Neale Sourna's Writer's Tidbits Creating Creative Writing/Research _ POC/Black Historical Fiction (BHF) @ Patreon.com/NealeSourna

 

About Neale Sourna's Writer's Tidbits

People of Color (POC) / Black Historical Fiction (BHF)
POC / Black Historical Fiction / Literature / Romance / Erotica and More
https://www.facebook.com/groups/163627582322721
https://www.patreon.com/NealeSourna

MISSION: To SHARE Historical Black, African, and People of Color (POC) Fiction author historical research references, story prompts, writer hacks, and links for writers and readers of People of Color Historical fiction and nonfiction.

Providing you with writing trigger topics and bits of history you never considered were a possibility. Or "someone" said it never was / never could have happened like that. They're wrong. And probably actually existed, was forgotten, ignored, or cast aside.

Plus, I'll be giving brief personal analyses on: character, a writer’s journey, and more that may prove helpful in creating your own colorful characters, in-depth stories, and completed published works.

NEED HELP:

• How to build an idea into a story?
• How to create interesting characters?
• How to keep your writer sanity sane?
• How to see or feel a writing trigger or a character trigger and what questions can get you to where you want to go.
  • Like always remembering Depeche Mode: "People Are People"

WHY? WHAT'S IN IT FOR YOU?

• Finding relevant reference materials remains scattered and haphazard. Searching for historical information for People of Color isn't just as easy as digging out your old school history books.
        Most often we aren't mentioned, well, not as thoroughly and heroically as European males.

• Writing historically about People of Color to bring something new to readers' minds and emotions about People of Color in History is the plan.
  We are people, with the same or similar wants, drives, hopes as everyone else.
        Ethnic cultures are the unique seasoning for the people we were, are, and want to be and I hope to help you find thought and feel points on cultural points of view (POV) you never considered.

• Finding material that gives us a mental or emotional writing prompt, an urge to build it into a scene, one story, or an entire series.

Maybe its a tapestry image of an African Brit trumpeter for Henry VIII of England, a notice about a foreign black officer soldier who fought for King Henry VIII and his son, Edward—a man of African descent Knighted (Sir Pedro).

Or ... hm, what time periods of historical films do you love and want to see yourself in?

To be blunt, those of European descent, usually male, write themselves into the history of the Great Wall of China, Polynesia, and running with Mongol hordes. 

If Europeans "might" be there, why not Africans, like Yasuke, the "Black Samurai / Black Ronin" or "African Samurai / African Ronin"?

• Plus, marketing and making connections outside of the larger African American Book Clubs, when "lists" for Black Historical Fiction and Literature, because most are only rearranged rewrites of the SAME lists of older / classic African American or Black American tales. 
  • For example. Try searching for "African British Historical Fiction" sometime and see what limited material comes up. Even just African British, when Africans have been in Europe since, at least, Roman times. 
  • Or look for "African American Historical Fiction" that's not Z. N. Hurston, A. Walker, etc.
  • Yes. Some newer books get listed but, you have to scroll and scroll to find the newer stories about older, more varied, or different tales.

NOW. WHO AM I…?

Neale Sourna (www.Neale-Sourna.com), an award-winning author / publisher - screenwriter - game story narrative writer, based in the Greater Cleveland, Ohio, USA area. My novel and short story writing grew from self-prescribed short story exercises to work out ideas for TV scripts and feature screenplays.

My first published work was the short story "Hesitation" for PLAYGIRL, May 2002. 
“Characters should have depth and reality, and be unique in their own way.”

Some awards include my first published novel HOBBLE which won Best Romantic Erotica of the Year from BlackRefer.com; screenplay FRAMES which ranked as a New Century Screenplay Finalist; and Best storytelling @ White Nights Conference Game Narrative Awards for online video game METROPOLIS: LUX OBSCURA. http://www.neale-sourna.com/scriptgateway.html

I am a member of the Writer's Guild of America - West (WGA-w)'s Video Game Caucus.

I also edit and design (ebook and book covers plus interior layouts) of the character-driven stories published through PIE: Perception Is Everything (www.PIE-Percept.com), which is my author-publishing company.

EVER HEAR OF "WRITE WHAT YOU KNOW”?

A little bit of everything in my life goes into my writing, because I believe in building characters who have unique depth, freshness, and reader memorability. So, they get some degree of my thoughts, emotions, and experience or that of someone I know directly or by observation.

