Today I'd like to share one of my favorite blogs of all time, Writer Unboxed. It's a collaborative blog made up of several contributors whose experience encompasses unpublished and published writers, an agent, a professor, screenwriters, industry professionals, and editors. And those are just the regulars. The blog also features interviews with industry movers and shakers, guests posts from the published and unpublished alike. The blog has been in existence since 2006 and the archives are well worth perusal. Blogposts come up Mon. through Fri. giving readers a steady diet.
They hold special theme months, contests, news posts, and heavily promote the work of others. I think what makes them stand out the most from other blogs is their positive attitude toward everyone and the inclusion factor. They actively invite conversation through the comments section and contributors do take the time to respond to the people who interact with the blog. Writer Unboxed is warm, welcoming, and helpful. They continue to add to their number of contributors too as time goes on.
So a huge shout-out to them. If you haven't discovered them yet, you're in for a treat.
Thursday, April 14, 2011
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Writing Love and Saying Goodbye
Sometimes you come across a question like this out in the internet: Why do you write?
It's not a trick question and there are several possible answers. I think the question is meant to be more introspective than anything, allowing a writer to take stock of their priorities and to realize what motivates them.
Like thousands of other people, I fell in love with storytelling and writing as a child. There's nothing special or even remarkable about that. Children are taught and influenced heavily by stories. Growing up, I had vague notions of attempting to publish someday. It wasn't a driving force for me though. I loved the storytelling process. I have suffered from insomnia since a young age and rather than make a big deal out of it, I found a way to take care of the issue on my own. I make up stories at night to silence all the other voices in my head and allow me to relax and fall asleep. I've always loved to read. I love to watch movies. I love talking with other people and hearing the stories of their lives. I love the way stories affect my emotions, my thought processes, and especially when I can find the hidden subtext or theme within them. Yes, I even like morality plays and stories with obvious or hidden morals to them.
So I didn't put a lot of pressure on myself as I wrote during my childhood and teen years. I explored, experimented, and had a lot of fun. I kept an index card file of my ideas, had official notebooks where I listed my titles, and took great pleasure in putting a check mark beside each title I'd completed a draft for. My writing was prolific. I'd get up earlier than anyone else in my family to enjoy the quiet in order to write. I think I spent more of my free time writing than in pursuing anything else. I loved the writing process.
Zooming ahead to today, I'm getting ready to file away the manuscript I've labored over for the past five years. I'd written the first draft back when I was seventeen, completed a second draft months later and even started a third before I needed a break and went on to work on other stories. The serious contemplation of publication hit me five years ago. I pulled out my title list and chose the story I thought would work best to break into the publishing process with. I started my research into the industry while working on the latest few drafts of the story. Quickly I realized that my two book idea wouldn't work. There was such a creature as word count limit. I'd have to chop my two books into four. That isn't easy. Then I discovered my first book would have to work as a standalone if I wanted the chance to publish the other books that would finish the story. Okay, I would work hard to do that.
I studied, I read up on craft and guidelines, I wrote and rewrote, outlined, and slaved over the first half of the original book to make it a separate and standalone entity. It grew into a monster. It needed necessary filler in places to make a standalone plot work but the characters which were allowed to be enlarged and the subplots that came into being threatened the main line of the story. I stubbornly held on and kept at it. What was the point of all this time and effort if this wasn't to be my first published book?
This book, it turns out, was my learning book. I can smile with relief now as I prepare to file it away. The beast grew too frustrating towards the end and many days I didn't even want to look at it. All the time and effort put into it certainly wasn't wasted. I've learned a lot, especially about my weak points. I also learned that I'd grown to despise the writing process rather than love it, and no one should continue with a book if it makes them hate writing.
Maybe someday down the road I'll unearth this story again along with the original, sit down, strip away the two characters who took it over (even though they are favorites with my beta readers) and take the time to approach the story from its founding viewpoints. I'll dismantle huge chunks of plot and subplot without cringing. Or, I may just read through the story and feel the echo of my relief when I decided I was done with it.
I'm going to take a week or two break from writing. My internal editor needs time to power down. I've got a manuscript to critique for someone else, two books to read before they're due back at the library, and I want to take the time to read through some of my other completed story drafts. I have nineteen to choose from. Or I might rekindle my interest in one of the half completed stories. Who knows? I need to get my love for writing back. Focusing too much on publication and revision killed the experience for me and it showed.
