Cause and effect

Cause and effect...

This week I have been doing the edits on Flight that the lovely Penny and Janet wanted me to do for Firefly. I had had a bright idea as to how I could enliven a scene and make it more thrilling but I needed to check that what I was suggesting was viable. I was pretty certain it was, but you know how you always doubt yourself. My book has horses in it and this particular scene concerned the horses again so I went to my Oracle, the ever knowing Imogen Cooper. As always she came back with the most pertinent of questions. 'Yes, it does work, but how come they can suddenly do it? You need to feed something in earlier about it.'

Doh! Of course, I do. I know that. I am forever telling my students and my 'Eggs' that. Don't just put something randomly in. There has to be cause and effect. It is Chekov's if you say there is a gun hanging on the wall in the first chapter then someone needs to be shot by it later in the book. Trouble is when it is your own work it is not always so easy to see or remember that - definitely a case of do as I say not do as I do in this instance. So infuriating. But it was easily fixed after some thought. I was able to add a scene earlier on that introduced the idea, which I think works. Let's see what feedback I get though. Watch this space.

The idea behind cause and effect is it gives your characters a reason or the capability for undertaking a certain action. The reader is going to pick up on these hints, it is like a jigsaw puzzle for them and as they read so the pieces slot into place. They get a sense of satisfaction, enhancing the reader experience. The ultimate for cause and effect is, of course, J K Rowling who sprinkled throughout her stories cause and effect. Hints in the first story that were carried through to the final story. That is true dedication and not always necessary.

What you have to remember to do, and particularly when as I was, adding scenes in when editing later, consider whether you have a reason for this scene. Another way to look at it is has someone dropped a pebble in a pond that caused the ripples enabling this event to happen and what were the implications. Who did they impact on? It might not just be this particular event - who else might it affect? Ask yourself these questions.

In the meantime enjoy your writing this week.

Today's music is a mash up of old dance scenes with Mark Ronson's Uptown Funk Ft Bruno Mars because it makes me smile and I love the way the two the words and pictures match - Not quite a cause and an effect but a good reaction.

Make every word count

Writing is a long and sometimes lonely journey

When giving feedback this is something I often talk about.  Making every word count and ensuring that each word moves the story forward. It sounds easy doesn't it but it can be a little difficult and easy to forget when you get wrapped up in your story telling and the sound of your own voice. We all do it particularly in that first draft when we get excited about our subject. I personally killed three chapters out of my latest WIP. They were great but they did nothing for the story. They were fabulous if you wanted to know about horses though!

It is all about keeping the writing tight. Lots of unnecessary words end up slowing your story down and taking your reader away from the main point and main thrust, Impacting on the pace and therefore potentially losing the interest of the reader. How do you spot it? That can be the hard part. It is looking at sentences and paragraphs and asking yourself. What am I trying to say? Does it say what I want it to? Am I showing it the best way I can? And yes I am sorry often it comes back to that show not tell too (see previous post).

But and there is a big BUT it is not all about making the writing so tight there is no colour to it. When a reader reads your writing they need to feel your story. They need to experience it and become part of the narrative so they forget everything else that is going on around them and live it. You remember those stories that stay with you for days after you have finished reading them? That is what you are trying to create with your words when you are making every word count.

No one ever said writing was easy. Writing is a long and sometimes lonely journey.

I would suggest you can't do anything about making every word count until you have finished your whole story. I wouldn't try and do it while first writing the story because you might stop your creative process. Get the story down first. It is part of the editing process because until the story is finished you won't know which words are important! You won't know what is at the heart of the story you are trying to tell. Be patient and listen to your gut it is inevitably right. Go on have fun writing over the Christmas period.

I finished lecturing on Friday on what turned out to be a strange and difficult semester for me. Not one I ever want to repeat. I have never felt so disconnected and yes that favourite word discombobulated. My colleagues and friends have been brilliant and kind and generous with their support. They have touched my heart. My body has gone into melt down now as I have pushed it too hard. I really should know better. I have been disabled long enough to know what I can and can't do but apparently not. However it is the build up to Christmas which I love so much that has to make everything better.

