Here's a sketchy bit of information on finding one's own voice in writing. I'm still working on it, but as I relax more with my second novel underway, I'm feeling more at ease about letting my own personality show through the words.
One problem I'm facing -- is deciding on whether I should specialize, and if so, how much. I have been wanting to write children's middle grade novels for a few years now, and have quite a few good ideas for future novels... however the novel I'm working on right now is an adult mystery novel. Will having my adult novel published adversely affect my career as a novelist for children? Should I use a pen name for one genre or the other?
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Sunday, November 25, 2001 ( 4:16 PM )
Linda's Secret
I have a secret to share today. I have such a hard time getting started with my writing each day! I spend the day doing research and reading books about writing, doing silly (but helpful) writing exercises, and the other essential stuff of daily life for the stay at home mom - like chatting with the kids, petting the cats, washing the dishes, cleaning the house. It all adds up to a very busy day. By the time evening comes around, I'm too tired to do any writing with the kids making noise, the TV blasting, dogs running back and forth (because we bring them in every night)... and I fritter the evening hours away without getting my writing work done. It isn't until the kids go to bed and the house gets quiet that I can write.
Last night Keith wanted my attention. First he wanted to talk about the budget. I *hate* talking about money, but when he mentioned that he wanted to talk about getting Paint Shop Pro and a new printer, he got my attention. He knows what I like. After that, he was practicing his guitar and came up with some new tunes which he wanted me to listen to. You know how it goes. I got very little done, and nothing done on my novel until he decided to go to sleep at 1 am.
So there I was. 1 am... and the only work I'd done on my novel all day was one of Alicia Rasley's writing exercise/preparation pages... (I love her stuff)... and at that early morning hour I decided to see what I could write before I passed out. Well, I'm happy to report I wrote an entire chapter (2000 words, for this book)...!!! And that's the way my writing usually goes. I wait until the last minute, then race through it just before sleeping. Once I actually came very close to falling asleep at the keyboard, but usually I don't mind staying up late. Anyhow, that's my normal day (and night).
Once I actually wrote 1500 words on The Scribe of Irohila earlier in the day and I noticed that it was easier and my writing seemed better to me. I am toying with the idea of doing the revision writing earlier in the day, when I get ready to do it... but can I change old habits like that? I have a busy, noisy family that homeschools, and working during the day means distractions.
This page has an interesting writing exercise for creating a character. I used it to describe a man I used to know, and came up with a new tyrant-character named Ariblus. It was kinda fun.
Thursday, November 22, 2001 ( 11:18 AM )
Giving Thanks!
I have a lot to be thankful for today. I just finished my first novel, The Scribe of Irohila. It is a children's middle-grades novel about a boy living in a very ancient civilization, beyond what our history books can tell us about. I'm putting it on the back burner for a few months while I finish up some other novels I had started a long time ago, before the NaNoWriMo challenge.
I wrote The Scribe of Irohila in 21 days, writing at least 2500 words daily except the one day I took off due to having to drive into Yreka for an appointment. I just got the cool graphic from the Journalers NaNoWriMo group. Thanks Ryan Kawailani Ozawa!!! (He organized the group and made the graphic!)
I also want to thank Chris Baty and his friends who created NaNoWriMo, without whom I'd still be a wannabe instead of a real novelist!
My current work in progress is an adult mystery novel called Escape From the Hills of Pravado.
"Be interesting with every sentence. Be brief. Hemingway's first editor at the Kansas City Star gave him this style sheet: 'Use short sentences. Use short first paragraphs. Use vigorous English. Be positive, not negative.' Hemingway later referred to that list as 'the best rules I ever learned for the business of writing.' "
That's from an article in The WD 2001 "Guide to Writing Fiction Today" - on sale online for only $6.50.
Of course, once the "writing secrets" are published on the web, they aren't secrets anymore.
This site shows something of the possible culture I could be writing about in my novel. I'm writing about an ancient earthbound culture - something far beyond our current historical records.
This website shows pictures of artifacts recovered at a hidden cave in the Rockies, and I found the article very helpful.
I'm 84% done and tonight am not paying enough attention to my writing. My mind is wandering all over the internet. I only have three more nights of writing, if I can keep myself going.
I am so impressed with some of the other novel writing I've seen from the NaNoWriMo group -- I know mine doesn't compare in some ways. My descriptions are lacking. I have plenty of good dialogue but other than that the novel is mostly action and I rarely take the time to describe things in detail. I need to study the art of description more before I re-write this manuscript!
Tuesday, November 13, 2001 ( 12:58 PM )
Scene Crafting
I think this fiction writing is best described as scene crafting, for that is what I do. I've come up with my own little formula for getting through this novel. It is this:
Each chapter is at least 2500 words. That's one day's work.
Each chapter has five scenes, at least. I plan the scenes just before I start work each day, writing one or two lines about each in my binder, so I'll know where I'm going. This prevents me from getting stuck in the middle of a chapter without a plan for the next scene.
Each paragraph is about 50 words - of course this varies a lot since dialogue, especially, can be much shorter. I'm writing for children ages approx. 10 to 15, so I don't want my paragraphs to get too complicated or long.
Each scene is about 500 words. If I break down the story into these 500 word segments, trying to do a good job in crafting each of them, they build up into the great work of a novel. Eventually.
I am now 1/2 way to my goal of 50,000 words for this novel, and last night the working title came to me during the writing. It is The Scribe of Irohila. I've got exactly 25,100 words done at this moment.
"For a long time I was reporter to a journal, of no very wide circulation, whose editor has never yet seen fit to print the bulk of my contributions, and, as is too common with writers, I got only my labor for my pains. However, in this case my pains were their own reward."
