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#IC can bleed into OOC. Be careful when simming confrontations between characters. Often such sims should be proceeded by an OOC discussion that specifies what will happen, and how to resolve the confrontation.
#IC can bleed into OOC. Be careful when simming confrontations between characters. Often such sims should be proceeded by an OOC discussion that specifies what will happen, and how to resolve the confrontation.


{{heading|Writing Q&A With Margaret Wander Bonanno (Excerpts)|lightgreen}}
<big>2014 Writing Improvement Month Event</big>
FltAdmlWolf> Margaret is a published Star Trek & scifi author, You can find her list of books here: http://amzn.to/Y3vgde<br>
DiegoHerrera> Our first question: When writing for a character or group of characters over an extended period of time (up to and including novel length), what do you think is the best way to keep them interesting?<br>
Margaret Bonanno: I do flashbacks. Hint a little in Chapter 1, then drop a “When he was a child, he…” in a subsequent chapter. That kind of thing.<br>
DiegoHerrera> So slowly reveal information about them instead of letting it all slip in one go?<br>
Margaret Bonanno: Sprinkle little bits about the character through the narrative is I guess what I’m saying. Oh, yeah. Don’t want to get bogged down in a whole lot of narrative at the beginning. Just tease a bit.<br>
DiegoHerrera> Good advice, thanks.<br>
DiegoHerrera> Our second opener: If writing for an inhuman character such as an alien or monster, how would you go about communicating that inhuman quality in writing?<br>
Margaret Bonanno: Good one! Depends on just how alien it is. If it’s *really* different, start with the physical stuff. For instance, I’m fascinated by sea creatures. Created a species of telepathic jellyfish in *Preternatural* and tried to see the world through their eyes (or non-eyes, as happens to be the case). Did the same for a species of giant intelligent earthworms in *Unspoken Truth*. Start with the physical differences from humanoids, and try<br>
Margaret Bonanno: …you try to do it through dialogue. Think of the number of times Spock has made bemused observations about human behavior. That’s really what aliens are about – holding up a mirror to what fools these humans be. <br>
DiegoHerrera> Great! I can imagine that writing for a race of telepathic jellyfish must have been quite a challenge!<br>
Margaret Bonanno: Give you an example: When I was a kid (See how I did that?) I inherited a bunch of old storybooks from a babysitter. One was a collection of fairy tales from Czechoslovakia. Real Grimm-type stuff, not the Disneyfied version. One story was about a princess who’d been kidnapped by a witch, who steals her eyes. Stumbling around the cabin while the witch is away, the princess finds a chest full of eyes, and starts trying them on…<br>
Margaret Bonanno: The first is a pair of eyes stolen from a wolf. Through them the princess sees a world that’s blood red and fraught with terrors. She takes the eyes out.  The next pair of eyes is from a fish. The princess sees the world as if underwater – dark and full of horrifying sea creatures ready to eat her. She throws them aside…<br>
Margaret Bonanno: Finally she finds her own eyes. That’s all I remember of the story (the princess probably kills the witch a la Hansel and Gretel, but that wasn’t important to me). The part about “seeing through another’s eyes” was what stuck with me, and that’s what I try to do…whether it’s an alien or an atypical sort of human. <br>
AlleranTan> Hi Margaret! My question is: Do you have a specific style guide you follow, or any particular style you adhere to or recommend? For example, I don’t capitalise the word “Human” if there are no other species in the story, but I do if there are (e.g. Toralii, Kel-Voran, Human). Just to muddy the water some more, I don’t capitalise ‘human’ or any other species/race in my fantasy work at all (orc, kobold, human). What is you<br>
DiegoHerrera> I think chat ate some of that- What is your preference is the question, I think. <br>
AlleranTan> Ahh, it came through for me. Oops. Note to others: post shorter questions. <br>
Margaret Bonanno: Good question! I don’t think I’ve ever capitalized Human, though I would probably capitalize “Earther” if and when I used it. And of course I adhere to the Pocket guidelines when it comes to Vulcans, Klingons, etc.<br>
DiegoHerrera> Guidelines laid down by the publisher, is that right?<br>
AlleranTan> My understanding is that it’s the difference between common noun and proper noun, since “wolf” and “fox” aren’t capitalised, but say, Timber Wolf is.<br>
Margaret Bonanno: Yes.<br>
AlleranTan> But I know author preference does play a part in it all.<br>
Margaret Bonanno: Probably right, AlleranTan. And for my original aliens, I tend to make up silly names.<br>
DiegoHerrera> Do you have a method for doing it?<br>
Margaret Bonanno: Well, the name for the giant intelligent earthworms is Deemanot, which is an acronym for – wait for it – nematode.Oops, I meant “anagram,” not “acronym.”<br>
