Editing

Being Okay With Trashing It

Published August 20, 2010 | By M. Lori Motley

Now that I’m a professional writer (ahem), I somehow feel better about trashing large chunks of my writing when it doesn’t work.

Yesterday I was working on “Sweetest Poison,” trying to include more clarity about how the two main characters came to be traveling together. After writing about three pages of it, I realized it didn’t work for the story and tossed it. Okay… I didn’t toss it. I put it in a Notepad file and saved in a folder with the story itself. Throwing away writing seems sacrilegious to me. But it didn’t feel wrong. I didn’t feel like I wasted any time writing it.

The story itself is being troublesome. It’s a rather old one and has been critted several times. I spent a while yesterday reading over the crits and looking for common threads. When things get critiqued by multiple, quality people, it is much easier to know what you did wrong and fix it.

“Sweetest Poison” neglects to show readers how the two people came to be traveling together, and did not have enough clarity about the reason for their journey. I think I’ve fixed that last bit, but the first is bugging me.

They are traveling together because that’s what they do. Is it always necessary to have a meaning… a motivation behind doing something? These two characters have traveled together before. They are both adventuresome types, fighters, and friends of the prince. Isn’t that enough?

Troublesome…

It’s 10:22 am. First round of homeschooling is almost over. I have done my marketing for the day, checked emails and forums and now have completed a blog post.

Time to get going on fiction. Today I’m starting a story for the “On the Premises” mini contest due at the end of the month.

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Pride of the Pantser

Published August 14, 2010 | By M. Lori Motley

I’ve always prided myself on being a pantser – writing by the seat of my pants – and still think it is the most magical way to get a first draft down. Writing what the characters tell me to write, as they tell the story of their lives, is energizing and usually not aggravating. It’s the stuff afterward that troubles me: the editing, polishing, rewriting, etc.

A couple of writing classes and reading of some published author’s blogs and sites have given me a new appreciation for the outline. I spent some time today creating a “Novel Template” loosely based on the three act structure. The thought of sticking my  novel into a template was off-putting at first, but, after working at it for an hour or so, I discovered new pathways that made so much more sense than my original story. Since I was on my first draft anyway, I knew I would have rewriting to do. That does not bother me.

Creating an outline or filling out a template not only organizes the story after the first draft is down, it helps with brainstorming before the fact. If I am going to create a true career out of fiction writing, I need to produce quality product quickly. Being organized can help me do that.

Besides working the template for my novel “Shroud Work” today, I brainstormed and jotted notes for a paranormal romance novella and found two markets for short stories I need to check out more.

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Burning a Story at Both Ends

Published April 2, 2010 | By M. Lori Motley

“Finish the damn thing first,” my inner voice screamed within the confines of my skull. “Edit later.”

It’s good advice. I should get the first draft done before I go back to the beginning and put on my editor’s hat. Writer’s hat and editor’s hat are two different things, ya know.writerjournal bloodylery

But I procrastinate, and I get tired of doing the same thing for too long. So I decide to burn my story at both ends — this is last year’s NaNoWriMo novel, and, although I finished the 50,000 words, we all know that 50k does not a completed novel make — and edit the beginning chapters until they follow the story the way I want them too, AND write first draft at the end of it.

Is this insane? Can this be done?

Again: “Whatever works can be done.” and “Yes, it may be insane, but being a writer is often insane. It’s in the job description.” (Besides, it’s what I want… what I love.)

Perhaps it is just playing in to my procrastination. Hell, writing this blog post is part of my procrastination as well. The kiddies are in bed, they are being quiet for once, and I’m supposed to be writing (or editing), but I’m not. Well… I am writing, but… well, you know.

Anyway…

When I feel like writing, I write at the end of my novel. I’m coming up to a very exciting bit where the mages begin to interrogate – magically – the serial killer. I’m not sure how it will go. I’m very eager to find out – hopefully as eager as my someday readers will be. :o )

When I feel like editing, I scroll up till I reach the break between black text and blue and journey through the familiar bits, making sure there are no holes.

I’ll let you know if the process works when I finish the novel.

