Sometimes, writing in first person will be exactly the right choice for a novel. Whatever your reasons for choosing first person point of view might be, if you truly believe it is the best way to tell your story, than by all means follow your instincts. So long as you are aware of the limitations of the voice, and you are happy to work within those limitations, you will be fine.
“With whatever viewpoint and voice you choose, you should exploit the possibilities of the viewpoint and voice you have chosen rather than feel constrained by its limitations.”
- James N. Frey author of internationally best selling books on the craft of fiction writing.
•If your viewpoint character has a quirky and compelling voice, for example, and a unique (and subjective) way of looking at the world - like Huckleberry Finn and Forrest Gump - 1st person point of view is the viewpoint for you.
Perhaps you really don't get all this, “moving the camera around business.” You simply want to tell an intimate story through one character’s eyes (First Person).
Are you still unsure at this point which viewpoint to use? A question then. Can you see your novel working equally well in both first and third person? Then my advice would be to go with the third person point of view. Whereas a large majority of novels written by beginners use the first person viewpoint, a large majority of published novels are written in third person point of view.
Of course, a very similar effect to omniscience can be achieved with a more conventional 3rd person Multiple Viewpoint Novel.
The MacKenna Saga. The ins and Outs of Writing
Thursday, October 17, 2013
Tuesday, October 15, 2013
First Person Versus Third Person POV
The entire Third Person versus First Person debate can present any beginning novel writers with what may seem like insurmountable problems.
An author could write two versions of his or her novel - First in third person POV, and then in first person- and either would be acceptable, though they would be unique stories. The irony of fiction writing is that you can always change your mind. John Irving, the American novelist (I'm not a fan of him or his novels, but this is the case in point) wrote his early drafts of Until I Find You in the first person. Not until a much later draft did he shift the thousand-page novel to third-person point of view, pare it down to eight hundred and twenty-one pages, and release it. Changing the POV in a novel that large is a lot of work.
If you have read any comprehensive information looking for advantages of the first person over the third person, you’ve probably more or less concluded about which viewpoint is right for your own novel. If you’re a movie buff like me, writing a novel is like having a camera you point for the reader and display your story. The reason for this summary is to help you make up your mind about how you want to direct your novel.
You are far from wrong if you believe I’m writing this, to convince any writer straddling the line between the two POV’s, to jump to one side or the other. I like both, though I write from the third person side, I’m experimenting with a Science Fiction mystery in first person POV.
Taking into consideration all pros and cons, they seem to come out overwhelmingly in favor of using third-person point of view for most novels.
I generally consider that a first-person POV is an easier viewpoint to handle, but, as the old song goes, ‘It ain’t necessarily so’. Once you’ve master the theory behind each viewpoint, there’s nothing really difficult about either of them.
First-person is noticeably more intimate than the third person. Sue Grafton handles Kinsey Millhone character masterfully using the first person POV Likewise, John D. MacDonald steered Travis McGee through his troubled waters in the first person. (I like the fact that both authors stuck to themes for their titles. Sue uses the alphabet for her titles: A is for Alibi, B is for Burglar, etc. John D.. McDonald (1916-1986) used colors in his Travis McGee titles: Nightmare in Pink, The Empty Copper Sea, One Fearful Yellow Eye. I know I've pointed these out before.)
It is possible to replicate first-person intimacy while writing in third person. Third-person is more imminent than first-person - even using past tense, a well written third person POV doesn't destroy the illusion of the story taking place in the here and now. This shouldn't be a deterrent if you’re dead-set on writing your novel in first person. Third-person isn't as confining as first person can be. Using third-person point of view gives you the greatest freedom as a storyteller, in the sense that you can move your "viewpoint camera" around a lot more than in a first-person POV story. In first-person, your fix the camera behind the viewpoint character's eyes throughout your entire story. Third person and it is more objective, also, giving any writer the ability to present a more rounded portrait of their central character.
An author could write two versions of his or her novel - First in third person POV, and then in first person- and either would be acceptable, though they would be unique stories. The irony of fiction writing is that you can always change your mind. John Irving, the American novelist (I'm not a fan of him or his novels, but this is the case in point) wrote his early drafts of Until I Find You in the first person. Not until a much later draft did he shift the thousand-page novel to third-person point of view, pare it down to eight hundred and twenty-one pages, and release it. Changing the POV in a novel that large is a lot of work.
If you have read any comprehensive information looking for advantages of the first person over the third person, you’ve probably more or less concluded about which viewpoint is right for your own novel. If you’re a movie buff like me, writing a novel is like having a camera you point for the reader and display your story. The reason for this summary is to help you make up your mind about how you want to direct your novel.
What Is The Best Viewpoint?
You are far from wrong if you believe I’m writing this, to convince any writer straddling the line between the two POV’s, to jump to one side or the other. I like both, though I write from the third person side, I’m experimenting with a Science Fiction mystery in first person POV.
Taking into consideration all pros and cons, they seem to come out overwhelmingly in favor of using third-person point of view for most novels.
I generally consider that a first-person POV is an easier viewpoint to handle, but, as the old song goes, ‘It ain’t necessarily so’. Once you’ve master the theory behind each viewpoint, there’s nothing really difficult about either of them.
First-person is noticeably more intimate than the third person. Sue Grafton handles Kinsey Millhone character masterfully using the first person POV Likewise, John D. MacDonald steered Travis McGee through his troubled waters in the first person. (I like the fact that both authors stuck to themes for their titles. Sue uses the alphabet for her titles: A is for Alibi, B is for Burglar, etc. John D.. McDonald (1916-1986) used colors in his Travis McGee titles: Nightmare in Pink, The Empty Copper Sea, One Fearful Yellow Eye. I know I've pointed these out before.)
It is possible to replicate first-person intimacy while writing in third person. Third-person is more imminent than first-person - even using past tense, a well written third person POV doesn't destroy the illusion of the story taking place in the here and now. This shouldn't be a deterrent if you’re dead-set on writing your novel in first person. Third-person isn't as confining as first person can be. Using third-person point of view gives you the greatest freedom as a storyteller, in the sense that you can move your "viewpoint camera" around a lot more than in a first-person POV story. In first-person, your fix the camera behind the viewpoint character's eyes throughout your entire story. Third person and it is more objective, also, giving any writer the ability to present a more rounded portrait of their central character.
Monday, October 7, 2013
LOSE THE ADVERBS AND GAIN THE READER
This post is about using (overusing) adverbs in narrative not in dialogue.
While adverbs have their place, (even in narrative) beginners tend to use them to far to often, and established authors use them because they know they can get away with it. When it comes to adverb usage, the rules doe all should be:
1.) Omit the adverb if it doesn’t change the meaning of the sentence.
2.) Adverb usage means you’re not using a strong enough verb.
3.) If the adverb passes these two tests, you should keep it
Fast food employees need rules to do their job, but we're writers, we aren’t flipping burgers. We need to know the "Why?" or we get cooked (Rejected).
Before you send those hard worked pages of your novel to an agent or publisher for consideration, follow the adverb rules listed above. If you do some soul searching and honest reflection you'll find 99% of adverbs (even the most judiciously (lol) place ones), to an editor sound like nails on a chalkboard. You've played by the rules, yet in all honesty your adverbs failed the test. There has to be more to this adverb thing.
Why, you ask? Why this unnecessary prejudice against the lowly adverb? After your adverb-soul-searching I just spoke of, you'll find these three reasons to avoid adverbs helpful.
Reason 1
The use of any adverb may be a strong indicator of some contextual problems surrounding it, so it becomes a form of telling, not showing. Whether you’re writing in 1st person or 3rd person, at some point in your story you provide the reader with descriptive narrative. One example is in describing a setting the character is in, entering , or going to enter. Even if you have an adverb in the scene that passes all the rules, pull out from the sentence and ask yourself "Am I doing a good enough job with the narration." It’s possible you’re not painting the picture you want. What you need is a brush stroke, not a touch up. The adverb is a bandage for bad exposition.
Reason 2
The adverb may be an indicator of a point of view issue. This was a problem for many scenes for my co-author me. Our first book, written twenty years ago and recently pick up by a publisher, had many weak passages. We were confused until we realized we needed a tighter POV. (Pounded into our head by our publisher Show - Don't tell.) Twenty years ago we felt the adverbs conveyed the feelings of the scenes central character. Once we understood the problem, the adverbs disappeared and our scenes are much better.
Reason 3 Once you see the difference you'll understand how adverbs distance the connection between the reader and your characters, not enhance it. As writers there's a tendency to use adverbs because we feel we're heightening the reader experience, but in fact, once you take an honest look, most of the time the opposite is true.
(True Story) Take this excerpt from the first scene in a novel. The widower's young son wakes from a terrifying nightmare. The father enter the room and quiets him.
He hugged his weeping son, kissed his forehead, then gently rocked him back to sleep.
The adverb "gently" sounds like a good adverb. You would think so. The editor struck down. Your first thought is, that would remove the meaning. But in fact, the loss of the adverb enhances the scene.
He hugged his weeping son, kissed his forehead, then rocked him back to sleep.
By omitting the adverb "gently", it forces the reader to imagine the scene. And this, my dear writer, is what you want the reader to do. You want them to engage, to empathize and imagine. You want them to become your character. If you modify your verbs to tell the reader exactly what is going on, you keep them arms length and they never become invested in the character or your story.
At the Las Vegas writers conference an agent told us "If I find more then three adverbs in three hundred words I stop and send it back".
LOSE THE ADVERBS AND GAIN THE READER
While adverbs have their place, (even in narrative) beginners tend to use them to far to often, and established authors use them because they know they can get away with it. When it comes to adverb usage, the rules doe all should be:
1.) Omit the adverb if it doesn’t change the meaning of the sentence.
2.) Adverb usage means you’re not using a strong enough verb.
3.) If the adverb passes these two tests, you should keep it
Fast food employees need rules to do their job, but we're writers, we aren’t flipping burgers. We need to know the "Why?" or we get cooked (Rejected).
Before you send those hard worked pages of your novel to an agent or publisher for consideration, follow the adverb rules listed above. If you do some soul searching and honest reflection you'll find 99% of adverbs (even the most judiciously (lol) place ones), to an editor sound like nails on a chalkboard. You've played by the rules, yet in all honesty your adverbs failed the test. There has to be more to this adverb thing.
