TIME FRAMES, RESEARCH & THE VALUE OF WRITERS GROUPS

Sometimes the smallest things can trip up a writer. Almost happened to this one. But for the good eyes and critical thinking of my Writers Group, who don't even write the same genre as I, a piece of work I am working on would have continued with a significant error.

The problem came about because I changed the original time frame to fifteen years earlier. The reason isn't important; I just felt other elements would work better. In the process I failed to research that certain critical elements that couldn't be changed hadn't been developed by the new time frame, i.e. the Internet and emails not to mention certain "language" we commonly use such as BTW, FYI, LOL, etc.

Fortunately, one of the members in my Writers Group raised the issue. She wasn't sure but.... Stop the Presses and send out group "Help" messages to people of the appropriate ages and who lived in the story's location at the time of the story's time frame. Seems the Writers Group was on the money. And it was my daughter (!) who found the most "on the mark" piece of information needed.

Yes, the story can be "fixed", the time frame can be changed to fit the accuracy of that critical element - BUT what if I had not had the eyes and critical thinking of my Writers Group? Deep doo doo. That's what.

I had done research on car models and colors of the cars being used (not every color is produced by every car maker in a given year - something to check out). I had checked out the appropriateness of certain perfumes and men's colognes. But the Internet and the availability of email communication? Nope.

With so much technology evolving so quickly - and taken so much for granted by so many, writers need to be careful when incorporating any aspect of it in their writing. Once more, a butt was saved from the fire. Could have been a bonfire without that catch....

NEW RESOURCE FOR FICTION CRIME WRITERS

In today's QueryTracker email is an interview and notification of Carolyn Kaufman's first book for writers, THE WRITER'S GUIDE TO PSYCHOLOGY: How to Write Accurately About Psychological Disorders, Clinical Treatment and Human Behavior. It hits Borders bookshelves today - December 1, 2010.

How fortunate I am to have a great Borders bookstore right here. In fact, that's where our Writers Group meets.

This book, which I intend to gift to myself, is being praised by bestselling thriller writer and psychologist Jonathan Kellerman as "thoughtful, scholarly, comprehensive and a boon to writers aiming for accuracy when depicting the world of abnormal psychology and clinical treatment." Another bestselling author, Jilliane Hoffman, adds, "Every writer who even thinks about creating or explaining a character with a psychological disorder should have a copy on their desk, right next to their dictionary and thesaurus..." (which is where I will have my copy, BTW)

According to the article on QueryTracker, "Carolyn Kaufman's doctorate is in clinical psychology, and she is a former psychotherapist turned full-time psychology professor at Columbus State Community College in Columbus, Ohio. She is frequently consulted by journalists as an expert source, and her specializations are clinical/abnormal psychology and media psychology."

I know that I have often read her columns on QueryTracker and found them insightful and true in accordance with experiences and individuals I encountered during my career in the law enforcement/corrections field.

Even in the brief introduction provided in this morning's column the author talked about the differences in schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, psychotic and psychopathic and errors made in television and fiction when trying to use these illnesses to describe characters.

This book will be a treasure trove for any writer who desires to write credible stories with characters of depth and validity.

SUPPORTING OUR LOCAL WRITERS

On Saturday, December 4 from 11 AM to 12:30 PM, MWPA (Maine Writers and Publishers Alliance) member Jeff Foltz will be at the Bangor Public Library and then at the Rockport Public Library from 3:30 PM to 5:00PM with his new historical novel, Birkebeiner.

It has been a real treasure to find other local writers. Even more surprising is the LARGE number of published poets in the state.

Finding "First Readers" has been interesting as well. In addition to the writers in the Writers Group in which I participate, I recently "recruited" a select group of individual "First Readers." These are friends and associates who read mysteries and police procedurals simply as a hobby. After all, these are my would be buyers. Better to find out their thoughts, interests, opinions, etc.

Some seem to devour pages with almost daily - at least weekly - feedback and requests for the next chapter. Others have had personal "bumps in the road" to handle. Afterward they are quick to let me know, they are back at it with their feedback to follow. And others... Well, I'm not quite sure where they are.

This last group are mostly individuals who are still holding down full-time jobs. And we are all happy for them - even for those who could fold-it-up if they wanted. So maybe they are just busy with the business at hand. Who knows. But the one thing I don't do is to push the issue. One of the objectives is to write something the reader doesn't want to put down - can't wait to read the next page. So the absence of feedback is feedback after all.

