Get a Little Irony in your Diet

Most writers I know are also lovers of irony (so are most teenagers, but they like to call it 'Fail'). I just had to share my own recent example.

Yesterday, I posted about distractions from writing that I pretend are devices to help me write. I've long suspected Twitter and Blogger are not actually helping me get words down in my WIP (although I think the cookies still do help?). Right after I posted my list of distractions, mostly found in the Internet world, my Internet went down. I was without social networking for the whole day (today I've managed to slip down to the local library for an online fix). Had I upset the ADSL gods?

After a moment of stunned shock, I pulled out my WIP, The Warracknabeal Kids, and wrote. I got in two new chapters and opened up some new connections between characters. I also discovered some important motives. Once I'd exhausted my words, I turned to editing Dog Show Detective, which also turned out to be time productively spent.

Afterwards, I polished off a novel I'd been reading I Am Not A Serial Killer. Dan Wells' novel is about a teenager who feels it is left up to him to stop a vicious serial killer in his home town, ironically, this kid is also a sociopath.

I've learned that sometimes it pays to turn off the technology and just write (but not always! I still need my blogs to read and twitter friends to contact!). I'm thinking of introducing one day a week where I 'switch off'.

So, if we all love a bit of irony, how about finding ways to put it into your manuscript? What if your MC devises a plan to achieve what they want, but it ironically turns out to give their antagonist what they want instead?

And on an exciting note - I've almost reached 200 followers! Keep an eye out for the competition I'll run as soon as I get there (any day now!) - big book giveaway coming up!