Category Archives: Nandy Ekle

Relax

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POST CARDS FROM THE MUSE

Relax

By Nandy Ekle

Shopping, cooking, eating, decorating, partying, wrapping, mailing, planning, eating, cleaning, making up extra beds, staying up late hours, hugging, kissing, laughing, crying, eating, re-cleaning, unwrapping, redecorating, good-bying, and re-cleaning again. From the beginning of November through the beginning of January, life is nonstop chaos. And for those of us whose comfort is routine and order, The Holidays are exhausting. Add to that a full-time job, unfinished stories and a cruel conscience, and, well, no wonder the muse vanishes every time we boot up the computer.

Now, it’s over. The time has come to put things back in order and continue on with your life. But you’re tired. No, that’s not right. You’re EXHAUSTED. You put your hands on the keys and watch them just sit there. Ideas bounce around in your head with characters and scenes.

What you really need is rest. Give yourself permission to take one week off. Heal, rest, relax.

But don’t forget that while you’re resting and relaxing, your characters are frozen exactly where you left them, which, depending on where they are and what they’re doing, can be very awkward.

Congratulations. You have just received a post card from the muse.

Yes, I’m Going There

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Yes, I’m Going There

By Nandy Ekle

 

Of course there are always at least two sides to everything. One rule I’ve heard is to branch out and try new things, to research and learn, let the imagination run. The other side of that rule is to write what you know.

I’ve thought about that for a while. I love to pretend I’m someone else and go through their adventures, even the most painful kind. I love to learn new facts and see how things work, what other places look and smell like. In short, I’m a person who enjoys new experiences.

But one day the thought occurred to me, who better to write about arachnophobia than a bona fide anrachnophobe? Who can describe the terror better than someone who breaks out in the proverbial cold sweat, someone whose muscles clench up and freeze when an eight-legged monster creeps across the floor? No one who has never suddenly realized their arms and legs have crawled back into their body will ever be able to accurately describe the way the air leaves the room and their eyes glue themselves to the creature as it runs to hide in a corner until you’re not looking so it can jump on your head and tangle in your hair, laying egg sacs in your skin . . .

Yes, well—now you see how writing what you know can be a definite advantage.

Congratulations. You have just received a post card from the muse.

Fill In the Blank

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POST CARDS FROM THE MUSE

Fill In the Blank

By Nandy Ekle

 

Her first name is __________. Her hair is the color of __________ and her eyes look like __________. Her favorite hobby is __________. Her passion is __________, but more than anything in the world she wants __________, and she would be willing to give up __________ to get it.

His first name is __________. His hair is the color of __________ and his eyes look like __________. His favorite hobby is __________. His passion is __________, but more than anything in the world he wants __________, and he would be willing to give up __________ to get it.

One day they meet at __________ and they both know __________. They decide they should __________, each one thinking about that one thing they want so desperately. But when they begin to _________ they realize _________ all along. In the end they have __________ their goals to __________.

The End.

Congratulations. You have jus received a post card from the muse.

Writing Prompts

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POST CARDS FROM THE MUSE

Writing Prompts

By Nandy Ekle

 

I have written about writing prompts before, but I’m going to write a new blog here about them because sometimes they can really give us that jump start we need. I once ran across a prompt that was to write a short flash fiction story backwards and to start with the words, “Finally he (she) heaved a sigh of relief.” I guess that was exactly what I needed because I quickly wrote a story less than 1,000 words. It had a beginning (which was really the end), a middle, and an end (yeah, the beginning). And I had a ball writing it. (You can find it on flahesinthedark.com – search for author Nandy Ekle and it will pop right up for you to enjoy *shamless plug*)

Another prompt I stumbled on was to write a story using exactly 50 words. It had to contain people dressed formally and a fatal action had to happen. My words poured out and my fingers flew and I had a 50 word (exactly) story that soon became an idea for a great novel. Well, we’ll talk about finishing a novel some day in the future.

However, there are a few prompt sites and generators that really do the opposite. These are the ones that are like slot machines. You give each wheel a spin and they all land on topics that could not possibly go together or make any sense whatsoever. I try to stay away from those.

There is one other prompt that I enjoy and it is sitting in a time waste with a pad of paper and a pen. This would be like a doctor’s office, or some other type of dead time space. One time I found myself waiting for an appointment in an office full of other people just sitting around staring at the wall. I decided to describe the room. I started with the gray walls and described them down to the bumps in the sheet rock. I went into great detail with the carpet, the furniture, and finally some of the people sitting in the chairs. I could see all the emotion in their faces: the desperation, the fear, the frustration, fatigue, anger and hope. Before my name was called I had a discovered some characters, a conflict, and a story started.

