I've begun

I'm doing a lot of thinking. I just completed the final draft of my first YA, and it's making the rounds to agents. For my next book, I want to create a series character, and I'm trying to create her world. I'm trying to maker her upper -end YA age, seventeen. My goal is to get the first book in the series done by Valentine's Day. That's the plan...

I'm stalling. I've got a completed novel that my agent wants me to revise, but I have revision (plus I have been ill) so I have been putting it off. Got to get round to it at some point, gaaah.

I've just gone past the 10,000 word mark on the first draft of my first novel. It sucks (needless to say), but I'm getting my plot down, the broad brushstrokes for my characters and am determined to keep chugging through to the end. At the same time, I'm working on my idea for a second YA novel (YA SF this time), which I think could have good potential.

I stalled this week brainstorming. And this bladder infection has got me moaning and distracted. But I had a good talk with my agent and he told me that out of all the conferences, shows and writing workshops he's attended, (about 10 this last year) he managed to meet nearly all of the top acquisitions editors at the large and medium houses. He said that 70% of them are young females in their twenties or thirties. He suggested we try a paranormal thriller, with some layering and and good subplots and twists. Oh, and a good smathering of erotic undertones. A gritty, other worldly type story that is designed to shock and awe. He seems to believe that this genre is hot right now and not fixing to dim in the near future. I concured and shelved my SF for the time being.

I just started it a few hours ago. I'll bone up on my romance over at the appropriet thread and see if I can get my female protag girded in some flashy intelligent armor. We'll see how this rolls. I'm taking it nice an easy this time--concentrating on premise and great voice right up front. I want the beginning to not to tarry, but to get right into the emotional horrifics. A little horror tutoring wouldn't hurt me either. Horror + Romance (and a tad of magic) =paranormal thriller. So here goes I...

Good luck to all

Tri--red-shifting

Description can be a heady wine for a writer. Sometimes less is better. If the scene happens to punctuate the personality of the character, so much the better--kind of a two birds with one stone technique. But I do hate describing everyday items and avoid it if it's not neccessary. Right now I'm describing a birthday party. I'll see if I can post a bit. I'm trying to give the impression that this is a rich girl's party. Not sure if I'm making that clear.

Avy had blown out the 18 candles on her birthday cake two hours ago. The last of the party guests had just stepped out the door. Silly String hung from the chandelier like pasta and a thick carpet of confetti lay over the parquet floor. An explosion of wrapping paper had buried the dinning room table that seemed to take up a half acre of living space. Drake Labrador had excused the guests early, claiming that he had an important business conference. His wife, Lizzy, was already running a portable sweeper over the floor, managing to push the small paper squares into hills, that in turn were shoved into larger mountains. A front end loader would have served better to remove the confetti mounds. It was all for naught anyway; the maid was off.

Tri

I thought I had finished my YA supernatural mystery novel, until someone on the boards advised me that 30,000 words was too short. I let the thing sit for a month, and finally decided to do a complete rewrite. Rather than try to write new scenes and plug them into my existing story, it's easier for me to rewrite the story and scavenge from the scenes already written. Also, it helps make it feel a little more fresh. I'm sorta getting sick of this story and these characters.

Started a YA novel a few weeks ago after writing true crime. Why the switch? In the past I've began 2-3 YA, but never finished. The on I've started is a YA paranormal mystery. I'm really having fun writing it!

After getting some valuable feedback from some beta readers and a couple of "plot epiphanies" on my part, I figured out which screws need to be tightened to get this latest (of many) drafts into something I can consider sending out. But revision is going slowly. I was pretty disappointed to see 2006 go without this YA wrapped up and ready to make some friends. I'm not big on New Years Resolutions, but this year, dammit. This ms is going places, it will see the inside of many a post box. 2-oh-oh-7, yo!

xxxrae

sharpierae said:

After getting some valuable feedback from some beta readers and a couple of "plot epiphanies" on my part, I figured out which screws need to be tightened to get this latest (of many) drafts into something I can consider sending out. But revision is going slowly. I was pretty disappointed to see 2006 go without this YA wrapped up and ready to make some friends. I'm not big on New Years Resolutions, but this year, dammit. This ms is going places, it will see the inside of many a post box. 2-oh-oh-7, yo!

xxxrae

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Yes! Me too! ::high-fives Stockholm YA writer:: WOO!WOO!WOO ::runs around in a circle shaking his fist::

I'm almost 45k into my new WIP, and my goal is to write 1,000 words a day (I know, I'm crazy right?) until it is finished! Not only is it YA, it's sort of a memoir kind of thing, and I want to finish it before I completely forget everything that happened!

I also have a problem with description, although this one isn't too bad. I find I add a lot more description when I'm trying to reach a word count goal. It also helps that I've actually seen everything/one/where that I'm writing about.

I write with the philosophy that if I can see it in my mind, I can describe it. I've used professional editors to brush up my writing, and have been fortunate enough to have the help of published authors on a chapter or two. Their advice on description is to limit the initial details to three and throw in more as your write further. This rule has worked well for me. My problem gets to be too much description, which is great since cutting is easier than filling in. Also, every reader will complete the image themselves in slightly different ways. Focus on the most important aspects of the setting/character you're describing in your initial description. As you proceed to show that character or setting, you can throw in more details, usually a word or phrase, with the actions taking place.

