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This week: Meeting Jay Asher Edited by: Cubby  
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Hello, everyone! Welcome to this edition of the For Authors newsletter.  This week's topic is focused on Jay Asher, but first off, I'd like to share a few quotes with you. Enjoy!
Quotes:
When the world says, "Give up,"
Hope whispers, "Try it one more time."
~ ~Author Unknown
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He conquers who endures.
~ ~Persius
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With ordinary talent and extraordinary perseverance, all things are attainable.
~ ~Thomas Foxwell Buxton
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Never give up, for that is just the place and time that the tide will turn.
~ Harriet Beecher Stowe
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Not knowing when the dawn will come, I open every door.
~ Emily Dickinson
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Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hopeat all.
~ Dale Carnegie
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Meeting Jay Asher
Last Spring, I was fortunate enough to attend my very first writing conference in Lansing, Michigan hosted by SCBWI-MI (Society of Childrens Book Writers and Illustrators - Michigan). It was a real treat listening to editors from Harper Collins Children's Books and Dutton Children's Books, along with a literary agent from Barr Goldblatt Literary LLC.
And how exciting it was to attend sessions led by authors Jay Asher (Thirteen Reasons Why), Donna Gephart (As if Being 12 3/4 isn't Bad Enough, My Mother is Running for President!), and James Tobin (Sue MacDonald Had a Book), along with illustrator/cartoonist Dave Coverly (Speed Bump and Sue MacDonald Had a Book)!
The highlight of this event, however, was when I actually spoke with Jay Asher! I had read his book a year before, only because a concerned grandparent/board member at my library asked me about it. Her 13 year-old granddaughter wanted to read it, but Grandma was uneasy about it because it dealt with suicide. I told her I'd read it and let her know what I thought. It was an amazing book. I was so angry at that girl for what she left behind emotionally for her friends and family. I shared this with Jay and he said that was exactly what he hoped his readers would feel. I highly recommended it to my board member and went as far to say it would be an excellent book discussion for both teens and their parents.
Listening to Mr. Asher speak was amazing, too. He shared his disappointment of rejection slips back when he tried writing picture books for children. Then one day he decided to go in a different direction. He'd never tried Young Adult Fiction, but found himself writing a story of a teenaged girl who committed suicide, leaving behind 13 cassette tapes for a list of 13 people to listen to, explaining what led up to her decision to take her life. It leaves the reader with a mixture of "How can kids be so mean!" to "That wasn't fair for her to leave those kids with such guilt." Anyway, my point here is, he tried something different and discovered that it worked for him... though he didn't get published right away. After 12 or 13 rejections, he was about to give up writing altogether, when several publishers called at once. He chose the one who wanted to change the least in his manuscript. What a happy ending! This was definitely the highlight of my day.
Next time I think about giving up on a manuscript after it's been rejected, I'll remember Jay Asher. If he had given up right away, his book would've never been published!
Don't give up!
Spring Conference with Jay Asher:
http://jayasher.blogspot.com/2010/05/michigan-is-nice-nice-baby.html
 Question: How many times do you send a manuscript out before giving up on it? Send me your response through the feedback window near the bottom of the page.
May you have an inspiring week and an exceptionally inspiring year!
Keep on Writing!
 Cubby ") |
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~FEEDBACK~
Free_Rip
My big problem with dialouge... well, problems - are having the dialouge:
a) fit into the plot (sometimes I know how I want a scene to go, but whenever I write the characters talking it ends up differently - I've rewritten scenes over and over before, trying to take it the right way. But if I focos just on making the plot go where I want character development goes out the window! It's a hard balance.)
b) keeping it appropriate to ages and accents/cultural phrasings, especially with really young characters. I can do a few bits easy, but consistently keeping it up takes a lot of effort, research and complete re-writing of many parts. Plus, you've still got to keep it easily understandable.
Thanks for an interesting newsletter
~ Here are a few suggestions: a) Try less dialogue. Sometimes characters seem to ramble on when they don't need to.  b) Writing for children is much more difficult than people can imagine! Sounds like you're taking your writing seriously though, and you'll come out of it for the better! It's not easy, I know!
A thinker never sleeps
Another interesting newsletter. The most difficult thing, I find, with dialogue, is balancing the beats and the `he said', `she said'. As you've shown in the newsletter, balancing tags can make all the difference when writing dialogue.
~ It's all about flow. Reading dialogue out loud is helpful. Or have someone else read it out loud.
winterwriter
Dialogue flow is the big deal for me. I have this obession with writing in a way that the story flows with very little pause or stop and go. I love stories that read poetically and just flow easily, and it is always a problem with my writing when it comes to Dialogue, when I have to create dialogue my whole story is thrown off and it becomes difficult to finish pieces. I purposely write with as little dialogue as possible to finish short stories a lot but I know that is going to be difficult when it comes to a novel
~ Try writing a short piece using dialogue only. It's a challenge that can be addicting! It's also a great exercise. No tags! Just plain dialogue. 
swanlakegrrl
Wonderful advice about dialogue. You pointed out some highlights that I have always wondered about and mentioned both basic mistakes as well as techniques to improve the dialogue. I found this newsletter extremely helpful. I think I'll go and see how I can implement your advice in my new story. Many thanks for sharing this!
