I see my contest has scared the daylights out of everyone. Bravo, to the few brave souls who’ve taken the plunge and entered. For the rest of you, oh come on, it’s not that hard.
I’ve managed to rewrite the first four chapter of my single title…AGAIN. If this round doesn’t work, then I’m going to stop banging my head against the brick wall and write something new. I can’t do this anymore. It’s making me bitchier than usual.
I must say I have learned a valuable lesson from this exercise. (By exercise I mean trying to rewrite the first book I ever wrote.) I’ve discovered something about the way I write. I cannot go back. Stephen King talks about this in his ‘On Writing’ book. He says if he doesn’t just plow through a book while writing, the characters become stale and cardboard-like. He’s absolutely right. I’ve been so far removed from this manuscript that it’s akin to pain to work through it again. I know it NEEDS a ton of editing to make it readable, but I just can’t seem to get into it. No matter how hard I try. I’ve moved on mentally.
I’d always looked forward to the day I could become a ’smart’ writer. By that I mean, someone who puts together partials and doesn’t waste their time finishing books unless someone wants to buy them. Unfortunately, my personality isn’t suited for this type of writing. I have to ‘plow’ through the book, writing it as fast as I can in order to get it on paper. I don’t mind going back and editing, but I must do it right away.
As it is, the partials I have lying around are making me crazy. I feel the need to finish every last one, but there aren’t enough hours in the day. What’s your approach to projects? Do you finish the book or complete the first three chapters and a synopsis to submit?
March 4th, 2005
I’m no good at submitting three chapters and a synopsis– I’m a pantser, so I really have no clue where my story is going by only three chapters into it. Fortunately right now I have an editor who’ll contract based on a partial, even though she has no clue where it’s going either– she trusts me (foolish woman:-).
However, I have lots of partials (usually no more than one or two chapters– vague ideas that I wrote down when they flashed into my mind, and then put away for months or years) lying around my hard drive too, and I usually get around to using most of them. When I can’t think what to write next, I click through my documents looking at the partials, and often something jumps out at me and I find a story jumping into my mind. I think four of my published books so far have been based on small partials I started and then forgot about for a while.
by Ellen Fisher March 4th, 2005 at 11:12 amI’m a partial panster. And I can’t do synopses beforehand since I’m not sure where it’s going.
by Dreamweaver March 4th, 2005 at 11:59 amI usually finish the really good ideas. (!). Subbing on a partial scares me silly. I’ve got one with an editor right now, & am desperately trying to finish in case she requests it! Ack!!
Ellen,
I can see that being a problem, if you’re a panster writer. I fluctuate between panster and plotter. Only the latter as of late.
Dream,
A surprise request is part of the reason I can’t do this anymore. It freaks me out to have to try to finish a book right away. What if something goes wrong? What if the story fights me? I panicked when I finaled in the 2003 Lori Foster/Kensington Brava contest because I hadn’t finished the novella.
by Jordan March 4th, 2005 at 12:29 pmI was going to reacquaint myself with your heroes before I relied on my rather unreliable brain.
by Nicole March 4th, 2005 at 2:04 pmI avoid the synopsis whenever possible and always sent out partials without finishing the book. (This was before I had an agent.) It takes so long for the request for “more” to come in that I think it’s best to get the beginning out there and working for you while you finish the book. I’ve managed to do almost everything without writing a synopsis and even my query letters didn’t contain a book blurb. Why? Because every agent and editor will tell you that there is usually something in the query to make them not want to buy the book. But I can usually hook their interest if they read the partial. I know this is not the norm and it won’t work for everyone, but it got me 4 contract offers in four weeks because I had so much stuff out there.
by Sylvia Day March 4th, 2005 at 2:20 pmBTW… I got the no-blurb-on-query idea from Elizabeth Boyle. http://elizabethboyle.com/ten.htm#writing
by Sylvia Day March 4th, 2005 at 2:22 pmI’m wavering between the Partial Now, Full After Request thing, especially since I am trying a whole different genre(supernatural fiction series ala Charlaine Harris or L.A. Banks) and am sort of trying to find my way with, and also since the historical romance market is so odd these days. I’m a proud pantser at the moment having figured out that writing my story out by hand a loose synopsis form gives me less grief and anxiety than sitting at the computer, biting my nails over daily word counts. Instead, I have page counts! 5 handwritten pages a day equals apprx 25 typed pages. But even plowing through a book without editing is so hard because I notice that different sections come out differently because of my darn moods and real life getting in the way! But write the way it’s best for you, and the rest of it will flow.
by Evangeline March 4th, 2005 at 3:05 pmI’m in the middle of “On Writing” now and I love it! I have so many partials sitting around I could use them as furniture. I’ve found that I do best if I write it down like I’m (orally)telling a story to someone (not trying to get all technical and “synopsis” like) - just wander through it. Then when I go back to write it, I discover I know (pretty much) where I’m going but there’s a lot of amazing stops along the way I didn’t know were there. Sorta like the difference between taking your time along the back country road versus the interstate on the way home.
