I'm at a point in "Mongan Manor" where an antagonist, of sorts, is coming onstage for the first time. I realized that even though I have mentioned her repeatedly in the first part of the book, I had little idea about her personality. Now, before her first active scene, I need to define her better. This person started the trouble at the heart of the story while unaware of what she was starting. Do I make her innocently mischievous or deviously manipulative? Should she be failing in her mental faculties since she's almost a century old or be sharp and cunning? Nice or nasty?
And how important is it to determine her motivations? And should those motives be complicated or simple? At this point, I have to decide how important they are to the plot. Regardless of why this lady stirred up her family with the notion of hidden treasure, the goal is to find it and settle all the disputes. Her motives will have to fit her personality and vice versa. What keeps coming into my mind about her is a character portrayed in a movie that's a favorite of mine, mainly pertaining to her appearance and manner, but that's just the surface.
I have some other activities planned for the day, things which occupy the hands while letting the mind roam.
Showing posts with label On Writing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label On Writing. Show all posts
Thursday, November 21, 2013
Tuesday, November 19, 2013
The Why
I sat down this morning with the intention of putting something on my blog but with no ideas about what. Distracted by hunger, I got up and made some scrambled eggs. Since it's easier to read while eating than to write while eating, I went into my email to read some messages from The Write Practice. There was an article titled "The Odds Are Against You, Might As Well Get to Writing." While it presents some daunting statistics about the scant chances of commercial success for a writer, it encourages authors to write all the same. It triggered some thoughts about why I do this.
First, it's not for the money. Yes, I get paid when people buy my books. I wish more people would to get me to the point where I make a comfortable living at it. Do I expect to move into a mansion and have servants and all that? No. Comfortable would be just fine, but I'm not even to that point yet.
Second, I know the odds are against fame and a Pulitzer Prize, and neither of those things ever inspired me to write. Recognition is certainly nice, and I get some of that now and again. Nobody stops me on the street or in the grocery store to indicate they recognize me. I'm not a household name and wouldn't expect to be unless I get more books sold.
Third, I've already proven that I can write a novel, get it published, and get paid. Therefore, what drives me is not a sense of accomplishment from doing once what many are never able to do.
So what, then, is the point? Why do I do it?
As I imply on my websites, I can't NOT write. It goes on in my head whether I want it to or not. Story ideas, scenes, bits of dialog, characters and their relationships--my imagination keeps generating the stuff. The only way to control it is to put words together in a "permanent" way. Only, that just makes room for more stuff to gush out of my brain. It's as if there is a story that must be told, and since I don't have throngs of people waiting with bated breath to hear me tell it, into print it must go. Once it's in a manuscript, why not try to get it published? I have, and it continues to be a rewarding experience. Just not monetarily rewarding. Yet.
I've often heard advice from big-time authors who say not to try to write to the market. Just because Young Adult vampire/shapeshifter/zombie/wizard stories are the rage one day doesn't mean that the thirst for such books won't be quenched by the time YOUR book finds its way to the marketplace. The best advice I ever heard was, "Write the book that is in you."
Which is what I do. There seem to be many of them in there waiting to get put down in words. Fine by me. I would continue to do it even if nobody wanted to publish or read anything I wrote. But I think someone who writes stories of any length actually taps a common well of human experience which stands to ultimately touch others. Writing stories is a high form of communication, of human communication, of sharing experience and ideas and emotions. Perhaps that is the bottom line of why it feels so rewarding.
First, it's not for the money. Yes, I get paid when people buy my books. I wish more people would to get me to the point where I make a comfortable living at it. Do I expect to move into a mansion and have servants and all that? No. Comfortable would be just fine, but I'm not even to that point yet.
Second, I know the odds are against fame and a Pulitzer Prize, and neither of those things ever inspired me to write. Recognition is certainly nice, and I get some of that now and again. Nobody stops me on the street or in the grocery store to indicate they recognize me. I'm not a household name and wouldn't expect to be unless I get more books sold.
Third, I've already proven that I can write a novel, get it published, and get paid. Therefore, what drives me is not a sense of accomplishment from doing once what many are never able to do.
So what, then, is the point? Why do I do it?
As I imply on my websites, I can't NOT write. It goes on in my head whether I want it to or not. Story ideas, scenes, bits of dialog, characters and their relationships--my imagination keeps generating the stuff. The only way to control it is to put words together in a "permanent" way. Only, that just makes room for more stuff to gush out of my brain. It's as if there is a story that must be told, and since I don't have throngs of people waiting with bated breath to hear me tell it, into print it must go. Once it's in a manuscript, why not try to get it published? I have, and it continues to be a rewarding experience. Just not monetarily rewarding. Yet.
I've often heard advice from big-time authors who say not to try to write to the market. Just because Young Adult vampire/shapeshifter/zombie/wizard stories are the rage one day doesn't mean that the thirst for such books won't be quenched by the time YOUR book finds its way to the marketplace. The best advice I ever heard was, "Write the book that is in you."
Which is what I do. There seem to be many of them in there waiting to get put down in words. Fine by me. I would continue to do it even if nobody wanted to publish or read anything I wrote. But I think someone who writes stories of any length actually taps a common well of human experience which stands to ultimately touch others. Writing stories is a high form of communication, of human communication, of sharing experience and ideas and emotions. Perhaps that is the bottom line of why it feels so rewarding.
Wednesday, November 13, 2013
Point of View Can Be Tricky
Got through a tricky passage in "Mongan Manor" where Stefanie gets some good information from a member of the family, putting a different spin on the treasure. Her conversation went through a few fits and starts as I worked out how much to reveal and how many red herrings to toss out.
Arline Chase, my publisher, always has excellent information on her blog for Write Words. Her post yesterday was about author intrusion, something I try to stay on the lookout for. In a nutshell, it has to do with not including information unavailable to the point of view character. Since I do a lot of my work in first person POV, I really have to watch out for this. My character cannot narrate that My cheeks turned red unless she's looking at herself in a mirror at the moment. Instead, her narrative might say, My cheeks burned with embarrassment. It's a bit trickier when writing in third person, harder to catch. I think the key is that the point of character feels things about him/herself and observes things about other characters to draw assumptions and conclusions. As someone who read Arline's post remarked, big-name authors fall into the trap frequently, and maybe the average reader doesn't notice, but critics and editors sure do.
