Description: The Irresistible Novel

Currently, I am reading my way through The Irresistible Novel by Jeff Gerke. This book inspires me to really look at my writing on a deeper level. I’ve been reading while also working my way through the editing process of the novel I wrote. This practice has caused me to be a better editor. Each week the chapters give me something new to think about and focus on in the editing process which in turn is making me a better writer. First drafts can be pretty terrible, but Gerke’s book is helping me polish my work. This week the focus is on description.

Description

According to Gerke, description is, “text that portrays the appearance of characters, items, and locations.” (Gerke 25) At first glance a non-writer might look at the argument of description and think that any book without it cannot be worth reading. However there is a major distinction between narrative and description. Narrative portrays action while description describes the nouns of the story. Believe it or not many publishers are anti-description. Many authors are as well. They feel that overdoing the description can stifle a reader’s experience. By dictating how a reader should envision something the description can sometimes keep a reader from connecting with a book on a genuine level.

There are some authors who completely omit description while others spend page upon page laying out each scene fluffed with description. There has to be some middle ground, right!?!

What Do You Think?

If you are unsure how you feel about this argument, pull a couple of books you have read recently. Get a few books you absolutely loved and a few that you utterly hated (and maybe never finished.) Re-read a few pages from anywhere in the book. Tally up which books use description heavily, moderately, and not at all. If you are anything like me you may discover something about yourself as a reader.

When I looked at my stack of books I preferred books with the moderate level of description. The books I loathed all had either heavy levels of description or none at all. Those which came in heavy on the description are those I would refer to as slow and boring books. Those that contained none at all I would refer to as books with which I never made a true connection. The plot might have been fine, but I never felt like I became part of the world along with the characters. To figure this one out give it a try yourself! Grab some books off your shelf and explore.

My Current Project…

My preferences in description tend to be natural. As I wrote my first draft of my novel there was nothing going on in my mind except the plot. I didn’t focus on grammar, editing, and I definitely didn’t think twice about description. I wrote to get my ideas on a page. But as I go back and edit my earlier work I see that I stayed fairly consistent in my use of description. I am a moderate descriptionist meaning that I recognize the need for description in forging connections to characters, setting, and scene. However, I also know that for many readers (like myself) going overboard on the description can lead to reader boredom.

This is one reason why it is so imperative that writers are also readers. It’s hard to write a book if you don’t have the experiences of reading so many. Writing,for me, has been a natural process born of abilities and enjoyment for reading.

The more books you read the more clear your writing voice becomes.

The Ameri Brit Mom

Five Minute Friday: Surprise

This week the topic for the Five Minute Friday link-up post is Surprise. What is a link-up? Essentially a link-up is when you join other bloggers and write on a similar topic. You share your blog posts with one another and begin conversations via a host site. You can head over to Kate Motaung’s page to check out other entries from inspired bloggers. Here’s my five minutes of uninterrupted, unedited writing on this week’s topic:

My greatest surprise came on January 13, 2012. It was a chilly winter day. I was just settling back into my work routine which explained my high levels of exhaustion. The weekend had finally come and I found myself ready to sleep it away. I couldn’t explain the way I was feeling. In fact, I had never quite felt that way before. I was sick, but I wasn’t sick. I was tired, but I was energized. My life had become an oxymoron.

I was sitting around the long table in the staff lounge that Friday afternoon. After discussing our weekend plans I told a colleague I was looking forward to just sleeping the weekend away. I was a first year teacher and it wasn’t too off base to think that I was running on empty. However, the other teacher mentioned that she felt the same way I described when she was pregnant. And so it began…

Unable to get the thought out of my mind I stopped at a drug store on the way home. I rushed into my house careful not to show my husband what I had just purchased. I took a test and in less than two minutes the course of my life would change. I went from a newlywed new teacher to an expectant mother.

My daughter was a huge surprise. Originally we planned to wait a few years before becoming parents, but God’s plan was greater than my own.

Nine months later I would meet that beautiful surprise. She instantly became my purpose. I held her and none of my previous plans made sense anymore. I will be forever grateful that God gave me such a delightful surprise and I wouldn’t change His timing for anything.

