Tuesday's Tip: Destroying Weaknesses

Perhaps the hardest part of editing your work is recognizing its weaknesses.  Here are some tips:

• Use a spell/grammar check on a regular basis. And be sure to do this BEFORE you ever let someone look at your work. 

• Notice overuse of words or phrases. Everyone has their favorite word, and sometimes it can sneak in without the writer noticing. If you're using Word, you should be able to do a "Find". If you notice instances of the same words together, try to think of a replacement.

• Then ask someone to read your story. Not your mom. Not your friend. But, preferably, another writer or editor. You want someone who will give you honest and valuable feedback. Save the ego strokes for after the book is published. For this step, I highly recommend joining a critique group or finding a beta reader. A critique group will offer an array of opinions and suggestions, of which you can find a common thread. This will help you recognize not only the little flaws of your story (awkward sentences, confusing imagery) but the big pitfalls (sloppy plot, one-dimensional characters).

• When you receive your feedback, be sure to ask for specifics. If someone says, "I just didn't like it" ask why. After a few pointed questions, you should get to the heart of the matter: didn't like the characters; the plot was predictable; etc.

• Finally, when you believe your story has reached its full, wonderful potential--set it aside. Don't look at it (and try not to think about it) for at least a month. Sometimes, you might even wish to take longer. After you feel as if the story has finally been on the back burner long enough where it will appear "fresh" to your eyes, comb through it again. Often, this will help you pick up on the mistakes (story contradictions, wrong word usage, etc.) that might have slipped by you the first time. Also, it will help you rediscover the "flow" of the story.
  

On that note, happy writing!

Tuesday's Tip #3: Have Fun!

Making the writing process fun doesn't sound like much of a tip, does it? But, honestly, when you're striving so hard to make your story perfect, the word "fun" can slip out of your vocabulary. And soon the story you loved has become a hated waste of time.

Here are some tips to make your writing fun:

1. Introduce a man with a gun. 

(Yes, you might have heard this before.) When you're in a rut, sometimes you have to make something unexpected happen. Whether that is a man with a gun, a long lost friend, an earthquake or whatever--and then see how your characters handle it.

2. Don't take yourself (or your writing) too seriously.

One of my common blunders is when I start thinking of my writing as a job. Sure, it's a job I love, but it's still a JOB. And I don't necessarily like to WORK. If it ever gets to this point, I try to take a step back and just look at the story and the characters. I try to immerse myself in the EMOTION of the book, not the structure/grammar/spelling/etc.

3. Let your characters be themselves.

If one of your characters does something spontaneous, let it happen. Let them breathe on the page. And just go with it. In my experience, some of my best scenes are ones that I didn't mean to happen. It's also a great way to reconnect with your characters.

4. Step away.

Sometimes the best thing to do is to leave your work alone for a while. Whether that be twenty minutes or a day or a week or a month. When you come back to it, you will have fresh eyes and a fresh heart. This is perhaps the hardest thing to do (especially when you're highly frustrated) but it really helps you see things clearer.

And my last tip is ...

Remind yourself what it is about writing you love. Read a favorite book or poem. Watch a movie with an excellent storyline. Talk to someone about your story. Even if you start off unenthusiastic, you will soon remember things that will inspire you to write more.

Tuesday's Tip: It's All in the Details

The secret to a strong, memorable character is details.

Details. Details. Details. And, oh yeah, details.

Not sure how many of you out there are fans of romance, but, even if you’re not, I’m sure you’ve stumbled across what you would call the “cookie-cutter” hero and heroine. They are, of course, beautiful and desirable. Often, the woman is a tad silly or naïve, but she still manages to snag the hero’s heart. Right? Same old. Same old. And boring.

Now, let’s say you have the same story. Let’s say it’s a romance, so the people have to be attractive. Let’s even go so far as to say the heroine is blond and blue-eyed with excellent proportions. (Getting ready to roll your eyes yet?) How do you keep heroine (let’s call her Josie) from being just like all those other beautiful, well-endowed corset-wearing divas?

