While Stan is reading the Wielder, I find my self preparing to write the next book. But before I do so, I have some research to do.
Nothing too academic, of course. I find if I bury myself in facts I have a hard time jumping back into the world of fiction. No, this research is actually going to be nothing but fun.
First, I intend to interview my brother (who lived in London for two years some time ago and recently spent a few weeks there, touristing). I want to know fun things, like what does London smell like? How easy is it to get a cab, or get around without one? Where would you go for fun? What are your favorite museums?
And, of course, tell me everything about the Tower of London.
You see, Book 2 takes place mostly in the Tower and the rest is a romp around London Town. This is going to be a LOT of fun!
Also, I am in the process of creating a Character Notebook. I'll sit down with Book 1 and take thorough notes on every character, from their eye color to the their favorite color. But also I need notes on each main character's story arc.
Once I have this organized, I can begin work on Book 2.
But don't be fooled. Book 2 is already half written. It's a fun, 'keep me busy' sort of project while I wait for Stan's verdict.
Gotta keep busy!
Friday, May 25, 2012
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
Nerves
Stan has the manuscript. He will, at some point or another, sit down and read some of it (or even all of it).
Oh dear.
Sometimes I think I'm a good writer. Then I read good (and great) writing and feel miserably inadequate.
After all, I remember, I'm not published. I have a marvelous agent, but have yet to convince him my manuscript is ready to be seen. I love my book, but it pales in comparison to my favorite novels.
Of course, even if I get published, that doesn't mean anyone will read it and like it. Even if Stan sends out the manuscript, that doesn't mean it will impress anyone.
At least I love it. That should be enough...right?
Groan.
I just have so much to learn, and I'm afraid I'll never learn it.
If you can't tell, my nerves are eating me up.
All, right. Enough wallowing. Chin up, teeth clenched, and back to work!
Oh dear.
Sometimes I think I'm a good writer. Then I read good (and great) writing and feel miserably inadequate.
After all, I remember, I'm not published. I have a marvelous agent, but have yet to convince him my manuscript is ready to be seen. I love my book, but it pales in comparison to my favorite novels.
Of course, even if I get published, that doesn't mean anyone will read it and like it. Even if Stan sends out the manuscript, that doesn't mean it will impress anyone.
At least I love it. That should be enough...right?
Groan.
I just have so much to learn, and I'm afraid I'll never learn it.
If you can't tell, my nerves are eating me up.
All, right. Enough wallowing. Chin up, teeth clenched, and back to work!
Friday, April 13, 2012
Proud of Myself
And I should be!
Yes, I just finished trimming (hacking) 10 percent of my manuscript away. It is DONE. I even went through afterward and cut as many "he/she nodded" and "just" as I could. (I found myself using those a lot--guess we all have weaknesses.)
I cut my 112,600 word manuscript down to 100,400 words. And it shrank from 401 pages to 364.
What an experience! I told my Hubs that it felt like smoothing out a sculpture, and the story is better without my habit of stating the obvious and my apparent need to repeat myself three or four times.
Now I just need my agent to agree that it's finally ready, and someone really ought to check it for technical errors. I would do it myself, but I don't speak 'comma' or 'semi-colon', and I don't trust the 'Grammar Check' program.
Of course, I hesitate to say it's 'done'. I keep thinking it is, and then it isn't, but I'm hopeful. I'd really like to get started on book 2, but I'll wait and see what happens with Wielder first, and in the meantime, I'm going to celebrate by sleeping every chance I get.
I'll let you know when I hear from Stan 'The Amazing Agent'!
G'night!
Yes, I just finished trimming (hacking) 10 percent of my manuscript away. It is DONE. I even went through afterward and cut as many "he/she nodded" and "just" as I could. (I found myself using those a lot--guess we all have weaknesses.)
I cut my 112,600 word manuscript down to 100,400 words. And it shrank from 401 pages to 364.
