Author: A.L. Buehrer

Categories
Fiction Writers' Advice Poetry Writing

Why Write Poetry?

If you normally write fiction, poetry may or may not be something you think much about. Maybe you’re so absorbed in mapping out your story-world, developing your characters, and fine-tuning your plot that you feel like writing poetry would be a distraction. After all, novel-writing is hard work, and takes focus. Why should you divert your creative energy into trying poetry?

I’ll admit now that I’ve written poetry for longer than I’ve written fiction. I don’t get absorbed in poetry-writing like I do with my novels. In fact, though I do consider myself a poet, I really don’t write poetry as often as I would like. The inspiration comes randomly and typically out of nowhere. But every time I find myself writing a poem, I can feel that I’m doing something constructive—not only for my growth as a poet, but for my fiction-writing as well.

Writing and reading poetry changes how you handle writing prose. I’m confident about that. Poetry stretches your descriptive power, and makes you search for a way to put a twist on everyday thoughts. When I write poetry my awareness of clichés and tired metaphors skyrockets.  Practicing these skills definitely crosses over into my prose-writing.

Goals for poetry are going to vary according to the poet—and according to the poem. A lot of the time, the poems I write are simply capturing a mood. I’m fairly abstract, and I don’t often write about specific situations or issues. A lot of the time I can’t really explain what a given poem is about, because it’s more about creating an emotional atmosphere than anything else. If I use what I’ve learned from writing poetry and apply it to my prose, I can create a vivid atmosphere for scenes in my novels.

You might have a more literal style. Supposing you write in plainer speech about definite subjects. You’re still improving artistically if you put thought into your work. You’re still playing creatively with words, learning to see things from unexpected perspectives and through new metaphors. This will force you to see situations in your fiction from new angles—which can do nothing but good for your prose and overall creativity.

So, even if you think you don’t have a talent for poetry and that your creative writing skill is limited to fiction, I would encourage you to try your hand at poetry even if it’s just as an exercise. And you might find you like it enough to continue composing poems for their own sake.

On a quick final note, I have an announcement to make. I really haven’t hyped this much, but I’ve just released a small book of my own poetry on Amazon. If you read poetry at all, check it out. I’m excited to finally share it with my readership.
Categories
Creating Characters Fiction Writers' Advice

20 Prying Questions for Your Characters

If you’ve done a lot of character questionnaires before, you probably know where your main character was born, the names and ages of their siblings, their favorite food, their favorite color…those things you timidly ask your new pen-pal in the first letter. But here’s the thing: there’s absolutely no reason to be shy with your characters. All those highly personal questions you would never ask a real person in an interview—those are the things you really need to know.

You could think up a lot of these prying questions, and I would advise you to think of some that would be particularly relevant to your character in their particular story. But to start you off, here’s a list of twenty deep questions to flesh out your characters.

1. How is your relationship with God?

2. Have you ever been in love?

3. Did you have a good childhood?

4. How is your relationship with your parents?

5. What makes you angry?

6. Are you comfortable with emotions?

7. What about you do you feel the world won’t accept?

8. What is your worst fear?

9. What’s something you feel completely incapable of?

10. Who would you die for?

11. What do you dream about?

12. What always makes you laugh?

13. What do you look for in a friend?

14. What are you most ashamed of?

15. What is your earliest memory?

16. What do you miss the most about your past?

17. Who do you owe the most to?

18. What would you change about yourself?

19. Have you ever come close to dying?

20. What do you hope for the most?

For best results, I would suggest writing the answers first-person in your character’s voice. You can use as many or as few of these questions as you want, and feel free to think up your own. I think you’ll find it gives you a lot of inspiration for character-arcs and even plot twists for your story.
Categories
Fiction Writers' Advice

5 Elements of a Fandom-Enabled Story

 

 
 