Organization Projects

This winter was rough on my house. Not only did the cold and snow keep my family sequestered for days on end, but illness also ran rampant in our home for several weeks of the season. As the temperatures are on the upswing I’m beginning to get an itch to tackle the To-Do list at home and work on the projects I put off during the months where I lacked motivation. The first step to the process is getting organized.

Over the past several months I have really struggled to be an organized person. I missed important dates and events due to not keeping my calendar updated. I wasted a lot of time looking for things that I had misplaced. I even went days without cooking simply because I didn’t want to cook in a kitchen with dishes that needed to be done and floors that needed to be cleaned (it’s terrible I know.)

Two weeks ago I took a good solid look at my state of affairs and realized it was time for things to change. I had let the weather and my exhaustion keep me from taking care of my home and family in the way that I know I should.

As the weather changed into my favorite season of the year I found myself more energized and motivated to get my life in order. I’ve really enjoyed reading the blog Organize 365 by Lisa Woodruff. On her blog, she outlines practical, and inexpensive ways to get your life in order. I’ve taken her tips and when things apply to my life and my house I’ve begun to utilize those ideas.

My latest projects are just the beginning of a 40 week stretch to organize my whole home (let’s hope!) So far I have accomplished ridding my house of random papers by creating a Sunday basket and an efficient filing system.

Sunday Basket

A Sunday Basket is a central landing place for all paper in the house. This is where all things from mail to items that need to be added to the master schedule should find themselves from Monday-Saturday. The goal is that you should take a half an hour every Sunday to sort through everything, take action when necessary on particular items, and file things away. The Sunday Basket should be completely emptied each Sunday.

The first Sunday I had a lot of paper to sift through and ended up spending an hour on the process, but the idea is that as you continue to utilize the Sunday Basket that it should take less and less time each week to reach the bottom. When I sat down to go through everything I created four piles: trash, to-shred, to file, and actionable items.

For me, my kitchen ends up being the collection place for all things paper. In our home layout the kitchen is the entryway because I park my car in the garage, therefore, it ends up being the place where paper and random things are collected. After a day of work I get home and drop whatever is in my hands and head toward the couch to put my feet up for a few minutes. As opposed to making my kitchen table or counter top cluttered with bills, schedules, and correspondence, now I have established a functional system for dealing with the unmanageable amount of paper that enters my house on a weekly basis. My Sunday Basket sits on my counter top. Just above the basket, in the cupboard, I have cleared out a space for paper filing.

Like many of you I do also have a home office, but it is upstairs and away from the entryway. While a home office is a great place to store files it isn’t necessarily in a central location in everyone’s home. The kitchen is the place where life happens. We spend far more time in the kitchen than any other room (apart from maybe the bedroom due to sleep.) So it makes sense that the kitchen should also function as a go-to place for all things of importance. Over the span of two weeks I have created new binders for my finances, home user manuals, meal planning, art projects, and my personal writing ventures. So far this system has worked seamlessly. And I feel much better about my house which was formerly being overtaken by loose papers.

Family Schedule

The next project I tackled involved my family schedule.

Like I said earlier I had been a bit lazy about using a master schedule. I had missed appointments, double booked my time, and even neglected to pay a couple of bills on time due to just not being on top of the dates. This was a huge issue and I’m embarrassed to say that I had let it get that bad. But, after reading Lisa’s plan for getting a master schedule up and running I decided to put it into practice in my own life.

I’m a paper-planner kind of girl. That is something that I think will never change about me. I love technology, don’t get me wrong, but I remember far more when I actually participate in jotting it down with pen and paper. So I dug out my abandoned planner and began to fill it with important events, ideas, and memos. Then, I color-coded the planner giving a color to each member of my family as well as major categories like church and appointments. I like a color-coded system because it helps me to quickly see from a glance where I tend to budget my time.

The next phase in my home organization project involves establishing a system for packing lunches quickly while also providing healthy options. If you are like me and struggle to stay balanced and keep on top of everything check out the blog, Organize 365!

