The Burn

You're almost done...

By Jersey Tourism
[CC-BY-2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)],
via Wikimedia Commons

You set out your workout goal -- twenty miles on the bike. You've never done twenty. But las time you got to seventeen. What's three more?

You pass your previous mark of seventeen and something happens. Your legs gain forty pounds in a matter of seconds. You begin to slow. Each breath you take hurts a bit more. You begin to doubt and the wind suddenly picks up--slamming you in the face.

You look at your distance watch... 17.2 Miles. It's impossible. You'll never make it. And then, the fire starts. The burn. That sensation that is universally understood but also misunderstood.

The breakthrough is on the other side of that burn. That burn is your body telling you to stop. That you've done enough. You're fine. Just stop.

But if you continue, if you press on, if you push through the tears, your body transforms. And so do you.

Anyone can exercise, just like anyone can write. But only those who stick through the hard times, the doubts, the BURN, will they come out better.

Only the author knows if they took a shortcut. If they stopped before the magic happened. Next time your inner voice tells you to stop, that the sentence is good enough, that the motivation is good, that the scene is memorable enough, stop for a moment. Do you feel that burn? Do you see the fear that stops you?

If something feels wrong, or weak, or incomplete, I can guarantee that you are right. Push through that burn. What comes out on the other side will be worth the pain. Feel the burn. It means something magical is about to happen.

Have you ever fought through and discovered something new about your story? About yourself?

Fight the good fight!

Sticks and Stones?

-- Sticks and stones may break my bones (but words will never hurt me) --

It's a cute saying. False, but cute nonetheless.

Photo credit: Photoshop Player 2009 on Flickr

The fact of the matter is that the impact of words last far longer than a bruise or a broken bone. Words can shatter. Words can alter. Words are powerful.

Think of the words that continue to haunt you since high school. Think of the word that your significant other said, only once, but you never forgot. 


(Before you lecture me, yes, I get it -- the rhyme's goal is to encourage the reader to not allow words to hurt them, because after all, they are only words... audible expressions of air... tell me how that works out for you)

As writers, we have a fundamental issue to reconcile. We aspire to get our work in front of as many readers as possible. But do we really? Are we ready to take what comes with the territory?

I've met some writers, and know of many more, who have yet to put themselves out there. They don't like to share their work with others, afraid of the feedback. They don't want to be critiqued publicly. Not yet, they tell me.

Then there are those who do have their work our there, and the first negative comment on Amazon, or critical book review by a blogger causes a meltdown. Their reaction is either a public embarrassment or a psychological breakdown that throws them off track.

It seems to me that a successful writer is the resilient writer. 

FADE IN: Definition by dictionary.com

re·sil·ient

adjective /riˈzilyənt/  (of a substance or object) Able to recoil or spring back into shape after bending, stretching, or being compressed (of a person or animal) Able to withstand or recover quickly from difficult conditions

FADE OUT

I used to say that athletes were the most resilient type of people out there. Have you seen how a football or rugby player gets squashed by another giant? The very next moment, they're up on their feet, spitting out a tooth, then smiling. 

But I've come to realize that if a writer wants to last and produce material for a few decades, then they have to become the poster boy/girl for resiliency. 

My friend Webster says a resilient person can 'recover quickly from a difficult condition.' Check. Writers are bombarded by the most damaging type of 'difficult conditions.' We are judged and punished by words for our words, for our art, for our babies. 


They're judging us! Us! Who do they think they are?

Reality check, the best are judged and critizized. King, Rowling, and everyone before them and after them have been told and will be told they suck. This is the nature of art. More than ever, everyone is a stinkin' critic. And you can't stop the democratization of opinion. 


How will you handle it? Will you implode, or will you sit in front of your computer and produce more? 


Butt in the seat, or your face in the sink? Choose.


Only one will produce art and make you better. Only one will stop you from pursing your dreams.

Words by others will hurt. And that's okay. We need to absorb that, acknowledge them then move forward--always move forward. If we're going to let words hurt us to the point that they stop us, then maybe we should consider an easier vocation. Maybe rugby?

Fight the good fight!

Query Letters -- Love or Hate?

I hate query letters

That's not completely true. I hate that to the writer, the query letter is seen as the chasm between unfulfilled dreams and a career.

winnond / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Query letters are how your manuscript lands into the hands of your dream agent, assuming you need an agent. And to be clear, my dream agent is still Martin Short from the Big Picture.

But the query letter doesn't have to be seen in such a limited way. My recommendation -- even if you're going independent, self-pub, small-pub, or Irish pub, you should still do the query letter.

Before you send the mob to my house, here me out.

I've spent considerable time and brain cells (what little I had left) on this topic. I am convinced that when you develop the query letter, it will highlight gaping holes or issues in your story. If you've been struggling with your query letter, the issue may not be the letter itself, it may be (ghasp!) the story you've written.

So I've made a solemn oath. I will write a query letter, before I've started to write my next story. Call this a story treatment if you like. But the approach is sound and powerful if used properly.

After countless hours of research (mostly on Super Agent Janet Reid's Query Shark, but also on dozens of other sites) I have compiled my notes for you:

1. Focus on the Action: leave out the backstory. Most queries give too much description. Probably because we feel like we need to explain why we are where we are, etc. Get to the heart of the matter and fast. Show it. Use powerful verbs. In other words, trust yourself as the writer. Everyone has a backstory. Only your protagonist is about to get into this specific problem.

