novel writing Archives

What’s in a prologue?

novel writing, P.D. Martin, prologues Comments Off

Mar 282013

For some reason, I think every book I've written includes a prologue. It just seems like while I don't want to cram clunky 'back story' into my books, there is some basic information that's needed before readers start on chapter 1. Know what I mean?

Couple of examples...my first Sophie book, Body Count, includes a prologue of Sophie as a child, so it's 30 years or so earlier. Yes, the main story is complete without this prologue, but it gives readers some important character information (namely that Sophie's brother was abducted when she was a little girl).

Another example is from my current work in progress. This book, tentatively called The Pulsars, includes a prologue from 18 years earlier when a woman (who's the mother of my main character) finds out she's carrying a Pulsar fetus. Again, while the main, present-day story works without it, there is scene-setting in the prologue. Plus, the reader discovers that the scans are compulsory worldwide and that if the fetus is a Pulsar, the governments around the world have enacted the Pulsar Termination Act, which means all Pulsar fetus must be terminated. So I guess the story works without it, but the short, two-page prologue also does a lot. Yes, as the reader moves through the story they would discover that the main character is a Pulsar whose mother and father went on the run so they could keep their child. But I do like the way the prologue, as it is, launches the reader into this new world.

As you can probably tell, I like prologues. Like writing them, like reading them. Funny thing is, after I'd written about three books I met someone who said they NEVER read prologues. That they figure it's not necessary for the story. This shocked me. I consider a prologue to be part of the story, and as long as it's pretty short and tight (and well-written, of course) I think they're a great writing device. Many novice writers make the mistake of packing in back story in large chunks in the first chapter or two. A prologue (as long as it's bare essentials!) can get rid of this more clunky 'reveal'. It can set the scene, deliver character motivation or back story. Ideally, a prologue should also capture a reader's attention. Make them want to read on--instantly.

So, what do you think of prologues? Do you read them? And if you're a writer, do you write them?

Note: I'm afraid I'm not going to have internet access when this post goes live (or for the couple of days following it). But I am very interested in everyone's thoughts on prologues and will get back to the comments!

THEY’RE JUST NOT THAT INTO YOU (WINNING AWARDS)

awards, Booker Prize, Gar Anthony Haywood, Loren D. Estleman, mystery, novel writing, Private Eye Writers of America, Shamus Comments Off

Sep 262012

by Gar Anthony Haywood

As you may have noticed, some of us Murderati authors of late have been having a heck of a time getting brand new posts up on schedule for your entertainment. It's not that we've been shirking our duties, it's just that life intrudes. So rather than fresh content, for better or worse, you've been treated to a lot of Oldies but Goodies over the last few days.

Well, as it happens, I'm in a bind trying to put my own post together today. The family and I are moving into a new home this weekend and to say I've been swamped getting ready would be the equivalent of saying Noah worked liked the devil preparing for the flood. I'm dead on my feet.

Still, all excuses to do so aside, I'm not in the mood to fall back on an old post of mine on this Wednesday, no matter how brilliant it would have been. So what I'm going to do instead is lightly touch on a subject that's been on my mind quite a bit lately.

Take a look at this book cover:

I bought this Fawcett paperback back in 1986 or so. This photo's rather lousy, so just to be clear, the cover text reads as follows:

BEST PRIVATE EYE NOVEL OF THE YEAR

Shamus Award, Private Eye Writers of America

An Amos Walker Mystery

LOREN D. ESTLEMAN

SUGAR-TOWN

"A gem. I think Amos and McGee would understand each other."
John D. MacDonald

Now, here's my question: Can you guess what element of the overall cover ultimately convinced me to buy the book?

a) the art

b) the John D. MacDonald blurb

c) the title

d) the reference to the Shamus award

e) the name of Estleman's character, Amos Walker

If you guessed b, you'd be close. I've never been big on cover blurbs, but a kind word from John D. MacDonald would have been nothing to sneeze at.

The art? It's fine, but it didn't particular impress me.

I liked the title, I didn't love it.

And while Amos Walker is a great name for a series character, I wouldn't have risked $1.95 on that alone.