Show don't tell

If there is one thing I am constantly being asked about it is 'show don't tell.' Showing is all about allowing the reader to experience and emotionally engage with the story rather than just telling them what happened. I should add there is always a place for a small amount of telling but the majority of times you can show it better. This is something I tell my students/writers - ask your manuscript 'can I show this better?' If you could do so. If not tell it.

Showing helps the reader believe in the story and live vicariously through your main character. They become part of the story. I am sure you can all remember stories where you've become so involved in the story it has become real to you. Well that is 'good showing.'

When you are telling you are instructing the readers what they are thinking and what they need to believe about the story. It is passive. Showing is all about personal interpretation. You are actually making the reader work, engaging with them and it is most effective if the reader identifies with your main character. When you are showing what you doing is leaving clues and hints on the page as to how the characters are feeling and what they are doing. It is then up to the reader to pull them all together to create the images you want them to. For example:

Telling:

Paul was angry.

Showing:

Paul slammed the door when he came in. His eyes were cold and hard as he stared at me. Pounding his fists on the table he shouted, 'What did you think you were doing?'

See you haven't actually mentioned he was angry once but hopefully the reader knows the fact without being told. As a reader you are involved in what is going on.

You can use action, dialogue, thoughts, description, body language and feelings when showing. Remember to use all your character's senses too don't just rely on sight and hearing. Importantly these all add up to scenes. Scenes need to move the story forward  all the time. Telling may occasionally be used to slow the pace down however. Don't info dump if you can avoid it that tends to stop the story dead. Weave those details in. Showing is all about convincing your reader that your world is real and believable. You have to ensure that your reader will also care about your main characters.

Dialogue must always serve a purpose too. It must move the plot forward or give more information about the character. Don't have a wasted conversation about nothing to fill space or use up words. Do not use dialogue for exposition either. If you do you are likely to lose your reader.

One thing to avoid are those wonderful 'ly' words - you definitely need to show that rather than telling the reader. Also work on the details. These are things that can make your work come to life. They can really lift the narrative. Don't just say it is a car but give a specific one because it immediately creates an image and that image also gives clues. For example and taking the car- the story is going to be very different one if your character is driving an old mini with one door that is missing than one that is driving a sleek red Ferrari - don't you think?

As a writer telling a scene is much easier than showing it and often in your first draft there will be loads of telling but don't worry you can go back and sort that out. It is hard work to show a story. Get the story down first and then work on it. We all do it.

I was asked once whether 'show not tell' even applied to children's books too - YES it most certainly does! Children love to become totally lost in their stories. They are passionate about their characters. Show them good stories.

This is just a very brief post on a what is a very large topic but I hope it gives you some answers and something to think about.

On a more personal note I went back to work this week after a long period off. I have a had a huge amount of support from some great friends. It has been wonderful. I have had some lovely emails, messages, cards and a some total surprises through the post - CDs, a hug in a scarf, a diary full of poetry,vouchers champagne and a fox. All totally unexpected and so delightful. I cannot thank you all enough. You helped me get through an incredibly difficult time.

I love this and it is for all my friends. 'I am just glad to be here and glad to have you by my side'

Are you STILL writing that book?

It's a long and lonely journey

'Are you STILL writing that book?' are words that weigh heavy for any writer and cause much pain. They are often said by a well meaning non writer who has no concept of the process. No doubt that first draft was written rapidly to great delight but that is only the beginning.

A first draft is a shell of a story. It shows the basic form of it and gives you a chance to see whether the story does actually work. No doubt it will have a baggy middle and you may well have started in the wrong place. We all do but only by writing that first draft are we able to work these things out. What comes next is probably several rewrites. The rewrites may well go into double figures and that is not to be ashamed of as each one will be better than the last. I am currently on the sixth rewrite of my WIP. Rewriting is all part of the editing process. It gives you a chance to iron out all those parts where you can ask the question 'could I show this better?' It allows you to get to know your characters inside out. Work out your settings. I have in the past as I have mentioned on in this blog previously totally changed settings. Not this time though.

