Stage Three of the Writing Process: Editing

The final step of the writing process is the longest and hardest. In the early years of writing, I had this impression that a true writer would write a first draft, spell check, and voila! The genuine creatives just sit down, write as they pull their hair out, and then send out their perfect draft to the publishing house. That's what I saw on TV whenever they showed writers, whether in documentaries or in fiction. Thankfully, I learned soon enough that rewriting is as much a part of writer's life, as thinking up stories. It still daunts me, and it is the one step where I am still working on a personalised process, but I am beginning to enjoy it. Looking at the first draft, just the sheer amount of revisions required often makes me feel like I am never going to get the book done, but then when I see improvements that I make, no matter how little, it gives me hope that little by little, I will get there. Currently, my editing process is quite simple. After the first draft, let the manuscript rest for a little while. Then read through, get the feel for the story. This step tells me if I have plot holes. The next step is to fix easy mistakes, like wrong names. Then go through and fix the plot holes, or any consistency issues. Basically this is a rewrite where required, add scenes, delete scenes, without worrying about making the language perfect. Ideally, a short break here and then another read through. (A step I am most likely to skip) Then go through and revise properly, line by line edit. Polish. And hopefully, done! So there it is, a deceptively simple process that takes forever. This is what I am following right now. It may change, but for now, seems like a logical plan. That's all folks. The three stages of my writing process. How about yours? Have you got yours figured out, or is it work in progress?

Stage Two of the Writing Process: Writing

This is it. The moment I've been waiting for since an idea appeared in my head. This is the time to tell the story. To write. To let the creativity pour out of me. Without restraint. Without worrying about the final result. This is the time to immerse in the world where my characters and I are the only people in existence. Ironically, this is also the shortest of the three stages. I finished the first draft of my current WIP in November for NaNo. Entire draft in a month. Of course that was a bit extreme case, but say even if I were to do it on a more slower basis, in terms of overall hours, it wouldn't take much longer. Having an outline definitely makes it easier, because I don't have to stop to worry about how I am going to move forward. To avoid internal editor from switching on, I open a new document for each of my outline point. I copy a point in the new document, so I can see it as I write, and make sure I don't miss anything. Of course sometimes I may add things that are not included in the outline point, but that's okay. When I am done with that scene, I delete the outline bit, close the document and open a new one for the next point. I find this works better than writing it all in one big document, because then the temptation to go up a page and check/change something is too great. As a rule, I don't change anything as I am writing, even if I know it's wrong. For example, in my NaNo novel, I realised half-way through the book that one of my supportive character's name changed after a few chapters. Instead of going back to all the scenes that he was in, I left it there. When I started editing, it was one of the first things to be corrected. Of course there are exceptions. If I have written/changed something about the scene I am writing or the scene right before, and if it's a small thing, then I might go and change it then and there. The point is not to get bogged down by editing. Writing process must flow fast and smooth. I have found that this works for me. The purpose of the first draft is to get the whole story out. Once it's there on the page, it can be revised and made better. But it needs to be there first. I tried using yWriter and Liquid Story Binder, but in the end, I found MS Word works best for me. For any kind of lists I need, like a list of characters, I use Excel. MS Office covers all I need, and I suppose because I have been using it for years, I am comfortable and familiar with it. I have occassionally written first draft by hand too, but that was mostly because of flexiblity issue. Now that I have Finn (netbook for those of you who haven't been introduced), typing straight on the computer is definitely more practical. So there it is - the writing. I just sit down, follow my outline, and right as fast as I can, or sometimes as fast as the words would flow.

Three Stages of the Writing Process

I have been writing for a good few years, and I have written several books left at various stages from outlines to second or even third drafts. But it was only since last year that I got serious about taking writing as a career and not just a vague dream or a hobby. So since last year, I have been examining my processes, and trying to find what works for me. When I was writing my first draft of this book last November for NaNo2009, I had a pretty solid plan in mind. Finish the book, edit for two-three months, start submitting. Solid plan. Or not, as it turned out. While I was getting frustrated with POV decision and daunted by editing, I realised that deadlines are meaningless if they don’t produce good result; they are also meaningless if they are unrealistic. That’s when I started to think consciously about the whole process of writing a book, from thinking of an idea to finish the final edits and polish and declaring it ready for submission. That brings me to… Three Stages of the Writing Process 1. brainstorming / outlining 2. writing 3. editing This will be a three part post starting tomorrow where I will talk about these three stages, as I see them. I hope you will find something useful in them, and I look forward to hearing your opinions/experiences about these three stages as you see them. Disclaimer: All opinions and views are subject to change with experience.

Do you just write your book or your world?

