A to Z: Quadrireme

I am sure there are some people in this A to Z Challenge who won't be able to come up with a word for the letter "Q".  I am also sure there are some people who will take the easy way out and pick a word like quirky, or quick, or even quaint and make a delightful post about their letter "Q" word.  But not me.  I went all out and picked Quadrireme.  The picture is a wee bit off, but gives a good hint as to what the word means.  Quadrireme is another word for an ancient ship with four sets of oars...although this picture shows many more.  And how can I tie THAT into my writing?  Funny you should ask...

I think of my picture book stories as the ship itself and the four sets of oars as the four parts that make up the whole. One set of oars is PLOT because we all know without that, there IS no story.  One set of oars is the CHARACTERS who must struggle and overcome great obstacles. One set of oars is ILLUSTRATION or the very pictures supporting the story line.  The last set of oars is AUTHOR'S VOICE which identifies the story as my own.  With these sturdy oars my ship can sail calm seas until it finds a safe harbor at some nice little publishing house...

Quiet!  There's A Canary In The Library
Written by: Don Freeman
Illustrated by: Don Freeman
Ages: 3-8
ISBN: 0670062308
Teaser:  Cary daydreams one day of being a librarian so she can invite all the animals to the special bird and beast day at the library.  But what happens when mice scamper in and upset the elephant?  How will Cary restore order?  And who is her little helper?

What's A Plotter To Do?

There are so many factors to creating a good story for a writer to consider.  Strong characters, showing not telling, and writing for a specific target audience are some of them.  But what about the overall plot?  Can a novice writer focus on the other parts of a great story, only to overlook a key element? When in the  middle of revisions, do you sometimes come across one of these situations?

The Run Around...does your plot seem to go in all different directions or even take you in circles until you are left with a dizzying headache?  Readers need to know there is a beginning, middle, and eventual end to a story.  It's one thing to take them on an adventure and quite another to lead them on a wild goose chase where they get lost along the way.

Playing Dead...is your overall plot so boring and slow that it simply dies somewhere along the way?  Readers need to be fully engaged in a story.  From the first sentence to the last, a writer's challenge is to draw their audience into the story and keep the reader on the edge of their seat while they wonder what will happen next.

A strong plot is just as vital to a story as an engaging main character or active dialogue.  It is the foundation which holds all the pieces together.  Without it, a writer might be able to finish that manuscript but it will never make it past the slush pile.  With it, it's amazing what great feats that story will actually be able to accomplish...