Plot Monkeys

We’ve been talking for the past few weeks about the upcoming holiday season–the food, the family, the parties, the happy moments, the joyful memories. And at the root of all of those things is an innate sense of well-being we all enjoy…things like the good health of our loved ones, the roof over our heads, the food on our table and the blessings we all share.

For Americans, some of that well being comes from knowing there are people out there, on the front lines, sacrificing their own personal lives–holidays with their families, graduations, birthdays, anniversaries, the births of their children, the first day of kindergarten for their little girl, or their son’s Little League triumph–so they can fulfill the duties their country has asked them to fulfill.

Whatever you feel about the politics of the whole thing, the truth is, there are thousands upon thousands of American soldiers sitting in tents or bunkers, hearing from their loved ones only through a computer screen in an occasional email or in a much-cherished package from home.

Many of them, from what I hear, don’t even have that much. They don’t get packages from home. And at this time of year, especially, we Plotmonkeys would like to try to do something to change that, for at least a few of those brave men and women.

And we’re asking you to help us.

Each one of us–Carly, Janelle, Julie and Leslie–are donating a gift box (or funds for one) for a soldier currently serving overseas, using one of several available charities. We’re asking any of our readers who have the means and the desire to do the same. Not only will you be doing a very good thing for someone, but most official donations are usually tax deductible.

And to sweeten the pot even more, we’re sponsoring a very special contest. Just make a donation of $10 or more to one of several “support our soldiers” charities–or “adopt a soldier” through a site like the one listed below, and you will be entered to win a great prize:

A $100 gift card to the online store of your choice, in time to use for the holidays!

Every $10 you donate gets you an additional entry.

To enter, just choose the method of your donation, then send us proof of it. If you donate money, email us a confirmation from the charity. If you prefer to fill a special box full of goodies, send us a photocopy of the store receipt, and one of the postage receipt showing you shipped a package to an APO/FPO address.

Emails entries should be sent to: plotmonkeyscontest@gmail.com

Snail mail should be sent to: Plotmonkeys, c/o Leslie Kelly, PO Box 1378, Frederick, MD 21702-0378

In order for the soldiers to receive gifts by Christmas, they must be sent by December 4, which is two weeks from today. (And it’s already too late for parcel post…it must be priority!) We’ll allow a few extra days for those of you mailing packages to get your receipts to us…we’ll need them by the end of that week, December 7. Quite an appropriate day to remember the men and women of our military, don’t you think?

The winner will be drawn that weekend and their name posted with our regular contest announcement on Sunday December 9.

Here are some ways you can donate. (The first 4 are all 501c corporations, meaning they are tax deductible!)

1. http://www.operationusocarepackage.org/site/pp.asp?c=ikLVJ7MSKvH&b=569653
You can sponsor a care packages from the USO for $25 and pay right online

2. http://soldiersangels.org/index.php?page=donate
Any financial donation is welcomed and can be made online, through Paypal

3. If you would prefer to donate to a group providing emergency aid and financial assistance to the families of deployed soldiers, click here: http://operationhomefront.net/donate.htm

4. http://www.packagesfromhome.org/donate/
Another organization where you can donate cash in any amount to help pay for those care packages.

5. This site gives you the name of an active service person and allows you to order a “box of treats” to be shipped directly to that person. (Note: This one does not clearly state that the donations are tax deductible)
http://www.treatsfortroops.com/foster/selection.php

6. If you want to pack a box of your own but don’t know who to send it to, check out this site. A radio station is sponsoring an Adopt A Soldier event–you can read your soldier’s bio, choose one, get his address and pack a box yourself. http://clear99.com/?page_id=289

Please note: We are not advocating any one charity…if you know of a specific soldier you would rather help, that’s fine. Just send us the copy of the store & postage receipts.

And if you personally know someone serving–and would like to suggest that person as a gift package recipient–please let us know! One of our generous Plotmonkey visitors (or one of the Monkeys!) might like to “adopt” him or her directly.

We do hope you’ll join us in this effort to make the holidays just a little bit brighter for somebody missing his family on the other side of the world. And feel free to keep us all updated on your progress–who you donated to and why!

I’ll start…I just donated to the Operation USO site. The USO has always seemed incredibly romantic to me–sexy GI’s, slim women in long, A-line skirts, singing songs like Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy…it appeals to my romantic and my theatrical sides!

So…ready, set go! Donate! Feel great about yourself! Enter!

And feel free to spread the word to your other blogs and friends, other writers, family members. The more entries, the better a holiday season for a bunch of lonely troops!

