After a ray nasty cold, I have found myself off task after being on a roll.  I have found myself in a place where gettingbback into the rhythm and discipline of writing has become a bigger task than the actual writing.  I know thatiI am not alone, that many writers find themselves in a similar position when life gets in the way of our well planned week.  So how does one stay on task, how do you get restarted once you get off target, and what difference does it make anyway?  

To answer the first question, one has to look within.  Writing takes self discipline, and what motivates us is as individual as we are.  There is no right answer to this, so you have to find what works for you.  If find solid deadlines work best for me, but for you, a hard deadline my have no meaning.  You have to discover your own motivation, create your own routine, and stick with it.  Some say it takes 21 days to make a knew habit or break an old one.  That's three weeks if that sounds better for you.  Certainly not a long time to get into a writing habit.

But what do you do when you get out of the habit?  After all, we are only human.  The demented elves suggest you go back to step one and look inward, find what motivates you and work on that writing habit again.  If you did it once, you can do it again.  And no matter what remember your goals.

What difference does it make?  The difference is finishing your work or not.  If you do not stay on task, you may never finish, or it may take a long time to do so.  It also takes you out of your own story and it may take an additional time to remember what it was you were writing in the first place.  The demented elves will agree with the experts that say, write everyday.  There is no one way to do it, so find the one that works for you and continue to write, write, write! 

I have read a lot of books on writing, and while plot points tend to be discussed more so with film and TV, it is something any writer may wish to think about, especially if one is struggling with the plot.  For the most part, plot points are discussed in fairly similar terms (though I have seen them called other things); however, regardless of how they are explained they are pretty much the same concept.

Plot points are simply moments in your story that are life changing.  Not for the author, but for the protagonist.  I have often times heard it as moments that take your story in a new direction, but I believe it is more than that.  Consider a story where the protagonist moves to a new city and gets a job.  While that is a life changing event, it is not going keep the interest of your audience as this is a common occurrence.  When making your plot points more intense than reality captures the audience's attention.  To make a move more intense, you could move her into a home with an old man that hates women, and he is not afraid to let her know that at every possible moment.  Or perhaps you could focus on work.  Imagine your farm boy finds out that the fabulous job offer was nothing more than a con and he is now penniless in a strange city where he doesn't know the language.  Either choice will keep your audience because now the protagonist has just had a life changing event that leaves him or her with a dilemma. 

Demented elves believe that each plot point should bring more pressure than the last.  Think for a moment and turn up the heat.  That is what makes the story more interesting.  It is all well and good that the heroine has to learn to live with someone that hates her, but then what?  After a while, it gets old.  So know that the story needs a new direction, what if the old man gets kidnapped?  What if the heroine is the only one the kidnappers will talk to?  Now we have a new direction with a new dilemma.  One that will force the protagonist to make an even more difficult choice.  The more demented the plot point, the more the audience will be interested in the story.  

The three act structure has three.  Each one should be more demented than the next.  Each one should present the protagonist with a life changing dilemma.  They do not have to be unbelievable, unreasonable, or involving fictitious creatures, but they do have to be extraordinary.  When thinking out your plot points make them as interesting as possible.

It is the opinion of the demented elves that profanity is the sign of weak writing.  In all honesty, a good writer can think of better words for a character to use than those wonderful "four letter words" we use in real life.  It has also been observed that movies, books, and other forms of entertainment do not do as well when they are riddled with words that are otherwise found as offensive to more sensitive ears.  As a writer, you are better off using little or no profanity.  

Now comes the argument of "but to leave it out is not realistic."  There are moments in writing when using any words simply will not do.  For instance, when Indiana Jones was standing on a rope bridge spanning across this deep canyon and the bad guys were at either end of the bridge, it would have been unrealistic for him to say "oh fluffy muffins."  So,         Mr. Jones lets out a curse word, after all, who wouldn't; however, it is noted that out of the entire movie, that is the only time he uses profanity.  A rule of thumb is, if you can think of something better to say, please do.  The overuse of these colorful expressions take the audience out of your story.

Should you insist that there is nothing wrong with the proliferation of profanity in your work, ask yourself this, would you want your boss to read it?  Your mother?  How about your pastor/priest/rabbi/etc?  No?  Then why use it.  Use your creative writing skills to come up with better language than that.

