TIME TO SELL SOME CLINIQUE —
*receives note*
Clinic? Not Clinique? Oh. Oh. Like, a, a… writer’s clinic. A story clinic, whatever.
Cool. I’m more of an Avon guy, anyway.
Here’s the drill, word-nerds and story-architects.
You’re writing something? Novel? Short story? Script? Etc? Let’s hear a status update. How’s it going? What problems are you having? Maybe we can all crowdsource some solutions or, at the very least, it’ll give me fodder for a future blog post. (Hey, nobody said I wasn’t at least a tiny bit lazy.) So, talk to me. What are you writing, how’s it going, and what problems are you having? Drop your answers in the comment section below. KAY THANKS BYE.
*takes off in a jetpack to battle psionic moon-bears*
Mozette says:
Fry Nelson: Book 3 is coming along fine.
But I’m stuck with the ending – I always get friggin’ stuck with the ending of books.
Help!
Okay. Fry and Raven (husband and wife Bounty Hunter team) have been turned into vampires accidentally through blood healing aliens who came to Earth when their planet popped off and had an inter-planetary change (kind of what we’re going through, but it took only 3 years to undergo… and kicked everyone off the planet and scatter them across the galaxy).
Well, Paul – Fry and Raven’s programmer – is from this planet and he’s got the power to heal these guys… but chooses not to until one day he’s forced to and – BANG! – he turns Fry! Damn! Raven’s been change before him. And now, these two have to be retrained not to kill innocent people and only to kill off criminals.
So, I’m up the last 4 chapters. Fry and Raven have been let lose in Logan City (a complete dump in 2035), and now they’re spending their first night there. What I need to know is: who do they piss off first and how do they do it? I know how they’d react… just I need help with the pushing; as usually they’re told to go out and do a job and they do it. They’re not ones to pick a fight… it’s not in their programming.
Okay… help me out… please?
February 26, 2014 — 7:11 AM
Ebony the Weirdo says:
Here’s an idea for a push: have the person piss them off first. Or have them do something that goes to personal levels. If things get personal, I’m pretty sure they would go against their programming. Maybe you should have the other guy start the fight. Maybe the job they do pisses off the other guy, who starts an argument, one of your MC’s does or says something that unintentionally offends them, and that’s where the fight begins? Pushing isn’t always intentional, you know. Sometimes instinct causes issues. Helpful?
February 27, 2014 — 12:58 PM
Mozette says:
Oohh… you’ve given me some great ideas here. Thank you so much!
I was just thinking, they could run into somebody they’ve come up against before and these people aren’t happy with them… want revenge and try to kill them… hmmm… and this is where the picking of the fight begins. 😀
Thank you again. 😀
Or they could just be hanging out in the wrong place…. you know turf wars. 🙂
February 27, 2014 — 7:52 PM
Ebony the Weirdo says:
Welcome, and true that works as well.
February 27, 2014 — 10:32 PM
Andy Cowley says:
Without fondling your onions too much Chuck, I’ve finished my first draft, and a lot of the credit for my continued motivation is this blog. The first time I’ve got to the end of one. My files are littered with unfinished, mutant-story-spawn, and this is the first one that has been given a heart.
I’m currently in a two-stage review process. I’m reading it, on my Kindle on the train, with a notebook and scrawling all the bits that are bollocks and need changing. I’m also following it up a few days later with an actual edit.
So far so good.
So what’s the difference? I think, for the first time, I don’t feel like I’m out on my own, sitting in a field of people doing awesome stuff and wishing they’d throw a Frisbee to me. I just walked in there with a bottle of gin and started hurling abuse and stealing Frisbees.
I also started, mainly for my own records, to write down stuff I was learning in a blog: http://infinitegibbons.wordpress.com This allows me to practice writing stuff that ain’t fiction, but also to remember shit I’m learning. Two stones with but the one bird as it were, time is short kids.
Thanks Chuck
February 26, 2014 — 7:14 AM
Alli says:
So, writing a novel. Got stuck a bit on scene so took some time to do research which sort of sidelined me for a few weeks. When getting back to the narrative I was like wha??? Nothin, nada,
*me staring at blank screen*
So I was like forget it. I’ll write a short story, something totally different. I went off on that for 3 days and it was like magic, man. Suddenly I was back to novel all kinds of things clicking.
Moral – keep writing, even if it’s something else. Sometimes the brain needs a rest from the constant beating of the same drum.
February 26, 2014 — 7:17 AM
bethraymond says:
I also tend to lose my way after spending too much time down the research rabbit-hole. I need to take your advice about writing something else when getting stuck–it’s far better than not writing anything at all.
February 26, 2014 — 10:36 AM
terribleminds says:
An interesting tactic. And shows how each writer really is his or her own creature — when I deviate from a work to work on something else, even short-term, it’s very difficult to come back to the original work.
February 26, 2014 — 10:50 AM
Gaie Sebold says:
I love switch-hitting – I don’t generally do it in a planned way, just shift whenever I get a funky idea for one of my ongoing projects, or wake up overnight with one particular story jumping up and down in my brain, yelling – or, when I’m logjammed on a particular story. It means I get something done, even if it’s not on the current project. This does not apply when I’m on deadline, however – or at least didn’t the last time since I was a *teensy* bit (i.e. about 2 months’ work) behind where I should have been, so it was a case of just getting head down and getting on. (The getting behind wasn’t due to working on other things, just due to life stuff which was making it hard to work on anything at all). Generally I find project-switching productive, and there can be a very useful cross-feed of ideas from one project to another. But whether it works for you I think depends both on how much available time you have and how your brain works. I know a few people who find it just doesn’t work for them. I would say it’s worth experimenting with, though, if you haven’t tried it before.
February 27, 2014 — 6:04 AM
Pat says:
Thanks for the invite, Chuck!
Writing my first novel. 53,000 words into it. I have no flipping clue what genre it is. It started as paranormal romance, but took a hard left into urban fantasy & erotic horror. Is there a genre I am not aware of that encompasses this type of thing?
I love the story and am having big fun writing it. Just don’t know how it would be marketed when & if I can get someone interested in publishing.
I also would love the name of a professional, reputable and not scary expensive editing organization. Can anyone offer that without endorsement legal craziness?
Thanks for the space to ask questions. Thank you for your writing advice books.
Much Respect! -P.
February 26, 2014 — 7:22 AM
obsidianpoet says:
Proofeditcheck.com is my editor. She is really good. She has done lots of books and not just mine. She is fair on pricing. Editing is one of the few things I actually have someone do. It is well worth it. Just gotta find the one you can work best with. Good luck!
February 26, 2014 — 7:40 AM
Charles Harvey says:
How can she afford to do work at those prices? Sounds great, but what’s her turnaround time?
February 26, 2014 — 9:58 AM
obsidianpoet says:
For me it was usually a week or so, but those were shorter things. Just email her and I am sure she would be able to give you a range of time for what you have. Her prices are pretty much on par with other freelance editors. She does do some publishing company work as well. The first thing you should do with any prospective is to contact them and see what vibes you get from their emails.
February 26, 2014 — 10:25 AM
Pat says:
Thank you for your response! I will definitely check into this. Best wishes for your continued success. -P
February 27, 2014 — 9:09 AM
terribleminds says:
I’m sure an editor or two might be listening!
As for genre — at least during writing it, I wouldn’t worry too much. Just get the book down, and when it comes time to sell the book to an agent or to readers directly, maybe pick one and go with it. 🙂
February 26, 2014 — 10:51 AM
Pat says:
Thank you for the response! Will do… -P
February 27, 2014 — 9:18 AM
Mark Matthews says:
I am writing an urban horror story based in Detroit (where I am from), told in fast, flash-fiction like chapters. Angel is ten years old, born with a heart defect, and it is only the heroin her neighbor gave her that gives any relief. Her mother is gone from her life, and there are rumors that she was killed by her father and is buried in the abandoned burnt-out house across the street. The house intrigues her, she can’t stay away, and she develops a friendship with the monstrous looking homeless man who squats inside.
The help I need? I am trying to write ‘ghosts’ and spirits into the story without sounding tacky. It isn’t easy, and I have too many of them. (lots of peeps did die on that street). And I’m trying to take the first person perspective of a ten year old girl living in extreme poverty. Making her sound too old or too young is the problem, but going third person makes it seem too impersonal.
It is actually “inspired” by a true story. The setting is a street I visited as a social worker. I did a home visit to a family where the mother told the child more than once “you should be grateful. I could have had an abortion..” In some ways, I think the whole thing is my revenge fantasy against the mother, and empowering the ten year old to thrive and survive in the incredible true horror she was born in.
February 26, 2014 — 7:22 AM
Sabrina Howard says:
Hmmm… What you’re asking for is help with stylistic things. For ghosts, just think “I will not do all that cheesy crap that they do in bad horror movies and ‘Paranormal Activity,’ such as the radio where a ghost’s voice can be heard.” You could always try a more fantasy-esque approach to spirits, where they a) live in another realm or parallel universe or b) all converge on the main character with their problems.
As for the perspective, I know what you mean about the impersonality of third person; my medieval fantasy novel-in-progress started out in third person, but then I opted for first person in order to flesh out the protagonist’s personality, and his struggles at home. Of course, since I am an indesicive (insert whatever word you deem necessary here), I reverted BACK to third person again so I could easily switch perspectives. All I can say is, it depends on what kind of story you want to tell.
It sounds like a great idea for a book! Keep up the good work.
Good luck!
Sabrina Jade Howard
February 26, 2014 — 7:42 AM
Gina Rinelli says:
I just wanted to say that sounds like a great idea for a story!
It popped into my head that she wasn’t sure if the ghosts were really there or if they were a hallucination from the drugs…
February 26, 2014 — 9:04 AM
Michael Patrick Hicks says:
Hey Mark,
I think that if you can build up enough character information and sell readers on the truthiness of her and the world she occupies, you can make the haunted aspects a natural outgrowth of that atmosphere without sounding tacky. I’m thinking kind of a slow-burn approach and doling out the ghosts and spirits piecemeal rather than an upfront, in-your-face assault.
That said, I’m looking forward to seeing how this story turns out! I’m from the Detroit-area, too, and it’s definitely a perfect setting for urban horror. Keep plugging away and good luck!