What an experience! I told my Hubs that it felt like smoothing out a sculpture, and the story is better without my habit of stating the obvious and my apparent need to repeat myself three or four times.
Now I just need my agent to agree that it's finally ready, and someone really ought to check it for technical errors. I would do it myself, but I don't speak 'comma' or 'semi-colon', and I don't trust the 'Grammar Check' program.
Of course, I hesitate to say it's 'done'. I keep thinking it is, and then it isn't, but I'm hopeful. I'd really like to get started on book 2, but I'll wait and see what happens with Wielder first, and in the meantime, I'm going to celebrate by sleeping every chance I get.
I'll let you know when I hear from Stan 'The Amazing Agent'!
G'night!
Thursday, January 5, 2012
Editing Out Loud
So, having rewritten the heroine, the villain, and the best friend, I have now begun the trimming process.
Not as easy as it sounds.
You take up your manuscript and think, 'sure. I could do without this word or that.' But that is not enough. We're talking MAJOR cutting here. Hundred of words...thousands.
Some writers can do this with ease...I suppose. But I am not one of them. It took some time and a few trial edits, but I did, in the end, figure out my own secret to trimming the fat.
I'm reading it out loud to my husband.
It's taking forever, yes, but it's working. See, his job (actual, money-making employment) is editing back his own work--and he's very good at it. I'll admit there are times I fight his comments, and sometimes (very rarely) I win, but for the most part we agree to cut words, phrases, even (horror) whole paragraphs.
With the first five chapters, five hundred words were eliminated! Not bad!
The reading aloud part is crucial. It allows me to catch when I miss a word as well as holes I've left in the story and little mistakes that become HUGE when others read your work--like 'he was painting the house blue on page 3, but his paint brush is red two pages later!' Ugh, I hate stuff like that!
So, the work continues. One of these days, people. I am going to get this right. I AM!!!
Not as easy as it sounds.
You take up your manuscript and think, 'sure. I could do without this word or that.' But that is not enough. We're talking MAJOR cutting here. Hundred of words...thousands.
Some writers can do this with ease...I suppose. But I am not one of them. It took some time and a few trial edits, but I did, in the end, figure out my own secret to trimming the fat.
I'm reading it out loud to my husband.
It's taking forever, yes, but it's working. See, his job (actual, money-making employment) is editing back his own work--and he's very good at it. I'll admit there are times I fight his comments, and sometimes (very rarely) I win, but for the most part we agree to cut words, phrases, even (horror) whole paragraphs.
With the first five chapters, five hundred words were eliminated! Not bad!
The reading aloud part is crucial. It allows me to catch when I miss a word as well as holes I've left in the story and little mistakes that become HUGE when others read your work--like 'he was painting the house blue on page 3, but his paint brush is red two pages later!' Ugh, I hate stuff like that!
So, the work continues. One of these days, people. I am going to get this right. I AM!!!
Monday, November 21, 2011
Magic!
To my very great surprise, this edit is very different from all of my previous edits. I suppose each one was unique, really, but this is a whole new level.
Between raising three children, illness (my own, my husband's, and the children's), holiday activities, touching bases with my friends now and then (so they don't think I'm dead), keeping the house in reasonable order, and freaking out about a mouse infestation in our attic (yeah--gross), I didn't think I'd find the time to get any of this edit done.
Guess again! :)
Even with squeezing it in here and there, I'm a week in and more than halfway done. And it's serious rewrite! I've scrapped scenes, rewritten others, changed main characters, even turned a plot-line upside down.
And it's easy. And fun! And finally, FINALLY pulling itself into a beautiful, satisfying whole. The characters are consistent, and the plot is tight and flows well.
I'm just so pleased with how this is coming together. So pleased.
I think the biggest reason it's so different and easy is that I haven't read it in about six months. I've got fresh eyes, and I've been reading more than writing. Reading another person's work changes how you look at your own writing.
