"Callie Craves Glitz and Grammar..."

I feel like a need a t-shirt that reads:

"I use Grammarly's plagiarism checker because orange jumpsuits aren't quite my style."

Really, though. I am starting to feel like I've been gifted with a personal puppy-dog of an editor who trails me around and makes helpful suggestions to my work. More on this further in the post. Aren't you curious? ;)

An essential point in the process for any writer, whether you are going independent or traditional with your publishing, is the process of Revision & Self-Editing. Many times you can get ultra-dedicated beta readers to help you with the editing process, and many suggest that you actually hire a professional editor. I have not done that yet (I don't have it in my budget to hire for things I can do myself by taking care.) but I think it would be amazing to be able to! Here, I shall take out my little soapbox and stand on it and flap my fingers like a flight attendant, asking you to check on the right for my friend Rachelle Rea, and on the left for my friend Amber Stokes who are both available to meet all your editing needs! Aren't I such a good chum? Anyway, I have benefited first-hand from Rachelle's expertise and know Amber to be a thorough, precise person so  I can vouch for their goodness as editors. But when it comes to do-it-yourself editing/revision, I thought I'd tell you some of my favorite books/tools to use:

First up is James Scott Bell's Revision & Self-Editing. (Appropriately named, yes?) I realize I have mentioned this book at least once (if not 999 times), but anything this marked-up and spine-cracked is obviously worth mentioning again. I am anxious to read Mr. Bell's Plot & Structure someday, but this book is perfect for the writer who wants to have their hands on a book that covers the bases of Dialog, Setting, Pacing, Characterization, Tension, Points of View, and all the other major categories in telling a good story. This book assumes you have a working knowledge of writing and the writing-system so it really is best for revision/self-editing (nawwwww.) but as such I can't think of a better book to recommend. I like being able to flip open to a familiar section in a familiar book and be able to read again exactly the same section I read three months ago; to me, owning a book like this is way more helpful than just Googling my issues.

When I was visiting my older brother in Purcellville this year, I had the chance to hang out at the Patrick Henry College coffee-shop several mornings. Directly across the great hall from the coffee-shop is a little bookstore. I rambled in once or twice, feeling quite horrible that I didn't really have money for all the things I was looking at and wishing I wasn't the only patron in the store, but finally I purchased Eats, Shoots, & Leaves by Lynn Truss, having heard much about it. While I didn't find it to be quite as much The Elements of Style as I expected, it was probably better for being deeper. The book is humorous, dedicated, and has the distinct honor of introducing me to the eloquent semi-colon: a mark to which I now owe much debt. If you want a better handle on the various punctuation marks and their proper and improper uses, this book is a great one!

Quite recently (i.e. last week) Grammarly was brought to my attention and no sooner had a begun a free trial, than I realized that this is a pretty awesome program. See, it's like having a personal secretary. It's like having an English teacher sitting there suggesting changes to your manuscript with complete instructions on what went wrong and how to fix it. According to Wikipedia:

Grammarly is a writing-enhancement platform developed by Grammarly, Inc., and launched in 2009. Grammarly's proofreading and plagiarism-detection capabilities check for a writer's adherence to more than 250 grammar rules

See? It's pretty awesome and exceptionally clever and fast. I am not quite certain if the free version allows you this privilege (I am using my free trial of the real-deal), but you can plug in a whole chapter of your novel and it will search it for mistakes, categorize your mistakes, walk you through them, and suggest changes. In addition to all this, you can also adjust the settings so it will edit your text as a general, business, academic, technical, creative, or casual project. (And the specifics of your critique will adjust to suit!) You should definitely check out Grammarly; the rates are quite reasonable and a year's subscription to the program will probably cost you no more than a one-time editor...which means you can use it on more than one novel, if you're fast! :D Of course, Grammarly suggests you hire a real proof-reader, as an electronic set of eyes will often miss things a human would see. Quite sensible. The site gives you a free week trial so go sign up and try it out. So far it is pretty awesome. They have free tools too (i.e. you can plug in a sentence and it will tell you if it is grammatically correct or not.) so it's worth checking out. 

Well, I have oodles to do. Only 18 days till Fly Away Home is available for purchase! <3 I shall leave you all to play with Grammarly and try to get a grade of 100 out of 100 on your first try. (It's a little addicting.) Toodles and happy writing to you all!

