The Cygnus Book Awards recognize emerging new talent and outstanding works in the genre of Science Fiction, Steampunk, Alternative History, and Speculative Fiction. The Cygnus Awards is a genre division of Chanticleer International Book Awards and Novel Competitions (The CIBAs).
Chanticleer International Book Awards is looking for the best books featuring space, time travel, life on other planets, parallel universes, alternate reality, and all the science, technology, major social or environmental changes of the future that author imaginations can dream up for the CYGNUS Book Awards division. Hard Science Fiction, Soft Science Fiction, Apocalyptic Fiction, Cyberpunk, Time Travel, Genetic Modification, Aliens, Super Humans, Interplanetary Travel, and Settlers on the Galactic Frontier, Dystopian, our judges from across North America and the U.K. will put them to the test and choose the best among them.
The 2019 CIBAs received an unprecedented number of entries making this book awards program even more competitive. More entries along with more competitive works makes the final rounds of judging even more demanding. The judges have requested a new level of achievement to be added to the rounds to acknowledge the entries that they deemed should receive a high level of recognition.
We decided that this was the time to incorporate the new level – The FINALISTS – as requested by the CIBA judges. This new level will be incorporated into the 2019 CIBAs Levels of Achievement. The FINALISTS were selected from the entries that advanced to the 2019 CYGNUS Semi-Finalists level.
Congratulations to the 2019 CYGNUS Book Awards FINALISTS!
David C. Crowther – City of Drowned Angels
William X. Adams –Intelligent Things
J. I. Rogers –The Korpes Agenda
Erick Mars & Mike Wood –A Legacy of Wrath
Rey Clark –Titan Code: Dawn of Genesis
Trever Bierschbach –Embers of Liberty
Tim Cole –Insynnium
Shami Stovall –Star Marque Rising
Sandra J. Jackson –Playing in the Rain
Samuel Winburn –Ten Directions
Andrew Lucas McIlroy –Earthling
Paul Werner –Mustang Bettie
Jacques St-Malo –Cognition
Timothy S. Johnston –The War Beneath
Robert M. Kerns –It Ain’t Over…
Paul Ian Cross –The Lights of Time
Lawrence Brown –David: Savakerrva, Vol. 1
Congratulations to all whose works have advanced to the FINALISTS level.
All Semi-Finalists and Finalists will be recognized at the 2020 Chanticleer Authors Conference and the 2019 CIBA banquet and ceremony.
Good luck to all as your works move on the next rounds of judging for the limited 2019 1st Place Category Positions and the 2019 CYGNUS Book Awards Grand Prize.
The 2019 CYGNUS Grand Prize Winner and the Five First Place Category Position award winners along with the FINALISTS and Semi-Finalists will be recognized at the Sept 5, 2020 Chanticleer International Book Awards Annual Awards Gala,which takes place at theChanticleer Authors Conference, Bellingham, Wash.
Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, CAC20 has been rescheduled from the original date in April to September 4 – 6, 2020 with Master Classes to be held on Thursday, September 3. The CIBA Banquet and Ceremony is scheduled for Saturday, September 5, 2020.
We are now accepting submissions into the 2020 CYGNUS Awards writing competition. The deadline for submissions is April 30th, 2020. The winners will be announced April 2021.
The plot should always somehow scar or wound the protagonist and put something valuable at risk.
Protagonists suffer. Period. Paying heavy costs make characters relatable. I swear by these statements. Jessica Morrell
Making protagonists suffer in storytelling creates stakes, motivation, and tension.
Jon Snow – Game of Thrones
Remember that fictional characters must take more risks than ordinary humans. But as in real life, not all risks pay off, but the cost should always be much higher in fiction. Along the way friendships, allies, freedom or safety might be lost. Such is the cost of fiction.
Even in comedies and cozy mysteries…
How much will the protagonist suffer? Sacrifice? Regret?
Before I go further, it’s important to point out this doesn’t mean your protagonist will always be a martyr or your story ends in tragedy. But everything can be on the line in the fictional universe: friendships and allies, family, love, prestige, honor, trust, hope, money. Betrayals might happen. Long-held secrets revealed. Obviously these possibilities create emotional distress.
The Harry Potter novel series is a prime example of making your protagonist suffer from getting used mixed match socks for his birthday to betrayals to long-held secrets revealed.
Just How Much Trouble Can this Kid Get Into?
Not to mention to physical costs like pain, injuries, and body parts. Think Katness fighting for her life in The Hunger Games and going deaf in one ear. Then she’s forced to fight for Peeta’s life because he’s been badly injured. (In the book, not the film series, he loses a leg)
Speaking of body parts: remember the suffering doled out by psychotic fan Annie Wilkes in Misery by Stephen King?
Gulp.
Misery by Stephen KingBecause bad things happen to our favorite characters. Really bad things. Your character’s suffering will always reveal his or her depths and strengths. Suffering always advances the plot. If it doesn’t, leave it out of your story. Allow me to say it slightly different: any suffering, sacrifice, regret, betrayal, pain, or loss must advance the plot.
Let’s look at some examples:
Jem Finch loses his innocence when he realizes the depth of racism in his small town in To Kill a Mockingbird.
Rocky Balboa is brutally beaten and loses to Apollo Creed. But he goes the distance and wins love.
Juno MacGuff not only gives up her baby, but learns that the adoptive father-to-be is a man-child. She’s forced to risk giving her baby to a single mom instead of the stable couple she’d hoped for.
Woody of the Toy Story series loses friends, risks his pride, leadership role,and life, battles greed and heartlessness. All these costs bring him maturity and wisdom.
Woody of Toy Story
In The Godfather the Corleone family loses their oldest son in the mob war that breaks out. Unfortunately it was Sonny’s impetuousness that started the war. The inciting incident, or catalyst in the story is a meeting between the Corleone family and are representative for the Tattaglia family. This issue on the table is investing a million dollars to get into heroin-trafficking business. Sonny, going against protocol, reveals his interest in the money-making scheme.
