Wow, that time of week again, huh?
Updates:
Lodestar/When the Star Fell:
Still in total title flux. Can't decide on anything in this regard. I've finished and printed my revision outline for the next round of revisions. That will happen after the book comes back from beta. (For more on my process of revision outlines, see this handy post compiling all such items on outlining.)
Truth or Dare:
Well, it's finished. I'm still not sure I'll ever revise it in earnest and submit it anywhere. Not necessarily the genre that I want to start my career in so we'll see. Maybe someday with a pseudonym and different title.
How are your WiPs going?
Showing posts with label when the star fell. Show all posts
Showing posts with label when the star fell. Show all posts
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
Lodestar Soundtrack
I've posted about soundtracks before. I've even posted a soundtrack for Lodestar. (Or When the Star Fell. We're still in title flux over here.)
Looking back over that soundtrack, and thinking about the soundtrack as it stands now, I've realized something. These soundtracks aren't so much what you'd hear if the books were turned into movies. These are tracks that when I hear them I think of one of my books or of a character.
So here's the updated soundtrack for my contemporary fantasy, Lodestar.
"In Her Eyes" by Josh Groban (pretty much how the MC thinks of his predicament and of how one character views him)
"Untouchable" by Taylor Swift (whenever I hear this song, there's one scene in my book that comes to life in my head as I sing the song, so vividly I sometimes want to cry)
"This Time" from the August Rush soundtrack (the first lines evoke one of the scenes at the end of the novel for me, the chorus evokes some of the internal conflict for the MC)
"You Raise Me Up" by Josh Groban (basically how the MC feels about being thrust into this world he had no idea existed) *slight pause in soundtrack building to get lost in Josh Groban's voice*
"So Close" from the Enchanted soundtrack (pretty much every interaction between the MC and his primary love interest as there's a physical reason they can't touch, not even to hold hands)
"To Where You Are" by Josh Groban (evokes really the way the MC feels about the primary love interest, and a little bit of the emotion toward the end of the book) *pausing again for that gorgeous voice*
"Open Your Eyes (to Love)" from the Lizzie McGuire Movie soundtrack (there's a scene between the primary love interest and another character that is basically this and I think about this scene when hearing this song)
Looking back over that soundtrack, and thinking about the soundtrack as it stands now, I've realized something. These soundtracks aren't so much what you'd hear if the books were turned into movies. These are tracks that when I hear them I think of one of my books or of a character.
So here's the updated soundtrack for my contemporary fantasy, Lodestar.
"In Her Eyes" by Josh Groban (pretty much how the MC thinks of his predicament and of how one character views him)
"Untouchable" by Taylor Swift (whenever I hear this song, there's one scene in my book that comes to life in my head as I sing the song, so vividly I sometimes want to cry)
"This Time" from the August Rush soundtrack (the first lines evoke one of the scenes at the end of the novel for me, the chorus evokes some of the internal conflict for the MC)
"You Raise Me Up" by Josh Groban (basically how the MC feels about being thrust into this world he had no idea existed) *slight pause in soundtrack building to get lost in Josh Groban's voice*
"So Close" from the Enchanted soundtrack (pretty much every interaction between the MC and his primary love interest as there's a physical reason they can't touch, not even to hold hands)
"To Where You Are" by Josh Groban (evokes really the way the MC feels about the primary love interest, and a little bit of the emotion toward the end of the book) *pausing again for that gorgeous voice*
"Open Your Eyes (to Love)" from the Lizzie McGuire Movie soundtrack (there's a scene between the primary love interest and another character that is basically this and I think about this scene when hearing this song)
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
WiP Wednesday 5/18
I FINISHED MY LATEST WIP!!!!!!!
Ahem.
It's far too short to be a book. (Even a category romance.) But it's done. It shall now sit on my hard drive waiting for me to decide whether I actually want to revise and polish it to a publishable state. Maybe I just want to leave it in the drawer as good practice at my craft.
As for When the Star Fell, well that's going to get a new title one of these days. (Or maybe I'll just go back to the original title because it really worked so well for it.) While I wait for the latest beta feedback, I'm working on a new detailed outline from which to revise. (A process I've detailed before.) I've received some feedback on the first chapter and first few chapters that will also influence the next set of revisions.
How are your WiPs going?
Ahem.
It's far too short to be a book. (Even a category romance.) But it's done. It shall now sit on my hard drive waiting for me to decide whether I actually want to revise and polish it to a publishable state. Maybe I just want to leave it in the drawer as good practice at my craft.
