Tag Archives: writing

Summer Break Means Time to Write

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When I finished substitute teaching today, I went over how many days are left in the school year.  Suddenly, I realized I was on Summer Break.  I am heading up to the mountains tomorrow for a long weekend of reading, writing, editing, and friends.  When I get back, I am going to a fundraising lunch with my mother and helping out my sister with babysitting.  After that, I’m pretty sure there is only one day left of school…and I’ve never much desired to sub on the last day of school.

With time abound, I have plenty to do.  I have four books on my immediate to-read list.  I need to finish editing my latest novel.  On top of all that however, I will continue writing.  I have two stories in my head that I may start working on.  I also have two poems in-progress that I will try to flesh out this weekend.  This summer break will be a godsend to my writing.  I must make sure I keep it up the entire summer.  I need to give my followers some new material.  When I get back from the mountains, you can expect some.

With Love,
Richard

Filling in Plot Holes

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Ten pages of editing a day ended up being a bit much.  After three days of editing, I have 16 pages done.  Since the manuscript is already pretty clean, I don’t mind going a bit slower than expected.  Five pages of editing a day is great.  Plus, I’m pretty sure I’ll do much more this weekend.  I’ll be up in a family cabin in the mountains with no internet access for a few days.  It’ll be perfect.

It’s strange finding plot holes in your own work.  In some instances, I started something early on in the book and lost track of it as I wrote.  Other times, I didn’t plan on a certain plot turn and now realize the start of the book doesn’t line up with the end of the book.  I’ve come up with a good method of tracking all of them.   This is one of the main reasons I do at least three edits before letting anyone read my work.  By the time I’m done with the second edit, grammar and spelling is ususally fine.  It’s the plot holes you have to worry about.  I don’t want my first readers to be confused.

Time to go read.  The Handmaid’s Tale is quite interesting.

With Love,
Richard

Creating Free Time to Write (or Edit)

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I remember all the tipsI found about writing when I was a teenager.  It was all great advice.  It’s just that I didn’t understand all of them.  One was: “Don’t find time to write.  Make time to write.”  For a high school student, this idea was brilliant.  I kept failing to write anything of length because there was always so much else to do.  Forcing yourself to write is one of the best things a writer can do for themselves.

As I quickly approach the district’s summer holiday, I realize there is a new layer to this advice.  It’s one thing to make room for writing in your day.  It is another thing entirely to make room for writing in your life.  I substitute teach and take odd jobs because it allows me to focus on writing and (most importantly) write every single day.  Lately, I only take about two days off a month from writing/editing.  I make the decision to write on a daily basis.  But I also take it into account when i make decisions about my life.

And I wouldn’t change a thing.

With Love,
Richard

Getting Down to Editing

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I just finished editing the first two chapters of the book (out of 47).  I’ve decided to edit on the computer.  I could say it’s because I want to be environmentally conscious…but that would be a lie.  I prefer editing on the computer because I can make all the changes I need to instantly without the chance of forgetting.  I go straight through the writing and change what is needed.  At the same time, I have another Word document open tracking all of the plot holes and whatnot that I need to keep an eye on.

I’ve heard plenty of times that you are supposed to ready through the entirety of the novel one time without changing a thing.  I have to cry bullshit on that one.  I cannot read through, see all the small mistakes, and not do something about them.  I’m really enjoying editing right now.  Of my four novels, this one seems to have the fewest mistakes.  Considering how quickly I wrote it, I expected the exact opposite.  My goal for this editing job is to edit about ten pages a day.  With about 110 pages in Word, I should get a new draft done every eleven days or so.

With Love,
Richard

66,073 Words in 42 Days

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At 4:45pm today, I have completed my fourth novel.  It took me 42 days to write and is a total of 66,073 words.  That means I wrote an average of 1,573 words every day over the past six weeks.  Although the novel is slightly shortly than I would like it, I will probably take care of that in the editing.  I will wait until tomorrow to figure out how to edit this monster.

Tonight I will rest and celebrate.

8 April 2012: 600 Words
9 April 2012: 2,700 Words
10 April 2012: 4,300 Words
11 April 2012: 4,800 Words
12 April 2012: 8,700 Words
13 April 2012: 9,900 Words
14 April 2012: 10,700 Words
15 April 2012: 11,600 Words
16 April 2012: 13,800 Words
17 April 2012: 15,900 Words
18 April 2012: 17,500 Words
19 April 2012: 20,000 Words
20 April 2012: 21,100 Words
21 April 2012: 22,100 Words
22 April 2012: 25,300 Words
23 April 2012: 27,100 Words
24 April 2012: 28,500 Words
25 April 2012: 30,200 Words
26 April 2012: 31,500 Words
27 April 2012: 33,300 Words
28 April 2012: 34,700 Words
29 April 2012: 36,300 Words
30 April 2012: Halftime Break
1 May 2012: 38,300 Words
2 May 2012: 39,900 Words
3 May 2012: 40,700 Words
4 May 2012: 42,500 Words
5 May 2012: 43,400 Words
6 May 2012: 44,300 Words
7 May 2012: 46,600 Words
8 May 2012: 48,000 Words
9 May 2012: 48,900 Words
10 May 2012: 51,000 Words
11 May 2012: 52,300 Words
12 May 2012: Fourth Quarter Break
13 May 2012: 53,700 Words
14 May 2012: 55,100 Words
15 May 2012: 56,400 Words
16 May 2012: 59,800 Words
17 May 2012: Two-Minute Warning
18 May 2012: 64,700 Words
19 May 2012: 66,073 Words

