Bittersweet Symphony

Hi. It’s Nilanjana from Team WEP here sharing the team’s favorite treat which has led to our August challenge! 

What’s dark and bitter yet associated almost universally with pleasure, temptation, luxury and even decadence? Ha. Bet you got it right away! And fellow writers, what item can a writer use to whip up a romance one moment and satirize as a symbol of corruption in the next? Yup, exactly…and its history mirrors its bittersweet yet fascinating taste. 

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Food of the gods 

Where did this bittersweet treat originate? It didn’t just miraculously appear! It goes way back at least 3500 years. In the Olmec, Maya and Aztec cultures of Mesoamerica, cacao was considered a divine gift and made into a beverage drunk at sacred rituals and before battles. 

Cacao beans first reached the Iberian coast in the 1520s with the Spanish conquerors. A contemporary source wrote that it was ‘more like a drink for pigs’ than humans. Nevertheless, by the 17th century, trade in cacao was thriving. 

In Spain, chocolate was made more palatable with sugar/honey, vanilla and cinnamon. It became a court favorite. Chocolate traveled to France when Spanish princesses/nobility married there. It also went to Italy with the Jesuits. It caught on big time in Europe and many European nations established cacao plantations in equatorial Africa. The European market for sugar exploded too, in turn creating the demand for slave labor. 

While Africa still produces over 70% of the global cacao output, only 3% of the finished chocolate is consumed by them. Out of the Big 10 chocolate corporations, not one is located in Africa. Cacao farming is associated with poverty and child labor, which some companies are fighting to rectify. Something to be aware of when we bite into our next bar. 

Initially, cacao processing was manual and time-consuming. That changed majorly in 1828 when C. J. van Houten of Netherlands invented the chocolate press. It squeezed the butter from roasted beans, leaving powdered cocoa as residue. That could be mixed with liquids, molded and hardened upon cooling – the first modern chocolate bars. 

The Industrial Revolution resulted in patents for emulsification processes, machinery and molds. Thus chocolate morphed into a stand-alone industry. It transitioned from a locally consumed beverage to a global confectionery food product. 

Chocolate corners the romance market 

The notion of romantic love in Western culture dates back to Greek literature. Their most famous epics are predicated on the abduction of Helen by Paris. During the Middle Ages, courtly love – mostly unattainable and tragic, was an established literary theme. Knights sang of their love and offered roses as proof. The tradition of Valentine’s Day to celebrate lovers is mentioned in Geoffrey Chaucer’s Parliament of Fowls in 1382. 

Romance and love stories wound their way through the 16th century with plays like Romeo and Juliet to the first romance novels – Pride and Prejudice in 1813 followed by Jane Eyre in 1847. By mid-century, the romance novel, gifts and Valentine’s were well established and continue to this day. 

That was the perfect backdrop for the elaborate heart-shaped chocolate box Valentine’s gifts, which Richard Cadbury first designed in 1868. These gorgeous boxes were not simply packaging for chocolates but doubled up as keepsakes once the chocolates were eaten. Talk about nifty marketing! The Victorians simply lapped them up as we do. Chocolates as romantic gifts have remained popular. As Cadbury didn’t patent the heart-shaped packaging, whoops, it has been copied by other manufacturers – now a staple in Valentine’s Day celebrations. 

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Chocolate and storytelling 

Don’t get me wrong. It’s a mistake to assume chocolate is restricted to romance alone. Many authors have used chocolate - as a metaphor, for characterization or just a prop. Different ways, different genres. Here are some excerpts. 

1. A Tale of Two Cities (1859, Historical) by Charles Dickens Monseigneur was about to take his chocolate…. One lacquey carried the chocolate-pot into the sacred presence; a second, milled and frothed the chocolate with the little instrument he bore for that function; a third, presented the favoured napkin; a fourth (he of the two gold watches), poured the chocolate out. It was impossible for Monseigneur to dispense with one of these attendants on the chocolate and hold his high place under the admiring Heavens.  