Why, you ask? Why this unnecessary prejudice against the lowly adverb? After your adverb-soul-searching I just spoke of, you'll find these three reasons to avoid adverbs helpful.
Reason 1
The use of any adverb may be a strong indicator of some contextual problems surrounding it, so it becomes a form of telling, not showing. Whether you’re writing in 1st person or 3rd person, at some point in your story you provide the reader with descriptive narrative. One example is in describing a setting the character is in, entering , or going to enter. Even if you have an adverb in the scene that passes all the rules, pull out from the sentence and ask yourself "Am I doing a good enough job with the narration." It’s possible you’re not painting the picture you want. What you need is a brush stroke, not a touch up. The adverb is a bandage for bad exposition.
Reason 2
The adverb may be an indicator of a point of view issue. This was a problem for many scenes for my co-author me. Our first book, written twenty years ago and recently pick up by a publisher, had many weak passages. We were confused until we realized we needed a tighter POV. (Pounded into our head by our publisher Show - Don't tell.) Twenty years ago we felt the adverbs conveyed the feelings of the scenes central character. Once we understood the problem, the adverbs disappeared and our scenes are much better.
Reason 3 Once you see the difference you'll understand how adverbs distance the connection between the reader and your characters, not enhance it. As writers there's a tendency to use adverbs because we feel we're heightening the reader experience, but in fact, once you take an honest look, most of the time the opposite is true.
(True Story) Take this excerpt from the first scene in a novel. The widower's young son wakes from a terrifying nightmare. The father enter the room and quiets him.
He hugged his weeping son, kissed his forehead, then gently rocked him back to sleep.
The adverb "gently" sounds like a good adverb. You would think so. The editor struck down. Your first thought is, that would remove the meaning. But in fact, the loss of the adverb enhances the scene.
He hugged his weeping son, kissed his forehead, then rocked him back to sleep.
By omitting the adverb "gently", it forces the reader to imagine the scene. And this, my dear writer, is what you want the reader to do. You want them to engage, to empathize and imagine. You want them to become your character. If you modify your verbs to tell the reader exactly what is going on, you keep them arms length and they never become invested in the character or your story.
At the Las Vegas writers conference an agent told us "If I find more then three adverbs in three hundred words I stop and send it back".
LOSE THE ADVERBS AND GAIN THE READER
Four Types of Sentences
In the English language when people form sentences, they do one of four things. They,
1) ask questions.
2) make requests.
3) make a statement.
4) exclaim a powerful feeling or emotion.
Because sentences convey statements, requests, strong emotion, and questions we can categorized them into four different types:
1) Declarative.
2) Interrogative?
3) Imperative.
4) Exclamatory!
Declarative sentences form a statement;
Tomorrow I'll go to the shore.
Yesterday I left work early.
I told her wear her blue formal gown.
She didn't want to drink the soda I gave her.
We walked along the shore together.
Interrogative sentences form a question;
What do you think I should wear my black shoes or my white sneakers?
What did the teacher say to you yesterday?
Didn't you go to the movies yesterday?
Imperative sentences make a command or request;
Get me some water.
Leave that cat alone.
Go to the store for me.
Bring me some ice cream.
Some people assume an imperative sentences has no subject when they do, the subject of imperative sentences is always you. In these type of sentences, the person that is making the command or request is always asking you to do something. For this reason, the subject in an imperative sentence is called you (understood). All though the subject may not be visible in the sentence, it is understood that the subject is always you.
To get a clearer understanding of imperative sentences, see the ones that follow;
(You) get me a glass a beer.
(You) leave the man alone.
(You) ride to the store for me.
(You) Bring me pitched of ice tea.
Exclamatory sentences are the sentences that attempt to powerful feelings, or emotions;
I'm leaving!
I can't wait to graduate!
I love her (him) so much!
We beat the opposing team!
I can't believe he did that, I'm so upset!
The best way to distinguish one sentence from the other is to memorize what each type of sentence does. Declarative sentences are sentences that make a statement. Interrogative sentences are sentences that ask question. Imperative sentences are request and command sentences, or sentences that give orders. And the exclamatory sentences show a strong feeling or emotion.
1) ask questions.
2) make requests.
3) make a statement.
4) exclaim a powerful feeling or emotion.
Because sentences convey statements, requests, strong emotion, and questions we can categorized them into four different types:
1) Declarative.
2) Interrogative?
3) Imperative.
4) Exclamatory!
Declarative sentences form a statement;
Tomorrow I'll go to the shore.
Yesterday I left work early.
I told her wear her blue formal gown.
She didn't want to drink the soda I gave her.
We walked along the shore together.
Interrogative sentences form a question;
What do you think I should wear my black shoes or my white sneakers?
What did the teacher say to you yesterday?
Didn't you go to the movies yesterday?
Imperative sentences make a command or request;
Get me some water.
Leave that cat alone.
Go to the store for me.
Bring me some ice cream.
Some people assume an imperative sentences has no subject when they do, the subject of imperative sentences is always you. In these type of sentences, the person that is making the command or request is always asking you to do something. For this reason, the subject in an imperative sentence is called you (understood). All though the subject may not be visible in the sentence, it is understood that the subject is always you.
To get a clearer understanding of imperative sentences, see the ones that follow;
(You) get me a glass a beer.
(You) leave the man alone.
(You) ride to the store for me.
(You) Bring me pitched of ice tea.
Exclamatory sentences are the sentences that attempt to powerful feelings, or emotions;
I'm leaving!
I can't wait to graduate!
I love her (him) so much!
We beat the opposing team!
I can't believe he did that, I'm so upset!
The best way to distinguish one sentence from the other is to memorize what each type of sentence does. Declarative sentences are sentences that make a statement. Interrogative sentences are sentences that ask question. Imperative sentences are request and command sentences, or sentences that give orders. And the exclamatory sentences show a strong feeling or emotion.
Sunday, October 6, 2013
Proofreading IV
More things to look at during a proof read.
Parallelism
Look through your manuscript for series of items and make sure these items are in parallel form.
Example:
Being a good friend involves good listening skills, to be considerate, and that you know how to have fun.
Edited version:
Being a good friend involves knowing how to listen, being considerate, and having fun.
Pronoun Reference/Agreement
•During a proof read of any work, stop at each pronoun. Search for the noun that the pronoun replaces. If you can't find any noun, insert one beforehand or change the pronoun to a noun. If you can find a noun, be sure it agrees in number and person with your pronoun.
Apostrophes
•Stop at only at any words ending in "s." If you're using the "s" to indicate possession, there should be an apostrophe, as in Mary's book.
•Check every contractions, like you're for you are, it's for it is, etc. Each of these should include an apostrophe.
•Remember that apostrophes are not used to make words plural. When making a word plural, only an "s" is added, not an apostrophe and an "s."
Summary:
Proofreading is primarily all about searching your writing for errors, before submitting for your reading audience, a teacher, or a publisher, to see. I offer these resource to help you find and fix common errors.
Suggestions for Proofreading Your Paper.
One of the most difficult parts of the writing process is proofreading. It is easy for us to see what we think we wrote, not necessarily what our readers will read. These suggestions were offered to me and they should help you take a step back and view your writing more objectively.
Read your Paper Aloud
Any time your text is awkward or confusing, or any time you have to pause or reread your text, revise this section. If it is at all awkward for you, you can bet it will be awkward for your reader.
Examine your Paragraphs
Examine your overall paragraph construction. Look specifically at the length, supporting sentence(s), and topic sentence. Individual paragraphs that are significantly lacking length or sufficient supporting information as well as those missing a topic sentence may be a sign of a premature or under-developed thought.
Track Frequent Errors
Keep track of errors that you make frequently. once you can spot these you'll stop making them
Two principles
•Begin sentences with short, simple words and phrases that (a) communicate information that appeared in previous sentences, or (b) build on knowledge that you share with your reader.
•In a paragraph, keep your topics short and reasonably consistent.
Exercise: Diagnosis, Analysis, Revision
Diagnosis
1.Underline the first few words of every sentence in a paragraph, ignoring short introductory phrases such as "In the beginning," or "For the most part."
2.If you can, underline the first few words of every clause.
Analyze your Writing
1.Read your underlined words. Is there a consistent series of related topics?
2.Will your reader see these connections among the topics?
3.Decide what you will focus on in each paragraph.
4.Imagine that the passage has a title. The words in the title should identify what should be the topics of most of the sentences.
Revision
1.In most of your sentences, make the topics the subject of verbs.
2.Avoid hiding your topic by opening sentences with long introductory clauses or phrases. Put most of the subjects at the beginning of your sentences.
Questions to ask yourself as you revise sentences
Do your sentences "hang together"?
1.Readers must feel that they move easily from one sentence to the next, that each sentence "coheres" with the one before and after it.
2.Readers must feel that sentences in a paragraph are not just individually clear, but are unified with each other. Have fun and do go through life with your story(s) stuck inside you.
Parallelism
Look through your manuscript for series of items and make sure these items are in parallel form.
Example:
Being a good friend involves good listening skills, to be considerate, and that you know how to have fun.
Edited version:
Being a good friend involves knowing how to listen, being considerate, and having fun.
Pronoun Reference/Agreement
•During a proof read of any work, stop at each pronoun. Search for the noun that the pronoun replaces. If you can't find any noun, insert one beforehand or change the pronoun to a noun. If you can find a noun, be sure it agrees in number and person with your pronoun.
Apostrophes
•Stop at only at any words ending in "s." If you're using the "s" to indicate possession, there should be an apostrophe, as in Mary's book.
•Check every contractions, like you're for you are, it's for it is, etc. Each of these should include an apostrophe.
•Remember that apostrophes are not used to make words plural. When making a word plural, only an "s" is added, not an apostrophe and an "s."
Summary:
Proofreading is primarily all about searching your writing for errors, before submitting for your reading audience, a teacher, or a publisher, to see. I offer these resource to help you find and fix common errors.
Suggestions for Proofreading Your Paper.
One of the most difficult parts of the writing process is proofreading. It is easy for us to see what we think we wrote, not necessarily what our readers will read. These suggestions were offered to me and they should help you take a step back and view your writing more objectively.
Read your Paper Aloud
Any time your text is awkward or confusing, or any time you have to pause or reread your text, revise this section. If it is at all awkward for you, you can bet it will be awkward for your reader.