Every author wants to write it.  The one liner that is Remembered and oft repeated.  It is possible for all writers to write theirs.  It really isn't that difficult.  All one has to do is remember a few things.

First of all dialogue needs to sound natural.  A juvenile delinquent would not use formal language any more than a politician would use street slang.  Knowing who your characters are helps with how they speak.  A word to the wise, if you are unfamiliar with the way a certain group of people speak, do not simply make it up.  It will come across as insincere and phony.  It is better to do a little research.

Another way to have better dialogue is to listen.  Not so much as to what people are saying, but how they are saying it.  The demented elves know that sometimes the best oneliner is the one spoken unintentionally, usually an off the cuff remark.  It is highly recommended that should you hear that precious gem uttered, write it down.  You never know when you will want to use it.  Keeping a log of phrases will also help with getting a feel for natural language.

One last item to remember, as a story is an extension of the author himself, it is not a bad idea to put yourself in the shoes of the characters you create.  Ask yourself, " what would I say in this situation?".  It may make the process of writing dialogue easier.  It will also flow more natural because the author is being himself.

The recent purchase of a new cellphone has brought the demented elves to a realization.  One that will divert attention away from the storytelling process itself and address a common dilemma many writers have, most of us new writers that is:  What app or software should I use?

When it comes to apps, one should use caution.  This isn't just for writing apps, this the rule for any app will promise you the world, but many, especially the free ones, simply don't deliver.  In fact, many do nothing.  My suggestion to you is, read what they say it will do and then read the reviews.  That will tell you if it is something you would use.  A word of caution though, don't believe all the reviews you read since there are always sour grapes and those that don't like anything.  I suggest you read all the reviews and look for common problems in each.  In the end, you have to find what works for you.

When it comes to software, there is a lot out there, and depending on what you want to write depends on the software you need.  Obviously, if you are simply writing letters, reports, or even magazine articles, all you need is a word processing program.  For that matter, an old fashioned typewriter might suite your fancy.  These are all items that do not require any specialized formatting or elements.  If you are a writing a novel, you may wish to stick with the word processing; however, you have to work with what makes you happy.  As for formatting software, the demented elves have one piece of advice:  Test drive the different software using the demo programs before spending a penny.  many are quite costly and it would be a shame to spend money only to find out it wasn't what you wanted.  In regards to making any recommendations for software, the demented elves will not do so because each has something different to offer and it all is a matter of writer preference.

In the end, whether it is for learning to write or for formatting, one must find the apps and software that works for the individual.  There is no one right way to do things (unless it is the format of the document itself).  That said, remember buyers remorse can be painful so know what you are buying, even the free stuff.  Just remember, there is no substitute for hard work, so there is no magic app (or software) that will write your story for you.  Have fun with the programs, but put in the work.

A story without structure is like a house without a framework.  It all falls apart.  Structure is what keeps your story from getting muddy and confusing your audience.  Regardless of what structure you use, you need some sort of skeleton to keep your story together.

I have read all kinds of books on plotting, structure, and story.  All have different methods for completing a story.  Some start with outlining while others start with character development, while others tell you to skip both.  Yet all have the same basic structure designs.

No matter how you write your story, it must have a beginning, a middle, and an end.  I should note that there are those that say that method is old and out dated; however, no matter what they wish to call their elements, all stories start somewhere, end somewhere, and along the way there is a middle of the tale.  Without them, you have nothing.

Your beginning does not have to start at "the beginning."  It could start in the middle of an event, say a bank robbery or an awards ceremony.  It could even start before the beginning, say at the birth of the protagonist, even though the story takes place at the end of his life.  No matter where your story starts, it has a beginning, and it tells us who, what, when, and where.  This is where we get to know the score.  It is the set up to the story.  In short, your have to start somewhere and  you have to make us care enough about this particular tale to keep up paying attention.  

Likewise, all stories must have an ending.  If your story simply ends with no conclusion, you will leave your audience dissatisfied.  Happy or sad, your audience needs to know it is indeed the end of the tale.  Consider this, if I said I got up and went to work, you can honestly say, "who cares!"  You would want to know, what happened at work, what problems did I encounter, and how did I solve those problems.  In your story, your ending is how your protagonist solved his problems or how he was overcome by his problems. An ending to a story is simply a conclusion, not  when you choose to stop telling your story.