Several comments that you guys made in my last few posts regarding your writing habits, and especially Chris' comment today in this post made me wonder how do you manage to keep all your thoughts together - and I mean the kind of stuff that's not supposed to go in your draft, but comes into your head anyway.

For example, when I am writing a story, there is a lot of note-taking on the side. That's not for the story itself. That's the brain storming. If suddenly it occures to me that my heroine had an accident when she was 5, or that her favourite uncle is Uncle Bob, I write it down. It could be totally irrelevant to what goes in the book, but if I learn that little tid bit about my character, I want to make a note of it.

So for people who don't keep a writing journal or a notes file or whatever, what do you do? Do you just keep all that background information in your head? The act of sitting down and writing 1000 words a day or specific goals like that to move the story ahead, for me, mean actually getting ahead with the book. I don't count the brain-storming time amongst that. In my stories, there are nearly always long stretches of brain storming time required, because I tend to write more fantasy, and therefore I have a lot of world building to do, which is its own challenge.

But even in my "reality" based stories, I end up with piles of notes. Sometimes, I never use them again but they are not wasted, because once I write down something, I remember. I may not always remember where I wrote it, but I always know that oh yes I have thought of this before.

It's amazing how the brain works, and how much I underestimate it, because sometimes I think of something, think it a totally new and fabulous idea, but then I would find old notes from somewhere, written months ago, and I would have noted down exactly the same thing. That's precisely the reason why I am now learning to organise my notes a bit better, and keep same projects in same places, or nearby.

So that makes me wonder about people who say, I just sit down at certain time and write certain words. What about the thought process? Do you just do it in the beginning, and never have to go do it in the course of the writing? Or do you only follow the story, and not worry about anything else?

Need an Inspiration or Challenge?

Here you can have both. Carry on Tuesday Every Tuesday, you will get a writing prompt which is usually the first line of a poem or a novel. Some prompts are for poems or novels, but of course you can write what you wish. Also, if you wish, you can join in other people who commit to writing a piece on that prompt and share it with others. Three Word Wednesday Every wednesday, you can find three words here that you can use to write a story. Of course with all the back archives available, you don't need to wait for Wednesday. So let the muse start musing...

Writing a Novel Synopsis

I am one of those people who have hard time summarizing anything. My explanations are more like essays. So when I think of writing a synopsis for a novel, it's a daunting prospect. But here is a little help. In this post, How to Write a Novel Synopsis, many basic formatting points are explained, as well as how should one approach the synopsis. Hope you find it useful too.

A News Report

In the writing workshop I attended last Saturday, we passed pieces of paper with different words around the room, mixing them up. Then, we had to write something for few minutes based on the random words we received. I got: Chipping Sodbury, glass kiln, shocking, coughing, fighting So I wrote this little news item... "A glass kiln in Chipping Sodbury was the last thing anyone could have expected to become the main news for weeks. Shocking as it sounds, this particular glass kiln has people fighting over it. Found in an abandoned allotment in Chipping Sodbury by an old man who coughs more than he breaths, this glass kiln is one of a kind, believed to have been used by a glass blower from 50 years ago. He was famous for his use of Bristol blue glass, and quite mad that one day he destroyed his house, got rid of his possessions and simply disappeared. His curious history and his unique use of the Bristol blue glass has made this kiln one of the prime collector's item. The old man who found it says it belongs to him. The owner of the allotment claims his right, while suddenly the glassblower's heirs have sprung up to stake their own claim. Chipping Sodbury, a quiet little suburbia in the South West hasn't seen such excitement for years."

A Writers Health Spa

I just returned from one-day workshop called "A Writers Health Spa" A saturday very well spent. As the name suggests, it was a spa for writing. We started off checking in at the reception by introducing ourselves, then short exercise to warm up, then some time on the running machine where we worked our brains to come up with a story from a random words received from other members in the class. Throughout the day, I worked on several pieces. Some from prompts, some from words. There are some that I would never go back to, but most positive contribution of today is that I have returned with two distinct scenes that could be part of two different stories. So that has got my at least July Short Story Challenge sorted. :) But really, I love these writing workshops. I don't gain any new knowledge out of them but just by devoting six hours to nothing but relaxed writing, brain comes up with refreshing stuff. At home, I usually focus on writing that I need to do - whether it's a current project or an assignment. But in these workshops, I go with the flow. So far I have attended two workshops, and I love them so much that I will have to sign up for more.