Both POVs have their benefits and limitations, and the choice of which to use is largely a matter of style and preference. I use third person for the Jack Watson series as a device for giving the character information my main protagonists don't have and to take the reader where the action is. If not for this ability, stuff would happen off stage and Jack would be ferreting it out later. I think letting the reader witness important events "first hand" adds to the tension. For my other series, the plot unfolds through the eyes of one character who must unravel what is happening and how to protect herself. First person sort of locks me into a female protagonist because I'm not sure I would know how to write a first person male character for a novel. I did try it once in a short story, but those are usually so bare-bones in character development, it did not matter. Maybe I'll try it in a novel someday.
Arline Chase, my publisher, always has excellent information on her blog for Write Words. Her post yesterday was about author intrusion, something I try to stay on the lookout for. In a nutshell, it has to do with not including information unavailable to the point of view character. Since I do a lot of my work in first person POV, I really have to watch out for this. My character cannot narrate that My cheeks turned red unless she's looking at herself in a mirror at the moment. Instead, her narrative might say, My cheeks burned with embarrassment. It's a bit trickier when writing in third person, harder to catch. I think the key is that the point of character feels things about him/herself and observes things about other characters to draw assumptions and conclusions. As someone who read Arline's post remarked, big-name authors fall into the trap frequently, and maybe the average reader doesn't notice, but critics and editors sure do.
Both POVs have their benefits and limitations, and the choice of which to use is largely a matter of style and preference. I use third person for the Jack Watson series as a device for giving the character information my main protagonists don't have and to take the reader where the action is. If not for this ability, stuff would happen off stage and Jack would be ferreting it out later. I think letting the reader witness important events "first hand" adds to the tension. For my other series, the plot unfolds through the eyes of one character who must unravel what is happening and how to protect herself. First person sort of locks me into a female protagonist because I'm not sure I would know how to write a first person male character for a novel. I did try it once in a short story, but those are usually so bare-bones in character development, it did not matter. Maybe I'll try it in a novel someday.
Tuesday, November 12, 2013
More on The Name Game
Started in on "Mongan Manor" this morning, backtracking a bit to pick up the rhythm of the scene. I also had a flash of inspiration about providing Stefanie with the clues to the family secret and treasure mysteries, so I went forward with that. Had to stop and do some research on coats of arms and the various symbols used, and while I haven't yet decided on a key symbol for the story, I'm comfortable with the concept at least.
While doing my research into family names and histories, coats of arms, etc., I'm starting to wonder if I should include a disclaimer in the book when it's done. I want to stay true to the Irish heritage, but not so true that anyone could think I meant to portray real people. I'm making this up out of pure imagination and using facts from research for authenticity. I remember reading about another writer who was getting threats from someone who claimed her book of fiction exactly mirrored a relative's life. Is that how these things get started? Someone reads a book and figures any supporting details which match with him/herself or someone they know in life (notice, I did not say "real life" because life is real and fiction is fiction) and automatically assume that the writer based the book on them. Nonsense like that is nothing but ego and/or greed. I don't know anyone with the last name of Sheehy, the family name in the book. I chose it because of its meaning--eerie or mysterious. I did web searches for Irish-sounding names, both given and surnames, but mainly used those with certain meanings which will be part of the clues to the family secret.
I completely avoid using names or physical descriptions that might lead someone who knows me to think I wrote about them. I don't even like the idea of loosely basing characters on someone I've met. For one thing, when I meet someone, I never think "Gee, he/she would make a great character." It just doesn't happen for me. For another, when I'm developing a story, the characters are contrived to play certain roles in it. I need good guys and bad guys with a large proportion of people who are neither all good nor all bad. The role each plays determines their appearance, age, profession, history, demeanor, attitudes, and all the rest and can change as needed. Even the main POV character is subject to this treatment. Perhaps that's why I don't spend a great deal of time deciding who my character is before I set to writing the story, although that is an exercise many teachers of writing encourage.
Stefanie in the Windsong Lake series is a case in point. When I decided to resuscitate the "Dabblers" manuscript I finished a few years earlier, I decided that the character was too wimpy, too needy. She needed to be stronger. That was when I decided that she had known about her psychic ability and kept it secret for most of her life, even from her husband, Paul. Voila! More conflict was born. And her situation required her to "make peace" with her ability which kept trying to warn her of impending trouble, which meant she would be growing, developing, changing. Once I settled on that, my muse let out a sigh of relief and said, "Ahhh, now we've got it."
While doing my research into family names and histories, coats of arms, etc., I'm starting to wonder if I should include a disclaimer in the book when it's done. I want to stay true to the Irish heritage, but not so true that anyone could think I meant to portray real people. I'm making this up out of pure imagination and using facts from research for authenticity. I remember reading about another writer who was getting threats from someone who claimed her book of fiction exactly mirrored a relative's life. Is that how these things get started? Someone reads a book and figures any supporting details which match with him/herself or someone they know in life (notice, I did not say "real life" because life is real and fiction is fiction) and automatically assume that the writer based the book on them. Nonsense like that is nothing but ego and/or greed. I don't know anyone with the last name of Sheehy, the family name in the book. I chose it because of its meaning--eerie or mysterious. I did web searches for Irish-sounding names, both given and surnames, but mainly used those with certain meanings which will be part of the clues to the family secret.
I completely avoid using names or physical descriptions that might lead someone who knows me to think I wrote about them. I don't even like the idea of loosely basing characters on someone I've met. For one thing, when I meet someone, I never think "Gee, he/she would make a great character." It just doesn't happen for me. For another, when I'm developing a story, the characters are contrived to play certain roles in it. I need good guys and bad guys with a large proportion of people who are neither all good nor all bad. The role each plays determines their appearance, age, profession, history, demeanor, attitudes, and all the rest and can change as needed. Even the main POV character is subject to this treatment. Perhaps that's why I don't spend a great deal of time deciding who my character is before I set to writing the story, although that is an exercise many teachers of writing encourage.
Stefanie in the Windsong Lake series is a case in point. When I decided to resuscitate the "Dabblers" manuscript I finished a few years earlier, I decided that the character was too wimpy, too needy. She needed to be stronger. That was when I decided that she had known about her psychic ability and kept it secret for most of her life, even from her husband, Paul. Voila! More conflict was born. And her situation required her to "make peace" with her ability which kept trying to warn her of impending trouble, which meant she would be growing, developing, changing. Once I settled on that, my muse let out a sigh of relief and said, "Ahhh, now we've got it."
Wednesday, November 6, 2013
Too Much Too Soon?
Had time on my hands today without Internet access for most of it, but I did some work on "Mongan Manor." There is an important piece of the puzzle to the family secret involving names of ancestors, and I had thought I would put that off until much later. As I started down a different path this morning to do a different sort of scene, it struck me that it had the potential for more drama and would fit better at a later point, closer to the Big Scene, as it were. So I switched gears and started dropping some hints about names.
As always, I'm concerned about pacing. Each chapter must reveal something and institute a permanent change, hopefully with increasing tension and surprise, until the final wrap-up. The problem is getting a feel for where on the upward curve I am at a given point. In an earlier post, when I was working on the third Jack Watson book, I realized that things were happening too fast. A series of events occurred in the space of a day and it just didn't seem to be reasonable. Granted, I'm writing fiction, but as Stephen King once wrote in his "Danse Macabre," fiction requires a suspension of disbelief. Disbelief is a heavy load, like lifting a grand piano with a hoist to a third floor apartment. If you do it right, the reader gets swept up in the story and will believe just about anything, but if it flies in the face of reason to flagrantly, it's game over. Using my Jack Watson story as an example, I could imagine the reader thinking: "The killer found a phone number, called someone from out of town, got hooked up with a contract shooter, and then a snitch mentioned to Jack that someone was gunning for him ALL IN ONE DAY?????" Since I write in fits and starts, from day to day, the gaps make it hard to notice this, but when I went back to verify what day of the week I was currently writing (yeah, I do that a lot), I realized how much had happened in the space of a day and it just seemed impossible, even for fiction.
The other challenge with the Windsong Lake characters is that they're intelligent people. Paul's a genius and Stefanie recognizes patterns and never forgets anything. If a clue is too obvious and they both miss it or misread it, that grand piano is a pile of splinters.
As always, I'm concerned about pacing. Each chapter must reveal something and institute a permanent change, hopefully with increasing tension and surprise, until the final wrap-up. The problem is getting a feel for where on the upward curve I am at a given point. In an earlier post, when I was working on the third Jack Watson book, I realized that things were happening too fast. A series of events occurred in the space of a day and it just didn't seem to be reasonable. Granted, I'm writing fiction, but as Stephen King once wrote in his "Danse Macabre," fiction requires a suspension of disbelief. Disbelief is a heavy load, like lifting a grand piano with a hoist to a third floor apartment. If you do it right, the reader gets swept up in the story and will believe just about anything, but if it flies in the face of reason to flagrantly, it's game over. Using my Jack Watson story as an example, I could imagine the reader thinking: "The killer found a phone number, called someone from out of town, got hooked up with a contract shooter, and then a snitch mentioned to Jack that someone was gunning for him ALL IN ONE DAY?????" Since I write in fits and starts, from day to day, the gaps make it hard to notice this, but when I went back to verify what day of the week I was currently writing (yeah, I do that a lot), I realized how much had happened in the space of a day and it just seemed impossible, even for fiction.
The other challenge with the Windsong Lake characters is that they're intelligent people. Paul's a genius and Stefanie recognizes patterns and never forgets anything. If a clue is too obvious and they both miss it or misread it, that grand piano is a pile of splinters.
Thursday, October 31, 2013
Feel the Power!
Query for submission of "Where Power Lies" came back positive, so the manuscript is on its way to the selection committee! I spent some time fiddling around with the cover art (not so good) and with the blurb. I think the blurb I've got truly represents the story, but it's too long and not really "snappy." While my intent is never to falsely represent anything, I want to come up with a descriptive piece that's quick and intriguing. As for my cover art attempts, I have a couple of designs in mind. One features a futuristic city growing out of the ruins of the old, i.e. the "No Zone." The other concept is to have a silhouette vignette of the woman's dead body with a man (the Senator) standing over it, but the shadow he casts starts at his feet and then becomes the shadows of many people. I guess it depends on the blurb again, so if I rewrite what I have, one or the other covers may seem like the better option. The problem is, I'm not sure I can execute either of them very well with my meager tools and skills. I actually had a third option but it doesn't fit well with a blurb because it uses symbols that the reader will only discover by reading the book. Ah, well. Back to the drawing board.
"Mongan Manor" is still waiting to move to the next scene, but "Power" has been the focus of my attention and I haven't even thought about what should happen next in any detail. I find that sitting and staring at the computer screen, waiting for inspiration to come, doesn't work for me in these cases. I just have to sit and think about it, not doing anything else. On a few occasions, I've been able to just start typing something and my muse suddenly reveals the path ahead, but usually not. And I have never yet been able to skip over a leading section and just write the scene I've been so eager to get to. Just can't bring myself to do it. Maybe it has to do with not working from an outline. The story must unfold for me as it does my characters, so I can't skip over connecting sections to write the "fun stuff" out of sequence.
Friday, October 25, 2013
Useless Words
Another appointment this morning gave me more time to read "Where Power Lies" off hard copy, and I keep finding tons of stuff to change. All those conversation tags that add nothing--I said, he said, she asked. So remembering some tips from one of my favorite editing books, I devised a set of "rules" to follow regarding tags.
Now I'm eager to write the next scene in "Mongan Manor" which will crank up the action some more.
- Replace a tag with some action where feasible. "I think you're wrong on that." He looked down his nose at her. "You need to rethink your reasons."
- If there has been a break in conversation, a narrative passage for example, tag the first two exchanges of dialog to establish who is speaking to whom.
- Use tags a bit more liberally (or better yet, the action substitution mentioned above) when more than two characters are speaking.
- If a line of dialog opens a chapter or scene, make sure the reader knows who is speaking.
- If the tag does not clarify anything, cut it.
- Watch out for overuse of adverbs on tags, i.e., seriously, jovially, softly, gently, etc.
- Avoid repeating the same pattern of avoidance. For example, doing the first option above over and over again. Mix it up.
Now I'm eager to write the next scene in "Mongan Manor" which will crank up the action some more.
Wednesday, October 16, 2013
Meanwhile, Back at the Manor...
Doing some work on "Treasure of Mongan Manor" this morning, feeling my way through introductions to the people who live in or are visiting the manor. I don't want to bring in too many people at once, though, because that can be confusing to the reader. It's an odd thing a writer has to remember: while the story and its players are perfectly clear in your head, the reader will know nothing in advance of being told about it. Each introduction of a character must tell something about them, provide some reason for them taking the spotlight, however briefly.
Will there be a murder at Mongan Manor? Probably. There's a family fortune, a buried treasure, and a secret in the offing, any of which could be the motive for a murder. Some might want to solve the secret, and some might want to keep it under wraps. Some believe in the treasure and some don't. I haven't given any insights to the inheritance as yet, but I'll be toying with it soon enough. One motive at a time.
I also caught a problem earlier. Working from the family tree I drew up, with all the nice Irish names applied to several generations of family members, I realized in the writing of the current introductions scene that I had one character named Marla and another named Moira in the same room together. The names are just too similar. Marla then became Alma. It's that old closure thing. People don't read every letter or even every word placed before them. There are lots of examples of the phenomenon circulating on the web, where even though the letters are in the wrong order, maybe even interspersed with numbers, as long as the first and last ones are correct, most people are able to read it. The study of human psychological development calls that closure. So if a reader is speeding along at a good clip, having two such similar names could be confusing. As my publisher says, one of the cardinal rules for an author is never to confuse your reader.
Will there be a murder at Mongan Manor? Probably. There's a family fortune, a buried treasure, and a secret in the offing, any of which could be the motive for a murder. Some might want to solve the secret, and some might want to keep it under wraps. Some believe in the treasure and some don't. I haven't given any insights to the inheritance as yet, but I'll be toying with it soon enough. One motive at a time.
I also caught a problem earlier. Working from the family tree I drew up, with all the nice Irish names applied to several generations of family members, I realized in the writing of the current introductions scene that I had one character named Marla and another named Moira in the same room together. The names are just too similar. Marla then became Alma. It's that old closure thing. People don't read every letter or even every word placed before them. There are lots of examples of the phenomenon circulating on the web, where even though the letters are in the wrong order, maybe even interspersed with numbers, as long as the first and last ones are correct, most people are able to read it. The study of human psychological development calls that closure. So if a reader is speeding along at a good clip, having two such similar names could be confusing. As my publisher says, one of the cardinal rules for an author is never to confuse your reader.
Friday, October 11, 2013
Miscelleny
Sent off six letters and brochures to local libraries yesterday, offering each a free book for their collection and to make appearances with book clubs or at fairs. We'll see how that works out. I'll be exploring more promotional ideas and I'm giving serious consideration to making a book trailer. I found some articles on how to do that, but I'm not sure exactly what to do with it when it's done. I suppose I could do what some authors at Glen Ellyn Bookfest did and bring a computer to display the trailer in their allotted space. When it comes to personal appearances, I see a need to step it up a bit and look more professional. Would that help sales? Dunno.
Waiting to hear from my publisher about print editions of "Dabblers" and "Game Faces" before I send in my query for "Where Power Lies." A few times, I've started to open the "Power" manuscript and then decided there was nothing more to be done to it. I'm sure there are things I would change if I really tried, but it really is time to move on.
"Mongan Manor" is progressing well. Still fumbling around with how to get back story told. I've settled for putting in references whenever I think of them with the intent of editing them down later. I certainly want the book to be readable by someone who has not read the previous two books, but I also don't want to annoy those who have by restating things they already know. This can certainly be done, I believe, and a good example is with the Tempe Brennan books by Kathy Reichs. I did not start with the very first one, yet I enjoyed several of the books without it. Some of the references to previous events tempted me into reading the books that covered them, so that's the effect I want to achieve with my series.
An interesting blog post from Brianna Lee McKenzie (a writer's journey) which I picked up on from Twitter. She writes of how she had never written erotica, never tried to do steamy, explicit sex scenes, and yet found actually doing it not all that difficult. Hmmm. Maybe someday, I'll give it a shot, too. Thanks, Brianna, for the inspiring post.
Waiting to hear from my publisher about print editions of "Dabblers" and "Game Faces" before I send in my query for "Where Power Lies." A few times, I've started to open the "Power" manuscript and then decided there was nothing more to be done to it. I'm sure there are things I would change if I really tried, but it really is time to move on.
"Mongan Manor" is progressing well. Still fumbling around with how to get back story told. I've settled for putting in references whenever I think of them with the intent of editing them down later. I certainly want the book to be readable by someone who has not read the previous two books, but I also don't want to annoy those who have by restating things they already know. This can certainly be done, I believe, and a good example is with the Tempe Brennan books by Kathy Reichs. I did not start with the very first one, yet I enjoyed several of the books without it. Some of the references to previous events tempted me into reading the books that covered them, so that's the effect I want to achieve with my series.
An interesting blog post from Brianna Lee McKenzie (a writer's journey) which I picked up on from Twitter. She writes of how she had never written erotica, never tried to do steamy, explicit sex scenes, and yet found actually doing it not all that difficult. Hmmm. Maybe someday, I'll give it a shot, too. Thanks, Brianna, for the inspiring post.
Monday, October 7, 2013
The Quest for Perfection
Reading "Where Power Lies" from the back to the front this morning, and doing this way does seem to help me find things. I've also had a few snippets of ideas occur to me at odd moments during the weekend, just details to tweak the setting a bit. I also noticed a few cases of repetition, but do I really want to go through the process of running the word frequency counter again? Some of the repetition I've noticed occurs in different forms or tenses of a word, for example, wary and wariness, intense and intensity, warning and warned.
It comes down to the constant question of when have I done enough proofing/editing. In all of my previous books, I have found more errors in the final product, from out-and-out spelling or grammar errors to those pesky repetitions. Working with a small publisher, I don't have the input of an editor who will go over every word and punctuation mark. I could hire the service of such a person on my own, but even in books which I've read that supposedly went through a professional's fine-toothed comb, I have found mistakes. Sometimes BIG ones.
On the other hand, I have also read books, both best sellers and self published, that other readers raved about without a single mention of errors of any kind. That raises the question of the worth of the effort to reach perfection. If readers overlook the imperfections in books, then they certainly won't notice complete perfection either. Is striving for zero errors an effective use of my time or anyone else's? I think if the story is good, if people enjoy it and remember it and want to think about it, any errors they find won't matter.
I'm not making excuses here. Proofing is still necessary, and I'll keep trying to reduce errors and such as far as is feasible. But sooner or later, that manuscript has to be called "done" and head out into the world.
It comes down to the constant question of when have I done enough proofing/editing. In all of my previous books, I have found more errors in the final product, from out-and-out spelling or grammar errors to those pesky repetitions. Working with a small publisher, I don't have the input of an editor who will go over every word and punctuation mark. I could hire the service of such a person on my own, but even in books which I've read that supposedly went through a professional's fine-toothed comb, I have found mistakes. Sometimes BIG ones.
On the other hand, I have also read books, both best sellers and self published, that other readers raved about without a single mention of errors of any kind. That raises the question of the worth of the effort to reach perfection. If readers overlook the imperfections in books, then they certainly won't notice complete perfection either. Is striving for zero errors an effective use of my time or anyone else's? I think if the story is good, if people enjoy it and remember it and want to think about it, any errors they find won't matter.
I'm not making excuses here. Proofing is still necessary, and I'll keep trying to reduce errors and such as far as is feasible. But sooner or later, that manuscript has to be called "done" and head out into the world.
Thursday, September 12, 2013
Editing Is a State of Mind
Yesterday's slashing editing on "Where Power Lies" has reduced the manuscript by more than 1,000 words, and I'm only half way through it. I find it interesting on how my general mood influences my editing. I know that when I'm creating the manuscript, I try to get things down quickly with occasional slow-downs for important passages. On my first pass through, I try hard to make sure I'm conveying things clearly, and this ends up adding words. I also try to supply more imagery at this point, which also adds words. Searches for overused words can add or subtract length. An analogy to sculpting in clay just popped into my head, the notion of molding, modifying, removing clay or putting it back on.
At some point, I'm going to get totally sick of the story and want to move on. Hopefully, that coincides with the other sign of being "done," i.e., when I go to change something and realize that what was already there works better. That isn't to say I won't find things I wish I could change when I proof the galley (assuming my current publisher wants to pick up the book!) but that too is a matter of mood. The galley proof is about fixing format errors, spelling and punctuation, and adding the occasional word that mistakenly fell to the slashing edit--usually pronouns and articles I didn't intend to cut.
I feel good about the shortening length here, and I suspect I'll be right around 81,000 words by the time I'm done. For POD books, that's a good length, especially for a first in the series book. Does that mean I'll do a sequel to "Where Power Lies?" Maybe. I might even have a few ideas . . .
At some point, I'm going to get totally sick of the story and want to move on. Hopefully, that coincides with the other sign of being "done," i.e., when I go to change something and realize that what was already there works better. That isn't to say I won't find things I wish I could change when I proof the galley (assuming my current publisher wants to pick up the book!) but that too is a matter of mood. The galley proof is about fixing format errors, spelling and punctuation, and adding the occasional word that mistakenly fell to the slashing edit--usually pronouns and articles I didn't intend to cut.
I feel good about the shortening length here, and I suspect I'll be right around 81,000 words by the time I'm done. For POD books, that's a good length, especially for a first in the series book. Does that mean I'll do a sequel to "Where Power Lies?" Maybe. I might even have a few ideas . . .
Friday, September 6, 2013
Still Editing
After a morning of chores, I'll be getting back to work on "Where Power Lies" some this afternoon. I started with looking at instances of the word "that", which the word frequency counter program shows was used 649 times. Lots of instances occur in dialog, and some of those can stay. My main focus is on those in narrative. The test is to read the sentence without the "that" and see if it means the same thing. If it does, the word goes.
Part of this process has the potential to introduce other instances of repetition. If I rewrite a sentence to get rid of "that," I might reuse another word in close proximity. I could probably run the word frequency counter a hundred times over and still wind up with too many uses of one word or another. That's why running programs--word counts, spelling, grammar--is not enough. Only careful proofreading will get even close to a perfect manuscript.
Part of this process has the potential to introduce other instances of repetition. If I rewrite a sentence to get rid of "that," I might reuse another word in close proximity. I could probably run the word frequency counter a hundred times over and still wind up with too many uses of one word or another. That's why running programs--word counts, spelling, grammar--is not enough. Only careful proofreading will get even close to a perfect manuscript.
Thursday, September 5, 2013
Editing, The Next Phase
Finally made it through the second reading of "Where Power Lies," and this morning, I ran the program to count how frequently each word is used and the closest proximity of uses. I went through the list and removed some things that won't matter, i.e., people's names, punctuation marks, scene break marks, etc. Next comes the tricky part: to analyze the rest of the 84 pages of the list.
I know I tend to overuse the words "that" and "had," among a few others. I do a Find operation in Word to look at each instance and decide if the word is needed or if the sentence can be replaced. Other words used less frequently still present a challenge. An example, the list showed the word "granite" had been used twice in the manuscript, 67 words apart. I checked the document and found I had used it to describe the steps in front of a building and then again when mentioning the wall surrounding the same building. The second appearance can be eliminated because we've already established that the outdoor plaza is made of granite. On the other hand, the word "inventing" appears twice with only seven words in between, yet when checking the text, the repetition makes sense and I'll leave it alone. It's a time consuming task, so much so that in the past, I've gotten bored with it and quit after tackling the obvious. As stated in an earlier post, I've seen evidence in my published books that I really need to stick with it.
I started working on a cover idea, manipulating images for it, but that is also a time-consuming process. This morning, I took a break and did a little writing on the next Windsong Lake book, although the break didn't last long in the face of the guilty feeling I should be finishing "Where Power Lies."
I know I tend to overuse the words "that" and "had," among a few others. I do a Find operation in Word to look at each instance and decide if the word is needed or if the sentence can be replaced. Other words used less frequently still present a challenge. An example, the list showed the word "granite" had been used twice in the manuscript, 67 words apart. I checked the document and found I had used it to describe the steps in front of a building and then again when mentioning the wall surrounding the same building. The second appearance can be eliminated because we've already established that the outdoor plaza is made of granite. On the other hand, the word "inventing" appears twice with only seven words in between, yet when checking the text, the repetition makes sense and I'll leave it alone. It's a time consuming task, so much so that in the past, I've gotten bored with it and quit after tackling the obvious. As stated in an earlier post, I've seen evidence in my published books that I really need to stick with it.
I started working on a cover idea, manipulating images for it, but that is also a time-consuming process. This morning, I took a break and did a little writing on the next Windsong Lake book, although the break didn't last long in the face of the guilty feeling I should be finishing "Where Power Lies."
Tuesday, September 3, 2013
Time Off and New Perspective
While I did a little bit of work on "Where Power Lies" over the long weekend, adding a few touches here and there, I really got back to work on it this morning. I set out to make sure that important revelations of theories and motives came about in the proper sequence, not saying too much too soon. In the process, I took notice of an important point about tags in dialog.
Here is a brief passage from the start of Chapter 8:
Reese turned onto a sleepy residential street in an older neighborhood. Nothing moved along the shaded walks, and all the businesses were closed and dark.. He pulled into an alley behind a long row of apartment buildings.
"Who's Jeanie?" I asked.
"Nobody," he replied. "It's a code for an emergency."
Nothing all that wrong, really, but the last sentence has the tag "he replied" which caught my eye. It's not necessary. The first paragraph establishes who Dee is with, and the tag on her question sets the order of who is saying what. The "he replied" adds nothing--no emotion, no action, nothing. Leaving it out will not cause any confusion. The last sentence became:
"Nobody. It's a code for an emergency."
A small thing, but unneeded words should always be avoided. Over the course of a conversational passage, the overuse of tags breaks things up and becomes annoying, a sing-song rhythm.
So once again, I set out with one goal in mind and get distracted by small things. Oh, well. It'll all get done eventually.
Here is a brief passage from the start of Chapter 8:
Reese turned onto a sleepy residential street in an older neighborhood. Nothing moved along the shaded walks, and all the businesses were closed and dark.. He pulled into an alley behind a long row of apartment buildings.
"Who's Jeanie?" I asked.
"Nobody," he replied. "It's a code for an emergency."
Nothing all that wrong, really, but the last sentence has the tag "he replied" which caught my eye. It's not necessary. The first paragraph establishes who Dee is with, and the tag on her question sets the order of who is saying what. The "he replied" adds nothing--no emotion, no action, nothing. Leaving it out will not cause any confusion. The last sentence became:
"Nobody. It's a code for an emergency."
A small thing, but unneeded words should always be avoided. Over the course of a conversational passage, the overuse of tags breaks things up and becomes annoying, a sing-song rhythm.
So once again, I set out with one goal in mind and get distracted by small things. Oh, well. It'll all get done eventually.
Wednesday, August 21, 2013
Polishing
Oh, the hard work that remains after a first draft is completed! I made some notes before going to bed last night about an important statement that I needed to include somewhere early in the manuscript. In the opening chapter, Deanna discovers the body of a coworker at the office where she works and while the scene screams suicide, Dee doesn't believe it. I realized I needed Dee to explain why she would pursue the issue in the face of opposition. She did not know the murder victim well, and she supports the Senator who's office it happened in. Why would she push it? I came up with a reason, but finding the right place to include it was a bit of a challenge. It boils down to getting the reader behind Dee's quest with the feeling it's what they would do in her shoes.
The other challenge is the progression of the message. The other main character, Reese, is trying to figure out what happened, too, but from a different viewpoint. He is slowly introducing Dee to a different world, a new way of looking at things, and his revelations must proceed in a logical fashion. This becomes hard to manage when the manuscript is cobbled together from an older version with new ideas being added.
But each time I think I need to step back and do some sort of outline or summary, I wind up digging into the story again with the thought that I need to hone the idea more first. Why go through a tedious outline if it's going to change again, or so goes my rationale.
Another thing I'm becoming more aware of is the style. Long ago, when the first incarnation of the book was in the hands of a literary agent, she told me that Dee's narrative did not match the style of her dialog. Her descriptions were too, well, literary. I've seen it happening again in the rewrite, so I'm fixing as I go.
The other challenge is the progression of the message. The other main character, Reese, is trying to figure out what happened, too, but from a different viewpoint. He is slowly introducing Dee to a different world, a new way of looking at things, and his revelations must proceed in a logical fashion. This becomes hard to manage when the manuscript is cobbled together from an older version with new ideas being added.
But each time I think I need to step back and do some sort of outline or summary, I wind up digging into the story again with the thought that I need to hone the idea more first. Why go through a tedious outline if it's going to change again, or so goes my rationale.
Another thing I'm becoming more aware of is the style. Long ago, when the first incarnation of the book was in the hands of a literary agent, she told me that Dee's narrative did not match the style of her dialog. Her descriptions were too, well, literary. I've seen it happening again in the rewrite, so I'm fixing as I go.
Friday, August 16, 2013
Great Guns
Full speed ahead! Lots of the old manuscript of "Resistance" has turned out to be usable in the final chapters. At this rate, I might even finish a first draft --- Today!
I had to stop yesterday afternoon when I realized that I was about to reveal the person running the antagonists' show and it was someone who had never appeared in the book to that point. I consider that to be really rude and unfair. If a character is that important, he or she must at least show up in the early stages. It doesn't have to be in a particularly suspicious role at the time, which makes the big reveal a solid shocker, but the reader must already know of this character. The peak of the action is not the time to stop and introduce an entirely new character. That would be not only unfair to the reader, but it would ruin the pacing as well. I always want the reader to get to the climax, learn the true nature of the enemy, and say, "Why didn't I see that coming?"
Anyway, I had deleted some stuff from the older version of the book which introduced the knowledge of a baddie (notice, I'm not divulging the gender here), but it happened so late in the game, it still seemed weak and slightly underhanded. Instead, I needed someone who had already been mentioned and yet could fulfill the role I needed to fill. Last night, it hit me, but the decision required considerable editing of the old climax scene, plus insertion of another exchange, innocuous, closer to the start. Also, with the other changes, i.e., the time frame, I need to make sure that what is revealed in this climax fits with the revised plot lines.
Whew! Sometimes it's hard to write about the writing process without revealing too much!
Wednesday, August 14, 2013
About Plausibility
Made lots of progress on "Resistance" yesterday, and then hit a wall. Problem: Dee has an idea for blowing the lid off several conspiracies at once, but it will put her in danger. What could motivate her to do it? How can she convince others to help her and risk danger themselves? It's like what often happens in a horror movie when the female lead being menaced by an inhuman monster decides to go the one direction that will lead to a dead end and being trapped. Another example comes to mind from Arline Chase's blog about what would motivate a character to run into a burning building. Motivation is key, and it must make sense to the reader who must be able to say, "I would do the same thing in his/her shoes." It must be a plausible reason.
Under the circumstances. I know I have often found myself so caught up in a tale--be it book or movie--that I don't recognize such problems of reasoning until much later. The horror movie thing is always obvious, especially in offerings where the connection to the character is already tenuous. (Horror for horror's sake usually leaves us with mere sketches of characters because the filmmakers would rather spend time and money finding new ways to gross people out instead of developing dialog and characters.) The same thing applies to other mistakes. I may have mentioned something in one of my all-time favorite movies, "Charade": the body of a man in his pajamas is thrown off a train, then the police tell his widow that he brought no luggage aboard the train, only a few toiletry items, passport, datebook, etc. Did he board the train wearing his pajamas? If the pajamas (and robe) were in his little airline bag, what happened to the clothes he wore when he got on the train? Yet for the first several viewings (I really, really like this movie), I didn't notice the problem at all. I was too caught up in what poor Regina was going through and who all those people were and what were they after to worry about it.
So in "Resistance," when Dee presents her perilous ploy to get at the truth, she must have a good reason to put herself on the line and endanger others as well. I've tried to lay some groundwork for her decision along the way, reflecting on the wrongs done to her by those she seeks to bring down, but my main concern now is if that adds up to the right level of motivation.
Under the circumstances. I know I have often found myself so caught up in a tale--be it book or movie--that I don't recognize such problems of reasoning until much later. The horror movie thing is always obvious, especially in offerings where the connection to the character is already tenuous. (Horror for horror's sake usually leaves us with mere sketches of characters because the filmmakers would rather spend time and money finding new ways to gross people out instead of developing dialog and characters.) The same thing applies to other mistakes. I may have mentioned something in one of my all-time favorite movies, "Charade": the body of a man in his pajamas is thrown off a train, then the police tell his widow that he brought no luggage aboard the train, only a few toiletry items, passport, datebook, etc. Did he board the train wearing his pajamas? If the pajamas (and robe) were in his little airline bag, what happened to the clothes he wore when he got on the train? Yet for the first several viewings (I really, really like this movie), I didn't notice the problem at all. I was too caught up in what poor Regina was going through and who all those people were and what were they after to worry about it.
So in "Resistance," when Dee presents her perilous ploy to get at the truth, she must have a good reason to put herself on the line and endanger others as well. I've tried to lay some groundwork for her decision along the way, reflecting on the wrongs done to her by those she seeks to bring down, but my main concern now is if that adds up to the right level of motivation.
Tuesday, August 13, 2013
Torn
Last night, after going to bed, I couldn't stop thinking about "Resistance" and finally decided to do the time-line thing this morning just to quiet all the thoughts so I could sleep. Then I sat down this morning and couldn't wait to get back to writing, with no patience for going through what I've already done and charting what happened when. It's getting very close to the big showdown, which is more or less written in the old manuscript, but there's one more scene to do, an event which will push Dee over the edge to take offensive action.
I've read and heard about lots of different methodologies of various writers, from the can't-do-a-thing-without-a-full-outline school to write-what-I-feel-even-out-of-sequence. I tend more towards the latter I suppose because inventing the most dramatic scenes is usually what gets me started on a novel in the first place. Yet I'm an organized person by nature, and I'm also wary of missing details by waiting until I start proofing a full draft before fixing things I know are wrong. Sometimes, like today, I can fight down that tendency. I've realized that in "Resistance" I've lost track of what day of the week it is, an important fact in that the big action has been stated coming up on Saturday. Now all the good guys are scrambling to get into their positions for it because time is so short. But is it? Do I have them in Thursday or Friday at the current point?
I haven't even begun to give serious thought to cover art for this one yet, although I have in the back of my mind one of those oh-so-perfect yet highly-difficult-to-execute images. Perhaps a real artist could do it, though...
I've read and heard about lots of different methodologies of various writers, from the can't-do-a-thing-without-a-full-outline school to write-what-I-feel-even-out-of-sequence. I tend more towards the latter I suppose because inventing the most dramatic scenes is usually what gets me started on a novel in the first place. Yet I'm an organized person by nature, and I'm also wary of missing details by waiting until I start proofing a full draft before fixing things I know are wrong. Sometimes, like today, I can fight down that tendency. I've realized that in "Resistance" I've lost track of what day of the week it is, an important fact in that the big action has been stated coming up on Saturday. Now all the good guys are scrambling to get into their positions for it because time is so short. But is it? Do I have them in Thursday or Friday at the current point?
I haven't even begun to give serious thought to cover art for this one yet, although I have in the back of my mind one of those oh-so-perfect yet highly-difficult-to-execute images. Perhaps a real artist could do it, though...
Thursday, August 8, 2013
Reading in the Modern Era
Many sources with advice for writers say an author should read other writers in their genre to learn from what gets published. I have often suggested that writers pay particular attention to first novels since those always get the highest scrutiny from publishers. But now we are in a different sort of publishing world, where anyone can publish their work and have it available to the masses. While this is a boon to creative minds who once would have been squelched by the big publishers who judge works based on what they think will sell, it also serves to flood the marketplace with books of questionable quality. I've read a few. Editing can be sloppy to non-existent. Formatting errors abound. And there are entire websites devoted to bad cover art.
I recently purchased an ebook because the book trailer attracted me. On Amazon.com, there were a number of reviews praising it, and no reviewer gave it less than four stars. I won't give the author or the title since this is not a review. One thing I didn't do was check out the sample pages, and if I had, I wouldn't have bought it. Anyway, I began reading, and rather than being immediately entranced as many reviewers claimed to have been, my first reaction was annoyance. I'll get to why in a moment. I put it aside for a few days and then tried again to give it a second chance. I also gave it a third chance, but a fourth may not be in order. Then I began thinking about what could be learned from such a book. I don't claim to be an expert, but I'm addressing my reactions as a reader in the hopes of providing some food for thought for other writers.
First annoying thing: the story drops into the middle of a tense situation of which the reader knows nothing. There are intimations of threats of an otherworldly nature and of some ally who might be of assistance, but none of this is understandable. The subject character has only a first name and little else to help us identify with her. After the brief opening passage, the next chapter begins with a statement that it is now two months earlier. Personally, I hate that. The opening of a book should be strong enough, or the character(s) compelling enough, that one should not have to resort to jumping ahead into the action to tease the reader into becoming invested in the story.
Second annoying thing: the sentences are often too long and combine disparate bits of information. For example, while indicating an uncanny aspect of a newly arrived character, the appearance of that character is described in fair detail, down to what she is wearing. The problem with these jam-packed sentences is that I had to keep rereading them to make sure I understood what the point was, what main forward action they provided. Some provided none at all. Simple rule of English: a sentence is an idea. Sometimes we combine two ideas into one sentence with a conjunction, but each should contain one idea if it were to stand on its own.
Third annoying thing: anachronisms. This term pertains not just to things or events that should not appear in the time frame of the story, like the appearance of a revolver in King Arthur's court. In this case, in the early paragraphs, the character crawls to a new position and then soon after fears for her safety because she is too ill to rise from her bed and flee. Huh? And then she prepares to hold her ground and fight the threat. Double huh?
On my publisher's webpage, Write Words, Inc Authors Guide there are two major rules: (1) Never confuse your reader, and (2) Never made work for your editor. The book under discussion above broke Rule 1 and made me want to give it up. If the manuscript had seen the attentions of an editor, it would have broken Rule 2.
I don't think I'll be able to finish reading this one. Just considering it gives me a headache.
I recently purchased an ebook because the book trailer attracted me. On Amazon.com, there were a number of reviews praising it, and no reviewer gave it less than four stars. I won't give the author or the title since this is not a review. One thing I didn't do was check out the sample pages, and if I had, I wouldn't have bought it. Anyway, I began reading, and rather than being immediately entranced as many reviewers claimed to have been, my first reaction was annoyance. I'll get to why in a moment. I put it aside for a few days and then tried again to give it a second chance. I also gave it a third chance, but a fourth may not be in order. Then I began thinking about what could be learned from such a book. I don't claim to be an expert, but I'm addressing my reactions as a reader in the hopes of providing some food for thought for other writers.
First annoying thing: the story drops into the middle of a tense situation of which the reader knows nothing. There are intimations of threats of an otherworldly nature and of some ally who might be of assistance, but none of this is understandable. The subject character has only a first name and little else to help us identify with her. After the brief opening passage, the next chapter begins with a statement that it is now two months earlier. Personally, I hate that. The opening of a book should be strong enough, or the character(s) compelling enough, that one should not have to resort to jumping ahead into the action to tease the reader into becoming invested in the story.
Second annoying thing: the sentences are often too long and combine disparate bits of information. For example, while indicating an uncanny aspect of a newly arrived character, the appearance of that character is described in fair detail, down to what she is wearing. The problem with these jam-packed sentences is that I had to keep rereading them to make sure I understood what the point was, what main forward action they provided. Some provided none at all. Simple rule of English: a sentence is an idea. Sometimes we combine two ideas into one sentence with a conjunction, but each should contain one idea if it were to stand on its own.
Third annoying thing: anachronisms. This term pertains not just to things or events that should not appear in the time frame of the story, like the appearance of a revolver in King Arthur's court. In this case, in the early paragraphs, the character crawls to a new position and then soon after fears for her safety because she is too ill to rise from her bed and flee. Huh? And then she prepares to hold her ground and fight the threat. Double huh?
On my publisher's webpage, Write Words, Inc Authors Guide there are two major rules: (1) Never confuse your reader, and (2) Never made work for your editor. The book under discussion above broke Rule 1 and made me want to give it up. If the manuscript had seen the attentions of an editor, it would have broken Rule 2.
I don't think I'll be able to finish reading this one. Just considering it gives me a headache.
Wednesday, August 7, 2013
Time Line Time
First, I wanted to make note of the fact that I have updated my blog page, as well as my Google and Wix sites, with additional links for vendors who sell my books. On this page, they are on the left-hand side.
Okay, I've admitted to being a "pantser" when it comes to writing, and I sure don't claim to write from start to finish in a straight line. That doesn't mean I'll put off writing a connecting-type of scene to work on something exciting, but I do frequently go back and rearrange things as I go.
But outlining is not something I do before I start to write. Maybe I should, but I've never been able to do anything even close to writing a real outline. But now, in "Resistance," I have come to the point where I usually wind up about two-thirds of the way through where I have to stop and do a time line. This is just a list of events in chronological order, sometimes annotated with the day or date it happened if that's needed. Starting with what is already written, I might push it forward to cover things I haven't done yet, although usually I don't do that.
Most of my books have at least two plot lines--the people and the puzzle. As my characters try to solve the situation they are in, they also develop as people, learning, growing, and adapting. There's usually a love-story mixed in there, too, because I enjoy that part (the romantic in me). The puzzle part is the "real" plot, a mystery or situation to be solved. These always begin long before my characters become aware of them, and I have to work out the back story at some point: who did what, why, when, and where. This leads to an examination, if surface-level only, of the antagonists' background and motivations. I truly believe even the bad guys need to have a valid reason for their badness, even if the reasoning would not be embraced by anyone else.
I wound up yesterday's writing with a page and a half of notes in "Resistance" about what happens next. I found I wasn't really sure if the murder that opens the book is at the heart of it all or if it is the machinations of the antagonists. I decided that maybe it can be both! I do love a complex plot.
Okay, I've admitted to being a "pantser" when it comes to writing, and I sure don't claim to write from start to finish in a straight line. That doesn't mean I'll put off writing a connecting-type of scene to work on something exciting, but I do frequently go back and rearrange things as I go.
But outlining is not something I do before I start to write. Maybe I should, but I've never been able to do anything even close to writing a real outline. But now, in "Resistance," I have come to the point where I usually wind up about two-thirds of the way through where I have to stop and do a time line. This is just a list of events in chronological order, sometimes annotated with the day or date it happened if that's needed. Starting with what is already written, I might push it forward to cover things I haven't done yet, although usually I don't do that.
Most of my books have at least two plot lines--the people and the puzzle. As my characters try to solve the situation they are in, they also develop as people, learning, growing, and adapting. There's usually a love-story mixed in there, too, because I enjoy that part (the romantic in me). The puzzle part is the "real" plot, a mystery or situation to be solved. These always begin long before my characters become aware of them, and I have to work out the back story at some point: who did what, why, when, and where. This leads to an examination, if surface-level only, of the antagonists' background and motivations. I truly believe even the bad guys need to have a valid reason for their badness, even if the reasoning would not be embraced by anyone else.
I wound up yesterday's writing with a page and a half of notes in "Resistance" about what happens next. I found I wasn't really sure if the murder that opens the book is at the heart of it all or if it is the machinations of the antagonists. I decided that maybe it can be both! I do love a complex plot.
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