DiegoHerrera> I see! So based on a scientific term. Sounds like a good way of picking names that make sense.<br>
Margaret Bonanno: Yep. Then there were the jellyfish in *Preternatural*. Their name for themselves is S.oteri. If you pronounce the “S” as “ess,” you get ess-oh-TER-ee, as in “esoteric.”<br>
DiegoHerrera> We often have to create alien races for our collaborative writing here, so that approach will come in handy for our writers. <br>
DiegoHerrera> OK, this one is from Alex_Richards (stand by Kali!)<br>
Alex_Richards> Hello Margaret. When writing, I often find myself relying heavily on dialogue to set a scene rather than descriptive text/exposition. My question is twofold. First, how would you advise someone in my situation to be more inventive with their exposition, and second, what do you feel is the right balance between dialogue and narrative text?<br>
Margaret Bonanno: The answer to both, IMO, is: When you’re done, read it aloud. If the dialogue conveys the information you want it to, but also sounds as if it is real people talking then you’ve succeeded. You want to avoid the Victorian melodrama effect of the maid stepping downstage to tell the audience what’s going on. The same thing with finding the balance between narrative and dialogue. You’re wise in understanding that too much narrative can read like a lecture, and you want to avoid that but, again, when you’ve finished a scene that’s a mix of narrative and dialogue, try reading it aloud. You’ll know if it “sounds.” <br>
DiegoHerrera> Do you find reading aloud is a good way to run a self-edit as well? I.e. to pick up on any grammatical anomalies etc?<br>
Margaret Bonanno: Definitely. Can’t tell you how many times I’ve found typos, words omitted, or general “WTF were you thinking????” glitches in my work. It’s a sad fact that you can’t always proofread your own text, because the eye sees what it wants to see. So reading aloud helps there, too.<br>
KaliNicholotti> Hello Margaret and thanks for coming! My question is this. How do you motivate yourself to write, especially when you don’t feel especially like writing? Have you ever had to force yourself to just sit and write?<br>
Margaret Bonanno: LOL – it helps to have a contract and a deadline, as in “You’re getting paid for this. The clock is ticking. Get on with it!” Then again, sometimes the work itself just pesters you to get done.Right now I’m working on something on spec. No contract, no money, just tinkering with an idea. And I’ll be in the middle of something else entirely, when I have to grab a pen and scribble a thought on the edge of a crossword before I lose it. Generally, if you want to write, you’ll write. If you don’t, you’ll make excuses. And some days it’s better to just tidy a closet or work in the garden. Hope that helps, Kali.<br>
Vie> Firstly, welcome to the chat today – thanks for coming! I’d like to ask how you approach writing for an established series – Startrek for an obvious example – do you research the existing material first and draw ideas from it? Or do you come to it with an idea and see how that could be explored within the context of the existing material? Thank you in advance.<br>
Margaret Bonanno: Trek is actually the only media tie-in I’ve done (though I’d love for there to be a series of nuBSG novels. Ron Moore, are you listening?), and I have the advantage of being hooked on the Original Series since the beginning. In some ways I know these characters better than some people in my Real Life however, when it came to mixing in characters from several series, as in *Catalyst of Sorrows*, I had to go back and rewatch episodes and read other novels (and the reference books – they’re very helpful) Because readers will catch you out if you make mistakes, so you have to be extra, extra careful! But, yes, research is essential regardless of what you’re writing. It’s just that with Star Trek it’s fun as well!<br>
Vetri> A science fiction story may well include a protagonist from a very different culture to the one they are operating in, even if they are otherwise quite similar to those around them.  What sort of methods would you use to convey some of that, without letting it overpower the rest of the narrative?<br>
Margaret Bonanno: I think it goes back to the “through someone else’s eyes” thing I mentioned earlier, because it’s not limited to science fiction and actual from-another-planet aliens…it can be anyone in a strange situation. I think a lot of people become writers – or artists, actors, etc. – because they feel out of place in so-called “normal” society. It’s tapping into that and saying, “Okay, how would I feel if I were the only member of my species on this world?” that’s a good place to start. Or just think of how you felt in a strange situation, Vetri, and work from there.<br>
Handley> Hello Margaret, thank you so much for coming! Leading on from an earlier question, do you have any advice for someone pitching a novel idea to a publisher that is set in the Star Trek universe? Are there any problems with writing for your own characters in an established (and copyrighted) universe?<br>
