From the Editor's Desk
Hi and
welcome once again to Fiction Factor! And, as always,
welcome to our new subscribers.
Last month was Fiction
Factor's 9th birthday - but this month I had my own
birthday. While it wasn't a milestone birthday or
anything special, I still had one of the more memorable
birthdays I've had in some time. I spent some seriously
fun party-time with family and friends and enjoyed myself
immensely, but it wasn't this that made my week so
memorable.
The biggest gift I received was watching my builder start
the construction work on my new sea-side cottage
(finally!). It's taken me a long time of dreaming,
planning, negotiating and saving, but I'm finally
building the house I always wanted in the beautiful
beach-side suburb of Brighton, which is a little south
Adelaide. It's not big or ritzy or palatial or special -
it's just a nice little cottage that doubles as my office
and working-space - but the commencement of construction
really started my day off on a great note after waiting
so long. I'm so excited! I'll be sure to post a few pics
of my new 'home office' when it's complete.
Thanks also to those who jumped onto Facebook to wish me
a happy birthday. I appreciate the well-wishes :) If
you're trying to look me up on Facebook and you find a
few different Lee Mastersons listed there - I'm the only
female Lee listed with that last name, so I shouldn't be
too difficult to spot.
The rest of this month for me was spent researching and
writing about vampires as they relate to the paranormal
sub-genre. Tina Morgan is editing a new writer's handbook
specifically for writers of the paranormal to be
published by Dragon Moon Press and it's shaping up to be
a brilliant resource book. My contributing chapter is on
vampires, so if you're interested in writing about
paranormal topics for your future books, keep an eye on
this space for the release. I believe the book is going
to be titled "The Complete Guide to Writing
Paranormal" - but don't quote me on that just yet.
We have a great issue for you this month, so let's get
straight into the writing stuff!
This issue Patrick Davis looks at writing mysteries to
keep your readers intoxicated and Lonnie Ezell delves
into creating fictional characters to keep your readers
hooked.
It's time now to grab a beverage of choice, sit back, and
enjoy this issue of Fiction Factor!
Lee Masterson
Editor-in-Chief
http://www.fictionfactor.com
"A professional writer is an amateur who didn't
quit."
-- Richard Bach
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Mystery Writing: Keep Your Audience Intoxicated
by
Patrick Davis
A mystery, a compelling love story, a darkened enigma,
and fragments of the past are elements of secrets.
Secrets are powerful. Gossip is devious. A dark secret
whispered through gossiping lips unleashes its
intoxicating spell that will, for the moment, seize the
hearers. Gossip, as powerful as it is, buys the attention
of those listening. But if you harness the intoxicating
power of secrets that reside within the pages of a
captivating story, you have the potential of buying
yourself the attention of the vast, book-reading
population.
Blending
your secret in with the story's setting
If you are thinking of writing of mystery novel but are
not sure how, this is what you may want to consider.
Within the opening pages of your novel, introduce your
readers to a captivating secret. Allow this "hidden
incident" be a fragment of a love story from another
era. This will quickly lure your audience to read more.
Or your secret may be an old discarded tool, but later
discovered that it was a murder weapon. Or perhaps,
there's something recorded within the pages of a diary
containing a secret about someone else. Or suppose the
diary belonged to a young lady during the Victorian era
who knew of a secret romance that was forbidden. Perhaps
this secret romance involved someone who was dear to her.
And perhaps the author of the diary had no strength to
destroy her personal journal; and it was too painful for
her to keep it. So she entombed it within a secret hold
residing in her lavished home with hopes that no one
would ever find it.
Decades later, the old house with its mystic character is
on the market again, only to attract a modern-day couple
who have dreams of making the mini mansion into their
home. But within the shadows of the darkened cavity lies
this secret that will soon be discovered. And perhaps the
diary reveals untold history related to the neighborhood
that otherwise would have never been known.
The idea here is to expose the secret to your audience
but keep it hid from your main character(s) until the
right moment. This method evokes more tension, more
suspense. And the moment that the secret is revealed may
be a chapter away.
An example to this would be:
Mr. and Mrs. Smith were going to be proud owners of their
century-old home, but little did they know that their
home came with dark secrets that would soon haunt them.