2. Who is the Protagonist?: Who is the hero/ine? Wee need to know very quickly. Janet Reid recommends opening the query with the hero, in action, facing a problem. Also, only mention the most important characters -- no character soup.


3. What is the Problem?: Start with where the protagonist has a problem (the inciting incident, the disturbance). Again, show it. Let us feel the protagonist's problem. Let us care for her and what she's going through.


4. Compelling, interesting Villains: Boring villains mean boring story. The antagonist has to be so bad that you love him. Think silence of the lambs. 

5. What are the Stakes?: They need to be high. Saying, "He just got laid off," is sad, but not enough to carry an entire story. The stakes need to be high. James Scott Bell says there needs to be a feeling of impending death (actual or psychological). High stakes raise difficult choices...

6. Choices, please: The choices your protagonist faces must be explicit and compelling. If the choice includes, "she'll walk away," then there's no story, is there? Real choices. Though ones. Gut wrenching ones. If Katniss Everdeen does not survive the Hunger Games, her sister and mother will most certainly die. They have depended on her for everything. She volunteered to save her sister. She must survive, even if it means killing the boy whom she has known since she was a child. Tough choices, make for high stakes.

7. 250 words please: General acceptable theory says your query letter should be one page -- but one page can go as high 380 words... maybe more. By sticking to the 250 word count, you are forcing yourself to be succinct and stick to the core of the story. If you're doing this for the benefit of developing your idea you'll be tempted to cheat -- but you shouldn't. Get your main plot down. You will be able to overlay your subplots later. But no matter how many smart sub-plots you add, it will not make up for a flawed main plot. Make sure your main story rocks.

8. Rhythm: You need to develop an ear for rhythm. That's accomplished by reading your lines out loud, We've talked about this, reading out loud is a good (critical) practice. This practice will also highlight clunky writing. Reading out loud tells you when "They are" sounds better than "They're." Rhythm will also establish the tone and voice of your story.


9. Entice: The whole point is for the reader to say, "I want to know more." As you write the query letter, you should get excited too! Your blood should be pumping, and your fingers should be ready to explode with words.


10. Test: Let your writer friends read it. Get their input. Not only for proof-reading (which is critical, of course) but to see if they get it, if they're excited, if they want to read the manuscript. A good query letter/story treatment should sell itself.


As for me, I have to apply all the above to my query letter and story. 


I'd love to hear your thoughts on this. Do you have anything to add to this list? I'm sure you do. You can tell uncle Ara :)

Fight the good fight.

Fail Gloriously!

My eight-year-old wanted a skateboard for Christmas.

I wasn't crazy about it. My wife wasn't crazy about it. Yet, Santa apparently chose to fulfill his wish.

Needless to say, he was giddy with excitement. And in his excitement we were happy. My wife even went on YouTube with him and found how-to videos by the man, Tony Hawk. All was good.

For a few days, all he did was practice on that thing. During the day, in the yard. At nights, in the house. I cringed when I saw the scratches on our hard-wood floor, but turned a blind eye.

One night, while I wrote, I heard a thud from downstairs. "You okay?"

"Um, yeah."

I went back to my work. Ten minutes later, another noise. "What happened?"

"Nothing. I'm practicing."

I knew better than to just walk away, but I did. Five minutes later--you guessed it--a louder bang.

I inspected the war area... I would have been justified to get mad, take away the skateboard and tell my wife I told you so. But I didn't.

I can replace plaster and paint. I can't take away words that will forever tell him that failure is bad.

You see, I'd been breaking my own "plaster" upstairs. I'd been struggling with my writing. Trying and failing. Trying and failing.

There is nothing wrong in failing. Implied within failure is that you gave it a shot, you tried. And more importantly, you tried again.

If you're hitting walls, don't give up. Don't talk yourself out of it. There are plenty of people in your life (including the little voice in your head) who will convince you that you're not good enough, smart enough, creative enough.

Fail. Fail gloriously.

Some of us will understand and applaud you for trying. And do me a favor--once in a while, remind me that It's okay for me to get it wrong too.

I've missed more than 9,000 shots in my career. I've lost almost 300 games. 26 times, I've been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I've failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.

~ Michael Jordan

Fight the good fight!

Give Yourself a Promotion

"How can I get promoted?"

Secret handshakes go back a few years...

I hear this all the time at work. Everyone wants to know how they can get to that next level, then the next, and the next one after that.

Implied in that question is that there may be a secret handshake, a magic book, or fraternity that if they joined, then "it" would all come together. Whatever "it" may be.

I don't have the heart to tell people the truth -- not everyone is promotable.

Sorry, but it's true.

So when someone asks me that question, I tell them, "If you want to be a leader, then lead. If you want to be a project manager, then manage a project. You don't need the title to make it happen."

Show me. Don't tell me that you want to do something. Do it!

And when you do it, you'll show us all two things: you have the desire and the will to achieve even when you don't have the official title.

We must mentally promote ourselves to the role we aspire to hold. The answer is within us, waiting to be tapped.

No one wants to hire a project. But I can guarantee you that everyone wants to hire a winner. That person who has shown desire and will to do the hard work even when there is no guarantee of payoff.

