Stir the pot; in this case the plot, and you’ll see how alike writing and cooking can be.
Whether you’re writing a novella, (fast food), a novel, (a five-course dinner), or a short story, (preparing a snack), the success of your preparation depends upon mastering the tools of the trade.
Need to perfect a paragraph? Slice and dice to shorten sentences and speed the action.
Introduce suspense? Use a rolling boil.
Brown and simmer to smooth and lengthen a passage and to bring your reader’s heart rate back in rhythm.
Determine your pacing by flash-freezing, nuking in a microwave, or constantly stirring with a long wooden spoon.
Remember that your protagonist has to suffer, so turn up the heat and roast them or slow cook them.
Dealing with your villain offers the most options. Fry them, stew them in their own juice, lay them out with a rolling-pin, grill them or mash them. Alternately, you can prolong their just desserts in an all-day crock pot.
Bake or fricassee, it’s your choice. Just make sure you serve up a delectable morsel each time that will keep your guests coming back for more.
So next time you sit down to write, think about what your readers like and ask, “Can I take your order?”
See you next time on August 22nd.
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She’s done it again! In her new cozy mystery, Five Belles Too Many, Debra H. Goldstein once again shows her mastery at creating a tangle of secret lives and ambitious hearts where she hides the killer in plain sight within the story. And though we meticulously follow the clues she scatters for us, we’re always thrown for a loop because the killer is never who we think.
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March was World Poetry Day, and April was National Poetry month. During a recent webinar sponsored by the Highlights Foundation, the authors Margarita Engle and Padma Venkatraman expressed the following thoughts:
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This month, I’d like to share with you a few of the books that have moved, inspired, and touched my life. They are the voices of fellow-women across the globe; sisters, friends, women.
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Picture books, that welcoming world of imagery and words that capture the heart and the imagination. And most wonderful of all, when the story is true and reveals a hidden gem.
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“Books can’t be used as weapons. They can’t fill a hungry stomach or quench thirst. They can’t cure illnesses, loneliness or prejudice.”
Or can they?
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Featured Books
MARRYING MR. GIBSON
She won't be forced into marriage to a nobleman's by-blow. He won't be trapped into marriage by a father he's never known.
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I love it! Wonderful advice. Thanks for the meal.
Thank you, Jenny. I always look for links and connections in things. This was a fun one to write.