Examine your Paragraphs
Examine your overall paragraph construction. Look specifically at the length, supporting sentence(s), and topic sentence. Individual paragraphs that are significantly lacking length or sufficient supporting information as well as those missing a topic sentence may be a sign of a premature or under-developed thought.
Track Frequent Errors
Keep track of errors that you make frequently. once you can spot these you'll stop making them
Two principles
•Begin sentences with short, simple words and phrases that (a) communicate information that appeared in previous sentences, or (b) build on knowledge that you share with your reader.
•In a paragraph, keep your topics short and reasonably consistent.
Exercise: Diagnosis, Analysis, Revision
Diagnosis
1.Underline the first few words of every sentence in a paragraph, ignoring short introductory phrases such as "In the beginning," or "For the most part."
2.If you can, underline the first few words of every clause.
Analyze your Writing
1.Read your underlined words. Is there a consistent series of related topics?
2.Will your reader see these connections among the topics?
3.Decide what you will focus on in each paragraph.
4.Imagine that the passage has a title. The words in the title should identify what should be the topics of most of the sentences.
Revision
1.In most of your sentences, make the topics the subject of verbs.
2.Avoid hiding your topic by opening sentences with long introductory clauses or phrases. Put most of the subjects at the beginning of your sentences.
Questions to ask yourself as you revise sentences
Do your sentences "hang together"?
1.Readers must feel that they move easily from one sentence to the next, that each sentence "coheres" with the one before and after it.
2.Readers must feel that sentences in a paragraph are not just individually clear, but are unified with each other. Have fun and do go through life with your story(s) stuck inside you.
Proofreading III
Reading your work aloud slowly to yourself can help you see and hear miss, misplaced or repeated words. Look for the following.
Fragment Sentences
•Make sure each sentence has a subject. This might seem basic, like Duh how else would I write a sentence. Sometimes during a rewrite/edit we can rework or break up a sentence and leave behind a sentence fragment that lack a subject.
Before edit:
Kalen cringed at the wounded sound of the child’s voice. Setting the computer aside he waved the boys in. "Of course I do, Caesar."
After edit:
Kalen cringed at the wounded sound of the child’s voice. Set the computer aside and waved the boys in. "Of course I do, Caesar."
Corrected
Kalen cringed at the wounded sound of the child’s voice. He set his computer aside and waved the boys in. "Of course I do, Caesar."
•Make sure each sentence has a complete verb. In the following sentence, "were" is required to make a complete verb; "trying" alone would be incomplete: The boys were trying to coax Kalen into leaving his room.
•See that each sentence has an independent clause. Remember an independent clause cannot stand on its own. The following sentence is a dependent clause that would qualify as a fragment sentence: Set the computer aside and waved the boys in.
Run-on Sentences
•Review each sentence. Make sure it contains more than one independent clause.
•If there is more than one independent clause, check to make sure the clauses are separated by the appropriate punctuation.
•Sometimes, it is just as effective (or even more so) to simply break the sentence into separate sentences instead of including punctuation to separate the clauses. Run-on example sentence:
I have to write a report for my class about rock climbing all I know about the subject is I'm interested in it as a sport.
Edited version:
I have to write a report for my class about rock climbing, and all I know about the subject is that I'm interested in it as a sport.
Another option:
I have to write a report for my class about rock climbing. All I know about the subject is I'm interested in it as a sport.
Comma Splices
•Look at the sentences that have commas.
•Check to see if the sentence contains two main clauses.
•If there are two main clauses, they should be connected with a comma and a conjunction like and, but, for, or, so, yet.
•Another option is to take out the comma and insert a semicolon instead.
Example:
I would like to write my write my report about rock climbing , it's a topic I can talk about at length.
Edited version:
I would like to write my report about rock climbing because it's a topic I can talk about at length.
Edited version, using a semicolon:
I would like to write my paper about basketball; it's a topic I can talk about at length.
(Many editors and publishers consider semi colons inappropriate in fiction writing. They will tell you they're for technical works.
Subject/Verb Agreement
•Find the subject of each sentence.
•Find the verb that goes with the subject.
•The subject and verb should match in number, meaning that if the subject is singular, the verb should be as well. If the subject is plural the verb needs to be plural also.
Example:
Authors on a deadline is usually very busy.
Edited version:
Authors on a deadline are usually very busy.
Mixed construction
Read through your sentences carefully to make sure that they do not start with one sentence structure and shift to another. A sentence that does this is called a mixed construction.
Example:
Since I have an important edit to complete is why I can't go out tonight.
Edited version:
Since I have an important edit to complete, I can't go out tonight.
Fragment Sentences
•Make sure each sentence has a subject. This might seem basic, like Duh how else would I write a sentence. Sometimes during a rewrite/edit we can rework or break up a sentence and leave behind a sentence fragment that lack a subject.
Before edit:
Kalen cringed at the wounded sound of the child’s voice. Setting the computer aside he waved the boys in. "Of course I do, Caesar."
After edit:
Kalen cringed at the wounded sound of the child’s voice. Set the computer aside and waved the boys in. "Of course I do, Caesar."
Corrected
Kalen cringed at the wounded sound of the child’s voice. He set his computer aside and waved the boys in. "Of course I do, Caesar."
•Make sure each sentence has a complete verb. In the following sentence, "were" is required to make a complete verb; "trying" alone would be incomplete: The boys were trying to coax Kalen into leaving his room.
•See that each sentence has an independent clause. Remember an independent clause cannot stand on its own. The following sentence is a dependent clause that would qualify as a fragment sentence: Set the computer aside and waved the boys in.
Run-on Sentences
•Review each sentence. Make sure it contains more than one independent clause.
•If there is more than one independent clause, check to make sure the clauses are separated by the appropriate punctuation.
•Sometimes, it is just as effective (or even more so) to simply break the sentence into separate sentences instead of including punctuation to separate the clauses. Run-on example sentence:
I have to write a report for my class about rock climbing all I know about the subject is I'm interested in it as a sport.
Edited version:
I have to write a report for my class about rock climbing, and all I know about the subject is that I'm interested in it as a sport.
Another option:
I have to write a report for my class about rock climbing. All I know about the subject is I'm interested in it as a sport.
Comma Splices
•Look at the sentences that have commas.
•Check to see if the sentence contains two main clauses.
•If there are two main clauses, they should be connected with a comma and a conjunction like and, but, for, or, so, yet.
•Another option is to take out the comma and insert a semicolon instead.
Example:
I would like to write my write my report about rock climbing , it's a topic I can talk about at length.
Edited version:
I would like to write my report about rock climbing because it's a topic I can talk about at length.
Edited version, using a semicolon:
I would like to write my paper about basketball; it's a topic I can talk about at length.
(Many editors and publishers consider semi colons inappropriate in fiction writing. They will tell you they're for technical works.
Subject/Verb Agreement
•Find the subject of each sentence.
•Find the verb that goes with the subject.
•The subject and verb should match in number, meaning that if the subject is singular, the verb should be as well. If the subject is plural the verb needs to be plural also.
Example:
Authors on a deadline is usually very busy.
Edited version:
Authors on a deadline are usually very busy.
Mixed construction
Read through your sentences carefully to make sure that they do not start with one sentence structure and shift to another. A sentence that does this is called a mixed construction.
Example:
Since I have an important edit to complete is why I can't go out tonight.
Edited version:
Since I have an important edit to complete, I can't go out tonight.
Proofreading II
Personalizing Proofreading
In addition to following general guidelines from my last post, individualizing your proofreading process to your style will help you proofread more efficiently and effectively.
You won't be able to check for everything , but you should find out what your typical problem areas are and look for each type of error individually. Here's how:
•Find out what typical errors you make. Comments from other readers or a writers group about your writing is a useful way to find out your weak areas and what mistakes you make regularly.
•Learn how to fix those errors. In every good writer's group I've found there's always one person who as a mastery of the English language and it proper use. In our group it's Dwayne. Listen to their critiques of other writers work. If you listen you learn what not to do and will help you avoid errors in your writing. These writers can help you understand why you make the errors you do so you can learn to avoid them.
•Approach proofreading with specific strategies. Use the strategies detailed on the following posts to find and correct your particular errors in usage, sentence structure, spelling and punctuation.
Proofreading is primarily searching your writing for errors, in grammar and typographical, before submitting your paper for your audience's consumption. Use these resource to help you find and fix common errors.
Finding Common Errors
Proofreading can be much easier when you know what you are looking for. Although everyone will have different error patterns, the following are issues that come up for many writers. When proofreading your paper, be on the lookout for these errors. Always remember to make note of what errors you make frequently—this will help you proofread more efficiently in the future!
Spelling
•DO NOT rely on your computer's spell-checker—it will never get everything! (Their & There for insistence.)
•Examine each word in the paper individually by reading carefully. Moving a pencil under each line of text helps you to see each word.
•Check the Dictionary. If necessary, check a dictionary to see that each word is spelled correctly.
•Spelling Nightmares. Be especially careful of words that are typical spelling nightmares, like "ei/ie" words and homonyms like your/you're, to/too/two, and there/their/they're.
Double and or left Out words. Need I Say more?
Reading the paper slowly aloud to yourself can help you make sure you haven't missed or repeated any words.
In addition to following general guidelines from my last post, individualizing your proofreading process to your style will help you proofread more efficiently and effectively.
You won't be able to check for everything , but you should find out what your typical problem areas are and look for each type of error individually. Here's how:
•Find out what typical errors you make. Comments from other readers or a writers group about your writing is a useful way to find out your weak areas and what mistakes you make regularly.
•Learn how to fix those errors. In every good writer's group I've found there's always one person who as a mastery of the English language and it proper use. In our group it's Dwayne. Listen to their critiques of other writers work. If you listen you learn what not to do and will help you avoid errors in your writing. These writers can help you understand why you make the errors you do so you can learn to avoid them.
•Approach proofreading with specific strategies. Use the strategies detailed on the following posts to find and correct your particular errors in usage, sentence structure, spelling and punctuation.
Proofreading is primarily searching your writing for errors, in grammar and typographical, before submitting your paper for your audience's consumption. Use these resource to help you find and fix common errors.
Finding Common Errors
Proofreading can be much easier when you know what you are looking for. Although everyone will have different error patterns, the following are issues that come up for many writers. When proofreading your paper, be on the lookout for these errors. Always remember to make note of what errors you make frequently—this will help you proofread more efficiently in the future!