Sound familiar?

So you want to be a traditionally published author? Then do everything that's consistent with "being" a published author. Show the professionals in the industry that you're also a professional. You have to be the baddest badass out there. You are not competing against the slushpile. You're competing against those on the bestseller list. That's what the industry is looking for. Elevate your game. Give yourself a mental promotion--now!

Or maybe you will self-published. Then behave like a professional author for your readers. Give them your best work. The beautiful cover, the professionally edited novel, and build the personal connection with your fans who will spread the word for you like the plague. You are trying to win their trust. You're trying to establish a sacred agreement that if they take a chance on you, then you in return will honor their valuable (and diminishing) free time. You will give them the ride of their life.

By the way, these habits are not mutually exclusive. We have to do all of the above and then some.

Eliminate "good enough," or "pretty good" from your vocabulary. Only the best qualify. The good news is that it's all up to you--me. The bad news is that it's all up to you--me.

If we want to win at any game, then we must play the game as if we've already won. Believe in yourself, so others will believe in you.

Bad things happen to good people all the time. Lady luck shows up on the wrong table sometimes. But in the end, if we play the game fully, with passion and excellence in heart and mind, then on my scoreboard, we've already won, haven't we?

Believe in yourself, then do it. And when you do, the rest will believe in you too.

Fight the good fight!

I'm a Liar

Some months back I served on jury duty.

For those who may not know what that is--"it's your civic duty, son." At least that's what I've been told.

In a nutshell, it's where a large number of unhappy people come together in a poorly-lit hall, where unhappy county employees treat them poorly, and a judge hopes that the unhappy people are ready to participate in the legal process of determining ones innocence or guilt.

I was on the panel for a criminal case (gang related stuff... fun). Not a lot of pressure. Rival gangs, where the life of a 22-year-old sat on the balance. Like I said, no pressure.

The judge and attorneys started with some basic questions. What is your occupation, have you served on a jury before, etc?

When they got to me I said I had two jobs. By day, I set information technology strategy in the entertainment industry, but by night, I write novels.

(By the way, you better learn to say it with pride and power. Use your words to remind the universe that this writing thing is real. Your muse will hear it if you believe it)

The next step was where the attorneys asked different questions of the potential jurors, with hopes to select the best fit and to eliminate the worst.

The defense attorney, a scary looking guy, who could have been a gang member himself, suddenly turned to me.

"Juror number nine, have you lied before?"
"I lie all the time," I said.
He flinched. Literally took one step back. "I write novels," I continued. "It's my job."

Somehow I was selected for the case, and I must say it was exhilarating, depressing, scary at times, but in the end, I felt good about what we had done.

At the end of the case, we all had a chance to talk to the lawyers. The attorney in question approached me.

"That thing about being a liar... that was a first. I had to tell my wife about it," he said.

I know I was grinning.

The job of a fiction writer is to create a world where the reader finds herself living in that town, with those people, in that time period--but the place never existed. We create characters that you want to believe could be your best friend if you ever met them--but they were conceived in the author's mind. We create situations that make you feel like they could absolutely happen to you--but they never did. We can also take seemingly innocent questions like, "Where were you?" and turn them into a 90,000-word story.

We are liars. We don't make excuses, nor apologize for it. We lie because we can. We lie because our readers expect it from us. We lie, because the truth of our world is sometimes scarier than the worlds we create on the pages you read.

But when it comes to the stories we tell, we never hold back, we never take the easy path--there we always tell the truth. The people, the places and the situation are all fabrications. But the message and the sincerity by which we tell the story is true. We find the most painful or exhilarating emotions in our lives and transpose them to our characters. These fake people become the vessel to tell our truth. The only truth we know.

Those who know writers will sometimes wonder why we're a bit moody sometimes, or seem hurt or even sad. It's because, when we write, the worlds and the people we create are real. They carry our truth. We are vested in the story, in the characters and their outcome. These lies need to feel true to us, otherwise our readers will never believe us. And that would be a crime worthy of a judge and jury.

"Now comes the big question: What are you going to write about? And the equally big answer: Anything you damn well want. Anything at all... so long as you tell the truth." 

-- Stephen King, On Writing

Fight the good fight.

60,000 Words in Ten Days

This is not a marketing gimmick. For one, I have nothing to sell... not yet.

This is something that two years ago I would not have thought possible. In the past I never quite finished my stories. And those that were almost there, really sucked. I got over that hump with Aces. But this type of productivity is not the norm for me.

So what did I actually do?

I wrote a 60,000-word romantic comedy in two weeks (ten actual days of writing). And I'm still having a hard time believing it.

Flashback...

Back on August 25th, just before I drifted off to sleep, a seed sprouted in my brain--a story about forgiveness and closure. I dreamt about it and when I woke up the next day I had a surge of flammable adrenalin.

The next day on the 26th, I wrote a blog about my new story. I flippantly said that I was having an affair. At that point in time, I was developing the idea. And as the parts of it came together, I started obsessing over it.

The fact is that I was in love--and I mean that sincerely. I was in love with the idea. I was in love with the characters. I began to feel those butterflies and anticipation and longing that one feels when you fall in love. I could't stop thinking about the story. I wanted (needed) to know how things would come together. Would they come together? Is it possible to fix things that went wrong in the past?

