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Welcome back to Upcoming Titles, our monthly feature where we highlight books releasing this month. As always, this is by no means a comprehensive list of forthcoming releases, just a compilation of titles we think our readers (and our contributors!) would enjoy.
Summer is in full swing and two of our PubCrawl contributors have books coming out this month, including our very own Jodi Meadows and Julie Eshbaugh! Julie’s debut will be coming out this month and we are so, so, so excited for her book to finally be out in the world!
We are thrilled to have multi-published author Eileen Cook on the blog today. She's here to share with us some wonderful insights for writing dialogue. And be sure to check out her new release, Remember, at the end of the post. Thank you, Eileen!
Six Tips for Improving Your Dialogue: A WOW-Wednesday Post by Eileen Cook
Many readers describe dialogue sections of a book as their favorite. This is likely due to a few reasons:
Dialogue gives us the sense of getting to “spy” into intimate conversations. (And who doesn’t like to hear what other people are saying?)
Dialogue tends to increase the pacing of a novel. These passages read more quickly than long blocks of narrative.
Dialogue reveals character, what they say/do when interacting with others tells us a lot.
As writers, dialogue allows us to reveal important information in an interesting way and to move the plot of the book forward.
So how do you make your dialogue leap off the page? Here are six tips that will help you improve:
1. Avoid the Boring Bits: Real dialogue is filled with unimportant information. (How are you? Fine. Sure has been hot. Yep.) When you include dialogue in your manuscript make it dialogue that matters.
Why are the characters interacting? What is the purpose of the scene? If you cut it would it matter to the story?
Try reading the dialogue out loud - how does it sound?
Avoid too many adverbs (he said sarcastically, she said angrily, he said happily.) The emotion of what is said often can come through without this. “I hate your f-ing guts. I hope you die,” she said angrily. This line is repetitive. There aren’t many ways to say this lovingly.
Do you use character’s names too often? The truth is we rarely do in real dialogue so be careful you don’t have too much:
“Hi, Ryan.” “Good to see you, Brian. Are you ready for the test?” “I tell you, Ryan, I am freaking out.” “Don’t worry, Brian, it will be fine.
2. Dialogue Should Match the Character: Different characters should sound different from each other. What is your characters age, gender, level of education, ethnicity and how does that impact how they speak and the words they use?
If you took the character names off the page, would it be possible for you to tell who is speaking just by what they say/how they say it?
Think about your character- a teen boy from a small town in the South will “sound” different than a 40-year-old woman who moved to New York from England.
Avoid stereotypes or going over board. Just because you want the voice to match a character keep in mind that not all people from a certain group talk a certain way. Also avoid writing huge sections in dialect/accent, it can get distracting for the reader.
“I dinna know lassie. Och, I be shamed terrible of wha happn’d.”
If the reader has to try and decipher what your character is saying it gets to be a challenge. Consider putting in just a couple words here and there, after that the reader will “hear” the accent without you needing to have it in every line
3. Dialogue Depends on the Situation: Think about the situation in which the dialogue happens. If there are guns being fired all around the characters, this is not likely the time for them to have a long conversation about their feelings. What they say will need to be short, more direct.
Do you characters sound the same in all situations?
How does your character sound when threatened? When relaxed?
Who else might be around while they are talking? If they are talking to someone they have a crush on, but are surrounded by a group of her friends, they will likely talk differently as compared to if they were alone.
4. Dialogue Depends on Who They Are Talking To: The truth is that how we present ourselves is different depending on who we are interacting with. How a teen might talk to their parents is different then to a teacher, or to their friend, or to the person they have a crush on.
Does your character sound the same when talking to different people?
Write a scene where they talk to someone they are very close to as opposed to someone that they dislike.
5. Characters Don’t Always Say What They Feel: One of the biggest errors in dialogue is having characters say exactly what they think or feel. In movie dialogue this is called “writing on the nose.” The truth is, most of us are either too polite or scared to say what we think. Sometimes we know we can’t say what we want because it will get us in trouble.
Write a scene where characters say exactly what they think and feel. Then rewrite it trying to show the reader what the characters think/feel, but don’t allow your character to say it directly.
Does your character know what they think/feel? Often we confuse emotion. We come across as angry when in reality we are scared. For example, a parent may yell at a kid for doing something risky, when in reality what they are is horrified because the kid could have been hurt.
6. Using Location To Amplify Dialogue: We know that stories need conflict. Looking at where/when a dialogue scene happens can be an opportunity to increase conflict. What is the worst time/place to have a conversation? It would be a difficult conversation to break up with someone. It is even worse if that break up scene happens in some place that is public. For example, telling a best friend that you kissed their boyfriend is an awkward conversation. It’s worse if you tell her in front of a group of people at lunch. Or it might be worse if you tell her just after she admits that she’s in love with him.
Look at where key dialogue scenes happen in your book or story. Is there a way to increase the tension in the scene by moving the conversation to another place or time?