When Re-writes Pay Off

By the way - I did not model Smidgen off of Gavroche.
The picture just fit him. 

Rewriting is a thing I only do when I absolutely have to. I used to fear it. Now I just dislike it. I'm not talking about editing so much as I am talking about those moments when you open up one Word document file, sigh, and open a new one, needing to create something entirely different. There are several reasons why I usually wait to rewrite until the entire novel has been finished. If you're too picky on a first draft you'll find yourself bogged down in fixing problems that might straighten out by the end of the novel. But sometimes you just know that you'll go from bad to worse if you don't rewrite a scene right now. I came across this dilemma in The Baby a few chapters back; the chapter was finished and well-written and had done its duty of introducing a plot twist and a new character or two, but it just wasn't right.

Then I realized the problem: this scene intended for a children's book had no children in it--in fact, it dealt with a dilemma that most adults would find intimidating, let alone the 12-14 year olds who will be reading this book. Once I determined what the problem was, there was nothing left to do but fix it. I rolled up my proverbial sleeves and set to work. Below I have excerpts from the former version of Chapter Six, and the new version. Former is written in red, latter in blue:

     At Whiskin's Abbey in quite another corner of the valley, a young man waited in the shadow of an apple-tree.
     "Morning, John Brady," an old man said, tugging his cap in passing.

     Smidgen pushed his spine against the curve of the apple-tree outside Whiskin's Abbey and waited for John Brady. A hum like a hive of drones poured over the wall of the Abbey-school, but Smidgen knew it was no honey those boys worked for--it was lessons and more lessons. 

Not only is the second passage more interesting, it's also more intimate. In the former passage you are told there is an apple tree near  a place called Whiskin's Abbey. In the second it is spoken of as "the apple-tree outside Whiskin's Abbey..." A slight difference, but one that sets the tone and brings the reader in.

     Leona sat on a boulder--soft and white against the dark firs--and slid off as he noticed her. She came up smelling like sunlight and heather and wrapped him in her arms.

     Smidgen swung himself to the ground and led the way across a field ripe with cockleburs and over a ridge into the fir-filled copse. Leona was perched on the boulder where he'd left her, only now that she saw John Brady, that strange, worried look left her face and she smiled as she usually did.

Here, the second example is less intimate, but much more what a young reader will identify with. Smidgen is concerned for his sister, Leona, and he doesn't notice her beauty--he notices that she no longer looks worried. That, to Smidgen, is the thing that gladdens him, while John Brady would be more inclined to notice her physical appearance.

     She glowed brighter than ever and pushed a sweep of red hair from her eyes. "We are fine." As she said the words she raised her eyes, and John felt himself swayed by the intensity.
     "You and I? Yes. We are very fine." He touched the very tip of her pixie-like nose and smiled.
     Leona shook her head. "I meant something quite different."

     "We are fine."
     Something in her voice struck Smidgen as unusual, and he looked up from thrashing the grass to see a funny look on her face.
     John jerked his head with a laugh and touched her nose. "You and I? Yes. We are very fine."
      "And me," Smidgen said. He thought it advisable to remind them he existed. "I'm fine."

You can tell the difference here. Smidgen's appraisal of this conversation is much more casual and indignant. He feels the tension and he plants himself in the middle of it, which adds interest to what could be no more than a lovers' conversation which--as any third wheel knows--is not terribly interesting.

     John threw out his arms, exasperated. "Within a Community?--yes. Promises there are binding. You know this as well as I."
     Leona's head was bowed and her shoulders shook. John rolled his eyes. Oh God, no crying. Why do women--? "Leona, be a reasonable creature. What could possibly make our lives more difficult than they are now?"

     "Don't start acting like a woman, Leona," John said. Smidgen watched his obvious impatience at the first signs of Leona's tears, and wondered if John knew how rarely Leona cried. How could he? He'd never lived with her.
     Smidgen took her hands in his. "Tell me. I don't mind if you cry." 
     John rolled his eyes and elbowed between them. "Oh come now. Neither do I. Just don't...overreact. What could possibly make our lives harder than they are now?"

