From Puddle Play to Stain Removal: Novel Writing from Mud to Clean

I'm thrilled to have Wendy Paine Miller here. She's just released a new novella that I can't wait to read! Isn't the cover gorgeous? Today she's been kind enough to join us and tell us a little about her writing process. Here's Wendy - 

I watch my six-year-old as we wait for her bus in the rain. We both have umbrellas protecting our heads, but I notice her noticing the rain-spattered puddle. Without any further hesitation, she leaps directly into the center. No doubt about it, kids are attracted to getting sloppy in puddles.

I get that feeling. I’m addicted to getting sloppy while writing novels.

Here’s my interpretation of how the novel writing process plays out.

Rough draft = Jump in puddle, Splash around, Get covered in mud

NaNo is well underway. Writers all over the world are giving it a go. One of the best pieces of advice I have offer at this stage is to do everything in your power not to censor yourself. Some of my best writing has come when I didn’t over think a plot or contemplate character attributes to death. Write free.

First read through = Assess the damage, Determine if clothes are salvageable

I know, I know, it’s at this point you’ll be really tempted to Shout (like that?). But try to resist. Read the work and as Stephen King suggests read as much of it in one sitting as possible. Now, I know everyone goes about this differently, but what I’m about to share might shock you. I’ve had to discard an entire novel. We’ll call it Number 5. I got through about fifty pages and it hit me it wasn’t going to work as a novel. Now some would have rewritten the whole thing. I realized the best move was to put it aside and write something new. For the time being Number 5 wasn’t salvageable. Trust your gut on this.

Time for edits = The work might need to be stripped down, Remove unnecessary and extra muddy parts, Squirt with stain remover & soak in cold water, Apply more stain remover, Toss in laundry, Bleach may or may not be necessary, Hang to air dry, Repeat

Getting down to business. It’s essential to learn which scenes need to be cut, which words. If it doesn’t help move the plot forward, strip it out. Apply techniques that will improve your writing. If needed, take time to let the changes steep. Continue to apply what you’ve learned in craft books and by read-throughs, Seek out advice from critique partners, beta readers and a professional editor, incorporate additional changes, give it time to come together, and if necessary, repeat.

The next time you spot a stain or your child bolts for a puddle you’ll recall this post. 

In the meantime, make a habit of dancing in puddles. There will always be time to launder. I’m a huge fan of novel ideas that invite the mind to wander.

Thanks for being here, Wendy! 

Writers - What's your favorite step in the writing process?

Blurb for The Disappearing Key:

Gabrielle Bivane never expected parenting a teenager would be this hard, but she never expected stillborn Oriana to live to see fourteen, either. The night of Oriana's birth, Gabrielle and her husband Roy fused their genetic and engineering geniuses to bring back all that was lost to them—at a cost. 

The secret must be kept. 

Oriana Bivane senses she’s not like the other girls her age, but the time has come for her to change all that. She’s tired of secrets, but does she confide in the wrong person?

The life-giving key, suddenly missing, must be found. 

Available on Amazon Kindle & in paperback

Bio: Wendy is a native New Englander who feels most alive when she's laughing, reading, writing or taking risks. She's authored nine novels and is currently writing what she hopes will be your future book club pick. Her work has been published in numerous anthologies and online sites. Wendy lives with her husband and their three girls in a home bursting with imagination and hilarity.

She's represented by Rachelle Gardner of Books & Such Literary Agency.

Breaking Through

I feel like I've finally gotten through the roadblock that has been slowing down my progress on my manuscript. I've gotten several chapters finished the past few days, and I'm feeling more excited about working on the project.

One thing that really helped was that I sat down and re-evaluated my characters. I'm a major plotter, but I don't think I'd had given my characters enough say in what would happen to them. I typed out a list of the following for my hero and heroine and found some things I'd believed about them needed to change:

External Goal
Internal / Emotional Goal
Lie he/she believes
Emotional Strength
How all these things would affect his/her relationships (including the romantic relationship in the story)

Something about typing all of this information out helped me see the weaknesses in my story. Hopefully, I can keep the momentum going.

