all write - fiction advice_ july 2012

2/23/2015 AllWriteFictionAdvice:July2012

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SA T URDA Y , 2 1 JU LY 2 0 1 2

KeepingContinuityContinuityerrorsmightseemoneoftheleastimportantaspectsofawriterslistofthingstowatchoutfor,buttheyareeasytomakeandsometimesdifficulttospotandyetremainanimportantpartofthewritingmethod.

Writinganovelisntaninstantprocess.Ittakesmonths(yearseven),andduringthattimeitisfeasibleandsometimesunavoidablethatwriterswillinadvertentlycreatecontinuityerrors,simplybecauseitshardtorememberwhathappenedonpage12whenyoureatpage200ofthestoryandyourebeaveringawaytogetitcompleted.

Justasinmovies,themistakescansometimesbeglaringorsometimesquitesubtle,buttheyareerrorsnonetheless.

CommonErrors:

TimeTimeofyear,timeofkeyscenesetc.PlaceSetting,placenamesetc.CharacterisationClothes,personalobjects,birthdays,names,traitsetc.PlottingPlotflawsandgapinginconsistencies.Objects

Timecontinuityerrorshappenbecausewritersforgettimeframes.Awritermighthaveastorysetduringthesummerandthusinchapter4heorshementionsthatitisJune,butthenafewchapterslater,andwithoutrealising,themonthhaschangedtoJuly.Likewise,theymightforgetthatitssummerandwritesomethingmoreakintoawintery

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Soyou'veembarkedonyourfictionwritingjourney.

It'soneofthehardestthingstodocreateawhole,believableworldforotherpeopletoenjoy,especiallyifyou'renewtowriting.It'salsooneoftheloneliestjobs,especiallywhenthereisnohelporadviceorsupport...sorightheretherewillbehandyarticles,examplesandsimplestepbystepguidestohelpmakethecreativeprocessthatmucheasier.

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scene.

Therearealsotimeswhenthetimemightactuallybementionedbecauseitisrelevantinakeyscene,sothewritermentionsthatitis10pminchapter7,butwhenreferringtoitagainfurtherintothenovel,thattimesuddenlychangesto9pm.

Whiletinydetailsliketimemightseemunimportant,youcanbetthereaderwillpickuponthem.Overall,itshowslackofattention.

Thesameruleappliesforsettingitseasytomixupplacenames,particularlyiftheybeginwiththesameletter.ItseasytoforgetthatacharactermightbeboardingaplaneinLondon,butthenthenameoftheairportsuddenlychangestoLutonhalfwaythroughthestory.

Characterisationisapricklyareaforcontinuitymistakes.Donthaveacharacterstartoffwithblueeyesatthebeginningofthestory,andthenbychapter20hehasbrowneyes.Doesacharacterwearglassesatthestartofthestoryandthenhalfwaythroughheisinexplicablyiscuredofhisshortsightednessbecausethewriterforgotthatthecharacterworeglasses?

Whatifyoudescribeacharactersclothesinonescene,thenseveralsceneslaterthecharacteriswearingsomethingelsecompletelydifferent?Again,thisisaneasyslipuptomake.Youmightnotspotit,butthereaderwill.

Also,makesurethatcharacternamesdontmorphintosomethingelse,orarespelleddifferentlyinchapters.Theirtraits,personality,theirstyleandidiomsetc.shouldremainconstantthroughout.

Plotcontinuityisparamounterrorsherecausemassiveplotflawsandgapingholes.Forinstance,ifyouhaveacharacterthatisscaredofheightsandyouvehighlightedthisaspartoftheircharacterisationearlyinthenovel,thenduringtheexcitingclimaxdonthavethecharacterheroicallyclimbingupthesideofabuildingwithoutawhiffoffear,unlessofcourseyoumakeitpartoftheplot.Inotherwords,thecharacterisforcedtoconfrontthatfearinordertosaveanothercharacterfromdanger.

