Me on Writing Groups

after finishing the first draft of what is the Werewolf Idea at the end of July, then waffling for a month, then starting the first draft of Ghost Idea in September and noticing that it's mid-October and i'm only at 6500 words, i've come to realize that i think i need a critique partner or group.

i loved the writing class i took in the spring because everyone shared and we fiddled and worked out kinks and rough spots, and i liked getting feedback from people on how to fine-tune the story.

grammar crap aside (boo on grammar, what teen in YA uses proper grammar when they talk??), i think i need someone, or some someones, to point out weak spots and strong spots in terms of plot ideas, and where i need to cut back on background and info dumps.

of course, i'm wary of searching for crit partners because the Ghost Idea is small right now and the Werewolf Idea first draft has holes i haven't fixed yet that i plan to fix in the second draft.

*head-desk* maybe i'm just lonely. writing a book is solitary, especially when you don't have anyone to talk about it with.

so, i'm putting this out there for anyone who's writing and looking for a crit partner or group. i'm not sure about a limit, right now it would be about 10 people, but i'm thinking that's a bit much. maybe 5 or 6.

you know what i write: YA urban fantasy/romance that includes the hell that high school can be. you don't have to, but i guess you have to like it, or at least be interested in reading it. i'm open to lots of genres (i'm not big on westerns, though ;)), i read a bunch of romance, contemporary & paranormal, plus lots of YA. :)

this would be an online thing, not a bi-weekly face to face meeting in a cafe kind of deal. i live in Canada. odds are, you don't (no offence :)). since NaNoWriMo is on its way (where you can find me, check the link on the right), i'm not looking to start this seriously until December. right now, i'm just putting the word out, looking for people who might be interested and are looking for crit partners.

you can comment here if you're interested, or find me on Twitter. if you've got a group but you know someone who doesn't, then feel free to spread the word. :)

Me on Writing in Sections

well, more like chapters & prologues & aside bits & dreams & so on.

i don't mind all these things in books. prologues can be helpful, can hint at what happens later in the book (Hawthorne's Dark Guardian series comes to mind, as does everyone's favourite to be hated Twilight series). dream bits are neat. i like the chat room bits in Alex Flinn's Beastly, they were funny. :)

in the Werewolf WIP i started to add dream bits that hinted at a past life, but then took them out (not deleted totally, i saved them in an extra file) because i thought they were cheesy.

in the Ghost Idea WIP, i'm going to shove in e-mails & journal bits, mostly because it's 2010 and e-mail & blogging are everywhere. most blogs are journals. i've done one like that before.

i'm also trying to cut down on the size of my chapters, maybe between 5 to 9 pages. i like Lili St. Crow's Strange Angels series & those books have some short chapters, like 6 or 8 pages, but then there's 1 or 2 15 to 20 page chapters.

there's also a prologue, but it's barely a page & a half. don't judge me for sticking in a baby prologue. ;) it's choppy (i hope) & happens before the story, it's not a preview prologue, & it raises some questions that get brought up & revealed later on.

everyone had their own method of chapters & letters & prologues & epilogues. i don't mind them. i get a little confused when some agents & editors say they don't like them. i get that not every book needs them, but what's wrong with them?

i like epilogues when it's a single book & not part of a series, or if it's a romance novel & each book is about a single couple (thinking of J.R. Ward's Black Dagger Brotherhood books, they're so good, even with all the rap music & 'ghetto speak,') & there's a concluding epilogue at the end when it wraps everything up. Lisa Kleypas' The Hathaways also has this. those books are really good, too. :) i'm apparently a sucker for a happy ending, like other single girls. ;)

come back Monday when i try to do an In My Mailbox post. i went to the library today and ended up on a 9-book book high. :D

Me on How I Write

i don't mean like a schedule thing, like from 9am to 11:30am i write, then i eat lunch, then at 1pm i get back to it until dinner, then again at 7pm until i go to bed and so on.

i mean the process i use, and my thoughts on outlining versus discovery writing (or, as i always thought of it, writing by the seat of your pants).