As for When the Star Fell, well that's going to get a new title one of these days. (Or maybe I'll just go back to the original title because it really worked so well for it.) While I wait for the latest beta feedback, I'm working on a new detailed outline from which to revise. (A process I've detailed before.) I've received some feedback on the first chapter and first few chapters that will also influence the next set of revisions.
How are your WiPs going?
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Background and Setup
How much is too much when starting a book?
In my contemporary fantasy, When the Star Fell (or whatever I end up titling it), I have a bit of a dilemma.
Draft 2, which is the first complete draft of the book, takes until chapter 6 for the status quo upsetting moment to occur.
Draft 6 has that moment occurring in chapter 4.
I've tried to start the book with that moment, but it doesn't work for me. There are relationships to set up which are actually key to that moment having greater impact. (At least in my head the way I'm looking at the manuscript.) And I really have tried to start there. I wrote a new beginning, which still ended up in this current draft, just in chapter 4 not chapter 1. I hated it. It didn't grab me at all when I got to that upset moment.
I've recently received some feedback on the first chapter that has me absolutely waffling. This reviewer wanted more setup, more descriptions, more scenes happening in the start location. I haven't told this reviewer yet about the fact that two chapters of it got cut in revisions.
So at what point do you find the balance? How much setup is too much? Is it instinctive? Is it an inherent part of an author's style and voice, whether they start with a bang or ease into it?
For me, I really do prefer easing into it, both when I'm reading and when I'm writing. I can get engrossed in either form of opening. It just depends, for me, on whether the action heightens the tension and helps to draw me into the character or if I need to see them in their normal life for a bit to feel the impact of that status quo upsetting moment the way I should.
Rick Riordan's books are a prime example of this. The Red Pyramid starts a little slower. The two narrators show you a bit of what their normal is. Then he gets to the action and the upsetting of status quo. The Lost Hero jumps right into the crux of one character's arc. The kid has absolutely no idea where he is or who he is. This tension would be gone if we'd seen any bit of his normal reality.
Tolkien started off showing you how hobbits celebrate birthdays and what the Shire is like.
Jane Austen jumped right to the meat of it, a mother who wants nothing more than for her daughters to marry well, and one such opportunity has just moved into the neighborhood.
Kiersten White showed just how not normal Evie's normal is before turning her world on its ear.
I could go on, but I won't. I think what these examples are showing us is that, yes, it is instinctive and dependent on the story being told. I believe it is part of an author's voice, but more to do with the unique perspective an author brings to any story they write rather than a critical component of that voice.
What about you? Agree or disagree? Which do you tend to favor, jumping straight in or easing in?
In my contemporary fantasy, When the Star Fell (or whatever I end up titling it), I have a bit of a dilemma.
Draft 2, which is the first complete draft of the book, takes until chapter 6 for the status quo upsetting moment to occur.
Draft 6 has that moment occurring in chapter 4.
I've tried to start the book with that moment, but it doesn't work for me. There are relationships to set up which are actually key to that moment having greater impact. (At least in my head the way I'm looking at the manuscript.) And I really have tried to start there. I wrote a new beginning, which still ended up in this current draft, just in chapter 4 not chapter 1. I hated it. It didn't grab me at all when I got to that upset moment.
I've recently received some feedback on the first chapter that has me absolutely waffling. This reviewer wanted more setup, more descriptions, more scenes happening in the start location. I haven't told this reviewer yet about the fact that two chapters of it got cut in revisions.
So at what point do you find the balance? How much setup is too much? Is it instinctive? Is it an inherent part of an author's style and voice, whether they start with a bang or ease into it?
For me, I really do prefer easing into it, both when I'm reading and when I'm writing. I can get engrossed in either form of opening. It just depends, for me, on whether the action heightens the tension and helps to draw me into the character or if I need to see them in their normal life for a bit to feel the impact of that status quo upsetting moment the way I should.
Rick Riordan's books are a prime example of this. The Red Pyramid starts a little slower. The two narrators show you a bit of what their normal is. Then he gets to the action and the upsetting of status quo. The Lost Hero jumps right into the crux of one character's arc. The kid has absolutely no idea where he is or who he is. This tension would be gone if we'd seen any bit of his normal reality.
Tolkien started off showing you how hobbits celebrate birthdays and what the Shire is like.
Jane Austen jumped right to the meat of it, a mother who wants nothing more than for her daughters to marry well, and one such opportunity has just moved into the neighborhood.
Kiersten White showed just how not normal Evie's normal is before turning her world on its ear.
I could go on, but I won't. I think what these examples are showing us is that, yes, it is instinctive and dependent on the story being told. I believe it is part of an author's voice, but more to do with the unique perspective an author brings to any story they write rather than a critical component of that voice.