-- Thoreau
This sounds like my own experience with journalism!!
Here's four questions the writer, Debra Stevens of the University of Montana, suggests for choosing a topic for an essay:
What possible topics do I already have experience in?
What do I want to know more about?
What goals do I have in life right now?
What challenges and problems do I have right now?
Another article by Alicia Rasley... Here are some questions she discusses in the article:
1. What is going to change in this scene? How will the world of the story be different when it's done?
2. What is the central event of this scene? How does it affect the overall plot?
3. Who is the protagonist of this scene?
(There are 15 questions in all... check it out...)
Keith pointed out to me last night that the protagonist's name, Raoli, sounds too much like Ravioli. LOL ... I can always count on Keith to criticize something, so I have refused to allow him to read the rough draft. I told him that after the first re-write I'd read it out loud to the family for comments and reactions, which will hopefully help me with the final rewrite.
In the meantime - what to do about the name? Could it be changed to Rioli, or Raoni..?? I'm just making these names up, since the book is set in an ancient earthbound culture predating any historical records we now have. I don't want them to sound like any names currently being used on earth.
[Note: I decided to keep Raoli - because I like it. If an editor suggests a name change I will consider it.]
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Today's novel writing went much better than in the past. I'm finally settling down to a routine of 2500 words per day, and have accepted that I, too, can write a novel by setting a steady daily pace at getting it done. My characters are cooperating nicely now. The novel is 95% action and probably could use more characterization and description. I'm trying to read articles on how to write better novels as I move along with this one.
"Some writers and editors think the concept of restricted vocabulary is abominable and most trade publishers do not require a fixed vocabulary."
This is a fantastic FAQ from the AOL children's writers chat group. all the basic questions are answered here, and there are lots of links to other sites that explain the process of writing for children.
"...the reader can't help but be drawn into interacting with the events..."
- Alicia Rasley
This is an excellent article about suspense -- short, but to the point. I couldn't have read it at a better time, because right now in my novel, Raoli is racing through the woods with at least ten Halekolan warrior-guards trailing him to try to discover the location of his village. Will he succeed in throwing them off the track, or will they catch up with him first?
I like how they grouped this series of articles on science fiction writing, by classifying them: "basics," "intermediate" and "advanced". There's something for everyone... and I'm sure many of the articles would help writers of other genres.
Sunday, November 04, 2001 ( 10:41 PM )
After I wrote that last thing here, Keith sent the kids to their rooms and put on some relaxing Pink Floyd music for me... I sat down with my binder and paper and wrote a quick list of where I wanted the story to go tonight. That helped tremendously! I finished my 2500 word goal much faster than on any other night so far. I'm now 1/5 of the way through my novel! My characters didn't do exactly what was on my list, but at least the list gave the story some direction, making the actual writing easier.
This is terrible - I seem to be stopping every 200 words or so to do a word count... not sure where the story is going next. I have a general plan for the totality of the novel, but not a definite plan of what is to happen in today's 2500 words. I have another 1642 words to do today.
I keep thinking that if I can get through this novel, it will be like opening the flood gates on my writing ability - that somehow it will be so much easier after this. Will it happen? What stops me from writing? How can I change that?
This may be a good website for inspiration and information on the art of novel writing. I haven't looked at it much yet. They pay $10 for articles published there.
Adrian Havill, a non-fiction author being interviewed by Barbara Simpson on Coast to Coast tonight, just said that when he writes a book his family considers him a maniac because he works 12 hours a day, 7 days a week, until it is done! Such dedication!
"The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation. What is called resignation is confirmed desperation. From the desperate city you go into the desperate country, and have to console yourself with the bravery of minks and muskrats. A stereotyped but unconscious despair is concealed even under what are called the games and amusements of mankind. There is no play in them, for this comes after work. But it is a characteristic of wisdom not to do desperate things."
-- Thoreau
I'm glad I decided to read Walden for inspirations. Nearly every time I look at it I get an idea for the next scene I'm writing in my novel.
Right now I'm writing a scene where the protagonist and his two friends are being escorted into an unknown city by armed warriors. What would be the wise thing for them to do right now? Who will be wise, and who will give in to desperation? This gives my plot more substance.
"What a man thinks of himself, that it is which determines, or rather indicates, his fate."
--Henry David Thoreau
It would be interesting to listen to my children each speak on what they think of themselves. I could encourage the good parts and strengthen the positive self image. I would like to see all my kids be successful. I'm so happy that my three adult children area all self-supporting and apparently doing well.
“See how he cowers and sneaks, how vaguely all the day he fears, not being immortal nor divine, but the slave and prisoner of his own opinion of himself, a fame won by his own deeds.” --Thoreau
I am tired!! But before I sleep, I wanted to come in here and say some things I might not say in any other more public places. Writing this novel, so far, isn't so hard in the doing as it is hard in the getting started. I write in spurts. Getting myself willing to do a spurt is harder than actually writing once the spurt begins. If I were always willing to engage my mind, time and fingers, I would have much more done in a day.
I see that I may be in the top 10% of the word-producers in the NaNoWriMo word count list, but there are others who have much more done already. I saw one or two with about twice my productivity, and many more who aren't anywhere near to where I'm at with this, if their word counts are accurate. It could be that they're writing, not updating the word count.
To bed with my sleepy head.
I think since I left Raoli and his friends in the countryside, I will read a bit of Thoreau tomorrow to get in the mood for writing their story. Oh... so now it is THEIR story, not mine!! That's a change........
