Category Archives: organization

Okay, I plead Guilty. Guilty, guilty, guilty.

Posted on by
Reply

I’d like to think we’ve all done it. You know. Procrastinate. Put things off. Lost track of time and/or what we were doing. C’mon, you’ve done it, right? Let something slide because you got busy with other things?

Yes? No?

Okay, so maybe a year is a little much, but, yes, it’s been a year since my last post. I apologize.

To my credit, I’ve re-organized my way(s) of reaching my readers. Well, I’ve organized it. For the first time, really. It wasn’t easy. It took a lot of mulling and musing and shaking my head. And a couple of consultations with one of my sons, who also acts as my editor and sounding board for all things writing-related. To be fair, he’s one of three of my kids who can edit for me, but he’s the handiest, and maybe the easiest to talk to, because he understands how I think. He can guide me through my thoughts step-by-step better than I can myself.

I had always tried to link my communications together, re-posting and cross-posting where it wasn’t a problem, then having something unique to each platform.  But the lines would get blurred, and I’d be unsure, hesitant to post, because I wasn’t sure if I was making unnecessary duplicates or if I wasn’t offering the right posts. I thought about it a lot, but all my ideas were a little fuzzy. I couldn’t get a complete picture of what I was trying to do, let alone the best way to do it.

Finally I sat myself down at the computer and made up a table. I headed the columns with the different media sites I used, as well as a couple of sites that were primarily resources but that required as much monitoring as the others. Beneath each heading I wrote down the purpose the site served and the types of posts I wrote for it. Just doing that helped me sort out which posts needed to go where, and when and what material needed to be cross-posted. My excellent son guided me through figuring out which site would take the most effort to support – he was very much aware of my tendency to run out of steam, although he hadn’t realized how much of that was because I hadn’t nailed down what went where. Then I prioritized them by how important I felt it was to keep them current. Just writing it down clarified things and enabled me to set up a rough schedule for when and what kinds of posts to make on each site.

So, I’m starting up again. This site will have top priority, with posts going up 1-4 times a month. The format will remain the same: My books will all be displayed here, and there will be my reviews of other books. The blog will focus on varying aspects of the noveling process, and I will complete the collection of INKAS. Keep an eye out for the next one!

Here are links to the INKAS: what they are and the ones I've already covered:

What are INKAS   .....    TIP   ~ INKAS~  #1

Short Story   ....   TIP ~ INKAS ~ #1.1

Children's Story & Children's Story with Illustrations   .....    TIP ~ INKAS ~ #2

Poetry   .....    TIP ~ INKAS ~ #3

INKA #4 will be up soon: S O N G    L Y R I C S!

Not-so-Easy Does It

Posted on by
Reply

We all need encouragement and inspiration to write a story, but that kind of support is easy. We tell you how you have so much to say and you’ll say it so well.  We remind you that you have a unique voice, and that we can’t wait to read your work. Then we ship you off to your study or desk with everything from a plate of beans and coffee to filet mignon and a glass of wine and wait for your golden manuscript to appear. 

Okay, who said, ‘Yeah, right’?

All right, I get it. Writing isn’t that easy; neither is helping someone write. But it can be easier than the next step. Revision.

I enjoy a number of creative pursuits besides writing. One is house renovation. Ask anyone; I’d rather build a new bathroom than clean one.

BR1rough

 

Recently I heard Canadian Contractor turned YouTuber  Jeff Thorman  (Home RenoVision DIY),  remark that “Anytime we’re doing dry wall mud or any other kind of finishing, we start from rough and push toward finished.”

 

BR2partial

 

 

 

 

The concept applies to a lot of creative endeavors besides building.

 

logoFRS010115  Painting

logoFRS010115  Sculpting

logoFRS010115   Dance – even choreography starts with rough blocking of movement before it finalizes into polished dance steps and poses.

 

How often do we tell writers: Just get the first draft done; get the main story down in print. Then you can go back and rework it.

Rework it. Revise. Revision is, according to some 90% of writing. What does the process look like? Many writers work in steps.

  1. Revision 1 may be to remove all the over-used words. We each have our ‘favorites’, our personal crutches that we put in when we think there is a blank space that needs filling, eg, just, very, that. So the first pass may be to remove those unnecessary placeholders from our manuscript.
  1. The next one may be to clarify passages, put more imagery into description, add more authenticity to dialogue, more substance to characters.
  1. Revision No. 3 may be to remove the new set of over-used words. You can throw in eliminating the overworked phrases for good measure.
  1. An entire new pass to straighten out the plot tangles resulting from added material in Revision 2

And so on.

First draft, second draft, …, thirtieth draft. However many it takes to reach the point where you put down your pen and decide it is really… 

BR3nearly done

 

 

 

REALLY…

 

 

 

BR4done

…Done.

 

The list here doesn’t encompass the question of how to fix things. My next few blog posts will deal in greater detail with the agony of revision, an agony only outweighed by its value.

 

“Anytime we’re doing dry wall mud or any other kind of finishing, we start from rough and push toward finished.”

Jeff thorman Home RenoVision DIY

 

Local Author Showcase

Quote

Posted on by
Reply

via Local Author ShowcaseLocalWritersShowcase2019

Everyone should have a library this supportive. Local authors are invited to sell and sign their books and meet the public at the library. Donations are made to the Friends of the Library (the supportive organization) to help meet the library’s needs. If your library doesn’t have this, you should get them to try it. It’s a win/win/win for authors, the library, and the community of readers.