Margaret Bonanno: Best advice I can give you there is to check the publisher’s website: simonsays.com I’m not sure what their current policy is regarding Trek novel submissions, but I can tell you it’s never been easy. Basic rule has always been: You must have published something else first. Generally for any kind of publishing in the U.S., you’ll need to have representation through a literary agent.<br>
Margaret Bonanno: And in recent years, Simon & Schuster/Pocket have undergone some “downsizing,” so that makes it even more challenging.<br>
Cmdr_Karynn_Brice> Thanks for joining us Margaret. Have you ever gotten bored with a Character that you’ve written for a long time? If yes, what (if anything) did you do to make it interesting again?<br>
Margaret Bonanno: Wow, never thought of that, Karynn! If it ever did happen, I’m sure I could think of a creative way to kill them off…unless, of course, they’re one of the Star Trek regulars, in which case I could just not include them in most of the scenes.<br>
Hutch> When writing a novel, how far ahead do you plan? And how much detail do you get into at that stage? Do you leave room for your characters to do the ‘unexpected’ if the story calls for it?<br>
Margaret Bonanno: If I’m under contract (the usual case), I’ll have had to submit an outline, and that serves as a road map to keep me from getting lost (not saying it doesn’t happen, but at least I have a template to get me back on course) But characters do have a tendency to try to go off on their own, and sometimes you can argue them back to your POV, but other times you may as well see where they’re going to take you.<br>
Margaret Bonanno: Characters often have better insights than the author. Sounds crazy, but it’s very often the case. They’ll smack you upside the head and say “Look, I’d never do that, okay?” Because the outline may be 10-15 pages, but you’re building a 400-page manuscript around it. <br>
AlexMatthews> Margret thank you for coming, My question has been asked already, but how do you combat the witers block?<br>
Margaret Bonanno: I’ll do something mindless. As I mentioned, housework, gardening, or taking on a project like painting the living room – something where your hands are busy, but your mind is floating loose. And sometimes I find, at least, that I have to just wait I’ve always envied writers who can write pages and pages every day. I’m lucky if I get 1,000 words on a really good day. And sometimes you get stuck in one of those “Okay, what happens next?” situations, and you really have no clue…<br>
Margaret Bonanno: I’ve tried tinkering, tossing it out, tinkering again, tossing that out, tearing my hair out, banging on the walls. Finally, you just have to walk away. Do something else, anything else, and the exact thing you need will sneak into your peripheral vision like a cat peeking around the furniture, and you’re saved!<br>
Arden_Cain> It's great to have you here Margaret. How do you avoid placing too much of yourself into the character/s that you are writing. For example, my character here, has morphed into a partial reflection of my real self (history to an extent, personality traits and the like) even though it wasn’t my intent in the very beginning. How do you prevent situations like this to ensure that your characters are all fresh and unique?<br>
Margaret Bonanno: Hmm, good question. Depends on what I’m writing. There may be one character who’s most like me, and I’ll go out of my way to make some things as *not* like me as possible. With Trek, that’s easy, because I tend to identify most with the Vulcan characters, and as anyone who knows me can tell you, I am *not* always in control of my emotions. OTOH, the *Preternatural* trilogy was built around a protagonist who’s almost completely autobiographical…except that Karen’s in touch with telepathic alien jellyfish, whereas I’m not. Or am I? <br>
Margaret Bonanno: So if you *want* the character to be recognizable, pull out the stops. If not, then tinker with things. Make your character a different gender. Try a different age, hair color, ethnic background, etc.<br>
AnoraManar> Hey Margaret, thanks so much for taking the time to be here today and answer all of our questions. It’s greatly appreciated  I tend to constantly find myself in the same problem over and over again. I always have problems starting my writing. I have a middle and end, but I can’t ever work out the beginning. Any advice on how to tackle that problem?<br>
Margaret Bonanno: Happened to me once. I began in the middle of a novel, wrote it to the end, and by then I’d found the beginning. Unfortunately, I couldn’t get the beginning to mesh with the middle without a major rewrite of the middle, so I wouldn’t advise trying that – LOL…<br>
AnoraManar> Sounds like a plan. I have an outline of ideas all the time, but never seem to have a beginning to put with them though<br>
