Though we say it each month that our guest authors share their finest advice, this month we whole-heartedly mean it. So what do we have in store? We look at doing research for your story to the low-down on ebooks and finally the highs and lows that come along with being published.
Ellen, Nichole and Scott have been our featured authors for the past six months and we would like to give them each a great big Thank You on behalf of all of Book Divas and aspiring authors out there. Ellen and Scott will be continuing on for a few more months to keep on sharing their story and advice of making it as published authors. We will miss Nichole but are forever grateful for the time she has spent with us.
Don't forget to send in your questions about becoming an author to askanewauthor@bookdivas.com and support our authors by visiting them online: Visit Ellen Meeropol's Website | Visit Scott Sparling's Website | Visit Nichole Bernier's Website
1. I have a question about research for a book: I am writing a book that is not a science book but rather a fiction book set in a scientific setting, and (I feel) would require more details than I have knowledge of to make it seem realistic. I just don’t want to gloss over the details but I don’t want it to read like a textbook either. Aside from searching online for information, are there any other tips you have about setting writing about topics beyond your knowledge base?
Ellen: There are different ways of accomplishing the goal you express, of trying to include just enough research to add authenticity, without burdening the novel with unnecessary facts. Some writers do their research first, take notes if they like, but don’t actually use those notes when writing their story. That helps ensure that only the facts most that struck the writer as most important, or most useful for the story, are included. Other authors write the novel first, then go back and do research to fill in the blanks, trying to avoid errors in the fictional world, but not “read like a textbook.” I tend to use the latter method, and I also like to interview experts for factual information, rather than looking things up.
Nichole: I think the more you know about your subject as you begin writing, the better you’ll be able to bring it to life in fiction. In addition to scouring web sites and interviewing experts, reading novels about your topic is a great way to become familiar with a topic (or career, or time period) in a narrative way that draws you in. I’m beginning research for an historical novel, and I’m reading novels set in that time period to put myself in the mood. For my first book, I needed to have a detailed knowledge of professional golf, and of being a pastry chef. (I wrote a blog post about some of the research methods, here http://beyondthemargins.com/2010/08/writing-sports-when-you-aren’t-sporty/ For those, I looked up information as I went along (the PGA’s website has data from ALL professional events, going back decades). I also emailed experts to make sure I had details right (e.g., would a chef work with a block of cream cheese as it’s sold in the store, or from a much larger container?) Then when the book was done, I had experts read it to make sure I had not just the facts right, but the tone and jargon.
Scott: The trick with all fiction, scientific or not, is to give the reader a little that stands for a lot. You’re never going to include everything the characters say in your dialogue -- one line can reveal volumes. You’re not going to describe everything they’re wearing -- that hideous hat is all they need to know. The same with technical stuff. One way or another, you just have to soak up enough to find those evocative details. I agree about letting others read it when you’re done. I know a lot about freight trains, but I don’t live and breathe them. Fortunately, my friend Iron Legs Burk does. So I gave him the finished manuscript and he set me straight.
2. Ebooks seems to be in the news everyday. As published authors, how do you feel about ebook? Do you prefer print or electronic formats for your own books?
Ellen: I admit it: I’ve never read an ebook. I work in an independent bookstore and I love the physical presence of paper books. That’s my preference for reading, and for my own work. That said, I’m grateful that my publisher has made House Arrest available in ebook formats, because I like to think that the amazing world of literature has room for all formats.
Nichole: I own an iPad, but I haven’t yet read a book on it. I prefer hard copies of books I know I’ll want to keep, but I can imagine someday (when my kids are grown and I’m inhaling books again) the utility of traveling with several downloaded books. Like Ellen, I’m just glad to see readers accessed and engaged, in any format.
Scott: My book is selling because of the people who own and work in independent bookstores. They know the reading tastes and preferences of their customers, and they know which books to recommend to them. They are much more than booksellers -- they are book advisers to their communities. I’ve got great respect for people who can make a bookstore go in this economy, and I’m extremely grateful for their support. So you won’t find me reading an e-book, unless I can buy it from an indie bookstore. Go ahead and file this under Advice from a Hypocrite, because I’m writing this on a laptop loaded with 14.7 days worth of mp3s. But lately, I’ve started buying CDs again. I know the tide is going the other way...but I still think we need real stores in real neighborhoods.
3. I know that being a professional author is difficult but I was wondering... Can you share your highest high and lowest low of being an author?
Ellen: The lowest low is easy: reading a mean-spirited reader review online. Nothing more to be said about that. The highest high is harder, because I’ve really loved so many parts of having my novel published. The moment of holding the first finished book was an amazing high. I love doing readings. I love getting emails from readers. I love working on my novel-in-progress with a little more confidence that I’ll eventually figure it out, and get it right. Reading the starred review in Publishers Weekly was right up there, too. But probably the highest high has been attending book group discussions with a roomful of passionate readers who have insightful questions and comments, and who often see things in my work that I didn’t consciously plan. That is so cool.
Scott: The worst review of Wire to Wire concluded with this line: “I thought they stopped writing books like this a long time ago. For darned good reasons.” It kind of irritated me, but then I took the words “...darned good...” and put them on my website. Why not? The reviewer was so completely opposed to the book, that it actually didn’t feel that bad. That’s not even close to the low point. The lowest comes when I go into a store and the book’s not there, or when I’m hoping for a review and it doesn’t come. On those occasions, I’ve had to remind myself how lucky I’ve been: my book’s been published, most of the reviews have been very good. I should be the happiest person on the planet, and a lot of days, it feels like I am. That makes choosing the highest high tough, but here are a few. Blasting out music (and wrecking the speakers) the day I got the phone call from Tin House accepting my manuscript. Reading to a crowd of about 70 at Powell’s Books in Portland, Oregon, where I live. Reading to another big crowd at the Tin House Writer’s Workshop. Being able to share it with my wife and son. Hearing Bob Seger play at Cobo Hall. Okay, that last one has nothing to do with my book, but it was still a high point.
Nichole: It’s early for me yet to answer this question, since my book doesn’t come out until June, and I know a lot of highs and lows are waiting for me in the bushes. I suppose a high thus far, strange as it sounds, was being surprised by the early sale of German rights last fall, 18 months before the book was even going to be released here (though it can’t be published in Germany until after it comes out in the US). I was in the grocery story with all my kids, and my agent called from an international book fair. I think it was the purity of the surprise that made this so special: I’d been uncertain whether my book about motherhood and friendship amid post-9/11 angst would resonate for international readers. This was an early, unexpected affirmation that readers are readers, and enjoy peeks into others’ lives all the world over. What’s the lowpoint for someone who hasn’t yet had the unique experience of a bad review? I have to say it was a prominent magazine colleague’s lukewarm response to a partial first draft. Stupidly, I sent him a very rough early version, knowing nothing about the time and revision fiction takes compared to magazine work. I figured I’d be done shortly, and wanted some early support and contacts with agents (bitter ha ha). His reply—”I don’t think it’s quite ready for prime time”— stung more than the agent rejection letters a year later.
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