Writing What You Want

I have neglected blogging for last few days but what with holiday planning, frustrating short story, and SIMS game beckoning me...what's a girl to do! Tomorrow, I am off to Turkey for 2 weeks, so a little something before the break. When I was asked to write a story about "green issue" and I went back saying it didn't interest me, my tutor though kindly accepted it, did say that the purpose was not necessarily to write only what one was comfortable with, but what one could sell. I have heard this before, and I don't entirely disagree with it, because I don't think poverty is romantic or heroic in any way. But, I also don't agree with it. I create characters and worlds that come from me, the ones that somehow resonate with me. That is not to say that one shouldn't try different things. Because often you don't know you like something until you try it. But if I didn't care about that particular story, I cannot write it well. It doesn't move me, or touch me in any way. That and then the whole frustrated short story thing led me to wonder if I actually want to write short stories. I started of wanting to be a writer by writing a novel. That still remains the most important thing. After starting Writers Bureau course, I learned about other options of being able to write short stories and articles - things that might perhaps make me a published writer sooner. But now, I feel that the kind of short stories I may like to write have limited market beyond competitions, and I am not at all a fan of paid competitions. I understand that those people don't have enough funds to make it free, but I haven't got enough funds to keep paying for it when I don't win anything. So I don't even consider paid competitions as a market at this stage. So either then I must write short stories that suit the market requirements and write them well, or I don't. So I have come to a conclusion. To write short stories that I want to write, and then worry about the market. I refuse to frustrate myself any longer with a story that I don't want to write and therefore through the whole process, I keep calling it rubbish, nightmare, and can't wait for it to finish. And when it is finished, it is merely substandard. That is a waste of my time and energy, which could be better spent on millions of other things I do want to write. Novels thankfully provide hell of a lot of freedom, and I can write what I want. I think especially in the initial stage, when we are still learning the craft, learning to deal with rejection, trying to handle discipline of being a writer in spare time, it is essential to maintain the passion. If we loose the passion to write now, there is no hope. And passion comes from doing something you want to do with all your heart.

Top-Ten Reasons Why Manuscripts Get Rejected

Guest Blogger, Laura Bridgewater lists the 10 reasons why manuscripts may go in slush-pile at The Writing Bug. 10. Overdone description that doesn't move the story forward 9. Spoon-feeding the reader what the character is thinking 8. Having the characters address each other repeatedly by name, as in, "John, let's go!" 7. Introducing a character with first and last name, as in, "John Smith entered the room." 6. Beginning a story with dialogue 5. Opening with a cliché 4. Yanking the reader out of the action with backstory 3. Not giving the reader a sense of place or where the story is going 2. Characters are MIA until bottom of page 2 1. Telling instead of showing I found #7 quite surprising, though I suppose it's more of a guideline than hard and fast rule.

Dreaded Rejection Letter

Couple of days ago, I got a dreaded rejection letter for a fantasy short-story. URGH!! Coming home from work and looking at post, that's the last thing you want to see. Of course, no one wants to see rejection. Yet, every book published on writing says that unless you can handle rejection, you shouldn't get into this industry. So how do I feel about receiving rejection?

• Fortunately, I happen to be creative but also practical (in some things) and stubborn, so when I see a rejection letter, I don't fall into despair. Of course I do feel bad, and for a short while I do feel a bit down, but it doesn't effect my general happiness level. Though mind you, I have only seen a couple of rejection letters so far so not sure what might happen if that lasts too long.
• I am realistic about the magazines I submit too. This particular story was submitted to a top magazine so obviously chances of rejection are higher.
• This letter was typed, but not form rejection. So for some strange reason, that felt slightly better.
• Generally though, I am of the opinion that as an unpublished author this is a learning stage. Each rejection letter also says that I managed to sit down and complete a story. I found a market and I submitted it.
• And of course now there is nothing stopping me from revising it and sending it to another magazine and see how things go...

How do you handle rejection?

Ripped to Shreds (I am so happy)

Yes...I do mean it. My short story has been ripped to shreds, and I am thrilled.

Ok, that was the hook...now let's start from the beginning.

I signed up for Jacqui Bennett Mini Course. It basically means, Jacqui critics 4 short stories under 2500 words. To begin, I had to send her any story. Mine was 2600 words, but I did ask permission first. It was returned, not with negative comments as such (in fact she said it did have some originality and good ending), but with "proper" editing. If one word could be used where I used to, that was a red mark. If there was a description where it wasn't needed, it was cut.

Just looking at my short story with all the editing comments has made me realise how much severe editing I need to do. I must admit, I am one of those people who doesn't hang around too long after finishing a story. I do hurry up the sending, when I shouldn't. Let it be a lesson.

For the second assignment I have to write a story based on a scenario I have been given. This is where I have a problem. I am supposed to target one of the regular magazines, which I call "womanly" magazines. They are fine, of course. Their stories are fine too. But they all require happy happy stories, and I just can't think of many good happy/fluffy short story ideas. I tend to come up with the ones that end unhappily. Oh well, it's called a challenge for a reason.

I don't know whether Story 3 and 4 are supposed to be assigned or free, but I look forward to it...sort of...