February 26, 2014 — 9:14 AM
terribleminds says:
First person might actually make it easier to not be tacky. You can rely on the value of showing instead of telling — think of how certain FPS games handle this.
February 26, 2014 — 10:54 AM
mikes75 says:
I hesitate to suggest this, because it might be a totally wrong direction for what your doing or hurt the immediacy you’re trying for, but to the point about seeming too old or young, have you thought about adding a frame where she’s recounting the story later in life? Establishing the story with a prologue/epilogue as a remembrance, at least while still in draft form, might get you past the doubts about her voice. You might decide it’s not necessary later, but at least now it might get you past any self-consciousness about her voice.
February 26, 2014 — 11:27 AM
R. Dale Guthrie says:
For the ghosts, think “imaginary frienemies”, assuming only the girl, or a select few others can see them. Instead of them interacting too tangibly with the real world, have them question her, console her, intimidate her, and occasionally, if she helps them with their ghostly business, some useful object is left behind when the ghost fades away. For a bad ghost, maybe it leaves behind contaminated heroine, for instance…
I like the idea of past-tense first person. You can frame it as a retelling of her tale, so that if she seems too old or young sometimes, it can be attributed to the narrator miss-remembering her own past self.
February 26, 2014 — 2:40 PM
slayitalldown says:
I am constantly foiled by a lack of self-confidence, the more I learn the more inadequate I feel to the point where I am either a sobbing ball of emotion or a fiery blaze of bitchy emails admonishing myself. I can’t bear to put down an ill-used word in an original fic but will blast fanfic out in a fit of spite and post for the giddy rush of hitting the ‘publish’ button. I think I have ‘perfect precious original fiction syndrome’. Are we any closer to a pharmaceutical-grade life-hack?
February 26, 2014 — 7:31 AM
Alexis says:
I completely stalled out for 2 months stuck in a thick pudding of self-doubt. Don’t ask me how but somehow I embraced it. I can’t silence the screaming doubt, but I can live with it. For me I came to the conclusion that I would rather have a book out, even if it’s a huge failure, get’s terrible reviews, and is a crushing embarrassment (because honestly, isn’t that what the fear is all about?) than NOT finish. So now I’m pushing on. Not sure if that helps but there you go.
February 26, 2014 — 9:18 AM
smithster says:
I know those feels too, and way too well : / But I’ve also come to the realization that it’s better to try, even if you fail, than to never know whether you could have succeeded. Besides, for all the blood, sweat, and tears that go into my stories, I have SO much fun writing them 🙂
Important thing to remember for me – it’s never going to be perfect, and that’s okay. I figure if I thought I had written something perfect, I’d either stop trying to improve, and therefore suck at it, or feel like I could never do that again, which would be depressing. Doubt is important because it keeps you trying to do better. The trick is to keep it from paralyzing you, and to that end I aim for improvement rather than perfection.
February 26, 2014 — 11:00 AM
terribleminds says:
Some thoughts:
http://terribleminds.com/ramble/2012/07/31/ask-a-writer-in-which-i-exhort-you-to-care-less/
February 26, 2014 — 10:56 AM
obsidianpoet says:
My problem? Finding the time to write. I am one of those creative mood types that can’t just sit down to write my fantasy stuff if I ain’t feeling it. You got any magic time stop devices? Between the day job and my small human I don’t get stuff done. But I could use a few opinions from real folks…since we have ebooks these days do consumers expect a certain number of words or do they just want an entertaining story? I have just been striving to write the story till it is done. Sometimes that gives me a novella and sometimes a novel. All the info I read out there seems biased one way or another. Just curious 🙂
February 26, 2014 — 7:31 AM
David Glynn says:
See, you answered your own question!
February 26, 2014 — 7:48 AM
Rowan says:
For me, I just say I need to write 1,000 words per day. Whether that means I will write 1,000 great words or 1,000 shitty words, I still write them. The editing gets the shittiness out. More often than not, I write 999 shitty words and one gem.
February 26, 2014 — 8:36 AM
Brittany says:
I think you’re doing the right thing – write until your story is complete. Don’t worry about length, especially if it’s your first draft. You need to get the story out, first, or it will never find it’s way to the page!
Sometimes, you just have to force yourself to sit down and write. Some of the best advice that I’ve heard from another author (Marissa Meyer), was to sit down, even if you don’t feel like writing, and strive to make a silly goal, such as writing a sentence. Most of the time, that sentence will turn into another sentence, and so on, and, even if it doesn’t, well, look, you wrote something! Go take a nap and try again in a bit.
As for having a little human – is there anyone who might want to spend a few hours with them one or two days a week? Pass them off to a grandparent/aunt/uncle/good friend for a few hours a week and dedicate that time *specifically* to writing.
February 26, 2014 — 8:45 AM
Tami Veldura says:
I have Evernote installed on my computer and my phone specifically for this reason. I’ve written whole short stories through evernote over time. The key is to open evernote instead of a game/facebook/twitter/news/tumblr when you have 5 minutes you’re waiting for something.
You may even find that you have more time than you thought, you’re just spending it on facebook or something and not realizing it.
My biggest time-sink was twitter, just reading through my stream. I wasn’t even tweeting!
February 26, 2014 — 3:03 PM
Gaie Sebold says:
It took me years to learn this, but it’s true – don’t wait for the muse. She’ll turn up – but only if you do. She may be pissed off at you for a while, but if you prove you’re willing to put the time in, even if it’s ten minutes, she’ll be there. Lunchtime at your job, or on your commute, or before work, or waiting for appointments or waiting for the soup to heat, or whenever. Even five minutes is worth it.
February 27, 2014 — 6:20 AM
Kaleb Russell says:
I’ve been working on this fanfic, A Rising Star, I’m about three chapters into it and and I’m totally stuck! I know I should plot it, but I’m not sure how. I don’t even know where to start. Please help me.
February 26, 2014 — 7:32 AM
curiouskermit says:
I’m a “pantser” at heart, but I’ve realized I need to do more outlining, just for my own sanity. Do you mean outlining, when you say you should plot it? Chuck talked about a “tent pole” method of outlining which I really like. You only outline the pivotal moments that must happen. Maybe if you give this a try it’ll help you get unstuck and move ahead.
February 26, 2014 — 12:31 PM
Kaleb Russell says:
Thanks for the advice!
February 26, 2014 — 8:26 PM
Kaleb Russell says:
But what exactly could I type in the search engine? I tried typing in “Tent Pole”, but nothing relating to outlining came up. Any other key words?
February 26, 2014 — 8:42 PM
Tami Veldura says:
I generally start all of my stories without a solid plan, but at some point the initial idea wears out and I’m not sure where to go with it. (right about where you are now) At that point I start a bullet list.
-scene one
-scene two
-scene three
No more than a few sentences. I try and specify exactly what has changed (since the def. of a scene is -something changes- be that plot or character). Eventually you catch up to where you’re stuck, but at that point you know a few things. Maybe you know major-climactic-event-number-3, throw it into a bullet point a little way down the page. Maybe you know MC-2-kisses-MC-1 at some point in the first act: put it on a bullet.
Fill things in on your best guess on where they belong, give yourself some time to do this. Maybe a day or two of good focus. Eventually, though, you’ll run out of steam here, too.
Step two is to take a look at the first gap in your bullet points. Take a look at the points on either side of this gap and ask, what one thing needs to change to get from A to B?
Make that a bullet point between the two. Now it’s not a perfect bridge, maybe you need more points between A and your new A.5, but just ask the same question. What one thing needs to change to get my characters from A to A.5? Write a bullet point. Repeat as necessary
This feels less like creative inspiration is winging through your fingers and more like work. Your flights of creativity will come back when you start drafting again.
February 26, 2014 — 3:12 PM
Kaleb Russell says:
Thanks for the advice! I’ll try it.
February 26, 2014 — 8:33 PM
curiouskermit says:
Tami – I really like your advice, I’m going to print that out and keep it. =)
Kaleb – I found this post of Chuck’s that has lots of good stuff:
http://terribleminds.com/ramble/2013/05/14/25-things-you-should-know-about-outlining/
February 27, 2014 — 9:13 AM
Tami Veldura says:
Steal it, spread it around, alter as you think you need to! I’m heavily left brained so the bullet-list makes me feel all organized when, in fact, half the outline is blank. 😀
February 27, 2014 — 2:48 PM
Tami Veldura says:
It’s the method that works for me, ymmv, but I hope it’s worth a shot!
February 27, 2014 — 2:47 PM
David Glynn says:
Stalled utterly at 87,000 words, all enthusiasm gone. Sucks ass is what it does.
February 26, 2014 — 7:44 AM
J Crosby says:
Been There. So has Gaiman: http://nanowrimo.org/pep-talks/neil-gaiman
February 26, 2014 — 8:12 AM
Anthony Laffan says:
at 87k you should be almost done. Maybe go back and find what made you love the story in the first place? Write a short story about a distantly related to your MC character? Shift perspective? You’re almost there. Don’t give up now!
February 26, 2014 — 10:12 AM
Arabella says:
I’ve just started a YA contemporary fantasy about a girl training to work with the Horsemen of the Apocalypse. I’m about 7,000 words in and I’ve got a love it/hate it thing going on. There are parts I really like and parts that make me want to stab the manuscript. Buuuuut…. that’s what rewrites are for 🙂
The only real problem I’m having is settling into the rhythm of the book. I reckon by about 10,000 words I’ll have hit my stride. Fingers crossed 🙂
February 26, 2014 — 7:45 AM
Michael E. Henderson says:
Training to work with the 4 Horsemen? I thought they pretty much had it covered. Just kidding. I read it that she was working to train the horses. That sounds interesting, and I’m sure the 4 Horsemen can be real bastards to work for.
February 26, 2014 — 7:55 AM
A Citizen of the World says:
So I am writing this YA novel – my first novel… YAY! – that has been germinating in me for the past 15 years. It’s all shards of stories that I’m pulling together and I’m having fun writing it.
My issue is: Because I work long hours, I’ve discovered that writing it out scene by scene is the most manageable approach for me. HOWEVER, I don’t write those scenes in the order in which they appear in the story because I write what my creative juices dictate I write whenever I sit down.
