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Friday 28 November 2014

The trials of editing

Coming down to earth after NaNoWriMo (though the novel is still on my mind), I decided to do a little editing on previous writing. Went back to a story I'd written at least a year ago which I'd previously edited quite heavily but still wasn't happy with over the ending.  In fact I did yet another edit as well as changing the ending! Now I'm not sure what to do with it. The piece is a little over 15,000 words so too long for a short story, not long enough for a novella and seems to sit in the less likely area of a novelette. To get it to novella stage I'd have to write an extra 2,000 words. The piece is a mystery/ghost type of story. Where do I go with it now?

Ah the dilemmas of writing. Before I do anything else perhaps I should now run off a hard copy again and see how it looks on paper. Maybe there is another edit in there! Perhaps I should try and find someone to read it.

Titles are always something I struggle with. It's bad enough with poetry but stories are harder. This current piece I'm editing has had a working title which is awful. I've come up with something a bit better but I'm still note sure it has the right feel for the type of story so I suppose the whole thing is still a work in progress. It would be nice to have one of my stories at a point when I could submit. They take so long to write and edit!

Sunday 23 November 2014

NaNoWriMon 2014 - winner! (now where did I put my life!)

'working title' only
My days of rising early to get word counts completed, of zoning out and into character's lives, plots and picturing new scenes at odd moments are over. Yes, friends I have made it. The novel is finished - I have reached the magic number of 50,000 words (and some) with a week to spare, despite starting a day late with the vaguest idea of what I was doing.

When I say the novel is finished there is a ton of work needed on it. What I have is the bare bones of a story with potential. I know the writing has suffered, my characters are not developed fully, the sub plots are almost there but need some additional work for them to gel completely. I got to know characters I wasn't intending to get to know that well as the story dictated. As for research well, that could take ages! (Yesterday at our church Christmas Fair I bought four books for £2, three of which are crime novels!). I've got a bit hooked on crime all of a sudden - I wonder why?

Would I do it again? Possibly not. It has been a great challenge and experience  but the writing did suffer with the speed I had to go at. I will now put it away for a some time and then the first thing I will do with it when I do dig it out again is to read it all through and note down stuff I didn't make of note of while I wrote (things that I forgot later and guessed at or left with question marks), draw up proper time lines and get a feel for what is working and how to improve it. The book on Police Procedure finally arrived yesterday so I will read through that but I fear it doesn't cover all I need. However, my eldest son (bless him) pointed out to me last week that indirectly I do know two people in the Police Force, one of whom is in CID. I'd not even thought about them and it was right under my nose.

First thing to do now is find my life again and start thinking about Christmas. I have lots of poetry 'out there' which I'm waiting on as well as one short story and I have tons of books to read, things to do, places to go.

I don't think I will miss these characters as much as the ones in my previous novel but I suspect that might be because I haven't spent as much time with them, one month as opposed to six months. And I need to return to that first novel at some point.

I did learn a lot from taking part in the challenge. I learned I enjoyed crime more than I thought. It led me to some interesting places and though I struggled I found I could write about some things I don't necessarily know about and that I have more than one story in me!

I already have an idea for something else which is entirely different. It's just a seed at the moment and there is no time for it yet to germinate and it may not come to anything. It's in my head only. But for now I'm winding down as this year comes to an end. I need to take stock and make some decisions.

Wednesday 19 November 2014

Getting ready for the final push (NaNoWriMo 2014)

Me age 11
I so loved my day off from writing yesterday. It did me good. However, I did send out a batch of poems. Deadlines were looming and having got caught up in my novel I knew if I didn't get on with it I'd probably miss them.

My visit to the library was one of the quickest on record. I found what I was looking for straightaway and was out of there. In spare moments I am devouring The Writer's Handbook - Guide to Crime Writing. It features articles from the likes of Val McDermid, Ian Rankin and Minette Walters.

