Tackling that Revision

Happy Monday!

We are in DECEMBER! I'll give you a minute to freak out about that.

We've also reached the end of NaNoWriMo. If you won: GOLD STAR FOR YOU. If you participated, but didn't quite reach 50k: GOLD STAR FOR YOU. Because you got words on the page. And even if it wasn't 50k words, it's more than you had on October 31st. That's something to be darn proud of.

Now, if you DID reach 50k, or even reached the end of your novel, you're solid, right? Eh. Maybe. Maybe not. It kind of irks me when people scream DON'T YOU DARE THINK YOU'RE FINISHED. More than likely, you're not. Generally speaking, first drafts are for getting the words out. Revision is turning those words into what you dreamed they would be.

In December 2013, I started what would become my biggest revision project yet (helloooo, my precious PLAY ON). And while it was most definitely hard work, I ended up with a book that I am so very proud of. I'm no expert, but I do have a few tips on how to tackle a major revision.

Be open to change.

This is the number one step. If you’re not ready to change anything, then you’re probably not ready to revise. Finishing your draft is awesome! But revision is where the magic happens. If you don’t think you need to change anything in your first draft, I suggest letting your manuscript sit for at least a week or so--heck, come back to that baby after the holidays, if need-be. When you return with fresh eyes, you may be surprised at the things you find.

Know what needs to be done.

When I get notes from my CPs/agent/editor, the first thing I do is make a list of each issue that needs addressing. This way, I can check them off as I go.

Make an attack plan.

This is where outlining comes in handy. It doesn’t have to be some long, drawn-out, 10-page outline. Simply jotting down main plot points can be super helpful. The point here is that you need to know where you're going.

Have a support system. And chocolate. And pie.

There may be tears. And that's okay. This writing stuff gets tough. Sometimes, you just need someone else to tell you that you CAN do this, even if you don't believe it yourself. Trust me.

Embrace the "mental health days."

We’re not robots. We have brains and bodies that need rest. Burnout is a real thing that sucks. I, for one, love my mental health days. If you need a night of Netflix and brownies, go for it. Your MS will wait for you.

Be patient with yourself.

Again, it's tough. And the first round of revisions may not be "it." You may need two rounds. Three. Seven. But once you're holding a manuscript that's everything you'd hoped it would be, all the work is so, so worth it.

NaNoWriMo Homestretch!

It’s getting gritty ‘round here at Revision Warriors. For the first time ever, we have FIVE NaNoWriMo participants. This means lots of early alarms, buckets of coffee, and loads of Facebook pep-talks. And because of ALL that, this post will be brief. 

Unless I can use this post toward my word count.  Hmm. 

My own crazy:  NaNo Critter Mascot accepts NO excuses. 

As we near the end of this intense writerly marathon, I’ve paraphrased some of our own RW pep-talks and tips we've given each other these last weeks.

It’s a FIRST DRAFT. Let it be messy. Like, plotlines-don’t-add-up kind of messy. By now, you’ve no doubt told your inner editor to pipe down a few times. But at this stage, even if it’s a BIG oops, like an errant plotline or you realize one of your heroes should play for the other team, well, good catch. Write your thoughts down somewhere you won’t lose them and move forward. From that point on in your ms, write the story with your new twist. Adjust your previous chapters in revision. Later. After you’ve hit your 50K.

WRITE CHAPTER INTRO PARAGRAPHS. If you’re feeling lost or unsure (or stuck in the murky middle of your ms), try writing the opening paragraphs for your remaining chapters to help plot the way.

KEEP MAKING WORDS. Even if you need a prompt. Here are a few ideas: 

  

   -    Your protagonist now has a cold. Or a stomach bug (I think everyone at RW had an illness during November).

   -  How would it affect your story if there were an ice or tropical storm moving in?

   -  What if your antagonist does something good in front of your protagonist?

   -  One of your characters randomly receives a letter about claiming an inheritance. 

ALMOST THERE! Only one more week of these early wake-up, late nights, and writing while bobbling your sandwich and a plate on your lap. Let’s bribe our friends/family/children with promises of quality time and coffee dates in December, but for now, keep going!

It is worth it. You have LOTS of new words!

Pity Party for...one?

We've been taught since we were infants to reach for the stars and work our butts off until we succeed. Knowing this, I've set many short and long-term writing goals for myself.

Now that I've hit the murky middle in my WIP, I've been feeling, well, a bit sorry for myself for not achieving more at this stage of my writing career. I question if I have any business writing a book. I studied Music Education in school. Am I kidding myself? This is my third novel. I really hoped my last MS would be The One. But despite the partial and full requests, it now lies restlessly inside a jump drive collecting dust while I lounge in a sea of self pity.  *cue Debbie Downer tones Womp Womp*.

When I'm feeling down like this, it's difficult for me to stay focused. (Think Doug the dog in the movie UP.) So last week when I sat down to write and instead found myself surfing the Internet, I swam across a life preserver. Yes, in the black hole of wasted time, there was a giant plastic doughnut in the form of a blog post I swear was written just for me! The post reminded me that I'm not alone and that every single writer--both pre-published and published--have felt the same anxiety. 

So readers I share this wonderful post with you if you haven't already read it. It's written by amazing author Dahlia Adler. Thank you Dahlia for reminding me that I'm not alone.

Dahlia Adler's Awesome Post

*Squirrel!* 

photo credit: Peter L Barker via photopin cc

Finding balance during NaNoWriMo

Ode to Jack Kerouac by Oliver Hammond via Flickr

Are you participating in NaNoWriMo? If so, you might have changed your schedule for the month, or are trying to squeeze writing in whenever you can. Whether you're a planner and have organized a spread sheet for everyone around you so that they're aware of your writing time, or you wake up early or go to bed late, you're noticing that NaNo isn't easy.

