When NOT to Take Criticism

Several contests opened this spring, so in a few weeks, authors will be getting back scoresheets and . . . criticism. 

But not all criticism is helpful. “I don’t like this character” is one of those unhelpful comments. What isn’t liked? Personality? Reactions? Hair color? I mean, it could be any reason, and if you don’t know the why, how can you improve? 

Then there’s other criticism that means well, but is wrong. You just know it’s wrong. For example, my debut novel, Betrayal of the Band, that releases in August contains three POVs. Five years ago, when I was just starting the story, I met with an established author at a conference for feedback. She advised telling the story from one POV. She also informed me that my plot was lacking excitement. 

I left the meeting feeling less than encouraged. I’m a plotter, so on the one hand, at least I only had to throw out a synopsis and a scene list, not an entire manuscript. On the other hand, did I really need to abandon my vision and create an entirely new story?

I spent a couple of weeks thinking and praying about the story and the concept, and I came to the conclusion that the story was supposed to be about the band. Not one character’s journey, but the journey of the band. So one POV wasn’t right for the story. But while I knew I wouldn’t take that advice, that didn’t mean the rest of her advice should be ignored. Confident in my decision to keep the multiple POVs and tell the story of the band, I tackled my synopsis and scene list again. I analyzed books with multiple, equal POVs and brainstormed until I had a better manuscript to write. Three years and two rounds of edits later, I received an offer of publication.

So not all constructive criticism or well-meaning (and well-respected!) advice should be taken. But that doesn’t mean the criticism isn’t useful. Examine your story and determine why you shouldn’t listen. Perhaps the advice is off the mark, but that doesn’t mean the story isn’t lacking in some other way. And you’ll have a strong argument for your decision!

Getting Inside Your Character's Head

Greetings, fellow YAtopians! It is your friendly neighbourhood weirdo, Ryan. Today I'm coming to you with a post about character.

So, last week I was in an interesting discussion with my super cool, super secret writing group (Hello, Sommies!) that got me thinking. It surrounded J.K. Rowling and her BIG SHOCKING REVEAL a few years back that Dumbledore was gay. We were discussing whether or not information revealed after a book/series has already been written or information that remains in the writer's head can be considered part of the story. Basically, we agreed there are two camps of readers: ones that confine the story to the information in the book (he might be gay but we can't say for sure) and ones that go beyond that and expand the story however they want (he's gay because J.K. said so and it's obvious).

This post isn't about that, per se. It has more to do with the author's role in this. Extraneous information, that is, information about a character that doesn't make it into the book, is really, really important. In fact, I'd say it's crucial to writing a complex, well-rounded character. As writers, we must get inside our characters' heads, right? And through that we can better inhabit their voice. We don't have to use all that information, but we should know it.

So, you have to ask yourselves...

*ahem*

Uhh... *snort*

Hold on. Something is... wrong. I feel... funny... *sniffle*

Intense pain coming from my nose. It's like something is trying to... escape my nostrils. What the... 

It's coming out! AHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!

Ahhh, that's better! No, this isn't Ryan. He's sitting here beside me. Out like a light, of course. Ha! Guess he couldn't handle his character breaking loose from his brain. Through his nose! Gotta say, it wasn't the easiest way out. Totally forgot how sticky snot can be. And I've picked my fair share of snot. But, hey, a character's got to be heard, am I right? 

So Ryan thought he could get inside MY head? Fat chance. Little did he know I was planning to escape from HIS head. And now I have. I'm here, ready to grace you all with my presence. You all better watch out because your characters can get loose at any time too. Just a heads up.

No one gets inside my head. Hear that, Ryan? Haha, no, he's not hearing a whole lot right now. See this red ball cap on my head? Yeah, it's my favourite. You want to know why? Because it keeps people like Ryan OUT of my head. Well, also because my dad bought it for me before he shipped off to Iraq. Red's my favourite colour too. Your characters probably have favourite things too, things they love more than anything, things that keep them safe. You should know those things, people!

So, where do I go from here? Good question! I have a favourite place. I can hide there when Ryan starts to wake up. Where? Ha! I'm not telling you! You'll tell Ryan. But I'm sure your characters have favourite places too. Bet you'll blab about that as well.

You should know that the thing I hate worst in the world is a tattle-tail. Like my kid brother, Mikey. One time I stole a packet of Jolly Ranchers from the corner store. Uhh... maybe I shouldn't be telling you this. Whatever... it's too late. Anyway, I stole the Jolly Ranchers (the best candy ever, by the way) because my best friend Buster dared me to. Well, Mikey was there and wouldn't keep his trap shut! He ran to my mom and she told me what she always tells me, "Gregory Samuel Jacobs, you never cease to disappoint me!" Then she grounded me for a month. I'm sick of trying not to disappoint her! 

Anyway, I'm sure your characters have people in their lives that say stupid stuff like that too. I'm sure they have stories just like mine with brothers or sisters that are good for nothing!