Spelling
•DO NOT rely on your computer's spell-checker—it will never get everything! (Their & There for insistence.)
•Examine each word in the paper individually by reading carefully. Moving a pencil under each line of text helps you to see each word.
•Check the Dictionary. If necessary, check a dictionary to see that each word is spelled correctly.
•Spelling Nightmares. Be especially careful of words that are typical spelling nightmares, like "ei/ie" words and homonyms like your/you're, to/too/two, and there/their/they're.
Double and or left Out words. Need I Say more?
Reading the paper slowly aloud to yourself can help you make sure you haven't missed or repeated any words.
Saturday, October 5, 2013
Proofreading
The primary purpose for both grammatical and typographical proofreading
is about searching your writing for errors. In this series of articles
will help in the process before you submit your paper, or manuscript for an
audience to view. Whether you submitting your work to a teacher, a publisher,
etc, the next couple of articled will serve as a resource to help you
find and fix common errors.
Where to Begin
Every author, writer, or person will find a unique
proofreading process that works for them. Here are some general strategies most
writers find helpful. Begin to improve your proofreading skills by using the
guidelines listed below.
General Strategies
• Time. Allow yourself sometime between writing and proofing. Take
a break! Some say just five minutes is
productive because it will help you get some distance from what you've
written. The goal is to return with a fresh eye and mind. That’s why I have two
manuscripts open at the same time. Leaving your work sit for a few hours while
you work on something else is a good way to pull you mind away from the story. When you go back to read, you’ll see mistakes
you might have missed if you hadn't waited.
• Slow Down. Many errors are made or missed by speeding through writing and
proofreading. Leave yourself plenty of time to look over your writing
carefully. This will help you catch errors you might otherwise miss. Always
read slowly. Reading at your normal speed, won't give
your eyes sufficient time to spot errors. (You read what you think you wrote.)
•Read aloud. Reading your work aloud, slowly, encourages you
to read every word on the page. All of them. Even the ones you forgot to remove while editing.
•Role play. Playing the role of you readers encourages you to
see the book as your audience will. So while you read aloud, put yourself in
your audience's shoes.
•Get others involved. A second, third, or even a fourth
pairs of eyes is always good. (Not your mother, sister, brother, favorite aunt, or girl friend etc isn't going to help.) Asking a friend or a writers group to read your paper, gets other perspectives on your writing. A fresh reader(s) will be able to help you
catch mistakes you've overlooked, and YOU WILL overlook mistakes, extra words, and
typos, etc.
Friday, October 4, 2013
G.Skill RAM
I've been really neglecting my blog. I thought I share this with you Last May I replaced my PC with parts I purchased from Newegg. Among those parts was a 16 Gig RAM kit from G.Skill. http://www.gskill.com/en/ .
The Kit I purchased is their G.SKILL Ares Series 16GB (4 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231545.
I have used their RAM in an number of Client PC with great success. When my system started giving me the BSOD (Blue Screen of Death) the last thing I suspected was defective RAM.
After eliminating all other hardware at the reason for the BSOD, I discovered the RAM was defective. This is a first in all the RAM I've purchased from G. Skill
I went to their website and fired off an email explained the problem and my diagnosis to come to this conclusion. In two days I received instruction to fill out the online RMA and submit it. The RAM has a lifetime warranty. A short time later I received the RMA # and shipped the RAM off. Within a couple of day I opened my mailbox and there was a complete new RAM kit. No Hassle, No arguments. A refreshing change from the hassles I gotten from other hardware suppliers.
If you're looking for good, reliable RAM, G.Skill RAM is the place to look. It's available at different price levels to cove a wide range of users. http://www.gskill.com/en/series/desktop-memory
From basis desktop RAM, their (Value Series), to their best their (TridentX Series). I recommend looking into their RAM. First for reliability and second for product backing. That's all I'm using from now on.
The Kit I purchased is their G.SKILL Ares Series 16GB (4 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231545.
I have used their RAM in an number of Client PC with great success. When my system started giving me the BSOD (Blue Screen of Death) the last thing I suspected was defective RAM.
After eliminating all other hardware at the reason for the BSOD, I discovered the RAM was defective. This is a first in all the RAM I've purchased from G. Skill
I went to their website and fired off an email explained the problem and my diagnosis to come to this conclusion. In two days I received instruction to fill out the online RMA and submit it. The RAM has a lifetime warranty. A short time later I received the RMA # and shipped the RAM off. Within a couple of day I opened my mailbox and there was a complete new RAM kit. No Hassle, No arguments. A refreshing change from the hassles I gotten from other hardware suppliers.
If you're looking for good, reliable RAM, G.Skill RAM is the place to look. It's available at different price levels to cove a wide range of users. http://www.gskill.com/en/series/desktop-memory
From basis desktop RAM, their (Value Series), to their best their (TridentX Series). I recommend looking into their RAM. First for reliability and second for product backing. That's all I'm using from now on.
Monday, June 10, 2013
For you writers. Forget the editors and grammar
The hoax that backfired.
Everyone knows the adage, "You can’t judge a book by its cover." In 1969 that aphorism got an extra dose of validity when Penelope Ashe, a bored housewife from Long Island, NY, wrote the trashy sensation Naked Came the Stranger.
As part of her book tour, Ashe appeared on talk shows and made the bookstore rounds. But the Long Island housewife was anything but. She certainly wasn't what her book jacket claimed. Penelope Ashe was as fictional as the novel she supposedly wrote. In reality, both were the work of Mike McGrady, a Newsday columnist disgusted with the lurid state of the modern bestseller. Instead of complaining, he decided to expose the problem by writing a book of zero redeeming social value and even less literary merit.
He enlisted the help of 24 Newsday colleagues, tasking each with a chapter, and instructed them that there should be “an unremitting emphasis on sex.” He also warned that “true excellence in writing will be quickly blue-penciled into oblivion.” Once McGrady had the smutty chapters in hand (which included acrobatic trysts in tollbooths, encounters with progressive rabbis, and cameos by Shetland ponies), he painstakingly edited the prose to make it worse. In 1969, an independent publisher released the first edition of Naked Came the Stranger, with the part of Penelope Ashe played by McGrady’s sister-in-law.
To the McGrady's dismay, his cynical ploy worked. The media was all too fascinated with the salacious daydreams of the “demure housewife” turned author. And though The New York Times wrote, “In the category of erotic fantasy, this one rates about a C,” the public didn't mind. By the time the journalist revealed his hoax a few months later, the novel had already moved 20,000 copies. Far from sinking the book’s prospects, the negative press pushed sales even higher. By the end of the year, there were more than 100,000 copies in print, and the novel had spent 13 weeks on the Times’s bestseller list. As of 2012, the tome had sold nearly 400,000 copies, mostly to readers who were in on the joke. But in 1990, McGrady told Newsday he couldn't stop thinking about those first sales: “What has always worried me are the 20,000 people who bought it before the hoax was exposed.”
Read the full text here: http://mentalfloss.com/article/49674/14-greatest-hoaxes-all-time#ixzz2VkhJIaoN
--brought to you by mental floss.
Saturday, April 6, 2013
Past & Passed
Once upon a time I had a problem with these two words. Found this one on the web, thought I'd share it with you.
“Past” as an adjective
The first definition which the OED gives for past as an adjective is “Gone by in time; elapsed; done with; over.” For example: “The days for mourning are now past.”
When attributed to a group of people, past can also mean “Having served one’s term of office; former.” (OED)
“Past” as a noun
The main meaning for the noun form of past, given by the OED, is “The time that has gone by; a time, or all of the time, before the present.”
As a preposition, past can mean: “Beyond in time; after; beyond the age for or time of; (in stating the time of day) so many minutes, or a quarter or half of an hour, after a particular hour.” (OED)
The first meaning the OED cites for past being used as an adverb is “So as to pass or go by; by.” For example:
“To pass” means “To proceed, move forward, depart; to cause to do this.” (OED) This can refer to movement forwards in time, in space, or in life (such as “to pass an examination”).
For example:
Past – relates to location
The word past locates something in time, and sometimes in space. It can be used as an adjective, noun, or adverb.“Past” as an adjective
The first definition which the OED gives for past as an adjective is “Gone by in time; elapsed; done with; over.” For example: “The days for mourning are now past.”
When attributed to a group of people, past can also mean “Having served one’s term of office; former.” (OED)
- “All past presidents of the United States were male.”
“Past” as a noun
The main meaning for the noun form of past, given by the OED, is “The time that has gone by; a time, or all of the time, before the present.”
- “In the past, standards were higher.”
- “We cannot live in the past.”
As a preposition, past can mean: “Beyond in time; after; beyond the age for or time of; (in stating the time of day) so many minutes, or a quarter or half of an hour, after a particular hour.” (OED)
- “It is almost half past five.”
- “My house is the one just past the turning.”
The first meaning the OED cites for past being used as an adverb is “So as to pass or go by; by.” For example:
- “The ball sped past the goalkeeper.”
Passed – a verb in the past tense
Passed is the past participle of the verb “to pass”. It can be an intransitive verb (one which doesn’t require an object) or a transitive verb (one which requires both a subject and one or more objects).“To pass” means “To proceed, move forward, depart; to cause to do this.” (OED) This can refer to movement forwards in time, in space, or in life (such as “to pass an examination”).
For example:
- “The weeks passed quickly.” (Intransitive: subject “the weeks” and no object).
- “I passed all my exams!” (Transitive: subject “I” and object “my exams”.)
- “He passed the ball well during the match earlier.” (Transitive: subject “He” and object “the ball”.)
When do “past” and “passed” get confused?
Often, writers muddle the words past and passed in sentences such as:- “The heroes passed a village on their way towards the mountains.”
- “The heroes past a village on their way towards the mountains.”
- “The heroes pass a village on their way towards the mountains.”
- or “The heroes are passing a village on their way towards the mountains.”
- “The heroes walked past a village on their way towards the mountains.”
Unusual uses of the word “passed”
Most of the time, passed is a verb, as described above. There are a few occasions when it can be used as a noun or an adjective, though. For example:- “Don’t speak ill of the passed.” (noun)
- This comes from the phrase “passed-away”. - “A passed pawn” (adjective)
- Term used in chess. - “A passed ball” (adjective)
- Term used in baseball. - “A passed midshipman/fireman/surgeon” (adjective)
- Someone who has passed a period of instruction and qualified through examination – apparently this usage arose in the navy.