I also think it helped that I bought myself a new package of Pilot G-2 07 pens :) Whatever works, right?

How about you? Do you ever have to stop in the middle of the project and re-evaluate everything? Do you have a favorite pen?

Best Writing Advice I've Received

A big part of writing is receiving feedback from others. If you're published or on a journey to be published, you're going to receive good and bad critiques of your writing from critique partners, agents, editors, contest judges, reviewers, and readers.

For the next few weeks, we're going to talk about some of the great wisdom other people have given me on my writing journey.

This week's piece of wisdom applies mostly to romance or any romance thread in a story. Instead of rejecting the submission, an editor who'd read my synopsis and first three chapters was kind enough to give me an opportunity to revise and resubmit. Her revision notes included this about my characters:

Your hero and heroine each needs to risk losing something of great value to them in order to be together.

It sounds simple but it's such a vital piece that many romance writers are missing. I had created solid goals, motivations and conflicts for both of my characters individually, but there wasn't enough keeping them apart.

When I'm critiquing or brainstorming with other romance writers, one of my first questions now is: What would the hero and heroine each be sacrificing to be with the other person?

The more concrete your answer, the better. Something abstract like "give up his fear of commitment" isn't enough. It needs to be a sacrifice -reputation, career, family, cause he or she cares about, dreams for the future, etc.

So what about your story? What would the hero and heroine each be sacrificing to be with the other person? Or what's a great piece of advice you've received?

*Also, I'd love to have some guest posts on this topic. If you have a great piece of writing wisdom you've received, email me at julie (at) julie jarnagin (dot) com. Or feel free to use the image above if you'd like to post about it on your own blog.

Guest Post - The Importance of a Great Critique Partner

I'm excited to host guest blogger and friend Sharon Srock.  

She lives with her husband, Larry, and two dogs in Rural Oklahoma. She is a mother, grandmother, and Sunday School teacher. Sharon has one and three-quarters jobs and writes in her spare time. Her favorite hobby is traveling with her grandchildren. She is a member of the ACFW and currently serves as treasurer for her local chapter. Sharon’s writing credits include numerous poems and short stories published in science fiction fanzines.

 Callie, Sharon's first novel in her "Women of Valley View" series, was recently released. You can learn more about her wonderful book after the post.  
Also, be sure to check out Sharon's free ebook that introduces her Women of Valley View characters.
 

Here's what Sharon has to say about working with a great critique partner:

One of the most important tools a writer can have is a great critique partner. The one I work with is the only one I’ve ever had so I can’t say if our relationship is “normal”, but I can say that I’m glad God didn’t give her to anyone else.

By the very nature of the job description critique partners should have a level of trust in, and comfort with, each other. It’s much easier to take criticism from someone who loves you, someone who knows how you think. This goes back to that “normal” thing.

My critique partner and I decided to work together the very first day we met. Two newbies, sitting in a writers group, thrown together by the whispered admission that we wrote women’s fiction, and the suggestion, by the group leader, that we should try working together.

Oh sure, why not?

I remember coming home after that meeting, so thrilled at the prospect of another writer reading my stuff. I sat at the computer, wrote a quick note, and fired off that first manuscript. I don’t know if she felt the same, but I got a quick response and a copy of her story.

Thus began the dance.

Tentative messages back and forth. “It works for me, but… Maybe you should tweak… Am I annoying you yet? (After she marked the same rookie error for the sixth time).” We LOVED each other’s work and we were being just as honest as we knew how to be, or maybe just as honest as two strangers were comfortable being.

Then it happened. I got a particularly ugly rejection note from an agent. “The beginning is too slow…too much back story…not nearly ready…” How did this happen? It’s been read, reviewed, and revised. My critique partner loves it. Surely this man must be crazy.

Tearful note to critique partner. “Can you believe he said these things?”

