Category: Uncategorized

My husband is a computer whiz. He does something so complicated at work that I don’t even understand it enough to explain it.

I’m pretty good on computers. I’m much better than many people, but I know only a tiny fraction of what my husband knows.

But I can open up a computer control panel and make changes. I pull up the run box and type commands and paths in. I know different things to type in at a C prompt. I can get into a system folder.

Basically, I know enough to completely destroy a computer…unintentionally.

I’ve always believed is that knowledge is power. So I read a lot online—different writing links, mainly.

But I’m good at writing, unlike computers. And I’m practiced at writing—I’ve been doing it for a while now. I take snippets of different writing approaches from one post and tips from another and I mull over my plot and run little experiments.

On Twitter, I tweet the posts I find interesting. I don’t add any opinions on the tweet, I just summarize the post and put the truncated link on there.

I’m not endorsing the approach in the link. In my mind, I’m saying, “Here it is. See what you think. Maybe it will help you.” If I see something I think is absolutely wrongheaded (pointing writers to a scam, or giving incorrect industry advice, etc.), I’d never tweet it.

I got a direct message on Twitter yesterday from a publisher regarding one of the tweets I’d sent.

She was concerned (and she was very polite in her exchange with me) that one of the articles I’d linked to could be troublesome.

The article covered book openings and gave tips for hooking readers (or agents and editors) in the first paragraph.

The publisher implied that a little knowledge was a dangerous thing. That there are writers who are not experienced and will take the advice too literally—and too far. They’ll take the tips one by one and stick them in their WIP until it’s a gimmicky mess. They’ll diligently follow a checklist…and it won’t work.

I did see her point. I’m sure she gets an incredible number of bad manuscripts dumped on her desk and probably a fair amount of it results from formulaic writing.

But—there has to be a mistake-making period for writers to learn. There has to be a period of time where we read up on techniques…and fail miserably while using them. There needs to be a learning curve.

I think the important thing is recognizing when we’re not ready to submit yet.

The dangers of a little knowledge:

Not adapting the advice to fit your writing style or WIP
Being too formulaic in our approach
Information overload (which sometimes results in paralysis)
Overconfidence

The dangers of too little knowledge:

Lack of growth.
Longer period of time to improve our writing (we’d be improving it on practice alone.)
Fewer ideas on handling problem areas of manuscripts

I still believe that the more we know, the better we get. But the publisher was right to inject a note of caution—take writing advice with a grain of salt. Adapt the ideas, don’t just follow them like a checklist. Trust our gut, practice, and know when we’re not ready to submit our work.

One day I might be a computer whiz, too. I’ll just have to mess up a whole lot of computers to get there.

I’m sure that everyone reading this blog has been affected in some way by the hobbled global economy.

Whether it’s a friend or family member who’s lost a job, benefit cutbacks due to employers’ economizing, or a difficult time selling a house—it’s likely hit home.

I’ve read about the different issues people have faced and shaken my head at the craziness.

Then our county started messing with the libraries.

Last week, out of the blue they decided to close 12 out of the 24 local libraries in our county.

Really? Really, now. There’s no waste anywhere else? No county commission lunches on the taxpayer dime? No little bits of foolishness that could be cut back? It’s come down to libraries?!

My own Matthews branch is one of the lucky 12 that will be left open..for now. But they’re talking about closing all the libraries this summer. And they were sneaky about this—I’d have spoken at the board meeting. I’d have taken on an email or letter writing campaign. It just boggles my mind. And Charlotte is a successful city.

I can easily drive to an open branch. In fact, I live close to the county line and can drive over to another county in ten minutes. But—how many people can do such a thing? How many kids won’t have books to read over the summer? How many adults who don’t have computers won’t be able to look for jobs at the library?

So I’ve now donated money to the library system and am on their email list of folks to call if they discover things might get worse. Usually I’m just wandering around in my own happy little creative haze…now I’ve been mobilized! This particular economic hardship has come up and bitten me in the rear.

It should be that way with our characters, too. They’ve had something major happen to them—if they haven’t,then where’s the conflict? How do they react to it—are they passive? Does the conflict happen to them? Are they victimized? Or are they empowered? Do they become stronger characters and find ways to fight back when the conflict hits home?