2. Proof of the Pudding (1910, Short fiction) by O. Henry "Smoke, Shack?" said Editor Westbrook, sinking cautiously upon the virulent green bench. He always yielded gracefully when he did yield. Dawe snapped at the cigar as a kingfisher darts at a sunperch, or a girl pecks at a chocolate cream. 

3. Peril at End House (1932, Crime) by Agatha Christie ‘It was a box of chocolates.’ ‘Ah! sacré. And I told her to eat nothing—nothing—that came from outside.’ ‘I don’t know about that. It’s hard work keeping a girl from a box of chocolates. She only ate one, thank goodness.’ 

4. The Da Vinci Code (2003, Thriller) by Dan Browne "Although Professor Langdon might not be considered hunk-handsome like some of our younger awardees, this forty-something academic has more than his share of scholarly allure. His captivating presence is punctuated by an unusually low, baritone speaking voice, which his female students describe as 'chocolate for the ears.’” The hall erupted in laughter. 

5. Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood (2016, Memoir) by Trevor Noah As a kid I understood that people were different colors, but in my head white and black and brown were like types of chocolate. Dad was the white chocolate, mom was the dark chocolate, and I was the milk chocolate. But we were all just chocolate. 

At Write…Edit…Publish…(WEP) we celebrate flash fiction by writing to a prompt every alternate month. The current prompt is based on Chocolat by Joanne Harris (1999, Magical Realism with an overdose of chocolate). The linky is open 16th - 18th August. Come join the fun! All you need is love. For writing, that is. And a bit of chocolate! 

WEP is also presently open for submissions to its first-ever flash fiction Anthology. Be in it! 

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Nilanjana Bose blogs at Madly-in-Verse. She is a poet, essayist and short fiction writer. Also a quiet follower of the IWSG and a not-so-quiet part of WEP for more than a decade.

Back to the Basics

Years ago, as a newbie writer, I thought a story had to fall like fairy dust from the sky to the page or else I was a failure as a writer. If it wasn't coming to me like magic, I was obviously a talentless hack. But then, as I rubbed elbows with fellow writers and read helpful tips from famous writers, it finally occurred to me- writing isn't simply talent. It's also hard work paired with education.

I have been the slush pile reader for several writing competitions this year and I couldn't help but think as I read the entries that there was a lot of talent in all these stories, but sometimes, something was missing. They were good, but not yet good enough. I will admit, as a writer, I cringed when that thought went through my head. I mean, I have personally heard that more times than I can count and I surely don't want to be turning into one of those people who tell writers this is good, but not good enough.

So, how does a writer go from good to good enough? Personally, I'm still studying and learning, but in analyzing the ones that didn't emerge from my slush pile, I can say it was mostly for a lack of the basics. There might have been a great voice, but the plot was weak. Great characters, but no conflict.

That's when I decided for this week’s IWSG post, I would recap what I think are the most important elements a story- for other readers and for my own better WIPs too.

The Basics:

1.       Conflict. Conflict raises the stakes. Without any trials for characters to face, there would be no character growth or plot arc (beginning, middle, end). But conflict doesn’t have to be Rambo-esque. Person vs. person can simply be the interpersonal frustrations of two characters (most every romance ever).  A character can also have conflict with nature (To Build a Fire), fate (Harry Potter), self (Fight Club), society (The Hand Maid’s Tale), technology (Blade Runner), or even the supernatural (It).

2.       Theme. Our high school English teachers weren’t wrong—a story needs to have a point. Be it a moral lesson or a comment on relationships or society, there needs to be a reason for someone to take the time to read the story.

3.       Characters. Duh, right? How is there a story without characters? Since that’s a given, let’s go a bit deeper. Flesh out those characters. Who are they? What’s their back story, even the tidbits you’ll never share. What are their hobbies, pet peeves, favorite color? Make them real. Add some flaws. Then make them grow (AKA character arcs). If they’re staying static, either you have a flat character who isn’t meant to inspire, or you need to dig deeper.

4.       Setting. It’s more than just the time and place. Used wisely, it sets the tone and adds dimension to the story. In my Coulter Men series, the first book is about an independent single mom who lives on an island; book two, the hero is an isolated, barren-souled man living in Montana; book three the heroine is hiding her identity and living a lie in the heart of Washington, DC.

