Pen Friends ~ Welcome Debut YA author, Christina June as she talks about her forthcoming book, It Started With Goodbye (See below for bio and summary!) SP: Welcome Christina! Can you tell us a bit of who you are and when you started writing?
Sure! I’m a mom, a high school counselor, a wife, a daughter. And a writer! I’ve always been a writer, more when I was younger, but I began writing novels with the goal of publication about four years ago.
You’ve sat down, know your characters, have a plan for writing, the plot is nailed down, and you’re itching to get started.
The first sentence comes out and…. sounds like a preschooler wrote it.
You try again, delete your second attempt, and then switch to paper and pen. That will help! Several crumpled papers later, your waste bin is starting to fill but not the pages. How do you get that perfect intro sentence? How do you set the mood, capture beauty, or develop your style?
If you ask kids what they’re most afraid of, I’d bet a lot of them would say, “the dark.” This isn’t an uncommon theme—the dark is a constant we must face on a daily basis, and it can be quite scary when we aren’t prepared for it.
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When the boat lands at the shore, a dozen villagers rush over shaking their heads and hands. I pull on my sticky shirt, loosening it from my chest before I jump out. I shouldn’t be here, but I play the whole dumb tourist thing again, and hope they buy it like the last village did…
The bench looked deceivingly inconspicuous, like if you sat on it, you could enjoy your brown paper bag lunch, watching pigeons in the park, without any life altering events…
But it can be these simple things that can be deceiving; where no one would expect to find their worst nightmare.
STYLE VERSUS VOICE: any ideas?As writers, we talk about voice on a regular basis. It’s what makes you, you–unique and individual, separate from every other person who has written about the very thing you are now rehashing.
But what is it about you that makes you wear the red dress with purple tights and galoshes instead of jeans and a pullover? It’s style—you’re not less you one way or the other, but it’s a choice about how you’re presenting yourself to the world—today.
The bench was deceivingly inconspicuous. So plain was the chipped white paint and creaky wood, it practically promised that if you sat on it you could enjoy your brown paper bag lunch, watch pigeons in the park, without any life altering events…
Finish this prompt in 500 words or less. Send us yours at thespinningpen@gmail.com . We will select our favorite to be shared with our readers.
Recently I reviewed a few new writers manuscripts and found they were making very simple but fatal mistakes. The result was terrible: their characters left no impression on me.
When we read a book, at most we want to fall in love with the characters. Not romantic love, but form a real connection to them—at a minimum we want to identify or sympathize with the MC and other sub characters or else the story won’t matter to us.
Here are a few pointers on how to connect readers with your characters.
Pen Friends ~ Thanks to everyone who submitted their prompts! Our selected prompt this week is written by Lily Cushman. Please enjoy her creativity! Please also enjoy Allison Voltaire’s prompt in the comments on the original post.
Prompt 1# Lily Cushman, Alaska, 17,
“Before the lights went out, I saw him,” Elisabeth whispered to Lyda in the dim light of the bomb shelter. “I swear that was Jack. But they pulled the soldiers out to get in the lorries. I saw him!”
“I believe you!” whispered Lyda. “But how are we going to find him again?”
“It’s always a matter of questions. We just have to ask the right person.”
“And not get shot,” Lyda supplied.
“Right. And not get shot.” Elisabeth didn’t know what to do.
Think back to high school (maybe you’re still in high school, and it’s not a far stretch of the imagination). Think about that girl who’s pretty, popular, kind, smart, and to top it off, the boy you have a crush on likes her. Or think about that handsome guy: the star of his chosen sports team, who coaches and teachers alike look the other way for him, has the newest car (or an awesome restoration), and has his pick of girlfriends.
No matter how nice or kind they are, you’re sort of annoyed by them, right? Even if you happened to be their best friend and they treated you well, you’d have days where you’re just jealous and resentful of how easy life seems to be for them.
Now take that seemingly perfect human, and translate that into a character. Ugh.
Before the lights went out, I saw him…
Throw back to The City of Ember. Finish this prompt in 500 words or less. Send us yours at thespinningpen@gmail.com . We will select our favorite to be shared with our readers.
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