I think one of the best times in a writers life is when he meets another writer that has accomplished so much--like Janet Evanovich. She had great words for the writers in the Florida Writers Association. Get the first chapter completed and move on. She said to quit rewriting it until you wear yourself out. It makes sense to me. She is also the inspiration I need to write my first romantic comedy. This will be intersting, but something I think will help me to be a better writer. This group of writers is fantastic and very suportive. I was extremely honored to win the Royal Palm Literary Award for best thriller in 2008 sponsored by the FWA.

Novelist Johnny Ray's reflections on Dialog.
One of the great exercises in creating fantastic dialog is simply going some where and listening to what they say and how they say it. I recently did this and learned two things that I found very interesting. First off, when asked a question, most people never directly answer it, but beat around the bush. The next point is that most people try to talk over the other person. It would be great to learn how to make two people talking to each other at the same time appear on one flat piece of paper.
If anyone knows of an author that has mastered this technique, I would love to read some of that author's work. Let me know what interesting experiences you have had in observing others talking.

Novelist Johnny Ray's thoughts on life. It's interesting to see how life changes when you have to go to the hospital for a small surgery - I had my gall bladder taken out. However, all is looking better now and I hope to get back to work on my next novel soon. I would like to thank all of you that have been so supportive of me the last two weeks.

The experience made me think about how much emotions and thoughts that a writer needs to express through his characters. This is what is needed to make them come alive. The use of dialog that sounds natural and conveys their inner thoughts is a gift that is hard to learn with out actually forcing yourself to do so. I have heard of this lesson in writing before and plan on doing it in the next few days. It is simple, you take a notebook with you and write down word for word what people say. While I am healing it would be great to try this.
It would be great to see how other writers work on dialog, so leave me a note.

Johnny Ray

Building a brand name for Johnny Ray as a novelist is a step by step process that becomes more and more interesting as time progresses. However, the friends created along the way are making all of the difference in the world.
I think it is important to look at the process of writing from both a writer and a reader. There are thousands of books on how to write. And, they are very informative. However, you do not see many on the subject of reading tips. To fully enhance this experience, I have decided to dig into this much deeper and hopefully provide the little something extra that will help the reader enjoy the book he or she is reading. No, this is not going to be a course in reading, but think of it as more of a way of thinking, of understanding, of experiencing a world that the writer intended.
I think it is very true that the charcters in the book should tell the story, it is impossible to totally remove the writer and his personal opinions. A review of who the author is will help tremendously in reading the book. Now, if it is an author you know from before, you may already know much. But adding to your knowledge of who that person is could be invaluable in understanding the story. On a new book, reading about the author could prove to help understand why the story is told a particular way. So, I guess my first post in this series is to get to know the author and what makes him or her tick. The effort will be well rewarded.

Johnny Ray

Novelist Johnny Ray's notes on how to make writing interesting.

First and most important, the writer, in my humble opinion, must find life interesting, intriquing and completely unique in every day it is explored. There is so much to explore , to discover, to live. Yes, all people have a way of enjoying life, some more than others. But, for many life seen through the eyes of the writer adds to their life. It would be good to explore the whole world and see all of the beauty this world has to offer, but not a reality for everyone. That is why I think the writer has a special obligation to experience life and remember all of the details that make places come alive.

It would be great to hear how other writers record their thoughts on places they visit. leave me
a note on how you keep track of the places you visit. Or if you are a reader, let me know what it is about a place that you want to know about. What excites you so much that you want to visit it. How can a writer make a place appear real and vivid to you.

Novelist Johnny Ray's writing tip #1 on polishing the novel. Sometimes finding an error is easy when it stands out from the rest of the work. Other times it's hard when it is so well embedded in the work. A single shell on the beach is always given much attention, but when you see clusters of them every where, you tend to not even notice them. That is why I like using the control F key. There are many times that a writer loves a certain word or phrase. And unintentionally uses toooooo much. You know the words. Just click on one and add it to the control F box. It will amaze you. The secret is learning how to replace it. It takes work, but that is what writing is all about.
Let me know how you like to use the Control F key to polish your work.

Novelist Johnny Ray's vision of writing from one of the most beautiful beaches in the world proves that dreams can come true.

Caladesi Island near Clearwater Florida was recently picked by Dr. Beach as the most beautiful beach in America. The only way to reach it is by boat and having an experienced captain running the boat is fantastic, especially when he knows the history of the island. I will be working on an article about this island shortly and releasing all of the photos of I have taken.
As always, I want to know what others have in their backyard to inspire them, to excite them to write.
There really is a good story here that needs to be told. More on that later.

Novelist Johnny Ray's writer's block issues. Some days the story flows off the back of your mind easily and sometimes it clogs up the works. Like today, when I think I can get started again, I find myself wanting to do more and more research. Yes, I'm writing about a city (Moscow)I have only been to twice and then just passing through. However it is amazing how much information and photos that you can have access to over the internet. It is a curse and a godsend.

I have joined a writer's group and look forward to the meeting with them this Saturday. It's the Tampa chapter of the Romantic Writers of America. I think just the excitement of being around so many talented people will be great.

I think it would be great to hear how other writers work through their own writer's block.