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- Rank: Eccentric Mentor
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@godlyfantasy12 AHHH!!!!! I ADORE that Beauty and the Beast idea!!!!!!!! I mean, I’m a sucker for anything about writers, so you had me at the first sentence! Plus, I think that’ll totally go with Jane Austen theme too!!!! EEKK! I’m excited about that one!
So, I had originally shied away from switching Cinderella around, because I’ve done that for my other retellings, but the idea you’ve got is totally different! AH! I love this one too!!! I can see it coming together already!!!
Thank you SO SO SO MUCH for these fantastic ideas!!!!! You da bomb, gurl!
@gracie-j š I am so glad you like them!!! Ask me for ideas anytime! Ahhhhh now Iām excited! Be sure to let me know once you finalize the plots and such!!
#IfMarcelDiesIRiot
#ProtectMarcel
#ProtectSebSo y’all, who all has started a second draft? I’m wondering if you could give me some tips. I’ve done the read through, taken notes, and am outlining chapters but decided I may go ahead and start writing chapters I have outlined. That being said, its going to be pretty much an entire rewrite/writing the scenes I did not write (which were a lot). Im gonna take more time with it now that I’ve more things fleshed out and in order, but does anyone have any tips on how to start and get yourself in tune with writing if that makes sense.
How to transition from quickly getting every word down to really focusing in and getting in the mind of your POV character. How do you do that? How do you get into a scene and a character’s head and focus totally on the scene? And ik everyone’s drafting/editing is different, but I’d love to hear how you all get into the mindset of seriously writing.
Gonna tag some peeps.
@gracie-j @devastate-lasting @joy-caroline @issawriter7 @my-brain-just-went-blank Could y’all plz tag some people I forgot? Lol
#IfMarcelDiesIRiot
#ProtectMarcel
#ProtectSeb@godlyfantasy12Ā
Second draft haha what is thatĀAhem. Anyways. No, I haven’t really done any second drafts before…I mean, sometimes I change core scenes, and my sister makes me rewrite some…I know I’ll be doing second drafts for some, though, especially the ones that i wrote when I first started writing. I’m gonna redo the whole plot…I, um, actually sometimes forget my POV character exists. So no, I am not good at that.
But…I can tag some people…
@nova21 @abigail-m @writerlexi1216 @daisy-torresLately, it's been on my brain
Would you mind letting me know
If hours don't turn into days- Rank: Eccentric Mentor
- Total Posts: 1789
@godlyfantasy12 Of course! I will! And I’ll definitely let you know when I figure everything out!! Thanks again!!!
By the way, I, uh, I don’t actually draft…so I’m not sure I can give you any advice on that! But I’ll tag some peeps who might can!
- Rank: Eccentric Mentor
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I’m working on my second draft forĀ The Apostle’s SisterĀ right now, and here are a couple tips I’ve picked up while writing:
– It often really helps to write free verse poetry or “diary entries” from the POV of the character you’re struggling with. It really helps you master their voice. I do Story Sundays on my blog every Sunday, where I write a diary entry from a character and post it. I find that really helps. It’s very beneficial if you also do it from the characters who are maybe not POV characters because it helps you master their unique voice and development.
– Focus on one thing at a time. Like, for the first rewrite focus on sentence structure, typos, grammar, etc. Then on the second rewrite, examine your character’s motivations and make sure they make sense. On the third rewrite, pay special attention to the dialogue and try to get down the unique sound of each character’s dialogue… etc. Just do one thing at a time instead of trying to tackle everything at once.
– I’d say also, focus on one character voice at once. Like this week I was editing and rewriting Chapter 4 of TAS. I really focused on getting Temira’s voice mastered, her way of speaking, her way of moving, her way of thinking, way of expressing things, showing her feelings, etc. Next time I edit that chapter I’ll focus on all those things for Paul, and then, finally, Reuben. Doing Reuben last since he’s not a major character and his emotions, voice, whatever etc. doesn’t affect the plot as profoundly as Temira and Paul. I’d say work down from the most crucial character (probably the POV character, as in Temira’s case) in the specific scene, to the character who affects the plot LEAST (Reuben).
Hope that helps you a little! Let me know if you want more.
