Throughout the entire month of February, Fiction Flurry will be hosting on-line write-ins! That's right, you can join us from the comfort of your own home, fuzzy slippers and all!
So pop on over to the Fiction Flurry Facebook page and write to your heart's content. We usually hang out from about 7:30 to 10:00 most nights. Come support one another and let's conquer those writing challenges together!
Showing posts with label Get Your Writing Mojo Back. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Get Your Writing Mojo Back. Show all posts
Thursday, February 2, 2012
Sunday, January 9, 2011
A Brief Word on Writer's Block
What would you have to say if I were to tell you that there’s no such thing as “writer’s block”? Hey! Hey you in Poughkeepsie, I heard that! Geez, I haven’t been called that since ninth grade.
Just hear me out. Like you, I endeavor to write. And like you, sometimes I feel like I simply cannot write. There have been days when I have been too sad to write. Or too anxious. Or too preoccupied. Too tired, too busy, too overwhelmed. Even too bored! Too, too, too.
But on any one of those days, was I able to open my e-mail and jot off a note to a friend? Text my brother? Update my Facebook status? Tweet to the entire free world? Well, sure! Er, uh, what I mean is, I guess I wasn’t actually incapacitated or anything. I mean I could write; right? So what was it? What was stopping me?
It was me.
Likewise, you are stopping yourself.
To write or not to write is a choice. Always remember this. Writing, be it for a job, a hobby, or “just for fun” is an activity. Like jogging or watching TV or playing a round of golf, writing can only be accomplished when you pursue it. Nobody needs “inspiration” to sit down and watch the boob tube. The “golf muse” doesn’t tap you on the shoulder and encourage your choice of clubs.
Hey, I am not saying it’s easy. Some days, it’s not. But what I am saying is that there is only one person who can write that story knocking around within the gray matter between your ears. That person is you – because it’s your story and no one else’s.
So push “too this” to the side and sweep “too that” out of the way. Choose to write that story today!
Just hear me out. Like you, I endeavor to write. And like you, sometimes I feel like I simply cannot write. There have been days when I have been too sad to write. Or too anxious. Or too preoccupied. Too tired, too busy, too overwhelmed. Even too bored! Too, too, too.
But on any one of those days, was I able to open my e-mail and jot off a note to a friend? Text my brother? Update my Facebook status? Tweet to the entire free world? Well, sure! Er, uh, what I mean is, I guess I wasn’t actually incapacitated or anything. I mean I could write; right? So what was it? What was stopping me?
It was me.
Likewise, you are stopping yourself.
To write or not to write is a choice. Always remember this. Writing, be it for a job, a hobby, or “just for fun” is an activity. Like jogging or watching TV or playing a round of golf, writing can only be accomplished when you pursue it. Nobody needs “inspiration” to sit down and watch the boob tube. The “golf muse” doesn’t tap you on the shoulder and encourage your choice of clubs.
Hey, I am not saying it’s easy. Some days, it’s not. But what I am saying is that there is only one person who can write that story knocking around within the gray matter between your ears. That person is you – because it’s your story and no one else’s.
So push “too this” to the side and sweep “too that” out of the way. Choose to write that story today!
Come say "hi" to Bijoux (she's irresistible):
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Self-Editing...How the Heck Do You Do It?
First off, KUDOS to you if you've made it through the intital draft of a novel and are ready to edit. That's a feat in itself. Most people who start a novel never ever finish it. So, stay positive. You're already heading in the right direction.
So far in my journey to publication I have written (and edited) two full length Young Adult novels. The first one was, well, horrible. A complete learning experience. My grammar skills left a lot to be desired, let me tell you. But, hey, putting it out there to beta readers was my very first step in learning to self edit. I didn't even know what a dialog tag was two years ago let alone a beta reader!
When I tried to edit my first novel, I had no clue what I was looking for. Mainly, I just ran through looking for misspelled words and run-on sentences. So, when I got my first red-filled edited version from a beta reader back, I was a little taken back. I had a lot to learn.
Instead of getting mad at the people making the marks, I went back to them and asked them to teach me learn some skills and so I can improve the next time. For this post, I figured I'd share what I learned from the disastrous first novel.
1. Shorter Sentences: Yep. Aim for short concise sentences. Agents even pointed that one out to me. This makes the words flow and people can read it fast.
2. Keep Your Sentences Active: What I mean here is, instead of saying something like..."I watched him stand..." make it "He stood." Again this helps flow.
3. Internal Thought--Make Sure It's There: Another words, just because you know in your mind how you want your character's dialog to be perceived, doesn't mean your reader gets it that way. If your main character says something snippy, but the reader doesn't see some internal reasoning for it, it can turn the reader against your character. You want people to like your characters. To empathize with them. So, make sure they come off the right way.
4. Pacing: Most agents will tell you to start your story with action. To get a good feel for what they mean here, pick up a book from your shelf and read the first couple of pages. More than likely it's an action scene. Don't lead in with backstory, even if it's important. Figure out a different way to work it into the story. Cut scenes that drag the story down. Save them in a file for later, they work somewhere else.
5. Look For Repetition: This can range from overly used words (Look and eyes are some of mine) to repetivie thoughts. I've had my hand smack for saying the same thing eight different ways in just three chapters. The reader will get it the first time, don't beat a dead horse.
