Only 3 days (counting today) until the day I wanted to be finished the first draft of my work-in-progress, and I’m doubtful that I’m going to make it. That’s because, in the process of getting my character to talk about her situation (thanks to Andrea V. for your suggestion), my plot has expanded to create more interesting events than the ones I had originally planned. Yay!
I’m still going to attempt to meet my self-imposed deadline. I’ve found that it’s been a good motivator for me. Plus, it helps me remember that this is only a first draft. Polishing, rewriting, going back to fix things—that’s all going to come later. I have ideas for more novels and I don’t want to spend forever getting the story down (like the 2 or 3 years I spent on each of my first couple of novels), especially when I know I’ll be changing things during revisions. So, hooray for deadlines (but also for having the flexibility to be able to break them if necessary, so I won't be up 'til midnight Wednesday scrambling to finish my novel).
Monday, June 28, 2010
Friday, June 25, 2010
Keep 'Em Coming - The Ideas, That Is
People often ask, where do you get your ideas? I usually answer that they come from everyday life—things the kids do or talk about, things I notice, tidbits that make me stop and think when I’m reading the newspaper. But in reality, they're always around me, popping out of thin air when I'm doing anything. A few places where I’ve gotten ideas this week:
1. Watching my daughter's swimming lessons at the community pool
2. Out looking for snails (for my classroom) in the garden
3. In the middle of the night during a thunderstorm, when I'm trying to stop the dog from digging a hole in the hardwood floor under my bed
4. While I’m rushing around trying to do 101 things and I can’t find a scrap of paper or a pencil that isn’t broken
5. Writing in my book journal in the perspective of the character in my novel
Where's the weirdest place you've gotten a writing-related idea?
1. Watching my daughter's swimming lessons at the community pool
2. Out looking for snails (for my classroom) in the garden
3. In the middle of the night during a thunderstorm, when I'm trying to stop the dog from digging a hole in the hardwood floor under my bed
4. While I’m rushing around trying to do 101 things and I can’t find a scrap of paper or a pencil that isn’t broken
5. Writing in my book journal in the perspective of the character in my novel
Where's the weirdest place you've gotten a writing-related idea?
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Aack! I'm Stuck!
It’s not writer’s block. My brain and fingers are raring to go. But I’ve written my main character into a dungeon tower and I’m not sure how to get her out. My outline (which I slaved over months ago) is a little vague on what’s supposed to happen now. Maybe I thought I’d come up with a good idea by this point? Some ideas that have crossed my mind:
1) She unwinds her long hair and…oops! Not my story. Anyway, her hair is messy and tangled and the window is too small.
2) Friends rescue her just in time and—wait! She’s the main character so that’s cheating. She needs to do something to get out by herself.
3) ???
Since I’m stuck on this part, I’m going to skip ahead. I usually write in sequence, so it will be challenging for me. (I'm looking at it as another chance to grow as a writer). I just hope I don’t end up with a big hole in my story later.
1) She unwinds her long hair and…oops! Not my story. Anyway, her hair is messy and tangled and the window is too small.
2) Friends rescue her just in time and—wait! She’s the main character so that’s cheating. She needs to do something to get out by herself.
3) ???
Since I’m stuck on this part, I’m going to skip ahead. I usually write in sequence, so it will be challenging for me. (I'm looking at it as another chance to grow as a writer). I just hope I don’t end up with a big hole in my story later.
Monday, June 21, 2010
What Do You Want From a Story Ending?
Now that I’m getting close to writing the ending of my first draft, doubts are starting to get in the way of my writing. The ending is tricky. What do I want it to do?
1. Achieve something significant for the main character. As one of my MG readers pointed out, “The mystery should be solved.” Even if there isn’t a mystery, feelings of suspense and tension need to be released. Loose ends need to be wrapped up.
2. Make sense. The solution shouldn’t come entirely out of the blue. For me, this means the main character needs to have a key role in resolving the problem.
3. Include something unexpected. Even though I want the ending to follow logically from previous story events, I don’t want it to be predictable.
4. Leave the reader feeling positive. I don’t think MG readers like stories that end with too many unresolved issues. Readers in this age group like to have something good happen to the main character at the end.
What do you want from your ending?