I have a guest at the Mystery Lovers’ Kitchen today–fellow Midnight Ink writer Beth Groundwater will give us a delicious mixed drink recipe…and tell us how to put together a gift basket for a mystery loving friend.

Last Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday, I took a trip to the North Carolina mountains with my father. My sister and her husband were in Blowing Rock part of the time, too.

Taking trips without the kids isn’t something I get to do very often, but it’s fun when I do. I definitely miss the children, but it’s nice to pull away for a little while and not have to consider eating at restaurants that have chicken tenders and French fries on their menus.

Daddy is an English professor and was on spring break. He was excited to have time to read a couple of books he’d gotten for Christmas and his birthday. I was able to do a lot of revision work while he read—and I was even able to take some great pictures—including this rainbow we saw out the back of the cabin.

Doing something out of the ordinary is a great way to recharge your batteries. I have to admit that my batteries needed some recharging. I have one book for one series at the publisher waiting to hear what they think, a book for the other series I’m doing a final proof on before its July release, and a book I’m turning in on April 5. Sometimes it felt like all I was doing was searching and destroying my own mistakes—these novels were all either recently revised or currently being revised.

My head felt really clear in Blowing Rock and I don’t think it was only due to the mountain air. I could see some fresh approaches to my book and I think it had a lot to do with being in a different place and doing different things.

It’s easy for me to get in a rut. I’m a pretty quiet person and I frequently do the same things day in and day out. But occasionally I change things up a little and it always seems to help me out.

These are some (really minor) things I’ve done to shake up my routine sometimes (you can see how conservative I am with changes in my routine!) :) —

• Abruptly driven down a road I’ve never driven down before.
• Read a genre or subgenre that’s completely different than something I’d ordinarily read.
• Listen to different music (I listen to just about every type of music, so to be different I’ll try listening to the stuff my son does. Hmm…it’s different, all right…)
• Go to different library branches to write (Okay, y’all are laughing at me now. But this is a big change in routine for me!)
• Try some different activities—I’ve been gardening lately, which has been impossible due to the cold, rainy weather. Now with temps in the 70s, I’m able to get outside—and even write outside after I’ve done my yard work.

How about everyone else? How do you shake up your routine and get out of your ruts? Does it seem to help with your writing?

I’d like to welcome L. Diane Wolfe to the blog today. As a professional speaker, Diane travels extensively for media interviews and speaking engagements, maintains a dozen websites & blogs, manages an online writer’s group, and contributes to several other sites. In addition, she’s the author of a YA series, Circle of Friends, and her 5th and final book of the series, The Circle Of Friends, Book V…Heather released March 16th. More information about Heather is at the bottom of the post. Thanks Diane!

Elizabeth invited me to share some tips on editing. Call me weird, but I love this phase! I enjoy revising my work, improving the writing and tightening the scenes and dialogue.

Editing comes with an added bonus – it can re-inspire! If we’ve grown weary or find we are stuck, rereading can ignite our passion once again.

Every time we pass through our manuscript, we’ll discover something that requires improving, changing, or fixing. Allowing our work to sit for a week or two helps us attack it fresh as well. We don’t want to start running circles around our work, but we can’t skimp on this process, either.

What do we need to look for when editing?

· Grammar – Is grammar usage correct? Is the punctuation in the right place and capitalization proper?

· Overused terms – Are there words or phrases we use too often? Do we repeat words in a paragraph? Do we find clichés? What can we fix by consulting a Thesaurus?

· Excessive description – Are we following the adage “show don’t tell?” Are there scenes best left to the reader’s imagination? Do we describe scenes or people that have no relevance to the story? Do we provide details a character wouldn’t notice depending on gender?

· Continuity – Do colors, names, and places vary from one scene to another? Are there glitches in the timeline?

· Staying in character – Is behavior consistent? Is dialogue consistent? Are there changes in personality for no apparent reason? Do characters respond in a manner that’s gender appropriate?

· Point of view – Is our POV consistent? Do we suddenly take on the roll of narrator? Do we head hop too often or too fast? Do we reveal things outside of a character’s POV?

· Story flow and pacing – Do scenes feel rushed or overlong? Does the story move quickly in the beginning and then drag in the middle? Does anything feel forced or contrived?

