It's baaaack . . . Write-A-Thon Contest!

On Friday, November 4, 2011, Precision Editing Group will be sponsoring our 3rd Write-a-Thon, and we're inviting writers to show us how many words you can write in 4 hours! This will also be a great kick off for those of you who are doing NaNoWriMo.

The contest will open at 4:00 Mountain Daylight Time and end at midnight (You choose the best 4 hours during that period of time, or break it up and track your time). The person who writes the most words will receive their choice of a $50 Amazon.com gift card OR a 30 page content edit by one of the Precision Editing Group Editors ($60 value). Other prizes will be awarded to various winners, which include an autographed copy of Variant by Robison Wells, and an autographed copy of Pumpkin Roll by Josi S. Kilpack.






Here's how it will work:

1-The Write-a-Thon will officially begin at 4:00 Mountain Daylight Time on Friday, November 4, 2011.

2-The blog titled "Start Now: Write-a-Thon" will post at 4:00 MDT--you need to enter your starting time and starting word count in the comment section of the blog when you begin.

3-Write for four hours--set a timer if you need to! You can break up your four hours, but please do not exceed four hours of total writing time.

4-When finished, come back to the PEG blog and put your end time, end word count, and total words written in those 4 hours as another comment on the blog.

5-All "end time" posts must be posted by 12:15 a.m. that night (technically Nov 5), Mountain Daylight Time (we're giving you 15 minutes to tally your numbers). To calculate your times based on where you live, go HERE and educate yourself about time zones.

6-Please be honest about your word count and use your time to write REAL words. You are your own time/word keeper and we are trusting that none of our dearly beloved readers would sell their integrity for $50 or 30 pages :-) You must have posted a start comment AND an end comment to be eligible to win either of the prizes.

7-The winner will be posted on Saturday, November 5th here on the PEG blog.

We'll also be adding up everyone's words. We're hoping to hit 100,000 words in one night.

Feel free to spread the word to other writers (Facebook, Twitter, personal blogs), wherever they may live--send them here to read up on the specifics. This contest is open to anyone, anywhere. While the prizes are a perk, the true challenge is to see how much you can do in a four hour period of time dedicated to writing. Order pizza for the kids, put the cell phone on silent, TIVO Letterman, and let your fingers go.

*Please ask any questions here, we'll answer them as soon as possible.

Dear Author . . .

By Julie Wright

“I spent a bit of time perusing the Dear Author for the romance category boards over on Amazon. It was hilarious . . . until it wasn't.

I'm in the process of editing one of my earlier manuscripts that I've received my rights back from the publisher. I knew the writing was rough because I was young when I wrote the book and inexperienced as a writer. I had no idea how bad it truly was until I got two sentences into the edit.

Sad that it only took two sentences for me to start rolling my eyes. I actually would have been eye-rolling at the first four words except I was too shocked to be capable of the eye-roll.

I made a lot of mistakes in those first books, mistakes that would instigate the words, "Dear author . . . Please don't . . ."

It's important to remember your audience and to read enough in the genre in which you're writing so you understand the cliche's and sand-traps of that genre. Basically, what I'm saying is . . . learn your craft.

I was so glad to have been published with those first couple of books, so excited to be an "author," that I jumped in before I was ready. Was it a mistake? Maybe. Maybe I never would have published and worked to get better if I hadn't had those first books come out the way they did. Or maybe I would have kept writing until I grew in my craft and had a first book release that would have stunned the world. Who knows? Twelve novels later, I am a much different writer today than I was ten years ago. I hope to keep improving and growing and BECOMING.  For now, I am editing and eye-rolling. And paying close attention to notes like, "dear author . . ."

Feel free to peruse the Dear Author board on Amazon for yourself:

Dear Author . . .

And do you have any memos you wish you could say to authors in general? Things you wish they'd stop doing or do more of?                    

Time Warps

by Annette Lyon

Throughout your story, time will pass. Story time, that is. (Even more time will pass as you write it, but that's another topic.)

Handling time can be tricky, and if it's done poorly, your reader may get confused, annoyed, and, quite possibly, put the story down. Here are the most common ways writers mishandle time that I see as an editor:

Back Story Dumps

This is one of the most common ways to mismanage time: dwelling on back story, especially in the first couple of chapters. Get to the now of the story right away. Give us whatever information we need from the past in small bites (usually later), and probably less back story than you think we need. We've talked about this one elsewhere, so we'll jump to the other time problems.

Flashbacks

While I'd never say you can't use a flashback (few writing rules are so solid you can actually say "never" to them), I would say to be wary of them and, when using them, learn to do so well.

A few flashback tips:

1) Make the transitions into and out of the flashback crystal clear so the reader can follow easily. We need to know where and when we are at all times.

2) Keep the flashbacks short and few. Lots of flashbacks aren't a story. You don't want your novel to get mired in what led up to this point; tell us what's happening now. That's where the current conflict (and therefore, what your reader will care about) lies.

3) Use flashbacks with a clear purpose, deliberately, when you've gone through other techniques and are sure that there's no other way to effectively accomplish what your story needs. Don't fall back on this technique as your default. Chances are, the easiest way to tell the story isn't going to be the most effective.

