Author Catherine Nogle

With 2020 just a few days away, I’d love to meet some new mutuals* in the writeblr community… Which means that the hunt is on (+boosts are welcome):

If you’re an active writeblr and interested in getting to know each other’s works, please reblog this post!

Because I realize that not every WIP is for everyone, here’s a quick description of each of my ongoing original projects (with links out to my WIP summaries):

Devida & Goliath is an Edwardian steampunk adventure set in the British Raj and other imperial holdings

Retrocognition is a paranormal thriller (and political murder mystery!) set in modern day Reno, Nevada

The Blue Jay is a Prohibition-era crime story (featuring a light/dark pairing) set in San Francisco, California

A Shield of Bones is a war-time period drama about a Muslim Viking warrioress set in 9th century Western Europe

The Vizier’s Apprentice is a short 19th century retelling of the original One Thousand and One Nights story frame

Enthralled is a short (and steamy) space opera that grapples with colonization, organized crime, and (soul mate) magic

All of my works are inspired by my personal identities as a happily-married Muslim academic of color with an unquenchable thirst for science, math, history, and adventure. (I also happen to be a multimedia creator, in that much of my writing is accompanied by music, graphics, or art. More info here!)

In your reblog, feel free to tell me about your work, yourself, and whether you think we’d be compatible! I love reading just about any genre, so I plan to follow back anyone who’s interested in becoming mutuals.

I have a couple of things on the go and I’m going to share more as I write them. My main wip that I talk about it Redburn and here is the summary:

Support me on Patreon for $1+ and get access to tons of sketchbook pages, phone backgrounds, and animated illustrations!

Hi! This is, yeah, this is important. I’m so glad you wrote me. Lemme see…

How to Write Like You Used to, Before You Learned Stuff that Fucked Up Your Natural Creative Flow and Turned Your Writing into Boring, Stilted Garbage

Ok, that’s maybe a little dramatic, but hear me out. Lots and lots of writers start out doing pretty awesome, interesting stuff, both on the prose-level and the story-level. Then they decide to learn more about writing, or they get some  “feedback” from readers or betas, or god forbid they go to a critique group or something and then they start second-guessing the shit out of themselves. The first thing that happens is they start to dislike writing, an activity that used to bring much joy. The next thing that happens, usually much later, is that they look back at some old stuff they wrote and realize it was way better, but have no idea how to get their groove back.

I know because it happened to me. Here’s what I did to reclaim my old writing self. Hopefully some of these techniques will work for you, too.

Forget everything you’ve learned about how you’re “supposed” to write.

Like, everything. Plotting, characters, setting, sentence structure, world building, e-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g.

Prioritize feeling good.

Write how it feels good to write. Do run-on sentences feel good? Use ‘em. Does writing a 10-page description of a teacup turn you on? Do it. You can edit it later. But if you don’t write something that excites you at the outset, you’ll have nothing fun or interesting to work with when you do get to the editing stage. I talk more about this concept here.

Write for yourself.

Don’t worry about whether anyone else will like it. Write what you like, how you like. Be your own #1 fan.

Write fast.

The faster you write, the less time you have to think. The less time you have to think, the more you’ll be able to access your natural way of writing instead of forcing yourself to write how you think you “should.”

Don’t show your early drafts to anyone.

That’s your baby. Keep it safe. Getting feedback (even if it’s positive) on your writing too early in the process can kill your creative spark. Take the time to get intimate with your own work and develop it into something that won’t break under the weight of other people’s opinions before you put it out there. Remember: Your relationship to your writing is the most important thing. Nurture it!

Trust yourself.

I’m not saying not to take feedback or constructive criticism into account at some point. I’m also not saying not to try to learn how to be a better writer. I’m saying trust what turns you on. Trust your intuition. Trust that there’s something special there. Trust that eventually someone else will see that, too. I wrote this post after I got a piece published that I’d stood by for years, even after a ton of people told me it was weird and that they “didn’t get it.” Basically, in the words of a writer friend of mine, if you don’t back yourself up, how the fuck can you expect anyone else to do it? Be your own best ally.

Hope this helps!