when i first got the idea during a YA fiction creative writing class last October/November (thank you to Cathy Stonehouse and the other 4 girls in that class), i went out and bought a little notebook to write down all my ideas in (why i was in a YA fiction class is a whole other story).

in the beginning all i had was a standard family feud idea, which turned into a werewolf pack family feud idea.

i have this issue with reality and why i wish we did have vampires and werewolves and shapeshifters and the like wandering around. some days, reality seems a bit boring. i get that people have interesting lives, and that i have to actually leave the house to have an interesting life, but it's that extra pop of the abnormal and the unexpected that draws me in.

once i wrote something about shifters that ran a bar, but then there was an electrical fire and they had to deal with the aftermath. it was normal, but there was that splash of the paranormal.

(end mini-rant) ;)

so, back to last fall. i started writing down a bunch of ideas in this little notebook, like character descriptions, setting/location/time period info, and a rough outline of plot ideas. now, it's about half-full and it's become a catch-all of plot point ideas, edit ideas, fine-tuning characterization, writing music suggestions, and possible sequel book rough outlines.

i'm wary of writing a totally detailed outline with fiction. when i wrote lit papers in university, i really needed outlines. with fiction, as long as i know vaguely where i want to go, i stick my headphones in and write. if i stray in the little fiddly details, it's because a better idea popped up. if i stray in a big idea, then i really have to think about why i strayed.

i know where i want the story to go, that's so important. as long as i know the destination, the journey can be as fast-paced or twisty and confusing as it wants to be.

now, as i've been working on this WIP over the last few months, and especially the last few weeks (thanks to Patrick Alan, Tawna Fenske, and #1k1hr on Twitter), i've had some good edit ideas. i've worked them in to what i'm doing now, and it kills me to keep from going back and editing before i've finished but it has to wait.

i watched a friend of mine get stuck in the revision loop, where she wrote something, got into it, then went back to edit, then went back to edit, and so on. i don't want to get stuck in that.

for the moment, my process involves writing when i can, writing to music as often as i can, and editing and revising once the first draft is done.

plus enjoying the day long plot epiphany i had yesterday. :D

Me on Twitter

it's okay. i use it mostly for babbling. i babble a lot, but that's not the point.

okay, so i don't use it mostly for babbling. i'd like to think i use it for future networking when i've finished my current WIP (and i mean finished like written and edited and polished to the best of my ability) and start querying agents.

it's also a way to secretly stalk authors and writers who write books i like. :D

maybe stalk isn't the right word, but it's made them a lot more accessible as well as a lot more human. after taking English lit classes in a university setting for the past few years, and after being in university for the past six, it's bizarre when you have to make assumptions on what the author's beliefs were when they're Charles Dickens or H.G. Wells or William Shakespeare.

following writers on Twitter, from published to hopeful nerds like me, makes everyone sound human and fallible. i'm not perfect, and seeing published books in bookstores that are the same genre i'm writing in intimidates me.

plus i'm 23, so i've got most of my life ahead of me, but when i read about teenagers getting multiple book deals for their first novels, it sucks just a bit, knowing i lacked the motivation to finish writing something earlier and query sooner. but it's good for them. they deserve some props.

(my first actual novel was written in high school and should be burned. it's that bad, trust me.)

Twitter also makes it possible for the writers to hear from the readers about what they really think. sure, they could get slammed, but i bet they really love it when they get a reply from someone who said they just read their book and loved it. i don't think i've done that yet. probably should. (*wave to Becca Fitzpatrick and Maggie Stiefvater because i loved both Hush, Hush and Shiver, i'm waiting not so patiently for the next books ;) *)

because i'm always on Twitter, i'm going to copy and paste some good tweets i read over the past few hours (feel free to find me on Twitter at @writing_goober and go through my who i follow list for more Twitter fun):

@mstiefvater: Sharpie on laminated bookmark is slippery. I have signed my desk twice by accident. Come back, you little bugger.

@tawnafenske: Agreed! I will join you in your noble battle. RT @DanKrokos: The skinny jeans plague must be stopped.

