I don't make resolutions. (Um... anymore.) I think they're too broad, and they don't bend to real life situations. I'm the kind of person that needs to feel like they're making progress, and I work better when I have a set of conditions to meet, so for me it's all about setting goals.
Last year I was coming off the high of finishing my very first complete draft of a novel. I set some HUGE goals that I now know were not just overwhelming, but also misguided.
2010 was a difficult year for me in many ways, and an amazing one in many others. A death in the family left me unable (both literally and emotionally) to write or revise for about two months. I entered into that long dark tunnel called "revisions". Where I learned that no matter how good you think your first draft is, there are always thousands of ways to make it better. And some of those ways take a full revision before you can see the path to them.
So where am I as I start 2011?
After an extremely busy holiday season I am FINALLY reaching the end of what turned out to be an almost complete rewrite. I have learned A LOT about story structure, plot, and character arcs. Much more than I would've thought possible in a revision.
From my revisions I've learned a lot about myself as a writer, my tics, and ways to make my next first draft a much better starting point. (Also, Scrivener changed my life when it comes to story, plot, research, and chapter organization!)
I have felt the pain of killing my darlings and the joy of having a CP fall in love with my favorite character.
I've fought the pull of shiny new ideas, found ways to stay focused (although this will be a continuing battle for me, no matter how excited I am about a project) and discovered that I CAN write on demand and turn out something I'm proud of (thanks Tangled Fiction!)
I have made some truly awesome friends who get my obsession over writing and YA.
And I have been humbled and honored by some very kind and encouraging words about my writing.
So what are my goals for this year?
Last year I wanted to bang out the really rough first drafts of two novels. This year that's not good enough for me. I want to complete one really well thought out, solid first draft.
I want to make my current ms the absolute best it can be before it goes out into the world.
I want to write more short stories and on a regular basis, which okay, is a given thanks to Tangled Fiction. But I want these to be stories I'm proud of, not stories I make excuses for like "well, if I had more than a couple days, this would've been awesome!"
As a whole, I just want to keep getting better at writing by actively pursuing ways to do so. Whether it's conferences, retreats, challenging myself to styles/genres I've never written before, whatever.
And of course, I want 2011 to be the year I sign with the perfect agent for me and my book!
What about you? Are you going full steam ahead with a list of resolutions? Setting small goals? Did 2010 turn out like you thought it would?
Showing posts with label revision. Show all posts
Showing posts with label revision. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Monday, November 15, 2010
Music Monday - In Which I Suck At Blogging
So I haven't done a real post in over a week! I suck!
It's a hectic time of year for me. I just started an extra seasonal job. (At a bookstore! Yay!) I'm dedicated to finish my revisions by the end of this week. I still have a weekly writing post at Sisters in Scribe. And with Tangled Fiction now doing weekly stories, I'm writing, or thinking about writing, or stressing about writing ALL THE TIME. Which I love, but whew! It doesn't leave me much time to blog!
If you've been wanting to read our shorts at Tangled Fiction but hate waiting all week or reading it in pieces, we now have a Story Archive where you can read each full story in one complete post!
Also for those of you who've been reading and demanding kissing, I deliver with my opening this week. Check it out: KISS OF DEATH Part 1 (or here at the Tangled Fiction Livejournal Community)
Just remember, be careful what you wish for!
In other news, I'm planning on doing another HUGE contest like last year's (but with even more 2010 books!) next month to celebrate the end of the year and the end of my revisions!
And finally, since it IS Music Monday after all, here's a song I've been listening to lately! It's about stripping away things you don't need, and it puts me in a happy revising mood.
It's a hectic time of year for me. I just started an extra seasonal job. (At a bookstore! Yay!) I'm dedicated to finish my revisions by the end of this week. I still have a weekly writing post at Sisters in Scribe. And with Tangled Fiction now doing weekly stories, I'm writing, or thinking about writing, or stressing about writing ALL THE TIME. Which I love, but whew! It doesn't leave me much time to blog!
If you've been wanting to read our shorts at Tangled Fiction but hate waiting all week or reading it in pieces, we now have a Story Archive where you can read each full story in one complete post!
Also for those of you who've been reading and demanding kissing, I deliver with my opening this week. Check it out: KISS OF DEATH Part 1 (or here at the Tangled Fiction Livejournal Community)
Just remember, be careful what you wish for!
