18 hours ago
Monday, February 22, 2010
Losing Flavor
Still revising (I say that like there's an end to this, but is there?), but I'm finding that the more I revise the more I lose the feeling behind the first draft. How to I keep from cutting out the good parts and is there a way to determine what the 'good parts' are? I guess not. Trial and error, more errors and more trials.
Sunday, February 7, 2010
Revising the Wheel
It's been a while since I've written anything on this blog (sorry), but life has its own crazy schedule to keep, I guess.
I'm well on my way into revision of the first draft of my novel. I went through the first draft and compiled a lengthy outline (which ended up taking a whole lot longer than I had anticipated, thanks to both my computers crashing at the same time - however, I think listing the major events, etc. by hand actually helped me more than if I had typed through the entire process). After completing the outline of the 'current state' of the book, I wrote up a new outline for the first four chapters that incorporated a more active plotline and cutting out some of the unnecessary content.
As I start writing new content or reworking/rewriting certain sections, I am excited for where I am taking the book. The story will remain the same for the most part, but I'm hoping to make the plot a lot more compelling and exciting for the reader (and for me to write). The ideas I'm running with at this point were actually plans for earlier versions of the series that I have rethought within the context of the first draft. And, I think the new plot may work!
The downside of doing NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) is the lack of time to plan out what you are writing, as you force yourself to keep going straight ahead (mostly to just build your word count, which is arbitrary). The upside is having a finished draft. I'm glad that I went through the chaos last November, having learned through a writing boot camp (or is it 'book camp'?) of sorts on how to turn off your inner critic. I've never been much good at that...unless I'm blogging.
If anyone out there is taking on the daunting task of revising a novel, a great DVD I found (well, it was recommended on the NaNoWriMo website) is called "So, Is It Done? Navigating the Revision Process." I've found it hard to locate resources for learning tricks of the trade on the revision process, finding even books that say they teach you about the revision process are really a Writing 101 teaching guide and have little to add to what I already know about revision - just do it, look for grammar errors, story issues, plot holes, cliches, etc. What I really wanted was affirmation of the insanity of the process and some tips on how to be the most efficient at the lengthy process. I have read a little of Self Editing for Fiction Writers by Renni Browne and Dave King, two, supposedly, well-known editors. I haven't formed an opinion of the book quite yet.
I feel optimistic about the changes I'm making to the book. Hopefully I'll update again soon.
I'm well on my way into revision of the first draft of my novel. I went through the first draft and compiled a lengthy outline (which ended up taking a whole lot longer than I had anticipated, thanks to both my computers crashing at the same time - however, I think listing the major events, etc. by hand actually helped me more than if I had typed through the entire process). After completing the outline of the 'current state' of the book, I wrote up a new outline for the first four chapters that incorporated a more active plotline and cutting out some of the unnecessary content.
As I start writing new content or reworking/rewriting certain sections, I am excited for where I am taking the book. The story will remain the same for the most part, but I'm hoping to make the plot a lot more compelling and exciting for the reader (and for me to write). The ideas I'm running with at this point were actually plans for earlier versions of the series that I have rethought within the context of the first draft. And, I think the new plot may work!
The downside of doing NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) is the lack of time to plan out what you are writing, as you force yourself to keep going straight ahead (mostly to just build your word count, which is arbitrary). The upside is having a finished draft. I'm glad that I went through the chaos last November, having learned through a writing boot camp (or is it 'book camp'?) of sorts on how to turn off your inner critic. I've never been much good at that...unless I'm blogging.
If anyone out there is taking on the daunting task of revising a novel, a great DVD I found (well, it was recommended on the NaNoWriMo website) is called "So, Is It Done? Navigating the Revision Process." I've found it hard to locate resources for learning tricks of the trade on the revision process, finding even books that say they teach you about the revision process are really a Writing 101 teaching guide and have little to add to what I already know about revision - just do it, look for grammar errors, story issues, plot holes, cliches, etc. What I really wanted was affirmation of the insanity of the process and some tips on how to be the most efficient at the lengthy process. I have read a little of Self Editing for Fiction Writers by Renni Browne and Dave King, two, supposedly, well-known editors. I haven't formed an opinion of the book quite yet.
I feel optimistic about the changes I'm making to the book. Hopefully I'll update again soon.
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Words and Sniffles
I'm working on compiling a comprehensive outline of the first draft of my novel, after placing the work aside for about a month. The book needs a lot of work, to say the least. However, there are some good points to save.
Unfortunately, the process of getting in touch with my inner critic once more and revising the he## out of my novel is coming at a time when my head is going to explode with a nasty cold. After three hours of reading and marking up my printed manuscript, my eyes are literally puffy and red and I can't breath with my mouth closed (get the picture?). Now I'm off to get some sleep so that I can do the working thing and get back on to revising. Hopefully I'll have more to report soon, but I don't want to push myself into an immune system shut down. That just wouldn't help my productivity.
Unfortunately, the process of getting in touch with my inner critic once more and revising the he## out of my novel is coming at a time when my head is going to explode with a nasty cold. After three hours of reading and marking up my printed manuscript, my eyes are literally puffy and red and I can't breath with my mouth closed (get the picture?). Now I'm off to get some sleep so that I can do the working thing and get back on to revising. Hopefully I'll have more to report soon, but I don't want to push myself into an immune system shut down. That just wouldn't help my productivity.
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Up and...writing
Well, I'm back. For the next three months I'm going to be focusing on taking on the arduous task of revising my novel. I have no fantasies of this being an easy process and I'm probably going to want to rip my hair out (or maybe just my brain), but when I eventually have that final draft in my hands the work will all be worth it.
As I go along I'll try and report in on how things are going, what I'm reading and "ah-ha" moments that I'm hoping to have plenty of in the coming months.
As I go along I'll try and report in on how things are going, what I'm reading and "ah-ha" moments that I'm hoping to have plenty of in the coming months.
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Time off before revising
Well, I'm taking a few weeks off to get some distance from my novel before jumping head first (or is it feet first?) into revision. You may not see a post again until after New Years (is it really almost 2010?), but I'm sure I'll still be thinking about my novel no matter what I do. More ravings will come...eventually.
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