Category Archives: Rory C. Keel

Introducing…

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Introducing…

By Rory C. Keel

  

At one end of the street three bodies lay in the dirt, at the other end smoke drifted from the barrel of a pistol that a man in a trench coat held in his hand.

Who were these three dead men? Why did they challenge the man in the trench coat? What was this gunfight about?

The first few sentences of a piece of work should draw the reader into the story and cause them to read further. A good introduction may tell the reader what kind of story it will be and help them decide if it’s their kind of story.

Listed below are five basic opening techniques

  1. Picture or unusual image
  2. Dialogue
  3. Action
  4. Question
  5. Interesting fact

Try using each of these in your writing and see which one creates the greatest interest in your opening paragraph.

www.roryckeel.com

ARE YOU AFRAID TO FLY?

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ARE YOU AFRAID TO FLY?

by Rory C. Keel 

It’s amazing that so many people have a fear of flying. Several years ago, while on a plane from Saint Louis Missouri to Portland Oregon, I remember boarding and seeing a man who looked as pale as death. He took his seat across the aisle and immediately buckled the seat belt, grabbed the armrests and shook so violently I wondered if it was the engines or him shaking the plane. After sedating himself with a couple of adult beverages, he slept soundly to our destination.

While I have never been afraid to travel in an airplane, I have experienced a fear of flying. Realizing I would never pilot an F-16 fighter jet, I turned to the hobby of remote control airplanes.

After what my wife called “investing heavily” in a kit, I began to build my first R/C airplane. For days I trimmed every piece of wood with the skill of a surgeon to the exact specs. For weeks, I placed every drop of glue precisely in the correct spot, as to not change the balance of the plane. And after months of careful tune-ups on the engine and electronics, along with a few instructions from others to assure that my plane would soar with the eagles, fear took over.

What if it crashes? All that hard work and time will have been in vain.

On my first solo flight, I rolled the plane down the tarmac and lifted off. A feeling of accomplishment flooded over me as I made one pass, then another over the stands. Not wanting to run out of fuel and lose the plane, I made the approach to land. That day I witnessed the most horrific sight—in front of me laid splinters of wood, pieces of plastic and shards of metal. I crash-landed my plane.

In writing, there are moments when we are afraid to submit a piece of work, fearful of rejection. We work on a piece until it is perfect then, “WHAT IF” takes over. What if it’s rejected? What if it was a waste of time because no one likes it?

The good news is that my first plane did finally soar. I learned that my time wasn’t wasted at all. In all the hours of building I had learned how to repair the broken plane, and after adjusting the mistakes I made in the landing approach, confidence took control.

Yes, I have letters of rejection for my writing, however with repairs and a few adjustments, those same pieces have been published.

Don’t be afraid to fly!

Roryckeel.com

Introducing…

Posted on by
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Introducing…

By Rory C. Keel

  

At one end of the street three bodies lay in the dirt, at the other end smoke drifted from the barrel of a pistol that a man in a trench coat held in his hand.

Who were these three dead men? Why did they challenge the man in the trench coat? What was this gunfight about?

The first few sentences of a piece of work should draw the reader into the story and cause them to read further. A good introduction may tell the reader what kind of story it will be and help them decide if it’s their kind of story.

Listed below are five basic opening techniques

  1. Picture or unusual image
  2. Dialogue
  3. Action
  4. Question
  5. Interesting fact

Try using each of these in your writing and see which one creates the greatest interest in your opening paragraph.

www.roryckeel.com

It’s all in the execution

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A poor plan properly executed, will work. It’s all in the execution.

By Rory C. Keel

As you step out on the stage of becoming a writer, there are many unknowns. Writers groups and conferences are helpful in learning the in’s and out’s of writing and publishing. However, unless this knowledge is put into a plan and executed, it is useless.

Develop a plan

Set short-term goals and long-term goals for your writing and put together a plan to reach them. Write them on paper or log them on a computer where you can physically see them every day to remind you of what you want to achieve.

Finding a topic or story to write about this week is a good example of a short-term goal. Set a daily, weekly, monthly word count to reach and a time management schedule in order to meet them.

Develop long-term goals such as setting a date to finish the first draft of your story or novel, research agents or publishers to pitch your book to or determine to submit your story to multiple markets until someone buys it.

Now execute the plan

You must execute your plan! Good or bad, no plan will work unless you carry it out. When you plan a vacation you use the knowledge you have available and make a plan. If you never move forward, you will never reach your destination.

What if your knowledge is limited or you realize your plan is not perfect? Move forward – adjust. Often we need to reread the map or take a detour to get to our destination, but we continue to move forward. Even a poor plan that is properly executed, will work, but it must be executed to reach the goal.

Roryckeel.com

Writing Endorsements

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Writing Endorsements

By Rory C. Keel

Ask for endorsements from readers that enjoyed your writing. Simply say something like, “Would you provide me with a positive comment I could use as a testimonial for my book?”

Use the positive comments as headlines for your writing on your website and other promotional materials such as bookmarks and brochures.

Take note of unsolicited positive comments and remarks about your writing in e-mails and personal conversations. If individuals say something positive about your writing, ask to quote them.

Collect testimonials in a notebook and you will have them readily available when promoting your writing, stories and books.

