The “goodies” that winners of the challenge receive include a  congratulatory video featuring the staff of the Office of Letters and Light (which runs the contest), downloadable “winner” badges like the one pictured here, and a PDF certificate you can download, customize with your name and your novel’s name, then print and (if you like) frame.

I ordered my “winner shirt” from them.  This is a standard T-shirt which features a variation on the image shown above.  (Costs $20.00 with profits funding next year’s event.)

On December 2, winners receive a promotional code from Amazon.com’s “CreateSpace” service and the developers of the “Scrivener” software.  The CreateSpace code allows you to print a paperback copy of your book for free, one that looks like any paperback you might find on the shelves at a local bookstore.  The Scrivener code provides a 50% discount on their novel writing software (which I used to great effect this year on Windows and have previously purchased for the Macintosh).

My novel isn’t finished yet, but I’m planning to complete it now and edit it some time in the next few weeks.  Then I’ll have CreateSpace print a copy I can put on the shelf.

On the other hand, I have a much better handle on where I need the story to go this year than I did last year.  I have a set of scenes plotted out in Scrivener and all I really need to go is go back and write them.  Motivating myself to do that is, and has typically been, the greatest challenge for me.  There’s a part of me that feels like once I’ve outlined the story and fleshed it out a bit, it’s “done” and there’s no point continuing to write.  That’s silly, of course, but it’s how my mind works.  Yesterday I managed to push quite a bit of text out.  On 11/25, I was counting about 11,000 words of notes in my total.  Today, with over 42,000 words as my total, I am counting only finished words in the draft.  So I’ve managed to crank out over 10,000 words today alone, which is pretty darned good.

But is it good enough to reach 50,000 by November 30?  We’ll have to see.

While this is good as far as the challenge is concerned, I was really hoping to be at the 40,000 word (or higher) mark at this point, so I am disappointed in my progress.

Also true is that I’m counting 11,997 words of character notes, background material, and scene descriptions in the total, so my finished word count is much closer to 20,000 (which means I’m actually behind the 26,667 word point I should be at by now.  That’s also disappointing.

Fortunately, however, I am taking all of next week off.  While I am doing this in part to relax, spend time with family, and do some holiday shopping, I’m also doing it to start kicking out the word count.  I’m hoping that at the end of next week I’ll be well above 50,000 words of “finished product” and moving closer to my 80,000 word goal.  Time will tell, however.

I was pleased to learn last week that the makers of one of my favorite writing tools, Scrivener, have announced the upcoming release of a Windows version of the software.  I own the Mac version, and it was in fact the reason I looked for a Mac when I purchased my last laptop.  Normally, I have no use for the Macintosh operating system.  (It’s not that I have any particular problem with the Mac, it’s more that I switched to Windows in 1998 and I haven’t had a compelling reason since then to switch back – Scrivener included.)

I’ve been using the free public beta of Scrivener for Windows since I found out about it.  For Nanowrimo 2010 I had been using the open source Storybook software which is fairly similar and works on Windows, Mac, and Linux.  The Scrivener beta has so far been very reliable and hasn’t crashed, though it has exhibited a couple of bugs that I’ve reported to the development team.  I expect to complete this novel entirely in Scrivener now and to acquire the final released version in 2011 when it comes out.  If you don’t have a favorite writing environment you might want to check it out, especially since it’s free at the moment.

Well, I’d better get to cranking out today’s words…

Those who complete this goal will be dubbed “Winners” and will get some token prizes.  These include a printable certificate with your name, graphics (similar to the one at the left) to post on your site, and discounts with a number of merchants who offer products and services for writers.  The most significant freebie you get is the opportunity to have Amazon.com’s “CreateSpace” service produce a printed paperback copy of your finished NaNoWriMo novel.  I didn’t take advantage of that particular benefit last year because I never got the novel finished and what I had in those 50,000 words (to be quite honest) was terrible.

This year, I started preparing in September.  I began writing my notes and character sketches, and even fired up a copy of Dramatica Pro 4.0 to help me brainstorm and gather my thoughts.  My plan this year is to actually complete the entire novel (which will likely be more like 80,000 words) and have something I can officially print into book form via CreateSpace.

If you’d like to follow my progress on the book, here’s the link to my profile on the site.  (The site’s been really, really slow lately, so don’t be surprised if it doesn’t work that well.)

Several months ago, I analyzed a large number of software reviews from a variety of sources.  This included magazines, leading computer web sites like CNet and PC World, and informal reviews posted by hobbyists on web forums.  From that analysis, I compiled a structure for software reviews and a variety of tips for doing a fairly professional job of reviewing a software product.

