When you're writing something out by hand, with pen and paper, and you get the urge to save the file.
Yes, I have officially been writing too long.
*chants*
There is no ALT-F / S with a Bic pen. I cannot crash a paper notebook. There is no ALT-F /S with a Bic pen. I cannot crash a paper notebook.
head/desk
:-P
Tis the Season
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
.... for frustration. Fa-la-la-la-la l'la-la-la.
I'm at that point most writers hit where they don't like to look at their WIP for even one more second. It comes in the home stretch, when you're almost ready to wrap things up and call them shiny, and suddenly your brain goes on lock down.
It could be stress (yay, holidays!). It could be some sort of latent fear. (It's almost done - now people will judge it! Yikes!) It could be boredom. (Not this again! I saw this story yesterday! Wah!)
This is also the point when things get a bit dicey for the writer. It's tempting to shove the hateful WIP in a drawer and say NO MORE! Just scrap it and go on to the next thing. If you were running, this would be the point you hit the wall. But, like running, there's something on the other side of that wall. There's a second wind and more speed than you believe possible.
When it happens, and it will, you'll know what I mean. This is where a back-up story comes in handy, I think. If you have something productive to do other than your main WIP, then you won't feel so bad about neglecting the word count. (And you will feel bad for that.)
Right now, I'm on the not so fun side of the wall, but hopefully, I'll be seeing the view from the otherside soon.
/ whinge.
I'm at that point most writers hit where they don't like to look at their WIP for even one more second. It comes in the home stretch, when you're almost ready to wrap things up and call them shiny, and suddenly your brain goes on lock down.
It could be stress (yay, holidays!). It could be some sort of latent fear. (It's almost done - now people will judge it! Yikes!) It could be boredom. (Not this again! I saw this story yesterday! Wah!)
This is also the point when things get a bit dicey for the writer. It's tempting to shove the hateful WIP in a drawer and say NO MORE! Just scrap it and go on to the next thing. If you were running, this would be the point you hit the wall. But, like running, there's something on the other side of that wall. There's a second wind and more speed than you believe possible.
When it happens, and it will, you'll know what I mean. This is where a back-up story comes in handy, I think. If you have something productive to do other than your main WIP, then you won't feel so bad about neglecting the word count. (And you will feel bad for that.)
Right now, I'm on the not so fun side of the wall, but hopefully, I'll be seeing the view from the otherside soon.
/ whinge.
First Drafts are Not Crap Writing
Monday, December 6, 2010
Not mine. Not yours. Not anyone's.
So there.
Yes, I know that flies in the face of the mantra of the moment which is "Give yourself permission to write crap."
Don't do that. Just don't.
1st drafts are RAW writing, not crap writing - and there IS a difference.
When you designate something as "crap", it becomes refuse. You expect it to stink and you expect to toss it out in the end. 1st drafts shouldn't be like that (no draft should). Treat your drafts as raw materials. Freshly picked cotton or newly shorn wool. Raw diamonds and unprocessed gold.
It may not look like much, in fact it may look worthless or even gross, but realize that it's not yet ready to be used. It needs to be processed.
You have to wash it and pick out the burrs. You have to bleach it. You need to heat it up and let the dross separate. It has to be cut and polished.
Those are steps you have to go through to get from raw material to a marketable finished product, and they're steps that won't work on crap. It doesn't matter how well you dress it up or if you throw glitter on it or if you try and paint it gold, it's still crap underneath.
Writing (even the bad kind) takes effort, and that should never be treated as refuse. It should be treated with respect and handled appropriately for what it can become in the end if the correct methods are applied to it in order to utilize the raw material present.
Going into a new WIP, or working on the existing one, with the idea in mind that you've given yourself permission to write terribly just puts you in the mindset to not expect your first draft to be worth anything. But it is - first drafts are EXTREMELY valuable because they are the foundation of what comes after.
Time spent writing something you expect to throw away is time wasted, and writing takes long enough as it is without wasting time on something you don't intend to use.
Crap is a lousy foundation. It decomposes quickly and takes down everything on top of it with the void left behind. I refuse to allow myself to build my stories on crap.
Does that mean that my first drafts are perfect? No.
What is means is that, while I don't obsess over perfection (*looks around to see if anyone notices crossed-fingers*) with the first drafts, I do put effort into them, and I do strive to make them the best they can possibly be. Because, in the end, I'd rather sit down to create a diamond ring with rocks in a bucket than crap. And I know I'd sure rather put my name on something made from gold than garbage.