In other news, I'm planning on doing another HUGE contest like last year's (but with even more 2010 books!) next month to celebrate the end of the year and the end of my revisions!
And finally, since it IS Music Monday after all, here's a song I've been listening to lately! It's about stripping away things you don't need, and it puts me in a happy revising mood.
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Kill Your Darlings - The Movie Musical Edition
I'm in the midst of serious revisions and feeling a little loopy, which is why this post is about revisions and one of my all time favorite things, random musical movie moments! And um, how those two things relate to each other.
We've all heard that saying "Kill your darlings." (Or murder them, whichever.) Essentially it's saying any time you have something you find especially clever or that's close to your heart DELETE IT because it probably doesn't fit with the rest of what you've written or even belong in your book. This is killing your darlings to the extreme, but you get the idea. I think it's easy when your book is about A, and all your scenes are focused on A, to slip off into tangent B and then think it's brilliant just because it's so different from the rest of the book.
It's at that point that you must stop and really look at the scene about B. Does it have anything to do with the plot of your book? Is it there just to be awesome? Will it stop readers in their tracks as they wonder when this dark thriller turned into a slapstick comedy?
How does this relate to my love for random spontaneous musical scenes in movies? I'll show you!
Take the 80s classic TEEN WITCH. (Shut up. It IS TOO a classic!)
This is the blurb for TEEN WITCH:
Louise is a shy misfit with a huge crush on and no chance of dating Brad, the hunky star of the high school football team. When Louise discovers on her 16th birthday that she's descended from Salem witches, she uses her newfound powers to become the most popular girl on campus! But when sparks fly between her and Brad, how can she be sure it's true love and that he's not simply spellbound?
You'll note that nowhere in the description is the movie called a musical. Yet, fairly early on, we're given this:
(Take a moment to recover from the 80s explosion. I'll wait.) I remember even as a kid, the first time I saw this I thought, WTF is this a musical? BUT IT WASN'T. It was just a movie with a scene where everyone broke out into a choreographed dance routine for NO REASON OTHER THAN THAT IT WOULD BE SHEER AWESOME. And as you can see, it was, but that's not the point.
The point is, as a first time viewer, I was confused. I kept waiting for more dance routines, but there really weren't any. And in the end I was sort of disappointed about that. And I wondered why that scene was in there anyway. Just to tease me with a glimpse at how awesome Teen Witch would've been as a real musical?
So as you can see, if Teen Witch was a book, as much as I love the random dance scene, because I love random dance scenes, that particular darling would have to go. It sticks out and it's distracting because it doesn't really belong.
Do you have a scene like this? So full of awesome it could be it's own book? So unrelated to what's actually happening in your plot? You might have to save it for a different project. Put it in a drawer and when you're sad, take it out and read it and know that it's proof of your magnificent talent.
And now, just in case I have thoroughly depressed you by telling you to take out your favorite scene, here's my all time favorite spontaneous musical scene. I SO wish this would happen while out at a restaurant in real life!
We've all heard that saying "Kill your darlings." (Or murder them, whichever.) Essentially it's saying any time you have something you find especially clever or that's close to your heart DELETE IT because it probably doesn't fit with the rest of what you've written or even belong in your book. This is killing your darlings to the extreme, but you get the idea. I think it's easy when your book is about A, and all your scenes are focused on A, to slip off into tangent B and then think it's brilliant just because it's so different from the rest of the book.
It's at that point that you must stop and really look at the scene about B. Does it have anything to do with the plot of your book? Is it there just to be awesome? Will it stop readers in their tracks as they wonder when this dark thriller turned into a slapstick comedy?
How does this relate to my love for random spontaneous musical scenes in movies? I'll show you!
Take the 80s classic TEEN WITCH. (Shut up. It IS TOO a classic!)
This is the blurb for TEEN WITCH:
Louise is a shy misfit with a huge crush on and no chance of dating Brad, the hunky star of the high school football team. When Louise discovers on her 16th birthday that she's descended from Salem witches, she uses her newfound powers to become the most popular girl on campus! But when sparks fly between her and Brad, how can she be sure it's true love and that he's not simply spellbound?