PS: Thought I’d share one of my favorite pictures. My cousin’s son served early in the war, and as a lark I sent him a romance novel in a care package. Turned out that thing got passed all around his unit…and all the guys begged for more! One day I got this picture in an email:

Is there anything sexier than a soldier who understands the value of reading romance novels, and learning what it is women really fantasize about???

It’s been awhile so I thought I’d update you all on Bailey, but she’d rather do it herself. She’s bossy that way!

Hi, all! I’m 8 month old now. I’ve been living with my family for 6 months. It’s hard to believe the time has passed so fast! I figured first I would show you pictures of the day I came home and me today I just had a haircut) - and some other family photos. Afterall, Thanksgiving is all about family.
Here’s mine:

Can you believe both of these pictures are little old me???
Here’s my family album so to speak!
MY MOMMY
(both of them)

MY Brother BUDDY

There’s more, but I’ll stop there because I’d rather talk more about ME!
I’m quite a polite little girl … just look at how I cross my paws.
And here I am again with my favorite stuffed toy. My sister Jackie named it Squirrelly Face - as if that would make me go fetch it?
I might have arrived here late compared to Buddy and he might get his food first and be allowed out the door before me, but believe me, I’ve taken over. Who do you think is in charge of the toys in this house? Buddy chews his, I take it. Mom gives Buddy my toy, I take that one back. She gives him his original one? That’s right, I grab it back. No one is going to mess with me. Of course sometimes I end up on the short end of the leash, hooked to the dresser or put in my crate while the big dumb ass gets free reign of the house. You’d think he’d take advantage, but no. I whine a little. Woof. Sound pathetic. And Buddy comes running to sit beside me. Yep, who’s calling the shots here?
AGAIN, THAT WOULD BE ME.


BUDDY SPEAKS
Can you believe this girl’s nerve? We all know I’m King. If I want to sleep in my mom and dad’s bed, all I have to do is keep myself clean, look pathetic and I’m THERE. She’s stuck in the crate. I’m fed first. What does that say? Everything if you ask me. Take my toys? I give them to her. If I wanted to take them back, I have her by ten pounds and a good many inches. I could take her if I wanted to. I choose to let her think she’s in charge. Isn’t that what all men do? It’s the smart, easy way to live, Man. Do I look like the servant or the king? Don’t answer that. It’s a rhetorical question.
AND NOW FOR YOUR VIEWING PLEASURE:

I’ll end now, assuming you’ve had your fill of me.
Yeah, right. Anyway, I just wanted to wish you all an early :happythanks: from me, Miss Full of Herself, Mom and the rest of the family. Remember to
EAT :turkey:
DRINK
and
BE MERRY :vibrating:

Julie’s Jungle Madness winner is Minna, comment # 2!

Please send me your address to julie @ julieleto.com, along with your request for a title from my backlist. I’m not sure what’s available until you ask, so give me a couple to choose from. Many of my books are currently in storage.

Congratulations!

And now for the funny…sounds like a page from my future life… (Click to get the larger size.)

About a month ago, I finally picked up a book that had been on my TBR pile for WAY too long–I’D TELL YOU I LOVE YOU, BUT THEN I’D HAVE TO KILL YOU by Ally Carter. I’d heard such fabulous things about her from multiple sources…including on her agent’s blog and from Carly. Well, all the rumors about Ally’s brilliance were truer than true. As soon as I finished the book, I went right out and purchased the follow up to this book, which made the NEW YORK TIMES, then begged Carly to exploit her friendship with Ally to get her over here to Plotmonkeys for a guest blog!!
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A MOVIE LOVER’S GUIDE TO WRITING NOVELS

First I’d like to thank the lovely Carly Phillips for inviting me to guest blog here at PlotMonkeys. It’s so excited being asked!

I’ve thought long and hard about what I wanted to talk about—what aspect of the biz really pushes my buttons and the lessons I’ve learned in the last few years that I really wish someone had told me a long time ago.

But in the end I decided to go back to the beginning—the very beginning—to the first things I ever wrote and the first lessons I ever learned about writing…screenplays.
That’s right. I’m a recovering screenwriter. I had teenage dreams of houses in the Hollywood Hills and star-studded premieres. I read books on screenplay structure and formatting. I watched old movies with a copy of the script in my lap and a highlighter in my hand and prayed for an agent and a deal with a big studio.

Then I got real.

There are literally thousands of screenplays written every year but only a few dozen movies released by major studios, so it was pretty easy to see that the odds of having a book published—while still long—were significantly better than ever seeing my stories on film.

And most of all, I realized that writing books was a better fit for me and my writing style. At first I was afraid I’d wasted those early years writing those (incredibly bad) screenplays. But now, as I look back on it, writing (incredibly bad) screenplays was a great way to learn how to write (hopefully better) books.

