Rewriting a manuscript: this is NOT how I remember it.

So, we are back on Dragonfly Island, and my story is taking on a whole different shape. I’m still in CHAPTER 1, but even so, I can feel the wind of changes. The tone is more consistent, this beginning is stronger and better than the one I lost. This time around, my outline is very detailed, and turned out to be very well worth the time.

Recovery begins here!

        I am starting the recovery process of the lost manuscript by recreating what I remember of the outline. Amazingly, it comes to me easier than I thought it would. I have listed every chapter and major events and relationship developments. I also chunked the book into three sections, along with length expectations and due dates. It feels good to have  a plan. Looking at the outline, reassures me that I can recreate what I’ve lost. Yay me!

I am also anxiously awaiting response on the picture books’ manuscripts I sent out earlier this month. I know, I know… it takes 6-12 weeks to hear back, and even then, ONLY if interested. Somehow, I have faith that someone has to be interested. You’ll see!

Grieving the loss of half-finished manuscript.

What am I supposed to do? Am I supposed to start over? Forget about it?

I only have unpolished snippets here and there that I sent back and forth between home and work computer. I don’t have the main file. Slamming my head into the wall surprisingly did not solve the issue. I want to work on the story, I want to pick it up for NaNoWriMo, but that’s quite a challenge, when the bulk of the manuscript is on a dead HD.

What if my Chimera decides it doesn’t want to wait this long to be killed? What if my forest full of harpies decides it wants to become a paradise garden? What if my brave “shaolin” monk quits his quest while I’m trying to recover 40K draft?

Any advice is welcome.

Cautionary Tale

Save your drafts, and you will not have to go into a depressive break because you just lost 50K for two manuscripts in progress.

The End.

P.S. Oh, and I’m back. I’m starting to work on a new project, and just sent out a 250 word manuscript for a picture book to 5 publishing companies.

Writer’s Fear

Why is it so scary to share your writing? Your ideas? I never thought I will be in this terrifying club of scared writers.

I don’t want anyone looking at my story and going “that’s dumb, next?” I want people to CARE about my characters, like I do; I want the reader to think it’s brilliant, and classic, and not the least bit boring. I don’t think my skin is as thick as I’d like it to be, and when someone is allowed to read the words that I poured a great deal of my heart and obscene amounts of coffee into – the nerves are giving in!

At the same time, there is nothing like honest feedback. It’s priceless. The lesson learned today? Be brave. Share your writing and share your ideas with people who will not be afraid to tell you the hard truth.

Writing, like with words…

Words intrigue me, I can taste and smell my favorites; they have color and life, and I hope they don’t annoy the reader. I have to be careful not to overuse some of them: BEAST, QUITE, CREATURE, UGLY, SCARLET, BURLY, CRACK, ROAR, THICKET, DELIGHT, POUR, PERL, BERRY, PLETHORA, FASCINATE.

I pull up on-line thesaurus quite a bit,  if I’m not sure of the meaning, I double-check with a regular dictionary. English is my second language, after all. To my shame, I have to admit that I am not at all confident with articles, as my native tongue doesn’t have them. At all. Not even one. One of my secret fears is that no agent will want to deal with a manuscript filled with misused articles. *sigh*

We’ll have to wait to find out.

Evolving Manuscript

Every day my characters become a little bit more real, unanswered questions are cleared away one by one, the adventure is taking shape with all the right peaks and falls.

Up until the last week, I had a problem: I still did not have a very solid excuse for Lily Rua to be walking across the island on the quest to save Little Prince. He’s a lovable little boy,alright, but why would she care? Well, I have answered this very important question.

Up until this past weekend, my party seemed incomplete. Now, it feels right!

Up until last Friday, I did not have a well-defined backstory for my little Danko. Now, I am very clear on his parents (mother, at least), his upbringing, and his ailments.

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Still to discover: Renoi’s story, a twist in the midpoint (my gut is telling me something is missing there), the details on the villain.

On Writing Dialogue…

I am struggling with dialogue. I am always on the look out for great tips on writing dialogue, and I am starting to organize my thoughts on this subject. I try to keep myself in check, and I strive to have one of the following three reason for the dialogue to occure:

#1. To advance the plot

#2. To advance the relationship between characters

#3. To advance the relationship between the reader and the character

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Once I establish the purpose, I have to deliver, right? Right. It’s harder than it sounds. Once I’m done with a scene, I reread it and edit it for these three points:

#1. The context: if my characters are talking, it doesn’t mean that they are sitting still in their chairs. They might be walking, picking up dropped pine-cones, flipping through a book of spells, scratching their elbow, etc. This means I always keep in mind the backdrop for the dialogue that you are going to read. If I don’t feel like working on the backdrop – I just make quick notes to myself *add holding hands and cooking dinner*.

#2. The realism: the truth is, if you listen to the conversations that people are having on the streets, in the parks, and at the stores – you will notice that they are not at all smooth-flowing. Some conversations are choppy, and others are too boring. People don’t always answer each other’s questions, they don’t speak in complete sentences, they jump from one subject to another, and some of it simply makes you yawn. Finding the balance between realism and entertainment is not easy, but rereading out loud sure helps.