Software Review Structure

I used a mind mapping tool to help me organize my thoughts and observations.  In the end, I decided that software reviews should follow the basic structure outlined below:

• • A “50-foot view” or very short overview of the review results
  • Description of the software (its purpose, functionality)
  • The installation process
  • The user interface
  • What the software is like to use
  • How it compares with other products
  • How it compares with previous versions of itself
  • What its documentation and tech support is like
  • How it’s licensed and if demo/trial versions exist
  • What its technical specs are
  • What the specs are of the system you used to review the software
  • A conclusion summarizing the good and bad of the software

All of these parts aren’t necessary for every software review you do.  For example, if you’re looking at a program that has no competitors and you’re not familiar with its earlier versions, you wouldn’t bother to include a comparison to other products or to earlier versions.  Still, your goal will be to include as many of the above sections as you can authoritatively speak to.

Detailed Software Review Structure

For each of the points in the basic structure, I’ve developed a list of questions to ask yourself (and details you may want to include) to make sure you cover that particular point thoroughly.  Again, not all of these will apply to every review.  Think of them as a guideline.  Include what you think is relevant and useful for the package you’re reviewing, and leave out the stuff that’s not applicable, useful, or worth the time to research.

Below is the “fully expanded upon” list of points in the basic review structure:

• A “50-foot view” or very short overview of the review results
  • This should be just a very short list of bullet points, no complete sentences, and with the minimum number of words necessary to share the information.  Think of it as “If I had 15 seconds to tell someone about this software, what would I say to them?”
  • What are the product’s strengths, highlights, or best features?
  • What are the product’s weaknesses, problems, or frustrating details?
  • In 2-3 sentences, what would you tell someone who wants to buy this product or one like it?
  • This can include a 5-star or x-out-of-10 rating if you want it to
• Description of the software (its purpose, functionality)
  • What does it do?
  • What features does it include?
• The installation process
  • How long does it take to install?
  • Were there any problems installing it and getting it working?
  • Does it have any copy protection?
  • If there is copy protection, is it convenient or frustrating to work with?
  • Does it uninstall cleanly if you decide to remove it?
• The user interface
  • Is it intuitive to use, or did you need to consult the help or manual?
  • Can keyboard shortcuts, menus, etc., be customized to suit your needs?
  • Does the interface look modern or “dated”?
• What the software is like to use
  • How long does it take to launch the software and make it usable?
  • What file formats does it read and/or write?
  • Is there anything you found annoying about using it?
  • Is there anything you found especially fun or cool about using it?
  • Are there plug-ins, extensions, themes, or other “add-ons” you can get for it?
  • Did you find any security concerns (e.g., passwords stored in visible text form)?
  • Are there ample keyboard shortcuts?
  • Did you run into any glitches?
  • Does it integrate well with other products?
  • Is it easy to get patches/updates and install them?
  • Is any kind of automation built-in (scripts, macros, etc.)?
  • How long does it typically take you to do whatever it is the software does?
• How it compares with other products
  • Do they have features this product doesn’t?
  • Does it have features they don’t?
  • Is the other product easier, harder, or about the same to use?
  • Is it more or less expensive than the other product?
  • How do the other products technical requirements (CPU, RAM, etc.) compare?
  • What’s the other product’s “footprint” (RAM, CPU, hard disk usage) in comparison?
  • Is it faster or slower than the competitor?
• How it compares with previous versions of itself
  • What features have been added in this version?
  • Have any features been taken away?
  • Are any existing features harder to use now?
  • Are any existing features easier to use now?
  • How do the technical specifications compare with the old version?
  • How does the user interface compare?
  • Is it faster or slower than previous versions?
• What its documentation and tech support is like
  • Is the manual thorough?
  • Is the manual easy to understand?
  • Is tech support available?
  • How do you access tech support?
  • Is there an online knowledgebase on the manufacturer’s web site?
  • Were tech support staff professional, courteous, and helpful?
  • How much support comes with the product, if any?
  • Does there seem to be a big user community? (Search for web forums, newsgroups, or mailing lists where people share information about the software.)
• How it’s licensed and if demo/trial versions exist
  • Is it commercial, shareware, or freeware?
  • What are the license terms?
  • Is a trial or demo version available? If so, what’s missing from the trial/demo?  How long does the trial/demo last?
  • What does it cost to license?
  • Who sells licenses to the software, and who develops it?
  • Are there multiple variants (e.g., Basic, Advanced, and Pro versions)?  If so, consider a table showing which features are in which variant to help readers identify which one they need.
• What its technical specs are
  • CPU required, recommended
  • RAM required, recommended
  • Hard disk space required, recommended
  • Peripherals required, recommended
  • Operating system(s) supported and versions supported (e.g., Windows 2000/XP/Vista, Mac OS X 10.3 through 10.5)
  • Does it need a network connection?
  • Does it need anything else not specifically listed above?

