Have you seen Dr. Horrible’s Singalong Blog? It’s this awesome film from Joss Whedon. Nathan Fillion was in it, as was Neil Patrick Harris and Felicia Day. I love this movie like nothing else.

 

 

I learn about writing from everywhere, or at least I try to. So when something comes along that captures my imagination as much as this, I have to ruin it for myself. You know, by picking it apart to see how it was made. I actually intend to do this more often on here, as it’s actually a great practice.

 

 

Now, directors have all kinds of tools we don’t have. Sad to say, Neil Patrick Harris and Liev Schriber are not here to act my stories out. I also don’t have Danny Elfman to write a score for me. But there are still things to learn from the writing and character building.

 

 

The characters

 

 

I fell in love with Dr. Horrible/ Billy right away when watching this movie. He’s a real person, which I’ve mentioned before is kind of a big deal for characters. He gets mad and bitches. He’s not a lovable klutz who stumbles into success, but neither is he a superhero for whom everything comes easily. He’s a self-obsessed dork, disillusioned but somehow still hopeful. A pessimistic dreamer, which I think we can all relate to. He wants the girl, the world and the cool job in the Evil Leauge of Evil. He knows he should have those things, and is trying desperately to achieve them. And yet he’s full of doubt. Not in himself, but in the world.

 

 

We see all of these aspects of him through the way he speaks to the people around him. He plans things out. He refuses to meet with someone because he feels that they’re beneath him. He talks, openly, about being defeated by Captain Hammer. He does a million subtle things that show us how he’s feeling.

 

 

Bad guy, good guy

 

 

The protagonist of this movie is a villain who calls himself Dr. Horrible who wants to be a super villain. He wants to join the Evil League of Evil and work with Bad Horse. (The Thoroughbred of sin.) He has a Ph.D. in horribleness and wants to rule the world.

 

 

He also refuses to have a fight at a park because there are kids there. He’s respectful of Penny, the female lead. Even though he’s in love with her, he’s honest with her. When she asks him to sign a petition to help homeless people he does, but he also tells her that he thinks she’s treating a symptom of their society. He wants things to be better for everyone. He’s smart, honest and works hard. He’s interested in his friend’s lives, taking the time to ask them about what’s going on with them, dispute being a little self-centered. He’s felt failure, boy has he ever, and keeps trying anyway. At several moments, he proves that he’s not capable of killing someone in cold blood for his own personal gain. Or for any reason, really.

 

 

The antagonist is Captain Hammer, a superhero with hammer like strength. He’s loved by the community and has an adorable little group of fan girls and boy who stalk him and cut off pieces of his hair when he’s not paying attention.

 

 

He also has sex with Penny just because he knows Dr. Horrible likes her. He pays lip service to her cause of helping homeless people. He makes a point of beating the hell out of Dr. Horrible, just to make him look like a loser. He’s narcissistic and stupid. He makes a show of helping the homeless just for more praise. When he fails, he falls apart. And he proves that he’s got no problem, at all, killing.

 

 

While I do love the bad guy protagonist motif, (as seen in Dexter, Santa Clarita Diet and Ray Donovan) this isn’t what’s happening here. As we can see, the super villain personifies qualities that we would associate with a good and noble person. The superhero is the actual horrible person. (See what I did there?)

 

 

Everything you ever, and 1+1 Vs. 2

 

 

When you watch Dr. Horrible, you hear the same phrase over and over. Everything you ever.

 

 

Everything you ever what? Wanted, deserved, dreamed of? It never actually says, which leaves the viewer to finish the sentence themselves.

 

 

This is the clearest example I’ve ever seen of a lesson I learned from a Ted Talk by Pixar writer Andrew Stanton. By the way, if you haven’t seen his talk, The Clues to a Great Story, here’s a link. Fantastic talk. But the lesson is this.

 

 

Don’t give the audience two, give then 1+1 and let them figure it out for themselves.

 

 

And this is something I’ve struggled with so much. I want my stories to be clear, to be obvious. I have a habit of saying “Look! Here is the moral of this story! Here is how she’s feeling, here’s why he did that thing! I know you’ll never be able to put it together yourself, and I’ll be damned if I’ll be misunderstood. So I’m just going to tell you what I want you to get our of this. I’m not going to let you extract something from this that I didn’t intend!”