Which leave us with d, the reference to the Shamus award. That's the correct answer. I'd never heard of the Shamus award at the time and knew nothing about the Private Eye Writers of America, but I figured if a group of Estleman's peers had seen fit to proclaim this book "the best private eye novel of the year," it had to be pretty damn good.

It was.

I'm a little more jaded where awards are concerned now, of course. But not by much. I still believe in them, and value them, and yes, goddamnit, as an author, I covet them. How readers in general feel about them is a mixed bag. Some find awards important and some don't. And publishers?

Publishers don't give a flying f-word about awards.

You want proof? How's this:

I'm a judge on the Best Paperback Original committee for one of the major book awards this year and I can count on two hands the number of submissions I've received directly from publishers over the last five weeks. Authors have sent their own books in, publicity professionals have sent the books of clients in --- but only three submissions have come from the house that published them. The list of major publishers yet to be heard from, regardless of who did the actual submitting, would be longer than your arm.

Conclusion? Publishers don't think the promotional payoff of one of their books winning a literary award (short of the Booker Prize) is greater than the cost of mailing one physical copy each out to four or five award judges.

Seriously?

I think this is pretty sad and incredibly shortsighted, but maybe publishers are right. Maybe awards really don't matter.

What do you think?

The Research Bookshelf

bookshelves, City of Ghosts, Degenerate Art, noir, novel writing, Raymond Chandler, research, The Blue Dahlia Comments Off

May 242012

By Kelli Stanley

First, let me say this: it's good to be back at Criminal Minds. Thank you to Gary Corby and everyone else who pinch-hit for me during my absence! And thank you to our readers, those who've been with us since the beginning, and those who just, perhaps, stumbled across us, thinking we're related to the TV show. Welcome--and stick around, you may like us just as much. :)

Now, as to the shelf question. I live in a very small house with my partner, two cats and a dog. What this means is that I have fewer bookshelves, but a lot of ledges, towers, bins and boxes full of books. Books in the basement, books in the kitchen, books in the foundation of the house ... you get the idea.

Along with books by fellow old and new Criminal Minds like Rebecca and Josh and Hillary and Michael and Gary and Meredith and Graham and Sue Ann and Vicki and Reece and Gabi and Shane and Sophie and (well, you get the picture) and my noir library (which contains my most precious writing collectible, the edition of Henry James given to Raymond Chandler and inscribed by John Houseman when Chandler finished The Blue Dahlia--yes, this book was once owned by Chandler and now reposes on one of my bookshelves), and classics and Classics and books about film and film noir and books from childhood and books with memories and books as gifts ... have I mentioned how small our house is? But I digress ...

Anyway, along with all this plethora, this plenitude, this prodigality of the written word, are books and magazines and newspapers and articles that I depend upon every day. This is my sacred research shelf ... and most of these sometimes out-of-print, dusty and forgotten objects aren't available electronically, so an e-reader won't help me.

Y' see, I can't read fiction when I'm on a tight deadline and in the throes of a novel. And I'm on a tight deadline and in the throes of a the next Miranda Corbie book, City of Ghosts. So what I read is research ... research before and during the writing process.

So let's take a look at just a few items on the City of Ghosts bookshelf (which should give you some idea of some of the plot elements) ...

1. A handsome, over-sized paperback called Degenerate Art: The Fate of the Avant-Garde in Nazi Germany. An out-of-print catalogue from an exhibit held at the Los Angeles County Art Museum ... absolutely priceless.

2. Tragic Train: "The City of San Francisco". Long out-of-print book from the '70s about the historic streamliner The City of San Francisco and its mysterious (was it really sabotage?) train wreck in 1939.

3. A Century of Spies: Intelligence in the Twentieth Century. Reasonable overview, though seems a little overeager to accept revisionist theories about the Verona cables and Alger Hiss.

4. Secret Armies: Exposing Hitler's Undeclared War on the Americas. A fascinating expose from 1939 by muckraking journalist John L. Spivak.

5. The Faustian Bargain: The Art World in Nazi Germany. Terrific analysis and information.

There are many other books, of course--books about San Francisco, about the Spanish Civil War, books about forensics and California, pamphlets and maps and menus and matchbooks from the period. And perhaps my most valuable research tool, a 1940 Pacific Telephone and Telegraph Telephone Directory. Miranda would be lost without her copy, and I would be, too.