• What the specs are of the system you used to review the software
  • CPU, RAM, hard disk, optical drive, video card, OS, etc.
  • How did the review system compare to the recommended specs
• A conclusion summarizing the good and bad aspects of the software
  • This should be about a paragraph or two long and summarizes the highlights of all the above points.  It should finish with a recommendation (or not) for the software relative to what you get for the money, how well it does what it’s supposed to do, and so forth.

If you manage to follow this basic structure, you’ll write a review that’s thorough, detailed, and useful.  Your readers should find pretty much whatever they’re looking for in that review.

The above structure probably would not work well for video games or hardware.  It’s oriented more toward application software and utilities.

Jim DiGriz would not appear to be a sympathetic character at first glance.  He is a career criminal.  He makes his living stealing from others, eluding the police, and committing any number of other crimes.  Yet, almost from the first page, you find yourself liking Slippery Jim.  Why?

To be certain, Jim has a few imperfections aside from his chosen profession:

• • He’s very smug and sure of himself. When he disables the police robot that tries to arrest him in the opening scene, we are told “He squashed very nicely, thank you.”  Later, when the robot tries to grab him on the way out of the office, Jim says “I had been waiting for that and they [the robot fingers] closed about two inches short.”  When he hears the police sirens outside, it’s “a wonderful sound” and he tells us that “I accepted it as any artist accepts tribute.”   At one point, he tells us “The very idea that someone could outthink me was odious.”
  • He has little respect for authority or the police. When describing the reaction to his escape, he says “They were sure making a big fuss over a little larceny, but that’s the way it goes on these overcivilized worlds. Crime is such a rarity now that the police really get carried away when they run across some. In a way I can’t blame them, giving out traffic tickets must be an awful dull job.  I really believe they ought to thank me for putting a little excitement in their otherwise dull lives.”  When he meets the leader of The Special Corps, the elite government unit that hunts down people like him, DiGriz describes him as “The old boy behind the desk”.
  • He doesn’t see his actions as harmful. In addition to thinking that the police should thank him for giving them some excitement, Jim also mentions that no one is really harmed by his crimes.  If he robs a bank or a business, for example, he figures they’re reimbursed by their insurance company so no one really got hurt.  What about the insurance company?  They’ve lost money, and they’re probably going to raise the victim’s insurance rates, too.

Still, Jim DiGriz is a sympathetic and likable character.

Bestselling author Michael A. Stackpole says that there are seven traits that tend to make characters likable:

• • They are admirable.
  • They are “in control”.
  • They are virtuous.
  • They are “human”.
  • They exhibit courage.
  • They seem like “a force of nature”.
  • Reading about them is a kind of “guilty pleasure”.

How does Slippery Jim stack up to this list?

• • He is admirable in spite of himself. Jim is creative, telling us “One of the main reasons I have stayed out of the arms of the law for as long as I have, is that I have never repeated myself.  I have dreamed up some of the sweetest little rackets, run them off once, then stayed away from them forever after.”  He becomes more admirable when he joins The Special Corps and agrees to take down the more dangerous, homicidal killers.
  • He is “in control” by virtue of being a skilled planner and sharp thinker. In the opening scene, he knew a police robot would come for him and had already prepared the large safe and explosive charge in the ceiling to drop onto its head, disabling the radio that would call for backup.  He had an escape panel in the wall, knew how long it would take to make it through various parts of his escape route, etc

  The early scene where he’s prepared his escape shows him to be in control.  The fact that his carefully considered plan to trap Pepe and Angelina worked, up until the point he let her escape (showing his “human” side), illustrates this.

  In most situations, in fact, Jim is a “take charge” guy who not only tends to bring others around to his way of thinking but also has a strong handle on his own emotions.  At various times he tells us “I stifled that train of thought before it started”, and “Think first, then act.” when he’s feeling paralyzed with fear