7. Have Fun: The best part of writing dialogue? Unlike real life where once we say something (or are unable to think of the perfect comeback in the moment) in fiction we can always go back and revise. If you think of the perfect snappy sarcastic line for your character two weeks or two months after you finish a draft, you can go back and put it in.
Dialogue that engages the reader will pull them into your book. It allows them to get into the head of your characters and to feel that they are active participants in the story. If you find this is an area you struggle with things that can help include:
Download film or TV scripts and look how it appears on the page.
Read your manuscript aloud. Often what looks good on the page, sounds “wrong” when we hear it aloud.
Practice makes perfect. Be patient with yourself, writing dialogue is a skill. The more we practice the easier it gets.
Happy Writing!
About the Book:
A thrilling tale about what a girl will do to get back a memory she lost…or remove what she wants to forget.
Harper is used to her family being hounded by protestors. Her father runs the company that trademarked the “Memtex” procedure to wipe away sad memories, and plenty of people think it shouldn’t be legal. Then a new demonstrator crosses her path, Neil, who’s as persistent as he is hot. Not that Harper’s noticing, since she already has a boyfriend.
When Harper suffers a loss, she’s shocked her father won’t allow her to get the treatment, so she finds a way to get it without his approval. Soon afterward, she’s plagued with strange symptoms, including hallucinations of a woman who is somehow both a stranger, yet incredibly familiar. Harper begins to wonder if she is delusional, or if these are somehow memories.
Together with Neil, who insists he has his own reasons for needing answers about the real dangers of Memtex, Harper begins her search for the truth. What she finds could uproot all she’s ever believed about her life…
Eileen Cook is a multi-published author with her novels appearing in eight different languages. Her books have been optioned for film and TV. She spent most of her teen years wishing she were someone else or somewhere else, which is great training for a writer. Her latest release, REMEMBER came out in February 2015.
You can read more about Eileen, her books, and the things that strike her as funny at www.eileencook.com. Eileen lives in Vancouver with her husband and one very naughty dog and no longer wishes to be anyone or anywhere else.
"When I finished this book I was certain I knew what should be on the cover. I pictured a creepy gothic house perched on top of a cliff overlooking the ocean. I’d been imagining the house in the book for so long I could imagine it perfectly. I’d even drawn floor plans of the house when writing the book. Of course the problem with having this type of clear vision, it’s really hard to find something in the real world that matches.
"I’m incredibly lucky to work with the team at Simon Pulse. They always invite me to participate in the cover design process. They talk to me not only about what I imagine the cover looking at, but also the feeling I want the cover to impart. My cover designer, Cara Petrus, wanted to make sure that the cover had some of the creepy gothic feel, but also wasn’t too dark as the book has humor too. Cara picked up on Isobel’s interest in art and also her feeling of being trapped..."
"I have two (or at least two) great weaknesses as a writer. I'm lousy at titles and terrible at imagining covers. I'm so lucky to have the team at Simon Pulse behind me. My editor somehow manages to avoid laughing out loud at my titles ideas and the cover designer, Cara can be counted on to come up with some great ideas.
"The book takes place in an exclusive boarding school so my first idea was having a scene where you see Hailey climbing over the wall to sneak off campus. However, we didn't want it to look like she was breaking out of jail...
"Cara then had an idea that she quickly sketched out with photoshop where it was the main character in her school uniform with a lollipop (right). The problem was that it looked a bit 'porny.' You have to watch out for those school uniforms -- who knew a blazer and knee highs could be so racy..."
The lovely Eileen Cook is here to share the story of her novel, Getting Revenge on Lauren Wood.
"There is a scene in the book where the main character dresses up a Barbie doll in a cheerleader outfit and then chucks it into a wood chipper. I thought it would be fun to show someone holding a Barbie doll by it's hair and sticking a pin into it- voodoo style.
"I shared my idea, but the art department warned me that Barbie is trademarked so they frown on people sticking pins in her on book covers. The designer did like the concept so she ordered a custom made doll from China and created the cover we ended up with ...
Read the rest of Eileen's Cover Story, and see some funny doll play, at melissacwalker.com.
The ivory tower is granting me a one day pass to go out and see the real world. The things good behavior will get you!
GLEE!
I'm being let out to speak at Oklahoma's school librarian conference, EncycloMedia. I'm excited. Thrilled. And a little nervous. Okay... a lot nervous. I'll be out with real people. I have to talk. I have to talk intelligently, in complete sentences, with no editing, about my middle grade novel, Dragon Wishes. I have to sound like I do this regularly. But all I've done for weeks now is sit in the ivory tower with my imaginary friends - and a few dead writers - and write. My social skills have sort of fallen by the wayside. Ask my kids. My husband. My dog, even.
Fortunately, should my skills waver, I'll be in amazing company and so hopefully no one will notice. I'm speaking with Eileen Cook, What Would Emma Do, Cynthea Liu, Paris Pan Takes the Dare, Jenny Meyerhoff, Third Grade Baby, and Suzanne Morgan Williams, Bull Rider.
