WSW: Writer Software

Image from http://www.quest.com/tv/

My current project is a bit more complicated than any of the others that I have undertaken. It is being told in three unique points of view, filled with music and movement, multiple timelines, tons of research, and a historical piece of Brazilian folklore. It is becoming clear that I need to be super organized to make sense of it all.

In all of my other projects, I have just used a single folder on my hard drive to store all of my files for that particular writing project. In it, I had the first draft, scenes without a home, character notes, and a document that had any pictures needed. Easy peazy.  I knew where each scene would go in the long run, at least the general order of things.

This project is all over the place. Scenes are popping up in no particular order. There is backstory that will need to be intertwined, one character that doesn't play on the same time schedule as the others, and dealing with the same scenes being told in multiple points of view. I know that until I have all the puzzle pieces pulled out of the box, I can't even begin to figure out how to place them together. And this isn't just a hundred piece level one puzzle. We are talking about a box of a thousand tiny pieces.

I say all of this to say that I am considering using writer software.

So, what about you? How do you stay organized when you are writing?Have you tried any writing software? If so, which ones? If not, have you been tempted to? Are you a pro at one of the many available, or have you only used basic word processor files? 

Whatcha Say Wednesdays are for you. It's a chance to voice your opinion, share your knowledge, and interact with one another. Answer what speaks to you, and ignore the rest. But do tell—I’m quite curious.

Pick and Pull: Recycling for a New Story

Photo from http://www.motiont.com/carfinder/Resources/CheapAutoParts.aspx

Back in 2010, I talked about a story that started off as a project that I loved but was yet terrified of trying to write, and later was sent to the Scrap Pile. I couldn't pull the story together. As much as I love those characters, I just could not make that story work. In the above mentioned post, I said that I was sending it the scrap pile. "I will leave it in tact like a car in the junkyard to be sold for parts when needed. Who knows, maybe Jared and Caitlin will find happiness in another story that is more my style. They deserve it after all I’ve put them through."

Well, guess what. Exactly what I said would happen, happened. They are no longer Jared and Caitlin, and are now Amanda and Nate. Her backstory is almost exactly the same. His has changed a great deal. The deep connection between them is the same, well, actually stronger. They are no longer facing the end of the world, but were brought together by a wish that could mean death for one of them. But someone is pulling the strings and bringing these two together.

The stakes are high, the love is deep, and the characters are full of dimension. I am currently calling the story The Wish, but that will probably change. It's already changed once from Local Lore, I had picked that name, because of it's connection to Brazilian folklore. I felt the name was too weak, and didn't connect the reader to the story properly.

I say all this to say--it can happen. Those discarded darlings can be revived. It takes time. I had to step away from the project for two years, discover a new culture, and experience life from a new perspective.

I cannot use all of the 10K words that I dedicated to Touch of Light, but I have found a home for a love story that needed proper attention. Maybe you have a few stories in the scrap pile that feel abandoned. Sometimes that is where they stay. But, sometimes, they will see the light again. We just have to give them time to breathe.


Have you ever saved a story from the scrap pile? Do you still miss some of your discarded darlings? Do you try to revive them, or do you accept their new home in the junkyard? 

Recycled: Can't Stop Reading

What makes a page turner? What about a book keeps you from sleeping?

At some point, each of us has come across a book that has grabbed us by both eyes and not let go. We’ve fought to put it down, and failed horribly. They’ve left us walking into work with dark circles under our eyes. Forced us to spend our lunch hours tearing through as many chapters as possible. Turned us into complete addicts.

Twilight did this to me, and though I loved them, it wasn’t the stellar writing – it was something else. Hunger Games is another that kept me up at night. Let’s go old school – Bridget Jones Diary. So what is it about these books? Are the pages lined with crack?

I went back and looked at some of the books that have done this to me to see what it was that made me cling to them, and choose reading versus a night out on the town.