The Ameri Brit Mom

My Thirty One Bag

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When I first started teaching it quickly became apparent that in order to make the trek from school to home efficiently each day that I would need to own a functional tote. For years, I’ve carried a Vera Bradley tote, which I’ve loved, but over Christmas break my VB tote finally bit the dust. I received it my first year of teaching five years ago so it was a good run, but it was obvious that it was time to purchase a new tote.

Last month, I was approached by a student who was taking part in a fundraiser to help toward an upcoming school trip. The fundraiser involved Thirty-One. This is a personalized bag and organizer company which works through direct sales. Their mission is to sell bags to empower women.

In my previous experience all of the Thirty-One bags I currently own have held up well, and have been extremely functional so I decided to support the student in his endeavor.

I decided on the large tote (which was the special for February) in the Navy Perfect Pendant print. Because it was a sale for the month they no longer carry this exact bag, but the similar tote that they carry continuously is the Go-To Tote in the same print.

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Since receiving my tote I’ve used it daily. I really like the pockets and sections within the bag. Most competitors’ bags lack the organization capabilities that my Thirty-One bag offers. I like when I can put items in a portion of a well-pocketed bag. It eliminates the time spent sifting through the contents in order to locate keys, pens, papers, lipstick, etc. With this bag it’s easy to place things where I want them and they don’t tend to move around once I’m on the go.

If you follow me regularly you know that I am a big supporter of direct sales. Personally, I do not sell anything, but I love the idea of helping women who do. I’m much more likely to purchase things if I know that my money is going toward a good cause. Women who use direct sales to support their family and their dreams is a big reason behind why I choose to support companies like Thirty-One, Origami Owl, Doterra, and Scentsy.

The Ameri Brit Mom

What I’m Reading-Good Omens

As part of my 24 Book Challenge I am currently reading Good Omens, a book written in 1990-the year I was born. I’m enjoying the dark British humor even if it does tend to be a bit sacrilegious. Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett are both known for their out-there fiction and this book is no exception. I’m about halfway through the text, but already there is a struggle between angels and demons as the end of the world is quickly approaching. The idea that good and evil can work together is quite comical in and of itself even without two mediocres in charge. The two realms are working together to bring about Armageddon through the release of an antichrist. Stay tuned for my final evaluation of the book in the next week or two.

Today at Covenant…Suffering

This week Pastor Travis Davenport of Covenant Church in Grove City continued leading us through Romans 5. Today’s message was part of the sermon series Friends With Benefits. This portion of scripture is rough especially for those currently going through a tough circumstance, but that makes it even more important to be aware of the benefits of a friendship with Jesus. It’s when those tough times strike that we need him most in our lives.

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Suffering

Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.

Romans 5:1-4

Suffering is a part of every journey with Christ. Sometimes suffering marks the beginning of our journey. Sometimes suffering occurs frequently on our road maps. But one thing is for sure: we will all face suffering of some kind in our lives. It’s easiest for us to thank God for His many blessings than to be grateful for the tough places he makes us wade through, however this passage highlights the necessity of those troubling moments in our faith. We love it when God chooses to listen to the prayers and answer them according to our will, but we need to remember that God is more concerned about our eternal state than our benefits here on Earth. Sometimes his answers don’t align with what we think they should, but that usually means that he’s allowing this testing to happen for a greater purpose. And those greater purposes are outlined here in the passage above.

In the pit of suffering the last thing we want to do is throw any type of party (except maybe a pity party.) So there is a struggle in comprehending verse four when Paul says to, “(rejoice or) glory in our sufferings.” The one practical piece this verse gives to us is a look at the importance of perspective when it comes to suffering. When we can stand up to the testing of our faith in the face of struggles we set off a chain reaction which reaps eternal benefits. (Oftentimes this is the purpose of the suffering we face.)

The Chain Reaction-

Suffering leads to endurance

the Greek term for endurance means single-mindedness/focus
the act of suffering eliminates distractions in our lives
our time and money accumulate distractions, but the circumstance of suffering takes value away from things which formerly distracted us from God.