Back story - Originating from the Past
Before you reveal the hidden relic to your character,
perhaps you will first want to transport your audience
back to the past and show them just how the romance got
started, or how the sterling silver cake knife became a
murder weapon, or how the diary came into play. But don't
reveal too much. Just show a few sequence-of-events. It
will keep your audience engaged. Later on, your character
will conduct a search that will lead to clues pointing to
the past again.
You can read the rest of this article here: http://www.fictionfactor.com/guests/mysterywriting.html
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 Create A Character
Clinic
Can you create a great character that editors
can't turn down? Holly Lisle can and she can show
you how too!
Did you know that starting with a name and a
character description will KILL your character?
You can learn to bring all your characters to
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Creating Fictional Characters That Hook The Reader
by Lonnie Ezell
As readers, we want to get drawn into a novel and pulled
along from the first page until the last. As writers, how
can we create characters that help us do just that? Read
on for some of the top tips to help you bring your
fictional characters to life.
What
Every Character Should Have
There is one thing that every character should have: a
reason to be there. This shows up in two ways.
The first reason is simple. Every character should
matter. When you have unnecessary characters in your
story, you end up with plot lines and fluff that do
nothing to further the story. Instead, it bogs it down,
which leaves the reader asking the worst question
possible, "Why should I care?" They're already
asking that when they pick your book up, so you have to
give them a reason to care. By removing some characters,
or combining several minor characters into one important
character, you increase the impact and drama in your
book.
Second, and one of the most important aspects of a good
novel: every character should have realistic goals that
we can see. While there may occasionally be the bartender
who is there just to give directions, something he says
or does should give him depth. Don't pass up an
opportunity to show the reader something about your
world. By taking that cardboard bartender and having him
try to stall the hero, then apologize because the
antagonist is threatening his daughter, you not only show
the reader more about the antagonist and the type of
person they are, but you've potentially created another
obstacle for the hero to overcome-freeing the daughter.
You can see
the rest of this article here: http://www.fictionfactor.com/guests/creatingcharacters.html
Crafting the
Romance Story
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 Create A Plot
Clinic
Have you ever lost interest in your story only 20
pages from the start and not know how to get it
going again?
Best Selling Author of more than 30 novels, Holly
Lisle, can show you exactly how to structure your
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Dangling Modifiers
by Lee Masterson
"Having been thrown into the air,
the dog caught the ball."
The only real way to describe a "dangling
modifier" is to show you a really
exaggerated example, like the one above. I'm sure the
writer of this sentence did not mean that the dog was
thrown into the air, but to a reader the meaning is not
immediately clear.
In this sentence, the subject (the dog) is the 'doer' of
the main clause - or action - (caught the ball). In the
modifing part of this sentence (having been thrown into
the air) the 'doer' of the main clause is not clearly
stated. It does not directly relate to the subject of the
main clause, and so, it would be considered a dangling
modifier.
Revision 1: When the
ball was thrown into the air, the dog caught it.
The modifying phrase is now a dependant clause. The
meaning is clear.
Revision 2: The dog
caught the ball that had been thrown into the air.
Now the phrase and main clause have been turned into
a simple sentence.
What is a Dangling Modifier?
A modifier is a word or phrase that describes,
clarifies, or gives more detail about something else. It
is usually placed as closely as possible to what it
describes.
A dangling modifier is a phrase or clause that modifies a
word not clearly stated in the sentence, or that does not
connect grammatically with what it is intended to modify.
Many dangling modifiers occur at the beginning of
sentences - often as introductory clauses or phrases, but
can also appear at the end.
In English sentences, the 'doer' must be the subject of
the main clause that follows.
Dangling Modifiers at the Beginning of Sentences
Example 1: "Having
finished eating, the dog stalked out the door."
Having finished states an action, but does not name
the 'doer' of that action. In this example, the dog is
logically the subject doing the action of stalking out
the door, so this sentence does not have
a dangling modifier.
Always try to find the first noun following the modifier.
In this example, the dog is the first noun to follow the
modifier. As the two logically fit together, a reader
will be able to easily discern the meaning of this
sentence.
Example 2: "After
eating the dog chow, the bowl was empty."
The subject of the main clause here - the bowl - did
not eat the dog chow, so this sentence has a dangling
modifier.
A possible revision for this sentence could be: "After
eating the dog chow, the dog saw that the bowl was
empty."
The doer of the action is now the dog and the
modifier makes sense.
Another possible revision could be: "The dog ate
the dog chow and the bowl was then empty."
