Category Archives: Natalie Bright

SENSORY WORD: RED

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SENSORY WORD: RED

By Natalie Bright

 

We think of our eyes as video cameras and our brains as blank tapes to be filled with sensory inputs.

Michael Shermer

I love this quote! Think of your readers as blank tapes. It’s your job as a writer to convey that image in as vivid a picture as possible. You create a world on a page with words that comes alive in the readers’ brain.

Let’s consider the color red. Think about digging even deeper. Instead of red, how about:

Pink, salmon, coral, raspberry, strawberry, tomato, currant, cherry, crimson, vermillion, flame, ruby garnet, wine

Each one of those shades of red creates a totally different mental image.

Thanks for following Wordsmith Six!

Nataliebright.com

 

 

 

THE VERY BUSY SPIDER

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THE VERY BUSY SPIDER

 by Natalie Bright

 

A recent Publishers Weekly article announced a new initiative involving publishers and more than 30 communities working to make popular eBooks available for free to children. The Open eBooks app is being developed by the New York Public Library. More kids reading and discovering stories is so exciting. I hope the ConnectED Library Challenge is a huge success.

For the Love of Books!

Remembering the joy I found as a child from my favorite books makes me think of Eric Carle’s THE VERY BUSY SPIDER.

My son loved that book. His father and I took turns reading it out loud. Every. Single. Night. Never mind that I joined a book club and received 2 to 3 new picture books each month. Our boy wasn’t interested. The sheer drudgery of reading Mr. Carle’s book over and over for many years became almost unbearable. My husband and I took turns talking in goofy voices for the animal parts, seeing who could keep a straight face the longest.

Being desperate, I offered a brilliant compromise. We would read two stories every night. One of his choosing and one of my choosing, from the growing pile of book club treasures. My son thought this over for several long seconds. “O-tay,” he says. “But we wead busy spider two times.”

So that’s what we did. One new book and then the spider book every night. Twice. Outsmarted by a three year old, I admit it, but who can argue with that logic when someone you care about loves a book that much?

Dyslexia Diagnosis

Several years later, when my son was in elementary school and struggling, we discovered he had dyslexia. After training sessions and classes which included parent’s participation as well, I understood his fascination with THE VERY BUSY SPIDER. It has clean lines, simple yet detailed illustrations, pages filled with white space; that book literally relaxed his over active brain. The story calmed him down after a day of sensory overload.

Honestly, I still cringe every time I see that cover. No matter how much I dreaded reading that book, what if I had insisted on reading the other books instead? His heart would have been broken, and his over-active mind would have never settled down for sleep.

Readers Have to Connect

As a writer I stand in awe of THE VERY BUSY SPIDER. I learned two lessons from my son and that book:

  1. Some readers may not connect with your stories. Every reader is different.
  2. Stop writing to catch the latest trend. If you’ve never reached the end, it might be time to start something new. If you’re not really into it, how can your readers connect? Write the kinds of books that burn in your heart and mind.

When I dropped the drudgery of writing to what’s popular, my clip file and pub credits grew. The characters that spoke to me gained me a literary agent.

Book Lovers to Do List:

Long before I was a writer, I was a book lover and reader. Here are a few ways we can all promote the joys of reading.

* Recommend a good book to a child or parent, even if it’s not yours.

* Post a book review for an author.

* Comment on an industry related blog and share the link.

* Keep writing the stories of your heart.

Creative Genius or Paranoia?

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Creative Genius or Paranoia?

By Natalie Bright

The creative person is both more primitive and more cultivated, more destructive, a lot madder and a lot saner, than the average person. FRANK BARRON, “Think”, Nov-Dec 1962.

People should realize that writers apply their vivid imaginations to every aspect of their lives. It’s an endless list, the things we can worry about, and the writing and submitting process is no exception. I’m not saying I’ve ever had any thoughts on this list (perhaps one—okay, two), but these issues have come up in conversation with creative types:

  • My children, husband, in-laws, co-workers, neighbors, my cat—the entire universe—have conspired to prevent me from finishing this book.
  • Why did I send that stupid and inappropriate email to my agent? I should have never asked that question. She’s never replied because obviously, I’ve been dropped as a client. Can I be any more unprofessional? My career is over.
  • No response. They never got it. It’s been 14 days, 8.5 hours, 22 minutes since my submission. I don’t like the way the new mailman looks at me. He probably never put it in the bin for mailing. The crazy postman sabotaged my writing career.
  • I can’t believe I let this story out into the world. What a piece of crap. No wonder I can’t sell anything. I’m a total joke to every editor in New York City. They probably read my work out loud at happy hour just for a good laugh.
  • My book would have sold by now except for my website. I need a complete redo with a more vivid color scheme, different pictures, new bio. A blog! I need a blog. And a tribe. How much does a tribe cost?
  • I’m done. It’s too hard. I can’t take all of this rejection. Who am I kidding? My dream. Is. Over. *sob* Hey! A great idea for a picture book just came into my head! I’ll sleep later, AFTER I finish the first draft…

…onward my WordsmithSix friends!

