3 Writing Lessons from La La Land

If you are looking for an article that is going to be praise La La Land, I suggest you look elsewhere. If you want an article that is going to show you what to avoid when you are writing through one of the world's most overhyped movies, then you are in the right place.

I wanted to love the movie. I really did. I am obsessed with musicals, and I don't think you will find a bigger Ryan Gosling fan than me (hey girl, I respect your writing career so much that I am going to write a post that is slightly controversial). If anyone was primed to be its biggest fan, it was me.

But I am not. Why? Well, I have three writing lessons to let you know why I am not fly-around-a-planetarium in love with La La Land. Warning: spoilers are up ahead. 

1. Develop both leads

My major beef with the movie is that Mia isn't developed. At all. Seriously, who claims to be obsessed with movies but has never seen Rebel Without a Cause? Also, how is having an aunt that loves movies motivation enough to go into the movie business? I also was not rooting for her play. At all. Why? The audience never got to see it. 

You know what would have been better? If she were a writer. Why? Because that's all the audience sees her do. I saw her writing during the film, but I rarely saw her act. When she did act, she was pretty terrible.

Sebastian, on the other hand, I felt like I knew a lot about. I know why he loves jazz. I know why he wants to follow his dream. I actually saw him perform jazz.

Your takeaway: When you are writing a romance (or any story with two leads), makes sure both of them are equally developed. 

2. Deliver on your genre promises

When I see a musical, I expect the actors to actually be good at singing and dancing. No offense to Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone, but they are terrible at both. Also, the music was not memorable at all. 

Your takeaway: When writing in a certain genre, deliver on its promises (unless you are intentionally breaking them, but if so, proceed with caution). If you are writing a romance, have a happy ending. If you are writing a fantasy, there should be an element of magic. 

3. Be realistic 

I am sorry, but I have a hard time believing that Mia could launch her career off a play that most people thought wasn't good. Plus, her voice is terrible, so I don't believe that she would have wooed people in an audition with it.  I also have to really suspend disbelief that she would still care about Sebastian if she were happily married with a kid. To mix movies, let it go, girl. 

Your takeaway: When writing, ask yourself: "Would this happen in real life? Would I react in this way? Would other people really behave in this manner?" 

How about you? Did you love La La Land? Let me know in the comments below.

The Hardest Part of the Writing Process

It is what made the football players sweat and nervously clear their throats when they sat in the university writing center with me. It is what makes my clients cringe and wring their hands. Hell, it even makes my palms sweat thinking about it.

You probably can guess what I am talking about.

Revision.

When you first started your novel journey, you probably thought your greatest struggle would be reaching "The End." However, once you finish your book and open the file to edit it, you freeze faster than an old operating system.

You don't know where to begin. You see all the areas that you want to fix, but you don't know how. You are daunted by the enormity of the task. So you shut your file, and your book gathers more (virtual) dust than that old Mandy Moore CD you have. 

To quote Kid President, "Not cool, Robert Frost." The world needs to read your book. People need to escape through your story or hear your message. You need to revise it for them. 

As I established last week, revision isn't a step you can skip, even if you hire an editor. Yet you don't know where to begin. What is the solution? 

Fortunately, my friend, Jennifer Blanchard, and I have your back. We have created a workshop that will help you revise your manuscript so that it is ready for an editor. To end your revising nightmares, go here. 

Note: we start next week, so you should hustle over there now before it disappears. 

Ten Reasons to Edit Your Book Before Sending It to an Editor

When I was younger, I thought that I just had to write a book and then I could send it to an editor without even giving it a second look. I believed that the editor would receive the messy manuscript and make it magical. 

I was so wrong.

While your manuscript doesn't have to be perfect before you send it to an editor (that would defeat the purpose of having one), it should be the best you can possibly make it. Why?

1. It is your book, so you should edit it first. It is your work, and you have the responsibility to fix it first. You know your vision; it is up to you to make sure your draft matches it to the best of your ability. 

2. It will refamiliarize you with your own work. That way, when your editor says that Lily acts out of character in chapter three, you know what she is talking about. 