Friday, April 5, 2013
Show, Don't Tell
Speech and Thought Through Personality .
The fiction-writing dictum for both publisher & editor is, “Show, don’t tell.”
How do you apply that in practical terms when it comes to communicating characterization without exposition?
People in different eras have unique speech and speech patterns, but restrain yourself from indulging in periodization in your historical novel; if your Elizabethan-era characters talk like Shakespeare’s, people:
1) won’t understand much of what they say and
2) will be distracted by your forced — and fatally flawed — attempt at authenticity.
Do immerse yourself in that period’s society: What did people know about history and sociology and psychology and spirituality (even if they never used those terms to identify them)? What were prevailing political and social and religious viewpoints? How open were the people of then day, about expressing themselves? Do not to let modern sensibilities intrude on the way your characters speak and think. Do, however, permit them and their speeches and thoughts to be accessible to modern readers.
The extent to which characters will express their ideas and opinions, or ruminate about them, and the language with which they will do so, depends on a few other factors:
People of different generations and different social backgrounds generally speak differently. Geriatric characters should exhibit speech and speech patterns distinct from juvenile ones and consistent with norms unless an exception is a deliberate dramatic point — for instance, if a teenager who has switched bodies with an elderly person is trying to pass vocally as well as visually as a senior citizen.
Likewise, the speech and thoughts of well-educated characters will usually be distinguishable from that of those of others with less formal schooling. Of course, no one should assume that a person with only a high school education is less intelligent than a college graduate, or the reverse, but their vocabulary and the level of sophistication of their thoughts will, unless they are self-educated, likely differ.
Further individualization of characters makes fiction writing more vivid. How does one’s personality affect words and thoughts? A repressed person’s speech patterns will differ significantly from an extrovert’s. A tense, angry character will exhibit different rhythms of speech and thought than a carefree individual.
Length of speeches and thoughts is also a consideration: Philosophically minded people do not tend to make snap judgments. Children do not soliloquize. Match the extent to which people speak and think to their personalities. Keep in mind that various sentence lengths and paragraph lengths have differing dramatic values, too — long passages tend to be soothing (but, when too long, are sleep-inducing), while short bursts create or maintain tension (though,done to excess, can be as wearying as extensive paragraphs).
In essence, capitalize on your knowledge of individual characters to establish vocabulary and modes of speech and thought, as well as on familiarity with societal norms for speaking and thinking appropriate to the era in which your characters live.
The fiction-writing dictum for both publisher & editor is, “Show, don’t tell.”
How do you apply that in practical terms when it comes to communicating characterization without exposition?
People in different eras have unique speech and speech patterns, but restrain yourself from indulging in periodization in your historical novel; if your Elizabethan-era characters talk like Shakespeare’s, people:
1) won’t understand much of what they say and
2) will be distracted by your forced — and fatally flawed — attempt at authenticity.
Do immerse yourself in that period’s society: What did people know about history and sociology and psychology and spirituality (even if they never used those terms to identify them)? What were prevailing political and social and religious viewpoints? How open were the people of then day, about expressing themselves? Do not to let modern sensibilities intrude on the way your characters speak and think. Do, however, permit them and their speeches and thoughts to be accessible to modern readers.
The extent to which characters will express their ideas and opinions, or ruminate about them, and the language with which they will do so, depends on a few other factors:
People of different generations and different social backgrounds generally speak differently. Geriatric characters should exhibit speech and speech patterns distinct from juvenile ones and consistent with norms unless an exception is a deliberate dramatic point — for instance, if a teenager who has switched bodies with an elderly person is trying to pass vocally as well as visually as a senior citizen.
Likewise, the speech and thoughts of well-educated characters will usually be distinguishable from that of those of others with less formal schooling. Of course, no one should assume that a person with only a high school education is less intelligent than a college graduate, or the reverse, but their vocabulary and the level of sophistication of their thoughts will, unless they are self-educated, likely differ.
Further individualization of characters makes fiction writing more vivid. How does one’s personality affect words and thoughts? A repressed person’s speech patterns will differ significantly from an extrovert’s. A tense, angry character will exhibit different rhythms of speech and thought than a carefree individual.
Length of speeches and thoughts is also a consideration: Philosophically minded people do not tend to make snap judgments. Children do not soliloquize. Match the extent to which people speak and think to their personalities. Keep in mind that various sentence lengths and paragraph lengths have differing dramatic values, too — long passages tend to be soothing (but, when too long, are sleep-inducing), while short bursts create or maintain tension (though,done to excess, can be as wearying as extensive paragraphs).
In essence, capitalize on your knowledge of individual characters to establish vocabulary and modes of speech and thought, as well as on familiarity with societal norms for speaking and thinking appropriate to the era in which your characters live.
Thursday, April 4, 2013
Writing Prompts
Writing Prompts, what are they?
If you’re a fiction writer, you may want to consider the use writing prompts to kick-start your creativity. A writing prompt is a topic around which you start jotting down ideas. The prompt can be a single word, a short phrase, a complete paragraph or even a picture. The idea being, to give you something to focus upon while you write. You may stick closely to the original prompt or you may, as many do, wander off at a tangent.
The point is to start writing, without being held back by inhibitions or doubts. Your first notes will be rough, disjointed, but the more you refine your idea the closer you’ll to something polished and complete. Maybe a scene or even a complete story.
Here are four good reasons for writing to prompts:
1.When faced with a blank page, many times it’s hard to start writing. Focusing on your unrelated prompt for a while, helps get the creative juices flowing. Writing for for just ten minutes on a prompt, you should find it easier to return to the piece you intended to write. You may also find that if you stop trying to think so hard about what you wanted to write and switch you attention to the prompt instead, the words and ideas for your original piece start to come to you after all.
2.The things you write, responding to inspiration of your chosen prompt may end up as worthwhile material in their own right. Your prompt may give you ideas from which a complete story can grow. You may get a fresh idea for another piece you’re already working on. It’s often surprising how much material you come up with once you get started.
3.Working to a prompt regularly, helps to get you into the habit of writing. It can act as an exercise regime, helping to build up your “mental muscles” so that you start to find your writing sessions get longer and longer, while the effort gets easier.
4.Prompts can be a great way to get involved in a writing community. Some writing groups offer a prompt for everyone to write about, with the intention being for everyone to come up with something they can then share. The leader of one such group handed out a 3 x 5 card. Each member wrote down two nouns, two verbs, two adjectives, and one color. The twist to the exercise came when we passed the cards two places to the left. The card we received, became the basis of a 300-500 word piece. This can be a source of great encouragement, although knowing others will read what you have written can inhibit your creativity.
Examples of Writing Prompts
Here are twenty writing prompts that you could use to spark your imagination. If you want to use one, don’t worry about where the ideas take you or whether what you’ve written is “good”. The point is just to get into the flow of writing. You can come back later and polish if you wish to.
01. It was the first hard snowfall of the year.
02. She woke, shivering, in the dark of the night.
03. His feet were already numb. He should have listened.
04. Silk lace.
05. She studied her swollen face in the mirror.
06. Red eyes.
07. This time her boss had gone too far.
08. She’d have to hitch a ride home.
09. The streets are deserted. Where is everyone? Where had they all gone?
10. The city burned, fire lighting up the night sky
11. They came back every year to lay flowers on the side of the road.
12. Stars blazed in the night sky.
13. He woke to the song of birds in the meadow.
14. The garden was overgrown now.
15. The smell of freshly-cut grass.
16. He hadn’t seen her since the day they left High School
17. ‘Shh! Hear that?’ ‘I didn’t hear anything.’
18. He’d never noticed a door there before.
19. Where does this corridor led?
20. ‘I told her not to go there!’
21. He’d always hated speaking in public.
Where To Find Writing Prompts Online.
The internet is a wonderful source of writing prompts. There are sites dedicated to providing them which a quick search will turn up. Examples include:
•Creative-Writing-Solutions.com
•WritersDigest.com
•CreativeWritingPrompts.com
I also came across numerous blogs offering a regular writing prompt to inspire you and where you can, if you wish, post what you’ve written.
•DragonWritingPrompts.blogspot.com
•OneMinuteWriter.blogspot.com
•SundayScribblings.blogspot.com
There are also many other sites that can, inadvertently, provide a rich seam of material for writing prompts – for example news sites with their intriguing headlines or pictorial sites such as Flickr.com that give you access to a vast range of photographs that can prompt your writing.
Have a Twitter account, there are users you can follow and receive a stream of prompts Three examples:
•twitter.com/writingprompt
•twitter.com/NoTelling
•twitter.com/writingink
Another idea is just to keep an eye on all the tweets being written by people all over the world, some of which can, inadvertently, be used as writing prompts.
How To Make Your Own Writing Prompts
You can find ideas for writing prompts of your own from all sorts of places. Get used to keeping your eyes open for words and phrases that fire your imagination. Sometimes snatches of overheard conversation, headlines, signs, words picked from a book and so on. Jot them down any and all, then use them as writing prompts to spark your creativity. You never know what road they may take you down..
If you’re a fiction writer, you may want to consider the use writing prompts to kick-start your creativity. A writing prompt is a topic around which you start jotting down ideas. The prompt can be a single word, a short phrase, a complete paragraph or even a picture. The idea being, to give you something to focus upon while you write. You may stick closely to the original prompt or you may, as many do, wander off at a tangent.
The point is to start writing, without being held back by inhibitions or doubts. Your first notes will be rough, disjointed, but the more you refine your idea the closer you’ll to something polished and complete. Maybe a scene or even a complete story.
Here are four good reasons for writing to prompts:
1.When faced with a blank page, many times it’s hard to start writing. Focusing on your unrelated prompt for a while, helps get the creative juices flowing. Writing for for just ten minutes on a prompt, you should find it easier to return to the piece you intended to write. You may also find that if you stop trying to think so hard about what you wanted to write and switch you attention to the prompt instead, the words and ideas for your original piece start to come to you after all.
2.The things you write, responding to inspiration of your chosen prompt may end up as worthwhile material in their own right. Your prompt may give you ideas from which a complete story can grow. You may get a fresh idea for another piece you’re already working on. It’s often surprising how much material you come up with once you get started.