Characters you genuinely care about – Becoming emotionally invested in a character, will keep you coming back with every spare minute you can muster. You know if it ends poorly—you will need to take a few days off to mourn. A character that you relate to and desperately want to see succeed.

Cliffhangers at the end of chapters – We naturally want to close a book at the end of a chapter versus the middle, but when the chapter ends with a car wreck—we HAVE to know who lives, who dies, and how the heck’s the Ferrari. So, we start the new chapter, and darn now we are back in the middle. Keep reading. Now, the body is missing. Well, where did it go? Next thing you know it’s 3:00 am, and you’re hiding in the closet with a flashlight trying not to wake the rest of the house.

Reverse Arc – A story has a natural arc. Each chapter is generally designed the same, building to the climax and then slowly bringing the reader back down. The reverse arc throws all that out the window- starting with action, covering slower parts in the middle of the chapter, and planting you back at the top of a climax at the end, propelling you into the next chapter.

Forget the drapes - Now, I personally have a tendency of skipping past the pages of beautifully written prose discussing the tiny butterfly pattern that is woven into the blue wallpaper. Couldn’t care less. I want to know where the heck did Hot Guy go, and is he the one holding the bloody knife? Maybe that’s just me, but a book that leaves a reader quivering for more is not doing so because of the mass amount of description. I couldn’t tell you what Bella’s room looked like, but I can tell you there was a vampire hanging out in there.

This can not end well – A storyline that appears to have a definitive ending, one that will crush your soul, but the writer gives you the tiniest inkling of hope--will pull you to the end. You may be reading it while peering through your fingers, but you are reading forward. I give it up to Stephanie Meyer on this one for sure. Breaking Dawn! Hello! ‘Nuff said.

Make ‘em laugh – A book that is just fun to read will make a reader cling to it, and heck, even come back for more. It’s not the same Zombie response of, “Must finish book, have to finish book, Boooook.” But the pages flick by just the same. You know the saying – time flies when you are having fun – well so do the chapters. Bridget Jones Diary was one of the first books that did this to me. I hoped things would work out for her, but laughing out loud alone in the dark is why I could not put that book down.

This list is not complete, but I think it’s a good start. So you tell me ...

What are some other things that glue you to the writing? Do you use any of these page turning techniques in your writing? What’s a book that grabbed you and wouldn’t let you go?

Only You Can Prevent Word Abuse

I hit my 100th follower, which is AWESOME! Thanks to all of you for helping me reach this milestone.

Awesome is one of my favorite words. Although I do believe it applies here, awesome is one of those words that is overused. It reminds me of a story. My husband and I were talking one day, and he said (very loosely quoted), “One day, we will be riding up the escalator to Heaven. The angels will be singing, the sky will be illuminated, and at that moment – I will frog you in the arm and say ‘that is awesome’.”

Writers often have “go-to” words, peppered throughout their writing. I’ve noticed it during critiques, my own writing, and even published books. A light dusting is not a major offense, but when these words appear on nearly every page or every paragraph—revisions must be done. However, it’s an easy fix.

There are several ways this is done in writing. Sometimes it’s the character that is the offender. In my novel, Iron Thirst, one of Felicity’s favorite words is complete, such as complete disaster. It is a useless adjective, but it is a part of her speech. But like the use of cuss words—it needed to be reduced to one written word for every seven times she would say it in real life.

Another example is the overuse of rarely used words. The first time I noticed this in published work was in Twilight. Did anyone else notice the overuse of the word chagrin? It stood out, because it’s not a word heard too often. When teenagers were saying it, it came across as even more odd. Now, Stephanie Meyer has obviously done well for herself, but we are not all going to be as lucky.

Sometimes it is our own addictive nature that goes to these words, and many times they are useless words. Very, really, and just are examples that I have plucked out of my own writing. Slight rewording will fix it. If something is “very tall” (telling), maybe it hurts your neck to look up at it or maybe clouds hide the top (showing).

