Week in Review (#4)

WEEK IN REVIEW

Another 'Week in Review' post! I really need more ideas as to what to blog about....



Past Writing 

This week I made my weekly word count goal of 3,000 words minimum by writing 3,384 for my YA fantasy novella, Pink Knight. I've got 17,800 words written of what will be a 25,000 word story, so I'm around 3/4 of the way finished. This is so great! I'm actually going to finish this one. I probably should reward myself when I'm all done.

I can't wait to be done with it, not because I'm hating to write it, but because I want to get to the editing. I must be an editing junky because I can't write and not edit as I write. That's my style, but it'll likely keep me from having to revise the story so much. So far, everything is going very well and the story is good, even for my standards. The fact that I've yet to trunk it is a good sign.

Past Reading

I just finished reading Such Wicked Intent by Kenneth Oppel, the second book in The Apprenticeship of Victor Frankenstein series and it was amazing! I loved the first book SO much and this one did not disappoint. I might say I liked this one even more than the first. I think it's the last one, which is sad, but good if that's all the author has to say about this story.

I'm very into Frankenstein literature and, finally, more books are coming out because of the success of Kenneth Oppel's books. Last week, I also got approved for an ARC of Broken by A.E. Rought, which is a YA retelling of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. Although, I don't know quite how it retells it, but the protagonist is a teen girl. I'm hearing good things about it, so I'm excited. That books comes out January 8, 2013.  

This Week

My goal is to write another 3,000 words of Pink Knight. Honestly, stating my goals on my blog has really helped me to not slack off. I know I would have had I not been declaring that I intend to write this amount of words, or have that much finished by this time. I really need that accountability. It keeps me real. Last thing I want to do is look like a total flake for not writing enough when I could have.

This week's reading will be preempted because a writer friend of mine needs a critique on her novella due out later this year. So, I will be reading, but not a finished manuscript. I do love to edit, although it's so much more work than passive reading. (Can I state the obvious, or what?) If I finish early enough in the week, I'll be moving on to reading my ARC of Velveteen by Daniel Marks. He is a super funny guy and I can't wait to dive right into his YA paranormal/horror novel. 


That's all for this week, folks. Thanks for all your support and words of encouragement. I appreciate whatever comments you'd like to leave, be they in-depth, or even the drive-by variety to lob at me!
  

Week In Review (#3)

WEEK IN REVIEW

Time for another "Week in Review" post and I have happier things to report this week compared to last week.

Past Writing 

I decided to raise my word count last week from 3,600 to 4,200 because I wanted to add back in the 600 words I didn't write from the previous week. It was tiring, but I made my word count of 4,200 and my WIP's total word count now stands at 14,300 words. I'm excited I made it! Last week was so quiet and peaceful compared to the week before, which made focusing on writing ten times easier. Distractions, please keep away!

Past Reading

I didn't read any regular novels last week because I usually have to take a break from the grind every four or five months. As much as I love to read, too much of a good thing without any breaks isn't so great. I've enjoyed ignoring the books on my shelves, even if they've been looking at me like this lately, O__O, trying to figure me out.

I did, however, read a new book on the craft last week that I bought on my Kindle for only $4.99 called The Emotion Thesaurus by Becca Puglisi and Angela Ackerman. You guys! This book is so amazing. It's self-published by the ladies who run The Bookshelf Muse blog for writing tips and such. It has a long list of different types of emotions that we all feel and descriptions on all the physical and internal symptoms for each, giving you so much more to write with. You just look up whatever emotion you want and there's the list. It's a must-have reference for writers!

This Week

Since my goal is to finish this novella by October 20th (about a month from now), I really don't have to kill myself to write it every week in order to meet this deadline. I'm going to plan on writing 3,000 words per week until it's done, so my goal for this week is to write another 3,000 words of Pink Knight. I'm still very happy with how the story is progressing and surprised I don't feel like I have no space for all the things I want to do with the story. I feel almost like I have too much room, instead.

I'll be back to reading again, as usual, and I'll finally be getting to Such Wicked Intent by Kenneth Oppel, the second book in The Apprenticeship of Victor Frankenstein series. It's a cool historical gothic YA title with alchemy and mad scientists, or at least, a budding mad scientist who will, eventually, create that infamous monster we all know and love. 

That's it for me this week. Thanks for reading and cheering me on! I hope you all reach your writing goals this week, too, or whatever types of goals they may be.

Book Review: Writing the Breakout Novel by Donald Maass

I've been thinking for a while about reviewing the books on writing craft that I've read in the past on this blog. I've been reviewing sci-fi/fantasy novels on my book blog for over year, so I figured reviewing books relevant to this blog might make sense. The following review is not just a testimonial meant to convince you to buy the book, but is my way of outlining what the book actually contains in very condensed form.

Writing the Breakout Novel
by Donald Maass

Genre: Nonfiction/Fiction Writing Reference

Publication Date: August 15, 2002

Source: paperback purchase

| Amazon | | Barnes &Noble |

Take your fiction to the next level Maybe you're a first-time novelist looking for practical guidance. Maybe you've already been published, but your latest effort is stuck in mid-list limbo. Whatever the case may be, author and literary agent Donald Maass can show you how to take your prose to the next level and write a breakout novel—one that rises out of obscurity and hits the best-seller lists.