 
We all want to be the author of a story that triggers the explosion of a new fandom. We want our readers to be as excited to read our story as we are to write it. We want to inspire fan-artists to bring our scenes to life in their art. We want to inspire fan-fiction writers to use our characters and settings to sharpen their own skills. There’s nothing quite like seeing a truly satisfied fan-base spring up around a great story.
But what makes that happen? Okay, I’m not going to pretend I understand the magic and mystery of fandoms. I have no idea why fangirls and fanboys do what they do– OTP’s and headcanons and AU’s and all that—but when I look at the stories that spark these great fandoms, there are elements they all have.
I’ve isolated five for the sake of this post. I’m sure there are other things, but let’s look at these five for now:
1. Vivid Characters
Often really vivid. In fact, I would almost recommend pushing it a little. Lean into your characters’ unique qualities. If you find that magnifying your characters makes them feel flat or fake, deepen them rather than mellowing them out.
Your readers want characters that are so clear in their minds that they can survive outside the context of the book. This is the concept behind the alternative universe thing. If a character is self-contained enough, we can imagine what kind of a high-school student they would be. Think about your characters now. What would be constant if you changed up their situation. That’s what you need to emphasize to make them real. Put them in a completely different role. What doesn’t change? That’s who they actually are. Play it up.
2. Humor
I just wrote a whole post about how essential this is. The ability to amuse people with your writing is a super-power. Don’t overlook it. People remember the humorous parts of stories. They’re going to re-read the funny scenes in your book. Your characters’ quips and clever lines might even enter your readers’ repertoire of in-jokes.
Though fiction can accomplish a great deal more than simple entertainment, readers greatly appreciate being entertained. If a story makes me laugh, that’s a solid sign that the author is succeeding in entertaining me in the way many of us crave the most.
3. A “Wow” Element
I couldn’t think of anything more technical to call this. The “Wow” element is something that sparks a reader’s imagination. It can manifest itself in countless ways—a fascinating culture or event in historical fiction, an amazing species of dragon or a magical object in fantasy—a unique alien race or impressive use of technology in sci-fi. Readers want to be captivated by something interesting. I doubt that I’m the only one who is often attracted to stories initially by something about them that is simply cool.
4. Emotions
All of them. If there’s one thing that’s obvious about fandoms it’s that they want “all the feels.” But don’t get hung up on one emotion. Tragedy is great, we love sobbing. But nobody really wants to cry for the entire book—in fact, I doubt that it would be physically possible. We want to feel rage, jealousy, delight, terror, embarrassment, wonder, curiosity, satisfaction…on and on it goes. If we don’t get the whole ride, we feel kind of cheated.
I’m not that great with this one sometimes, I’ll admit. I get pretty caught up in the intricate workings of my plot and sometimes forget that, though a complex sound plot is a good thing, nothing can beat a story that makes you feel things. All these emotional ups and downs connect a reader with a character and make them care about what happens next.
5. Originality
Originality is so sought-after and so elusive. It’s hard to measure and define—and probably impossible to teach. I suppose there’s really nothing original under the sun, and yet everyone knows a rip-off when they see one. Some new authors obsess so much over originality that they paralyze themselves for fear of doing something that’s been done before. Still others seem to make no attempt and cut and paste nearly to the point of plagiarism.
I think the key to originality is a well-exercised imagination. Don’t be afraid to play with an idea in your head. Keep your possibilities open. Try putting that spin or this twist on what you’ve got. Mix, match and crossbreed those wild ideas in your head. After all, isn’t that the fun part?   
Categories
Fiction Writers' Advice

5 Reasons Your Writing Needs Humor

As seriously as you might take your writing, you probably agree that good writing usually requires a splash of well-written humor. Whether it’s witty banter between characters, quirky relatable situations, or outrageous misadventures, we always crave a little laughter at some point in a novel—and even in shorter works.

But still, somehow, we can forget that from time to time when we caught up in the actual adventure of writing. It’s easy to get distracted by the profound impact of our themes or the dramatic arcs of character-change. I often lose sight of other goals when I’m engrossed in building up to what I hope to be a brilliant plot-twist.

Maybe there are great works of fiction and prose out there with no humor at all, but why deny yourself the obvious advantages it gives to your fiction?

Reason #1

  • It gets the reader’s guard down. You really want to do whatever you can to get your reader warmed up to you. Nothing breaks the ice like a good joke. I know from observing my own reactions as a reader that humor momentarily turns off that raging hyper-critical part of my mind that tries to distract me from enjoying fiction at all.