The first step is admitting you have an issue. Run your manuscript through Wordle. It’s a visual tool that will show you the most used words in your book. Use your judgment, but if like, just, really, or very is larger than the name of the love interest—Houston, we have a problem.

Step Two – Fix it. Using find (Control+F) within your manuscript to locate all the uses of the overused word, and then either omit, replace or reword. Some people will tell you to stay far away from a thesaurus, but I disagree. I find it to be a great tool, but use it sparingly. I don’t grab the nearest three syllable word, but I use it to trigger my memory of a word that I might be forgetting. But make sure it fits your text, mood, and voice.

Learning your “go-to” words is part of revising, and with a little research—you will find the best way to correct this within your writing. Only you can prevent word abuse.

What are some of your “go-to” words? What other tools do you use to find or fix the problem?

No Thanks, but I'll Tell Ya Why

I set off on the mission of querying a couple of months ago. I felt great about the condition of my manuscript, I had two versions of query letters, and was off to find agents that represent my genre. I sent off one or two at a time, spacing them out. I decided to query slowly.

I received a few no’s, but also received a few requests for partials. Let me tell you—that is an exciting yet terrifying experience. Sometimes I don’t know which I was more concerned with – the yes or the no. Am I ready for this?

But one of the most spectacular things happened. I received the mystical helpful rejection. The agent said he would pass, but he was very honest about exactly why. He offered advice to improve the manuscript. In the writing world, this is the next best thing to a yes. Wow!

Now, I will be honest. I read it just like I’ve read all of my initial critiques. The first time with my heart broken, the second time in denial, and then when I was ready – with my mind open.

I began planning the new direction for the book, taking his advice to heart. In my particular case, it involved trimming down the beginning and streamlining the initial plot. I chopped nearly seventeen pages out of the first fifty, adding more strategically placed cliffhangers to help pull the reader forward.

There were some really fun scenes that had to be pulled. It hurt to do so, but I believe it truly helped the story. And with this new beginning, the book reads more like a supernatural romance than the original urban fantasy that I had been trying to sell it as. A slight switch, but the reader can get a feel for what they are getting themselves into much quicker.

So, my fine penned friends, it pays to query slowly. Had I sent out a large chunk of letters, I would have burnt bridges with a version of a book that wasn’t where it needed to be. And like I said – I needed the advice of a professional to get it closer to perfection. Not to mention, I took it as a huge compliment that the agent took his time to give me advice.

If you are querying – query slowly. Give agents the time to review your work. Make changes, keep growing, and above all – don’t give up!

How’s your writing or querying going?

Watcha Say Wednesday: Are You a Juggler?

I have been a busy little bee since we last spoke. I've got the new YA up to about 15,000 words. I've nicknamed it The Hunting Moon (working title). I've retrieved Iron Thirst from exile and started revising. I've become addicted to Twitter thanks to all the funny, clever people that hang out there. Think the last one is not helpful? Well, when you receive horrible critiques, surprise emails, or are just having a bad day and great friends pull you off the ceiling, calm you, and put you back on your feet - you'll see. (Love you guys!) Like the blogosphere, it's a great support system - but more instantaneous.

Now, what was I talking about? Point. I had a point. *scratches temple* Oh, yeah.

In the past, I've had a problem balancing multiple projects. I will be flying by, typing away on a new WIP. Then I'll decide to go back and revise Iron Thirst. I become so involved with my first love that ideas stop flowing for the new WIP, and it gets dropped by the wayside.

This go round, I am more focused (or so I'm telling myself), but I fear it will happen.

Which brings me to this week's Watcha Say Wednesday.

How many balls do you keep in the air? Do you only work on one WIP at a time, or are you a polynovelist (I think I just made that up. I wrote this in religion class.)

Do you wait until your MS is near perfection before you start a new WIP, or do you have a process such as revising one while writing another?

Answer what speaks to you; ignore the rest. But do tell - I'm quite curious.