This is one of my favorite bits in the whole chapter, since I can imagine my young brother being just as protective of me. Smidgen likes John Brady, but he still considers himself the first man in Leona's life. Thus, when he sees John making Leona cry, he's ready to wedge himself in that little crack and be the one to comfort the lady. There are two dynamics here that weren't there in the first version of the chapter, since Smidgen never comes to the valley: a brother-sister, long-standing relationship that John and Leona can't possibly have, and a sense of triumph; Smidgen has scored a point over John. Something he's probably been waiting to do for some time.

So.

Can you see how rewriting pays off? Smidgen is now a much larger character and that has sprung me into new plot depths I hadn't expected. All because I took a morning to restructure a chapter that wouldn't have fit in a children's novel. It's definitely worth a thought. You never quite know what might happen if you take out your scalpel and start probing!

How To Survive Rewriting: the good, the bad, and the ugly

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. In short, it was time to rewrite Fly Away Home.

After having sent the book to numerous beta-readers, the critiques started swinging back in and for the past several days I've been swamped with so much rewriting it nearly made me question my calling as a writer. (I jest, I jest....partly.) At first it was an overwhelming jungle of horrid mistakes, plotting, and things to correct. I stared at the sheets of closely-written notes from my grandmother, and at the lengthy emails from my long-suffering friends, and thought, "What the blazes have I got myself into?"

There is always this moment on the edge of editing and rewriting, and the question is, "What will you do with it?" Only the brave and true survive the process. Only the dedicated have the guts to go through with it.

With all humbleness, I am one of them.

I know that rewriting is only going to make my book better. It's daunting, terrifying, and wretched at times, yes. But there is also a sense of exhilaration. If you are one who is looking down on your work in progress and wondering how you'll ever make a sensible book out of the hash in your hands, you are at the right place. In this post I intend to make you laugh, make you groan, and show you a little of how I go about it. Ready?

All right.

After assembling my thoughts and girding myself with bravado I didn't feel, (and a deal of prayer I did feel) yesterday was the official re-write kick-off. Witness my Facebook postings throughout the day:

January 10, 12:13 p.m. :

That feeling of utter confusion, bewilderment, and terror when you realize "editing" is more like "rewriting" and you gulp, close your eyes, and plunge in the knife.

January 10, 12:19 p.m.:

The general consensus is that I need some yelling in my book. *feels shell-shocked, realizing she must now spend the day getting her characters into several arguments in several places*

January 10, 11:54 p.m.:

Because there are days when you can't escape editing, and a purple pen lessens the terror. A smidge.

So my first suggestion? Use a purple pen. Never use red. Red is the color of blood. Red is the color of guilt. Use anything but red, I beg you.

The first official step in Rewriting is to identify which pieces need a complete overhaul.

In my case there were two key scenes that several beta-readers had commented on. I knew I needed to completely redo these scenes, adding material, cutting material, changing characters, etc. This was extremely daunting and I hardly had the courage to start cutting in. But I knew it needed to be done. When have a head-to-head with a thing that screams "DEATH! DESTRUCTION! RUIN! CHAOS!" the best thing to do is ignore the fact that it's enormous. I went in with a scalpel rather than a broadsword, and began to make my correction little by little. Don't look at the big picture in these overwhelming moments. Go line upon line, precept upon precept (to hackney a phrase) and you'll soon find the thing is done. Rather than editing the original file though, I copied and pasted the sections into a separate document which immediately tamed the tigers.

Working in separate files gives you mental freedom to make changes, knowing you can always revert to the original if you must. Both of my sections were large and unwieldy and it took me all day, but I rewrote 7 or 8k words yesterday. I was so pleased with the outcome, I made the decision to edit the original file and ditch the old material.

It was a wonderful feeling. ^.^

After fixing those two beasts, the next step was to try my hand at the Post-it Note System. This is my version of a system introduced to me by author Stephanie Morrill. I had wanted to try it ever since seeing her example on Go Teen Writers, and today was my chance. I woke up bright and early, knowing that I wanted to get my Wall of Power made before breakfast so I could focus on editing the rest of the day.

I wish my camera had captured the grandeur of the sunrise. It was so brilliant.

Sarah is out of town which has been great for my rewriting schedule because I can work at odd hours and not disturb anyone! After waking myself up with a shower, I sat and wrote a sticky note for each scene in my book. I was well-fortified with brightly colored Post-it notes, my purple pen, and my JJ Heller Pandora station.

Oh yes. And chocolate. Please don't forget the chocolate.