Give me one second. Just got to grab something from Ryan's nose. Ahh, there we go. My trusty backpack. Do your characters have backpacks? Maybe they have purses. I bet there are all sorts of cool things inside. I got the latest Para-Man comic. It's awesome. Let's see what else. Some rubber bands for shooting at the girls. Pencil crayons and notebook where I like to doodle. Oh, and this cat's cradle string. It keeps my hands occupied. I seem to always need to have my hands occupied. At least that's what my homeroom teacher, Mr. Lippman says. He's cool. Probably my favourite teacher. He gave this string to me. I thought it was stupid at first, but it has come in handy. Bet your characters have weird things like that too.

Uh oh, Ryan's waking up! Gotta go! See you at the old grain elevator on Smith St. Er, wait... no that's not my favourite place or anything... damnit!

Unreliable narrators

Last week, I had the joy of reading the most amazing book, BROTHER/SISTER by Sean Olin. It was twisted, dark, eerie and utterly amazing in every way. I can't say too much about what made it the most amazing without spoiling it, but I hope those of you who have read it will know precisely what I mean.

This book got me thinking a lot about something I personally haven't seen often: unreliable narrators. When we're viewing the world of a book through a close third person or a first person point of view, we automatically rely on our narrator/point of view to be telling us things...well, accurately. Sights, smells, events. We assume what we're told is truth.

BROTHER/SISTER switches back and forth between two first person POVs: Will and his sister, Asheley. (Yes, spelled just like that.) As the story progresses and events are recounted as though the siblings are each telling their story to someone, you gradually began to notice things. Little things. Little inconsistencies between Will's story and Asheley's. There are points where these inconsistencies make you pause and wonder, Okay, wait, what did happen? This is part of why I found this book so glorious, and it's only because of the bouncing back-and-forth POV that we're able to locate these inconsistencies and try to figure them out.

This is a tactic that should be employed very carefully. If I were reading, say, a story told from the point of view of a pathelogical liar, it would be harder to take in. What is truth? What is a fabrication of her brain? While this would be a fascinating story, I would find it hard to relate to the narrator because how do I know these events for which I'm sympathetic for her are real and not a figment of her imagination?

For the most part, unreliable narrators would take me out of a story. I have to trust that whoever's eyes I'm witnessing the story through are telling me the truth. Or else...what is the point?

But in the case of BROTHER/SISTER, it truly does make the entire book what it is. Every little unreliable thing out of their mouths is intentional.

What say you, YAtopians? Ever read a book where the narrator wasn't always truthful? Had a skewed way of seeing things? Anyone else read this uh-may-zing book and want to squeel about it with me?

Diana Wynne Jones / Point of View and Narrators

I'll apologize in advance, because I'm kicking off this post on a sad note.

Diana Wynne Jones, renowned British author of sci-fi and fantasy, passed away on March 26th. While I haven't read all of her books, she is the author of my favorite book that many of you have seen me reference multiple times: HOWL'S MOVING CASTLE.

(Howl and Sophie are characters I hoped to see her bring back time and again, as she did with their appearances in CASTLE IN THE AIR and, as recently as 2008, HOUSE OF MANY WAYS.)

Since the 1970's, Diana has written over 40 books, not to mention the number of collections she's contributed to and the short stories.

My heart and prayers go out to her family. She and her amazing stories will be missed.

---

For today's post, I also wanted to present a question to all our fantastic readers and my fellow YAtopians. This weekend I finished a book that has been fairly widely talked about. It's told from two first person POVs, male and female.


This isn't the first time I've seen alternating 1st person POVs like this. Maggie Stiefvater did it in SHIVER, and I loved it. But this book jumped back and forth even within a chapter, sometimes as often as every few paragraphs, and the transition felt so awkward and jerky to me. (Not to mention while the male narrator was the main love interest, there was another love interest who didn't get his own POV, and I feel there was never any real question about who the girl would end up with. It left the love triangle lacking a bit for me.)

I will say, though: I love multiple points of view in books. So long as the character's POV is necessary, of course. I love seeing everything through multiple sets of eyes, getting into more than one person's head. SHIVER allowed me to do this, and so did this other book I finished (jarring transitions aside).

I've heard from a small handful of agents who don't like more than one POV in a book. And a couple of others who think it's too difficult of a sell. I'll admit, I'm still getting the hang of reading first person. If I'm presented with two books on a shelf I think are interesting and the only difference is what POV they're written from, I'll grab the one in 3rd person without a second thought. On the writing side of it, I love the look of 3rd person, but I've discovered I'm a lot better at 1st.

So while I prefer to read and write in 3rd, it seems I end up reading and writing primarily in 1st.

My question(s) to all of you: do you have a preference in point of view and whether you get one narrator? Two? Ten? And if you're a writer, do you prefer to read one way, but write in another?

(As a side-note... Made it past the halfway mark of my current WIP! 40k!)

