Mystery Novels

Scene Locations

~ Kristina Stanley ~ 5 Comments

#writetip Where does your action happen?

Do you vary the locations of your scenes throughout your novel?

If you hadn’t guessed it, I’m going to mention my spreadsheet again. Yup, I have a column for scene locations. When I read, I enjoy a novel that takes place in different locations and has the characters moving around.

Sorting the spreadsheet by location tells me if I’ve used one location too many times. Maybe it’s important to the story, and that’s okay. But what if it’s not? When I see a location turn up many times, I assess it and see if I can come of with a more imaginative way of describing the scene.

Sometimes by creating new location, the characters surprise me and the story takes a new turn. Always an interesting process.

Synopsis and Blurb Review

~ Kristina Stanley ~ 1 Comment

#writetip So you’ve written your blurb and synopsis and think they’re great. That happens to me too. So . . . I need some outside feedback.

I treat my synopsis and blurb the same way I treat my novel. I have readers who read for content, and I have those who proofread.

If you’re lucky and have readers for your entire novel, why not ask them to read your synopsis and blurb too? You already know their skill set for reading. They already know your story and can keep you honest.

I try to tell my readers what I want from them.

For the blurb I ask:

–       Does it clearly represent the story?

–       Would you want to buy the book based on the blurb? Why or why not?

For the synopsis I ask:

–       Does it clearly represent the story?

–       Is it an engaging synopsis or does it feel too much like a list of events?

Please let me know if you have any tips for writing great blurbs or synopses.

How to use a spreadsheet for your synopsis

~ Kristina Stanley ~ 10 Comments

#writetip The dreaded synopsis has found its way to the top of my to-do list.

How do you take 82,000 words and summarize them in to 500 to 1000 words?

Sweat it out, of course.

As I’ve said before, I love my spreadsheets and don’t know how anyone can write a novel without one. Well, here is my next use.

One column of my spreadsheet has a name for each scene. The name represents what happens in this scene.

To create my synopsis, first I’m look for turning points in the novel. Luckily, I already have this in the spreadsheet. The turning points are events that take the story in a new direction.

Next, I write each scene name on a paper. I cross out anything that doesn’t need to be in the synopsis.  Once I do this four or five time, I write out a one line description of the scene. Now I know if I’m anywhere near the right word count. If not, I keep cutting.

I follow some simple guidelines:

–       Use protagonists POV

–       Don’t include questions

–       Use present tense

–       Write in the same voice as your novel

–       Don’t turn the synopsis into a list

–       Include the ending

If the first line of your novel is great, and I hope it is, why not use that as your opening line of your synopsis?

If you have any tips for writing a synopsis, I’d love to hear them.

 

 

Spread Sheets and Novels

~ Kristina Stanley ~ 5 Comments

#writetip I don’t know how anyone writes a novel without spread sheet. The more I write, the more columns my spread sheet contains.

What I’ve discovered writing my third novel, Burnt, is that I needed to add two new columns. These columns are helpful if you are writing a mystery novel.

One column is used for clues to solving the crime. This means the reader knows the clues, but the main protagonist might not. This is especially helpful if you write from multiple points of view. If not, you probably don’t need this one.

The second column keeps track of clues the main protagonist knows. This ensures the character doesn’t mysteriously know something at the wrong time.

For a more detailed description of my complete spread sheet and how I use it, please see:

Related articles

Don’t Rush The Ending

~ Kristina Stanley ~ 2 Comments

#writetip This week has been a big week for me. I’ m still basking in the joy of completing my novel, Burnt.

If you’ve been reading my blog this week, you know I recently completed the CWC mentorship program, and I want to share one thing I learned from Garry Ryan.

Don’t Rush the Ending.

He told me the reader has been waiting for the final scene so let them savour it.

I think I shorted my ending to get the book finished and not let it drag. I missed the importance of satisfying the reader with a deep and thoughtful final scene.

I’ve now re-written it, and thanks the mentorship program, I think (as usual – in my biased opinion) that it’s much better.

It seems like there is always something to learn when it comes to writing a novel. I guess that’s why people spend a lifetime writing.

First Draft: Then What?

~ Kristina Stanley ~ 1 Comment

#writetip Do you get to relax and celebrate when you finish a manuscript and are getting ready to send it to your agent or publisher? You probably deserve it, but if you’re anything like me, it’s time to get to the next activity.

Yesterday, I finished updating my 3rd novel, Burnt, based on comments from Garry Ryan. I’ve sent it off to be proofread, and now, I’m not going to look at it for a couple of weeks.

What am I going to do with my time?  Well . . .

  • Write a blurb
  • Write a synopsis
  • Figure out if Burnt is the best title for the novel
  • Update my website
  • Update the CWC website
  • Update my agent’s website (Margaret Hart at HSW Literary Agency)

And on and on it goes . . .

There is so much more to writing a novel than actually writing the novel.

THANK YOU GARRY RYAN

~ Kristina Stanley ~ 2 Comments

#writetip As a member of the Crime Writers of Canada, I am entitled to participate in the mentorship program.  Garry Ryan, president of the Crime Writers of Canada and Author of the Detective Lane Mysteries, was my mentor.

Garry is the Winner of a 2007 LAMBDA Award and the Calgary Freedom of Expression Award 2009.

So how lucky was I feeling, when the CWC notified me that Garry would be working with me on my manuscript. Garry provided me with broad scoped and detailed feedback. He told me where I was doing things well and where I needed to work on things. He called it tweaking. I’ve saved all of his comments and will use them on future manuscripts.

If you write crime stories and are trying to get published, the CWC offers a way to get your manuscript ready.

Check out Garry’s website. He has a page that lists where you can buy his novels.

Thank you , Garry!

Opening Scenes: Action or Summary?

~ Kristina Stanley ~ 3 Comments

#writetip How do you start your novel? Are you a believer in action or summary? Me, I like to start with action, whether I’m reading or writing a novel.

In my humble opinion, the opening scene is where you get to “show” your stuff. An opening scene filled with action gives a writer the opportunity to show who their main character or villain is, what he/she is made of and how he/she behaves.

I find if I read a summary of a character in the first scene, I don’t tend to be that interested in the character or believe what the writer has to say about the character.

However, if the character is thrown into a situation, I get to learn through seeing and make my own decisions on what they are made of and then the writer has me, and I’m happy to go along for the ride.

A Story Worthy Problem

~ Kristina Stanley ~ 4 Comments

#writetip How do you know if you have a story worthy problem and why do you want one?

I guess it depends on whether you are writing short stories or novels. I write novels, but love to read short stories. Let’s say a novel is somewhere between 70,000 and 100,000 words. Some can be more and some less.

For a reader to want to spend their time reading 70,000 words, there has to be a problem they are interested in and it has to be big enough to write that many words about.

Your main character needs to strive for something of they are just sitting around being boring. They need to come up against obstacles.

My idea is that you know you have a story worthy problem if you find yourself at 70,000 words (ish) and are still writing about it. If you run out of things to say, it might not be the story worthy.

Mystery Novel: Order of Clues

~ Kristina Stanley ~ 4 Comments

#writetip Are you writing a mystery novel and unsure of where to place your clues? Are you including red herrings in your novel? Me too.

One thing I learned working in the human resources field is that people tend to remember the last message you give them. So when I was giving feedback, I tried to end the meeting with a positive message, something the person could take away and be proud of.

I thought this could translate into writing a mystery novel. I give a “real” clue and follow it with a “false” clue. My hope is the reader will remember the second clue, forget the first clue but still have it in their mind, and not guess too early who the villain is.

What do you do?