 Stephanie's system was a combo of index cards and sticky notes, but I went with only Post-it notes and created my own method that is working absolutely amazingly for me.

 Each color means something different:

Pink: Average scenes
Green: Key "turning-point" scenes
Blue: Possible scrap-scenes
White: Suggestions
Yellow: General comments

I ended up with 70-some "scenes" and it pleased my organized side to see that they squared up with precision when I stuck them to the wall. I was also pleased to find that--not including the two major rewrite-scenes yesterday--I had only a of couple scenes to consider cutting. (This will be my third edit on this book, so I got rid of, or rearranged several scenes in the former rounds) All the same, I reconsidered several scenes and replaced their sticky-notes with ones of a different shade where needed. After that I took out my white pieces and made lots of suggestions for various scenes such as...

Haha.

These suggestions are so helpful when you need a quick glance to remind you of what needed fixing in the given scene. Heighten tension? Add an argument? Mention this event? Incorporate a certain character? I was proud that I remembered to number the individual Post-its so that if they fell off the wall I could get them back in order without driving myself crazy.

I had fun with the cryptic descriptions of certain scenes....no one but myself need know what some of them mean...

;)

Here is the wall after rearranging and adding notes:

The awesome thing about this system is that you can literally see the flow of your story. If my key scenes are the green ones, I can see where I need to check tension in the lesser scenes, where I might need to relieve it in the intense blocks, etc. Since you're dealing with Post-it notes, you also have the freedom to play around with rearranging the various scenes. The yellow Post-its, again, are general things to remember throughout each scene and all the way through to the end. 

Another perk of the Wall of Power is that it allows you to easily identify, add, and follow "circularity"--a topic Jill Williamson touched on over at Go Teen Writers earlier this week.

Me standing against the Wall of Power. 

Or the Wall of Terror. 

Both were appropriate depending on when you caught me during the day. By lunchtime, my Facebook statuses were less than cheerful:

January 11, 12:13 p.m.

Historical accuracy makes me want to up and write fantasy. :P

-OR-

January 11, 1:19 p.m.

Waaaaaaaaa. Editing today is a Sudoku puzzle. Move one piece and the rest goes to shambles behind it.

After I came down to lunch, Mama listened to me rant about wishing there was a coffee shop that wasn't twenty-five minutes away, then calmly said, "Well, you could go anyway. It isn't that far."

I could, couldn't I? With computer in tow. 

It is a maxim of mine that a change of scenery does wonders. Therefore I toted my laptop full of its quibbles with Mr. Barnett, geography, Callie Harper, and 50's slang, and went to Panera. There, I ordered therapy in the form of a cinnamon roll and hazelnut coffee. I took a window seat and flipped open my computer. 

I heard Eric Hutchinson's "Rock Roll" and smiled.

It was a good spot for editing. 

And for taking awkward pictures with the self-shot of one's tablet.

And for embarrassing oneself by taking one's laptop from the laptop case borrowed from one's guitar-playing brother, and finding there is all a manner of horrid things springing out at you like strings and papers and pens and picks. And everyone stares at you tolerantly.

I was there an hour and a half and got nearly all the way through the list of corrections I'd copied down from my Wall of Power. YES! Along the way I was aided by a phone-call from a friend who has just been Sher-locked, and musing over just how amazing Steven Moffat is, and how he probably had to go through this self-same rewriting process for his genius. Tomorrow is Saturday, and therefore a day for cleaning house, but I expect to be right back to my Wall of Power on Monday, making corrections and giving Mr. Barnett a temper, and finding out just where in Manhattan The St. Evans' Post ought to be located, and doing all a manner of things. In fact, I'd rather not think about it. In the past two days I've taken huge leaps in the rewriting, and it's amazing to see what persistence and elbow-grease will do to a story. 

Rewriting isn't easy, and I'm not trying to make it out to be a lark, but it is helpful to have tips and tricks. I hope I've encouraged some of you with a peep at my system, and I assure you it helps. Just get down and get your hands dirty, and it'll all come right in the end. 