Dangling Modifiers at the End of Sentences
Example: "The closet was empty,
having packed everything into the suitcase."
The closet - the subject of the main clause - is not
supposed to have put anything in the suitcase.
To revise this sentence, name the appropriate or logical
doer of the action as the subject of the main clause. In
this example, the closet is the subject. Then, change the
phrase that dangles into a complete introductory clause
by naming the doer of the action in that clause.
Possible Revision: "Aydan
emptied the closet, having packed everything into the
suitcase."
I admit this sentence does sound a little awkward,
but it is technically correct. Let's combine the phrase
and main clause into one.
Possible Revision: "Aydan
emptied the contents of his closet into the
suitcase."
You can read the rest of this article here: http://www.fictionfactor.com/articles/dangling.html
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~ "Words are, of course, the most powerful drug
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Writing Courses
You can see the full list
of available courses here: http://www.fictionfactor.com/courses.html
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Paying Market Listings
You can find the complete
Market Index here: http://www.fictionfactor.com/markets.html
Happy Market Hunting!
(Disclaimer: Mention of a market/ contest in Fiction
Factor is not necessarily an endorsement. Check all
guidelines in full before submitting)
Ravenous Romance
http://www.ravenousromance.com
Ravenous Romance are seeking new voices for their erotic
romance publishing lines. They are currently accepting
submissions for both short stories and novel length works
across various sub-genres. Please read guidelines in full
before submitting.
Submission Guidelines: http://www.ravenousromance.com/submission.html
Catastrophia Anthology
http://news.pspublishing.co.uk/2008/09/09/catastrophia-anthology-call-for-submissions/
Catasrophia will be a collection of short stories based
around the theme of catastophes, disasters and
post-apocalyptic fiction up to 6,000 words. Payment is
£0.03p per word (approx 6c per word US) to a maximum of
£100 ($200). No reprints.
Deadline: 31st May 2009
Submission Guidelines: http://news.pspublishing.co.uk/2008/09/09/catastrophia-anthology-call-for-submissions/
Nenonymous Nine: Cern Zoo
http://weirdmonger.blog-city.com/cerne_zoo__guidelines.htm
The Nemonymous editor requires a story judged suitable by
its author for inclusion in the projected Cern Zoo book,
planned to be published in June 2009. Ideally, this story
should be specially written for ‘Cern Zoo’.
'Cern Zoo' (alternatively 'Cerne Zoo') simply means what
it means to you.
Submissions should be between 500 and 14,000 words. Lump
sum payment in UK pounds to author upon publication:
£0.01 a word up to a maximum of £100 (by Paypal).
(approx 2 cents per word US up to a maximum of $200)
Deadline is 31st March 2009
Submission Guidelines: http://weirdmonger.blog-city.com/cerne_zoo__guidelines.htm
Quantum Genre on the Planet of the Arts
http://www.crossingchaos.com/submissions2
seeks submissions of short stories, flash fiction, film
and book interpretations for a new print anthology:
Quantum Genre on the Planet of Arts. Basically, the
Quantum Genre is not theme-based but style-based. In
other words, Quantum Works are not about quantum theory
but quantum representation of characters and their
worlds. The style is
distinguished by a high degree of obscurity of both the
narrative and characters which are subject to mutability
and ambiguity.
Stories should be less than 3000 words. Payment is 4
cents per word. Deadline is 1st May 2009
Submission Guidelines: http://www.crossingchaos.com/submissions2
Shine Anthology
http://shineanthology.wordpress.com/category/guidelines/
SHINE is an anthology of optimistic near-future SF,
published by Solaris Books. Stories should be under
10,000 words and should be set up to 50 years into the
future. Payment is 5 cents per word on publication.
Please read guidelines before submitting.
Submission Guidelines: http://shineanthology.wordpress.com/category/guidelines/
Silly Western Anthology
http://residentialaliens.blogspot.com/2008/10/silly-western-antho-call-for.html
CyberAliens Press are looking for short stories from
500 to 3500 words in length, as well as poems, jokes,
puns, limericks, artwork, and general silliness. All
submissions must express one of the following themes:
+ American Wild West
+ Steampunk
+ Prairie Romance
or some mixture of the above.
Submission Guidelines: http://residentialaliens.blogspot.com/2008/10/silly-western-antho-call-for.html
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