Plus, with a lifelong love of learning and with life experience as a temp and perm employee in various fields besides writing; including: retail, business banking and wealth management, accounting, engineering, live theatre, cinema, music (vocal, instruments, and radio), erotic photo modeling, historical and cultural research, and even a little microgravity research at NASA.

You never know what comes in handy for writing characters and plots.

EDUCATION:

• Cuyahoga Community College’s Digital Film & Editing, Game Design Building; plus studies in Music Theory & Harmony. 
• Graduate level Film & Video writing and analysis at American University, DC. 
• A Performing Fine Arts Bachelor Degree from Lake Erie College, OH in Music, Photography, Painting, and Live Theater Stage Management and Theater Management. 
• An undergrad-intern semester at Mount Vernon College with the National Endowment for the Arts Opera-Musical Theatre Financial Distribution Program. 
• And an academic term alone abroad in Vienna, Austria just living, making friends, and learning.
  

A MISCELLANEOUS FUN FACT.
I share a birthday with sensual and sensational authors the Marquis de Sade of France and Thomas Hardy of England.||

_BUY STORIES online at your usual bookstores (BN and Amazon). Or get mobi / kindle / epub versions banned by Amazon Kindle or other vendors available at: https://payhip.com/NealeSourna 

https://www.patreon.com/NealeSourna

• 
  

Showing Writing Changes, Chap 1 Becca DuMaurier (part 1)

 

Showing Writing Changes, Chap 1 Becca DuMaurier

      This and the next few posts will show you changes made while changing several website story chapters of a short story "novelette" into a novel, well, novel series. Here is proof that good things need time for story, character, research, and a novelist to grow something wonderful.

      Yes, the shorts were great, if I do say so myself and my client and her website visitors; but more of a good thing is great too.

Original Client Short Story_Feb 2008

_899 wds

 

Becca in the Woods Cornwall, England UK; 1680s

Becca’d been on her way to her betrothal, or rather she’d escaped from crowded, maddening London, back to her stormy, Atlantic tossed Cornwall coast;,; three hundred miles further west than most London courtiers would ever venture.

 

The whole world was in mad upheaval! Pirates raided coasts. Neighbor killed neighbor, for God and Right. Their Catholic king’d run away and his daughter, with her Dutch Protestant husband, now ruled; as Becca’s healthy loveliness and strong family name remained besieged by an earl, whose grown heir had died, and now he wanted another, by her.

 

Unlucky Becca.

 

She’d lost two babes; both to fever, then lost her beloved, gentle husband in the king’s senseless wars and now this earl, older than her father, had reached out his covetous hands, to make her his countess, in payment for her father’s impending bankruptcy.

Both men had...more... https://www.patreon.com/NealeSourna

Watch. WATCH! Especially creatives and creative writers.

http://www.pbs.org/wnet/gperf/episodes/hamiltons-america/#




hamilton, broadway, pbs, creative, creative writing, lin, manuel, miranda, writing

24 Things You Might Be Saying Wrong

by Reader's Digest Magazine, on Wed Aug 18, 2010 10:23am PDT

The Reader's Digest Version of all those confusing words and seemingly random rules you missed in English class.

You never mean: Could care less

You always mean: Couldn't care less

Why: You want to say you care so little already that you couldn't possibly care any less. When the Boston Celtics' Ray Allen said, "God could care less whether I can shoot a jump shot," we know he meant exactly the opposite because 1) God has other things on his mind, and 2) God is a Knicks fan.

You might say: Mano a mano

You might mean: Man-to-man

Why: You don't speak Spanish by adding vowels to the end of English words, as a columnist describing father–teenage son relationships seemed to think when he wrote, "Don't expect long, mano a mano talks." Mano a mano (literally, "hand to hand") originated with bullfighting and usually refers to a knock-down, drag-out direct confrontation.

You might say: Less

You might mean: Fewer

Why: In general, use fewer when you're specifying a number of countable things ("200 words or fewer"); reserve less for a mass ("less than half"). So when you're composing a tweet, do it in 140 characters or fewer, not less.

You never mean: Hone in

You always mean: Home in

Why: Like homing pigeons, we can be single-minded about finding our way to a point: "Scientists are homing in on the causes of cancer." Hone means "to sharpen": "The rookie spent the last three seasons honing his skills in the minor leagues." But it's easy to mishear m's and n's, which is probably what happened to the Virginia senator who said, "We've got to hone in on cost containment." If you're unsure, say "zero in" instead.

You might say: Bring

You might mean: Take

Why: The choice depends on your point of view.