BENEFITS FROM WRITERS CONFERENCES/RETREATS

Finished the chapter - polished and re-written 'til I'm blue in the face (like the corpse). But I've come to realize I would never have thought of this "new" first chapter without having gone to the retreat, without having been in that particular workshop, without having had the benefit of learning from an experience and published writer in a related genre.

There is just so much a writer can learn from reading "teaching" books, articles, email blogs, etc. Sometimes you just have to invest in being where the professionals are, making contacts with those who've walked the path ahead of you, creating networks that include people who will generously share their knowledge and will extend even more of that knowledge once you have gone home and are plodding along.

Courage and hard work are part of the journey. Writers Groups and then Friends in the Biz help, too. Always remember to say "Thank You" to those who extend a hand and the offer of helpful suggestions even when, at first, you think "I thought it was done. Oh, boggers!"

LIFE'S NOT EASY - NEITHER IS DYING

If you read the prior post, you know I am trying to write a challenging chapter. Challenging on several planes - for several reasons. Distractions come easily. At some points I welcome them. Like now. So I look out the office window at the beautiful blue sky with only a few white cotton ball clouds. The sun sparkles off the water that moves from west to east (for the moment. The current changes as easily as my nerves lately.). Fall has arrives in this part of the state and the largest oak tree along the shoreline has finally caught up, the leaves at the top a bright rusty gold while mid-way down they are still green. The pine tree across to its left is its ever-present green but dropping needles, I know.

I can see the trees on the opposite side of the shore, a rainbow of reds, oranges, yellows and greens both bright and dark. All the summer docks have been pulled up. There are no boats zipping, no jet skis skipping, no motor sounds. The water is quiet except of the wind. It has been windy this past week. Everything from blow-the-house-down windy to just breezy enough to blow down the leaves and send them bouncing across the lawn. "Just keep right on and into the woods," I urge from my spot. I have no time or desire to be raking. I am suppose to be killing my victim.

But I wrote this first draft some time ago. But it aside to mellow and not it is going into the fire of review and rewrite through the writers group. A NEW first Chapter I had not planned on, but there it is on my "to do list" along with some ironing that has been waiting nearly a month. And the large driveway garden that needs to be cleared for the removal of TONS of iris rhizomes. I couldn't remove them last Spring so I vowed to get rid of them this Fall. Must be done, even if it takes an ax to get the job done. (Hate those irises - ugly color.)

See? There are so many ways to avoid doing what must be done. I've completed the research. Have the dialogue. Know how the "device works. It's just the "getting to it" that keeps getting in the way.

It will be done, I know. It's just that she's such a nice person. And she's had a hard time of things. She thought life was just about to get better. It was all in the business of trusting and betrayal. Bad choices, poor thing.

STARTING WITH A "BANG"

Today I have to be in a "killing" mood. Sorry. That's just the way it is.

Good thing it's rainy and windy outside. Don't think a bird would have a chance holding its own. Even the squirrels and chipmunks have gone to ground.

The water is churning on the lake. Not a duck or loon in sight.

Perfect day to write a thriller scene - an entire chapter if I can stay in that place I have to go - see and feel what must be seen and felt. It may take days. For sure, there is no music playing in the background, not even the soft jazz I usually have muted to keep me company. No. Murder needs no company.

The opening of the book was never planned to be this way. But it seems the logical way. Even though, to be honest, it gives me the creeps.

I know the method. I know the killer. I know his motive. And I know the victim. I know them all too well. And because I know this killer I admit he scares me, even though I am the writer. Even though he is "fictionalized", he's based on others who are/were real. And I do not know for sure they are now dead. Murderers don't always see a court room, and even when they do they're not always sentenced to death row, and even then... Well, you know the reality of death row. Don't we all. Well, except in Texas maybe.

Remember, I just came back from the Writers Retreat where I read from the opening chapter of my novel-in-progress. The entire chapter was read in the workshop I attended. Got fairly good reviews actually. But then the workshop leader, Patrick Quinlan, published writer of thrillers, said words to the effect, "You need to capture the reader, the publisher, with a bang. Grab them by the throat. Show your victim being killed in the first chapter."

