writing – Page 9 – Jennifer Lane Books

#IWSG The Best Negative Reviews

April 6, 2016 Jennifer Lane

Welcome to April’s Insecure Writers’ Support Group. Hop over the Alex Cavanaugh’s blog to join us!

Recently a reader friend asked, “How do I write an honest, helpful, negative review?”

Let’s discuss negative reviews. I don’t want to censor reader opinions, but merely state how I can learn best from reviews. I definitely know how frustrating and disappointing the reading experience can be. It has also become so clear to me that no author can please every reader.

As an author, I appreciate negative reviews that 1) offer specific constructive criticism, 2) make me laugh, and/or 3) acknowledge how personal preferences affect reactions.

I suggest getting specific about what’s not working for the reader. The tightness of the writing? Grammar? Pacing of the plot? Realism of characterization? Chemistry between the characters? Too many characters? Implausibility of plot?

Here are some reviews that have taught me to write better:

“There was head hopping in the third person omniscient perspective. Sometimes the same paragraph had perspectives from two different characters.”
(Thank you to two authors for sharing this wisdom about my debut novel With Good Behavior.)

“Grant is a wuss.” (This made me LOL)

“Grant cries too much.” (These reviews informed my characterization of beta men–I don’t want to make them too weak.)

“It was too depressing and covered too many issues.” (I’ve tried to lighten up later books with more humor.)

“It just didn’t work for me because…” (I like when reviewers state how their personal preferences affect the reviews, acknowledging that others might enjoy it but it just didn’t fit for them.)

Some negative reviews are not as helpful:

“This is YA, not NA.” (I get frustrated with this critique of Blocked because the age of the characters is indeed New Adult. Though it’s also my fault for choosing a sexy cover then not delivering the horizontal refreshment.)

Reviews that spoiler the reader or attack the author as a person are also not my cup of tea.

How about YOU? Which negative reviews are the most helpful?

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#IWSG Balancing Writing with the Day Job

February 3, 2016 Jennifer Lane

Happy February Insecure Writer’s Support Group!

IWSG is the brainchild of Alex Cavanaugh. Join us HERE.

How’s your writing? I’ve been making good progress on book three in my college sports romance series Blocked. Too bad I came to a standstill due to a psychology conference I’ve attended the past few days.

Check out the gorgeous Montana mountains where I’ve learned more about psychology and interacted with lovely colleagues.

I’m itching to get back to my writing when I return home to Ohio, though I have so many emails and messages to plow through that it may take a while.

Do you have any tips for writing while traveling? Or for balancing writing with your day job?

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#IWSG This is the EXCITING Stuff! #BookSigning #CoverReveal

October 7, 2015 Jennifer Lane

Happy October to All Writers.

Join us for the Insecure Writers Support Group, hosted by Alex J Cavanaugh HERE. We vent about our worries and support each other through the lonely journey.

After writing for nine months, I’m excited for the fun part: releasing a novel!

We are editing ACED (Blocked #2), a New Adult volleyball romance. We hope for a release date in November of 2015. The cover for Aced showcases hot Latino med student Alejandro Ramirez, and I’m eager to share it with the world.

Want to help me with the cover reveal on 10-21-15? Sign up HERE.

Over the weekend I attended the book signing, *Sassy in Savannah*. There was a huge turnout despite the rain plaguing South Carolina, and I had a blast meeting readers like Becca.

What’s your favorite book swag? I have bookmarks, of course, but I like to offer something more creative. I decided to buy volleyball key chains and print them myself, and they were a big hit.

After the book signing, we headed south for some sunshine in St. Augustine, Florida. It was beautiful visiting America’s oldest city. I am covered in mosquito bites. *itches*

Hope you have an opportune October!

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#IWSG The Voices, the Voices! #writing #ILoveWriting

September 2, 2015 Jennifer Lane

Feeling insecure? Need support? Join us for the Insecure Writers Support Group, created by Alex Cavanaugh and co-hosted by Julie Flanders, Murees Dupé, Dolorah at Book Lover, Christine Rains, and Heather Gardner!

If you’re like me, sometimes the negative voices get you down. Here’s a helpful post for writing: Five Negative Voices and How to Shush Them.

A more positive voice:

I love writing–I really do! Let me specify, though, that I love FICTION writing. The past two weeks I’ve slaved over writing a psychology book chapter for a textbook, and it was hell. No wonder I gravitate more toward therapy than research. One small consolation is that writing five fiction novels has improved my academic writing, too.

I’m almost done with my sixth book ACED (Blocked #2), yahoo!

76000 / 80000 words. 95% done with Aced!

I’m hoping for a November or December release, depending on the editing timeline. Have you released a novel in December? I’m nervous the holiday rush might be a bad time to launch my baby.

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Five Tips for #Writing #Therapy Scenes #IWSG

August 5, 2015 Jennifer Lane

Time for August’s Insecure Writer’s Support Group. Writers, learn more HERE and join us.