Critique partners response, “I’ve wondered about some of the same things.”

What???

I’ll never forget the phone call that followed. Me, trying to control tears that only the rejected can really understand. Her, apologizing for not raising red flags over things that bugged her, surprised to hear from me because I must surely hate her now. I think that’s the moment our real partnership began. That was the day we stopped dancing around each other and learned that truthful critiquing didn’t equal mean. We really did love each other’s style, voice, and stories, but there were issues in both works that needed to be addressed.

Even though we’re opposites in many ways, she’s raising her family, I have an empty nest. She has a college degree, I don’t. I work two jobs, she’s blessed to be a stay at home mom. I grew up in church, she never had that privilege, a solid friendship is evolving out of that partnership

Despite our differences we complement each other. I love her grasp of grammar and all the little things she finds when she reads my stories. I’m not sure what she considers to be my strong point, but I do know the partnership is working. We both sold our first books this year. I can’t speak for her, but I know I could not have accomplished that milestone without her help, honesty, and support.

So my advice to any aspiring writer is to find a great critique partner. But don’t come looking for mine, I saw her first.

Let's talk critique partners! Do you have one? How did you find your CP? What do you think is the most important quality in a CP? 

Here's an excerpt from Sharon's new release, The Women of Valley View: Callie:

Callie Stillman dabbed raindrops from her face with a linen napkin as Benton dodged a server with a loaded tray and took his place across from her. She smiled into her husband’s blue eyes and reached across to wipe water from his beard. “We’ll both have pneumonia if we don’t dry off soon.”

Benton took the napkin and finished the job. “I’ve been told the food is very good. A few sniffles should be worth it.”

Callie’s gaze roamed the room. “It’s…” Recognition slammed into her chest, forcing the air from her lungs. The man crossing the room behind her husband nodded and continued to his table. Was that the bailiff? Do you swear to tell the truth… She gulped for breath and fought the familiar darkness that crowded the edges of her vision.

Callie ran a finger around her collar, tugging the neck of the blouse away from skin suddenly dewed with a fine film of sweat. Too hot. She took a sip of water, dismayed at the tremor in her hand as she lifted the glass to her lips. Not here, not tonight. Callie closed her eyes and practiced the breathing techniques she’d learned over the last six months. In through her nose, hold for a few seconds, and out through her mouth. Concentrate only on the current step in the process, the next breath. The tightness in her chest began to fade away. Thank you, Jesus. She raised her water again and held the cold glass to her flushed cheek. 

Available through B&N, Amazon, and Pelican Book Group.

At the end of her blog tour, Sharon will be giving away this great prize pack including, copy of Callie's story, certificate for Terri's story when it releases in April, 6 piece cherry blossom bath set, cosmetic bag, bath wrap, cozy pink eye mask, pair of aloe infused booties, hair turban, tennis bracelet, $25.00 Amazon gift card. To enter, just leave a comment with your email address. Sharon will draw a winner on Nov. 19. 

Productivity Tools

Recently my favorite tool for getting more done is the stopwatch on my iphone. I start it every time I'm working on my manuscript and stop it any time I get distracted or sidetracked. It gives me a clear measure of how much I'm spending in my work in progress each day. It has been eye opening and keeps me accountable.

What's your favorite trick or tool for getting more done? 

Do your scenes sparkle?

Writer Interrupted

I'm over at Writer Interrupted today. I'd love for you to stop by and leave a comment.
http://writerinterrupted.com/2012/07/02/abcs-of-the-content-edit/

A Baby Turtle

This is what it feels like to edit my latest novel.



How's your week going?

ABCs of the Content Edit

Repost from November 2010

Every step of my journey to publication has been a huge learning experience for me. The revision letter was no different. The content edits forCanyon Walls were pretty extensive. At first, I was disappointed, but now, I realize that it is just another step in making me a better writer. Here are a few of the things I learned from my content edit.

