“Write” Start: Action

Action is another way to open a story, whether it’s a picture book, chapter book or YA novel. The official term is in media res, Latin for “in the midst of action.” Delving the reader into the exploits of the main character establishes the stakes at risk and ups the tension. I used this style of opening in FORTY WINKS. A dragon zoomed around the child’s room at night, waking him. 

Opening a story with action places the reader in the middle of the scene as it is taking place. It’s been used for centuries, as far back as the Roman poet Horace who stated that an epic poem should not begin “from the egg” but should “snatch” the listener “into the middle of things.” It kicks the story off in the middle of the plot. 

To begin with action, something happens. The action may be near the beginning of the story, or closer to the middle or ending. The writer then backtracks to introduce the character and the situation.

Call for Submissions for Young Writers:

The Louisville Review accepts accepts submissions of previously unpublished poetry from students in grades K-12. Seeks writing that looks for fresh ways to recreate scenes and feelings. Honest emotion and original imagery are more important to a poem than rhyming and big topics—such as life, moralizing, and other abstractions. Parental signature must accompany submissions. Unsolicited submissions of fiction, poetry, nonfiction, and drama year round. All work must be previously unpublished. Reply time is 3-6 months. Simultaneous submissions are accepted, but please notify us promptly via email if your work is accepted elsewhere. All submissions are considered based on quality of writing above all else.

Submissions guidelines at http://www.louisvillereview.org/submissions/

Call for Submissions for Adult Writers:

East of the Web. East of the Web is keen to provide exposure for writers by offering them a place where their work will be seen and read in a high quality, respected setting. The site receives about half a million unique visitors per month, so successful submissions are likely to be viewed by more readers than in almost any other short story publication. In addition, the site receives attention from agents, the press, film makers, schools, universities and other publishers.

Submissions guidelines at http://www.eastoftheweb.com/short-stories/Publishing.html

Nancy Kelly Allen has written 40+ children’s books and a cookbook, SPIRIT OF KENTUCKY: BOURBON COOKBOOK.

Leave a message or check out my blog at www.nancykellyallen.com

“Write” Start: Curiosity

 My last blog focused on the “write” start by introducing the unexpected as the beginning of the story. Another way is to appeal to the reader’s curiosity. In my book, AMAZING GRACE,” a young girl had two mysteries—a wrapped box and a letter—that intrigued her because she didn’t know what was in either.

When we stir readers’ curiosity, we hold their interest. They want to dig deeper and explore the story to discover the next turn of events. Readers enjoy immersing themselves in the plot as they attempt to figure out the mystery or how the protagonist will escape from the dire situation the writer has created.

As writers, we want to give the reader a compelling force to grasp and hold their attention. Allow them information so they, too, can become part of the team as they try to figure out the solution or solve the problem. End each scene with them wanting more, using such tactics as an unexpected twist to the story, a surprise, or another problem or setback.

Call for Submissions for Young Writers:

Guardian Angel Kids.

MONTHLY THEMES AND DEADLINES 2019

March----- SADDLE UP! -----February 3 2019
April----- CHALLENGES-----March 3 2019
May------ LIVING IN A FISHBOWL -----April 3 2019
June----- I AM ME -----May 3 2019
July----- SCENT SENSE -----June 3 2019
August----- CONSERVATION FOR KIDS -----July 3 2019
September----- SUPER HERO -----August 3 2019
October----- TRAINS, TRACKS, AND TRAVELERS -----September 3 2019
November----- GAK SAYS LET'S EXPLORE OREGON TRAILS -----October 3 2019
December----- THE BEAUTY OF THE HOLIDAY -----November 3 2019

Submissions guidelines at http://www.guardian-angel-kids.com/submissions.html

Call for Submissions for Adult Writers: Cast of Wonders. Stories that evoke a sense of wonder, have deep emotional resonance, and have something unreal about them. We aim for a 12-17 age range: that means sophisticated, non-condescending stories with wide appeal, and without gratuitous or explicit sex, violence or pervasive obscene language. Think Harry Potter or The Hunger Games.