Flashbacks Within Flashbacks

Laugh if you will, but I do see this. A flashback all by itself has the potential for confusing the reader about what happened and when. Adding a second flashback inside the first is doubly confusing. If the second flashback includes time words like "two weeks ago," we have no idea what's going on; is that two weeks prior to the second flashback? Is the second flashback two weeks prior to the first? Or is this two weeks before the main story line? Confusing? You bet. It's also sloppy.

Rewinding.

This is when, for example, Scene A covers the time from 3 to 6PM, and then the writer goes on to write Scene B, but backs up in time and repeats some or most of what happened in scene A, only from a different POV.

Here's the problem: After reading scene A, which ends at 6PM, most readers (understandably, since in our lives, time moves forward) will assume the time is 6PM (or later).

Rewinding is jarring in the extreme. Readers expect time to flow one direction unless clearly told otherwise. So if that expectation is violated, the reader gets pulled out, has to reorient, and only then move forward. You've just given the reader the perfect chance to close the cover and walk away.

In one rewinding case I saw, two characters see one another for the second time. We first see the brief meeting from the man's point of view. He went on to have a pretty long scene with other events. So when the next scene began, from the woman's point of view, I assumed an hour or two (at least) had passed.

The scene read fine that way at first. But halfway through, the door opens, and she sees the man. I assumed this was their third meeting. It wasn't until a page or two later that I realized that oh, this is meeting #2, and we're seeing it for a second time.

Among the problems with this particular story: The second viewing didn't add a thing.

As with flashbacks, there's no hard and fast rule to avoid this technique, but I'd caution against it even more than with flashbacks.

Rewinding: A Caveat

As an editor, I have seen rewinding done well . . . a total of one time.

In that case, it worked for several reasons:

1) When we jumped from Character A to Character B, the section was labeled with the B character's name clearly identified as the POV character. I knew right away that we'd changed locations and POV, and when the time shifted too, I was ready for it.

2) Although we were reliving a time period, a significant amount of Character B's story didn't feature Character A at all. For the most part, we weren't seeing the same scenes, just the same time period.

3) During the moments where we were repeating a scene, we got a brand new perspective with new, important information. Both perspectives were crucial to the story.

4) We weren't ping ponging back and forth; each section was several chapters long, so we had a significant amount of time with each POV before swapping to the other.

In the first case (that didn't work), none of these items were present.

1) We simply moved to the next scene with no marker or header telling us where (or when!) we were.

2) We relived not only the same time period, but the exact same moment.

And the kicker:

3) The two characters' perspectives weren't different enough to add a single thing to the story.

A rule of thumb regarding POV:

Use the point of view of the character who has the most to lose in any given scene.

A corollary:

That means you can't pick two characters to use and then show the scene twice.

As an exercise, feel free to write both. Then see which is the most effective and choose the better scene. I can guarantee that one of the two will be better than the other. Use that.

Then throw the other one away.

Handling time in fiction, especially in something as lengthy as a novel, can be tricky. Avoid the pitfalls of back story dumps, flashbacks (plus flashbacks within flashbacks), and rewinding, and you'll have eliminated a lot of potholes, making your story much smoother reading.

"I'm a Bit Stubborn"

by Annette Lyon

Writing, whether it's your occupation, hobby, or passion, brings with it challenges that I believe are unique to the creative arts.

Among them is an intense connection to your work, almost as if your words are an extension of yourself, your heart, your very being.

That can pose a huge problem, but here are two of the most common ways:

1) You are too afraid to get feedback.

It's very hard to put your work out there for other people to see, then ask them for an opinion, especially since writing can be so subjective. It's like someone telling you your baby is ugly, and it's all your fault.

2) You refuse to accept feedback.

Yes, writing is subjective . . . to a point. But when alpha/beta readers, critique partners, and editors continue to return with similar feedback (this is confusing, show this, the pace is lagging, whatever), maybe there's really a problem.

Maybe you can really improve.

A truth for success in writing: being pig-headed gets you absolutely nowhere.

Those writers who seek help, who are open to suggestion and change, who recognize that maybe they aren't yet ready to put up a shelf for their incoming Pulitzer, who continually strive to improve: those are the writers who will eventually succeed.

I recently met a man who is an aspiring writer and actor. As we talked, it became clear that the main reason he hasn't found any success in either endeavor is that he refuses to seek or accept feedback.

With his writing, he simply will not let others so much as suggest he add a comma. No one is allowed to give criticism of any kind (editors and writing teachers are "full of themselves," you see). He has no industry connections at all, and therefore doesn't understand how the industry works. He doesn't take time for his craft. He simply expects success to land in his lap.

As we talked, he explained that he can't stand being told what to do. "I'm a bit stubborn," he admitted, as if that's an admirable quality.

Stubbornness can be a good thing; to some extent, it's what helped me get as far as I have in my career. I'm stubborn enough to not give up.

But that's not the kind of stubborn he was talking about. He refuses feedback, suggestions, change, and any hint that he maybe he'd get further by going about doing things differently.