A - Avoid emotional whiplash - In an effort to create more tension in scenes, I was unintentionally making my heroine an emotional mess. When an editor labeled this “Emotional Whiplash” a light bulb went on in my brain. What a great way to explain this problem! When you’re adding conflict and emotion in a scene, be careful not to jar your reader.

B - Be Decisive – The editor (at least in my case) lets you know what needs to be changed, but doesn’t tell you how to change it. After I read through the revision letter, I had to make some big decisions about what I would do to correct the problems in my story. No one knows your story better than you do. Learn to follow your instincts, make a decision, and make it work.

C - Consider subplots carefully – Just because you love a secondary plot in your novel, doesn't mean it belongs there. What does it add to your main story? If you removed it, how would it change your story? If it doesn’t add anything to your plot, cut it.

D - Details are important – Content editors are experts at picking up on those little inconsistencies. Before you send your book to an editor or agent, do a read through looking at the details. Come up with a system or a spreadsheet to track these easy-to-miss, but incredibly important, details.

E - Enjoy the process – A big set of revisions can be stressful and cause a lot of self doubt. It’s easy to get overwhelmed. Trust me, I know! Every now and then, I had to step back and remember that I’m getting the chance to do what I love to do. What could be better than that?

A Roadmap for Your Story

This month I'm presenting on the topic of outlining at my local ACFW chapter meeting. I'm an extremely detailed, aka obsessive, plotter. I'm planning to teach how anyone from a seat-of-the-pants writer to a plotter can use my system to organize their novel, either before they begin (for plotters) or as a tool for editing (for SOTP writers).

So I'm coming to you for help. If you were hearing a presentation on plotting, what would you be interested in learning? Would you like to see examples? Would you like to do some hands-on exercises? What questions would you have about the process of plotting?

NaNoEdMo

It's official. I need goals...and a deadline. In the past three months since National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) I've added 15,000 words to my manuscript and edited four chapter. Not terrible, but at this rate it will take me all year to finish this book. That's why I'm embarking on the NaNoEdMo / Novel Track Editing challenge this year with a goal of editing for 50 hours during the month of March. I'll be updating my status on the NaNoEdMo page I created.

Whether you're editing, writing, or have a completely different goal, I'd love for you to join me. Post your goals and your progress in the comments of my NaNoEdMo page and we'll cheer each other on!

Have you ever participated in NaNoWriMo or NaNoEdMo?

Ten Reasons to sign up for NaNoWriMo

1. It’s fun to see the look you get when you tell someone you’re writing a 50,000 word novel in a month.

2. Those characters who have been talking in your head will finally have a purpose.

3. Writing fast and furious can release creative juices you never knew you had.

4. It gives you an excuse to procrastinate on things like cleaning the toilets.

5. It’s the perfect opportunity to write that weird time travel, pirate, romance novel that has been plaguing you.

6. You’ll have something to do while everyone else is taking a nap on Thanksgiving afternoon.

7. At the end of the month, you can say, “I wrote a good book!”

8. It’s a great way to get to know other crazy writers.

9. For years, you’ll know that 50,000 / 30 = 1,667 (because that will be your daily word count goal).

10. You don’t have to edit or work on a synopsis for an entire month.

Have you ever participated in NaNoWriMo? Do you plan to in the future?

"Editing As I Go" Part 2 - Guest Post by Lauren Boyd

On Monday, Lauren Boyd told us a little about her experience editing her first novel. Today she's back to tell us what she's learned in the process. Thanks for being here, Lauren!

I submitted my manuscript to thirteen agents and editors in early January. I know the finished product was much better than my first draft because of that final edit.

But I bet if I went through the manuscript again today, I’d still find things I could tweak and make better.

That’s because, if you’re like me, you’ll finally have to get to the point where you feel good enough about your manuscript to make the call that you’re done. Otherwise, you could be editing it for years in an attempt to get it “perfect.”

Plus, putting a limit on how many times you edit your work is good practice for when you get a publishing contract. Because once you’re under contract on a manuscript, the publisher doesn’t give you years to write and edit the next one. Maybe a few months.