The Everyday Project

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With only a few chapters left, I am starting to wrap up the storylines of several characters. I’m enjoying it a lot.  I’ve grown to know my characters a lot over the past month an a half.  Their lives after the events of the book almost feel like they are writing themselves.  I know how they act and what they are capable of.  As the book comes to a natural conclusion, I am finding out a lot that I didn’t know about my characters.  I love it.

Today I am uploading a personal project that has nothing to do with writing.  Five and a half years ago, I started taking a picture of myself everyday.  Today, that means that there are more than 2,000 pictures.  When played in quick succession (10 images a second), you can see me age.  The Everyday Project is something I believe everyone should do.  I hope you enjoy.

Closing Action

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I have about 15,000 words left to write.  Considering I am hitting the final climax over the next two chapters, my closing actions will be about 10,000 words.  I’ve never really thought about this before.  How much closing action is too much?  How much is too little?  In my first two novels, I didn’t think about this much because they were part of a trilogy.  With my third novel, everything was quick so I did the same with the end.

I hate making things back and white.  I know that the outline I have is perfect to conclude this story.  But, as I look at the numbers, I wish the concluding action wasn’t 1/8th of the novel.  I won’t honestly worry about it until I get there.  Too often do I think about the numbers then I realize that certain chapters will be twice as long as others.  I’m just thinking about too much, I guess.  I just need to write, write, write, and wrap this thing up.

Much Love,
Richard

Finishing in Style

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Most writers have a certain scene stuck in their head when they write.  I know I do.  I feel compelled to write because I can see certain parts of my story so clearly.  I know exactly what needs to happen before I can write the scene that I’ve thought about for weeks.  Sometimes it is the beginning of the story.  Sometimes it’s a random part.  Sometimes it is the climax.

I had four of those scenes stuck in my head when I started this project.  Now that I am in my final two weeks of writing, I have written out three of those four scenes.  Nothing is more satisfying that being able to write out a scene in such a way that gives it justice.  It’s a surprisingly hard thing to accomplish.  Sometimes these scenes have been in my mind for years.  When you finally write it out, you don’t want to get a detail wrong.

Damn.  Writing with passion complicates everything.  Hmmm…sounds about right.

With Love,
Richard

Dilemma: Writing & Working

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A couple weeks ago, I watched “Girl, Interrupted.”  In the movie, they ask the protagonist what she wants to do with her life.  Her response: Write.  The reaction is one that many writers know well.  There are blank stares and then the inevitable question.  “What’s your backup plan?”  Few non-writers understand the mindset of a writer.  We writers may do something else to make money.  That is not who we are.  We are writers first.

I have built a life that allows me to focus on my writing.  It is something I hope to maintain for years to come.  With my Bachelor’s Degree, I am able to substitute teach whenever I want for decent money.  With cheap rent and a cheaper lifestyle, I honestly don’t work very often.  I do, however, write at least three hours a day.  It’s difficult to build a lifestyle that allows you to be a writer first.  If you are able to accomplish it, it is well worth it.  I encourage all writers out their to honestly sit down and think about their priories.  If you can put writing first, you should.

I’m about to hit another major milestone in my novel.  More tomorrow.

Much Love,
Richard

The Plight of the Writer (Huzun)

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It’s strange being a writer at times.  Your writing depends so much on emotion.  The thing is emotion is ever-changing–much like a river.  The question that stands is: How to you harness the power of that river in order to produce something that will allow a reader to care.  If I write to fast, I worry about the quality of my writing.  If I write to slow, I worry about the changing emotion (of me) changing the state of the writing even when that is not what I want.

There is a reason depression and writing are forever bound.  For one, those who suffer from depression seems to have a more poetic view of their world.  Aside from that, the depressed mind is constant.  If you allow yourself to fall into depression, you need not worry about the changing state of your writing.  The question you are left with is: Can you sacrifice your life for your writing.  When writing becomes your life, the question is simple to answer.

For my readers: A poem.

Questions Deep in a Cavern
I go on regular hikes in the mountains behind my house.  I have found a beautiful waterfall where I’ve started to write.  I went there to write about a something very specific.  The idea merged with my surrounding and formed my favorite poem to date.