Ugh, so I've just discovered something about my WIP. I'm halfway through it word-count wise, but not halfway through plot-wise, which means when it comes time to edit I am going to have to cut out a lot. I'm trying to tell myself that this is a good problem to have because at least the story is flowing and I'm not worried about it not being long enough (which was an original concern with the novel I'm currently querying, and I actually had to add about twenty pages to that in the second draft). I also have an idea of which scenes are extraneous and can go, but a lot of those scenes reveal things about the main character and side characters, so it will be tough to edit. Basically, the novel I'm querying now is 78,000 words, which is good for the young adult market (which agents suggest, for a first novel, should be 60,000-80,000 words). Right now, I see this book hitting the 90,000 word mark if not higher. To be safe, I really don't want it to be more than 85,000 words, and to get it down to 80,000 would be even better.
It's going to be tough, but it's actually a more comforting problem than not having enough plot.
On a side note, my hubby and I watched Paranormal Activity for the first time the other night, which was a lot scarier than I though it was going to be. At first, it just looks like a really badly acted home movie, but as the plot progresses it gets better. Even though there were moments that freaked me out, I was able to fall asleep just fine. That is, until my computer mysteriously turned itself on at 3 in the morning!!! Weird, right? Okay, so it's not that weird since there are a billion explanations and most likely it was just doing an update or something, but after seeing that movie it was a little freaky.
Thursday, December 23, 2010
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
A couple updates!
Hey everyone, I have a couple exciting updates for you : )
First and foremost, I am a married woman now!!! The wedding was beautiful and I couldn't be happier to be a Sadie Lady (hopefully most of you get that reference). I really don't get why December isn't a busier bridal month considering we didn't have to do much at all in the way of decorations; the church and the reception site had already put up a lot of Christmas decorations on their own. Anyways, it was a day to remember, and we had a great time on our honeymoon at The Inn and Spa at Cedar Falls in Hocking Hills, Ohio. If you're interested in a serene setting and a relaxing day at the spa, check it out:
http://innatcedarfalls.com/
I have to admit, it was kind of weird to go so many days without writing though.
Secondly, I've had two other agents ask to look at partials! Yay! Keeping my fingers crossed that they both ask for fulls off of the partials. I still haven't heard from the agent with my full, but I don't expect to hear anything until after the holidays. After reading some more advice, I'm not going to send a status query until the four month mark, which will be January 30th.
Well, that's all for now. I hope everyone has a wonderful Holiday season : ) Merry Christmas and Happy New Year (if I don't post till after then)!
First and foremost, I am a married woman now!!! The wedding was beautiful and I couldn't be happier to be a Sadie Lady (hopefully most of you get that reference). I really don't get why December isn't a busier bridal month considering we didn't have to do much at all in the way of decorations; the church and the reception site had already put up a lot of Christmas decorations on their own. Anyways, it was a day to remember, and we had a great time on our honeymoon at The Inn and Spa at Cedar Falls in Hocking Hills, Ohio. If you're interested in a serene setting and a relaxing day at the spa, check it out:
http://innatcedarfalls.com/
I have to admit, it was kind of weird to go so many days without writing though.
Secondly, I've had two other agents ask to look at partials! Yay! Keeping my fingers crossed that they both ask for fulls off of the partials. I still haven't heard from the agent with my full, but I don't expect to hear anything until after the holidays. After reading some more advice, I'm not going to send a status query until the four month mark, which will be January 30th.
Well, that's all for now. I hope everyone has a wonderful Holiday season : ) Merry Christmas and Happy New Year (if I don't post till after then)!
Saturday, December 4, 2010
Getting To Know Your Characters
One of the best things about writing is discovering your characters. Like most writers, I spend time working on character worksheets for the main characters before I delve into the actual story. But I don't care what anyone says, it doesn't matter how much time you spend on character worksheets or character interviews, you'll always discover new things about your characters as you write your story. That happened to me last night, and it is such an amazing feeling. It's truly like these characters are real people, letting you into their innermost thoughts and feelings; there's no other way to describe it.
Now, don't get me wrong. Character worksheets, interviews, and any other method to get to know your character before writing the story is VERY important. But also don't stress yourself out about knowing every little detail of your character's life before you start writing because there are some things that just will not come out until you start the story.
I know there are a lot of writers out there who say they know everything about their characters before they start writing, and that their characters don't do anything they don't want them to do, but to me that's half the fun of writing. When I plot, I give myself a beginning, middle, and end, with very important scenes I know I have to have, but how I get to and from those pivotal scenes is an adventure. My current WIP (work in progress) has a major fight scene on a train that I never intended to write. It just sort of happened (again, this ties back into letting loose on first drafts. Let whatever you want to happen happen. If I decide later this train fight scene isn't needed, I can always get rid of it. But, the point is, I would never have had this scene if I didn't let myself explore). By all means, it's important to have a road map, but don't limit yourself either. When you let your creativity roam free, you'll be surprised by what can happen.
If you're looking for good character worksheets/interviews, this is a great site: http://www.booklaurie.com/tips_interview.php
Also, just a great writing site in general: http://www.absolutewrite.com/forums/index.php
Countdown to Wedding: 7 days!!!
Now, don't get me wrong. Character worksheets, interviews, and any other method to get to know your character before writing the story is VERY important. But also don't stress yourself out about knowing every little detail of your character's life before you start writing because there are some things that just will not come out until you start the story.