My questions for you this week: have you ever filed away or trunked a novel? How hard was it for you realize it wasn't going to be the one? Do you use a filing system for ideas or stories?
It's not a trick question and there are several possible answers. I think the question is meant to be more introspective than anything, allowing a writer to take stock of their priorities and to realize what motivates them.
Like thousands of other people, I fell in love with storytelling and writing as a child. There's nothing special or even remarkable about that. Children are taught and influenced heavily by stories. Growing up, I had vague notions of attempting to publish someday. It wasn't a driving force for me though. I loved the storytelling process. I have suffered from insomnia since a young age and rather than make a big deal out of it, I found a way to take care of the issue on my own. I make up stories at night to silence all the other voices in my head and allow me to relax and fall asleep. I've always loved to read. I love to watch movies. I love talking with other people and hearing the stories of their lives. I love the way stories affect my emotions, my thought processes, and especially when I can find the hidden subtext or theme within them. Yes, I even like morality plays and stories with obvious or hidden morals to them.
So I didn't put a lot of pressure on myself as I wrote during my childhood and teen years. I explored, experimented, and had a lot of fun. I kept an index card file of my ideas, had official notebooks where I listed my titles, and took great pleasure in putting a check mark beside each title I'd completed a draft for. My writing was prolific. I'd get up earlier than anyone else in my family to enjoy the quiet in order to write. I think I spent more of my free time writing than in pursuing anything else. I loved the writing process.
Zooming ahead to today, I'm getting ready to file away the manuscript I've labored over for the past five years. I'd written the first draft back when I was seventeen, completed a second draft months later and even started a third before I needed a break and went on to work on other stories. The serious contemplation of publication hit me five years ago. I pulled out my title list and chose the story I thought would work best to break into the publishing process with. I started my research into the industry while working on the latest few drafts of the story. Quickly I realized that my two book idea wouldn't work. There was such a creature as word count limit. I'd have to chop my two books into four. That isn't easy. Then I discovered my first book would have to work as a standalone if I wanted the chance to publish the other books that would finish the story. Okay, I would work hard to do that.
I studied, I read up on craft and guidelines, I wrote and rewrote, outlined, and slaved over the first half of the original book to make it a separate and standalone entity. It grew into a monster. It needed necessary filler in places to make a standalone plot work but the characters which were allowed to be enlarged and the subplots that came into being threatened the main line of the story. I stubbornly held on and kept at it. What was the point of all this time and effort if this wasn't to be my first published book?
This book, it turns out, was my learning book. I can smile with relief now as I prepare to file it away. The beast grew too frustrating towards the end and many days I didn't even want to look at it. All the time and effort put into it certainly wasn't wasted. I've learned a lot, especially about my weak points. I also learned that I'd grown to despise the writing process rather than love it, and no one should continue with a book if it makes them hate writing.
Maybe someday down the road I'll unearth this story again along with the original, sit down, strip away the two characters who took it over (even though they are favorites with my beta readers) and take the time to approach the story from its founding viewpoints. I'll dismantle huge chunks of plot and subplot without cringing. Or, I may just read through the story and feel the echo of my relief when I decided I was done with it.
I'm going to take a week or two break from writing. My internal editor needs time to power down. I've got a manuscript to critique for someone else, two books to read before they're due back at the library, and I want to take the time to read through some of my other completed story drafts. I have nineteen to choose from. Or I might rekindle my interest in one of the half completed stories. Who knows? I need to get my love for writing back. Focusing too much on publication and revision killed the experience for me and it showed.
My questions for you this week: have you ever filed away or trunked a novel? How hard was it for you realize it wasn't going to be the one? Do you use a filing system for ideas or stories?
Saturday, April 9, 2011
Saturday Link Special #3
Oh, so much good stuff going on every week. Some of it you may have already read or linked up to, others you might not know about yet. I found tons to read and digest and here are the links I chose to pass on:
Alison Janssen wrote about 8 Fiddly Things You Can Do To Your Manuscript To Make Your Editor's Day. There's some gems in there even for the unpublished writer working on revisions.
