Rachelle J. Christensen

Romance, Suspense, Mystery Author

Memory Lane

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For Writers

I’d like to take a trip down memory lane. Would you like to come along?

I started blogging in 2007 because I wanted to build a web presence for myself as an “author” and challenge myself to learn some of those technical computer things. Little did I know how much I would enjoy blogging, the opportunities that would come my way, and most of all the incredible FRIENDS–like you–I would meet along the way. We’ve come a long way, and I say “We” because I wouldn’t be here without the great support from each of you! Thank you!

I’m reposting one of my very first posts today. It’s kind of fun for me to look at what has happened since I wrote that post.

I feel incredibly blessed to have realized my dream of becoming a published author. A pivotal part of that journey was my introduction to a wonderful critique group, AuthorsIncognito and my authors guild LDStorymakers. I feel like I’m only beginning my journey. I have so many more goals to achieve, so many more stories to write, and blogs to post. 🙂

Many of the things on my top ten list still apply to me. Even though I’m a published author, I’m still vulnerable, and I’m putting myself out there right now for more rejections because I’m querying agents. Yes, if you have any extra magic fairy dust, sprinkle it here because this farm girl knows how to work hard and I’d like to double my efforts in my career with an agent.

So here’s that list. If I were writing this list today, it’d say “my inbox” and “emails” instead of “mail”–crazy how things change!

First posted on September 15, 2007:

The Top 10 Reasons to be a Writer According to Rachelle J. Christensen

I love being a writer and I want you all to know how much I enjoy it, so here’s my top ten list!

10. You get lots of mail. Yes, it’s usually rejection letters with words like “unfortunately, sorry, and it’s just not right for me,” but hey, everyone loves to get mail—right?

9. You get to have your self-esteem tested on a regular basis. Most people go around thinking they are no good, but you have the actual proof in the letter you just got out of the mailbox.

8. You are one of the few people who will get to enjoy The Look in your lifetime. The Look is when you are talking about what you like to do and you say, “I like to write.” And the person says, “Really, have you been published?” and if you say, “No, but I’ve got 289 queries out right now.” They give you The Look and say, “Hmmm, that’s nice.” (If further explanation is needed just try it on one of your friends).

7. You know how to do things with Microsoft Word that Bill Gates doesn’t even know.

6. You can feel good about devouring an entire bag of M&M’s, ½ pound of cheese, a box of crackers, another bag of M&M’s, and a Dove dark chocolate bar because you are going to reach your word count goal today!

5. You will acquire the odd habit of addressing letters to yourself with postage paid and dropping it in the mailbox and excitedly counting down the days until you get it back.

4. Writers are intelligent people! You know what ms, SASE, SAE, SCBWI, IRC, b&w, 20 lb. white, YA , dummy, and agent only means.

3. You also know what query, outline, sample chapter, spreadsheet, synopsis, unsolicited material, simultaneous submissions,em dash, table of contents, royalties, advances, and submissions editor means. Oh, and of course you know what rejection means too.

2. When you step into a bookstore from now on, you will look around at all the sundry bestselling books on the shelves in awe and smack your palm against your glistening forehead and vociferate, “What am I doing wrong!” and then wince as your hand tingles and your wrist throbs, and you remember that you shouldn’t slap things because you have carpal tunnel syndrome.

1. Because you like to write prolifically, and you compose, dash off, draft, scribble, create, rewrite, reference, versify, and inscribe on a daily basis— you can write up silly, zany, cockamamie, amusing, sardonic top ten lists and post it for your friends when you are having an otherwise uneventful day. (And you can count this list as 461 words closer to your word limit today and insist that all of your friends give Rachelle J. Christensen credit for writing something worthwhile today.)

Thanks for joining me on this trip down memory lane, and thank you again for making this journey so enjoyable!

How has your life changed in the past 12 years? Have you achieved some of the things you’d hoped to?

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Hitching a Ride

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For Writers

Year ago, I attended LTUE (Life, The Universe & Everything) symposium on writing was held at Utah Valley University. I could only attend one of the three days, but I think I picked a great day. My favorite part of the day was the keynote address by James Owen. I was so inspired by his story that I went out and bought his book, Drawing Out The Dragons, and then stood in line for him to sign it. It’s remarkable.

I had a great time visiting with my writing buddies and making a few new ones. There were several great nuggets of wisdom, I picked up there to incorporate into my writing.

