Needless Words by Janice Seagraves

I did a video on Needless Words on YouTube and how much better your writing is without them.

Please like, share, and leave a comment.

Thank you.

 

When going through my first edits, I overused 'and'. I hadn't realized that I'd used 'and' so much until my editor sent back my manuscript with 'and' highlighted and it was all over the place. I know now how to eliminate most of those, but not then.

Sometimes shorter punchier sentences work best.

Later, on another edit, I was given a list of overused words.

That
Very
Like
Then
Suddenly
Now
Really
Was
As

And then I learned about filter words and I had more words to avoid using:

Realized
Decided
Felt
Touched
Wondered
Noticed
Sounded
Knew
Seemed

 

Removing these words and letting the sentences stand as is, works remarkably well.

 

Example: I felt her hand gripped mine.

Correct: her hand gripped mine. 

 

And now, about my books.

I'm running a sale during the pandemic. Most of my books are only .99 cents. 

Please check out my books on Amazon, Smashwords, and Barns and Noble.

Profiling Character

A story cannot be written without character. Authors spend a great deal of time creating their characters. There are various tools that authors use to develop characters. A questionaire is completed with details such as name, physical description, family, education and other such items. The generic questionaires can be lacking when trying to get to the essences of the character.

Then another character development tool is the character interview. The questions can seem ridiculous and some questions are outlandish that even the author doesn’t know their own personal answers.

The tool that I use comes from my love of magazines—the celebrity profile. Grab any
magazine, Vogue, Elle or Seventeen and read the article on the celebrity featured on the cover and the reader comes away with a fully formed person that everyday people come away with the character or personality of the celebrity.

That is exactly what authors strive to do with their characters. So, when I am creating a character, I construct the magazine profile style interview. The great thing about this tool is the creation of the character in their world and how they fit or don’t.

My current project that is being developed is a Regency romance. Here is an example of character profile.

 Lady Diana Langley appears as the lady the title proclaims however she is much more. She swept into the drawing room, a smile upon her face.

Those two sentences help round out her character. Lady Diana is of noble birth but she isn’t formal but friendly as well as energetic. She smiles as she sweeps into the drawing room. She doesn’t walk, or glides or stomps in. She is like a wind blowing in. That is her energy that the world sees in her.

This freeform allows the author to interact with the character in a way that isn’t abstract as the character is explored through quotes, setting, and daily life or any other way the author wishes.

The other positive aspect of the character profile is that anything and everything can be explored and depends upon the author and can be added to as the character progresses.

There are no rules.

And you have probably read a few of these celebrity profiles and know how to construct one and if you don’t pick up your favorite magazine, draw a hot bath and just read. It’s research then craft your character.

The Book That Made Me A Romance Reader

I cannot remember a time when books weren't a part of my life. If you are anything like me, you love books.

Different moments in my life can be defined by different genres. Little Women, Sweet Valley High when I was a pre-teen. The Age of Innocence when I was a teenager along with Pride and Prejudice and other classics. In my late teens and early twenties, it was all about mysteries.

Then in my mid-twenties, a friend lent me a romance novel, Devil's Bride by Stephanie Laurens. I had read romance before but none started my obsession like Devil did. He tempted and I fell.

I devoured that book when I should have been doing my homework. I stayed up all night long reading and falling in love not just with Devil but romance. I closed that book, more than wanting more books--I needed more romance books.

Some people say they read romance to escape and I wanted that too but it was something more that I searched for. I was searching for passion. At that point in my life, I was empty and numb. I had lost the optimism that had always been a part of me.

Romance novels gave that back to me. Each novel was like a balm that helped heal me. I couldn't get enough. I would save every extra dime and buy books. My Friday night outing was heading to Borders or Barnes and Nobles to get more books. My to-be-read pile grew just a little higher than my already-read pile.  I was a romance reader, fan, and devotee and will always be.

What about you? What book made you a romance reader?

Cowgirls Don't Cry by Janice Seagraves

Hot Time In The Summer Time collection

I’m in this collection with my short story Cowgirls Don’t Cry which follows Cowgirl Up in an early anthology with Romance Books ‘4’ Us collection.

As Gwen and Arthur’s big day approaches, will his father succeed in stopping the

wedding from happening, or will Gwen’s empathic gift soften his heart?

COWGIRLS DON’T CRY

(FOLLOWS COWGIRL UP)

Janice Seagraves

CHAPTER ONE

While interviewing his client, Arthur Castel felt an urge to wrap things up. A shiver of awareness went through him, and his heart beat a little bit faster. Gwen is in the waiting room. He didn’t need to look to see if she was there, he knew it. The bond that had linked them the first night they slept together told him so.

As the client, Mr. Ortega, told him about the case, Arthur nodded, but his gaze kept darting toward the door. He jotted down some notes, even though his heart wasn’t in it. Anything to keep his mind off Gwen. This was his first case as a trial lawyer and he should have been excited. He studied the file and asked a couple more questions. “Okay. That seems to be all I need from you. If I have any more questions, I can call you at this number, right?”

