How to Create Emotobooks for

Grit City Publications

The Revolutionary Fiction Medium

Ron Gavalik

Published by GCP at Smashwords

Copyright 2011 Ron Gavalik, Grit City Publications

Illustrator: Zach Revale

Content Editor: Rebecca Hoffman

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

This eBook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This eBook may not be resold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of the creative team.

Advisory Note

This eBook is strictly used for advice. If you’re reading this eBook to learn the intricacies of crafting an emotobook, remember the policies stated here are subject to change.

When characters suffer desolation they're capable of anything. These possibilities open up the imagination of the author, artist, and editor. As creators, we aim to torment those whom we love, to shape them into better people, and save their souls.

That’s our gritty rule.

So You’re a Writer or an Artist

The Grit City Publications (GCP) team welcomes you to the new world of crafting emotobooks, the first exclusive eReading fiction medium.

As I write this introduction, Microsoft Word has flagged the word emotobook as a misspelling. I examined the word, ran the spell checker, and even looked it up in the dictionary. You know what? It doesn’t exist. Not to fear. The word 'emotobook' is not yet a common term, but we at GCP are ensuring its brand in the world. If you navigate to Twitter and type in the hashtag “#emotobook,” you’ll see it’s already trending.

What we’re about to discuss here is a new medium of fiction. The starkly traditional writer may wish to step away from fear of the unknown. It’s been well over 150 years since the common norms of publishing and literature were established. The thought of a new kind of storytelling is daunting to some.

We think it’s exciting.

So many people in the past couple of years have opened their minds to the idea of books delivered through digital devices made up of electrodes, lights, and internal gizmos. The music and film industry helped us over that hurdle. But there are still those who believe “real” books consist only of pulp, spines, and ink. Unfortunately, these folks will never change their minds. The rest of us will brave this new world. We hope you’ll come along for the ride.

Before we get started, please understand the only purpose of this electrode-driven handbook is to give writers a basic understanding of how to transform their stories into emotobook fiction for GCP, and for artists to learn how we use expressionism to capture the feelings of characters. If you’re a writer and find yourself here too early in your career, please flip to the end of the last page, where you'll find a few links to some writing guides we think are helpful.

Still with us? Good. We want you to help us lead the emotobooks revolution. Should you accept the challenge, you will join a Community of authors, illustrators, and editors bent on crafting the best popular fiction. It means you’ll sweat blood, tears may be shed, and the sense of joy at nailing a great story or fantastic expressionistic illustration will be had. You will become a pioneer of a new medium of fiction.

That is an exciting prospect, indeed.

The GCP Community works together as colleagues. They become links in a long chain of marketing, creative advice, and friendship. They join together through social media and employ strategies to target the reading and non-reading markets.

In the following pages, you'll find more than just an explanation of emotobooks. If you’re a writer, there are tips on how to transform your already-written masterpiece, or begin crafting from the first page. If you’re an artist, you’ll see it’s time to stop drawing for corporate needs and begin illustrating from the soul. The basic parameters we require are outlined, along with the rights we request, and the pay structure. Read it carefully.

Now, we’ll begin this fun exploration of emotobooks as we lay out the ground rules for crafting your emotobook story and the magnificent art that will stimulate your readers into a passionate frenzy.

Ron Gavalik

Author of the Grit City EmotoSerial

Publisher of Grit City Publications

Emotobooks Defined

First of all, what is an emotobook? A term coined by GCP founder, Ron Gavalik, an emotobook is a limited-length story of 5,000-10,000 words that uses expressionistic illustrations to depict the emotions of characters during moments of peaked tension. Emotobooks can be individual (short) stories, referred to as EmotoSingles, or serialized installments, referred to as EmotoSerials.

GCP is seeking popular (genre) fiction submissions for transformation into emotobooks. Writers may ask, “Do I have to draw pictures and stuff?” No, of course not. Emotobooks are of a collaborative nature between writer, editor, and illustrator. The writer dreams up the story. The editor works with the writer on an accepted submission to strengthen the story. The illustrator then adds his or her vision of the story, by creating the intense illustrations we weave into the pages.

Why launch a new fiction medium?

One reason: heighten the experience. Each emotobook delivers an imaginative ride, where abstract visuals allow readers to become more fully immersed in the story. Whether the average reader knows it or not, they’re painting a picture of the story in their mind as they read. If you, the writer, decide to focus on the warmth and tenderness of a mother’s hug after a child’s near-death accident, that reader is going to conjure a relative experience. That’s the power of the written word, as we all know.

What about the inner workings of the character’s emotions? Does the reader really conjure images of that in their mind’s eye? The answer is no. What they’ve done through all known time is conjure similar feelings. That’s good. If you can inspire a reader into feeling what your character feels, that’s a job well done! We're just taking it one step further.

In the following example from Grit City, Issue #5, Dillon Galway fits his hands over Alyssa Stephano’s wounded face and unleashes his power onto her. Read how the tension rises and is then met with an illustration:

Alyssa swatted at Dillon’s hands, but couldn’t push him away. She ran her hands up and down her torso, in search of something that wasn’t there. She lifted her arm, formed a fist and swung with whatever strength remained. Her fist connected squarely with his cheekbone, but with inconsequential force. Nothing would separate them.

Her fear and anger resonated deep in the core of his emotions. “Why are you doing this to me?” she said. “I thought you were my friend.”

The power that ravaged through her also tore through him with the ferocity of a rabid animal.  It hammered through her callused surface of anger and toughness, revealing a lifetime of anguish and despair. A tear trickled down his cheek. He couldn’t bottle in the onslaught of her emotions. From the depths of her subconscious mind, he sensed her only reason to live was to inflict misery onto those she believed deserving. She was so beautiful, but carried such blackness. Her wounds were the result of physical beating, but on the spiritual level she bore the brunt of hatred and abandonment.

Alyssa’s suffering drove deep into the recesses of Dillon’s rationale and jarred independent thought. The power lived within him, but carried far too much influence. He was the host and had to regain control of his actions.

Can you see how the illustration played into the scene? It wasn’t a direct illustration of the scene, but a representation of Dillon’s emotional state, as influenced by Alyssa.

Through other forms of fiction, one can only imagine how the character is feeling. A description can be gripping and vivid, but your reader is still only able to base their perception of the character's feelings on their own experiences or level of empathy. However, these expressionistic drawings take great strides to bring the reader further into the experience. They can now interpret a visual, which makes the experience interactive. The scene becomes much more vivid with a visual cue of Alyssa’s overwhelming feelings and the power flooding Dillon’s mind.