Submissions guidelines at http://www.castofwonders.org/submissions/

Nancy Kelly Allen has written 50+ children’s books and a cookbook, SPIRIT OF KENTUCKY: BOURBON COOKBOOK. 

Comment or check out the blog at https://nancykellyallen.blogspot.com/

Writing Children’s Books with Child Appeal, Part 2

Fictional picture books often deal with the character solving a problem, and in doing so, the writer’s job is to show the character’s emotional state. A character’s feelings are the gateway into the story.  Emotions make readers feel, make them hunger for the character to overcome the obstacles, and cheer for the victory. Without the emotional stakes, readers are not drawn into the character’s world, so they don’t care. Make readers feel. Make them care. With each scene, consider how the reader will react. Is the event something in which the child can identify? If children see themselves in a story, they identify with it and request it for storytime, over and over. 

Mountains of children’s books have been written on every subject that interest children of every age. Making a book different in some way so it can compete in a highly competitive market is necessary. One way to do this is to write about some thing or experience in which a child is familiar and flip it to present the information or story in a fresh and engaging way. A retelling of a fairy tale from the voice of a minor character: Example: Cinderella as told by the pumpkin or the glass slipper.  

Page turns are fun for the readers and add a ton of child appeal. This approach keeps adding surprises as the story unfolds. Here are three ways to add page turns.

1.      Stop in the middle of a sentence and complete it on the following page. Readers enjoy this because it allows them to predict what my happen next. The more a reader is engaged in a story, the more appeal it has.

2.      Use part of a compound word on one page and the remainder on the next. Example: He found a rattle…snake in the grass.

3.      Transitions words are fun to heighten the interest of turning a page: then, when, but, etc. 

In my next blog, I’ll continue with more ideas for writing books with child appeal.

Nancy Kelly Allen has written 40+ children’s books and a cookbook, SPIRIT OF KENTUCKY: BOURBON COOKBOOK. Check out her blog at www.nancykellyallen.com 

Call for Submissions for Young Writers:

KidSpirit accepts submissions of poetry, artwork, and nonfiction articles from 11- to 17-year-olds everywhere. Except for artwork, all work should be related to the following themes:

Unity and Division (Fall 2017)
Creation and Destruction (Winter 2017/18)

Submission guidelines at https://kidspiritonline.com/get-involved/ 

Call for Submissions for Adult Writers:

One Teen Story is a literary magazine for teens and adults who read young adult fiction. They publish 12 issues a year digitally and in print. Each issue contains only one story.

They pay their authors $500 dollars and 25 contributor copies for first North American serial rights. The rights revert back to the author after publication.

Submission guidelines at http://www.authorspublish.com/one-teen-story-now-open-to-submissions/Nancy Kelly Allen has written 40+ children’s books and a cookbook, SPIRIT OF KENTUCKY: BOURBON COOKBOOK. Check out her blog at www.nancykellyallen.com

To Outline or Not, part 4

More reasons why I outline a manuscript before writing:

Avoid Writer’s Block. An outline helps me break down the story into manageable parts and to see the story from beginning to end. Little by little, I know I can complete the manuscript without feeling so overwhelmed that I completely give up. 

More comprehensive coverage of a topic. When I write biographies, I add every major event to the outline so I won’t overlook or eliminate an important issue. In my dual biography, HAPPY BIRTHDAY: THE STORY OF THE WORLD’S MOST POPULAR SONG, I wanted to relate how the two Hill sisters’ parents influenced their work. I also wanted to showcase the impact of the song on national and international levels. Just a line or two on my outline allowed me to quickly determine that I included these elements. 

Writer motivation. Earlier, I discussed how an outline helps develop character motivation. It also offers emotional advantages. When the outline is staring back at me, I am more motivated to write, since I don’t have to sweat bullets in trying to figure out what the character will do next or what obstacle pops us to hinder his/her efforts. This is already thought out and all I have to do is write the scene. For me, the outline makes my work so much easier and simpler. Easy and simple win. I know what to write next, and all I have to do is figure out how to write it.  