“Yes, or my office number.” Mr. Ortega, a well-dressed middle-aged man with silver in his dark hair, slid a card across the desk.

Picking up the card, Arthur clipped it to the file. He stood and held out his hand. “Thank you for coming in.”

Mr. Ortega stood and clasped his palm. “Think you can get me off?”

“I’ll do my best. Sexual harassment lawsuits can be a little dicey, but this one seems to be more of a he said/she said situation.” Probably why he, the newbie, was saddled with this case. “I’ll do the best I can.”

“That’s all I can ask for.” Mr. Ortega went out the door.

Arthur placed a few folders he needed to go over into a briefcase and hurried out. His entire body pulsed at the sight of his fiancée.

Gwen sat in one of the comfortable chairs in the waiting room. She wore one of the dresses he had bought for her—low-cut, and dark. The dress was made for her. He caught a tantalizing glimpse of her creamy white breasts. All he wanted was to take her right there on the floor.

Gwen’s green eyed gaze went to Mr. Ortega. Her expression seemed troubled.

“Did milady miss me?” Arthur offered a hand.

“Always, darling.” Gwen took his palm and rose.

The shock of skin to skin contact ran through his body.

She picked up her old leather-fringed jacket.

Arthur helped her into it and sniffed her hair, getting a lungful of cherry blossom from her shampoo.

“Your jacket does nothing for that sexy dress.”

She slipped her arms into the sleeves. “Sorry, but it’s all I have.”

He settled the coat on her shoulders. “I’ll have to buy you another one.”

“It never ends, does it?” Mr. Ortega shook his head before stepping through the doorway.

Gwen flipped her dark hair out of the coat and glowered after him. “Client of yours?”

“Yes. What are you feeling?”

“His disdain for women is like a throb in a bad tooth.”

A chill flowed up his spine. “What else?”

Gwen met his gaze. “Whatever he’s done, he’s guilty as hell.”

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And my Amazon author page: https://www.amazon.com/Janice-Seagraves/e/B0056D223Y/

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Hot Fun in the Summer Time, our summer antho, releases 25 June.
Amazon preorder link:
 
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07RRRZP2Q

The weather is heating up, but it’s not just the sun and the sand which will keep you hot.
This summer anthology brought to you by the authors of Romance Books 4 Us will bring temperatures to your eReader that will set unheard of heat records, scorching the tips of
your fingers as you turn the pages.
Sultry temperatures.
Passionate couples.
Unbelievable desire.
This is your ticket to… Hot Fun in the Summer Time.

RAFFLECOPTER GIVEAWAY LINK:
http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/ec8aae6733/?

#writinghacks #writingadvice Writing Hacks by Janice Seagraves

Here’s are some ideas that might make writing a little easier. I know they’ve helped me with my writing, and I hope they can help you, too.

*One scene one POV. This simple reminder has helped me to keep from head hopping, especially when I was a new writer. (Not that you do that.)

*You should sprinkle in backstory like cookie crumbs. A little goes a long way.

*Make sure all your threads are tied up by the end of the story in one nice neat bow.

*Avoid adverb abuse in dialogue tags and use said instead. It is nearly invisible to the reader.

*There are times when you don’t need or want to use said, so use an action tag instead.

*Be careful not to use duplicate words. Too many looks, stared, arched eyebrow or frowns etc., catches the writer’s eye and pulls them out of the story.

*Don’t say your character blushed. Say his or her face heated since they can’t see their own face.

*This is one of mine: Avoid a saggy middle by using the middle of your story for the big reveal. That means a sudden death, a body found, or something scary happens, or if you're like me and write romance then you can use the middle for the first kiss, first sex scene, etc.

*And my new favorite and one that I learned from a revision work shop: When working on revisions, if there is a favorite scene or sentence that you’re not sure if you want to delete, open a file and name it deleted scenes, then saved that scene or sentence. If your story reads better without that section then leave it out, but if your story needs it then nothing is lost, and you can add it back in.

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Alien Heart, the first of a whole new SF series.

https://www.amazon.com/Alien-Heart-Chronicles-Arcon-Book-ebook/dp/B01N0N73OF/

Blurb: Divorcee and single mom, hardworking Audrey Westberry is the host of a cable TV show called Miz Fixit.
Romance was the last thing on Audrey’s mind when two handsome extraterrestrials join the audience of her show.
Soon Audrey finds out a single word “mated” has different meaning when you are born a galaxy away. After a wonderful night of passion, Audrey finds herself far from home, impregnated and her life turned upside down.
Will she ever be able to leave the alien compound, see her son again, or get home in time to film the fall season of her Miz Fixit show?
But what’s a girl to do with two aliens that smell like candy, and their kisses taste like it, too?

Janice's website:  https://janice-seagraves.org/

Janice's Twitter: https://twitter.com/janiceseagraves

Janice's FaceBook Page: https://www.facebook.com/JaniceSeagravesAuthor/