The funniest part was when I got ready to leave at about 7:15 that night. I had parked at the farthest lot (one of two that were free for conference attendees) and rode the shuttle over that morning. I wasn’t sure if the shuttles were still running, so I thought I’d check. As I walked up to the bus stop, I noticed a man sitting there so I smiled, thinking if he was waiting, the shuttle must be running. I was about to say hello when I noticed the sign posted there stating that the shuttle stopped at 5pm on Fridays.

“I guess it isn’t running then,” I said aloud.

“It isn’t?” the man asked and began studying the sign I pointed at. He hadn’t noticed, so then he asked if I had a cell phone. He said he lived nearby and had left his phone home that day, but he would call and have someone come pick him up and drop me off at the parking lot.

I gave him my phone and he called his house. “I sure am glad you came by. I could have been waiting here another thirty minutes,” he said after he handed me back my phone.

“I really can walk.” I thought about the ride in on the shuttle and figured it was probably close to 3/4 mile from where I stood to the parking lot. The man insisted it was no problem, and while we were waiting another lady came walking up and frowned at the sign. I recognized her from another writers conference I attended and said hello. We found out we were parked in the same lot and she too was hoping for a ride on the bus. The man offered her a ride as well, but wasn’t sure which vehicle his niece would be bringing to pick him up.

And that’s how about five minutes later, I ended up in the back of a little 2-seater Ford pickup–the back as in, the man put the tailgate down so I could climb inside. He offered his seat to either my friend or I, and I told her to go ahead and sit up front. I’m a farm girl, so I figured I’d volunteer.

It was farther than I thought to the parking lot, maybe a mile, so I was glad for the ride and extremely glad I had carried my jacket around all day at the conference because that wind whipping across the back of the pickup was cold!

Moral of the story: Always carry your cell phone with you so when a random stranger asks to use it in return for a ride to the parking lot…wait, what about all that stranger danger stuff I tell my kids?

Do as I say, not as I do?

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Balancing Family and Writing

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Writing Tips by Rachelle

*I wrote this article for a writing group that I’ve been a member of for years and years now.*

I am a writer. I am also a mother, wife, daughter, gardener, piano teacher, chicken keeper, bread-maker–you get the idea. People often ask me, “How do you find time to write?” I imagine that every writer, no matter how young or old is asked this same question. The answer is within the question itself—finding time. If something is important to you, you find the time, you make the time, you PRIORITIZE.

Writing is important to me, but it took some doing for me to figure out the best way to work with a young family. As a new writer, I read in several places from esteemed authors that you shouldn’t write unless you had a two-hour block to work because it takes time to get back into the writing mode, etc, etc.

Unfortunately for me, I believed that advice for at least six months. Every time I would think about writing, I would think that I didn’t have enough time and I probably should get more housework done or do something else on my ‘To do’ list. Then I had an “Aha” moment when I realized that as a stay-at-home mom of young children, I probably would never have a two-hour block of uninterrupted time.

And so I began writing in snatches. Ten minutes here, twenty minutes there, and sometimes during nap time I would get a full hour of writing in! In between caring for newborn babies and chasing after toddlers, I would be thinking about my novel in progress. Sometimes while rocking a baby in the middle of the night, an idea would strike me and I would scribble down a few notes. Now, I try to keep my Word document open during the day so if I get a great idea for a scene, I can hurry and type it out.

So, how do I find time to write? I write in snatches during the day and then I don’t watch much TV so I have time to write when the kids go to bed. Writing is a priority to me and I have a wonderful family who knows how important it is for me to write. Let those around you know what your priorities are. Tell them about your dreams and goals and then ask for their support. Listen to advice on writing, but form your own “rules” for the writing method as you figure out when your most creative times occur and how to tap into your inner writer.

I found a method that works for me and I wish you the best of luck in finding your own writing method so you can crank out those pages. Happy Writing!

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All the Words in the World

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For Writers

As you all know, I love writing retreats and conferences. I haven’t been able to do very many in the last few years, but love to reflect back on the experiences that I have had in the past. Several years ago, I went to St. George, Utah for a writing retreat.

It was back to mom life after I got back home, doing laundry, picking up crayons, sweeping the floor (pointless with a 2yo at the time), and taking care of sick kids. It wasn’t very glorious when compared with waking up after a full night’s rest, doing Yoga and writing 2,000 words before making breakfast that I got to eat hot, without interruption. But I came back and was happy to be doing that laundry even if it meant I didn’t have time to write anything on the book I was working on because it was special about coming home to my sweet children who love me.