~ You are very welcome! My pleasure.
jlbane
I remember hearing Dean Koontz give an experience he had had with an editor who wanted to add a lot of various tags. He highlighted one extreme example: instead of 'she exclaimed,' the editor changed it to 'she ejaculated.' Koontz quipped, "I didn't even know that was possible." Its just a funny story that serves well to warn us of over using tags and also the thesaurus.
~ LOL!  LOL! Thanks for sharing that!
angelfeather
Thanks so much Cubby!:D Your newsletter is great and a huge help for me! I am writing a true story from my past and it is hard trying not to write in past tense to give away the ending of the book when writing dialogs. I put my thought after a dialog, I'm worried that it will give the ending away??
Thank you so much for your time. Have a beautiful week. :)
~ Send me an example via email. Glad you enjoyed the newsletter!
Kady Rose
For me the hardest parts about writing dialogue are finding a unique, individual voice for each character (especially kids) and finding a way to insert vital story information without creating long-winded monologues.
~ Try this: Pay attention to tv characters and/or book characters from a writer's point of view. Listen closely to their voice, notice their quirks and body language. Start a character profile on each interesting character you come across. As far as kids go, watch shows involving children. Read juvenile chapter books and easy readers. Browse through the picture book section at the library. Go to a park or beach and observe. You are right about the long-wind monologues! Thank you for sharing!
Fiona Hassan
I don't really know what about writing dialogue I find hardest - pretty much just coming up with dialogue in general! lol Something I've found that really helps me is my own conversations with my friends: it's very sarcastic, could squeeze by as witty, and there's plenty where it came from! lol Thanks for a great and helpful newsletter :)
-Fiona
~ Good for you! You've discovered listening skills that you can use in your dialogue writing! 
Joy 
Excellent tips. Thanks, Cubby.
~ Thank you and you're welcome!
atwhatcost
>>What do you find most difficult about writing dialogue?<<
I recently learned about these rules for dialog, so now? Everything! Hardest is putting the action into the words, so attributions aren't needed. It feels like going from reading Highlight magazine to books on Quantum Theory. The things I'm willing to do to myself, just to get published.
~ Oh, yes, I know! Ya gotta love it, right?
raeburk01
Hello, Cubby! This newsletter was a great reminder for those of us in editing mode. You made some wonderful points. However, I have to disagree with the one where you talked about exclamation points. In my vast reading on the subject of fiction writing, exclamation points have been discouraged, only to be used in dire situations, and never more than one. In the example you gave, you don't need all those exclamation points, especially since you use the tags "shouted" and "yelled". The only one you could probably get away with in editing would be the first "Craig!" because it is before the "shouted". I don't want to step on toes, I just noticed that was different from what I'd been reading up on.
~ I tend to use exclamation points a lot. I guess I get too excited, lol, and want to share my enthusiasm! I do appreciate your comments. No toe stepping taken! Thank you for your wonderfully taken response!
Sean Conklin
The most difficult part of writing dialogue for me is keeping it interesting. i don't know how exactly it comes off to a reader since im biased because i know what im talking about. I tend to simplify it, but then it seems dull. usually i find a good mix, but after a lot of revising. Enjoyed the newsletter, helped a lot.
~ Try listening to your dialogue read by someone else. Or record it and then listen to it. I revise all the time, BTW! I'm always finding something new to redo! 
Jaeff | KBtW of the Free Folk 
Thanks for featuring my item this week, Cubby! Excellent newsletter, as always.
~ Thank ya!
Kyna 
Thanks for showing, instead of just telling, what you meant for dialogue tips.
The hardest part of dialogue for me is trying to figure out if the character would actually say something like that (phrasing it and such)
~ Try putting yourself in your chacter's shoes. Now speak the dialogue out loud, along with body language and quirks. Does it seem to fit? If not, change something till it feels right.
Thylacine
This news letter had some great advice. I sometimes think my dialogue lacks a certain flow. I do love to use it as a way to explain things going on in the story to my reader. It is often a more expedient and easier to read way of explaining plot and character motive to the reader.
~ Yes! You are absolutely right-- explaining things going on through dialogue! YAY!
SkyHawk - Into The Music
Cubby -- I agree with a lot of the things you mentioned in your dialogue newsletter. You need to make it flow, make it fit the situation, include some action to break it up, etc. And "said" is certainly one of the most over-used words in written dialogue. But there's one other thing I'd like to point out -- using "real speak" in your story.
What do I mean by "real speak"? Simply put, making your characters talk like real people. Think of it this way – how many people do you run into that ALWAYS speak in grammatically perfect English? Yeah, not many. Slang, accents, dialects, differences in education, all of these affect how people speak in everyday life. And differentiating people this way not only adds some variety to your characters, it makes your story more believable.
