tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5681406041084018359.post1242461299237739291..comments2023-06-23T02:50:22.108-07:00Comments on What I Learned Today: When a Change Really Does You(r Story) Good (March Madness Check-In, Day 25) #WIPmadnessL.S. Taylorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14027508427079449613noreply@blogger.comBlogger30125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5681406041084018359.post-25243581344165094012013-03-27T06:28:13.574-07:002013-03-27T06:28:13.574-07:00Big goals, but you can do it! I can totally empath...Big goals, but you can do it! I can totally empathize here. I had one story that had a dozen incarnations over thirteen years, and I think I slowed my development as a writer because I was so certain it would be my first published novel, too. I'll come back to it when I can give it the talent it deserves.L.S. Taylorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14027508427079449613noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5681406041084018359.post-44749472064484658782013-03-27T06:25:18.274-07:002013-03-27T06:25:18.274-07:00Congrats on meeting 65K! And yeah, those crazy epi...Congrats on meeting 65K! And yeah, those crazy epiphanies can smack us out of the blue, but they're usually so right.L.S. Taylorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14027508427079449613noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5681406041084018359.post-86485836483325512992013-03-25T23:25:14.882-07:002013-03-25T23:25:14.882-07:00Congrats, Carol!
One of my earliest stories whic...Congrats, Carol!<br /><br /><br />One of my earliest stories which I've since mothballed, went through so many incarnations. A man looking back on a childhood summer, an older teen looking back a couple years, an adolescent with a three-year time jump after the prologue, an eight-year old with a three-year time jump, and it's now a boy during the summer he turns thirteen. All but the last one? First person, past tense. I decided to go to third because there were some scenes I needed to write without the MC in it. This entire process was written in the write/edit/write method, which meant it took forever.<br /><br />Also, all the back and forth sent my initial crit partners on a goose chase because my story had multiple personalities. Editing one section but not others led to the voices sounding accurate on one page and foreign on the next. It's a mess that I'll eventually revisit. But I can see how learning the craft and working with other writers through the years has helped my writing for the better.<br /><br />My writing dream was to have that story be my first published one. As most of us know, that's not always the case. In fact, that story might never reach eyeballs again, but the passion behind the project kept me moving forward and got me to where I am today.<br /><br />And today I made a twitter commitment. I announced that I'd write two stories in April. 100K in 30 days. Previously, I wrote 70K in 30 days, 21K in 2.5 days, 8K in less than a day. It can be done. Will it be stellar prose? Not necessarily, but I want to challenge myself to just keep writing and see where it takes me.<br /><br />One edition, though--probably best to maintain some semblance of normalcy in my life--if I can figure out my website situation (I'm waiting for an email from a customer rep) rather than daily blogs, I'll blog a weekly update and/or daily twitter word counts. <br /><br />I already have big goals for April, might as well try and cut myself some slack, but not too much. haha<br /><br />Today was full of website research, Camp NaNo planning and craft book/blog/guide reading.<br /><br />Yes, I plan on sleeping in April. I hope to check in with #wipmadness as it continues. <br /><br />I'm excited for what lies ahead while freaking out on the inside. :)<br /><br /><br />Happy Writing,<br /><br />Tonette<br /><br />P.S. I can't imagine Eric Stoltz as Marty. Hypothetically, try and imagine Michael J. Fox in 'Some Kind of Wonderful'. Glad things worked out the way they did. transient solitudehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08937070408098762169noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5681406041084018359.post-51248331681987036072013-03-25T20:26:13.563-07:002013-03-25T20:26:13.563-07:00I had a moment yesterday when a change that I had ...I had a moment yesterday when a change that I had made from my WIP's outline actually took me by surprise. It was so wildly beyond what I had planned for that character that it changed the entire tone of the rest of the story. I didn't even know I was going to do it when I started writing the chapter. As a matter of fact, I didn't even know I was going to do it as I was writing the paragraph before it happened. I wrote the sentence and literally stopped to stare at my computer like someone else had typed it. I love the feeling of surprising myself with my own writing. <br /><br />Hit 65k on the WIP today. And at a relatively reasonable hour too. Unheard of. <br /><br />Hope you're all doing well. <br /><br />- MMelissa Greyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18109682825813612713noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5681406041084018359.post-58519846112752827312013-03-25T20:25:39.693-07:002013-03-25T20:25:39.693-07:00I've heard a few are okay. I know I actually m...I've heard a few are okay. I know I actually made a point of not using them and that actually didn't do well for the story. Just as long as it's not every fifth sentence, you'll probably be fine. :)<br /><br />Progress is progress! :)L.S. Taylorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14027508427079449613noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5681406041084018359.post-66297137134683420542013-03-25T20:24:26.587-07:002013-03-25T20:24:26.587-07:00Go you! :D