What about you? Agree or disagree? Which do you tend to favor, jumping straight in or easing in?
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
WiP Wednesday 5/11
I'm still working back into a good writing flow. Which will not happen today most likely. (Dismal and dreary weather seems to do that to me.) On to the updates.
When the Star Fell:
I'm debating my title, once again. I love this title, but I don't know if it's the right title for this book. I might have to hang on to it and use it for a different book from the same mythology that I developed for this one.
I've sent it off to another beta and have been getting some feedback on the first few chapters. Just what this means for the next round of revisions, I have no idea.
Truth or Dare:
I've added maybe 1600 words to this in the last few days. I want to finish this by the end of the month and I'm thinking it might happen. But I also think the story itself is going to fall far short of my word count goal so I'm thinking of scrapping the goal all together and just writing.
A very scary thought, I know.
That's it for updates on this glum Wednesday. (Seriously, it rained all night and the sun still doesn't want to show its face.) How are your WiPs going?
And don't forget to come back tomorrow for part 3 in my Twitter Basics for Authors series!
When the Star Fell:
I'm debating my title, once again. I love this title, but I don't know if it's the right title for this book. I might have to hang on to it and use it for a different book from the same mythology that I developed for this one.
I've sent it off to another beta and have been getting some feedback on the first few chapters. Just what this means for the next round of revisions, I have no idea.
Truth or Dare:
I've added maybe 1600 words to this in the last few days. I want to finish this by the end of the month and I'm thinking it might happen. But I also think the story itself is going to fall far short of my word count goal so I'm thinking of scrapping the goal all together and just writing.
A very scary thought, I know.
That's it for updates on this glum Wednesday. (Seriously, it rained all night and the sun still doesn't want to show its face.) How are your WiPs going?
And don't forget to come back tomorrow for part 3 in my Twitter Basics for Authors series!
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Daring to Be Different
We interrupt our regular WiP Wednesday post for something that has been bothering me of late.
All right, here's the deal.
I'm very devout in my religion, very firm in my faith. I have my own personal beliefs on angels. I know a lot of people have very very specific views on angels.
Guess what?
That doesn't mean you have to conform to that in your writing, if you choose to write about angels. A couple of years ago, I had the idea in my head to write something paranormal. I started researching all the different paranormal elements that I knew of. I narrowed it down to three, based off of what I read.
There was one idea on angels that I read that just stuck with me. It steamrolled and steamrolled until I had the basis for all my mythology of the book. There's a rich mythology that I've developed for this.
And it has come under attack a couple of times. Simply because it's not the standard view of angels. Yes, I pulled a very obscure description of angels on which to base my mythology. Yes, this view is not the same view I have on angels.
But you know something? I don't care. Does it mean that I might not sell this book? Probably. But I would rather be different than conform because two people screamed and shouted at me over my supposed lack of research. Because you don't know how much or how little research someone has done.
All right, here's the deal.
I'm very devout in my religion, very firm in my faith. I have my own personal beliefs on angels. I know a lot of people have very very specific views on angels.
Guess what?
That doesn't mean you have to conform to that in your writing, if you choose to write about angels. A couple of years ago, I had the idea in my head to write something paranormal. I started researching all the different paranormal elements that I knew of. I narrowed it down to three, based off of what I read.
There was one idea on angels that I read that just stuck with me. It steamrolled and steamrolled until I had the basis for all my mythology of the book. There's a rich mythology that I've developed for this.
And it has come under attack a couple of times. Simply because it's not the standard view of angels. Yes, I pulled a very obscure description of angels on which to base my mythology. Yes, this view is not the same view I have on angels.
But you know something? I don't care. Does it mean that I might not sell this book? Probably. But I would rather be different than conform because two people screamed and shouted at me over my supposed lack of research. Because you don't know how much or how little research someone has done.
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
WiP Wednesday 4/27
I have absolutely no progress to report this week. This is because I have taken a break from writing. Sure, my stories are still up there wandering around. And I'm definitely thinking about them. So I'll share some thoughts I've been having about them and then we'll be done.
When the Star Fell. Okay, so I posited a question to some writer friends about picking a POV character. One came back with the advice that the MC should be the one who has the most to lose and knows the least. Well, poop. The one with the most to lose might be the character I'd switch to. The one who knows the least amount though is the current MC.
I've also had the thought on this one that I'm trying to put it into the wrong genre. That it should be a straight-up paranormal romance. But then I'd lose my villain scenes. And those are some of my favorite scenes/chapters.
Truth or Dare. I'm still stuck on this one. I'm not getting much by way of inspiration and I think that it's going to come out way too short to be even a category-length romance novel.