Use bring when you want to show motion toward you ("Bring the dog treats over here, please").

Use take to show motion in the opposite direction ("I have to take Rufus to the vet").

The rule gets confusing when the movement has nothing to do with you. In those cases, you can use either verb, depending on the context: "The assistant brought the shot to the vet" (the vet's point of view); "the assistant took the shot to the doctor" (the assistant's).

You might say: Who

You might mean: Whom

Why: It all depends. Do you need a subject or an object? A subject (who) is the actor of the sentence: "Who left the roller skates on the sidewalk?" An object (whom) is the acted-upon: "Whom are you calling?" Parents, hit the Mute button when Dora the Explorer shouts, "Who do we ask for help when we don't know which way to go?"

You almost never mean: Brother-in-laws, runner-ups, hole in ones, etc.

You almost always mean: Brothers-in-law, runners-up, holes in one, etc.

Why: Plurals of these compound nouns are formed by adding an s to the thing there's more than one of (brothers, not laws). Some exceptions: words ending in ful (mouthfuls) and phrases like cul-de-sacs.

You almost never mean: Try and

You almost always mean: Try to

Why: Try and try again, yes, but if you're planning to do something, use the infinitive form: "I'm going to try to run a marathon." Commenting on an online story about breakups, one woman wrote, "A guy I dated used to try and impress me with the choice of books he was reading." It's no surprise that the relationship didn't last.

You almost never mean: Different than

You almost always mean: Different from

Why: This isn't the biggest offense, but if you can easily substitute from for than (My mother's tomato sauce is different from my mother-in-law's), do it. Use than for comparisons: My mother's tomato sauce is better than my mother-in-law's.

You almost never mean: Beg the question

You almost always mean: Raise the question

Why: Correctly used, "begging the question" is like making a circular argument (I don't like you because you're so unlikable). But unless you're a philosophy professor, you shouldn't ever need this phrase. Stick to "raise the question."

You might say: More than

You can also say: Over

Why: The two are interchangeable when the sense is "Over 6,000 hats were sold." We like grammarian Bryan Garner's take on it: "The charge that over is inferior to more than is a baseless crotchet."

You almost never mean: Supposably

You almost always mean: Supposedly

Why: Supposably is, in fact, a word—it means "conceivably"—but not the one you want if you're trying to say "it's assumed," and certainly not the one you want if you're on a first date with an English major or a job interview with an English speaker.

You might say: All of

You probably mean: All

Why: Drop the of whenever you can, as Julia Roberts recently did, correctly: "Every little moment is amazing if you let yourself access it. I learn that all the time from my kids." But you need all of before a pronoun ("all of them") and before a possessive noun ("all of Julia's kids").

You might say: That

You might mean: Which

Why: "The money that is on the table is for you" is different from "the money, which is on the table, is for you." That pinpoints the subject: The money that is on the table is yours; the money in my pocket is mine.

Which introduces an aside, a bit of extra information. If you remove "which is on the table," you won't change the meaning: The money is for you (oh, and unless you don't want it, it's on the table). If the clause is necessary to your meaning, use that; if it could safely be omitted, say which.

You never mean: Outside of

You always mean: Outside

Why: These two prepositions weren't meant for each other. Perfectly acceptable: "Wearing a cheese-head hat outside Wisconsin will likely earn you some stares and glares (unless you're surrounded by Green Bay Packers fans, that is)."

You might say: Each other

You might mean: One another

Why: Tradition says that each other should be used with two people or things, and one another with more than two, and careful speakers should follow suit: "The three presenters argued with one another over who should announce the award, but Ann and Barbara gave each other flowers after the ceremony." (By the way, if you need the possessive form of either one when writing that business letter, it's always each other's and one another's; never end with s'.)


8 Confusing Pairs

leery, wary: suspicious
weary: tired

farther: for physical distance
further: for metaphorical distance or time

principle: rule
principal: of your school

compliment: nice thing to say
complement: match

continual: ongoing but intermittent
continuous: without interruption

stationary: stands still
stationery: paper

imply: to suggest a meaning
infer: to draw meaning from something

affect: typically a verb, meaning "to act upon or cause an effect"; as a noun, it's "an emotional response"
effect: typically a noun, meaning "something produced," like a special effect; as a verb, "to bring about," as in "to effect change"

Creative Designers and Writers Forum, LinkedIn: Intuition and Creativity: Are the Two Linked? « The Potential Within

They are linked wonderfully, when I remember not to ignore or disregard their connection. They work together to anchor my writing in a reality that is both hyper and realistic--as most fiction and good nonfiction are. It's that fortunate way of "hearing" a character's voice or the nonfiction POV voice that's perfect in character subtext.