5.       Point of View. Who is telling the story? Probably the person the writer wants the reader to most identify with. I will often shift POV from the guy to the gal to get a he said/she said sort of banter going. In order to maintain some mystery, it’s often better to hold the POV cards a bit tighter. If the reader knows every thought of every character, it could be like setting unwrapped presents under the Christmas tree. What’s the fun in that?

Those are a quick rundown of my favorite. What elements of a story do you think are the most important?

Picture credit:

Image by Tumisu from Pixabay

Don't forget to join in the IWSG Book Club discussion on Goodreads.

Our August/September book is Forest for the Trees: An Editor’s Advice by Betsy Lerner.
Discussion Fun Day will be September 25, 2019.
Until then, enjoy this freebie created by one of our book club moderators, Juneta Key: Story Study Checklist (Click on the link to open and then save the PDF to your computer.)



Want to try your hand at flash fiction? Enter the WEP challenge!

Check out the WEP Challenge Here

                          Don't forget! The Twitter Pitch is coming. Polish up those manuscripts. 

IWSG Day December 2018

It's time for another group posting of the Insecure Writer's Support Group! Time to release our fears to the world - or offer encouragement to those who are feeling neurotic. If you'd like to join us, click on the tab above and sign up. We post the first Wednesday of every month. I encourage everyone to visit at least a dozen new blogs and leave a comment. Your words might be the encouragement someone needs.

The awesome co-hosts for the December 5 posting are:

J.H. Moncrieff, Tonja Drecker , Patsy Collins, and Chrys Fey!

This month's optional question is: What are five objects we'd find in your writing space?

Our Twitter is @TheIWSG and hashtag #IWSG.

We got so many phenomenal entries for the anthology contest. Look for the announcement of the official Table of Contents in January!

Don't forget, the next Twitter pitch event is in January! It's a great way to get noticed by editors and agents.

This month's WEP theme is Ribbons and Candles. You can sign up now, and even get your post up early, as some are doing due to the holidays. We can't wait to see what you create!

If you've got Instagram, you can participate in our daily questions. Here's December:

For those on Goodreads, we have a book club. For great books and discussion, check it out!

The December/January selection is Big Magic, by Elizabeth Gilbert. The discussion begins January 23.

Those who participated in NaNoWriMo are hopefully breathing a big sigh of relief right about now. Even if you didn't complete the full 50,000, any words down "on paper" are worthwhile!

How did you do for NaNo? Did you reach your goals? Have you read Big Magic, or will you be doing so for the book club? Will you be doing WEP? Have you tried out the daily Instagram prompts? Will you be doing the Twitter Pitch?

Writing Together With #WEP and #IWSG

Those of us passionate about writing, regularly read craft books with the aim of polishing our work, don’t we? But no craft book can appeal to every writer. It’s hit and miss to find a book that is exactly what you need. Sure, we can learn bits and pieces, but I’ve found an excellent way to improve my writing right here in the blogosphere.

What better place to learn the writing craft? Amongst supportive friends.

As a relative beginner writer when I started blogging in 2007, nowhere could I find what I was looking for - an online writing community that not only challenged my writing, but one where I could ask for instant feedback. I dabbled in #Fridayflash and other occasional online writing challenges, but nothing fulfilled my need.

You know what they say…if it’s not available, invent it. So, I took the plunge. Knowing I’d need a partner, I emailed a favorite blogger friend, Francine Howarth, and RomanticFridayWriters (RFW) was born in 2010. We started weekly #flashfiction challenges with a word limit of 400, then after groans and grumbles, we upped it to 1,000 words (the upper limit for #flashfiction). Francine eventually moved on to take the Regency Romance world by storm, so Donna Hole stepped into the breach.

RFW segued into WEP (Write…Edit…Publish), opening up to more genres – added to flash fiction, we included non-fiction, poetry, photography, art and playscripts. But flash fiction remains the most popular genre by far. By now I was operating without a co-host which was no fun, so I asked one of WEP’s most enthusiastic participants, Yolanda Renee, to become my new partner. Good choice. Yolanda was full of enthusiasm to see WEP take its place in the vibrant writing community, offering its unique blend of camaraderie, critique and challenge.