The point of all this? I now believe the best thing you can do for yourself (if you have a manuscript that needs work) is put it away for a long, long time. Don't stop thinking about it, maybe allow yourself to outline or brainstorm a little now and then, but don't touch the manuscript itself.
The result? MAGIC!
Between raising three children, illness (my own, my husband's, and the children's), holiday activities, touching bases with my friends now and then (so they don't think I'm dead), keeping the house in reasonable order, and freaking out about a mouse infestation in our attic (yeah--gross), I didn't think I'd find the time to get any of this edit done.
Guess again! :)
Even with squeezing it in here and there, I'm a week in and more than halfway done. And it's serious rewrite! I've scrapped scenes, rewritten others, changed main characters, even turned a plot-line upside down.
And it's easy. And fun! And finally, FINALLY pulling itself into a beautiful, satisfying whole. The characters are consistent, and the plot is tight and flows well.
I'm just so pleased with how this is coming together. So pleased.
I think the biggest reason it's so different and easy is that I haven't read it in about six months. I've got fresh eyes, and I've been reading more than writing. Reading another person's work changes how you look at your own writing.
The point of all this? I now believe the best thing you can do for yourself (if you have a manuscript that needs work) is put it away for a long, long time. Don't stop thinking about it, maybe allow yourself to outline or brainstorm a little now and then, but don't touch the manuscript itself.
The result? MAGIC!
Sunday, November 13, 2011
This is Why
A friend asked me once why I call this blog "Round about we go". If you are a writer then you already know the answer.
I actually got the title from a Milne poem, called "Busy":
"Round about, and round about, and round about I go. All around the table, the table in the nursery. Round about, and round about, and round about, and round about..." Well, you get the idea.
In my Milne book there's a cute little sketch of a toddler skipping around a table until his little legs give out and he falls down dizzy.
It's an endless cycle, this writing stuff and sometimes I feel like that dizzy little man--skipping happily in circles, and going nowhere. Thankfully, it is a happy journey to nowhere and I never give up hoping I will eventually escape the nursery.
Alas, my friends, I have not yet stopped skipping 'round my nursery table. The Wielder is in my hands once again, and in dire need of editing.
However, do not get discouraged. This time it is different. This is what I've heard called "trimming the fat". Removing all the extra info and wordy descriptions that are holding the story back. That is what Stan wants.
I am also going to spruce up the heroine and the villain. That's what I want.
Thankfully, I am well past the pregers hormone issue and writing is, once more, a pleasure. And so...
Round about, and round about, and round about, and round about I go!
I actually got the title from a Milne poem, called "Busy":
"Round about, and round about, and round about I go. All around the table, the table in the nursery. Round about, and round about, and round about, and round about..." Well, you get the idea.
In my Milne book there's a cute little sketch of a toddler skipping around a table until his little legs give out and he falls down dizzy.
It's an endless cycle, this writing stuff and sometimes I feel like that dizzy little man--skipping happily in circles, and going nowhere. Thankfully, it is a happy journey to nowhere and I never give up hoping I will eventually escape the nursery.
Alas, my friends, I have not yet stopped skipping 'round my nursery table. The Wielder is in my hands once again, and in dire need of editing.
However, do not get discouraged. This time it is different. This is what I've heard called "trimming the fat". Removing all the extra info and wordy descriptions that are holding the story back. That is what Stan wants.
I am also going to spruce up the heroine and the villain. That's what I want.
Thankfully, I am well past the pregers hormone issue and writing is, once more, a pleasure. And so...
Round about, and round about, and round about, and round about I go!
Monday, August 15, 2011
It's Complicated
The process of waiting is happily filled with hours of writing and, that rarest of pleasures (rare for the young mother of three, anyway), reading. (And I don't count children's books, sorry). What am I reading?
A few things, actually. I've got a bookmark in William Goldman's "The Princess Bride" (for the millionth blissful time), I just started Jane Austen's "Emma" (only my second reading--I didn't like it the first time), and a book by my favorite writer.