Just Breathe

I have pages in two different people’s hands right now, and my “new” first chapter is posted on Critique Circle.com. Having new people read your work is exhilarating and terrifying. And I’m very lucky and happy to have people that are browsing through my words, and helping make them stronger.

But it is full disclosure time. I am never more neurotic than when I am waiting on a review. I pray in time this will get better for the publishing business is all about waiting. I know this, and that is why I make sure that my crazy is kept internal. Well, with the exception of this post. The only reason that I share this so openly is because I don’t think that I am alone.

But you have to recognize this for what it is and not give into temptation to pester those blessed souls who have offered to read your work. To not fill their inbox with insane messages of …

--- “What page are you on?” ---

---“Nevermind, don’t read it. You won’t like it.”  ---

--- “I know you’ve had fifty pages for only thirty minutes, but what do you think?” ---

--- “Your silence means you hate it. Am I right?” ---

--- “Please love me.” ---

*Just so we are clear, I have never ACTUALLY sent any of those* :-)

Please note, my anxiety is not a reflection of the critiquers, only of my own impatience.

These people are there to help you get stronger, not to validate you as a writer. And the process of waiting is one that you must become accustomed to if you are serious about the business.

--- You must wait until your manuscript is ready before querying.

--- You must wait and query slowly—not sending a mass email to all agents who you think rock.

--- You must wait to hear back from said rockstar agents.

--- They ask for pages, you must wait to hear if they love them.

--- If they love them, you must wait for them to find the publisher that thinks you rock.

--- Found a publisher, you must wait on that much dreamed about cover.

--- Cover’s on shelf, you must wait to see if people love your characters as much as you do.

And if they do, all the waiting will make that moment all the sweeter.

No matter if it’s the wait for a critique, the wait for the words to be your version of perfect, or the agent’s email to finally hit your email box after the thirty-seventh time of you sending an email to yourself with the subject ‘TEST” – BREATHE!  Take a deep breath, find something else to do, channel your anxiety into beautiful art, and don’t forget how blessed you are to have been given the gift of words.

The choice to write can be made in a minute, but the decision to become a writer is not one that should be taken lightly. It is a journey no less difficult than Frodo’s. This business requires determination, courage, resolve, patience, strength, and wonderful friends who help put you back on the right path when one of those is faltering.

Celebrate each accomplishment. Brush off each down fall. And put your best write forward.

Much love to all of you for being my Samwise on this journey!

So tell me. What are you waiting on? Are you a patient person? Do you stress when others have your work? Or do you stay cool as a cucumber?

WIP: Under Construction

When I decided to write five new chapters for an already finished manuscript, I knew it would be a daunting task. Especially if those chapters are in a different POV from the majority of the book. After the initial thought had formed and had time to simmer, a little voice, the voice of doubt, stepped in and had something to say. I had not written one word of the new chapters, and I was getting, “It’s too hard; it won’t work; you’re wasting your time.”

I kindly told the voice to hush. With a won’t-know-til-you-try attitude, I stared at the familiar flashing cursor. A week later, I finished the rough draft of all five chapters. And I’m very glad that I did.

The chapters, like any first draft, need a great deal of work, but before I start polishing, I will be going through several steps to prepare these chapters so they can slide into the book. Think about it. If you decide to build onto your house, you can’t just slap some wood up and start painting. There is cutting, sanding, and other prep work needed before you can add this new room. The last thing would be the paint. For example, the first chapter slides in between existing chapters four and five. I need to work on passage of time, trying to keep things linear, the transition to each scene, and avoid duplication of ideas.

I’ve worked out an approach to help take each step at a time, because I find that breaking it into bite size chunks is much easier to swallow.

1) Before and after transition checks – I want to make sure sliding in and out of the second POV is not jarring, but is significant enough that the reader realizes immediately that the shift has happened. Stephanie Meyer did this in New Moon, and the first time I missed it, and was part way through the passage before realizing, Oh, we’re Jacob now. By Eclipse, I was right there with her. Even if you are remaining in the same POV, you must make sure that the transition is still smooth. This will lead to revising not just the new chapters, but the old.