So my question is: What’s the best way to get them organised and stitched together in the order in which they flow in the plot? I mean – what’s the best way to build “connective tissue” scenes as it were. I have an outline but the scenes are amassing like mushrooms in a dark, dank corner of Storyville…
I suspect I might end up with a Rubrik’s Cube of scenes to sort out and an almight headache to go with it…
February 26, 2014 — 7:51 AM
Mozette says:
I had this problem with one of my first novels… and it’s a real bitch, isn’t it?
I was working full time and had my weekends filled with seeing my friends I didn’t have the energy to see during the week… and when I didn’t want to do that, I was editing and trying to pull together what I had written in long-hand over my lunchours into something manageable.
What I did was get out what I’ve written each day and type it up on your computer, iPad or table in an app called ‘Notebooks’… you can use this cool little app for just about anything, have as many pages as you like and it’s easy to use. Each page could be a chapter and you can edit, add and change whatever you need as you go along… I found mine for free on PlayStore for my Acer Android, and it’s great! 😀
Otherwise, you can do the same thing on your laptop at home on Word 7, just under a different format.
February 26, 2014 — 7:58 AM
A Citizen of the World says:
Yup, it’s a pain-in-the-arse in the making!
Thanks for the tip! Will look into the “Notebooks” app for sure as I’ve an Android phone too 🙂
I suspect I’ll still be writing lots of connecting/bridging scenes and inwardly cussing at myself about it in the not-too-distant future 🙂
February 26, 2014 — 8:05 AM
Brittany says:
I’ve heard a lot of people really like Evernote, as a free option, or Scrivener, which is something like $40. I have Scrivener and I adore the poop out of it – it’s such a great piece of software. If you participate in National Novel Writing Month (Nanowrimo!), and beat your 50k, you get a 50% discount code for Scriv.
Both programs function somewhat similarly, but Evernote isn’t made to be a writing software. It’s missing a lot of the basic writing functions, but it’s easy to organize. Scrivener has a bit of a learning curve, not much, and it comes with preset “templates” to help you write and organize based on your writing type (novel, short fic, screenplay, etc).
February 26, 2014 — 8:49 AM
kaytee says:
Oh yes, this. Random scenes that need to come together somehow. I had to write a list of scenes and then rearrange them into the correct order, then fill in the blanks. I needed to rewrite a lot because scenes overlapped, things happened twice, things happened in the wrong order etc etc. I did get through it eventually and make it all make sense, but it was hard work.
After I had this problem with my first novel, I tried to do a proper outline for my second novel… and it didn’t work. I can’t think through the whole story that far in advance. Does this get easier? :-/
February 26, 2014 — 9:01 AM
Eileen says:
A bulletin board could be your new best friend. Write a 1-2 line description of each scene on an index card, and then tack them up in order on your bulletin board. With your whole story laid out in front of you, you can easily see where the holes are. When you have an idea for how to connect things, jot it down on a new index card and put it where it needs to go. For me, it’s a stress-free way to work out plot issues. Don’t like the way scenes are flowing? Switch some index cards around. Don’t like a scene? Rip the index card into confetti and write a better idea on a new card. You can even color-code the cards to easily see major character arcs and themes. (Trust me, you can waste hours playing with index cards if you so desire.) Then, once you finish moving things around, you’ll have the complete road map for your novel right in front of your face. You don’t have to spend a fortune on a giant bulletin board; they sell 12×12 corkboard squares in packages of four for just a few bucks. Good luck with your story!
February 26, 2014 — 10:02 AM
Justine says:
This is where Scrivener is so helpful. Each “file” in Scriv can be a scene (that’s how I use it). You write a short description of the scene on a “notecard,” then there’s a cork board feature for you to rearrange the scenes at will, and Scriv automatically rearranges the files in your “binder” (file manager) based on your cork board. Such a huge time saver.
February 26, 2014 — 10:32 AM
bethraymond says:
Fully agree–Scrivener’s cork board feature is awesome for writing and organizing at the scene level. I could not write without it.
February 26, 2014 — 10:40 AM
A Citizen of the World says:
Thanks for the advice, Eileen! I’ll try this because right now, I’m even contemplating sticking 1 sentence plot summaries in an Excel spreadsheet (shudder!) to get plot order under control!
This sounds like a more organic way of doing it!
February 26, 2014 — 7:57 PM
Bran Mydwynter (@mydwynter) says:
I work on some projects this way (by scene, assembled later to make a zero draft), and Scrivener is a godsend. The way it’s set up, moving scenes around is as easy as clicking and dragging, and then if you need to write connective tissue all you have to do is add a new scene in between existing ones.
Software to the rescue.
February 26, 2014 — 11:03 AM
A Citizen of the World says:
Hi Justine, Beth Raymond and Bran:
Ah!!! I have heard of Scrivener and one of my friends using it (she’s almost at the end of her first draft) is raving about it!
I will look into it – $40 is not too much to pay for preserving my sanity…
February 26, 2014 — 7:59 PM
Wulfie says:
Don’t know if you did a NaNo, but if you did, you get a half off coupon for scrivener.
February 26, 2014 — 8:04 PM
A Citizen of the World says:
Thanks for the heads up!
Unfortunately, I don’t do NaNoWriMo because I’m not a fast writer and my day job has insanely long hours (I write for an hour or so every night before bedtime – only time available for me to even hear myself think…). So I decided to forgo NaNoWriMo.
In any case, at the rate my scenes are mushrooming, it probably can’t wait for November 🙂
February 27, 2014 — 12:57 AM
Jenni Cornell says:
I am in the editing phase and having trouble finding a good beta reader. I have given it to numerous people and get back a few generic comments. How to find the good beta reader. I am also struggling with my own newbie knowledge of what to keep and what to throw away. I hear a lot about story arcs, but I am unclear for what I should be looking. It’s a mystery, so how do I know if I have misled and red-herringed enough? How do I tangle the trail more? In a way, I want the answer in front of the readers face and they don’t recognize it. That’s the magic, huh?
February 26, 2014 — 7:53 AM
A Citizen of the World says:
If your book is a Fantasy, YA, or Science Fiction book, you could try joining the Science Fiction Fantasy Chronicles forum: http://www.sffchronicles.co.uk/forum/
It’s free to join and they have a very active section for writers – plenty of constructive, pull-no-punches critique going on but they usually only do critiques on excerpts. You might be able to connect with folks who will be willing to beta read for you though.
The only drawback is that you’ll have to have 30 posts before you can access the critiquing boards.
Good luck!
February 26, 2014 — 8:09 AM
RSAGARCIA says:
Hi, Jenni. If you seriously want help, and you don’t mind a free month and a few bucks a year, I’d recommend the Online Writing Workshop for Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror, or the OWW, as members call it. Aside from the fact that members are at all levels–just starting out to many times published–and they give valuable critiques behind a firewall that doesn’t mess with your first edition rights, you can post one thing of no more than 7,500 immediately during your free month. After that, you get points that you use for posting–one point for each review you do, with four needed to post. You can post as many times as you want during the free month, though there is a limit on the number of posts up at a time. Though I’d tell you, you learn SO MUCH MORE critiquing than you ever will by getting reviews. The OWW has had a lot of members go on to success, such as Elizabeth Bear, Ilona Andrews, Jim Butcher and the recent guest editor for the Magazine of SF&F, CC Finlay to name a tiny few. You can also check out Critters, who do all genres, I think and are free, but you do have to do a few full novel critiques before they’ll look at yours. Hope that helps!
February 26, 2014 — 8:22 AM
Anthony Laffan says:
I’m looking into this now, thanks. Also, for the lazy: http://sff.onlinewritingworkshop.com/index.shtml
February 26, 2014 — 10:15 AM
itsfamilyjules says:
Thanks for this!
February 26, 2014 — 10:55 AM
RSAGARCIA says:
Ack! Thanks Anthony! I should have posted that myself instead of wasting words lol 🙂
February 26, 2014 — 11:01 AM
Jenni Cornell says:
Thank you for this advice. I dont think the first group would be interested in me, but I will check out Critters. Thanks again!
February 26, 2014 — 11:52 PM
Wulfie says:
I’m having this same problem. I don’t just want a BR I want a Critique Partner where we swap things back and forth. So far every time I’ve connected with someone it’s been a one-way relationship as the person gets busy with edits or other projects or doesn’t have time. They usually don’t even ask about seeing my work. HELLO?!
I favor horror, urban fantasy, anything paranormal, not into contemporary romances or erotica. If you’d like to talk about working together my email is: wulfshado (at) gmail (dot) com. Maybe we could work out something.
February 26, 2014 — 2:07 PM
Dave Higgins says:
I am rewriting the first draft of a vampire novel (a vampire novel, written by me rather than just randomly redoing someone else’s, which would bring its own problems).
I am concurrently final polishing a short-story collection for publication at start of next month, which – while it could be – isn’t a drag on the rewrite.
The rewritten draft is so far tighter and other good adjectives, and has even more feasible character behaviour (for added contrast with the supernaturalness of vampires). However, the tightening is really dropping the word count. Assuming the current reduction is representative, it will come in at approximately 60,000 words.
This seems a touch light. So my dilemma is whether to finish the entire rewrite and then assess, or stop and outline an expansion to one or more subplots while I am still close enough to the start it does not require major surgery to set things up.
February 26, 2014 — 7:54 AM
terribleminds says:
60k is a bit light, but doable — I’d say get all the way through it and then you’ll have a complete picture?
February 26, 2014 — 10:59 AM
Dave Higgins says:
That was my initial thought; especially as ebooks have weakened – if not destroyed – the line between novella and novel, having enough words to meet a publisher’s thoughts on spine width is less vital.
February 26, 2014 — 11:19 AM
Barbara Forte Abate says:
I have only just sent my pages off to my flashy new editor (as in less than 24 hrs) ago) who will respond that my shiny new novel is nearly painful in Brilliance, or very painful in crapiness. So um, I’m clearing my brain of crumbs and getting ready to work on baking the next cake to avoid obsessing over that possible B or C grade, even as I’m hoping for an A :-).
