A Thanksgiving Acrostic

 

It’s a little late to be wishing you a Happy Thanksgiving, but I’m doing it anyway. The days between Thanksgiving and Christmas are a busy time for most of us, and that includes me, so I’m going to use reprints this year. I’ll start with a Thanksgiving acrostic originally posted on November 23, 2015.

A Thanksgiving Acrostic

Here is a list of things that I am thankful for as a writer.

Thesauruses for finding the perfect word,

Handkerchiefs to cry into when my characters get in trouble,

Authentic dialogue,

Notebooks to preserve ideas,

Kind friends and relatives who don’t laugh at my lousy first drafts,

Snoopy’s Guide to the Writing Life for those moments when I need encouragement mixed with humor,

Gripping plots,

Imaginary friends (and enemies) who come to life on the page,

Vivid description,

Imagery that puts the reader in the setting,

Nerve to cut out those favorite passages that just don’t fit, and

Groups of other writers to provide critiques, support, and networking.

__________

The picture at the head of this post wasn’t in the original 2015 post. It is a Currier and Ives print titled “Home to Thanksgiving” and is in the public domain because of its age. (Currier and Ives went out of business in 1907.)

Writing Lessons from Africa--Clarity is Everything

 

Sightseeing is no fun if you can’t see anything because of the darkness or the dust in your eyes.

A significant part of our time in South Africa was spent on safari riding in an open-air Land Rover (the first photo) while bouncing along dirt tracks (the second photo).  That was fine during the morning game drives but became a problem for me during the evening ones.

I almost always wear sunglasses while outside. They aren’t just for the sun, though. I wear contacts, and the sunglasses keep the dust out of my eyes. As anyone who wears contacts knows, getting grit under a lens is not only uncomfortable but can also result in losing the contact.

When the sun went down during the evening game drives, I couldn’t see the animals (or much of anything else) through my dark lenses. Eventually I learned my lesson and took out my contacts when it got too dark, but it took at least one evening game drive before I realized I needed to take my prescription glasses along.

So when I got home, I ordered a pair of Transitions sunglasses. Hopefully I’ll have better luck seeing the next time it’s both dark and windy out.

My sunglass issues remind me of those authors who use double meanings or try to bury literary, historical, or other lesser-known references in their work. (Yes, I know the analogy is a stretch.) But unless you are aiming for a highly-educated audience, allusions that some readers will miss can work if—and only if—the surface story is interesting without them. If my enjoyment depends on specialized knowledge or Mensa-level thinking, I won’t read that author again.

If you want to infuse your manuscripts with allusions that show how smart you are, make sure the story works on an everyday level as well.

Because reading is no fun if you can’t see the road ahead.

Writing Lessons from Africa--Explain Yourself

 

We were in Zimbabwe, Africa, in early September, which is around the time when the dry season ends and the rainy season begins. What we experienced was more like the dry season as there was no rain while we were there.

Apparently that was also the best time to see Victoria Falls. According to our guide, the falls are sparsest in the middle of the rainy season. And they are so full of water in the middle of the dry season that you can’t see them for the heavy mist.

That seems counterintuitive until it’s explained. The Zambezi River is fed by a natural catchment area that absorbs rainfall like a sponge during the rainy season and then releases it gradually. By the time the water reaches Victoria Falls, 1000 kilometers downriver, the dry season has begun.

The fact that Victoria Falls is fullest during the dry season is hard to believe until it’s explained. If I just made a bald statement that more water goes over the falls in the dry season than in the rainy season, would you be inclined to believe me? If you know me, probably so. But what if you don’t?

As writers, we must be careful how we deal with mysterious events or those that appear to be unlikely. That doesn’t mean we should eliminate them or give away our secrets too soon, but it does mean we need to include enough logic and foreshadowing during the course of the story for the reader to say “of course” or “that makes sense” once the solution is revealed. Otherwise, we’ll lose our audience.

So make sure you put enough information in the story to make it ring true at the end.

Writing Lessons from Africa--Tastes Differ

I think wart hogs are among the ugliest animals God made. Well, hippos on land are uglier, and I’m sure you can name a few other animals, but wart hogs are near the top of my list. One of the women I went on safari with had a different take, though. Debbie thinks wart hogs are beautiful, and she was excited every time we saw some. It just goes to show that people have different tastes.

Readers have different tastes, too. It’s easy for me to get discouraged when someone doesn’t like what I have written. If it’s a true critique where they point out things I could have done differently, I appreciate the feedback. But sometimes it’s just because they don’t like the type of things I write.

And that’s okay.

I’ve heard some writers claim that they are writing for the masses. Unfortunately, that’s an unobtainable objective. No one can please everyone, and I’d go crazy if I tried. Or I’d get so depressed that I’d give up writing altogether.

Some audiences are narrower than others, but none include everyone. Even generalized categories such as children, teens, adult women, and adult men are far too broad.

A sane writer (if there is such a thing) narrows his or her audience and writes for it. If other people enjoy the story, too, that’s simply a bonus.

So find your audience, and don’t be discouraged when you come across a reader who isn’t part of it.

 

Writing Lessons from Africa--The Hidden Depths

 

Personally, I think hippos are boring when you see them out of the water. Notice how ugly even the baby is when standing around grazing, or at least that’s my assessment.

In the water, hippos can be magic. That’s the second photo, which shows only eyes, ears, and noses peeking out.

We only saw the two hippos out of the water. I took the photo at about 9:30 a.m. from an open jeep in Pilanesberg National Park where the wildlife is used to tourists. But in the late afternoon, when hippos take to the water, we had a number of sightings. Those were at Songimvelo Game Reserve and along the Zambezi River. And the submerged hippos were by far the more interesting.

I gather lots of research when writing fiction. While that’s especially important for historical fiction, good research is necessary for all genres. Then there are those writers who create detailed character sketches for their main characters. In the process, we learn a lot of information that is helpful in developing the story but is of little interest to our readers. But because we know it, we are tempted to use it.

Bad idea.

Dumping everything we know into a story is as boring as a hippo out of water. Leaving most of that information beneath the depths, however, intrigues readers and keeps them involved.

So leave most of your research in the hidden depths.