Details.

First off, let’s take some of the perfection away from Ms. Josie. She has a small gap between her two front teeth. And maybe she has freckles. Also, let’s make her have an annoying tendency to bite her nails when she’s nervous, so she never sports the perfect manicure.

Are you still with me?

Now, let’s give her more surprises. Josie has a Ph.D. in philosophy and a black belt in karate. She volunteers at the local homeless shelter. She has a fanatic adoration of cats and believes that she one day might be a crazy cat lady unless she meets Mr. Right or Mr. Allergic to Cats.

She thinks she has a big butt. She falls for a guy for all the wrong reasons, and has even been called “easy”, but she’ll punch you in the face if you call her a slut. She’s shy, but comes off as stuck-up. Her mom is her superhero. Her dad is in prison. She has a brother named Pete who just confessed that he is gay. She is the only member of the family who still talks to him.

Now, put that character in your traditional love story. She’s not going to be one of those stereotypical heroines is she? Which will also make your story less than stereotypical.

Rounding out your characters with information, even information that will have no place in your story, makes them come alive on the page. Not only for you, but for your reader. Keeping a list of details about your character will also help you decide what her reaction would be to certain events. And, if you give your character room to grow, she can lead you to some surprises.

Tuesday's Tip: Repeating Beats...er, Sentences

Last time I compared sentences to music. Each sentence has a specific rhythm/beat, and when those rhythms are repeated too often, the story, despite its content, can seem monotonous.

However, repeated rhythms have their uses.

For example, when the author/narrator wants to draw attention to something specific--whether it be a moment, an emotion, or an action--a repeated beat can express that desire.

She stood at the edge of the practice ring, sword in hand. She watched. She waited. She learned.


The most common example of repeating beats is done in threes. It's also called parallelism. It can also be done in a single sentence.

Maria liked the dewy mornings, the misty mountains, and the foggy grove.


Notice how each direct object has a certain number of beats? The result is that the sentence reads like a line of poetry, with a certain pace and emphasis. If you had the desire, you could even point out the stressed and unstressed sounds.

If you're familiar with poetry, you can relate that certain rhythms express certain moods. For example, short, choppy sentences give a feeling of tension or excitement. While long, flowing sentences give more of a feeling of ease. (I know this is where some people might argue with me. I know there are exceptions!) If you consider the two examples above, what sort of feeling do they evoke? You have to admit, the first example is more likely to get your heart thumping than the second one.

Tuesday's Tip #1

I've decided to start a "Tuesday's Tip" in the hopes that I can provide at least some sort of useful information on this blog for other writers (instead of just gabbing about my writing all the time). So, without further ado, here we go.

Tuesday's Tip #1 

When reviewing sentence structure, I find it useful to think of the sentence as a piece of music. Each sentence has its own beat or cadence, and, in order to keep the reader interested, you want to make sure that you don't have too much of one beat structure.


For example: Susan went to the store. She picked up some soup. She bought a dozen eggs.


Notice how each sentence has the same rhythm? Of course, this is the most obvious form, since all the sentences have the same structure: Noun/Pronoun + verb + direct object.


When you repeat a sentence structure, it subconsciously sends a signal to the reader, and after a while it will begin to sound like a metronome. Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock. And even if the story is intriguing, a reader might find themselves bored after a while.


An improvement on our three sentences: Susan went to the store. After perusing the groceries, she bought soup and eggs.


Read the sentences aloud. Notice how your voice dips and rises? Even when you read silently, some part of your brain (at least, in my case) recognizes the sounds and rhythm of the words. Lack of sentence variation (or rhythm variation) can kill a good story. Often when I see the work of a fledgling writer, this is one of the mistakes that catches my eye. It's easy to fall into a pattern of writing, and it's really easy to use what works. My suggestion: Treat your sentences like pieces of music. The more varied, the better. (Though repeating beats have their uses, too. I'll save that for next time!)