After an attempt on the godfather’s life, and with the body count rising, Michael, the youngest son, commits murder and is forced into hiding. The story follows his profound character arc from war hero and college graduate to cold-hearted mob boss. He loses his humanity with each power move and act of revenge.
Michael Corleone and the Godfather
Bad decisions often make things worse. Because fictional characters screw up a lot. Which brings on more misery, self-doubt, and need for more risks.
Questions to consider when plotting:
Is the cost justified?
Will readers realize the cost or sacrifice is too great before the protagonist will?
Does the protagonist understand the cost involved or is he or she naive? Untested?
Can you make the toll affect several aspects of the protagonist’s life? Can the plot exact physical, emotional, financial tolls?
Will the cost involve another character? A vulnerable character?
Will the protagonist be exposed, peeled bare while paying the cost?
Will other characters try to dissuade the protagonist from paying the price?
Can you make the cost or sacrifice or pain visceral and believable?
Moral Dilemmas to consider when plotting:
Principled choices and decisions will always create actions and consequences. They always drive the story forward.
Unprincipled choices and decisions typically cause chaos, pain, and also propel the story ahead. An example fromJurassic Parkhappens when the park employee-computer whiz leaves the grounds to sell off dinosaur DNA. His actions, taken during a horrendous storm, opens a Pandora’s box of disasters and life-and-death consequences.
The ramifications from all important decisions should be long lasting.
The higher the stakes, the higher the drama.
The choices often underline the genre type. A suspense story is often based on finding justice so decisions will hold a lot of weight and consequences.
Don’t provide characters easy answers. Corner them, stress them out, push them past their limits.
Know your fictional casts’ moral codes.
Search out the important dilemmas in stories, noticing the enormous variety and possibilities. Are there shades in right from wrong? Is the crime story about sorting real justice from mob justice; truth from lies? Are actions based on loyalties, faith, science, passion?
Homework
Your homework this week: Can you identify the cost in stories you read and films you watch?
Keep writing, keep dreaming, have heart. Jessica
Our next marketing posts will be on SOCIAL MEDIA and PROMOTION TIPS for Selling Books ONLINE and New Selling Platforms.
Our next editorial posts will be on Character Development. So, please stay tuned…
Jessica Page Morrell
Jessica Page Morrell is a top-tier developmental editor for books and screenplays. Her articles have appeared in Writer’s Digest and The Writer magazines. She is known for explaining the hows and whys of what makes for excellent writing and for sharing very clear examples that examine the technical aspects of writing that emphases layering and subtext. Her books on writing craft are considered “a must have” for any serious writer’s toolkit.
Jessica will teach theMaster Craft Writing Classesat theChanticleer Authors Conferenceon Thursday, Sept. 3, 2020 and will present sessions during the conference. She and Kiffer will also host a fun kaffeeklatch for Word Nerds at CAC20.
Did you know that Chanticleer offers editorial services?We do and have been doing so since 2011.
And that our professional editors are top-notch and are experts in theChicago Manual of Style.They have and are working for the top publishing houses (TOR, Macmillan, Thomas Mercer, Penguin Random House, etc.) and award-winning independent presses. If you would like more information, we invite you to email Kiffer or Sharon at KBrown@ChantiReviews.com or SAnderson@ChantiReviews.com.
We work with a small number of exclusive clients who want to collaborate with our team of top-editors on an on-going basis. Contact us today!
Writer’s Toolbox
Thank you for reading this Chanticleer Writer’s Toolbox article.
We encourage you to stay in contact with each other and with us during this stint of practicing physical distancing to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
Let us know how you are doing, what is going on where you live, how are you progressing on your writing projects.
I invite each of you to join us atThe Roost– a private online Chanticleer Community for writers and authors and publishing professionals. You are welcome to email me for more info also.
We are active onFacebook,Twitter, and Instagram. You can find us by using our social media handle @ChantiReviews
Minimize physical contact! Maximize social connecting!
It is time to Spring Clean our writing habits with precise, fresh language. Jessica Morrell suggests searching for these culprits that can easily sneak into our writing.
Declutter Your Sentences by Eliminating These Junk Words
Breathing, deep breaths, barely breathing, inhaling, exhaling, and other lung movements. Many writers of all levels reveal their characters’ emotions and reactions using their breath, lack of breath, breathlessness, or as their main method of reacting and showing emotion. “I took a deep breath” is a phrase I’ve seen so often it’s a cliche. Unless a character has the breath knocked out of him or is in the midst of childbirth, avoid focusing on breathing as your main means to create emotion. Instead collect a variety of mannerisms, reactions, gestures, and body language individual to each character.
Said exclamations:Today’s readers are sophisticated and understand when characters are talking and that at times the character’s voices and emotions change. The notion is the ‘he said, she said’ parts of fiction appear invisible. Readers understand that a character might sound shrillby the circumstances and dialogue spokenso you don’t need to proclaim,Mary Ellen shrieked shrilly. Never write Jason emoted, pleaded, bantered, snarked, smirked, blasted, bleated, peeped, groused. Now occasionally in the midst of a horror story, you might want to underline how terrified a character is, but consider dabbing these attributions in only for the most terrifying or surprising moments.
Down or up. As in Rachel sat down. Now Rachel can collapse into a chair, or sidle into an empty seat in a dark theater, or ease onto a sofa, or flump onto a bed. Sit and sat means a person is lowering himself or herself. As in down. More accurately sit means supporting your weight on your buttocks. Question your use of up. It seems so innocent, doesn’t it? Blithe stood up. Stood means up because standing means a person is upright, supporting himself on his feet. Denzel stood, joining the screaming fans. Also, do not write grabbed up; grabbed suffices. Avoid appending up to spoke, hurry, lift, climb, and rose.
Clichés. Oh how, I hate thee. Eliminate all yourI took a deep breath. Ditto foreyes widened, out of the corner of my eye, jaw dropped, raven locks, and steely blue eyes. Then there is: Each and every, knife to my heart, piece of cake, fire in the belly, he/she took my breath away.And before you write about your characters staring into each other’s eyes, think about how often it happens in real life and how often it happens in your stories.