Payparticularattentiontothisareasothatyoudontcreatetomakeeverythingfit.Makesureyourplotiswatertightandnotfullofthosegapingholes.

Objectscausewritersallsortsofcontinuitygaffes.Gotapatternedruginchapter3,butthepatternsvanishbychapter8?Whatifacharacter

measure.Iamprivilegedtohaveeightshortstories/poemspublishedinthisbook,soifyoulikeyourdamesalittledarkanddangerous,thisisthebookforyou.

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isdrivinga4x4inchapter10,butbychapter11itsbecomeasalooncar?IfacharacterisusingaBlackberryatthebeginningofthestoryandthenitchanges(withoutexplanation)toaniphone,thatisacommonerror.

Didacharacterplaceanobjectonthetableinthediningroominchapter12ofyourcrimenovel,butachapterlatertheobjectvanishesorturnsupelsewhereinthescene?

Colourscanalsochange,somakesurethebluecaryoudescribeearlyinascenestaysblue.Ifacharacterpickssomethinguptouse,likeagun,thenmakesurethatthecharacterstillhasit.Itseasyforthatobjecttosimplyvanishwhileyourebusywritingthefollowingscenes.

Toavoidcommoncontinuityfaultslikethese,duringthewritingprocess,makealistofthenamesyouveused/willuse,makeanoteofkeydatesandtimesinthestorysoyoudontgetinamuddle.Keeptrackofkeyeventsorplacesincaseyouhavetoreferbacktothemlaterinthenovel.

Doingthismakesiteasierwhileediting.Andofcourseyouhavetobethorough,sowhenreviewingyourwork,keepyourlistsandnotesinmindsothatyoucanchecktomakesurethattimes,places,names,objects,charactersandplotflawsremainconstantthroughout.

Theideawithcontinuityistokeeptheinformationconsistentfromonechaptertothenext,sothereisasmooth,seamlesstransitionoftime,characters,plot,settingandobjects.

Nextweek:Keepingviewpointsbalanced.

POSTEDBYAJ HUMPAGEATSATURDAY, JULY21, 2012NOCOMMENTS: L INKSTOTHISPOST

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SA T URDA Y , 1 4 JU LY 2 0 1 2

PolishingYourProsePart2Withtheusualfaultsofclichs,grammar,POVandsentencestructureetcallcorrectedthroughjudiciouseditingtheprosepolishingprocessshouldthentakeonadeepernarrativecleansetotidythethingsthatarenotsoobvioustowriters,thethingsthatwedontalwayslookoutfor.

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Thismeanslookingalittledeepertoseewhatelsecanbeimprovedpriortosendingyourprideandjoytoagentsandpublishers.

Ambiguity,forinstance,issomethingwriterstendtomiss.Ambiguityoccursduetopoorsentencestructures,ofteninadvertentlygivingsentencesdoublemeaningsandthusconfusingthereader(andonoccasion,makingthemchuckle).Whatyouintendedforthereaderisntalwayswhatisunderstoodbythem,somakesureeverysentencereadscorrectlyanddoesntgiveadoublemeaning.

Tensesstillremaintheonethingthatconfusessomanywriters,andespeciallysowhenworkinginfirstpersonpointofviewbecauseitseasytolosefocusandslipfrompresenttopasttense.Itsimperativethatyoupayattentiontotenses,otherwisethenarrativebecomesweakened.Forexample:

Ilivebytheshadows,Ihideinthem,makethemmyown.IveneverhadafearofthedarktheymademewhoIam.

Spottedthetensechange?IveneverhadandmademewhoIamshouldbeIdonthaveandtheymakemewhoIamrespectively.Thatshoweasyitistoslipupwithtenses.Thereadermaynotspotthis,butaneditorwill.

Hangingparticiplestobeginsentencesdontimpresseditors,either.Theycauseambiguityandweakensentences,buttheyarealsoasignofpoorwriting.