@joy-caroline Thx! Any other tips u could share? (If u donāt mind) my main thing probably with this draft is definitely the characters (although I want to do good descriptions and such too). I have 3 POV Charries and I write in first person so they each get their own chapter when it shifts to their POV.
Iām mainly trying to figure out how to make myself get into a scene and really focus. How to make myself write because once I get started itās a bit easier but itās the actually getting started part that gets me lol
#IfMarcelDiesIRiot
#ProtectMarcel
#ProtectSebOoh, AWESOME!!! Soo, I should admit my writing process is normally 100% different from normal, sane writers processes. I normally write my first drafts how most people write their second ones. But when I start round two, I don’t normally reread my story until later drafts because often it gets very discouraging for me to see all the many things I need to fix. So I just start again from chapter one and write until the end. But my brain also works where it’s always critiquing, running through the checks to make sure characters are developed, plot is engaging, enough description, etc., that I can do this without having to have notes and stuff. I’m not sure this helped at all. I’m always hesitant to say how I do things ’cause I know it’s not technically the “right” way, but I hoped that might’ve helped a bit. š
God gives His hardest battles to His strongest soldiers.
TeenWritersNook.com@godlyfantasy12 @gracie-jĀ
Lol I’m either in the middle of like, draft 6000 or the longest draft 1 ever so take what follows as you mayHonestly, what has helped me the most to get into my character’s heads is to work on a scene I’m dying to write, whether or not it actually fits into my draft. (This is one reason why I have several dozen Scrivener documents within my main WIP.) Like, just spending time hanging out with my characters, writing out conversations they might have, throwing them into weird situations, etc.
As far as the whole starting writing thing goes, I feel you there–it’sĀ hard. Making a little ritual out of it (brewing a cup of tea/coffee/hot chocolate/other cozy beverage, pulling up a specific song or album, settling down in a particularly comfy spot) definitely helps me.
āSeven seconds till the end. Time enough for you. Perhaps. But what will you do with it?ā
- Rank: Eccentric Mentor
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Absolutely! I don’t mind at all. Here are a few more things that have worked for me, in regards to just characters since that seems to be what you’re focusing on right now.
I find that lots of times I can’t get into a scene because I’m thinking about what I wantĀ my character to do instead of thinking what wouldĀ theyĀ choose to do. A lot of times as authors we get too wrapped up in what we want to happen in the story. Readers can definitely tell when characters are acting contrary to the personality, values, voice, etc. that we’ve given them.
I was just working on a scene for Chapter 4 of TAS where I wanted Paul to be honest with Temira about something because it would push the plot forward. But putting myself in Paul’s place and his personality and development and voice and everything, I knew it was contrary to all that if he were blatantly open with Temira. So I changed it so that he was very reticent with her and hardly spoke. Reading over it again, I realized it was much more poignant than in the original draft when I pushed Paul into divulging things contrary to his character.
If you find you have to force a character to do something contrary to what they would in reality think, say, or do, you should rethink that scene or part of your plot. You might be tempted to keep things the way they are just because that’s easier, but trust me, your readers will know.
As for struggling to get started, I completely get you! *crying* I struggle mightily with the same thing. I think the thing that helps most is to play some favorite motivational music, stop at 1-hour or so periods to work out and stretch a bit, promise yourself a reward when you’re done, set a timer for 15 minutes at a time and do a word sprint to complete your hour that way.
Hope this helped, I’m always here whenever you need anything! š
- Rank: Eccentric Mentor
- Total Posts: 1379
I wanted to tag you here so I could ask you a question, if you don’t mind!
I was curious how you keep your spirits up and stay motivated while working on a long-term project? What’s your process for writingĀ The Snow Warrior?Ā I’m curious because as far as I know, nearly everyone else on the forum is working on projects that will take them months, maybe even weeks to finish. But you and I both have long-term projects, as I believe you’ve been working on TSW for three years and I’ve dedicated myself toĀ The Apostle’s SisterĀ for the long haul.
I’d really like to hear any thoughts you have! š
Hi, I saw your ultimate list for beta readers and was considering signing up (thanks for doing that, btw; it’ll be super helpful in the future.)Ā So I noticed that you put a website link in the list; I don’t have a website yet, but is it still okay if I sign up?Ā Can people just reach me through the forum?