Mind matters, especially in the first person. You don’t need to report on how the character is reviewing things in his/her mind because this distances the reader and reminds her there is a narrator instead of the reader living amid the story world. So eliminate ‘mind raced‘ ‘thoughts raced‘ ‘mind’s eye‘ (a truly lame term), and ‘searching her mind.’
Really. I mean really? Do you need it? Is the weather really cold or is it frigid or dangerously cold?
I saw. If you’re writing in close first person you don’t need theI saworI looked part of the sentence. Example: I saw ahead of me three leprechauns frolicking merrily in the grass. Instead:Ahead three leprechauns frolicked merrily in the grass. Why?The reader wants to pretend that he or she is spotting the leprechauns along with the character. Also describing the leprechauns implies the narrator or character is seeing or observing. No need to state it.
Literallymeans exactly as described or in a literal or strict sense. It does not mean quite, actually or really. Wrong: I was so mad I was literally shaking like a leaf and red-faced. Or, I was so terrified I literally jumped out of my skin. Or, Her death literally brought me to my knees. Better: The playoffs were watched by literally millions of fans.
Basically, essentially, obviously, basically, totally.Hint: question every adverb you use with an -ly ending because many are so overused they’ve become meaningless. However, the larger issue is many people sow these words into their stories without understanding their correct meanings mostly to maximize or intensify. Over time many adverbs have become meaningless.Basicallymeans at a basic level or fundamental sense, not almost or mostly.Essentiallymeans the essence of something or in an essential manner, not almost or often. Practicallymeans in a practical manner not almost or mostly.Totallymeans completely, in every part, not really.
Moments. I’ve read manuscripts where characters pause or think or kiss for only a momenthundreds of times throughout the story. There are plenty of ways to describe brief actions or thoughts.
Suddenly. Because if you’re reading fiction you assume that actions, twists, and surprises will happen abruptly. They are devices used to increase tension and suspense. No need to announce it.
That. If a sentence works without that, ditch it. Easy, right?
Just. No, I’m not just kidding. Too many of us (guilt-hand raised) use this one out of habit.
Prepositional phrases. Prepositions are the carbohydrates of language. Of course, we need them for clarity but use with care. Instead of a book of poetry, use poetry book. Instead of a tower of flames, use towering flames.
Kiffer’s Note: So here’s the trick: When writing your first draft, write it. Don’t worry about the trees—words. Concentrate on the forest—the story. Then, when you are editing fix these issues. Replace dullards with the perfect words that will move your story forward, increase tension, enhance the atmosphere, add depth to your characters, make your dialogue pop, and immerse your reader into the world that you have created.
A handy tool to help you recognize if these egregious junk words have infiltrated your manuscript is the“Find and Replace” tool that can be found in WORD or other word processors. This tool finds and highlights specific words so that you can replace if needed to insure that every word counts. Click on this link, if you would like more information and how this tool works: https://support.office.com/en-us/article/find-and-replace-text-c6728c16-469e-43cd-afe4-7708c6c779b7
Don’t always use the first word or phrase that pops into your head because you might be using rusty, old clichés. Or fix these dullards when you edit. Likestock still, fast asleep, choking back tears, stirred up a hornet’s nest, did a double take, under the radar, and never in her wildest dreams.
You are welcome to copy and paste this article into a document and print it for your writing craft and tools notebook for ease of access while you are editing you work-in-progress.
Jessica Page Morrell
Jessica Page Morrell is a top-tier developmental editor for books and screenplays. Her articles have appeared in Writer’s Digest and The Writer magazines. She is known for explaining the hows and whys of what makes for excellent writing and for sharing very clear examples that examine the technical aspects of writing that emphases layering and subtext. Her books on writing craft are considered “a must have” for any serious writer’s toolkit.
Jessica will teach theMaster Craft Writing Classesat theChanticleer Authors Conferenceon Thursday, Sept. 3, 2020 and will present sessions during the conference. She and Kiffer will also host a fun kaffeeklatch for Word Nerds at CAC20.
Did you know that Chanticleer offers editorial services?We do and have been doing so since 2011.
And that our professional editors are top-notch and are experts in theChicago Manual of Style.They have and are working for the top publishing houses (TOR, Macmillan, Thomas Mercer, Penguin Random House, etc.) and award-winning independent presses. If you would like more information, we invite you to email Kiffer or Sharon at KBrown@ChantiReviews.com or SAnderson@ChantiReviews.com.
There are so many mechanics of writing style I could write about columns on the topic for years. Come to think of it, I have.
Let’s focus on layering language into a story with care so that it adds to overall meaning and effect.
This means making careful choices so that you don’t distract the reader from your narrative. As a writer, search for precise words and comparisons to satisfy your reader. The problem of finding the perfect word or imagery, instead of thealmostperfect word, is no small matter.
Denotation or Connotation – Know the Difference
While the literal or explicit meaning of a word or phrase is its denotation, the suggestive or associative implication of a word or phrase is its connotation. Thus you’re always making choices about meaning and language.
Merriam -Webster says: “What’s the difference between connotation and denotation?
While each of these two words has several possible meanings, they are notably distinct from each other in all senses. Denotation is concerned with explicit meaning, and connotation tends to be concerned with implicit meaning. The word home, for instance, has a denotation of “the place (such as a house or apartment) where a person lives,” but it may additionally have many connotations (such as “warmth,” “security,” or “childhood”) for some people.
Examples of denotation in a Sentence
The word has one literal denotation but several different connotations.
The definition provides the word’s denotation.
We all need a practical, sort of workday vocabulary that is consistent with our voice, and then we also need a vocabulary that’s the writer’s version of the Taj Mahal. Or, as another example, sometimes the style needs to be basic like bread pudding, sometime it needs to be more like a seven-layer wedding cake. Sometimes the best words are clear and simple, and sometimes they need to soar like a heron aloft on an air current. Sometimes stories work well in the style we’ve come to associate with Hemingway—terse, journalistic and economical. And sometimes a story needs all the embroidery and bombast of a stylist like John Updike.