February 26, 2014 — 7:54 AM
Kay Camden says:
I feel your pain. This waiting is the worst. Sorry, I don’t have any advice. Except to be near a large stuffed object when you get your pages back covered in red marks so you can either have something to punch, or have something to bury your face in and weep. Depending on what kind of person you are.
February 26, 2014 — 9:28 AM
tyrovogel says:
the cards are laid
now it’s too late
the night is over
morning time
another week
another Wednesday
another hope
a dream
for luck
fuck
for feeling
for that romantic touch
for this semantic curiosity
unrhymable monstrosity
of which’s been written much
love
a girl’s skin’s magic touch
however the cards dealt
whatever she had felt
she’d read inside the cards
and so did he
astrology
is not a science fact
it’s science fiction
it has friction
a certain résonance
in magic cards seanse
it has … mmm …. ambiance
in a way, it is cosmology
the search
for origins
of stars
it’d be nice to know
we’re only alive once
cliché, my friend, but true
please play
Gemini Rue
a good game
quite intelligent
i thank you for your time
for my unsolicited rhyme
it’s time for coffee
& the world
of my imagination
3,000 words
2,000 to go
i have 1 hour
i’m a procrastinator
OH NO
:)
February 26, 2014 — 7:54 AM
Michael Patrick Hicks says:
I’m working on my second novel, a follow-up to my just-released CONVERGENCE. I’m on track to make my monthly goal of 25,000 words, so yay! I started working on the first draft Feb. 4 with a goal of writing at least 1,000 words a day. If I miss a day (and have, three days now), I do my damnedest to spread out the missing thousand over the next few days, plus a little extra. This way, if I can get 1600 words across the next two days, I’m coming out a little bit ahead.
My biggest problem has been time management. As a married, full-time office monkey, there’s not enough hours in the day to accommodate all the time I would like to spend writing. I’ve been able to carve out some free time during the work day and before or after, plus weekends, to meet my goals, but only just. I think that by keeping my daily writing goals modest and consistent, that in and of itself has been a terrific boon towards meeting them. Because I know I can do it, I do it. If I had told myself I need to write 5,000 words today, it’d never happen; not even by half. It’d be too much of an unreachable target. But, 1,000 words is realistic, and I often go over it.
February 26, 2014 — 8:02 AM
Kay Camden says:
“My biggest problem has been time management. As a married, full-time office monkey, there’s not enough hours in the day to accommodate all the time I would like to spend writing.”
Me too. God, me too.
February 26, 2014 — 9:29 AM
joeturner87 says:
Firstly I’d like to say; my name is Joe, and I’m a writaholic, I write every day, and no matter how hard I try, I just can’t stop. Oh wait, it’s not that sort of clinic?
Oh okay, well then, since I’m here, can you take a look at this – (begins to undo trousers). Oh, not that sort either? 🙁
To the point!
I’m currently working a short story I did for one of your flash fiction challenges, into a novel. I told myself I would finish it, it’ll be my first completed novel, no matter how bad, I would reach the end. I’m still holding strong on that promise, but I am having just a couple of minor “problems”.
Firstly; Length. Very mature of you to snigger, but no, not that. I don’t know if it’ll be much longer than a novella, which means, in terms of technicalities, I still wouldn’t have finished a novel! I realise, perhaps in the course of writing, new avenues will avert themselves, and hopefully make it somewhat longer (see it’s the first novel I’ve ‘properly’ planned, so I kinda ‘know’ the length – stop laughing!)
Second; Bored! Sounds terrible, but the truth is, the story is boring me, perhaps because I’ve plotted it, a symptom I had always found with plotting, hence banging my head against the wall with pantsing, which was clearly working. I chose this particular story because I had so many whirling round my mind, it became overwhelming, and I spent months doing fuck all due to indecision, and this story felt the most formed, because it was a previous flash fiction piece. So right now – granted the more action orientated is yet to be written – I’m bored, and if it’s boring me, chances are, it’ll completly melt the brains of potential readers.
I know some days can feel like this, and others I believe the story has potential, these are part of the package of writing, and a lot can be sorted on a second draft, and a lot more can be sorted on the third, and fourth, and fifth, and finally if it’s still not sorted there’s always the gasoline draft. I could have worse issue, but you asked for problems, and at current, these are mine.
Thanks Chuck.
February 26, 2014 — 8:05 AM
terribleminds says:
Sometimes writing is like a magic trick — outlining or not-outlining still involves a level of practice and perfection, and it’s vital to find a way not to be bored by that, lest you become bored with rewrites, too. For me outlining fails to capture the real power of a novel — which is to say, little character interactions, descriptions, metaphors, the way a scene plays out. Outlines are just bullet points of event, plot, BOB DOES THIS, MARY GOES HERE. It doesn’t rob the magic from the story anymore than a travel itinerary robs the majesty of actual travel — but it’s also possible you’ve overoutlined or burned out on the book. Hard to say because, as noted, every writer is different!
February 26, 2014 — 11:03 AM
joeturner87 says:
It’s nice to hear from a professional on these matters, and your points help, but perhaps I wasn’t entirely clear, I’m not bored by writing, just currently bored by this particular story, which I’ll have to sort.
Once again, thanks for taking time to reply, I know you must be busy and I appreciate it.
Thanks!
February 26, 2014 — 2:25 PM
Louise says:
Working on a novel, but that’s not the problem (it’s got, like, a 1000 words, it’s still adorable and tiny and I haven’t had to get out the flame thrower yet). The problem is I’m getting ready to bury another short story and the short story graveyard is looking a little full, with short story zombies all over the place. And that one short story that made it out of the graveyard, I have dissected it and can’t work out what made it work where the other gzillion don’t.
I’m trying to give up on short stories altogether – go cold turkey on them – because, clearly, not everyone is good at short stories. And that one story that’s all, hey, I have wings and I am mocking you from the skies, is clearly not representative.
The other option was to find some kind of course or a critique group or something, but from a practical sense, that’s not likely to happen right now.
Anyway, how do I stop writing short stories? Because I keep telling myself, the next story will work. Obviously it will. This idea is the most fantastic and shiny thing ever. It will fly and leave the zombies all staring up at it in wonder. When they see it, they’ll shake their heads and go back to their graves and be silent for the rest of time.
And then it fails. Something about it, something no one can actually identify, just doesn’t work.
So, I need to end this cycle of loathing and focus on my novel. Or, you know, give up altogether on this writing thing. Yes, everyone says just keep at it, and everyone goes through this (I know that, so even this post is starting to look less and less like a good idea), but surely there’s a point at which to stop, at which no matter how hard I try, I’m never going to get any better at this. But how to know when that is, and how to stop if I’ve reached it? Is there some kind of app that will stop me submitting these dreadful works of fiction to long-suffering editors?
See, I can’t even write short blog post replies.
February 26, 2014 — 8:07 AM
Maure says:
I have to say this – I started grinning while reading through your comment, so it looks like you have a pretty engaging writing style. 🙂
Short stories are weird. I have a difficult relationship with them, where I write them partially and then forget about them and they starve before I get back and then I dump them in a different folder because I can’t remember what I meant to do with them, or I write them all in a rush but they’re disturbing or fizzle out at the end or feel too neatly ended, or… you get the picture. Can’t seem to stop writing them, though.
February 26, 2014 — 11:34 AM
Louise says:
Haha 🙂 As all my rejections go – well-written story, plot a total disaster.
I do *read* a lot of short stories, which I thought would help, but turns out not so much…They’re kind of addictive aren’t they? That’s the trouble.
February 26, 2014 — 3:17 PM
Valerie Valdes (@valerievaldes) says:
I think the allure of short stories, in a sense, is the instant gratification. You get an idea, you write it, and BAM! Story. It’s not like a novel, where you write and write and oh my god, I’m still writing, when will this be over? You can show it off to people and not have to worry about explaining that, okay, this is chapter 15 and before this a bunch of stuff has happened and… At the same time, this can also lead to short stories becoming disposable like tissue paper. You can make a masterpiece out of it, but mostly you use it and trash it and move on.
So, deep question: what do you really want? Do you want to write better short stories? Do you want to write novels instead? Do you want someone to tell you it’s okay to write short stories that never go anywhere and are just for funsies? Do you genuinely want to stop writing and take up some other hobby, like gardening or spelunking?
Let’s go in order of easy answers. It’s super easy to give up and move on. All it requires is that you not write. It’s okay to not write. A very limited number of people will be affected if you stop, mostly you. We can talk about how you’re depriving the world of your stories and stuff, and while true, the world won’t miss what it never had. But again, is that REALLY what you want? I doubt it.
Is it okay to write short stories for fun? Of course. Writing can be fun. It’s like sex that way. Or masturbation. Whatever. The point is, if you just want to write a thing and you enjoy doing it, there’s no requirement that you show it to anyone else, or edit it, or do anything but bask in the afterglow. So if all you need is someone to give you permission to do a thing that you like, then voila. Permission granted.
If you want to write novels instead, that’s okay, too. We all have a limited amount of time to work with, and we have to make choices about what we do with that time. If you write 350 words a day, a la Chuck’s method, then you have to decide whether that will be 350 words of short fiction or long form. At that pace, you can write roughly one novel a year, or roughly 20 short stories. As a wise Myke Cole once told me, there aren’t many people out there building a career or making a name for themselves on short fiction. So if that’s where you want to go, novels are the car to take you there.
If you want to write better short stories, it won’t be easy, but you have many options. Classes. Critique groups. Books on writing. You have to really internalize the notion that writing this stuff is as much work as writing novels. That shiny idea you mentioned is just an egg, really. You have to learn to sit on something a while after you write it instead of getting super excited and kicking it out of the nest like a newborn bird–it will not fly, as you already know. You have to learn how to take a thing apart and put it back together so that it works, to build the mechanical bird that flies instead of flopping around on your table. You have to learn how to take rejection, grit your teeth and keep submitting. Don’t worry about the suffering of the editors too much; they’re doing their job. Worry about sending them something worth reading. Worry about your bird, not the color of the sky.
I say all this as someone who almost stopped writing recently because of a really rough critique of a story I poured my soul into. It sucks like a Dyson. But I dug around in the pockets of my soul and came up with enough change to get my ass back on the train to Writertown, population: People Who Write. So if that’s you, here’s a dollar. See you there.