Writing is a long and lonely journey. This can be eased by working with the likes of the Golden Egg Academy  (GEA) where you have the chance to work with an experienced editor. You can be part of a critique group, where you develop a real trust for all the members and you can provide support for each other as you are in the same situation.

Don't give it to family and friends for feedback. However much you ask them to be truthful in their feedback they won't. They care about you and they are going to want to like it and not hurt you. Feedback is always a tricky thing. You don't always have to agree with it. It is there for you to ask questions of the manuscript. If several people are coming up with the same thing then there really is a problem but you have to remember all feedback is subjective.

Writing, rewriting, rewriting again however many times is necessary to get it right and editing all takes times and cannot be rushed. You cannot put a time limit on it. People often ask me 'How long until you think I will be finished?' I cannot give them an honest answer because I  don't know how long their personal writing journey will take. I don't know what their writing processes are but also you never know when life might get in the way. For example my own life has been turned upside down by a simple total knee replacement. I was supposed to be back at work last week. I am not and I still can't drive. It is quietly driving me potty particularly as the pain is very distracting and making it very difficult to concentrate. I couldn't have planned for that.

Those who do not write expect that you just write your novel, send it off and it is published. Oh how wrong could they be? As mentioned in my previous post please do not send your MS off to an agent or a publisher until it is as good as you can get it. There is a caveat to that though. There is a risk of spending too long tinkering for fear of sending it off. Sometimes you do have to bite the bullet and say enough is enough but only you (or if you have the support of the likes of GEA they will help you) can decide.

So next time that well meaning person asks 'Are you STILL writing that book?' reply 'Yes I am!' with pride not with embarrassment because you are doing the best job you can.

This seemed apt today

Editing - follow your gut feeling.

Pondering...

Over the last few weeks I have been giving a lot of feedback in a variety of forms. At university I am supervising several students who are about to hand in their ECPs (Extended Creative Project or dissertation to the rest of you) and last week I did some one-to-ones with some fabulous Golden Eggers during The Art of Story workshop (which is where the photo was taken).

On several occasions I have had conversations that have gone something like this:
Me: 'I think you need to work on....it is not quite working.'
Writer: 'Yes, I knew that but I was ignoring it, you are quite right though, I'm going to change it. Now you've said it too I really know I need to change it.'
But that's it, it is hard to have enough confidence in your gut feeling to follow it. But invariably, and I know I have said this before, it is right. If something is niggling at you do it, make the change. Be brave and you might be surprised by the result. You will more than likely have a stronger manuscript for it. It is something I have learnt through experience. There have been times where I have been the one on the other side of that conversation with my toes curling in embarrassment as IC suggests I get rid of something that I have known for ages is not working...if only I'd got rid of it earlier and followed that gut instinct.

However precious a piece of writing is, if the voice at the back of your head is saying it doesn't fit in, you have to take it out. A real case of  'killing your darlings.' Sometimes very painful - but don't delete these little gems have a document entitled 'Darlings' and deposit them in there, you never know you might just be able to use them somewhere else. See no writing is ever wasted!

I am thinking of getting stamps created with 'show not tell' and 'don't info dump'. These are things I have been talking about over and over again. The importance of leaving clues for your reader so they can create their own picture from your narrative but also trusting them to be able to work out what you suggesting without handing them everything on the plate. Look at your manuscript and think are you guilty of these things?

It is a very interesting time for me at the moment as they have changed the drugs I take to prevent migraine. One of the side effects of the new drug is word blindness. This is not ideal for someone who is so reliant on words! There have been several gold fish moments as I stand there mouth flapping as I try desperately to think of the word I need. It has made me realise quite how important words are to me and how I take my vocab for granted. What happens if we have no language to express ourselves? This has been part of the reason I have been a bit quiet on this blog. Word blindness impacts on all parts of your life. Am hoping I am finding coping strategies now so will be back.