My present project has been fleshing out a reality-based romantic novel that takes place in mainland China, along with a huge language barrier. I was given a major character's description and the reaction him, and came up with an overtly effusive manner for him to speak.

Bingo. I was told that she laughed at the pleasure of hearing him come alive, as she recalls him. I've never met him, nor heard him.

Intuition is listening and perceiving the subtleties around and within you, creativity is doing it, expressing it outwardly and not assuming it's frivolous, or hard.

From Beyond Romance Blog: Flaws versus Foibles By Misty Malone (Guest Blogger)

http://lisabetsarai.blogspot.com/2010/02/flaws-versus-foibles.html

Jane Smith is perfect. She’s funny, witty, sings like an angel, and gorgeous. Though she can be a bit too nice at times, and has a tendency to be a bit clumsy.

Mary Johnson is also popular, but she’s known for her hot temper and often acts without thinking of the consequences first.

So, which one of these characters would you rather read about?

Mary, right? Bet I know why.

Mary has a character flaw. Jane has a character foible.

Merriam-Webster defines character foibles as, “a minor flaw or shortcoming in character or behavior.” These “quirks” don’t impact the character’s life in any significant way and rarely have the power to carry a main character through a plot. Being clumsy, like Jane, may make a reader identify with the trait, but rarely with the character herself.

On the other hand, Mary’s anger and impetuousness open up a whole world of plotlines because of the fatal character flaw at the core of her personality. Whatever situation she gets in, her fatal flaw will make it worse. The reader will cringe when Mary makes yet another mistake, but that’s what you want as an author: character flaws are what make readers care about your characters.

Here are some tips and tricks: [http://lisabetsarai.blogspot.com/2010/02/flaws-versus-foibles.html]

Game Writer Exchange at LinkedIn.com

GAME STORY WRITERS

WANTED: Established game writers, rank beginners and working in-betweeners. Share your latest job and career notice finds, give information and advice, or submit education hookups concerning game story writing and/or requests for short to long fiction for games or comics.

Writers are often THE LAST TO BE CALLED into the game planning and development process, but are expected to pull a gigantic elephant out of the tiny hat.

Just like art graphics and programming code good writing and especially GREAT WRITING needs time to build its understructure and then layer on muscle and flesh.

The more WE WRITERS share and give one another a hand up to get each and every one of us into projects earlier, the better our writing will be and THE BETTER THE GAMES WE WRITE WILL BE, and the sooner we’ll be asked to the party.

No more last minute literary rescues and trying to piece together plots that makes all the already chosen graphics work. Which can be great—if it works—and disastrous and a blame on the writer when it doesn’t.

Let’s all move ahead, together.

--Neale Sourna at GAME WRITER EXCHANGE

*******************************

An open letter:

GAME WRITER EXCHANGE just needs to be simple. It seems there are few writing gigs, or we don't hear about them until late. Or, we're busy and want to pass on something we've found to another, who's qualified.

Some of us are getting fairly regular hits, but if we writers can pool or resources and therefore--like attractive gazelles at a watering hole a women in a women's college attract the interests of power hitters; once they see us here.

Although the women's college thing is better but way too similar to lions hunting gazelles!

If we can gather a decent, solid range of starting, medium, and advanced writers in an easier to find virtual location, I think it will improve our access, our writing, and our marketing and cash flow.

Hopefully, this open approach will encourage the planners, developers, and recruiters to see us. We're here! We need to be added to the planning and the payroll way before all the artists and whomever find they have logic holes.

We game writers just need to be gathered together much as the artists and coding programmers here at LinkedIn; together like them, but highlighted and spotlighted in our own element, away from them.

And if anyone has questions, we can share answers.

I've seen game writer and game comic, etc questions spread out around my other author, scriptwriting, and game groups; but not specialized to it. I see comics, and even script planning art boards, in a similar area as game story narrative.

Also there are narrative articles and blogs at Gamasutra.com and other places, and it wouldn't hurt to gather those. I've been pulling a few into my own character writing blog [http://writing-naked101.blogspot.com/ ] but ... I'm a little lonely, I think.

I'm alone when I write, edit, layout, and publish my works or write or rewrite other peoples scripts, novels, and games.

