TBW Recap- Sharpening Our Skills For Finding Compelling Stories

And a Few Simple Questions for Readers to Keep It Interesting

What makes a story compelling? Join me in developing our “Eyes and Ears” for finding good books and honing the craft of writing.

Heck of a six months since Trials By Writing began publication. First a Thank You, then a recap and a chance for you to tell me your preferences. The latter two are useful in figuring out where we’re headed.

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TBW sprouted in January 2024. It grows, breathes, thrives because of you, its readers.

I know you have busy lives and many choices. It’s humbling you carve out time to read or listen.

You give me great joy. By reading and listening, by liking, by feeling unfettered enough to comment, you make my life richer and I thank you.

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TBW’s goal is simply this: Find compelling stories. These compelling stories call to us, and when we hit one, they resonate inside of us for long periods. Take for example, Ann Patchett’s Tom Lake, set in a cherry orchard with extensive flashbacks. The flashbacks prompted me to think of the times Debbie and I picked berries, apples and other fruit. Flash forward—it made our recent blueberry picking all the richer.

TBW goes further by deepening our skills, our “Eyes and Ears” so to speak, where we become better at finding compelling stories in a world overstuffed with words, hyperbole, sounds, and sights amidst a shortage of time to enjoy the same.

In developing our “Eyes and Ears,” we’ll expand our understanding of not just of how the story progresses, but its underlying elements that either pull us in or push us away. Armed with our enhanced skills, we can better evaluate book reviews, hunt for stories on our own, learn to drop a book after only a few pages, or stick with it and go on to maybe discover a rare treasure. I’ve done this on many occasions—on the verge of quitting a book, only to give it another chance with a slightly different mindset and been deeply rewarded.

TBW began as a twice a month publication, with a piece on writing dropping the first Friday and a review of books the third Friday. Posting twice monthly was done with deliberation, as a toe in the water. No need to fill your inboxes with dross—we get enough of that already, don’t we?—and I’m working on a novel, a hair-pulling venture if there ever was one.

Twice a month soon inflated with lagniappes. An occasional essay/character sketch for example, in furtherance of finding stories among the everyday.

Other changes occurred as well. Since starting Trials By Writing, I’ve felt less need to write about writing, more urge to find compelling stories in books and elsewhere. In reviewing books, I’ll include a brief excerpt meant to give a sense of the characters and their conflicts we find so interesting.

The books come organically from my To-Be-Read list, without particular purpose. My main criteria for a book is, can it draw me in? I’m not paid—wouldn’t that be sweet—I like this book because somebody FedExed a copy with a twenty as a bookmark. (Don’t try this, the donation will be reported in a newsletter post and a local charity will be enriched.)

Lately, I’ve been looking at a type of book that occupies the messy middle between literary (which focuses on the writing, not so much on plot) and genre (mysteries, suspense, thrillers, etc. which focus on the plot). These books are character driven, with enough plot to maintain interest, and many are topped with exceptionally good writing. Because I’m pushing the envelope into books I don’t ordinarily read, I don’t always like where a plot takes me, but that’s OK. It’s not my work and I’ll go along for the ride.

As for the essays, the lagniappes, well they’ve billowed in frequency. Sometimes, April Fool’s and an eclipse occur within days of one another, opportunities too rich to ignore. Sometimes—I try to keep the dirty laundry unaired, but—sometimes my writing animates and when it does, it’s pushy. It sharp-elbows itself off the Consider For Publication List and onto the Scheduled For Publication List. Not naming any names.

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That’s the game plan. Discuss books, experiment by writing about everyday life via essays, talk about writing, all meant to develop our “Eyes and Ears” in finding stories we can grab onto and illuminate deeper meaning in our own lives.

Here’s your chance to weigh in. Drop your answers in the comments or send me a message.

In our search for compelling stories and the skills to find the same, what do you want to see more/less of?

            Posts on books?

            Essays?

            Posts on writing?

            Anything else?

Do you prefer a certain type of story, a particular genre?

Anything you’d like to see in book reviews?

One final note. It’s summer and I’m outside more, interacting less with the page, more with the people and places around me. Because I have to write, I’ll probably publish more essays. By all means, get outside yourself, and make your own stories. TBW will be here when you’re ready.  

All the Best,

Geoff

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