What can we do to improve our editing technique?

· Read large chunks at a time. Sometimes it’s difficult to gauge flow when we only read a page or two. Uneven lulls in the story become more apparent when we follow a scene from beginning to end. Continuity mistakes are easier to spot as well.

· Read aloud. Uneven dialogue is easier to spot when we hear the words spoken. We catch stilted, unnatural exchanges. Reading with a partner of the opposite sex exposes improper gender words and phrases. Flow of story and narration also benefit when we read aloud.

· Employ a test reader. We are close to our material and sometimes miss the obvious. A neutral test reader often spots flaws and mistakes we may have missed. We know the story by heart, but a test reader can’t read between the lines and will question items and passages that don’t make sense.

We are not the ultimate editor of our work. A professional is still required before submitting or self-publishing. However, we can improve our story and present our best effort if we learn to master the basics of editing. And growing as a writing is what it’s all about!

– L. Diane Wolfe, Professional Speaker & Author www.spunkonastick.net www.thecircleoffriends.net www.circleoffriendsbooks.blogspot.com

***********************************

THE CIRCLE OF FRIENDS

BOOK V … HEATHER

BY L. DIANE WOLFE

When confidence turns to frustration…

A new beginning awaits Heather Jennings. The position at Clemson means she will finally realize her dream of coaching basketball. Heather is ready to focus on her duties, using sheer force if necessary to prove her independence.

Sadly, her triumph is hampered as her father and greatest advocate lies dying of cancer. Battling her grief, she must also deal with a sister who appears incapable of responsibility or achievement. And once basketball season begins, a talented but cocky player who resembles her in every manner challenges all that remains of Heather’s patience.

Heather’s life changes when she encounters a man capable of handling her bold and feisty attitude. Straightforward and smug, he entices her to date him, and despite his gruff nature shows a great capacity for compassion. However, the last thing Heather needs is a serious relationship with a man equally fixated on work and opposed to marriage…

Release date: March 16, 2010, Dancing Lemur Press, L.L.C.
$19.95 USA, 6×9 Trade paperback, 282 pages, Fiction/YA
ISBN 978-0-9816210-5-0 / 0-9816210-5-8

“Heather deals with real life and real situations.” 5 Stars

– Teens Read Too

“Curl up onto your favorite reading spot and journey along with Heather as she seeks the balance of family and work relationships. Be prepared to be pulled into Heather’s world and you will find yourself cheering her on and wanting to scold her at the same time. L. Diane Wolfe has created amazing characters with believable attributes and flaws; making Book V in the Circle of Friends series a true gem.”

Book Trailer:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cn7tSWQqdYc

I thought I’d do a short post on chapter breaks today—because I’m currently going through my manuscript and sticking them in, so they’re on my brain!

As I’ve mentioned a couple of times, I write the text straight through and then put the chapter breaks in later. Although this isn’t a technique that works for everybody, it helps keep me from worrying about the formatting of the novel until I’m done being creative.

My books are about 75,000 words, so roughly 230 pages in a regular font like Times or Calibri. I do convert the text to Courier (where it’s more like 285-290 pages) and times the pages by 250 to get a better estimate of my word count…my books have a lot of dialogue and white space on the page.

This text, for me, usually ends up being nineteen or twenty chapters. I also use scene breaks within chapters to break up the material within the chapter. I like having good stopping points in books as a reader (I’m a distracted reader), so I try to put them in my books, too.

I don’t always end the chapter at an exciting moment because that seems a little gimmicky to me. But I do have cliffhanging chapter endings probably 3-4 times out of the 20. I also try to end chapters at points where readers want to read on instead of putting the book down—points where they want to see what happens next. And I try never to end a chapter with something boring happening or else the reader might not ever return to the book.

The length of my chapters varies. I do have usually one or two pretty short chapters and then a couple of chapters that are a lot longer—where maybe there wasn’t a great stopping place in the chapter. I try to break where it makes sense. And I make sure no chapters are excessively long—I’m a reader who likes knowing where the next intermission is, and I don’t want it too far off.

Have you got a chapter breaking method?

Please join me tomorrow when author and professional speaker L. Diane Wolfe guest posts on “Edits and Revisions.”