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How I Know I’m Getting Better

Published April 14, 2009 | By M. Lori Motley

Instead of working on a new project last night, I opened up the beginning of a work in progress novel and reread the first few chapters. It felt like visiting a old friend from high school, even though I wrote it long after I left public education. The sentiment was still there. I still loved the story. It was the writing that threw me for a loop.

As I read through, enjoying the story, I had to fight the urge to edit it extensively. That wasn’t in my plans for the evening and I don’t intend to work on that novel for a while anyway. The deep-seated urge taught me something however.

I know I’m becoming a better writer. I can tell easily because I used to suck.

The writing in this vampire novel that I was working on a year or two ago was sophomoric and clumsy. Adverbs danced with speech tags that made no sense and descriptions that went nowhere. It was frankly embarrassing.

Finding out that my writing is getting a lot better was bittersweet. Of course, I am very glad that I write better now than I did two years ago. On the other hand, it only shows me how much work I have to do in order to get any of my novels or short stories ready for publication. It also scares me a bit that, if I get much better in the next two years, I will have to rewrite everything again.

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How Many Times Do You Edit?

Published October 13, 2008 | By M. Lori Motley

I think I have an uber-editing disease. I have one novel that I have edited and proofread about 27 times.

Why?

I occasionally get the feeling it is because I am scared to let my baby out into the world, but then I realize that is other people talking. I’m not scared really, I just don’t think I’m good enough. Actually, I know I’m not.

But, since no writer is ‘perfect,’ and a writer with fifty novels on the hard drive and none in the hand is NOT what I want to be, how much editing is enough?

An editing rundown:

  1. Read through for plot holes and fix them
  2. Examine for timeline or fact problems and fix them
  3. Search for adverbs and passive verbs and see if they need fixing.
  4. Realize I missed a plot hole or two and fix them
  5. Suddenly get a GREAT new idea for a subplot and wedge it in
  6. Do all the above steps to the new sections
  7. Wonder if it wouldn’t be better in a different POV and try it out
  8. Switch it back to the original point of view
  9. Get sick of it and leave it alone for a month
  10. Read through again and realize it’s pretty good
  11. Start line-by-line proofreading
  12. Find another plot hole….

THIS is why I don’t finish anything. I must learn when enough is enough.

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S&M and the Inner Editor

Published November 15, 2007 | By M. Lori Motley

During NaNoWriMo, the most popular refrain is “Kill the Inner Editor!” Now, I refuse to kill my inner editor, since I’m not completely convinced in the resurection of life. I need my editor, see, since I play on actually submitting my novel to publishers.

But I don’t want to get bogged down in editing during NaNoWriMo. Who does? So I have to just tie my inner editor up for a while. (I think she likes it, quite frankly.)

Here is the problem.

I begin to consider NaNoWriMo to be not sanctified enough to honor completely. “It’s the spirit of the thing. Just one month of doing things differently,” I say, but don’t quite believe it.

I write to get published, and enjoy the whole process, no matter how painful the creation, destruction and recreation might be. Is NaNo not right for me? Maybe not.

It’s not about getting 50,000 words done in a month. I know I can do that. I write up to 15,000 words a day for various fiction and business purposes. I could write a first draft in a week if I needed to (You know, like if someone chained me to the chair and whipped me.)

So, why not edit now? I’m not quite sure.

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Now Available

Elements of Time

Available from Twin Trinity Media.

Elements of Dimension

Elements of Dimension continues the Twin Trinity short story anthology series with more top-quality stories and poems. This book explores the themes of science fiction, fantasy and reality. I have one short story, "Death Obeyed," and one poem, "Tale of the Suburban Dungeon" in this book.

Elements of Time

"Elements of Time" short story anthology is available now. It features winning stories from the Accentuate Services contests plus themed poetry. Two of M. Lori Motley's short stories, "Inescapable" and "No Time Like Now," are included.


Elements of Soul

"Elements of Soul" short story anthology is available now. It features fifteen winning stories from the Accentuate Services contests plus themed poetry. Two of M. Lori Motley's short stories, "Summer Heat" and "Flood of Tears," are included.

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