tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-66944363018317408432024-03-12T22:11:42.727-07:00Leave the Frigging MarshmallowsWriting isn't easy. Eat real food. You need the energy to get through that draft.Robin I.http://www.blogger.com/profile/17557480330363646629noreply@blogger.comBlogger60125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6694436301831740843.post-66492420098336529072018-01-31T14:32:00.001-07:002018-02-15T17:42:08.661-07:00The Most Important Questions When Reading Like a Writer<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "graphik meetup" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">One of the best ways to learn about writing is read like a writer. That is, read for craft, take the writing apart, and be aware of the choices the writer made and their effect on readers.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmhDKeUHjH6vslTCIz6HP6RBhUeR07-0MSU7iFhMjTwhCzmkaLn2Wz7CXLpHvgm5iS-jttSwhozvPus2tpYX0nsgwLuWg_xOVWZGXAaBVMCBEdZ6d-OUstV3NLuujmh5YE8i3Hl2S7xGU/s1600/5284194786_64776d089d_z.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="428" data-original-width="640" height="427" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmhDKeUHjH6vslTCIz6HP6RBhUeR07-0MSU7iFhMjTwhCzmkaLn2Wz7CXLpHvgm5iS-jttSwhozvPus2tpYX0nsgwLuWg_xOVWZGXAaBVMCBEdZ6d-OUstV3NLuujmh5YE8i3Hl2S7xGU/s640/5284194786_64776d089d_z.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Reading like a writer is not simply reading... <i>Image </i><i>"<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/42954113@N00/5284194786/" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Reading & Writing</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">" (</span><a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/" rel="license" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">CC BY 2.0</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">) by </span><a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/42954113@N00/" property="cc:attributionName" rel="cc:attributionURL" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank" xmlns:cc="http://creativecommons.org/ns#">M.Markus</a>.</i></span></td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "graphik meetup" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">This is often a difficult change from reading for pleasure and responding with emotion. It is a more active (versus reactive) form of reading, and it requires asking questions of the words on the page. </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "graphik meetup" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Here, I have provided a quick guide </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "graphik meetup" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">on how to form those questions. This information is extracted and condensed </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "graphik meetup" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">from <a href="http://thewritepractice.com/" target="_blank">The Write Practice</a> because I can't be trusted to know how to read like a writer on my own.</span><br />
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<a name='more'></a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "graphik meetup" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><b>Ask Three Big Questions</b></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "graphik meetup" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"> </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "graphik meetup" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">There are three big questions to ask when you read like a writer: </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "graphik meetup" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">what, why, and how.</span><i style="background-color: white; font-family: "graphik meetup", helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"></i><br />
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<b style="font-family: "graphik meetup", helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><i>What</i> Was Powerful?</b><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "graphik meetup" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">What kind of passage is it? Was it description that got your heart racing? Was it the dialogue, or the way the characters were developed? Was it the explanation of a principle you never quite grasped before, or facts you never knew?</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "graphik meetup" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><b><i>Why</i> Was it Powerful?</b></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "graphik meetup" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Why does </span><i style="background-color: white; font-family: "graphik meetup", helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">this </i><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "graphik meetup" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">passage matter? Why was this one different from everything else? Why did it stand out? </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "graphik meetup" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">The answers can be along the lines of:</span><br />
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<li style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">It revealed something about the character’s past that changes my entire perspective of her choices.</li>
<li style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">It emphasized what the author was trying to say, highlighting the importance of the solution offered or the awfulness of the problem outlined.</li>
<li style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">I knew this character lived on a mountain in Tibet, but not until this section did I think what that would mean for her view every morning of clouds and no ground—so different from mine (assuming you don’t live on a mountain in Tibet) that it actually explains her assumptions.</li>
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<b><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "graphik meetup" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><i>How</i> Did it Achieve That Power?</span></b><br />
<br style="background-color: white; font-family: "graphik meetup", helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "graphik meetup" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Every writer has a set of tools, but most of them can be summarized fairly neatly. There’s “show, don’t tell” and “less is more.” There are basic grammatical skills (which are learned, not inherent) such as punctuation and consistent verb tense. There’s good vocabulary.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "graphik meetup" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">But while every sculptor uses the same hammer and chisel, the end result never looks the same. Your goal is to figure out how this author did it.</span><br />
<ul style="background-color: white; font-family: "graphik meetup", helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; list-style-position: outside; margin: 0px 0px 16px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 1.33em;"><br />
<li style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Was it the word-choice? Sometimes the choice of unusual words, or simple words, or specific words can make the difference.</li>
<li style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Was it the rhythm? There is a rhythm to good prose writing. Read a beautiful passage out loud if you don’t believe me. If you were to swap words with synonyms of different syllable count, the rhythm would totally change.</li>
<li style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Was it the viewpoint? Did this passage offer a perspective you hadn’t seen before?</li>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "graphik meetup" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Sometimes it’s what the author doesn’t say that makes it work. Things left unsaid for the reader to apply can be incredibly powerful.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "graphik meetup" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">I'd like to also point out that Francine Prose came out with a book last year, called <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Reading-Like-Writer-Guide-People/dp/0060777052" target="_blank">Reading like a Writer</a></i>. I'm intrigued by this, but haven't gotten to it yet. Clearly, this is a much shorter guide and may just be a stop-gap before you get to reading Prose's book. But let's all get there eventually.</span><br />
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</span></span>Robin I.http://www.blogger.com/profile/17557480330363646629noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6694436301831740843.post-7714950308297662552017-05-28T07:27:00.000-07:002018-02-15T17:42:55.252-07:00The Trend of Terrible WordsThere is a message that I need to get out to the world: <i>We are destroying the beauty of written English. </i>I'm not talking about using <i>impact</i> as a verb. I don't care about that. I mean, <i>festoon</i> was a noun for two centuries before it became a verb. I'm pretty happy with a lot of nouns that have become verbs. <b>Language evolves. </b><br />
<br />
I don't care about business jargon or self-help talk, either. And I won't even get into using <i>literal</i> as <i>figurative</i>. I'm talking about something more insidious.<br />
<br />
Let me explain before I identify the problem. <b>Two words, in particular, stick in my craw because I hear them all the time: <i>historical</i> and <i>inspirational</i>. </b>These two words have nearly replaced <i>historic</i> and <i>inspiring</i> in popular culture, and pop culture is where we get used to using words. Once we grow accustomed to their use in everyday use, the devolution of the written language begins.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJbu7oUj1iRD7XPO40-krWfl0UChEi7VJwY6xEaId-WElykbk0YkFLoy_U0R8on2BmMw2kK076T737xkkw0EW4_zZ0qjGrJKHB8vMYWuhpimNgifWDV5b9cR3Ko78oF203nYq5RmO-y20/s1600/4027272686_26bb480944_o.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><i><img border="0" data-original-height="207" data-original-width="249" height="332" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJbu7oUj1iRD7XPO40-krWfl0UChEi7VJwY6xEaId-WElykbk0YkFLoy_U0R8on2BmMw2kK076T737xkkw0EW4_zZ0qjGrJKHB8vMYWuhpimNgifWDV5b9cR3Ko78oF203nYq5RmO-y20/s400/4027272686_26bb480944_o.png" width="400" /></i></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">Image: <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/naufragio/4027272686/in/photolist-2he4K2-69JGzz-8JchT7-7YWeS8-brPjQ4-ojX2Fb-4X5yiY-2JZfjm-aekFPC-busS2s-78SPRY-b7BSwk-2JUs7N-9tXY8H-9eF9oD-2auqRn-brUJXM-2FmYmX-2Hv4VG-b7BV1v-9RBzeS-9ka23D-bBUvMD-9zywLV-e99FAY-bdjqTP-aA2TcY-9kGh7q-9kd4RA-9zyxdg-9ydRAH-aYYcnF-9iFAvr-FQWvZ3-akRdDd-b7BRjR-9RBzEC-9vNLPa-9Ygmmb-9vNMqz-b4SoGr-9RBy1Y-b7BVj6-9yLLCC-eRi2y4-bdem4i-9GUwiJ-a7eZNE-bre6FP-b7CbeF" target="_blank">Gavin Baker</a> <span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">"<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/naufragio/4027272686/" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3;" target="_blank">Captcha</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">" (</span><a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/" rel="license" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3;" target="_blank">CC BY-SA 2.0</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">) by </span><a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/naufragio/" property="cc:attributionName" rel="cc:attributionURL" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3;" target="_blank" xmlns:cc="http://creativecommons.org/ns#">Naufragio</a></span></span></i></td></tr>
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You may not think these words are too bad or a sign of the decline of English, but <b>they clutter the language</b> with extra letters, sounds, and syllables that writers don't need when they seek clarity.<br />
<br />
Is one suffix not enough? Do more syllables make people feel smarter?<br />
<br />
<b>I know <i>historical</i> and <i>inspirational</i> are actual words</b>, but <i>epidemical</i> is supposedly a word, too. We never use it because it's an adjective, just like <i>epidemic</i>. So when something becomes widespread<br />
<a name='more'></a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "molengo"; font-size: 22px; line-height: 30.8px;">—</span>like the use of the so-called word <i>inspirational</i><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "molengo"; font-size: 22px; line-height: 30.8px;">—</span>we say it reaches "<i>epidemic</i> proportions." Not "<i>epidemical</i> proportions." <b>Both words have the same meaning and purpose.</b><br />
<br />
So why do we say a house is <i>historical</i> when it's <i>historic</i>?<br />
<br />
I don't have the answer, but <b>if you are a person who prefers to use <i>historical</i> over <i>historic</i>, I suggest you begin using the following words.</b> They may illicit a similar good feeling.<br />
<br />
<i>romantical</i>: "We're in a <i>romantical</i> relationship."<br />
<i>aquatical</i>: "I took diving lessons at the <i>aquatical </i>center."<br />
<i>toxical</i>: "Want to be happy at work? Avoid these 8 <i>toxical</i> people,"<br />
<i>cryptical</i>: "The children pass <i>cryptical</i> messages under the door."<br />
<i>hypnotical</i>: "His swinging testicles were <i>hypnotical</i>."<br />
<i>myopical</i>: "I need glasses because I'm <i>myopical</i>."<br />
<br />
You can also try using <i>phallical </i>or <i>orgasmical</i> in a Women's Studies class to sound really smart.<br />
<br />
<i>Inspiring</i> used to be the common word. It actually still is in print, if you <a href="https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=inspirational%2Cinspiring&year_start=1800&year_end=2015&corpus=15&smoothing=3&share=&direct_url=t1%3B%2Cinspirational%3B%2Cc0%3B.t1%3B%2Cinspiring%3B%2Cc0" target="_blank">check it out on n-gram viewer</a>. But in speech, in public, on TV, and in online media, <i>inspirational </i>is overwhelmingly used.<br />
<br />
Now, I understand the purpose for <i>intentional</i> and <i>national</i> and <i>rational</i>. We're probably not going to ask about the <i>nutriating</i> value of a food. <i>Situational</i> is <b>not</b> interchangeable with <i>situating</i>.<br />
<br />
But <b>why</b> would we say there are <i>redemptional</i> qualities to a project when we could say the project has <i>redeeming </i>qualities? Fewer syllables. Fewer letters. Clearer sound. Clearer speech.<br />
<br />
I've actually heard use of the word <i>relaxational</i>. Hearing that is not at all relaxing to me. Why are we making this stuff up?<br />
<br />
Might as well start using <i>frustrational, irritational, exhaustional, dehydrational, captivational, excitational.</i><br />
<br />
That film was absorbtional.<br />
The experience was dehumanizational.<br />
<br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #20124d; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-weight: bold; line-height: 27.1855px;">"Never use a long word where a short one will do." <span style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 30.8px;">—</span>George Orwell</span><br />
<br />
Cutting out an extra suffix could help us try to live up to Orwell in a minimal way.<br />
<br />
I hope this is not confusional.<br />
<br />
Now I can let it rest.<br />
<br />
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Robin I.http://www.blogger.com/profile/17557480330363646629noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6694436301831740843.post-13384239097452329112017-05-17T17:52:00.001-07:002018-02-15T17:44:08.317-07:00Getting to Writers' ConferencesMy novel, <i>Leave the Frigging Marshmallows</i>, has been in process for a while. Years.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Novel notes. <i>Photo by Robin Israel.</i></td></tr>
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Part of this is because I question myself. Part of it is because I want it to be great. And part is that it is just difficult to find my way through a character-driven novel with multiple complex characters and their individual stories without any real instruction beyond other novels.<br />
<br />
I can read all the books on craft in the world, but they never seem to fully apply to <i>my </i>characters and their stories. They often help me expand and enrich my characters more, and I'm grateful for that, but it often complicates things further. Often, books on writing focus on plot and structure and, when I impose such things on my characters, they fight back and story becomes forced. I really want to find a way through this messy thing.<br />
<br />
That's the reason I started attending writers' conferences last summer. I had avoided them for a while because I thought of them as pitch sessions and I wasn't ready to pitch anything, but then I started<br />
<a name='more'></a>feeling starved for a comprehensive critique from literary writers and I signed up for the UNM Summer Writers' Conference in Santa Fe. It was close, one I could drive to, and it had some really great writers. Sandra Cisneros, Jonis Agee, Antonya Nelson, Debra Monroe--these are the ones I can think of off the top of my head. Sadly, there is no reference back, since the funding for this conference was mined by the university after last year and the event no longer exists. It stands, however, as the first conference with workshops that I have ever attended.<br />
<br />
It was different from <a href="https://www.awpwriter.org/awp_conference/overview" target="_blank">AWP</a>, which is all panels and book fair... and <i>huge</i>. It was different from <a href="https://piper.asu.edu/conference" target="_blank">Desert Nights, Rising Stars</a> because it was a week long and you share your work in a workshop setting. I hadn't been in a workshop that I wasn't running in more than 15 years. AWP and Desert Nights are both really useful (and I will write about how in a later post) but it's this workshop element that I needed. I needed to not be the teacher, to not be the leader.<br />
<br />
I longed to be the student again. I <i>needed</i> to learn something that I wasn't learning as a teacher.<br />
<br />
At the conference in Santa Fe, my workshop leader was the lovely <a href="http://www.simonandschuster.com/authors/Jo-Ann-Mapson/1832036" target="_blank">Jo-Ann Mapson</a>, She was kind and supportive and I was happy to be there, getting a harder look at my work. Something about this conference changed how I thought about myself as a writer. It wasn't just Jo-Ann's workshop. It was the interaction with other writers from all over the country. It was meeting with editors and agents--one who confronted me about self-sabotage. I came back with a mindset that made me rethink what I was doing as a writer--not my writing itself, but my attitude toward writing and myself as a writer and all my insecurity as a middle-aged woman coming back to writing. It made me think about how I was spending my time as a writer.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJetdI0Ju0ZsRTb4W3P9XPAriB7KAk3GchIpovEBruWRJT7Zq7sgjBsQyOx-3_Zm7G3733c7jjvF52R2WLYWpKNS2NfzpWoCxzXTBzDNQ3OfVKECtZomUmUs5B6W9AYVUg6Q4xNQ22M_A/s1600/IMG_20140814_185813.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="307" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJetdI0Ju0ZsRTb4W3P9XPAriB7KAk3GchIpovEBruWRJT7Zq7sgjBsQyOx-3_Zm7G3733c7jjvF52R2WLYWpKNS2NfzpWoCxzXTBzDNQ3OfVKECtZomUmUs5B6W9AYVUg6Q4xNQ22M_A/s400/IMG_20140814_185813.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sometimes you need more than your weekly writing group, as awesome as they are.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
I'll tell you something else about these conferences--more comes from them if you're <i>not</i> trying to pitch a book. I had a satisfying experience there. And I want to learn more.<br />
<br />
That's why I applied to four conferences this summer. This is also different from most conferences. Generally, you find a conference you like, sign up, pay, and (hopefully) choose your workshop leader. For the conferences I applied to this summer, there is an application fee, sample writing (some up to 50 pages), an application essay, and for some, references. Last year, I applied to <a href="http://sewaneewriters.org/conference/" target="_blank">Sewanee</a>--one of the most prestigious and most difficult conferences to get into--and I didn't get in.<br />
<br />
This year, I chose to apply to all the big ones and just <i>hope</i>. <a href="http://www.tinhouse.com/blog/workshop" target="_blank">Tin House Workshop</a>: Rejected outright. <a href="https://communityofwriters.org/announcing-our-2017-summer-writing-workshops/" target="_blank">Community of Writers at Squaw Valley</a>: Accepted! With funding! Yay! <a href="http://www.middlebury.edu/bread-loaf-conferences/bl_writers" target="_blank">Bread Loaf</a>: Still waiting to hear. And Sewanee: ... <i>accepted?... wow! </i>...oh, but no funding...<br />
<br />
Even without funding I feel incredibly honored to be accepted as a contributor. Check out <a href="http://sewaneewriters.org/faculty/" target="_blank">the faculty at Sewanee</a>. It's pretty darn impressive. Every participant who attends receives assistance that covers two-thirds of the actual cost, leaving them with $1800 in tuition and boarding. There is some additional funding on top of that, if your manuscript resonates with the readers strongly, or if you're lucky. I'm not. And they don't take credit cards. Financial anxiety ensues. (I probably shouldn't put $1800 on my credit card anyway.) <i>And they wanted to know if I was planning on attending within 4 days and get the deposit to them a week later.</i><br />
<br />
I contemplated not going. I thought, is it useful to go? Is it too much to attend two conferences in a summer? Maybe I should wait. <i>But maybe I'll never get in again!</i> Is it entirely stupid to not go when given the chance?<br />
<br />
I checked with the Arizona Commission on Arts, talked to Arizona Humanities, called the MFA program I graduated from in 1998--I figured if I'd get my hustle on, I'd be able to find a grant out of cycle. But I came up with nothing.<br />
<br />
Several of my (younger) friends suggested a GoFundMe campaign, as did the AZ Arts Commission, so against my Generation X beliefs that no one will give me money and it's sleazy to ask for it, <a href="https://www.gofundme.com/sewanee-writers-conference" target="_blank">I set up a campaign</a>. Now, 3 hours into the campaign, I'm a little more than a quarter funded.<br />
<br />
I'm a little freaked out by this. It's great that people are contributing, and it's mostly donations of $25-$50. I am grateful that I could possibly be going. I love that people support me and want to see me go. I'm happy that people believe in me. But there is still some sort of anxiety that I have, and I'm not sure what it is.<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>Is it that the beliefs I've had about asking for money for so long are inaccurate? </li>
<li>Is it undignified? Is it somehow related to vanity publishing?</li>
<li>Is it that I don't see a lot of difference between this and visiting all my friends and family to ask for $20? </li>
<li>Is this, in a way, worse than being that mooch because I'm not facing anyone and there is no expectation to be paid back? </li>
<li>Is it that I hate solicitation and I worry that all my Facebook friends will un-friend me, or that people I have loose connections with are cursing my emails and my name? </li>
<li>Is that I worry I will fail these people who support me or that I will make a fool of myself when I get there? </li>
<li>Is it that, when I told my dad I was doing this, he said, "Why would anyone help you with <i>that</i>?" (Thanks, Dad.)</li>
<li>Do I worry that I owe people who contribute? Or that they will hold something over me?</li>
</ul>
<br />
Maybe all of these fears are true. I've gotten better as asking for help and accepting it over the years, but money is still uncomfortable. Maybe I am a cadger who will say something really stupid and embarrassing to Alice McDermott. What writer hasn't made a fool of himself at some time or another? What writer hasn't failed people?<br />
<br />
Maybe the biggest concern is that, by asking for help, I'm committing to completing my book. I'm committing to it being strong enough to be published. I won't allow myself to fail--thus putting pressure on myself that may not be helpful.<br />
<br />
Or maybe it will be.<br />
<br />
So I'm trying to get through all these things and get myself to Sewanee, so that later, when this book is done, I can watch a heavy stack of papers turn into a book and say to everyone who helped, "Thank you. It wasn't for nothing."<br />
<br />
If you can contribute, I'll be really grateful. <a href="https://www.gofundme.com/sewanee-writers-conference" target="_blank">Stop by and take a look at my story</a>. If you can't contribute, and you're willing to pass the campaign on, I'll be happy about that, also. And if you think you can't go to the conferences or workshops you really want because of the cost, consider a GoFundMe campaign, too.<br />
<br />
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Robin I.http://www.blogger.com/profile/17557480330363646629noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6694436301831740843.post-2029510626480606312017-02-24T14:29:00.000-07:002018-02-15T17:45:25.764-07:00The Most Exciting Literary Time of the Year<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
The <a href="http://themorningnews.org/tob/" style="animation-delay: 0.1s; animation-duration: 0.1s; animation-iteration-count: 1; animation-name: fontfix; animation-timing-function: linear; color: #1f24cc; cursor: pointer; display: inline; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Tournament of Books</a> is not considered a great prize and there is no monetary award, just a rooster, but I contend that it is the most exciting literary time of the year--better than the Pulitzer, the Man Booker, the National Book Award, and even the Nobel.</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif73l6-eKmXYQXiWQ10uKkZ0-XLrRQHLg2BmbZiucVUNrN39q4BzvdVPcGBA_sIE3E_b7iWTwQABEiTLZArjb7_jqTH1selbp4UJudxJIAYTQoQn8lBP4bMdkidgh7asByLf-a2GqeGWs/s1600/4190447298_51319ece53_z.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif73l6-eKmXYQXiWQ10uKkZ0-XLrRQHLg2BmbZiucVUNrN39q4BzvdVPcGBA_sIE3E_b7iWTwQABEiTLZArjb7_jqTH1selbp4UJudxJIAYTQoQn8lBP4bMdkidgh7asByLf-a2GqeGWs/s1600/4190447298_51319ece53_z.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;">Woohoo! <i>Image: </i><i>"<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/rubyblossom/4190447298/" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Ride a Cock horse!</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: start;">" (</span><a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/" rel="license" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">CC BY-NC-SA 2.0</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: start;">) by </span><a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/rubyblossom/" property="cc:attributionName" rel="cc:attributionURL" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank" xmlns:cc="http://creativecommons.org/ns#">rubyblossom.</a></i></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="D_bbcode" style="max-width: 580px; overflow: hidden;">
All those other awards are given under a shroud and with just a few lines of justification. Spend a few days in anticipation while waiting for the announcement, yeah. Get a momentary thrill, sure. Question the decision process, yes. But a day or two later, the discussion ends. The Tournament of Books is not like that--not at all.</div>
<div class="D_bbcode" style="max-width: 580px; overflow: hidden;">
<br />
<a name='more'></a></div>
<div class="D_bbcode" style="max-width: 580px; overflow: hidden;">
A project of The Morning News, the Tournament take place all through the month of March. It pits 13 books against each other in one-on-one rounds, with the judges for each round named and specifically discussing the two books and why they chose the winner they did. Two official commentators give their opinions and the public also comments. Still, the winner is the winner, and that book moves onto the next round while the loser is knocked out of the competition.<br />
<br />
Or so you may think.<br />
<br />
By the time the end of the month nears, and the books have been whittled down to two, the zombie round ensues. Two books that have already been knocked out are voted back in by the public. These two books compete with the remaining two in the final set of battles.<br />
<br />
The Tournament of Books touts its transparency in coming to a decision, and specifies none of any of this is fair--it's all taste and opinion. But it's a fun discussion of books. Whether you have read all the books in contention and are rooting for your favorite, or you've read none and you get to hear what the judges, commentators, and public have to really say about these books to add to your reading list, it's an active discussion of books that gets those who keep up with it excited about reading. Curious? <a href="http://www.themorningnews.org/tob/2016/avenue-of-mysteries-v-a-spool-of-blue-thread.php" style="animation-delay: 0.1s; animation-duration: 0.1s; animation-iteration-count: 1; animation-name: fontfix; animation-timing-function: linear; color: #1f24cc; cursor: pointer; display: inline; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Read the judging for last year's play-in round between <i>Avenue of Mysteries</i> by John Irving and <i>A Spool of Blue Thread</i> by Anne Tyler, judged by the writers of Bob's Burgers.</a><br />
<br />
When you're done, <a href="http://www.themorningnews.org/article/the-2017-tournament-of-books-shortlist-and-judges" style="animation-delay: 0.1s; animation-duration: 0.1s; animation-iteration-count: 1; animation-name: fontfix; animation-timing-function: linear; color: #1f24cc; cursor: pointer; display: inline; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">check out this year's short-list</a> and prepare for another kind of March Madness.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://themorningnews.org/tob/" style="animation-delay: 0.1s; animation-duration: 0.1s; animation-iteration-count: 1; animation-name: fontfix; animation-timing-function: linear; color: #1f24cc; cursor: pointer; display: inline; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Here is the Official Tournament of Books page, where you check out how the tournament works, the brackets for last year, and the history of the competition, which started in 2005.</a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
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Robin I.http://www.blogger.com/profile/17557480330363646629noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6694436301831740843.post-28125230120672187532017-01-22T15:03:00.001-07:002018-02-15T17:47:11.288-07:00Stuck in the Middle? Getting Past the Middle: A Novel Project, Step 2<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">If
you recall, way back before Christmas I <span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><a href="http://leave-the-frigging-marshmallows.blogspot.com/2016/12/GPN-ANP.html" target="_blank">challenged myself and you</a></span>
to finish writing the second half of the first draft of a novel by the end of January. I
said I was going to check in a couple times a week.