Reason #2

  • It’s a chance for characterization. Plus, it’s a surefire way to amp up a given character’s likability and humanity. Most people have some kind of a sense of humor way down inside. Think of the people you know. Try to pinpoint the different flavors of humor you have encountered. (And remember, it’s always okay to steal directly from real like.) Take humor as another chance to make a character unique.

Reason #3

  • It connects with the reader. A character can make me laugh with (or at) them before they can get any other emotional reaction from me. I might never care about their sad predicament if they’ve never made me laugh. Everyone wants to laugh. When a writer can deliver humor that I appreciate, that establishes instant trust. This writer cares enough about me to give me what I want as an audience.

Reason #4

  • It breaks up monotonous mood. Some books are sad, some are suspenseful, some are sweet, and some are scary. But if every paragraph has the same mood, at least for me, the overall impression in the end is that it was boring. Humor has a great way of breaking emotional tension and putting a surprise spin on situations. This can really liven up a story for me.

Reason #5

  • It improves the reader’s overall perception of the writing. If a book made me laugh—even just a couple of times—chances are, I’m not going to put it down, and I’m not going to tear it up in a review. I know humor isn’t easy, and if a writer goes out of their way to add some in, they’ve got promise as far as I’m concerned. 

If you’ve convinced yourself your message is just too important to joke about, just remember that even Jesus used humor to get through. (Occasionally even sarcasm—just a little note for the sarcasm-hating crowd.) We’ve heard very serious pastors and Sunday-school teachers and Robert Powell repeat him so often in the most sanctimonious way possible that I don’t blame anybody for getting a little deaf to it. The point is, if you have something important to say—something you want people to remember—make them laugh!

Categories
Fiction Writers' Advice My Books NaNoWriMo

Seven things I learned from NaNoWriMo

 

This year was my first attempting National Novel Writing Month’s great 50k words in 30 days challenge. I’ve been hanging around on the sidelines wondering if I have what it takes for several years now, and abruptly—here in the middle of my senior year of college—I decided it was my time.

  And I did it. I actually surpassed 52k on November 30th, claiming my official win plus. My odds actually hadn’t been that great. If I was like a lot of participants, attempting their first novel, I doubt that I could have done it. But even if I hadn’t been able to pull it off, I think it would have been well worth the try, because doing something that extreme teaches you things.

  So, without further ado, here’s what I learned on the front lines of NaNoWriMo.

1.    I learned how to save images I edited in Photoshop so that the internet would acknowledge their existence. Big revelation. I figured out how to do this when saving my cover image for my NaNo novel. You “save for the web.” Never would have thought of that. Ha. I’m so techno-savvy.  But I’m glad I got this figured out, so now I can edit title images for this blog, and stick them on Pinterest and stuff. Better late than never.

 

2.    Better late than never. That’s something else I learned. I was 10k words behind up until Thanksgiving break. I kept seeing people on the forums freaking out over being 2k behind, or so. I gritted my teeth and caught up suddenly in the home stretch. It was totally possible!

 

3.    Along the same lines, I discovered the hidden true moral of “The Tortoise and the Hare.” We were supposed to win NaNo by way of the tortoise’s strategy. Just one foot in front of the other, 1,667 words a day. But if you look at my chart of daily word count throughout the month, you see that’s not what I did at all. There were about ten days where I hit and exceeded the target word-count. I worked in hare-like sprints. Guys, the only reason the hare lost the race was because he fell asleep. Therefore, the true moral of the story was: no sleeping.

 

4.    Stopwatches are better than timers.This is a crazy fact that I discovered, and it may quite possibly be only true for me. When I set a thirty-minute timer, I was lucky to get 500 words down in that time. I thought that was my limit. Then I set a stopwatch. When I hit 500 words, I stopped it–always between 15 and 12 minutes. Crazy.

 

5.    All dialogue should be argumentative underneath. This keeps it from getting boring and loosing connection with the plot. If there’s always some sort of conflict of interests underneath the conversation, it becomes a lot more logical, and easier to know what the character should say next. Even if the conflict is very small and petty, it’s going to help.

