Reading For Craft

Journals, Diaries, and Letters (Expertise)

Sea of Cortez by John Steinbeck is described as “one of those rare books that are all things to all readers. Actually the record of a brief collecting expedition in the lonely Gulf of California, it will be science to the scientist, philosophy to the philosopher, and to the average man an adventure in living and thinking.”

Second: Expertise

Recently I read a short story western set in the early 1900’s. One character took ill and the other took over the daily diary log for a week, as requested by their employer, and almost went mad with the boredom. As a reader I was on the borderline of skimming any more diary entries myself when the author returned to the main diary person who realized that the reason they were so far behind schedule was due to the enormous amount of time needed daily to keep their nomad livestock alive and healthy. The diary details were short, meticulous and repetitive. Like the record keeping of the Sea of Cortez log there was an authenticity to the lifestyle and the work that made the fictional story read like a memoir.

Hopefully as writers we will not cut as close to the edge of boring readers, but to understand and use accurately details of a job or location or project, diaries and letters and journals written by hands-on participants will give us the verity of expertise. We can see through their eyes and recognize what aspects are important and which are not.

They will also bridge the gap between instructional information, such as reading a recipe, and the emotional response of a working process, such as the texture and smell and satisfactions of kneading dough into bread, or shaping pottery on wheel, or hearing an engine hum after changing plugs and draining oil.

Share: What diaries have you read that made you feel as if you were present?

Read deep, marcy

Reading For Craft

Pacific Coast Justice

Mysteries

Trying to dive into the mystery genre is like trying to decide what to eat at a lavish banquet. The range runs from light-hearted cozy to deep psychological mind games. And even within a category, such as a cozy, the intensity can run from low pulse to heart pounding marathon.

Then, once in a sub-category, what criteria can be applied to quality, for both writers and readers? Details. I read so many mysteries that it is a pure delight when I find a series that not only keeps me up at night reading but also can’t wait for the next series, by that author.

Inspirational crime novelist Janice Cantore’s Pacific Coast Justice fulfills both. Main character Carly Edwards is a dedicated police officer in Las Playas, California. She is ‘real’, a woman who struggles with relationships, faith questions, and integrity in the workplace. Carly could be our neighbor, friend, or sister. The shifting clues flow through the plot from the beginning to the end with increasing stress just where they catch a reader by surprise. In addition, as an ex police officer herself, Cantore brings an added layer of authenticity in procedure and protocol without overpowering the reader with extensive explanations but instead with confidence. That sense of accuracy extends to the locations as well. As readers we see what Carly sees and feels and hears—an in the moment ride-a-long.

Mystery writer Elizabeth George says that the details that show a person’s landscape “imprint an impression of a character in the reader’s mind.” The external and internal are achieved through specific and telling details. These are details with a message attached to them, the kind of details that no reader forgets. She keeps her characters real and grounded in daily life.

Those specific and telling details are threaded unobtrusively throughout Cantore’s series. If you are an aspiring mystery writer, find an author that incorporates those telling details in your specific sub genre and study the aspects of how thoroughly they are presented. Don’t settle on only recent publications too, but go back and see how the author started off. Or perhaps you need an assortment: one author that describes location well, and another voice, and another plot.

Personally as a reader, I prefer challenge, curiosity, and nail biting without adrenalin terror or graphic sensory overload. I had to stop watching one of my favorite TV series Bones when I found myself needing to close my eyes more and more with each episode. However, I recognize my squeamishness is in the minority for that genre style. And in reality, it’s not a category I am drawn to. The acting and script quality kept me watching even though from the onset I had to close my eyes, at least for the opening incidents. Although I consider myself a qualified viewer to assess Bones, as a writer I could not possibly pen any material.

Find the “imprint impression” that impacts you first as a reader, and then write your own quality stories that keep fans asking for more. Enjoy!

In alphabetical order, here are a few more published series that have kept me up past midnight so far this year:

Colleen Coble: Rock Harbor Series and The Hope Beach Series

Earlene Fowler: Bennie Harper Mystery Series

Jenn McKinlay: A Library Lover’s Mystery Series

Ramona Richards: Jackson’s Retreat Series

Share: What favorite series have you read recently? What details draw you to read that particular author?