WEP is a close-knit team, so here’s my current co-host, Yolanda, explaining what joining WEP has meant to her: “When I discovered the RFW website (now WEP) in 2012, I joined without hesitation. The opportunity to work on writing a short story and receive immediate feedback was exciting. I posted my first flash fiction and requested a full critique. I not only got the critique, but my every question answered. This was ideal, and the opportunity to learn came not only through my writing but also by reading the work of others. I was hooked. Posting from WIPs is a popular way to test writing ideas, and I’ve used the work created for the challenges in my books, and I’ve re-written pieces after critique as contest entries. The opportunities are endless and inspiring. This online community is a success story — many participants have gone on to publish multiple novels.”

And the success story will continue through the partnership with the IWSG. WEP itself includes the founder, Denise Covey, co-host Yolanda Renee, along with Nilanjana Bose and Olga Godim. We are thrilled to join with the talented IWSG admin, most particularly at this stage, Pat Hatt and C. Lee McKenzie. Here is a joint badge created by our very talented Olga Godim. We'd love it if you'd share on your blog.

As current team member, the multi-published poet and prose writer Nilanjana Bose says, “My first entry for WEP, which was then RFW, goes back to August 2012 and I’ve not missed a prompt since, even when traveling...WEP has pushed, stretched, rewarded and comforted me even as it has grown me out of my comfort zone. It has improved my writing skill set, fine-tuned them both as a poet and a story-teller. The rigorous discipline of writing to prompts, set word counts and deadlines is invaluable for writers at any stage of growth.  I cannot imagine my writing/blogging life without it.”

Flash fiction is an addiction, and this bi-monthly 1000-word challenge is the icing on the cake. If you’re considering taking the plunge, please do. You’ll be surprised by the quality of the writing, the variety of genres, the supportive feedback, and the networking opportunities made possible simply by participating in WEP.

How about you? We’d love you to take up the challenge of writing to WEP prompts. Your writing will improve through the challenges and feedback. Even if you consider your writing flawless, sharing with others and offering valuable feedback to beginners will help the community grow and you will reap new readers for your published, or soon-to-be-published works.

We have the complete list of challenges on our website. On the Challenges 2018 Page you will find helpful hints for each challenge, but it’s up to you and your creativity how you approach each prompt.

We've had so much fun this year - with IN TOO DEEP, ROAD LESS TRAVELED and UNRAVELED YARN. So much creativity in the entries. Now it's your turn. You love the idea, don't you? What’s next?

WEP challenges are free and open to all. The current prompt is for August, CHANGE OF HEART. Submissions are already open. CLICK on this link and you're there!! We encourage you to post the badge in your sidebar with a link to WEP (writeeditpublishnow.blogspot.com).

Follow this process if you wish to participate:

• The InLinkz sign up is on the WEP blog on the first of the month, or you may see it on other blogs who've copied the code. Add your intention to post here.

• We post entries on the third Wednesday of the month or according to the badge. Post your entry onto your website or facebook page. (The TimeZone clock is on the WEP site - follow this timezone as we're from all over the world). Please add 'WEP' to your TITLE so we can easily pick it up.

• Leave a comment on the WEP website when you post, so we can add your Direct Link (DL) to the list. This way you retain your position.

• We ask that you do the rounds, leaving comments and feedback as requested.

You can post flash fiction, non-fiction, poetry, an artwork with an explanation, photo essay or a playscript. 1,000-word limit. Any more, and reading becomes a challenge in itself!

There is a $10 Amazon Gift Card for first prize. Who decides who wins? A shortlist is compiled by the WEP team, sent to the judge (Nick Wilford) and he places them into first, second and third. Second and third receive a winners’ badge for their website or facebook page. And there is a Commenter Badge for participants who read most/all entries.

And please subscribe to our mailing list at WEP! (Any problem with MailChimp, email me and I'll add you manually).