And when I get this way, my dreams are shattered. I've blogged about this as well. My world of dreams and reality get blurred. This is a curse, I admit. I was not able to sleep. I would work off the fumes of love and passion.

As I developed the story, I used a tried and true system that has worked well for me in the past (James Scott Bell's framework for plot and structure). This time, I incorporated what I learned in his seminar which I attended in Los Angeles.

By August 29th I was ready to start. I want to stress, that this is a very short, even by my impatient standards, period of planning time. But I had identified what I needed. I knew my main characters very well. Too well. I knew the conflict and the challenges. What I didn't know was how I would end it... but I never know that.

To get into the right state of mind, I spent time flipping through old year books (oh yeah, I worked myself up). I reminisced, bringing back and tapping into those awkward days. I read the notes that my friends wrote ("You're the best. KIT" -- "Lakers rule!"). Then I hit the mother load. I had forgotten that during 9th grade I kept a journal for about three months. As I read the horrible melodrama that was my life, I knew that I was ready to explode with content.

But I did one more thing on the 29th. I analyzed one of my favorite romantic comedies -- Notting Hill. I even blogged about it for you. My new story is a romantic comedy so I wanted to assure that I had not left any page unturned.

I bagan to write in earnest on August 30th. I wrote the first chapter and stopped there. I have this ceremonial thing that I write the first chapter and evaluate the voice, the dialogue and the characters. The next day I gave it to my wife. She smiled and said the thing every writer wants to hear. "I want to know what happens next."

The surge was unstopable. On Sept 7th I tweeted the following:

The next day, on Sept 7th I tweeted this:

Nine days of writing and I was at 53k words.

By the next day I was sitting at 60k words. Which happened to be the goal for this particular story.

I wrote fast, because I honestly couldn't stop the process. I was scared that I would lose it if I didn't burn through it. Also, I needed to know how the story would end. I used all my tools that I've written about in the past. Scrivener, Evernote and the iPad. Not to mention Nutella (#nutellaWriters) and espresso.

On Sept 9th, I was done. Over the past couple of days I've taken a break. I have to tell you, writing like that has a burn out effect. I was (am) exhauseted. To keep up this clip I would wake up at 4 AM to write until 6 AM. Then from 7 PM until 1 or 2 AM.

Now, I'm done. And a bit shell-shocked.

Now I'm letting it simmer. I'm creating distance from the story. I will return to it in a month (maybe two weeks... maybe one). And I have to say, I'm dying to read it. I'm already considering a few additional scenes... but I must admit, maybe I wrote those scenes already. 

I can't recall. 

It was all a blur. 

A dream, but a real dream.

Fight the good fight!

I'm Lazy

It's true. But don't assume lazy is bad.

I think our schools and teachers have taken this perfectly good state-of-mind and have applied all types of bad connotations to it.

At it's core, I suppose being lazy is being averse or disinclined to work. One of my favorite non-fcition books is Timothy Ferris's Four-Hour Workweek. He asks, "Are you being active, or productive?"

I've never appreciated people who work hard and produce nothing. I appreciate people who work smart, and work on the right things. Work in and of itself is meaningless. Work should produce something. The question is, what is it that you're producing by working.

The high school years

When I entered 10th grade, everyone was yapping about college, applications, letter's of recommendation, GPA, SAT, blah, blah, blah. I needed expert advice. And no, Google was not an option back then. I'm not sure if we even had electricity yet.

I spoke with my Math/Physics teacher who I greatly respected. I told him I thought engineering would be good for me. I liked creating things from nothing. I loved solving problems. And I had a natural curiosity for why things worked the way they did. So he told me to skip the big schools where I would be one of three hundred students in each class. He pointed to the local university--Cal Sate University Northridge. I thought this was brilliant. My older brother had just started there.

I grabbed my brother's CSUN catalog and flipped to the back. I wanted a shortcut. It turns out, any SAT score would do if you had a GPA of 3.00 or above (not the case anymore by the way, but this was during the Jurassic era--less competition). For my international readers, 3.00 basically means you're getting a B (85%) on all your subjects. Maybe an A (95%) here and there offset by a C (75%) somewhere else.

Perfect. I had the solution. I knew how to maximize the result by minimizing the work. If I maintained a 3.00, I wouldn't need to study for the SAT. Suffice it to say I graduated with a 3.01. Yes, I've always been good at doing just what I needed to get by. The thing is that high school was somewhat irrelevant. College mattered and so would graduate school. But seriously, high school? High school was the time to fall in love, play the guitar, go to the beach, and live life. Tell me, honestly, what would create better stories and memories? Junior-Senior prom or the mating patterns of squirrels? Okay, bad example. It would be interesting to learn about a squirrel's mating pattern, but hopefully you get the point.

Back to wasting effort. Some of my high-school friends had higher GPAs than I did. They also planned on applying to CSUN. But they, for some ungodly reason, were enrolled in SAT classes. They were nervous, they had flash cards, you name it. Why? I didn't get it at all. That was wasted work. They would produce nothing by doing that. This is what I mean when I say, if the work produces nothing of value or of consequence, then don't bother.