3.Working to a prompt regularly, helps to get you into the habit of writing. It can act as an exercise regime, helping to build up your “mental muscles” so that you start to find your writing sessions get longer and longer, while the effort gets easier.
4.Prompts can be a great way to get involved in a writing community. Some writing groups offer a prompt for everyone to write about, with the intention being for everyone to come up with something they can then share. The leader of one such group handed out a 3 x 5 card. Each member wrote down two nouns, two verbs, two adjectives, and one color. The twist to the exercise came when we passed the cards two places to the left. The card we received, became the basis of a 300-500 word piece. This can be a source of great encouragement, although knowing others will read what you have written can inhibit your creativity.
Examples of Writing Prompts
Here are twenty writing prompts that you could use to spark your imagination. If you want to use one, don’t worry about where the ideas take you or whether what you’ve written is “good”. The point is just to get into the flow of writing. You can come back later and polish if you wish to.
01. It was the first hard snowfall of the year.
02. She woke, shivering, in the dark of the night.
03. His feet were already numb. He should have listened.
04. Silk lace.
05. She studied her swollen face in the mirror.
06. Red eyes.
07. This time her boss had gone too far.
08. She’d have to hitch a ride home.
09. The streets are deserted. Where is everyone? Where had they all gone?
10. The city burned, fire lighting up the night sky
11. They came back every year to lay flowers on the side of the road.
12. Stars blazed in the night sky.
13. He woke to the song of birds in the meadow.
14. The garden was overgrown now.
15. The smell of freshly-cut grass.
16. He hadn’t seen her since the day they left High School
17. ‘Shh! Hear that?’ ‘I didn’t hear anything.’
18. He’d never noticed a door there before.
19. Where does this corridor led?
20. ‘I told her not to go there!’
21. He’d always hated speaking in public.
Where To Find Writing Prompts Online.
The internet is a wonderful source of writing prompts. There are sites dedicated to providing them which a quick search will turn up. Examples include:
•Creative-Writing-Solutions.com
•WritersDigest.com
•CreativeWritingPrompts.com
I also came across numerous blogs offering a regular writing prompt to inspire you and where you can, if you wish, post what you’ve written.
•DragonWritingPrompts.blogspot.com
•OneMinuteWriter.blogspot.com
•SundayScribblings.blogspot.com
There are also many other sites that can, inadvertently, provide a rich seam of material for writing prompts – for example news sites with their intriguing headlines or pictorial sites such as Flickr.com that give you access to a vast range of photographs that can prompt your writing.
Have a Twitter account, there are users you can follow and receive a stream of prompts Three examples:
•twitter.com/writingprompt
•twitter.com/NoTelling
•twitter.com/writingink
Another idea is just to keep an eye on all the tweets being written by people all over the world, some of which can, inadvertently, be used as writing prompts.
How To Make Your Own Writing Prompts
You can find ideas for writing prompts of your own from all sorts of places. Get used to keeping your eyes open for words and phrases that fire your imagination. Sometimes snatches of overheard conversation, headlines, signs, words picked from a book and so on. Jot them down any and all, then use them as writing prompts to spark your creativity. You never know what road they may take you down..
Seven useful websites writers
From grammar guides to usage resources. From usual suspects to obscure gems, here are seven web sites writers of all genres will find of great value:
1. Amazon.com
You may have heard of this website — a good place, I understand, to find books (or anything else manufactured). But what I appreciate even more is the “Search inside this book” link under the image of the book cover on most pages in the Books section. No longer do you need to own a book, drive out to the bookstore, or thumb through it at library in search of a name, that clever remark or expression you can’t quite remember. And even if you do have access to the book in question, it’s easier to search online than to try to remember on what part of what page in what part of the book you remember seeing something last week or last month or years ago. The book search can be a writer’s salvation.
2. The Chicago Manual of Style Online
A review on this site, The Chicago Manual of Style, notes that despite its abundance of useful information, buying the bulky book is overkill for writers (but it is an editors best friend). Editorial professionals of all kinds will benefit from the CMOS, Style Q&A feature, which responds authoritatively, sensibly, and often humorously to visitors’ queries.
3. Banned for Life
Newspaper editor Tom Mangan’s site lists reader contributions of clichés and redundancies.
4. GrammarBook.com
Jane Straus, (May 1954 - Feb 2011) author of The Blue Book on Grammar and Punctuation, created this site to promote her book. It also features simple grammar lessons (and quizzes), as well as video lessons, an e-newsletter, and blog entries that discuss various grammar topics.
5. The Word Detective
Words and Language in a Humorous Vein on the Web Since 1995
This online version of Evan Morris’s newspaper column of the same name (some were also published in the book The Word Detective) features humorous Q&A entries about word origins.
6. The Phrase Finder
A useful way to find proverbs, phrases from the Bible and Shakespeare, nautical expressions, and American idiom (the site originates in the United Kingdom), plus a feature called “Famous Last Words” and, for about $50 a year, subscription to a phrase thesaurus. (Subscribers include many well-known media companies and other businesses as well as universities.)
7. The Vocabula Review
The Principal Web Destination for Anyone Interested in Words and Language
Essays about language and usage; $25 per year by email, $35 for the print version.
Tuesday, April 2, 2013
Grammatical Errors That Aren’t
Just finished running my manuscript through the WordPerfect Grammatik. I ran into so frustrating, if not down right maddening rules that drove me crazy. Rules that can, in dialogue screw up you character’s way off speaking, if you adhere to them, Here are seven I found and I will ignore.
There are two types of grammar: Prescriptive grammar, which prescribes what should be, and descriptive, which describes what is customary. Tension between the two systems is
foreseeable and healthy; it keeps us thinking about what we’re writing and how we're saying it.
Allowing mob rule at the expense of some governing of composition is madness, but articulate absolutism is dangerous, also. As with any prescription, overdosing is contraindicated. Here are seven hard pills to swallow for the language storm troopers who insist on a strict attachment to rigid syntactic patterns at the expense of, well for lack of a better word, language:
1. Never begin a sentence with a conjunction. WHAT! WHY!
And why not? For an honorable tradition of doing just that exists. But many people persist in prohibiting this technique. Yet as writers defy them. Or we ignore or laugh at them, neither of which they appreciate. Nor do they understand our attitude, though we try to convince them, and will continue to do so. So there.
The words beginning each of these sentences are conjunctions, easily recalled with the mnemonic FANBOYS. Every one is perfectly acceptable at the head of a sentence. As is obvious from the previous paragraph, however, a little goes a long way.
In case you don’t know,
For
And
Nor
But
Or
Yet
So
2. Distinguish between, While and Though
Petty prescriptivists would have us reserve while for temporal usage only: "While I agree, I resist," they say, should be revised to "Though I do agree, I resist." I will admit I often change while to though, and while I understand, I’m sorry, I can not stop myself , and though I understand that it may seem bookish, but I think though reads better.
3. Use Data only in the plural sense. (Huh!)
Who came up with this data? The alternative is to use the word datum in the singular sense, which makes you sound like a propeller head. (Look it up, kids.) People who say "datum" get data, but they don’t get dates.
4. Never split an infinitive.
It isn’t wise to always ignore this fallacious rule against dividing the elements of the verb phrase "to (verb)" with an adverb, but to blindly follow it is to prohibit pleasing turns of phrase — one of the best known of which is from the introductory voice-over from all the Star Trek television series: "to boldly go where no one has gone before." (The original series, produced before the more recent sensitivity to gender bias, put it "no man.")
5. Use none only in the singular sense. (What!)
None of these rules, followed strictly, allow for a vernacular ease with language.
Did Earth stop spinning? Did that sentence hurt? Did the waves stop crashing to shore? If you Want to replace none with "not one" or "no one" ("Not one person admitted guilt"; "No one saw that coming"), by all means, do so, but fear not none in a plural sense.
7. Distinguish between Since and Because.
Ditto. And ditto. I agree that indiscriminate replacement of since with because may seem finicky, but since — ahem — because I find the latter word more pleasing, I reserve the right to prefer it.
6. Never end a sentence with a preposition.
This rule is ridiculous, to start with. If you believe it, please tell me what planet you are from. Give it up. What are you striving for? Do I get my point across
The stricture against closing sentences with words that describe position stems from an eighteen-century fetish for the supposed perfection of classical Latin, which allowed no split infinitives — for the excellent reason that Latin infinitives consist of single words. English, however, being a distant relative of that language, should be allowed to form its own customs.
There are two types of grammar: Prescriptive grammar, which prescribes what should be, and descriptive, which describes what is customary. Tension between the two systems is
foreseeable and healthy; it keeps us thinking about what we’re writing and how we're saying it.
Allowing mob rule at the expense of some governing of composition is madness, but articulate absolutism is dangerous, also. As with any prescription, overdosing is contraindicated. Here are seven hard pills to swallow for the language storm troopers who insist on a strict attachment to rigid syntactic patterns at the expense of, well for lack of a better word, language:
1. Never begin a sentence with a conjunction. WHAT! WHY!
And why not? For an honorable tradition of doing just that exists. But many people persist in prohibiting this technique. Yet as writers defy them. Or we ignore or laugh at them, neither of which they appreciate. Nor do they understand our attitude, though we try to convince them, and will continue to do so. So there.
The words beginning each of these sentences are conjunctions, easily recalled with the mnemonic FANBOYS. Every one is perfectly acceptable at the head of a sentence. As is obvious from the previous paragraph, however, a little goes a long way.
In case you don’t know,
For
And
Nor
But
Or
Yet
So
2. Distinguish between, While and Though
Petty prescriptivists would have us reserve while for temporal usage only: "While I agree, I resist," they say, should be revised to "Though I do agree, I resist." I will admit I often change while to though, and while I understand, I’m sorry, I can not stop myself , and though I understand that it may seem bookish, but I think though reads better.
3. Use Data only in the plural sense. (Huh!)
Who came up with this data? The alternative is to use the word datum in the singular sense, which makes you sound like a propeller head. (Look it up, kids.) People who say "datum" get data, but they don’t get dates.
4. Never split an infinitive.
It isn’t wise to always ignore this fallacious rule against dividing the elements of the verb phrase "to (verb)" with an adverb, but to blindly follow it is to prohibit pleasing turns of phrase — one of the best known of which is from the introductory voice-over from all the Star Trek television series: "to boldly go where no one has gone before." (The original series, produced before the more recent sensitivity to gender bias, put it "no man.")