6. Forshadowing: Make sure you weave it in throughout the novel. It's imporant. Weather you know it or not, it's one of those things that can keep your reader hungry to finish your novel. So weave in some clues.
7. Stay in the Right Tense: This is a biggie for a lot of people. If you start in present tense or past tense, stay in that tense. Most of all, pick the tense that best suits your writer's voice.
8. Let Your Voice Shine Through: You hear it all the time, voice is everything. If you hear someone talking to you in your head, write it down just like you hear, weather it's snarky or whatever. It's what's calling to you. Be true to it.
9. Establish Your Crisis in the First Quarter of the Book: First off make sure you know your MAJOR crisis. It's really hard to make that the center of your writing when it's not clear to you even. Take a hard look at your plot and make sure you know and can clearly state it.
10. Have Fun With It: Remember why you are writing. The minute it's not fun anymore, is when you stop loving it. It's okay to put a novel back on a shelf and edit it later if you become frustrated. Sometimes a break can give you fresh editing eyes.
Any other tips you wanna share???? We'd love to hear them!
~~Annie~~
http://www.youngadultbookworm.blogspot.com/
So far in my journey to publication I have written (and edited) two full length Young Adult novels. The first one was, well, horrible. A complete learning experience. My grammar skills left a lot to be desired, let me tell you. But, hey, putting it out there to beta readers was my very first step in learning to self edit. I didn't even know what a dialog tag was two years ago let alone a beta reader!
When I tried to edit my first novel, I had no clue what I was looking for. Mainly, I just ran through looking for misspelled words and run-on sentences. So, when I got my first red-filled edited version from a beta reader back, I was a little taken back. I had a lot to learn.
Instead of getting mad at the people making the marks, I went back to them and asked them to teach me learn some skills and so I can improve the next time. For this post, I figured I'd share what I learned from the disastrous first novel.
1. Shorter Sentences: Yep. Aim for short concise sentences. Agents even pointed that one out to me. This makes the words flow and people can read it fast.
2. Keep Your Sentences Active: What I mean here is, instead of saying something like..."I watched him stand..." make it "He stood." Again this helps flow.
3. Internal Thought--Make Sure It's There: Another words, just because you know in your mind how you want your character's dialog to be perceived, doesn't mean your reader gets it that way. If your main character says something snippy, but the reader doesn't see some internal reasoning for it, it can turn the reader against your character. You want people to like your characters. To empathize with them. So, make sure they come off the right way.
4. Pacing: Most agents will tell you to start your story with action. To get a good feel for what they mean here, pick up a book from your shelf and read the first couple of pages. More than likely it's an action scene. Don't lead in with backstory, even if it's important. Figure out a different way to work it into the story. Cut scenes that drag the story down. Save them in a file for later, they work somewhere else.
5. Look For Repetition: This can range from overly used words (Look and eyes are some of mine) to repetivie thoughts. I've had my hand smack for saying the same thing eight different ways in just three chapters. The reader will get it the first time, don't beat a dead horse.
6. Forshadowing: Make sure you weave it in throughout the novel. It's imporant. Weather you know it or not, it's one of those things that can keep your reader hungry to finish your novel. So weave in some clues.
7. Stay in the Right Tense: This is a biggie for a lot of people. If you start in present tense or past tense, stay in that tense. Most of all, pick the tense that best suits your writer's voice.
8. Let Your Voice Shine Through: You hear it all the time, voice is everything. If you hear someone talking to you in your head, write it down just like you hear, weather it's snarky or whatever. It's what's calling to you. Be true to it.
9. Establish Your Crisis in the First Quarter of the Book: First off make sure you know your MAJOR crisis. It's really hard to make that the center of your writing when it's not clear to you even. Take a hard look at your plot and make sure you know and can clearly state it.
10. Have Fun With It: Remember why you are writing. The minute it's not fun anymore, is when you stop loving it. It's okay to put a novel back on a shelf and edit it later if you become frustrated. Sometimes a break can give you fresh editing eyes.
Any other tips you wanna share???? We'd love to hear them!
~~Annie~~
http://www.youngadultbookworm.blogspot.com/
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Writing A Heartbreaking Scene: How Do You Go There?
So I've had a couple days off, and I spent a chunk of those days watching sappy click flicks and working on revising my manuscript. There are some really great tear jerking scenes in movies and books out there right now, just FYI. Anyway, when I think about writing a sad scene, like a break-up or something, I like to pull out some sappy movies and get my mind right. Writing a heart wrenching scene works so much better when you can feel empathy for your characters and a well written scene (movie or book) can draw you in and instantly make you feel that.
The Sky Is Everywhere (YA Novel)
Twilight Saga (New moon break up scene...book or movie)
A Walk to Remember
There's a few to get you started. Have any you want to share?
Happy NaNo Everyone!!
~Annie~
http://www.youngadultbookworm.blogspot.com/
I was thinking of some of my go to movies and books that just bring out those emotions that in turn help me write better scenes in my own manuscripts and I thought I'd share. But I warn you now, most of my list is YA/Teen stories since that's what I write. Who knows, maybe someone I'll help someone get through a block. :)
Here goes:
Twenty Boy Summer (YA Novel)
The Sky Is Everywhere (YA Novel)
Twilight Saga (New moon break up scene...book or movie)
A Walk to Remember
There's a few to get you started. Have any you want to share?
Happy NaNo Everyone!!
~Annie~
http://www.youngadultbookworm.blogspot.com/
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