Co-Authoring
“How could you possibly collaborate on a novel?”
That is one of the questions we are most often asked when we tell people that we have done just that. Usually followed by, “why?” and then a bevy of other questions.
As to the “why”, that’s its own post that we may tackle at a later date. As for the other questions, all we can do is tell you how it works for us. So here we go.
The collaboration process for Knight Errant kind of happened organically. We’ve known each other for 30+ years. In the early years, we played a lot of Dungeons and Dragons together, both as players and Dungeon Masters, so we were both already storytellers.
The details of how the collaboration started have been lost in the mists of legend, but near as we can remember, Steve had a character he had named Hawk, loosely based on one of his D&D characters named Red Hawk. Eschewing the fantasy origins, this character had a very special spaceship. From there, we began to discuss what kind of story we could do, and before we knew it, we were writing a novel. For a while, life got in the way and we quit working on it. Then fast forward twenty-five years and we got back on the story, finished it up, and got it published. Now we’re working on the second book and have several other projects in the works. Below is what we’ve managed to learn as co-authors in our time working on the book.
First and foremost, keep in mind that every book is at heart a collaborative effort. In addition to the writer (or writers), you will work with an, editor, proofreader, and publisher, at the very least. Chances are you’re going to have beta readers to tell you what’s wrong (and right) with the book. As you write, you have to take into account the input from all these different sources. So, unless you’re writing a self-published manifesto that you market yourself, there’s going to be some amount of collaboration involved in writing your novel.
When it comes right down to it, you collaborate on a novel pretty much like you do on anything else. It’s all a matter of compromise. In many ways, it’s like a marriage. You need to follow the 80/20 rule. For you single people, the 80/20 rule states that you give eighty percent of the time, and take twenty percent.
In other words, you must be willing to let ideas that you love go if the other person absolutely hates it. By the same token, if you love something - or hate it - you should be willing to offer solid reasons why you feel the way you do, then be willing to either convince the other or accept losing your baby.
What we’ve learned in practice is that such discussions often involve the words “or” or “how about this?” As in Paul saying, “Trey should have tentacles spout from the top of his head as Cthulhu takes over his body,” and Steve going, “interesting idea, but how about we not bring Lovecraft into the story and the tentacles are the result of an alien DNA infusion. Or we try something a bit subtler, like he just gets a rash on his cheeks.” And we go back and forth and eventually settle on him getting a burst of acne from drinking too much soda.
Obviously, that is an extreme example, but it gives you an idea of how the compromise works in telling a collaborative story. You must be able to play well with others, be willing to see your ideas mutate, and perhaps go in a different direction. Just as your characters will often drive the plot in a different direction, your co-author will do the same thing. This is both the beauty and horror of collaboration. Your ideas may change, but they often change in ways you wouldn’t have thought about yourself, and more often than not, they come out better for being put through the wringer.
So that’s the prime advantage of collaboration: the mingling of ideas. It’s the old “two heads are better than one” idiom. We have found this works quite well, and the story has come out stronger for it. And speaking personally for us, we’ve been friends a long time, but schedules don’t always allow us to get together as much as we like in a social context. Collaboration gives us a chance to set at least one day a week to meet up. We’ll grab some lunch - usually at a Mexican restaurant we frequent - and shoot the breeze about life, the universe and everything; then go to our favorite coffee shop, The Daily Grind, and commence to writing and discussing. This is where plot points are hammered out and previously written passages discussed and massaged. Indeed, even as this post is being written, Knights book two – our second collaborative novel – is being discussed.
Another advantage is that your workload can be cut down. Or, to look at it another way, doubled up. The way we have begun to work on our novels is that we’ll discuss a rough outline. This is a new concept for us. Knight Errant was about as pantsed as a book can be pantsed. (For those not in the know – ‘pantsed’ means writing by the seat of your pants.) We wrote with no real idea where we were going or how it would end up. Which may explain why it took us so long to get it done.
Now we have become more structured. We have created an outline for the second Knight book, and an outline for a fantasy adventure novel. So, we are dividing the work. Currently, Steve is working on the first draft of the second Knights novel. He is “telling” the story, putting down what happened, how it happened, what was said about it, and how it came out. (Plot, structure, dialog, resolution).
In the meantime, Paul is doing the same with the fantasy adventure. Then we will switch for the 1.5 draft. Paul will follow up on Knight 2 and flesh out the “fluff”, adding descriptive passages, tweaking the dialogue, and generally doing more of the “showing” portion of the novel. Steve will do something similar to the fantasy book. Any major deviations to plot or scenes are discussed, and an agreement reached on the best approach to the matter in question. So, we work on getting two things done as once, which would be much tougher for just one person.
Promotion is another place where collaboration can be handy. Since you have two people, you have twice the options for promoting. Two Facebook pages, two Instagrams, two Twitters, basically two of any social media you want to use. So you can have far more reach than you would by yourself. Blog posts, such as this one, can also be shared.
Which leads to the first of the disadvantages. In addition to splitting work, you are also splitting credit and, more importantly, money. If you can’t find someone willing to write with you just because they love your personality, they will expect to be paid half of whatever your book makes. So you don’t get all the money for yourself. Which means you may want to have drawn up some sort of legal document to this effect, stating how profits are divided (and spent, in the case of needing to purchase copies for resale at conventions, et cetera.) Following the marriage theme: Several years ago, a successful businessman said that you needed to draw up the divorce paperwork at the beginning of the venture, while everyone is still getting along.
