Dissecting a Chicken (Soup Story)

By Tracy Crump

Chicken Soup for the Soul has been around an incredible 24 years and is considered the best-selling trade paperback series in publishing history. Its longevity is due in part to the diverse writers who contribute to its varied titles.

How could you become one of those writers? Try dissecting this chicken and see what makes it tick.

Head

Most writers know the head—I mean opening—must hook the reader. But you can find many ways to effectively kick off a Chicken Soup story.

·       Dialogue always adds interest and catches your reader’s attention, but since characters have not been introduced yet, it can cause confusion. If you use this method, be sure it’s clear who is speaking. Few Chicken Soup stories begin with dialogue.

·       Setting can ground the reader in time and place, but it can be boring if you’re not careful. Hold to the maxim that it’s taboo to open with a weather report. Give just enough detail that readers picture the scene.

·       Shocking statements grab a reader’s attention and make him want to read on. Just be sure the statement is relevant and stay true to your story.

·       A question can draw readers in. But be sure that if you ask a question at the beginning, you answer it by the end.

Tail

The closing of a Chicken Soup story is almost as important as the opening. You must resolve any conflicts, answer any questions, and bring it to a satisfying conclusion—without belaboring the point. As my friend Marylane says, “Tie it up with a bow. Your story is your gift to the reader.”

·      

Tie the closing to the title, the opening, or a turning point in the story to bring your tale full circle.

·       End with a lesson learned. Most Chicken Soup stories include the takeaway in the closing.

·       Conclude with a repeated line or twist on a repeated line used throughout to connect the end to the rest of the story.

·       If the story is humorous, or sometimes even if it isn’t, close with a punch line to leave the reader happy.

Body

Finally, you need something to hold this chicken’s head and tail together. The middle or “guts” of the story must provide a conflict or struggle for the main character (which is probably you) to overcome. It draws the reader along keeping her wondering what is going to happen and how the protagonist will triumph.

Now that you’ve successfully dissected a Chicken Soup story, you can construct one of your own and send it flying (I mean submit it) to Chicken Soup for the Soul.

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As co-director of Write Life Workshops, Tracy Crump conducts workshops and webinars that encourage others to “Write Better, Write Now!” Storytelling is her specialty, as evidenced by two dozen stories published in anthologies, including nineteen in Chicken Soup for the Soul. She edits The Write Life, a free e-newsletter with story callouts, that has inspired many writers to move forward with their writing. Her love of teaching also takes her to conferences where she helps writers hone their craft. Tracy’s numerous articles have appeared in national magazines such as Focus on the Family, ParentLife, Mature Living, and Light & Life. She has been a magazine columnist, written for newspapers, and published around fifty devotionals. Recently she has taken her “Stirring the Pot: Writing for Chicken Soup for the Soul” workshop on the road and is loving it. Website: www.TracyCrump.com  FB Profile: https://www.facebook.com/TracyKirkCrump

FB Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorTracyCrump/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/TracyCrumpWrite

1 Leads to 2 Then 2 Billion

By Doyne Phillips, Managing Editor for Southern Writers Magazine

I enjoy a McDonald’s bacon egg and cheese biscuit about 2 to 3 times a year. It has to be a special occasion such as having the grandkids over but even then the breakfast trip to McDonald’s makes the occasion even more exciting.

Now I’m not McDonald’s biggest customer with only 2 to 3 purchases a year. McDonald’s CEO recently announced the company was going to serve only cage free eggs. He went on the say that would be over 2 Billion eggs a year. I realize my 2 or 3 aren’t much compared to 2 Billion but they do all add up.

The same is true for writers. We start with a word or two and before we know it they add up to a paragraph, page, chapter, short story or book. I am a fan of the short story. One of my favorites was a 2009 John Grisham book of short stories call Ford County. Grisham took some of his better shorts, put them together and they added up to one great book.    