My sound track of the week is especially for my gorgeous daughter. It was our song for a long time and I know she will understand why I have chosen this for her this week.  It is the Lighthouse Family  with High

I've just typed 'The End'

My most pressurised moment of 2013!
Courtesy of Ben Randall Photopgraphy

And now let us welcome the new year, full of things that have never 
been.
--Rainer Maria Rilke

How apt is it that on the last day of 2013 I typed 'The End.' It was the last words of the first draft of my new novel.  One that I started back in September.  I have done my normal of writing 'cold', so I get the bare bones of the story down (hence why it was written so fast). I am now going to print it off and leave it sitting, fermenting in the corner before I go back to it and I start painting the colour in. When I will rewrite/edit 'hot'. This is how I write. I am not saying it is the right way or the only way but after many years of trying, it is the best way for me.  I have to mull things over, allow inspiration to take me by surprise as all the details start to appear to me.  It is like a tapestry. I first of all do an outline edge to the picture, once complete and I can see how it looks I go back and fill in the light and shade.


I started this last night and now it is early on the 1st January, the first day of a brand new year. I spent the evening with family and friends, many of whom I have known for over 20 years, and had a wonderful time, where I could say farewell to the old and welcome in the new. Even better is I have no hangover as I didn't drink last night as I was driving gorgeous daughter and baby grandson (son in law was DJ-ing where we went). Happy times.

I suppose there should be a moment of reflection. In 2013 there were some amazing highs, including my daughter's wedding (see picture - that was me trying to lace up her dress, oh the concentration and pressure to get it right!), both my sons have found gorgeous girlfriends and have left home,plenty of perfect moments with Noah and the others,  I turned 50, my contract at the University of Winchester was made permanent and to my surprise I became a Senior Lecturer, I got a book contract for an academic book and, oh joy of joys, I started working with The Golden Egg Academy and Imogen Cooper and her gaggle of editors: Beverley Birch, Chrissie O'Brien, Bella Pearson and Maurice Lyon. - a specific highlight from this was being told at the launch, by Barry Cunningham of Chicken House and JK Rowling fame, that  Imogen and I were scary women! This made me laugh out loud as I am anything but. 

Anyway as with all life this was countered by some unbelievable lows, which I am not going to dwell on here. They shook me and my belief in myself to the core. It has taken a lot to come out the other side. I won't ever be the same person but am very grateful to the family and friends who stuck by me and supported me throughout. 

But what about 2014, what is that going to bring? Lots of challenges for a start. I have this book to write on writing young adult fiction, which I am busily researching at the moment. I have the aforementioned novel to edit hot, polish then get out there - there is a huge amount of pressure to get it right as when I mention the story to anyone they say 'That's amazing, can't wait to see it, it could be a film!'  Think I might stop  saying anything... I have many exciting things planned with Golden Egg  as well as  many wonderful things that I will be doing at the University too - am hoping I may have a little announcement connected with that soon too . It is a year where I need to find out who I am and reclaim the house as my own. It is a strange feeling as I am living totally on my own for the first time ever - exhilarating yet daunting at the same time.  All those labels that I have hidden behind for years have gone - no longer mother, student, daughter, wife. Who shall I be now? Maybe this year I will try and fit some travel in. There are many places I would like to go. But whatever happens I am ready for it - bring on 2014.

I hope 2014 brings you all plenty of happiness and laughter and all the strength in the world to deal with the moments that, inevitably, will not be that great - but let's also hope those moments are few and far between. Happy New Year everyone.

And I couldn't end this post without a piece of music from  my personal sound track. This is the music that my daughter walked down the aisle to with her two brothers either side, preparing to giver her away. I could never have been a prouder mother at that moment. It was a Perfect Day....oooh there's another song...but for another time. 

Sigur Ros' Hoppipolla

Trust

Trust your gut

I have been doing a lot of reading for a chapter I am writing with a colleague. Today I read a paper, which though unlikely to make into the chapter, was very interesting. It was by Ursula K. Le Guin entitled 'A matter of trust.' I came away from it with two important quotes. Firstly, 'in order to write a story, you have to trust yourself, you have to trust your story and you have to trust the reader.' I would actually add one more to that. You have to trust your editor too.

I am not always great a trusting the reader and often find myself particularly when I am first splurging a story down I end up showing the reader something and then telling them the same thing. A bit of overkill. I did some fairly serious editing again to my novel this week and suddenly found myself with a very short novel. Oops! Tomorrow is about building the story up.