Obviously there are writing styles that are too gorgeous, too painterly. The same for a style that is too ‘out there,’ too odd to grasp—as if wooly mammoths populate the page.
For example, boisterous and unexpected adjectives such asclaxonortessellatedor the unforgivableboustrophedonic(all used by John Updike)—stop the flow of narrative. Instead of the reader remaining involved in the scene, he steps aside and engages his intellect. Choosing surprising yet apt modifiers is vital, but it’s not a task to be undertaken frivolously. Playwright David Hare says, “Style is the art of getting yourself out of the way, not putting yourself in it.”
Choosing surprising yet apt modifiers is vital. – Jessica Morrell
Anchoring the Story
When it comes to figurative language, you want to demonstrate an imaginative range, while remembering figurative language adds layers of meaning while alsoconcentratingthe flow of ideas. We use figurative language because it mates images and likenesses, connects with the reader’s associative right brain, and helps anchor the story. With figurative language, you want to demonstrate with freshness and verve. However, don’t range too far with your images or the story becomes tangled and obscure. Wordcraft that makes us shiver is delicious. Wordcraft that exists merely to show off is pointless.
Analogy and Metaphor
Analogy and metaphor are always subservient to the viewpoint, yet always take us deeper into the subject or moment as when Truman Capote described Elizabeth Taylor’s “eyes so liquid with life” and “the face, with those lilac eyes, is a prisoner’s dream, a secretary’s self-fantasy; unreal, non-obtainable…” Don’t you wish you’d woven together “a prisoner’s dream” to describe an indescribable beauty? Notice how it makes youfeelthe allure of Taylor?
Don’t Try to Do This in Your First Draft
In your editing process, it’s okay if your first draft is unpretentious, just as it is okay if your first draft is blowsy and lumbering. But then, as you refine later drafts, ask yourself if the writing needs to lift off the page a bit. If it is clean, or simply stark. If lush prose is necessary, or stripped down prose is needed.
Intensity of Language and the Potency of the Circumstance
Pay attention to theintensityof language which can range from mild to inflammatory. Match intensity of language to the potency of the circumstance, the sentence, the scene. Note the places in the story where the reader needs to linger and feel emotions and tension. In these passages it’s important to make precise choices, to examine your sentences, and listen hard to what you must say.
Clichés
The next thing to ask yourself as you’re revising is ‘have I heard this before?’
Clichés and trite expressions are often an editor’s first tip off that you’re a lazy or unimaginative writer. “Clichés are the old coins of language: phrases that once made a striking impression but have since been rubbed smooth by repeated handling.”
In Conclusion
If the writing seems thin, keep asking yourself a simple question: what does this remind me of?
Perhaps you’ve written about time running out (always a juicy element) and in the story your character is desperate because a deadline is looming as his kidnapped girlfriend is buried alive in a tunnel under the New York subways. It is mid-February, a blizzard is raging, temperatures are dropping to the lowest in a century, and travel is almost impossible. Your reader needs to be practically digging his nails into his palms; as if the harsh cold is seeping into his joints while turning the pages.
If the writing doesn’t illustrate those glacial temperatures, the reader won’t be feeling the danger. And will not harbor visions of frostbite or worse, of her frozen body like a soldier left behind on the Russian Front during World War II. You don’t need to conjure an analogy or metaphor for every passage, but you’ll need sensory details, until the reader is shivering and the cold has ripped through him.
Jessica Page Morrell is a top-tier developmental editor for books and screenplays. Her articles have appeared in Writer’s Digest and The Writer magazines. She is known for explaining the hows and whys of what makes for excellent writing and for sharing very clear examples that examine the technical aspects of writing that emphases layering and subtext. Her books on writing craft are considered “a must have” for any serious writer’s toolkit.
Did you know that Chanticleer offers editorial services?We do and have been doing so since 2011.
And that our professional editors are top-notch and are experts in theChicago Manual of Style.They have and are working for the top publishing houses (TOR, Macmillan, Thomas Mercer, Penguin Random House, etc.). If you would like more information, we invite you to email Kiffer or Sharon at KBrown@ChantiReviews.com or SAnderson@ChantiReviews.com.
Official Announcement of the Chanticleer International Book Awards 2019 Semi-Finalists (the 2019 #CIBAs)
We have just completed the final sweep of all seventeen divisions of the 2019 Chanticleer Int’l Book Awards submissions. All of the divisions’ Semi-Finalists have been announced.
Each one of the Semi-Finalists has been notified by email from the president of Chanticleer Reviews, Kathryn “Kiffer” Brown at KBrown@ChantiReviews.com.
Additionally, all 17 divisions’ Semi-Finalists have been posted on the Chanticleer Reviews website (see links below), have been sent out in e-newsletters to our entire subscriber list, and have been announced on Chanticleer’s Facebook page and on Twitter social media platforms.
We always check for stragglers, the inevitable stray, and late ratings coming in from judges (they do this as a labor of love for books and authors), and other anomalies that are just the nature of tracking the thousands of entries that we receive despite our state of the art integrated software program for tracking, DRM, and interactions with the judges.
The works that made it to the 2019 SEMI-FINALIST are currently in the final rounds of judging to determine which ones will move forward to the limited First Place Categories and the coveted grand prize position for each division. The Overall Grand Prize for Best Book will be determined from the 17 divisions’ grand prize winners.
An Important Announcement from KIFFER– the Chanticleer Authors Conference has been postponed until September 3 -6, 2020 (from the original date of April 16-19, 2020) due to the Coronavirus (Covid-19) situation. This postponement was decided on March 12, 2020. Thank you for your patience and understanding as we are scrambling with the rescheduling and the logistics. All registrants have been notified by individual emails. We will post updates as we know more.
We are currently working on the schedule of CAC events and CIBA announcements for the new dates. Thank you for our patience and understanding during this unique event that is presenting new challenges on many fronts for everyone.
