Letting Your Story Flow

by Brian Beam

Like many writers, I have had my share of discarded manuscripts, some only paragraphs, others dozens of pages. So many hours, so many ideas, all thrown away.

At the height of my frustration at not being able to finish a complete fantasy novel, I knew I had to try something else. I wanted to identify that special “something” which would allow me to fulfill my dream of finishing my first novel. Through articles about writing, interviews with my favorite authors, and instructional books, I found that a common theme was outlining your story. 

So, I started outlining. However, instead of discarding my manuscripts, I found that I couldn’t even start one to discard. It made no sense to me. The story was right there on the page. All I had to do was expand it into narrative. It should have been easy. For me, though, easy as it may have been, the inspiration to write those stories evaporated.

After taking a step back, I realized that I felt too constrained with my outlines. I had written out the flow of the stories, but then I felt stuck to that flow. Getting new ideas meant going back through my outline to figure out exactly how that new idea would affect the rest of the rest of the plot points. It felt tedious. I kind of gave up.

After a few years of minimal writing, I got a general idea for a series of short stories. It was the first idea I had been excited about in so long that I just had to put it to paper. I forewent the outlining, just wanting to enjoy the feeling of writing again. I was only a couple pages in when I realized that my first idea was not going to work as a short story. My new plan was to expand my story into a trilogy of novellas.

 
Pirate Therapy and Other Cures
BY: Mark A. Rayner
PUBLISHED BY: Monkeyjoy Press
PUBLISHED IN: 2012
ISBN: 9780986662782
Pages: 158

  
    When I saw the book request from author Mark Rayner for his book Pirate Therapy and Other Cures, I had to laugh and at the same time I wondered what Pirate Therapy was. Mark Rayner has a website/blog skwib.com where he publishes flash fiction, in which some of those stories have made it into this book. I don’t read very many humor books, so I was skeptical about reading Pirate Therapy and Other Cures.

    The author has collected some of his best flashes for this edition, which are hilarious tales that will put a smile on your face. You’ll learn what happens when a worldwide virus turns it’s victims into clowns; learn about the strange mythology of unicorns; learn about what high fiber foods you should be eating (if you are a cyborg); find out how Batman really feels about his Justice League of America team; learn the history of Groundhog Day; and learn ten great facts about Canada.

While flipping through channels a few weeks ago, I stumbled upon Gilmore Girls. I recall when the series was first aired in 2000 and for some reason I never got around to watching an episode. What caught my eye was that Lauren Graham was constantly carrying around a cup of coffee, which so do I. After twenty minutes of viewing and listening to the snappy dialogue, I was now a fan. A few days later I went to a Target store in the city and found seasons one and two bundled together for twenty dollars.

Gilmore Girls is set in the small, wacky town of Stars Hollows, where single mother Lorelai (played by Lauren Graham), manager of the Independence Inn, is raising her sixteen-year-old daughter Rory (played Alexis Bledel). When her daughter is accepted into the Chilton Preparatory School, Lorelai asks her rich estranged parents for financial help due to the school’s expensive tuition. Of course things are not so simple as her parents want them to have Friday night dinners with them and be an active involvement in their lives.

 
TITLE: Star Wars: Knight Errant Volume 2--Deluge 
AUTHOR: John Jackson Miller
PUBLISHER: Dark Horse Comics 
PUBLISHED DATE: June 5, 2012
ISBN: 9781595826381
ARTIST CONTRIBUTORS: David Daza, Iban Coello, Ivan Rodriguez, Joe Quinones, Michael Atiyeh, and Sergio Abad



Set in the beginning of the Old Republic, a 1,000 years before the birth of Luke Skywalker, this epic tale centers around a young female Jedi Knight named Kerra Holt, who is attempting to fight against the evil Sith Lords. The Sith Lords are trying to control large portions of the galaxy while continuing a war with the Republic. In the five issue series titled Deluge, Kerra Holt returns to the ocean world of Aquilaris, the planet she once called home, which is currently under control by the Sith Lord Daiman.

As soon as Kerra arrives she jumps into a battle against the Sith Lord’s army and she allies with other Republics. Her people have been enslaved and she’ll do anything to save them. Soon, she realizes that there is another enemy - a Hutt. Now determined more than ever, Kerra must go against all odds to stop them from flooding her home planet.

The Thirteen
BY: Susie Moloney
PUBLISHED BY: William Morrow
PUBLISHED IN: 2011
ISBN: 978-0-06-211766-3
Pages: 330

    After being fired from her waitress job at a strip club, Paula Wittmore is notified that her mother has taken ill. She packs up her bags along with her teenage daughter, Rowan, and returns to her home town, a suburban called Haven Woods. Everything may look normal there, but Haven Woods has dark secrets at every corner, including several strange deaths and apparent suicides.

    Returning home is putting Paula on an emotional rollercoaster as she reunites with some of her childhood friends, not to mention her mother’s strange frenemies - twelve women bound by terrible secrets that requires a thirteen to be sacrificed.

How to Start and Make a Conversation: How to Talk to Anyone in 30 Seconds of Less
BY: Christ Gottchalk
FORWARD BY: Deanna Anderson, M.ED, CCC/SLP Speech Language Pathologist
PUBLISHED BY: Atlantic Publishing Group, Inc.
PUBLISHED IN: 2010
ISBN: 978-1-60138-383-9
Pages: 288

 Before there was Facebook and Twitter, there was a thing called talking - actual face to face communication. In the book How to Start and Make a Conversation you'll learn how to talk to anyone in thirty seconds or less. You may think this is easy and just text somebody, but in the competitive business world, or just life in general, good communication skills are required.

The book's target readers will be mostly shy men and women who have a hard time getting up the nerve to talk to someone, but it can easily be used by students, teachers, business owners, etc. The author quickly takes you through the basic reasons of why conversation is important in our society. There are many reasons why someone can struggle with communications, like social anxiety, fear of rejection, self-esteem, etc. Throughout the book you'll learn about how important body language is; speaking to a stranger in thirty seconds or less; how to make small talk; how to leave a conversation; communicating at work; making friends; the romantic art of conversation; and learning how to communicate in the social media world.

"For the first time in a long time, I don't know what my future is,
Meggie." Allison rested her head on Meghan's shoulder.

"If you can stop controlling your life, maybe God will finally have
a chance to get a word in edgewise and be able to tell you want he
wants for your life."

page 56, Wish You Were Here by Beth K. Vogt