  • He is virtuous, in his own way. Throughout all of his criminal exploits, Jim has never killed anyone.  This is confirmed during his “interview” with Inskipp.  Jim tells Inskipp that he hasn’t killed anyone that he knows of.  Inskipp confirms this by saying “Well you haven’t, if that will make you sleep any better tonight.  You’re not a homicidal, I checked that on your record before I came out after you…”We see evidence of this non-violent nature throughout the book.  Jim’s weapon of choice for incapacitating foes is a gas grenade.  He uses them on the occupants of the armored car he steals, on pursuers inside the department store, and elsewhere.  During the chase in the department store, he tells us that he “put an entire clip of slugs through the door, aiming high so I wouldn’t hurt anyone.”Even when he short-changes a cab drive “to break the monotony” he tells us “the tip I gave him more than made up the loss”… showing that he can’t steal from individuals.
  • He is human. During the armored car scenes, we see Jim make his first mistake, failing to realize that the same trucks were going in and out of the parking lot. Later, when he finds himself in the office with Inskipp, he is asked “Don’t tell me you thought it was an accident that you ended up here?”  His response is “I had, up until that moment, and the lack of intelligent reasoning on my part brought on a wave of shame that snapped me back to reality.  I had been outwitted and outfought, the least I could do was surrender graciously.”Later, when he catches up to Angelina and Pepe, Angelina (the mastermind) pretends to be a victim of Pepe’s evil schemes (when in reality the opposite is true).  When Pepe tells him that the whole plan was Angelina’s and he’s just let her get away, he says “The cold feeling was now a ball of ice that threatened to paralyze me.  ‘You’re lying,’ I said hoarsely, and even I didn’t believe it.”  This won’t be the last time Angelina fools with Jim during the story.
  • He exhibits courage. Jim goes through several tense moments escaping from the police in the early scene, including walking across a plank between two tall buildings with no safety precautions.  He sets himself up as a potential victim for Pepe and Angelina, even though they shot a hole through a previous victim’s shop.  In fact, Jim exhibits courage consistently throughout the story.
  • The book itself is a “guilty pleasure”. There are many people who enjoy reading about criminal capers because they enjoy secretly imagining themselves to be the ones in the stories.  For example, they vicariously live the thrill of cracking a safe, robbing a bank, or running an elaborate con.  The Stainless Steel Rat books (there are at least 10) are told in first person perspective, making it even easier for a reader to imagine being Jim DiGriz.

So, by Stackpole’s guidelines, Harrison has done a great job establishing Jim DiGriz as a likable, sympathetic character.  What might be equally interesting would be to see how Harrison turns Angelina from a psychotic, cold-hearted killer into a doting wife and mother.  However, that doesn’t happen in this book.  It will have to be a topic for a later article.

In Part 4, I’m going to examine Harrison’s use of Dialogue and Description in the novel to paint images of the characters, scenes, and action.

I thought it might help to investigate some of the many software packages available for writers of fiction, to see if these would help guide me through the planning phases of my novel writing and perhaps help me to better flesh out my ideas.

Over the past couple of months, I’ve become aware of many software tools of value to fiction writers (some of these include Windows, Linux, and Macintosh versions, others are Windows only).  The Fiction and Novel Writing Software List below is the result of my research:

• Black Obelisk Software’s “Liquid Story Binder”: This Windows-only application is rather daunting for first-time users. It incorporates character dossiers, timelines, storyboards, journals, outlines mind maps, and more. It probably has every tool you would want, and although I own two licenses to it (long story, involving keeping bad records) I’ve yet to actually really learn it.
• Richard Salsbury’s (no relation) “RoughDraft”: This is a donationware word processor designed for writers. Richard stopped development on it in December 2009.
• Anthemion Software’s “Writer’s Café”: This application promises to include “everything you need to write fiction”. It features drag and drop cards to help you lay out a storyline, auto-formatting for screenplays, various built-in writing resources like writing prompts and an e-book of author Harriet Smart’s writing experiences.
• Write Brothers’ “Dramatica Pro 4.0”: I purchased an inexpensive copy of this from eBay a few weeks ago. I’ve decided to use its StoryGuide feature to make the first cut through my NaNoWriMo 2010 novel idea. I may supplement with other software later.
  
• Typing Chimp Software’s “Character Writer”: This looks like a pretty helpful tool for fleshing out a fictional character. It asks questions about the character’s mental health, personality type, psychology, childhood, dialogue style, relationships, etc..
• Space Jock Software’s “yWriter5”: This free software, created by an author, helps a writer track characters, chapters, scenes, locations, etc..
• StoryCraft: This software has been on the market for 15 years, and purportedly guides you through the story development process, helps outline it, improve character development, etc..
• Ravenshead Services’ “WriteItNow”: Includes storyboarding, monitoring your progress against writing targets, a thesaurus, a built-in editor, a “tree view” look at your work, and character profiles.
• StyleWriter: This application is a “style and usage checker” for writers that plugs into Microsoft Word on Windows. It looks for things like jargon, abstract words, passive verbs, clichés, and long sentences.
• Write Brain’s “PowerWriter”: This program includes integrated outlining, story development tools, integrated dictionary and thesaurus, and integrated storage of research.
• Write Brain’s “Power Structure”: This software is supposed to encourage writers to think through their stories. It helps the writer graphically analyze the evolution of conflicts in the story, organize story points in an index card style view, and supposedly acts as a “playground of the mind” for exploring the story you’re writing.
• NewNovelist: This product claims that you can use it to write a novel “your way” whether that means starting with the characters, the ending, or something in the middle. There isn’t a lot of detail about the software on the site, but there are a lot of linked reviews and testimonials from people who have used it. (I reviewed the 2.0 version on this site.)
• Fahim Farook’s “PlotCraft”: Described as a “complete idea/research management database utility for writers” this free software allows you to storage and save ideas for later use, including hyperlinks and images.
• Storybook: This free, open source software helps a writer organize characters, story strands, locations, and other details. It features a chronological view of the story, as well as a “book” view and “chapter/scene” view.
• Anthemion Software “Storylines”: This looks like it may be a defunct product, from the same folks who produce Writer’s Café. It is a storyboarding tool that helps organize the plot of a fictional story.  My biggest gripe about this software is it’s appearance.  It reminds me of one of those “child’s computer desktop” packages that tries to simulate a computer inside an application.
  