February 27, 2014 — 3:03 PM
Louise says:
This may seem odd, but I don’t think it is that easy to stop. Which was kind of the point of my original problem. If the ideas are there, doesn’t your head just explode if you don’t use them?
I’m a perfectionist. I don’t just write a short story in no time. I work at it. I’ve read the books. I’ve studied short stories. And it just doesn’t seem to work. I don’t get any better. I get the rejections, grit my teeth and keep submitting. And submitting. And submitting. I know all the time that what I submit will get rejected, but still I submit it.
I do think I probably need a class or a proper critique group or something, but like I said, that is impractical (for several reasons). So I guess I’ll just have to keep the graveyard and the zombies 🙂
February 27, 2014 — 5:53 PM
Chris Taylor (@SoleEnglishBoy) says:
I always get stuck on plotting. I have my main idea, I know where I want to go with is and…. I cannot make it appear rationally on the page. I am an outliner but how much is enough or too much? Snowflake is a hybrid enthusiasm/inspiration vampire and seat of the pants is just not an option.
Do you write CIAesque character profiles, draw maps of your locations, and have hundreds of pages of scenes?
Any advice would be appreciated greatly.
February 26, 2014 — 8:11 AM
terribleminds says:
Yesterday’s post may be of some value —
http://terribleminds.com/ramble/2014/02/25/the-question-mark-is-shaped-like-a-hook-question-driven-plotting/
February 26, 2014 — 11:05 AM
Michael E. Henderson says:
I’m shopping around my completed novel “Self Portrait of a Dying Man,” and collecting the rejections. So far, my favorite is “alas, not compelling enough.” Ok, I can deal with not compelling, but do we really need the “alas?” Another said it was close, I’m a good writer, but no dice.
Anyway, it’s about a guy who is told by Death that he has six months to live. He finally buys into the idea, so he quits his job (which pisses off his wife) to paint self portraits. He thinks it will make his family feel all better when he kacks.
His art instructor tells him he’s probably fucked in the head. He knows a guy who can help him get rid of Death. An Indian (Native American). The Indian feeds him peyote and mushrooms to bring on visions, and subjects him to suspensions practiced by the Mandan Indians (A Man Called Horse, only worse. The real ceremony ends by cutting off a finger).
Lots of other cool stuff happens, and it’s all fun and games up to the very end.
But I think it may have character development problems, or something.
What I need is for someone knowledgeable about how a novel might be written to read it and tell me what they think.
I have another novel being published later this year by a real publisher, so I am not utterly clueless, just kinda.
(If any of you have been involuntarily committed, I’d like to talk to you. There’s a bit of that in the story, and I need a reality check, although it’s never been criticized.)
February 26, 2014 — 8:14 AM
Todd Moody says:
Spent a good part of January revising my first novel and now it’s getting looked at by someone with a keen eye (i.e. edited.) The second one is nearing completion. I’m getting to the best part, the climax, so the writing should flow easily. I’ve changed the ending about 6 times so far, still up in the air on how to treat the protagonists fiancé.Hopefully it will work out in the writing.
February 26, 2014 — 8:16 AM
terribleminds says:
Good luck, Todd!
February 26, 2014 — 11:06 AM
Lynne Ryder says:
Hey all! Thanks for doing this Chuck!
Long time listener, first time caller.
I’ve written a dark contemp/fantasy YA short and some in my critique group tell me they don’t like the ending. The tween main character basically abandons her high school tormentors to a terrible, albeit deserved, fate (though the exact details of what happens are left to the imagination).
I’ve read the same criticism on Amazon about YA books; adult readers being unhappy with the choices characters make in YA stories. I’ve had a couple teens read it and none have said they dislike her choice at the end. My feeling is, a teens sense of morality and justice is not quite the same as an adults, and therefore make different decisions.
Should I change the ending for the sake of attracting adult readers too?
February 26, 2014 — 8:23 AM
pmillhouse says:
Could you add a character that reflects the “adult’s desire to control your tween’s decisions” – maybe not an adult, but a split complement who argues with said MC? Maybe even a fantasy character who plays devil’s advocate?
That might draw in that adult audience while allowing your tween to leave the high school tormenters (a.k.a. scumbag bullies) to their deserved fate?
February 26, 2014 — 9:35 AM
Philip Harris (@SolitaryMindset) says:
I’m working on the outline for a new novel at the moment, while I revise the last one. I’m not sure what genre you’d call it – Nerd Contemporary maybe. It’s about the misadventures of a group of videogame developers, a mix of comedy, serious themes and maybe a bit of romance.
Originally it started out as a bit of a side project, a palate cleanser if you like and I was going to use an open ended diary format and just post it on my blog. However, now I’m outlining the story I’ve got a real plot with themes and ideas. I really like what I’ve got so far, so I’m taking it more seriously and writing it as a novel.
The dilemma I have at this point is whether I should stick with the diary format or switch to traditional first person. I’m not sure why it’s such a difficult decision (fear of screwing up a good story I guess) but it is.
Any comments or suggestions welcome.
February 26, 2014 — 8:23 AM
Justine says:
Why can’t you do both?
February 26, 2014 — 10:38 AM
Philip Harris (@SolitaryMindset) says:
Great, now I have three choices 🙂
Not a bad idea though, definitely something for me to think about. Thanks.
February 26, 2014 — 3:01 PM
terribleminds says:
Doing both could be tricky, but could really work if handled deftly.
February 26, 2014 — 11:07 AM
Mark Matthews says:
Thanks Sabrina. Quite ironic. I have switched from first person to third and now back to first again.
As for the whole supernatural ghosty thing, it is being introduced via the psychotic homeless man who’s dealt with hallucinations his whole life, to make it seem a bit natural and slightly based in reality.
February 26, 2014 — 8:28 AM
Mark Matthews says:
I completely replied in the wrong spot. I’ll show myself out.
February 26, 2014 — 8:30 AM
pmillhouse says:
I spent the last thirty days doing a mini-NaNo on my second fantasy romance novel. I used to hit THE WALL at 30K, but this book made it to 50K.
I know how it ends, and I’ve got a scene outline for how to get there, but after 30 days Muse has packed up and sailed off for the tropics. I feel like a burned out shell.
I of course want to finish my s*#%, but I think about a week’s vacation in the sun might be what the Muse wants. What would you guys and gals do?
February 26, 2014 — 8:46 AM
Lynne Ryder says:
I feel ya, sister. Hitting that wall sucks rhino balls. I’m sure you”ve heard the same old saws that I have about you needing to have butt in chair whether the muse shows up or not. Tis true, painful as it is. I say push through to the end. Do not walk away from that first draft unfinished. If the issue is you’re just tired of looking at it, take a day or two to get outside in the fresh air. Screw the polar vortex. Need a week in the sun? Take it, but bring your laptop and write while you throw back a few MaiTais. Sometimes a change of scenery is inspiration enough. If the issue is you’ve hit a dead calm in the plot waters, you story took a wrong some pages back and will need retooling later. Just push on. Ain’t no way through it but to get to it. Boom. (Drops mic, walks off.)
February 26, 2014 — 9:16 AM
pmillhouse says:
OK – 48 hours, max.
Mai Tai’s away…
Thanks!!
February 26, 2014 — 9:37 AM
Justine says:
Try writing flash fiction back-story for one of your characters. I’ve done an ABC exercise where you line up the letters of the alphabet and each line of your story begins with the next letter (first sentence starts with “A,” second with “B,” etc.). It’s a short, concise story that gets your brain working on something related, plus trying to get your story to conform to the ABC structure is a real problem-solving treat.
February 26, 2014 — 10:42 AM
terribleminds says:
The Muse won’t help you. The Muse is a mirage, really. Angel and demon in equal parts. Mostly, you just gotta hunker down and finish it. That’s what separates the aspirants from those who get stuff done (“the perspirants?”). Not to say you don’t deserve a little reward — but a week in the sun would make a nice reward for actually finishing this book.
February 26, 2014 — 11:08 AM
Reay Jespersen says:
The few novels I’ve started have waned and then stopped working all together. So I’m wondering a few things:
– If ideas were started but have since sat untouched for years, is it worth trying to inject life back into them, or were they perhaps not as solid as I first thought once they were put into play (hence the waning in the first place)?
– Could I perhaps save them by taking them back to square one and approach them a different way, like outlining (which I’ve never done)?
– Could it be, as as been suggested before, that I’m perhaps just not a novelist? I’ve experimented with a wide variety of writing (and found some success in a few formats including screenplays and short stories), so I’m loathe to accept that I’ve finally met a writing format that I want to try but it’s simply not something I can make myself get through, but it does make total sense that one would be stronger in some formats than others.
February 26, 2014 — 8:48 AM
bethraymond says:
I had a project that sat around for YEARS before I finished it–and it was far, far better the second time around than the first. I will say that by the time I finished, I was a little over it, but it was still totally worth the effort.
February 26, 2014 — 10:44 AM
Reay Jespersen says:
Thanks, Beth. Did you try a different approach to it the second time around (outlining vs. not the first time, or tearing down and rebuilding the concept maybe from a different viewpoint to freshen it up a bit), or did you just reboot and try again exactly the same way as you did the first time?
I suspect part of the issue is that formats where I’ve had a little success, like short stories and scripts, are by nature faster formats. Like yes, a script tells a whole story, but it requires stripping out as much extraneous detail as possible, requiring that much less time to actually write. Whereas novels, of course, allow the freedom to explore everything far more deeply. There’s way more detailed writing involved in novels, and I’m wondering if it’s just sheer volume of writing that trips me up each time, instead of ticking along as I’m used to to get through writing (short or screenplay) stories faster.
As with so many writers, I have an endless font of ideas that I want to get to, so it could also be an aspect of impatience with yes, wanting to tell this story and that one and that one and do them properly, but also wanting to hurry up and get through them to get to the next things, too. I suspect that finding success in a “slower” format (as attempted novel writing has been for me) would change that approach: If I got through a novel and sold it and it did pretty well, I’d recognize that ok, it’s worth my time to make myself go through that process all over again, rather than drop it part way through to some degree to go for the only buzz I currently really enjoy, which is of finishing another project.