You have to remember that the story should consist of clues that allow the reader to create their own picture and develop a narrative based on their cultural moment and your thoughts. Trust your reader.

When writing it is important to trust yourself too, that gut instinct. If it doesn't feel right it invariably isn't. Again I have found this out from experience. I have not been convinced about a part of the narrative but neither have I had the confidence to remove it. Inevitably IC will pick up on it and say take that out. I have learnt through bitter experience, if worried, take it out. You won't regret it.

This all adds up to the second quote I found in the same piece 'A story is a collaboration between a teller and audience, writer and reader. Fiction is not only illusion, but collusion.' You may think you write on your own but actually you are never alone. You have your potential reader sitting on one shoulder and your editor on the other, both of whom you are colluding with creating the best story you can.

You have to trust your gut instinct about some other things too. I have been a bit quiet on the blog because I have been on leave and being doing a lot of thinking. This has led to some quite difficult decisions. Let's hope my gut instinct is right on this one too!

Just remember everyone, have belief in yourself.

This is for my children who have helped me through the last few months and listened as I tried to make these decisions. Thank you. Our song from the dim distant past xx

Editing, head space and PhDs

Happy Days!

It was two years ago today that I took my PhD viva. Time has flown, the world has changed and so have I. The little lad in the picture is now a toddler and loving life. My daughter is still smiling and I am very aware of how important family is. I am also aware of how fragile life is.

Things have been happening over the last few months that have made me think, made me reassess and consider what actually makes me happy. One thing I do know is that I still love my writing, escaping into a world of words. I love my research and need to develop it further. However, my research profile is not as strong as it should be that is in part due to work commitments that consume every waking moment leaving no head space to let ideas develop. That is one thing that has to change.
I have lots of ideas bubbling away both creative and critical. I just need to focus and create that head space and I am going to. Watch this space.

During the past week I was talking to NS via skype and we were discussing that innate inability to self edit your own work at times. We both acknowledge that when critiquing other people's work you can see the mistakes both structural and copy but when it comes to your own there is a sense that the shutters come down. This can mean there are some cringe worthy moments when an editor/critique partner points out an issue  in your work that you know you have picked other people up on. Yet you still can't see it in your own work. We were also discussing the importance of working with people and organisations that you trust. I am lucky I can offer that sort of support to my students at the University of Winchester but also to others through  the Golden Egg Academy. It is a very satisfying process watching something grow and evolve. I just get irritated when I can't see my own mistakes.

In fact I am fascinated as to why we can't see the mistakes so I asked gorgeous daughter, who knows a bit about brains, and she came back with the obvious - your brain sees what it thinks it has written and not necessarily what is actually on the page. This is all well and good but how do you make it see it afresh and anew. I am aware there are all the ideas about leaving it in your bottom drawer for three months and then going back to it but it can still be an issue. I know about reading it backwards so you just see the words and not the sentences. Then of course the ever important reading out loud. All of which are valid but I still find the occasional mistakes gets through - so frustrating. I want to explore how the brain works more with this.

How do you approach your editing?

I also wanted to let you in on my plan. It is my intention to use this blog more to develop my ideas as I focus on my research. It is something I have seen a friend do and it works well so thought I would give it a go too. It is time to take control and move on. Watch this space.

However, this is the second post I have written today but the first one will never see the light of day. It ended up just too personal for me and my family but still needed to be something that was written down. This is for all my family, you will know why I have chosen this particular version. Love you.

Beverley Birch and the physicality of verbs

Beverley Birch

I was lucky enough to attend the first morning of the weekend workshop that Beverley Birch was running at the Golden Egg Academy last weekend. Other work meant I had to come home early and not spend the whole weekend there, which I was desperately sad about. Beverley, an editor at Hodder until her recent retirement, was running a workshop on 'Through the Narrator's Eye.'

I only had a brief taster of Beverley's session but it was fascinating. It was all about the detail and how it can be used to convey the story. Beverley, as many of you know, is also a writer - check out one of her books Rift. She spoke to us about her writing processes. Her first draft is all about the idea and getting it down. The second draft is about pace. The third draft is all about characterization. The fourth about detail and so it goes on going back through pace/characterization/detail until she feels it is ready. Often she will go through 50-60+ drafts before she reaches this stage. As she pointed out, with the publishing industry as it is at the moment, you need to go that extra mile.