So there.
Yes, I know that flies in the face of the mantra of the moment which is "Give yourself permission to write crap."
Don't do that. Just don't.
1st drafts are RAW writing, not crap writing - and there IS a difference.
When you designate something as "crap", it becomes refuse. You expect it to stink and you expect to toss it out in the end. 1st drafts shouldn't be like that (no draft should). Treat your drafts as raw materials. Freshly picked cotton or newly shorn wool. Raw diamonds and unprocessed gold.
It may not look like much, in fact it may look worthless or even gross, but realize that it's not yet ready to be used. It needs to be processed.
You have to wash it and pick out the burrs. You have to bleach it. You need to heat it up and let the dross separate. It has to be cut and polished.
Those are steps you have to go through to get from raw material to a marketable finished product, and they're steps that won't work on crap. It doesn't matter how well you dress it up or if you throw glitter on it or if you try and paint it gold, it's still crap underneath.
Writing (even the bad kind) takes effort, and that should never be treated as refuse. It should be treated with respect and handled appropriately for what it can become in the end if the correct methods are applied to it in order to utilize the raw material present.
Going into a new WIP, or working on the existing one, with the idea in mind that you've given yourself permission to write terribly just puts you in the mindset to not expect your first draft to be worth anything. But it is - first drafts are EXTREMELY valuable because they are the foundation of what comes after.
Time spent writing something you expect to throw away is time wasted, and writing takes long enough as it is without wasting time on something you don't intend to use.
Crap is a lousy foundation. It decomposes quickly and takes down everything on top of it with the void left behind. I refuse to allow myself to build my stories on crap.
Does that mean that my first drafts are perfect? No.
What is means is that, while I don't obsess over perfection (*looks around to see if anyone notices crossed-fingers*) with the first drafts, I do put effort into them, and I do strive to make them the best they can possibly be. Because, in the end, I'd rather sit down to create a diamond ring with rocks in a bucket than crap. And I know I'd sure rather put my name on something made from gold than garbage.
Great Contest Opportunity
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
CA Marshall, who is a freelance editor type person, is having a contest over on her blog for Christmas. YAY!
The prize is a substantial edit for an up to 100,000 word MS. Double YAY! (English MS, only, though.)
(This nifty little button should get you there if my coding skills have completely deserted me:)
a href="http://www.blogger.com/%E2%80%9Dhttp://www.camarshall.com/p/editing-services.html%E2%80%9D" target="”_blank”">
Pop on over and see if it sounds like something you'd want to give a try.
And since part of this is what you want/would give for Christmas --
For giving, unless someone tells me something specific, I go the gift card route.
For getting, it's a little weird this year.
If you've read this blog, you know I like vampires, and have since I was a kid. Well, what you don't know (unless you are a stalker and go through my trash) is that the "L" in my name stands for "Laura". At the store the other day, while shopping for cousin-munchkins, I came across "Monster High" in the toy aisle, and their vamp-girl "Draculaura". It's too perfect for inspiration.
:-)
Though, I'm fairly certain, even the doll is taller than me. :-P
The prize is a substantial edit for an up to 100,000 word MS. Double YAY! (English MS, only, though.)
(This nifty little button should get you there if my coding skills have completely deserted me:)
a href="http://www.blogger.com/%E2%80%9Dhttp://www.camarshall.com/p/editing-services.html%E2%80%9D" target="”_blank”">
Pop on over and see if it sounds like something you'd want to give a try.
And since part of this is what you want/would give for Christmas --
For giving, unless someone tells me something specific, I go the gift card route.
For getting, it's a little weird this year.
If you've read this blog, you know I like vampires, and have since I was a kid. Well, what you don't know (unless you are a stalker and go through my trash) is that the "L" in my name stands for "Laura". At the store the other day, while shopping for cousin-munchkins, I came across "Monster High" in the toy aisle, and their vamp-girl "Draculaura". It's too perfect for inspiration.
:-)
Though, I'm fairly certain, even the doll is taller than me. :-P
THANKSGIVING
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
So, if you're in the States, tomorrow's the big day. It's the one day of the year, diets are allowed to go out the window, nutritionists are bound with shoe string potatoes and gagged with turkey drumsticks, and family members gather to stuff their faces while bringing up all those things everyone swears will... never... be... brought... up... again...