You'll note that nowhere in the description is the movie called a musical. Yet, fairly early on, we're given this:
(Take a moment to recover from the 80s explosion. I'll wait.) I remember even as a kid, the first time I saw this I thought, WTF is this a musical? BUT IT WASN'T. It was just a movie with a scene where everyone broke out into a choreographed dance routine for NO REASON OTHER THAN THAT IT WOULD BE SHEER AWESOME. And as you can see, it was, but that's not the point.
The point is, as a first time viewer, I was confused. I kept waiting for more dance routines, but there really weren't any. And in the end I was sort of disappointed about that. And I wondered why that scene was in there anyway. Just to tease me with a glimpse at how awesome Teen Witch would've been as a real musical?
So as you can see, if Teen Witch was a book, as much as I love the random dance scene, because I love random dance scenes, that particular darling would have to go. It sticks out and it's distracting because it doesn't really belong.
Do you have a scene like this? So full of awesome it could be it's own book? So unrelated to what's actually happening in your plot? You might have to save it for a different project. Put it in a drawer and when you're sad, take it out and read it and know that it's proof of your magnificent talent.
And now, just in case I have thoroughly depressed you by telling you to take out your favorite scene, here's my all time favorite spontaneous musical scene. I SO wish this would happen while out at a restaurant in real life!
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Critique Your Critiques
This past weekend I was fortunate to attend KidLit Con 2010. Where the Merry Sisters of Fate (Maggie Stiefvater, Tessa Gratton, and Brenna Yovanoff) gave a presentation on critique groups.
First let me say that KidLit Con was AWESOME! Really well put together, lovely venues, and great panels. Every time I attend a conference I'm reminded how awesome it is to be in a room full of writers. When the time came for Q&A with the Merry Sisters, every single question asked was about writing!
They talked about many fascinating and insightful things, but the one I want to focus on today is a comment they made about getting a critique.
Maggie was talking about editor's notes, but it really fits for critiques from crit partners and beta readers as well. She said (I'm paraphrasing), sometimes you might get a note back saying "I don't like that thing with the pickup truck at the convenience store, can you do something else?" And she said what you need to know is, the editor (crit partner, beta reader) isn't really talking the pickup truck. They're responding to something in the scene that isn't working. So if you like the pickup truck you don't necessarily need to take it out. You need to figure out what about the scene isn't accomplishing what you intended. You need to, in effect, (and this is me talking now) critique your critique.
Before you get all panicked and start slashing things, (or angry and defensive, whichever is your MO) really read over the entire critique and try to get a sense of what the critiquer is and isn't getting from your story. The things that tend to stand out to people are the things that are easily identified. So a reader might say "the pick up truck thing" but what they really mean is "I just didn't get why she suddenly went from sad to happy in that scene where he offers her a ride in his new pick up truck. It just didn't feel real to me, and it threw off what happened in the next scene."
These are the kind of comments the Merry Sisters work on together, and it's the kind of thing you can do on your own or with your cps. A lot of times a few in depth questions can help you figure out what's missing and what needs to be changed.
Before you start asking questions, be clear on what you want the scene to accomplish. Then work to figure out what it is and isn't accomplishing. The fix might be as simple as adding one line of dialogue or as huge as deleting the entire scene and starting from scratch. You might even find that what you were trying to get across isn't the best choice after all.
The thing I took away from the Merry Sisters' talk more than anything is when you get a critique that says something other than "that's brilliant!" Stop. Breathe. Read it, and then read it again. Take another deep breath, and then begin a dialogue either with your cp, or with yourself. Every crit is helpful no matter how basic it is. Try to find the useful bits and use them to make your ms shine.
First let me say that KidLit Con was AWESOME! Really well put together, lovely venues, and great panels. Every time I attend a conference I'm reminded how awesome it is to be in a room full of writers. When the time came for Q&A with the Merry Sisters, every single question asked was about writing!
They talked about many fascinating and insightful things, but the one I want to focus on today is a comment they made about getting a critique.
Maggie was talking about editor's notes, but it really fits for critiques from crit partners and beta readers as well. She said (I'm paraphrasing), sometimes you might get a note back saying "I don't like that thing with the pickup truck at the convenience store, can you do something else?" And she said what you need to know is, the editor (crit partner, beta reader) isn't really talking the pickup truck. They're responding to something in the scene that isn't working. So if you like the pickup truck you don't necessarily need to take it out. You need to figure out what about the scene isn't accomplishing what you intended. You need to, in effect, (and this is me talking now) critique your critique.
