by Tari Faris, @FarisTari
I worked with a lot of new authors over the past few months. And as I did, I noticed a patterned surface. There are seven bits of writing advice I seemed to give to every student on repeat. I am not claiming to have these seven foundational blocks mastered. In fact, my first drafts also have many of these exact problems. I just had to learn to recognize them and leave them on the editing floor during my revisions. I am guessing many veteran authors do as well.
So if you want to shake off the “beginning writer” feel to your writing. I have seven bits of advice for you as well.
I don’t have time to adequately deal with all 7 in one blog post so I will divide them up for a summer series. The other posts will come June 16, July 21, and August 18. ( These links will only work after the date has passed)
So where do we begin?
Exactly!
One of the biggest problems I see in early writing is where to start the story. Most of them start too early.
Never forget – Location, Location, Location!
I don’t mean to set it in Texas versus Alabama. That isn’t the type of location I am talking about.
This phrase was coined with selling real estate. We all know that a house in LA will sell for more than a house in Kansas. A house on the oceanfront will sell for more than a house a few blocks away. Why? Location. People will pay for being in the middle of it. Sure, it is cheaper to live on the outskirts of LA and drive in but who wants a two-hour commute? It is cheaper to drive thirty minutes to the beach, but people want to see it from their windows.
What does this have to do with writing? People are investing not just their money but their time in your book. If you don’t start in the thick of the story, they may not be willing to “commute” to find it.
In simpler terms, don’t start your story too soon. We don’t need to see the back story on the page first thing. The inciting action should happen in the first or second scene for that character. Sometimes it can even happen before the first scene.
I understand that the back story is important, and it can be woven into the story in a more powerful way than front-loading it. Ask yourself, where does the story really get interesting? Where do I really feel for my character? Start there.
Susan May warren calls it too much pipe. I love this. The phrase comes from her days in Russia. There was communal hot water heating. This meant that if your apartment was near the place where the water heated then your apartment was hot. But if you were at the end there was very little heat by the time the water got to you. Why? Too much pipe cooled it down.
It is the same with the story. You want to start where the water is hot. If you have too many words before the story is hot then the reader will wander away. Grab the reader with the hot part of the story.
Now, look at your story. Are you starting where the story is hot? Can you cut the first scene and make it hotter? Don’t be afraid to do that your first scene is your most important – make it your strongest.
Join me on June 16 as I talk about the next way you can shake off looking like a beginning writer.
Until then, make sure you don’t have too much pipe!
Leah Williams is back in the quaint town of Heritage, Michigan, and ready to try again to make her business a success. But blank slates are hard to come by, and a piece of her past is waiting for her there. Heir to the Heritage Fruits company, Jonathan Kensington is the guy who not only made Leah’s past difficult, he also seems determined to complicate her present as well.
Jon is trying to prove to the Heritage Fruits board that he, not his manipulative uncle, should be running the business. The board insists Jon find a new owner for the building that will house Leah’s business. To avoid forcing a buyout of Leah’s part of the building, Jon strikes a compromise with Leah, and the two go into business together. With her vision and his know-how, it might work. And Leah might realize he’s loved her since high school. If only he didn’t keep on shooting himself in the foot by boxing her out of important decisions.
Sparks fly in this romantic story of two people who must learn to trust both each other and the one who called them to this journey.
Available now for preorder! And visit linktr.ee/tarifaris to sign up for preorder rewards!
Tari Faris has been writing fiction for fifteen years but has been creating fiction in her head as long as she can remember. She is represented by Wendy Lawton at Books & Such Literary Management and is a member of ACFW and My Book Therapy. She was the 2017 Genesis winner, 2016 Genesis finalist, and 2014 Genesis finalist. In addition to her writing, she also works for My Book Therapy as a special project manager and writes for LearnHowToWriteANovel.com . When she is not writing or working, she spends time with her amazing husband and kids. In her free time, she loves coffee, rockhounding with her husband and kids, and distracting herself from housework. You can connect with her at www.tarifaris.com