As Julie has said on her blog before, editing can require more undivided attention and unbroken concentration than writing. Now that I have had the experience of writing and editing a novel, I see what she means – and I completely agree. Editing a novel is an arduous, tedious, sometimes exhausting task. Editing a novel requires a lot of perseverance because the manuscript is so long and because every piece of it has to work together to be cohesive, to make sense, and to be believable.

In conclusion, I learned a few things while writing my first novel that I hope will help you in your writing (if you don’t already do these things). I know I’ll be doing them next time:

1.) Make a plan. Before you begin writing, figure out where you’re going, especially if your manuscript will be significant in length. Write down your ideas in whatever way helps you the most: an outline, brief notes, or a lot of information about what each chapter will include. I’m sure there are people who write well without a plan. But, as it turns out, I’m not one of them . So I’ll be making a plan next time.

2.) Fresh eyes find errors. I mean your eyes. Take a break from your writing for several hours, or pick it up again the next day. Chances are, when you come back to it, you’ll easily find things that could be better written.

3.) A second opinion is important. You might think you have a masterpiece on your hands – and maybe you do! But you would still be well-served to have at least one friend, significant other, or fellow writer read and edit it. You’ll probably be surprised at (and grateful for) the things they find. And their edits might mean more work for you, but that’s okay – because if they noticed a glaring problem when they read it, an agent or editor would, too. So you might as well go ahead and fix it now – before you submit it.

I think the bottom line is this: It doesn’t matter so much when you edit, as long as you do edit.

And by the way: As I edited my first draft, I cut and pasted material that I wasn’t sure I wanted to use into a new Word document – just in case I did ultimately decide to use it. Some of it I did indeed use.

But 16,324 words of it I didn’t.

My lesson here? I need to do a final edit – even if I think I’m editing as I go.

What have you learned from your writing and editing experiences?

Lauren Boyd blogs about writing at www.laurenspathtopub.blogspot.com. There, she offers thoughts about writing based on her own experience and research of the publishing industry. Hopefully, her musings will help you. If you enjoy her blog, please visit often!

"Editing As I Go" Part 1 - Guest Post by Lauren Boyd

I'm working fervently on book two of my series right now. A few fellow bloggers have offered to help me out by providing guest posts. This week I'm pleased to introduce Lauren Boyd. Thanks for being here, Lauren!

I like words.

That’s one reason why I started writing in September of 2009.

Mostly, I wrote picture book manuscripts because my two young children are a great source of inspiration and ideas. Since a picture book manuscript doesn’t have many words, I could quickly type it up, just to get the words down, then edit it to sharpen it before submitting it.

But then, in May of last year, I saw a news clip about something that struck me as very interesting.

And I decided I wanted to write a novel on the subject.

The longest piece I’d ever written for possible publication was a 1,222 word manuscript for young readers. So the idea of writing something as long as a novel was daunting. In fact, I wondered if I would lose motivation before I even finished it.

But my excitement about the topic won out, and I jumped right into writing! No plan, no outline, nothing. I just started writing.

I didn’t write the chapters in order: I wrote them as they came to mind and renumbered them as necessary.

As I went along, I felt like I was writing well – like this first draft could be my final product. At one point, my husband, Jason, asked me how long I thought it would take to write the entire manuscript. “It shouldn’t take long,” I answered him. “I’m editing as I go.”

My manuscript had a fictional plot and characters. But the topic was non-fictional (scientific), so I had to do extensive research as I went along in order to make sure I was incorporating correct information into my writing – because I wanted that aspect of the story to be completely accurate.

Then, in September of 2010, after spending most evenings of the previous four months on this novel, I finished it! It was done! Jason expressed interest in reading it, so I decided to take him up on his offer. I gave him a few chapters at a time to read. I knew it would be good to have new eyes go over the manuscript, in case there were any outstanding problems.

So much for “editing as I go.”

Turns out, this first draft was not going to be my final product. (Incidentally, my husband should have been an editor).