2) Consistency and duplication checks – When adding brand new chapters, some things in previous chapters may change. You have to go through and make sure that you are not contradicting yourself. In line with this, you must also make sure that you are not duplicating ideas. When covering a story from multiple POV’s, you don’t want to tell the exact same story through both of their eyes, otherwise the POV switch would not be necessary. The second POV needs to bring something new to the table. For me, Adam Bristow sees the dark side of the story. He is down in the nitty gritty. While Felicity is clueless that the dark side even exists.

3) First Coat – Begin the polishing process. Cleaning up the echos, making sure action tags are there. Make the new chapters as strong as possible.

4) Voice consistency check – Now that the entire book is fairly shiny, I can go back and divide the book into the different POVs.  I plan to go through each POV separately, making sure that the voice of the character remains true and distinct.  This is especially true for Bristow. He is British, uses slang, and is male. I have to make sure that all of his chapters read with the exact same voice, and that they are unique, making them stand out from Felicity’s chapters.

5) Final Coat – Read the entire book, and revise once more. For me, revisions are normally a three part process: read and edit, revise, final read through. I always read through it after a round of edits because when making edits, I often leave a dangling period or something bizarre that does not belong.

6) Let it dry – Put the manuscript a way for at least one month, and go find something else to do. Draw the blueprints for the next novel. During this time, I often hand the ms over to critiquers. This go round, I will be searching for another reader, one who has not read it. More on this later. I’m thinking about doing a fair trade, so keep me in mind if you are looking for a critique.

Ok, I’ve run long. I’m hearing the Oscar wrap up song.

I’d love to hear any advice you have for adding to a finished ms. How many POV’s are in your current WIP. Have I lost my mind? (The last question was mainly for me.) I’m thinking about writing on some of the consistency checks that I’ve used in the past. Is this something useful to you?

Just One More Time

Each time I set out to tackle my manuscript, I qualify it as the “last round of edits”, and I am convinced each time I begin them that it truly is. Closer to the end, I know I'll be back. See, I discuss it here and here. I’ve watched enough movies to know that when you say you’re going to do something one more time, you either get busted by the police or shot. Nothing as tragic as that here – unless I kill over after I suffer a fatal paper cut or stab myself with the red pen. But this time the wait was worth it. I am finally able to see some real problem areas within the manuscript, and have come up with clever ways to fix them. 

I pulled my first prologue, because it was too cheesy and too Twilight. (Not on purpose, but just how it turned out. Heck – it was the first thing I wrote). On the third set of edits, I wrote a new prologue that solved some problems, but created another – lack of consistency.  It was in another person’s POV from the rest of the story, and you don’t hear from him again until near the end. So, I trashed it too and moved on without the prologue, but it was still lacking.

The problem with my manuscript is that the protagonist falls into a world she doesn’t know exists, forced into situations she has no business being in, and the story is how she deals with it. You need to see her in her own environment before stripping it all away from her – and then watch her grow. The story is told in the protagonist’s first person POV. She is light and airy, while the world is dark and sinister.

The reader needs to know what they are getting into. I keep thinking about From Dusk ‘til Dawn.  I apparently missed all the previews and warnings about this movie before watching it. I sat down with my popcorn, and watched George Clooney and Quentin Tarantino be the bad guys. Then about a third into it, more than a normal Act I – BAM! DANCING, EVIL, FUGLY VAMPIRES.  Where the heck did that come from? I love vampire movies; I love horror, but that was not what I thought I was sitting down to watch. Isn’t this the Pulp Fiction guy? Bank robbers, extreme violence, but why the hideous vampires.

I don’t want to ever do that to my readers. Surprise them, keep them guessing, but let them know the story they are curling up with.