Another thing you have to resolve if you want to collaborate is to make sure that your style, work ethic, and schedules are compatible. There’s nothing worse than starting to work with someone only to discover they want to write Paleolithic mystery when you thought you were writing a cyberthriller set in Slovenia. Or that they can only write one day a month when you were expecting twice a week. So be sure to hammer out such details before you enter into any sort of collaboration.
Remember your editor is your friend. Use them for procedural squabbles. We recently heard of two writers who got into a tiff over spacing. One of them was a little older and still insisted that you always use two spaces after a period. Back in the day that was conventional protocol. However, single spacing is now taught and considered correct. Either way, this is nothing for the two of you to allow to get in the way of the creative process. Find a good editor and let them worry about such things.
We have also been asked the nuts and bolts of how this works, not just the creative process but also some of the practicalities. For example: when storing works in progress, we use Dropbox and have a shared folder. Inside that shared folder, we have multiple folders containing our many projects, both current and future. As long as you have an internet connection you can gain access to your files and get to work. This makes working from your favorite watering hole a breeze.
Along that same line of thought, people also ask how we keep track of changes. Currently, we use Microsoft Word for writing anything non-script related. We go to the review tab and turn on ‘Track Changes’. This keeps versions straight during revisions. Just pick a color you like and go for it. This can be visually messy at first, but your co-author can see any additions you have made and either accept them or make additional comments or corrections. We are currently looking into switching over to Scrivener, once we learn that program’s best process for collaboration.
People will frequently ask who wrote what? The answer is usually, “If you liked it, I wrote it. If not, he did.” Oftentimes, you need to go back and review prior chapters for continuity or to refer to notes you wrote earlier. Sometimes it is as if our individual egos had been subsumed by our collective ego. “This sentence is awful! Who wrote that?” or “That was awesome, when did you write that?” “I thought you wrote that.” You know you have won when you each think the other person wrote it. As you work through the many revisions towards the final draft, you will find your collective voice and hopefully not be able to tell who wrote what.
Collaborative writing is a lot like exercising with a partner. They provide encouragement when you don’t want to write or are in a slump. They are also an accountability partner to help you stay on track with them. It’s one thing to cancel on yourself, but much more difficult to cancel on someone else. Having a writing partner can also keep your ego in check.
Co-authors bring different perspectives and life experiences that will only make your writing better. For example: Paul has been in the film and theatre industry since he was a teenager and Steve has been in uniform since he was 19 years old. Paul brings a secure understanding that there are many different ways to tell a story and Steve brings a knowledge of group dynamics and a tactical mindset.
Whose name goes first? Usually the more well-known or most recognizable author will get first billing. You might also want to go with the more unusual name for ease of searching.
In our case, Paul already had two books to his name and he also fell first alphabetically, so it was an easy call. We have discussed that on future endeavors we will switch every other time. Keep in mind you may also want to get your publisher to weigh in on this, as it can be a marketing decision as much as an ego-driven one.
Collaboration isn’t for everyone. It takes a certain kind of personality that is willing to share credit, time, and money with another person. Artists (writers included) can be temperamental, egotistical beasts. And we’re including ourselves in that group. So, you have to be able to tamper back these traits in yourself, and find someone who can do the same. At its best, collaboration is a wonderful, fulfilling experience in shared creativity. As long as you go in with eyes open to the pitfalls, and do what you can to mitigate them, there’s no reason you can’t create in tandem.
Get Your Copy Today!
Knight Errant
By Paul Barrett & Steve Murphy
Fiery Seas Publishing
July 11, 2017
Science Fiction
Warriors…Scoundrels…Mercenaries….
The Knights of the Flaming Star are the most feared and respected Special Operations teams in the known universe. There’s no assignment they can’t handle. No job they can’t complete. As a team, they’re unstoppable.
Then a rescue mission gone awry finds them betrayed by a ghost from their past. Bent on vengeance their nemesis has laid a trap designed to grind their reputation into the dirt and ultimately destroy them.
The pursuit of their enemy will take them from planets run by corporate oligarchies—to a world entrenched in medieval technology and shrouded in magic. They’ll need every ounce of their will, prowess and cunning to turn the tables, salvage their reputation, and save the universe from apocalyptic destruction.
About the Authors:
Paul Barrett
Paul has lived a varied life full of excitement and adventure. Not really, but it sounds good as an opening line.
Paul’s multiple careers have included: rock and roll roadie, children’s theater stage manager, television camera operator, mortgage banker, and support specialist for Microsoft Excel.
This eclectic mix prepared him to go into his true love: motion picture production. He has produced two motion pictures and two documentaries: His film Night Feeders released on DVD in 2007, and Cold Storage was released by Lionsgate in 2010
Amidst all this, Paul has worked on his writing, starting with his first short story, about Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, at age 8. Paul has written and produced numerous commercial and industrial video scripts in his tenure with his forcreative agency, Indievision. He has two published short stories (As You Sow and Double Cross) and one self-published novel (Godchild). He lives with his filmmaker/graphic artist partner and their three cats.
Steve Murphy
Steve Murphy has spent much of his life as a military man, starting with four years in the Navy and a stint in the Army National Guard. Not through with serving his fellow man, Steve then became a police officer and spent 23 years doing that. Fourteen of those years he was on the SWAT team and 9 of that he worked as a sniper.
Steve currently lives on a 14-acre farm somewhere in North Carolina with his wife, three dogs and a cat.