In some cases writers take their individual stories and compile them in an anthology. Chicken Soup for the Soul is an example of this. Another example would be our local writers group of some 26 or more writers annually compiling their own anthology. It is a great way to gather the efforts of several writers and produce a very interesting collaboration. Everyone can be a part of the work without carrying the full weight of the production.

Over the years I have known of pastors putting their sermons together to form a book. Imagine preaching one sermon each week then bring them together for a book. In another case a psychologist has a nationwide practice complete with newsletter, blog and interactive sites. She has taken her blogs combined them by topic and created many topic related eBooks.

Since the founding of Southern Writers Magazine I and others have written blogs for our blog site Suite T. To show you how 1 leads to 2 then 2 Billion here is an example. I do not have 2 Billion blog entries but I do have, as of this post, 149. 1 post every 2 weeks has led to 149. Other staff members have more or less but each of us have enough material to put into a book or eBook. It didn’t come over night or within a break neck period of deadline meeting writing, but it did come, it all added up.

Now it is your turn. What have you done with your writing over the years? Have you logged numerous short stories or blogs? Maybe you should consider gathering them together for a book or eBook. What you have done over the years has added up to something you may have yet to realize. 1 can lead to 2 then, if not to 2 Billion, to a book. Look into it, you may be happily surprised.              

Creative Side?

By Claire Fullerton

I have an eighteen-year-old niece named Sara. She is long of limb and long of hair, with angel-blue eyes so reminiscent of my brother that they haunt me. She is in her freshman year at a liberal arts college in Oregon, and I heard about her curriculum yesterday over the phone. She has yet to decide on her major and is therefore taking courses aimed at a well-rounded education: physics and math classes I can’t even pronounce, chorus and a creative writing class to balance the score. 

And I, being unqualified to discuss any of her classes beyond one, grasped the subject of her creative writing class and said, “Tell me about it.” She said that after all the papers she is expected to write for her other classes, she finds it hard to employ her “creative side.” It was there I combed the hair of my advanced years and dove in with a life jacket.

I don’t think people have a creative side; I think people are creative by virtue of their existence. Writers need only do two things: open the door within, and give themselves permission to write. The way I experience it, writing is not any different from thinking. It seems to me we all have a voice that resides within like divinity’s spark, and what writers seek to do is express this in the hopes that they are understood. Nobody can tell a writer exactly how to do it, because it is a personal, individual process. 

In my mind, telling someone how to write is like saying, “Let me tell you about how to be you.” Mind you, people can hand you tried and true craft and form, but they are only guidelines aimed at reining in creativity and putting it in a manageable place. And because I’m convinced we all have so much spinning around internally without a rudder, it seems to me writing takes that tangled ball of yarn and gives a person the first thread to straighten it out. It charts a course for linear thinking, for organized expression, and is ultimately an outlet for individual truth.

But writers have to see themselves as creative first. They have to understand that they fundamentally are, and see it as a gift. If they do, they can take pen to paper, as it were, and let it shine.

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Claire Fullerton is the author of “Dancing to an Irish Reel” (Literary Fiction) and “A Portal in Time,” (Paranormal Mystery), both from Vinspire Publishing.  She is an award winning essayist, a contributor to magazines, a five time contributor to the “Chicken Soup for the Soul” book series, and a former newspaper columnist. Claire grew up in Memphis, and now divides her time between Malibu and Carmel, CA with her husband and two German shepherds. She has recently completed her third novel, which is a Southern family saga set in Memphis. http://www.clairefullerton.com/ https://www.facebook.com/clairefullertonauthor?ref=hl 

On Giving an Author's Speech

By Claire Fullerton

I was recently invited to give a speech at The Pacific Grove Museum of Natural History, in Pacific Grove, California. An acquaintance of mine, whom I met at one of my book signings, is the museum’s Director of Public Relations. He thought the invitation would avail a great opportunity for me to talk about my two novels, one of which is a paranormal mystery set in nearby Carmel-by-the-Sea. After I jumped at the invitation, I started considering the audience. It would be an erudite group, interested in local history, which implied I better show up with dates and historic facts. But these are not elements in my paranormal mystery, and neither are they essential in my literary milieu. As I pondered my predicament, something occurred to me: anyone who makes a plan to suit up and attend an author’s event is interested in writing. They are somewhere on the path between aspiration and fulfillment in their own writing career, and therefore would like to hear an author articulate their findings along the road to publication and perhaps elaborate on their writing process and attendant lifestyle. I therefore decided to make my speech less about my books and more about encouragement along the road to publication.

