Hey! I’m filling in for Susie May this morning. She just got back from a fantastic retreat with some marvelous marketers in Texas, so she’s in catch up mode. I was telling her about a conversation I had with the great Matt Jones at Jones House Creative about writing. I told him, “Your dream is worth your effort.” He in kind, immortalized the line in a screen saver for me to used and remember! It’s so true. Your dream is worth your effort. Worth your time. Don’t let anyone or anything steal it. TV? Not worth it. I laugh at Hollywood award ceremonies. They want me to watch them give awards to each other? Well hey, Hollywood, show up at ACFW Carol Awards this year. Watch us give awards to […]
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Your Dream Is Worth Your Effort
Conversations: Editing and Wordsmithing your novel!
Sally sat down at the table, handing me a Christmas tin. “Merry Christmas.” I opened it. Inside lay petite, decorated Gingerbread men and women, their faces, aprons and overalls intricately decorated. “Wow.” “It’s my one Christmas claim to fame. I sell them at the annual craft show.” They looked too good to eat. “You put me to shame. My talents end with chocolate chip cookies. Although, my children love them.” I put the lid on the tin. “You know, your cookie prowess is not unlike finding your voice, or wordsmithing your story. Which is the final step in editing your manuscript before you move to proofing.” “I am nearly finished all my scene by scene edits.” “Then you’re ready to make your story sing. It’s in the wordsmithing phase where […]
Read the RestHow to Edit your Fast Draft Novel Step 2: Scene by Scene
“So much snow!” Sally came into the coffee shop stamping her feet. Overnight, the sky had buried our little village in thick frosting. I sat nursing a hot cocoa. “I know. It feels a little overwhelming, thinking of plowing the driveway, the porch, the deck…” “Not unlike doing the macro edit on my novel,” Sally said, unwinding her scarf. “But I think I have the big picture/content edits figured out. What’s next?” Kathy handed her a peppermint mint mocha. Sally sat down, warming her hands on the cup. “Now it’s about looking at every scene to make sure it has enough tension and that you’re building in the emotional layers. I call it: Scene by Scene Editing.” “First, start with the scene structure. Determine if it is an Action or […]
Read the RestConversations: How to Macro-Edit your Fast Draft
“Okay, here it is.” Sally plunked down a thick sheaf of paper, bound by a rubber band. “72,834 words.” “I’m impressed.” I handed her a victory candy cane mocha. “I’m exhausted. My brain is a noodle. I wrote late at night, early in the morning, while boiling macaroni and cheese. I’ve thought about this novel in my sleep, while doing laundry, driving my kids to school. All I do is think about this book.” “But, do you like it?” She smiled. “I do. But it needs so much work, and I’m not sure where to start. I have a jumbled mess. I have misspelled words and run on sentences and grammatically incorrect paragraphs…ugly.” “No worries. Today, I’m going to tell you what to do with that mess! “First, Let your […]
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