Saturday on Scrivener

Or: I've been up since 3am and it's noon and that SUCKS.

Do you guys know what Scrivener is? It's a writing software that is awesome. I got the Windows version when they came out with the Windows beta version right before NaNoWriMo in 2010. (2010? *checks blog* Yup, 2010. Which, if you weren't around, I completely failed at it because I got sick twice in one month... I think? Although the way the blog reads, I was sick from September to November. I think I spent about a month sick. Yay sinus and/or throat infections and this is why if you're sick for more than two weeks, you need to go to the doctor because obviously it isn't better and man, I barely remember that fall.)

Anyways, for a couple years it's been that if you win NaNoWriMo, you get a coupon for half off Scrivener. I lost horribly, but KT won and she already had it so she gave me her coupon and I got it for 20 bucks which is a GREAT deal and I think might be an annual thing? And last year you could get 20% off just for participating. I'd say hold out for a coupon because it's a bit expensive and I'm generally cheap, but it's a really awesome software.

Since I don't think I use it like most people do, I thought it'd be interesting to show you guys how I use it. I don't draft in it, though. The formatting throws me off and messes with the little thing in my head that tells me when paragraphs are the right size and how dialogue feels and stuff... I realize how strange that sounds.

Anyways, I'm using the "novel" template that comes with Scrivener, but I tend to adapt it a fair bit to work for me. Also keep in mind that I'm using the Windows version and I'm pretty sure there are some differences between that and the Mac version.



(Just click it to make it bigger and see all the details and stuff because it'd look awful if I made it larger.)

I tend to write in bits and pieces. See that thing that says "Manuscript?" That is where are the bits and pieces end up. (They also go into a binder once I rip them out of my notebook. This is why my notebooks must have a perforated edge and binder holes.)

Then you see the "Character" and "Setting" folders with the "Sketch" thingies? Those are templates that are just in the Novel template on Scrivener but I might play with them a bit. Generally I don't use them, but I thought I'd leave them in case I wanted to.

After that, my Research folder tends to be insane. I like to make a new text document for each thing I want to take notes on per book. (The text thingies are the things that look like index cards. They're a document and you can move the order around on the corkboard and stuff. I think there's a demo video on Scrivener's website so if you're curious, go watch that, okay? 'Cause this is just how I use it.)

OH and the colourful things in the Research folder are pictures. And it's all in one place! How awesome is that? Basically, that's why I like Scrivener. All my insane little research things and all my random scenes and everything that would normally be all over the place and I'd forever be losing is all in one place. And bear in mind that this is a book that I'm not writing yet so this is kind of small for now.

See why I was willing to pay 20 bucks for it? I would never say that you NEED any special kind of software to write books (hey, I wrote on looseleaf for years before I even had a computer) but this one is VERY HANDY for me personally.

What about you guys? Got any fun tricks or tips like this?

Also, I'm still open to blogging requests and stuff. Anything you want me to blog about? (Anon from last week - I will do that post on dialogue, hopefully next week. I just had this on my mind and wanted to do it first.)

Have a great weekend!

Peace and cookies,
Laina

Thursday on the Secret About Writer's Block

In middle school (before I started writing), I wrote a few essays for English about writers magically having the words flow. Whether or not they really did, I didn't care. Flowing words sounded way better than "Such and such was a good writer. He strung some cool words together." Little did I know that words do NOT magically flow. 

Words are more like a sink. Sure everything might come out fine and handy when you first turn it on, but after you try to turn it off, the only water left coming out is the tiny annoying drips. Did that make any sense? Basically, words might magically flow at the beginning, but if you break the flow to watch Supernatural, getting the flow to turn back on is hard. The occasional word might drip out, but for me, those drips are the kind what make me back up and go "how is this even English."

Some people might call this writer's block. I call it the end of my sanity.

I wish I had a magic solution to the end of all sanity, but I don't. I am currently in a drip faze. Plot holes and word funks are messing with my sanity, and I wish I had a cure. I don't though. The best I can say is just keep writing. 