He found things that he said were not believable or realistic. He pointed out things about the scientific world that don’t happen the way I had described them (he’s an engineer who works with scientists.) He pointed out responses in conversations that could be better stated.

And a lot of the problems he found occurred in the first three chapters, which were fundamental in setting the stage for the rest of the story.

So much for “editing as I go.”

I had a lot of work ahead of me.

I began to revise, rewrite, and edit. As I went along, I found things that I knew could be better written – in addition to what Jason had suggested. Maybe it was a catchier way to say something. Maybe it was a more concise way to say something. Maybe it was a better way to explain something. I even realized as I double-checked my research that I had mistyped or miscalculated a few things.

As I read through the manuscript, I realized that I hadn’t discovered my style of writing, “or voice”, until about halfway through chapter three. I wouldn’t have noticed this without a final edit. Therefore, I rewrote the first two chapters and half of the third chapter in my “voice”, in order to match the rest of the manuscript.

So much for “editing as I go.”

I went through each chapter of my manuscript, one by one, and edited it. It took self-discipline. It took perseverance.

It took four months.

As long as it had taken to write the first draft.

How about you? Do you write to get your ideas down and then edit when you’re finished? Or do you edit as you go and your manuscript turns out beautifully?

Come back on Wednesday to learn what Lauren learned from her editing experience!

Lauren Boyd blogs about writing at www.laurenspathtopub.blogspot.com. There, she offers thoughts about writing based on her own experience and research of the publishing industry. Hopefully, her musings will help you. If you enjoy her blog, please visit often!

Big News!

I have a lot of great news to share today!

First, Connie Arnold won a copy of White Roses by Shannon Vanatter Taylor. Congratulations, Connie! If you’ll click on the connect link above and send me your contact information, we’ll send you your book.

Also, my edits for Canyon Walls are complete, and I was thrilled when the editor was happy with my changes. It made all of the late nights working on the revisions worth it.

Finally, my biggest news is that I’ve signed a contract with Heartsong Presents for the sequel to Canyon Walls! Book #2 will be due to my editor on March 1. It’s time to get back to work!

ABCs of the Content Edit

Every step of my journey to publication has been a huge learning experience for me. The revision letter was no different. The content edits for Canyon Walls were pretty extensive. At first, I was disappointed, but now, I realize that it is just another step in making me a better writer. Here are a few of the things I learned from my content edit.

A - Avoid emotional whiplash - In an effort to create more tension in scenes, I was unintentionally making my heroine an emotional mess. When an editor labeled this “Emotional Whiplash” a light bulb went on in my brain. What a great way to explain this problem! When you’re adding conflict and emotion in a scene, be careful not to jar your reader.

B - Be Decisive – The editor (at least in my case) lets you know what needs to be changed, but doesn’t tell you how to change it. After I read through the revision letter, I had to make some big decisions about what I would do to correct the problems in my story. No one knows your story better than you do. Learn to follow your instincts, make a decision, and make it work.

C - Consider subplots carefully – Just because you love a secondary plot in your novel, doesn't mean it belongs there. What does it add to your main story? If you removed it, how would it change your story? If it doesn’t add anything to your plot, cut it.

D - Details are important – Content editors are experts at picking up on those little inconsistencies. Before you send your book to an editor or agent, do a read through looking at the details. Come up with a system or a spreadsheet to track these easy-to-miss, but incredibly important, details.

E - Enjoy the process – A big set of revisions can be stressful and cause a lot of self doubt. It’s easy to get overwhelmed. Trust me, I know! Every now and then, I had to step back and remember that I’m getting the chance to do what I love to do. What could be better than that?

Back to Work

Last weekend I was in Las Vegas.



My mom, sister, and I went to celebrate my mom's birthday. It was a blast.

Now, I'm back to the real world.



Revisions to Canyon Walls are due on November 1. I want it to be perfect, and it's a little overwhelming.

I'll be back to blogging soon!