Contemporary LOVE

I am and have always been a contemporary girl at heart. Yes, I read a lot of paranormal. Yep, I love paranormal, but contemporary will always be my first love. And funny I should use the word love, because I'm also a huge romance addict (as if everyone doesn't know that already).



But I digress, that's not the whole point of this post. What I want to talk about is contemporary YA. Real people, real world, real issues. It does something to me, affects me in a way not all genres can. There are so many special, special contemporaries out there. Stories that break your heart and put it together again. Make you laugh, smile, cry, sigh and the difference is, I think it feels more real to me because...well, it is real. It could happen to me, you, the girl down the street. In fact, it IS probably happening somewhere to someone. Or has, or will. How special to give that situation a voice?

Again, not bashing paranormal because a large majority of the books in my bookshelf are paranormal, but for today, I'd like us to promote some of our favorite contemporary reads out there. I'll share some of my favorites that I've read lately.

SPLIT by Swati Avasthi. This is one of the most powerful books I've ever read. I was glued to it until the last page. It ripped my heart out, but by the end, I felt so much HOPE. More than hope, I KNEW things would be okay. That despite the past, the future would be different. It was an incredible journey to take, and I felt honored to take it. Jace will always hold a special place in my heart.

FREEFALL by Mindy Scott. I'm seeing a boy POV theme here, but this book was just incredible too. She nails boys POV so well and tells a breathtaking story about a boy from the wrong side of the tracks, dealing with the death of a best friend and trying to better his life. Made of awesome. Sweet romance in it too :)

TWENTY BOY SUMMER and FIXING DELILAH by Sarah Ockler. I can't talk contemporary without thinking Sarah. In my opinion, no one puts words together as beautifully as she does. There are so many passages in these two books that live inside me. I can read those passages now, not even reading the whole book again and get shivers, tear up, and feel like I'm living inside the characters' skin. She is my hero.

The Summer series by Jenny Han. Also, beautiful, beautiful writing. I feel so much when I read these books. One of my favorite things about it is the relationships. Even though its a YA series and about the teens, the relationship between Belly's mom and Susanna is incredible. We all want friends like that. Oh, and hello? Conrad. Love a good, tortured boy.

HARMONIC FEEDBACK by Tara Kelly. *sigh* I love Justin. I do. One of my all time favorite book boys, but you know what? This book is about SO much more than just him. It's about a girl, a girl who sees the world a little differently than others. People think she sees it the wrong way, but does she? I'm not so sure. I loved getting inside Drea's head. Seeing things through her eyes and seeing that there is no "right" way to see the world.

These are a few off the top of my head. Now you tell me, what are some of your favorite contemporary YA's? What is it about them that you love so much?

Let's Talk About Characters!

Okay, I just have to take a minute to say how SUPER excited I am to make my first official post for YAtopia. Like giddy excited...LOL

Second, I wanted to announce some of the winners from out launch last week! The winner of my contest for a 10.00 dollar gift card is.... JESSI E!

Wendy's contest winner is...ORCHID!

Leigh's contest winner is...LEXIE!

Congrats everyone!

Now... getting that out of the way, on with my post :)

I want to talk about characters. I've made no secret in the past that I am completely, 100% a character reader. I can handle almost any kind of plot as long as the author writes characters I can fall in love with. And I don't just mean boys I can swoon over because while that is nice...okay, maybe a little more than nice, a girl can always use a good swoon, I need to go deeper than that. I think that's part of the reason that I love those tortured heroes so much. I like looking deep into a character. Finding out what makes the tick, why they hurt, how the deal with it and I love, LOVE seeing them find a way out of it. I want inside their heads AND their hearts.

I think even those carefree boys have to have some substance to them. I still need to know why they are the way they are. I love to laugh with them, but I also want to see that emotional side too. I want to know everything about them and if an author can do a good job of that, I fall in love with them.

Though it might sound like it, it's not all about the boys either. Though I always say I have to like the female, but love the male, I also need a girl I can connect with on some level. I'm not saying we have to be alike or that if they were real, that I think we'd be BFFs or anything, but I have to know them. Even if I don't have their experiences, I need to have some clue what it's like to live in their skin. I need to know their head and hearts too.

That's what makes a book to me. The characters.

It's the same way for me when I'm writing. The majority of the time, one of the characters pops into my head first. With WHAT A BOY WANTS, the whole book started around Sebastian. I had the good looking, slightly cocky, sarcastic boy pop into my head and I needed a story to go around him. I wanted the book to be from his POV because his voice spoke SO loudly to me. As I picked around in his head, I realized though he was cocky, sarcastic and was a little girl obsessed, that he also was a great friend. That even though he gave his friends a hard time, there wasn't anything he wouldn't do for them. That he was a good son and wanted to protect his mom. Actually, he wanted to protect everyone he cared about. He might not always show those sides to him, but that makes the times they pop out all the more special, because it made him real. To me at least :).

Who are some of your favorite characters you've read or written and why? What is it about them that speaks to you?