This means self editing, so you write the story but then you have to step back and see it from an editor's point of view. You have to be quite cold and calculating about what works and what doesn't. What messages you are trying to get across etc. Are you being consistent and is the voice apt? Beverley suggested that many editors now are looking for something that is pretty much there now. Gone are the times where an editor will spend hours getting it right with you. This is not because they don't want to but purely because they don't have time. Like the rest of the world they are under a huge amount of pressure.

It is all about reader reaction - do you want to read more or is your immediate thought, 'Nah, not interested.' You are looking to create an umbilical cord between your characters and your reader making them part of the story. You want to be looking for texture, for an ebb and flow in your story. Remember as an author, what you focus on is what the reader is going to see. You need to paint that picture and as such you need to think filmically when you write. As Beverley pointed out look at your language and think, is it said 'sufficiently and efficiently?'

For example, Beverley went on to talk about the physicality of verbs and how much they can convey about a situation and/or how a character is feeling. It also means you can cut down on those pesky adverbs. This is an example I use for my own students. 'The old man shuffled slowly towards the kitchen.' You can cut slowly out immediately as you can't do anything but shuffle slowly. Active verbs can build tension/drama/action when used appropriately. A basic example is suggesting the headteacher 'strode' towards the badly behaving teenagers. It is a much stronger image than just walking. It implies anger or at the very least, purpose.


It was wonderful to catch up with two students from Winchester as well. One former MA student, Sarah Bentley, and one about to be former student, Harrison Bulman. We worked in a group along with the wonderful Zoe Taylor who was the Golden Egg intern until recently. We had a wonderful time dissecting four excerpts that Beverley had given us. It was fascinating listening to everyone's opinion. Luckily we agreed on a lot of stuff.

This is just a mere taster of what Beverley covered last week. I wish I could share more but hopefully it has given you some things to think about when you are editing. I am now off to do some rewriting of my own. Happy weekend.

And because I am working on my dream I thought I would post Bruce Springstein's version:

Rewriting and editing with a true professional

The indefatigable Imogen

I am lucky, so lucky. Not only do I get to work with my dear friend Imogen Cooper at Golden Egg Academy. But the inimitable Imogen is also working with me on the novel that was originally my PhD. It is very different now. It has grown and strengthened under her guiding hand. She is the Senior Editor for Chicken House Publishing and is award winning, having won and been shortlisted for the Branford Boase Award. (See how lucky I am?)

On Thursday we spent a brain frazzling day on the novel. The woman is so insightful. She is very good at highlighting the things you actually knew needed changing but have been ignoring hoping it was just your imagination. A tip for all: if in your gut you feel something is not working, inevitably you are right. Listen to it. It can be a very good editor and save time later.

One of the worst things about being a creative writing lecturer is that you expect not to make the same mistakes as your students. However, sometimes you just can't see them even though it is all too easy to see it everyone else's work. I can assure it is very cringe making when they are highlighted. But one of the most important things I can bring to my teaching and share with my students is my own experience and processes including the painful ones.

The other important point I will be telling my students is that writing a novel takes time - never a great thing to acknowledge for someone like me who is renowned for being impatient.This is made more difficult by the limited time I find for writing at the moment (as is the case with all writers I am sure). Work just gets in the way and sucks the life out of you. I find sometimes the words flow and other times I could be pulling teeth as I try and put a single word on the page. But hopefully it will all be worth it in the end. I have the summer ahead of me, the joys of being an academic, and that is when I plan to write...as soon as the marking is finished that is!

Working with Imogen is easy. She knows what she is doing and is very clever at helping you to understand what needs to be done without making you feel stupid. She teases the ideas out of you and suddenly there is the light bulb moment as you realise how you can make the story even stronger.  I still love the story I have written and I love what I am going to do to it next. I am killing off three characters and rewriting the beginning. All good stuff.