I freely admit I am not an organized speaker. There are those who draft an outline and hit its notes in a planned cadence, but I’ve never been the sort to do well when boxed in. I need wiggle room and natural flow. I need to feel I’m in a conversation, as opposed to giving a lecture. I want to feel I’m contributing something of value in give- and- take forum, even if I’m the only one talking. And because I grew up in Memphis, when in front of an audience, I feel the need to employ Southern hospitality. Keeping this in mind, after the museum’s director introduced me from behind a podium, I thanked him for the nice introduction, ignored the podium, and pulled up a chair in front of the audience, the better for us all to feel at home.

I shared notes on the rewarding dynamic that has built my writing career: the push and pull that began with an intuitive whisper suggesting I should write something, for no other reason than the whisper wouldn’t leave me alone and was starting to bother me, in that way unutilized potential does, until it takes up square residency and won’t go away. I outlined the steps I took on the road to the publication of my first novel, which included my own newspaper column, contributions to magazines, and multiple publications in the “Chicken Soup for the Soul” book series, followed by a complete leap of faith in the draft of my first novel. I said that in my opinion, the act of writing is not so much about ambition as it is about the need to share my impressions of the business of living; that to me, it’s a prompting worth following, for no other reason than one feels compelled. But writing is a lonely business and one has to be okay with being in it alone. Writing is also about commitment, for one has to decide every day whether to be directed by self-discipline or self-doubt. Then there is the tendency to measure oneself against other writers, which is a complete waste of time. One has to write for the sake of writing, which brought me around to my most salient point.

When I think about art for art’s sake, I think of writing. If one is comfortable doing the task for its own sake, then I believe there are mysterious, uncanny forces that guide a writer onward in increments, until the sheer act of perseverance creates a body of work. When this happens, a writer can make a choice about what to do with it, keeping in mind that few writers ever definitively arrive, that there is no there to get to, and that there are only the stepping stones along the way of what becomes their writing career. A writer’s career creates itself if one holds true and stays the course. It is alchemical magic, the result that manifests from making repeated offerings via the written word and the bravery it takes to share.

After my speech, I invited questions. It was a half hour of unscripted banter, something of which an author cannot prepare. What I learned from the evening concerns the power of good intentions. If an author arrives in the spirit of helpfulness, with the intention of sharing their findings as encouragement and is willing to tell their story, then there is no need to be anxious before an audience and everything turns out better than if it had been planned.   

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Claire Fullerton is the author of “Dancing to an Irish Reel” (Literary Fiction) and “A Portal in Time,” (Paranormal Mystery), both from Vinspire Publishing.  She is an award winning essayist, a contributor to magazines, a five time contributor to the “Chicken Soup for the Soul” book series, and a former newspaper columnist. Claire grew up in Memphis, and now divides her time between Malibu and Carmel, CA with her husband and two German shepherds. She has recently completed her third novel, which is a Southern family saga set in Memphis.  http://www.clairefullerton.com/ https://www.facebook.com/clairefullertonauthor?ref=hl 

How Does One Become a Writer?

By Claire Fullerton

My mother was not a writer, but maybe she should have been. She was one of the most natural born story tellers I’ve ever had chance to come across, and she glowed under a willing audience, well aware when she had one in the palm of her hand. She was a product of what I now call the old south, raised in an era when ladies were cultured and charming.

