John Palisano – MANUSCRIPTS

What Inspires You to Write?

Stories are everywhere. Inspiration for writing stories is everywhere, too, and not just in the obvious places. So are tools and techniques that can inspire but can also access those same creative-making brain cells so crucial to writing and storytelling. Here are some fun examples.

Movies & TV Shows

This one is pretty obvious, right? We’ve all seen a ridiculous amount of stories in these mediums. I’m afraid to think of how many hours I have absorbed over my life already. The good thing is that we are all familiar with the basics of storytelling structure. So much so that even those who are not specifically studying the art of storytelling are pretty fluent in its components. We recognize and respond to them, knowingly. Which is great, as often learning the elements of what makes a great story is a matter of identifying and naming such traits instead of having to start from scratch. One big caveat for writers: movies and television shows only deal with two senses. Sight and sound. Writers have smell, touch, and taste that we can use, too. Movies have tried to integrate some of the other senses, but it’s been more of a gimmick, like using buzzers in the seats for The Tingler in the 60s. Hmm. Maybe someone can wire books to buzz when they hit a certain page? That would make reading a little more . . . interesting!

Music

Many writers use music for inspiration while writing. This is common and makes sense. I know many who use motion picture scores to set the mood for their stories. Pretty cool. Writing a thriller, how about playing some of Bernhard Hermann’s Alfred Hitchcock scores? Turn on some classical for doing a period romance. Some writers use pop music with lyrics, as well, but many I know find it distracting when writing and stick to classical, instrumental, or soundtrack music. Another technique for those musically inclined has been to actually play an instrument before or during writing to make their own soundtracks for their stories. Pretty inspirational and a lot of fun. One big caveat: quoting song lyrics in writing is mostly a big no-no. Clearing lyrics can be difficult work. Finding out the right representative can be a challenge, and the fees most will demand are unaffordable to most aspiring and working writers.

Cooking

This might be an odd one, but hear me out. Cooking a dish or a meal has serious similarities to writing. You need to have a plan. If you don’t, you need to figure one out, either through experience (like burned casseroles) or through a template or a recipe. You’ve got to prep your ingredients. Sometimes making other side dishes, sauces, or seasonings. Then you have to put it in the oven and cook it just right. That same creative space that allows you to cook also bakes your creative ideas. Yum. “What’s for dinner?” “How about a little drama with a side of cliffhanger sauce?”

Books & Magazines

Naturally, reading plays a huge part in inspiring writers to want and need to write stories of their own. Stories ignite our imaginations, leading to new stories and new worlds to explore. Most writers were inspired to write by first being avid and well-read readers. Even seasoned writers look to others to be inspired. A beautifully written book with a captivating story can sure make another writer want to get their fingers in the game and strive to hit such a benchmark. Remember, there’s plenty of room at bookstores for new stories. Publishers always want new works, and with online marketplaces, shelf space isn’t limited like it once was. Although standing out among such a deluge is another topic entirely.

Fine Art, Drawing & Sculpting

Like music, fine art, drawing, and sculpting offer a different perspective on story. Going to a museum or gallery can ignite a firestorm of creativity. Some of the best works tell a story of their own and do so through a single moment in time. The old cliché that a picture is worth a thousand words is amplified tenfold. Imagine the wraparound stories of some of the greatest paintings and sculptures. Imagining these can be a great exercise. On the flip side? Drawing, painting, and sculpting again access a creative part of the brain that also can contain our writing thoughts. If you think of your mind like a muscle, it’s good to flex this area in other disciplines, as well, because they’re all ultimately connected. Creativity comes in many forms. I grew up with my mother’s family owning an auto body repair shop. There was a tremendous amount of art and craft happening to repair the damage, match paint colors, and make everything look like new again. And that’s just one example of how creativity can arrive in many forms and can inspire writers. What other disciplines do you love that can also be considered creative? Knitting? Design? Bead making? Woodworking? There are so many! Find and draw inspiration from the life around you. Your writing will be all the richer for it!

John Palisano’s nonfiction, short fiction, and poetry have appeared in countless literary anthologies and magazines such as Cemetery Dance, Fangoria, Weird Tales, Space & Time, McFarland Press, and many more. He is the author of the novel Nerves and Starlight Drive: Four Tales of Halloween, and has been quoted in Vanity Fair, the Los Angeles Times, and The Writer. He has received the Bram Stoker Award© and was recently President of the Horror Writers Association. Say ‘hi’ at: johnpalisano.com, amazon.com/author/johnpalisano, facebook.com/johnpalisano, and twitter.com/johnpalisano

Self-Editing Tips for Beginning Writers

So, you’re just starting your new book and you’re new to this whole ‘writing’ thing. Or maybe you’re a seasoned writer who has written blogs, articles, or fiction. However you came to this current manuscript, the following advice can help you, even if it’s a reminder. There are two main areas of editing to think about: spelling and grammar.