The fact Imogen has set up Golden Egg Academy means she is just as willing to share her talents with those who want to attend. Time is always a precious commodity but Imogen is so generous with hers. So I will say again I am incredibly lucky to be working with her on so many levels including the fact she has become a great friend and this is my chance to say, thank you Imogen. X

Now I have some rewriting to do and a schedule to keep to. Be back soon.

And here is my tribute to Storm Thorgerson who designed the album covers that illustrated my teenage life and who sadly lost his battle with cancer this week. Here is Pink Floyd's 'The Great Gig in the Sky'

Writing in layers

Dorothy?

I had a wander round the city today. It has been a while and first of  all I ended up buying these shoes - bad woman - but I also had a little potter round my favourite art gallery where there were some amazing paintings (check these out: http://www.bellfineart.co.uk/view-more-info.asp?id=3248 and http://www.bellfineart.co.uk/view-more-info.asp?id=3147) It was positively restorative for a shattered mind and body.

But wandering around Winchester also allowed me time to think about my new work in progress. I had had some great feedback from my critique group, which I was delighted about, but it definitely needed work. I had already decided earlier in the week to kill off one of the characters. She was surplus and had nothing to say so there was no point having her there. Whilst I spent the morning people watching as I walked around another new idea came to mind. It was one of those surprise moments I mentioned in the post before last. I realised I wanted to start the story earlier and there needed to be a heightened sense of risk and tension. These kids were in danger and up until now I hadn't let the reader know that. I was the only one who knew.

It is a problem I often see with students and something I think we can all be guilty of at times. You read the story and it feels a bit flat and one dimensional because the important bits of the story are still be in the writer's head. We, the writers, know exactly what is going on in our story but have failed to put those hints on the page to enable a reader to work it out as well. It is all about layers. Creating characters that are fully rounded, settings that lift off the page and a plot that engages the reader - making them want to keep reading.

There is an art to going back over your work and making the links, developing those layers so that they all make sense. There is no easy route, it takes time and effort and is all part of the editing/rewriting as well as the actual writing process. But it is worth it. A good idea, when you are rewriting/editing, is to analyse your chapters and break them down ensuring that plots and sub plots are supported throughout and don't just drift off somewhere without conclusion. Also checking that your characters' behaviour and attitude is consistent and appropriate throughout. It is all in the small details that can ensure that the reader willingly suspends disbelief (check out Samuel Taylor Coleridge for this idea) and embraces the story.

Here is Zoe Keating playing Optimist. Watch how she creates the piece of music by creating layers - just like writing.

Editing and polishing my manuscript

Trafficking that was.....

This photo shows the first complete version of Ham and Jam that was completed two years ago on the Arvon Tutored Retreat that I was awarded. It has now undergone several reincarnations including two total rewrites. One where I took the number of points of view down from four to two and the latest one where I moved the setting of the whole story from France to the UK. At times it has been like pulling teeth, at other times it has flowed, totally unstoppable, like lava down a volcano.

The original story had sex, drugs and alcohol in it - after all that was my PhD. The latest version has none of these but does have a bit of violence and a shooting. I am pleased with this version and am confident that the rewrites have definitely improved the story. I realised I was writing  a thriller, something that never occurred to me I would ever write. But I loved doing it and look forward to doing more.

Having done the rewriting, I am now in the position of editing, editing, editing and polishing. It can be quite painful and tortuous as you try and make the manuscript as perfect as possible. This weekend I will find myself asking questions of the MS such as:

Am I telling anything I have already shown?

Is the dialogue relevant the story and moving it on or is it a bit 'talking heads'? (talking heads is where characters are doing a lot of talking but not moving the story forward)

Have I just info-dumped? Instead I need to drip-feed this information in. Resist the urge to explain.

Have I remembered to use the setting as a character? It can create moods etc - think the moor in Wuthering Heights.


Have I left some stuff to the reader's imagination?

After that, and using the 'Find' tool, I will search for the following words and try and replace them: 'as', 'very', 'then' and 'suddenly' - plus any other 'ing' and 'ly' phrases. I may not get rid of all of them but I will check that  there is no better way of saying it.