Congratulations. You have just received a post card from the muse.

The Dump

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POST CARDS FROM THE MUSE

The Dump 

By Nandy Ekle

 

“The most important things to remember about back story are that (a) everyone has a history and (b) most of it isn’t very interesting.”

― Stephen King, On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft

One time I read a story with a very complicated plot. A lot of this plot depended on the 200-year family history. The author had an incredible tale, but I was never able to finish it because the first one hundred pages gave the whole history at once. It was a very convoluted history with lots of characters and lots of twists and turns.

This is called information dump. I asked the author about the reason for placing the backstory at the front of the book in one giant swallow and the answer was that it was critical to understanding the present day story. And this was, to some extent, true.

However, there are other ways to accomplish this. If you’ve ever read any Stephen King books, you’ve seen this done brilliantly.

One of his methods is with dialogue. Two who have not seen each other in a while will have a conversation bringing each other up to date on news from the past. This can also be used to drop clues as to the trickier parts of the story.

Another one of Mr. King’s methods is to start the story at a place in the backstory as if it’s happening at that moment. After the pertinent information is out, he flashes forward to the actual story.

Another interesting way to get the history out there for the reader is in dreams. This can be fund because dreams are symbolic and just about anything can be used to transfer the important history.

And, of course, there’s always flashbacks. But always remember, elephants are best eaten one bite at a time instead of all at once.

Congratulations. You have just received a post card from the muse.

Top of the Ferris Wheel

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Top of the Ferris Wheel

By Nandy Ekle

 

We hadn’t watched one of those court shows in forever. You know what I’m talking about—the Jerry Springer type judges, hearing the cases of Jerry Springer type parties. The cases sound contrived, the judges sound scripted, and the parties scream and yell at each other when the judge bangs her gavel.

As we flipped through the channels we came across one of these shows and decided to watch for a minute. There were two women, two best friends, who were suing a carny man. Their claim was negligence. They had been trapped at the top of the ferris wheel for more than five minutes. One of the women suffered from severe acrophobia, fear of heights.

The story was that one of the women, the one who was not afraid of heights, decided to administer some psychotherapy to her friend. The best way to overcome an irrational fear is to face it. So she talked her acrophobic friend into getting on the ferris wheel at the state fair. After all, the ferris wheel is a very tame ride—no terrifying speed, no slowly climbing mountains to plummet down toward the earth with a promise of death. You simply sit in a bucket and look at the landscape as the wheel turns.

As you can imagine, the wheel stopped while the two women were at the very top due to a sudden mechanical problem. According to the carny man, the wheel is inspected three times a day, so the sudden problem was very unexpected and the man immediately stopped the ride.

The acrophobic woman had a panic attack. She began screaming and flailing causing the bucket to rock and bounce. As her panic turned into outright terror, the door of the bucket flew open, causing her fit to peak, and the other woman also began to flail around.

Eventually the wheel was repaired enough to bring the women back to the bottom so they could leave and go on their merry little lawsuit-for-pain-and-suffering way.

After listening to this story in total disbelief, I realized what the women were describing was the perfect image of plot writing. You have a character with a problem who wants a solution to their problem. Then you have them do something so different from anything they’ve ever done before, only for everything that can go wrong to . . . go wrong. Then you have a character who seems to be at fault for every problem that comes up. And finally, we have the secret bad guy, the one who stands behind the machinery with a pair of wire cutters.

Congratulations. You have just received a post card from the muse.

Nandyekle.com

 

Yes, I’m Going There

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POST CARDS FROM THE MUSE

Yes, I’m Going There

By Nandy Ekle

 

Of course there are always at least two sides to everything. One rule I’ve heard is to branch out and try new things, to research and learn, let the imagination run. The other side of that rule is to write what you know.

I’ve thought about that for a while. I love to pretend I’m someone else and go through their adventures, even the most painful kind. I love to learn new facts and see how things work, what other places look and smell like. In short, I’m a person who enjoys new experiences.

But one day the thought occurred to me, who better to write about arachnophobia than a bona fide anrachnophobe? Who can describe the terror better than someone who breaks out in the proverbial cold sweat, someone whose muscles clench up and freeze when an eight-legged monster creeps across the floor? No one who has never suddenly realized their arms and legs have crawled back into their body will ever be able to accurately describe the way the air leaves the room and their eyes glue themselves to the creature as it runs to hide in a corner until you’re not looking so it can jump on your head and tangle in your hair, laying egg sacs in your skin . . .