Maass details the elements that all breakout novels share—regardless of genre—then shows you writing techniques that can make your own books stand out and succeed in a crowded marketplace.

You'll learn to: establish a powerful and sweeping sense of time and placeweave subplots into the main action for a complex, engrossing storycreate larger-than-life characters that step right off the pageexplore universal themes that will interest a broad audience of readerssustain a high degree of narrative tension from start to finishdevelop an inspired premise that sets your novel apart from the competition Then, using examples from the recent works of several best-selling authors—including novelist Anne Perry—Maass illustrates methods for upping the ante in every aspect of your novel writing. You'll capture the eye of an agent, generate publisher interest and lay the foundation for a promising career. 

 

My Review

When I finally got around to reading this book after buying it, I was at a point in my writing self-education where I wanted to become a better storyteller, not just a better writer. I had already smoothed out my technical writing skills well enough and found my fiction still lacking quite a bit. What did I need to do to write a compelling narrative? There was something still missing because when I wrote fiction, it continued to fall flat on the page. It was my story that was failing, or so I had discovered when I cracked open this gem of a book.

The first thing Maass teaches is the foundation of a story—the premise. Don't pursue just any old premise right out of the gate. It needs to be developed into a premise that is strong enough to withhold the structure build on top of it that is your actual written story. For that, it should have one of four elements: plausibility, inherent conflict, originality and gut emotional appeal. Once my premises could pass this litmus test, I found I could fix any flaws in my manuscripts without having to rewrite them.

Second, raise the stakes of the story, meaning make the characters lose things that are valuable to them, or threaten to. In order to do that, Maass has you ask, “How could things get worse?” Make the danger immediate and put your characters on the chopping block. Otherwise, your reader won't care enough. He also talks about time and place, which could be considered less important in writing breakout fiction. But, if you can capture the psychology of time and place by describing how setting makes characters feel, it can have deeper impact and won't be used solely for visual imagery.

The chapter on 'Characters' could be the most illuminating. Engrossing characters are larger-than-life and they say what we can't say and change in ways we can't. They have inner conflicts of conscience and are celebrated by readers because of their strengths. Your main character should be the one who changes the most by the events of the story. After all, a story is about events that cause a character to transform, at least internally.

Maass delves into plot and different contemporary uses for plot, how to handle multiple viewpoints, subplots, pace, voice and endings. He also devotes a chapter to advanced plot structures showing how authors of various genres, like science fiction and category romance, can enhance their plotting to catch the eye of the gatekeepers in the biz.

Lastly, is the chapter on theme. Maass believes all novels are moral and shows you how to build a theme for a novel step by step. Thankfully, he shows how to avoid becoming preachy and how to let the characters do all the talking, or acting for that matter. Their job is to convey theme through their words and deeds, a powerful combination that drives the story's message home to your readers much more effectively than an author on a soapbox.

As much as I'm interested in writing a breakout novel, I didn't read this book strictly for that reason. I read it because I wanted help taking my fiction to “the next level.” I don't want anymore false starts on my manuscripts that have to be shelved because the premise is too weak, or I don't have a well-developed enough character goal. I'm not saying this book is the final word on story craft. But, it could open your eyes to concepts you simply never knew before and lay the groundwork for more advanced story-writing education.

My score: 5/5 stars. 

 

Week in Review (#2)

WEEK IN REVIEW

It's been a week since I blogged and the last time was my most recent "Week in Review" post. This week I'll report on how things went last week concerning my word count goal on my novella WIP and other tidbits. 

Past Writing

I set a goal for myself last week to write 3,600 words every week in my YA fantasy novella, Pink Knight. Well, this week proved to be more troublesome and distracting in my real life than I expected, so I didn't quite make my word count. I hate to make excuses, but last week was a seriously BAD week, worse than usual. Still, I did write 3,000 words, making the length now at 10,100 words, so not too far below my goal. I'm happy enough with that, all things considered. Hopefully, I'll have a quieter week, adversity-wise, and be able to make my weekly word count goal.

  Past Reading

I read Camille Picott's Sulan and a children's book suggested by her called The Paper Bag Princess. Sulan is a cool cyberpunk dystopian novel that actually reads like something other than The Hunger Games! And, The Paper Bag Princess by Robert Munsch was funny and cute. I wonder I never knew about the book when I was a kid, since it was published way back in 1980 (when I was 4). I bought it on my Kindle for $1.89, so go get it if you want to read it. Super cheap! 

I also bought Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi and Partials by Dan Wells. Both are YA dystopia and were on sale in the Kindle store for only $2.99 each. Partials still is. Check them out if you want to save on these titles. They are also the same price for now at Barnes & Noble's website. Also, I finally got my UK edition of Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas, a YA fantasy title, which I'm super excited to read. Took weeks for it to get here because the post office is really slow right now. Same for my Bleach manga volume. At least they're safe with me now.