So that has made me think about the things that movies and novels have in common and here are the top 10 things that this movie-lover learned about writing novels. They’ve certainly helped me. And here’s hoping it helps you as well.

1. Novels and movies both tell stories–that’s their function and why we lay down money and/or invest our time in them.

2. Point of view is the first story-telling decision the story-teller must make. Now, of course you have to decide on the story itself–but how to tell the story starts with POV. Get the wrong one and you’ll fight an uphill battle from day one!

3. Character–EVERYTHING ties to character. An old screenwriting test is to cover up all the character names and see if, from dialogue alone, you can tell who’s speaking. If not, your characters aren’t unique enough. Are there two characters you can combine? If so, why haven’t you? Make ‘em special—they’re your ambassadors.

4. Show don’t tell—This term is frequently used by screenwriters, but novelists keep it in mind too. In fact, it’s probably easier for a screenwriter to see and fix this problem. With novels, everything is technically “told”. What the adage is getting at, however, is our tendency to do the audience’s work for them.

Don’t TELL the reader, “Gloria had a bad day thanks to a rumor started by her ex-best friend who had recently stolen Gloria’s husband.” Instead, SHOW Gloria kicking a potted plant or slamming a door. Movie makers know that audiences only know what they see with their eyes and hear with their ears. If more novelists would keep that in mind, I think we could finally put the “show don’t tell” problem to rest.

5. Stories are ultimately a string of scenes. George Lucas has said that a great film is simply sixty great two minute scenes. Jack Nicholson has said that he’ll do any movie where his character has three great scenes and no bad scenes.

So, what are your three great scenes? Does all of your story take place within the context of a scene? If not, you may need to revisit number five above.

6. Amazing stories always have both internal and external struggles. Take the movie Rocky for instance. Rocky wants to make something of himself. He wants to find love. He wants to prove that he matters. How does he do it? By fighting the heavyweight champion of the world. If you’re all internal it’s boring, and if you’re all external it’s shallow. Strive for both.

7. Plot points are the scenes or events that “hook” into a story and spin it in another direction. In a classic three act structure, the first major plot point would be the thing that kicks off the main conflict of the story. You’ll have a lot of smaller plot points along the way as your characters strive toward their goals, but there is usually one big plot point near the end that sets up your final act.

8. Goal—this is what the characters want—not the physical item they desire but the outcome. It’s what everyone is working toward.

9. The MacGuffin is Albert Hitchcock’s term for “the item of importance that everyone wants, upon which the plot turns.” A great example is the microfilm in North By Northwest.

Now, nothing ever comes of the microfilm, but it keeps Cary Grant going all over the country—it gives everyone a reason to have the next scene. If your story is stalled, asked yourself “what’s my MacGuffin?”

10. Tasks are obviously the things that must be done in pursuit of your satisfying outcome (goal) to acquire your MacGuffin. Take Lord of the Rings for Example. The Ring is a textbook MacGuffin. The task is to destroy the ring by achieving a bunch of other tasks along the way. If your scenes don’t have tasks—well—why are you writing them?

Following these storytelling tips won’t assure a writer of a six-figure Hollywood film option, but keeping them in mind might help you to create and execute a story that will give you a leg up when it comes time to navigate the tricky sub-rights waters.

I’m thankful for cookies…because really, who doesn’t love a great cookie? These are from Mrs. Fields…and even if they don’t quite arrive in time for Thanksgiving, they’re cute! And there are brownies inside, too! 18 Nibblers® cookies, 12 Brownie Bites, and two frosted cookies. Yum! Post a comment. US residents only (non-US are eligible for the Amazon Giftcard!)…and only one entry per address!

I’ll throw in a backlist book…depending on availability!

Oh! And the winner of the ARC of PHANTOM PLEASURES is Alison #4! Send me an email (julie @ julieleto.com) and I’ll post it ASAP!

Come back Sunday to see who got the cookies!

On Tuesday, Leslie posted about the feast and food side of Thanksgiving. Today I’d like to know how everyone plans to spend their Thanksgiving day. Normally, every year Don and I switch from his family, to mine. This year we would have been spending Thanksgiving with my family . . . but instead we’re spending it alone.

This year, my parents and Don’s parents will be a on an European cruise together during Thanksgiving. Lucky them! The four of them get along really well and often take cruises together. So, we won’t be going to our parent’s house for our Turkey dinner. Don’s sister is going to be with a good friend for the day, and my brother is going to be in Texas visiting his son (who goes to Texas A&M) during the long Thanksgiving weekend. This is the first year ever that we’ve spent Thanksgiving without any family!