Poetry is still on the backburner.
How are y'all doing with your WiPs?
When the Star Fell. Okay, so I posited a question to some writer friends about picking a POV character. One came back with the advice that the MC should be the one who has the most to lose and knows the least. Well, poop. The one with the most to lose might be the character I'd switch to. The one who knows the least amount though is the current MC.
I've also had the thought on this one that I'm trying to put it into the wrong genre. That it should be a straight-up paranormal romance. But then I'd lose my villain scenes. And those are some of my favorite scenes/chapters.
Truth or Dare. I'm still stuck on this one. I'm not getting much by way of inspiration and I think that it's going to come out way too short to be even a category-length romance novel.
Poetry is still on the backburner.
How are y'all doing with your WiPs?
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
WiP Wednesday 4/20
I have a severe lack of progress to report at this point in time.
When the Star Fell: This one is going on the backburner. I've been thinking about it, and it needs an overhaul. One thing thought that had kept coming up in my head, even as I finished that first draft a long time ago (not in a galaxy far, far away, though) was that the book needed to be focused on a different character. The MC is currently Derek, my normal, non-paranormal character. The MC needs to be the main paranormal character, Alnair. Corollary to this change, the book needs to be the third in a series. Each book would have its own standalone plot, its own character arc for this character, but there would be an overall emotional arc for her.
Truth or Dare: Boy is this one giving me issues. Who knew it would be so difficult to write? It's going to need a lot of added wordage when I get to "The End." But I'm not going to worry about that one until I get there. I am enjoying it, mostly. When I can get some writing time. I'm trying to find that balance right now between all the real-life things demanding my time and my writing. It's an on-going struggle. That just became less of a struggle because of some factors not in my control.
Poetry: Nowhere fast. I go through phases, I guess, where I'm really motivated to work on it. Then the muse vanishes and it sits untouched for ages. Failed attempts at getting any of it published probably have something to do with this. I write poetry from my own experience. I don't write about war or politics or weighty issues. I write about loss a lot I suppose. But I'm okay with this. I may someday decide to self-publish my poetry just for kicks.
When the Star Fell: This one is going on the backburner. I've been thinking about it, and it needs an overhaul. One thing thought that had kept coming up in my head, even as I finished that first draft a long time ago (not in a galaxy far, far away, though) was that the book needed to be focused on a different character. The MC is currently Derek, my normal, non-paranormal character. The MC needs to be the main paranormal character, Alnair. Corollary to this change, the book needs to be the third in a series. Each book would have its own standalone plot, its own character arc for this character, but there would be an overall emotional arc for her.
Truth or Dare: Boy is this one giving me issues. Who knew it would be so difficult to write? It's going to need a lot of added wordage when I get to "The End." But I'm not going to worry about that one until I get there. I am enjoying it, mostly. When I can get some writing time. I'm trying to find that balance right now between all the real-life things demanding my time and my writing. It's an on-going struggle. That just became less of a struggle because of some factors not in my control.
Poetry: Nowhere fast. I go through phases, I guess, where I'm really motivated to work on it. Then the muse vanishes and it sits untouched for ages. Failed attempts at getting any of it published probably have something to do with this. I write poetry from my own experience. I don't write about war or politics or weighty issues. I write about loss a lot I suppose. But I'm okay with this. I may someday decide to self-publish my poetry just for kicks.
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
WiP Wednesday 4/6
Progress report:
When the Star Fell
Back from beta. The weekend will be for going through the comments and such.
Truth or Dare
Massive wordage added to this. Since Saturday I've added 11,027 words to this WiP. I have an advantage though. So far, I've been able to cut and paste a lot from the short story this is being adapted from.
The short story it's from was all from the FMC's perspective. So the challenge is a)finding the passages from her perspective that work best and b)making those blend well with the switches to the MMC's perspective.
That said, I'm now at a point in the story where I have to add in a lot of stuff that wasn't there originally. So wordage progress may slow significantly for a while. I'll have to write fresh both the MMC and FMC perspectives. Nothing to copy and paste for a few months of narrative time yet.
Those are the only projects for which I have any progress to report.
How are your WiPs going?
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
WiP Wednesday 3/30
Um.
Well, uh.
Yeah. I have some sort of Writer's ADD.
Experimental romance short? Not liking it any more. So I've stopped working on it.
...Futile updates
This is a poetry collection of mine. I've got four going at the moment. This one is my sort of pet project. I really want to get this one completed. I'm aiming for it to be a book-lenght collection. (Meaning it's minimum 50 pages. That's at least the average I seem to see when looking at contest deadlines.) I'd love to see this one published.