Spelling

This one’s easy, right? Microsoft Word, Google Docs, Scrivener . . . all the big ones have spell check built right in. On top of that? There are services such as Grammarly and ProWritingAid that do a pretty good job of catching the biggest, most egregious mistakes. As far as each of these tools has come (Does anyone remember the early days of spell check where the suggested spelling was more often than not completely wrong?) they still need an actual human being to make sure they’re getting everything correct. Consider self-driving cars. There’s a lot they can do now (other than catch on fire randomly) but for now and in the near future, a human driver is required behind the wheel. Well, you’re going to need to be that human driver behind the wheel of your manuscript when you employ those great digital tools. Here’s a big rule: it is not enough to rely solely on built-in or third-party spell checkers. Reading your manuscript carefully catches errors in addition to what the computers will find. You’ll likely find missing words, misused words, and any other number of things that need fixing. Another benefit of doing a spelling pass is that you will more than likely fine-tune other aspects of the work you may have missed while feverishly writing your drafts. Another caveat? It’s ideal to have another person do a pass, as well. Our minds tend to ‘fix’ things automatically. We hear words in our own voices. It can be a challenge to find everything. I didn’t believe this for years until I became a professional copy editor. My work would come back with errors that I couldn’t believe. How could I miss some of these very basic things? My answer was that my mind was doing the auto-correct thing. Strange, but true. I’ve spoken to other editors who deal with the same phenomena. That being said, you can eliminate a ton of these errors with the methods outlined above. It will go a long way to making life a lot easier for your copy editors later.

Grammar

This is a much more complex type of editing. Think of grammar as the blueprint or architecture of writing. What parts make up a sentence? See Jane run. Grammar can be very simple, or very complex, of course. This is where things can get very tricky, especially for the auto-corrects and yes . . . even Grammarly, despite its name. English is a very challenging language. Again, these tools can help guide you, but they are even less effective than their use for correcting spelling mistakes. The biggest issue I’ve seen with grammar has to do with tense and point of view. When correcting your manuscript, make sure your verb tenses are the same throughout a section or chapter. Example: if you begin a section using past tense; ‘John liked writing stories’; stick to those verb tenses. In this case, you’d primarily use verbs ending in ‘-ed’. Switching to the present tense, such as, ‘John edits the stories he’s writing’ presents a tense conflict and needs to be addressed. Now, let’s say you want to switch tenses. If you must, use a section break (***) to do so, signaling your reader of the change. And make sure to add another section break when you’re switching back, too. Although, this style isn’t common for current fiction readers.

Point of View

This is another big issue, mainly in fiction writing. It boils down to character perspective. If it’s the main character’s point of view, stay there. Don’t ‘hop’ into another character’s head in the middle of the scene. Head-hopping is jarring and hard to follow. You want to stick with one point of view (POV) during your entire section or chapter. If you do want to ‘hop heads’, use a section break (***), and make sure to close the section with one, too, if you switch back. In popular, commercial writing, be aware that sticking to one POV per section or chapter is much preferred by agents, publishers, and especially your readers. This wasn’t always the case. In many gothic texts, and even up through the mid-20th century, head-hopping and even dialogue were often crammed into one paragraph. Sticking to one POV per chapter is something major to look out for when redrafting and editing your manuscript.

Learn More

One of the first lines of defense is to school yourself in these matters! It’s not very time-consuming and it will serve you well. My highest recommendation is reading Strunk and White’s The Elements of Style. It is a thin book, under 100 pages. Inside, it has almost everything you need to know to write clearly, concisely, and professionally. I read it annually as a refresher. Another great book to check out is Self-Editing for Fiction Writers by Dave King and Renni Brown. This is a much more extensive and detailed book, but the tools and advice are priceless.

Online

There are some amazing sites you can check out, as well. The major dictionary, thesaurus, and encyclopedia brands all have excellent, and in most cases, free pages with convenient search tools. One of my favorite sites is Grammar Girl’s Quick and Dirty Tricks https://www.quickanddirtytips.com/grammar-girl/ if you really want to do a deep dive, it’s also a great resource for searching those peculiar grammatical pickles in which we sometimes find ourselves. Happy writing and happy editing!