What has to happen, has to happen. It&...Go you! :D<br /><br />What has to happen, has to happen. It's all for the good of the story, right?L.S. Taylorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14027508427079449613noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5681406041084018359.post-51671758976035902002013-03-25T20:23:53.398-07:002013-03-25T20:23:53.398-07:00Yep. As I mentioned to Mary Ann (below), I just di...Yep. As I mentioned to Mary Ann (below), I just didn't go into details because I didn't want to bog down the post. :) Happy writing.L.S. Taylorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14027508427079449613noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5681406041084018359.post-53066512054874064252013-03-25T20:23:01.470-07:002013-03-25T20:23:01.470-07:00Congrats on the sale, Misha! And I hope the splitt...Congrats on the sale, Misha! And I hope the splitting goes well. Awesome progress there. :)L.S. Taylorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14027508427079449613noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5681406041084018359.post-2442946826469731892013-03-25T20:22:15.765-07:002013-03-25T20:22:15.765-07:00Sorry to hear that, Kim. I've had a few reject...Sorry to hear that, Kim. I've had a few rejections like that, too, because I still hadn't figured things out. It sucks. But there are other agents and overall, if the story's better for it, then maybe it was meant to be. Hope things go well for you on your break!L.S. Taylorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14027508427079449613noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5681406041084018359.post-1656880886806917332013-03-25T20:15:17.991-07:002013-03-25T20:15:17.991-07:00Congrats again, Carol. And don't worry about i...Congrats again, Carol. And don't worry about it. I'm definitely not going to make my goals, unfortunately. But I've made myself okay with it. Besides, there's still six more days of checkins!L.S. Taylorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14027508427079449613noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5681406041084018359.post-65444654373994661442013-03-25T20:00:18.507-07:002013-03-25T20:00:18.507-07:00I'm glad to hear I'm not the only one tota...I'm glad to hear I'm not the only one totally rewriting an MS! The one I'm querying started out as a 4 POV horror story with a lot of Native American elements. It's now a 2 POV urban fantasy with a made-up magic system. Hard deleting stuff but so worth it when I see/read the latest version.<br /><br />I didn't get my 2 chapters revised today. I detoured and did an adverb search and destroy. I was pretty sure I hadn't used ANY but was shocked to find more than 2,000 'ly adverbs! Bah... :(<br /><br />Congrats to Carol!Carolyn Charronhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02597693347049887726noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5681406041084018359.post-25852932851555829832013-03-25T16:52:19.005-07:002013-03-25T16:52:19.005-07:00Heheheheheh. :)
Finished. That's such a relat...Heheheheheh. :)<br /><br />Finished. That's such a relative term, isn't it? And so subjective that we need a new word for it as it applies to manuscripts.L.S. Taylorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14027508427079449613noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5681406041084018359.post-30146219670029658312013-03-25T16:50:23.849-07:002013-03-25T16:50:23.849-07:00May the detour be exactly where you need to go. Ha...May the detour be exactly where you need to go. Have fun!L.S. Taylorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14027508427079449613noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5681406041084018359.post-17259488265915935492013-03-25T16:49:35.576-07:002013-03-25T16:49:35.576-07:00Thanks, Denise! I think our stories are like bounc...Thanks, Denise! I think our stories are like bouncy balls. We can start them bouncing, but other people have to have a chance to toss them back to you.<br /><br />Have a great time at Horse Camp. You never know. Sometimes the quiet evenings in the semi-wilderness can provide exactly the space you need to be creative.L.S. Taylorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14027508427079449613noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5681406041084018359.post-49202840428227894382013-03-25T16:45:44.049-07:002013-03-25T16:45:44.049-07:00Yay, congrats, Jennifer!
Sometimes it takes heari...Yay, congrats, Jennifer!<br /><br />Sometimes it takes hearing "Fix this!" from multiple people before it sinks in. And then it's usually so very worth it.L.S. Taylorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14027508427079449613noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5681406041084018359.post-76311028070545795722013-03-25T16:44:40.953-07:002013-03-25T16:44:40.953-07:00I've done a lot of 180s in my work. Right now ...I've done a lot of 180s in my work. Right now I've got two WIPs with alternating POVs and I realize what a huge challenge it is. No way around it with these stories though. <br /><br />Go, Wipsters!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00769602845843608247noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5681406041084018359.post-32416091729261010792013-03-25T16:43:37.358-07:002013-03-25T16:43:37.358-07:00Explore that new character. Maybe they'll lead...Explore that new character. Maybe they'll lead you to a stronger story. :)<br /><br />Yes, it's been a great month, hasn't it? I know I won't make my main goal, but it's dependent on someone else, so that's okay, I'm working on other stuff. And reading. So I'm really okay with how it's all turned out. Onward to chocolate!L.S. Taylorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14027508427079449613noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5681406041084018359.post-4256929047298273052013-03-25T16:39:30.392-07:002013-03-25T16:39:30.392-07:00But on the positive side, think of how much you le...But on the positive side, think of how much you learned in the process! :)L.S. Taylorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14027508427079449613noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5681406041084018359.post-82290682898169029392013-03-25T16:38:45.860-07:002013-03-25T16:38:45.860-07:00Lloyd mentioned Stoltz and the reasons behind the ...Lloyd mentioned Stoltz and the reasons behind the casting change (I just didn't want to bog the post down with the infodump. ;)<br /><br />Yes, take that break! I have a week's staycation coming up soon, and I'm going to do my damnedest not to let household tasks take over. (Will probably leave the house for a coffee shop or something.)