With our central heating kicking in at 5.20am (for my youngest son who has an early start for his job) I am awake and downstairs writing sometimes by 6am. No wonder I am knackered half way through the morning. I take naps after lunch sometimes and last night I almost drifted off watching England play Scotland (in fact I missed the first goal). I perked up to watch a bit of Imagine about the German artist Keifer who has an exhibition on at the Royal Academy (do I have time to get there???) but couldn't manage the midnight finish and went to bed with about twenty minutes to go.

I've decided that I must be more active on Twitter and while doing the NaNoWriMo challenge this seems to be the right time. I tweet early in the morning (only weird writers are up then!) and suddenly I have a few more followers. But I've started tweeting about my other interests, especially art and found some interesting people who I follow and they follow me. I am still not quite sure about Twitter but I'm making more of an effort to have some sort of presence there.

Coming back to my novel, this morning I thought I was not going to get started but I've pushed on through. I've had two sessions at it today so that I can reach my own target and have just broken the 40,000 word barrier. I have just under 10,000 words left to write! From tomorrow people are able to load up their completed novels for the official word count check. Some people it seems have got there already!

I've now got to begin wrapping things up. I'm aiming for a big dramatic end but I can't get there too quickly. I have notes for a couple of scenes still to write and then I have to sort out my sub-plots before the final ending. Ah! it all sounds so simple.

Want to have a big push tomorrow if possible because Friday and Saturday are taken up with arrangements for the Church Christmas Fair. Our group is laying on hot food. So I have to cook, put together the new menu and some fliers, get everything up to the hall on Friday afternoon and make sure the tables are laid. Then there is the little matter of the Christingle service in two weeks time - I need to fish out the posters and get them up on Friday! Friday morning is also my sport session where all frustrations will be thoroughly dealt with!

Monday 17 November 2014

Seventeen days in - obsessed and tired (NaNoWriMo 2014)

I have to admit I've become obsessive over this novel. In the last few days I have been packing in the words and setting my own targets. I live this story and find it very hard to switch off. In fact the longest I've gone without something flitting through my mind was when playing sport on Friday morning! I wake in the night and think about it. In the mornings when I get up I'm full of it and I'm on my laptop almost straightaway. I leave it to go and do something else and I'm working through new scenes. I might go back and write a bit more. I'm conscious of not unraveling everything too quickly. I change pace with new scenes in the hope the reader will want to go on. I throw in some lighter scenes between the more dramatic/serious stuff and try to forget whether my plots are plausible, whether I am running rough-shod over the way the Police work. Hell, I will have a lot of research to do at the end and probably lots of reading,

My novel is taking me to places I never dreamed of. Maybe I should have known by my characters and situations but I didn't quite see it coming.

I like all my characters really, even the obnoxious ones! I created them. But sometimes I think I need a break from them. I was wondering whether I dare to have a day off from them tomorrow. It's been so full on lately and I am well on the way now that one day off won't be the end of it all (I've written just over 36,000 words now). Maybe it will help me see things clearer, give me a chance to let things settle before I head on into the last 15,000 words. There is life out there apparently but I think I've forgotten. I feel tired and often I've found it a lonely process. I've tried to find someone to buddy up with on the NaNoWriMo website but no luck so far and I don't wish to spend too long on the forums as like Facebook, it takes me away from actually writing.

I've done my words for today. I think I'll just slip away into a book and live some other characters' lives for a while!

Wednesday 12 November 2014

NaNoWriMo 2014 - day 12, a struggle

A beautiful sky to look at helps the writing process.
Well, here I am at the end of day twelve and boy it has been a slog today. Last night I realised that some of my plots would not work and I needed to rough out some questions and answers to get to the bottom of it. It took me all evening and a few pages of notes before I was happy. Great, I thought, now I'm cooking. Ah! if only it was that simple. I was up later this morning and didn't really have enough time to do my writing stint before I went off to choir so I didn't get to it until this afternoon. First off I couldn't get a word down and I'm talking to myself, telling myself to type anything even it it's nothing to do with the story and I was about to do that when I began with just the name of my main character and slowly invented a scene. It has been a great effort to hit the word count today. I've managed it though. Such a contrast from yesterday when I wrote like someone possessed. I wonder whether this happened because I was out of routine or it's just the wall they talk about on the NaNoWriMo website.