Before you get all panicked and start slashing things, (or angry and defensive, whichever is your MO) really read over the entire critique and try to get a sense of what the critiquer is and isn't getting from your story. The things that tend to stand out to people are the things that are easily identified. So a reader might say "the pick up truck thing" but what they really mean is "I just didn't get why she suddenly went from sad to happy in that scene where he offers her a ride in his new pick up truck. It just didn't feel real to me, and it threw off what happened in the next scene."
These are the kind of comments the Merry Sisters work on together, and it's the kind of thing you can do on your own or with your cps. A lot of times a few in depth questions can help you figure out what's missing and what needs to be changed.
Before you start asking questions, be clear on what you want the scene to accomplish. Then work to figure out what it is and isn't accomplishing. The fix might be as simple as adding one line of dialogue or as huge as deleting the entire scene and starting from scratch. You might even find that what you were trying to get across isn't the best choice after all.
The thing I took away from the Merry Sisters' talk more than anything is when you get a critique that says something other than "that's brilliant!" Stop. Breathe. Read it, and then read it again. Take another deep breath, and then begin a dialogue either with your cp, or with yourself. Every crit is helpful no matter how basic it is. Try to find the useful bits and use them to make your ms shine.
Friday, October 15, 2010
Friday Five
If you've noticed I've been posting less this week it's because I'm neck deep in revisions. I have a self-imposed deadline and I intend to meet it! Hopefully with something that makes sense. Cutting 25,000 words or so and adding 30,000 new ones hurts my brain. Anyway, onto the Friday Five!
- Over at my crit group's blog Sisters in Scribe we have an awesome guest post by Andrew Jacobson of the new Middle Grade Fantasy series THE FAMILIARS! Stop by and check out the post for a chance to WIN a copy of THE FAMILIARS! Ends October 30th.
- Next weekend I will be heading to Minneapolis to the Kidlit Con 2010! I'm especially excited because I'll be meeting 2/4 of the girls from Tangled Fiction there, Anne Marie and my CP Natalie C Parker! Are you going to be there? Let me know! I'd love to meet you!
- I LOVE this post by TH Mafi, which is so my life right now. 6 Things You Lose When Writing A Novel. Plus she's having a contest right now where you can WIN $100 for books! (No that's not a typo. That's one hundred dollars. For books!)So go check it out. And if you haven't been reading her blog regularly, you should be. It's hilarious.
- How awesome was it seeing all those miners pulled out of the mine? That's the kind of reality tv I like. I think I cried almost every time one of them came out. And I don't really cry much. I swear!
- The SCBWI conference I went to last weekend was AMAZING! I learned so much. This year's focus was on Fantasy and Sci-Fi and Cinda Williams Chima gave two awesome workshops on world-building, and hooking your readers. Once I finish my revisions I'll go through my notes and share what I learned, but in the meantime, you should totally check out her books. Her most recent is the second in her Seven Realms series The Exiled Queen. I got a copy of the first book in the series, The Demon King, signed and will be giving it away over at Sisters In Scribe.
Hope you have a great weekend! I'll be strapped to my macbook until I finish thesestupid awesome revisions!
- Over at my crit group's blog Sisters in Scribe we have an awesome guest post by Andrew Jacobson of the new Middle Grade Fantasy series THE FAMILIARS! Stop by and check out the post for a chance to WIN a copy of THE FAMILIARS! Ends October 30th.- Next weekend I will be heading to Minneapolis to the Kidlit Con 2010! I'm especially excited because I'll be meeting 2/4 of the girls from Tangled Fiction there, Anne Marie and my CP Natalie C Parker! Are you going to be there? Let me know! I'd love to meet you!
- I LOVE this post by TH Mafi, which is so my life right now. 6 Things You Lose When Writing A Novel. Plus she's having a contest right now where you can WIN $100 for books! (No that's not a typo. That's one hundred dollars. For books!)So go check it out. And if you haven't been reading her blog regularly, you should be. It's hilarious.
- How awesome was it seeing all those miners pulled out of the mine? That's the kind of reality tv I like. I think I cried almost every time one of them came out. And I don't really cry much. I swear!