 Nataliebright.com

Hometown Promotions

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Hometown Promotions

By Natalie Bright

There’s a line in a country song that goes, “everyone dies famous in a small town”.

How many of your neighbors, coworkers, or in-laws even know that you’re a writer?

Local Fame and Fortune

We have a renowned New York Times Bestselling author here, who’ve I’ve known since she first became published. She now has a huge fan base, both locally and internationally, and she’s worked hard for it.

In the 25 years that we’ve been friends, I’ve known her to do many, many local talks for free, even though she commands major fees around the country. She rarely turns down an invitation to speak at local library fundraisers, book club meetings, or organization lunches. She’s become extremely popular with the Red Hat groups. Her programs include a tidbit of the characters and settings of her stories yet to be published. She’s not only selling her current list, she’s introducing herself and creating a fan base for works in progress. Her Fan Club has grown by leaps and bounds. Usually 100-200+ people show up at her local book signings for new releases.

Sometimes neighbors can be your biggest supporters. When I started out as a nobody writer several years ago, I’ve tried to emulate that train of thought.

Put Yourself Out There. Should You Charge?

Kid Lit authors are highly encouraged to decline school visits unless the school pays a fee because it sets a precedent in the area. I come from that small town mentality where everyone pitches in when asked and volunteerism is the way of doing things.

Right after college, I volunteered at our local historical museum where I spoke to thousands of kids during spring field trips. Today, some of those same teachers ask me to visit their classrooms. I can drop my kids off at their schools around 7:30, make it to the gig to talk about writing, and be back to my day job desk by 10:00. The kids get an inexpensive pencil with my website or a bookmark with my picture and bio. A 2nd grader told me last week, “I don’t want you to leave.” Another one whispered, “I’m writing a story, too.” For me, it’s about connecting with kids.

The publishing business moves at a snail’s pace. I’m making every effort to keep my name out there as a writer, and all it takes is my time and a .39 cent pencil. I’ve never considered charging the schools in our district, where my friends teach and my children have been enrolled since kindergarten.

Sometimes New Opportunity Means Practice

A friend’s daughter asked me to talk in the Dallas area for a reading event. The inner-city school had very limited funds so I agreed to talk for free. I’ve never done a power point for 700 elementary kids, but it seemed like a great opportunity since I’d be in the area anyway for a conference. This teacher is a tech-whiz so she helped with audio-visual set-up in the gym. I did my program for the first 300+, she offered suggestions to improve the clarity of content, and it went even better for the next group. I have the confidence to do it again. Sometimes new opportunity affords you a practice run, and don’t be afraid to ask for help.

Explore Your Town

Here’s that small-town mindset again: your time is free and it costs you nothing to give it away. Everyone you know can open doors to new opportunity. I usually say yes to everything because it always leads to something else. I’m not talking about selling out as a professional, hard selling, or pounding a group over the head about buying your book. I’m talking about networking and connecting with people who live in your neighborhood.

Show up, give them more than they expected, thank them for their time, eat the free meal, and leave your postcard bio. Odds are someone will ask if you have any books with you. Odds are good you’ll get an invitation to come back, or you’ll be asked to speak to another group because of the contacts you made. Odds are even better that someone will look at your website, perhaps follow you on Twitter or Instagram. Don’t forget to send a hand-written thank you note to the person who invited you. They may not buy a book today, but they know your name.

Selling Books

Marketing and promotion is a marathon, and who has the most depth and understanding about your stories? You can relay that passion about your novels better than anybody else. As authors, WE UNDERSTAND it’s business and all about building a platform and selling books, but not everybody has to know that.

Nataliebright.com

 

 

Wedge of Writing

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“I used to read Zane Grey, and Louis L’Amour books as a child and I absolutely loved them, with the western setting and the action. One thing that I felt was missing from these stories was the romantic relationships. When characters never really get involved with one another emotionally, it makes them seem less real. There are four great motivators of people—hate, greed, fear, and love. Many writers will spend entire novels involving their characters in hate, greed or fear, and leave the love out. Humans are not that shallow. Love is a huge motivating factor in our everyday lives as well as the lives of characters. To write a story and leave romance out makes the story seem empty.”

          — JODI THOMAS

 

The Writing Process

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The Writing Process

By Natalie bright

 

If you enjoy reading about other author’s writing process like I do, you’ve probably come to the conclusion that there is no right or wrong way. I think the main goal that will set you apart from other writers is to actually get to THE END.