Her name was Shirley, and never was a woman more appropriately named. To me, the name tinkles like Champagne in cut glass: captivating and celebratory in its effervescence, happened upon only on rare occasions. Never have I seen a woman occupy a chair quite like Shirley, who could be found at the cocktail hour holding court in the card room in the house I grew up in with one feminine leg tucked beneath her and the other dangling freely at her seductive crossed knee. This was how she observed the end of the day, for in her mind, there was much to discuss. She was fascinated in the players who populated her extravagant world and had an uncanny ability to dissect their character down to the last nuance.

I couldn’t say now if she was insightful or just plain observant, whether she was legitimately concerned or liked to gossip, but she had a way of telling a story that could turn a trip to the grocery store into the most enviable journey ever taken. I used to watch my mother—study her with adolescent awe, looking for clues on how to evolve from an inchoate girl into her replica. I could have come out and asked her, but I always knew she wasn’t the type to ever confess. She is nine long years in heaven now, but the reverberating shadow she cast keeps her never far from reach.

I was asked just the other day how I became a writer; whether I studied it in college or took some other road. It’d be so convenient to say I have an accredited piece of paper granting me permission, but the truth is I have much more than that: I grew up under the tutelage of a southern shanachie, who showed me the seemingly ordinary in life is actually extraordinary; it all depends on how the story is told.

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Claire Fullerton is the author of A Portal in Time (Vinspire Publishing.)  Her second novel, "Dancing to an Irish Reel" will be published in early 2015. She is a three-time, award winning essayist, a contributor to numerous magazines, and a multiple contributor to the "Chicken Soup for the Soul" book series. She had her own weekly column in the ”Malibu Surfside News," and is currently writing a Southern family saga based on her award winning narrative in the San Francisco Writers Conferences' 2013 contest. www.clairefullerton.com

Snapshots for Chicken Soup for the Soul

Today, our Editor-in-Chief, Susan Reichert, is taking a much deserved break from blogging to bring you the sage advice of Tracy Crump of Write Life Workshops. Tracy is a multi-published Chicken Soup for the Soul author and offers us her tricks and tips to find our bylines in their books. Please give a warm Southern welcome to Tracy!


by Tracy Crump

We often think of our lives as one long autobiography when really they are made up of thousands of little stories woven together. Those “snapshot stories” are what Chicken Soup for the Soul looks for in submissions. But how can we present a picture from our lives that will appeal to this popular series?

Scope Out the Landscape

Years ago, Chicken Soup editors allowed writers to submit stories under a catchall title of “Other Stories.” No longer. Today Chicken Soup’s web site lists only their upcoming book topics, usually six to ten specific titles. Each listing includes a blurb about the proposed book. Right there in a nutshell, the editors are telling writers what they want. Write your story geared to their needs.

I always recommend reading Chicken Soup books or any other publication you wish to write for. You will find no better way to learn a publication’s tone, slant and preferences than reading what they’ve already published. I’m often surprised by the variety of stories I find in a Chicken Soup book, stories I never would have thought of submitting to that particular title. They spark memories of incidents I could write about and embolden me to take a chance on an unconventional idea.

Set Up Your Camera

Chicken Soup guidelines say they want stories about “ordinary people doing extraordinary things.” That sounds daunting, but it doesn’t mean they expect heroic deeds. Look for stories in everyday events and show how that event had an impact on your life, changed your perspective or touched you in some meaningful way. Tell a story that will make a connection with the reader.

Be sure to focus on a narrow topic—a moment, event or relationship that you can cover in 1200 words or fewer. Hone in on the important details. Remember, this is not your memoir. It’s a short story.

Snap the Picture

Tell your story in an engaging manner. Use strong nouns and verbs and let the reader “see” the action as it unfolds. Be sure to include all the elements of good storytelling: action, dialogue, conflict and resolution.

Chicken Soup says they want stories that will make the reader “cry, laugh or get goose bumps.” They want them filled with “emotion and drama.” Above all, they must have takeaway value, something the reader takes away from the story that touches his or her life. A good Chicken Soup story has to have a point.