Call for submissions for Young Writers:

"It's All Write!" Teen Short Story Contest. Restrictions: Open to Grades 6-12. Genre: Short story, and flash fiction, unpublished. Prize: 1st Place $250, 2nd Place $150, 3rd Place $100. 

Deadline: February 24

Submission guidelines at http://www.aadl.org/events/itsallwrite

Call for submissions for Adult Writers:

PER DIEM PRESS will publish a single chapbook of poetry in early 2017, eight 4” X 5”pages, saddle-stitched, with a cardstock cover. The poet will receive $1,000 and copies. Poets of every stripe are encouraged to submit eightish pages of previously unpublished poetry in English to Per Diem Press, 912 Cole Street #331, San Francisco California 94117. Submissions need to be received by February 28, 2017. All rights, of course, will be retained by the poet.

Submission guidelines at https://www.facebook.com/daniel.handler/posts/10154017560371837 

Nancy Kelly Allen has written 40+ children’s books and a cookbook, SPIRIT OF KENTUCKY: BOURBON COOKBOOK.

Creating Scenes

Let’s look at other elements needed in scenes.

Action. The sooner the action, the sooner the reader is drawn into the story. The momentum of action carries the reader forward, turning the pages. Remember to keep the action true to the character. A girl might run away from home, but she is not likely to intentionally place her younger sister in harm. One effective beginning is to start a novel with an action scene without explanation. Jump into the action. Backstory is unnecessary as a novel opening and is best revealed and scenes unfold.

Add conflict, tension, or suspense. I began my children’s novel, Amazing Grace, with two mysteries. As the scenes unfolded, the first mystery was revealed. A few scenes later, I introduced the second mystery. Failure creates conflict, tension, and suspense. Allow your character to fail and fail again. Through failure comes learning, experience, and change—elements needed so the character can grow and succeed. Failure is a motivator. It’s what keeps the character determined to continue the quest. Failure and learning creates an emotional growth for the character, as well.

Consider how each scene takes the character to the goal or solution to the problem, the end result. If the scene doesn't do that, scrap it. Save it for the next book.

Call for Submissions for Young Writers:

Cuckoo Chronicle is a bi-annual online literature journal for young writers aged 15-21. We like innovative, original work by young writers, and aim to both support talent development and showcase high quality work. We accept poetry, short fiction, flash fiction, excerpts from longer fiction (providing they make sense as a stand alone piece) and creative non-fiction (not reviews). We also love to receive audio/ video/ film- so send us your songs, performances and illustartions too. We’re also interested in illustrations too. BE CREATIVE.

We also offer a Cuckoo prize of £50 for the best submission of every issue!

All submissions are read by our Editorial Committee made up of young people, also aged 15-21. They decide what goes into Cuckoo, edit pieces and decide on the editorial direction of Cuckoo Chronicle.

Submission guidelines at http://chronicle.cuckoowriters.com/submit/

Call for Submissions for Adult Writers:

2016 SUNDAY TIMES EFG SHORT STORY AWARD.
Writers from around the world are invited to enter the 2016 Sunday Times EFG Short Story Award. The winner will receive £30,000 (US$46,500), making this the most valuable prize for a single short story in the world. The prize is for stories up to 6,000 words in length and there is no entry fee. Stories can be either unpublished or published. If published, the work must have first appeared after 1 January 2015. Writers can enter regardless of their nationality or residency but they must have an existing record of publication in creative writing in the UK and Ireland. Deadline September 24, 2015.

Submission guidelines at http://www.booktrust.org.uk/stefg/entry-form

Today, I’m continuing the series “Ways to Improve Writing.”

If a scene can be deleted from a story without changing the overall plot, the scene is probably not needed. Consider rewriting so everything your character does results in repercussions. What are the consequences if the character enters the door with a sign: Do Not Enter. If the characters actions are big, so will be the consequences. Readers want extraordinary experiences when reading. The characters must take action. As writers, we cannot let the characters take the easy way out of the predicament.

