Hello and welcome to the J.Q. Rose blog.
Is March coming in as a lion or lamb in your part of the world???
Today is the monthly meeting of the Insecure Writers Support Group(IWSG) blog hop!
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| Internet Writers Support Group Blog Hop First Wednesday of every month. |
What is IWSG? Founder of the Insecure Writer’s Support Group and author Alex J Cavanaugh explains the group's purpose is "to share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds!" You're invited to become a member of this supportive group.
The group blogs the first Wednesday of every month. The list of bloggers is always available so you can hop around to the author blogs filled with humor, advice, and thought-provoking topics on writing and publishing. You can find the list of participants at Alex's IWSG page.
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| IWSG Question for the Month |
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| Writing a story. |
A really, really, really old story? Yes, I have. Funny how time and experience change the perception of our writing. When I wrote the story, I thought I had done a pretty good job. I especially loved several of the scenes. The brilliance of my writing shone through, or so I thought about twenty years ago. I was wrong
Even if there were some glaring problems with it, I am still proud of finishing it. With that story, I learned a lot about putting words together to make sense to a reader. Afterall, that's the tough part of writing. The reader has to get it.
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| Remember learning how to ride a bike??? |
I bet the first time you got on a bicycle, you didn't ride smoothly. In fact when your dad let you go, you probably crashed--how do you stop this bike??? Writers have to jump on a story and learn how to write. And the more you rode your bike, the smoother you pedaled and the bolder you became--like speeding down the gravel road from the top of the highest hill. So the more you write, the more skilled you become. Practice, practice, practice.
However, don't keep your writing to yourself if you want to improve your skills. Writers learn by sharing their writing with others. Get feedback and suggestions to improve so your readers will be able to follow the story easily.
Call me crazy, but I enjoy the editing and revising of my stories. So maybe I should re-visit that really, really, really old story and fix it up. What a challenge!
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REVIEW: Romance and Mystery Authors on Writing
on May 2, 2015
A great little read about creating characters, writing dialogue,
and editing and marketing tips from established authors
in the romance and mystery genres. You can enjoy it in one sitting.
and editing and marketing tips from established authors
in the romance and mystery genres. You can enjoy it in one sitting.
17 comments:
You're not crazy at all. I go through the same changes. My very first short story, I see craft wise through a different set of eyes now because I've matured in my writing and I plan to rewrite it. Someday.
Shalom aleichem,
Pat
Hi Pat, Glad to know I'm not crazy!! LOL Thanks for stopping in and leaving a comment. Have a great IWSG blog hop!
I guess that proves that we can't fix it if it's not written down. :-)
Anna from elements of emaginette
Excellent point, Anna. Thanks.
I enjoy the revision process as well.
Every story matters because it was practice. And we need lots of that.
A) Lion!! :(
B) I do have an old story that needs major work. Unfortunately, I don't enjoy revision at all. I think at this point it would be best to just start over from scratch. I fear I would let bad things slide because I just can't let it go...
Sometimes I enjoy revision, but I think I am impatient I find myself getting anxious if I get that far, but I want to learn how to do revision well.
Great post.
Juneta @ Writer's Gambit
I don't think it's a crazy idea at all, Janet! I often wish I could go back to my old published books and change them. There are many things I'd alter now in hindsight. But sometimes I pick up an old story I've shelved and think, actually, this isn't too bad. That's a great feeling when that happens. (I wish it happened more often...!)
Hello! This is my first time at your blog and I've followed it. I love the roses and look forward to visiting you here. I’ll connect with you online as well.
I think it's normal to want to change what you have written. This is why we should put the story away for a while and then revise. But even after it's published, I find myself contemplating changes to make it better. It's because we learn something new each day. All best to you.
Alex--I love the idea that every story matters--even if one's bad. I've learned something with every one of them. Of course, I never write a bad one. Uh-huh...
Tess--I didn't know you hated revision so much. I agree, sometimes it just isn't worth doing the story over.
Dare I say March came in like a lamb here??
Hi Juneta, Oh I get it. You want to revise your revisions..Each time you write, you learn more by doing revisions. But I think you learn more by having someone else look at the project and get their feedback on revisions.
Helena, you are so right. I've read articles I wrote back in the day and I think, wow, I wonder who wrote this!! LOL..It's good to be pleased with your work. I agree. I wish I could find more!!!
Hi Victoria, thank you for visiting and following!! Roses are my favorite flowers, so that's why I chose Rose for my pen name. (I also was a floral designer.)
I know what you mean about always wanting to make the story better. I'm having fun revising a novella published 6 years ago. I got my rights back to it and am having so much fun fleshing it out and revising it. I can really see how much my writing has changed in such a short period of time.
H'y, JQ. What a great topic. Yes, I have those old stories. The farthest back I"ve gone is my third book and It took tons of rewrites. I hadn't mastered the POV thing yet. I'd think I had it all worked out and the next re-read would discover another head hop! I love the first book I wrote--the book of my heart. Great story, loved the characters. Alas, I had zip in the way of craft. It would take just starting over and I don't have the heart to do it. My second book has not quite as good a story, but an awesome scene that cause my CPS to cry. Now that scene I will have to reuse somewhere, somehow. Thanks for always having such interesting posts. I've shared.:)
Thanks for sharing, Marsha. Definitely dig out the nuggets in those old stories and incorporate in the new. Great idea. Glad you enjoy my posts. I enjoy visiting your blog too and keeping up with all your activities and events.
Ha! I also love the editing stage. Formatting too, although I have other eyes do that for me. But I do as much as I can before sending off my MS. I edit and format the best I can. Try to make their work easier for them. But yeah, I love editing even though my editor is far superior at it.
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