Month: January 2013

What’s the last thing you’ll say to the world?

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You have a chance to say one last thing to the world.

This thing must be short: less than the length of a tweet.

This thing must be good – it will literally be carved in stone, and people will be reading it for years to come. For some, it will be the only thing they know about you.

So, you story writers, you world crafters, you word fiends; what would you put on your tombstone?

It’s an intriguing question, particularly for a writer. I mean, shouldn’t we have the best epitaphs ever?

A few folks in my family have already decided.

 

My mom:

It could be worse.

This is her life’s motto and she’s said for years she wants it on her tombstone. I find this hilarious. Imagine walking through a cemetery and reading that.

 

My brother:

Born once. Died twice. Now I’ll live forever.

His heart stopped for 45 minutes when he was a baby, so technically he’s already been dead once.

 

Mine:

Our back is to legends and we are coming home.

This is a quote from The Hobbit, when Bilbo is returning from his adventures. Maybe my own words should be on there, but this quote may just be too perfect.

 

While we’re on the subject, here’s bestselling author John Green’s thoughts on tombstones:

 

And because we can’t leave it unresolved, here’s his brother (and guy behind Lizzie Bennet Diaries) Hank Green revealing the story behind Gussie Manlove:

 

So how about you? What will you have etched above your final resting place?

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Inspiration Monday: sky writing

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Today I gave my nose a paper cut with a napkin. Seriously?

Fortunately, I’m not in the habit of snorting lemon juice.

Oh look! Cool stuff to read! Including some new faces!

Sandra

UnhealthyObsessionWithWords

Chris

Oscar

LadyWhispers

Mike

Nick

LMLeffew

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The Rules

There are none. Read the prompts, get inspired, write something. No word count minimum or maximum. You don’t have to include the exact prompt in your piece, and you can interpret the prompt(s) any way you like.

OR

No really; I need rules!

Okay; write 200-500 words on the prompt of your choice. You may either use the prompt as the title of your piece or work it into the body of your piece. You must complete it before 6 pm CST on the Monday following this post.

The Prompts:

sky writing
haunted word
prepare for the best
none remember
one broken string

Want to share your Inspiration Monday piece? Post it on your blog and link back to today’s post (here’s a video on how to do it); I’ll include a link to your piece in the next Inspiration Monday post. No blog? Email your piece to me at bekindrewrite (at) yahoo (dot) com. (I do reserve the right to NOT link to a piece as stated in my Link Discretion Policy.)

Plus, get the InMon badge for your site here.

Happy writing!

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* MC = Mature Content.

Opinions expressed in other writers’ InMon pieces are not necessarily my own.

6 steps to judging your own writing

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When the pages are closing in on you. [image by Thanakrit Du]

When the pages are closing in on you. [image by Thanakrit Du]

You’ve been working on your novel for so long, you no longer know what’s good and what’s bad. You can’t tell whether the tone is right, the pacing is fast enough, or the characters are believable. All you can see is a swarm of words.

You either think it’s all wonderful (you’re wrong) or it’s all terrible (you’re wrong).

And when it comes to editing, with or without beta readers, you’ll have to make your own decisions at some point.

So is it possible to look at your own work with complete impartiality?

Well, no. But with the right preparation, you can get close.

  1. Step away from the novel. Don’t even look at it for at least a month. Work on something different (NOT the sequel).
  1. Feed the machine. In that same month, read some classics and award-winners. Avoid the “guilty pleasure” books that are horribly written but that you love anyway – those are for another time. Get your brain used to the good stuff so it can recognize the bad stuff (like eating McDonald’s after months of home-cooked meals, it stays with you in a nasty way).
  1. Feed the machine some more. Also re-watch some of your favorite movies – being shorter than books, they more clearly show the plot as a whole. Note how each story is structured. How does it open? How does the tension escalate? How does the hero reach his lowest point? What ultimate decision does he make?
  1. Review. Read good books and/or movie reviews, especially ones that point out plot faults. This will help you identify problems in your own work. For instance:
    1. David’s amazingly insightful reviews at Twilight’s Warden
    2. The hilarious animated video series How It Should Have Ended
    3. The brilliant (though horribly crass, so be warned) reviews at Red Letter Media (I’ve only watched the Star Wars ones)
  1. Tell your ego to shut up. We writers have a tendency to waver between extremes of pretentiousness (“They just don’t understand my brilliance!”) and anxiety (“They’re going to think I’m an idiot.”). Tune out both these voices. Neither is truthful.
  • For the pretentious voice: Let go of the things you refused to change before. Pretty paragraphs you refused to delete. Lovable characters you refused to kill. Look at those “non-negotiables” and ask why? If you don’t have a real reason (e.g., “to be edgy” is not a real reason to be gratuitous), then change it. There are many ways a story can play out, and there’s probably a much more exciting and meaningful way yours can.
  • For the anxious voice: Every good writer is scared when he releases something new into the world. That’s normal. But ask yourself: does a certain part scare you—a certain phrase or scene? Does it scare you because it sounds juvenile, or because it exposes a piece of you? If the former, change it. If the latter, have the courage to leave it.
  1. Create a deleted scenes file. You know you should cut something—but it’s also pretty good writing; what if you need it somewhere else later? Don’t be paralyzed by uncertainty. Simply copy, cut and paste any major deletions into a new file. Soon you’ll have a much cleaner manuscript and a whole list of ideas to fall back on should you ever need it.

What part of self-editing gives you the most trouble?

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