(Perhaps related side note: I’ve often been accused of over-thinking things…)
February 26, 2014 — 11:16 AM
bethraymond says:
I ended up rewriting the first chapter and in doing so, kept alive a character that I’d originally killed off. That led to a ton of different changes to the story, and the second time around it was much better. I also ended up putting it out as a serial (though it wasn’t really intended as such), which helped a lot with the “holy-cow-this-is-a-huge-project-will-it-ever-be-done”? Of course, now that it *is* done, I’m faced with editing it as a whole, so that should be interesting. 🙂 Good luck to you!
February 27, 2014 — 1:29 AM
Reay Jespersen says:
So, more zombie characters.
Roger that! 😉
Thanks!
February 28, 2014 — 7:11 AM
Brittany says:
My writing group started a side project called 30in30, meant to be an extension of Nano (30k in 30 days), and I totally botched it after the 15th. I was doing fairly well writing on the weekends, but weeknights just weren’t happening. And then weekends stopped happening and now it’s the end of the month and my total is less than 10k. Sigh.
My biggest problem (other than lack of plotting) became this – I’m writing a fantasy horror novel involving witches and fantasy creatures. So far I have goblins and plans for some other mythical beasties to show up in later novels, but that parts cool for now. My main baddies, on the other hand, are some extremist religious crazies who are all like, “Bible says kill the witches! Bwah!” – and I hate them. I feel like extremist religious crazies are overdone, but I have no idea who else who would hunt them without needing a bunch of back story.
Does anyone have a baddie lying around somewhere, collecting dust? I need a new one.
If anyone is interested in joining us for the next 30in30 in May, it’s an open group on Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/groups/1396970287219880/
February 26, 2014 — 8:56 AM
terribleminds says:
Might could spend sometime pulling away from the actual draft and doing a little world-building, just to see how stuff works and fits into the larger story?
February 26, 2014 — 11:09 AM
Maure says:
I suggest you just ask yourself ‘What are all the reasons someone could hate fantasy creatures?’ and then just write everything that comes to mind down. Or maybe the villains all hate different fantasy creatures, and just got into a group because… idk, they met on the Internet.
February 26, 2014 — 11:39 AM
Hawk Z (@HawkZeez) says:
I had a similar (well kinda) problem in my current project… What helped me was riffing off the protagonist’s internal motivations/wants/fears instead of their external plot dilemma. Figuring out what she cared about on a deeper level (like, that super charged thing that would get her ranting for an hour at a party) and setting the baddies against *that* vs what was most obvious on a plot level was helpful for me.
Also, reasons people could want to hunt goblins… Profit, politics, family/clan grudges, religious but not so crazy, supernaturally compelled to for REASONS ;).
February 26, 2014 — 4:03 PM
Gina Rinelli says:
After three years of trying to fit my writing into the evenings (and failing more often than succeeding) I’ve started writing during my lunch breaks. I leave my desk and sit in the conference room, and I’ve hit my word count every single day since I started. To say it’s been revolutionary is seriously an understatement!
For anyone who is struggling to fit their writing in, I highly suggest finding a CHANGE you can make to create dedicated time for writing. For me, the key was having somewhere to go (even though it’s a table 10 ft from my desk) so my head (and my coworkers) knows it’s writing time.
February 26, 2014 — 9:00 AM
Courtney Cantrell says:
I’m on the penultimate chapter of my soft sci-fi novel Elevator People, first draft. I’ve been working on this one for over two years, and it’s been the most difficult first draft I’ve ever finished. The closer I get to the end, the slower I write.
I think it’s because I’ve known for a while that one of my favorite characters in the story has to die before the story can end. And I don’t want him to die.
I could write it so that he leaves the story without dying, but I suspect that this would be cheap of me and disrespectful toward my readers.
So I have to kill him.
But I don’t want to.
And I’m scared to death that I’m gonna screw this up, because even though this is the hardest novel I’ve ever written (or maybe because it is), I think it also has the potential to be the best thing I’ve ever written.
GAH.
*SIGH*
February 26, 2014 — 9:05 AM
Kay Camden says:
I have someone to kill in my book three. Its first draft is 50% complete and on hold while I revise book two.
Now you have me worried about going back to book three. 😐
February 26, 2014 — 9:34 AM
Courtney Cantrell says:
Gives a whole new meaning to the phrase “kill your darlings,” eh? Maybe you should kill the char within the first 50%. That means you just have to add the death in, not write up to it. ; )
February 26, 2014 — 4:38 PM
terribleminds says:
This sounds like you’re primed and ready to pull the trigger. GO FORTH AND EXECUTE.
February 26, 2014 — 11:10 AM
Courtney Cantrell says:
*sigh* I just knew–KNEW–you were gonna say that. Chuck, how come you gotta be so…so…AUTHORLY??? *stares at you*
*stares harder*
(Thank you. Execution commencing. Woe is me. WOE, I tell you.)
February 26, 2014 — 4:42 PM
Courtney Cantrell says:
I did it.
I killed him.
And I cried.
CRIED.
(Doc, this little exchange seriously couldn’t have come at a better time. I was poised to let the char drift off ambiguously into the sunset. I just needed a nudge in the opposite direction and BOOM. I suddenly knew what the killing-him-off needed to look like. Thanks.)
February 27, 2014 — 9:20 AM
Kay Camden says:
Good for you. Done. Now time to grieve. 🙁
I’m prepared to cry when I have to do mine. And cry through every revision of that scene. I can’t kill him early on. He’s a very important character to my heroine and makes a big impression on her life. I really, really wish he didn’t have to die. But he just does. And it’s not gonna be pretty. 🙁
February 27, 2014 — 11:54 AM
Courtney Cantrell says:
Thanks, Kay. And yes, there must be a period of mourning. But I’m not letting the mourning get in the way of the writing. As soon as I click “Post Comment” here, I’m switching over to the WIP and having my way with that last chapter I need to write!
One thing I’m learning is that no character’s death is pretty if it it has significance. We’re supposed to wrench the reader’s heart out with those deaths, because those deaths wrench our own hearts out AND THAT’S WHAT WE WRITERS DO. If it doesn’t hurt, we’re not doing our job.
Of course, it’s easy to preach that to a fellow writer and then turn around and prettify my own char’s death. Gotta turn around and kill the darlings in Draft 2. ; )
February 27, 2014 — 11:55 PM
Courtney Cantrell says:
Not only did I kill off that character a couple weeks back, I finished the first draft of the novel today. BOOM.
*tosses confetti and marmots at EVERYBODY*
March 13, 2014 — 9:20 PM
Meg Preuss says:
I’m 63k into my first novel.
Have spent the last four months knowing how I want to end my novel but being unable to actually put it into words. So that means, at the moment, a lot of bare bones scenes that need to be fleshed out.
My muse is finally back to work, helping me out but between work politics and being depressed over a bad break-up, I’m finding myself staring at a blank screen every night. I’m barely making my monthly word goal.
I can’t decide if I need to step away from writing for a couple of weeks – because the depression is seriously tainting my writing at the moment (all my male characters are having really bad stuff happen to them).
February 26, 2014 — 9:05 AM
Justine says:
Same problem (depressing life, depressing stuff happening to characters, writing first draft). If that’s what’s happening, let it happen. It’s why it’s a first draft. You can change it later.
I’ve taken to writing scenes with my antagonists when I’m feeling in the dumps. They come off as remarkably evil, which isn’t necessarily what I intend, but at least I’m motivated to have them block my protag.
February 26, 2014 — 10:46 AM
Aubyanne Meletio Poulter says:
As one who recently discovered her material more than likely lifted from a blog (perhaps, this one) I have to say, this is a wonderful, but impractical idea.
If someone sees your material online, your options for defending it are limited. Even if you have a clear case. I got lucky, but I’ve heard countless instances where the defendants were able to steal from the plaintiffs – legally.
So, don’t be that guy. And good luck.
-AMP
February 26, 2014 — 9:10 AM
Erin says:
I’m clicking away on my first draft of my first novel ever. Progress is good — 42,000 wds in 2 months. I’m not sitting around waiting for the muse. The story is well-outlined, I know the ending, so I feel like overall I’m in pretty good shape. Things that stump me are: knowing that by the time I’m done writing this shitty first draft, I’m going to have learned so much about novel writing that I’ll want to start a new one instead of revising this one; and, knowing as I write that I’m going to learn so much about character development in revision that I’ll regret not knowing as I wrote the first draft. Not a bad problem to have — you don’t learn how to do anything until you do it, and hey, I’m finally actually doing it. But at the same time, I’m kind’ve mourning the fact that this first novel is likely destined for the round file, and I feel bad that out of my stable of novel ideas, this plot is the poor horse that I have to learn to ride on.
February 26, 2014 — 9:22 AM
smithster says:
My problem at the moment is finding a satisfactory ending. All the major action is done with – it’s just a case of how the characters come to terms with it. My difficulty is that one character is still physically dealing with the effects of the last physical confrontation for at least a week (probably longer if it’s to carry as much weight as I want it to), but I am loathe to write a whole series of interactions now that the major action is done to illustrate all that angst. I feel it would draw the ending out for far too long. So I have to find a way to convey a period of time passing in which psychological and emotional things happened in a few lines – telling rather than showing – so that I can set up the (hopefully) cathartic final moment.
::sigh:: so going to fuck this up. Fricking first drafts, man. I need a drink.
February 26, 2014 — 9:24 AM
Tami Veldura says:
If I read that right, you haven’t written out the lengthy ending version yet.
You don’t know if it won’t work until you do it. Write it all out with all the interactive details you want in there. If it turns out that it is too long, it’s much easier to trim up some sections then have to generate that text from a non-sufficient ending.
I say go for it.
February 26, 2014 — 3:22 PM
ardenrr says:
Aloha Chuckmeister –
I started my first novel in November with NaNo. I pounded out 55K in 30 days and then fell into a writing coma. Not sure if I’ll ever do NaNo again. It was fun but my words were icky. I couldn’t bring myself back to it for almost a month but when I did, I fell in love with it again. I don’t have a lot of time to write but I just surpassed 70K yesterday and have set a goal to write every single day, even if it is only one page. At least it’s something. I do have you to thank as you have helped motivate me a lot on days when I didn’t feel like writing.