 

 

Which, as I write this, I realize is a horribly selfish way to write. It is not our jobs as writers to tell people how they should feel about our writing. It’s our job to tell a story. A real, honest, story.

 

 

Finally, I’d like to tell you my favorite Joss Whedon quote about writing.

 

 

“Make it dark, make it grim, make it tough, but then, for the love of God, tell a joke.”

 

 

Comedy works well in Dr. Horrible. You’re laughing so much at the absurdity of it all that you don’t see the dark ending coming.

 

 

If you have any movies, tv shows or books that you’d like to see picked apart for writing lessons please ask. Send me an email at nicolecluttrell86@Gmail.com or comment on this post.

 

 

Hey, guys. I wanted to warn you, if you haven’t gotten around to reading You Can’t Trust The AI, you might want to do it soon. Because I’m going to be pulling it from PBW in two weeks.

As soon as I do pull it, it will be available as a KDP Select book. So, if you have Amazon Prime, you can read the whole thing for free. That will include the last episode, that is not on this website.

Here are links to all of the episodes.

Episode One

Episode Two

Episode Three

Episode Four

Episode Five

Episode Six

Episode Seven

Episode Eight

Enjoy, and have a great day, guys.

 

I keep telling myself, every month, that I’m going to have a calm month. Then God laughs and says, “Nah.” Best laid plans and all.

 

 

In fairness, I set myself up for a lot of this, and most of it is good busy not hustling to survive busy. I also have all sorts of exciting announcements to share with you.

 

 

Where my writing is right now.

 

 

I finished two major projects in March. The rough draft of Virus is done and in hibernation until May. It’s the first Station 86 book that’s an actual, you know, full-length book. So while it’s going to be at least November before you get to see it, it’s twenty episodes long. I know some tv shows that didn’t have twenty episodes in their last season. And, you won’t have to wait as long for Virus as, I don’t know, Tamora Pierce’s book about Numair that I’ve been waiting to read since I finished Battle Magic in two days! Yes, I know she has a different book coming out in October, but it’s not the same.

 

 

Anyway, that rant aside, I also finished the second draft of Missing Stitches. I did both of those in the same day, actually. It was really a pretty bomb day for me. Now that the second draft is done and I have to let it sit, I get to do something pretty fantastic.

 

 

Woven is a long series, but the first story is done in Missing Stitches. There will be more books about that cast of characters, but they need a rest for now. So, now I’m starting on a two book story. It’s still in the same universe, and it takes place after Missing Stitches. But it’s a whole new cast of characters. (By the way, if you haven’t gotten Broken Patterns yet, here’s your link.)

 

 

This, of course, means I’m rough drafting again this month, and probably next month too. I’m digging deeper into the people of Calistar and the stories they can tell. I’m having a lot of fun, is what I’m saying.

 

 

National Poetry month

 

 

Of course, National Poetry Month started today. Don’t forget to check me out on Instagram and Facebook to follow along in the fun. Or, you know, mock my terrible poetry. That’s totally fine, too.

 

 

B2B Con

 

 

B2B stands for Brains to Book. It’s an online con, and the first con I’ve ever attended! I’ll have an Author Spotlight booth in the Science Fiction series, if you want to stop by and see me. Here’s a link, and the awesome poster they put out for us Sci-Fi writers. I love that it’s an online con, which is nicer on my budget and calendar. Oh, and I have a really cool announcement for the con.

 

 

You Can’t Trust The AI is available for Pre-Sale now and will launch on April 7^th, the first day of B2B Con!

 

 

I actually rushed the launch a little bit because I wanted to be ready for the con, but it is ready to go! Just like with Seeming, there is a special, not available online episode. Do you want to know what’s going on with Godfrey’s dad on Earth and get a teaser for Virus? Then you need to get this book, my friend. Here’s a link to the pre-sale page.

 

 

Oh, and then, of course, there’s Easter, two family birthdays and a ton of gardening to do. Probably also a ton of reading on my back porch to do, too. I’m excited to see the second quarter of the year start. How about you?

 

 

What are you planning this month that you want to share? Let us know in the comments below.