Then during a break, in a one-on-one, once I had the opportunity to outline the entire plot and characters in the book, he was even more emphatic.

And he was right!

It has now been four days and a long drive home that I have danced around this. Danced up close to it and then backed away. Do all mystery/police procedural writers dance this way when they have to go back into Hell? I don't know. I just know I have. Because I know that is where I have to go. Again.

Today is a killing day.

MAINE WRITERS & PUBLISHERS ALLIANCE FALL RETREAT

This past weekend was the 2010 Fall Writers Retreat sponsored and conducted by the Maine Writers and Publishers Alliance (MWPA) out of Portland, Maine. The setting was gorgeous. Never having been to Boothbay Harbor before, I have to admit it is a postcard advertisement for coastal Maine. And the staff at the Liniken Resort provided food not only fit for kings and queens, but courtesy and accommodations beyond anything the concept of a retreat could hope for.

There were different two-day workshops in the mornings for the many genre of writers in attendance, in addition to three special seminars on Saturday afternoon. On both Friday and Saturday evening, members of the Retreat staff and MWPA Board read from their works-in-progress or various published work. These included poetry, novels and short stories. Patrick Quinlan, published thriller novelist - and the leader of the workshop I attended - also read a piece he recently finished following his trip to China. It haunted me later through the night. While some might considered it "thriller" material, it is pure non-fiction. While it is not entertaining in the truest sense, in this writer's opinion, it needs to be published.

Of course, by the time I arrived home late Sunday afternoon, I was exhausted. Brain drain mostly. The three-hour drive home was nothing compared to the five-hour drive to get there in torrential rain with white-out back splash from vehicles in front of me on the highway - many of which did not have their headlights on while windshield wipers were going at full speed. True, it was in full daylight and those drivers didn't need their headlights to see where they were going, but those of us behind them needed to be able to see their taillights to see their cars through the white-out of water and the planing that was a threat to all of us. Stress is a word that doesn't begin to describe the environment for the middle two hours of that trip.

There is a lot I have brought home to my writing environment from the Retreat - nice people, generous writers all, encouragement shared roundly, new and creative ideas, tender thoughts put to paper, friendships nurtured, laughter, information and the bountiful knowledge gained from steps other have walked that may reduce the bumps and bruises for others in their wake.

It was a gift of many layers given to me. Many thanks are due.

TOMORROW IS THE DAY

Tomorrow is the first of a three-day Writers Retreat sponsored by the Maine Writers and Publishers Alliance. The retreat is being conducted at the Liniken Resort in Boothbay Harbor, Maine.

Because I will be leaving early (to allow plenty of time to get lost-and-found several times enroute - it always happens when going to a new place, regardless of whatever map I use), there will be no posting tomorrow. On top of the new route and my propensity for getting lost, the weather is projected to be rainy - very rainy. Oh Joy!

So today I am getting chores done, for both my place and for a family member who will be returning to his home on Saturday following rehab for a hip replacement. The objective is to minimize the stress tomorrow and to arrive at the Retreat relaxed (and excited). The latter is an automatic. The former, a challenge.

In the meantime, I can see the storm coming in over the lake and I still have to go to town, the post office, etc.

Maybe a nap is in order first. Naps always help. Perhaps I am part cat.

Have a great day.

WHEN LIFE IS AT ITS BUSIEST - TAKE A BREATH

Lately I have found there is much too much to do and not enough time to look, think, ponder or even breath. Not good, especially for a creative person. Definitely not enough time to laugh - especially to laugh at life's moments.

Yesterday was the gathering of my weekly writers group at Borders. I do LOVE our Borders store. The staff and management there are so welcoming and accommodating. It's a bit like a mini-library with benefits galore.

So there we were, the six of us - gathered around our two tables pushed together, papers out, coffees on the table (hoping no one spills anything), sharing the news of the week. One of us has just been signed by an agent who sounds like she must have been a heavenly angel in her previous life. Another one has just returned from caring for a daughter-in-law who had major surgery and an elderly mother. Needless to say, she is more than qualified to writer about the "sandwich generation."

So, the assignment for the week was to read and critique one member's submission from the previous week. We go around the table - one at a time. First the summary and then page by page - punctuation, flow, typos, the whole kit and caboodle. And there are six of us, remember. The writer/submitter only gets to take notes or to answer a question if specifically asked. No defending. No clarifying unless asked. (But we are not brutal either. On the other hand, if we don't understand something, why should the writer assume any other reader will?)