</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> I
did not check in.
</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> The<a href="http://leave-the-frigging-marshmallows.blogspot.com/2016/12/GPN-ANP1.html" target="_blank">
</a><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><a href="http://leave-the-frigging-marshmallows.blogspot.com/2016/12/GPN-ANP1.html" target="_blank">first exercise</a></span>
I gave you worked really well for me, and I was busy working on my
book. But now we have about a week left and I want to continue
with the plan, because I think it’s quite good.
</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTkL7jKnH5h4Ug0J7uXdkQHI5487ZHthOujfvlETYtr5ms6Z7D60pFCYQuuJKmh-_Dyt_YjAP7mhjdbq6UCcXE_-7vpdrZaC53VpZ_SJygLlJvjNmb4hLnG-al7vP8qOZobwnQpUgxkN0/s1600/7135051675_372b2617a4_z.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTkL7jKnH5h4Ug0J7uXdkQHI5487ZHthOujfvlETYtr5ms6Z7D60pFCYQuuJKmh-_Dyt_YjAP7mhjdbq6UCcXE_-7vpdrZaC53VpZ_SJygLlJvjNmb4hLnG-al7vP8qOZobwnQpUgxkN0/s400/7135051675_372b2617a4_z.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;">Too busy to blog! (<i>Image:<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/zoonabar/7135051675/in/photolist-bSv1hk-m7o7j8-dY6QBZ-cHfW2q-dvp6kb-cHfTbb-DTyGU8-8oE84w-8qZRZm-6n8C1g-fKgDtT-65rAC8-9zRsCa-6rqtKi-aLcd6-2aupPs-7UsQ8-e8ZYWB-4f6ZYB-4asgTc-8PWKUU-6EUMGR-5k5bxG-as6kPL-5Rpn3Z-8kNxn1-NW7nGC-4xQYjH-6EYFru-4LYDU8-EKp5J-oggHQu-5m1HhU-5FzVDJ-icgEUs-9sGkev-5ZmPFU-2f3kP-6EUKwT-j9X6AG-7A9aaa-ayxcbA-fsf4s-bGJP92-9kBfTQ-5dz8Fo-woK6n-58XUhh-9VfPpJ-euuKd3" target="_blank"> Chris Brown</a> </i><i>"<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/zoonabar/7135051675/" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Work</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: start;">" (</span><a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/" rel="license" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">CC BY-SA 2.0</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: start;">) by </span><a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/zoonabar/" property="cc:attributionName" rel="cc:attributionURL" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank" xmlns:cc="http://creativecommons.org/ns#">zoonabar</a>.)</i></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b style="font-family: "helvetica neue", arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">This next exercise</b><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> actually comes from </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.carolineleavitt.com/" target="_blank">Caroline Leavitt</a></span><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">,
author of </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">at least 10</span><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> novels—so it seems like she </span><br />
<a name='more'></a>is capable of getting through,
more than I have proven.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> This
is the time for us to <b><i>get to know the characters of our novel in a
way that drives them to act and to move the story along </i></b>without
having to concern ourselves with the “plot.”
</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>Some
people are freaking out right now</i>,
I know. But remember that we’re working on <span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><a href="http://leave-the-frigging-marshmallows.blogspot.com/2014/07/character-based-v-plot-based-fiction.html" target="_blank">character-driven</a></span>
novels in this plan. You may have a basic idea of the plot, which is
fine, but we’re not planting a plot onto the characters. We already
know the <span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><a href="http://leave-the-frigging-marshmallows.blogspot.com/2015/01/what-question-is-your-novel-asking.html" target="_blank">story question</a></span> that the
novel will explore and now we are looking at the details of the
characters that will <i><b>allow
them to explore the question</b></i>
and move it forward, <i><b>while
also moving the story forward</b></i>.</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> So,
in October 2016 copy of <span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><i><a href="http://www.writermag.com/the-magazine/issue/october-2016/" target="_blank">The Writer</a> </i>that I ran across at the library</span>,
Caroline Leavitt ("Portrait of a Modern Novelist") asks us to ask ourselves the following questions
about <i><b>each major
character</b></i>—<b>not
just the protagonist! </b>
</span></div>
<ol>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>"What
does she want in the beginning? What is at stake if she doesn’t
get it?" </b>(There
needs to be something major at stake: the love of her family, her
self-identity… For more on stakes, check out Chuck Wendig's post, <a href="http://terribleminds.com/ramble/2013/07/16/25-things-to-know-about-your-storys-stakes/" target="_blank">25 Things to Know About Your Story's Stakes</a>.)</span></div>
</li>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>"What
happened in her past that makes her have this idea of what she
wants?"</b> (Did her
mother lose faith in her brother when he made too many mistakes
and never seemed to treat him the same again? Was she hard on him,
or did the character think she was harder on him than she needed
to be?)</span></div>
</li>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>"What
is her 'ghost'?" </b>(Leavitt
describes the ghost as “the thing that haunts you from your past
and keeps you from getting what you want. It can be fear—it can
be anything.”)</span></div>
</li>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>"What
is her plan to get what she wants? How does it fail and make
things worse?"</b> (It’s
as if the more she tries, the worse she makes it. Are you starting
to see how this may develop into a plot without the plot being
forced on the character?)</span></div>
</li>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>"What
is her 'Big Doom'?" </b>(This
is when everything she can think of has failed, so something else
needs to creep in so she can realize she has wanted the wrong
thing all along—she needs and wants something else. This way she
can look at her life and situation in a new way and see her deeper
problems, which we may have been able to see, and then she can
finally change things.</span></div>
</li>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>"What
is her new equilibrium?" </b>(We
can think of the novel as starting at a norm that has been going
on for a while. By the end of the novel, we establish a new norm
that will be kept up for a while. The character gets what she
needs for a while, <i>but
at some cost</i>.)</span></div>
</li>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>"How
does it end for this character?"</b>
(We are trying to end is some way that is satisfying, but leaves
the reader thinking—or maybe filling in what she thinks will
happen in the character’s life after the novel ends. Personally,
I think this one is difficult to plan out before getting to the
end. I’m envious of you if you can do it!)</span></div>
</li>
</ol>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> You’re
halfway through your novel, so you should know your characters fairly
well. Mapping your answers out to these questions should help you
keep moving <i><b>and</b></i>
create tension between all these characters. Just remember: in every
scene from now on, keep what each of your characters wants in mind
since, in the middle, they should be fighting for it. That should
keep the drama level high and keep you moving toward getting them to
the realization of what they truly need.</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
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Robin I.http://www.blogger.com/profile/17557480330363646629noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6694436301831740843.post-84644739162276474092017-01-22T13:14:00.001-07:002017-01-22T13:18:31.359-07:00Four Chambers Press is looking for eight local authors...<span style="background-color: white; color: rgba(0 , 0 , 0 , 0.870588); font-family: "graphik meetup" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Four Chambers Press is looking for eight local authors to respond to featured art installations at this year's Canal Convergence Water + Art + Light</span><span style="background-color: white; color: rgba(0 , 0 , 0 , 0.870588); font-family: "graphik meetup" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"> in partnership with Scottsdale Public Art February 24 - 26, 2017 at the Scottsdale Waterfront. Open to all literary genres, performance styles, and forms. Authors will receive a $100 stipend (and a $20 gift card from Changing Hands). Interested individuals can learn more and apply online at </span><a href="http://fourchamberspress.com/canal-convergence" style="animation-delay: 0.1s; animation-duration: 0.1s; animation-iteration-count: 1; animation-name: fontfix; animation-timing-function: linear; background-color: white; color: #1f24cc; cursor: pointer; display: inline; font-family: "Graphik Meetup", helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://fourchamberspress.com/canal-convergence</a><span style="background-color: white; color: rgba(0 , 0 , 0 , 0.870588); font-family: "graphik meetup" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">. </span><span style="background-color: white; color: rgba(0 , 0 , 0 , 0.870588); font-family: "graphik meetup" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">The deadline for </span><br />
<a name='more'></a><span style="background-color: white; color: rgba(0 , 0 , 0 , 0.870588); font-family: "graphik meetup" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">applications is Friday, February 10th, 2017. </span><br />
<br style="background-color: white; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.870588); font-family: "Graphik Meetup", helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" />
<span style="background-color: white; color: rgba(0 , 0 , 0 , 0.870588); font-family: "graphik meetup" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">You can </span><a href="http://fourchamberspress.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/2017-02-26-Canal-Convergence-Release-Final.pdf" style="animation-delay: 0.1s; animation-duration: 0.1s; animation-iteration-count: 1; animation-name: fontfix; animation-timing-function: linear; background-color: white; color: #1f24cc; cursor: pointer; display: inline; font-family: "Graphik Meetup", helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">click here to download the press release</a><span style="background-color: white; color: rgba(0 , 0 , 0 , 0.870588); font-family: "graphik meetup" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"> and </span><a href="http://fourchamberspress.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/2017-02-26-Canal-Convergence-Application-Packet-Final.pdf" style="animation-delay: 0.1s; animation-duration: 0.1s; animation-iteration-count: 1; animation-name: fontfix; animation-timing-function: linear; background-color: white; color: #1f24cc; cursor: pointer; display: inline; font-family: "Graphik Meetup", helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">the application packet</a><span style="background-color: white; color: rgba(0 , 0 , 0 , 0.870588); font-family: "graphik meetup" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"> respectively. You can download a </span><a href="http://fourchamberspress.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/2017-02-26-Canal-Convergence-Flier.jpg" style="animation-delay: 0.1s; animation-duration: 0.1s; animation-iteration-count: 1; animation-name: fontfix; animation-timing-function: linear; background-color: white; color: #1f24cc; cursor: pointer; display: inline; font-family: "Graphik Meetup", helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">flier here</a><span style="background-color: white; color: rgba(0 , 0 , 0 , 0.870588); font-family: "graphik meetup" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">.</span><br />
<br style="background-color: white; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.870588); font-family: "Graphik Meetup", helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" />
<span style="background-color: white; color: rgba(0 , 0 , 0 , 0.870588); font-family: "graphik meetup" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Four Chambers is extremely grateful to Scottsdale Public Art for providing such a wonderful opportunity, and we're very excited to see what the authors will come up with (especially if it's you).</span><br />
<br style="background-color: white; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.870588); font-family: "Graphik Meetup", helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" />
<br style="background-color: white; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.870588); font-family: "Graphik Meetup", helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" />
<span style="background-color: white; color: rgba(0 , 0 , 0 , 0.870588); font-family: "graphik meetup" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">P. S. Four Chambers is looking for individuals to perform short sets at this year's Erotic Poetry Music Fest at Alwun House--1204 E Roosevelt St, Phoenix, AZ 85006--on Friday, February 17th, 2017; e-mail </span><a href="mailto:events@fourchamberspress.com" style="animation-delay: 0.1s; animation-duration: 0.1s; animation-iteration-count: 1; animation-name: fontfix; animation-timing-function: linear; background-color: white; color: #1f24cc; cursor: pointer; display: inline; font-family: "Graphik Meetup", helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">events@fourchamberspress.com</a><span style="background-color: white; color: rgba(0 , 0 , 0 , 0.870588); font-family: "graphik meetup" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: rgba(0 , 0 , 0 , 0.870588); font-family: "graphik meetup" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; font-size: 13px;"><span style="color: rgba(0 , 0 , 0 , 0.870588235294118); font-family: "graphik meetup" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;"><!-- Go to www.addthis.com/dashboard to customize your tools --> </span></span><br />
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</span></span>Robin I.http://www.blogger.com/profile/17557480330363646629noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6694436301831740843.post-48734180279797737652016-12-24T15:35:00.002-07:002018-02-15T17:49:38.657-07:00Stuck in the Middle? Getting Past the Middle: A Novel Project, Step 1<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Stuck in the middle of your novel? Start again here.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS9FZrYCpNWRjp0omVJJFBFW_AwLpA_MAotbpHO1ZR8mMLVntt7vFLRyGGAqD-FEhBbLySJgfrsfpA1z6faAcU7-8cCaY-hSfNBFkF07BiIoVitVixSwTfS5X6S_ygmp8pz4__WE1n-8Y/s1600/29598269396_05bf259f1f_z.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS9FZrYCpNWRjp0omVJJFBFW_AwLpA_MAotbpHO1ZR8mMLVntt7vFLRyGGAqD-FEhBbLySJgfrsfpA1z6faAcU7-8cCaY-hSfNBFkF07BiIoVitVixSwTfS5X6S_ygmp8pz4__WE1n-8Y/s640/29598269396_05bf259f1f_z.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;">When the path through your novel becomes obscured... <i>(Image courtesy of<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/60712129@N06/29598269396/in/photolist-fogWcK-e3RTBC-iqRHsA-oqDit-oqDgA-oqDeX-kmfMJ-kmdUS-ModGTo-M6uSiA-bPsvWe-kmdku-dSN5Rx-kmYgvj-6JNUwb-8cJuiD-6uUj4Y-7g7rey-4Hyu4M-7vd9fB-M7is6h" target="_blank"> Dianne Lacourciere</a> "<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/60712129@N06/29598269396/" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">When Life Is Foggy</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: start;">" (</span><a href="https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/" rel="license" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Public Domain</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: start;">) by </span><a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/60712129@N06/" property="cc:attributionName" rel="cc:attributionURL" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank" xmlns:cc="http://creativecommons.org/ns#">Artistic-touches</a>)</i></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b>Remind yourself of your novel's story q</b><b>uestion</b>. Don’t go looking up your notes
from the past to see what you wrote way back when you first started
this project. Write what you see the moral question as</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<a name='more'></a><i>now.</i> It
may have changed. That’s okay. Things often change in
character-driven stories. In fact, they probably should. The original question may have gotten you this far, but changing it may be
what gets you through the rest of the book.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
So stop and think about what you have
and ask yourself what question this story seems to be attempting to
answer. (<i>Note here</i> that it is not what you <i><b>want</b></i>
it to answer, but what <i><b>it currently is in the process of
answering</b></i>.)</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Don’t get all caught up in
specifics. Keep it simple and something that addresses something
<i>universal.</i></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Examples:</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Barbara
Kingsolver, for</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><i>The
Poisonwood Bible</i></span></span></span></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">:</span></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">
</span></span><span style="color: black; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.kingsolver.com/faq/about-writing.html#4" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;" target="_blank">How does one make peace with the terrible things one country does to another, when we’ve profited from them but weren’t responsible?</a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> </span></span></span></li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Caroline
Leavitt, for</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"> </span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><i>Cruel
Beautiful World</i></span></span></span></span><span style="color: black; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">:
</span><a href="https://leslielindsay.com/2016/10/05/writers-on-wednesday-caroline-leavitt-talks-about-being-a-fall-chicken-list-maker-fixer-mapping-out-stories-via-the-truby-method-songs-that-influenced-the-1960s-1970s-and-so-so-much-mo/" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;" target="_blank">What do you do when there is something you want to fix, and you can’t?</a></span></span></li>
</ul>
</div>
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
I had to think long and hard about
mine. I started out with something different and a bit more
conceptual since, as I mentioned <a href="http://leave-the-frigging-marshmallows.blogspot.com/2016/12/GPN-ANP.html" target="_blank">previously</a>, my current novel is more
plot-driven than I am used to and focused more on the trajectory of
outward actions. Thus, I was more focused on an idea of my
protagonist learning that the goodness of the world that her parents
taught her about in their isolated home environment was not easily
applicable to the outside world. <i>← This is an example of getting
too complicated and caught up in specifics. </i>
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Forming this as a <b>question</b> forces the idea to be simplified and forces you to answer it with a
story, rather than you saying <i>this is what it’s about</i>.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
I resisted the urge to state that the
<i>you</i> is 12-year-old or that she was solving problems that were
entirely new to her. It was important to use<i> you</i> because it is then asking all of us, not this girl, and makes the question feel universal. I did not get caught up in the concept of the
plot. I boiled it down to this:
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i><b>What do you do when all the
people you depend on are in danger and you are left to get them to
safety on your own? </b></i>
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
And this reminds me what needs focus in the story.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Now, please excuse me. I must go write
for three hours.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">
_______________________________________
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Stuck in the middle of your novel? I have been, too, so I'm forcing myself through in one month with a plan, even though I'm not the sort of writer who plans the book. If you want to know more of my long-winded explanation of this, <a href="http://leave-the-frigging-marshmallows.blogspot.com/2016/12/GPN-ANP.html" target="_blank">check out the invitation</a>. You've reached my first step in this plan I have set up. I'm completing it along with you.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i>Otherwise, here is the second half of the novel in a
month, simplified:</i></div>
<ol>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i>Write for three hours a day.</i></div>
</li>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i>Read at least a book a week.</i></div>
</li>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i>Follow through with
reflective and planning activities.</i></div>
</li>
</ol>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
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Robin I.http://www.blogger.com/profile/17557480330363646629noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6694436301831740843.post-72230528292909271142016-12-22T19:47:00.000-07:002018-02-15T17:51:07.697-07:00Getting Past the Middle: An Invitation to a Novel Project<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i><b>I can start novels all day</b></i>.
I’m full of ideas, full of intriguing starts, lines, scenes,
dialogue. I started writing my first book when I was 12. I also
started writing my second book when I was 12. The problem has always
been getting through the second half to the end.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtm6dZ36wR927cqfeWse45qI4IAoYKRDRpRQ0dn_S9K_KusS9mN5nroIXbi6_4NuprFGZdmH9fBR6yr2wVKw3ByDpCcEj-pRBmruf8O6jXQfeLzDooBYXBCAns6Aaha3LP7uvGIxJmG5A/s1600/8653129078_9f1a1f2045_z.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtm6dZ36wR927cqfeWse45qI4IAoYKRDRpRQ0dn_S9K_KusS9mN5nroIXbi6_4NuprFGZdmH9fBR6yr2wVKw3ByDpCcEj-pRBmruf8O6jXQfeLzDooBYXBCAns6Aaha3LP7uvGIxJmG5A/s1600/8653129078_9f1a1f2045_z.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Words. (sigh.)</b><i><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/pennuja/8653129078/in/photolist-97gGW7-kGdZWR-vYb9e-8RTbUx-gyTd2-9zZN66-aC8Uhu-ebDxNE-nLcqsn-7CLAFK-4PaPbL-6QXm34-feJWWk-4CmYGR-8aAYZ4-69kLYd-4LeYh3-63DyMM-gEP1e-4vEpwg-arpNUX-4bqWqf-57YsF2-61369b-6AhryS-bzzPff-BiYKL-rcU2yM-7zVRri-4NWX1-BN8uD-eUGWoF-7E3akX-eHXHQU-6rDocS-4K3SVU-pzewzG-e78Cx4-eUUfVm-7yPJ12-57RZmj-add5AR-9wsh86-7zrVRZ-6wmFS7-5d3ogW-r3GViw-5cY3Ea-n67uM-egkFfc" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"> </span><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Image: Jim Pennucci</span></a> "<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/pennuja/8653129078/" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Words</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: start;">" (</span><a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/" rel="license" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">CC BY 2.0</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: start;">) by </span><a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/pennuja/" property="cc:attributionName" rel="cc:attributionURL" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank" xmlns:cc="http://creativecommons.org/ns#">pennuja</a></i></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
I did finish one novel. It didn’t
make much sense, in terms of traditional storytelling, but I was
young (like 30), full of myself, and not really sure how to revise
this tangle of words and scenes and <br />
<a name='more'></a>emotions and people into
something more coherent. Also, I needed a job to support myself after
grad school. So I just didn’t revise it. Didn’t have time.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Stopped writing. Worked.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Yeah, yeah, lots of writers write
while working. I’ve heard it. I don’t think I’m unusual for
losing sight of intentions, dreams, purpose—at least for a little
while. Purpose gets displaced. Some of us are the “passive
dreamers” who don’t really know how to power through to the
vision. (I’ve recently learned I’m not alone in not understanding
this.) I guess I’m the less exceptional sort. Or maybe I’m more
exceptional because I can have another purpose for a while.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Maybe?
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
I’ll tell myself that. But I know it's an excuse.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
* * *</div>
Anyway, there (finally!) came a time
when all my attempts (over years!) to get myself back to writing led
me back to a writing life. I implemented what I needed to make it
appear I was living up to my commitment, but I obviously still have
your doubts—<i>even though I know I can write complex and
interesting characters, and even though I know I have something worth
sharing with the world, even though</i>...</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
I mean, where’s the damn book?</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
I write and write and write something
really good and am convinced of my genius for a few days. But then
you get to the middle. This is where I always get stuck.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
Can you relate?</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
* * *</div>
Let me tell you a little story about
my current novel(s).</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
I have been writing this coming-of-age
story for what seems like forever. In reality, it’s been about five
years since I started the writing. It’s been stewing for longer, of
course, but getting scenes on paper started about five years ago. I
told myself that, if I could just get through the first draft, I’d
be relieved. I’d be home free. Revising? Editing? I’ve always
loved that part of writing short stories and essays. <i>Revision is where the real writing begins, </i>I used to say.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
So I wrote the first draft to get through to the revision and it took
a really long time.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
Like four years.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
I got hung up in the middle, of
course. I kept writing the same kinds of scenes over and over. But I
got to the (sketchy) end. And I knew it was time to <a href="http://leave-the-frigging-marshmallows.blogspot.com/2015/08/revision-editing.html">revise,
rewrite, rethink, redream</a>—take a whole new look at it.<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
* * *</div>
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
I am an <a href="http://www.kporterfield.com/creativity/intuitive_writer.html">intuitive
writer</a>—what is more popularly called a <i>pantser</i> these
days, but I think this term is a way for planners to disregard the
<a href="https://andreajwenger.com/2012/12/23/intuitive-writers-what-a-concept/">intuitive
process</a> because it doesn’t seem productive or they don’t
understand it. I write to discover. This discovery of the characters
and their predicament and how they drive their stories is what I find
fascinating. However, it leads to a highly episodic novel, since
people don’t generally live their lives as a novel and I believe in
my characters as human. Lots of things happen that influence the
characters in my stories and they don’t tend to follow a neat
little line. So when I get to the middle of the book and I start
wondering how this will all lead to what I see as the end, I try to
take control. I try to plan, envision, map out chapters and character
arcs, and all that crap.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
But the truth is that, as well as I
know my characters, my characters run much deeper than I usually
suspect and there are new things that I don’t know. It takes a long
time to know these characters, just like it takes a long time to
really know people. I keep re-thinking the story and why the
characters do what they do. I seek help. I ask for others to read it.