So, uh, thanks for that…
February 26, 2014 — 9:25 AM
John Prill says:
I just want to figure out a title name for the 3rd book in my series.
I have titles for all the others, but not the third one that I like.
It’s a, I don’t know what genre, — a guy has to go out and find the other items mentioned in the bible.
Item’s like Moses Staff, Delilah’s scissors, the Horns that fell Jericho, the 30 pieces of silver.
Stuff like that.
The third book involves the skull of a donkey that Samson used, the tools Noah used to build an ark, and bricks from Babel.
February 26, 2014 — 9:26 AM
Maure says:
Do you have a theme to your titles? That would seem to be the first thing to think of. Are they named after the objects, lines from a Bible verse, so on?
February 26, 2014 — 11:42 AM
John Prill says:
Well, most of the other titles are related to the story itself: “Ink Between Good & Evil (Pens, what was written and what happens afterwards); Silver (betrayal); The Other Ark (how sin survived after the flood to create sodom and gamorrah and everything else); False Idols (end title that wraps it up neatly)”, etc.
I actually have a google doc with the titles and ideals for what I think the cover should look like. It’s just this one book that I have trouble with figuring out what the title should be related to the contents.
I’ve thought about going with a title related to Babel, and then to the tools, or the the jaw bone. Nothing seems to really click with it though yet.
February 26, 2014 — 12:01 PM
Nina Niskanen says:
I’m working on a novel I started for NaNoWriMo that went on to languish for a couple of months after November as short story open submission deadlines and workshop homework took over all of my brain activity and it’s like they never gave it back. I’m still kind of recuperating, I think, because the words just haven’t been coming since about halfway through December. I wouldn’t call it writer’s block because I have the same tired dullness at work. like my brain just isn’t firing on all neurons. I’ve tried re-invigorating my brain with short stories but they’re coming out even worse. At least with the novel I have a solid outline and thanks to NaNoWriMo I have a pretty good beginning, or more like half, already done whereas with short stories I keep coming up with these Awesome Ideas that I really want to write but they keep on not forming into actual stories or the stories they form into feel contrived and/or cliched and I don’t like to even read vignettes so I’m pretty sure if I start writing them as vignettes I’m going to stop writing for good. Maybe I’m just tired (but I’m getting 7-8 hours of sleep a night and even on the weekends I don’t sleep more than that no matter how hard I try), maybe I’m depressed (although I don’t feel depressed), maybe I have a parasite that is taking over my body brainpan first but in any case the words just aren’t coming and I don’t know why.
February 26, 2014 — 9:28 AM
Valerie Valdes (@valerievaldes) says:
I think we all get into ruts, and it can feel like the longer you stay in one, the harder it is to climb out. But you can do it. What helps me, personally, is having a writing group to egg me on instead of going it alone. When you have a sense of solidarity (and maybe a little accountability?) then the problems can feel a little less insurmountable.
February 27, 2014 — 3:30 PM
Elaina M. Roberts says:
I’m going through the first round of edits. It’s brutal. I think I need a hug 🙂
February 26, 2014 — 9:28 AM
Tribi says:
(hug)
February 26, 2014 — 9:57 AM
Mark Matthews says:
Thanks Gina, Mike, (and Chuck for this idea) Mike, I am thinking of naming it after a true Detroit street, with landmarks of the area, the true name of the corner gas station, etc… And both of your ideas are partly the route I took for the ghosts.
February 26, 2014 — 9:30 AM
Tribi says:
I like to write fanfiction because people read it (my big story has 309,000 hits) and you get good feedback but I realize now how much easier those stories are to write because there’s no world building required. In 2010 I wrote a NaNo story that I think could be good but when I look at it now it’s like it’s set in this netherworld haze. Even I don’t know if they’re in America or some other place, do they have money? what year is it?
I could go through it and drop in chunks of background where I can or I could write another story from a different point of view and have that story provide the setting. My story is kind of a haves/have-nots thing that’s all about the haves now so it would be interesting to add that other perspective.
Or maybe start each chapter with a different have-not reacting to something that was done to them and then have my regular chapter wherein that thing gets done. Like a barkeep picking up a gold coin that was left on his counter during the night and calling his wife to talk about it and wonder about the transmission on his car or what time he’ll be home; and then the chapter that follows is all about our heroes’ late night high jinks that end with them breaking into a bar and stealing a bottle of tequila but leaving the coin behind. So you get the sense that the world is ours and it’s the same old mundane same old but these people are completely removed from it and they _are_ living in a netherworld haze.
Yeah, that’s what I should do. Thanks.
February 26, 2014 — 9:41 AM
Mieke Zamora-Mackay says:
I’m currently revising my first YA novel. I am struggling, struggling, struggling with “Finishing My Shit” and “Trying Hard Not to Suck.”
But, I. AM. GOING. TO. FINISH. SIR. I have you as my boot camp squad leader in my head. SIR.
February 26, 2014 — 9:49 AM
Silent_Dan says:
I’ve hit a snag on my post-apocalyptic urban fantasy/superhero novel set in Australia. I’ve got the main plot, but I’m having terrible trouble figuring out whether to include a romance subplot, or other subplots for that matter. The ‘novel’ is currently 42,000 words – 8000 or so short of the NaNoWriMo magic number of 50,000. It has five main characters, and the younger brother of the protagonist, who were all there when goblins stormed their town and killed the protagonist’s dad. I haven’t worked out whether the goblin leader they encounter in the next chapter (5 years time) will be the one the MC is hunting. If he kills it off no trouble, that’s kinda a letdown from a revenge-plot perspective. So i guess I should make it that goblin is present at some point later on. Where, though, I don’t know. It’s not intended to be the Big Bad, either in this novel or any of the others in the series, but I think I want to delay the revenge for a later book, as I’m delaying the younger brother’s return (which, at this point, takes 3 books).
Hence I need to clear my head of all this and write something different.
February 26, 2014 — 9:51 AM
Rik Dodsworth says:
Writing a Novel. It’s set on another world so I guess it could be classed as Sci-Fi but I feel it’s more of an adventure than straight up Sci-fi.
Struggling to settle on a name but that’s not particularly important at the moment. I’m 30k words in and I’m worried that I don’t really know how I’m going to end it. I like most of what I have so far and could probably write a million words about this world, but I want this story arc to have some meaning and end satisfyingly enough for a reader not to want to stab my face afterwards.
February 26, 2014 — 9:51 AM
Nina Niskanen says:
Try thinking about where you began. What do the characters want? What do they need? Since it’s adventure, a happy ending is of course encouraged (science fiction as such don’t care but adventure is different) but that doesn’t necessarily mean a Disney ending. Often the most satisfying endings are the ones where the MC has had to sacrifice something to achieve her happy ending. Something that really helped me figure out the story arc is Orson Scott Card’s M.I.C.E quotient as taught by Mary Robinette Kowal, explained pretty well here: http://www.writingexcuses.com/2011/08/07/writing-excuses-6-10-scott-cards-m-i-c-e-quotient/
February 27, 2014 — 6:20 AM
Jamie Wyman says:
You’ve got 2 options:
1) John McClain it. Walk over the shards of glass that are the next words and push through.
2) Go back a few chapters and find out where the wheels first got gummy. Unstick them.
You’ll notice quitting isn’t one of those options. Work it, man.
February 26, 2014 — 9:58 AM
EldritchGirl says:
I can’t get anything from my brain to the page. It’s all so good in my head and all so terrible when it’s written. I think I’ve deleted thousands of words in the past few weeks. I have no idea what to do.
This opressive, eternal winter outside isn’t helping either.
February 26, 2014 — 9:59 AM
Justine says:
Stop deleting. Just WRITE. The first draft is the “downdraft” as in, just get it down. Don’t worry if it’ll be good or if it’s terrible. Capture the essence of your story in the first draft and if you think something is lacking in a scene you’re writing, put notes in there (like “make this seem more like XYZ” or “have character B FEEL the pain here”), and don’t go back and do that until the first draft is done. Buff and polish (and delete, if you must) in edits.
February 26, 2014 — 10:52 AM
Kay Camden says:
I agree with Justine. If you keep deleting you’ll never get anywhere. You have to have something to work from. A first draft wouldn’t be a first draft if it didn’t suck. I’d show you the first draft of my first published book..IF I WAS CRAZY. Just take my word for it.
It’s gonna be bad. Stop deleting. Write to the end. Put it away for 2-4 weeks. Get it back out. Start at the first page and revise. Clarify, tighten, pick better verbs. Visualize the scene, turn a blah, cliche description into a fresh one. This is where you should be spending your time.
THEN you’ll have something. And until you do, it’s your little secret. No one will see it.
February 26, 2014 — 11:07 AM
terribleminds says:
It’s often terrible. Write anyway. You can fix what’s broken but first you gotta empty all the widgets and dongles out of the box.
February 26, 2014 — 11:13 AM
Wendy Christopher says:
Here’s the thing; the first draft of anything ALWAYS sucks. It’s supposed to suck – if it doesn’t you are a mutant writer-droid from outer space and you must be quarantined in Area 51 and used for devious medical experiments. 😉
You can’t build a robot out of thin air; you have to build it out of the pieces of crap lying around that no-one else would touch with a crap-covered stick. Then you tinker wit them, tweak them, polish them up and – ta-dah! You’ve built a robot. It might still not work properly – but that’s when you go back and tinker and tweak some more…
It’s the same with writing. You gotta let yourself write really really badly to get anything written. Go for it! What’s the worst that could happen?
February 27, 2014 — 3:09 AM
Kevin says:
About to start work on draft number four of my first novel, an LGBT-focused story about three college friends and their hellacious last semester. Two of the characters are black gay men, one being a masculine type who is closeted about both his sexuality and his atheism to his religious, conservative family, the other a flamboyant, charismatic type who struggles with his affairs with two men because of dark secrets from his past and his harsh, dominating personality.
The third character is a transgender woman who ran away from home at 17(though her parents say she walked out) and lived on the streets before making it to college. She has an estranged relationship with her mother, a non-existent one with her father, and dealing with man drama both past and present, all while trying to scrape together enough money for her reassignment surgery.
The novel also deals with other themes like identity, sexual hangups, religion, transphobia, homophobia, etc.