Flingingasidehercoat,sheturnedtohimmightsoundperfectlyfine,buttoanagentorpublishinghouseeditor,ittellsthemthewriterhasntpaidattentiontoclarityofthesentence.Youcantreallyhaveacharacterdotwothingsatonce(eventhoughitsperfectlyfineintherealworld)becausethisisfiction,andeveryactionshouldbecleartothereader.Inotherwords,sheflungasidehercoatandthenturnedtofacehim.Avoidstartingsentenceswithhangingparticiplesifyouwanttomaketherightimpression.

Clarityandsimplicitycountyoudonthavetomakeyourwritingoverlycomplicated,sothatitishardtofollow,andasshownintheexampleabove,dontfallintothetrapoflettingyourwritingbecomeambiguousandthusweakenedasaresult.Writingshouldbeclearandconcise.Clarityandsimplicityspeakforthemselves.

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Keepyourcharacterisationconsistentthroughoutthestorycharactersevolvewiththestory,aswillyourreader,sodontletthemstepoutofcharacterbydoingsomethingludicrousinordertofalselyevokedramaticeffectoreventsinordertoforcethestory,otherwiseyourrisklosingnarrativeintegrityandthereaderwontbetooimpressedeither.

Alsomakesureyourcharactersarenotclichd.Inotherwords,dontmakethemcardboardcutoutsorcaricatures.Theyshouldbeindividualandflawedasrealpeople,andinstantlylikeable.

Overall,yourproseshouldhavemovement,sotospeak.Itneedstoundulate,raceaway,slowdown,itneedsriseandparry,itneedstobegentle,itneedstobeexciting.Itshouldneverstaystillotherwiseitwouldborethereader.Inotherwords,yourproseshouldhavetherightbalanceofpace.Ifitdoesnteitheritreadstoofastortooslowcorrectit.

PolishingProseChecklist

Ensure:

Youveeliminatedambiguity.Youhavethecorrecttensesthroughout.Youvecutouthangingparticiples.Yourprosehasclarityandsimplicity.Youhaveconsistentcharacterisationthroughout.Pacingshouldbebalancednottoofastandnottoslow.

Perfectproseisunattainable,butbetterproseisachievable.Bypayingattentiontowhatmatters,awriterimproveshisorherchancesofbecomingpublishedandstayingpublished.

Nextweek:Gettingcontinuityright

POSTEDBYAJ HUMPAGEATSATURDAY, JULY14, 2012NOCOMMENTS: L INKSTOTHISPOST

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SA T URDA Y , 7 JU LY 2 0 1 2

PolishingYourProsePart1Everywritershouldunderstandtheimportanceofaddingfinishingtouchespriortoasubmissiontoanagentoreditor.Whileabsoluteperfectionisunattainable,writersshouldtidyandpolishtheirMSS/shortstorytothebestitcanbe,andthisisforseveralreasons.

Oneistopresenttoyourwouldbeagentorpublisheraprofessionalwriter,someonewhoknowswhattheyredoing.Youraimistomakeanimpressiontherightimpression.Anotherreasonisshowthereaderaflawless,enjoyablepieceofwriting.

Payingattentiontoyourproseanintegralpartoftheeditingprocessisvitalbecausethisiswhereyourvoice,yourstyle,yourtechniqueandyournarrativeisscrutinisedbyyouragent,publisherorreadersandtheverystructureofyourprosedetermineswhetheritreadssmoothly,makessense,isenjoyable,orwhetheritisjarring,clunkyordoesntreadrightatall.

Thedownfallofsomewritersisthattheydontpayenoughattentiontoeditingandrewriting,andtheresultcanbeprettyawful.

Thereareumpteenwaysyoucantidyandpolishyourprose,butherewelllookattheusualthingsthattendtoescapeawritersattentionthemoreimportantoneslikeclichs,repetition,waffle,unbalancedsentences,show/donttell(exposition)balanceofdescription,narrativeanddialogue,overuseofadjectivesandadverbsandkeepingyourPOVconsistent.