Just like that shoebox of old pictures stored in the top of the closet, your life is full of interesting snapshot stories that you can pull out and show to readers. And that is just what Chicken Soup is waiting for.

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Tracy Crump has published in a variety of magazines such as Focus on the Family, ParentLife, Light & Life, Journey and CBN.com. Ten of her stories have appeared in Chicken Soup for the Soul. She is a frequent speaker at writers conferences and produces a free e-newsletter called The Write Life. Tracy’s latest venture is to join with Write Life Workshops partner Marylane Wade Koch to produce webinars. Their next webinar, “Stirring the Pot: Writing for Chicken Soup for the Soul,” is scheduled for November 11, 2011. 

Connect with Tracy online at her website, on Facebook, Twitter and at Write Life Workshops.

The Habit of Five

by Doyne Phillips, Managing Editor

Jack Canfield in his book The Success Principles stated that he made a habit of doing five things each day to move his plan forward toward his goal. He used examples of doing five radio interviews, contracting five speaking engagements or reaching out to five editors of newspapers and magazines. No matter what the day would bring he would make the habit of five endeavors and stick with it.

Jack Canfield’s success is no secret to us. We know him for his Chicken Soup for the Soul, The Secret and The Law of Attraction as much as anything he has done. What many do not realize is that Jack studied under the great business leader W. Clement Stone and declares Stone as his mentor. His studies under Stone led him to write The Success Principles which are a collection of 64 principles of success and the stories that go with them. I found the five a day principle to be a great one.

So what five will you do today? Will you not only do it today but again tomorrow? In future days will you continue with another five? I know we may not have such high expectations as five radio interviews tomorrow but we do have something we can do that one day may lead to those interviews. Touch on five each and every day and see how far you can move your plan forward in a week, month or year. I believe you will be surprised. If you are let me know. I want to hear how you have done. Make it a habit that you will not want to break.

Leapin' Lizards!

by Doyne Phillips, Managing Editor

You are headed toward your goal. You are following your plan. Things are looking up but your progress is slower than expected. You need something to happen to speed you along. You need a QUANTUM LEAP!

Not sure what I mean? We can sell one book at a time or approach one person at a time. But what if we could approach many people and sell many books at once? That should give us a quantum leap toward our goal. Let me give you a couple of examples.

Andy Andrews was promoting his book The Traveler’s Gift by giving it to friends, acquaintances, radio shows, television shows, etc. It found its way into the hands of Robin Roberts of Good Morning America. Robin loved it and picked it as the Book of the Month. From there is became a bestseller.

Jack Canfield, in his book The Success Principles, tells how writing a best-selling book Chicken Soup for the Soul was his quantum leap in his career. It opened the doors for more opportunities for audio programs, speeches, and seminars. Canfield said, “It took me from being known in a few narrow fields to being known internationally.” But what got him to a bestseller may have been another quantum leap.

Jack and his co-creator Mark Victor Hansen were giving their book Chicken Soup for the Soul to anyone interested. They got the idea to give it to a sequestered jury. The jury was unable to read the newspapers or watch television so it would be something they could do without violating their instructions from the judge.

This particular jury was seen by millions each day being delivered from their hotel and stepping off the bus at the courthouse. Tucked under their arm was a copy of Chicken Soup for the Soul.  The jurors were deciding the O. J. Simpson trial.

The press made inquiries about the book. How many books did it sell? We may never know but we do know it played an integral part of getting the book out.

When Andy Andrews got his book into the hands of the host of Good Morning America, he had no idea it would be read much less loved and brought to the viewers as the Book of the Month. Nor did Jack Canfield know that giving his book to the jury would get the attention it did. Both knew what was needed and continued to move forward by promoting their book. The opportunity grew beyond their expectation. Demosthenes said, “Small opportunities are often the beginning of great enterprises.” Take the leap; and may your next leap be a quantum leap!