5. Use none only in the singular sense. (What!)
None of these rules, followed strictly, allow for a vernacular ease with language.
Did Earth stop spinning? Did that sentence hurt? Did the waves stop crashing to shore? If you Want to replace none with "not one" or "no one" ("Not one person admitted guilt"; "No one saw that coming"), by all means, do so, but fear not none in a plural sense.
7. Distinguish between Since and Because.
Ditto. And ditto. I agree that indiscriminate replacement of since with because may seem finicky, but since — ahem — because I find the latter word more pleasing, I reserve the right to prefer it.
6. Never end a sentence with a preposition.
This rule is ridiculous, to start with. If you believe it, please tell me what planet you are from. Give it up. What are you striving for? Do I get my point across
The stricture against closing sentences with words that describe position stems from an eighteen-century fetish for the supposed perfection of classical Latin, which allowed no split infinitives — for the excellent reason that Latin infinitives consist of single words. English, however, being a distant relative of that language, should be allowed to form its own customs.
Tuesday, March 26, 2013
17 Tips for Stranded Manuscript Submission
- If you are submitting your manuscript on paper, type the document. Do not submit a hand written version. (Rejected)
2.Use a single, clear font, 12 point size. The best to use is Courier or Courier New. At the very least, ensure you use a 12 point, serif font. Something like Arial with be Rejected.
3.Black print on white paper. The only acceptable choice.
4.When printing out your submission (rather than submitting it electronically), agood quality plain white paper is a must. Print only on one side of each sheet.
5.Include your name and contact information at the top left of the first page. Put an accurate word count at the top right. Put the title half-way down the page, centered, with "by Your Name" underneath. Start the story beneath that.
6.If you chosen to write under a pseudonym, put that beneath the title but your real name in the top left of the first page.
7.Put your name, story title and the page number as a right-justified header on every subsequent page, in the format Name/Title/Page Number. You can also just use a key word from your title and not repeat the whole thing on each page.
8.Left-justify your paragraphs. Right margins should be "ragged".
9.Ensure there is at least a 1 inch (2 centimeters) margin top, bottom, and left, right, around your text. This is to allow annotation to be written onto a printed copy.
10.Use double spacing for all your text.
11.Don’t insert extra lines between your paragraphs.
12.Leave the first line in the chapter start out a the left margin.
13.Indent the first line of each proceeding paragraph by about 1/2 inch (1 centimeter). Usually one (1) tab keystroke,
14.If you want to indicate a blank line, (Scene Break) place a blank line, then a line with the # character in the middle of it, then another blank line.
15.Don’t use bold or italic fonts or any other unusual formatting. To emphases a piece of text you should underline it.
16.Put the word "End" after your text, centered on its own line.
17.If you are submitting on paper, don’t staple your pages together. Package them up well so that they won’t get damaged and send them off.
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
The Eve Beguilement
After several yeas of starting over and editing the manuscript, I just wrapped up the rough draft of The Eve Beguilement. The 137K word story took a lot of twists due to the delay in the translation of some of the journals and records, but it's finally done.
I'm doing typo read through of The Adam Eradication. I will edit the The Eve Beguilement, while I get From the Garden Cast flushed out. It's at 26,464 word, so only 100K or so words to add. No big deal. :-))
I'm doing typo read through of The Adam Eradication. I will edit the The Eve Beguilement, while I get From the Garden Cast flushed out. It's at 26,464 word, so only 100K or so words to add. No big deal. :-))
Monday, March 11, 2013
Working Cover: The Eve Beguilement
Hi everyone,
Take a look at the working book cover (not the final) for our second book "The Eve Beguilement".
This is the web version so the colors are not what then are in real time.
Incase you can't read the text on the back cover.
The MacKenna Saga
Book Two
The Eve Beguilement
Kalen and Mayla return to Mayla's family's Outlands estate. They hope to leave the past behind settle into a peaceful life. That is until an attempt is made to abduct Daniella and kill Kalen. While seeking answers for the senseless crime, Abel Santiago, Mayla's middle brother returns. Convinced Kalen is guilty of murder, and angered by his family's unquestioning support of him, Abel attempts to kill Kalen. After recovering from the near fatal attack, Kalen travels to the nearby town of Solana and interrupts two men in the midst of kidnaping a woman. The crime uncovers an even darker secret the Central Council is concealing, hundreds of Arrisian young women are missing.
Suspecting his enemies Maria and Jenna are involved, he investigates. Following a lead from the kidnapers, Kalen, Mayla, Jamie Santiago and three roving patrol officers travel to an isolated corner of the Outlands on a rescue mission. But the mission turns in one of survival, their own.
Separated from their friends, Kalen and Mayla stumble on the kidnappers’ hideout, and derail Maria's plans. Their interference thrusts him and the entire Santiago family into a life and death struggle that destroys the Santiago estate and threatens the lives of Mayla's family. Another attempt to kidnap Daniella, followed by a mid air attack on her and Connor O’Dell sends Kalen and Mayla hunting for the conspirators.
During the ensuing battle to rescue Daniella and Connor Kalen tries to uncover the reason one of the riches, most powerful woman in the colonies would risk death to accomplish her mission. Jenna and Maria escape, leaving a trail of death and destruction in their wake, one Santiago dead and another near death.
I would appericate any comments.
This is the web version so the colors are not what then are in real time.
Incase you can't read the text on the back cover.
The MacKenna Saga
Book Two
The Eve Beguilement
Kalen and Mayla return to Mayla's family's Outlands estate. They hope to leave the past behind settle into a peaceful life. That is until an attempt is made to abduct Daniella and kill Kalen. While seeking answers for the senseless crime, Abel Santiago, Mayla's middle brother returns. Convinced Kalen is guilty of murder, and angered by his family's unquestioning support of him, Abel attempts to kill Kalen. After recovering from the near fatal attack, Kalen travels to the nearby town of Solana and interrupts two men in the midst of kidnaping a woman. The crime uncovers an even darker secret the Central Council is concealing, hundreds of Arrisian young women are missing.
Suspecting his enemies Maria and Jenna are involved, he investigates. Following a lead from the kidnapers, Kalen, Mayla, Jamie Santiago and three roving patrol officers travel to an isolated corner of the Outlands on a rescue mission. But the mission turns in one of survival, their own.
Separated from their friends, Kalen and Mayla stumble on the kidnappers’ hideout, and derail Maria's plans. Their interference thrusts him and the entire Santiago family into a life and death struggle that destroys the Santiago estate and threatens the lives of Mayla's family. Another attempt to kidnap Daniella, followed by a mid air attack on her and Connor O’Dell sends Kalen and Mayla hunting for the conspirators.
During the ensuing battle to rescue Daniella and Connor Kalen tries to uncover the reason one of the riches, most powerful woman in the colonies would risk death to accomplish her mission. Jenna and Maria escape, leaving a trail of death and destruction in their wake, one Santiago dead and another near death.
I would appericate any comments.
Thursday, March 7, 2013
A 'Microsoft' email you should avoid at all costs
"Danger Will Robinson, danger!"
I reviewed this warning from Kim Kammando a local radio personality about a Microsoft E-Mail going around. Instead of me telling you about it just click on the link and read for yourself. Kim's claim to fame. 'She is your digital goddess.' She's good and if you've never heard of her check out the rest of her website when you're done reading
The link to the site is no longer active My apologies
http://www.komando.com/tips/index.aspx?id=14152&utm_medium=nl&utm_source=alerts&utm_content=2013-03-07-article-in-body-b
I reviewed this warning from Kim Kammando a local radio personality about a Microsoft E-Mail going around. Instead of me telling you about it just click on the link and read for yourself. Kim's claim to fame. 'She is your digital goddess.' She's good and if you've never heard of her check out the rest of her website when you're done reading
The link to the site is no longer active My apologies
http://www.komando.com/tips/index.aspx?id=14152&utm_medium=nl&utm_source=alerts&utm_content=2013-03-07-article-in-body-b
Monday, March 4, 2013
Self Editing: The Bane of Self-Publishing
Think how many times you've received a reply to an email you sent out, only to noticed that your original text contained errors. It turns out that editing one’s own writing is remarkably difficult. Once they are initially missed, errors tend to become "invisible" to a writer when they review their work. Our eyes skim past them. A lot of new writers make the critical error of self-editing and think they are done.
If the publishers of writers like James Patterson. Issac Asimov, Sue Grafton, Robert B Parker, Raymond E. Fiest all require an editor to review and check their work. What makes any of us first time writes believe we are better and don't need an editor.
My co-author and I had our self-published Tyranny series picked up by a publisher in Las Vegas. What was the first thing the owner did? He tore out the first chapter (literally). We had to create a whole new chapter starting in a different place. Next he took a scene from book one and had us move into to book two. Next he underlined all the placed where we did tell and not show. We sat together in a marathon session over a weekend and removed all the places he raised objection. Now the company editor is taking her turn and bringing up very good points about character development, scene description, and repetition in the story. The process is frustration at times but necessary.
I'm doing a last read-through of The Adam Eradication. I printed the entire manuscript, got away from my computer and started reading. While the manuscript is complete, and was edited twice, this read is pointing out a boat load of typos made while removing my telly pros and replacing them with pros that help the reader to see the story.
This brings to mind an elderly woman I met. She wrote a book and was very anxious to get it published. So anxious in fact she didn't want to bother having an editor read it at all. This was huge mistake, made by those who decided to self publish.
Concerned about her book I request she allow me to send the first five chapters to the woman who did the first edit on my book. She went through the pages as a courtesy. What this editor returned shocked to woman into taking a second look and she paid the editor to run through her manuscript.
She received her red-lined manuscript back entered the edits and corrections. This writer figured she was done. I tried to convince her to have someone outside her family read through it one more time. Her reply, I made all the changes, it's ready to go.
She had 500 copies printed. After receiving cases and cases of books, her son took one home to read. He returned it to her three day later, red lined, pointing out errors on almost every page. Her concept is a good one, but instead of book worth reading she had boxes of books that are good for little more than starting a fire.