 

 

 

Butler PA is an old steel town. We’re about 45 minutes away from Pittsburgh, the best freaking city on the planet. There are more churches than literally anything, most of them some sort of Catholic. Roman Catholic is pretty big. We’ve got a decent population of people from places like Hungary, where my family is from originally. This is my home town, where I’ve lived the vast majority of my life.

Every job I’ve ever had has been here. My daughters were born here. My husband and I got married in Diamond Park, right in front of our historical court house that is still in use. I walk through my memories every day, glimpsing ghosts of the girl and woman I’ve been. I could write a book, and might someday, just of the memories that come back to me when walking Main Street.

Here’s just one of them.

I was walking to the coffee shop one day when a woman walked towards me. She looked pretty hung over, not walking a straight line by any means. She stopped me, and to this day I have no idea why. Maybe because I was a friendly face, or maybe she just needed another woman to be honest with her right then. Maybe she thought I was someone she knew. I don’t think I’d ever seen her before. But she stopped me, and said, “Can I ask you a question? Does my makeup look alright?”

I looked at her, wanting to give her an honest answer. “Yeah, it looks fine,” I finally said.

“Good, because I am so hung over and I’ve got to go to work,” she said, and continued on.

I think it’s fair to say that I have an interesting relationship with my hometown. On the one hand, I really hate it. I’m a liberal, this place runs red. It’s a small town run mostly by small minded people.

But that doesn’t take into consideration the people who live here.

I love my hometown, too. It’s steeped in history, as well it should be. We have one of the oldest theaters in America, Butler Little Theater. My kids and I go see plays there. We have a Main Street full of indie restaurants and coffee shops. I’ve posted pictures of Cummings in my Instagram feed a lot, because it’s such a great looking old building.

There’s a great sense of art here. The symphony does well, there are three music shops, one of the oldest book stores in the state and a great museum of Japanese and Chinese art. (The Maridon. If you’re coming into town, check it out.)

Here’s the best thing about this town, though. It loves the people who live here. When I do a book signing, people ask me where I’m from. I tell them, “I’m from right here in Butler.” And they love that. They love that a girl from Butler is doing something with herself.

As much as I would love to live in Pittsburgh, and someday I will, I don’t know that I could ever really pull away from my love of this place. I’m from here, and that’s never going to change.

If you haven’t yet, be sure to check out Days and Other Stories. It’s my first short story collection, and it’s totally free. Get it here, on Gumroad.

I did two book signings in February and one last week. I was, to put it mildly, extremely nervous about this. I’m an introvert that doesn’t like meeting new people face to face. I don’t like pitching things to people after years of retail having to do just that. I really don’t like pitching my own book. It makes me anxious as hell.

And yet I did hold two successful signings. They weren’t successful in that I sold a lot of books. They were successful because I met a lot of people and generated some excitement.

I feel like when I schedule signings for Station 86, Volume one, I’ll be in a better position now that I kind of know what I’m doing. I’m hoping that the lesson’s I’ve learned will help me with my upcoming con as well.

If you, like me, are planning a signing and don’t particularly like meeting people, here are some things to keep in mind.

Start somewhere comfortable.

Every signing I’ve done has been in places I am familiar with, enjoy going to and know the staff of. I went to my two favorite coffee shops and my local bookstore. These are places that I am nearly as comfortable in as my own house.

I may have had a panic attack if I’d tried to go somewhere unfamiliar, and I’m not being dramatic. Now that I’ve done this a few times, I feel better about going somewhere less familiar, but I had to start somewhere I know.

Make plans in advance.

Most introverts know that a trip into the outside world is easier with a plan. I require a plan for going to run errands, because knowing exactly what I’m doing and exactly where I’m going makes me feel better.

Use this for your book signing, too. You need to have a conversation with the people hosting your event. You need to know when you’re going to be there, for how long, what the foot traffic is likely to be like, where you’ll be setting up. Surprises or unexpected circumstances can make for a stressful day.

Take your needs into consideration first.

While you’re making these plans, be sure to make your needs a priority. Remember, while you are a guest in this establishment, it is to their benefit if you’re a customer draw for them. They should want you to do well. So don’t be afraid to schedule your signing for a time you’re likely to be high energy and not get overstimulated. I scheduled for days when I knew that I could go home and rest after the signing, because I knew it was going to take something out of me.