I look for advice and I get wildly different opinions and different
ideas of writing and of what novels are.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
And then I get entirely overwhelmed.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
So, even though I finished the first
draft of this book, I chose to do something weird to get me through
the revision of this 5-year coming-of-age novel. I put it aside and
to start writing a middle grade book that had a clear trajectory. I
didn’t know the characters too well, but I started writing this
little book with the idea that this would help me envision a path for
my other book. I didn’t need it to be <i>good</i> or anything; I
needed it to stay the course and happen fairly quickly.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
I mean, it’s still character-driven,
but I try to focus on the plot more than character. The idea isn’t
to be brilliant or heart-wrenching or deeply true—it’s just to
get through and write a decent book with a clear trajectory.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
Only now I’m stuck in the middle of
the middle grade book. Go figure.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
* * *</div>
I am here, though, to invite you on a
little journey to finish the draft within a month. (I have to start
teaching again in a month—built in deadline!) I have a plan and
it’s happening.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
Here’s what to do the day before
embarking the plan for finishing the second half of the novel in a
month:</div>
<ol>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b>Find a place to write</b>.
I <i>know</i> you have a place to
write. You’ve written the first half of your novel, after
all.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
</li>
</ol>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
But are you writing your novel in that
place lately? If you’re not, it might be time to change things up.
It may be subconsciously acting as the space for being stuck in the
middle right now.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
Personally, when I get too comfortable
in a place, it starts being a distraction, so I have to change my
writing space every few months. Think about it this way: when you
have trouble sleeping, you have to change the environment. You have
to change the lighting and turn your bedroom into a space that is
dedicated to sleep—not family time, not watching television, not
eating in bed. Your bills and your computer should not be in there.
You have trouble putting those things aside and simply sleeping with
all the ghosts of those other things in the room with you while you
sleep because your mind associates family time, T.V., food, bills, work, and whatever else you have brought into the room, with that space. Sleep not a priority there anymore.<br />
<br />
Don't let your mind associate your writing space with being stuck. The reality is that <b>there is nothing wrong with your novel that needs attention right now</b>. You simply need to get through it before anything else. Put yourself in a space that tells you
it is time to write. It may be the library, an office or co-working
space, a cafe, a different room in the house. It may be rearranging
that room or cleaning it, too, but you’re trying to get the novel
done in a month, so cleaning and rearranging the room might just be
another distraction. Clean it when you’re done, accept that writers
have dirty houses, and go to set up your laptop in the attic.
Wherever you end up going, when you choose this space, formalize it
as your writing space. Remind yourself that this is where you get
down to work and write, then do it. Write for an hour just to prove
it. You don’t get to be bothered there. It’s all about writing.</div>
<ol start="2">
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b>Prepare your mind for tomorrow</b>.
Ask yourself if you are ready to do this, because writing half a
book in a month is no small feat—it takes time.
</div>
</li>
</ol>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
This is not a plan for people who plan
on putting in 30 minutes a day. It takes hours. Every day.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
But the full-on plan is simple:</div>
<ol>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b>Write for three hours a day,
even during the holiday season.</b> Keep in mind this is <i>write
your novel for three hours a day</i>—not a blog post (ahem) or
emails or articles or your dissertation or whatever else you might
tend to write.</div>
</li>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b>Read at least a book a week,
even during the holiday season</b>. Read novels similar to the one
you’re writing. Read novels that are entirely different. Read
literary novels and read genre novels. Read them and note what
works, what is exciting to you, what makes you want to read more.
Read.</div>
</li>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b>Follow through with
reflective and planning activities, even during the holiday
season</b>. I have culled several from some well-known writers and
teachers of writing to help move the novel forward. I’ll update
here a once or twice a week with those.</div>
</li>
</ol>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Easy, right?</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
Well, it’s not, but keep telling
yourself that it is. Keep reminding yourself that thousands of people
write novels every year. Go the library, the bookstore, wander the
virtual aisles of Amazon and Barnes & Noble and Powell’s and
<i>marvel at how many stories are right there, piled up to the
ceiling. All kinds of people have written books</i>. Many of them are
not good, aren’t genius, may even be poorly written, <b>but they’re
done</b>. That’s a leg up on you and me. Seriously, a moron can
write a book, and you are not a moron. You’re smart and observant
and you’re writing has personality. You don’t even need to try
too hard and your first draft will be better than a lot of the books
that have been published. Talk yourself up. Writing a novel is not <i>so
difficult</i> that all these other people couldn’t do it. <i>Obviously
you can, too!</i></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
So find your writing place <b>where
you will sit yourself down and get your work done</b>—remember that
you may need to change it from the space in which you have been
having difficulty with your novel. And <i><b>quietly commit yourself
to writing for three hours—every single day</b></i><i>.</i></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
Then, when you’re ready to start,
start writing.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
Or start in with <a href="http://leave-the-frigging-marshmallows.blogspot.com/2016/12/GPN-ANP1.html" target="_blank">Step One of GettingPast the Middle: A Novel Project</a>.</div>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Okay, <i>go!</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
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Robin I.http://www.blogger.com/profile/17557480330363646629noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6694436301831740843.post-41035341016572822142016-03-30T20:10:00.000-07:002018-02-15T17:57:26.888-07:00Writing about writing is like writing about air...<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
...or rather, it's like air itself. You
know, like we barely notice air—other than in certain
circumstances: when the fragrance of orange blossoms fills the air in
spring, or when it's misty outside and light reflects off the fine
droplets floating in the atmosphere, or when there is a sudden drop in
temperature, or a million other things that might draw our attention to the air around us for a moment. Most of the time we hardly notice we're
breathing it, and just like that, we shouldn't notice writing much,
except for a few moments of beauty or strangeness or extremity.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">
<img height="320" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b0/Alchemy_air_symbol.svg/2000px-Alchemy_air_symbol.svg.png" width="320" />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
So when I spend so much time writing
about what is, essentially, <i>air</i>, I get a little fatigued. It's
like walking around noting every inhale and every exhale and every shift in the breeze
and the smell of the kitty litter. Yes, it's valuable to be aware, but I have other
things to concern myself with. I mean, I have to <i>change</i> the
kitty litter. I have things on my mind.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
<a name='more'></a></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
When I'm teaching college writing
classes, one of the things that never ceases to frustrate me
somewhere in the middle of the semester is that, depending on the
class, I find myself reducing writing to a means of communication—something that a writer can do effectively, with power and grace, or
poorly. And often I want more in content and less in means, especially when I'm dealing
with eighteen- to twenty-year-old students. Writing classes so frequently assume these kids have the content ready to go in their minds and all
we are doing is helping them organize their thinking and communicate
it well. But they don't. Most of the time they don't know what they are thinking about, or what they think about <i>any</i> topic.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
I don't hate it. I like to help them
realize that they actually <i>are</i> thinking something that can be communicated in writing in a meaningful way. But wouldn't I love to really talk
about something in-depth for an entire term with them so that I could get more complex thought from them...</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
When I write about writing, I often feel like I have more vital things rolling around in my head that I'd rather communicate. My novel, of course, is not about writing. It's about life and humanity (like most novels) and to write about writing often feels like something lacking humanity even though the task itself absolutely does not. As writers, we have to feel passionately about things to be able to convey something real. I may go on a rant about commas. I may be thoroughly annoyed when they are misused and, thus, obscure the meaning or purpose of a sentence, but I don't feel passionately about them. They serve a purpose, and I may toss a book away or stop reading an article if I can't get past the damned commas, but they will not change the quality of my life. </div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Over the last month, I have been distracted by the <a href="http://www.themorningnews.org/tob/2016/fates-and-furies-v-bats-of-the-republic.php" target="_blank">Tournament of Books</a>, bothered by my deteriorating eyesight that is making both reading and seeing in the distance difficult, irritated by the electoral process and
<a href="http://usuncut.com/news/arizona-polling-disaster/" target="_blank">the funny election we had here in Arizona</a>, preoccupied with the class I started teaching about the U.S. naturalization process, and have been preparing for a new composition class that starts in April. Among other things.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
So sometimes writing about air seems
inconsequential. I mean, what am I trying to do with it? Am I simply
writing to keep air pollution away? Have I read enough student
writing in my life that I don't want any new writers to come to me for
editing unless they understand what I put forth here?</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Nah. If I were, I wouldn't be sick of
writing about writing. </div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
But I am over writing about writing for today. Tomorrow you might find something else here. </div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Or you might find some more writing about writing. </div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
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Robin I.http://www.blogger.com/profile/17557480330363646629noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6694436301831740843.post-87406867615842882722016-01-27T17:53:00.000-07:002018-02-15T18:00:39.434-07:00The Ratio of Scene to NarrationI recently had someone tell me this: "The balance between scene and narration is supposed to be 75% to 25%, actually."<br />
<br />
As if novels can be written by numbers.<br />
<br />
Notions such as this annoy me.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxrANAmZe0RF_ox3mGKaPpQUAvcN-MBvFaoufoZXUzDNFucOMeEIZrICkUDjq1r8u0n2rjIh1ogGBMbo9F391IgrJj4YW4fNCFuo12NwrMONuTh7kXCuOduaIG5bBY8LKqlp6wUMqwMUo/s1600/2477901881_79b7465c33_b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxrANAmZe0RF_ox3mGKaPpQUAvcN-MBvFaoufoZXUzDNFucOMeEIZrICkUDjq1r8u0n2rjIh1ogGBMbo9F391IgrJj4YW4fNCFuo12NwrMONuTh7kXCuOduaIG5bBY8LKqlp6wUMqwMUo/s640/2477901881_79b7465c33_b.jpg" width="496" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: small;">Being reductive is annoying. <i>Image </i><i>"<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/pixscapes/2477901881/" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Annoyed or Sleepy?</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: start;">" </span></i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: small;"><i><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: start;">(</span><a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/" rel="license" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">CC BY-NC-ND 2.0</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: start;">) by </span><a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/pixscapes/" property="cc:attributionName" rel="cc:attributionURL" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank" xmlns:cc="http://creativecommons.org/ns#">Doug McGr</a></i><i>.</i></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
I understand the need to try to figure out writing a novel when new to <br />
<a name='more'></a>the process--I've done plenty of that myself--but where do these percentages come from?<br />
<br />
I maintain that, <b>if you look at the books that you read, you will find wildly different ratios of scene to narration</b>.<br />
<br />
To exemplify this, I have taken a sample of the books strewn about my office. I opened the books randomly and made sure I was not at the beginning or end of a chapter, since those would tend to have more narration and the dreaded <i>telling</i>. Here's what I have come up with:<br />
<br />
<b>1. <i>Tortilla Curtain</i>, T.C. Boyle</b><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i></span><i style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif; text-align: justify; text-indent: 20px;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">What n</span><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">ext? he thought,</span></span><span style="font-size: x-small;"> </span></span><span style="background-color: #ffe599; font-size: x-small;">sinking wearily into the car seat. He hadn't sat there half a second before some moron was honking behind him, and he jerked the car angrily out into the street, ignoring the manufacturer's warnings, and roared up Ventura Boulevard for the canyon road.</span></i><br />
<i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; text-align: justify; text-indent: 20px;"><span style="background-color: white;">He was in a rage, and he tried to calm himself. It seemed he was always in a rage lately--he, Delaney Mossbacher, the Pilgrim of Topanga Creek--he who led the least stressful existence of anybody on earth besides maybe a handful of Tibetan lamas. He had a loving wife, a great stepson, his parents had left him enough money so he didn't have any worries there, and he spent most of his time doing what he really wanted to do: write and think and experience nature. So what was the problem? What had gone wrong? Nothing, he told himself, </span><span style="background-color: #ffe599;">accelerating round a car trying to make an illegal U-turn</span><span style="background-color: white;">, nothing at all. And then it came to him: the day was shot anyway, so why not go straight out into the hills? If that didn't calm him, nothing would.</span></i><br />
<i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; text-align: justify; text-indent: 20px;"><span style="background-color: white;">It was barely two. He could go out to Stunt Road and hike up in the hills above the ocean-he wouldn't have to be back until five for Jordan, and they could go out to eat.</span><span style="background-color: #ffe599;"> He turned west on Mulholland and followed it to where the houses began to fall away and the stark naked hills rose up out of the chaparral, and he cranked down the windows to let the heat and fragrance of the countryside wash over him. </span><span style="background-color: white;">For once, he'd have to do without his daypack-he always carried a smaller satchel with sunscreen and bottled water no matter where he went, even if it was only to the supermarket or the Acura dealer, and </span><span style="background-color: #ffe599;">he glanced over at it on the slick new spotless seat beside him.</span><span style="background-color: white;"> If he went home for his things he'd have to deal with the fence people-somebody new, somebody Kyra had got through the office-and he just wasn't in the mood for any more hassles today.</span></i><br />
<i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; text-align: justify; text-indent: 20px;"><span style="background-color: #ffe599;">When he got there, to the place where the trail crossed the road and a narrow dirt parking strip loomed up on the left, he cut across the blacktop and eased the car in</span><span style="background-color: white;">: no sense in scratching it the first day. </span><span style="background-color: #ffe599;">There were no other cars</span><span style="background-color: white;">-that was a good sign: he'd have the trail to himself-and </span><span style="background-color: #ffe599;">he stepped out into the grip of the heat that radiated off the hills with all the intensity of a good stacked split-log fire. </span><span style="background-color: white;">The heat didn't bother him, not today. It was good just to be away from all that smog, confusion and sheer--he came back to the word--nastiness. The way the guy had just said "fuck you" to his wife, when he was in the wrong and anybody could see it. And Kenny Grissom. The hordes of the poor and downtrodden. Jack. The theft.</span></i><br />
<i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; text-align: justify; text-indent: 20px;"><span style="background-color: #fff2cc;">I</span><span style="background-color: #ffe599;">t was then that he stood back and looked at the car for the first time, really looked at it. Brand new. Not a scratch on it. Not a dent or ding.</span><span style="background-color: white;"> He thought: Maybe I should go down into Tarzana to the car wash and have it waxed, to protect it, just in case. And then he thought: No, I'm here, I'll hike. </span><span style="background-color: #ffe599;">He smeared his face with sunblock, tucked the bottle of mineral water down his shirt and started off up the trail.</span></i><br />
<i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; text-align: justify; text-indent: 20px;"><span style="background-color: #ffe599;">He didn't get far. </span><span style="background-color: white;">He kept thinking about that new car-forty miles on it and four and a half thousand dollars on top of the insurance-and how vulnerable it was sitting there beside the road. Sure, this wasn't as busy as the canyon road, but if they'd got the first car, what was to stop them from getting this one too? The fact that it was quieter out here just played into their hands, didn't it? Fewer people to see the crime, as if anybody would do anything about it anyway. And any car parked here guaranteed that the owner would be away from it for hours.</span></i><br />
<i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; text-align: justify; text-indent: 20px;"><span style="background-color: #ffe599;">Suddenly, without thinking, he sank into the brush no more than a hundred yards from the road. He could see the car glittering in the sunlight through the stalks and branches of the vegetation that lined the trail. </span><span style="background-color: white;">He was being paranoiac, that was all--you couldn't hold on to everything, could you? He knew that, but for the moment he didn't care. He was just going to sit here, sit here through the afternoon, hidden in the bushes, sit here and watch.</span></i><br />
<br />
The highlights are the <i>showing</i> sections and what's left are <i>telling</i>. I will have writers in workshops say, "Why not show he was in a rage?" "What can you do to make him seem paranoid without saying it?"<br />
<br />
What I want to say here is that we are writers of books. These are not films. We have an opportunity that films don't to give insight into the inner workings of our characters. We are telling stories of people--that means their actions, their thoughts, and their reasoning. Those things don't always come out naturally in dialogue or action. They often don't even come out explicitly through narration, but narration exposes some of that person for us to see and draw conclusions about.<br />
<br />
Now, the above excerpt does not look like a 75/25 showing/telling split, so I pulled another section from a little later in the book, representing another character and also not at the beginning or end of the chapter:<br />
<i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i><i style="font-family: arial; font-size: small; text-align: justify; text-indent: 20px;"><span style="background-color: white;">Candido was a wall, but the wall was crumbling. He wasn't used to the North, had seen snow only twice before in his life, both times with the potatoes in Idaho, and he hated it. </span><span style="background-color: #ffe599;">His jacket was thin. He was freezing to death. And so, he became a moving wall, lurching up out of the ditch, crossing under a barbed-wire fence and making his way in huaraches and wet socks across the field to the barn, where he stopped, his heart turning over in his chest, and knocked at the broad plane of painted wood that formed one-half of the door through which the farmer had disappeared. He was shivering, his arms wrapped round his shoulders.</span><span style="background-color: white;"> He didn't care whether they deported him or not, didn't care whether they put him in prison or stretched him on the rack, just so long as he got warm.</span></i><br />
<i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i><i style="font-family: arial; font-size: small; text-align: justify; text-indent: 20px;"><span style="background-color: #ffe599;">And then the farmer was standing there, towering over him, a man of huge hocks and beefy arms with a head the size of a prize calabash and great sinewy thick-fingered hands</span><span style="background-color: white;">, a man who could easily have earned his living touring Mexico as the thyroid giant in a traveling circus. The man-the giant-looked stunned, shocked, as surprised as if this actually were another planet and Candido a strange new species of being. </span><span style="background-color: #ffe599;">"Pleese," Candido said through jackhammering teeth,</span><span style="background-color: white;"> and realizing that he'd already used up the full range of his English, </span><span style="background-color: #ffe599;">he merely repeated himself: "Pleese."</span></i><br />
<i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i><i style="font-family: arial; font-size: small; text-align: justify; text-indent: 20px;"><span style="background-color: #ffe599;">The next thing he knew he was wrapped in a blanket, sitting in a big gleaming American kitchen, appliances humming, a steaming cup of coffee clutched in his hands. The farmer moved about the kitchen on feet the size of snowshoes. All the broad geometry of his back was in motion as he fussed over his appliances, six slices of toast in the shining silver toaster, eggs and a slab of ham in the little black oven that congealed the yolks and set the meat sizzling in two minutes flat, and then he was standing there, offering the plate and trying to work his face into a smile. Candido took the plate from the huge callused hands with a dip of his head and a murmur of "Muchisimas gracias," and the big man lumbered across the kitchen to a white telephone hanging on the wall and began to dial. The eggs went cold in Candido's mouth:</span><span style="background-color: white;"> this was it, this was the end. The farmer was turning him in. </span><span style="background-color: #ffe599;">Candido crouched over the plate and made like a wall</span><span style="background-color: white;">.</span></i><br />
<i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i><i style="font-family: arial; font-size: small; text-align: justify; text-indent: 20px;"><span style="background-color: white;">There are always surprises. Life may be inveterately grim and the surprises disproportionately unpleasant, but it would be hardly worth living if there were no exceptions, no sunny days, no acts of random kindness. </span><span style="background-color: #ffe599;">The farmer motioned him to the phone, and on the other end of the line there was an angelic voice, the sweet lilting gently lisping voice</span><span style="background-color: white;"> of Graciela Herrera, a chicana from a town five miles away, </span><span style="background-color: #ffe599;">talking to him in the language of their ancestors. Graciela picked him up in her bright yellow Volkswagen and dropped him off at the bus station, where she translated for the ticket agent so he could purchase his ticket. </span><span style="background-color: white;">Candido wanted to raise a shrine to her. </span><span style="background-color: #ffe599;">He kissed her fingertips and gave her</span><span style="background-color: white;"> the only thing he had to give: </span><span style="background-color: #ffe599;">the laminated picture card of the Virgin of Guadalupe he carried for luck.</span></i><br />
<br />
This excerpt is somewhat closer to a 75/25 showing/telling split.<br />
<br />
But please note that I am calling it a <i>showing/telling</i> split rather than <i>action/exposition</i> or <i>scene/narration</i>. This isn't accidental:<br />
<br />
Action and exposition are integrated together to create the scene. The scene is conveyed by the narrator. It's really difficult to separate them, other than to say <i>This part is showing and this part is telling</i>.<br />
<br />
I, for one, have recently realized that the parts I love most about a lot of books are the narration. The narrator is the personality of the book. The narrator chooses how to tell the story. (Yes, the narrator <i>tells</i> it!)<br />
<br />
<b>2. Middlesex, Jeffrey Eugenides</b><br />
<br />
In case you didn't know from reading my blog, this is one of my favorite books and I use it in nearly every example. Here's the what a page in that book is like:<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFWTwxVTqS3aUUNe5bgRcDvn9ZFBYNR5924nc6IXtfpQz5oKuc5uQRMWVeLl4uOICR3ZU62Y-h_qjbMlo8EYnvFXQy5BdH2ckmVD1Dpzb72yPKMObhyphenhyphenLbXEnTV9P9Wu9fc6FttIo3VwPE/s1600/20160127_160728.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="545" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFWTwxVTqS3aUUNe5bgRcDvn9ZFBYNR5924nc6IXtfpQz5oKuc5uQRMWVeLl4uOICR3ZU62Y-h_qjbMlo8EYnvFXQy5BdH2ckmVD1Dpzb72yPKMObhyphenhyphenLbXEnTV9P9Wu9fc6FttIo3VwPE/s640/20160127_160728.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><i>Middlesex</i> by Jeffrey Eugenides</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="text-align: center;">The people who say they skip narration to get to the dialogue are missing a lot in this book. How do you describe and contextualize the Detroit riots of '67 in dialogue? I guess you could, but it wouldn't take your breath away. Here, you get a little dialogue, a paragraph of how the narrator's dad used it over and over thereafter, a seven-year-old's impressions, a little history, the action, the norm, then back to her riding her bike past tanks and bullets to her dad ducking behind tins of olives, distant action, and then a paragraph speculating on the snipers. </span><br />
<span style="text-align: center;"><br /></span>
<span style="text-align: center;">These two pages might actually be close to the 75% action if you consider summation of a scene, in parts, as action; it's action in several different places at once. Does this count?</span><br />
<span style="text-align: center;"><br /></span>
<b>3. I doubt that <i>Gone Girl</i> would have been the same if Gillian Flynn and said to herself, <i>Hey, the rule is 75/25--I need to cut down on this exposition</i>. </b>How much would we have understood at all of that story without all the interior explanation?<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwsK9LwD_2DhCGLe4QFGoBeX-1XpE4r1q_LJbzWKqJTj1JnWJsrStPXhWXynMmzLw6TllJ-cmgBt60JAEXlbPN4thLaeV8pqZhW8aGqKfkPso1hmR3uE50YLGnIMi7BhoQJ4mv3ZHlTjA/s1600/20160127_160150.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="588" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwsK9LwD_2DhCGLe4QFGoBeX-1XpE4r1q_LJbzWKqJTj1JnWJsrStPXhWXynMmzLw6TllJ-cmgBt60JAEXlbPN4thLaeV8pqZhW8aGqKfkPso1hmR3uE50YLGnIMi7BhoQJ4mv3ZHlTjA/s640/20160127_160150.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><i>Gone Girl</i> by Gillian Flynn</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
These two pages are every bit exposition. It's all telling. Admittedly, I took this photo before I realized it was "the cool girl" speech, but I guess it's important enough that the book fell open to these pages. My point now is that the important sections of the novel aren't necessarily scenes, and this is a standout section. Exposition can be just as riveting as direct scene. So when you need to narrate, narrate your heart out.<br />
<br />
<b>Wait a minute.</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
<b>4. Take a look at NoViolet Bulawayo's <i>We Need New Names</i>.</b> There is well <i><b>under</b></i> <b>25% exposition</b>. Does that mean it's missing something?<br />
<i style="background-color: #ffe599; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></i>
<i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><i style="background-color: white;"> </i><i style="background-color: #ffe599;"><span style="background-color: white;"> </span><span style="background-color: #ffe599;"> </span></i><span style="background-color: #ffe599;">What exactly is an African? Godknows asks.</span></i><br />
<div style="border: 0px; line-height: 25.998px; margin-bottom: 1.857em; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: white;"><i style="background-color: #ffe599;"> </i><i style="background-color: #ffe599;"> </i></span><span style="background-color: #ffe599;">Shhh, look, Bastard says.</span></i><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i></span><i style="background-color: #ffe599; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">The white man starts tearing the paper in his hands; he rips it and rips it and rips it, throws the pieces onto the ground. Then he starts trampling them with his feet, his enormous legs moving swiftly. A small cloud of dust lifts. He moves like dancing, stomp-stomp-stomp, as if he is hearing a drum somewhere in his head. The woman watches but doesn’t do anything.</i><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i></span><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: #ffe599;">Then, as if that is not enough, the white man gets on the ground and starts pummeling it with his fists, just pummeling and pummeling, </span>and I think of Prophet Revelations Bitchington Mborro when he fights with a demon. I picture the white man’s knuckles cut and bleeding, the brown earth drinking the blood. <span style="background-color: #ffe599;">When he finally, finally stops, </span>maybe because he has worn himself out, <span style="background-color: #ffe599;">and just stays there on all fours, dangling his golden head like he will never look up again, the woman kneels there besides him and lays her hand on his broad back as if she is about to pray for him. Then her shoulders start heaving and heaving and heaving like she is crying for the world. </span></i><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i></span><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: #ffe599;">The guard just stands there looking. Then Sbho starts sniffling again.</span></i><br />