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Emotions

Without Making Your Character Feel Too Self Aware

Showing Emotion Without Telling About It

Emotions Associated With Body Language

Telling Readers What The Character Doesn’t Want To Show

Hiding Emotions

Expressing Cardinal Emotions: Masculine vs. Feminine

Writing Extreme Emotion Without Melodrama

Specific Emotions

Conveying Shock

Conveying Embarrassment

Conveying Disappointment

Conveying Love/Attraction

Conveying Annoyance

Conveying Relief

Conveying Uncertainty

Conveying Impatience

Conveying Shame

Conveying Resentment

Conveying Panic

Conveying Guilt

Conveying Desperation

Conveying Sarcasm & Verbal Disrespect

Conveying Confusion

Conveying Stubbornness

Conveying Frustration

Conveying Indifference

Conveying Indignation

Conveying Confidence & Pride

Conveying Smugness

Conveying Enthusiasm

Conveying Curiosity

Conveying Hopefulness

Conveying Unease

Conveying Reluctance

Conveying Worry

Conveying Humility & Meekness

Conveying Happiness & Joy

Conveying Amusement

Conveying Disgust

Conveying Resignation

Conveying Jealousy

Conveying Anticipation

Conveying Contentment

Conveying Defeat

Conveying Excitement

Conveying Fear

Conveying Hatred

Conveying Hurt

Conveying Being Overwhelmed

Conveying Sadness & Grief

Conveying Satisfaction

Conveying Somberness

Conveying Sympathy & Empathy

Conveying Wariness

Conveying Defensiveness

Conveying Desire

Conveying Doubt

Conveying Energy

Conveying Exhaustion

Conveying Hunger

Conveying Loneliness

Conveying Physical Pain

Emotional Wounds

A Role Model Who Disappoints

A Sibling’s Betrayal

A Speech Impediment

Becoming a Caregiver at an Early Age

Being Bullied

Being Fired or Laid Off

Being Held Captive

Being Mugged

Being Publicly Humiliated

Being Raised by Neglectful Parents

Being Raised by Overprotective Parents

Being So Beautiful It’s All People See

Being the Victim of a Vicious Rumor

Being Stalked

Being Trapped in a Collapsed Building

Being Unfairly Blamed For The Death of Another

Childhood Sexual Abuse (by a family member or known person)

Discovering One’s Parent is a Monster

Discovering One’s Sibling was Abused

Experiencing a Miscarriage or Stillbirth

Failing At School

Failing To Do The Right Thing

Financial Ruin Due To A Spouse’s Irresponsibility

Finding Out One’s Child Was Abused

Finding Out One Was Adopted

Getting Lost In a Natural Environment

Growing Up In A Cult

Growing Up in a Dangerous Neighborhood

Growing Up In Foster Care

Growing Up In The Public Eye

Growing Up In The Shadow of a Successful Sibling

Growing Up with a Sibling Who Has a Chronic Disability or Illness

Having Parents Who Favored One Child Over Another

Having To Kill Another Person To Survive

Infertility

Infidelity (emotional or physical)

Losing a Limb

Losing a Loved One To A Random Act of Violence

Making a Very Public Mistake

Overly Critical or Strict Parents

Physical Disfigurement

Rejection By One’s Peers

Telling The Truth But Not Being Believed

The Death of a Child On One’s Watch

Victimization via Identity Theft

Watching A Loved One Die

Wrongful Imprisonment

Spending Time In Jail

Suffering From a Learning Disability

Motivation

Achieving Spiritual Enlightenment

Avoiding Certain Death

Avoiding Financial Ruin

Beating a Diagnosis or Condition

Being Acknowledged and Appreciated by Family

Being a Leader of Others

Being the Best At Something

Caring for an Aging Parent

Carrying on a Legacy

Catching The Bad Guy or Girl

Coming To Grips With Mental Illness

Discovering One’s True Self

Escaping a Dangerous Life one Doesn’t Want

Escaping a Killer

Escaping a Widespread Disaster

Escaping Confinement

Escaping Homelessness

Escaping Invaders

Finding Friendship or Companionship

Finding a Lifelong Partner

Having a Child

Helping a Loved One See They Are Hurting Themselves and Others

Obtaining Shelter From The Elements

Overcoming Abuse and Learning To Trust

Overcoming Addiction

Protecting One’s Home or Property

Pursuing Justice For Oneself or Others

Realizing a Dream

Reconciling with an Estranged Family Member

Rescuing a Loved One From a Captor

Restoring A Name or Reputation

Righting a Deep Wrong

Seeking Out One’s Biological Roots

Stopping an Event From Happening

Trying Again When One Has Previously Failed

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The opening scene is the most important piece of your novel. This scene determines whether your reader is pulled in or puts the book down. Here are some important do’s and don’ts.