However, the good part of today was a writing a funny scene which made me laugh. The tea I was drinking went down the wrong way and left me coughing like crazy for a while. All worth it!

The other good thing is that I have reached the 20,000 word mark. I am still worried about keeping the story going without padding it out with useless stuff.

Over the weekend I was off colour. I had a temperature but no other symptoms and Sunday was an awful writing day. But I kept at it and am still on target to finish in time as long as I keep up.

I still find I think about my characters, plot, scenes when I'm not writing and I spend time doing a little research as I go. My main worry is still sounding authentic in the genre. I have sent for a book recommended by a column writer in Writer's Forum entitled The Crime Writer's Guide to Police Practice and Procedure. It should arrive tomorrow. I didn't realise how hard it is find a book on UK Police. I found an excellent sounding one on Amazon and was keen to buy it but I didn't know whether it was UK of US. The description did not say. I read all the feedback comments and finally almost the very last comment said US. I was so disappointed. This could be a very long edit coming!




Monday 10 November 2014

Positive thought of the day.

I know the writing is going well when I start avoiding housework to write rather than the other way around!


Sunday 9 November 2014

Friday 7 November 2014

NaNoWriMo 2014 - day 7 - 'in the zone'

Thought for the day : You know you are a writer when you spend more time with your characters than you do with your own family.

It's fast becoming like this. On the other hand over the last few days I have started to understand my characters. They are becoming real to me and this has helped the writing process. There are still lots of things that remain unclear but gradually the story is falling into place. I'm working out connections, plots, decided who my main character is (phew!) and done a bit of research as I go. It all helps. Also the discrepancies have been sorted. I had several and they annoyed me so I decided as I was on target I would spend a little time editing mistakes and actually increased my word count!

Draw backs - I find myself drifting into plots and next scenes at odd times when I'm not writing. The whole thing is taking over my life. But that's good, it means I am 'in the zone'. I've stopped worrying so much about words counts (for the most part, but I like to see them racking up!) and am concentrating on the story.

I have a routine. I write mainly when I get up once I've had a cup of tea and feel awake enough. So writing starts around 7-7.30am and I keep going until about 9am or later if I have time. When time is short I have a second session later in the day when I can fit it in. I have become obsessive about the music I write by to. I was interested to see on the NaNoWriMo  website other writers mentioning the music they write by. I found one writer's playlist on Spotify. While I loved the music (very much my thing) it was too relaxing! I have to have dynamic, energising stuff. I've tried all sorts of music in the past but I keep coming back to Trance and now it is my chosen music every time I write. The one I am using now from my playlist on YouTube runs for just over three hours! It has it's quieter moments but mainly it's fast and keeps me writing. First off I played several different Trance sequences but now I'm down to just the one. As soon as the music starts it my cue to write. Strangely I was about to listen to it while writing this blog but I couldn't. It's my writing track and nothing else at the moment! It actually felt wrong.

Everyday I go on to the NaNoWriMo website to see what's happening, go into the forums and add to my word count. I'm chuffed I have my second badge - for 10,000 words and now it's the big haul to the next milestone. At present my word count stands at 12,423 and I am on target to complete by the end of the month if I keep it up.

I think in a previous post I kind of moaned that content wasn't important but I was struggling in the beginning - very much so. What I hope to have at the end of the month is a rough draft to work with. It's also a big boost to my confidence that my imagination is still working and I've managed to unearth a story. I just wish my ideas had come a few days before the challenge started!

I'm finding it difficult to switch off and meals in the household get cobbled together with whatever I can find. I actually went shopping the other day! Luckily hubby has been in a soup making mood and my oldest offspring over ordered pizza the other night so there were pieces left the next day! I've become a scavenger.

I've had a couple of excellent writing days which is a boost. I'm sure there will be more lows but for now I'm happy with the way it's all going.

I'll check back again soon and let you know how it's all progressing.

Tuesday 4 November 2014

NaNoWriMo - day four

You know when your're a writer when your mind wanders during an art history class and you begin to try and sort out your plot! If only I could!