We hope. ;)

A mood like peppermints

November is long famous for being a month of serious writing for men and women and boys and girls all across the nation. The month you buckle down, force yourself to pour out a book, and get cracking on the project you've procrastinated on for so long. For me, November has been full of writing. But not the sort you'd think. I haven't written a stitch of Au Contraire. That project is on hold, actually. No, do not fly off the handle. I simply realized that it would not be right to devote all my energies to a new project when I hadn't edited/rewritten my last two books. Therefore I've pulled out all the stops and have been editing, polishing, and taking-a-breath-before-rewriting The Scarlet-Gypsy Song and Fly Away Home. Both of these books have more potential than A Mother for the Seasonings, and though I haven't quite given up on the former, I honestly think either or both of the others will find a home sooner. Therefore it makes sense to focus on editing them and preparing these two very different stories to try their wings.

To be quite honest, it's nerve-wracking. Not only do I have to prepare these two stories physically, I also have to do my research on comp. titles, marketing, agents, and proposals for each. It's like finding I'm suddenly the mother of triplets and they're wailing to be fed at once. Like parenting, I can see I'm in that stage where they'll keep me up at night and I'll get very little sleep. Unlike parenting, I hope my "children" won't contract some strange childhood disease along the way. And they certainly won't cut teeth. At least, let's hope not. Being bitten by a story? That seems a tad twisted. All this to say, I thought I'd share with you a little of how I go about rewriting/editing. 

First off, I indulge my vanity and read through my favorite parts of the story. If I see a glaring problem, I fix it, but this stage is the feel-good stage of the process. I let myself enjoy having finished the book, and I immerse myself in the world of Scarlettania or 1950's NYC.

Then I read through the entire book again. Very. Very. Slowwwwwwwllllyyyyy. I often whisper aloud the words as I read them, making sure they taste right on the tongue. There are some sentences that look fine on paper but sound strange when you read them aloud. I don't like awkward writing like that, and I always make sure to change it when I can. I keep a weather eye out for POV slips. I ask myself questions:

Is this dialog going anywhere?

Whose head are we in here?

Would he have reacted that way?

Would a girl in the 1950's have used that word?

I keep an eye out for odd endings to sentences. In the case of historical fiction, I make myself like an artist dabbing on finishing touches of paint to his masterpiece. I sprinkle a liberal supply of historical tid-bits into the story. Phrases. Jokes. Places. Pop culture references--one of my favorite parts of polishing up the historical novel. I try to go through Round One pretty quickly. If I move through at a nice trot I'll be able to catch pacing mistakes easier. Also, I'll be reading it at the pace most readers would. I'm not nit-picking. I'm getting the general flavor of the story and fixing the obvious flaws.

After I've done a good, brisk run-through I coerce certain friends of mine into reading the book as it is and suggesting changes, critiquing the changes I've made, and generally running the manuscript through a wringer. We aren't running it through a sieve yet, but we're definitely serious now. Sometimes the friends suggest drastic changes that would require massive amounts of rewriting... (gulp) but I take their criticism into consideration and even lean toward applying it. After I've reviewed all the criticism and thought through the options and the cause-and-effect of making the changes, it's time to start Round Two.

I read through the book again, mentally marking weak spots. Scenes that seemed to promise a revival later on the plot and are never referenced again. There are decisions to make. Am I going to keep the scene and tie it in, or delete the scene and replace it with something else? What themes are running through the book? Are they strong throughout? Why did I drop the magazine subject half-way through the plot? That's stupid. Round Two is the Humiliation Stage. The moment I begin to think my writing stinks and I'll never make it to publication. I'm over it. The plot. The characters. (Except for Mr. Barnett. He's a dear and I'd marry him myself if possible.) But I press on. Through the swirling dusk of my brain, I know it's worth it. I straggle through to the end and turn round, breathless and panting, my cravat askew. Often my mood will have gone south. I then write little scribblings of how I'm feeling and laugh over them with a wry smile:

She was in a mood like peppermints. A cold mood. A tingly mood. And she sucked it to herself, wishing she was labeled "curiously strong mint" for good measure to ward off anyone of a weak constitution.

After I've cleaned my sword from battle in Round Two, it's time to move on to Round Three. Round Three for me entails a lot of general clean up. Smoothing of scene transitions. Touching up here and there of dialog. Lengthening internal dialog. Adding an observation or two through that conversation. Checking facts for the third or fourth time. Adding or lengthening description where the setting is a bit obscure. Renaming this character. Referencing that earlier chapter. Round Three is a peaceful haven compared to that horrid but priceless Round Two.