DO write it as a scene, not a data dump. You may have a fantastic premise, a marvelous alternate history or post-apocalyptic world or magical realism to die for, but if you don’t engage your reader in an actual scene, you will bore them.

DO write a scene that immediately introduces a character that the reader can root for. Yes, I know Stephen King has had great success introducing victims that are then shortly afterward killed off. That’s a horror trope and we expect it. But if you are caught up in world-building and haven’t dreamed your way into a character who is worth following through 100,000 words of writing, your story is pointless. I have read many pieces of fiction by would-be writers who can’t grasp this essential concept, and without exception, they fail to engage the reader.

DO introduce the stakes right away. In case that’s a challenge that needs some exposition to develop, create some immediate stakes (a life threat works) that keep the tension high and the reader engaged until you can lay out the larger stakes.

DO begin in medias res, which means “in the middle of things.” Most beginning fiction writers make the mistake of starting too early in the plot. Meet the monster on page 1. 

DON’T include a flashback in the first chapter. Work on a scene, which means time is NOT compressed. It should include dialog, action, description, setting, and interior monolog. Keep everything happening within that scene for at least the first chapter. You can bring in a flashback in Chapter Three.

DON’T shift points of view within a single chapter. Let the reader establish a strong bond of interest (even if it’s with a POV villain) over the course of a whole chapter.

DON’T open the story with your character waking up unless it’s because she’s got a gun in her face (or a knife to her throat – you get what I mean). We don’t need to follow a character through their mundane daily routine. 

Funny, that’s the part I remember from this too. 

You can.

You don’t have to.

The monster can be figurative and not yet full-grown.

@tygermine I like starting my stories in the middle of a conversation

Do it, bruh. Just make sure it’s the right “middle” of the right conversation.

Tbh, these “dos and don’ts” are little more than good suggestions because many good books don’t start out with all of these. Some good books follow some of these suggestions very well! Some genres practically require them! But “not all books” (man, that phrase is ruined) need to follow every writing “rule” perfectly. It’s impossible.

Just, when you pick up a “bad” book with a lame beginning, it probably needed to follow a few of these and would’ve turned out much better.

If your beginning needs help consider these suggestions. If your beginning is doing just fine, you feel, keep these good suggestions around for the next book.

Not following these suggestions does not make it a bad scene/book.

Not following these suggestions does not ensure readers drop your book.

Not following these suggestions does not mean you’re a bad/lazy writer.

They are the best friend you have ever had in your long long life and you love them more than you thought you could ever love a human.

you are allowed to take a break. you don’t have to write if you don’t feel like it.

everyone has their own pace. it doesn’t matter if you write one page or ten pages a day, you are still a writer.

your first draft is going to suck. every first draft or every book has sucked. i’ll get better and better as you edit. that’s what editing is for, making your work actually good.

experiment. try out new routines, new styles, new genres. it’ll never harm you. you’ll gain experience and become a better writer. you’ll understand what suits you and what doesn’t.

you don’t need publishing to be a writer. publishing is just an option but if you don’t want to you can just keep your writing to yourself.

if you write, then you’re a writer. no matter how much experience you have, what genre you write, if you are published or not. you are a writer.

everyone is different. everyone has a different style so find your own and rock it. search for inspiration but ultimately focus on what allows you to express your ideas in the best way possible.

How they smile

What their “tell” is for lying

Posture

Volume of speech, if they’re verbal

Nervous tics

How much eye contact do they make

In a group conversation, how close do they stand to others? Are they off to the side just listening and occasionally speaking or are they right next to people?

When standing, what do they do with their hands? Talk with their hands, cross their arms, put hands in pockets, prop up against the wall, etc

The sound of their footsteps

Nonverbal greetings: do they wave, nod, hug, glare, punch, high five, something else?