If you’re going to be anxious with high foot traffic that’s not there for you, ask your host when a less busy time for them is. Consider what you can and cannot tolerate.

Ask the location what they’d like for you to provide, and what they would like to provide.

Here are some things that I feel like I should have thought of before my signing, but didn’t even think of until one of my hosts asked me about it. A table and chair. Two places I did a signing at wanted me to bring those in. So ask about that kind of thing.

Ask what you are and are not allowed to do.

Can you take pictures and put them up on social media? Can you take pictures of the staff? Can you talk to people as they come on, or would your host prefer that they approach you? Basically anything you intend to do besides sitting at your table and signing copies of your book, ask first. The book store wanted to run my books through their register. I was totally okay with this. I also made sure to tell them I was going to give away a free copy, so they were ready for that.

Make yourself feel good about how you look, but put comfort first.

I do love my makeup, and I love an excuse to get dolled up. But for my signing I stuck with simple things that I knew would look okay and be wearable.

Your book signing is not the time for new clothes that might itch, new shoes that might kill you if you wear them too long, or new makeup routines that might mess up your day.

Here’s the thing to remember. This is your book signing. You aren’t going to a job. This is your scene, and you can wear whatever you want. If you want to wear jeans and a t-shirt, go for it. If you want to dress up like your character, who am I to judge? So long as everything is clean and in good condition you’re good.

Invite people you love.

My best friend in the whole world came to my first signing. She just chatted with me in between talking to people, and helped me chat up my book. I couldn’t thank her enough.

If you have someone you love who’s prepared to be excited about your book, by all means invite them to come.

Have an elevator pitch prepared.

The number one question I got was, “What’s the book about?” Well, of course, that’s what you’re there to do. So have a quick explanation ready. You don’t have a lot of time for this. In my case, most people were in there to get a cup of coffee and leave. So they really were just killing time until their coffee was ready.

So I had just enough time to give them a quick explanation and give them a business card. That was it. So have something quick and short ready.

Start local.

People love a local girl. At least, people in my hometown do. I had one guy buy a book just because I was a local girl. So it doesn’t make a bit of sense to travel way out of your way to do a signing when you’re more likely to be successful close to home.

Have business cards to hand out.

I’m sorry to tell you this, but most people who come to see you are not going to buy your book that day.

But if you can give them a little something to remember them by they may buy it later. (No, I’m not suggesting prostitution.)

This is especially useful if you have books that are free or cheaper than the book you’re signing that day. Or, if you have your own fiction up on the site. Get some business cards made up with your website, the title of your book and whatever email address you want the general public to have. I used Vistaprint, and was very happy with what I got.

I also suggest only having printing on one side of your card and leave the other side blank. I talked to a reader who wasn’t all about fantasy, but loved her a good mystery novel. So I wrote down some of my favorite mystery writers, including some indie writers she hadn’t heard of before. It never hurts to have some writing space.

Understand that walk ins aren’t necessarily prepared to buy your book right then.

Your signing is in a public place. Somewhere people go to on a regular basis. Along with the people who show up just to see you, there will be people who show up just to buy coffee.

Don’t take that personal. You’re an unexpected element to these people. It could be that, if they had known you would be there, they would have been delighted and prepared to buy a book. It could be that they don’t give a damn that you’re there and they just want to do whatever they’re there to do and leave.

You cannot control this, and you’ll upset people if you try. Unless you’re holding a closed event, invite only, walk ins are happening.

Understand that, at first, most of the people attending will be walk ins.

In fact, walk ins are probably going to be most of what you get, just starting out. Look, I’m going to share something kind of silly with you all. Before my signings, I stand in front of my bathroom mirror and tell myself this.

“I am a published writer, part of the entertainment industry. I am going to this thing as the talent. People are coming to see me, to talk to me. People are going to be excited to get my autograph.”

This little pep talk is super, helps me get out the door, and is kind of not true. My hosts treat me like the talent. The people in their stores do not. I am not a big name pull just yet. I do not yet have fans losing their minds to meet me.

That day may come, but it’s not today.

Embrace it. Make new fans.

Try to give away a book if you can.