I came into NaNo with a plan that provides balance to my busy life as a wife and mother to 3 kids under 10, and setting enough time aside to get my 50K novel done in 30 days.

Four days a week, I set aside the daytime to spend it with family and friends and do most of my writing at night after everyone goes to bed. The other three days, I take my 4-year-old to Mother's Day Out for a couple hours and come home to write, write, write, and do laundry, clean, go grocery shopping, etc.

The reason I came up with this plan is because I wanted something I knew I could stick to. I didn't want to get halfway into Novemeber and quit because everyone around me was complaining that I'm ignoring them. This plan gives me time to write and time to spend with people so I don't get crazy. ;)

It was important to me to make time to do things I enjoy like eating lunch with a friend, watch a movie, or to veg on the couch with my hubs to watch the latest and greatest The Walking Dead after the kids go to bed. Without this time planned out, my relationships and mental attitude would suffer.

So, while we're writing and trying our darnedest to meet our word count for the day, let's also think of ways to find balance, even if that means playing catch up later. Spend some time with people you love most or take a day off to refill the creativity tank. :)

Best of luck to all the people NaNoing this month!! We can do this!! You can find me on NaNo as DiDiBo and on Twitter here.

Do You have Creative Outlets Other Than Writing?

I’ve always felt like I have a creative brain. For me, that means there’s about a million things I want to do or want to learn how to do, and all these things compete for my attention. And while I think it’s great that I have all these interests and ambitions, it’s also frustrating.

Fact: There will never be enough time to do it all. *sad face*

So that means I've had to (for now) limit my non-writing activities. So when I'm not writing, I run an indie nail polish shop on Etsy called Wikid Nails, where I sell my handcrafted nail polish. If you follow on me on Twitter you may have seen one or two a lot of my manicure tweets. (Guys, I have a serious glitter addiction. Just sayin'.) And during the fall, I hawk my wares at some of the local craft fairs as well. 

I also love to knit and crochet. Mostly I make fingerless gloves, yoga socks, and slouchy hats that I sometimes sell, but mostly give as gifts to friends and family.

There’s magic in producing something that simply did not exist before I felt compelled to create it.

Take knitting. Even though I know how to fashion the stitches, I’m still boggled every time I finish a pattern and have a completed project. I think, how the heck did I turn a ball of yarn into a pair of fingerless mittens?

Answer: magic. Duh!

Unfortunately, there’s no pattern for writing a book. (though if someone could get on that, that’d be awesome.)

The principal is sort of the same though, if you liken words to stitches. You have to string them together, over and over, twisting them and turning them until they become more than the sum of their parts. It takes time and practice, and little bit of magic, and in the end, something new exists in the world that hadn’t before. And you made it happen. Ah-maze-ing!!

I'd love to hear about YOUR creative endeavors outside of writing. Bonus points if you're an Etsy seller, too. And if you are, leave a link in the comments. I'd love to check out your shop! 

Lost that Lovin' Feeling?

Before we jump in, I’ve recently discovered something: a majority of my posts are either pep talks, or advice on how to get through being stuck.

I GET STUCK A LOT, FOLKS.

But I think that’s normal. Roadblocks in a manuscript can come from so many different things: your plot may have taken a wrong turn down a dead-end road; you may be hitting a complete blank on what happens next; good, old-fashioned fear may have you paralyzed. And then there's the super-sad explanation: you just don’t feel the connection to your story. 

I’m working on a new WIP, and I’ve hit every single one of these roadblocks over the past month. Hard times in the Smith house, y’all. So, I dug into my arsenal of roadblock-bashing material. The most recent blockage I hit was that super-sad one I mentioned: lack of connection to the story. One thing I’ve come to embrace is the Manuscript Love List. I can't take credit for this one; I got the idea from Stephanie Perkins.

Here's the idea: you make a list of all the things you love about your manuscript. Easy, right? It may sound super-basic and you may be wondering how that can possibly help, but I urge you to give it a try—you may be surprised! For example, here are a few of the love list items from my upcoming YA Contemporary, PLAY ON.

Ponds

Starry skies

Flowers

Pick-up trucks

Wide-open fields

Baseball games during cool springtime nights

I jotted these down in the early stages of the story, and as the story grew, so did my list. Just reading over the things I love about the story gets me into the mindset of its atmosphere and, most importantly, of why I wanted to write it in the first place. So if you’re stuck, give it a try! You may just fall in love all over again. J

Let It Go... Or not!

It's the perfect time of year to reflect on our accomplishments and revisit goals that may or may not have been met. My goal for 2014 was to take my rewritten YA Sci-fi and find an agent equally excited about it. It was new and shiny--I'd raked over every word, hooked every chapter end, and added short term goals for my MC to ramp up the tension. (Look for a later post from me about over editing) I knew this manuscript forward, backward, and sideways. The world I'd created completely sucked me in.

I've been very open about my query process...the partial and full requests...the rejections...and the LaLa Land some of my submissions fell into. I fully intended to send my queries in batches, tweak things as needed, and to not stop until I reached one hundred agents. I have several dear friends who submitted over sixty, seventy even eighty queries before they received agent representation so I knew going into it that it might be a long haul. But here I am, only a little over halfway through my goal and I've found my heart just isn't into it.

You see, I have a new manuscript (a YA historical fiction). New characters insisting I share their secrets and dreams. They. Are. Consuming. Me! Anything that takes me away from their lives--even if it's something as simple as researching new prospects for my Sci-fi, puts me into a tailspin. It's insane. So I've decided to put my old MS on the shelf for a while to prevent distraction from my WIP. I'm not letting it go forever. Someday I'll pull it out and read it with fresh eyes. And who knows, maybe I'll fall in love with it all over again.

photo credit: jackoraptor via photopin cc