Melanie

triceretops said:

Avy had blown out the 18 candles on her birthday cake two hours ago. The last of the party guests had just stepped out the door. Silly String hung from the chandelier like pasta and a thick carpet of confetti lay over the parquet floor. An explosion of wrapping paper had buried the dinning room table that seemed to take up a half acre of living space. Drake Labrador had excused the guests early, claiming that he had an important business conference. His wife, Lizzy, was already running a portable sweeper over the floor, managing to push the small paper squares into hills, that in turn were shoved into larger mountains. A front end loader would have served better to remove the confetti mounds. It was all for naught anyway; the maid was off.

Tri

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I really like your writing style. I can sense some "richness" in this paragraph. The question, I wonder, is how rich do you want to make her family sound?

Arisa81 said:

Okay, so I wrote for 2 days and haven't done a lick since (at least on the novel). I think that I might take back my goal of writing a novel this year and start with something shorter. Maybe a novelette or a short story for young adults. I think I am very intimidated right now at the thought of writing an entire novel good enough that I will actually submit it one day.
Did anyone else do this? Start with something shorter and work your way up?

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Don't give up! When you think of your goal in more managable terms, you'll be able to reach it, and the thought won't seem so daunting. How about writing 200 words a day? That's hardly more than a few paragraphs, but if you keep it up for the entire year, you'll have a decent sized novel to work with. And besides, if you make yourself start writing with a goal of 200 words in mind, you'll most likely end up getting really into it and writing even more. Now, my goal is to write 1,000 words a day, but most days I end up writing a lot more than that. You just need the goal to get you started, and your muse will take it from there!

laurenem6 said:

Don't give up! When you think of your goal in more managable terms, you'll be able to reach it, and the thought won't seem so daunting. How about writing 200 words a day? That's hardly more than a few paragraphs, but if you keep it up for the entire year, you'll have a decent sized novel to work with. And besides, if you make yourself start writing with a goal of 200 words in mind, you'll most likely end up getting really into it and writing even more. Now, my goal is to write 1,000 words a day, but most days I end up writing a lot more than that. You just need the goal to get you started, and your muse will take it from there!

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Arisa don't give up! I remember feeling the same way you feel, and it was always for one of two (sometimes both) reasons. Either I had not worked out my plot and outline well enough in advance, and I really had no long-range idea what I was going to do with my story, or I had set unreasonable daily writing goals. In both cases, I suddenly found myself avoiding my writing. I found that doing the hard work of making a complete scene-by-scene plot outline (even if the story deviates from it later), and lowering my daily writing goal to something that I could manage. The second part turned out to be the big culprit. I'm the sort of person who wants to see results right now. I was not overly thrilled with the prospect of sitting down and writing two pages per day, every day, for six or eight months. I wanted to write TEN pages a day for two months (and hopefully see the book in the stores a few weeks after that). Since I started forcing myself to do a complete scene-by-scene outline (just one or two lines per scene) and forcing myself to just do a little bit every day, I have finished one YA novel that I am currently revising, and 60,000 words of a fantasy novel. It can be done

Yes, I would look at the story in smaller chunks and concentrate on those scenes, which you build into the next, and so on. I've never worked with an outline and found that if I pace myself, the story usually does a good job of writing itself. I just have to wear blinders to keep me focused on the next scene before me.

Tri

ADD and Frustrated

I'm the perfect candidate for Attention Deficit Disorder when it comes to writing. I'm having a really tough time staying focused on any one of my works-in-progress. All of them are in the brainstorm/research/outlining stage. In only one case (YA fantasy) have I actually gotten started in writing the novel.

It's really hard to know how much research and/or world-building is necessary before one starts. But it seems like I'm not doing enough.

Arisa81 said:

I won't be giving up on writing for young adults ever.

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Melanie

BrianTubbs said:

I'm the perfect candidate for Attention Deficit Disorder when it comes to writing. I'm having a really tough time staying focused on any one of my works-in-progress. All of them are in the brainstorm/research/outlining stage. In only one case (YA fantasy) have I actually gotten started in writing the novel.

It's really hard to know how much research and/or world-building is necessary before one starts. But it seems like I'm not doing enough.

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I felt like you were describing me right there! I start too many things and can't focus. I'm about haf way through the first draft of one book and I started 3 more. I couldn't help it. I had to write the basic ideas down before I forgot them.

I also have a hard time balancing my description. Sometimes it's too much, other times not enough. I notice it most when I read and the pace seems to go way too fast. I then realize that I haven't described anything but the main characters actions. I plan on slipping bits and pieces in to break up the action a little, hopefully it won't be too obtrusive. Since it is a fantasy, I think the setting is pretty important and I've been completely neglecting that aspect. I'm not sure if I should start rewriting the glaring things now, or finish up my incredibly sketchy draft and rewrite from the beginning?

I haven't been writing (seriously) for almost 2 months. Not because I don't want to, but because I have been in the process of moving. I felt like trying to do anything else on top of that and taking care of my kids was trying to do too much. Rather than make myself crazy, I decided to take a break and get my family settled and then start again. Any ideas on how to get back into it? It starts to feel more daunting the longer I wait. We've been relocated for almost 2 weeks now, so most of the boxes are unpacked and I'm ready to get started.
Thanks everyone and may this year see all our stories reach completion!

I'm brainstorming as we speak since I can't seem to sit down and write down an actual outline. I usually write decent as I go along. So far I have almost 10,000 words for my novel-in-progress "Injected", but I don't think it's that good right now. I plan on going back later and trying to polish it up A LOT. But hey...at least I have some things down and I know where I'm taking my characters and what kind of personalities they have.

Sometimes when I'm writing or brainstorming for a project I'm working on, I tend to get other ideas that branch off into an entirely different novel. It's kind of a bad thing for me to do because then I'll start new projects when I haven't even finished the first one! haha