In fairness, I knew that I would do well in the math section of the SAT. As for the English section, since English was officially my fourth-language, I knew it would be a tougher nut to crack. So, I read close to 1,000 comic books and probably close to thirty novels the summer before 12th grade. In the end, although I didn't "study" for the SAT, I did something else that helped me indirectly. I did the things that helped fuel my imagination and more importantly, my passion for stories.

###

Fast forward to this past January when I completed Aces. My mentor was so excited about it, that when I asked him to give me some guidance with the query letter, he told me to hold off on that. He took my manuscript and approached agents that he knew--agents that he had worked with in the past.

My lazy-gene kicked in. Why work on this horrible thing called a query letter, if I really didn't have to. However, I decided that some effort would probably make sense. After all, as much as I appreciated the desire to help me, I didn't know what would or could happen. But frankly, beyond a half-hearted attempt at the query, the months of January through March were just that--half-hearted. Instead, I worked on a new novel.

So what happened? From January until July of 2011, three amazing agents were considering my manuscript. The third agent sat on it for three months. I know it's easier to say no than it is to say yes. The maybes are the worst. But I got valuable insight from three great agents.

As I mentioned in my last post, I knew it wouldn't end well. None of them represented my genre, short of an author or two who were house-hold names. So to pick me up would be very very irregular.

In early Feb, the first one passed. In late March, the second one passed.

In April, when I finished the first draft of my new novel, I woke up from my lazy stupor and started reading on the topic in ernest. Some of my twitter friends, specifically @KatLovesBoho (Kathryn Sheridan Kupanoff) and @IamJPRoth (Jo Perfilio) gave me the type of feedback that helped me get it to a point that was closer.

In July, the third agent finally said no. That's when I got guidance from the great James Scott Bell, which got my query letter to the 90% mark. Then I reached out to Writer's Digest, 2nd Draft service. And finally, when I got more feedback from new agent Lauren Ruth, I knew that I was finally ready.

At this point, each and every word has been looked at, dissected, and washed with a toothbrush so many times that I can't imagine a query letter that would do a better job of capturing my story. And even then, it may not be enough. *Le sigh*

"Wait!" you must be yelling. "Nearly five stinkin' months on a one page letter. Five months to create 250 words? And that may still not do it? This sure seems like a lot of work for little value."

I think the math points to less than two words per day. Not very efficient. But this is a case where the work you put into the query letter is directly correlated with the improved probability of landing an agent.

Here's the thing about the publishing world. To get published by a major publisher, you need an agent. To get an agent, you need to query them. Each agent gets an average of 200-300 query letters a week. Some into four digits digits. If they like the query letter, they will ask for pages from your manuscript. No agent, no major publisher. So how do you get noticed by an agent? No, spraying perfume on the email query letter will not do the job. And even your keen insight into the mating patterns of squirrels will not do it.

The way you get noticed is two step process: (1) write an amazing query letter then (2) hope and pray.

I've got the hoping-and-praying bit down. And for once, I feel good about the query letter.

Fight the good fight!

What Justin Bieber Can Teach Aspiring Authors

Say it ain't so, Ara!

Before you think I've jumped off into the deep end and have purchased a Bieber-Fever T-shirt, or have replaced all my conservative ties with purple ones, please take a deep breath, relax and read on.

My wife ordered Justin Bieber's documentary/movie ("Never Say Never") a couple of weeks ago. My boys (5 & 7) seem to enjoy his music, and my wife (who is always looking for any opportunity to show our boys that hard work pays off) made popcorn and turned down the lights.

This was my opportunity! Exit stage right. I was about to get nearly two hours of uninterrupted writing time. Score, right? Well...

It took about seven minutes until my wife called for me. I knew I should have put the noise-canceling headphones on sooner, but alas, I hadn't.

"What?" I asked, although it wasn't really a question--it was an accusation.
"You've got to see this." That's code word in our home. It means, come downstairs and check this out. Because, if you don't, we will all be disappointed in you.

I may have uttered a couple of expletives. I may have even said, "No one understands my pain." I may have.

I must admit that I walked downstairs having prejudged Bieber as another "created-in-the-studio" artist. No talent, but a phenomenal marketing engine. Thoughts of N-Sync & Spice Girls came to mind.

I went to the den and to my surprise, my boys (thunder and lightning) were watching this movie. I mean really watching it. Anyway, I walked over, sat on the arm of the couch and next thing I know, 90 minutes had elapsed and I was entertained beyond my expectations.

I went back to my office and sat in front of my manuscript, but instead thought of this young man's journey and the road ahead. It became apparent to me that if someone studied his road to success, then maybe on some level, we could apply it our own artistic journey. The journey of transforming from a writer into a published author.

12 things Justin Bieber can teach an aspiring author:

1. Create content that meets your audience's tastes

As writers, we have heard this before -- first, write a great book. I agree. But what's great to a romance reader, is not great to a YA reader. Know your audience. Ideally, you are a member of that audience. In the case of Bieber, the type of music he loved was the type of music he wrote. He understood what made him love artists like Usher, or Boyz II Men.

There are a lot of questions floating around genre. You must understand why an agent cares and why the editor needs to know. But think about it from your perspective as well. Who will want to read this story? Who is your tribe? "My novel will appeal to to all current members of the Whig political party." Awesome, you're adressable market (the total market that could be converted into a paying customer) is a total of seven people.