• Ashley Software’s “Writer’s Blocks 3”: Claiming to be “The Smartest Way to Write”, this software encourages the writer to create “blocks” of text that can be rearranged to better structure the story. It helps outline, organize research, structure the content, and more.
• wikidPad: This free open source software is designed to be a “wiki-like notebook” for storing thoughts, ideas, lists, contacts, etc. on your computer. It features text auto-completion, document history, auto save, search and replace, export to HTML, and more.
• WordWeb: This software is offered in free and Pro versions. It is described as a “comprehensive one-click English thesaurus and dictionary for Windows”. It can look up words, show their definitions, synonyms, and related words. It also includes pronunciations and usage examples.
• WriteSparks: This software can reportedly generate over 10 million story ideas to help you come up with a story idea when you need one. (I haven’t had any trouble with that so far.)
• Fahim Farook’s “WriteTrack”: This is a submission-tracking tool for writers, to help them keep a handle on where they’ve submitted their work, when, etc..
  
• Spacejock Software’s “yEdit”: This looks like an ideal tool for NaNoWriMo. You set a target number of words to write, and the software tracks your progress toward that goal. It’s free of charge, too.
• WriteWay Pro: Includes book organization, outlining, composition, dictionary, thesaurus, notecards, character profiles and templates, word/page count tracking, reports and statistics, storyboarding, research folders, and more.
• Celtx: This software is described as “the world’s first all-in-one media pre-production system”. It includes screenplay, stageplay, AV script, audio play, comic book, and plain text editors. It contains storyboarding, sketching, document management, and more. Although aimed at screenwriters, it’s of value to all kinds of writers. I’ve seen this one being sold on eBay.
• The Literary Machine: This software is described as a “dynamic archive and an idea management tool aimed at creative thinking” for writers.
• Outline 4D for Windows: Outlining software for fiction, playwriting, and screenwriting.
• Literature and Latte’s Scrivener:  This software, a product of Literature and Latte Ltd., is my current tool of choice for novel writing activities.  While the current version is Mac-only, there are free public betas of Windows and Linux (at the bottom of the Windows page) versions available as of April 2011. I posted a review of the Scrivener for Windows beta on the site.
• Dramatica Pro:  This software is kind of “story brainstorming on steroids”.  You start by making some selections about the kind of story you want to write, and Dramatica helps guide you through the plotting and characterization to produce a well-fleshed-out story.
• Sol Stein’s WritePro:  Helps you flesh out characters, plot, etc.
• Fiction Master:  A more-advanced version of WritePro.
• Book Writer:  A word processor for creative writers.
• StoryView: Outlining software for writers.
• Serenity Software’s Editor: Proofreading and style checking tool for writers.
• Ashleywilde Software’s Storybase: Given information about your characters and their mindsets, it generates a list of plot ideas you might want to use.  They are currently beta testing an online version of the tool: Storybase.net
• MasterWriter: Word/phrase finding software which claims to help you find the right word or phrase for any situation.
• Melanie Ann Philips’ Storyweaver:  Provides step by step guidance to completing a story.
• Storyist: Mac-only story development software
• StoryO:  Story development software that resembles index cards
• Storymind Software’s Master Storyteller:  Having not actually used it, and not seeing a lot of detail on the vendor’s web site, it looks like a set of “flash cards” with tips and tricks to help you tell stories better.  They describe it as a set of interactive exercises.

And there are probably many more out there with which I’m not familiar.  It would be a very easy thing for a fledgling novelist to get bogged down for months examining and trying out all this software… and not actually doing any writing.  As a computer and gadget geek, I’m doubly susceptible to this.  I’ve had to be careful not to spend all my time trying to find the “right” package and actually do some WRITING with the tools.

There are also many excellent free and open source writing tools that you may find valuable.

Over the next few weeks and months, I hope to take the time to at least “play around” with each of the above packages (and any others I encounter).  When I feel that I have a firm enough grasp on any of them to be able to review it competently, I’ll share my thoughts here.

I’ve spent the most time with Dramatica Pro 4.0 so far, so it’s likely I’ll cover that one next.

One program I am finding very useful is Microsoft OneNote 2010.  As I read useful writing tips or come up with story ideas I want to pursue, I drop them into OneNote.

In any case, the above list may be helpful to you if you’re looking for some software to add structure and organization to your fiction writing efforts.