So, prologue’s back in, and it is much stronger. It is in the other character’s POV. Just because the reader should know doesn’t mean the protagonist should. She gets to remain clueless. I’m adding a few chapters throughout in his POV. It works, because there were a few other behind the scenes items that I am now able to bring to life. And he is a great character – probably my strongest. Their voices are very distinct from each other – so it is not confusing. And best of all, I get to step back in his head.

I’m very excited about this round of edits. I’m not kidding myself by calling it my last.

What round of edits are you on? How many of them where your “last”? 

Do you fear or embrace the prologue?

  

Ta Da!

It is done. Finished. Complete. 80,000 words, 261 pages. I am not so naïve as to think that I will never revise it again, because I am sure after a month or so, I will tackle it once more. It does feel good though.

The last step I took in the revision process taught me more than anything so far. I learned the trick from Stephen King. (I’ve learned a lot from him as anyone who has read more than one post would know.) He said to read the whole thing, start to finish, making notes and marking corrections. Then go back and make all of those corrections. 

Previously, I would print out a chapter, mark it up, and then revise. Chapter by chapter, sometimes having to reread the chapter 3-5 times, over and over until I had it right. I don’t think this was a bad plan, and I am glad that I did it.

Once I had the whole thing as shiny as I thought it could be, I then took Mr. King’s advice. I plan to replant all the trees that I have killed in the process, but I have a hard time using the editorial side of my brain on screen. My creative side tends to shine there. (This may be just me.) I took the entire 261 pages to Kinkos, and had them spiral bind it. Which is a nice experience in and of itself. It cost $6, and allowed me to carry it with me without worrying about pages getting shuffled, dropped, or misplaced. Plus, holding a spiral bound copy of your work feels so rewarding. Sometimes you forget that you actually wrote a book.

I went through and read the whole thing. I was able to catch where I repeated themes, check the pace of the novel, and see for myself what the reader would feel. Did I get bored part way through it? Did I feel like I needed a break from the adventure/excitement? Were the love scenes spaced evenly apart? These are things I wouldn’t have caught before, because of the way that I was revising.

What are some of your tricks and techniques for revising?

Also, to celebrate this next step – I wanted to give you something fun. Enjoy!
Vampire Reunion

Revisions: Tweezers and Wrecking Balls

            Since I am knee deep in revisions, I thought I’d take a break and talk about that for a moment. Let me start by saying, I am a newbie. This is my first novel. When I started the process, I hadn’t taken a single class, read a single style or writing guide, nor did I remember much of what my English teachers said about quotation marks, commas, or periods.

            I was oh-so-proud (ya’ll member) to finish my first draft. I sent it off to a friend, who lovingly pointed out how horrible my grammar was (God love her!) and caught many holes. I fixed everything she said – and then Ta-Da! It’s finished. Hoorah! Build query letter, and off I went to write book number two.

            But then I began to do my homework. I inhaled copyright laws, proper first chapters, Elements In Style, Stephen King’s On Writing, fiction workshops, pitch workshops, critique groups. Then I came back to book one. My reaction… (wait for it) … OMG! This thing needs serious work.

            Shock, huh? I didn’t appreciate the value in revision. I was afraid of it. It intimidated me to think about re-writing things that I had already labored over. But this new epiphany clued me into what writers much further down their path already know, it has to be done. You must revise, and your story will only grow as a result. If you are afraid to change things or admit that your manuscript needs work, it will sit on your hard drive and will not ever land on an agent’s desk.

            I took a wrecking ball to chapter one, threw my much loved prologue in the trash, added five new scenes, one deliciously evil, new character (read previous post), a nice POV switch, removed probably a thousand adverbs – apparently I’m addicted, and I’m only up to chapter 15 out of a total of 30. Woohoo!

            And you know what; I’m loving it. I haven’t had this much fun since, well, I wrote the first draft. It’s hard at times to kill your darlings, but I save each draft in case I can use it in the future. Alright, enough rambling – back to revisions.