<br /><br />L.S. Taylorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14027508427079449613noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5681406041084018359.post-30197265656389718882013-03-25T14:01:42.982-07:002013-03-25T14:01:42.982-07:00Oh, yes. Originally the movie started shooting wit...Oh, yes. Originally the movie started shooting with Eric Stoltz in the role of Marty. I have found that my writing won't be led very well. It must do the leading and another voice or another direction sometimes just won't fit. The battle I'm doing now is trying to work the 3rd person or 1st person POV for my last ms. So many issues either way. Give and Take.<br /><br />I'm a little distracted now that I'm on spring break. Just put shelves up in my office, with the help of Ghost Hunk, and I am vowing not to spend the whole break cleaning or rearranging. I must get back to the madness!Ghost Girl (aka, Mary Ann)https://www.blogger.com/profile/10104992485564788542noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5681406041084018359.post-340394808772163972013-03-25T12:58:03.690-07:002013-03-25T12:58:03.690-07:00Love this post, Laura. I actually did know about ...Love this post, Laura. I actually did know about the refilming decision. In fact, the other actor was Eric Stoltz. I love him, but really, Marty McFly IS Michael J Fox and vice versa. If our story isn't true, then we gotta reshoot, so to speak. I'm still playing with my POV, so I suspect major rewrites loom large. But at least I'm writing. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5681406041084018359.post-81819405308494208842013-03-25T12:06:36.369-07:002013-03-25T12:06:36.369-07:00Well... my madness currently centers around splitt...Well... my madness currently centers around splitting the novel I sold into two volumes. It's a challenge I relish, but it's making it really difficult to read and write. The reason: my thoughts keep circling back to my manuscript. <br /><br />Oh well, I'll get it right eventually. In the meantime I read 24 chapters today, which means I'm almost back up to date. I also managed to write 1550 words, which puts me back on track to achieve my 31k goal. :-)Misha Gerrickhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06364173848456424521noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5681406041084018359.post-36292527194317950732013-03-25T11:44:30.711-07:002013-03-25T11:44:30.711-07:00Congrats, Carol!
CROSSED OUT originally had my MC...Congrats, Carol!<br /><br />CROSSED OUT originally had my MC Stephanie dealing with her anger against the church which made her 'calling' as a soul rescuer kind of ironic considering she made talismans to help murdered girls cross over to the other side. The counselor also was a pastor who filled in at the last moment. Some how that really bugged editors/publishers out there. Some said it had an almost anti-Christian feel which I didn't see at all. So after a number of personal rejections, I ended up bagging that angle. Also it was told in two different POVs-Stephanie's and Dylan's. That didn't go over really well either. I still am kicking myself for doing that as I lost more than a couple dream agent opportunities that way. **I did learn that it's better to not rush out a project just to get an agent. It'll hurt in the long round.<br /><br />This week is Spring Break! Yay! I'm so burned out with sixth grade curriculum and STAR testing is next month! Ugh. Double ugh. Husband's home sick but at least he's finally going to the doctor after I've been bugging him for the past couple months. I do hope to get some writing in this week. If I have to, I'll go to the library and just write.Kim Baccelliahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05304806976633973536noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5681406041084018359.post-66541250142248362592013-03-25T10:38:13.680-07:002013-03-25T10:38:13.680-07:00Hey! That's my name up there! I was dawdling a...Hey! That's my name up there! I was dawdling around on Facebook when Shari suggested I get over here and check in, and now I see why. :) Thanks, Laura! What a lovely way to start out my last week of #wipmadness!<br /><br />Thinking back, I made several changes in my second novel -- from past tense third person POV, to present tense first person, and finally to past tense first person -- and still wasn't happy with it. Of course, that might not be because of the POV so much as it's a story that just didn't work. Either way, it's been shelved and I'm chalking it up to good experience. Later characters have been much easier to live/work with!<br /><br />Can there be only one week of our March Madness left? I still have unmet goals, and they weren't big ones to start with! There is so much else happening this week, but I'm going to dig in and see how much I can get done before Easter arrives. BUT FIRST... I have to go have a look at Denise's prize list and make my choice. WooHoo!!!Carol Garvinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02182655399708415140noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5681406041084018359.post-79862108296571340032013-03-25T09:49:42.898-07:002013-03-25T09:49:42.898-07:00Great post, Laura. It's so important to have t...Great post, Laura. It's so important to have the courage to listen to our gut and make those big changes, because if we continue on when we've cast the wrong guy as Marty, odds are no one's going to be making a series of writing analogies out of our movie almost thirty years later. I mean...uh...you know what I mean. ;) <br /><br />I've changed POV after I thought a ms was "finished" (ha! little did I know...) It went from alternating to a single POV. And my newest YA WIP mysteriously turned out to be MG, LOL, but the story wants what it wants, I guess, so I'll just run with it and see what happens.<br /><br />Have fun with the madness, wipsters! Home stretch this week! Go, go, go!!Shari Greenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12495151345889657066noreply@blogger.com