We'll see you in August!

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The 2018 Annual IWSG Anthology Contest and A IWSG/WEP Collaboration

It’s time for another group posting of the Insecure Writer’s Support Group!
Time to release our fears to the world – or offer encouragement to those who are feeling neurotic. If you’d like to join us, click on the tab above and sign up. We post the first Wednesday of every month and encourage everyone to visit at least a dozen new blogs and leave a comment. Your words might be the encouragement someone needs.

The awesome co-hosts today are: Erika Beebe, Sandra Hoover, Susan Gourley, and Lee Lowery!

Every month, we announce a question that members can answer in their IWSG post. These questions may prompt you to share advice, insight, a personal experience or story. Include your answer to the question in your IWSG post or let it inspire your post if you are struggling with something to say. 

Remember, the question is optional!

August 01 Question: What pitfalls would you warn other writers to avoid on their publication journey?

The 2018 Annual IWSG Anthology Contest

Word count: 3500-6000

Genre: Young Adult Romance

Theme:

Masquerade

A Masquerade can be a false show or pretense, someone pretending to be someone they aren't. It can be a ball, a fancy dress party, it can be a mask. Open to interpretation.

Submissions accepted: September 5 - November 4, 2018

How to enter: Send your polished, formatted (Double spaced, no page numbers), previously unpublished story to admin @ insecurewriterssupportgroup.com before the deadline passes. Please include your contact details, your social links, and if you are part of the Blogging, Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter IWSG group.

Judging: The IWSG admins will create a shortlist of the best stories. The shortlist will then be sent to our official judges who will be announced September 5.

Prizes: The winning stories will be edited and published by Freedom Fox Press next year in the IWSG anthology. Authors will receive royalties on books sold, both print and eBook. The top story will have the honor of giving the anthology its title.

 The IWSG/WEP COLLABORATION

The Insecure Writer’s Support Group has entered into a new partnership with the Write...Edit...Publish Challenge (aka WEP) which is the brainchild of Denise Covey, a long-standing IWSG member, who runs this challenge with her wonderful team.
WEP is a free online writing/creative community.

 Choose from the following formats: FLASH FICTION, POETRY, NON-FICTION, ARTWORK, PHOTO ESSAYS

1. SUBMIT your name to the Inlinkz list that will be provided on the WEP blog. The list opens 01 August which is TODAY!
   2. CREATE your entry for the August challenge - CHANGE OF HEART
   3. EDIT your entry
   4. POST your entry on your blog/face book page on August 15 - state feedback preferences
   5. READ other entries, giving feed back
   ALL GENRES WELCOME except erotica - 1,000 words maximum.
   Visit the WEP site for more information.

The IWSG Goodreads Book Club

We're almost at 300 book club members!

Our book selection for August/September is:

The Art of Memoir by Mary Karr

This one is for our memoir writers and anyone who has ever thought of writing a memoir. The discussion will start September 19th and will go to the end of the month, but it will be up indefinitely, so you can hop in whenever you're able. Join Us On Goodreads.

 

Facebook Shake Up

The Facebook  members can look forward to some new activities. Starting in August, the line-up will be as follows:

Sunday – New Member Shout Out
First Monday – Member Services Offered
The remaining Mondays – Informational Monday
First Wednesday – IWSG Day
Second Wednesday – Ask For Help
Third Wednesday will be shared with WEP

The WEP challenge is on the third Wednesday of August, October and

December, which is every alternate month
On the non-WEP third Wednesdays – Wordsmith Tales
Fourth Wednesday – Hot Topic/Industry News
Fifth Wednesday – WOW It’s Wednesday

Friday – News & Promo

We look forward to engaging in stimulating conversation and exciting discussions/debates on a variety of topics. JOIN US ON FACEBOOK.

Which one of the above activities are you interested in? Will you be preparing a YA story based on Masquerade? Or do you prefer the theme Change Of Heart? Would a memoir discussion over at the Goodreads Book Club suit you? Or one of our Hot Topics coming up as part of the new Facebook line-up? 

There is plenty to choose from! Happy IWSG Day!