Analyzing the Chapter “Hooks”

I’ve been told that if you want your novel to be a real page turner, there are a few simple techniques that can help you achieve that. First, start each chapter with a “hook” that gets the reader asking questions like “Who is this? Why did that happen?” End each chapter with a cliff hanger of sorts that makes the reader wonder what’s next. If you also keep chapters close to an average length of around 2,500 words, most readers can get through one fairly quickly. They’ll get to the end of the chapter they’re reading and think, “That last chapter went pretty quick. I wonder what will happen next. I’ll just read one more chapter before I quit.” This cycle continues chapter after chapter, and soon the reader has finished the whole book. With this thinking in mind, I took a look at how Harrison started and ended the 19 chapters in The Stainless Steel Rat. (For me, the book has always been a page-turner.)

Chapter 1 starts off with a pretty strong hook:

When the office door opened suddenly I knew the game was up. It had been a money-maker — but it was all over. As the cop walked in I sat back in the chair and put on a happy grin. He had the same somber expression and heavy foot that they all have — and the same lack of humor. I almost knew to the word what he was going to say before he uttered a syllable.

At once, the reader starts asking questions. Who is telling me this? What money-making game is over? Why is a cop coming in, and why does that make the character smile? How does he know what the cop is going to say? The rest of the chapter explains that our main character is a career criminal who has been running a scam where cans of fruit stolen from a government warehouse are re-labeled by robots and sold to unwitting shopkeepers at great prices. He knows what the cop is going to say because it isn’t the first time they’ve tried to arrest him. The cliff hanger at the end of Chapter 1 is that although Jim has eluded the initial pursuit, he is still on the planet and might not get away.

Chapter 2 doesn’t a hook at the beginning. It takes some time to explain what our anti-hero is all about, how he views his life of crime as a sort of public service, and that there aren’t many like him in the galaxy. It ends with him on a different world, about to end a second criminal enterprise, only to realize that something isn’t right. Someone is looking for him.

Chapter 3 starts with Jim wondering who is after him, and trying to escape from them. It ends with him receiving an offer to join The Special Corps, an elite government agency that catches dangerous criminals and solves problems that individual planetary governments can’t. Jim sees this as “the end of loneliness”.

Chapter 4 shows Jim finding life in The Special Corps as a new recruit incredibly dull. It ends with him discovering a plot to build a nearly unstoppable battleship and being sent to investigate it.

Chapter 5 begins with a description of the planet Cittanuvo, on which the battleship is being built. It ends with the battleship taking off ahead of schedule and escaping, and Jim wondering how he’s going to catch it.

Chapter 6 is primarily there to slow down the frantic pace of action established in the earlier chapters. Jim spends time thinking about the mysterious people behind the battleship, what their motives might be, and how he might catch them. It ends with the cliff hanger that “the next four days passed very slowly”, leaving a reader to wonder what happened after that.

Chapter 7 ramps the action back up, with the battleship threatening Jim’s ship (which has been setup as a tempting robbery target). It ends with Angelina, who turns out to be the criminal mastermind behind the battleship’s construction, escaping. Jim realizes he’ll be seeing Angelina again.

Chapter 8 has Jim stealing a ship and heading out after Angelina. When an explosive device detonates on the ship just after Jim disconnects it, he realizes that he’s on his own now and can’t expect help from the Corps.

Chapter 9 sees Jim as an independent again, deciding how to find and capture Angelina. It ends with him finding her in a bar, pretending to be a prostitute.

Chapter 10 starts with Jim pretending to hire Angelina’s services following her back to her room. It ends with Jim realizing that this was a trap, and that she knew who he was. “Then, at the exact and ultimate moment of my maximum realization and despair she pulled the trigger. Not once, but over and over again. Four tearing, thundering bullets of pain directly into my heart. And a final slug directly between my eyes.” Naturally, the reader wonders how in the heck Jim can survive that.

Chapter 11 finds Jim coming around in an ambulance, groggy and in pain. He survived because of a bullet proof vest and a reflexive move to shield his head with his arms. He modifies his medical charts to appear dead on arrival and is taken to the morgue. He exits the hospital before being treated.

Chapter 12 finds Jim looking for a disgraced medical professional to help heal his wounds and perform plastic surgery on him. It ends with a realization that Angelina is mentally ill, and that he’ll have to “follow her down the path of insanity” if he hopes to catch her. This is another chapter that breaks the action for a bit.

Chapter 13 starts with Jim taking a combination of drugs to simulate Angelina’s various psychological issues. It ends with him passing out, after triggering a booby trap he set for himself to prevent him from taking human life in his psychotic state.

Chapter 14 begins with Jim realizing he’s in love with Angelina and that simulating her psychotic mind was intoxicating to him (“Even while detesting the thought I felt the desire for more of the same.”) It ends with executing the first step in plan to get her attention as a member of the planet’s royalty.