Hey, everyone. I’m Jennifer Lane, psychologist/author (psycho author). I do therapy on the weekdays and write on the weekends, and I can’t decide which is more fun.

Character growth is essential in any story, and I often help my characters develop through psychotherapy. Finding the balance between authentic therapy and engaging storytelling can be tricky. Here are some tips:

1) Empathy. Otherwise known as validation or good listening, empathy is reflecting the speaker’s emotion. It’s a key therapy skill, regardless of the therapist’s theoretical orientation. Here are some examples of empathy:

Client: “What’s the point?”

Therapist: “You’re feeling hopeless.”

Client: “He’s such an ass!”

Therapist: “You’re really angry at him.”

Sounds simple, right? It’s not. A lot of times we want to give advice or solve problems, when all people need is validation. Empathic listening is quite therapeutic.

2) Boundaries. Therapists’ ethical codes discourage multiple relationships with clients. If I’m your therapist, I can’t be your friend, lover, business partner, babysitter, etc. Hollywood often shows therapists shagging their clients with no negative consequences. Not realistic.

3) Diagnosis. Though some therapists don’t put much stock into psychiatric diagnosis, it’s helpful to have a somewhat accurate diagnosis for the character. I giggled when I read Christian Grey’s initial diagnoses as haphephobia (fear of being touched) and parasomnia (sleep disorders). Fortunately Ms. James did her research for a later book, diagnosing him with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Here’s a good website summarizing mental health disorders. I also like the Writers Helping Writers Emotional Wound series.

4) Progress. Is it common for a huge therapeutic breakthrough to occur? An insight that changes everything for a character? Not really. While I adore this scene in Good Will Hunting, it’s not characteristic of therapy.

Change tends to be difficult and gradual, and clients are unique in their responses to therapy. Some clients feel better merely by naming or reframing the problem. Others just benefit from a private, nonjudgmental space to talk.

5) Character Development. Therapy is a wonderful vehicle to develop your characters. Is your hero funny? Write dialogue for him that makes the therapist crack up. Does your heroine try to mother everyone? Perhaps she brings tea for the therapist, or knits the therapist a hat in the winter. Character interpersonal dynamics will unfold in the therapy relationship just like any other relationship, inserting some fun into the drama.

Have you ever tried to write a therapy scene? Hopefully these tips will help.

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Power Pose Your Way to #Confident #Writing #IWSG

July 1, 2015 Jennifer Lane

It’s July already and the rain won’t stop in Ohio, waah. How can I train for swimming in a triathlon relay when thunder closes my outdoor pool? Time for July’s Insecure Writer’s Support Group, the brainchild of Alex Cavanaugh. Join us HERE.

Last week I delivered a presentation to swim campers about ways to build their confidence. I mentioned the technique “fake it till you make it”. In other words, if you don’t feel confident, sometimes acting confident on the outside can boost confidence on the inside. Head up, shoulders back, add a smile or serene facial expression, and you’re good to go.

Then I heard about a TED talk by social psychologist Amy Cuddy that takes confident body language a step further. According to Dr. Cuddy, our nonverbals affect how others see us. But can nonverbals affect how we see ourselves?

Since I know you’re busy and may not have time to watch the 21 minute video (it’s worth it if you do have the time), I’ll summarize her research.

Holding “power poses” for just two minutes can significantly increase testosterone (feelings of power) and decrease cortisol (feelings of stress).

What are power poses? Here’s one:

Here are two more:

Are you mired in insecurity when writing? Knees knocking before pitching to a publisher? Try a power pose for two minutes and you’ll feel more assertive, confident, and optimistic!

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Learning Cool Stuff Through Writing #IWSG

June 3, 2015 Jennifer Lane

Woo hoo, I love summer. Time for June’s Insecure Writers Support Group, hosted by Alex Cavanaugh.

Alex’s awesome co-hosts for the June 3 posting of the IWSG are M. Pax, Tracy Jo,Patricia Lynne, Rachna Chhabria, Feather Stone, and Randi Lee!

Writers, join us HERE.

There are so many cool aspects about writing, but one of my favorites is learning something new.

I just wrote a chapter in my work-in-progress Aced where the hero attends confession with a priest. I like to write moments when my characters grow and challenge dysfunctional behaviors. Typically this involves throwing my characters into therapy. But Aced’s hero Alejandro is a Catholic Latino good boy, and I wanted to try a new space for healing and development outside the therapy office.

Although I attended Notre Dame for grad school, I’m not Catholic, and I’ve never experienced confession myself. Luckily, my critique partner is Catholic, and she provided a helpful link explaining the process. I also found this list of sins that blew me away. Jeez… I sin all the time!

Did you know that pirating ebooks is a sin? 😮

Both confession and therapy involve reflection and sharing secrets. But one unique part of confession is FORGIVENESS. I love the idea of seeking God’s mercy in an effort to forgive ourselves.