<i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: white;"><i style="background-color: #ffe599;"> </i><i style="background-color: #ffe599;"> </i></span><span style="background-color: #ffe599;">What, are you crying for the white people? Are they your relatives? Bastard says.</span></i><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i></span><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: #ffe599;">They are people, you asshole! Sbho says in this hard, hot voice</span> we have never heard before, and I almost fall out of the tree because nobody has ever called Bastard that. Never ever. <span style="background-color: #ffe599;">I wait to see what he will do but he is looking at Sbho with confusion on his face.</span></i><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i></span><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: #ffe599;">What are they going to do? Godknows says, and just as the question leaves his lips we hear the sounds of smashing. The white man and woman keep kneeling as if they don’t even hear the noise but the guard is pacing around</span> nervously. I don’t know why he doesn’t run away, it’s not like his legs are tied, like his hands.</i><br />
<i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: white;"><i style="background-color: #ffe599;"> </i><i style="background-color: #ffe599;"> </i></span><span style="background-color: #ffe599;">Maybe they are killing things, Godknows says, answering himself. We sit there and listen to the sound of things breaking and crashing and falling and damaging.</span></i><br />
<i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="background-color: white;"><i style="background-color: #ffe599;"> </i><i style="background-color: #ffe599;"> </i></span><i style="background-color: #ffe599;"> </i></span><span style="background-color: #ffe599;">I want to be in there, in there smashing things, Bastard says, and he laughs. He has taken out his pocketknife and is stabbing at the tree, tattooing it.</span></i><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i></span><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: #ffe599;">Me, I’m going home; I should have stayed behind with Chipo, I’m going home right now, Godknows says</span>, his voice sounding like somebody who is fed up with playing.</i><br />
<i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: #ffe599;"><span style="background-color: white;"><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i></span><span style="background-color: #ffe599;">Wait. Wait until they leave, Stina says. Plus, look at the white people still down there, they’ll see us.</span></span></i><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </i></span><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: #ffe599;">I don’t care, I’m going. I’m not even hitting Budapest anymore, Godknows says. He starts to move, but Stina slides down his branch like a snake, reaches, and grabs Godknows by his Don’t Be Mean, Go Green T-shirt. </span></i><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: #ffe599;">There is a sound of cloth ripping. We sit in silence and wait, Stina holding Godknows by the shirt </span>as if he’s a mad dog that shouldn’t be let loose.<span style="background-color: #ffe599;"> Bastard has finished tattooing the tree. It reads Bastad; he has left out the r </span>but I doubt he even knows this.</i></div>
No. It's not missing something. It's told the way the author and narrator needed to tell this very particular story.<br />
<br />
When you're working through your novel, you might be tempted to listen to all the advice: to have an inciting incident in the first five pages or keep your chapters to less than ten pages or expose your "villain" to your readers by chapter two or to show-don't-tell or to follow <i>whatever </i>formula...<br />
<br />
<b>Every book is different. Every writer is different. Every story is different. You simply have to work out what you need for the story you are telling.</b><br />
<br />
And you probably don't know what that is from the beginning--or even the second or third drafts. Maybe it will need to fit into a formula eventually. Maybe you do need to look for a balance, but<br />
even the idea of "balancing" can be corrupted when we start using percentages.<br />
<br />
So when someone starts saying that your protagonist needs to have a goal apparent on page one--and it doesn't suit your story--stop listening. <b>He's not talking about your book.</b><br />
<b></b><br />
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</b>Robin I.http://www.blogger.com/profile/17557480330363646629noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6694436301831740843.post-76552361952044803092015-12-14T23:26:00.001-07:002018-02-15T18:02:47.740-07:00A Simple Step-by-Step Guide to Revising the First Two Chapters of a Novel <div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Because the beginning of the novel sets
up the rest of the book and, in a way, nearly dictates the everything
that happens after it, I've been busy at work trying to revise the
first two chapters of my novel. </span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I'm pretty sure I have it all figured out.</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">There is a lot going into the
process. This is a character-driven novel and the reader needs to
connect to at least one of the characters and be at least interested
in the others, while also having an idea of where
things could go. Even if that's not where they go, the reader should be
able to look back and recall that what happened was evident from the
beginning.</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">At least that's what I'm going for at this moment.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-YugVply0UUxmc3ojJkOEOKAMG6xMlyWfou51GA23CvBBUBbn9PsXW-xygkyiNZhtsF88rE9gTD82OSy2NPqUth3axMrl5ejKEhZctMDxXMfz0NC-Lg5mOmC-IssMv0P0bKkMxxOYhv0/s1600/steps.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="485" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-YugVply0UUxmc3ojJkOEOKAMG6xMlyWfou51GA23CvBBUBbn9PsXW-xygkyiNZhtsF88rE9gTD82OSy2NPqUth3axMrl5ejKEhZctMDxXMfz0NC-Lg5mOmC-IssMv0P0bKkMxxOYhv0/s640/steps.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Learn the simple steps to revising two chapters.</b> </span><i style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif; font-size: small;">Image: "<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/istolethetv/388669312/" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">four eyes</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">" (</span><a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/" rel="license" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">CC BY 2.0</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">) by </span><a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/istolethetv/" property="cc:attributionName" rel="cc:attributionURL" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank" xmlns:cc="http://creativecommons.org/ns#">istolethetv</a></i></td></tr>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Today, I am sharing with you my <b><i>easy
65-step process of re-writing the first two chapters </i></b></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b><i>of a character-driven novel</i></b> </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">so that the mystery behind revising will be revealed.</span><br />
<a name='more'></a></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<ol>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Stop blogging and any other
non-necessary activities so you can put more time into your novel.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Cut out everything from your first
draft that doesn't directly lead to the end.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Write the stories of additional
characters in your book, including their perspectives on the scenes
they share with the protagonist.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Consider what you want your narrator to
be able to do as a narrator.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Determine what you want the first
chapter to do, what you want your readers to feel or think at the end
of the chapter.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Revise your first chapter with added
insight from other characters and the narrator and feel brilliant
about it.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Take your first chapter to your novel
critique group and so they can complain about the narrator.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Take in complaints and then remember
that they are a supportive group and are trying to help you.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Consider what parts of their advice
will work for another revision.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Get back to feeling great about your
chapter and send it to an editor who has worked on amazing books that
have earned nationally- and internationally-recognized awards.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Simultaneously feel honored that he is
willing to talk to you on the phone for a half hour, and totally
confounded because of all the work you need to do—you knew you
needed to, but you may not have needed to know it this specifically
just yet.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Watch stupid stuff on Hulu.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Read the first chapter of 15 books and
take notes on how they are structured.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Wonder why everyone seems to write in
first person.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Go to a movie.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Wonder how much any of this has helped
you.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Watch something dark and depressing on
Netflix.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Consider which of the 15 books you read
the first chapter of that you like the most and put those in a stack.
Put the other ones in a paper bag and burn them.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Write something brilliant.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Have a glass of wine and dance by
yourself all night.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Write something brilliant the next day,
too.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">That evening, wonder what the hell you
were writing.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Send old stories that never got
published out to literary magazines.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Go to your writing group and consider
working on your blog, even though you're not supposed to because it
distracts you from your book. Do some editing work instead.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Read your previous chapter and consider
what the editor told you.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Receive surprisingly quick notice that
one of the old stories you sent out has been accepted for
publication. Try not to be horrified that such an embarrassing story
has been published. Instead, be super-impressed with yourself and
wonder what has changed in the market that this story would be
published.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Send out more stories.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Reread the notes you took during your
meeting with the world-class editor. Stare at them for a while, then
stare at the wall.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Work on a freelance writing project.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Take a walk.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Watch HGTV.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">In your writing group, continue editing
someone else's work. Or get back to work on the freelance writing.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The next day, stare at your computer.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Reread the material you think will be
included in your second chapter, but keep stopping to talk or do
other things so you don't get through it.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Think about the things your novel group
said about your narrator and what the editor said about your narrator
and how they contradict each other. Consider what you like in a
narrator.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Decide not to worry about the narrator
until later.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Read an entire book.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Get a fitness tracker and become
committed to walking all day.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Clean the house.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Read at least seven articles on the
state of the publishing industry.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Play with the cats.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Work on the garden</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Make fresh pesto.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Walk back and forth across the house.
Walk around the block.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Get jealous of other writers</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Go for a run. Count calories and
detrmine how much of a calorie deficit you have between your run and
your omelette.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Read the second chapter of 10 books to
see how they are structured.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Wonder what the big frigging deal is
about first-person narrators.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Consider what you want your second
chapter to do.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Worry about your parents.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Talk to yourself.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Talk to your friends about your
parents.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Drink a lot of coffee.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Read every literary journal you can get
your hands on.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Lose 5 lbs in 5 days.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Complain about your parents not taking
care of themselves while secretly acknowledging that they are
complaining about you wasting your time on writing a novel.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Revise the first half of your second
chapter so that you can submit it to your novel critique group at the
last minute.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Decide that you like how it's going
when you reread it.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Have your novel workshop tell you that
the revision has changed the feel—and the protagonist seems like an
entirely different person from the last draft or the first
chapter—and bring up a ton of really good questions.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Get notice that another of your old
stories has been accepted for publication. Congratulate yourself.
Maybe your writing does have an appeal to some audience, somewhere...</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Feel totally overwhelmed. Wonder how
you are going to be able to get everything you want into your novel
in an effective manner while still being interesting and
entertaining.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Question your sanity.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Begin a new plan for understanding the
first two chapters because these are the foundation on which the rest
of the novel is built.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Start working on your blog again.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Write the new draft of the first two
chapters.</span></li>
</ol>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Process delineated! </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Soon the rest of your book will easily flow from it!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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</span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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Robin I.http://www.blogger.com/profile/17557480330363646629noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6694436301831740843.post-34150217208603946922015-08-31T16:11:00.000-07:002018-02-15T17:33:40.826-07:00REVISION ≠ EDITING<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><b>Revising
is not the same as editing.</b></span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: black;">Many writers see the word <i>revision</i> as “to see again,” and then
they re-read their manuscript for consistency, for errors, for </span></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">overused words</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: black;">. They re-read for </span></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">cliches and </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">pacing</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">. This is hardly
more than editing.</span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDF2TBBhg5fpHC6AkF761-sS27OTMmZeRe5p1toFVhbQTx6rJlJ2kpf_MEB8E0wamNnz1viDtKNbydrTgvUK-INTkQqt4uUWSMwvgvQWriQFXmMwZvwehOy3hCacjfQzfkKRehkKD8TMI/s1600/14758890586_98e81691a7_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="346" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDF2TBBhg5fpHC6AkF761-sS27OTMmZeRe5p1toFVhbQTx6rJlJ2kpf_MEB8E0wamNnz1viDtKNbydrTgvUK-INTkQqt4uUWSMwvgvQWriQFXmMwZvwehOy3hCacjfQzfkKRehkKD8TMI/s640/14758890586_98e81691a7_o.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Revision isn't just <i>seeing again</i>. </b><i>Image: </i><i>"<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/internetarchivebookimages/14758890586/" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Image from page 21 of ”Traité de chirur</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: start;">" (</span><a href="https://www.flickr.com/commons/usage/" rel="license" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Public Domain</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: start;">) by </span><a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/internetarchivebookimages/" property="cc:attributionName" rel="cc:attributionURL" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank" xmlns:cc="http://creativecommons.org/ns#">Internet Archive Book Images</a></i></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 1;">
<b style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">These
writers are missing a key step: <i>re-visioning</i>.</b></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"></span></div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">When
you really look at the word <i>revision,</i> there are deeper
meanings to it than simply seeing again. Yet, the
words <i>revision</i> and <i>edit</i> are frequently used interchangeably and this may be why so many books miss the critical
step of revision.</span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">If
you don't believe me, take a look at the history of the words. Even
in the simplest interpretation of the words, </span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><i>to edit</i></span></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">is
not <i>to see again,</i> so why do we edit and call it <i>revising</i>? </span></span></div>
<dl>
<dt style="orphans: 1;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=edit&allowed_in_frame=0"><span style="color: #800020;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>edit
(v.)</b></span></span></span></a><span style="font-size: small;"> </span><span style="color: #800020;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=edit"><img align="BOTTOM" border="0" height="19" name="graphics3" src="https://www.etymonline.com/graphics/dictionary.gif" width="19" /></a></span></span></span></span></dt>
<dd style="border: none; margin-left: 0in; orphans: 1; padding: 0in;"><span style="color: #073763; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://etymonline.com/index.php?term=edit&allowed_in_frame=0"><span style="font-size: small;">1791,
"to publish," perhaps a back-formation from </span><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><i>editor</i></span></span><span style="font-size: small;">,
or from French </span><span style="font-size: small;"><i>éditer</i></span><span style="font-size: small;"> or Latin </span><span style="font-size: small;"><i>editus</i></span><span style="font-size: small;">,
past participle of </span><span style="font-size: small;"><i>edere</i></span><span style="font-size: small;"> "give
out, put out, publish."</span><span style="font-size: small;"> Meaning "to supervise for publication" is from 1793...</span></a></span></dd></dl>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">In the 1790s,</span><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> e</span></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">diting meant preparing for
publication, a</span><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">ccording to EtymologyOnline</span></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">. But it was nearly 100 years after the term
</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">came into existence that the meaning of <i>editing</i></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> became crossed
with <i>revising</i></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">.</span></div>
<dl>
<dd style="border: none; margin-left: 0in; orphans: 1; padding: 0in;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"><a href="http://etymonline.com/index.php?term=edit&allowed_in_frame=0">Meaning
"make revisions to a manuscript, etc.," is from 1885.</a></span></span></dd></dl>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Commonly,
we think of <i>revision</i> like this:</span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">re-: <i>to
do again.</i></span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">-vision: <i>to
see </i>as in eyesight... the ability to see.</span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Why
do we forget all the other definitions of <i>vision</i>? We actually
use the word in a lot of different ways regularly. Does this ring a
bell?</span></span></div>
<dl>
<dt style="orphans: 1;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://etymonline.com/index.php?term=re-&allowed_in_frame=0"><span style="color: #800020;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>re-</b></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></span></a><span style="color: black;"><a href="http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=re-"><img align="BOTTOM" border="0" height="19" name="graphics5" src="https://www.etymonline.com/graphics/dictionary.gif" width="19" /></a><a href="http://etymonline.com/index.php?term=re-&allowed_in_frame=0"></a></span></span></dt>
<dd style="border: none; margin-left: 0in; orphans: 1; padding: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: black;"><a href="http://etymonline.com/index.php?term=re-&allowed_in_frame=0"><span style="font-size: small;">word-forming
element meaning "back to the original place; again, anew, once
more," also with a sense of "undoing," c. 1200, from
Old French and directly from Latin </span><span style="font-size: small;"><i>re-</i></span><span style="font-size: small;"> "again,
back, anew, against."</span></a></span></span></dd></dl>
<div style="border: none; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 1; padding: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://etymonline.com/index.php?term=vision&allowed_in_frame=0"><span style="color: #800020;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>vision
(n.)</b></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></span></a><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=vision"><img align="BOTTOM" border="0" height="19" name="graphics6" src="https://www.etymonline.com/graphics/dictionary.gif" width="19" /></a></span></span></span></div>
<div style="border: none; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 1; padding: 0in;">
<a href="http://etymonline.com/index.php?term=vision&allowed_in_frame=0" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">c.
1300, "something seen in the imagination or in the
supernatural," from Anglo-French </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"><i>visioun</i></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">,
Old French </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"><i>vision</i></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"> "presence,
sight; view, look, appearance; dream, supernatural sight"
(12c.), from Latin </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"><i>visionem</i></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"> "act of seeing, sight, thing seen," noun of action from
past participle stem of </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"><i>videre</i></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"> "to
see." </span></a></div>
<dl>
<dt style="orphans: 1;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>The
act of seeing comes in <i>last</i> in this definition.</b> </span></span></dt>
<dd style="margin-left: 0in; orphans: 1;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br />
</span></dd><dd style="margin-left: 0in; orphans: 1;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">But
how often do we hear writers say things like, “The novel lost its
<b>vision</b>
and direction after so many critiques”? Or, “The story came to
me in a <b>vision</b>”?
How many authors have had a <b>vision</b>
of having a <i>New York Times</i> best-seller? Do you know any writers who
lost track of themselves and developed <b>visions</b>
of becoming the Shakespeare of their time? Have you ever read a book
review of a fantastic novel that is touted as <i>a
</i><i><b>vision</b></i><i>
of history and poetics merged</i>?</span></span></dd><dd style="margin-left: 0in; orphans: 1;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br />
</span></dd><dd style="margin-left: 0in; orphans: 1;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>That's
five different uses of <i>vision</i>
beyond the act of seeing.</b></span></span></dd><dd style="margin-left: 0in; orphans: 1;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br />
</span></dd><dd style="margin-left: 0in; orphans: 1;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">1.
The ability to think about or plan the future with imagination or
wisdom. “The novel lost its <b>vision</b>
and direction after so many critiques.”</span></span></dd><dd style="margin-left: 0in; orphans: 1;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br />
</span></dd><dd style="margin-left: 0in; orphans: 1;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">2.
An experience of seeing someone or something in a dream or trance,
or as a supernatural apparition. “The story came to me in a
<b>vision.</b>”</span></span></dd><dd style="margin-left: 0in; orphans: 1;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br />
</span></dd><dd style="margin-left: 0in; orphans: 1;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">3.
A mental image of what the future will or could be like. “... a
<b>vision</b>
of being a New York Times best-seller...”</span></span></dd><dd style="margin-left: 0in; orphans: 1;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br />
</span></dd><dd style="margin-left: 0in; orphans: 1;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">4.
A vivid mental image, especially a fanciful one of the future. “...a
<b>vision</b>
of becoming the Shakespeare of his time.”</span></span></dd><dd style="margin-left: 0in; orphans: 1;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br />
</span></dd><dd style="margin-left: 0in; orphans: 1;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">5.
A person or sight of unusual beauty. “...a <b>vision</b>
of history and poetics merged.<i>”</i></span></span></dd><dd style="margin-left: 0in; orphans: 1;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br />
</span></dd></dl>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">If we consider
<i>vision</i> as any one of these definitions, <b>re-visioning
becomes more about imagination, creativity, inspiration, insight,
inventiveness and much less about correcting or fixing what we've
written</b>.</span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAx0PrmQ53feVGV_ZSTB82zBVZ_reoOGD9ls-OCOjriPMkpAQyZmvJC3yelnL-a7KzLH7-NRfaHhl0sb58gJM-wmd6oGmGJW43qyXwPMU5F9-j0PXA7FRJocUSH6P2bLQ0VM_OHyVA_qU/s1600/2885144903_6507712fdd_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="462" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAx0PrmQ53feVGV_ZSTB82zBVZ_reoOGD9ls-OCOjriPMkpAQyZmvJC3yelnL-a7KzLH7-NRfaHhl0sb58gJM-wmd6oGmGJW43qyXwPMU5F9-j0PXA7FRJocUSH6P2bLQ0VM_OHyVA_qU/s640/2885144903_6507712fdd_o.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Re-dream your story.</b> <i>Image: </i><i>"<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/alicepopkorn/2885144903/" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">dream of life</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: start;">" (</span><a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/2.0/" rel="license" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">CC BY-ND 2.0</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: start;">) by </span><a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/alicepopkorn/" property="cc:attributionName" rel="cc:attributionURL" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank" xmlns:cc="http://creativecommons.org/ns#">AlicePopkorn</a></i></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">If
we think of revision as putting our book down after writing it and going back to our starting point, then we </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">process what we have come to in the end and</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> can start over with a new
image of how to see the novel as it has evolved in meaning and
character from when we first began writing it.</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Re-visioning
is not the torturous process of preparing a book for publication, but
<b>a new opportunity to re-imagine the book as even better than it is
now</b>. It's time to lay on the floor and begin re-thinking what this
book can be, what these characters can be, what this story can be.
<b>It's time to re-enter the dream state</b>. It's time to channel the
characters again, now that we know them better. It's time create that
vision of beauty that the novel can be.</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">It's
not time to edit.</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">It
is time to make this book incredibly good—so good it will blow
minds. So good everyone will be talking. So good that it will live on
for the next hundred years.
</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">That's
what revision is.</span><br />
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Robin I.http://www.blogger.com/profile/17557480330363646629noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6694436301831740843.post-2338192723148759702015-08-22T20:14:00.000-07:002017-05-28T16:13:10.698-07:00How to Revise a Novel—Step 3In <a href="http://leave-the-frigging-marshmallows.blogspot.com/2015/07/how-to-revise-novel-step-2.html" target="_blank">Step 2</a>, we looked at how to use Larry Brooks' 4-part system for revising a <a href="http://leave-the-frigging-marshmallows.blogspot.com/2015/07/how-to-revise-novelstep-1.html" target="_blank">shrunken version of the novel</a>. Today we'll talk about utilizing the work you did there to manage a revision <i>with multiple storylines.</i><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjckkTXOzPgpyDyQSFW8HPrhB70HRVN6odsjYGyLIfMNwpyZhW4ZMeIgnW4AhG-RFPlzkk4hsIeyr1kWoxUnJ7JD7w4wukGaASnIxkZoqmTUZgSRfUVXa1pBg3z8FyXqz5dERyj3ts27B8/s1600/20150722_220502.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjckkTXOzPgpyDyQSFW8HPrhB70HRVN6odsjYGyLIfMNwpyZhW4ZMeIgnW4AhG-RFPlzkk4hsIeyr1kWoxUnJ7JD7w4wukGaASnIxkZoqmTUZgSRfUVXa1pBg3z8FyXqz5dERyj3ts27B8/s640/20150722_220502.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>4 story parts / 4 colors</i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<a name='more'></a><b>1. If you haven't done so yet, make a note card for every scene. </b>Yes. <i>Every scene</i>. Just a sentence or two summarizing the key actions. Number them, too--this makes it easier when rearranging them.<br />
<b><br /></b>
<b>2. Color code cards</b> the same way you did with the manuscript for the four parts of the Brooks system. They should match; same color same code. I colored the bottom edge of the card so that I can still utilize the cards another time with a different code.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBeWyUAc_N87AfvU7YSzIASmsiAa6PZZsgmtre_Oel_ipYHSHNdpYxPphUxrpAsP2rqV6dSPwCSSJcWnIdCO0osRwPvo4HzAJqwgS2O4solliWAHSVOZl3C1KI6Gq1dNbcR3jzxtYGngA/s1600/20150724_123232.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="491" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBeWyUAc_N87AfvU7YSzIASmsiAa6PZZsgmtre_Oel_ipYHSHNdpYxPphUxrpAsP2rqV6dSPwCSSJcWnIdCO0osRwPvo4HzAJqwgS2O4solliWAHSVOZl3C1KI6Gq1dNbcR3jzxtYGngA/s640/20150724_123232.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>6 story lines / 6 lines of cards</i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b>3. Separate the cards for each story line into multiple lines </b>in a way that chronologically follows each line and allows you to look at each separately to see what is there and what is missing. This is like looking at the <a href="http://leave-the-frigging-marshmallows.blogspot.com/2015/04/13-week-novel-week-8-chaos-of-figuring.html" target="_blank">transparencies</a> I made, but on a scene-by scene-basis. Because I believe that nearly every scene must offer at least two ways to forward the story, it meant making duplicate cards so that I could keep the lines moving and not have to juggle overlapping cards.<br />
<br />
<b>4. </b>Just like you<b> identify the three plot points and two pinch points </b>in the overarching story (You did this in <a href="http://leave-the-frigging-marshmallows.blogspot.com/2015/07/how-to-revise-novel-step-2.html" target="_blank">srep 2</a>) you will do this for <b>each subplot</b>.<br />
<br />
<b>5. Every scene that you have identified as a plot point or pinch point will now be pulled from your deck of note cards</b>. You will then arrange these in chronological order in one timeline--all subplots together. (My theory is that you need to know the chronological story first, even if you wind up not telling it chronologically.)<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv4KHdywTiIq8apT1FQ9kQhgGcNfS2CIa5nROh_SMQubCDBB2l89fECkz8LHzmUQWxXfhn9m6QO_t0zIAm6idBAkMhLEjwSI5dqxMHD5Ripd6C4yNyGN5bU64Vh3RBITkyp9uEq65zH00/s1600/20150724_125713.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="484" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv4KHdywTiIq8apT1FQ9kQhgGcNfS2CIa5nROh_SMQubCDBB2l89fECkz8LHzmUQWxXfhn9m6QO_t0zIAm6idBAkMhLEjwSI5dqxMHD5Ripd6C4yNyGN5bU64Vh3RBITkyp9uEq65zH00/s640/20150724_125713.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>My story made most sense when the cards were arranged like this... the beginning in the upper left corner and then end in the lower right.</i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b>6. </b>Next, go through and <b>mark the 4 scenes</b> <b>that you feel are the most emotional or dramatic in the entire story </b>(not in each separate story line). You might expect that these emotional and dramatic scenes will be plot- or pinch-points, but if you follow Brooks' definitions for them, these points may be smaller moments, so you might find yourself pulling additional cards.<br />
<br />
Place those chronologically within your timeline of cards and then step back to analyze.<br />
<br />
<i>Where did the most emotional and dramatic scenes show up in the manuscript? Are they grouped together at certain points or spread out throughout the whole novel? How do these emotional/dramatic scenes build up to or result from the points in #5? </i>If you can't identify that, these may be the darlings that need to be killed that we always speak of. They might be distractions that pull your story and plot off topic and cause you to stray.<br />
<br />
Once you have arranged the chronological order of each point, you can develop scenes that lead up to and spring from those points. You might find that your four favorite scenes are part of that. Other scenes you've already written may be, too. You'll cut some because they don't add and you'll need to add some because you were missing critical pieces that led up to the points to make them happen.<br />
<br />
And you should feel pretty good about how your story is working. See? It's not formulaic. It's just what a story needs.<br />
<br />
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Robin I.http://www.blogger.com/profile/17557480330363646629noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6694436301831740843.post-52039451200355808592015-08-12T21:15:00.001-07:002018-02-15T18:16:59.167-07:007 Residencies You Still Have Time to Apply For<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Need a little time away to finish up your manuscript? Will a month in the woods spark your creative mind? These residencies offer writers a chance to step away from the daily grind and get to work without distractions.</span><br />
<div>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<div style="border: none; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 1; padding: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><strong><a href="http://www.hambidge.org/program-overview.html" target="_blank"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: small;"><i>Hambidge Creative Residency Program</i></span></span></a></strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"><i><b>
</b></i></span></span>
</span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0.49in; orphans: 1;">
<strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Duration:</span></span></strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> Mid-February
through April </span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0.49in; orphans: 1;">
<strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Who’s
Eligible: </span></span></strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Writers
in any genre</span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0.49in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><strong><span style="color: black;">Location:
</span></strong><strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Hambidge,
Georgia</span></span></span></strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span><strong><span style="color: black;">Deadline:</span></strong><span style="color: black;"> September
15, 2015 </span>
</span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0.49in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: black;"><br /></span></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgscHNlWwdkysvzRzlsLEqNksNe8TLWPNzTDc-qFgnIA-uLMTExy91CplI4o9L7PZtp9Lx7hZ-vUOD5Uyup4y0Kz7OuHBBCO7gTLjP7LkLKdLs8W69ubDApeMcq6VZ3A_ggprQAsKj3z5I/s1600/14865049001_2080f53369_b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgscHNlWwdkysvzRzlsLEqNksNe8TLWPNzTDc-qFgnIA-uLMTExy91CplI4o9L7PZtp9Lx7hZ-vUOD5Uyup4y0Kz7OuHBBCO7gTLjP7LkLKdLs8W69ubDApeMcq6VZ3A_ggprQAsKj3z5I/s640/14865049001_2080f53369_b.jpg" width="636" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Go rustic in Sheridan, Wyoming</b>. <i>Image: </i><i>"<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/pagedooley/14865049001/" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Google Street View - Pan-American Trek -</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">" (</span><a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/" rel="license" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">CC BY 2.0</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">) by </span><a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/pagedooley/" property="cc:attributionName" rel="cc:attributionURL" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank" xmlns:cc="http://creativecommons.org/ns#">kevin dooley</a></i></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><strong><a href="http://www.jentelarts.org/sitepages/aboutjentel.htm" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue; font-size: small;"><i></i></span></a></strong></span><br />
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><strong><a href="http://www.jentelarts.org/sitepages/aboutjentel.htm" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue; font-size: small;"><i>Jentel Artist Residency Program</i></span></a></strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"><i><b>
</b></i></span></span>
</span><br />
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0.49in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: black;"><b>Duration:</b>
January
15 - May 13 </span>
</span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0.49in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: black;"><b>Who's
Eligible:</b></span><span style="color: black;"> </span><span style="color: black;"> W</span><span style="color: black;">riters
in creative nonfiction, fiction, poetry and drama</span><span style="color: black;">
</span></span>
</span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0.49in; orphans: 1;">
<strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Location:
</span></span></strong><strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Sheridan,
Wyoming</span></span></span></span></strong></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0.49in; orphans: 1;">
<strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Deadline:</span></span></strong><strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"> September
15</span></span></span></span></strong></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0.49in; orphans: 1;">
<strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></span></span></span></strong></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrFHYJ9UWw1nayIiQIJLV_cCxu-T2Mura7ak9C_dB51b5tSNapUXOGr2vCHQibI8P6BUZW_MexAlZ4A83j0KbT2Hf29euqaWsMxXSxIo0vWED7s2tKVeTuXqQXlnBr-V53zt6gYGOsWEw/s1600/6360824111_fcb00e7d5b_b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrFHYJ9UWw1nayIiQIJLV_cCxu-T2Mura7ak9C_dB51b5tSNapUXOGr2vCHQibI8P6BUZW_MexAlZ4A83j0KbT2Hf29euqaWsMxXSxIo0vWED7s2tKVeTuXqQXlnBr-V53zt6gYGOsWEw/s640/6360824111_fcb00e7d5b_b.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: x-small;">Hide out under a covered bridge in Johnson, Vermont.</span></b> <i>Image:<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-small;"> "<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/dougtone/6360824111/" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Power House Covered Bridge - Johnson, Ve</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">" (</span><a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/" rel="license" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">CC BY-SA 2.0</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">) by </span><a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/dougtone/" property="cc:attributionName" rel="cc:attributionURL" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank" xmlns:cc="http://creativecommons.org/ns#">Dougtone</a></span></i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0.49in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">
</span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 1;">
<strong><a href="http://vermontstudiocenter.org/"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: small;"><i>Vermont
Studio Center’s Residencies</i></span></span></span></a></strong></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0.49in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: black;"><b>Duration:</b>
Between
2 and 12 weeks, year-round </span>
</span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0.49in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: black;"><b>Who's
Eligible:</b></span><span style="color: black;"> </span><span style="color: black;"> Writers
& artists</span></span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0.49in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><strong><span style="color: black;">Location:
</span></strong><strong><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Johnson,
Vermont</span></span></strong><strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>
</b></span></span></strong>
</span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0.49in; orphans: 1;">
<strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Deadline:
</span></span></strong><strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">October
1</span></span></span></span></strong></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0.49in; orphans: 1;">
<strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></span></span></span></strong></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 1;">
<strong><a href="https://ledighouse.submittable.com/Submit" target="_blank"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: small;"><i>OMI International Arts Center – Ledig House</i></span></span></span></a></strong></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0.49in; orphans: 1;">
<strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Duration:</span></span></strong><strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"> Spring
Residency Dates: March 18 – June 3, 2016</span></span></span></span></strong></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0.49in; orphans: 1;">
<strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Location: </span></span></strong><strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Ghant,
New York</span></span></span></span></strong></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0.49in; orphans: 1;">
<strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Who’s
Eligible: W</span></span></strong><strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">riters
& translators</span></span></span></span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Deadline:</span></span></strong><strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"> October
20</span></span></span></span></strong></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.nps.gov/romo/supportyourpark/artist_in_residence.htm" target="_blank"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><i><b><span style="color: blue;">Rocky Mountain National Park Artist-in-Residence Program</span></b></i></span></a><strong><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">
</span></span></strong>
</span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0.49in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>Duration:</b>
2-week periods, from June to September</span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0.49in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: black;"><b>Who's
Eligible:</b></span><span style="color: black;"> </span><span style="color: black;"> writers
& artists</span></span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0.49in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><strong><span style="color: black;">Location:
</span></strong><strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">A</span></span></span></strong><strong><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">
</span></span></strong><strong><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">cabin
in Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado</span></span></strong><strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>
</b></span></span></strong>
</span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0.49in; orphans: 1;">
<strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Deadline:
</span></span></strong><strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">November
12</span></span></span></span></strong></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0.49in; orphans: 1;">
<strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></span></span></span></strong></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjujEzTwJe6ix259zOanja8ZlyylCAkwhfvbYtfGLA4gGJlyi4cQUX2z-4XTtziihTiBMRbRVEpyB4OIVhx2g2mDLUZoQKRwKCqGbKOq6nCw6c9flY66ekFKo1VzrW6TNie5nXlsa1qP5s/s1600/6284232558_a8e3457ae6_b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjujEzTwJe6ix259zOanja8ZlyylCAkwhfvbYtfGLA4gGJlyi4cQUX2z-4XTtziihTiBMRbRVEpyB4OIVhx2g2mDLUZoQKRwKCqGbKOq6nCw6c9flY66ekFKo1VzrW6TNie5nXlsa1qP5s/s640/6284232558_a8e3457ae6_b.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>The water will calm your mind in Provincetown.</b> <i>Image: "<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/erikorama/6284232558/" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Provincetown Harbor</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">" (</span><a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/" rel="license" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">CC BY 2.0</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">) by </span><a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/erikorama/" property="cc:attributionName" rel="cc:attributionURL" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank" xmlns:cc="http://creativecommons.org/ns#">erikorama</a></i></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://web.fawc.org/program" target="_blank"><strong><span style="color: blue; font-size: small;"><b><i>Fine Arts Work Center</i></b></span></strong></a></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0.49in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>Duration:</b>
7 months, from October 1 to April 30</span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0.49in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: black;"><b>Who's
Eligible:</b></span><span style="color: black;"> </span><span style="color: black;"> writers
& artists</span></span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0.49in; orphans: 1;">
<strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Location:
</span></span></strong><strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Provincetown,
Massachusetts</span></span></span></span></strong></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0.49in; orphans: 1;">
<strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Deadline:
</span></span></strong><strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">December
1</span></span></span></span></strong></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0.49in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><strong><a href="http://www.sarabandebooks.org/residency" target="_blank"><i><span style="color: blue;">Sarabande Writing Residency</span></i></a></strong><span style="font-size: small;">
</span>
</span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0.49in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>Duration:</b>
between 2 and 6 weeks</span></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0.49in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: black;"><b>Who's
Eligible:</b></span><span style="color: black;"> </span><span style="color: black;"> </span>poets,
fiction writers, or creative nonfiction writers<span style="color: black;">
</span></span>
</span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0.49in; orphans: 1;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><strong><span style="color: black;">Location:
</span></strong><strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">A
cottage in</span></span></span></strong><strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>
</b></span></span></strong><strong><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">a
14,000-acre nature preserve near Louisville, Kentucky</span></span></strong><strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">
</span></span></span></strong>
</span></div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0.49in; orphans: 1;">
<strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Deadline:
</span></span></strong><strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">December
1</span></span></span></span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></span></span></span></strong>
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><!-- Go to www.addthis.com/dashboard to customize your tools --> </span></span></span></span><br />
<div class="addthis_inline_share_toolbox_xo2h">
</div>
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">
</span></span></span></span>
<br />
<div class="addthis_native_toolbox">
</div>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">
</span></div>
</div>
Robin I.http://www.blogger.com/profile/17557480330363646629noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6694436301831740843.post-3777283181290922742015-07-27T20:59:00.001-07:002018-02-15T18:09:19.801-07:00How to Revise a Novel--Step 2Last time, <a href="http://leave-the-frigging-marshmallows.blogspot.com/2015/07/how-to-revise-novelstep-1.html" target="_blank">in Step 1</a>, I took you through the process of shrinking down a novel and looking at it in three acts.<br />
<br />
I had mixed feelings about this because I already felt I had a good idea that my draft disintegrated into a hodge-podge of random scenes in the third act. This was solidly upheld in the shrunken three-act process. It was useful in some ways, but I wanted it to be <i>more</i> useful.<br />
<br />
I wanted an epiphany.<br />
I wanted a miracle.<br />
I wanted the secret to fixing a novel.<br />
<br />
Logically, I know there isn't a magic pill that will solve my novel's problems, but it doesn't stop me from searching. I want to know something I don't already know.<br />
<br />
So this is the next thing I did with my shrunken novel.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwICi6M0FSxLhlXx_iQnac9Dn6rKL9-IiieoFGnJbyyGiNnPTVyne1imABq4cTNYSWSTkbN0ltx1r2N97jWjqzZpyKvVw1uVG1ZCqvygGlaQdUYhU41ERcRftJ3QhVDUlYGx3j582I0A0/s1600/tiny+book.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="468" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwICi6M0FSxLhlXx_iQnac9Dn6rKL9-IiieoFGnJbyyGiNnPTVyne1imABq4cTNYSWSTkbN0ltx1r2N97jWjqzZpyKvVw1uVG1ZCqvygGlaQdUYhU41ERcRftJ3QhVDUlYGx3j582I0A0/s640/tiny+book.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Okay. I didn't shrink it <i>this </i>small.</b> <i>Image: </i><i>"<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/practicalowl/4098547561/" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">The Worlds Smallest Dictionary</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: start;">" (</span><a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.0/" rel="license" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">CC BY-NC 2.0</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: start;">) by </span><a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/practicalowl/" property="cc:attributionName" rel="cc:attributionURL" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank" xmlns:cc="http://creativecommons.org/ns#">practicalowl</a></i></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<a name='more'></a><b>1. First, I read Larry Brooks' ideas on structure in his book, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Story-Engineering-Larry-Brooks/dp/1582979987?tag=duckduckgo-ffab-20" target="_blank"><i>Story Engineering</i></a></b>. He divides the novel into four sections: Set-up, Response, Attack, and Resolution. It's okay if you're not writing a thriller or some other plot-based novel; a character-driven novel will push the plot in similar ways.<i><b> </b></i>Brooks best best exemplifies this in his blog when he identifies the protagonist's changing roles throughout each part:<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b>Plot-based vs. Character-driven</b><i><b> </b></i><br />
<a href="http://storyfix.com/story-structure-series-1-introducing-the-four-parts-of-story" target="_blank"><i><b>Set-up = Orphan</b></i></a></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<a href="http://storyfix.com/story-structure-series-1-introducing-the-four-parts-of-story" target="_blank"><i><b>Response = Wanderer</b></i></a></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<a href="http://storyfix.com/story-structure-series-1-introducing-the-four-parts-of-story" target="_blank"><i><b>Attack = Warrior</b></i></a></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<a href="http://storyfix.com/story-structure-series-1-introducing-the-four-parts-of-story" target="_blank"><i><b>Resolution = Martyr</b></i></a></div>
<br />
As much as I was able to see that my ideas of my story fit the four parts, it was those roles that spoke of what was happening in my character-driven story. I'd suggest reading the book because that will give you a more substantial hold on the four parts.<br />
<br />
<b>2. Next, I reminded myself that many great literary novels don't fit into a formula.</b> People don't fit into a formula. Books are their own beasts and they take their own paths. I read Jeffrey Eugenides' <i>Middlesex</i> a couple months ago. It was brilliant. I loved it. It would not fit into any formula ever presented--at least not the whole book. Is there a formula for a three-generation epic?<br />
<br />
It could be argued that each generation in <i>Middlesex</i> roughly fits Brooks' "formula," but there is much more than one quarter of the third section (Calliope/Cal's direct story) committed to the "set-up" of that part, and "orphan" certainly would not fit most of that. Oddly, when Desdemona and Lefty are <i>actually</i> orphaned in the first generation story, they still don't really fit Brooks' "orphan" designation. (I'll avoid trying to figure out this entire book in front of you.) Additionally, I don't really see how the Nation of Islam or the Detroit riots really fit into the structure for <i>any </i>of the three generations. Granted, I have not tried to break this novel down. I'm not ambitious enough to break down a 500+ page novel that covers a century when I am simply trying to figure out a 250 page one that encompasses a summer. <br />
<br />
<b>I, also, reminded myself that I am not as good a writer as Jeffrey Eugenides</b> and that most novels need more traditional plot points to keep the reader reading. It's an emotional need to know the <a href="http://leave-the-frigging-marshmallows.blogspot.com/2015/01/what-question-is-your-novel-asking.html" target="_blank">story question</a> and to feel progress toward an end that offers some sort of answer to that question. As readers, we need these parts to stories--they are natural to stories.<br />
<br />
In fact, to my estimate, Brooks' four-part structure may very well be present in <i>Middlesex</i> six times--at least two per generation--and the reader is willing to follow these ups and downs because it takes us to so many places and asks so many questions that are eventually answered while moving through various emotional roles (and oceans and countries)... and we really want to get to the part that addresses the overarching question set forth on the first page about what it is like to go through adolescence as a hermaphrodite and find oneself.<br />
<br />
Well, that <i>and </i>it's entertaining and funny.<br />
<br />
I ramble.<br />
Have I convinced you to read <i>Middlesex</i>, if you haven't, yet?<br />
Hey, man, it only came out thirteen years ago.<br />
<br />
Let's get back to <i>our</i> novels-in-progress...<br />
<br />
Let's also keep in mind that all these formulas--the three-act structure, Larry Brooks' four-part structure, those beat sheets that everyone is into--come from Hollywood. They're how big films are plotted. Not French films (<i>Blue is the Warmest Color </i>in no way fits this) or art house films. And there seems to be a lot of complaint about how formulaic Hollywood is and how predictable the stories that come out of there can be. So now novelists are jumping on the predictable bandwagon? <br />
<br />
Well, no. As I think about Larry Brooks' structure and I think about <i>Middlesex</i> using it six or more times within one novel, I come to this: he is not offering us a formula. What he is talking about is the <i>energy</i> that any story needs to be compelling.<br />
<br />
My story needs a clearer sense of its progression because my protagonist loses her charm as she wanders around emoting and arguing. I mean, <i>come on</i>. There is no reason this book should be 400 pages. Thus, I need to remind myself of what a story needs to keep moving to build to a satisfying end.<br />
<br />
<b>Don't poo-poo your readers' need to be satisfied in the end.</b> Larry Brooks' structure can be used to get the story to move, but don't torture yourself with it. It might help. It might not. Maybe a little. I don't know. Just keep trying different ways to look at your story until you get it to where you want it to be. Mentally prepare yourself for any level of effectiveness.<br />
<br />
<b>3. Finally, I was prepared enough to take my <a href="http://leave-the-frigging-marshmallows.blogspot.com/2015/07/how-to-revise-novelstep-1.html" target="_blank">shrunken manuscript</a>, still 60 pages, and divide it into four equal sections. </b><br />
<br />
<b>4. I assigned each part a color and banded the bottom of those 15 pages with that color.</b> This keeps that approximation of the stage and the protagonist's role clear--and I will need that clarity later when I start sinking into the quagmire of subplots and multiple characters.<br />
<br />
Also, I like color-coding things and making diagrams and other visual representations.<br />
<br />
<b>5. I identified my first plot point (otherwise known as <i>the inciting incident</i>) to see where it fit within those four parts. </b>After rethinking a lot of things from my first shrunken novel venture, I've redefined what I think my inciting incident to be. I'm feeling stubborn and I refuse to follow the rules on this one just yet, so I have a series of things that happen which I believe to be the inciting incident. I'm only working on my second draft, so I am probably totally wrong in thinking this way but that's what I'm sticking with right now, my gut. Let me humor myself in this draft--I have 18 more drafts to go.<br />
<br />
<b>The inciting incident should be at the end of the first part and bridge into the second. </b>I was shocked--<i>shocked!</i>--to find that the series of events that I call "plot point one" started at the end of the first part and bled into the second part. They took place in three scenes within four in a row. <i>It was almost as if I had known what I was doing!</i><br />
<br />
<b>6. After that, I identified <a href="http://jordanmccollum.com/2009/10/overview-larry-brookss-story-structure/" target="_blank">two more plot points and two pinch points</a>--or, at least where they should be. </b>If you've been hanging out with me, you will probably be able to define these pretty easily within your story. Whether you've used <a href="http://leave-the-frigging-marshmallows.blogspot.com/2015/03/13-week-novel-week-4-exploring-structure.html" target="_blank">index cards</a> or <a href="http://leave-the-frigging-marshmallows.blogspot.com/2015http://leave-the-frigging-marshmallows.blogspot.com/2015/03/13-week-novel-week-3-activities-plots.html" target="_blank">diagrams</a> or <a href="http://leave-the-frigging-marshmallows.blogspot.com/2015/04/13-week-novel-week-8-chaos-of-figuring.html" target="_blank">both</a>, you have been thinking about these critical points in the story, so the definitions of each plot point and pinch point likely make certain events in your story stand out to you. The question to ask yourself here: <i>Are any of these points difficult to identify or missing? </i><br />
<br />
<b>7. Once those are defined, mark them in your shrunken manuscript. </b>Are they somewhere around the percentage marks indicated? Based on a full manuscript shrunken to 60 pages, these are the <i>approximate</i> places that each point should take place:<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><b>Plot Point 1: page 15</b></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><b>Pinch Point 1: page 22</b></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><b>Plot Point 2 (Mid-Point): Page 30</b></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><b>Pinch Point 2: page 37</b></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><b>Plot Point 3: page 45</b></i></div>
<br />
<b>If they're not within a page or two (in the shrunken manuscript), they are probably not acting as those points in your novel</b>. This means restructuring may be needed or events that do happen in those approximate place need more weight and focus on the plot's purpose.<br />
<br />
<b>My results:</b><br />
--When I went to the page numbers I indicated, everything fit naturally through Pinch Point 2. Plot Point 3 came incredibly late.<br />
--I knew, because I had multiple subplots that were intended to combine into one overarching story, that these points would be happening all over the novel on various pages. It didn't seem like a bad idea at first--there is always movement somewhere in the story. Then reality hit me. I needed to define all these points for each story. Major pain. But that's writing, so I did it.<br />
--When I separated the plot into subplots, I was also able to see where the overarching plot points and pinch points touched all subplots and where they didn't. This made me think about how those points could have an effect in each subplot, where they needed to build in the end, and where they really needed to come together to create a crisis. <br />
<br />
This is the most general implementation of Larry Brooks' method in a revision. I liked it and I decided to go deeper into his system. I'll go into that next time. <br />
<br />
But be forewarned: I had to unshrink everything to look at it in full detail. I had to face it like a real writer. I also had to get my note cards out.<br />
<br />
oh... but next time...<br />
<br />
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Robin I.http://www.blogger.com/profile/17557480330363646629noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6694436301831740843.post-44645205760424059432015-07-21T17:07:00.001-07:002018-02-15T18:12:58.145-07:007 Reasons to Learn to Love RevisingI meet lots of writers who say they hate revising. Others have told me they just write a draft and give it to an editor. Done.<br />
<br />
I don't understand. Revising <i>is</i> writing. Therefore, if you love writing, you also love revising. Yes, it's a complex and difficult love, but it's just that which brings the greatest reward.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4LzI-XUc7XePMfI5WT2B7vGk_UiZQcjHamUN2NVt3gY1aJ3mO_XijLbg87ry7PjsTsUDMa471FTzrteDgdvpsW-xMQOYbPeOoBoX7sCpq2kYR69uFUcgCVaK8QY4FQOx9C4fS1FsJKAA/s1600/love.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="582" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4LzI-XUc7XePMfI5WT2B7vGk_UiZQcjHamUN2NVt3gY1aJ3mO_XijLbg87ry7PjsTsUDMa471FTzrteDgdvpsW-xMQOYbPeOoBoX7sCpq2kYR69uFUcgCVaK8QY4FQOx9C4fS1FsJKAA/s640/love.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: small;"><b>Love takes care.</b> <i>Image </i><i>"<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/evablue/4583830419/" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">banksy - peaceful hearts doctor - 3</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: start;">" (</span><a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/" rel="license" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">CC BY 2.0</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: start;">) by </span><a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/evablue/" property="cc:attributionName" rel="cc:attributionURL" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank" xmlns:cc="http://creativecommons.org/ns#">Eva Blue</a></i></span></td></tr>
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And because I don't want you to miss out on this amazing love, I think we should talk about the reasons a writer needs to buckle down and commit his heart and soul to revising his novel. <br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
Before I do, I'd like to define a few things very briefly:<br />
<i><b> Drafting</b></i> is the writing of the story--getting it down on paper for the first time.<br />
<i><b> Revising</b></i> is rethinking the story and producing additional drafts that usually change the story--evolve it.<br />
<i><b> Editing</b></i> is tweaking--looking for consistency and gaps, problems in voice and perspective, smaller but still large things.<br />
<i><b> Proofreading</b></i> is correcting grammar and sentence structure.<br />
<br />
Granted, as an editor, I can give you a lot more detail on what editing and proofreading are, but we're here today to talk about revising and it's amazing ability to transform<i> suck</i> into beauty.<br />
<br />
<b>1. Revising your novel tests your love for your story and characters</b>. If you don't love them enough to stick with them through the revision, then readers won't love them either. You have to love them more than anyone else in the whole world--even if they annoy you.<br />
<br />
<b>2. You get to see where everything goes awry and you get to figure out how to improve it</b>. This makes you a better writer when you are working on your next book--you'll have a better idea of how to work through the kinds of problems stories present you.<br />
<br />
<b>3. Your characters will grow and become more complex, complicated, and richer</b>. This will make them more memorable to your readers.<br />
<br />
<b>4. You get to really hone the narrator's voice and the role of the setting</b>. With all the plot-based fiction going on right now, we often give less attention to these things that involve the reader more--things like context and perspective.<br />
<br />
<b>5. You find themes and symbols that start to show up, and develop them throughout the story</b>. Readers love to interpret these things. Also, when you find those themes and symbols that come up organically, you begin to think a little more about yourself and how you process things--bringing you greater enlightenment for your next novel. Soon you will find you are an incarnation of the buddha.<br />
<br />
No, no... but you should be bringing more insight to the next book.<br />
<br />
<b>6. You will be bringing out the best in your novel and your writing</b>. I don't care if you think your draft of your book is brilliant right now. When you go back and read it a year and a half from now, after reading lots of great published books, you will be shocked at how embarrassing it is. A revised version will be closer to your vision of your book than one you simply wrote and edited.<br />
<br />
<b>7. When you send it to your editor, she will hate you less and will do a much better editing job </b>because there is so much more quality to work with. (Never complain about editors doing a crappy job because they didn't pick up on errors and didn't change X. <i>You</i> gave her that to work with. If you can see it, why did you give it to her?) Also, when an editor gets to work on something she enjoys--and she never enjoys tons of mistakes or poorly developed stories--she may charge you less per word.<br />
<br />
That's all I've got right now. It's time for me to get back to <i>my</i> revising.<br />
<br />
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Robin I.http://www.blogger.com/profile/17557480330363646629noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6694436301831740843.post-33228024780728265752015-07-06T19:13:00.000-07:002018-02-15T18:14:39.381-07:00How to Revise a Novel—Step 1If you're anything like me, your first draft is a giant mess.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3SzCZ_GzeEm4WNyk45aRrW2sA1SkANve9wMpxUPmqJNmsdso1XH2H4jnFGjoZdc9NwWHBDWzqsY5TgvlSprMtiN-qQgxDrnsKsPRDE9CHyLs3i844uXJV5IrzFy8w7LB97hEsEIGLKX8/s1600/contents.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3SzCZ_GzeEm4WNyk45aRrW2sA1SkANve9wMpxUPmqJNmsdso1XH2H4jnFGjoZdc9NwWHBDWzqsY5TgvlSprMtiN-qQgxDrnsKsPRDE9CHyLs3i844uXJV5IrzFy8w7LB97hEsEIGLKX8/s640/contents.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Chapters? Who needs chapters? No. I don't have chapters yet.</b> <i>Image: </i><i>"<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/97741188@N04/14413042463/" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Adventures of Captain Greenland (table o</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: start;">" (</span><a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/" rel="license" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">CC BY 2.0</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: start;">) by </span><a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/97741188@N04/" property="cc:attributionName" rel="cc:attributionURL" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank" xmlns:cc="http://creativecommons.org/ns#">earlynovelsdatabase</a></i></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Before I began the revision process in mid-June, I knew I had out-of-order scenes. I didn't even have chapters. I knew that, as I pushed characters through a plot, they changed. No amount of planning prepared me for how my characters changed<i style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 13.1999998092651px; line-height: 18.4799995422363px;">―</i>even though I go through various revisions of character building and multiple character exercises throughout the process of writing so that I can understand them better. I just don't know what will come up. I knew my plot got messy and I became disjointed as a writer near the end. I knew I was not even close to committed to the end; it was mechanical, to get there and say, <i>This draft is done</i>.<br />
<br />
I knew there were so many issues... so so many.<br />
<br />
<a name='more'></a><b>Before this, I thought I knew what I needed to do to revise a first draft.</b> But if you've been following this blog, you know that the novel I'm working on now is an entirely different animal than my last one.<br />
<br />
The last one was conceptual and small. In my attempt to keep things simple this time, as I am still new to writing novels, I went with a little coming-of-age story. One protagonist. As realistic as I've ever written in fiction. A character-driven story, since that's what I write and what I like to read.<br />
<br />
Unfortunately, this is not simple at all. Nor is it small. Plus, large parts of narration are missing. So my ideas of how to revise went out the window.<br />
<br />
<h3>
Previously, my approach to revising was this:</h3>
<ul>
<li>Read the entire draft, without marking it up. Make notes on paper, if necessary.</li>
<li>Determine if the chain of events is inevitable and makes sense.</li>
<li>Is everything related to the story at hand?</li>
<li>What is dropped and when does it get dropped? Does it need to stay in the story and be built up, or can I cut it out?</li>
<li>What is pointless? Where did I stray?</li>
<li>What comes up out of nowhere that needs to be addressed and built in earlier on?</li>
<li>What themes and motifs seem to be arising?</li>
<li>What feels missing? What feels wrong? What feels really right? What can I do to bring out more of the right and what are the solutions for the wrong?</li>
</ul>
This is all fine and dandy. With a short conceptual novel, it felt more manageable to read and ask oneself these questions and then address them.<br />
<br />
It feels so naïve now. (...sigh..) <i>I was so young then.</i><br />
<br />
My current novel is confounding. It seems impossible to simply follow that list.<br />
<br />
<h3>
<b>So I decided to try something different.</b></h3>
<br />
<b><i>Step 1: Shrink into 3 Acts</i></b><br />
<b>A. </b>First, I <b>shrunk my novel down to 60 pages</b><i style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 13.1999998092651px; line-height: 18.4799995422363px;">―</i>literally. I changed it to single-spaced, removed all white spaces, shrunk the font to 7pt., and printed it out. The intention is not to be able to read it, but to <b>see it as a big giant visual representation of itself</b>.<br />
<br />
When shrinking, I felt that the manuscript should fit into a round number of pages so that it could easily break it into 3 sets. Ideally, I'd like it to be 30—and definitely no less than 30—but I couldn't get my pages to shrink that far, even with 4pt. font.<br />
<br />
<b>B.</b> Next, <a href="http://leave-the-frigging-marshmallows.blogspot.com/2015/03/13-week-novel-week-3-activities-plots.html" target="_blank">I thought about the 3-act structure, as well as the 5-act structure, the 8-point structure, and some others</a>. Ultimately, I think all of these can eventually fit back into the 3-act one. So I <b>broke it into 3 stacks, 1 act per stack</b>:<br />
Act 1<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "molengo"; font-size: 22px; line-height: 30.8000011444092px;">—</span>15 pages<br />
Act 2<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "molengo"; font-size: 22px; line-height: 30.8000011444092px;">—</span>30 pages<br />
Act 3<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "molengo"; font-size: 22px; line-height: 30.8000011444092px;">—</span>15 pages<br />
<i>Remember, this is an approximation, because the thing has been shrunken down to a much smaller size. (In my case, it's a fifth of the size of the real manuscript, even though the whole thing is there.) </i><br />
<br />
<b>C. </b>After that, I looked at each stack to <b>determine precisely where each act would fall</b>,<b> </b>based on the content, and marked a red line there to separate them.<br />
<br />
<b>D.</b> Then I made a thick green line of where the approximate start of each act would be, based strictly on the page number. With the way I had broken everything up, it meant that Act breaks would be between pages 15 & 16 and 45 &; 46.<br />
<br />
<b>E. </b>Then I laid it all out on the floor to <b>evaluate the script visually</b>.<br />
<i>What was the difference between where the acts generally begin and end, and where they actually were in my manuscript?</i><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLnHWGvAZ4gvFV33eZHQLS5Ejxx30qcz0gfsBfbZ0RIwcARcup4-LMwAzisoDVPG7-piX0VlqpQMqzDLt4eBJcMEsLb9qrGru1Do-a5_9nU8KhpbSrhBi8KZyuY24zoXTzXBbp12V9ru0/s1600/20150622_154415.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLnHWGvAZ4gvFV33eZHQLS5Ejxx30qcz0gfsBfbZ0RIwcARcup4-LMwAzisoDVPG7-piX0VlqpQMqzDLt4eBJcMEsLb9qrGru1Do-a5_9nU8KhpbSrhBi8KZyuY24zoXTzXBbp12V9ru0/s640/20150622_154415.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><b>This is what my 60 pages looked like.</b></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
This allowed me to think about how a standard overarching structure might work and what kind of changes might need to be made.<br />
<br />
<b>My results?</b><br />
Well, this led me to consider a few things.<br />
<br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "molengo"; font-size: 22px; line-height: 30.8000011444092px;"><b>—</b></span>I had divided my novel into "Books"<i style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 13.1999998092651px; line-height: 18.4799995422363px;">―</i>general periods of time. I don't write in chapters because I assume the order of scenes will be rearranged for storytelling purposes.<br />
<br />
Here's the weird thing: Act 2 doesn't even begin until many pages into Book 2 (actual pages, not the shrunken ones). So, apparently, Book 2 is not a natural break.<br />
<br />
<b style="font-family: Molengo; font-size: 22px; line-height: 30.8000011444092px;">—</b>Where I would break the story into acts, content-wise, is one page behind my 15 page estimation for Acts 1/2 (a reasonable variation) and 6 pages behind the estimation for Acts 2/3<i style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 13.1999998092651px; line-height: 18.4799995422363px;">―</i>that's over 30 pages in the actual manuscript.<br />
<br />
This tells me something I already knew. I lost grip on my story and things went awry.<br />
<br />
<b style="font-family: Molengo; line-height: 30.8000011444092px;">—</b><span style="font-family: "molengo";"><span style="line-height: 30.8000011444092px;">Because I was aware that something was wrong, I took a look at each act and what is needed for each of them. I made notes in the corner at the beginning of each act that stated which pieces I was unable to identify from memory. For insta</span><span style="line-height: 30.8000011444092px;">nce, in Act 1, I made a note to determine if there was <i>a ticking clock</i> any</span><span style="line-height: 30.8000011444092px;">where? I don't think so. It's not that kind of book, but maybe if I create one somewhere</span></span><i style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; line-height: 18.4799995422363px;">―</i><span style="font-family: "molengo";"><span style="line-height: 30.8000011444092px;">something that the protagonist imposes on herself</span></span><i style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; line-height: 18.4799995422363px;">―</i><span style="font-family: "molengo";"><span style="line-height: 30.8000011444092px;">it might create more of a sense of urgency.</span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr-JzKGGmiqf8UZuP0LlqabuP-h7YRGkes8QxO2-NhGDhpcYwcKcO93_S4o4nBXeA_DN8C9kJwvfgj22nH-IpKAeoV8za1UwrcB7Z9v2wOSrvOp4sl0oNXFEZggvE8Go5dQaO8AI3X7M0/s1600/20150622_154708.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="290" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr-JzKGGmiqf8UZuP0LlqabuP-h7YRGkes8QxO2-NhGDhpcYwcKcO93_S4o4nBXeA_DN8C9kJwvfgj22nH-IpKAeoV8za1UwrcB7Z9v2wOSrvOp4sl0oNXFEZggvE8Go5dQaO8AI3X7M0/s640/20150622_154708.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><b>Notes to self.</b></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "molengo";"><span style="line-height: 30.8000011444092px;"><b>It also made me acutely aware that I needed to look at my shrunken manuscript with a different method. </b></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "molengo";"><span style="line-height: 30.8000011444092px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "molengo";"><span style="line-height: 30.8000011444092px;"><b><i>Check in next week to see how I take this shrunken novel to a more active breakdown.</i></b></span></span><br />
<br />
<b style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><a href="http://leave-the-frigging-marshmallows.blogspot.com/2015/02/write-your-novel-draft-now-are-you-ready.html" target="_blank">Find out about the 13 week challenge here</a><span style="background-color: white;">. And </span><a href="http://leave-the-frigging-marshmallows.blogspot.com/2015/03/write-your-novel-now-week-1-activities.html" target="_blank">see the first week's activities here</a><span style="background-color: white;">. </span></b><br />
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Robin I.http://www.blogger.com/profile/17557480330363646629noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6694436301831740843.post-14353075429099986162015-06-18T21:09:00.000-07:002018-09-06T13:39:23.782-07:008 Reasons Why Good Books Are RejectedYour novel is brilliant. You know it is.<br />
<br />
So why aren't any agents picking it up?<br />
<br />
This is not a post about delusions of the quality of one's writing. It's about why you send your book out to 10 agents and another 10, and then 10 more, and you still haven't gotten a nibble.<br />
<br />
It takes sending a book out to more agents than you would imagine before you find the right one. And that's what it's about: finding the right person, the one who will be as committed to your book as you are.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><b style="font-size: small;">You're not represented ...yet. Persevere.</b><span style="font-size: x-small;"> </span><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">Image<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"> </span></span></i></span><i><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-small;">"<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/c0t0s0d0/2370428187/" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #165ba8; outline: 0px; text-align: start;" target="_blank">rejected</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">" (</span><a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/" rel="license" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">CC BY-SA 2.0</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">) by </span><a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/c0t0s0d0/" property="cc:attributionName" rel="cc:attributionURL" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank" xmlns:cc="http://creativecommons.org/ns#">☻☺</a></span></i></td></tr>
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<a name='more'></a>Last month at the Pima Writers' Conference, I had the opportunity to hear <b>agent Moses Cardona, President of <a href="http://www.jhalit.com/#Home" target="_blank">John Hawkins & Associates</a>, </b>speak and explain why he and other agents choose to turn down books, even when they are good.<br />
<br />
I want to share those reasons with you.<br />
<br />
<b>1. Personal Taste. </b>Agents succeed because of what they like and are inspired by. Their taste affects the kinds of books they represent and, thus, the relationships they have in the industry. If an agent generally likes and reads fantasy books, she gets good at selling them and knows the editors and publishers who work with fantasy books. If she finds a crime thriller that she really believes in and takes it on, she is entering new territory. Her connections don't work with crime thrillers and her methods of selling a fantasy may not work as well when working in a genre with which she isn't familiar. Thus, she will likely pass on it.<br />
<br />
Additionally, if it's not the type of book she tends to read, she might not bother reading it. It does not mean your book sucks or you are a terrible writer. Don't take it that way. Make sure you are sending it to someone who actually reads crime thrillers.<br />
<br />
<b>2. Passion.</b> In addition to be the type of book she likes, she needs to love it. If she is going to be an advocate for it, she'll need to be committed to it for the long term. If she just likes it and thinks it's good work, will she stick with it for months or years? If she just thinks it's salable, while she lose interest when the market changes?<br />
<br />
<b>3. The Market.</b> Agents are supposed to know what is going on in the genres they represent. They need to know if an entire genre is in decline or if it is about to blow up. They need to know what readers are looking for and what they aren't buying.<br />
<br />
If a book similar to yours was recently published, it can affect your project either positively or negatively. Has the need for that kind of book been fulfilled for the time being or has it sparked a trend? Is it <i>too similar</i> to yours?<br />
<br />
<b>4. Contacts.</b> If an agent doesn't know the right editors and publishers for your book, she's doing you a favor by turning you down. (See #1 above.)<br />
<br />
<b>5. Suitability to Genre.</b> If your book deviates too much from the conventions of the genre in which you are submitting, it may difficult to sell. It doesn't matter how brilliant it is if the agent cannot see where it fits into genre.<br />
<br />
If it is a combination of genres, an agent might have a rough time determining the audience. The agent is not making money off of you unless she sells your book, so she's got to know who to sell it to.<br />
<br />
<b>6. Length.</b> Do you know the average range in word count for books in your genre? If you fall outside of that range with a very short or very long book, you may find agents shying away from it. They know that publishers don't regularly take books from first-time authors that stray from the word count range.<br />
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<b>7. You.</b> Do you have more than one book in you? Are you going to be difficult to work with? Are you credible in your topic? All things that can influence whether an agent will take you on.<br />
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<b>8. Conflict of Interest.</b> If your project is too similar to one the agent is already representing, she is likely to turn it down to avoid misunderstandings or any legal actions.<br />
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<b>So stop thinking that not getting representation speaks to the quality of your book. </b>You're not represented ...<i>yet</i>.<br />
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You've got to keep sending it out. <b>Persevere.</b><br />
______________________________________________________<br />
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Robin I.http://www.blogger.com/profile/17557480330363646629noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6694436301831740843.post-15022498042298167912015-06-11T19:31:00.001-07:002018-02-15T18:31:31.261-07:005 Ways Your Dialogue Tags Suck: Dialogue Diatribe #2<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
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Dialogue tags shouldn't be difficult. Trust me. As an editor who reads the work of new writers, dialogue tags can get really screwed up and entirely disrupt the flow of a story.</div>
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Don't take this lightly.</div>
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In my <a href="http://leave-the-frigging-marshmallows.blogspot.com/2015/05/13-week-novel-week-11-dialogue-part-1.html">last post on dialogue</a>, I explained the mechanics of dialogue. Today I want to talk about the tags themselves.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Make your tags invisible.</b> <i>Image </i><i>"<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/jmpznz/4027624154/" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Memorias de un hombre invisible</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">" </span></i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><i><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">(</span></i><i><a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.0/" rel="license" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3;" target="_blank">CC BY-NC 2.0</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">) by </span><a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/jmpznz/" property="cc:attributionName" rel="cc:attributionURL" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3;" target="_blank" xmlns:cc="http://creativecommons.org/ns#">'J' Jose Maria Perez Nuñez</a></i></span></td></tr>
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The thing with dialogue tags is that when people begin writing fiction, they often begin to see that they are writing <span style="font-style: italic;">he said</span> and <span style="font-style: italic;">she said</span> and it feels like a lot of repetition. As writers, we're taught to avoid using the same words too often, so we want to <span style="font-style: italic;">fix</span> this problem. Unfortunately, in attempting to fix dialogue tags, many writers wind up with bad ones. </div>
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<a name='more'></a>Using bad dialogue tags is like admitting:</div>
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<li style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; vertical-align: middle;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms";">I have never taken a writing class.</span></li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; vertical-align: middle;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms";">I'm too lazy to go to the library to check out a copy of Strunk & White.</span></li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; vertical-align: middle;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms";">I don't know how to use the internet for reference.</span></li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; vertical-align: middle;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms";">I like to torture readers and editors.</span></li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; vertical-align: middle;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms";">No literate human has ever read my work. My writing group is a clowder of cats, a baby doll I found in the dumpster, and an old bottle with a face drawn on it.</span></li>
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">1. Overtagging</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "It's beautiful," she says.</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "What is?" he asks.</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "That painting in front of you," she says. "Don't you think it's beautiful?" she asks him. "Sexy," she purrs.</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "That's the one my mom painted," he says. "There is nothing sexy about it," he tells her.</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "I had no idea," she smiles. "She certainly has a talent." </span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "A talent that tore apart our family," he grumbles.</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "I didn't know," she says, putting her wine glass down. "And you're still not over it?"</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> He furrows his brow. "Mothers are not sexy," he says. "They should not display their sexuality to the public."</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> She stares at him for a minute before saying, "I need to get up early. I think I'll head home."</span></div>
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I swear, every workshop I have ever been in has at least one person who insists that they can't understand who is speaking in someone's story and that dialogue tags are missing. That's how we end up with things like the above. </div>
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A dialogue tag isn't needed each time a character speaks. If it is a conversation between two people, readers can usually follow properly paragraphed dialogue once the first lines are tagged. Too much <span style="font-style: italic;">he said/she said</span> calls attention to itself. Try omitting some of them and seeing what conversation can happen without a tag.</div>
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Let's experiment. I'll remove all but two dialogue tags.</div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "It's beautiful," she says.</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "What is?" he asks.</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "That painting in front of you. Don't you think it's beautiful?" She pauses to take the image in more intently. "And sexy."</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "That's the one my mom painted. There is nothing sexy about it."</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "I had no idea. She certainly has a talent."</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "A talent that tore apart our family." </span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "I didn't know. And you're still not over it?"</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "Mothers are not sexy. They should not display their sexuality to the public."</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> She stares at him for a minute before speaking. "I need to get up early. I think I'll head home."</span></div>
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The rhythm may be off and actions may give more to this conversation, but who is speaking is not unclear. It won't hurt to add one or two back in when you have more than one speaker, when the conversation is long, or when there are longer diversions inserted--but think about what is necessary.</div>
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<b>2. </b><span style="font-weight: bold;">1001 Synonyms for "Said"</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "What's your best writing advice?" John inquires.</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "Start with a baby at the edge of a cliff," Dennis declares.</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "Oh," Mitch scoffs, "if everybody does that then we're all writing the same thing."</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "I have your beers," the waitress chirps, but she goes unheard.</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "That's ridiculous. There are a finite number of stories," Dennis informs Mitch.</span></div>
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All these verbs are intrusive. Stop being creative with dialogue tags. If you think the simple <span style="font-style: italic;">say</span> and <span style="font-style: italic;">ask</span> call attention to themselves, try reading the same thing with those instead of the synonyms:</div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "What's your best writing advice?" John asks.</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> Dennis looks up from his computer. "Start with a baby at the edge of a cliff."</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "If everybody does that," Mitch says, "then we're all writing the same thing."</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "I have your beers." The waitress goes unheard.</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "That's ridiculous. There are a finite number of stories," Dennis says.</span></div>
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I admit it. I removed a couple of the <span style="font-style: italic;">says </span>because, um, I <span style="font-weight: bold;">just</span> wrote about<span style="font-style: italic;"> </span>overtagging. But the second dialogue simply moves more smoothly. Save those unusual verbs for tags in which you are trying to create impact.</div>
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<a href="http://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/there-are-no-rules/keep-it-simple-keys-to-realistic-dialogue-part-ii">Read more on synonyms in dialogue tags</a>.</div>
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<b>3. Des</b><span style="font-weight: bold;">cribing the Dialogue</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "I don't have time for this," Louise said brusquely.</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "It's just a quick signature," Ruth said pleadingly. "I need to get it out in the mail today."</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "I have to read it first. No time."</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "You dictated it," Ruth said, frustrated. "I wrote exactly what you said."</span></div>