Dream. Write. Inspire.
https://thepencilsisters.com
@joy-caroline
I don’t mind at all!:)
Alright, let’s see… how do I keep my spirits up? Well first off, TSW is the first novel I’ve ever attempted that I had no plot for, no character goal, and no overall driving force that would move each chapter the way I needed it to. And still, to this point, I have no definite plot or main problem for my heroine to solve. And yet, I have never been able to bring myself to toss this story over my shoulder.
I think what keeps my spirits up is a few things actually. The first being God of course. Because when I remind myself that I’m writing for Him, even though I mostly portray Christianity in my fiction the Narnia way, it keeps my writing’s focus on Him and gives me confidence that this story is good and that I should keep writing it.The second is conviction.
You see, on one hand, perfection is the last thing to worry about for the first draft or so; yet:
“You need to have that conviction. That you are brilliant, that this is the greatest idea that anybody’s ever had and by writing it, you will set the world on fire.” Neil Gaiman said that and of course, I don’t always feel that way, nor do I think that I’m exceptionally brilliant, but Gaiman makes an excellent point. In order to write a story, especially one that you’re going to stick with for a long time, you need to have conviction that it is worthwhile.The third is to love your story and MC.
The only reason that I’ve stuck around for TSW is because of how much I love it. I love the characters, I love the themes, I love the setting. The world in my novel is like a home that I return to wherever I can. I love it all more than anything.My process
wasn’tisn’t an extremely organized one. But there are a few things I could share. One thing was getting all my characters straight, in order and at least get most of their personalities and backstories together. For that, I used many methods and apps including the Wassi app, to flesh them out. But interviewing them always worked the best for me, (though I will give Wassi a lot of due credit). Since your writing Biblical fiction, a lot of your characters are already there, but you can still flesh them out in certain ways.
I also (I highly recommend this if nothing else and perhaps you already have one) is to keep a journal (or note app) for your WIP. To write down spare ideas, scene ideas, phrases you overhear from others, names, interviews, and such.
And to be honest, the most I’ve ever got done in one time was due to NaNoWriMo. The other larger chunks I managed (and actually a lot of what kept WriMo going) were stray scenes that I’d written earlier on and wrote them out as fully as I could. The only other thing I can remember aside from that, at the moment, is to write every day no matter what. And eventually, it becomes as natural as any other daily thing.I’m sorry if that all sounded kind of rambly, I hope it didn’t sound too scatterbrainy. And if I can remember anything else, I’ll be sure and tell you.
But I think it’s awesome that you’re going to dedicate yourself to TAS. It’s an amazing story and I have every confidence in you; it will definitely be a worthwhile story and an incredible one at that:)- Rank: Eccentric Mentor
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Wow, thanks so much for all the tips!!! I love that point about conviction.
I definitely agree with you, no matter how hard TAS has been at times, I absolutely will not give it up because I love the entire world and the characters and the themes just so much. It is like a home to me. And yeah, even though lots of my characters are already there, it’s awesome to study their personalities and voices in the Bible and develop them accordingly. And of course, there are characters like Temira, Reuben, and others who are barely (or not at all) mentioned in the Bible. I have to start their character development from scratch.
I actually wrote the first draft of TAS in exactly two months. XD It was my NaNoWriMo (I don’t sign up since the community is so liberal; I just follow my own goals) project. I managed to write more than 50k in November and wrote about 50k more in December, ending the novel at around 122k words.
Thanks! I’m more encouraged now to keep trying, thank you so much!!
@joy-caroline
*Whew!* I’m so glad that I was able to help:)
Yes, there’s always fleshing out to do with characters, especially/specifically those who weren’t mentioned much in the Bible. I just like getting my characters straight first so I can hand the pen over to them and let them drive the plot and dialogue.
WOW! I had no idea that you already had 122k first draft! That’s amazing girl, congrats!! š Yeah, the NaNoWriMo community is pretty liberal, that’s why I just stick to my own writer’s profile and goals and ignore everything else.
(Still amazed you have a 122k first draft:)
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