C. T. Suddeth

8 habits of great authors

(just gear your habits toward your genre/main character)

1. Think Like your Main Character: If you’re a man writing about a woman, think like a woman. I.e. always be your POV character.
2. Find the “Emotional Truth” of your character’s experiences: You must know your character’s past and motives & tie them in with others like them, because they will have similar problems, goals etc.
3. A Good Pop-Culture Reference Goes a Long Way: Music, Stars, TV shows etc. (might use made-up names)
4. Get Input From Real People: Co-writers, beta readers, critiquers, comments from people similar to your character
5. Use Slang Words at Your Own Risk: slang mutates too quickly to use in print
6. Keep It Moving: keep it simple & stay on the plot. I.e. KISS & RUN. (keep it simple stupid & run with the plot)
7. It’s Okay to get Dark: No genre is off limits anymore.
8. Find the Kernel of Hope: Even with a sad ending, leave a way out.
   Happy writing to you 
   

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Comma-tose

The major types of commas that writers need:

1. Clause independence: After a coordinating conjunction that links 2 independent clauses. E.g. I ate the whole pizza, and my wife never let me forget it.
2. Separation anxiety: Used for setting off a parenthetical element from the rest of the sentence. E.g. George Washington, the first president, was also a general.
3. Serious about series: Separating the elements of a series. E.g. I like pizza, my wife, and George Washington. (I included an Oxford comma, the comma before “and”)
4. Speaking of: Commas are need for dialogue and quotes. E.g. “I like pizza,” I said.
5. Omissions: Using commas to indicate omitted words. E.g. I ate the first pizza quickly, the second pizza less quickly. (omitted “I ate”)
6. Please repeat: using commas between repeated words. E.g. Whatever you do, do well.

   Commas have many other uses, so know when to use them and when not to. Until we meet again, happy writing to you.
   

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I try to be modest, and I don’t believe in bragging. But I make an exception for writers:

Have the arrogance to start your novel. Few people start one. You must believe in yourself and your storyline. Without your story, the world will lose a valuable story.

Have the arrogance to finish your novel. Even fewer see it to completion. You must believe it is worth finishing and presenting to the world.

Have the arrogance to edit it and hone it. Far fewer people have the courage to do this. You must believe it is worth the effort.

Have the arrogance to show it to critique groups and beta readers. . You must believe that is worthy of attention and development.

Have the arrogance to think that other people will want to read your novel. Why else have you gotten this far?

Have the arrogance to believe that editors and agents will want to read your manuscript. Otherwise, why bother to show it to them?

Have the arrogance to believe that a publisher will want to publish your manuscript. Otherwise, why did you send it to editors and agents?

Have the arrogance to believe that people will want to buy and read your novel. Otherwise, why bother going to book signings, book fairs, and promoting your book in other ways?

Have the arrogance to believe that reviewers and critics will like your novel. Otherwise, you will show it to no one.

Have the arrogance that your novel will make the world a better place. Why did you write to begin with?

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A writer (Dashiell Hammett, I believe) once said that when his story needed fresh air, he liked to introduce a gun into the situation. (I cannot find his specific words) He wrote crime/detective novels, so guns were a natural for him, but he meant to shake the story up. Guns are not the point. In other words, to keep the story from getting boring, let the plot make a hard-left turn. Here are just a few suggestions:

>Bring someone new into the scene. E.g. His ex-wife enters the room while he is with his girlfriend.

>Change the geography. E.g. The car goes off the road into an abandoned barn.

>Text message. E.g. Someone gets a text: I know who your real father is.

>Change the time: E.g. Rip Van Winkle wakes up 20 years later.

>Change the characters. E.g. Another old device: Surprise! I’m your wife’s twin sister.

>Change your main character’s behavior. E.g. Jekyll and Hyde, where he drinks poison.

>Change the weather. E.g. A sudden snowstorm.

>Okay, bring a weapon in. E.g. someone pulls a hand grenade.

These are just a few suggestions. Warning, make sure your gun fits the story and is fresh. This leads back to my favorite writing rule: Take the reader where the reader is not expecting to go.

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