Characters’ reactions should have passion and fervor if we expect the reader to become involved in the story. The key to gaining a reader’s attention is through the reaction of the character. Make the character curious and show this through thought, action, and dialog. Take the reader inside the character’s head to show varying levels of intensity. The character will be more upset with some events than others, and the emotional reactions well vary accordingly.

Reactions make the characters seem real. Allow them to have high and low emotions, to get angry or upset, speak out in anger, make mistakes, and react in way they later regret. Readers respond to characters’ feelings so invite readers to the emotional side of your story.

Call for Submissions for Young Writers:

 

One Teen Story accepts submissions from writers of all ages. Most of the stories we publish are by adult authors writing for a young-adult audience. While teen writers are welcome to submit during our regular submission period, we encourage them to submit instead to our teen contest, which opens on May 1, 2013. One Teen Story is looking for great short stories written for the young adult audience ages 13 and up. These stories should deal with the teen experience (issues of identity, friendship, family, coming-of-age, etc.) and should be geared primarily toward an audience of teen readers.

Submission guidelines at http://www.oneteenstory.com/index.php?page=submit

Call for Submissions for Adult Writers:

MONKEY STAR PRESS ANTHOLOGIES. We are looking for content for two mom lit anthologies 1) tantrums and babysitters, and 2) moms, children, and lack of sleep. We accept personal essay, creative nonfiction, flash memoir, and non-essay content including poems, lists, top ten, dos and don’ts, humor or inspirational, up to 2,000 words. Deadline December 31, 2014. One to two free paperback copies of the anthology and compensation ranging from $25 to $200 (to be paid after publication based on a payment structure that is explained and outlined in the contract that you sign).

Submission guidelines at http://www.monkeystarpress.com/p/call-for-submissions.html

Writing a Middle Grade Novel, Calls for Submissions

Today, I’m continuing the series, Writing a Middle Grade Novel, focusing on pacing. 

Another way to keep the pace of the story moving along is look at the scene as if you’re a photographer. Think visually. What is happening close-up? Take the reader on the journey so s/he can feel, see, hear, taste, and touch the scene. Is there a tear in the dress, is the whimpering that of a dog or a child, or is the burr sticky? Let the readers discover these things as if they were there. 

Pacing differs with the scene. Long sentences tend to slow the pace and short sentences speed the action. If there is a fight scene, short sentences, even one-word can be powerful. Pow! Onomatopoeia (crash, bang, boom) add zip to the story. Sentences can be shortened by eliminating prepositional phrases to move the action along at a faster clip. Instead of writing “the rooms in the cave” state "the cave’s rooms.” 

Action verbs and strong nouns work better because they are specific. Avoid the overuse of adverbs and adjectives. He ran quickly doesn’t work as well as He sprinted.

Cliffhangers are great devices to speed up the action. When a chapter ends with lots of suspense, the reader quickly turns the page to find out what happens next. 

Short chapters and scenes are effective ways to speed up the story. 

Slow scenes and fast-paced scenes both work well. The key is to use the best speed and rhythm for each scene in your manuscript. 

With this blog I’m resuming Call for Submissions for Young Writers. I’ll continue posting these through May, 2015.  

Call for Submissions for Young Writers:

The Louisville Review. The Children's Corner, work by students in K-12.

Fiction, Poetry, Creative Nonfiction, and Drama

Submissions of previously unpublished manuscripts are invited. Prose submissions should be double-spaced and page numbered. Poetry (up to 5 poems) need not be double-spaced. Drama should appear in standard format. Include name on every page. Reply time is 4-6 months. Our editorial staff reads year around. Submissions are recycled. Poetry and prose should be submitted in separate envelopes.