I know there are a lot of writers out there who say they know everything about their characters before they start writing, and that their characters don't do anything they don't want them to do, but to me that's half the fun of writing. When I plot, I give myself a beginning, middle, and end, with very important scenes I know I have to have, but how I get to and from those pivotal scenes is an adventure. My current WIP (work in progress) has a major fight scene on a train that I never intended to write. It just sort of happened (again, this ties back into letting loose on first drafts. Let whatever you want to happen happen. If I decide later this train fight scene isn't needed, I can always get rid of it. But, the point is, I would never have had this scene if I didn't let myself explore). By all means, it's important to have a road map, but don't limit yourself either. When you let your creativity roam free, you'll be surprised by what can happen.
If you're looking for good character worksheets/interviews, this is a great site: http://www.booklaurie.com/tips_interview.php
Also, just a great writing site in general: http://www.absolutewrite.com/forums/index.php
Countdown to Wedding: 7 days!!!
Thursday, December 2, 2010
First Drafts
Hey everyone! Happy December : ) This is going to be a really busy month for me...my wedding is in 9 days, so I'm getting ready for that (which includes procrastinating on writing those thank-you cards) and then we'll be going on our honeymoon, then the next week is Christmas, so I don't imagine I'll be able to get as much writing done this month as I would like. Also, I probably won't be blogging much. I hope to start blogging more often after the wedding and holiday season. But, I thought I would talk about my feelings toward first drafts today.
As you all know, I'm still waiting anxiously to hear back from the agent that has my manuscript. I've also sent out more queries to other agents, but so far no one else has bitten. In the meantime, I've been working on the first draft of another YA manuscript, and so far it's been a really unique experience. In some ways, it's easier than my first book because I can say to myself, "Hey, you already wrote one book! That's the biggest hurdle of all." At the same time, you can't help but suffer from the dreaded Sophomore Effect, where you wonder if you really can do it again. First drafts are by far the hardest to write, but they shouldn't be! The most important thing to remember is this:
First drafts are supposed to suck!! It's a RULE.
Okay, so I can pretty much guarantee your first draft is not going to suck as much as you think it does, but the point is you need to let yourself off the hook. Don't worry about writing the Great American Novel during the first draft. Don't worry if you feel like a scene has too much description or whether you can come up with a better word for "realized." The most important thing about the first draft is to JUST WRITE THE BOOK. That's it. When you look at it that way, it actually becomes the easiest draft to write because it doesn't matter how great or sucky it is, no one ever has to read it. Now, the second and third drafts will be more difficult because that's where you start to go through it with a fine-tooth comb, but they shouldn't be that terrible because, guess what? You've alrady finished the book. You wrote "The End." It's done. Now you just have to perfect it.
This is what I've learned from several writing classes, author's blogs, as well as from my own experience writing my first book. Just keep reminding yourself that you'll never have anything to perfect if you don't get through that first draft. Even though I've already done it once, I have to keep reminding myself with this second book.
So, good luck everyone! And if you've been nervous to start writing, or if you're struggling with that first draft, I hope this helps. *in my best Dory voice from Finding Nemo* Just Keep Writing! Just Keep Writing Writing Writing!
Sidenote: My puppy (who is seven months old today and 65 pounds) got to play in the snow for the first time yesterday, and she loved it! Granted, it was only a dusting so I can't wait to see how she acts when we get a couple inches of it. Hopefully I'll get a good camera someday and post some pictures of her on here : )
As you all know, I'm still waiting anxiously to hear back from the agent that has my manuscript. I've also sent out more queries to other agents, but so far no one else has bitten. In the meantime, I've been working on the first draft of another YA manuscript, and so far it's been a really unique experience. In some ways, it's easier than my first book because I can say to myself, "Hey, you already wrote one book! That's the biggest hurdle of all." At the same time, you can't help but suffer from the dreaded Sophomore Effect, where you wonder if you really can do it again. First drafts are by far the hardest to write, but they shouldn't be! The most important thing to remember is this:
First drafts are supposed to suck!! It's a RULE.
Okay, so I can pretty much guarantee your first draft is not going to suck as much as you think it does, but the point is you need to let yourself off the hook. Don't worry about writing the Great American Novel during the first draft. Don't worry if you feel like a scene has too much description or whether you can come up with a better word for "realized." The most important thing about the first draft is to JUST WRITE THE BOOK. That's it. When you look at it that way, it actually becomes the easiest draft to write because it doesn't matter how great or sucky it is, no one ever has to read it. Now, the second and third drafts will be more difficult because that's where you start to go through it with a fine-tooth comb, but they shouldn't be that terrible because, guess what? You've alrady finished the book. You wrote "The End." It's done. Now you just have to perfect it.
This is what I've learned from several writing classes, author's blogs, as well as from my own experience writing my first book. Just keep reminding yourself that you'll never have anything to perfect if you don't get through that first draft. Even though I've already done it once, I have to keep reminding myself with this second book.
So, good luck everyone! And if you've been nervous to start writing, or if you're struggling with that first draft, I hope this helps. *in my best Dory voice from Finding Nemo* Just Keep Writing! Just Keep Writing Writing Writing!
Sidenote: My puppy (who is seven months old today and 65 pounds) got to play in the snow for the first time yesterday, and she loved it! Granted, it was only a dusting so I can't wait to see how she acts when we get a couple inches of it. Hopefully I'll get a good camera someday and post some pictures of her on here : )
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