2. Endurance leads to character

character is proven through testing
once character has been tested the result is proven and genuine
you can take control of your suffering by controlling how you allow it to affect you

3. Character leads to hope

Hope is a conviction or confidence in an end result
our hope is rest and peace with God
our suffering removes any competition for our hope
suffering shows us that the only thing that will truly fix our situation is Jesus and proves that our hope is in eternal life with Jesus not in anything of this world.
there is no rest in any other outlet

So know that if you find yourself in a dark place struggling to keep your head above water that God has in mind your eternal benefits over your Earthly ones. It is not an easy message to digest especially in the midst of a large struggle, but if you endure, prove your character and place your hope in God then the benefits of those choices will far outweigh any other option.

The Ameri Brit Mom

Prologues: The Irresistible Novel

This Christmas I received a copy of The Irresistible Novel by Jeff Gerke. I’m just getting around to working my way through this book. It’s been perfect for this season of editing as each chapter is centered on an issue in writing. With each chapter the author explores how to add to your own writing using the principles discussed therein.

At the conclusion of each chapter the author shows you what publishers are looking for when it comes to that issue, but then he ultimately presents you with a choice of whether or not you want to include that idea in your own writing. One of my favorite quotes thus far in the book is born from the idea that in the end you are the author of the book and whatever you feel comfortable with is how you should write.

“Why would you include for other readers the very thing you hate as a reader?” (Gerke 19)

Today I am going to summarize some major ideas from Chapter 1: Prologues. Judging by comments and responses that I’ve received from followers I can tell that many of you are working toward a writing project be that a novel, short publication, or article so I hope those of you who do dabble in writing will find ideas presented in this book helpful. I plan to continue to share ideas with you as I read my way through The Irresistible Novel.

Prologues

The big question posed in this chapter is the relevance of including a prologue in your book. A prologue is the background story necessary for understanding the major conflicts and problems in the novel. The thinking behind this question is that all novels should begin in the exposition phase and so all books should technically contain a prologue. However, is it necessary to truly set your prologue apart from chapter 1? Or is chapter 1 of every book a prologue?

There are a few schools of thought on this topic. Some say that prologues which explain time prior to the time period are necessary. They believe that in order to engage the reader on the proper level that the reader needs the background knowledge presented in this chapter. Another thought is that prologues which just unpack information and tell the reader what they need to know as opposed to showing them throughout the story is actually detrimental to your writing.

Good writing shows the reader what they need to know through demonstration. Poor writing just tells the reader what they need to know.

The principle above is a fine line. Anytime you cross over from showing into telling the quality of your writing begins to decrease. So, the big issue here is not necessarily should you have a prologue, but rather what do you include in the prologue. If you plan to just unpack facts about the characters and their pasts then maybe rethinking your novel structure is necessary. Is there a better way to reveal what you plan to discuss in the prologue in another way throughout the book? If so, then I would personally recommend foregoing the prologue and just starting with chapter one.

On the other hand, I recognize that there are times when a prologue is necessary. There are stories (mysteries popped into my head first) which sometimes do show a scene and use the prologue as an element of foreshadowing. So if you can build the prologue into your story using showing techniques then I can see it being beneficial to your overall novel.

According to Gerke, many publishers are looking to avoid the prologue these days. But, if deleting the prologue takes away from the story you’ve created don’t sacrifice your writing style. If you have written a truly irresitible novel someone will recognize the gem you’ve produced with or without the prologue.

My Current Project…

For the novel I have written I chose not to include a prologue. This was an idea I thought about for quite some time. Originally I did have a prologue, but as the story continued I recognized ways to input the backstory of my characters into the plot. I did so using dialogue. Many of the conversations throughout the book reference things that originally were found in my very telling prologue.

Dialogue is a great tool for showing your readers what they need to know. Characters divulge information with emotion in a way that pure narration never can. As I’ve gone through the editing process the idea of showing and not telling has been on the forefront of my mind. I’m constantly reworking sentences and scenes to depict a more descriptive format. I’m glad that I’ve found many articles about how rubbish first drafts are for even the best authors because I would have lost hope without that encouragement. Editing takes a while. It’s a process which includes long reflection on every chapter, every paragraph, every sentence, and every word.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on the prologue and how you do or don’t like to include it in your novel writing.