And suddenly, I'm considering self-publishing for it. I know, I'm talking crazy now. I'm not making any decisions. The collection is nowhere near complete. I did add a poem to it over the weekend, but then I deleted one from it. I moved one poem from section 1 to section 3. I tweaked wording on almost every poem in the collection and even gave two of them new titles.
Musings updates
This poetry collection (aiming for chapbook length, so 16-24 pages) is at a standstill. It's a collection of tankas (think a haiku with two additional seven-syllable lines at the end) and haiku. It's entertaining sometimes to try my hand again at the short form, bending the rules of each form while still talking mostly about nature.
Milepost updates
This collection is probably going to go by the wayside. So far, all the poems are crossovers with ...Futile and so I'm not terribly in love with it.
Migrations updates
This is by far the least developed collection. It has 5 sections, one for each place I've spent a significant amount of time. But it only has I think 3 poems. Very very rough. And it might not ever get off the ground.
Truth or Dare (tentative title for a romance novel I'm adapting from a short story I wrote) updates
Started it. I'm just over 1100 words in at this point. It's entertaining, trying to bring out both voices and make internal and external arcs for the characters. When I wrote the short story, there wasn't much room for more than the events that brought the FMC and MMC together, drove them apart, and reunited them. I'll be interested to see how this experiment goes.
But my track record shows that I don't do so well with experiments or adapting a short story into a novel.
So, yeah, can you say I'm avoiding the real issue at hand?
Well, uh.
Yeah. I have some sort of Writer's ADD.
Experimental romance short? Not liking it any more. So I've stopped working on it.
...Futile updates
This is a poetry collection of mine. I've got four going at the moment. This one is my sort of pet project. I really want to get this one completed. I'm aiming for it to be a book-lenght collection. (Meaning it's minimum 50 pages. That's at least the average I seem to see when looking at contest deadlines.) I'd love to see this one published.
And suddenly, I'm considering self-publishing for it. I know, I'm talking crazy now. I'm not making any decisions. The collection is nowhere near complete. I did add a poem to it over the weekend, but then I deleted one from it. I moved one poem from section 1 to section 3. I tweaked wording on almost every poem in the collection and even gave two of them new titles.
Musings updates
This poetry collection (aiming for chapbook length, so 16-24 pages) is at a standstill. It's a collection of tankas (think a haiku with two additional seven-syllable lines at the end) and haiku. It's entertaining sometimes to try my hand again at the short form, bending the rules of each form while still talking mostly about nature.
Milepost updates
This collection is probably going to go by the wayside. So far, all the poems are crossovers with ...Futile and so I'm not terribly in love with it.
Migrations updates
This is by far the least developed collection. It has 5 sections, one for each place I've spent a significant amount of time. But it only has I think 3 poems. Very very rough. And it might not ever get off the ground.
Truth or Dare (tentative title for a romance novel I'm adapting from a short story I wrote) updates
Started it. I'm just over 1100 words in at this point. It's entertaining, trying to bring out both voices and make internal and external arcs for the characters. When I wrote the short story, there wasn't much room for more than the events that brought the FMC and MMC together, drove them apart, and reunited them. I'll be interested to see how this experiment goes.
But my track record shows that I don't do so well with experiments or adapting a short story into a novel.
So, yeah, can you say I'm avoiding the real issue at hand?
When the Star Fell updates:
Considering a start-over rewrite. Basically, characters and main events would remain the same, but all new words. I'm not really sure of this and I hesitate to do anything drastic with so little feedback on the work as it currently stands. But I'm feeling rather like a hack at the moment.
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
WiP Wednesday 3/23
Progress was made this week, but not on what I really should have been working on. Sigh.
The goals this weekend are to actually sit down and work on When the Star Fell.
After that, I'm going to work on my poetry collections. These are works I really would love to have published. To do that requires actually finishing them.
How are your WiPs going?
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
WiP Wednesday 3/16
So, no querying for me any time soon.
I was re-reading the book to look for the things I want to cut. There are some things that are bothering me with the book. I've hinted at them before.
Now I'm seeing problems everywhere. When did my story adopt so many inconsistencies and problems? I did not give it permission to start fostering troublemaker children. Not cool.
So, I'm abandoning any notion of querying When the Star Fell, at least in the next couple of months. Maybe come September. 2 years after starting that initial world-building. Seriously? 2 years. I started it the fall immediately after I graduated with my master's.
The last 2 years have taken me so many different directions and yet I'm now coming full-circle back to where I was that summer when I was working on Oracles Promise and had so many hopes for the year to follow that graduation. Those hopes have long-since died in so many ways.
