Drafts Category
I Signed a Book Contract!
Posted on November 21, 2020 1 Comment
Be the first to get release news and book updates! Here’s the story: Several years ago, when I was a still a new mom, my parents paid for me to go to one of the local SCBWI writing retreats. I dropped my husband and daughter off at my sister-in-law’s so she could help with the […]
Fine-tuning Revision
Posted on August 22, 2020 Leave a Comment
I’ve been working on revisions for my contemporary middle grade novel. I’ve never gotten into quite so much fine-tuning before. It’s a whole different thing. I had the scenes in order and the character arc pretty well figured out. But now, I had to go through and make sure all the emotions remained consistent. I […]
The Unmentionable First Draft
Posted on July 10, 2015 Leave a Comment
I think I’ve mentioned before how I typically do my rough and first drafts in my head before I ever put anything on paper. This makes my first paper drafts much smoother than the ones of many writers I’ve spoken with. Well, for the first time in my life, the mental draft isn’t working. This […]
What to Do Differently
Posted on July 6, 2015 Leave a Comment
I may have figured out part of the problem. I need to write the story, not the book. Does that make sense? The book is the finished product that will be published. I don’t need to worry about that yet. I can think about marketability and what editors and agents want during the final revisions. […]
Stuck pulling teeth
Posted on June 8, 2015 Leave a Comment
I am stuck. In three places at once. Part II is where I’ve been doing most of my writing. I’m at an entire sequence of battle scenes, and I hate writing battles scenes. I have written one good battle scene in my life, and when I went back to look at it, I thought, “I […]
Too Focused
Posted on July 21, 2014 Leave a Comment
Okay, okay, I think I know what part of the problem is. I’m terrible at description. That’s the main glaring problem with highschool draft of Epic Novel. It’s all very terse, very telly, all action and dialogue. In my current draft, I have really focused on description. Perhaps too much. One compliment I always get […]
Under the Couch . . .
Posted on July 18, 2014 Leave a Comment
Da da da da! Last night, I officially finished typing the rough draft of Epic Novel Book 1 Part 2!! Except for the last page which may be hiding under the couch. . . . I haven’t exactly met my self-imposed deadline of submission ready by the end of July, but I feel certain satisfaction […]
Better Writer
Posted on July 14, 2014 Leave a Comment
Argh! Is it possible that I was a better when I was 17 pre-MFA—pre-any-kind-of-creative-writing-class-ever? I keep looking back at my highschool draft of the Epic Novel. Yes, in many ways it was terrible. Yet, the characters seemed more real, more authentic. They certainly seem more like teenagers, which I suppose shouldn’t surprise me. What really […]
Intense Emotional Climax
Posted on June 9, 2014 Leave a Comment
Why are the intense emotional scenes such a challenge to write? I’m talking about climaxes. I spend the whole manuscript just trying to get to those intense scenes, but when I finally arrive, I find myself floundering around. The writing is often surface and too quick. A scene that should probably take several pages (since […]
Ta Da!
Posted on May 8, 2014 Leave a Comment
:::cracks knuckles::: Guess who just finished the rough draft of Part 2? (drumroll please . . . .) ME!!! So being sick all day has some advantages. But my goodness, it was hard to do. I mean it was hard to write. Some tough stuff. I had to put on appropriate music. Thankfully, it was […]
A. W. Downer 