3. It might be cheaper. Some editors give you a quote based on a sample of your writing. Even if the editor does not do that and has a standard price, you might have to go through more rounds of revisions, which is more expensive.

4. It will save you time later. If you fix that plot hole now, you won't have to do it in a few months after you get your edits back.

5. The editing process will be less intimidating. Not only will you have fewer issues that you have to fix, but you will be familiar with editing your work. You won't think: "Ahh! I don't know how to edit." Instead, you will think: "Oh, I have done this before. I have it handled."

6. You will be less precious about your book, which will make your book better. If you have already seen some of and fixed the flaws in your book, you won't be offended and defensive if the editor catches other problems. If you have already seen some of the issues, you won't be s surprised and hurt to find others. You will be inured to the whole process.

7. It makes you a better writer. If you edit your work on your own, you begin to realize certain ticks that you have as a writer. Then you can be aware of them for the next book. For example, there might be certain words that you constantly use as a crutch or that you overuse adjectives. 

8. You will know which hills to die on. When you receive edits from an editor, some of them are objective and some are subjective. If your editor tells you that you constantly are changing tenses, then you know you need to fix it. However, if the editor wants to cut the jokes in the book that are crucial to the character, then you can fight to keep them.  

9. You will better know what kind of editor/edits you need. If you are editing the book and notice that you are struggling with the love scenes in the novel, then you know you need to hire an editor who specializes in that. If there are major structural problems in the book, then you know to hire a developmental editor. 

10. It is just part of being a professional. You always want to send someone your best work, even if she is going to correct it.

Not sure how to edit your book? My friend, Jennifer Blanchard, and I are going to put together a workshop on how to do this. Keep your eyes peeled next week for more details! 

Forget Walden Pond

Last weekend, I went out to New Paris with a bunch of friends. I had really romantic ideas about the trip: shooting stars, delicious food, and beautiful fall foliage. All those things were there, and it was really wonderful. 

It was just missing one major thing: inspiration.

You see, I always had an idealized version of how nature is supposed to inspire you. I thought about how Thoreau wrote Walden Pond when he lived in a cabin by a lake and how the Romantic poets talked about the beauty of nature. Surely nature would give me the jolt of creativity I needed to get back into the swing of things with my writing.

I forgot about one major thing: myself.

You see, I am not exactly what you would call an "outdoorsy person." (I am imagining all the people who know me in "real life" laughing hysterically at this notion.) When I did a meditation group in college, I always left more stressed out than I was before I walked into the meditation center. Why? They always had outdoor visualizations. All I could think about was getting sunburned, being eaten by bugs, and accidentally rubbing up against poison ivy.

To say I have a deep fear of poison ivy is an understatement. When a free-range dog (that was owned by my friend's relatives) in New Paris came up to me, I screamed and ran away. Not because I am afraid of dogs. No, I am obsessed with them. It was because I am afraid he rubbed up again poison ivy and would give it to me.

So I shouldn't have been surprised that I was creatively dry in an environment that normally stressed me out. You know where I get inspiration? Cities. I am like that chick from Green Acres. Give me Park Avenue. I am inspired by street lamps and pedestrians, not by cows and flowers. I would much prefer the honk of taxis over that annoying chirping that crickets make. So when I am stuck, I walk around my city streets until I see someone who might be my next character. 

How does this apply to you and your writing? Go where you are inspired, not where you think you SHOULD be inspired. Just because your favorite writer is inspired by the ocean, it doesn't mean you have to be. 

Basically, know yourself. If you don't know where you get your inspiration yet, experiment. See if the mountains are your muse. Or maybe you are itching to write after going abroad. Perhaps there is a room in your house that helps you to pick up your pen. Basically, do you. 

Keep going to your favorite place and are still stuck? Book a Novel Idea Session with me here. I can inspire you faster than the Empire State Building inspires me. 

Dancing in the Metro

It was a moment that could only happen in D.C.

My husband and I were sitting in the metro when two young men entered the car. This is not an unusual occurrence. What they said next definitely was.