Since I will be at my cousin's overfull house full of overstuffed people, and since tomorrow even the banks and post offices are closed, I'll not blog tomorrow. Instead, I'll say HAPPY THANKSGIVING today instead of tomorrow.
All right, kiddies, you know how this works. Clockwise around the table, share your thankfuls:
I am thankful that I have my little blog following of lovely people who read these rambles I pound out at my laptop, and I am thankful that my WIP, all 3 of them, are in much better shape than they were a week ago.
So, how about you?
Since I will be at my cousin's overfull house full of overstuffed people, and since tomorrow even the banks and post offices are closed, I'll not blog tomorrow. Instead, I'll say HAPPY THANKSGIVING today instead of tomorrow.
All right, kiddies, you know how this works. Clockwise around the table, share your thankfuls:
I am thankful that I have my little blog following of lovely people who read these rambles I pound out at my laptop, and I am thankful that my WIP, all 3 of them, are in much better shape than they were a week ago.
So, how about you?
Rowling's Reach
Friday, November 12, 2010
Nathan Bransford has made this week one dedicated to the Harry Potter-verse on his blog. Today, he asked / challenged / suggested that people do their own Potter / Rowling posts to be linked back, so here goes...
I missed the Potter bandwagon. I have never purchased nor checked out a HP novel. I have never seen a HP film. And yet, I can't honestly say I know nothing of Harry Potter or J.K. Rowling. Like those arcane echoes of times past that remain in our common vocabulary as "cliches", Harry Potter has become something of a cultural standard.
The reach of these book, as well as their impact on our pop culture is evident, more so for those of us who never participated, I think, because it's through our experiences that you come to realize just how hard it is to escape the "Wizarding World of Harry Potter".
Even without joining the stampede toward devouring these books, I can name the main characters (and most of the actors who portray them). I know the over-reaching story arc and who the good / bad guys are. I know the themes of the books.
Some of this may be due to frequenting writing boards where JK Rowling is mentioned frequently, as is HP (every teen writer seems to think they have the "next" Harry Potter at some point.). I'm not sure if that's where it comes from, or not, but somehow I picked up a working knowledge of Quidditch, and well, that's weird.
HP seems to work a bit like the "boiled frog" analogy. (If you stick a frog in a pot of water and gradually raise the temperature, he'll boil before he even knows it's getting hot.) This is how the Potterverse has impacted pop culture, I think. Sure the glitz and fervor was highly noticeable, but the subtle changes came slowly and without fanfare. (by subtle, I mean the use of HP-words and phrases becoming "normal" words, etc.)
I'll admit I'm curious about what makes these books tick. (Who wouldn't be, right?) But the first time I was tempted to look one up on You Tube or the HP-wiki was when I started with that writer's board I mentioned.
The first instance was someone telling me my WIP read like a fusion of The Forest of Hands and Teeth with Dementors.
:-( <---- I looked like this. I didn't know what a Dementor was, so I was a bit disturbed at the idea that maybe it was a bad thing.
I hit Google and found out that a Dementor was a soul-sucking creature used as a prison guard in the HP-verse. Okay, so I was still slightly disturbed, but I was no longer upset. The person had meant it as a compliment. My point is that HP had become so pervasive, that it was being used as a descriptor to reference people's work.
(FWIW, there's no soul sucking involved in my WIP)
I saw it over and over again. People said "This reminds me of______" (fill in the blank with the appropriate HP character or descriptions. Scars were too much like Harry's. Characters acted too much like Hagrid. Mentors were "Dumbledore wearing a mask" (though, technically that should be Gandalf....). The "good villain" was met with -"Oh... he pulls a Snape! Gotcha!"
Unlike so many stories that seem to be popular, then forgotten, HP is transcendent. In twenty years, the impact will still be there. The words will still be in our vocabulary. The characters will still be studied as archetypes. The theme park will still be hosting visitors.
(It's got it's own friggin' theme park.... when's the last time a "book" rated that high on the culture-shock scale?)
And... I still probably won't have read or watched (I have a mental block on magic stories. Yes, I'm weird like that.)
The impact of those 7 books is enormous. (<--- obvious statement of the day). They made Rowling a household name (and made a pretty nifty career for the actors who portray her characters). They floated many an author whose books were suddenly not as big a risk thanks to the extra income HP generated for its publisher. They became the new bar to reach for.