We're followed the next day by P.J. Hoover, The Navel of the World, Jessica Anderson, Border Crossing, Barrie Summy, I So Don't Do Spooky, Donna St. Cyr, The Cheese Syndicate, and Zu Vincent, The Lucky Place.
Beforehand, we're being interviewed for a televised program that the Metropolitan Library of Oklahoma broadcasts throughout the state. Please, please, please let my hair cooperate so that I look like someone who actually styles her hair every once in a while, rather than pulling it back in a haphazard ponytail because dead writers and fictitious characters don't care what your hair looks like. And after that, there is a luncheon with librarians. Gulp. Can I carry on a coherent conversation for a whole hour? Or will I get that far off, I-have-an-idea look and start scribbling on my napkin? Librarians will understand if I do, right?
Maybe after all of that real world experience, I'll be ready to lock myself away in the ivory tower again, but I have a feeling, it'll be the other way around. I used to be a pretty social person, some time in the distant past...I think. Either way, I think that seeing, talking and interacting in a spontaneous way with real live people who don't need me to edit their dialogue could be, what's the word?
The Wry Writer is looking for stories featuring strong female protagonists and lesbian characters portrayed in a positive light. Open to a variety of material including adventure, crime, romance, and drama. Accepts flash-fiction (1000 words max.), short stories (1000 - 7500) and novelette-length stories (17500 words max.). Payment: $10 for short fiction. More details...
The Capilano Review (BC) seeks experimental and adventurous writing for open and themed issues. Themes: Collaborations and North Shore. Submit poetry (4 pages min.) and fiction (6000 words max.). Payment: $50 per published page to $200 max. Deadline: ongoing. More details...
The Fiddlehead (NB) invites poetry and fiction from Canadian and international writers. Submit fiction (4000 words max.) and poetry (3 to 5 is best). Payment: $20 per published page, plus contributor's copy. Accepts submissions year-round. More details...
Queen's Quarterly (ON) is accepting submissions of articles, reviews, short stories (2500-3000 words) and poetry (up to six poems). Payment determined at time of acceptance and paid upon publication. More details...
Rubicon Press (AB) produces unique chapbooks of poetry from writers around the world. Seeks work that resonates, moves, inspires and affects. More details...
Insomniac Press invites submissions of commercial and creative non-fiction. Appreciates subjects such as business and personal finance, gay and lesbian studies, and black Canadian studies. More details...
Scholastic Education (ON) is accepting short stories for Grade 6 readers. Stories should be at a reasonable high reading level and include literary devices such as flashbacks, time change, figurative languages, foreshadowing, different perspectives, symbolism, subplots, dear reader (acknowledging the reader device). Also alliteration, allusion, hyperbole, irony, metaphor, onomatopoeia, oxymoron, personification, rhetorical question, simile, understatement. Length: 3000 words max. No pets, witchcraft, or demons. Send questions to Laura Smith at [email protected]. Send submissions to: Laura Smith, Scholastic Canada, 175 Hillmount Road, 3rd Floor, Markham, ON, L6C 1Z7. (via Saskatchewan Writers' Guild)
Small feminist publisher Second Story Press (ON) is currently accepting unsolicited manuscripts of special interest to women. Accepts fiction, non-fiction and children’s books. More details...
Ricepaper (BC) seeks poetry, fiction, non-fiction and drama by Asian Canadians. Also publishes articles (query first). Payment: modest honorarium. More details...
Online journal Blue Skies seeks poetry submissions. Publishes emerging and established poets. Especially appreciates writing by Canadians. Submit 3 poems plus brief bio. More details...
Writers from Canada and around the world are being invited to enter a monthly short story competition run by Certys Limited (County Durham, England). Prizes: £100 for the monthly competition; £250 for the annual competition. Entry fee: £5. Deadline: ongoing; last day of each month. More details...
The Invisible Majority is now accepting submissions for works of fiction, non-fiction, humour, art, music and video for their inaugural issue (publication online in Spring '08). Theme: "Made In China". Upcoming themes: Poverty, Food & Drink, Elections, Water.Submissions:1500 words max. Deadline: ongoing. More details...
Online literary journal Cha seeks quality poetry, fiction, creative non-fiction, photography, graphic fiction and reviews from and about Asia. More details...
BuschekBooks (ON) seeks poetry, fiction and translation manuscripts from emerging and established authors. Also considers non-fiction. Query first. More details...
The New Quarterly's mandate is to introduce a new generation of Canadian writers. Invites submissions of fiction, poetry, interviews, and writing about writing. Wants to be delighted by a story well-told. Payment: $200 per short story, novel excerpt, and essay, and $30 per poem or "postscript" story. More details...
Grey Borders wants authors that are willing to read in front of a crowd that may be
more concerned about the hockey game than the reading. Location: micro-brew pub the Merchant Ale House in
Hamilton, ON. A successful reading is transforming the unknowing public into interested readers. More details...
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Last year, 
