do better than most. You have
almost no sixth sense ability but you have more depth than most pretty, young
girls.
“Thank you. You
know, I didn’t think you liked me much, to be honest.”
“I’m still
deciding,” Josepina smiled a little shrewdly, “However, you stood in front of a
city of beings that could rip you apart and you were able to look at us and
speak to us as if we were still people. I respect that. Respect is more
important than like.”
Evangeline let a
couple minutes pass in silence before she asked the next question,“So, is it
really true about the physical intimacy? I mean, is it impossible for you now?”
Josepina looked
at her with that half-curious, half-knowing look and Evangeline quickly added,
“I’m just wondering since there are some married couples that I have seen...”
Evangeline was
doing her utmost to convince her face not to turn red. Of course she wasn’t
just curious out of the blue. She was in an unspoken, apparently platonic,
bed-sharing arrangement with a male whom she wanted to kick in the head for the
majority of each night while at the same time looking forward to each morning
in his room. Every day, when she put down her book and climbed under the covers
she lay stiff and anxious, wondering if he would lie down beside her, knowing
that he occasionally did, but never being awake when it happened.
Josepina’s lips
curled into a wide, knowing smile and killed any chance Evangeline had of
keeping the colour on her face normal.
MTG has worked in numerous positions, mainly in managerial and executive roles. These include the editor-in-chief of a cultural magazine, an executive director, and most recently, the manager of a non-profit organization that works with immigrants and refugees. She has extensive experience working and studying abroad, including Germany, Italy, Korea, Abu Dhabi, and Pakistan; these experiences taught her about many cultures and worldviews, which influenced her writing.
Terra Nova, her first publication, is Book 1 of a series. The series’ concept emerged when she, like the protagonist, was diagnosed with the blood disorder paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria (PNH), and her then-boyfriend (now husband) joked she was becoming a vampire. She currently works and resides in Canada.
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