#3. Voice and word choice: I aim to maintain a pattern of speech consistent with each character without overdoing it. This is probably the hardest one for me.

It all comes down to my ultimate goal – creating a dialogue that the reader will believe and enjoy. How does one achieve such perfection? I would assume through a little bit of talent and a lot of practice. I’m not so sure I possess the first one, so I’m off to do the latter.

For the neurotic aspiring writers: Do you ever?…

As a new writer, I often feel alone and conflicted: “Am I doing it right? Does anyone else ever do this? Am I delusional to think this will work?” Yet, the more I pay attention, the more I realize others are asking themselves the very same questions I do!  Wouldn’t it be nice to know you are in good company? The point I’m trying to make here – if you find yourself questioning your process – that makes two of us!

* Do you ever work on multiple manuscripts at a time?

Sure do. In fact, I think most writers do. I have two projects going at the moment (hint, they are listed in the GOALS section on the left). New ideas still intrude on my time, once in a while, but I simply create a folder for them, and set them aside . It is my understanding that as long as you can discipline yourself to make progress, it doesn’t matter how many manuscripts you are running.

* Do you ever skip around?

That’s the only way I know how to work. Apparently, I can’t follow intended sequence of events. If I’m working on the chapter that needs a dialogue, but I feel compelled to work on the description, I just make notes *insert a dialogue about…*, and move on. Sometimes I skip whole chapters, again, leaving myself notes *Chapter 11 – meeting with Dodo birds*.

* Do you ever write while doing something else?

80% of the time. I’ve stopped thinking of it as a bad thing. As long as I’m making progress, it’s all good. There are days I need a quiet room to get anything done, and then there are days when I have my TV running, and browsing Facebook while typing only once sentence at a time.

* Do you ever work on a story without knowing the ending?

Yup. I have an idea for the Dragonfly Island, but it is not set in stone. I just know that my conflicts needs resolution, and there aren’t that many choices: “He either does, or he doesn’t”, and “they either do, or they don’t”.

* Do you ever go for a long time without touching your manuscript and then pick it up months later?

Well, if you were following this blog, you know that I just came out of 6 months break. It just took me a couple of days to pick it up where I left off.

* Do you ever feel shy about sharing your writing with others?

Hillarious, I know: I want to be a published writer, yet I feel mortified having to share my writing. I did promise my significant other the first read, but that’s it. At the same time, I don’t mind posting short excerpts on the blog, or getting advice on AW Forum. The feedback I get is extremely helpful.

* Do you ever doubt your skill?

All. The. Time.

* Do you ever think your plot is no good? cheesy? boring?

I do. I simply try not to dwell on it, or I’ll never finish.

* Do you ever dream about being published?

I’m not without an ambition. I very much hope to find an agent, get a deal, and have a faithful following of readers.

* Do you ever set writing goals that you don’t meet?

According to my first schedule, I should have been done writing, rewriting AND editing, both manuscripts I started last year. I’ve learned to let go, and the only thing that matters is the answer to the following question: Am I making progress? I still set goals, make deadlines, and strive to stick to the intended word count, but I have learned to be more reasonable with my demands of myself.

* Do you work on your query and research agents even though your manuscript is far from finished?

Ok, I confess, I do that. But I do try to keep myself in check – how much time do I spend on writing vs. looking for ant agent? I am very aware of the fact that unless I finish my project(s), I will never have a need to send out that polished query to my perfect agent.

* Do you ever feel alone?

Sometimes. No one else, I know in real life, writes. However, I feel lucky to have access to the on-line community of writers. You know, the kind that reads this blog.

One chapter at a time: the process.

Today, I’m reflecting on the process of unwrapping a chapter.

About 2/3 into my manuscript, and I realized that my characters came upon a lonely tower in the middle of a meadow. At that point, I did not know who or what lived in the tower, or even if it was abandoned. I did not know if it was there to keep a secret or simply to provide shelter.

I did have a calm feeling about it, and did not expect anything too scary or dramatic to show up. When one of the characters opened the old door, I walked in right behind him, and took notice of what I saw: shelves with jars and bottles all around the walls, a stove, wooden trunks, a spiral staircase, light coming from a room all the way upstairs.

Who would live in such a place? Well, it must have been an odd character, a hermit. And a hermit it was! What did he do with the jars? He said he stored potions, and foods, and spells inside them. The travelers spend a night there, and the hermit cooked for them a marvelous dinner (I enjoy writing about food, especially when I am hungry myself). The hearty stew came out mouthwatering! Although, if you think about the long day that my travelers had, it is no surprise that little Danko fell asleep before he took a bite.

Did I mention that my hermit had two pet foxes? I knew something was missing, a detail was escaping me. And then I realized it: my hermit seemed too lonely in that lonely tower of his. While doing some reading on Japanese folklore, I came upon a deity that had two foxes. Sweet and powerful image stuck in my mind, and just the right kind of companions for my hermit revealed themselves!