Chapter 15 starts with Jim in the royal prison wondering if he’ll ever get out. It ends with hooded figures breaking into the prison and pulling him out.

Chapter 16 finds Jim being introduced to Count Rdenrundt, who wants to take over the planet (presumably with Angelina’s help). There’s no way for Jim to know if Angelina is here or not, but he plays along anyway. It ends with him meeting Angelina and learning that he had killed the Count’s wife, only to cause her family to threaten revenge.

Chapter 17 has Jim wondering what to do. Should he turn Angelina in or stay with her? It ends with him learning that her psychotic nature was caused by childhood taunting over her ugliness, and Jim telling her that she’s not that little girl anymore (but slipping and calling her “Angelina” in the process).

Chapter 18 begins with some suspicion over an assassin sent to kill Angelina the night before. It ends with The Special Corps showing up and capturing Angelina, who thinks Jim was stalling her so that they could close in.

Chapter 19 explains that The Special Corps had been monitoring Jim all along, and waited to see what he did with Angelina before finally swooping in to capture her. It ends with Jim and Inkskipp believing they might be able to cure Angelina of her homicidal tendencies.

So we see that most of the chapters in the book follow the pattern. There is something of a mystery at the start of the chapter, and a question at the end that makes you wonder what will happen next. Chapters 6 and 12 serve as a kind of break in the action and provide readers with a chance to catch their breath.

The hooks are a bit subtle in some cases, but are present in nearly every chapter.

Coming Up in Part 3 – Characterization

In Part 3 of the analysis, I’m going to look at characterization. How does Harrison establish Jim DiGriz as a career criminal, yet a sympathetic and likable guy? How does he depict Angelina as a cold, calculating criminal, yet leave her sympathetic enough that Jim can fall in love with her? And how has Harrison set the stage for Angelina to become a major character in future Stainless Steel Rat novels?

Jesse dropped his newspaper on the table and looked at the others. They looked up from their eggs and bacon. Frank sipped his coffee.

“Says here this man got 18 years for killin’ his wife and kids,” Jesse announced. “Ask me, that’s better than payin’ child support.”

The others looked at each other and they saw they were all thinking the same thing. What a jerk. But he’s the boss, so what can we do? The waitress, wearing a red plaid uniform skirt and carrying a steaming pot of coffee, stepped over to their table.

“Can I freshen anyone up?”

Jesse looked up and smiled. “Me, honey.” His eyes traced her figure from neck to knees. He rubbed a palm on his jeans.

She stepped closer and tilted the coffee pot toward his cup. Jesse’s hand reached out toward her skirt. She stepped back out of reach. Jesse’s hand dropped to his lap. A smile flashed briefly on his lips. She stepped forward again and started to pour, but stopped when his hand moved toward her.

She put her left hand on her hip, and cocked her head to one side. “It’s hard to pour when I’m trying to stay away from your hand!”

“Honey, it ain’t nothing us truckers don’t do every day.”

She scowled at Jesse. “Well, you’re not doing it to me!” She walked over to the manager, who was now glancing at their table every few seconds.

Frank glared. “Why do you have to be like that, Jesse?”

The others’ eyes widened. Did he really say that?

Jesse glared, and made a noise like air escaping from a truck’s breaks. He sipped his coffee. His upper lip wrinkled.

“It’s cold.” He put the mug down and pushed it away.

“If you hadn’t tried to grope her, she’d have warmed it up.”

“Just havin’ a little fun, Frank.”

Frank looked down at his plate and moved the eggs around with his fork. If I didn’t need this job…

Jesse chuckled. “You sound like my ex-wife…”

Frank’s face reddened. “Well, it wasn’t your ex-wife that got caught in bed with that stripper from Rascals, was it?”

“Lorraine had it comin’.”

“How do you figure that, exactly?” He stared directly into Jesse’s eyes. He had to hear the old man wiggle out of this one.

“Wouldn’t give me any. Had to get it somewhere.”

Frank rolled his yes. The others hung their heads. “She was eight months pregnant, Jesse. Came in the front door holding your two-year-old daughter, pregnant with your son, and found you banging a stripper on the couch. Classy.”

“A man’s got needs. You wouldn’t know about that, I expect.”

Frank wanted to jump across the table and beat some sense into the old man, but it wasn’t worth it. He’d lose the job. The way the economy was, he might not find another for a while. With so many people out of work, no one was buying much, so there wasn’t much need for truckers to haul things around. He needed to calm down. He took a deep breath and released it slowly.

“Don’t you think Lorraine had needs, too?”

“I don’t know what she needed, but I know what she’s been gettin’ for the last ten years. Eight hundred bucks a month of my money. Can’t wait for them damned kids to turn eighteen and the court’s off my back.”

“They’re your kids, Jesse!”