Realize that testimonials from your readers will generate excitement and create interest in your work and draw more readers for your material.

Stories of Our Youth

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Stories of Our Youth

By Rory C. Keel

The Young Adult Genre is comprised of works written for the age group between twelve and eighteen, according to the Young Adult Library Service association (YALSA), which is a division of the American Library Association (ALA).

While written for a young audience, many adults also enjoy young adult stories and adventures. The protagonist as well as most of the main characters will usually be close in age, and the stories may deal with any social topic or subject that allows the character to deal with an inner struggle. The young adult genre will show the main character growing as they work to learn important life lessons.

Sub-genres include stories that fall into most other genres such as fantasy, horror, mystery, romance, science-fiction, historical and adventure, with a writing style that appeals to a younger audience.

It has been many years since my childhood, yet even today many of my favorite books are still those from my youth.

roryckeel.com

Better Critiques

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Better Critiques

By Rory C. Keel

 

Recently I re-examined a few rules on critiquing other writers’ works. Occasionally I have to do this because I tend to get caught up in the stories. There’s nothing better than someone reading a story to you, right?

First, when you give a critique, start with praise. The most fearful thing about having your work judged is the fear of mean spirited criticism. Find something that you like about the piece, whether it is the overall story idea, plot, character or phrase in the writing that touched a cord with you.

Second, examine the overall piece. Does it make sense? Will it fit within the stated genre or purpose for the writing? What is the plot or premise? Does it have a reasonable conclusion? Does it read smoothly? Does it show rather than tell?

Third, check the details. This is the time to check the facts, note any phrases that seem to be odd or out of place. Mark grammar, misspelled words and punctuation errors.

Finally, critique another writer’s work with respect. Have an attitude of helping them improve their skills, not tearing them down.

Follow these simple rules and you will give and get better critiques.

roryckeel.com

Think About It and Become Inspired

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Think About It and Become Inspired

By Rory C. Keel

Recently I found myself bogged down in writing my Novel. My first thought was that I had lost my ability to write. However, I seem to be able to spell and put a sentence together and my computer still functions. My fingers are flexible enough to hold a pen write on the reams of paper I have so what’s the problem, the lack of inspiration.

Inspiration

Inspiration doesn’t fall from the clouds nor is it mystical but it is a product of action.

When we feel inspired, it’s because we’ve been thinking and meditating on information we have taken into our minds through our senses. We take all of this information and then twist it, shake it, mold it and place it into a certain order in our minds that makes sense to us.

We then become inspired.

This process is action that produces inspiration.

roryckeel.com

Submission Format

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Submission Format

By Rory C. Keel

 

When writing a novel or even short works, you will need to format your work.

There are many different format styles. When submitting your work, make a diligent effort to understand and follow any specific guidelines regarding formatting requests.

Below is a good standard format that will be accepted by most editors, agents, and publishers in the industry.

Page Information

  • Margins — 1.5 inches all the way around
  • Font — Courier, Courier New, or other clean monospace serif font from 10-12 pt.
  • Line spacing — Double-space
  • Paragraph indent — first line, 5 pt.
  • Header — right justified, contains the following information: Last name/ TITLE/ page#

A header does not belong on the cover page. Start headers on page one of the actual manuscript.

Cover page — depends on whether you’re agented or not.

      Unagented:

  • Contact information — Name and address, phone number and e-mail address in the top left corner of the page, single spaced, left-justified
  • Title — centered, just above the middle of the page
  • by — centered and one double-spaced line beneath the title
  • Name or pen name — centered and one double-spaced line beneath the word by
  • Word count — centered and rounded to the nearest thousand, one double-spaced line beneath your name or pen name

     Agented:

  • Title — centered, just above the middle of the page
  • by — centered and one double-spaced line beneath the title
  • Name or pen name — centered and one double-spaced line beneath the word by
  • Word count — centered and rounded to the nearest thousand, one double-spaced line beneath your name or pen name
  • Agent’s contact information — Name, business name, mailing address, phone number (e-mail address if you have the agent’s okay first), left justified, single spaced, bottom of the page

First page

Header — should be in the upper right-hand corner of the page, and page number should be 1.

  • Chapter header — can be anywhere from one to six double-spaced lines down from the top of the page, and can be centered or left justified. You can title your chapters, or just write Chapter One or Chapter 1.
  • Body text — drop down two double-spaced lines to begin your story.
  • Scene breaks — drop down two double-spaced lines, insert and center the # character, drop down two more double-spaced lines, and begin your new scene.

Subsequent chapters — start each chapter on a fresh page. Keep chapter formatting and titling consistent with your first chapter.

Happy submitting,

Roryckeel.com

 

The People Surrounding You

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The People Surrounding You

Rory C. Keel

For a writing exercise, take a few moments and make a list of your closest friends, relatives, your boss and co-workers.

Choose the person you like the most and the least; the person who has had the most positive and most negative influence on you; the person who has changed the most and the least since you’ve known them; and then write a write a brief paragraph on each of them explaining why you feel this way.

Notice any quirks they may exhibit such as, do they constantly jerk their head back to flip their the hair out of their eyes, or do they run their hand throughout their hair?

Do they chew their food quietly, or smack their lips loudly?

These are the kind of details that add life to your story characters.

roryckeel.com