Happy Wednesday, friends!

I'm super happy to introduce long time friend and talented author Beth Vogt.

I can't wait to see what Beth has to share with us today!

Lie to Me

We are taught early in life that it’s wrong to tell lies. It’s not until much later that we are taught not to embrace lies. But by then, it’s too late. We’ve listened to lies about ourselves and we believe them to be true. Lies like:

• You’re not pretty.
• You’re not smart.
• You’re not good enough.
• You’re not ever going to amount to anything.

While we often carry around a multitude of lies-that-we-believe-are-true, there is usually one lie that becomes the LIE that affects us more than all the others. This Lie is created by some experience that wounded us emotionally. Writers refer to this as the Dark Moment of our past.

A real-life example of a Dark Moment

In 2007, I experienced a life-threatening illness. At first, my doctor-husband Rob closed down his practice and stayed with me around the clock. My fever reached 104 and at times I didn’t recognize him. In the midst of all the initial fear and stress, Rob and our two oldest daughters lost track of our then six-year-old daughter. She sat outside my bedroom door, waiting for her daddy to come out and tell her that I had died. Unfortunately, we didn’t know this until she told us about five years later.

Was this a Dark Moment for my daughter? Absolutely. Was she wounded emotionally? Yes. The possible death of a parent is a major fear for children. At that moment, my daughter felt abandoned. What Lie did our daughter believe? That she wasn’t seen, that she wasn’t valued in a time of crisis. For several years after my illness, we noticed a marked insecurity in my daughter, especially when I left town for a writers conference or if I got sick in any way. When my husband and I discovered what had happened, we reassured her, praying with her about it.

Understanding the power of the Lie we believe is important in writing fiction, too.

Your imaginary characters need to believe a Lie -

and you, as the author, must determine what the Lie is.

Your character’s past – who they were before they appeared on page one of your manuscript – determines why they say certain things. Why they make certain decisions. Why they stiff-arm God. Why they want nothing to do with love.

Imagine wrapping a piece of twine around a wooden top and then releasing it to spin, spin, spin … and topple. The twine represents your character’s Lie. The Lie influences your character’s choices and beliefs because they believe the Lie is true.

In my latest release, Almost Like Being in Love, my heroine Caron believes the Lie that she’s just not good enough. Why? Because Caron never earned her father’s approval. Her Dark Moment, which involved working for her father during high school, involved Caron overhearing her father say something extremely hurtful about her – and Caron hears the echoes of his words to this day.

As a writer, we need to forget the adage to not tell lies.

You want to craft characters that readers care about, right? One key to doing that is to create the Lies your hero and heroine believe. Deepen your story by using the Lie to affect your characters emotionally because it impacts their relationships. Then weave in the spiritual truth and allow God to heal the Lie. In doing so, you’ve created true-to-life fictional characters. After all, we’ve all believed lies. And we also know the freedom in discovering and embracing the truth.

What about you? Are you telling your imaginary characters lies?

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A GIVEAWAY FOR YOU!

Many thanks to Beth for this awesome post. Beth has also kindly offered to give away an autographed copy of Almost Like Being in Love to one lucky winner (U.S. entries only). All you have to do to be entered is answer Beth's question in the comment section below. If you aren't a writer, feel free to just say "hey" to be entered. Let's give Beth a really warm welcome.

Have a blessed Wednesday, friends.

Today, I'd love to introduce a lovely writer, lady and friend. If you aren't familiar with Lisa Wingate, you are missing out.

Selected among Booklist’s Top 10 for two consecutive years, Lisa skillfully weaves lyrical writing and unforgettable settings with elements of traditional Southern storytelling, history, and mystery to create novels that Publisher’s Weekly calls “Masterful” and Library Journal refers to as “A good option for fans of Nicholas Sparks and Mary Alice Monroe.”

Lisa is a journalist, an inspirational speaker, and the author of twenty-five novels. She is a seven-time ACFW Carol Award nominee, a multiple Christy Award nominee, a two-time Carol Award winner, and a 2015 RT Booklovers Magazine Reviewer’s Choice Award Winner for mystery/suspense. Recently, the group Americans for More Civility, a kindness watchdog organization, selected Lisa along with Bill Ford, Camille Cosby, and six others as recipients of the National Civies Award, which celebrates public figures who work to promote greater kindness and civility in American life. Booklist summed up her work by saying, “Lisa Wingate is, quite simply, a master storyteller.” More information about her novels can be found at www.lisawingate.com.

Many thanks to Lisa for sharing a great topic on Writerly Wednesday today.

What I Wish I’d Known When My First Novel Was Published

By Lisa Wingate

No matter what trajectory your particular writing career may take or what point you’re at in your quest, you can safely assume that, if you’ve chosen this profession, you’re in for a roller coaster ride. A writing career is challenging. It’s demanding. It’s busy. It can be unforgiving and maddening. It can also be unbelievably rewarding and filled with moments of story and human connection that are nothing short of bliss. With my twenty-fifth book, The Sea Keeper’s Daughters, hitting shelves in the September, I can honestly say that my career has been filled with things I didn’t expect. That’s probably because I knew next to nothing about the business when I started.

If I could go back to the moment I sold my first mainstream novel, Tending Roses, to (then) Penguin Putnam, I’d tell myself a few things:

1. Write because you love it. 

I know everyone says that, but it’s true.  If you really want a long career, you must figure out how to produce book, after book, while managing promotion, production edits, multiple forms of communication, and life in general. Set a manageable daily page quota or daily writing hours, and hold yourself to it.  One of the hardest things about writing is time management.