All Semi-Finalists in attendance at the 2020 Chanticleer Authors Conference that is scheduled to take place April 16 -19, 2020 will be recognized. CAC 20 is the sponsor of the Chanticleer International Book Awards banquet and ceremony. The First Place Category Winners and Grand Prize winners for all seventeen divisions will be announced at the banquet and ceremony that will take place the evening of Saturday, April 18, 2020. The Overall Grand Prize Winner will be announced and presented with the cash prize of $1,000 USD on that exciting evening.
(We’ve added a division, so standby for the new graphic — thanks!).
Here are the links to the 2019 Chanticleer International Book Awards SEMI-FINALISTS for All 17 Divisions.
These are the OFFICIAL and FINAL LISTINGS for the 2019 CIBAs SEMI-FINALISTS.
Each of the Semi-Finalists has been notified by email from the president of Chanticleer Reviews, Kathryn “Kiffer” Brown at KBrown@ChantiReviews.com.
Additionally, all 17 divisions’ Semi-Finalists have been posted on the Chanticleer Reviews website (see above links), sent out in e-newsletters to our subscriber list, announced on Chanticleer’s Facebook page and on Twitter social media platforms.
We will send the second and final round of email notifications to the 2019 Semi-Finalists starting before Wednesday, March 11, 2020.
The email includes links to Semi-Finalists Digital Badges, Semi-Finalists Book Stickers, a discount code for CAC20, and other information along with a significant discount code for CAC20 registration packets.
The 2019 CIBA Banquet and Ceremony will take place on the evening of April 18th, 2020. For more information,please visit the latest web postfor the latest information, status, and updates about timing, photo opportunities, etc.
Registration is required to attend the CAC20 and the CIBA Banquet and Awards Ceremony* and tickets are required for admittance.
Good luck to all of the 2019 CIBA Semi-Finalists as their works compete in the final rounds of judging.
Each of the authors whose works made it into the CIBA Semi-Finalists should be very proud! Congratulations! You definitely have something to crow about!
*And, finally, you do not have to be present at the conference or the awards ceremony to win, but it sure is a lot more fun!
That was what an author colleague of mine said to me shortly after I helped her brainstorm what came to be her first published book.
She had created a unique story world in which there was a problem (a danger element driving the plot) that could not be resolved in the short time-span of her book. Since this author knew I wrote a mystery series, she wanted my opinion or at least a nudge from someone who’s “been there” that she should take the plunge and commit to writing a series.
At the time, this seemed like a no-brainer. If the story arc needs two or three (or more) books, write them. Solve the over-arching story problem, giving the reader a satisfying ending, not just to each book but to the series itself.
Kiffer’s Note: Wendy Delaney is the author of the Working Stiffs awarding-winning cozy mystery series that is set in the fictional town of Port Merritt, Washington, across the Sound from Seattle, where Wendy lives. There are seven published titles in the series and counting. I always look forward to reading what kind of trouble Char, the truth-wizard sleuth, is going to find herself in.
The first book in her series, Trudy, Madly, Deeply, has garnered more than 582 reviews on Amazon with the rest of the mysteries bringing in hundreds of stellar Amazon consumer reviews.
But there’s a larger question to be asked when considering writing a series: What does the reader want? That’s a very loaded question, and the answer sure isn’t one size fits all. There are all sorts of variables as to why some books shoot to the top of the charts and others don’t, also why some series have staying power while others lose their momentum. It’s totally dependent upon the preferences of the reader, the genre or subgenre, the curb appeal of the cover, and what’s “hot,” as well as the series decisions the author makes.
Developing a Sustainable Series
EXAMPLES & INTERESTING TO NOTE
Looking at some genre fiction series with wide appeal, there’s a reason why Sue Grafton’s Kinsey Millhone series spanned almost all 26 letters of the alphabet and why there are over 30 Stephanie Plum novels: huge readership that got hooked on the continuing, well-written stories.
Of the ten top-selling ebooks on Amazon for 2019, three of them were part of a series—one of them a fabulously successful series: Harry Potter. This information comes as no surprise to this author and avid reader. I get hooked on certain series and can’t wait for the next book to be released, especially when there is a cliffhanger like in the last mystery/suspense I read. Oy!
Books with engaging characters and continuing storylines that capture our imaginations have great potential in the ever-growing sea of genre fiction. Those waters can be quite crowded, especially now in this digital publishing age, but don’t be disheartened. There’s an even vaster sea of voracious readers searching to binge on that next, new-to-them, entertaining series. That series could be yours.
Want to enhance the potential of that happening? This is something that continuity editor extraordinaire, Diane Garland, and I will be discussing in depth at the 2020 Chanticleer Authors Conference, but in a nutshell …
In short, go into this venture with a plan.
Assuming that you’ve been pursuing your publishing goals for a while and you know your craft, I would recommend that you research the market to make sure that there will be reader interest in your werecat Dystopian space opera/legal thriller hybrid (if you’re not aiming at a currently, well-established genre fiction category), and then, and only then, invest the time and effort into developing your series. You may not want to sink two or three years worth of hard work into a series of books if they can’t find an audience.
Do your research, make sure you have enough story for a series, think about the details of your fictional world and who you will be populating it with. Give yourself some “think time” before diving in.
Take it from me, a planner. I thought I had a plan. I had pages and pages of notes. Beyond the basic plot for Trudy, Madly, Deeply (book 1 of my Working Stiffs Mystery series), I had some ideas for future story situations and book titles. I knew that I was going to loosely base my story world on a real place not far away from where I live, Port Townsend. I did my research and everything was coming together beautifully, I thought as I wrote book 1 and set up what would become two continuing series subplots.
I sold that book to a small press publisher and believed that I was good to go. My series was well on its way. As it turned out, a somewhat bumpy way.
Make a plan. Develop a long range strategy.