Here are examples of two totally different methods that have worked for me.

Option 1: Chasing Rabbit Trails

When you look at the pasture behind my house, you can see several well-worn trails used by cotton tales and jack-rabbits. They criss-cross, head in every direction going on as far as you can see or ending at a fence or under a tree. Here’s a true confession; I find it extremely difficult to stay with one project.

With two teen boys (a senior and 8th grader) and day job demands, I’ve decided to follow the advice of Natalie Goldberg in WRITING DOWN THE BONES: go with the thing that’s burning a hole in your heart. Come to that story with fire in your gut. From novels to nonfiction magazine articles to short stories, I just write. I’ve learned to never question the idea muse and to write whenever I get the chance.

Take for example a picture book manuscript I just finished. The idea hit me as I was climbing into my husband’s pick-up truck on our way to lunch. We were talking about the kids fighting. He was explaining to me that it’s nothing unusual for brothers. As an only child, I can’t relate to how mean siblings can be to each other. I got a visual image of a picture book, as clear as if I held it in my hand. I made notes right then and there, and worked on it over the next two months. Then sent it off to my agent, who had a few suggestions. Took several more weeks to work on edits, and now it’s out in the world. Fingers crossed that it finds a home.

This process may seem crazy to some, but I am able to get things done.

Option 2: Emersion into Fictional World

The middle grade manuscript I recently finished involved a total emersion into the world of Comanche, a Plains Indian tribe that once walked the ground that is now our cattle ranch. The book began as a story about a mule skinner’s son set in the old west, but when I typed THE END it felt incomplete. Something was missing. One Saturday morning, after two hours of digging in the dirt, I found a perfectly shaped arrowhead point which reminded me that the last person who had touched that piece of flint had been a Native American. The burning in my gut turned into a Comanche brave. I had to bring Wolf’s point of view to that story.

A secondary character became a main character, and I started over with research. If words refused to come, research turned into long walks staring at a Texas sunset trying to figure out what in the heck a Comanche teenager might be thinking in 1854. This was the most difficult and most fun book I’ve ever written. Hopefully it will find a home as well.

Don’t Question the WHY!

Take the advice of David Morrell, father of Rambo and an amazing speaker; don’t question the why. He really motivated me to keep writing; no matter the rejection, no matter the crazy ideas that pop into my head, no matter that my story may never be seen by the world.

Let’s be fearless, dear writers! Follow that fire in your gut and discover where it leads. You might be amazed at what you can accomplish.

Please share your writing process. How do you stay on task until THE END?

 

Story in a Blog

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Story in a Blog

by Natalie Bright

Emotion…

…is an important component of any great novel. Laughter, sadness, or horror—experiencing a wide range of feelings is perhaps the main reason readers read. Inciting emotion should be the goal of writers when they write.

An exceptional writer can take their readers on a roller-coaster ride of sensation. Can you remember the story that made you laugh out loud? How about an ending that left you crumpled in tears? And horror—thank you King and Koontz. Heavy sighs, heart pounding love; innocent and sweet, or in graphic detail if you so choose. Which brings me to topic of this post.

Last week, I read a blog post that contains all of the components of a great novel, an example that writing good blogs is just as important as writing good stories. Follow the link, read, and let’s discuss: click here.

Story in a Blog.

  • Writing from the heart makes for intense reactions. Dig deep. You might have to revisit those painful and embarrassing times in your life. Go there and be fearless. Your writing will be all the richer.
  • Empathy with the author. The reality of the situation brings to mind a myriad of sentiments for most of us. Panic, sheer terror, frustration, and tremendous joy at the thought of being a parent, plus I laughed out loud.
  • This blog post has the necessary components of a novel. A great beginning that drags the reader in, solid middle, and an ending that ties up the tale in a nice little package. It leaves the reader satisfied.

Side note: The author of THE BIG OOPS is our niece, Lindsay Bright, and I’m so very proud to announce that she’s recently been selected as a new contributor to the hugely popular CityMomsBlog. She’ll be blogging from the diverse city of Austin, so please watch for her posts there.

Thanks for following WordsmithSix!

 Nataliebright.com

Wordsmith Six Welcomes Adam!

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Wordsmith Six Welcomes Adam!

We’ve added a new member to the WordsmithSix Critique Group.

Say hello to Adam Huddleston!

Adam brings a new vibe to our meetings in the form of fantasy and world creation. He blew us away when he shared the first four pages of a story idea at our last meeting. It was a unanimous vote to extend an invitation to him and to welcome him as a permanent member. Adam will be blogging on Thursdays.