by Eve Jameson March 4th, 2005 at 3:22 pmNo way would I just do a partial and submit. =:-o
The spectre of the ’surprise!’ request is enough to give me the willies. I’m not a fast writer, I twiddle and tweak *as I write* and I’m part plotter/part pantser.
by Jaq March 4th, 2005 at 4:28 pmNicole, I don’t know. It might be kind of fun to see what you actually remember. (wg)
by Jordan March 4th, 2005 at 5:18 pmSylvia, That’s great that your approach has worked so well for you. I’ve only written a few synopses in my life. I tend to sell on a blurb and chapters. Thank goodness! I know if they were counting on a knockout synopsis, they’d be waiting a long, long, LONG time.
I also understand the urge to have your work out there, since it takes so long for a response. Unfortunately, submitting multiple partials makes me a nervous wreck. I have to complete the book. My biggest fear is to send out several partials and receive multiple requests for fulls. I’d have a breakdown. No doubt about it. LOL! :-O
by Jordan Summers March 4th, 2005 at 5:28 pmEvangeline, I find that taking pen to paper will get the flow going in my writing. Sometimes you just need to get away from the computer.
by Jordan March 4th, 2005 at 5:30 pmEve, I’m so glad you’re enjoying Stephen King’s book ‘On Writing’. It is my all-time favorite writing book. I like it so much, my dh downloaded it in audiobook for me to listen to at night when I’m falling asleep.
by Jordan March 4th, 2005 at 5:31 pmJaq, I hear you. I’d rather have my fingernails ripped out by a pair of pliers, than be caught unawares by a request. :-/
I do think it’s great that everyone has a different approach to writing. It makes the world a more interesting place.
by Jordan March 4th, 2005 at 5:36 pmI used to finish the book and then spend months polishing it before sending anything out. Now I do about 3/4ths, write up a cheesy synopsis, and send the partial. While it’s out, I finish up the novel. I’m a very slow writer, so I need to make sure I’ve got most of the book done–the skeleton, at least.
by Larissa March 5th, 2005 at 8:19 amLarissa, I could probably do that. As long as I had 75 to 80% done and knew where the rest of the story was going, I’d be in pretty good shape. (ie not panicking)
by Jordan March 5th, 2005 at 9:03 amI wouldn’t even chance querying on the 75-80% complete. It would be just my luck to realize the second my fingers let go of the envelope and it drops into the great abyss of the mail box that there’s this HUGE freakin’ plot hole in chapter 5 that needs fixing and fixing it will affect every single chapter to follow. BIG REWRITE. Some people would just push forward and then do the rewrite. I would stop in my tracks and go back and fix it immediately.
Did I mention I’m a slow writer? gg.
by Jaq March 5th, 2005 at 10:59 amJaq, I do that too. If I have something wrong with the manuscript, I can’t write forward until it’s fixed. I’m way too obsessive compulsive.
by Jordan March 5th, 2005 at 11:05 amI do remember wanting to slap the hero of AQ1 around quite a bit. Does that count? *g* Even when I like aphas, I still want to slap some sense into them most of the time.
And of those books, I most especially remember the seeress the most. She had presence.
by Nicole March 5th, 2005 at 1:06 pmI must blushingly confess I’ve never read any of your books JOrdan *burning cheeks*
AS to writing, my goal this year is to learn to write a synop on an unfinished book. I’d at least finish a first draft before I query but I’m a fast writer. And my query letters usually get a lot of interest, which only means I can write a pretty good query letter LOL…..
I WONT query an agent on an unfinished book. In my experience they respond MUCH faster than editors will
by Cece March 5th, 2005 at 6:31 pmLOL! Nicole, That’s too funny. I would’ve thought you would want to smack Ares around, but I suppose Jac took care of that for you. Yes, the seer is a memorable character. She was a handful to write.
by Jordan March 5th, 2005 at 8:52 pmCece, See how you are…tsk…tsk…tsk.
My goal this year is to learn how to write single titles. I’ve written the contemporary from hell and one 75K length book, but I’m far from comfortable in the longer lengths. I want to change that this year.
by Jordan March 5th, 2005 at 8:55 pmActually, I want to smack most any alpha I read around. I like to see how the author is going to make me want to stop smacking him. That’s the key. You gotta make me like him in the end. Of course, I stopped reading vamps (mostly) because of the whole angsty alpha thing they have going on. *puke*
Now must think about your heroes some more.
by Nicole March 6th, 2005 at 6:53 pmNicole, You better hurry. Tomorrow’s the cutoff date.
by Jordan March 6th, 2005 at 10:21 pmI sent in my entry, hope it was on time.
by Nicole March 7th, 2005 at 9:17 amNicole, You’re in.
by Jordan March 7th, 2005 at 10:54 am