2. Never stop improving your craft

I was amazed to see how this young man spendt countelss hours with his vocal trainer/coach. Yes, my friends, he actually sings when he's performing live--no lip sync here. In fact, in the movie, he had strained his vocal muscles so much that he had to cancel a show.

Understand that the two core elements that make you a better writer are: writing & reading. And by definition, those are on-going elements. Therefore, your education never ends. There is no such thing as "I am there now." That's an abstract notion. There is no "there" to get to, because it only ends when you've taken in your last breath. You work hard every day... oh wait, that's number three.

3. Hard work

You must work hard every day--but also be smart. Tim Ferris ("4-Hour Work Week") asks the question, are you being active or effective. Set goals (word count, marketing plan, etc) then go after them with passion and focus. You never make excuses. You never accept excuses. You are not only your own toughest critic but you must also be your strongest advocate.

When no one wanted to sign Bieber, he and his manager hit the streets--planes, trains and automobiles. He went from one radio station to another. Just he and his guitar. He sang live and won over the DJ's. And he started building an audience. He built his platform by hard work and determination. No excuses.

4. You can create your "Platform"

In the movie, Bieber's manager (Scooter) tells the story of how none of the labels wanted to touch him. I paraphrase: "You need the platoform. He needs Disney or Nickolodean. You nead the machine." 

Yes, the platform is important. How will people know who you are? How much work will it take to generate a buzz about this new artists? What the labels didn't understand was social media: Hundreds of thousands of You Tube viewers + thousands of Twitter followers = platform (a true fan base). This young man had a monster of a platform. Which leads to...

5. This Social Media thingy may be real

More of your potential customers (i.e. readers) spend eyeball time on their computer/iPad/smartphone than on TV or the NY Times. Understand what this means. You need to have a presence in where they're looking. Doing poetry readings at Chuck E Cheeses will not get you the audience you need. Also, you need to have an honest voice. You need to be interesting and relevant and entertaining (not like a clown, but you know... entertaining). You have to be humble. You have to be you. 

Your voice as a writer is that special, unique way you say things. Your followers will follow you because you're interesting and relevant. And when you have followers, don't be a snob. Everyone loves the underdog. Everyone wants to be recognized as one of the people that helped a talented individual breakthrough against impossible odds. Treat them with the respect that they deserve.

6. Good Hair makes all the difference

7. The advocate

Scooter is Justin's manager. This guy belived in Bieber when no one else wanted to touch Bieber. He saw the talent when Bieber was barely fifteen (on You Tube by the way -- that's how Justin was discovered). He knew there was something there. And through all the rejections, he was never dissuaded. He worked even harder.

Many aspiring authors, myself included, are searching for the right agent. I emphasize right. Not every phenomenal agent is necessarily the right fit for you. For my day job, I have hired hundreds, interviewed thousands. I only hire on fit. Fit matters.

I know its tempting to jump on the first agent that shows interest. But this is a long-term relationship. The fit needs to exist for both of you. You are both investing your time/money on a joint veture. The right person is everything. First Who, then What.

8. The connector

Even with an advocate, what Scooter needed was someone who knew someone. He went to Usher. Usher had the power, prestige and connections to help pave the way. Usher knew Scooter so he agreed to listen to this "kid." This kid, sang an Usher song acapella (no music, just his voice) and blew Usher away. As Usher says in the movie, "This was a no brainer." Maybe. But so far, no label had even considered Bieber. Usher was the connector. He found Bieber the producer, who in turn got this young man's music published.

You never know who will help you. I find that the writing community has a lot of gems. And I am not referring to just their talent. But I mean as humans. They want to help. They want to give back. Behave like a professional. Be a connector for others. Do it, even when you're a relative nobody. Help others. If you love something you read, tell the world. Karma has interesting a way of helping you down the line.

9. You must be born left-handed



10. Love those who love you

Treat your fans--your followers--with respect. They will be your wave to success. Treat them as if your career depends on it. Because it does.

At concerts, his team goes out and upgrades seats for fans. Or give them free tickets if they were left without seats. It's the little things that converts a fan into a believer, and then into a loud chorus of appreciation. They will spread the word about you. This is the essence of word-of-mouth. And in today's democratized digital age, you never know who will be that person who will advertise you in ways that no full-page ad in the NY Times could ever dream of touching.

11. You must know how to dance



12. The right team, the right attitude

I was impressed at the loyalty of his team. Sure, they are with the fastest growing artist in the world. Sure, they are now rolling in cash. But they were with him when he was a nobody. It wasn't easy for the first few years. There was nothing there. Yet, they stuck it out together. As I watched them in the movie I noticed something else. They were a family and they had the right attitude.

Surround yourself with people who care about you and your dreams. Don't dwell in the negative stuff. Rejection letters are a part of the game. Please, oh please, don't post them on your blog. Don't badmouth the agent who "clearly is blind since you're the best thing since JKR, in fact, she stole your idea about Harry what's-his-name." Argh! Don't burn bridges--this is a interconnected highway with many connections. But more importantly, don't demean others in this industry who are trying their best. It's not easy. It can't be. Think about it and you'll get it. Finally, it's a small industry. When you attack one, you attack a few hundred people down the chain, and you show that you are not a professional. When you are dealt a bad hand, remind yourself why you write in the first place. I don't know about you, but I write because I have to. Because my sanity depends on it. Because now that I know I can, how could I ever pretend otherwise?


Fight the good fight!

Business Travel Doesn't Alway Suck

Actually, that's not true. I change my mind. Business travel does suck.

But sometimes... just sometimes... something unexpected makes it all worthwhile.

My Tweeps (Tweeps = Tweeter Peeps (Peeps = My Peoples (Peoples = you know... people... a lot of 'em))) got a handful of tweets from me when I was on my latest trip in San Diego.

I shared a picture of the marina from my room... If you haven't been to San Diego, find an excuse. It's one of those places that gets a hold of you and does not let go.

The trip itself was good. Conferences, coffee, workshops, coffee, one-on-ones with experts, coffee, meet new people, coffee, strategy sessions, and... let's see... did I mention coffee?

From 7 AM until approximately 6:30 PM I was busy with this stuff. And typically, my brain is fried when I go to these things. So much information, limited capacity left in my brain, and that typically results in no more juice left to be creative.

This time, it was a bit different.

Maybe it was the weather.

Maybe it was this statue that just spoke to me.

Maybe it was the coffee.

Or maybe it was the fact that I was still on a high from the James Scott Bell seminar that kickstarted the revisions of Rocky Peak.

Whatever it was, I had a phenomenal three nights of writing. From Sunday evening (when I arrived) to Wednesday afternoon (when I left), I had accomplished two things:

(1) I had added all the new scenes that I had identified ~ 12k words in 3 days
(2) I had completed the manuscript

And boy am I proud of how things have come together with this story. I am now doing a final read-through before I send off a copy to my mentor Michael Levin and my wife.

So I thought I'd share a couple of additional pictures. My "Hotel Room Office" and the elements that I use to get things done.

This is what's on my desk.

And when I look over my right shoulder, this is what I see.

It may be hard to figure out, but what I have on my window is a bunch of stickies.

Throughout the day, I jot down ideas.

It may be a new scene...

An inconsistency...

A good line...

A question...

or a reminder to further peel the onion layers of the plot challenges...

These are the things that bring everything together. The little accents that make the pieces flow with texture.

When I was revising, as I addressed a sticky, I would move it off of my "To Do Window" and set it aside in my "Done" pile. This is a very effective method that I've used for more than just writing. It comes from a project management methodology called SCRUM. Maybe I'll tell you guys about this rapid and agile process for getting things done in a future post.

Finally, Here's a blow up of my desk with some explanation

Research Material: 

• My iPad with all the Evernote research in front of me.
• My Revision plan -- A few sheets that includes the plot summary

The Avatar:

• That's my now infamous Moleskin notebook and pen that are my avatar on Tweeter

Music:

• Self-explanatory. In this case, I was listening to Evanescence

The JSB Flashcards:

• Read my post on James Scott Bell's seminar and some of the amazing tools I learned to use

Scrivener in Action:

• Read my post on why I love Scrivener so much here and here

Coffee:

• Really? You need me to explain this?

Fight the good fight!

A Weekend to Remember

I must confess, sometimes I can be a snob.

The Myth, the Man, the Master
James Scott Bell

Not over silly things, mind you. Well... okay, I can be a coffee snob. But any writer will tell you, coffee is one thing we should not take too lightly. But I digress.

No, I'm talking about being a snob over what I "already" know.

The thing is that if I learned something, if I have experience in the domain, if I feel that I've paid my dues and now I'm a bit of an expert, then I don't want to be treated like a novice. After all, I am an 'expert' now.

I've chronicled my challenge-paved path to writing before, but I think it's worth explaining again. For years (eight to be exact) I fiddled with a manuscript. On-again, off-again, but yes -- eight stinkin' years. And in the end, this manuscript was categorically bad.

It's sobering to admit something like this. But I have always been my best (or worst) critic. Of course, I didn't understand what made it stink. I just knew a bad smell when I sniffed it!

To the rescue: James Scott Bell's book on the craft --  Plot & Structure. I can't properly explain how much it helped me. As I read the pages, I became convinced that he wrote this for me. I had no quota and no goal. Every silly plot twist, flat character, and boring dialogue that you can think of, I was guilty of committing to paper. All of 'em!

So I dove into JSB's book. I like to believe that I became an expert on the material. And the result was that I completed the first draft of Aces in a matter of weeks. 8 years and I produced junk. 12 weeks and I had a complete novel. After I was done revising and editing, I started my second full-length novel, Rocky Peak. Same results.

Therefore I felt like I had it all down. I am the master. "I can probably teach that book," I thought very (very) quietly. Then I saw the posting of the "Seminar" by JSB. In LA, less than 10 miles from me.

Full Disclosure: I thought the seminar was for beginners. NOT me! I got this. I'm D man! What can he possibly team ME?

The reality is that I was struggling with the revisions phase for Rocky Peak. I felt like I was getting close, but something was missing. I couldn't put my finger on what exactly. This is where my snob-like mentality was my biggest obstacle. Once I got off my high-horse, I registered and in that act alone, things started to open up.