 

6.    Collapsing bridges and crashing helicopters are good things. I think this is self-explanatory. I mean, everybody knows this, right?

 

7.    And lastly, writing is not supposed to be as serious as we try to make it all the time. I wrote this novel to prove that to myself once and for all. We novelists spend so much time agonizing over unattainable perfection. I’m done trying to take myself so seriously. We have one of the most fun occupations in the world. It’s time to cut loose and enjoy it.

 

 

One more thing before I go. Here is the cover of my NaNo project. It’s never going to be published. I mean, it’s written from the perspective of my childhood imaginary enemy. I’m in it as a character and mentioned by name, and portrayed in a rather negative light, I must say. I needed to write a piece of literature with absolutely no pressure hanging over it, so that’s what I did.

  But now, back to reality. I’ve got to try to attain perfection with the draft of a dystopian novel I’ve got scheduled for release in February 2017.

  Serious business. 

 
Categories
Uncategorized

Antihero: a protagonist characterized by lack of traditional heroic values

There’s a dictionary-style definition for reference. Examples of this kind of character range from Disney’s Elsa to Marvel’s Loki. There’s probably an even wider spectrum than that. For some reason, people are drawn to characters who wreak havoc. I’ve come across several articles suggesting why.

  “They embody our hidden desires…”

  “They allow us to embrace the darkness in us…”

  “We identify with them because they show us who we really are–”

  Okay, stop. I used to think I was a cynic, but looking around, I seem to see humanity in a slightly more positive light than the average know-it-all writing on literary subjects for trendy blogs. Is it really just me, or is there something about these statements that doesn’t quite ring true?

  I kind of doubt somehow that we actually love antiheros for their moral shortcomings. I mean, if we really liked evil that much, there are plenty of villains that could be said to “embody our hidden desires” a lot better than any antihero ever could. Because of arguments like the above, Christian fiction tends to cautiously avoid antiheros. I think that’s a mistake. I think we need them. At least with those of us that are trying to stay on the right track anyway, I believe that the sympathy that antiheros arouse may come from the good part of our nature—that elusive “image of God” that we are all created in.

  Here’s what I mean:

1.      We have all know how it feels to wreak havoc

Think about it. Sometime in your past haven’t you run off in a fit of panic and thrown all Arendelle into a devastating mid-summer freeze? Haven’t you ever killed eighty people in two days? I mean on your own scale, of course. Our own mistakes are always the worst. Who doesn’t know how it feels to tear things up? Is it because we really, deep inside want to tear things up, or is it because we know how it feels and can imagine it so vividly?

2.       Stars shine in the dark

I’m a fan of high-contrast. The thing about antiheros is not that there is evil in them, it’s that there is good in them! That’s actually what makes them compelling. The realization that there is something buried inside a character that gives them a chance is what keeps us hanging on, white-knuckled. If you’ve seen Thor: The Dark World, you know it’s peppered with hints at this element in Loki. That singular moment when he shields Jane from the aether shines almost bright enough to blind you with hope.

3.      Desire for redemption

Hope for what? For Darth Vader, for example. Okay, Darth Vader is crossing over into villain territory. Still he illustrates the point. Even though that robotic black mask isn’t half so affecting as Loki’s incredibly emotive face, let alone Elsa’s highly expressive animated visage, Luke’s not alone when he feels the conflict in the once-good villain’s soul. It seems that there is something in us that thirsts to see redemption even after horrible things have happened. Especially then.

  How’s that for a hidden desire?
Categories
Uncategorized

Author Interveiw at However Improbable

  Hey, guess what? I got to do an interview on another writer’s blog. Many thanks to Jack at However Improbable for hosting me! Here’s the link. Check it out.

http://www.jacklewisbaillot.com/2015/11/i-dont-trust-you-miss-ethel-dont-go-in.html
Categories
My Books

Interveiw With Valhalse Coharnah, antagonist of The Stardrift Trilogy

Sorry for the pause. That was for suspense, of course. Very calculated. Now, here’s what you’ve been waiting for: an interview with the villain.

 

What is your goal as the ruler of Divizah?