But the dream and hope of seeing my book on a shelf is still alive, even if it's being deferred yet again.
How are your WiPs going?
I was re-reading the book to look for the things I want to cut. There are some things that are bothering me with the book. I've hinted at them before.
Now I'm seeing problems everywhere. When did my story adopt so many inconsistencies and problems? I did not give it permission to start fostering troublemaker children. Not cool.
So, I'm abandoning any notion of querying When the Star Fell, at least in the next couple of months. Maybe come September. 2 years after starting that initial world-building. Seriously? 2 years. I started it the fall immediately after I graduated with my master's.
The last 2 years have taken me so many different directions and yet I'm now coming full-circle back to where I was that summer when I was working on Oracles Promise and had so many hopes for the year to follow that graduation. Those hopes have long-since died in so many ways.
But the dream and hope of seeing my book on a shelf is still alive, even if it's being deferred yet again.
How are your WiPs going?
Friday, March 11, 2011
Footloose and Fancy-free Friday 3/11
I always do this to myself: a tragedy happens and I glue myself to the television. It's not healthy, but it's what happens. My thoughts and prayers go out to all those affected by this earthquake and tsunami.
It's the weekend, finally. I needed it to be the weekend so much. Maybe I'll actually be able to work some on When the Star Fell. You know, when I'm not busy living my life and working on other projects that demand attention.
I face a dilemma, now, too. I feel like I need to separate my networking professional persona from my personal Facebook. The plan would be to create a page for myself where I can network and such, and leave my main profile for very close friends and family. Meaning most likely you would only remain a friend on Facebook if a) we're related, b) we've met in real life, or c) I have a very good personal reason for keeping you as a friend on my profile. But how to tell everyone? I mean, it could come off as awfully rude if I'm not careful. But I also don't want to cull my profile's friend's list without any explanation.
Have a good weekend everyone!
It's the weekend, finally. I needed it to be the weekend so much. Maybe I'll actually be able to work some on When the Star Fell. You know, when I'm not busy living my life and working on other projects that demand attention.
I face a dilemma, now, too. I feel like I need to separate my networking professional persona from my personal Facebook. The plan would be to create a page for myself where I can network and such, and leave my main profile for very close friends and family. Meaning most likely you would only remain a friend on Facebook if a) we're related, b) we've met in real life, or c) I have a very good personal reason for keeping you as a friend on my profile. But how to tell everyone? I mean, it could come off as awfully rude if I'm not careful. But I also don't want to cull my profile's friend's list without any explanation.
Have a good weekend everyone!
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
WiP Wednesday 3/9
So, yeah.
That whole query thing? Not likely to happen this month. I'm still going to work to get the submissions materials all together and going, but there's been a slight hitch in the plan.
You see, I'm not so sure that the book as it stands is what I want as a representation of me.
That said, I'm going to launch into a major revision of certain elements of the book. It means I'll lose a lot of words. Those are words that will have to be added back in new ways. Which will take time. This isn't a revision I can pound out in a week. It might take two weeks. Or even three.
But I think it'll be worth it.
Also, if you haven't noticed, I've officially decided on a new title for my book.
It's now called:
When the Star Fell
How are your WiPs going?
That whole query thing? Not likely to happen this month. I'm still going to work to get the submissions materials all together and going, but there's been a slight hitch in the plan.
You see, I'm not so sure that the book as it stands is what I want as a representation of me.
That said, I'm going to launch into a major revision of certain elements of the book. It means I'll lose a lot of words. Those are words that will have to be added back in new ways. Which will take time. This isn't a revision I can pound out in a week. It might take two weeks. Or even three.
But I think it'll be worth it.
Also, if you haven't noticed, I've officially decided on a new title for my book.
It's now called:
When the Star Fell
How are your WiPs going?
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Owning Your Work
I posted a while ago about reconciling differences. As an author, I have my own personal beliefs about a variety of situations that characters could face, ways that characters might think, etc. (You can find that original post here.)
Now, as I sit down and really look at my story When the Star Fell (formerly titled Lodestar), I find myself faced with a question.
Do I want this work to be associated with me?
It brings to mind Warren Buffett's advice from that school visit I talked about before on the blog. (Find those posts here, here, and here.) In the video, he's asked, "How do you instill ethical leadership through your corporation? How do you know the management below you is making parallel decisions?"
His reply was the newspaper test. Imagine that the decision you're making is going to be reported on the next day by a less-than-friendly newspaper reporter. All your friends and family are going to see it. Are you good with the decision, imagining that scenario? If not, make a different decision.
