Some writers enjoy the process of rereading and combing through each word, looking for ways to strengthen sentences, remove extraneous detail, sharpen plot and develop characters. But for many it’s pure torture. Editing can feel like it lacks the punch and excitement of the initial writing, too analytical and uncreative.
I participated in Pitch Madness last year on twitter and while preparing I realized I had no idea what genre my book was. Before you begin they give you a list of what genre to put at the end of your tweet so that agents and editors can see if they would even represent your book. There were so many to choose from so I did some research on each of them.
I’ve always been one of those people that learns the hard way, by doing. I’m also one of those people that says “I can do it myself”. This is what led me to my most recent pitfall.
For all those who have interacted with small humans in the kinder-to-third grade arena, you might be familiar with Flat Stanley (also known in some cases as Flat Lizzy). For those who haven’t had the joy of meeting this illustrious character, a quick introduction.
How many times have we read a book, or a short story, or a terrific blog post and thought to ourselves, “man, this is great. I wish I’d written it.” I do that all the time.
A writer I know recently asked for song ideas to build her writing playlist—the music she’d play while she worked on her latest WIP, a fantasy adventure tale. She wanted songs that would speak to the acts of the book—her heroine on a mission, in trouble, fighting her way out, and resolving her issues. I thought of “I Need a Hero,” sung by Bonnie Tyler, who asks for a street-wise Hercules.
When you sit down to create a novel, graphic novel, screenplay, or any other piece of writing, chances are you have a purpose in mind—an idea to get across, or just characters and a story to share with the world.
Each chapter will be an essay by a different author on what they’ve learned through inspiration to write fiction, through applying the universal truths of their lives to fiction, and other gnosis learned through the process of writing. Wherever this wisdom comes from, it all qualifies as long as it occurred in the author’s mind due to writing fiction.
Welcome to our guest columnist, David Strom. An author who puts funny into his superhero stories, as he shares with us “Writing What I Am Not.” Enjoy! *** Dirty Harry said, “A man’s got...
Lately I find myself saying, “One day my book will be on that shelf” whenever I pass by the isle that holds all the literary material at a store. I know the hard work it will take to see that come true but I also know that which route to publishing I take plays a part.
Are you trying to edit one novel while writing another? This is what many writers find themselves having to do. Maybe you recently finished a novel, during NaNo perhaps. Or you wrote one awhile back and shelved it. Regardless, unless you edit that manuscript several times over it won’t be ready for prime time.
In January I started a new series project. This time I did it right. During my writing career I’ve morphed from a complete pantser (one who dives in with no set plan) to an assisted pantser (one who must have significant sign posts to complete the story journey safely). With my first series, The Kyn Kronicles,
I recently had the opportunity to do a beta read on a novel and provide a critique. The experience was both sad and depressing. Everything was off—pacing, character development, and conflict. Keeping all those ponies in harness pulling their weight and working together is complicated. But this is your job as a novelist.
I’m kinda cheating this month. I won’t be sharing much advice, although I hope it may give you some food for thought… 🙂 I suppose what I’m doing, is thinking out loud about a little writing conundrum I’m pondering; hoping you might chip in with your thoughts.
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Beth Barany helps authors get their books completed and out into the world, into the hands of their readers.
Creativity Coach for Writers, NLP Master Practitioner, and Master Teacher, Beth Barany has been there and knows how hard it can be to take your idea and turn it into a real book, that people will actually be interested, and even yearning, to read.
She walks the talk, as her clients like to say. She is the author of the 2012 award-winning young adult fantasy novel Henrietta The Dragon Slayer, as well as the author of the bestselling nonfiction books for authors and aspiring authors.
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