But Did They?

A trend is arising in manuscripts that leaves readers with a question, one they should not have to ponder. You've no doubt read it, and probably written it yourself. I've been guilty of it too. You're reading along~or writing~and come across, "she could hear...", or "he could see..." Just because you could possibly see or hear something, doesn't mean you do. Which begs the question, did she in fact hear it? Did he, in fact, see it? We may never know.

All jesting aside, sometimes this tactic is called for in writing, but more often than not, it isn't. The key is to try the sentence with "she heard" or "he saw" and feel it out. If it works that way, chances are you don't need to pose the question. Another good way to determine which way you should write it is to ask yourself, "do I really want the reader to wonder whether or not they saw, heard, smelled, etc. whatever it was?". If you don't want them to wonder, why pose the question? 

Hopefully those tricks will help you. And remember, sometimes the rules are meant to be broken, sometimes it will be appropriate to to pose the question. But reducing your use of this often overused writing trend will make it more powerful when you do want to use it, and clean up your writing. 

Happy writing, and if you have any hypotheticals of the situation you'd like to try out, feel free to post them in the comments. 

What a Good Pitch Shows

A good one-sentence pitch is useful in many ways other than just pitch parties on Twitter. Creating one before you even finish your book can reveal weak points. And, if you can't effectively communicate what your book is about quickly and easily, it will be hard to get people interested in it. It should reveal three things about your manuscript:

• The Problem (the main conflict): This is often the catalyst, what propels the entire book into action. It's big, and it should be toward the beginning of the book. Big means something different for each book, protagonist, and often genre. Someone dies, is kidnapped, fired from their job, a relationship ends, etc.. 
• The Stakes (Obstacles): What is at stake for your character? What stands in your character's way? You shouldn't list it all out in a one-sentence pitch, just go for the main thing.  
• The Solution (the journey): What has to happen for your character to overcome the obstacles in their way and obtain their goal? What type of journey must they make, or things must they do.

It can look like this (but doesn't have to follow it exactly): When The Problem happens to Your Character, they risk The Stakes, if they don't The Solution. 

If you write this before finishing your book, you'll be surprised at how much it will help you hone in on the things that matter most, and keep you moving toward that end goal. Happy writing and pitching!