What I Didn’t Have
What I didn’t have was a Plan with a capital P because one book into this multiple book series, I had established an abundance of story details … many only in my head—not the most reliable place to store the descriptive detail that I made up along the way, as I discovered when Diane alerted me of a continuity error in book two. I also hadn’t considered how much time I wanted to pass between events in the series before I started writing Sex, Lies, and Snickerdoodles (book 2). I was able to make it work, but having a well thought-out Plan would have saved me from introducing a little timing problem I had to rewrite my way out of.
Pantzer or Planner
The bottom line: Even if you’re a pantser—a fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants writer—if you want to write a series of connected stories that will intrigue and satisfy readers for the life of that series while avoiding writing yourself into problematic corners, unless you’re a super-human with perfect recall, it’s going to take a bit of planning.
For example: You may need a map of your story world so that you as the author know how far a favorite restaurant (or series “watering hole”) is from your protagonist’s house, or you may need a story bible that lists the distance as ten minutes away, so that the time factor to get there is the same in book one as it is in book ten.
Inconsistency is usually the kiss of death in a series. Our readers may expect our main characters to grow and change, but if a recurring character who is six feet tall with brown eyes when we first meet him becomes six-three with blue eyes several books later, that’s a problem! Whatever speech pattern or language unique to your characters, once established, needs to travel with them throughout the series. The continuity of all the details you provide about your story people, places, and things is key. So develop a plan to record those details—at least the basic details at the outset of your series—and keep track of them in a series bible as your story universe expands with every book you add to it.
The Time Element
Do what I didn’t do before I started in on book two of my series: As you plan the path you want your series to take, consider how you will use the element of time.
How many months or years will your series span?
Do you want your characters to age? Get married or divorced? Have children?
Experience the death of an aging loved one?
The things we experience over time in our lives can provide tremendous fodder for a lengthy series of books.
How much time passes between your books is a choice you as the writer need to make, especially if (like me with my cozy mystery series) you will be regularly killing off characters in a community that is not densely populated. Murder mysteries obviously require a murder to be solved, but if your sleuth is called upon to solve a murder on a monthly basis and your setting isn’t an urban one, your reader might think that there’s something in the water in your small town world!
On the subject of time, don’t shortchange yourself as you plan your series. Spend time mapping out your future books with a multi-year calendar. What do you want to have happen when? Maybe a certain story idea would play out best in Winter, when it’s darker and the days are short, or in the Summer when it’s hot and there is an undercurrent in your story that you want to bring to a boil. Maybe a secondary character is pregnant. Do you want her to have the baby before, during, or after the time period of the next book?
Decisions, decisions. Make them with a focus on the critical details that will guide the path of your series.
Develop that Plan with a capital P. Then, you don’t have to wonder if you can develop your story into a series, you will know that you can.
Wendy Delaney is the author of the award-winning Working Stiffs Mystery series. With over twenty years in the business of being an author, Wendy speaks at regional writers’ conferences and has coached writers to help them map out their stories as well as their author goals. As a veteran of both the traditionally published and indie author worlds, she has a wealth of experience she loves to share with other writers.
Wendy is presenting with Diane Garland, long-time continuity editor and founder of Your WorldKeeper, at the 2020 Chanticleer Authors Conference, they will do a deep dive into the essential information for authors to know before writing book one of a multiple book series.
Did you know that Chanticleer offers editorial services?We do and have been doing so since 2011.
And that our professional editors are top-notch and are experts in theChicago Manual of Style.They have and are working for the top publishing houses (TOR, McMillan, Thomas Mercer, Penguin Random House, etc.). If you would like more information, we invite you to email Kiffer or Sharon at KBrown@ChantiReviews.com or SAnderson@ChantiReviews.com.
A great way to get started is with our manuscript evaluation service. Here are some handy links about this tried and true service:
Detective Rudyard Bloodstone is facing the most bizarre crime spree of his career as a copper on the Victorian streets of London. Someone is using a poisonous Cape cobra as a weapon.
What begins as a simple robbery scheme turns deadly when a wealthy businessman is killed via cobra attack, the crimes go from strange to deadly. Rudyard (Ruddy) and his partner, Archie Holcomb, have few clues and no idea what would cause such a change in the criminal’s behavior.
When the criminal returns to the estate and attacks the victim’s daughter, Ruddy’s suspicions are confirmed. With Jack the Ripper still fresh on the minds of every citizen, Ruddy and Archie must locate this criminal quickly or risk the ire of their supervisor and the shame of losing the case to Scotland Yard. But with no clear understanding as to why the victims were targets, no idea of the killer’s identity other than obscure reports of his scarred appearance, and a weapon capable of killing with a single bite, Ruddy faces one of his toughest, deadliest mysteries to date.
The strong characterization of Karlsen’s cast shines brightly within this third edition to The Bloodstone Series. Rudyard Bloodstone, a Holmes-Esque protagonist, has an intuitive “ability to read people and [an] acuity at measuring their nature.” An adept sketch artist and survivor of the Zulu wars, he is more than a talented detective. This no-nonsense former soldier isn’t in the habit of apologizing for doing his job – or his methods – regardless of the social rank and attitude of the Londoners who fail to respect him.
Karlsen’s adept handling of the fiend and murderer, Kip Idrizi, presents an unexpected twist within the novel. His story and reasons for committing the crimes will give readers pause. Kip, an orphan and smallpox-scarred member of the lower class, yearns for a better life. With no education, no hope for betterment, and no friends, except for a cobra he rescued near the docks, he resorts to a life of crime. He hopes to “earn” enough money from “a toff with a fat wallet” to go to America and fade into the background in some small town in the West. His feelings of inadequacy, though leading to heinous acts, are directly related to how he’s treated by those upper-crusters in Victorian society. In this vicious cycle, he cannot escape the jibes and insults, so he, in essence, falls prey to an unscrupulous member of that upper-class group. This situation creates a duality in the reader’s feelings for Kip, where his vicious crimes war with his kindness toward a near-dead reptile and desire for a simple life of obscurity.