Submission guidelines at http://www.louisvillereview.org/

Call for Submissions for Adult Writers:

ASK is a nonfiction magazine for children 7-10 years old who are curious about science and the world they live in. Each edition of ASK is built around a central theme on some question or concept in the natural, physical, or social sciences, technology, mathematics, history, or the arts. ASK introduces kids to the joys of thinking, writing, and observing scientifically, and presumes them to be active participants in the ongoing search for better knowledge about the world.

ASK articles should read as engaging nonfiction, not like school textbook or encyclopedia material. Intended to be accessible and appealing to newly independent readers (grades 2-5), the ideal ASK article should also be interesting to any general adult reader. ASK looks for articles that are concrete, specific, and relevant to this age group. They should tell a good story, with an emphasis on ideas rather than just facts.

Submission guidelines:

http://www.cricketmag.com/19-Submission-Guidelines-for-ASK-magazine-for-children-ages-7-10

Writing a Chapter Book, part 7/Calls for Submissions

           This article is the seventh in the series: Writing a Chapter Book.

 Try these tips: 

Avoid the sagging middle. When we begin a chapter book, we usually have a definite beginning and ending in mind. We want the ending to solve the problem or reach the goal that the character confronts at the beginning of the story. But by chapter three, the story begins to slowly fizzle out. What can we do to keep the excitement of the beginning as we develop chapter after chapter?

 

Offer new insights into the character. What does the reader learn about the character that had not been revealed earlier? Maybe s/he has a learning problem or a phobia that comes into play at this point. 

Introduce a new character that will add a new problem or cause greater conflict. I once heard a speaker in a workshop describe it this way: treat your character badly; then treat your character worse. Add more conflict. Conflict is story and without conflict there is no story. Add barriers to prevent the character from achieving the goal or solving the problem during the middle of the story. Conflict is the motivation that keeps the character plugging along. 

Move the plot along. Don’t dwell too long on one scene. By adding conflict and depth to characters, the plot moves forward. Allow the characters to learn new bits of information that alters their viewpoints or decisions.

Next week, I’ll continue with chapter book tips.  

 

Call for submissions for young writers:

Writing at Sea Competition. Enter the Marine Society and Nautilus Telegraph’s new creative writing competition and you could walk away with a £1000 or a Kobo Aura and Kobo gift vouchers. The competition is open to serving and non-serving seafarers and is free to enter. The competition theme is Life at Sea and you can enter your poem (maximum word limit 80 lines) or short story (maximum length 3,000 words). Deadline December 31, 2013. The Marine Society Prize will have a sole winner. The Short Story and Poetry Prizes will be awarded in the following categories: Seafarers, Non-seafarers, Under 18’s.

Details at http://www.marine-society.org/writingatsea

Call for submissions for adult writers:

   Ask. ePals Media, 70 East Lake Street, Suite 800, Chicago, IL 60601. Ask is the Cricket Magazine Group’s magazine of nature, science, the arts, and the world at large for ages six to nine. Each issue focuses on a designated concept, question, or theme related to the natural, physical, or social sciences, technology, math, history, or the arts. It is published nine times a year and has a circulation of 36,000.

    The nonfiction in Ask is always engaging, and not overtly educational or textbook-like in tone or perspective. Articles should be concrete but narrative, and relevant to the interests of the young readers.

    Query according to theme by email to ask@caruspub.com, with Submissions in the subject line, or use Submittable, at https://cricketmag.submittable.com/submit/20689. Include an article overview, including scope and treatment, references/resources, an opening paragraph, and for writers new to Ask, a résumé, and an unedited nonfiction writing sample of at least 200 words. Articles, 1,200 to 1,600 words, including sidebar. Photoessays, 400 to 600 words. Humor, profiles of people, inventions, events, the arts, 200 to 400 words. Upcoming themes: Dropping Things or gravity (September 2014 issue), query by December 15, 2013; Fairy Tale Science (October 2014 issue), query by February 1, 2014; Chemist in My Kitchen (November/ December 2014 issue), query by March 15.
Details at www.askkidsmag.com

 Check out more contests on my blog: http://nancykellyallen.blogspot.com/