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You know what? If the dialogue and the actions around it don't speak for themselves, then they need to be rewritten. We'll get into that in <span style="font-style: italic;">Dialogue Diatribe #3</span>. In the meantime, read this without the adjectives and adverbs. Does the dialogue convey the hurriedness? Where does the dialogue need to be improved? Where would action help to amplify Louise's lack of time?</div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "I don't have time for this." Louise threw the files into her briefcase without looking to see if they were in order.</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "It's just a quick signature," Ruth said. "I need to get it out in the mail today."</span></div>
<div style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-style: italic;"> "I have to read it first. No time."</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "You dictated it. I wrote exactly what you said."</span></div>
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<b>4. </b><span style="font-weight: bold;">Why So Damned Weird with the Syntax?</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "Where's the monkey?" asked June.</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "He escaped the cage and has been running around the yard, terrorizing the neighbor's cats," said Mark.</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "Did you try to get him back inside?" asked June.</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "I let him out of the cage," said Mark.</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "So he didn't escape," said June, "like you told me." </span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "The cats have been pooping in the garden," said Mark.</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "I'm surprised you're not watching the terrorizing," said June. </span></div>
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The usual syntactical order of words in U.S. English is <span style="font-style: italic;">Subject+Verb</span>. Thus, <span style="font-style: italic;">June+said</span>--<span style="font-style: italic;">June said</span>. (Not <span style="font-style: italic;">said June</span>.) It's not that saying <span style="font-style: italic;">said June</span> is wrong; it can be appropriate to certain time periods and it isn't as uncommon in the U.K. It can also work rhythmically, though sparingly, in other time periods, too. The problem is when it is used <span style="font-style: italic;">consistently</span> in contemporary writing in the U.S. and Canada. </div>
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I recently edited a book in which the writer used a <span style="font-style: italic;">Verb+Subject</span> construction (<span style="font-style: italic;">said June</span>) with all names, and a <span style="font-style: italic;">Subject+Verb</span> construction (<span style="font-style: italic;">she said</span>) with all pronouns. The <span style="font-style: italic;">Verb+Subject</span> constructions stood out as especially strange. He did not want to change them because they were not technically wrong. When I asked him why he used the unusual construction, he said he didn't notice and he didn't know why he did it, but he just wanted to get the book to the printer. (One edit and it went to the printer--it's not enough. Don't be this kind of self-publisher.)</div>
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Unless you have a reason for being weird and inverting sentence structure, follow regional and current conventions.</div>
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<span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />
</span></div>
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<b>5. T</b><span style="font-weight: bold;">rying to Be Sneaky</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "Why did you come here?" Rufus asks, shoving his hands in his pockets, nervous about talking to such a pretty girl.</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "That's the question," she says, nibbling on a saltine.</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> Rufus now begins to ask himself why he walked up to her. Maybe no one knows why they go anywhere. "My name is Rufus," he says, stammering as he pronounces his own name.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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Sometimes we embed our tags with the hope that it will disguise them. This works to some degree, but when it is used over and over, the repetitive structure not only makes the reader aware of the tag, but also of the participial phrases.</div>
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This problem can also occur with varied sentence structures:</div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "I called, but no one answered," Dante said, unsure of what to say next.</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "Oh," she said as she turned and walked off into the kitchen. She gave him a forced smile.</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "You still want to go on a hike, right?" he said, trying to catch her eye.</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "I don't know," she trailed off, avoiding his line of vision. "It's not you…"</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "But what?" he said as his voice rose.</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "Well," she said, a tear forming in her eye, "when you left last week, I was afraid I'd never see you again."</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "Here I am," he said and held his arms out, unsure of whether he was holding them out for her to come to him or whether it was in resignation.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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Is this method of embedding dialogue tags better than just using gerunds? Well, it's at least alternating sentence structure, but it's overwritten and double-tagging. <span style="font-weight: bold;">There is a way to use this, however, to create better dialogue.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Invisible Dialogue Tags are Simple</span></div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;">There is nothing wrong with he said/she said.</span> Most readers barely even register the word "said". Their minds skip over it when it's not overused. Think of dialogue tags like punctuation: you use periods and commas most of the time, but occasionally, a semi-colon makes the most sense. Exclamation points are rare. Asterisks and brackets are not to be used liberally. Use <span style="font-style: italic;">said</span> and <span style="font-style: italic;">asked</span> (the period and comma of tag verbs) for most of your tags, only occasionally using a different verb when it enhances the story--in the same way you would use exclamation points. Occasional synonyms for <span style="font-style: italic;">said</span>, when used sparingly and appropriately, do not cause a distraction.</div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;">Use dialogue tags only when necessary</span>. If it's clear who is speaking, then the tag isn't necessary.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="font-family: "trebuchet ms"; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-style: italic;">Replace some tags with action and internalization</span>. Action within dialogue serves a similar purpose to the tag, with the added benefit of illuminating the scene beyond the dialogue. As an example of using action in place of tags, we'll look at the second dialogue from item #5. Action is highlighted in green and internalization in blue. </div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;"> "I called, but no one answered." </span><span style="color: #2e75b5; font-style: italic;">Dante was unsure of what to say next.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-style: italic;"> "Oh." </span><span style="color: #00b050; font-style: italic;">She gave him a forced smile and turned to walk off into the kitchen.</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> </span></div>
<div style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-style: italic;"> "You still want to go on a hike, right?" </span><span style="color: #00b050; font-style: italic;">He tried to catch her eye.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-style: italic;"> "I don't know…" </span><span style="color: #00b050; font-style: italic;">She avoided his line of vision.</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> "It's not you, but…"</span></div>
<div style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-style: italic;"> </span><span style="color: #00b050; font-style: italic;">His voice rose.</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> "But what?" </span></div>
<div style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-style: italic;"> </span><span style="color: #00b050; font-style: italic;">A tear formed in her eye.</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> "When you left last week, I was afraid I'd never see you again."</span></div>
<div style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-style: italic;"> "Here I am." </span><span style="color: #00b050; font-style: italic;">He held his arms out,</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> </span><span style="color: #2e75b5; font-style: italic;">not sure whether he was holding them out for her to come to him or whether it was in resignation.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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There are no dialogue tags here, but the effect of them remains. (Not that it makes me want to puke any less…)</div>
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">So you now have 3 simple ways to improving dialogue tags. My work here is done.</span></div>
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<div style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';">
<span style="font-weight: bold;">Bye.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms";"><b></b></span><br />
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Robin I.http://www.blogger.com/profile/17557480330363646629noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6694436301831740843.post-21488148263063567222015-05-31T09:06:00.000-07:002018-02-15T18:22:18.199-07:00The Courage to be Average Before Brilliant<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I'm
writing to you today from the <a href="http://www.writersbuffet.org/news/2015/3/23/27th-annual-pima-writers-workshop-at-pima-community-college" target="_blank">Pima Writers' Conference</a> in <a href="http://blog.pshares.org/index.php/literary-boroughs-56-tucson-arizona/" target="_blank">Tucson,Arizona</a>. The ice broke on the Santa Cruz River on Friday. There is no water in the river; it just means the temperature reached over 100 degrees for the first time this year. It's been that way for
two days now and it'll be that way today, too. Ugh. Take me to a
writing oasis! </span>
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEge__6Atc6KFXW-R9zzBR5Cjc4B4rawdrc2rVg56NF_whfTSFKjOgmaaj16uECJyPPK6_tnrs1D4AV3tAlfUSCuYwTPL8Eiky7C869qWThMslmnxukCfh-BfKFi6X8z1nps8UDVYKu5f-U/s1600/27861465_7418d6c794_b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEge__6Atc6KFXW-R9zzBR5Cjc4B4rawdrc2rVg56NF_whfTSFKjOgmaaj16uECJyPPK6_tnrs1D4AV3tAlfUSCuYwTPL8Eiky7C869qWThMslmnxukCfh-BfKFi6X8z1nps8UDVYKu5f-U/s640/27861465_7418d6c794_b.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Refresh the writing soul. </b><i>Image </i><i>"<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/therefore/27861465/" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Oasis and Wonderland</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: start;">" (</span><a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/" rel="license" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">CC BY-NC-ND 2.0</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: start;">) by </span><a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/therefore/" property="cc:attributionName" rel="cc:attributionURL" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank" xmlns:cc="http://creativecommons.org/ns#">Dean Terry</a></i></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"></span></div>
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">So here I am in the Proscenium Theater amid writers of all ages. I run two writing groups and am working to develop a non-profit writing resource in Tucson, and there is not a single participant here that I recognize</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">—</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">even though I used to run some writing sessions out of a Tucson-area writing group that has 300+ members.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I
thought this was strange. Shouldn't I know someone here?</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Perusing
the schedule, though, I realized that I'd met the organizer on
several occasions—have even been into her office to discuss the
non-profit—and two of the presenters. I recognized a third
presenter because she also ran a children's writing group out of the same cafe
I ran a group. In February, at the last conference I attended, I knew
one participant, a panelist, and a featured reader. I'm seeing a
pattern: I'm going into these things like I'm a beginning writer,
even though I'm not.</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">There
is something to be said about confidence. I tend to see myself as a
skilled and occasionally brilliant writer, while simultaneously being a
terribly average writer. Sometimes I'd just rather be a brilliant and
embarrassingly awful writer—at least I'd be straddling some sort of genius/crazy line that could be confusing enough to cause some debate. Or maybe there is no need for any kind of brilliance. Maybe I should leave that word alone, let it go.</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">But
no. I bother thinking of myself as average and I think there are a few things that contribute to this. First, I've spent a lot of my
life with walls up and I've been working on that. I find that the
more I let go, the more I reveal, the more I write something that
feels totally embarrassing, the more my readers love it. The parts I
feel are most horrible are the ones readers seem to go for. They're
the ones that get pointed out as the most memorable and affecting. So
I do feel like I am aptly dealing with that and trying to push myself
more.</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Another thing that makes me average, though, is my subtlety and my
penchant for understatement. I find these much harder to deal with.
Letting down emotional walls, sure. Giving up subtlety and learning to be sparing with understatement, not so simple. The problem? When I'm not
subtle, how to I reveal things openly without being obvious? This
part is like trying to learn how to write all over again. It's
exciting, though.</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I've
spent a lot of my life protecting myself, too. Thus, I haven't put
myself out there. I've barely tried publishing and only
recently have gone public with the fact that I am back at writing,
that I am making an effort to be <i>a writer</i>. I've only recently
gone public enough to fail publicly. I always thought it would be
best to do that in private and not let anyone know about it. This is a critical factor in remaining average.</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">What
it comes down to today is that I am at a conference and the sessions I find
myself at are talks on completing a draft, on keeping a ritual...
things that are more about discipline and inspiration—things I
should be able to figure out in life. And while I tend to avoid any talk (or even thought of) publishing or agents—I
find that worrying about such things while drafting or working on a
first revision can taint the whole story—I am choosing those
presentations. And you know what? They are giving me
confidence. Maybe it's this concern of mediocrity that I've been
suffering with, this feeling that no matter how skilled a writer I
am, no matter how wonderful I am, I'll still find a way to <i>not stand out</i>.</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I've
always been someone who hides in the shadows. Even as a kid I didn't
want to be noticed... unless it was to be acknowledged for doing well—not praised
for my success or excellence, mind you; that would be embarrassing. Wait. No. To be
praised for my success (and preferably to be better than everyone
else) would be joyous, but then I'd feel guilty for liking it. I was mortified that I'd become big-headed and it was presumptuous to be proud of the work I'd done. (I thought.) It might also set a precedence of
consistently superior work. So being acknowledged for being good was
just about right. Being good also allowed me to not try too hard and
gave me the room to think I'd be amazing if I actually tried. Ta-da!
No failure!</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I
know a lot of people do this. I'm not the only one. It's screwed up.
The idea is to get past it.</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">So
yes, maybe I am walking into these conferences with the idea that I
am a novice. Well, I am: my novel is not published and writing is
constant learning. If I'd had more courage to make an earnest attempt earlier, I'd be further along at this point. If hadn't
bothered to listen to all people who told me writing wasn't
practical, that a Plan B was necessary, I might be further along. </span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">But
now, I get to connect with people I haven't seen in a while
and meet new people. The difference now is that I walk up to
panelists and speakers I don't know to introduce myself and start up
a conversation. (I won't leave out the fact that I may tell one or two of them that what I just wrote is crappy. <i>WTF? Why do I do that? </i>I'm a work in progress, I guess, like my novel.) Now I get to start connecting so that when I'm ready
to look for an agent and a publisher, I have some idea where to start
and what approaches to take. Now, I get to connect with people who go through similar experiences; find readers; feel a sense of the larger community; <i>admit I am writing</i>.</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">So
I'm here now to encourage everyone to get out. Be a writer in public.
Even if you think you suck. Go ahead and succeed or fail—do it in a
big way so everyone can see what you are doing. Failure is learning.
Failure will help build relationships and support and tenacity,
which will help you fight the emotional fight of the family and
friends who tell you writing is a <i>nice</i> <i>hobby</i>, it's good that you have something creative to indulge in, but Plan B is more practical.</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">In
the words of <a href="http://cbbernard.com/" target="_blank">C.B. Bernard</a> who spoke at this conference on Friday:
“Writing is not an indulgence. Indulgences are all the things you
give up to write.”</span></div>
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Robin I.http://www.blogger.com/profile/17557480330363646629noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6694436301831740843.post-68215147802936010762015-05-25T19:36:00.001-07:002018-02-15T18:23:55.167-07:0013 Week Novel—Week 13 Activities: A Clean Finish<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Hello. How is your week going?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Well, it's an exciting time—we're in our last week of the novel draft.</span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL7ShSXe3JrVfAb103G9dAYUyTqwh_HYB2aU5KKV2JxsUwR2TTOw7JssJs4LaF8hbTvM3z5lLX1j9ZjiyY_xD01cKTSZD20vPtmysojoJA7RbfWCpvaD6vQXbmvkgtrL22NEh_NDwYWDk/s1600/4049695531_1b98e682ec_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL7ShSXe3JrVfAb103G9dAYUyTqwh_HYB2aU5KKV2JxsUwR2TTOw7JssJs4LaF8hbTvM3z5lLX1j9ZjiyY_xD01cKTSZD20vPtmysojoJA7RbfWCpvaD6vQXbmvkgtrL22NEh_NDwYWDk/s640/4049695531_1b98e682ec_o.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Get ready to write this!</b> <i>Image </i><i>"<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/tom-margie/4049695531/" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">3:10 to Yuma (1957)</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: start;">" (</span><a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/" rel="license" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">CC BY-SA 2.0</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: start;">) by </span><a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/tom-margie/" property="cc:attributionName" rel="cc:attributionURL" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank" xmlns:cc="http://creativecommons.org/ns#">twm1340</a></i></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Or maybe that's not so exciting. If you are like me, you contemplate not bothering with the resolution in this draft, because how can you really resolve anything if the whole book will change in the revisions? Any resolution you write will be thrown out anyway. Why not just start the revision process?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I admitted these thoughts to someone in my writing group—someone who has ghostwritten many books. He said that his wife closes cabinet doors halfway, puts the top on the toothpaste without twisting it shut. She does things only <i>so far</i> but never completely finishes them. Thus, things don't seem to get fully done. Basically, the implication was that, if I don't bother writing the resolution in the first draft, will I bother finishing the next draft? "Who cares if you throw away the resolution that you wrote in the first draft? What matters is that you have the closure, mentally, that you have finished and can move on." Well, he said something like that. Or that's what I took away. And then he suggested a fear of completion or failure—both things I had considered.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I think he was right. Simply writing a resolution allows us to tie things up and see where they go in this draft. Leaving it at the climax and without a resolution leaves the whole thing undone, the end open, and our minds spinning with that unknown. If it's finished, we are able go into the next draft cleanly.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">And that's what I'm asking you to do: finish your last 2500 words and then take a month off from this novel before revising. Don't reread it. Don't think about it. Don't even look at it. Take the jump drive that it's on and hide it in the bottom drawer of your desk. Put all your notes in there, too. Stay away from it. Do other things. Work on a draft of something else. Take a vacation.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Emptying your mind of this book for a month will also allow you to go into the revision process cleanly. It will allow you to think about it in different ways when you start the next draft.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">So keep going to the end. Finish it this week. Congratulate yourself. If you're in town, drop me a line and let's go out to celebrate together.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Then take a nap and plan your month. You deserve it.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Come back here when you are ready to revise. But do not revise, edit, or proofread for at least a month. I'm serious.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b><span style="background-color: white;">Coming in a little late? </span><a href="http://leave-the-frigging-marshmallows.blogspot.com/2015/02/write-your-novel-draft-now-are-you-ready.html" target="_blank">Find out about the 13 week challenge here</a><span style="background-color: white;">. And </span><a href="http://leave-the-frigging-marshmallows.blogspot.com/2015/03/write-your-novel-now-week-1-activities.html" target="_blank">see the first week's activities here</a><span style="background-color: white;">. </span></b></span><br />
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<br />Robin I.http://www.blogger.com/profile/17557480330363646629noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6694436301831740843.post-9156552087129256662015-05-18T19:21:00.000-07:002018-02-15T18:27:34.328-07:0013 Week Novel—Week 12: Thinking about the End<div>
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 29.1840000152588px;">It may seem pre-mature to start thinking about the resolution of your novel when you have just been writing 2500 words a week</span></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">—</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 29.1840000152588px;">you're barely over 100 pages! But with this plan, you've written a crappy first draft in 13 weeks, so you have approximately 32,500 words. It's short; around 130 pages. That's the intent.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 29.1840000152588px;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 29.1840000152588px;">When you write a whole story really briefly you have the skeleton to work with in the next drafts. And the drafts that follow. You have something to work with so that you can build a more complex and interesting story, so you can develop the intricacies and explore emotions with greater focus, so you can refine the language and the narrator. </span></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 29.1840000152588px;">In my world of writing, once you finish that crappy draft, you finally have room for the joy of creating a story that is it's own.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgawvYFoq9rZLSmqTpVcwWBeRl1WVusWxcdQjBs_4tpwNiYqcllaMDRWhDJHjxUCMa78LiAOjyjFCYQ_rnmnof5nmpUIjG0WoFzksEVW9VhrDuE1CUhyphenhyphenwzPeU6aQn3kZf18TjhFxUyv_YY/s1600/8620731002_5fb403c172_k.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgawvYFoq9rZLSmqTpVcwWBeRl1WVusWxcdQjBs_4tpwNiYqcllaMDRWhDJHjxUCMa78LiAOjyjFCYQ_rnmnof5nmpUIjG0WoFzksEVW9VhrDuE1CUhyphenhyphenwzPeU6aQn3kZf18TjhFxUyv_YY/s640/8620731002_5fb403c172_k.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><b style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Take some time this week to dream big.</b><i style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> Image: <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/martinaphotography/8620731002/in/photolist-e8MuZ9-ftZxd4-8CTjfN-7TTepX-8ha7SE-8roEMX-nAFnoE-nAFFju-dpHNWo-hw5R1n-6r9EC1-6r9EVN-6r9F8W-6r5utM-81j9Up-eRpFoH-eRB4dN-eRpFrB-E8GRE-6r9EHA-Gnb3F-6r9Ex9-5Ync2r-6XFsX7-8w5UzU-9QyuG-p9iS1F-jMfa4y-5AfrG-cLHss5-ca5ZF-pTH5D-qc8DpX-q2Kpyk-pwzSiE-3mHQL9-dkKS4S-avjRsN-7f8DX7-4nurTY-9RfUi-7AuVs8-HaLt3-6GGyXw-e6pFR5-qcadZi-qc1CJw-5WoVQy-bR6T16-qtzjHB" target="_blank">martinnak15</a> on <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/legalcode" target="_blank">Flickr Creative Commons</a></i></span></td></tr>
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<a name='more'></a><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 29.1840000152588px;">You just have to untangle the mess you produced in the first draft, this weird fog that your story ventured into. When you write and write and write just to get it done, you can lose track of things. You can tie yourself up in knots. You start to follow what your characters want (and you should</span></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">—</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 29.1840000152588px;">you learn a lot in the places they take you) and you wind up down some trail you never expected, or on a roof and choking on smog. It's not what you thought it was going to be when you started. What do you do with<i> that</i>?</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 29.1840000152588px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 29.1840000152588px;">Hey, the first draft is discovery. If it's a big sloppy mess, you have the opportunity to find a soul in there.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 29.1840000152588px;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 29.1840000152588px;">Think of this: plots are limited. A novel can have a great plot, but if you don't care about the characters or if you aren't engaged by the storytelling, then you put the book down. Have you ever pulled up a movie on Netflix that had all sorts of drama, plot twists and turns, and you got up and walked out of the room halfway through? I did that on Friday night. I went and made a salad. My friend fell asleep on the sofa. The next day, when we were trying to figure out what to watch, I mentioned that the movie last night was bland. "So nothing happened?" he said.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 29.1840000152588px;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 29.1840000152588px;">Actually, a lot had happened. They broke out of prison, abandoned one of their crew, got involved in some sort of organized crime. Somebody slept with somebody else. Somebody killed a few people. Someone turned on someone else. A few people fell in love and got double-crossed and one lost a leg. Dogs took over and zombies ate the dogs. Alright, the last three things didn't happen (as far as I know), but I didn't finish watching and I didn't care enough to know.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 29.1840000152588px;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 29.1840000152588px;">The next time, we watched a Terry Gilliam movie that didn't really make sense, but my friend stayed awake (he <i>never</i> stays awake during movies... his girlfriend will attest to this) and I really wanted popcorn</span></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">—</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 29.1840000152588px;">but I couldn't leave my seat long enough to make it. It was interesting and I cared about what the misanthropic protagonist chose to do</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">, </span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 29.1840000152588px;">even if the overarching logic of the plot wasn't fully thought-out.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 29.1840000152588px;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 29.1840000152588px;">Not that I want novels with weak plots, but some readers put less emphasis on plot when they read. It's really what you do with all the<b> elements surrounding the plot</b> that makes the novel <b>unique</b>.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 29.1840000152588px;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 29.1840000152588px;">So this week, since you're almost there, I'm going to ask you to think about the end of your novel. This really means that I'm going to ask you to think of the <b>effect</b> of your novel.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 29.1840000152588px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 29.1840000152588px;">It also means that I am going to ask you to stop and breathe deeply. I'm going to ask you to step away from the single-minded endeavor of <b>getting to the end </b>and taking time to <b>dream of the result</b>.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 29.1840000152588px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 29.1840000152588px;">I am going to ask you to remind yourself that <b>your novel has the potential to be great</b>. You are not a slave to it. <b>You are the creator</b>. <i>Summon your power</i>.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 29.1840000152588px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 29.1840000152588px;">Then ask yourself:</span></span><br />
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<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 1.6em;">When readers finish your novel, <b>what is the one big feeling you expect them to have at the end</b></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 1.6em;"><b>? </b>What single scene provokes that feeling the most? What can you do to this scene to push this feeling further?</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 1.6em;"><b>What makes a novel successful</b>, or even classic? (Write your answer down. Make a list.) Now take a look at your novel and ask yourself what you can do to bring the items on the list out in your book.</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 1.6em;">Think about the genre or form that you are writing in: <b>What makes novels in this genre uninteresting, predictable, or derivative?</b> Write a list of those elements. Then think about your novel and honestly assess it for the elements on your list. <b>What changes can you make that will buck your readers’ assumptions?</b></span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 1.6em;">Lastly, <b>write a review of your amazing novel</b>. What is celebrated? What is innovative? Surprising? What can you do with these last 20 pages that will ensure that a review like this is written?</span></li>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 29.1840000152588px;">You have to believe in your ability to fulfill the telling of this story in the most startling way. It doesn't matter if it's not breaking new ground now</span></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">—</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 29.1840000152588px;"><b>these are the seeds for that brilliant end</b>. There is something great there. Dig your hole and plant the seeds.</span></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 29.1840000152588px;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 1.6em;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , "trebuchet ms" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 18.2399997711182px; line-height: 1.6em;"><b>Revel in your greatness a little, then get to work at the first 10 of those last 20 mind-blowing pages.</b> (That's 2500 words to you!)</span><br />