I know you're sitting there like "I knew that, so what's the secret. Please don't tell me the secret is up there with all that mumbo gumbo." Sorry for the mumbo gumbo. I am on writing funk, and my brain is figuratively dead, so writing a post that might make sense probably won't make sense. I do have a secret though. The secret is...

Just because you are a writer, you won't magically flow out words. I don't think anyone magically flows words. BUT because you are a writer, you will have something amazing to say even through the drips.

Maybe you already knew that, but it's good every now and then to remember, especially during the drips.

How do you get out of the drips? What is the big writing secret for you?

Wednesday On Summer

Hey, guys! I know I've fallen off the radar for the past couple weeks, so if you thought I'd been eaten my sharks or something, I'm sorry to disappoint you. The month of July was kind of crazy for me, but I'm back (for the moment) and I hope you'll forgive me.

The last time I blogged, I wrote about my annual trip to the beach with my family. It was a great week. I bought a quilt, went on a scavenger hunt, wiped out a couple times, ate a lot of ice cream, and helped some toddlers dig a trench. One of my favorite things about writing, aside form the relationships between characters, is creating realistic places. Being in places that I love, like the beach, helped me think about how to create a place in writing that seems real. I can't say I came to any stunning conclusions, but changing my surroundings did change the way I wrote and thought, so if you're ever feeling stuck on a piece of writing, tell your parents to take you on vacation. Or you can just walk down the street to the park, if all else fails.

At the beach with my little brother. He's cute and also evil. 

 The following week I flew to Nova Scotia with my youth group. We started out in Cape Breton and I can easily say it was one of the most beautiful places I've ever been. Being a visitor in a different country forced me to look at things differently and it was nice, for the first few days of our trip, to be so far removed from the rest of society. None of us had our phones or computers. The nearest grocery store was about an hour away and the hostel we stayed in overlooked one of the largest salt lakes in the world.

My favorite part about Cape Breton was being able to write in nature. We would go sailing or hiking and then be given half an hour to sit and write. It wasn't everyone's cup of tea, but I loved it. I felt like I was sitting in the middle of an Emily Dickinson poem. The places we went-- Lake Bras D'or, the Cabbot Trail, and other places I forget the names of-- looked like the kind of places people write poetry about. It was incredible.

We left Cape Breton for Halifax, the biggest city in Nova Scotia, which was kind of a shock after our silence-and-meditation kind of deal. I loved it just as much, though. I'm kind of obsessed with cities. Halifax was just the right mix of charming history and excitement. It didn't hurt that it's a major port (I'm also kind of into water, hence the obsession with beaches, rivers, lakes etc.). I think the reason I love cities so much is because it seems like they have so many stories. You can't turn your head without wondering "What if?"

Cabbot Trail, Nova Scotia.

Halifax (or as we obnoxiously called it, "Holla Fax").

I wish I could have had longer in Canada. I miss Tim Hortons and I even kind of miss the hostels, despite the freezing cold showers. Those were not my favorite. Coming home was easier than it would have been, though, because I was looking forward to my penultimate adventure of the summer: Irish dance camp. As some of you may know, I have been dancing for almost eleven years and I'm certifiably obsessed with all things Irish. On St. Patrick's Day, I look like the Irish flag exploded all over my body. For the past couple years, I spend a week of my summer at Camp Rince Ceol. Rince is Irish Gaelic for dance, and ceol translates to music. It's your typical summer camp, except campers spend 8 + hours a day in dance classes with members of Lord of the Dance and Riverdance. The rest of the time we swoon over said instructors. I kid, I kid..kind of. We have a fake bonfire where we sing irish drinking songs, trivia night, and a final performance and party at the end of the week. I will never forget watching two former leads in Riverdance trying to break dance to Brittany Spears. It's basically a week of being obnoxiously Irish. I didn't get to write very much last week because I spent the majority of my time sleeping and dancing, but it is always one of the best weeks of the year. I'm majorly camp sick right now and I'm coping by crying, hugging my Riverdance poster, and going through the copious amounts of ridiculous camp photos on facebook. Thankfully, I'm driving to Baltimore this week to hang out a few of my infamous cousins, so I'll probably recover.