“How do I know that?” Jesse stood up. “It’s time to get outta here. Frank, you’re haulin’ that load of manure up to Riley Farms. Joe, them TVs for Big Buy are yours. Marsha, I don’t have to tell YOU what to do.”

“No… Answer the phone, keep the books, and deposit the checks.”

“That’s right, darlin’. Lose a few pounds and maybe I can find something better for you to do.” He winked at her and grinned.

Pig! They picked up their bills, and walked to the cashier.

The waitress looked over at the empty table. Three of the place settings had tips next to them. Next to the fourth there was only a newspaper.

]]> http://mikesalsbury.com/2010/09/15/jesse/feed/ 0 http://mikesalsbury.com/2010/09/03/notes-from-stackpoles-writing-in-the-post-paper-era/ http://mikesalsbury.com/2010/09/03/notes-from-stackpoles-writing-in-the-post-paper-era/#comments Fri, 03 Sep 2010 05:07:38 +0000 mike http://mikesalsbury.com/2010/09/notes-from-stackpoles-writing-in-the-post-paper-era/ Continue reading →]]> At Gen Con 2010, I attended one of author Michael A. Stackpole’s seminars entitled “Writing Success in the Post-Paper Era”. The seminar description mentions that Stackpole was “the first author to offer fiction on the iPhone/iPod Touch through Apple’s App Store” and that he would give attendees “an up to date look at the digital revolution and explain how you can profit and develop your career”. He definitely delivered on that. Below are my notes:

• For every hardcopy book sold, two are printed.
• The economics of publishing are such that if 25% of the copies of a book sold are digital, publishers will drop the paper version.
• If you intend to make a living writing, you need a professional web site, a Facebook presence, and a Twitter feed. All of these will help get your name out there and draw people to your work.
• If you do a blog, everything you write, tweet, or post on Facebook should be entertaining. It should also be positive, and professional. All of these things become part of your image, and you want to present the image of an entertaining professional with a pleasant personality. If you come across as a moody jerk, a loser, or a person who sulks over all their rejection slips, that’s not going to help your reputation.
• You should be able to generate 500 words on pretty much any topic and make it entertaining. If you can’t, you probably shouldn’t be looking at writing as a career.
• A good, professional WordPress design will cost you $150-200. You should consider that an investment in your future, and not go with one of the free, cookie-cutter themes on the web. (Like the one I’m using here, I guess…)
• Buy domain names for yourself, your main character names, and book titles. That will make it easier for people to find your site and your work.
• Mr. Stackpole uses Zen Cart on his site to handle payments and shopping cart duty.
• Paypal can provide a good payment option for customers. Make sure you get a merchant account with them, though.
• Put writing samples on your web site. This will help readers who are new to you decide whether or not to buy your work.
• Non-technical documents/books priced at over $10 will pretty much not sell as e-books.
• Pricing recommendations based on his experience: $2 for up to 10,000 words. $3 for 10-40,000 words. $5 for 50,000+ words.
• He recommends a metric over “word count divided by 10,000″ to represent “hours of reading enjoyment” for your work. Price based on that metric and describe your content in that terminology. The term “pages” doesn’t really apply in a digitial setting. Even describing in “word count” doesn’t work. What you’re really selling is the hours of enjoyment someone will get from your work.
• Consumers tend to be more concerned about the time cost of entertainment than the money cost.
• We’ll start seeing more digital serial stories in the future, similar to TV episodes, that are sold for casual reading sessions and priced as above.
• The three main formats you should consider publishing your works in: PDF (optional), ePub (works for all devices except Kindle), and Kindle format. Those three formats should cover just about any e-reader your customer might have.
• Stackpole recommends “Legend Maker” software on the Mac for creating the eBooks.
• At some point there is probably going to be a “big collapse” of traditional publishing. Until then you have no reason not to submit your work to traditional publishers.
• Physical books will drive readers to your web site. That’s good. You get money from your web site faster. Publishers tend to pay 6-9 months after the sale of the book. Payment tends to be around $1.35 from the sale of a $10 paperback. Sell a $2 short story through your web site, and you’ll pocket around $1.67… so digital publishing is a better deal for the author. More money, sooner.
• As far as editing and proofing services, for a short story, it’s sufficient to have another writer look it over. For a novel, hire a freelance editor.
• A good strategy for offering samples on your site: Put up installments of a serial story free. Take them down after a week or two. Put up the next installment. Near the end, offer a digitial omnibus collection of the entire series, including the as-yet-unpublished installments. People will buy them to get the parts they’re missing and read the parts not available yet.
• In the digital age, there are no “established authors” anymore. You are as established as your web store.

Mr. Stackpole offers a “Digital Career Guide” for $30 through his web store that offers more detail, recommendations, and information. I purchased a copy at Gen Con but haven’t read it yet. I hope to publish a review when I do.