1. Achieve something significant for the main character. As one of my MG readers pointed out, “The mystery should be solved.” Even if there isn’t a mystery, feelings of suspense and tension need to be released. Loose ends need to be wrapped up.
2. Make sense. The solution shouldn’t come entirely out of the blue. For me, this means the main character needs to have a key role in resolving the problem.
3. Include something unexpected. Even though I want the ending to follow logically from previous story events, I don’t want it to be predictable.
4. Leave the reader feeling positive. I don’t think MG readers like stories that end with too many unresolved issues. Readers in this age group like to have something good happen to the main character at the end.
What do you want from your ending?
Sunday, June 20, 2010
Thanks, Dad
Father's Day has been a little sad for me for the past ten years, because my father is no longer with us. I wish he was, because I see in myself a lot of his determination and persistence, and I'd like to think he'd appreciate those qualities in me.
My father always encouraged me to think about the quality of my life. It's bittersweet that the end of his life is what really propelled me to think about what I wanted out of my own. When I feel down or discouraged about my writing, I think about Dad and how his life was cut short, and it inspires me to continue to work towards my dream.
My father always encouraged me to think about the quality of my life. It's bittersweet that the end of his life is what really propelled me to think about what I wanted out of my own. When I feel down or discouraged about my writing, I think about Dad and how his life was cut short, and it inspires me to continue to work towards my dream.
Friday, June 18, 2010
What I Learned This Week
I love blogging because it helps me feel connected to the writing community. Even better is all the stuff I learn from reading blogs. A few things I learned this week:
1) Some mistakes that get in the way of establishing a strong POV in your writing (Kathryn Craft over at the Blood-Red Pencil )
2) Tips for writing a synopsis of your story in a query letter (thanks to Meganrebekah’s blog)
3) Different approaches agents have and how they might affect your writing career (another great post by Rachelle Gardner)
4) A recipe for a good coconut cookie (from CakeSpy)
I also read a great article about critique groups and how they benefit writers, though it’s not new to me, because I have an awesome critique group that does all these things (guest post by Maurissa Guibord over at Adventures in Children’s Publishing).
1) Some mistakes that get in the way of establishing a strong POV in your writing (Kathryn Craft over at the Blood-Red Pencil )
2) Tips for writing a synopsis of your story in a query letter (thanks to Meganrebekah’s blog)
3) Different approaches agents have and how they might affect your writing career (another great post by Rachelle Gardner)
4) A recipe for a good coconut cookie (from CakeSpy)
I also read a great article about critique groups and how they benefit writers, though it’s not new to me, because I have an awesome critique group that does all these things (guest post by Maurissa Guibord over at Adventures in Children’s Publishing).
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Pause/Stop: Time to Think
I’ve made it to Chapter 18 of my current work-in-progress, and I feel like I might actually accomplish my goal of finishing the first draft by the end of June. Now that I’m coming into the last third of the book, I’m excited to see how it’s going to end.
Yikes – did I just say that? I should already know how it will end, after all the outlining I did before I started. Except that since then, my characters have taken over the story in ways I didn’t expect. The specifics of the ending are changing. Yesterday, instead of writing, I did a lot of thinking about what’s going to come next. What I noticed:
1) Now that I know my characters better (and which minor characters have developed a stronger role), I have a better sense of what they’d do in a given situation.
2) I discovered some details that I need to weave in and/or bring out earlier in the story. Like in the part I’m writing now.
3) Some of the questions I had at the beginning of the story are starting to get answered, and some still need to be answered, but at least I know which ones.
4) Taking a mini thinking break gives me an energy boost.
Yikes – did I just say that? I should already know how it will end, after all the outlining I did before I started. Except that since then, my characters have taken over the story in ways I didn’t expect. The specifics of the ending are changing. Yesterday, instead of writing, I did a lot of thinking about what’s going to come next. What I noticed:
1) Now that I know my characters better (and which minor characters have developed a stronger role), I have a better sense of what they’d do in a given situation.
2) I discovered some details that I need to weave in and/or bring out earlier in the story. Like in the part I’m writing now.
3) Some of the questions I had at the beginning of the story are starting to get answered, and some still need to be answered, but at least I know which ones.
4) Taking a mini thinking break gives me an energy boost.
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