 

My aspirations change with the wind. I’ve told some people I would resurrect theocracy—only partially in jest. I used to be such a romantic. I would do anything if I would be worshipped for it. But after a while I realized that gods are all too often manipulated by those who take a more underhanded approach. I don’t know what I want right now, besides possibly to shake off certain political shackles—alliances, that’s what they call them—that keep Divizah so pitifully domesticated.  

 

How do you see yourself?

 

I…I’m not sure. It depends very much on perspective. Much of what I’ve been through has stayed with me. I see myself through the eyes of those around me sometimes. I used to try to see that way more often, but I grew to hate it. I hate what other people see, but I could care less if they continue to see it. People’s opinions don’t matter at all.

 

 

What is your take on humanity in general?

 

Humanity is ultimately tragic. So many people die chasing after something unattainable, impermanent, or altogether imaginary. A waste of lives. A waste of passion. I’ve tried reasoning with them. They don’t listen. Masses only trust their emotions—particularly their fear.

 

 

 

What is your greatest fear?

 

Fear? What would I be afraid of? I couldn’t say I have any fears…it wouldn’t be good for public relations. Everything’s alright most of the time. I used to think more about…things when I was younger, when I had just taken my position as sovereign. I’ve been trying not to brood so much lately. There isn’t any sense in worrying about it anymore…but I didn’t use to wake up in the night, like I do now.

 

Have you ever done anything you were ashamed of?

 

Shame very often comes from acting without weighing the consequences. I struggle with an internal discord between very passionate emotions and a need for a very strong strategy. You have to be extremely cautious as a Divizin sovereign. You live a public life and are constrained to meet rigorous expectations. Tiny mistakes still pile up in time, though. I’m both ashamed of everything and of nothing I’ve ever done.

 

From what do you derive satisfaction?

 

Nothing! No, I guess there must be something…some small thing. I like it when I walk into a room and I can feel a surge of awe run through everyone there. I enjoy paralyzing someone who attempts to oppose me. I have it down to an art. All of my human interaction has become very nuanced and adapted to create the desired effect. A Divizin sovereign is no mere mortal and never truly satisfied until they cease to be treated as such. I also like breaking glass. It has a guaranteed shock effect every time.

 

Is the Universe chaos or a plotted design?

 

Oh, a beautiful design—plotted no doubt, for self-destruct from the beginning of time, but nonetheless beautiful. The streamlined perfection of the design has always intrigued and, in light of everything that’s happened, almost amused me somehow. I think I’m beginning to understand now. With all the stardust, and heroism, and DNA and tears, it was all meant as a joke, after all–a bitter, morbid joke for those of us who get it.
Categories
My Books

Interveiw with Dahskay Onlore, Main Character of The Stardrift Trilogy

Now things get fun. Today, I’m staging an interview with The Stardrift Trilogy’s main character, Dahskay Onlore. Dahskay Onlore is an apprenticed radio astronomer working as an intern at her father’s Observatory in the mountains on the planet of Finzar. In Earth-years, she would be about sixteen when the story starts.

What are your favorite and least favorite things about your job at the observatory?

For one thing, I love the setting. The Ematosk Mountains are beautiful, and the emotional climate at the observatory is so peaceful and contemplative most of the time. It’s kind of a vacation setting. Then there’s the whole astronomy aspect. I love our subject-matter. It’s all so huge and fantastical, and the fact that our sole purpose is to listen to what the heavenly bodies are saying…that’s cool. (Laughs.) If you can’t see how cool that is, I can’t help you.

  Things that aren’t as cool would be the boring technical things and the computer work. I don’t like technology very much. And then there’s the fact that you’re kind of isolated up there and stuck with the same bunch of people all the time. That sometimes gets old.

 

How do you choose who to hang out with?

Well, when you’re working, you don’t often get to choose, but during breaks and the off-time we get every four days, I prefer to be with my brothers. Otherwise there are several girls that live in my dorm who I like. I like good communicators, quiet people, people with interesting stories. Some of the other interns aren’t really going into astronomy, so there are some that I have to search around for common ground with. But for the most part, a lot of the people at the observatory share that interest. It’s nice to be with people who have a passion for what you love.

 

Do you find it easy to trust people, and get along?