Let Me Introduce the Wordsmith Six line-up:

Middle Grade Mondays: That’s me, Natalie, a Chicken Soup author and freelance writer. I had every intention of writing romance novels, but discovered that the stories inside my head were for children. My work is represented by Mr. Stephen Fraser with the Jennifer De Chiara Literary Agency. For stories about cattle ranching and life in the Texas Panhandle, check out Prairie Purview Blog on my Website / nataliebright.com.

Tuesdays: Rory is the moderator of WordsmithSix blog site. This Chicken Soup author is also a published devotional writer and contest winner. He’s the former President of Panhandle Professional Writers, and is currently working on an amazing novel about Paul. Check out his Website RorycKeel.com

Outtakes Wednesday: Cait writes women’s fiction, screenplays, and is currently working on a wonderful memoir about her and her five sisters, and their life as a military family. She previously served a 3 term as President of Panhandle Professional Writers, and is active in the area youth writing contest.

Thursdays: Adam is a winner and participant in Flash Tales 2, a collection of flash fiction shorts, and currently serves as moderator of their website and contest. He writes fantasy and science fiction. Website http://site.flashfiction5.com

Freaky Fridays: Nandy is our resident horror writer. She’s been published in numerous anthologies. She’s also a contest judge and former Board member of Panhandle Professional Writers. To read Nandy’s stories, go to her Website nandyekle.com for purchasing information.

Saddle Up Saturdays: Joe is a former pro bronc rider and present day cowboy. He’s writing a rodeo tale about coming of age in the rough and tumble realities of professional, competitive rodeo. This is an amazing book and we’re all looking forward to the day when it finds a publishing home.

Our critique group is unique in that we represent a wide variety of genres, which makes for very interesting meetings. Join us as we write, work and muddle through the world of publishing.

Thanks for following Wordsmith Six

 

 

Characterization

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Characterization

By Natalie Bright

 

Creating well-rounded, believable characters.

During a snowy, lazy day of watching The Big Bang Theory marathon, I started thinking about the complex dynamics of characterization. The character traits go deep in this sitcom and play off this group of friends to compliment, define, and often times clash with each other.

Profiles

I began to write down the character profiles from the television show. This reminded me that well-rounded characters have good traits and bad traits, just like real people. There’s some things we really love about our BFFs, but there are other things that make us cringe. Real people are complicated. Folks have good qualities and bad qualities. They have issues from multifaceted pasts, or habits based on where they spent their childhoods.

Think about this: Real people have deep, dark secrets.

The way to avoid boring, cardboard characters is to make our fictional characters complicated too.

Character Study

Sheldon Cooper:      often times seems very rude

Inappropriate, no filter for what he says

Whiney, immature

We love him because: his endearing quality of a child-like innocence. He trusts his friends, does what his mother says, and loves his MeMaw. She calls him Moonpie because he’s yummy, yummy and she could just eat him up.

I think the characters of The Big Bang Theory are likeable because we can recognize in them the people that we know in real life. For a television series these recognizable traits are taken to the extreme to create believable fictional characters.

Heroes are not absolutely perfect. Give them a physical limitation, deep-burning issues from a past experience, or a personality mannerism that’s far from impeccable.

Villains aren’t all bad. Give them a loveable quality that readers can relate too, but take it to the extreme. Make them leap off the pages of your story. This past weekend I watched Silence of the Lambs again. I had forgotten how powerful that movie is. What makes us like Hannibal Lector? Why are we glad that he escaped prison?

Secrets: your characters must have a few secrets. Whether or not to reveal those secrets in your story is up to you.

Writing Exercise: Profile characters from your favorite TV show or movie.

MANUSCRIPT BASICS

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MANUSCRIPT BASICS

By Natalie Bright

A friend contacted me this past week with a question about her brother’s book. In a letter from a publisher, the editor requested a “single pane format”. I had never heard of the term. After some discussion, I finally pieced the puzzle together. He had submitted it in book format with two panes per page. Unfortunately, it’s a lengthy work and he has lots of cutting a pasting to do. There is good news–he has an editor willing to take another look!

Manuscripts should follow several simple formatting rules. Please share this blog with your newbie writer friends.

Here are the basic rules for formatting a manuscript to be followed when submitting your work to agents and editors:

Use a 1″ margin on both sides, top and bottom.
Double-space the entire text.
Indent fives spaces for each new paragraph.
Some agents/editors prefer a title page.
Don’t number the title page. Begin numbering with the first page of the text of the book, whether that be an introduction, prologue, or chapter one.
Place a header on each page, top right or left, which includes the following: title of your novel in all caps / your name / page number.
Start each new chapter on its own page, one-third of the way down the page. (control return for Word users)
The chapter number and chapter title should be in all caps, separated by two hyphens: CHAPTER 1—TITLE.
Begin the body of the chapter four to six lines below the chapter title.
Use a standard font, 12-point type. Times New Roman, Arial, or Courier is fine.
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