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<b><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Coming in a little late? </span><a href="http://leave-the-frigging-marshmallows.blogspot.com/2015/02/write-your-novel-draft-now-are-you-ready.html" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;" target="_blank">Find out about the 13 week challenge here</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">. And </span><a href="http://leave-the-frigging-marshmallows.blogspot.com/2015/03/write-your-novel-now-week-1-activities.html" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;" target="_blank">see the first week's activities here</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">. </span></b><br />
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Robin I.http://www.blogger.com/profile/17557480330363646629noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6694436301831740843.post-75975852827691430232015-05-11T19:58:00.001-07:002018-02-15T18:29:19.840-07:0013 Week Novel—Week 11: Dialogue, Part 1<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Why do so many "writers" not know how to write dialogue? I mean <b><i>why don't they know how punctuation and capitalization in dialogue work?</i></b></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><b style="font-size: small;">If you don't know how the mechanics of dialogue work, readers question your writing ability.</b> <i><span style="font-size: x-small;">Image</span><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"> </span></i></span><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><i>"<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/gdominici/75853153/" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Talking heads</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: start;">" (</span><a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/2.0/" rel="license" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">CC BY-ND 2.0</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: start;">) by </span><a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/gdominici/" property="cc:attributionName" rel="cc:attributionURL" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank" xmlns:cc="http://creativecommons.org/ns#">Gianni Dominici</a></i></span></td></tr>
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<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I need you to know this. If you don't, you will look like a total amateur. An amateur who didn't bother to look up the basics of writing. In other words, </span><b style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i>someone who doesn't care enough about writing to learn how to write</i></b><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Writing good dialogue, natural dialogue that is interesting, can be difficult to learn and may take years to get really good at</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">—</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">but the technical aspects are not hard.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Suppose you send your manuscript to an agent, a publisher, or a contest, and you have written in it, <i>"I was wondering, Mister. If you are hiring in your store." The young man uttered mumbling with nervousness as he looked the old man steady in the eye with determination. </i></span><i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The graying old gonif teetered on his heels for a moment before relinquishing that he "might be able to use the kid if he was quick on his feet."</i><br />
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</div>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I swear, for the love of cheese, if you send this to an editor and she doesn't send it back to you and ask you to resubmit it <b><i>only after you learn how to write</i></b>, then she is deperate for money. Or she is planning to rip you off. Or she is going to charge you four times the normal rate. Whichever it is, she is not going to return an impeccible ready-to-publish draft to you. That would require her to write it for you.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<b><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">So learn the rules of dialogue.</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I know, I know. You did not</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">—</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><i>would not</i></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">—</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">write that. But it's a handy example that I made even worse to entertain myself.</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>Mechanics in Dialogue</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">So let's take a look at a little less terrible version of that excerpt.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">"I was wondering, mister, if you are hiring in your store." The young man uttered. The graying old gonif relinquished that he "might be able to use the kid if he was quick on his feet."</i><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">There are a few things wrong with the mechanics here:</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Punctuation/Attribution Problems</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Direct/Indirect Quote Issues</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Paragraphing</span></li>
</ul>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I mean, <b><i>among other things</i></b>.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">Punctuation/Attribution Problems</span></b></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">"I was wondering, mister, if you are hiring in your store." The young man uttered.</i></div>
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<i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b style="font-style: italic;">The Rule: </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>1. When the attribution (dialogue tag) introduces the dialogue</b>, it is followed by a comma and the dialogue begins with a capital letter. </span></div>
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<i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>Wrong:</b></span><i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> The young man uttered. </i><i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">"I was wondering, mister, if you are hiring in your store." </i></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>Right:</b></span><i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> The young man uttered, </i><i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">"I was wondering, mister, if you are hiring in your store." </i></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>2. When the attribution follows the dialogue</b>, it is preceded by a comma that replaces the period at the end of the quote and the attribution does <b><i>not</i></b> begin with a capital letter.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>Wrong:</b> </span><i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">"I was wondering, mister, if you are hiring in your store." The young man uttered.</i></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>Right:</b></span><i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> "I was wondering, mister, if you are hiring in your store," the young man uttered.</i></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></i></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>3. When the attribution interrupts the dialogue</b>, only the dialogue is in quotations with a comma separating the first half of the quote from the attribution <i>and</i> following the attribution. The second portion of the sentence does not begin with a capital letter, nor does the attribution.</span></div>
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<i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></i></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>Wrong:</b></span><i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> </i><i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> </i><i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">"I was wondering, mister, t</i><i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">he young man uttered, </i><i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">if you are hiring in your store." </i></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>Wrong: </b></span><i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">"I was wondering, mister." </i><i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The young man uttered, "I</i><i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">f you are hiring in your store." </i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> ...or whatever other weird way you can think up to screw this up. There are lots of variables in this one.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>Right:</b><i> </i></span><i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">"I was wondering, mister," t</i><i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">he young man uttered, "</i><i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">if you are hiring in your store." </i></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></i></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>Variation:</b> </i><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">If the attribution separates two complete sentences, the comma will replace the period in the first sentence, the attribution will not begin with a capital, and a period will follow the attribution. The next sentence within the quotation marks will begin with a capital.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>Like this:</b> </span><i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">"I was wondering </i><i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">if you are hiring in your store," the young man said. "I've always wanted to work here." </i></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></i></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>Any questions?</b></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></i></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">Direct/Indirect Quote Issues</span></b></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The graying old gonif relinquished that he "might be able to use the kid if he was quick on his feet."</i></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></i></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><i style="font-weight: bold;">The Rule: </i>Quotation marks signify direct dialogue. Quotation marks are not used in indirect quotes.</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><i>Indirect</i> can be thought of as a paraphrase or summary of what was said. It is not word for word as it comes out of the mouth of the character.</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">For instance, "</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I was wondering, mister," is what our boy supposedly said to the gonif. The gonif did not respond with, </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">"might be able to use the kid if he was quick on his feet." This is obvious because, if he had been talking to the kid, he would have used the pronoun <i>you</i>, rather than referring to him in third person. So...</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>Wrong:</b> </span><i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The graying old gonif relinquished that he "might be able to use the kid if he was quick on his feet."</i></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>Right:</b></span><i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> </i><i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The graying old gonif relinquished that he might be able to use the kid if he was quick on his feet.</i></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> </i><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">...or...</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>Right:</b> </span><i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The graying old gonif relinquished that he "might be able to use" the kid, but only if he was</i><i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> quick on his feet.</i></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><i> </i> ... and because this is incorporated into the sentence without a dialogue tag, there is no comma.</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>Paragraphing</b></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><i><b>The Rule:</b> </i>Each change in speaker is indicated by a new paragraph. This helps avoid confusion about who is speaking.</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>Wrong:</b><i> </i></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><i> "I was wondering, Mister. If you are hiring in your store." The young man uttered mumbling with nervousness as he looked the old man steady in the eye with determination. </i></span><i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The graying old gonif teetered on his heels for a moment before relinquishing that he "might be able to use the kid if he was quick on his feet."</i><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /><b><br /></b></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>Right:</b> </span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><i> "I was wondering, Mister. If you are hiring in your store." The young man uttered mumbling with nervousness as he looked the old man steady in the eye with determination. </i></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> The graying old gonif teetered on his heels for a moment before relinquishing that he "might be able to use the kid if he was quick on his feet."</i><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>There is so much more wrong with this terrible little excerpt beyond mechanics</b>. (The dialogue tags... ugh. Maybe we can come back to that another time.)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Now, writing good dialogue, <b>the words inside the quotation marks</b>, is something else. That's a whole other post. (Or several other posts.)</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">But if you follow the above advice, at least you understand the <i>most basic</i> mechanics of dialogue.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">You have no excuse for not knowing dialogue conventions</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">—</span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">especially after reading this.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Got it?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Okay. Thank you for listening.</span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: black; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">How are those <b>2500 words </b>coming along this week?</span></div>
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<b><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Coming in a little late? </span><a href="http://leave-the-frigging-marshmallows.blogspot.com/2015/02/write-your-novel-draft-now-are-you-ready.html" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;" target="_blank">Find out about the 13 week challenge here</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">. And </span><a href="http://leave-the-frigging-marshmallows.blogspot.com/2015/03/write-your-novel-now-week-1-activities.html" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;" target="_blank">see the first week's activities here</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">. </span></b><br />
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<br /><a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/LeaveTheFriggingMarshmallows">Subscribe</a> to get posts directly, or check back during the week of May 18th for the next installment.</b></span></span><br />
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Robin I.http://www.blogger.com/profile/17557480330363646629noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6694436301831740843.post-6654449292029038192015-05-05T18:42:00.000-07:002018-02-15T18:30:29.512-07:0013 Week Novel—Week 10: Getting Past the Slump<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Well, it's <b>Week 10</b>. We should all be close to the end.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>I'd like to take this time to remind all of us that this is not perfect. </b>It may not even be good. But it's a draft that we can work with in the revision.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0edkdZwyhJoxO3BM0l0fNKRFh1glJ5bJzDpp-pS1-fdUSS8OgDMH500-YdgSs6cKBnXGrF8jecKk5BsPv6Z8AjYVqgH59b_Q5dYB4ncp4qw8Q2d7SGEvlNgGaSGzcsNkcagMMIdW434E/s1600/9550790093_ef133fdcf9_z.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0edkdZwyhJoxO3BM0l0fNKRFh1glJ5bJzDpp-pS1-fdUSS8OgDMH500-YdgSs6cKBnXGrF8jecKk5BsPv6Z8AjYVqgH59b_Q5dYB4ncp4qw8Q2d7SGEvlNgGaSGzcsNkcagMMIdW434E/s1600/9550790093_ef133fdcf9_z.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><b style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif; font-size: small;">Is your brilliant story wilting in the middle?</b> <i><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Im</span><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">age </span></i></span><i><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">"<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/lynnfriedman/9550790093/" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Drooping Tulip</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: start;">" (</span><a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/" rel="license" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">CC BY-NC-ND 2.0</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: start;">) by </span><a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/lynnfriedman/" property="cc:attributionName" rel="cc:attributionURL" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #2780e3; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank" xmlns:cc="http://creativecommons.org/ns#">Lynn Friedman</a></span></i></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">By this point in the novel, I'm skipping scenes, or just writing summaries, or just writing something terrible that I want to erase right away. But I don't erase it. I tell people I want to delete it, but I don't delete a damned thing until I revise. Not even he worst crap.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I have fragments of things all over the place and I save them. My first draft is a huge mess.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b><i>Fine. It's fine</i></b>. (I'm quietly soothing myself.) I remind myself that my other novel wasn't messy at all and it's sitting on a hard drive, wondering if it'll ever be read by anyone again, even its author. I'm convinced this messiness is a result of complex characters pushing their way out of a bad situation. That's good. I don't need to worry. I just need to get there, to the end.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">And here's the thing: <b>how complete can the end really be until the themes and subplots have been revised?</b> I don't think it can be. I can't wrap this story up with a little golden bow until the whole story before it is refined. So I don't think I need to worry that the resolution sort of falls away right now. The resolution is the last thing.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">What I need to worry about is that I care about the characters, that they are still interesting and keeping the action of the story going.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<b><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">But how do you keep the story going when you've been writing for over two months (or two years) and you want to get to the end?</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">To answer that, I am going to look at suspense writer <a href="http://www.jamesscottbell.com/" target="_blank">James Scott Bell</a>'s, <i><a href="http://www.jamesscottbell.com/styled-7/styled-8/index.html" target="_blank">Plot & Structure</a>. </i>This is one my beloved books on writing, mainly because it's all about the stuff I tend to ignore and makes me put those things in the forefront of my mind.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">So if the purpose of this middle part is to drive the story to the climax and resolution, it needs to do so with tension and conflict, and it should raise the stakes.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Hmmn... It seems like all we're ever doing as novelists is creating tension and conflict. And hell, we've been doing it for a hundred pages already.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<b><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">So now we've got to do it in a bigger way.</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>1. Death.</b> Physical death may happen, but what we really need, especially in character driven novels, is more figurative: <b><i>psychological death. </i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b><i><br /></i></b>
Death, whether physical or psychological, should be a constant threat for the protagonist. It should follow her around and get really close.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">James Scott Bell speaks of <b><i>psychological death</i></b> in <i>Catcher in the Rye</i> this way:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<i><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">"...in that gray world, many go on a search for a reason to live. If Holden doesn't find it, he will die inside. And maybe that will lead to a physical death through suicide."</span></i><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>2. Opposition.</b> We all know we are supposed to relentlessly throw obstacles at our protagonists. But how do we know which ones work best with our story? Which will build to a climax?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Generally, the obstacles will come from an opposing force, but we, the authors, need to know our forces well.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Opposition comes in four forms: man vs. man, man vs. nature, man vs. society, and man vs. self.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b><i>Man vs. man</i></b> seems most common in literature right now. There's a reason for it. It is easier to characterize that opposition character. Most often, we need this opposing <i>character</i> so much that even man vs. society and man vs. nature take on some of the qualities of man vs. man.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b><i>Man vs. society</i></b>... hmmn... <i>Hunger Games</i>? President Snow, obviously. Then, secondarily, just about everyone else... Cato, Clove, etc. <i>The Giver</i>? Uh, yes, the Giver--the one who perpetuates a society in which no individual has the freedom to choose his own path. Secondarily, the Community.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Young adult dystopian novels seem to be the clearest example. The thing is, when you fight society, you fight specific people in that society as well as the leaders who control it. In this way, it feels natural to put a face to the opponant--even if it is a group.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b><i>Man vs. nature</i></b>. Guess what? We characterize aspects of nature similarly. Think of <i>Moby Dick</i>. This is a classic man vs. nature story. But who is the antagonist? That white whale who kills sailors, chops off Ahab's leg, and destroys ships.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I'm not going to tell you that every one man vs. society or man vs. nature creates a character to represent that entity, thus seeming much like man vs. man, but many do. So it's not a bad idea to embody your opposing force into one or several characters.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Did I leave out one?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">That's because I believe that every good novel utilizes <b><i>man vs. self</i></b>. I mean, goodness, <i>Into the Woods</i> is as much man vs. self as it is man vs. nature. Good mystery novels always have a protagonist wrestling with himself. <b><i>Man vs. self</i></b> is always, always present... or we're bored.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Okay, so now we have determined that our opposing force has characters representing it. That alone does not answer the question of what obstacles we will roll out at the feet of our protagonists.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<b><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">This does:</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The oppostion must be stronger than the protagonist. The opposition cannot be easily defeated. I know it's obvious, but even the most brilliant among us forget the obvious from time to time.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Find a way to love, to adore, to root for your opposition. If you can view the oppostion with some sympathy, the plot becomes more complicated.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Tie the protagonist and opposition together. If either of them can solve the problem of the story by walking away, then there isn't enough there. There needs to be a reason that they cannot withdraw from the action. It could be obsession, moral duty, professional duty, a life and death situation, or even a physical limitation in setting that leaves them trapped together.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Find an additional level of complication. This might mean finding a new threat in a character we didn't see as a threat before. It could mean turning the plot back on the protagonist, so that a whole new group of people becomes an opposing force. How would the larger opposing forces operate? How would they attack?</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Consider other aspects of the character's life and those people who are involved. Drag them into the trouble. Make them reveal something dark that sets the protagonist into a tailspin at just the time he doesn't have time for it.</span></li>
</ul>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">If none of this is helpful, you might be exhausted from writing. You might be suffering from a temporary lack of confidence. It's important to take care of yourself. This exhuastion might seem like an insurmountable wall, but there is a solution.</span><br />
<div>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>Take a day off.</b> A real day off. Don't go and catch up on your chores or argue with people at work. Play hooky. Go hiking, go to a beach, cook a gigantic gourmet feast, take a nap in the sun, see a movie, buid a table, go shopping, paint... whatever is fun for you. No work. No writing. Just fun. Then go to bed early and read one of your favorite writers until you fall asleep. In the morning, the first thing you should do is write and keep writing.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">That's pretty much what James Scott Bell says about getting through the middle.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">And it doesn't keep you from your <b>weekly 2500 words</b>.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">See you right here next week!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<b><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">Coming in a little late? </span><a href="http://leave-the-frigging-marshmallows.blogspot.com/2015/02/write-your-novel-draft-now-are-you-ready.html" target="_blank">Find</a></span><a href="http://leave-the-frigging-marshmallows.blogspot.com/2015/02/write-your-novel-draft-now-are-you-ready.html" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;" target="_blank"> out about the 13 week challenge here</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">. And </span><a href="http://leave-the-frigging-marshmallows.blogspot.com/2015/03/write-your-novel-now-week-1-activities.html" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;" target="_blank">see the first week's activities here</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">. </span></b><br />
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Robin I.http://www.blogger.com/profile/17557480330363646629noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6694436301831740843.post-32847921914897014552015-04-27T18:40:00.001-07:002017-05-28T17:00:41.514-07:0013 Week Novel—Week 9: The Middle <div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Yes, I know it's not the middle of 13
weeks, but it's probably the middle of your story right now. Or maybe
a little past the middle. The part where focus diffuses, where the
plot strays, where the story gets claustrophobic or entirely hijacked
by something just introduced. The part where the writer begins to
question herself. Thus, allergies kick in, stomach flu comes on, or
migraines take over.</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Excuses.</span></b></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQcUhh-44-iO4IP65TwYk6-paDMU6eA1zNT_cxMjGfYelhcpyOWvibxbTjz4cjN1bpZcRkuxoclfHxdbZNiUGoCIHN6EYtuxo5UxuKxcYKBsUTXOrHjnveNabo9f3hH9iE1SVznE6hXMs/s1600/bromo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="379" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQcUhh-44-iO4IP65TwYk6-paDMU6eA1zNT_cxMjGfYelhcpyOWvibxbTjz4cjN1bpZcRkuxoclfHxdbZNiUGoCIHN6EYtuxo5UxuKxcYKBsUTXOrHjnveNabo9f3hH9iE1SVznE6hXMs/s1600/bromo.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><b>Here's the remedy. Now get back to work.</b> <i>Image: <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/nationalmuseumofamericanhistory/11647114935/in/photolist-iKdvut-iKhuSj-fA4tsd-zuhjS-iKfpCJ-9Je4xX-64147A-23vvEm-a4rzUA-a4oJ82-a4oKkZ-a4oJHz-8Uciid-9vKXmF-9vKXh4-6x8Wvv-8U9dMt-6jvBPq-9S7t4g-4stzX1-sa7vTt-dR84i2-9HFbtq-4uzVwG-dGnf8z-2vntdu-4KinfZ-6Hwvmz-55GMjn-6a9SdZ-9vNZby-9S7rSX-9gwXLo-9gtSme-baD1Kp-dGFyr-hKUznB-dRdC4w-8Ucj1E-79K7Qd-7vcnvN-rdiU46-9S7rvP-9vKXpi-59YjqQ-9vNZiG-9SanpN-9SakQ5-9SanAo-9S7sDT" target="_blank">National Museum of American History Smithsonian</a></i></span></td></tr>
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<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I've had one of those weeks. I just
wanted to write, but stuff kept coming up and my trip back to Tucson
seemed to show up out of nowhere—even though it's the same time
each week. I pulled out of commitments but I still had no time. Then
I got sick. There aren't enough hours in the day.</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">And then, when I don't write, I lose
steam.</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>So here's a practice I've been
adopting throughout this novel and which has been quite useful in
this week of no time:</b>
</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Take a break from whatever it is that
insists it must be done and just write 300-400 words. For instance, I
teach. I cannot put it off for later. I have to be there on time.
It's more work to find someone to take over for me and to inform them
about what my students need for that day, so I just have to teach. I
also have to have a plan for teaching or I look like a bumbling
idiot. (I've tried not having a plan.) If I put the planning the
class for too long, I get stressed an unproductive with the lack of
plan looming over me.</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">But what I can do is stop for a few
minutes and write what I need for my story. Sometimes these are
notes, sometimes dialogue, sometimes a scene. I can do this several
times a day. The beauty of this is that it fits in with everything
else because it's a 15 or 20 minute blitz and when my ideas slow
down, I go back to my lesson planning or my other business. This way,
I don't have to worry about losing steam in my writing session
because it's over. Usually, no matter how sick or busy I am, I can
find a way to hide to get a few minutes in. No one needs to know what
I'm writing.</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I keep about 50 blank pages in my
calendar, so I always have something to write on, even if I don't
have my computer. Often it's better for the writing blitzes to happen
on paper because typing them into my draft allows me to re-think the
moment and allow new parts to grow.</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><b>So, for this week</b>, I've got 2500
words to write. But that's nothing with a bunch of little sessions
each day. Then I've got to reflect a little on what I have... and maybe proofread this post.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">See you next time!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Coming in a little late? </span><a href="http://leave-the-frigging-marshmallows.blogspot.com/2015/02/write-your-novel-draft-now-are-you-ready.html" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;" target="_blank">Find out about the 13 week challenge here</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">. And </span><a href="http://leave-the-frigging-marshmallows.blogspot.com/2015/03/write-your-novel-now-week-1-activities.html" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;" target="_blank">see the first week's activities here</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">. </span><br />
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Robin I.http://www.blogger.com/profile/17557480330363646629noreply@blogger.com0