The slightly disheartening part of this is that you know if, and when, you show your completed manuscript, which you have lovingly crafted and can't see how it could possible be improved, they will promptly spot holes, mistakes and ways of making it better. Don't give up, listen and see what works for you, but most importantly don't ever be precious about your manuscript.

Right I am off to pull a few teeth ;-)

This song, Paper Birds,  is written and performed by one of my ex-students, Meg Burrows:

when does rewriting become editing become proof reading...

Yesterday I shared the following blog post with a few of my friends http://theeditorsblog.net/2012/01/07/use-a-rewrite-to-add-what-your-story-lacks/ and it started me thinking. When does rewriting become editing then become proof reading? The blog post is talking about filling in the gaps when rewriting, however, the more I thought about it the more I realised that is what I do when I am editing not rewriting. When I edit I look for the holes they are talking about, the 'show not tells', the bland characters and flat passages. As I have told you before I 'write cold, edit hot' (see August 14 2011 post). I get the bare bones of the story down and then go back and 'embroider it with colour.' Rewriting, for me, however, is something I am doing at the moment, as you know, it is where you change whole chunks of the story. It can be adding chapters in, taking them out, even changing the point of view (which is what I am doing). Rewriting is far more drastic than is suggested by that blog post.

As far as I am concerned rewriting is the major changes, editing is the looking for holes and adding colour, which brings the piece to life and finally, this is then followed by proof reading. Talking of which I have just marked 60+ creative pieces over the Christmas break and I would be a very rich woman if I had a pound for every time I wrote 'proof read carefully' on assignments. I know it is boring and it can be tough. I am also aware that you may have seen your work so often you don't see the mistakes. I have a couple of suggestions to counter this. Firstly, I put it away for a couple of weeks ideally (this is a good thing to do between the rewriting and editing process too) and then I read the work out loud. If it is difficult to read it is because there is a problem with the sentence. You also tend to spot spelling mistakes and inconsistencies if you do this. You can, of course, get someone else to read it out loud to you.

But perhaps I am the only person who sees the process like this. Maybe you have your own variations. What we all do know is that writing cannot be hurried. There are hurdles to be jumped and as I said in the last post: writing is rewriting....then editing....then proof reading....*sigh*


Michael Kiwanuka's Tell Me a Tale seems appropriate...

editing

I have gone back to The Book Protectors' Daughter. All the thoughts of representation and mimesis have made the brain ache a bit so I thought I would take a break from it. Plus it is a week since I looked at the complete novel and the time is right to start editing.
Editing can be a tough thing to do. You go back to something which when you last looked at it was the most amazing piece of work you had ever seen. You knew you could give Dickens or Dahl a run for their money, it is that good. Then when you look at it again it has mysteriously moved from being a piece of 'great writing' to a load of tosh. You need to operate on it, removing, adding or re-ordering as required, trying to get it to a semblance of a piece of good writing. (Great writing I think you achieve by accident and something you an never claim of your own work.)
You start reading it - btw editing must be done on a hard copy not the computer screen - with your pencil in hand ready to slash through words, scribble thoughts in the margin, use the above symbols to create/remove paragraphs,indents etc. It can be a very satisfying process as you watch your writing develop and form the narrative you were aiming for.
However, this can cause as much pain as it lifts you. There will be times when you have to 'kill your babies'. This is not as violent as it seems but it feels like it at the time. We have all done it, considered for hours a sentence until, in our eyes, it is absolutely perfect. It says everything we want it to and we glow with pleasure at the result. Then we come across it when we edit.What a disaster, it is still a glorious sentence, but not for this story. You have to be brave and for the sake of your work strike through those words. At times it really hurts and you have to be brave but in the end you will know you did the right thing.
Writing is a craft, something you need to practice, to hone and editing is part of this. If you think of a carpenter he will work on a piece of wood until it takes a form similar to the one he envisages to be the final product. Then he takes his piece of sandpaper to smooth the rough wood. The sandpaper is his editor's pencil. Smoothing out the rough bits and enhancing the good until they feel smooth and in his own mind his work is finished. I am off with my piece of sandpaper to polish The Book Protectors' Daughter.