The Ameri Brit Mom

Five Minute Friday: Share

This week the topic for the Five Minute Friday link-up post is Share. What is a link-up? Essentially a link-up is when you join other bloggers and write on a similar topic. You share your blog posts with one another and begin conversations via a host site. You can head over to Kate Motaung’s page to check out other entries from inspired bloggers. Here’s my five minutes of uninterrupted, unedited writing on this week’s topic:

I don’t do enough public bragging about my husband. I’m a lucky woman to have found such a great guy. And because he’s so great he deserves a good shout out so today I will write about him.

The reason I think about my husband when I see the word, “share” is because he has made it a point from the first moments of our daughter’s life to be an active parent. One day she will appreciate the fact that she has a daddy who does the things that many won’t. We share the role of bringing up our daughter 50-50. And it was obvious to me from the day that he became a father that he would never be a passive participant in her life. I’m truly lucky to have a husband who has always been willing to feed, clean, dress, and play with our girl.

In the days following her delivery I was dealt a rough hand, but I had faith in my husband’s abilities to come through and be there when I couldn’t be. He has had an active role in every aspect ever since and at times he even tilts the scales so that he is doing more than I am without ever complaining.

Sometimes I hear about husbands who refuse to do “this” and “that” with the children because it is the “mom’s” job. When I hear this I feel a bit of sadness for the women who aren’t married to my husband. I will never take for granted that I’ve married a wonderful dad who puts his family first and would do anything for us. He’s a loyal and loving man and I only wish that every family could have a father figure like him.

The Ameri Brit Mom

Paid in Full

Today I need this reminder from my adult coloring book, Live Loved.

No matter what kind of day you have had. Whether you have been dragged down by the damp weather or find yourself happy as a lark, remember that God loves you. When you feel alone or like you’ve messed up so badly that no one could forgive you or love you remember that the price for you has already been paid. Your life was paid-in-full long before you ever messed up and when you fall short of who you think you should be know that you were forgiven long before the folly.

If God loves you that much you deserve to love yourself as well.

Nike Workout Gear

Nike Workout Gear by theameribritmom featuring bpa free water bottles

I can’t believe I did it.I was so close to writing out the story of running from my life. I had come to terms with the fact that running was a thing of the past. No hard feelings. Then, a random message of conviction caused me to go back on my commitment to never run again. An old friend with good intentions made me do it. I can’t believe I caved in.

Over the weekend I found myself in a conversation with an old friend. During our conversation she mentioned she was running a quarter marathon in April and needed a partner to join her. In a moment of weaknesses I said I would do it, and that’s how I got myself into this pickle.

For a little background, I ran competitively in high school and post-high school I participated in a couple of half marathons and a dozen 5ks. However, since I had my daughter I have not done anything of the competitive sort. I’ve dabbled in running, but the time commitment has kept me from really taking training seriously. Over the winter I tried to do some runs, but found my knees aching and hips in pain as a result. I had more or less thrown in the towel on the idea of ever really competing again until this weekend.

But now that I have decided to give it another try I’m in need of motivation to get out there and do the work necessary to go from couch to quarter marathon in a little under two months. So how do I plan to motivate myself?

1. Running Buddy– Having a friend to run with keeps me accountable for finishing each workout. Some days the weather is less than ideal for running so finding accountability with another runner helps motivate me to run regardless of the conditions outside. Luckily, I have a few friends who also enjoy running and I plan to do a couple of runs each week with another person.

2. Set Weekly Goals– Having a long term goal is important, but sometimes I need to set smaller goals to keep me motivated on a daily basis. In the past, I would set weekly mileage goals or set a goal based on the amount of time I planned to run that week. These smaller goals help to give purpose to every single run. Each mile (or minute) becomes a step toward that weekly goal. I also love rewards. A great reward for hitting my weekly goal is giving myself a day of rest. (Example: If I can run 25 miles before Friday I will take Saturday off.)

3. Cute Workout Clothes– Who isn’t motivated by looking good? Recently, I went to a sporting goods store to pick out some soccer gear for my daughter. In the process, I found myself drawn to all of the brightly colored workout clothes for women. From sports bras to leggings there were so many adorable styles. I’m in need of a shopping spree to amp-up my workout wardrobe. (I’m a Nike girl if you haven’t guessed from the picture above.)

What is your favorite piece in your workout ensemble?