My first editor did the work and I made the corrections. But The Adam Eradication, being my first book, I found what I considered holes in the story and proceeded to plug them. Enter a good friend (enough of a friend to tell me the truth) she did the second edit. The first thing she did was cut the last 10 chapters (48K+ words). Her analysis. Your book ends at this point. A good piece of advise. I used those 10 chapters to start the second book. (Never trash anything you've written, archive it. A good idea can be reworked to fit somewhere else)
Throughout the edit she deleted whole paragraphs as redundant. Some writer suffer from this problem some do not. I was anxious to get the story to press and rushed though the last edit. After publishing the book I gave several copies away. My friend's wife read the book and sometime later handed me her copy. She said "I love you story but --" The book was marked with over forty sticky tabs each on a typo. Though minor typos, I learned my lesson. Fifty fire starters.
Editors cost money. Not as much as publishing an unreadable book. This mistake marks you as an armature, not serious about your craft. This kind of attitude will stop readers from ever considering reading any future work you publish, no matter how much you improve. And without someone finding your story compelling enough to look past your mistakes, no published will take you seriously in the future.
What can an editor do that I can't? What can an editor do that you can't? An editor will read what you wrote, not what you think you wrote. A good editor will find your inconsistencies, help you with the language appropriate for your genre. For instance a steam punk novel's use of nouns, pronouns, adjectives, etc will be different from those used in a science fiction novel as will a fantasy fiction novel will differ from SF or romance. Next, an editor will point out your flaws in the construction of paragraphs, scene breaks and poor character development. Some writer's characters all talk the same. A good editor will point this out and help you see how to vary your character's personalities. A good editor will tell you when you've shifted you POV(Point Of View) If character A is you POV character you cannot have character's B thought in a scene or describe a scene through character B eyes. You can if your novel is written from an omniscient POV, but few good writers use this POV anymore.
An editor will spot problems with spelling, punctuation, and grammar that can escape your notice.
Does the phrase familiarity breeds contempt. Well, familiarity with your subject can result in explanations and descriptions that are incomplete or confusing to readers. What you see in your minds eye is always what you've put on paper. An editor will ensure that your copy is intelligibly and concisely written.
You may also ask yourself why an editor is necessary when your word processing program already has spell checking capabilities. Spell check, it turns out, is only partially effective at catching problems. For example, homonyms (e.g., council/counsel) you won't find these flagged. Words used nonsensically are regularly accepted by a spell checker. These programs have nothing to say about confusing, ones needlessly wordy, jargony or telly prose.
One of the biggest helps is to join a writer's group. You read your work aloud and they critique your writing. Be advised, while most groups offer good non threatening environment, you need a thick skin, because it is still hard to hear your writing evaluated by others.
You took the time and effort to create a good story. Give it the polish and attention it deserves.
If the publishers of writers like James Patterson. Issac Asimov, Sue Grafton, Robert B Parker, Raymond E. Fiest all require an editor to review and check their work. What makes any of us first time writes believe we are better and don't need an editor.
My co-author and I had our self-published Tyranny series picked up by a publisher in Las Vegas. What was the first thing the owner did? He tore out the first chapter (literally). We had to create a whole new chapter starting in a different place. Next he took a scene from book one and had us move into to book two. Next he underlined all the placed where we did tell and not show. We sat together in a marathon session over a weekend and removed all the places he raised objection. Now the company editor is taking her turn and bringing up very good points about character development, scene description, and repetition in the story. The process is frustration at times but necessary.
I'm doing a last read-through of The Adam Eradication. I printed the entire manuscript, got away from my computer and started reading. While the manuscript is complete, and was edited twice, this read is pointing out a boat load of typos made while removing my telly pros and replacing them with pros that help the reader to see the story.
This brings to mind an elderly woman I met. She wrote a book and was very anxious to get it published. So anxious in fact she didn't want to bother having an editor read it at all. This was huge mistake, made by those who decided to self publish.
Concerned about her book I request she allow me to send the first five chapters to the woman who did the first edit on my book. She went through the pages as a courtesy. What this editor returned shocked to woman into taking a second look and she paid the editor to run through her manuscript.
She received her red-lined manuscript back entered the edits and corrections. This writer figured she was done. I tried to convince her to have someone outside her family read through it one more time. Her reply, I made all the changes, it's ready to go.
She had 500 copies printed. After receiving cases and cases of books, her son took one home to read. He returned it to her three day later, red lined, pointing out errors on almost every page. Her concept is a good one, but instead of book worth reading she had boxes of books that are good for little more than starting a fire.
My first editor did the work and I made the corrections. But The Adam Eradication, being my first book, I found what I considered holes in the story and proceeded to plug them. Enter a good friend (enough of a friend to tell me the truth) she did the second edit. The first thing she did was cut the last 10 chapters (48K+ words). Her analysis. Your book ends at this point. A good piece of advise. I used those 10 chapters to start the second book. (Never trash anything you've written, archive it. A good idea can be reworked to fit somewhere else)
Throughout the edit she deleted whole paragraphs as redundant. Some writer suffer from this problem some do not. I was anxious to get the story to press and rushed though the last edit. After publishing the book I gave several copies away. My friend's wife read the book and sometime later handed me her copy. She said "I love you story but --" The book was marked with over forty sticky tabs each on a typo. Though minor typos, I learned my lesson. Fifty fire starters.
Editors cost money. Not as much as publishing an unreadable book. This mistake marks you as an armature, not serious about your craft. This kind of attitude will stop readers from ever considering reading any future work you publish, no matter how much you improve. And without someone finding your story compelling enough to look past your mistakes, no published will take you seriously in the future.
What can an editor do that I can't? What can an editor do that you can't? An editor will read what you wrote, not what you think you wrote. A good editor will find your inconsistencies, help you with the language appropriate for your genre. For instance a steam punk novel's use of nouns, pronouns, adjectives, etc will be different from those used in a science fiction novel as will a fantasy fiction novel will differ from SF or romance. Next, an editor will point out your flaws in the construction of paragraphs, scene breaks and poor character development. Some writer's characters all talk the same. A good editor will point this out and help you see how to vary your character's personalities. A good editor will tell you when you've shifted you POV(Point Of View) If character A is you POV character you cannot have character's B thought in a scene or describe a scene through character B eyes. You can if your novel is written from an omniscient POV, but few good writers use this POV anymore.
An editor will spot problems with spelling, punctuation, and grammar that can escape your notice.
Does the phrase familiarity breeds contempt. Well, familiarity with your subject can result in explanations and descriptions that are incomplete or confusing to readers. What you see in your minds eye is always what you've put on paper. An editor will ensure that your copy is intelligibly and concisely written.
You may also ask yourself why an editor is necessary when your word processing program already has spell checking capabilities. Spell check, it turns out, is only partially effective at catching problems. For example, homonyms (e.g., council/counsel) you won't find these flagged. Words used nonsensically are regularly accepted by a spell checker. These programs have nothing to say about confusing, ones needlessly wordy, jargony or telly prose.
One of the biggest helps is to join a writer's group. You read your work aloud and they critique your writing. Be advised, while most groups offer good non threatening environment, you need a thick skin, because it is still hard to hear your writing evaluated by others.
You took the time and effort to create a good story. Give it the polish and attention it deserves.
Saturday, February 23, 2013
Progress On Final Edit
I've printed off my 143, 936 word manuscript The Adam Eradication for my final read-through. 2 or 3 chapter left to complete The Eve Beguilement only another 10K words. Then move on the From The Garden Cast already 35K + words
For you writers, a couple of quotes from Mark Twain on writing (English) One on Adverbs and one on Adjectives both note worthy.
"I am dead to adverbs; they cannot excite me. To misplace an adverb is a thing which I am able to do with frozen indifference; it can never give me a pang. ... There are subtleties which I cannot master at all,--they confuse me, they mean absolutely nothing to me,--and this adverb plague is one of them. ... Yes, there are things which we cannot learn, and there is no use in fretting about it. I cannot learn adverbs; and what is more I won't."
- "Reply to a Boston Girl," Atlantic Monthly, June 1880
"I notice that you use plain, simple language, short words and brief sentences. That is the way to write English - it is the modern way and the best way. Stick to it; don't let fluff and flowers and verbosity creep in. When you catch an adjective, kill it. No, I don't mean utterly, but kill most of them - then the rest will be valuable. They weaken when they are close together. They give strength when they are wide apart. An adjective habit, or a wordy, diffuse, flowery habit, once fastened upon a person, is as hard to get rid of as any other vice."
- Mark Twain in a Letter to D. W. Bowser, 3/20/1880
For you writers, a couple of quotes from Mark Twain on writing (English) One on Adverbs and one on Adjectives both note worthy.
"I am dead to adverbs; they cannot excite me. To misplace an adverb is a thing which I am able to do with frozen indifference; it can never give me a pang. ... There are subtleties which I cannot master at all,--they confuse me, they mean absolutely nothing to me,--and this adverb plague is one of them. ... Yes, there are things which we cannot learn, and there is no use in fretting about it. I cannot learn adverbs; and what is more I won't."
- "Reply to a Boston Girl," Atlantic Monthly, June 1880
"I notice that you use plain, simple language, short words and brief sentences. That is the way to write English - it is the modern way and the best way. Stick to it; don't let fluff and flowers and verbosity creep in. When you catch an adjective, kill it. No, I don't mean utterly, but kill most of them - then the rest will be valuable. They weaken when they are close together. They give strength when they are wide apart. An adjective habit, or a wordy, diffuse, flowery habit, once fastened upon a person, is as hard to get rid of as any other vice."
- Mark Twain in a Letter to D. W. Bowser, 3/20/1880
Monday, February 4, 2013
21 Book Marketing Tips
Sorry followers. I've been dealing with some personal issues and haven't been in the mood to blog. I'm back and for those of you writing I received and email from my coauthor with I load of great links for Book Marketing & Book Publicity Tool Kit. This comes from the BookMarketingBuzzBlog. I thought I'd pass them along to you. There are some real gems here. Check Out Brian Feinblum’s blog.
21
Book Marketing Tips
The Grassroots Way To Build A Following
For Your Book
Going Viral: Challenges &
Rewards
What Is Your Book Marketing
Attitude?
Blueprint
Of The Book Publicity Landscape
Book
Marketing With Social Media
20 Ways To Boost Your Website
Traffic
37
Ways To Get Paid For Your Words
Creating The
Perfect Press Release
The Subject Line Is Your
Pitch
25 Tips On What The Media
Wants
33
Twitter Tips, Sites & Strategies
15 Ways For Authors To Work With Book
Publicists Effectively
25 More Tips Of
What The Media Wants
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