That leaves us with the middle.  This is more than just the place between the beginning and the end.  This is the heart of the story, the meat and potatoes.  This is where many a story falls apart.  This is where we need a little planning.   I will say that, unlike the blueprints for a building, one can deviate from the outline, especially when you are inspired by an idea.   However, that would require you to have a plan in the first place, and  having a plan to deviate from will help your story from wandering away from you.  

I read a book on screenwriting written by a gentleman who read screenplays submitted to the Raindance Film Festival.  The author stated in all the submissions he had read, he never found a bad premise, only poorly executed ones.  It is an interesting thought.  To me this means that any idea, no matter how far fetched it may be, has the possibility of becoming a great story.  

Consider the premise that a storyteller continued to tell stories to keep her husband from killing her the next day.  You would have 1001 Arabian Nights.  A very old story indeed.  From that we get Aladdin and the Magic Lamp, Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves, not to mention Sinbad the Sailor, each its own story with its own premise, and one executed well enough that it has endured for hundreds of years.  But what if we took the storyteller out of the Persian king's bedroom and placed it in the Soviet Union, in the Black Market, or on Mars?    While each would be a variation of the same premise, it would provide all sorts of unique story lines, each with its own potential for memorable stories.  

The premise, in and of itself, is merely a launching point for your story.  How you develop the premise makes all the difference.  Let us return to 1001 Arabian Nights.  If the storyteller had been an old hag instead of a beautiful young virgin, perhaps the king might not have been enchanted with her long enough to hear the first story.  Or what if she had been any enemy agent, or a man?  Each one of these ideas might have worked for today's audiences, but in Persia hundreds of years ago, those story lines would be unthinkable.  If we really wanted to get demented, one could make the beautiful young virgin a male enemy agent from Mars.

So it is down to execution.  That premise alone, while demented, is not enough for a good story, but it does lend itself to enchanting possibilities; however, it is up to the author to develop what would happen.  To a demented elf's way of thinking, take your premise and play a what if game.  Consider different variables.  Make it different, but also understand, premise isn't the story, it is the starting point.

I have often wondered how it is that some books are published.  Even more so I wonder how some moves/TV shows get made.  You read the book and somehow never manage to make it out of the first chapter, or you get up during the show and watch the commercials (say where is that remote anyway).  Certainly they are not the edge of your seat story that sucks you in until you forget what time it is or that you have only three hours before you have to up for work.

So what is the difference?  What makes one so boring you can't  pick it up and the other one so exciting you are sorry when it is over?  It is the story telling.  Good story telling can overcome genre preferences, author biases, and even typos.  For example, while I was working on a story on my iPad, I printed up a copy to share with my friends.  Thanks to the app and auto correct, there were typos and missing words all over the place; however, because my friends were into the story, the only person to notice these errors was me.  My friends were into the story.  They wanted to know how it would end.  They wanted to know about certain characters.  They did not care that in was a "hot mess."

Books, movies, TV shows, and the lot, succeed or fail based not on the special effects (though some may argue that), the stars involved, or even the author himself, but rather how well the story is told.  Sometimes, if the story is bad enough, it actually captures our attention on another level, perhaps the freak show level (or recent times, Sharknado comes to mind).  Yet, for us as human beings, we need the story to entertain us and for us as writers, we need to perfect the art of story telling, to keep the interest of those we wish to entertain.  So here's to perfecting our craft!

Why do I write?  At one time in my life, I wrote because I was bored.  A late night job, alone with nothing else to do, or perhaps just not feeling motivated to do anything particular.  Whatever the reason all it took was any piece of paper and a writing utensil to entertain myself.  Oddly enough, it would also entertain anyone who found a carelessly discarded napkin.  Needless to say, though it entertained me (and maybe a friend or two) it was never all that great.  Later, when I wrote my first screenplay on a dare, I found that I really enjoyed creating stories for other people.  Now, after over fifteen years of studying the art of story telling, I write because I want to tell the story I like.