This Week

I plan to write at least 3,600 this week of Pink Knight, but I'd really like to exceed that. I'm not going to be reading any novels this week because I need a break, so I hope to have more time and energy for writing, as a result. My novella is coming along and I'm super happy with how the story is unfolding. It's turning into a story I'd definitely read if it were written by somebody else, that's for sure.

That's what my week was all about. How was yours? What are you planning for the upcoming week with your writing, or reading? 

   

Week in Review (#1)

WEEK IN REVIEW

Since I have expressed how hard it is for me to finish any writing project I start, I figured I might have need of a little thing called 'accountability.' Maybe proclaiming what I'm doing as I write a work of fiction, in this case my current YA fantasy novella, will hold my feet to the fire and get me to feel obligated to write it. As much as I hate obligatory anything, this might just work to get me to finish a WiP for once!

So, if I become transparent about what I'm doing every week, and what I plan on doing for each upcoming week, this could get me motivated to write. I need to try and see if this will work.

I'm writing a novella with a projected final word count of around 25,000 words and I have set myself a due date for it. That, too, is something I wasn't doing before and may have contributed to my problem. The self-imposed due date for the completed 1st draft is October 20th. So, I'll just report on how well I'm doing each week on nibbling away at this goal, if you don't mind.

 Past Writing

During the week last week, I managed to write up to 7,240 words of my novella, titled Pink Knight, clearing the 1st Act and starting Act 2. I even wrote 1,400 words on Thursday night. And, writing at night is really helping me a lot. I can actually get some done!  I'm going to keep doing that. Maybe I found my perfect writing time. No surprise it's late at night as I am an incurable night owl.

Past Reading 

I read a few novellas during the week, as well, namely The Assassin and the Empire (Throne of Glass, #0.4) by Sara J. Maas, Weighted by Ciara Knight, and Two Ravens and One Crow (Iron Druid Chronicles, #4.5) by Kevin Hearne. All stories were great and that's a feat in and of itself.

I'm loving the Throne of Glass prequel novellas and can't wait to read the first novel. Weighted was a review request by fellow blogger, Ciara Knight, and I love the Iron Druid Chroncles series. I hated the fourth installment, but I still intend to read future books. This novella was good and very funny. Atticus, the main character, didn't annoy me like he did in Book 4 and Oberon was his usual silly self.   

This Week

I plan to write every night for the rest of this week, with hopefully around 3,600 words completed. It's not a huge word count, but I never set myself up for big word counts since I have the tendency to not make them. So, I intend to write less so I can actually accomplish this. I'm also going to be reading Sulan by Camille Picott, a review copy I received from her for her Sulan book tour, which I'll be hosting for two days later this month on my book review blog. 

That's it for me. I'm kind of liking this feature and I might just keep it up on a weekly basis. It makes me feel organized, if anything.

Unfinished Manuscripts: Insecure Writers' Support Group (#2)

"Insecure Writer's Support Group" is a monthly meme host by Alex J. Cavanaugh for writers held on the first Wednesday of every month.

A big problem I now realize I have is that I can't seem to finish any manuscripts I start. I never thought I'd become one of those writers who can't finish any writing projects, but, apparently, I am just that.

I really don't know how this happened because when I start something I always have every intention of finishing it. Somewhere along the line, I come up with a new idea and decide to start writing it so as to have two projects going at the same time. No big deal, since having two or more manuscripts going at once is pretty normal for authors. But, when I have more than one going on at the same time, I end up favoring the newer one and seem to never get the older one finished.

This year, there are varying reasons behind why I have a couple of manuscripts now hanging out on the back burner. My YA urban fantasy, Ironworks, is on the back burner because I got to a point where I realized I couldn't fix the story without completely changing the entire premise. It was one of those MS's that was doomed to be a big problem from the start because it didn't have a firm foundation to be built upon. I wrote 20,000 words and stopped.

The second one I just shelved for now is my adult sci-fi/horror novel, Black Bird, which I had to suspend writing for now because I became too afraid to write it. I honestly cannot write it anymore because I feel like I'm going to mess up and it will be the end of the world. It really is ridiculous, but try telling that to my irrational mind that refuses to be convinced otherwise. I wrote around 16,000 words and put it aside.

Now, I'm writing a YA fantasy novella that's really fun to write, so I'm not afraid to spend time with it. So far I'm nearly 1/4 of the way finished with it, but having trouble not getting distracted away from it by real life problems at home. I'm hoping if I can get rested enough and write when the distractions are at a minimum (here's looking at you, midnight hour), then I might be able to actually finish this one! I only need around 20,000 words to complete it, and surely I can do that, right?

I hope so. I'm keeping my fingers crossed and saving my energy for the night time when my family members will be asleep and unable to distract me. I'm finding my life is really great when everyone at home is in bed. Sounds so mean, but it's the truth. Good thing I'm a natural night owl. 

That's my writing insecurity for this month. I hope by next month I'll have a lot more of my novella finished so it will not end up following the same fate as all my other unfinished manuscripts.  

Have you ever found it difficult to finish the manuscripts you start?