2. Finish your first manuscript and write another. 

It’s almost impossible to sell on a partial in fiction if you’re unpublished.  Polish your manuscript and send it out, because as much as we’d like them to, editors won’t come looking in your desk drawer.  While you’re waiting for news, write another book.  If the first one sells, you’ll be set for a two-book deal.  If the first one doesn’t sell, you will have eggs in another basket.  Be tenacious, be a thick-skinned as possible, keep writing while you wait for news.

3. Rejection stinks, but it happens.

Rejection isn’t anything personal; it’s just part of the business, and it’s to be expected.  Your project isn’t bad just because it gets rejected.  It may not be that editor’s (or agent’s) cup of tea, the house might not be buying right then, they may have another author under contract whose work is similar to yours, and so on.  There are so many reasons a book can be rejected, and the real trick is to look at the rejections as a tool and then move on.  Don’t make sweeping changes based on one opinion unless there’s an imminent sale involved.  Conversely, if you receive the same criticism from several editors (or agents), consider pulling out the red pen and getting to work

4. You probably won’t hit the NYT immediately.

In fact, few writers ever reach this coveted level. Be careful how you measure success. Setting lofty goals is a good thing… right up until you feel like a failure for not achieving them. Myriad factors determine which books get the “perfect storm” of great cover, great market timing, and heavy publisher promotion. Some of it is just luck. Write the very best book you can. Do what you can to promote. Stop obsessing. Write another book.

5. Find your creative tribe.

On any given road, you’re never the only traveler.  Others walk in shoes like your own and shoes that are different.  Find them. Critique one another’s work, brainstorm together, give creative criticism, take creative criticism, and learn from one another. Give back more than you get.

6. Cheer for other people.

One of the best promotional avenues available to writers today, yesterday, and tomorrow remains cooperative promotion. Find authors whose work is similar to yours. Shout out for one another’s successes, awards, and new releases. Your readers will thank you for the tips and you’ll feel good about doing something positive for someone else. You’ll also have that warm feeling when others do the same for you.

Above all, while you’re walking the writer-road, be aware, be in the moment, don’t close your eyes even for an instant.  Wherever you go in life, there are nuggets of story along the trail.  Sometimes you’ll see them coming; sometimes you’ll stumble over them.  Pause long enough to pick them up and examine them.  Your writer's mind can take it from there.

Lisa

Read a free excerpt of The Sea Keeper’s Daughters: http://lisawingate.com/seakeepersdaughtersexcerpt.pdf

Where can readers find you on the Internet?

Lisa’s website: www.Lisawingate.com

Lisa’s newsletter: Signup here

Twitter  |  Facebook  |  Pinterest  |  

Lisa’s blog: The Untold Story

Group blog: www.SouthernBelleViewDaily.com

Again, many thanks to the awesome Lisa Wingate. In addition to sharing her wisdom, Lisa has gracious offered to give away an autographed copy of The Storyteller. To be entered to win, simply comment below. The winner will be randomly drawn and announced on August 1st's Monday Cuppa post.

Blessings,

 

Happy Wednesday, friends! I'm SO excited to launch a new blog segment named Writerly Wednesday. Each Wednesday I, or a fabulous guest, will share answers to your writing questions (you can ask in the comments section below or email them to me at dani@danipettrey.com), along with writing lessons, writing quotes, and all things writerly. I hope you'll enjoy this new segment. It was born out of my readers' questions. I enjoy sharing my love of writing with you, but I know there are so many different ways to write and so many different approaches that I've also invited a number of dear writer friends to share their wisdom here with you. Next week's guest is the fabulous Lisa Wingate. Lisa will be sharing What I Wish I’d Known When My First Novel Was Published and will be giving away a copy of her fantastic novel The Story Keeper so be sure to come back next week.

Now on to today's topic--How to Create a Story Premise.

First, let's start with what a premise is. Writer's Magazine defines a story premise as:

A story's premise is more than a quick synopsis, or a simple thesis statement defining the theme or argument of a story. It is your canary in the storytelling coal mine and your lifeline as a writer."

While Writer's Digest says:

This premise is the underlying idea of your story-the foundation that supports your entire plot. If you can establish what your premise is at the beginning of your project, you will have an easier time writing your story."

I love the first quote.  LOVE. However, the second is true as well. To me, the story premise is simply an idea. The spark that gets your creative juices flowing, that makes you say 'what if?' That's how I start my stories. Each begins with prayer and two simple words. What. If. 

From there I follow the imagination God has created in me, and my brain tracks through a myriad of ideas. These ideas can come from anywhere--a newspaper article, a quote, even a picture. Something sparks and I've got my what if.

In an attempt to not to ruin the ending of my novels or any other novels for those who may not have read them, I'll give examples of what if story premises from films.

• Groundhog Day: What if you lived the same day over and over again?
• Raiders of the Lost Ark: What if an archaeologist is hired by the U.S. government to find the lost Ark of the Covenant before the Nazis?
• Die Hard: What if terrorists take an entire office hostage during their Christmas party?

Now these are very basic nuggets of their full story ideas, but it's a start. And, it's where I start--with a nugget, with a spark of an idea that I can play with. It's how I create my story premise and how I start all of my novels. I take an idea, play with it, pray over it, and then sit down and start writing.

How about you? How do you come up with your story premise? For readers and writers alike: share your favorite story premises from novels or movies that just captivate you in the comments below.

Thanks so much for joining me on this week's edition of Writerly Wednesday. Be sure to stop back by next week for the fabulous Lisa Wingate.

Blessings,