I'm not saying that you should charge in saying "I have written the next Harry Potter! (In fact, don't do that. Seriously, I'm telling you not to.) But there's nothing wrong with stretching toward that goal.
When you compete against the best, you get better by virtue of trying to play in their league. And while publishing is NOT a competition between authors, using someone else's career as inspiration can have the same effect.
Do I smile whenever someone tells me a piece I offer for crit reads like it was written by JK Rowling? You better believe it. Even without knowing her stuff that well, I know it's a compliment. And if they see something in my writing that strikes the same chord as what they saw in hers, then yes, I do a little happy dance.
I missed the Potter bandwagon. I have never purchased nor checked out a HP novel. I have never seen a HP film. And yet, I can't honestly say I know nothing of Harry Potter or J.K. Rowling. Like those arcane echoes of times past that remain in our common vocabulary as "cliches", Harry Potter has become something of a cultural standard.
The reach of these book, as well as their impact on our pop culture is evident, more so for those of us who never participated, I think, because it's through our experiences that you come to realize just how hard it is to escape the "Wizarding World of Harry Potter".
Even without joining the stampede toward devouring these books, I can name the main characters (and most of the actors who portray them). I know the over-reaching story arc and who the good / bad guys are. I know the themes of the books.
Some of this may be due to frequenting writing boards where JK Rowling is mentioned frequently, as is HP (every teen writer seems to think they have the "next" Harry Potter at some point.). I'm not sure if that's where it comes from, or not, but somehow I picked up a working knowledge of Quidditch, and well, that's weird.
HP seems to work a bit like the "boiled frog" analogy. (If you stick a frog in a pot of water and gradually raise the temperature, he'll boil before he even knows it's getting hot.) This is how the Potterverse has impacted pop culture, I think. Sure the glitz and fervor was highly noticeable, but the subtle changes came slowly and without fanfare. (by subtle, I mean the use of HP-words and phrases becoming "normal" words, etc.)
I'll admit I'm curious about what makes these books tick. (Who wouldn't be, right?) But the first time I was tempted to look one up on You Tube or the HP-wiki was when I started with that writer's board I mentioned.
The first instance was someone telling me my WIP read like a fusion of The Forest of Hands and Teeth with Dementors.
:-( <---- I looked like this. I didn't know what a Dementor was, so I was a bit disturbed at the idea that maybe it was a bad thing.
I hit Google and found out that a Dementor was a soul-sucking creature used as a prison guard in the HP-verse. Okay, so I was still slightly disturbed, but I was no longer upset. The person had meant it as a compliment. My point is that HP had become so pervasive, that it was being used as a descriptor to reference people's work.
(FWIW, there's no soul sucking involved in my WIP)
I saw it over and over again. People said "This reminds me of______" (fill in the blank with the appropriate HP character or descriptions. Scars were too much like Harry's. Characters acted too much like Hagrid. Mentors were "Dumbledore wearing a mask" (though, technically that should be Gandalf....). The "good villain" was met with -"Oh... he pulls a Snape! Gotcha!"
Unlike so many stories that seem to be popular, then forgotten, HP is transcendent. In twenty years, the impact will still be there. The words will still be in our vocabulary. The characters will still be studied as archetypes. The theme park will still be hosting visitors.
(It's got it's own friggin' theme park.... when's the last time a "book" rated that high on the culture-shock scale?)
And... I still probably won't have read or watched (I have a mental block on magic stories. Yes, I'm weird like that.)
The impact of those 7 books is enormous. (<--- obvious statement of the day). They made Rowling a household name (and made a pretty nifty career for the actors who portray her characters). They floated many an author whose books were suddenly not as big a risk thanks to the extra income HP generated for its publisher. They became the new bar to reach for.
I'm not saying that you should charge in saying "I have written the next Harry Potter! (In fact, don't do that. Seriously, I'm telling you not to.) But there's nothing wrong with stretching toward that goal.
When you compete against the best, you get better by virtue of trying to play in their league. And while publishing is NOT a competition between authors, using someone else's career as inspiration can have the same effect.
Do I smile whenever someone tells me a piece I offer for crit reads like it was written by JK Rowling? You better believe it. Even without knowing her stuff that well, I know it's a compliment. And if they see something in my writing that strikes the same chord as what they saw in hers, then yes, I do a little happy dance.
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