Thanks for reading! And tell us ... what kinds of bookshelves are in your house? :)

Gun 101

Crime Fiction, Guest Posts, handguns, novel writing, research, thrillers Comments Off

Mar 122012

I just finished reading the galley of a bestselling author’s soon-to-be-released thriller. Early in the book the author describes how the main character loads a 17-round magazine for a revolver. I realized I had my work cut out for me.

Unless one has hands-on experience with firearms, it’s easy to make mistakes. At a mystery writers’ workshop, I asked the audience how many had used firearms in their mysteries or thrillers. Almost every hand went up. I then asked how many had ever shot a firearm. Less than half the hands went up. If we’re going to write in these genres, let’s know a little about the weapons our characters use.

So, let’s look at some basics. First, how is a revolver different from a semi-automatic pistol? The first mass-produced, modern revolvers were developed in the early 1800s. Black-powder and a lead ball were loaded into the gun’s cylinders by hand. Not until the Civil War did self-contained cartridges appear.

Here’s a typical .38 caliber, snub-nose revolver:

It’s called a revolver because the cylinder which holds the bullets revolves each time you pull the trigger, bringing a fresh cartridge under the hammer.

Most revolvers hold six bullets; compact models may hold five; small caliber such as .22 may appear in a nine-shot model.

The technology of the semi-automatic pistol is designed to hold more bullets than a similar caliber revolver and to allow the pistol to reload the firing chamber and get rid of the empty shell casing in a way that is more streamlined than with a revolver. Here’s probably the best-known semi-automatic pistol, the .45 caliber Model 1911:

As you can see, there’s no cylinder. Bullets are held in a magazine which fits into the handle. Each time the gun is fired, the explosion pushes back the slide at the top, the empty brass is ejected, then as the slide bounces forward, it pulls off the top bullet in the magazine and slams it home in the firing chamber. Because the explosion does all the work, including re-cocking the hammer, the trigger pull necessary for the next firing is much less than it would be with a revolver. A semi-automatic pistol can be fired more rapidly and more easily than a revolver. Holding more bullets is a plus.
What about bullets? What is caliber? We see such designations as .38 special, .44 magnum, .22 long rifle, and .45 auto. Caliber is merely fractions of an inch designating bullet diameter. Some bullets are designated in millimeters, such as the 9 mm parabellum. European countries use millimeters while England and America use caliber. A 9 mm bullet is very close in size to a .38 caliber bullet.

Bullet cartridges have four major components: the brass casing, the bullet, gunpowder, and a firing primer. When the firing pin of a pistol hits the primer a small explosion occurs. The fire of that explosion sets off the main powder charge which propels the bullet out of the brass casing and down the barrel of the gun.

Bullets can be rounded lead (ball), flat lead (called wad-cutters) brass-jacketed (full metal jacket), hollow point, and frangible. The extent of bullet technology was recently pushed to the limit in a product called Zombie Max (tag line: Just In Case…). It has to be one of the most fearsome self-defense rounds on the market, with an explosively amazing terminal impact. (Yes, Virginia, this would definitely kill a zombie.)

Does a mystery/thriller writer need to be an expert to use firearms in fiction? No, but it’s good to know when you don’t know something. Some writers want to create an atmosphere of professional hit men, spies, detectives, etc. and get excessively involved in trying to describe things they don’t know about. Result? They figuratively shoot themselves in the foot.

A female novelist recently asked how her female protagonist might finish off a bad guy using a 12-gauge shotgun. She wanted to know: (a) would it blow a hole in him big enough to see through? (Terminator movies); (b) would it take off his head? (The Walking Dead); and (c) how far would his body fly through the air? This author had never owned a gun, never fired or even touched a gun, so she thought what she saw in movies was true. (Answers: (a) No, (b) No, (c) He’d fall over, not fly.)

Advice for writers: Never think that what you see in movies is true; check resources such as people knowledgeable about firearms; peruse the photos and descriptions on websites of major weapons manufacturers – Glock, Smith & Wesson, Taurus, Colt, etc. You’ll find hundreds of videos on YouTube showing firearms in action: what happens to a car when shot with various caliber bullets; how a suppressed pistol sounds versus an unsuppressed pistol, etc.

And try going to a pistol range for some hands-on experience.