I had such a great time on my writing retreat. I wrote 27,000 words in 6 days and was so dang proud of that. That put me at almost halfway through the first draft of that novel. And I learned some things about myself, my productivity and what I’m capable of. I was so inspired! I set some new goals and I always looking forward to a short retreat in the future.

So today I thought I’d take a moment to say how much I appreciate my family and their support with my writing career.

I think that all the words in the world can’t make up for those sweet kisses and ‘I love you Mommy!’ from my kids.

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Writing Conferences

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For Writers:

I’ve been reminiscing about the times I have been able to attend the LDSStorymakers conferences. In 2011, I was able to attend for my 6th time (it was the 8th annual conference) and I was again blown away by the sheer amount of knowledge and opportunities available.

National agents Becca Stumpf, Sara Crowe, and Sara Megibow were all in attendance as well as Marcia Markland, Senior editor at Thomas Dunne books.

A few highlights:

I won a seat at the VIP table with Becca, Sara, Marcia, and Larry Brooks for the Friday night dinner. It was so fun to talk with them in a more casual setting.

Dave Wolverton/Farland is one of my favorite teachers. He has so much knowledge, I wish I could just plug into his brain and download it!

Larry Brooks taught a great class on Story Structure and I bought his book Story Engineering

I attended Elana Johnson’s “How to Write a Killer Query class” and she knows her stuff!

I also attended Sara Crowe’s class on Query pitches and she gave some awesome advice and examples.

I met a ton of new writing pals and reconnected with some of my favorite buddies.

I felt like I was running the entire time (and sometimes I really was sprinting through those halls) to go back and forth to my room to take care of my baby. Here’s me with a picture of my baby–does he look hungry to you?

My wonderful mom came and stayed with me to take care of my baby–I love you Mom!

She made it possible for me to participate in this conference and I’m so grateful.

Attending these conferences can allow for so many opportunities and networking. As you can see, it was hard for me to go that year with a baby, but it was possible, and I learned and grew so much from my experience.

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Writing Compelling Characters

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For Writers

Years ago, I visited my one of my writerly friend’s blogs and found a fun challenge. Elana Johnson is an amazing writer. She challenged everyone to write on the topic of “Writing Compelling Characters” to show how diverse each and every person is when they are creating something of their own. Here is what I came up with:

Writing a compelling character is as multi-faceted a topic as the character itself can become. There are so many points to concentrate on developing to make your character come to life and compel your reader to continue turning those pages. Here’s a few of my ideas.

When I’m writing and reading, I need to see the character–their movement, general appearance, mannerisms. I also need to hear them. How do they talk? What happens when they enter a room?

To write a compelling character, you first need to create the character by answering some of the above questions plus a few more. When I’m working on a novel, I use a character note document where I write the name of each character, age, hair color, eye color, height, striking factors in their appearance, where they live or where they are from, some of their hobbies, what type of work they do. The list can go on and on, but it’s important for each character to be different, not cut from the same cloth. I need to have identifiable differences between the characters and so I’ll make notes of how I can show that to my readers by certain mannerisms, speech, and specific appearance points.

Each character must sound like himself. This means if I pull out a string of dialogue from a novel, it should be indicative of the character speaking. If all the dialogue sounds the same, then a reader will not be able to differentiate clearly between the characters. You have to know your characters so well when writing, because your reader will know them and will pick up immediately if the character says something that is out of sync. You don’t want your reader thinking, “He wouldn’t say that.” You also don’t want them thinking, “he wouldn’t do that.”

So, writing compelling characters is all about making the characters REAL, making them come to life and step off the pages of the book. One of my favorite tips that I heard several years ago (sorry, can’t remember who said it) was, “You should know your character well enough, that if you passed them on a busy street you would recognize them.”

That’s just the tip of the iceberg on writing compelling characters, but it’s a great starting point.

Think of your favorite books. Are they your favorite because of the plot or the characters? Who are some of your all-time favorite characters?

Some of mine? I love Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery. Melinda from Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson definitely stays with you. Katniss from The Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins. All of these characters are so well-written, I feel like they are my friends–especially Anne!

Okay, your turn to share. I’d love to hear some of your favorites.

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