Everyone loves something free, but I actually have another reason for suggesting this. I had a woman come to one of my signings with her daughter. She actually didn’t know I was going to be there. Her daughter picked out a few books from a 50 cent rack. The mom was literally counting dimes for those books.

Do I need to tell you that I’ve been there? I’ve stood in a store, surrounded by expensive, lovely books that I wanted so bad it ached and counted out the small bits of money I had to buy a clearance book for my daughter. My heart ached for this woman, and the woman I had been.

I was so excited to give that woman a copy of my book. And man, did it make her day. I was able to do that because I had already accounted for that loss.

Make it fun.

It should be fun. You worked hard to make it this far, Baby! You wrote that book, you got it published one way or another. You poured your sweat, blood and tears into this book. This is your day to finally stand up and tell the whole world, or at least the whole coffee shop, “Look what I did!”

So have fun with it. You deserve it.

Let me start out by saying that FYI always sounds mean. It always sounds like it’s going to precede something bitchy. I mean, have you ever heard someone say, “FYI, I left a plate of cookies in the dining room, help yourself.” No, it’s always something like, “FYI, your dog is not allowed in my yard, Marcus!”

I think I’ve mentioned this once or twice (or a freaking million times) that my first novel came out in December. I also self published three other books. Two are free, yeah, but the third one does cost some money.

That’s right, my life goal has been achieved by 30! (Thank you, Jenny Breeden of Devil’s Panties.)

With my book on the market, I have some shocking news for you.

I’m not rich! In fact, I haven’t even broken even yet. I still have my day job and I’m sure that I will for several years.

With that shocking wake up call in mind, here are some really unfortunate facts.

Making actual money as a writer is freaking hard. I make a percentage of what the publisher sells. For my indie book, I get the majority of the sales, but Amazon does take a percentage. I’m not going to go into details, but let me assure you that it’s not covering a cup of coffee right now.

The market is really saturated. I’m not kidding. There are thousands upon thousands of books, with new ones coming out every day. I love that as a reader, because I’ve got a never ending list of books to read. As a writer competing for attention, it’s challenging. Not bad, but challenging.

People are for the most part broke, and large price tags upset them. For real, my favorite writer’s recent book was almost $30. I’m going to buy it, but it will probably be the only book I buy that month. I buy one book, and thousands are coming out.

Getting your name out is difficult and expensive. It really is. That $30 book I bought was by a household name author. Philippa Gregory, if you want to know. I am not a house hold name author. Most people on a budget (all of us) are only going to buy one or two books a month, if that. It’s probably going to be someone you really like. I hope that’s me. But I’m probably not going to be.

Yet.

And that yet is kind of important.

I didn’t say all of that to discourage you, or make you give up on your writing dreams. I told you all that for two reasons. 1. It’s all true and we just need to accept the reality of it. 2. I don’t want anyone thinking I’m doing better than I am and comparing themselves to me.

Here’s the good news.

Looking at what I haven’t done yet and don’t have is always going to be depressing. But hell, looking back at where I’ve come from is pretty amazing. The same is probably true of you, my friend.

I didn’t quit writing my book. I finished the damn thing. If you can do that, you’re in better shape than the vast majority of people who want to write.

I didn’t quit looking for a publisher until I found one. If you can do that, you’re in better shape than most people who have finished their books. If you’ve decided to self publish, you are also doing better than most. That’s an intense amount of work and commitment.

Now people can find my book online and read it. People are reading my book!

Here’s something else to keep in mind. Elizabeth Gilbert, writer of Big Magic, had a full time job until Eat, Pray, Love made it big.

Here’s something else. If we compare being a successful author to running a small business (and there are a lot of similarities) then I should be feeling pretty optimistic. Most small businesses lose money for the first five years. Let me say it again for the people in the back Most small businesses lose money for the first five years! I even wrote this in the back of my YBY planner. I am on year two.

Year two, that’s it. I am probably going to lose money this year, next year and the year after that.

So no, I’m not rich. I’m not quitting my day job anytime soon. But I do love my life, and I’m so grateful for what I have.

My newest book, Spook, is available now. It includes twelve short horror stories. Meet a dog that won’t stop barking, a man who just wanted some Chinese food, and a little girl who just can’t stop her bad luck. Get it now for free.