Take a moment to think about the hard work that goes into writing. It can be a multi-step process that spans months, if not years. Before I began writing (way way back in grade school...see a previous entry for more on that), I had limited knowledge of the process. To me, writing a story was as easy as sitting in front of a pad of paper and re-writing Star Wars with different characters, ships, and planets. Many years and many writing courses later, I have gained a valuable insight into that process.
It takes a lot more than an afternoon or two of writing to finish a well-polished manuscript. A plot, settings, and characters all need invented. In order to accomplish those feats, the writer must first outline, profile, and summarize. After all the details of the story are worked out, it’s time for a first draft. Many stories written by both amateur and professional writers rarely make it past the first draft. If it does, you can bet there was a lot of sweat, tears, and hair pulling involved. Once all the sweat and tears have been replenished, the slightly balder writer enters the editing and revising process—egad! A final polish and—after several months of sleepless nights and dozens of fast food meals—a presentable manuscript is ready for the mail slot, yes? No! Now the writer must dedicate several hours, days, even weeks or months to find a suitable publisher. That polished sci-fi manuscript won’t go anywhere if it is sent to a publishing house that only prints non-fiction books or poetry.
The writing is done. The research is complete. Now the writer must craft a query letter, cover letter, and/or a proposal. The letter must be concise and engaging or the publisher won’t waste more than a few seconds on it. That’s the brutal truth of the publishing industry. Many writers spend countless hours on a manuscript only to have a publisher glance at it before deeming it ready for the recycle bin. When that happens, don’t give up. Try another publishing house. Keep sending that manuscript away. If several rejections occur, a writer can always re-examine the story. Maybe more editing and revising would strengthen the manuscript. Perhaps a step back from the current manuscript would be beneficial to a new work in progress.
No matter what stage of the writing process you are in, dedication will get you through it. Be stubborn about writing. Set aside a chunk of time each day to fulfill your writing needs and don’t quit until it’s absolutely necessary. Perseverance is a quality all writers must have. Harness that quality, use it day in and day out and you’ll become the writer you always wanted to be.
Saturday, May 28, 2011
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Distractions, Distractions
For the writer, distractions come in all shapes, sizes, and sounds. From food, to TV, to the fine art of relieving oneself. Not a day goes by without at least a dozen distractions pulling the writer away from the written page, or in my case, the unwritten page. The phone rings, the dog barks, Grandma Gertrude comes over for a visit, the neighbor is mowing the lawn, the aroma of fresh, hot apple pie drifts through the door crack. How can a writer deal with such distractions? Short of locking oneself in a small, white-walled, soundproofed, square room with pad and pencil, the “educated” writer must learn to use the distractions to his or her advantage.
There is a knock on the door. The “educated” writer will use this moment to contemplate who could be standing behind the door. A shady neighbor from down the street collecting donations to a phony charity. Perhaps this neighbor has a debt to settle with a loan shark and is desperate for cash. He needs to “raise” two-thousand clams by nightfall or he’s history.
Aha! That would make a great character in a novel about a single dad trying to prove his ability to raise four children to a demanding social worker . His wife had died two years ago. He lost his job shortly after that and has been gambling away what little money he had left. He managed to win a few pots in some high stakes poker games, but his luck has recently turned. Now with no money and no other choice, he turns to the streets for help.
Quickly, the “educated” writer jots down the notes then answers the door. It turns out to be an elderly woman who had the wrong apartment number. The “educated” writer gracefully accepts her apology and returns to the keyboard. With a moment’s thought, the “educated” writer wonders, what if the elderly woman did have the correct apartment? Perhaps the middle-aged man who answered the door abducted the friend she thought lived in the apartment. He only pretended she had the wrong apartment so he could get rid of the body without any witnesses. Again, the “educated” writer jots some notes. That scenario may not work in the current work in progress, but it might play well in a future piece.
With a question and a few thoughts, the “educated” writer used the distraction to his advantage, weaving a simple knock at the door into a well-rounded character and the elderly woman’s mistake into a suspenseful scene. The same can be done whenever the phone rings or dinner is calling. Ask a question. Contemplate the situation. Let your imagination run wild. Scribble some notes and you’ll be well on your way to defeating those annoying distractions.
There is a knock on the door. The “educated” writer will use this moment to contemplate who could be standing behind the door. A shady neighbor from down the street collecting donations to a phony charity. Perhaps this neighbor has a debt to settle with a loan shark and is desperate for cash. He needs to “raise” two-thousand clams by nightfall or he’s history.
Aha! That would make a great character in a novel about a single dad trying to prove his ability to raise four children to a demanding social worker . His wife had died two years ago. He lost his job shortly after that and has been gambling away what little money he had left. He managed to win a few pots in some high stakes poker games, but his luck has recently turned. Now with no money and no other choice, he turns to the streets for help.
Quickly, the “educated” writer jots down the notes then answers the door. It turns out to be an elderly woman who had the wrong apartment number. The “educated” writer gracefully accepts her apology and returns to the keyboard. With a moment’s thought, the “educated” writer wonders, what if the elderly woman did have the correct apartment? Perhaps the middle-aged man who answered the door abducted the friend she thought lived in the apartment. He only pretended she had the wrong apartment so he could get rid of the body without any witnesses. Again, the “educated” writer jots some notes. That scenario may not work in the current work in progress, but it might play well in a future piece.
With a question and a few thoughts, the “educated” writer used the distraction to his advantage, weaving a simple knock at the door into a well-rounded character and the elderly woman’s mistake into a suspenseful scene. The same can be done whenever the phone rings or dinner is calling. Ask a question. Contemplate the situation. Let your imagination run wild. Scribble some notes and you’ll be well on your way to defeating those annoying distractions.
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