So, I think we’ll be heading to a restaurant for our Thanksgiving meal. Not sure where yet, but my oldest daughter, Danielle (the non-vegetarian) wants steak instead of turkey, so we’ll try and accomodate her.

Since the four of us will be together for the day, I thought it would be fun for us to catch a movie, too. I’m not sure what we’ll see or even what is out in the theaters right now, but there has got to be some kind of fun holiday movie to see! Like Fred Claus, or maybe Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium - - both of which look like a lot of fun. My girls want to see Saw IV, but I don’t do blood and gore movies, so they’ll have to go and see that one on their own!

So, how are you spending your Thanksgiving? Will you be with family, or are you going to a friend’s house? Or are you hosting the big day? Will you be doing all the cooking, or is your Thanksgiving day a potluck kind of affair? Since I won’t be having a traditional Thanksgiving this year, I’ll have to live vicariously through your plans!

A few weeks ago, I went to a “Science Night” at my daughter’s school. Apparently, our school is a “science fair” school this year. I don’t know what that means exactly, except that apparently for the next school year, I am going to be caught up in the scientific method in ways I really never wanted to. I love science, but not this controlled experiment, actually have-to-be-accurate way.

But I was wondering something yesterday when I was asked about the readership we have on Plotmonkeys and I truly couldn’t answer. From the stats, I know that most of you come to the site now through bookmarks that lead you directly to our website or by typing in the www.plotmonkeys.com url. This wasn’t always the case. In the beginning, we got more hits through our links at other sites (the most popular then–and now–is www.carlyphillips.com–yeah, Carly!)

I know that 99% of our readers come in through US servers. We clearly have foreign readers because they post here, but they are in the minority, for whatever reason.

I know that most of you start hitting the blog around 9am and continue through 3pm, though we do have some serious early birds and night owls, like me.

I know that the number of people who come here has grown steadily over the last year. Saturdays, which we’ve recently dubbed “Craft Days” have increased our traffic on that day exponentially.

I know that all of you are the absolute best readers in the romancelandia universe.

I don’t need science to tell me that!

BUT…

Here’s what I don’t know…and what I’d like to know. This is all very useful information for writers and hell, I thought it would be fun to see the answers.

So, please play by answering the following questions (you can cut and paste). Anyone who plays today puts their name in for…yes, you guessed it, another ARC of PHANTOM PLEASURES.

WHAT STATE DO YOU LIVE IN?

HOW MANY BRICK & MORTAR BOOKSTORES (That’s an industry term for a bookstore like Walden’s, Borders, Barnes & Noble, etc.) ARE WITHIN 15 MINUTES OF YOU?

HOW MANY DISCOUNT STORES (that sell books) ARE WITHIN 15 MINUTES OF YOU?

HOW OFTEN DO YOU USE ONLINE BOOKSELLERS?

WHERE DO YOU BUY MOST OF YOUR BOOKS?

HOW OFTEN DO YOU BUY BOOKS PER MONTH?

WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE *TYPE* OF BOOK RIGHT NOW (PICK ONE!)

TELL THE PLOTMONKEY READERS ONE THING ABOUT YOU THAT MAKES YOU YOU?

I’ll start:

WHAT STATE DO YOU LIVE IN? Florida

HOW MANY BRICK & MORTAR BOOKSTORES (That’s an industry term for a bookstore like Walden’s, Borders, Barnes & Noble, etc.) ARE WITHIN 15 MINUTES OF YOU? 8!

HOW MANY DISCOUNT STORES (that sell books) ARE WITHIN 15 MINUTES OF YOU? 4

HOW OFTEN DO YOU USE ONLINE BOOKSELLERS? Once a month at least.

WHERE DO YOU BUY MOST OF YOUR BOOKS? Barnes & Noble because they give the best discount (though Borders coupons make them second, ev!)

HOW OFTEN DO YOU BUY BOOKS PER MONTH? Twice.

WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE *TYPE* OF BOOK RIGHT NOW (PICK ONE!) Suspense.

TELL THE PLOTMONKEY READERS ONE THING ABOUT YOU THAT MAKES YOU YOU? I’m incredibly nosy!

Now, your turn!!!

I’m battling a bad cold and laryngitis (nobody laugh!) so I thought I’d bring up something fun and easy for us to discuss that won’t require me to write too much.

Thanksgiving is next week, and I’m always on the lookout for secrets, tips, special ingredients for those holiday dishes, or just super fantastic recipes! Any huge successes or horror stories from holidays past?