It's true. I found my mind drifting several times this morning and had to pull it back. Actually the class was interesting because we were looking at Land Art which I quite enjoy but I kept thinking about how I would get another 1,600 odd words written today. Actually, I've only written about 1,400 but one thing I have realised in this challenge, there is no time to edit. I've quickly looked back at things and seen a few typos and a great big contradiction between two scenes written on consecutive days. Right now I don't feel I have time to put them right. The challenge seems more about word counts than content and as long as when I upload my novel at the end of the month I have achieved the magic 50,000 that's all that matters.One day maybe I will have time to go back an edit!

I'm still stuck for a title, my plot is all over the place and I really need to pin this down soon. I have several suspect/plot ideas but need to make a decision and stop faffing around. I'm also wondering if my novel is fast turning in to a farce but I do like a certain amount of humour in my stories. Another problem I have is who's viewpoint is this being told from? I pretty sure I know but I need to develop this character more.

And yet another problem is encountering things I know nothing of. There is a reference page on the NaNoWritMo website (made very interesting reading, can't wait to see the books!) but didn't find anything I needed there. Asked hubby in the end. His knowledge of science and pyrotechnics (don't even ask!) is pretty good.

One thing I can see coming is one hell of a major edit - a complete re-write. Am I stressing too much? Probably.

Monday 3 November 2014

NaNoWriMo 2014

What have I let myself in for? I knew NaNoWriMo was coming but I didn't have and ideas and besides I already have a novel to edit and other work in various stages. I had no intention of taking part. And then one night when I was laying awake and couldn't get back to sleep my mind started what I call 'head writing'. I had characters, I had a flimsy story and I couldn't stop the scenes playing out. Next morning I sat down and drafted some character profiles, all the stuff that had been in my head plus other stuff.

I was already a day late but I thought...maybe I should write this. So I looked on the website and decided to sign up. It took ages (eating into my writing time). My username was not available - that happened many times. Then it didn't like my passwords. I nearly gave up but then suddenly I was in.

Now my story. Well, I'm working in the dark a bit here because for some reason I have chosen the genre of crime/mystery/suspense. What do I know of crime, the insider workings of the Police force and all its departments?  Absolutely nothing! Still, it's only a draft and I guess I can work a lot of that out later? To complicate things - why go for easy when you can make it hard on yourself - I have multiple characters!

Have I worked out the plot? Er, not entirely. Have I worked out the baddies/who dun it? Er, no. Do I actually have a clue where the story is going? Er......no! Why am I doing it? I really don't know except that I like challenges. The big question is will I manage the 50,000 words I need to write to complete it by the end of the month. Your guess is as good as mine.

Starting a day late I was already lagging behind but I almost caught up by writing nearly double the word count yesterday. Today I achieved 1724 words, which added to yesterday's total makes 4.500 words so far. I'm almost on target.

My worries: I like to think through next scenes in advance then write them. Not sure how much time I will have for that and whether I can keep this up every day for a month. I am kind of writing as I go - basically making it up as I go along, thinking on my feet. The pace is quite something and I'm worried that after a week I won't be able to do it. My first novel was written over six months with periods of intense writing and some slow times when I wrote only 400-700 words at a sitting. I have to write around 1,600 words per day to keep on target. I feel myself wilting already. Today was a struggle, yesterday was a struggle. I don't expect tomorrow will be any better. What I need is more insight to my story. I did a little planning before I started this morning. Maybe I will try a bit more of that later today in the hope that it will help with tomorrows writing.

Has anyone else taken part in NaNoWriMo? If so, how did you find it?

One thing I must try to avoid is social media and answering my emails - that takes up so much time! This morning in the middle of writing a friend phoned wanting someone's address. I spend ages looking through Outlook, papers, ringing other people and still not getting the address I wanted. I shall have to be more disciplined!

I shall let you know how the writing is going. If all else fails I still have my blog and a my other writing to sort out. (I did wonder whether I was doing this as a diversion tactic to avoid the editing process of my novel - what do you think?)