Author Magazine had some great articles this week. One that really stood out for me was Laura Munson's Advice From the Now Writer Me...to the Then Writer Me about how there really is no arrival point or measure of success. And Dori Jones Yang's article on How to Get Past Failure.
Agent Jenny Bent delivers a passionate view on traditional and e-publishing and how things are going to have to be shaken up and changed in the entire industry.
Jessica at BookEnds tackles writing sequels and, yes, even if you're already published you still need to deliver a well edited manuscript for the next book.
Agent Mary Kole gets into Description Issues. Too much, too little, and misdirection--great post.
Literary Rambles has an agent spotlight up on Sara LaPolla of Curtis Brown, Ltd. If she's on your list to query or if you're buildling your list (and write: general fiction, literary fiction, narrative nonfiction, memoir, pop culture, urban fantasy, paranormal romance, mystery, fantasy, science fiction, literary horror, magic realism, young adult fiction) you might want to zip over and get some researching edge to personalize that query letter.
Wondering where you stand in writing experience and competence? Here's an easy breakdown courtesy of Miss Snark's First Victim.
At The Awl, Six Writers Tell All About Covers and Blurbs (as in review blurbs used for book promotion.)
David Baboulene guest posts at Write Anything regarding Subtext. Here's a good opportunity to hone some writing-craft knowledge.
Nathan (you should all know who I mean) gets lots of loud applause for his blogpost on Virtual Witch Hunts. Reacting online to a bad review, in poor taste. Joining a mob to beat down someone who's made a stupid mistake like that, very bad form.
Fellow AQCer, Rob Grindstaff, has begun a series of posts on POV, starting with distinction and choosing a point of view.
And just for fun, totally tongue-in-cheek, here's a video from the Onion News Network regarding Facebook.
Alison Janssen wrote about 8 Fiddly Things You Can Do To Your Manuscript To Make Your Editor's Day. There's some gems in there even for the unpublished writer working on revisions.
Author Magazine had some great articles this week. One that really stood out for me was Laura Munson's Advice From the Now Writer Me...to the Then Writer Me about how there really is no arrival point or measure of success. And Dori Jones Yang's article on How to Get Past Failure.
Agent Jenny Bent delivers a passionate view on traditional and e-publishing and how things are going to have to be shaken up and changed in the entire industry.
Jessica at BookEnds tackles writing sequels and, yes, even if you're already published you still need to deliver a well edited manuscript for the next book.
Agent Mary Kole gets into Description Issues. Too much, too little, and misdirection--great post.
Literary Rambles has an agent spotlight up on Sara LaPolla of Curtis Brown, Ltd. If she's on your list to query or if you're buildling your list (and write: general fiction, literary fiction, narrative nonfiction, memoir, pop culture, urban fantasy, paranormal romance, mystery, fantasy, science fiction, literary horror, magic realism, young adult fiction) you might want to zip over and get some researching edge to personalize that query letter.
Wondering where you stand in writing experience and competence? Here's an easy breakdown courtesy of Miss Snark's First Victim.
At The Awl, Six Writers Tell All About Covers and Blurbs (as in review blurbs used for book promotion.)
David Baboulene guest posts at Write Anything regarding Subtext. Here's a good opportunity to hone some writing-craft knowledge.
Nathan (you should all know who I mean) gets lots of loud applause for his blogpost on Virtual Witch Hunts. Reacting online to a bad review, in poor taste. Joining a mob to beat down someone who's made a stupid mistake like that, very bad form.
Fellow AQCer, Rob Grindstaff, has begun a series of posts on POV, starting with distinction and choosing a point of view.
And just for fun, totally tongue-in-cheek, here's a video from the Onion News Network regarding Facebook.
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
Wisdom from the Past
At ten years old I attended my first writer's conference. I was a delegate from my elementary school, chosen by my teacher, and I felt like I'd stepped into a sort of Wonderland. Granted, my teacher chose me because no one else in my class enjoyed creative writing, but I considered it a prize nevertheless. I carried a freshly printed copy of my "winning" manuscript with me, was given a nametag sticker, and was then herded into a controlled mob of elementary age children on a large university campus.
I remember my nerves when placed in a small group and asked to share part of my story out loud, in turn. What seemed so fun and brilliant before now came into a new perspective, that of not being alone in my pursuit of telling a story. I can't remember any of the other kids' stories in detail but I do recall getting my first taste of inadequacy with my own talents. I learned then that I needed to work hard at improving my craft and I needed to take the time to consider what I wrote about.