Who is my favorite writer, you ask?
Well, that's where it gets complicated.
The answer is: Stephen King. Yes, you heard correctly--Stephen King, the Horror novelist.
Appropriate response? Shock and (yes) Horror.
But, wait. I don't actually read Horror books (or see Horror movies, comics, etc.). I don't disapprove of them, exactly, but I can't handle them. I'm not built to appreciate stories created to frighten people. They make me hurt in a bad way and I don't like it.
However, Stephen King has written more than a collection of (widely acknowledged to be brilliant) Horror stories. He created a fantasy as well ("The Eyes of the Dragon") and a marvelous book called "On Writing".
Every now and then, you find a book that resonates with you. A book you read over and over because it speaks your language and you always come out of it inspired, enlightened, and just plain satisfied. For me, that book is "On Writing".
Contained in "On Writing" are Stephen King's past experiences and advice to writers, which is all very useful, but what I really like about it is hearing his voice. Behind the terrifying fiction sits a man with admirable morals, deep inner strength, and a macabre sense of humor.
I find his writing advice useful and inspiring, but I usually get more out of his stories. Some are sad, or painful, or just plain dark, but he tells them with humor, so you're laughing when you probably shouldn't be. Or maybe you're laughing exactly when you should be. The point is, you're laughing when he wants you to.
Which is why I can never read the rest of his books. If he can get me laughing at a horrific situation, what would happen when his intention is to terrify? I guess we'll never know. Sorry. It's just not my cup of tea.
Still, I always come out of "On Writing" wishing desperately that my favorite writer had chosen a genre I actually like! Then again, if he had done so, he wouldn't be writing "Truth" he insists all writers need to do. I suspect his abilities are tied to his truth-telling, so he wouldn't be my favorite if he wrote anything else, would he?
Sigh. As I said--it's complicated.
A few things, actually. I've got a bookmark in William Goldman's "The Princess Bride" (for the millionth blissful time), I just started Jane Austen's "Emma" (only my second reading--I didn't like it the first time), and a book by my favorite writer.
Who is my favorite writer, you ask?
Well, that's where it gets complicated.
The answer is: Stephen King. Yes, you heard correctly--Stephen King, the Horror novelist.
Appropriate response? Shock and (yes) Horror.
But, wait. I don't actually read Horror books (or see Horror movies, comics, etc.). I don't disapprove of them, exactly, but I can't handle them. I'm not built to appreciate stories created to frighten people. They make me hurt in a bad way and I don't like it.
However, Stephen King has written more than a collection of (widely acknowledged to be brilliant) Horror stories. He created a fantasy as well ("The Eyes of the Dragon") and a marvelous book called "On Writing".
Every now and then, you find a book that resonates with you. A book you read over and over because it speaks your language and you always come out of it inspired, enlightened, and just plain satisfied. For me, that book is "On Writing".
Contained in "On Writing" are Stephen King's past experiences and advice to writers, which is all very useful, but what I really like about it is hearing his voice. Behind the terrifying fiction sits a man with admirable morals, deep inner strength, and a macabre sense of humor.
I find his writing advice useful and inspiring, but I usually get more out of his stories. Some are sad, or painful, or just plain dark, but he tells them with humor, so you're laughing when you probably shouldn't be. Or maybe you're laughing exactly when you should be. The point is, you're laughing when he wants you to.
Which is why I can never read the rest of his books. If he can get me laughing at a horrific situation, what would happen when his intention is to terrify? I guess we'll never know. Sorry. It's just not my cup of tea.
Still, I always come out of "On Writing" wishing desperately that my favorite writer had chosen a genre I actually like! Then again, if he had done so, he wouldn't be writing "Truth" he insists all writers need to do. I suspect his abilities are tied to his truth-telling, so he wouldn't be my favorite if he wrote anything else, would he?
Sigh. As I said--it's complicated.
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