Class discrimination presents a significant dilemma for a number of the novel’s characters. Most obviously, this difference in societal treatment affects Kip; however, it extends to the protagonist as well. The distance between the haves and have nots risks blocking Ruddy’s and Archie’s progress in solving their case. Will the duo overcome the pressure and prejudice of class separateness to solve the case and ensure the safety of those who would rather cross the street to avoid the detectives? As in the other Bloodstone Mysteries, readers can expect an exciting story with plenty of twists and turns. Here’s a Victorian detective thriller set to chill your bones. Karlsen delivers a novel that will not be set down until the very last word is read!
Glissando is a term from music meaning sliding or gliding over keys.
When glissando is applied to wordcraft, it means paying attention to the sound and flow of language. Sounds arrest the reader’s attention. Even if your words are not read out loud, the readerhearsthem with her/his inner ear.
All language has sound and sound communicates meaning, emotion, mood and tone. Language is also embedded with deeply appealing rhythms that, like drum beats or heart beats, that slip into the reader’s consciousness and enhance the experience of reading.
In all writing, every word exists for a reason, every sentence builds the scene or idea. Each word is a note. Sometimes you want sound to lull a reader before you slap him with a heated argument or stage a bombshell scene. Sometimes you want him to pause at the end of a string of words. Sometimes you want to march along briskly as you dispense information.
When sound is emphasized a narrative becomes poetic. When sound is deliberately employed, sentences, paragraphs and scenes have clout. Writing without themes, purpose and music is only typing and writing without paying attention to sound is flat and empty.
Sound can add or subtract to the flow of writing. Like other writing devices, flow is a nearly invisible factor, but when it’s employed, your writing will be seamless and will reflect the mood and ambiance of a particular point in a story.
A note from Kiffer: Think of a symphony.
Think of symphonies and the myriad of moods that they evoke.
A few examples:
Stravinsky’s riotous Rite of Spring
Gershwin’s sultry jazzy and brash exuberant Rhapsody in Blue
Bernstein’s fresh and challenging West Side Story
Mozart’s complex and exhilarating Jupiter
Aaron Copland’s stirring and nostalgic Symphony for the Common Man
Bear McCreary’s Symphony for Battlestar Galactica (a side note: Bear is from Bellingham)
Each symphony is written with the same twelve notes, one note at a time. Each novel, each written work, is written one word at a time.
Flow
Flow happens when ideas and stories have fluidity, connectivity, and cohesion. Flow is consciously applied as a courtesy to the reader because readers deeply resent being lost of confused when amidst a page or story. Readers also hate to be jolted or to dangle, or feel a sense of disorientation. Flow provides the map, flow connects the dots, flow grants readers firm footing. Flow aids the internal logic needed to make your ideas comprehensible. Flow will move the reader from sentence to sentence, paragraph to paragraph, idea to idea, scene to scene, and chapter to chapter with grace and ease.
Transitions
An essential technique that creates flow is transitions and it’s shocking how often writers neglect to use them. Transitions are the words, phrases, sentences or paragraphs used to bridge what has been said with what is going to be said. Simple transitions are generally, but not always, a subordinate clause placed in the beginning of a sentence or paragraph and used as a road sign indicating a change. Probably the most famous transition in writing is “meanwhile, back at the ranch.” It provides an easy shorthand and the reader knows,Ah, we’ve changed locales; we’re at the ranch again. Wonder how Jane is getting along since Luke has been on the cattle drive for three months now.
Transitions are handy devices because they can accomplish so much in only a few words. Their jobs are to signal: a change in time, a change in place, a shift in mood or tone, or a shift in point of view. Transitions also clarify relationships, emphasize, contrast or compare things, conclude actions or thoughts, and create associations.
Here are a few tips for writing with wordcraft.
When in doubt, understate. Often the most painful, emotional, or violent moments in writing works best by using a minimalist approach.
Write about subjects that mean something to you, emotionally and intellectually; that force you to question your beliefs and values.
Save lush passages for choice moments in the story, especially decisions, revelations, and reversals. If you use heightened prose every time your character feels an emotion the whole will become contrived.
Omit redundancies like grotesquely ugly, grim reminders, complete surprise, and happy coincidence.
Make certain every sentence adds something new.
Generally avoid heightened prose for endings—often the best endings are concrete or understated.
Respect word territory. If you feature an unusual word in a sentence (effervescent,rococo,unremunerated,infelicity) then don’t repeat it again in a nearby paragraph or better yet, use it only once.
Don’t forget to keep asking yourself, what does this remind me of? As you lay out sentences and scenes, but also as go through your days, look around you with an artist’s curiosity. It’s a simple question, and leads to wizardry.
Keep writing, keep dreaming, have heart. Jessica
Jessica Page Morrell
Jessica Page Morrell is a top-tier developmental editor for books and screenplays. Her articles have appeared in Writer’s Digest and The Writer magazines. She is known for explaining the hows and whys of what makes for excellent writing and for sharing very clear examples that examine the technical aspects of writing that emphases layering and subtext. Her books on writing craft are considered “a must have” for any serious writer’s toolkit.
Did you know that Chanticleer offers editorial services?We do and have been doing so since 2011.
And that our professional editors are top-notch and are experts in theChicago Manual of Style.They have and are working for the top publishing houses (TOR, McMillian, Thomas Mercer, Penguin Random House, etc.). If you would like more information, we invite you to email Kiffer or Sharon at KBrown@ChantiReviews.com or SAnderson@ChantiReviews.com.
A great way to get started is with our manuscript evaluation service. Here are some handy links about this tried and true service:
The SOMERSET Book Awards recognize emerging talent and outstanding works in the genre of Literary, Contemporary, and Satire Fiction. The Somerset Book Awards is a genre division of the Chanticleer International Book Awards (The CIBAs).
Chanticleer International Book Awards is looking for the best books featuring contemporary stories, literary themes, adventure, satire, humor, magic realism or women and family themes. These books have advanced to the next judging rounds. The best will advance. Which titles will be declared as winners of the prestigious Somerset Book Awards?