Yes, well—now you see how writing what you know can be a definite advantage.

Congratulations. You have just received a post card from the muse.

 

Painting From Corners and Cutting Off Branches

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Painting From Corners and Cutting Off Branches

By Nandy Ekle

 

 

I love a good mystery show, especially if it has a twist. And sometimes the biggest twist is actually no twist at all. Here’s how it works.

You begin building the story in the usual way, introduce the character who is amazingly handsome and brilliant but who also has a sad little flaw. He reveals this flaw but justifies himself by listing the rules he has set for himself to control it. Then we go through a day or two of his life to see how it works. As the action/drama builds, we suddenly realize there is no way out for our character. He either has to break his own rules, or he has to give up. The more the story progresses, the tighter the noose gets and we are sure he’s about to be undone. Finally, at the end, just before he gives up, the light comes on and you realize what was forgotten. One of the smaller rules in his self-imposed control. As soon as that loophole opens up, he wins and lives happily ever after.

But then there’s the story line where he has to cut off his nose to spite his face. This is the character who does everything right. But the problems he faces grow huge enough and chase him out on a branch. You know he will have to do something, but everything he tries is thwarted. And in the end, he has to cut the branch he’s hanging from and drop to the abyss. But the twist is that he only drops a couple of feet. That’s when you gulp a deep breath of air and fall back in your chair.

This is great writing.

Congratulations. You have just received a post card from the muse.

Painting From Corners and Cutting Off Branches

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POST CARDS FROM THE MUSE

Painting From Corners and Cutting Off Branches

By Nandy Ekle

 

 

I love a good mystery show, especially if it has a twist. And sometimes the biggest twist is actually no twist at all. Here’s how it works.

You begin building the story in the usual way, introduce the character who is amazingly handsome and brilliant but who also has a sad little flaw. He reveals this flaw but justifies himself by listing the rules he has set for himself to control it. Then we go through a day or two of his life to see how it works. As the action/drama builds, we suddenly realize there is no way out for our character. He either has to break his own rules, or he has to give up. The more the story progresses, the tighter the noose gets and we are sure he’s about to be undone. Finally, at the end, just before he gives up, the light comes on and you realize what was forgotten. One of the smaller rules in his self-imposed control. As soon as that loophole opens up, he wins and lives happily ever after.

But then there’s the story line where he has to cut off his nose to spite his face. This is the character who does everything right. But the problems he faces grow huge enough and chase him out on a branch. You know he will have to do something, but everything he tries is thwarted. And in the end, he has to cut the branch he’s hanging from and drop to the abyss. But the twist is that he only drops a couple of feet. That’s when you gulp a deep breath of air and fall back in your chair.

This is great writing.

Congratulations. You have just received a post card from the muse.

Writing Prompts

Posted on by
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POST CARDS FROM THE MUSE

Writing Prompts

By Nandy Ekle

 

I have written about writing prompts before, but I’m going to write a new blog here about them because sometimes they can really give us that jump start we need. I once ran across a prompt that was to write a short flash fiction story backwards and to start with the words, “Finally he (she) heaved a sigh of relief.” I guess that was exactly what I needed because I quickly wrote a story less than 1,000 words. It had a beginning (which was really the end), a middle, and an end (yeah, the beginning). And I had a ball writing it. (You can find it on flahesinthedark.com – search for author Nandy Ekle and it will pop right up for you to enjoy *shamless plug*)

Another prompt I stumbled on was to write a story using exactly 50 words. It had to contain people dressed formally and a fatal action had to happen. My words poured out and my fingers flew and I had a 50 word (exactly) story that soon became an idea for a great novel. Well, we’ll talk about finishing a novel some day in the future.

However, there are a few prompt sites and generators that really do the opposite. These are the ones that are like slot machines. You give each wheel a spin and they all land on topics that could not possibly go together or make any sense whatsoever. I try to stay away from those.

There is one other prompt that I enjoy and it is sitting in a time waste with a pad of paper and a pen. This would be like a doctor’s office, or some other type of dead time space. One time I found myself waiting for an appointment in an office full of other people just sitting around staring at the wall. I decided to describe the room. I started with the gray walls and described them down to the bumps in the sheet rock. I went into great detail with the carpet, the furniture, and finally some of the people sitting in the chairs. I could see all the emotion in their faces: the desperation, the fear, the frustration, fatigue, anger and hope. Before my name was called I had a discovered some characters, a conflict, and a story started.

Congratulations. You have just received a post card from the muse.