What cool stuff have you learned through writing?

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#IWSG What’s Easiest and Hardest to #Write ?

May 6, 2015 Jennifer Lane

Whoops! Almost forgot this month’s IWSG in the midst of planning for trips to Chicago and Hawaii, a broken air conditioner, and installation of new carpet and sectional sofa.

Thanks to Alex J Cavanaugh for creating IWSG, and awesome co-hosts Eva Solar Melanie Schulz, Lisa-Buie Collard, and Stephen Tremp.

How’s your writing coming along? I wish it could go faster but I guess the muse can’t be rushed. I’m about 36K words into my work in progress, ACED (Blocked #2). Next up is a therapy chapter which is always easier for me to write. I throw my characters into therapy on a regular basis–I torture them so much that they need it!

I’m struggling a bit with the pacing of the romance. While it’s not insta-love, I have a tendency to rush things. I’m grateful for my critique partner Nicki Elson, who just released a wonderful romance (VIBRIZZIO). See my post below to read my review and enter the giveaway.

What type of chapters/scenes are easiest for you to write? Which are hardest?

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Montana Marijuana, Microaggressions, and Manuscripts #IWSG

February 4, 2015 Jennifer Lane

Happy Insecure Writers Support Group, started by Alex J Cavanaugh!

I’m in Montana for a psychology conference. learning some cool things. Too bad I dislike skiing because we have major snow in Big Sky.

But I’ve had a blast chatting with friends and learning stuff! The best presentation so far has been about MARIJUANA. As a psychologist who has witnessed the sadness of addiction, I was against legalization before the presentation. Now I’m totally against it.

While you might think this brownie, candy, and beverage are for the munchies after you toke it up, these “edibles” are actually how THC is administered these days. One gummy bear has 4 servings of high potency THC. They’re marketing to kids by infusing candy and drinks with THC.

And, this isn’t your grandparent’s pot, your parents’ pot, or even your pot. In 1960 THC was .2% concentration. Now it’s 12%. Since it’s been commercialized in Colorado, the lobbyists and marketing machine has created products with 36% THC which have zero resemblance to the natural hemp plant. (The CBD percentage has stayed the same, rendering today’s marijuana as less medicinal.) One 19 year old Wyoming student went to Colorado, had never had pot before, ate a cookie with high potency THC, had a psychotic break, and jumped out a window to his death.

Whatever your beliefs, decriminalization is not the same as legalization. The change in law is all about making money and not about decriminalization or health at all. Using marijuana before the age of 18 really increases risk of addiction and cognitive deficits: one study in New Zealand found an EIGHT point drop in IQ from using marijuana 5 times a week.

What are your thoughts about marijuana?

Another great presentation was on MICROAGGRESSIONS, or unintended discrimination. We all make comments, often without our awareness, that may be hurtful. For example, a heterosexual person may tell a homosexual person “I don’t care what you do, just don’t flaunt your sexuality.” That comment may be hurtful by implying a gay person is hyper-sexual or some other such stereotype. Should we tell a heterosexual couple to stop kissing and “flaunting their heterosexuality”?

This video highlights some micro aggressions:

Finally, how’s your writing coming along? I was about 20K words into a romantic suspense when I realized I was itching to write book two in my college volleyball romance series, so I just started that MANUSCRIPT. I’m titling it Aced for now.

I think I’ll put my romantic suspense Twin Sacrifice aside though I kind of miss it. Anyone write two books at once? I’ve never tried before.

My critique partner Nicki Elson’s awesome rom-com VIBRIZZIO is available for pre-order! You will love this story and it’s only $.99.

Write on, my fellow crusaders!

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#IWSG Guide to Publishing and Beyond & Writing Dialogue

December 3, 2014 Jennifer Lane

Thank you to Alex Cavanaugh for hosting The Insecure Writers’ Support Group, where we journey together down this lonesome writing road.

Have you downloaded your free copy of The Insecure Writer’s Support Group Guide to Publishing and Beyond?

The Insecure Writer’s Support Group Guide to Publishing and Beyond

Tapping into the expertise of over a hundred talented authors from around the globe, The IWSG Guide to Publishing and Beyond contains something for every writer. Whether you are starting out and need tips on the craft of writing, looking for encouragement as an already established author, taking the plunge into self-publishing, or seeking innovative ways to market and promote your work, this guide is a useful tool. Compiled into three key areas of writing, publishing, and marketing, this valuable resource offers inspirational articles, helpful anecdotes, and excellent advice on dos and don’ts that we all wish we knew when we first started out on this writing journey.

ISBN 9781939844088
235 pages, FREE
IWSG sites – website, Facebook, and Facebook Critique Circle
Find the book at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, Smashwords,Goodreads.

I contributed a piece on writing character relational styles, and I can’t wait to dive into reading all the helpful advice. Suddenly the writing journey isn’t so lonely!

Today I want to share tips for writing dialogue from author Justin McLaughlin: