Story Line - Life Experiencees Applied

 

"Story Line - Finding Gold In Your Life Story," by Jen Grisanti, is an oldie but a goodie (published in 2011). It crossed my path in its own time, in its own way. And yes, it is all about how to approach writing scripts. I am not a scriptwriter (yet), but I do believe that the information Grisanti shares is applicable to the genres I do write in - flash fiction and cozy mysteries.

Grisanti has stellar credentials - she was mentored for twelve years by Aaron Spelling, was Vice President of Current Programs at CBS/Paramount, and served as a mentor in the CBS Diversity Program. In 2008 she launched her own company, Jen Grisanti Consultancy Inc., and was hired as the Writing Instructor for  NBC's Writers In The Verge.

The foundation of this book is to help writers connect with their audience on a strong emotional level. This is done by writers going deep within themselves and using their personal experiences to add depth and authenticity to their writing.

The book is organized into the following categories: Setup (where the story starts), Dilemma (dilemma as used to clearly establish the character's goals), Action (the actions taken to achieve a goal, coming from the writer's own experiences), and Goal (the character's life after their goal is accomplished).

I am a pantser - I do not write out more than a bare-bones guide for my stories. What I found in reading this book is that when I use my own experiences, I write from a stronger place. I am more confident in my work, and my stories pull together easier.

Grisanti encourages the reader to take a deep dive into themselves. To look at themselves, to work with what they know. Each of us will take away something different from this book, but each of us as writers, will be better people for it.

(c) October 2022 Bonnie Cehovet

Reproduction is prohibited without written permission from the author.

Is There A Formula For Writing Cozy Mysteries?

Is there a formula for writing cozy mysteries? Many of you are out there going "Are you joking! We are pantsers!" Okay, calm down. I am a pantser too - meaning that my material writes itself and that the storyline develops as it is written. I have a rough outline, a rough idea of where I want things to go as the author,  but my characters have this weird tendency to want to define their own lives and write their own stories.

So what is this formula stuff? We can define this as a story having a beginning, a middle, and an end. In the end, especially in a cozy mystery, good prevails over evil. As writers, we to tie our stories up nicely, and not leave any loose ends. 

With mysteries, we are also looking at there being a crime, someone who commits the crime, and someone who solves the crime. With cozy mysteries, the crime is solved without blood, gore, and curse words. It often involves friends and/or family, and the setting is often within a community. 

A good cozy mystery has a hook of some kind, something that draws the reader in. It could be a profession, a craft, food (I love mysteries that include recipes, and anything involving chocolate or coffee), or a locale (I stories that take place in both large cities and small towns).

The protagonist needs to be developed in a manner that allows them to have certain skills, or to have access to people that do. (Having said that, I am sick to death of female protagonists who husband/boyfriend/significant other is somehow involved in law enforcement.) 

The murder/crime needs to be both interesting and plausible. And there need to be a few red herrings along the way.

What it comes down to is that the formula for writing a cozy mystery is to write a tight story that is interesting, involves a few brain cells, and leaves its readers with a feeling of time well spent.

(c) February 2019 Bonnie Cehovet

Reproduction prohibited without written permission of the author.   

  

Write First, Plan Later - Plan First, Write Later

Do you write first, then plan later, or plan first, and write later? I am a pantser - I write first, by the seat of my pants, then go back and pull things together. Oh - I have my Bible - a written out guideline for each of my characters that paints the picture of what they look like, what they have accomplished, where they went to school,where they live, where they work, what makes them tick. Without that, it would be all too easy to get off track, or worse, to get them confused! And I do have a general direction that I want my story to go in. I just allow my characters to write it.

I write whatever my characters want to write. And I let it flow, even when I know that I am going to have to research a detail to make sure that my character was right. I tend to do a lot of research on designer cloths, as some of my characters have the larger view of life. I write until I stop. I don't edit as I go along, I don;t check spelling or punctuation - I write! Then I go back and read my story back to myself. Does it sound believable? Does it move well? If it doesn't sound right, or doesn't move well, I may change a word or two. I eventually want this story to sell, after all!

Sometimes I note that I am using a word or phrase with too great a frequency. I try to change what I can, but if I cannot come up with something, I will check a Thesaurus. I try not to get too clever, though. I want the words that I choose to fit into the story, and not take on an unintended life of their own! At times I will take a phrase, or even a sentence or two out. Sometimes even a whole paragraph, if it just isn't working. If it is truly bad, I will just delete it. No harm, no foul. If it sounds good, but just doesn't work with this story, I may save it in a file. I never know when I might need it!

Make sure that you are using the right words for your story. They have to match the story, and they have to move it forward. If they are weighing it down, they need to go. To know in your heart what good writing is, go read some good authors. Look at how their words flow, at the choices they made, and at how those choices affect you the reader.

Here's to the awesome art of storytelling!

(c) July 2012 Bonnie Cehovet