@ScottWesterfeld: Some sequel ideas for Jude the Obscure: Ned the Mundane, Jill the Obtuse, and Mel the Unkempt. #hardyharhar

@HeidiRKling: I'm writing a scene that takes place on one of these: http://www.domainofdeath3.com/images/ridereviews/gravitron/gravitron.jpg SO FUNNY

@emilytastic: I feel like 80% of my friends/Twitter feed is at LA Times Festival of the Book. AND I AM CRAZY JEALOUS. #latfotb #grumpyface

@heatherbrewer: The lady behind me just said "I cheated on Michael". *gasp!* I wonder who he is & if he knows! #soapoperaairport

@melissa_marr: For the not-yet-pubbed writers out there: Harper is doing a contest where the prize is crit notes from me. http://www.radiantprose.com/

see, Twitter isn't so bad, except for when the Fail Whale appears.

stupid whale.

Me on Setting

Sometimes it’s hard for me to describe the setting of a scene when I write. I can see where the characters are in my head, and I can write what they’re thinking, saying, and doing, but describing their location is often an afterthought. I forget that not everyone can see all the little details I can see in my head.

In regards to my workshop assignment (my current WIP), I imagine not everyone saw the posters taped to the walls inside the school, the papers tacked to the cork board of the classroom, and the grey clouds, heavy with rain, hanging in the air outside the building.

Writing a descriptive paragraph, or paragraphs, isn’t hard, but I have issues in terms of selecting geographic locations as my setting. It’s difficult writing about a place I haven’t been to before, and so when I have to guess it feels awkward in my head. I tried setting a novel I wrote in 2006 in Dublin, Ireland, but I had to guess a lot in terms of building size and street layout because I hadn’t ever been there. I actually made it to Ireland in 2008, and it wasn’t at all what I expected. Of course, I probably should’ve looked online for pictures of the city, but at the time, that never crossed my mind.

At a writers’ conference last October, I overheard two women talking about one woman’s manuscript. She had set half the novel in the US and half in Thailand, but she’d never been to Thailand. When she pitched the manuscript to a literary agent the year before, the agent asked if she’d been to Thailand, and the woman said she was going in a few months. When she returned from the trip, she rewrote almost everything and set the entire novel in Thailand.

I think you have to have been where you set any piece of writing, whether it be an apartment, a house, a farm, or a different country. Unless you’ve seen the buildings and smelled the air of the location, you can’t describe it accurately enough when you establish setting.

happy Easter weekend. enjoy the chocolate.

Me on Titles and Title Block

so, i've been working on an idea i got for a YA urban fantasy/paranormal romance novel. something's been bugging me about it, and a few days ago i figured out why.

i don't have a title. not even a working title that i can chuck and replace later on.

it's been bothering me. usually i've got an inkling of a title when i'm working on something, or i make myself come up with a title before i start writing. not this time.

i've got title block.

i hate title block. it doesn't help that i also suck at titles. titles are the hardest part for me, and it's ruining the fun of writing this novel because i like the story and the characters.

the title has to be good. it has to suggest something, get your point across, but not give everything away. i'm going to look at some books i've read recently (or discovered recently) and tell you what i think of their titles.

Amber Kizer's Meridian: the name of Kizer's narrator/main character. an interesting choice, but it's not just her name. the MC is a meridian herself, which is a compelling idea. when i finished the book i thought it was very good, and the ending left it open for the possibility of a sequel.

Lili St. Crow's Strange Angels, Betrayal, and Jealousy: i have to admit, i was expecting something about angels in the first book. there were vampires and werewolves and zombies (i need to read more zombie books), and so i didn't quite think the title made sense. i still enjoyed the book, enough that i read it right after i finished it for the first time, and then i waited for the second one to come out. it wasn't until about 10:30 this morning that i wondered if the two guys the MC meets are her 'strange angels' in a metaphorical sense. if so, then you're a genius, Lili St. Crow. after reading the second book, the title made sense, and with the third coming out this summer, i can only imagine what it'll be about. i'm currently waiting not so patiently for it to come out.

Lauren Kate's Fallen: i think with the word 'fallen' there's a certain assumption that the book will have some kind of fall, perhaps even a fall from grace. the book has twists and turns, but i don't think i was disappointed. i don't remember the name of the next book, but i'll look it up.