- The SCBWI conference I went to last weekend was AMAZING! I learned so much. This year's focus was on Fantasy and Sci-Fi and Cinda Williams Chima gave two awesome workshops on world-building, and hooking your readers. Once I finish my revisions I'll go through my notes and share what I learned, but in the meantime, you should totally check out her books. Her most recent is the second in her Seven Realms series The Exiled Queen. I got a copy of the first book in the series, The Demon King, signed and will be giving it away over at Sisters In Scribe.
Hope you have a great weekend! I'll be strapped to my macbook until I finish these
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
The Universe Always Knows
A recent Note From The Universe:
You know, almost anything you feel you "have to" do, like cleaning and washing, can become a chore, even a drudgery; while those things that remain optional, like Disney World and Twister, can seem far more inviting, even fun.
So, as you go down the path of life, particularly when it seems you must force yourself through the motions, it just may help if you pause and give thought to the countless souls who'd give most anything for the option of even your "chores."
Life... it can sometimes be like one of those really, really "good problems," huh?
I got this in my email while slogging through what feels like the most painful and tedious and frustrating revision of my writing life. It made me realize that a year ago, I would've killed to have a finished draft of a novel complete with expert revision notes and people eagerly waiting to read it.
So... I guess it's all about perspective, huh?
You know, almost anything you feel you "have to" do, like cleaning and washing, can become a chore, even a drudgery; while those things that remain optional, like Disney World and Twister, can seem far more inviting, even fun.
So, as you go down the path of life, particularly when it seems you must force yourself through the motions, it just may help if you pause and give thought to the countless souls who'd give most anything for the option of even your "chores."
Life... it can sometimes be like one of those really, really "good problems," huh?
I got this in my email while slogging through what feels like the most painful and tedious and frustrating revision of my writing life. It made me realize that a year ago, I would've killed to have a finished draft of a novel complete with expert revision notes and people eagerly waiting to read it.
So... I guess it's all about perspective, huh?
Saturday, January 9, 2010
Revisionland
I have officially entered Revisionland! Or is that I have officially entered Revisionland *insert creepy laughter here*?
Yesterday I decided to stop wasting time while I thought about what other scenes might be missing and what order the scenes should go in - aka procrastinating. I wrote out of order, which was very helpful because I think in scenes, but left me with quite a mess. So I stuck the scenes loosely in order and printed out all 186 pages of my first draft. I figured it was better to read what I had and see how it all fits together before writing additional stuff.
Now, I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed. There is SO MUCH paper! And words! So many words! And somehow I'm supposed to make them all come together into a real live book? I have to say though, that looking at that huge stack of paper - like two inches, seriously - makes me feel accomplished. I wrote all those pages! It makes me feel that much closer to achieving my goal. If I can write that, surely I can shape into something worth reading right? Right?
I just need to scrape up some courage, grab my trusty hot pink pen, and curl up on the couch with my book. Because I wrote one. Like, for real. Wish me luck!
Yesterday I decided to stop wasting time while I thought about what other scenes might be missing and what order the scenes should go in - aka procrastinating. I wrote out of order, which was very helpful because I think in scenes, but left me with quite a mess. So I stuck the scenes loosely in order and printed out all 186 pages of my first draft. I figured it was better to read what I had and see how it all fits together before writing additional stuff.
Now, I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed. There is SO MUCH paper! And words! So many words! And somehow I'm supposed to make them all come together into a real live book? I have to say though, that looking at that huge stack of paper - like two inches, seriously - makes me feel accomplished. I wrote all those pages! It makes me feel that much closer to achieving my goal. If I can write that, surely I can shape into something worth reading right? Right?
I just need to scrape up some courage, grab my trusty hot pink pen, and curl up on the couch with my book. Because I wrote one. Like, for real. Wish me luck!
Monday, August 17, 2009
Revising Tips
Rachelle Gardner has a great post on her blog today about tightening up your manuscript.
It's funny how many of these (particularly adverbs, too many adjectives, and the elusive passive sentence) I can spot so easily in my crit group's work and then fill up my manuscript with the same thing and not even notice!
Read her great tips here!
It's funny how many of these (particularly adverbs, too many adjectives, and the elusive passive sentence) I can spot so easily in my crit group's work and then fill up my manuscript with the same thing and not even notice!
Read her great tips here!
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