Okay, so there are a few things I’m struggling with. I’ve gotten feedback from folks that one character’s “voice”, Derrick(the atheist) is not as strong as the others. He is an introverted guy, very reserved and in his own head. I dont want to make him a queen like the other guy, so how would I go about bringing out his personality more?
Also, I know my word count(135,000) is WAY over the limit for a first book, so my struggle is how will I know what to cut without taking the heart out of the story.
Also, I’m having a rough time classifying it. There’s stuff about relationships and love, so there’s romance, but there’s also some explicit sex, so there’s so erotica in the mix. Then there’s the religion and atheism bits, along with gender and racial identity. Would it fall under literary fiction?
I also havent really nailed down a title. I whipped one up that’s ok, partly so I could stop calling it “the novel I’m working on,” but people I’ve shown it to have commented about it. Any tips?
February 26, 2014 — 10:03 AM
Bran Mydwynter (@mydwynter) says:
There are all sorts of types of people besides flamboyant, right? Maybe Derrick’s personality comes out in dry wit and quiet asides that get to the heart of things. And/or maybe his facial expressions are fantastic and illuminate what’s going on in his head.
You might have to crack him open a little to get to the goods, but your the writer so that’s your prerogative.
Maybe his personality is keyed into his part in the story? As in, the way in which he affects the story is a clue to how his larger personality manifests?
Just throwing stuff out there.
February 26, 2014 — 11:12 AM
Kevin says:
“Maybe his personality is keyed into his part in the story? As in, the way in which he affects the story is a clue to how his larger personality manifests?”
Could you explain this a little more?
February 26, 2014 — 9:46 PM
Tami Veldura says:
The way you phrase your question about Derrick makes me think that much of the character voice you’re putting down on the page is contained in dialogue or physical actions. Since Derrick is more self-contained than the others, he’s coming off as quiet and uninteresting when, in fact, there’s all kinds of nonsense going on in his head that the other characters don’t see.
Do you swap POV and/or are you telling any of the story from Derrick’s POV? Take some time to brainstorm his history and the context of his childhood. With that in mind, look at the way you’re describing situations from Derrick’s POV. The adjectives and rhythm of the sentences should belong to Derrick.
An accountant, a cop, and a mechanic see the same car in entirely different ways (tax write off, speeding ticket, transmission problems). Derrick, PoC2, and TransWoman see their situations in different ways. Show this through their word choices.
Re: Wordcount. Without reading I couldn’t tell you if the word count is a product of over describing or too-ambitious of a plot arc. You’ll need to find a good group of beta readers you trust and put this question to them.
Titles… I’m wretched at titles, so I’ll leave that for someone else.
February 26, 2014 — 3:36 PM
Kevin says:
I do swap POV throughout the book (each chapter is told from the point of view of one of the three characters–it goes Derrick, Sharise (the transwoman) and Marcus (flamboyant guy)), and that has helped in developing their individual voices, I’ve just struggled with Derrick’s the most. Part of this might be his personality is most like mine, so maybe I’m having trouble putting as much “distance” from him as opposed to other characters. I’ve tried to go further in describing his internal thoughts and make his dialogue more sarcastic/dry humor/a bit cynical to give contrast. It’s just I’ve heard this from beta readers a lot so I thought I’d bring it up here.
I love your analogy of the cop, mechanic and accountant seeing the same thing a different way. I’ll have to remember that. As far as word count, I think it’s a little of both the reasons you cited.
As for the title, I’ll just have to wring my hands, rend my garments and beseech the inspiration gods until I get something good.
February 26, 2014 — 9:46 PM
Tami Veldura says:
Since Derrick is most like you, it may be that Sharise and Marcus are relying a bit too much on your natural sarcasam/dry wit voice. Perhaps it’s they who need to be a little less like Derrick?
February 27, 2014 — 4:15 PM
Lisa Nicholas says:
Oh lord. Does it count as a sophomore slump if it’s your fifth novel? I write romantic suspense/contemporary romance. The novel that won me my agent is about to go into submissions and I am struggling hard with the follow up. I wrote 50K of it in November, got sidetracked by edits to the first one, then came back to realize that the original 50K were WRONG WRONG WRONG and I’d taken a wrong turn early in the plot.
I’ve been struggling with it ever since. I’m starting to worry that I’m overthinking. I’ve always been someone who plots by instinct, and I’m trying to actually focus on craft, turning my unconscious decisions into conscious ones. Is this just part of the process? Am I having growing pains? Aaaaargh.
(Note to everybody else who writes fanfic: my agent found me via my fanfic, and a friend of mine got a two-book contract because of hers. Don’t let anybody knock your fanfic, man. I’m still writing it!)
February 26, 2014 — 10:05 AM
Maure says:
The only useful connections I’ve made so far have been people I’ve met through fandom. 🙂
February 26, 2014 — 11:45 AM
L.S. Engler says:
Time. Right now, my biggest issue is TIME. There just doesn’t seem to be enough of it. I’ve given myself tighter deadlines, and I have one looming and I’m really sweating being able to make it or not. Thankfully, I have two glorious days off right before the deadline, so you can guarantee I’ll be glued to my keyboard for the better part of tomorrow. And then on to the next one!
February 26, 2014 — 10:06 AM
Kay Camden says:
OMG are you living my life? lol
February 26, 2014 — 11:08 AM
changterhune says:
OY! SO MANY WORDS! SO LITTLE TIME!
Well I’m happy to report I’ve got 2 stories coming out soon this year so there’s that (Trust & Treachery Anthology and Stupefying Stories). But the revision process on my soon to be released novel is going slowly. I’m hung up on that one chapter that explains everything but needs to be shorter. ugh.
Then there’s the novel I finished over the summer that should get a first pass revision.
Then there’s my nanowrimo entry from 2008 which I suddenly found a title for last night while walking the dog which of course I’ve since forgotten.
Then there’s the 3rd book in my series which needs a real editor to go over (inquiries welcome!)
Then there’s the 4th book in the series that needs to be finished.
Then there’s all those unfinished short stories.
Jesus H, Christ I think I may be a writer.
February 26, 2014 — 10:06 AM
Peter Hentges says:
I’m mentally gearing up for a short-story workshop with Mary Robinette Kowal on March 7-9. I have some notes for the setting that I’m hoping to write in that I hope will become a series of stories that have a Conan-like feel to them, without the inherent racism and sexism of the pulp era. Sword-and-sorcery adventure for a modern reader, if you will. I’m letting that stew in the hind-brain while remaining open to what the workshop will offer. Wish me luck!
February 26, 2014 — 10:07 AM
itsfamilyjules says:
Good luck! 🙂
February 26, 2014 — 11:11 AM
terribleminds says:
I DEMAND A FULL REPORT
February 26, 2014 — 11:13 AM
Peter Hentges says:
I expect that I’ll post up notes and any resulting stories in some venue.
February 26, 2014 — 11:15 AM
mckkenzie says:
Yes, yes, I also want a report!! I’m doing her workshop in June and am sooo looking forward to it. If you have time and are so inclined, would you consider letting me know how it went? Was it good? Did it help? http://mckkenzie.wordpress.com/
February 26, 2014 — 11:18 AM
Peter Hentges says:
I’ll endeavor to remember!
February 26, 2014 — 11:19 AM
mckkenzie says:
Thank you!
February 26, 2014 — 11:25 AM
Peter Hentges says:
Posted a full report up-thread. If I don’t see that you’ve seen it in a day or two, I’ll follow-up on your blog.
March 10, 2014 — 9:48 AM
mckkenzie says:
Thanks so much, Peter!! Sounds like a great workshop! I’m doing the less intensive one that spans several weeks over the summer. Looking forward to it even more now. Thanks again!
March 10, 2014 — 10:08 AM
Peter Hentges says:
The workshop ran this past weekend and it definitely fit the description of “intensive.” Though the schedule had what looked like breaks, you had to fit in meals, doing your writing exercise, critiquing the work of two others, and anything else needing your attention into that time. I was worn out by the end of it and still feel a bit stiff and sore today.
Mary is a good teacher, and it was interesting to have her pass on things she’s learned from being a professional puppeteer that relate to writing. For example, in puppetry, what your puppet looks at is what it’s interested in. In writing, what you tell us that your character notices should tell us something about the character. If he notices the leggy blonde in the chair, he might be a hard-boiled detective. If he notices a woman is sitting on a chair that’s a Victorian reproduction, he might be an interior designer.
The exercises seemed to be straight-forward usage of the material covered in the discussion leading to them, but the parameters she set on them drove me to discover greater and greater depths of the scenario I’d constructed.
After we’d covered the basics, we moved into plotting and outlining, areas that I’ve had particular trouble with in the past. She has a system of classifying stories by type that clearly defines how particular story beats need to start and end, and how layering the types needs to be unpacked so the reader feels satisfied. It will take me a bit to digest that, but it’s given me a great framework for figuring out where a story should go when I’d previously had only the vaguest idea upon coming up with a story idea.
The final exercise was the challenge to take our previously-written outline and complete a 3,000-word story in 90 minutes. (We actually had closer to 120, but 90 was what was scheduled.) Of the eight of us in class, two had complete drafts in that time. I wasn’t one of them, largely due to needing to wrangle two dogs while also writing. I did finish about 70% of the story I wanted to write and had a much easier time getting through that much of the first draft thanks to the outline I’d prepared. So it showed me that a) the outline was a HUGE help and b) given another hour or two, I’d be able to have that first draft written without any difficulty.
So now, I’ll be finishing up that story. (I’m going to give myself a couple days to recoup.) Next will be setting some goals for how many other stories I want to write over a given time-frame. Going to start small; finish one story by [date] and follow through the process of the workshop: thumbnail sketch of story, outline, first draft. From there we’ll see how it goes.
If anyone is interested in crafting short fiction, I can heartily recommend Mary’s workshop. It was very helpful for me and the rest of the participants had good things to say as well.
March 10, 2014 — 9:46 AM
Nina Niskanen says:
Nice! I took the six-week version of that course and it was amazing. She helped me understand so many facets of my own writing that I’d missed before that just doing the work raised my fiction to the next level. Enjoy!
February 27, 2014 — 6:23 AM