Am I comfortable with what's in the story? Am I, being an active member of my church, comfortable with the situations I've put my characters through? Am I comfortable with the fact that I've written dialogue with the occasional (very occasional) curse word? Am I comfortable with every word on those pages?
And I'm not so sure I am.
Are you comfortable with your words as a representation of you?
(To be fair, I do realize that my book isn't me. But people can get judgmental sometimes. And I know that we have to be true to the characters, but doesn't that also mean we can create characters that don't behave in those ways that make us most uncomfortable?)
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
WiP Wednesday 3/2
Seriously? March? Where does time go. I'm sorry for being such a blogger slacker. Things are all pretty crazy right now.
So, WiP update. Um, well.
I'm taking the plunge and getting everything ready to jump into the query trenches. I've drafted a query for Lodestar and will be working on my synopsis through the coming days.
How are your WiPs going?
So, WiP update. Um, well.
I'm taking the plunge and getting everything ready to jump into the query trenches. I've drafted a query for Lodestar and will be working on my synopsis through the coming days.
How are your WiPs going?
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
WiP Wednesday 2/23
I haven't done much of anything with the book. Or with any projects for that matter. Life has been kind of crazy lately. Lots of changes, lots of stuff happening.
I want to start querying Lodestar/whatever title I give it. But is it too soon? Am I ready? Do I have thick enough skin to handle this process?
How are your WiPs going?
I want to start querying Lodestar/whatever title I give it. But is it too soon? Am I ready? Do I have thick enough skin to handle this process?
How are your WiPs going?
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Titling Your Novel
I face a dilemma, friends. (Yes I've emerged from blogging hiatus. Though for how long is yet to be determined.)
You see, Lodestar needs a new title. This is because in the Google alerts I've been getting for that title, it shows up as a way of referring to a foreign political leader. Not exactly the connotation I want to have associated with my book.
And I can't come up with anything else on my own.
My options that I've brainstormed myself:
Polestar
Starfall
Thanks to a Saturday tweet, I've been graced with the following options:
Solar Redemption
Song of the Sun
And Then the Stars Fall
First Star Rising
Dawn at the Edge of Black
(Thanks go to Liana Brooks for these ones!)
I've fallen in love with one from that latter list. (But I'm not going to say.) But this is where my second dilemma comes in.
I know that more often than not, a book's title gets changed during the publication process. The title I'm in love with (aside from the first one I named it and have been referring to it by for the past year and some odd months) doesn't perfectly fit the novel. I'm tempted to tweak the novel to make the book fit the title.
But do I do that? Or do I go with a blander title that I don't love so I'm not devastated when a publisher wants to change it down the road?
What are your thoughts? (And please vote in the poll on the sidebar for your favorite title from this post.)
You see, Lodestar needs a new title. This is because in the Google alerts I've been getting for that title, it shows up as a way of referring to a foreign political leader. Not exactly the connotation I want to have associated with my book.
And I can't come up with anything else on my own.
My options that I've brainstormed myself:
Polestar
Starfall
Thanks to a Saturday tweet, I've been graced with the following options:
Solar Redemption
Song of the Sun
And Then the Stars Fall
First Star Rising
Dawn at the Edge of Black
(Thanks go to Liana Brooks for these ones!)
I've fallen in love with one from that latter list. (But I'm not going to say.) But this is where my second dilemma comes in.
I know that more often than not, a book's title gets changed during the publication process. The title I'm in love with (aside from the first one I named it and have been referring to it by for the past year and some odd months) doesn't perfectly fit the novel. I'm tempted to tweak the novel to make the book fit the title.
But do I do that? Or do I go with a blander title that I don't love so I'm not devastated when a publisher wants to change it down the road?
What are your thoughts? (And please vote in the poll on the sidebar for your favorite title from this post.)
Thursday, February 3, 2011
Making Your Outline Work For You Part 3
We made it! The last step of the process! This one is time-consuming but by far the most fun of them all.
All those post-it flags and notes in the margin? They're coming off.
First, the easy ones. Whatever colors you've designated for things to move elsewhere (4 out of 6 categories) are the ones you'll go through first. Go one color at a time and start cutting and pasting. This is where your margin notes will come in handy. You should have noted along the way where to move something to. Mine read something like, "Use this scene for such and such bit of mythology, character history, whatever."
As you address each of these changes, remove the post-it. This pass-through will leave you with just two colors and two categories to address: Scenes/chapters to reconsider (which I've marked in mine with orange) and things hinted at or foreshadowed that need to be developed further.
These two are the meatiest of your categories and the ones the hardest and most time-consuming to address. But your outline will work for you, not the other way around, with this method. This outline will help you to close up plot holes, deepen characters, adequately foreshadow events, etc.