One of the young men announced, "We are here to make y'all smile with a dance performance. We are trying to raise money to go to LA to audition for So You Think You Can Dance. You are not obligated to donate." His friend echoed this sentiment. "We just want you to enjoy yourselves."

The young men played Sia's "The Greatest" and danced. It was no small feat; it is hard to swing around on the poles and breakdance in a moving car.

Of course, nobody but me was smiling and watching. Everyone was looking at their phones, frowning.

If you have lived in D.C., this will not surprise you. 

There was one young woman other than myself who was enjoying the show. She kept yelling, "This is amazing!"

When the music ended, she and I were the only ones applauding.

The came around with their bucket for donations, and some people actually donated even though they didn't look up during the performance (I guess they were secretly enjoying it).

When they got off on the next stop, the girl who was cheering left with them. I noticed her getting on the next train with them.

She was a plant.

What is the point of this story? Work on your writing (or whatever art you do). Show it to other people. Be brave like the young men on the train. Chase your dreams. Even if you don't get a positive response at first, you might be surprised with some money in your bucket at the end.

Also,  always have someone cheer you on. It never hurts to have a hype(wo)man. Just make sure she doesn't wear a gold watch around her neck. Yeah, boy! 

How David Bowie Helps My Writing

When I was at the National Book Festival, Angie Thomas mentioned how much hip-hop music inspired her writing. It got me thinking. Are there any musicians that have inspired my writing? The answer is a big resounding "YES!" 

The musicians that have an inspired me the most are amazing storytellers. I remember sitting in my parents' car in middle school as we drove through the countryside in the dark. The radio suddenly started playing Bruce Springsteen's "Dancing in the Dark." It was almost as if I downloaded a story. I had an image of a girl and a boy stuck in a small town, miserable and dying to get out. The next day, I sat down and wrote that story. I don't think I would have been able to do that if Bruce Springsteen didn't so powerfully tell a story of a young man begging to break free of his mediocre life.

I think it is so, so important to get inspiration and study the artistry of other disciplines. I think one of the most important things a writer can do is listen to a TON of music. Since I have learned the most from analyzing and enjoying the storytelling abilities of gifted musicians, I have compiled a (not comprehensive) list of my favorite storytelling musicians (besides my beloved Bruce Springsteen).

David Bowie

As a child, my dad played The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars on repeat. It drove my mom nuts, but I loved it. Except for "Five Years." That song scared me because it was about the end of the world. But you know what? That has become a standard for me when I am writing science fiction/horror stories. If I can scare people so much that they avoid my work, I have achieved an amazing goal. Now I seek out that song as a great example of scary storytelling.

Tom Waits

One of my friends in graduate school famously described Tom Waits as "a mixture of a drunk Cookie Monster and a lovesick pirate." I think his description is pretty accurate. He also said that nobody did better storytelling in music than Tom Waits, and I also have to agree. My dad once complained about Tom Waits's version of "Downtown Train" because he had this clear image of a pathetic, ragged man. This is exactly why the song is so brilliant. He paints ridiculously vivid characters. Besides, I am pretty sure "they stay at the carnival, but they will never win you back" is one of the best lines in music. 

The Cure

I had a coworker who told me that the Cure wrote pure poetry, and I completely agree. Beyond writing gorgeous imagery, they also are killer storytellers. One of my favorite songs is "Cut Here." It powerfully tells the story of a man's guilt over his friend's suicide. It blows my mind how much is conveyed in just a few lines. 

Kanye West

Okay, he is not my favorite person in the world, but, damn, the man is the KING of confessional rap/poetry. In "Runaway" (warning: it is explicit), there is Robert Browning level of storytelling (yes, I am comfortable with and stand by this statement) from the perspective of a really scummy guy. I feel like everyone can listen to the song and think: "yeah, I know someone like that." Which is amazing storytelling. Bonus: there is a hilarious scene from The Night Before centered on this song (I was literally falling out my seat laughing when I saw it). 

There you have it. These are some musicians that inspire me when I am stuck or that I analyze when I want to work on craft. How about you?  What musicians have inspired you? Tell me in the comments below.