In one of the workshop classes I felt my first thrill: a real author had come to speak to us. I can't remember who she was now or what she wrote; at the time that didn't seem important. She was one of the inititated, a professional who had her story printed by a publisher and sitting on bookstore and library shelves. I am grateful to this now nameless author, for dispelling one myth to me that day. She looked us all in the eye and said, "There are no new ideas. Everything that is thought of has come from something else already told or written."
My young heart rejected this at first. How could this be? I'd never read anything like my story before. (I can still feel justified in thinking this at that age because I was already a voracious reader.) Over the years that author's words have stuck with me. I understood them better each year. Now, I'm no longer ruffled by them. It's alright that there are no new ideas. There are endless ways to twist them around, reinvent them, or combine them. Kind of like music. There are only seven notes. With those seven notes, musicians are able to create new works of music every year. Fascinating concept.
This one piece of my past resurfaced with those grains of wisdom. What bits of wisdom do you remember first learning in regards to writing?
I remember my nerves when placed in a small group and asked to share part of my story out loud, in turn. What seemed so fun and brilliant before now came into a new perspective, that of not being alone in my pursuit of telling a story. I can't remember any of the other kids' stories in detail but I do recall getting my first taste of inadequacy with my own talents. I learned then that I needed to work hard at improving my craft and I needed to take the time to consider what I wrote about.
In one of the workshop classes I felt my first thrill: a real author had come to speak to us. I can't remember who she was now or what she wrote; at the time that didn't seem important. She was one of the inititated, a professional who had her story printed by a publisher and sitting on bookstore and library shelves. I am grateful to this now nameless author, for dispelling one myth to me that day. She looked us all in the eye and said, "There are no new ideas. Everything that is thought of has come from something else already told or written."
My young heart rejected this at first. How could this be? I'd never read anything like my story before. (I can still feel justified in thinking this at that age because I was already a voracious reader.) Over the years that author's words have stuck with me. I understood them better each year. Now, I'm no longer ruffled by them. It's alright that there are no new ideas. There are endless ways to twist them around, reinvent them, or combine them. Kind of like music. There are only seven notes. With those seven notes, musicians are able to create new works of music every year. Fascinating concept.
This one piece of my past resurfaced with those grains of wisdom. What bits of wisdom do you remember first learning in regards to writing?
Saturday, April 2, 2011
Saturday Link Special #2
More linkable goodies:
At Salon.com, Laura Miller brings up the two-headed beast of being both an author and a marketer and how the two together are seldom found. Then over at Dystel &Goderich, agent Jessica Papin states her rebuttal. The long and short of it: writers have to evolve as marketers if they want to stay alive. Editor Alan Rinzler shares a great blogpost on using the social media platform of Twitter.
There are some extra good blogposts on revising to be found on Rants & Rambling and author Jessica Day George's blog. Agent Rachel Gardner breaks it down regarding what turns off fiction editors from a manuscript here, here, and here.
The Gatekeeper posts about checking in with agents and acceptable protocol. The Behler Blog gives a scathing run down on the differences between POD, digital, vanity, and indie publishing.
The 7 R's of Positivity for Unpublished Writers gives an uplift to the weekly collection. Which also includes this link to Christi Corbett's blog on creating a "You Don't Suck" file. Great idea!
At Salon.com, Laura Miller brings up the two-headed beast of being both an author and a marketer and how the two together are seldom found. Then over at Dystel &Goderich, agent Jessica Papin states her rebuttal. The long and short of it: writers have to evolve as marketers if they want to stay alive. Editor Alan Rinzler shares a great blogpost on using the social media platform of Twitter.
There are some extra good blogposts on revising to be found on Rants & Rambling and author Jessica Day George's blog. Agent Rachel Gardner breaks it down regarding what turns off fiction editors from a manuscript here, here, and here.
The Gatekeeper posts about checking in with agents and acceptable protocol. The Behler Blog gives a scathing run down on the differences between POD, digital, vanity, and indie publishing.
The 7 R's of Positivity for Unpublished Writers gives an uplift to the weekly collection. Which also includes this link to Christi Corbett's blog on creating a "You Don't Suck" file. Great idea!
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