Last weekend, June 4th and 5th, I attended Jim's seminar "Novel & Screenplay Intensive." I walk in and there he is. Either he's very tall or I'm really short (okay, keep your opinions to yourself!). And this is when I knew I was in for a great weekend. Jim is a humble man. You would never know that he's a best selling novelist, a talented writer, and an expert teacher of the craft. Because he comes across as if he's still learning, but wants to share what he knows. In the business world -- in the domain of leadership -- we call this type of person a Level-5 leader (as explained in Good to Great by Jim Collins). Mr. Collins says Level-5 Leaders "...display an unusual mix of intense determination and profound humility." This statement personifies James Scott Bell.

A true expert isn't someone that hoards the knowledge, but one who willingly shares the knowledge for the overall improvement of the tribe (in our case, the writing community). And share he did. Some of us at the seminar joked that JSB is like Master Yoda. Although considerably taller, and less green!

One of the wonderful things about seminars is the people you meet. Yes, some were like me: working on getting their first novel published. But then there were others who had already published many novels. These are experts! They make a living writing novels. And they were at the seminar! Learning, taking feverish notes. No, you are never done learning and every novel you write will have its unique challenges. As a writer, I felt transformed and reinvigorated.

The seminar was filled with tools, techniques, and phenomenal examples from novels and movies. What he taught, sunk in. I mean really deep. I can't think of a technique or tool as a theoretical idea anymore. There are examples engrained within me. I do have a very long list of movies that I want to watch now, but that's a personal issue.

I hope that what he taught us will be released in his next craft book because there are nuggets of brilliance there. I don't want to give details about the seminar. So no real spoilers here (okay maybe one!).

At the end of day one, Jim showed us a tool that was worth the price of any seminar, book or on-line workshop he gives. He calls it the "12 Signpost Scenes."

If you've read his Plot & Structure book, or Art of War for Writers, or Revisions & Self-Editing, a lot of the "Scenes" will be familiar. But what he does here is he provides a framework for these critical scenes. The general flow, the main disturbances and "Doorways of No Return" and clearly articulated timeline.

Before you "purists" who write from the seat of your pants get all wound up, this is a simple exercise that helps you identify the big scenes, but just as important, you identify the big GAPS! That's it. You can stop there if you want. But oh, it gets better. I promise you.

I got home that first night and prepared my 3x5 cards for the "12 Signpost Scenes." And you know what? The problem that I faced with Rocky Peak suddenly became clear. There it was! I made that one correction, then the pieces magically started to fall into place. It was magic. It is magic. And Jim Scott Bell is a master magician of the craft.

I am a better writer as a result of this seminar. I have met other great writers. And I am in awe of JSB.

Now, if you don't mind, I have revisions to work on.

Fight the good fight!

One Year Later - Paris & The French Open

Those who follow my rants on Twitter know that last week I was on a business trip in Paris.

Couple of cool things about that:
(1) It turns out that exactly one year ago I was also in Paris. So this was an anniversary of sorts.
(2) It was on that trip where the idea for my novel, Aces, bubbled up to the surface

This trip gave me an opportunity to snap pictures of the "things" that inspired the opening chapters of Aces.

I am elated that my third most popular post on this blog is the chapter 1 excerpt of Aces. So, I thought I'd share what I "saw" with you.

As I've mentioned many times before, Aces was born in Paris, at the Pullman Hotel.

It so happened that the French Open had just started... French Open? No, that's not like a swap meet or an open house. That's one of four major tennis tournaments (grand slams) that happens during the year. Both last year and again this year, many of the pro athletes stayed at the Pullman.

While on the elevator, headed to the 23rd floor, I met Dominika Cubilkova.
It went something like this:
     Me: "Hi"
     Her: "Hello"
     Me: "Good luck today"
     Her: "Thank you"

Okay, it wasn't that pitiful, but it was not more exciting than that either. She did win that day, so I'd like to lay claim to her winnings for that day. Anyway, we were both headed for breakfast at the hotel's Le Montgolfier.

While I ate breakfast I saw a young guy staring at her like a love-starved pup. I wondered what he did? Was he a tennis player also? Maybe he was a young executive... or maybe he was there with his mom and dad :)

As I ate breakfast my writer's mind started to work quickly... by the way, the prosciutto ham, sharp cheese, fresh baguettes and everything else is to die for! As are the single serving Nutella packs... (excuse me while I clean my salivating mouth)

As I watched him, I thought, what if two people from very different, yet challenging worlds, fell for each other? What if all they wanted was happiness? And what if they had to choose between personal happiness and professional success?

In the opening chapter there is a scene with the individual thermos containers of coffee... this is what they look like. They are boiling hot!

The waitress that carried them had this determined look on her face. Dominika's huge tennis racket bag lay on the floor, but the waitress maneuvered around it with grace. So I thought, what if she hadn't?

You can see from these images that the view of central Paris is really pretty from up there.

I went to the office and all day this idea brewed. Thoughts of an opening scene populated my jet-lagged head. That night, when I returned to the hotel, I went to the bar. It has a very creative name... "Le Bar"

I melted into those plush seats. I sat with my iPad and started thinking, drawing, mind-mapping. I thought this bar deserved a scene or two as well.

That was one year ago.

Until then, I had not been able to finish a novel-length story before. There had not been enough for me to want to continue writing more. I lost interest and gas. But not with this one. I wanted to know what would happen to these two.

You never know when inspiration may strike. But when it does, we need to be in a position to jump all over it and bring it to life. Everything has the potential to evolve into a story. It's our job to find the story that lives in everyone we meet.

Fight the good fight.