Yeah, usually, I’d say I do. I like to see people in reference to their experiences and know them for who they are. A lot of people dismiss other people too easily as this or that, and walk away, or run away, accordingly. I try to be patient and learn about people, and try to assume the best of them. I found it really pays off.

 

Do you consider yourself a heroic person?

I don’t know…I guess it depends on how you define a hero. Standing up for what’s right under pressure and standing by the people you love are important, I guess. Those are things I try to do. I would be willing to do whatever I had to do to help people who needed me. Self-sacrifice and hope are probably the virtues that I would say define a hero. I want to be that strong, but I don’t know for sure if I am, right now.

 

Do you think individuals are important in the grand scheme of things?

Wow…big question. As an astronomer, you spend so much time in light of the giant realm we call the universe. Really, you would think that people and their individual struggles and achievements would shrink by comparison. Sometimes I wish they would. But yes, I think people are infinitely important–as important as the universe is huge. It’s a mistake to separate individuals from the grand design. Everyone’s an essential part of it.

 

Do you believe in a higher power?

Yes. I’ve always believed in God, but there’s something about astronomy, and space travel as well, that just keeps emphasizing it. You can’t feel alone out there. I don’t really like space travel, but, with all the comfort and familiarity stripped away, that’s when you really know that it isn’t just your personal culture, your hometown, your planet. You get out there tens of millions of miles from all that, and your head clears, and you know it’s not your imagination.

 

If you could send a message to everyone in the universe, what would you say?

I’d tell them to listen. Listening is so underrated. People don’t seem to have the curiosity or the imagination to search for what might be calling them. You never can know what your destiny is really meant to be. Mostly just because it’s so celestial, and so huge, you can’t take it in. But if you listen, you might get some hints of what’s coming for you. And it’s not something bound to your home planet. Your life was never meant to be that small.    
Categories
My Books

The Publishing Story

And what a long story it is. I started writing The Stardrift Trilogy way back in 2008. Back then, I wasn’t actually planning to publish. I didn’t expect anyone outside my family to read my story. I was fourteen then, so that seemed a little bit grandiose to me.

But here’s how I started my publishing adventures. For anybody who doesn’t know, there are three ways you can get a book published these days. You can try to sell it to a traditional publisher (traditional publishing), you can do the entire thing yourself (self-publishing), or you can buy the services of a publisher and keep the rights (subsidy-publishing.)

  I chose to subsidy publish a bit rashly, I suppose. I found a subsidy-publisher called Westbow Press that would produce my books and distribute them in four months—that was about two years ago. There were really two reasons I chose to subsidy-publish: it was faster than traditional, and I doubted that I could market my books successfully to a traditional press.

So what happened to the four months? A number of things. When I decided to publish, I had already written the whole trilogy. To cut expenses, I intended to have all three books produced as a single volume. So, when I submitted them to Westbow, the three were one document.

The books passed content evaluation, meaning they found no copyrighted material, nothing that was against their publishing standards, and that the manuscript was legible. But there was a problem: they didn’t have the equipment to bind a novel that thick. So, I had to divide the document into two volumes, and re-submit it.

  At this point, I think there was some kind of miscommunication, because they thought they had to run the whole evaluation over again, even though they had already seen everything the first time through. This set the time back again, and to make matters worse (and very confusing) it didn’t pass the second time.

Turns out Westbow, in the middle of my project, decided to tighten up their standards of violence in the books they produced—cutting it down to about a PG, or possibly even G level. There is some blood and violence in the trilogy, and after struggling with attempts at down-playing it in revision, I realized I couldn’t reduce it any further without disfiguring the story.

  So, we pulled out and went over to the secular Abbott Press. But time was set back again. We picked slowly through the process with multiple strange little setbacks. But, at long last, the project was finished.

  That was my rather awkward break into the publishing world. I’m eyeing out both self-publishing options and a small Christian traditional press called Enclave Press for my up-coming novels. My hope is to start to establish myself with the Stardrift Trilogy. If you have any interest, check out “books” page on this blog, or simply search for The Stardrift Trilogy by A. L. Buehrer on Amazon, Barns and Nobel, or the Abbott Press Bookstore.

Privacy Policy