Bree Despain's The Dark Divine: the title grabbed me once i read it. i purposely drove 25 minutes out of my way to get this book because only 1 bookstore in my general area had it, and i was able to snatch up the last copy they had. the title hints at something sinister and something amazing, because what is dark and divine at the same time. and Daniel being so hot didn't hurt, either. ;) (i also love the way there were little headings giving us the time of day and what day of the week; i have big issues with moving forward in time when i write, i feel like i have to write about what happens day after day)

Kiersten White's Paranormalcy: it sounds so funky and bizarre and mysterious. i was instantly hooked.

Judith Graves's Under My Skin: i'm not sure what to say. all i know is it sounds intriguing and suggestive. so many things can get under our skin, and i can only imagine what gets under the MC's skin. (i'm going to have to order this book soon)

so, there are more of my thoughts. i can be kind of rambly at times. i should get back to writing before i get distracted again.

Me on Types of Prose in Fiction

so, here's the continuation of my thoughts on writing. who knew homework would be so helpful?? :D

Hodgins describes the different types of prose in fiction and gives examples of them, but I’ve found that when I write I can’t separate them out in my mind. Everything is written the way is happens in my head, whether that be exposition, narrative, or a scene. It’s all a bizarre, and fun, mixture of showing and telling.

I need all of them, though. Exposition is great for back story, for informing the reader, for bringing the reader into an alternate reality that I’ve created. Narration is helpful, especially because I often write in first person. Sometimes I have an issue with how time moves in what I’m writing. I could easily write what happens to my narrator and characters one day and then the next and then the next, but it gets a little boring after a while. Being able to gloss over a few days with some of the narrator’s random thoughts mixed in is helpful.

I think I like scenes the most. Very often, I start either a chapter or something new with dialogue because it’s easy to use dialogue as a source of humour when writing. Sometimes jokes in the narrator’s thoughts don’t always work, but when someone is saying the joke, it seems to be funnier. You can be so informal with dialogue, fiddle with words and maybe even add an accent so when someone reads it, it’s even funnier.

I once heard that young adult fiction is written in scenes, but I think it’s more like young adult fiction is written in sections. There’s often one main idea occurring in every chapter, which is why in some I’ve read recently chapters can be five pages long or twenty-five pages long.

Chapter length doesn’t seem to matter, but it all has to flow with that correct mixture of exposition, narration, and dialogue, that correct blend of showing and telling so often found in good fiction.

Me on First Drafts

i'm taking a creative writing seminar right now as part of my B.A. in English lit, and every week we talk about the readings we have to do. they're all about fiction and writing, filled with examples and tips and advice and prompts. since i'm not sure what to talk about here, i figured i'd post them here for you people (if you exist) to read and comment on. the next one will be up in a couple of days.

While doing the readings for this week I found myself enjoying Hodgins’ A Passion for Narrative more than the others. I think it’s because I found it more accessible, and the language, to me, is a lot less formal than Wood’s How Fiction Works. With A Passion for Narrative, it feels like the writer is speaking directly to me and not to a general sense of ‘everyone.’

I was fascinated by Hodgins’ comments on the first draft, and how you should “[w]rite the first draft for no one by yourself. Write to find out what you’re writing about” (38). I heard someone say this at a writers’ conference, and I thought it was an interesting concept.

There’s something special about first drafts. You’re taking an idea, which may or may not be good, and you’re turning it into a story. It’s becoming something far more tangible than just an idea circling around inside your head, and it’s on its way to becoming an actual short story or novel.

When I first start writing after finding an idea that’s excited me enough to want to write about it, I do get emotionally involved. It’s something I created, something I had to search hard for inside my head, and it becomes important to me.

Hodgins’ idea is one I hope to use for all my future fiction writing. I hope it’ll help me distance myself from what I write, which will hopefully make self-editing easier. Keeping the first draft for myself lets me write it just for me, and then when I finish it, I can go back, look at it, and hopefully find areas to change that will make more people enjoy it.