I took last dibs yesterday. I have a tendency to be a bit "creative" in my critiques - offering suggestions about how a sentence might have more punch with a word change - or breaking one sentence into two - or changing one word for another. Or moving an ending paragraph to a different position. Or asking what if you did this instead of that. Just a thought, nothing more than a thought to ponder.

Well, in the middle of one of those - "think it would have more punch" kind of remarks, a gentleman from a nearby table comes by - probably on his way to get another coffee - and interjects, "I think what you all are doing is great!"

It was a bit startling, I will admit. But we are a friendly group so we turned to him and said, "thanks" - or words to that effect.

"I've been listening to you all. I think your group is just great. I teach writing at the local community college. You people are really good."

We didn't say who or what we were. It was just nice to have the "approval." Maybe he overheard something that will end up in his classroom this week.

One just never knows what will go out over the air or where it will land.

(Gee, I'm glad we weren't reviewing/critiquing a sex scene. We have been known to do that, too. Certain ones of us always want to make it more steamy. Even the gentleman in the group likes it steamy. And then there is the question of what to call certain components or actions..... We can be sooo creative. LOL)

SEASONS AND THEIR CHANGES

This past week has been a challenge with temperatures in the very high 90s. I will admit, 96, 97 degree days with or without humidity drains everything out of me, creativity, happiness, the ability to even sleep or desire to eat. (And that's a hard one to whip.)

Nights don't seem to bring any respite and so, upon rising I am even more tired, if possible, than I was when falling on the bed the night before. In truth, I can not imagine living in the deep south. Just watching old film noir stories like "To Kill a Mockingbird," where everyone is wiping his or her face with a handkerchief to remove the beads of perspiration, leaves me sticky and irritable. I don't know how they all managed to survive without killing off half the population during those hot, humid days that seemed to last forever. And yet, that is just what it has been like here for the last week. And we had other weeks like that earlier this summer. During such days, I fine impossible to write or work on the current manuscript. One can hardly conjure up a good murder when one just wants to kill any and every thing that moves.

And so along came "Earl." I know, people down along North and South Carolina had a totally different perspective than I about Earl - and rightly so. Down there, Earl was a down right unpleasant and unruly, not to mention unwelcome caller. But, by the time he came visiting up here in Maine, he'd run out of steam and he'd been pushed aside, so to speak, by some cold air giving him a good thumping from Canada. And so, when Earl arrived around 4AM Saturday morning, he had no wind left in his sails. Literally. No enough to blow out a match. Certainly nothing compared to this morning. For truth.

But Earl did bring more than three inches of sorely needed rain to the area where I live. (Thank goodness. I can barely think what my water bill will be the next billing cycle since I have been watering the lawn and gardens for hours at a time every morning starting at 6AM until the heat said the water would be working upward instead of the other way and thereby a total waste of money.) In the process, the temperature has dropped at least twenty degrees, there's a good stiff breeze, and I can write again. I can sleep. I can fix a decent meal which will, in turn provide the energy to work on the next stage of this mystery with all of its twists and turns.

There is a nip in the air that smells like fall - not that I look forward to the season that follows. But fall has energy whereas hot summer days have none for me. It takes energy to plan a mystery. Energy to plan a murder. And energy to catch a killer. A good season is upon us. Now all I have to do is entice some good neighbor to bring in the dock before the water gets too cold. No place in this manuscript for a frigid body, or a dock dragged offshore by the ice that is yet to come.

YESTERDAY WAS BOUNTIFUL

Ever have the phone ring right when you're in the middle of writing an inspired passage? Me, too. The benefits of caller ID helps decide if you're going to pick up the phone or let it go to voicemail. Telemarketers usually hang up when the voicemail starts up. (I really do not like telemarketing and in spite of registering with the "NationalDoNotCall List", they still call - usually during the dinner and national news hours.)

So yesterday, when in the middle of the current novel (editing and polishing and wondering "What was I thinking!) the phone on the desk rings. "Caller Unknown. Location Unknown." Forget it, would be my normal reaction, but for some reason, I picked up the receiver and said, "Hello."

Good news sometimes arrives from "Caller Unknown" I have decided. Because that one caller was the new President of the Maine Writers and Publishers Alliance. He was calling to let me know I have been named the recipient of the 2010 Writers Retreat Scholarship - and there is only one. YabaDabaDo!

Needless to say, no more work on the novel. I just wasn't in a "killer mode."

Maybe I should answer "Caller Unknown" calls more often. No, I think yesterday was just an exceptional day. We all need them every once in a while.

MWA UNIVERSITY IN BETHESDA, MD

The pilot program for MWA University (otherwise known as MWAU) was held at The Writers' Center on Walsh Street Saturday, August 14. Co-sponsored by MWA's national Board of Directors and the Mid-Atlantic MWA Chapter, I'm so pleased I was at the First MWAU. THIS was a learning experience unlike typical writers' conferences.

The presenters (and teachers) were Jess Lourey (author of Murder-by-the Month mysteries and a tenured professor of English and sociology at a two-year Minnesota college) who spoke on After The Idea. Great handouts, too.

Next was Hallie Ephron (author of psychologoical suspense Never Tell a Lie, crime fiction book reviewer for the Boston Globe, and author of the Edgar-nominated Writing and Selling Your Mystery Novel), spoke on Dramatic Structure & Plot.

The final morning presenter was Daniel Stashower who is a two-time Edgar award winner, and a recipient of the Raymond Chandler Fulbright Fellowship in Detective and Crime Fiction Writing. Dan's presentation on Setting & Description was not only beneficial, but his humor and comparative examples kept everyone involved.

After a one-hour lunch break, the afternoon session began with Donna Andrews talking about Character & Dialogue. Donna is the award-winning NYT bestselling author of sixteen novels and founding member of the Mid-Atlantic chapter of MWA.

Reed Farrel Coleman got everyone involved with his topic of Writing as Re-Writing. It was nice to hear Reed discuss his person process of dealing with writing and editing as a continuing process. Reed has been twice nominated for the Edgar (MWA's top annual honor) and three-time winner of the Shamus Award. Reed is an adjunct professor of English at Hofstra University.

The last presenter was Hank Phillippi Ryan, a Boston TV reporter who has won 26 Emmys for her investigative jurnalism. She has also been the winner of two Agatha Awards in addition to being nominated for the Anthony, Agatha and Macavity. Hank (a woman for those unfamiliar with her work) spoke on The Writing Life - a perfect closing for the day's program. One might think it difficult to be the last speaker at such an event, but Hank got everyone's attention from the "get-go" by passing out miniature chocolate candies. Her presentation was just as encouraging and energizing.

Anyone who hears of a MWAU being held in their area should plan to attend. At $50. for MWA members and non-members alike, it was a bargain.

OFF TO THE MWA UNIVERSITY

Today will be one of travel to Portland, Maine in preparation of flying tomorrow. This coming Saturday will be the MWA University in Bethesda, MD. Looking forward to the sessions, even if not the projected thunderstorms.

Tonight, in Portland, in the grand 35 years celebration of the Maine Writers and Publishers Alliance. Dinner with published authors in various restaurants followed by a Champagne and desert at the Portland Public Library and a dance. Congrats to MAPA and the many people who have made the organization (and tomorrow night's events) possible.

A NETWORK FOR MYSTERY WRITERS AND READERS

Check out www.Crimespace.com for a network of mystery, crime, thriller and suspense writers, readers and just fans. You can make "friends", ask questions, and read/comment of blogs. It's free - and a good source.

I'll be at a Mystery Writers of America (MWA) learning experience this coming weekend. Blogs resume here next week.

NOVELS CAN BE BASED ON THE IRONIES OF LABELS, IDEAS & PHRASES

This writer has often wondered at the irony of the conflict inherent in certain pat phrases we become accustomed to over time. Phrases like "Law and Order", "Peace Officers/Keeping the Peace and Law Enforcement", "Corrections and Rehabilitation" just for a few. Think about it.

The LAW is constant changing. ORDER is rather static. Maintaining Law and Order is not always compatible. It is somewhat like the age-old story of "the haves and the have-nots". Those who "have" will certainly want their version of order preserved. Those who considered themselves dis-enfranchised will be more inclined to want their version of order changed. The process of maintaining or changing is through both the evolution of the law and whatever other factors will generate more (goods, money, power, etc.) to the "have-nots", which by its very nature means less will be in the hands of the "haves." Sometimes that change is achieved peacefully through negotiation and compromise. Other times it is through rebellion and revolution. Somewhere, in the midst of that change (by whichever means) is that group of people charged with enforcing the law (and which law is often the question), - maintaining order (and whose order is the often question), - keeping the peace (among all of the people or only some is the question) without any question as to where they, as individuals, stand on the issue(s). And what if they, as individuals, feel conflict with their assigned duty?

As to the phrase "Corrections and Rehabilitation" - now there is an interesting idea. I did not say reality because there is little rehabilitation in the idea of corrections. As expensive as "corrections" is ($40,000+/annually per inmate in many state institutions), rehabilitation in the short-term is more. Inmates who would be eligible for rehabilitation programs are usually working in the institution, thereby reducing the cost of running the institution. If these same inmates were in rehab programs, that work might well have to be done by paid labor. On the other hand, rehabilitation is less expensive in the long-term because these individuals stand a better chance of not re-offending, of not coming back to prison.

Unfortunately, rehabilitation is not considered punishment in the minds of most voters. So while the title and label and department names may include the idea of changing behavior through rehabilitation, budgets are not paid with ideas. They are paid with voters' tax dollars. And campaigns are often waged on Law and Order promises. From such irony are interesting (and sometimes great) novels written.

WRITING FOR ENTERTAINMENT & EDUCATING THE READER

I'm a member of several national writers organizations that specialize in the mystery genre. Of course many of the members write related genres - thrillers, suspense and sometimes even romance - because every life needs a little romance. These organizations regularly put out newsletters which is wonderful because they contain valuable information in articles containing information that often helps us write better or overcome obstacles in this business.

Several years ago, one of these organizations - I think it was Sisters in Crime (primarily women writers of crime-related books) - had an article in one of their newsletters regarding the responsibility writers have in writing stories that solve the crime in a factually correct manner - meaning the writer doesn't use some kind of hocus pocus that couldn't really work. Now if the book is some kind of science fiction set in the year 2100, who knows - maybe hocus pocus will work. But if the setting is 1980, the writer has to use a method that would have been available at that time and since DNA wasn't.... Another example is to understand that not all law enforcement departments have all the whiz-bang, high-tech equipment. Sometimes a microscope and a scapel are the basic forensic tools. Understand what I'm saying here?

An example was offered of a real life trial where the case involved a man being tried for homicide - the killing of another. The prosecutor had extensive evidence to prove the case against the defendant - the gun, the bullet from the body matched the gun owned by the defendant, the gun was found at the murder scene, the defendant's fingerprints were on the gun and at the murder scene, the victim's blood was found on some of the defendant's clothing, the defendant had both a motive and an opportunity.

But the jury's verdict came back 11-1 with 11 voting Guilty and one lone hold-out for Not Guilty. When the lone hold-out was finally asked Why she refused to vote Guilty, her answer was - "They didn't find the defendant's fingerprint on the bullet" meaning the bullet inside the victim. When she was pressed as to why she expected a fingerprint to have been found on that particular bullet, she is reported to have said she had seen it on the television program, CSI. Unreal. And I do mean - Un-Real.

Television is NOT real life. Television is "entertainment." Where else is a crime committed, discovered, investigated and solved and sometimes ("Law and Order") prosecuted and a verdict received in 40 minutes or less - because we do have to allow plenty of time for the never-ending commercials. The answer is NoWhere.

Writers have a far more responsible job to the public. We write to entertain, of course. Otherwise we would never get published. Heck, sometimes we entertain and still don't get published. But nonetheless, we have the responsibility to try to educate our readers to what the "reality" of the "system" is. Otherwise there won't be any system and far less chance of justice if one of our readers ever has the privilege of becoming a Juror some day. (And I have.) For the sake of what we call the Justice System, we have to try to ensure those who do sit on juries in this country are at least not expecting to be "entertained.

FIGHTING FOR YOUR STORY

As if writing your story weren't hard enough - finding a plot, developing your characters, making the story flow, building the tension, finding the hooks, developing the threads without giving away too much of the secrets, pulling it all together at the end with a sense of "of course" and satisfaction - it seems one must often be prepared to fight for it after the fact. A friend of mine, another writer, has written a marvelous novel. Seems a potential agent thinks its about 30,000 words too long. That may be, considering the concerns of the publishing business these days. Of course there are readers like me who actually look for the thicker books to read, and are willing to pay the extra dollars for them, but maybe we are too few or something.

Anyway, to get back to my friend, she is now in the throes of trying to cut out words and passages without losing the color and meat of her story. Because it's not enough to leave just the skeleton. There has to be the growth, and the passion and the tricky intrigue. For my friend's book, there are such marvelous details and color, the story wouldn't be the same without them. Sometimes a writer can make magic with words, transporting the reader to places and times they only thought they knew or previously imagined.

My friend is working on the task before her and I know she will succeed. But I loved her response at one suggestion where a cut could be made. "I will fight for that section. It's where she (her protagonist) becomes the winner in her own race."

Writers need to fight for their own races and the winning. Sometimes that's the real reason, maybe the only reason, for writing hours and hours into the dark of the night with only the moon and stars for company.

ENDINGS AND BEGINNINGS

The last several months I have been submitting large sections (50+ pages, double spaced) of the first of my Susan Edmonds series for review and critique to the Writers Group. This is quite an assignment for the group since those who don't write novels usually submit short memoirs or articles of no more than six pages double spaced. Writer #2 who also writes novels used to submit thirty or so pages but she now submits 50 or so pages. No one seems to object to the size of the weekly assignments (from us). It's a complement to our writing, I think, since the group usually says they find the reading easy and are anxious for the next section.

It's interesting that both she and I are within the same cycle of submitting the concluding section of our novels. My last reviewed section came back last week. Hers will be submitted this coming week and returned the following Tuesday. I'm anxious to see how she will bring hers to an end. And then there was the feedback I received this past Tuesday.

Since then I have been reviewing the complete manuscript (MS), making sure all the threads are complete, tying up all the ends without making the conclusion obvious before the last chapter where Susan drops the hammer in a most unexpected, but effective way. Will she finally be able to go forward to achieving her dream after everything that has happened or will the obstacles force her to take a different path? Can she forge her path without losing the support of the reader? Can I bring in surprises that the reader will say, "Aha, never saw that coming but of course - it makes sense."

Writing police procedurals is not so different from being a detective - finding the clues that were there all along. And connecting them when there didn't seem to be a connection when first presented. Love it. Maybe that's why I so enjoyed working in the field for all those years.

And then there is the other novel in the series that I've already started to prepare for the group's review while getting ready for the MWA University in mid-August. There's hardly time to make the bed these days....

TIME FOR AN UPDATE

Enough good things can not be written about writers groups. I feel very fortunate to have found and been accepted into one. Living where I do, finding one was no small accomplishment. And one should not assume they will automatically accept anyone who asks to join.

First there is the size. The group shouldn't be so large that the work of the individual members gets lost in the shuffle - nor so small that there won't be sufficient variety and skill available for review and critique of your work. And because the groups are made up of people, with personalities and interests, it is important that they get along on a personal basis. Some groups require the members to write the same genre. Others are not so stringent. The group to which I belong has variety.

I write crime mysteries. Police Procedurals actually which are a sub-set of the Mystery genre. There is no one else in my group who writes my genre. However, someone else in the group writes historical novels and they often involve suspenseful moments. Then there is a third member. She writes Memoir. But she loves to read the novels. And she catches inconsistencies all the time. What a gem she is. And she knows that "someone has to die." So she tries to point out where we are setting up a character for that fateful end. It's good to have her around because sometimes we novelists find we need to go back and muddy the clues a bit.

The fourth member of our group also writes memoirs, but she also writes poetry. That's a weak spot for me, but she has written some that I "get" at the very first reading. And I benefit by expanding my knowledge of flow and imagery and representation from her that I can transfer into some of my own writing.

The fifth member is a former newspaper reporter who now writes articles for magazines. Boy is she great on questions of comma usage - when to use and when not. And sometimes she knows things from the topics she has written about in the past which are helpful to someone in the group researching something in that area.

So we all learn and share with each other. But most of all, we expand our writing style and techniques by having our work read, reviewed, critiqued and explored by others who are both supportive and critical in ways friends and family sometimes can not be.

Do we all have the goal of being published? I'm not sure. Certainly two of us do. All of us have been at one time or another in one venue or another. But myself and the other novelist strive in different ways. The peaks are higher maybe - the lows more so for sure. But as a group we share and learn and find friendship. Therein lies the benefit.