Here’s one of each:

Horror story…I was making a pecan pie one year and ran out of Karo syrup so I substituted about 1/3 cup of it with Molasses. YUCK. Molasses does not a pecan pie make.

Now a success story…I grew up with a Newfoundlander for a mother and she was the queen of root vegetables. I really love turnips and rutabagas, though a lot of people don’t even know what they look like! Anyway, one year I was making rutabagas, mashed them with butter and what I thought was pepper. But it turned out I was liberally sprinkling Old Bay seafood seasoning in there! Believe it or not, it was a BIG hit. So now I intentionally use the Old Bay.

Anybody else have anything to share? Special tips, or colossal foul-ups? Any great recipes or secrets to share?

Thanksgiving is almost here…yum!
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Side Note: Visit Carly today blogging at COS Productions where you can post for a chance to win a fun prize!
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When you think of Carly Phillips, what color do you think of? Yes, that’s right, it’s pink! I liked even my accessories to be pink (iPod, iPhone, computer cover, etc.) I went through a phase recently though – I tried to replace my favorite color with red.

Say it isn’t so!
Yes, folks, it is. Red plastic computer cover for my Macbook Pro, red rubber cover for my iPhone, and my Product Red Nano. And I adopted a new mantra – Red is the New Pink – as if to convince MYSELF.

… Uh, … No!
But something didn’t sit right with me.
And then I found a pink cover for my Macbook Pro. And I bought myself a big fat iPod Classic to hold all my photos and songs forever more, and I covered my phone and iPod with pink. And guess what?

All was right with the world! So I decided to find out what my favorite color Pink said about me:

What Your Favorite Color Pink Says About You:

Blissful — Content — Romantic Idealistic — Expressive — Artistic Funny — Quirky — Individualistic

This obviously is true – on a normal day I AM blissful, content and romantic … Idealistic – Expressive – and Artistic – can someone say writer? And Funny (sometimes), Quirky (maybe not) and Individualistic (YES).

And during my RED phase:

What Your Favorite Color Red Says About You:

Ambitious — Energetic — Passionate Spontaneous — Attractive — Inspiring Seductive — Powerful — Addicting

But this obviously wasn’t the real me. It was part me - I’m ambitious and attractive But I’m not energetic I don’t consider myself particularly passionate or spontaneous or inspiring or seductive, powerful or addicting. geez, what a list. Doesn’t belong to me. I think I borrowed it for awhile!

I’m definitely happy to have returned to my true color.

So what is your favorite color and what does it say about you? And is it true?

First, Janelle has an announcement…The winner for the “Where in the World is Janelle” blog on Thursday (She was in Beaverton, Oregon!) is Karen B (Comment #23 from THURSDAY). Just send Janelle a note at janelledenison@sbcglobal.net with your snail mail address and what book you’d like from her backlist.

And this week’s winner of Leslie’s Jungle Madness Friday pie fun giveaway is…

LIZA! Message # 37! CONGRATS!

Please drop me a note at author@lesliekelly.com with your snail mail info so I can get your prizes out to you.
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And now for a few grins…my Dad actually sent me these. Enjoy!

ROMANCE MATHEMATICS

Smart man + smart woman = romance
Smart man + dumb woman = affair
Dumb man + smart woman = marriage
Dumb man + dumb woman = pregnancy
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OFFICE ARITHMETIC

Smart boss + smart employee = profit
Smart boss + dumb employee = production
Dumb boss + smart employee = promotion
Dumb boss + dumb employee = overtime
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SHOPPING MATH

A man will pay $20 for a $10 item he needs.
A woman will pay $10 for a $20 item that she doesn’t need.
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GENERAL EQUATIONS &STATISTICS

A woman worries about the future until she gets a husband.
A man never worries about the future until he gets a wife.
A successful man is one who makes more money than his wife can spend.
A successful woman is one who can find such a man.
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HAPPINESS

To be happy with a man, you must understand him a lot and love him a little.
To be happy with a woman, you must love her a lot and not try to understand her at all.
______________________________

LONGEVITY

Married men live longer than single men do, but married men are a lot more willing to die.
______________________________

PROPENSITY TO CHANGE

A woman marries a man expecting he will change, but he doesn’t.
A man marries a woman expecting that she won’t change, and she does.
_____________________________

DISCUSSION TECHNIQUE

A woman has the last word in any argument.
Anything a man says after that is the beginning of a new argument.
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HOW TO STOP PEOPLE FROM BUGGING YOU ABOUT GETTING MARRIED
Old aunts used to come up to me at weddings, poking me in the ribs and cackling, telling me, “You’re next.” They stopped after I started doing the same thing to them at funerals.
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