Round Four is generally all I need. All major things have been mopped up. Ideally I've got more people to read my story and a bit more criticism. I compare these new reactions to the reactions of the first round. Apply changes as needed. Spit-shine the last bit. It is finished.

Now a brief respite and the treat an afternoon of reading without bringing out my laptop once. I know I'll soon have to start work on the querying process, but for now I've done well. This is the lull before the storm, and I enjoy it while I can. Often my mood will be that of a martyr's. I feel quiet, avenged, content. I sit back and enjoy the brief sense of victory. Told you it was worth it.

Revision: a timely guest-post by J. Grace Pennington

I am very pleased to be one of the stops on young, Christian author: J. Grace Pennington's blog tour for her newest book: Firmament: Radialloy! This book is the first in a series of 18 that Ms. Pennington has planned in her science-fiction series. You can read all about the book here, and even buy a signed copy! Isn't that cool? :) I know several of the stops on her blog-tour have been interviews, but I asked Ms. Pennington to write a guest post for us...it turned out to be something I really needed to hear! She tackles the great big issue of Revision. Yep. *Casts a wary glance at The Scarlet-Gypsy Song.* Read it, be changed, and let J. Grace Pennington know by leaving a comment on her blog. :) Without further ado I give to you:

Revision: A Guest Post

by J. Grace Pennington

Everyone has their own method of revising their writing.  For me, as a first-time novel-reviser, the daunting task of somehow whipping Firmament: Radialloy into shape was extremely daunting.  Not only was it my first try at such a thing, but I had absolutely no idea how to go about it.

I tried many different ways.  The first time, I just read straight through, correcting any errors that I happened to come across.  That didn’t work, because it only fixed various little issues rather than looking at the novel as a whole that needed a solid arc, plotline, and good setups and payoffs.  I got some minor problems dealt with, and lots of typos fixed, but no really significant revision happened on that first pass.

So that wasn’t the way to go about it.  I tried something else.  This time, I talked with one of my test readers and we discussed things that were weak, and brainstormed for possible solutions.  Theme was foggy?  We discussed what theme would best spring from the action.  Villain was unrealistic?  We created motivation for him.  Conflict was weak?  We figured out how to add some more antagonistic forces.

So then I carefully figured out which things needed to be changed, and went through the draft and changed them.  I wasn’t sure about this draft, but by this time it was so mixed up and I was so confused about it that I couldn’t really tell whether it was working or not.  So I gave it to another friend who printed it out, marked it up with notes, and mailed the manuscript back to me.  Thus I learned that it was full of plot holes and blatant illogic, as well as character inconsistencies and other horrors.

Clearly this whole going-through-the-book-and-fixing-things-here-and-there thing wasn’t going to work.  I had to do something more drastic.

I had to stop trying to make it work the easy, lazy way.

This time I finally got serious.  I printed out the entire book and put it in its own special binder.  Then, armed with a red pencil and some post-it-notes, I mercilessly butchered it.  Rearranging scenes, deleting scenes altogether, completely reordering plot points, adding new characters.  When I was done, there wasn’t a page that wasn’t stuck with notes or scribbled with red.

And then, I didn’t just go through and make the prescribed changes.  Nor did I paste over the good and almost-good parts and fill in the gaps.  Instead, I took the binder, set it up on my desk, opened a brand new word document, and started all the way over from the beginning.

Yes.  I did just that.  Started over almost from scratch.  I didn’t copy and paste anything that was to stay the same, I looked at the binder and retyped it.  Why?  Going straight through like that helped me to have a better sense of the story as a whole.  It gave me a smoother and more accurate idea of how everything fit together from beginning to end.  So I’d type out a scene that stayed the same, then create the new material I needed to fit it to the next remaining scene.  When I came to a scene that could stay mostly the same with some altering, I’d fix it as I typed it out.

It wasn’t as hard as I’d thought it would be, though it was still definitely a long and arduous process.  At times it would go smoothly, and at other times my brain was screaming, “I already imagined out this whole thing, and now you’re making me do it all over again?”

But every second was unquestionably worth it when I took a look at the finished project and sent it out for feedback.  The story was tighter, more fulfilling, made more sense, had a better point, was more interesting, etc., etc., etc.  I absolutely could not believe how much better it was.