Presenting the following works that have advanced to the 2019 SOMERSET Book Awards Semi-Finals:
Leonide Martin – The Prophetic Mayan Queen: K’inuuw Mat of Palenque
Beth Burgmeyer –The Broken Road
Judith Kirscht –End of the Race
John Herman –The Counting of Coup
R. Barber Anderson –The Sunken Forest, Where the Forest Came out of the Earth
Domenick Venezia –Liberator Legacy
Larry Brill –Deja Vu All Over Again
Domenick Venezia –Suriname Legacy
Alexandrea Weis with Lucas Astor –Damned (A Magnus Blackwell Novel Book 1)
Donna LeClair – The Proprietor of the Theatre of Life
Bob Holt –Firebird
Gail Avery Halverson –The Skeptical Physick
Dd Jaseron –Wheelboys
Janet K Shawgo –Legacy of Lies
Santiago Xaman – After Olympus
Sara Stamey – Pause
Patricia Averbach –Resurrecting Rain
Hannah Edington Tekle –Conflict
C. E. Porch –From the Halls of Cuba
Maggie St. Claire –Martha
Lisa Reddick –The Same River
Nick Mancuso –Fever
Jeanne McWilliams Blasberg –The Nine
Claire Fullerton – Little Tea
Gary Driver –God Answers Science
Elizabeth Crowens – Dear Bernie, I’m Glad You’re Dead
Linda Bledsoe –Through the Needle’s Eye
Carl Roberts– The Trial of Connor Padget
Patrick Finegan –Cooperative Lives
Mike Murphey –Section Roads
Jamie Zerndt –Jerkwater
Prue Batten –Passage
Tikiri Herath –Abducted – A Red-Heeled Rebels novel
David B. Seaburn –Gavin Goode
Joanne Jaytanie –Salvaging Truth, Hunters & Seekers, Book 1
Congratulations to all! Good Luck to all as your works compete for the First Place Category positions.
These titles are in the running for the First Place positions of the 2019 SOMERSET Book Awards.
Semi-Finalists will be recognized at the 2020 Chanticleer Authors Conference and the 2019 CIBA banquet and ceremony. The First Place Category Winners, along with the CIBA Division Grand Prize winners, will be selected from the 16 CIBA divisions Semi-Finalists. We will announce the 1st Place Category winners and Grand Prize Division Winners at the CIBAs Banquet and Ceremony on Saturday, April 18th, 2020 at the luxurious Hotel Bellwether in Bellingham, Wash.
We are now accepting entries into the 2020 CIBAs. https://www.chantireviews.com/contests/
Don’t delay. Enter today!
As always, please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions, concerns, or suggestions at Info@ChantiReviews.com.
The OZMA Book Awards recognize emerging talent and outstanding works in the genre of Fantasy Fiction. The OZMA Book Awards is a genre division of the Chanticleer International Book Awards (The #CIBAs).
Chanticleer International Book Awards discovers the best books featuring magic, the supernatural, imaginary worlds, fantastical creatures, legendary beasts, mythical beings, or inventions of fancy that author imaginations dream up without a basis in science as we know it. Epic Fantasy, High Fantasy, Sword and Sorcery, Dragons, Unicorns, Steampunk, Dieselpunk, Gaslight Fantasy, Urban Fantasy, or other out of this world fiction, they will be put to the test and the best selected as winners of the prestigious CIBAs.
These titles have moved forward in the judging rounds from SLUSH pile, to the LONG LIST, to the Shortlist and now have progressed to the 2019 OZMA Book Awards Semi-Finalists positions.
Congratulations to the following 2109 OZMA Book Awards Semi-Finalists.
Timothy Vincent –Tower, Sword, Stone and Spell
Porter Huddleston –EL on Earth
Benjamin Keyworth –Superworld
Susannah Dawn –Search for the Armor of God
T. L. Augury –Witches Brew
Elana A. Mugdan –Dragon Blood
Alex Tremari –Dragoncast
Dan Zangari & Robert Zangari –A Prince’s Errand
Anne M. Curtis –Where Acorns Landed
Tim Westover –The Winter Sisters: A Novel
Catherine Grangaard –A Fairy’s Tails
KC Cowan & Sara Cole –The Hunt for Winter
Monique Snyman –The Night Weaver
Elizabeth Isaacs –The Scythian Trials
M. L. Doyle –The Bonding Blade
S.J. Hartland –The 19th Bladesman
Joy Ross Davis –The Singer Sisters
Noah Lemelson –The Sightless City
Alexandra Rushe –A Muddle of Magic
Suzie Plakson – The Return of King Lillian
Alex Paul –The Valley of Death, Arken Freeth and the Adventure of the Neanderthals, Book 5
Zoe Tasia –Kilts and Catnip
Mark S. Moore –Rise: Birth of a Revolution
Michelle Rene –Manufactured Witches
Susan Faw –Heart of Bastion
These titles are in the running for the First Place positions of the 2019 OZMA Book Awards for Fantasy Fiction
Semi-Finalists will be recognized at the 2020 Chanticleer Authors Conference and the 2019 CIBA banquet and ceremony. The First Place Category Winners, along with the CIBA Division Grand Prize winners, will be selected from the 16 CIBA divisions Semi-Finalists. We will announce the 1st Place Category winners and Grand Prize Division Winners at the CIBAs Banquet and Ceremony on Saturday, April 18th, 2020 at the luxurious Hotel Bellwether in Bellingham, Wash.
Good luck to all as your works move on to the next rounds of judging.
The Cygnus Book Awards recognize emerging new talent and outstanding works in the genre of Science Fiction, Steampunk, Alternative History, and Speculative Fiction. The Cygnus Awards is a genre division of Chanticleer International Book Awards and Novel Competitions (The CIBAs).
Official Announcement of the Chanticleer International Book Awards 2019 Semi-Finalists (the 2019 #CIBAs)
Detective Rudyard Bloodstone is facing the most bizarre crime spree of his career as a copper on the Victorian streets of London. Someone is using a poisonous Cape cobra as a weapon.