Tobeginwith,startbygettingridofthoseterribleclichs,unlessyouwantyournarrativesoundingasthoughyouwroteitinthedarkages.Thesamegoesforrarelyusedorarchaicwords,whichmighthavebeenpopularatthebeginningofthe19thCentury,butwillseemoutofplaceinthemodernworld(unlessofcourseyouarewritingahistoricalbasedstory,wheresuchlanguagewascommon).

Lookoutforrepetitionwhereverpossible.Thiscancatcheverywriterout,soeditjudiciously.Repetitioncanbecertainwordswithinthesamesentence,repetitionofwholesentencesorpartsentences,andonoccasion,partsofscenes,especiallywhencuttingandpasting

Chapter&NovelLengthsJusthowlongshouldachapterbe?

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2/23/2015 AllWriteFictionAdvice:July2012

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duringtheeditingprocess.

Weedoutirrelevantinformationandcutoutunnecessarywafflebecausethisinevitablyslowsthepaceandrendersthewritingclunkyandhardtofollow.Sticktorelevantinformationtomovethestoryforward.

Also,aimforsmooth,evenlypacednarrative,ratherthanbadlyconstructedsentencesandparagraphswhichmaketoithardtoread.Tightensentenceswhereverpossible

GothroughyourstoryandreducetheuseofWasandtherebecausethesearetelltalesignsoftellingratherthanshowing.Ifyouwanttoimpressanagentorpublisher,thencutdownonthem.Toomuchuseofeitherscreamsamateuratprospectiveagentsandpublishers.

EverywritershouldknowthemaximShow/Donttell.Plentyofwritersfallintothistheytellthereaderwhatishappening,butnevershowthem.Theartofwritingistocreateandconstructplacesandpeopleandevents,tomakethereaderbecomepartofthestory,todescribetheminsuchawaythatthereaderfeelsliketheyarethere.Nowriterwillaccomplishthatwithtelling,andyetahighproportionstillcontinuestotellratherthanshow.

Withyourdescriptivescenes,showthereader,donttellthem.Paintapictureandlurethemin.

Asstatedinpreviousposts,trytobalancethenarrative,thedescriptionandthedialogue.Toomuchortoolittleoftheseelementscanmakethestoryunevenandawkwardtoread.Itdoesnthavetobeexact,butgetagoodbalanceofallthreeandyouwillmakeareaderhappy.

Dontforgettocutoveruseofadjectivesandadverbs.Again,toomanyofeitherwillshowagentsandpublishersthatthewriterisamateur.Letyournounsandverbsdoallthework.Theyaremuchstronger.

MakesureyourPOVisconsistentthroughoutdonthaveitchangefromonepointofviewtotheotherduringthemiddleofscenes,anditsessentialthatyoumaintaintheprotagonistsviewpointbynotlettingothercharacterstakeover.Aimforan80%20%ratioofprotagonist:othercharacters(moreonthisinupcomingarticles).

Attheendoftheday,whosestoryisit?The

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protagonistsstory,thereforemakesureitdoesntwaverfromtheirperspectivetoomuch.

PolishingProseChecklist

Ensure:

Youveeliminatedclichs.Youveeliminatedrepetitionwords,phrases,sentencesrepeatedscenesetc.Cutoutwaffle/irrelevantinformation.Thatnarrativeisntoverlyfloweryandsentencesremaintightandconcise.Thattherearefewinstancesofwasandthereaspossible.Thatyoushow/donttell.Youhaveagoodbalanceofnarrative,descriptionanddialogue.Youveremovedadjectivesandadverbs.YouvekeptaconsistentPOV.

Therearealotofthingstolookoutforinfictionwriting,butbykeepinganeyeonthesemainpoints,polishingyourproseshouldbecomesecondnature.

Nextweek:Part2ofPolishingYourProse.POSTEDBYAJ HUMPAGEATSATURDAY, JULY07, 20124COMMENTS: L INKSTOTHISPOST

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