My test readers got back to me, raving about how much better the book was, and with some much more minor critiques.  I realized that then I could go through the manuscript and fix things as I went.  That there was a place for that sort of revision, it just wasn’t at the beginning, when the story still needed so much remolding.

So I fixed those things, gave it to a few more readers, fixed a few more things, and then began the final passes.  I did one read through the book just looking for “ly” adverbs, to see how many were unnecessary or weak.  I searched “was” to check for instances of passive voice that I hadn’t realized I was using.  I did a punctuation check of the whole book, reviewing my commas, semi-colons, dashes, and all the rest.  I did another to make sure that each sentence was as clear and communicative as it could be.  I did about ten or twelve of these before I was finally satisfied that the book was finished.

Yes, I could have gone on tweaking forever.  Oh yes, there are still things about the book that could be much better, and more polished.  But I knew that it was the best I could get it with the knowledge and skill that I had at the time.

And then, I went to publish it.

Revision can be a scary journey, especially when you’re new to it, but really any time.  Having to operate on your child, the story you’ve labored over so long and hard.  But if you think carefully, fit you revision style to the number and size of changes your book needs, it won’t be nearly as frightening, and you’ll end up with a better book.

A story that is worth all the love and work you put into it, and that will be very much worth reading.

*     *     *

J. Grace Pennington is a homeschool graduate and oldest of nine kids, living in the beautiful Texas Hill Country with her family. She loves to write (obviously) but also enjoys a variety of other activities including reading, watching films, playing piano, (and a bit of guitar and violin) playing with her siblings, chatting with friends, and riding her horse: Pioneer.

Is Simple Best After All?

Have you ever received a piece of information just a teensy bit too late? That happened to me recently! I have been reading "Revision and Self-editing: Techiniques for transforming your first draft into a finished novel" by James Scott Bell. Recently I sent my manuscript to a publisher, only to withdraw it due to some of the company's policies that I didn't agree with. But I am not sure that I quite understood just how unfinished my novel was. A friend introduced me over the web to a wonderful blessing: a young lady named Claire who has since been acting as a sort of editor for my book. She has opened my eyes to the fact that I have problems with telling my story instead of showing it. I laughed aloud one time at one of her comment blocks; she said something like: "You are telling the reader instead of showing them. This is a technique popular in classic novels like David Copperfield, Anne of Green Gables, etc." because you know, it's true! That is the great majority of what I read, and so naturally my writing conforms itself toward that ideal. The problem? The writing world has changed since then, and readers do want you to show them the scene rather than tell it is many words. :) But back to the book I've been reading. I had always assumed (and Mama with me) that when writing dialog, it was profitable, and better writing to use alternative words for "said". Therefore, my dialog is peppered with "retorted", "answered", "stated", etc. I avoided little generic "said", that gloriously all-purpose word out of fear for it's very usefulness! But here is a passage in the aforementioned book that struck my eye:
"An attribution tells the reader who is speaking. Almost always, the simple said should be your default setting. Some writers, under the erroneous impression that said isn't creative enough, will strain to find ways not to use it. This is a mistake. Said is almost invisible to the reader but for its primary use as a tag to tell us who is speaking. It does its work and stays out of the way."

Wow. This perfectly describes my writing! :) *blush* But you know, this is what writing is about. This is why reading is profitable. This is why scribbling is my passion! :) There is always something to be learned that you have not heard. So please listen. I wonder if the things I write now will seem as immature, and...awful as the things I wrote as a 12 year old. Back then, I thought them prime literature! ;) Now...I laugh ruefully, still remembering how I cherished those stories and poems. Doesn't it then stand to reason that what we think is a masterpiece in creation now, will be viewed in rather a different light 10 years hence? Therefore, do learn new techniques...until I met Claire, I had never heard of show vs. tell. She recommends joining a writing critique group, (which I have yet to do) because, as the old saying goes: "Two heads are better than one!" and others catch mistakes or flaws in our writing that may be blind spots. If I have learned one thing through-out my small writing experience, it is that you must view criticism not as a thing to be offended at and avoid, but...merely an opportunity to refine your craft, and make your story a thing to be proud of in 10 or 12 years! Hope you enjoyed this tip from "Revision and Self-editing" by James Scott Bell! It was definitely worth the purchase! :)
-Rachel