Margaret Bonanno: How about this: Ask yourself why. Why are you writing this? Why does this story want to be told; why are these characters rattling around in your head? Maybe see if you can work backwards from “this is where they ended up” to “this is where they started.” Maybe that will work. If all else fails, “Once upon a time…” <br>
Jalana> Hello Margaret, thanks for being here, great to have you  Earlier you’ve spoken about alien characters and seeing through their eyes. Though if you do not write from their viewpoint how do you remind the reader of their unique features without getting repetetive? Do you have a trick for that for us?<br>
Margaret Bonanno: Little descriptors might help. “He tilted his head before he spoke so that his antennae could pick up the others’ voices…” “Like most of her species, her rapid heartbeat could be seen pulsing in her forehead…" Not all the time, but start with a full description, then abbreviate it as you go along. “Her forehead pulsed…” Or use bits of dialogue from the non-aliens. “Can you believe those extra thumbs? I was trying really hard not to stare at her hands…”<br>
Silveira> Good evening Margaret, thankyou for coming. Now as one of the non native english writers I admit some times I have trouble “translating” in english what I really mean to say. Any tips to make it easier?<br>
Margaret Bonanno: That’s a tough one. Probably the more you expose yourself to conversational English – in public places, conversations with friends, TV and film – the easier it might become. Quite a challenge all the same, and you’re courageous for doing it! Also, reading. The more contemporary [good] fiction you can read, the better. Diego, maybe your group can draw up a reading list of well-written fiction to help your ESL members.<br>
Dickens> Hello, as others have said, thanks to spend some time to talk with us. It’s a great oportunity specially for us non-english speakers. When you write about a scene, do you prefer for the scene to lead the characters actions or does the characters with their personality develop the scene? I mean, you prefer them to be drawn by the circumstances or that they force those circumstances<br>
Margaret Bonanno: Great question! Other writers have different techniques, but my stories always begin with the characters. My very first Star Trek novel, *Dwellers in the Crucible* began with the thought “What if the Kirk/Spock story was told from the POV of two female civilian characters?” The story just evolved from there. First you ask: Okay, who are these people? Then you explore what sorts of situations they might find themselves in, based on who they are.<br>
Dickens> Quite interesting thought. So you don’t like your characters be forced to a scene or situation where they can’t get out? Or better than like, don’t tend to drive them there?<br>
Margaret Bonanno: Oh, on the contrary, I love putting my characters into tough situations, because that shows what they’re made of. Will they be brave, self-sacrificing, resourceful, or cowardly, selfish, sneaky?<br>
Dueld_taJoot> I find I end up using the same physical shorthand over and over, constantly focusing on characters's eyes and eyebrows, mouths and shoulders. I’m afraid it will become some kind of kabuki caricature, which will jar readers into thinking about my lack of technique, rather than about the story. Have you ever found yourself relying too much on some motif? What did you do to find alternatives? Alternatively, what, if anything, has helped you expand your own mental Stock Footage Archive of body language and expression?<br>
Margaret Bonanno: Wow, tough one! Because I do the same thing, especially around eyes and hands. One trick is, after you’ve finished the entire manuscript, do a Search and count how many times you’ve used the same or similar description (“His hazel eyes danced with glee..”) and either find another expression, or just delete the descriptor altogether.<br>
T-Mihn> In character creation, is it normal for them to take on a life of their own different from the original plan? As if he/she had become a living breathing person?<br>
Margaret Bonanno: Oh, yes! I’ve had outright battles with some of my characters. Character: “You want me to put my life in danger here? I don’t think I want to do that.” Me: “It’s in the outline. Don’t be so stubborn.” Character: “Easy for you to say! You’re sitting there at your desk, and I’m the one who’s out the airlock. Nope, not doing it!” Most times you let them loose and see where they’re going. Sometimes they’re like balky children, and you have to be the Responsible Parent…<br>
Margaret Bonanno: “Listen, I’m the Omniscient Author here, right? I’ve got my finger poised over the Delete button. Don’t make me do this!”<br>
T-Mihn> lol. yep. as for the putting thwm i character building situations. they hate it after its done. they might forgive you.;)<br>


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[[Category:Writing Improvement Team|Tutorials]]
[[Category:Writing Improvement Team|Tutorials]]
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