One other thing about "real speak." When writing dialogue, don't let your spell check / grammar check trap you into writing perfectly. This is where you need to know the rules... so you can properly break them.
~ I agree 100%. If our characters spoke perfect, they would tend to sound like robots. Thank you for bringing that point up!
Susanne
HI - some great tips. I tend to play out my dialogue in my head first, acting out the characters, like a scene in a movie. I find it most difficult to know how to finish the dialogue. Who should have the final word? Great newsletters! Thanks
~ You might consider an interruption for some dialogue, bringing it abruptly to an end. Maybe the phone rings, the dog tears through the house, the alarm goes off unexpectedly, etc. Playing out the dialogue is a great exercise!
Joto-Kai 
I have a terrible time adding action and setting to my dialogue, except when pivotal - like what waiter Carl does with the chair AFTER Celia's abusive boyfriend leaves the restaurant. But mostly it's bare, save for an occasional "... said." Help!
~ Send me some examples via email and I'll help you with this. One you do it a few times, it's almost fun!
V_Gurl NaNoWriMo
I have a really hard time coming up with names for my characters. I usually have to get on to a site with baby names.
I try not to use names that someone else has already used, just because my perception of them is already set based on the book they're in. So, Harry and Edward, OUT!!
One thing though, is that you have to be careful not to come up with this wierd exotic name for a plain jane character.
~ I often run into the same thing. And since I write for children, I have to be careful of unusual spellings parents tend to give their children now. 
LJPC - the tortoise
Hi Cubby! You wrote a great, informative newsletter. I think this is what newsletters should do -- inform, teach and discuss. Almost all your examples were spot on and will help beginning writers very much, but you might want to re-evaluate the exclamation point one. Professionals feel that too many exclamation points is the sign of a novice writer trying to inject excitement into the narrative. They recommend using them sparingly. Once a dialog tag indicates shouting or yelling, there's no need for many exclamation points (or all capitals) within the dialog. Just sayin'... -- Laura
~ I super appreciate your comment on the exclamation points. Perhaps I need to look into this further. And thank you, Laura for "Just sayin'" I am here to learn and improve also, and as you know, we are all human.
Joan Twist
I want to know how to have a character explain about why the land they are in, is having a terrible time?
~ Perhaps a description woven inbetween the dialogue. Send me an example via email and I'll see what I can do to give you better advice.
Jay's debut novel is out now!
Thank you so much for featuring "The Dialogue 500" [18+] in the For Authors Newsletter! Dialogue is a really critical part of writing and a lot of people underestimate how essential it is. I really enjoyed this newsletter and you touched on a lot of the things people seem to do, even the pros. I don't know that I agree about exclamation points completely, though that might just be that I see a LOT of them! {/irony} I do agree that the punctuation needs to match the dialogue tags.
Thanks for a great newsletter!
Take care and Write on,
~j
~ Your response is the third regarding exclamation points. I have toned down my exclamation points quite a bit, but I still tend to use them quite often--probably too much, I admit! I'm wondering if it's because I write children's stories and there's always excitement going on when it comes to kids and talking animals! Thank you for the great response. Glad you enjoyed the newsletter!
doublemeasure
This is a leap forward in my understanding and appreciation of writing dialogue. Very helpful indeed, and thank you for producing this informative newsletter.
~ You are very welcome...
sarahreed
Great tips on dialogue! I think the hardest part for me, in writing dialogue, is the tags. I have a habit of using too many different tags, but I'm slowly working on using more actions instead of tags. It certainly emphasizes the dialogue better.
~ Good job! Sometimes the tags are harder than the dialogue itself!
flowerstar
Hey Cubby! I want to answer your question. And like others names hang me up! I am seriously stuck on two names (probably 'cause I'm using them in a story) Sasha and Devon. And my last names are weird. Blackthorn, Mendez, Jackal (to list a few.) They just please me. I guess it is because of my last name. Finkbiner..... ~Flowerstar
~ If they please you, then they're right for you. One thing I can't stand is when I'm desperate for a name because the story is screaming to be written, so I pick one in a hurry and it just doesn't feel right. That hangs me up, lol!
Thanks for sharing!
katherinerose
Cubby, as always you write a very interesting and informative newsletter. Thank you for all your tips.
~ You are most welcome!
Susanne
Hi! This newsletter inspired me to work some more on a long dialogue in my story. I want it to be the forum for my main characters to get to know each other better. It is never easy to keep a long conversation going in text. If you can, please highlight the text in my portfolio, all comments are so good to get. Thank you for great tips!
~ I'll take a peek into your port soon! Glad you got inspired!
 Thank you all for the wonderful feedback!
As always...
Have a wonderful week!
AND KEEP ON WRITING!!!
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For Authors: September 15, 2010 Issue [#3966]
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