The easier of these two categories is the foreshadowing/developing further one. For each of your post-its in this category, go back through your margin notes. These notes will indicate places where it will flow naturally to put in a sentence, a short scene, anything that might help foreshadow without giving away or places where a small bit of backstory can be seeded to explain something you've indicated.
Don't remove the post-it until you've fully addressed it. This includes scenes that need to occur after the post-it, further on in the narrative. Once you feel that you've added everything that needs to be in order to smooth out the plot bump, you can remove that post-it.
Now we're only left with one color. Scenes and chapters to reconsider. You may find that many of these are no longer something that needs to be addressed and the post-it can be removed. (Many of mine ended up being deleted as I went through the other five categories of changes.) But this category also includes the scenes that you noted in the margins to add but don't get addressed by the other five pass-throughs.
In the end, you'll end up with a stronger story and a post-it free outline. (At this point, for future revisions, I would suggest you create a clean outline to work off. This one you've just finished with is vastly different from the manuscript as it currently stands.)
All those post-it flags and notes in the margin? They're coming off.
First, the easy ones. Whatever colors you've designated for things to move elsewhere (4 out of 6 categories) are the ones you'll go through first. Go one color at a time and start cutting and pasting. This is where your margin notes will come in handy. You should have noted along the way where to move something to. Mine read something like, "Use this scene for such and such bit of mythology, character history, whatever."
As you address each of these changes, remove the post-it. This pass-through will leave you with just two colors and two categories to address: Scenes/chapters to reconsider (which I've marked in mine with orange) and things hinted at or foreshadowed that need to be developed further.
These two are the meatiest of your categories and the ones the hardest and most time-consuming to address. But your outline will work for you, not the other way around, with this method. This outline will help you to close up plot holes, deepen characters, adequately foreshadow events, etc.
The easier of these two categories is the foreshadowing/developing further one. For each of your post-its in this category, go back through your margin notes. These notes will indicate places where it will flow naturally to put in a sentence, a short scene, anything that might help foreshadow without giving away or places where a small bit of backstory can be seeded to explain something you've indicated.
Don't remove the post-it until you've fully addressed it. This includes scenes that need to occur after the post-it, further on in the narrative. Once you feel that you've added everything that needs to be in order to smooth out the plot bump, you can remove that post-it.
Now we're only left with one color. Scenes and chapters to reconsider. You may find that many of these are no longer something that needs to be addressed and the post-it can be removed. (Many of mine ended up being deleted as I went through the other five categories of changes.) But this category also includes the scenes that you noted in the margins to add but don't get addressed by the other five pass-throughs.
In the end, you'll end up with a stronger story and a post-it free outline. (At this point, for future revisions, I would suggest you create a clean outline to work off. This one you've just finished with is vastly different from the manuscript as it currently stands.)
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
WiP Wednesday 2/2
Happy Groundhog Day!
Ahem. Sorry. Back to regular programming.
It's time for a status update.
ROUND 3 REVISIONS ARE DONE!
I've successfully navigated my way through this revision. The manuscript is significantly smaller than it was before. Try just shy of 8700 words smaller.
Yeah. Let that one soak in a bit. And that's after having added stuff in.
My outline helped me a lot with keeping things straight on this revision. I knew what needed to be done and had a good idea of how. There was a problem scene that I figured out and now I think some things work a lot better than before.
Tonight I plan on starting my new outline for the book to replace the detailed outline I last worked off of. (More on that in tomorrow's outlining post.)
In other news, I have to re-title this story. I set up a Google alert on the title I currently have and the last two days it's brought back a reference to a foreign political leader. Not a great associatioin so I'm going to have to change it. But I love my title. Sigh.
How are your WiPs going?
Ahem. Sorry. Back to regular programming.
It's time for a status update.
ROUND 3 REVISIONS ARE DONE!
I've successfully navigated my way through this revision. The manuscript is significantly smaller than it was before. Try just shy of 8700 words smaller.
Yeah. Let that one soak in a bit. And that's after having added stuff in.
My outline helped me a lot with keeping things straight on this revision. I knew what needed to be done and had a good idea of how. There was a problem scene that I figured out and now I think some things work a lot better than before.
Tonight I plan on starting my new outline for the book to replace the detailed outline I last worked off of. (More on that in tomorrow's outlining post.)
In other news, I have to re-title this story. I set up a Google alert on the title I currently have and the last two days it's brought back a reference to a foreign political leader. Not a great associatioin so I'm going to have to change it. But I love my title. Sigh.
How are your WiPs going?
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