The programmers I work with are sometimes helpful but busy cranking out their games and my questions are normally only in what they do or do not want, which leaves me with more questions on how to improve, what others skills and game design programs [like Neverwinter Nights] from a writer's approach is best--and EASY and SENSIBLE--for the next step, in writers helping the game from concept to player.

I felt it was a burning idea and I didn't see it repeated anywhere else here, or I would've joined.

So, I've no desire to play dictator or mess up anybody's stuff but writers of every kind need to gather our power and use it to get us more: power, respect, reputation, opportunities, and the cash.

And, as always, I'm open to positive, useful suggestions for our project here in gathering game writing info, news, jobs, etcetera.

Neale

www.Writing-Naked.com
www.Neale-Sourna.com
www.PIE-Percept.com

Neale Sourna Game stories:

"Heartwild Solitaire" 1 & 2 pc games
"Margrave Manor" & "Margrave Manor2: The Lost Ship" pc games
"Berlin'61: The Wall" RPG

Neale Sourna's Writing-Naked.com--Creative Writing, Ghostwriting, Screenplays, Novels, Rewriting, Character, more....

Neale Sourna's Creative Writing, Freelance Writing, Online Writing and Creative Content, Ghostwriting, Rewriting, Screenwriting, Proofing, and Editing, Writing Character and Writing Ideas Help

With online clients worldwide, fiction and nonfiction: USA, Canada, Australia, England, Germany, Poland, and more. Accepting viable clients through Elance, Guru, and PayPal (if established previous client). Click on links following to see portfolios and connect into Neale online at Elance or Guru.

Elance.com / NS Elance Writing-Editing Profile and Guru.com / NS Guru Writing-Editing Profile / NS Resume 2009-08-NSourna--WritingNaked.pdf

(for scripts, screenplays, novels, game stories/gaming stories, short stories, sales dialog scripts, and more)

Find Neale Sourna at LinkedIn! http://www.linkedin.com/in/nealesourna

Find Neale Sourna at MySpace!

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Your screenplay, novel, or screenplay into novel, your dialog and visuals need hardcore writing and intense character rebuilding or revisualization. In your writing erotica, writing romance, erotic writing, too, it needs its to have hypnotic. sensual (all your senses) and emotional impact to have more power over your reader; so, invest in fine writing and great storytelling that makes your reader feel and experience.

Problems with one character or many characters?

> Are they "off"?

> "Not gelling?"

> "Out of step?"

> Or are they "frozen" or "lifeless,"and not "real enough"

We can work on that. I can help you improve that.

Or I can take over and give you a rewrite that'll help.

So, if you need:

> a writer,

> a rewriter,

> a ghostwriter,

> a writing consultant, perhaps

> a mini coach for just a few hours of writing/character/plotting advice

for a "kick start" or "kick in the pants," to help you with your fiction or your voice in both fiction and nonfiction, make contact.

If you're truly ready to be serious about investing in and doing the very best for your project, contact me; when you want a voice that's strong, profound, and farseeing--whether scifi/adventure, romance, spiritual, or drama (with or without humor / humour).

Quality pricing gets you quality writing; by byline or ghost (ghostwriting).

Client Project: NEW!! Heartwild Solitaire, The Author's Edition* The FIRST solitaire game with a romance story. Romance Follow a story of Anne, as she leaves her old life behind and sets off to rediscover her true self. But then a man, dangerous kind, steps onto her path... Tarot Through a Tarot spread see Anne's fate unfolding. Hand painted cards will guide you. Solitaire Have fun with a relaxing, card-matching game. Unique bonuses and random card placement will keep you playing for hours. And if you dare, submit your best score to the online chart and compete with others! *Game story Written by Neale Sourna, Rated E for Everyone Version also available

Client Project:

The Secret of Margrave Manor at http://www.margravemanor.com/

and

Margrave Manor 2: The Lost Ship

search/puzzle game scripts; fun, character-filled stories by Neale Sourna

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Client Project:

Great fiction stories just posted to two new websites: Samurai (2), Australian outback western mail order bride romance about a shy love (3), "Becca" (a short story novel) with adventure, pirates, a duke and a runaway lady, and more published at:

http://www.romantic4ever.com/romantic-fiction/index.html

and four of my contemporary and period wedding night stories are now here:

http://www.weddingnight.com/

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^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
"I will not fear.

Fear is the mindkiller.

Fear is the little death
That brings total Oblivion.

I will permit my fear to pass
Over me and through me.

And where it has gone
I will turn the inner eye.

Nothing will be there
Only I will remain."©

from Frank Herbert's DUNE.

What is Writing Naked?