Campers dancing at CRC.

What have you guys been up to this summer? Where have you been that's inspired you to write? What was your favorite part?

Hope you are making the most of your last few weeks (or days, for some of you).


Caroline

Tuesday on Other Modes of Transportation

Usually, when characters want to go places, they drive cars. It seems everyone has their license and everyone magically has a car, and if they don't, then their friends do. (Unless the main character lives in the city in which case they do that public transportation thing.)

And I'll admit, I drive a lot too, because my house isn't really walking distance from anywhere, and biking past the highway exits that follow my street is zero fun. But I've always been jealous of my friends who live in sidewalk-ed neighborhoods near downtown, because they can walk or bike or roller-skate or cartwheel to places without having to worry about parking and gas and other silly things.

Which brings me to an important point: take away cars, and you have an interesting new way to get to know a character.

Will your character strap on sneakers and walk/jog downtown? Or bike to a friend's house? Or roller skate to work? How about ride a scooter to pick up ice cream?

Here's how I would interpret the above:

Walking: this character is simple and independent.

Jogging: see above. Also, not afraid to show up at his/her destination covered in sweat.

Biking: this character is efficient and comfortable at higher speeds.

Roller skating: a daredevil who is also unique and maybe a bit loco.

Scooter: possibly wears a lot of skirts, but also efficient like the biker.

Of course, we could go on about cars and the kind of car your character drives and what that says about him/her. (Like, you know, the Impala.) Or maybe your character flies a biplane or hang glides.

What are the modes of transportation for your favorite characters?

Happy Tuesday!

Kieryn
www.kierynnicolas.com

Saturday Shouldn't Blog Today

Or: Mostly I forgot it was Saturday.

But also the RSI (repetitive stress injury) in my left wrist is flaring up and I'm not really supposed to type that much and also ouch.

So this week's tip is: Go to the doctor when things hurt and don't stop hurting, okay, kids? Okay.

(I have a blog post planned but typing hurts so I'll write it next week. I promise and I promise I won't forget.)

Hey! Why don't you guys leave me writing questions or things you want to see me blog about in the box below and I'll see if maybe I can come up with blog posts about those things? Yes?

Peace and cookies,
Laina

Thursday Tries to be Quirky

Characters should have quirks to make them real. I feel like a lot of characters today sound like carbon copies of each other. Quirks make characters unique.

I used to think quirks were only for…

Zooey Deschanel

Conspiracy Theorists

Sheldon Cooper :)

It took me a while to realize everyone has quirks. Okay maybe not realize they had them. It just took me a while to realize what they are. I forget mine because I do it every day. 

My quirks would be that

I love tomato sauce, but tomato on salad or whatever gross me out
The top drawer of my dresser always slides open right after I turn off the lights (I know this isn't exactly my quirk, but it's a quirk about my room. IDK I am horrible at thinking of quirks)
I wear flip flops all year round. Maybe it's because I live in Texas wear it doesn't get to cold, but even when it's cold, I wear flip flops. 

My dog is kinda quirky.

She likes to drink out of water bottles

She candance to Thriller.  I am seriously considering buying her a sequined glove and post a video on Youtube. Maybe not.

She giggles in her sleep. I think she may have the dog version of sleep apnea. I might just being paranoid though.

Even the people around me have quirks.

Someone who dries only their Hawaiian shirts in their garage instead of a dyer

Someone with a flag pole but never puts up a flag

Someone who doesn’t like fish, but if you say it’s chicken, they'll eat it

None of these people are super quirky or anything. They are all normal people who just have quirks.

The quirks don’t make them. If you asked me to say three random things about those people, those things wouldn’t be listed, but their quirks kinda just make them them. 

I am more likely to remember the eccentric 80 year old song writer who is tone deaf than the MC's guy best friend who is in love with her for no apparent reason. 

What are some quirks you notice? Do you ever put them in your books?