Yet he asked my advice about how to improve, succeed, and find industry connections. I had a sneaking suspicion that he didn't really want to hear what I was going to say.

First I asked, "Have you been to any writing conferences?"

"Oh, no. I don't have time for conferences or any of that stuff."

Since we'd met all of ten minutes earlier, I might have been too bold in my response, but it slipped out anyway: "Then you don't have time to be a writer."

After a slightly awkward pause, he said, "Yeah, I hear that. But . . ."

And he kept going on about how he's such a great writer and doesn't want (or need) to be told what to do.

When he heard about how many books I've published, he asked if I could connect him with friends in the industry to get him published.

My first reaction (which I didn't verbalize), was to list all the work I've done to reach the point I'm at. We're talking about close to two decades of hard, consistent work. Work I'm still doing. Success doesn't just happen.

I tried to explain that no one can help him in the way he wants. Even if I handed him my editor's cell phone number, it would do him no good. I can make suggestions and recommendations to industry friends (and I have).

Every so often the recommendation leads to a contract. In one case, the writer I passed the information on about had been actively working, hard, for years. It was a good fit, and I could whole-heartedly recommend them to my editor. It worked out only because the writer's skill, work ethic, and professionalism were already in place. They likely would have made it eventually without my putting a finger into the situation.

But I've made other recommendations that haven't ended up in a contract. I can suggest all I want, but in the end, I have zero control over what an editor or publisher does. I've been recommended by others too, but that guarantees nothing.

As the conversation went on, it became quite clear that he didn't know some of the most basic things about writing or publishing, things he could have picked up and learned with a simple Google search (or heck, by reading the archives right here).

I left the conversation guessing that whatever dreams he has will never become a reality because he refuses to be teachable.

If you hope to be published and have success, you need outside feedback (good luck ever publishing a novel if you refuse to be edited; your publisher will drop you like a hot potato).

I don't care if you think you're the best gift to literature since Shakespeare; you need to improve and learn what that means for your work.

You need to reach out and make the connections. Don't isolate yourself in a tower and think you know best when others can support you and help you thrive.

Don't think you have all the answers. I can guarantee that whoever you are, you don't.

Learn the ins and outs and expectations of what a writer does, how publishing works, and what that means for you personally.

If you're serious about writing, you'll never be in a place to sit on your laurels.

Don't look down your nose at someone who is suggesting that maybe this part of your story might work better if you revised. They just might know what they're talking about. And remember: they're trying to help you, not pull you down.

Bottom line: Learn what it means to be a professional. And then behave like one.

How Much is This Gunna Cost Me?

By Josi S. Kilpack

Awhile back I was approached by someone who'd just finished their first book. I'm always excited to encourage other writers and share the excitement of such an accomplishment. The woman then asked me what she should do next. I asked if she'd attended any writer's conferences and she said "Oh, those are so pricey, I couldn't afford that." I went on to tell her of some up and coming conferences that are very reasonably priced. "Oh, that's way too much money. What else can I do?"
So I told her of some free options: read writing blogs, find comparable books to what she's written and figure out who published them, follow agents on Facebook and Twitter, join a writing group. She asked how she would find a writing group and the first thought that came to mind was where I've met several members of the writing groups I've belonged to--writing conferences. But she'd already nixed that option, and yet it was the answer I had. So I told her and she, again, reminded me that she could never possibly come up with $100 to attend a writer's conference. I mentioned joining The League of Utah Writers which has monthly meetings, she asked (can you guess?) "How much would that cost?"
"About $25 a year."
She shook her head and explained, again, that there was no way she could pay anything. At that point I smiled and wished her luck. I watched her leave and wished I could have made her see beyond her determination that she couldn't afford the best options out there. The thought that's come back to me ever since is "How can she afford not to invest in something that's obviously so important to her?" The exchange has sat with me ever since and therefore here I am pontificating about it you guys.

On the one hand, I understand that there are people in some really tough financial situations. They are struggling to pay their mortgage and worry about the upcoming winter. They are working hard to make ends meet and there is no room for anything extra. I remember when I laid awake at night wondering how on earth I was going to pay the power bill. I would never tell anyone to pay for a conference instead of filling their children's cavities and I carry no judgment for them not seeing room in their budgets to invest in something far below milk and bread on their list.

On the other hand, I really don't know how anyone can expect and hope to make a career in writing without making an investment in it somewhere. IF you want writing to be a career, IF you want it to pay you money someday, there are going to be expenses. Here are some of the basic things that a writer can expect to spend money on:
*A decent computer
*A backup service of some kind for that computer
*Software--Microsoft Word is the standard right now
*Printer Ink for printing manuscripts (though with e-submission this isn't what it once was)
*Paper for printing on
*Writing Books--there are some you'll want to own for future reference
*Postage for mailing things
*Dues for writers organizations--At $25/year, that's $2.00/monthly meeting
*Writer's Conferences--in my opinion this is where you get the most bang for your buck

To me, this list is essential. It provides you with somewhere to write and store your words, mediums to send those words out, and opportunities to learn not only about the craft, but about the career you're striving toward. Without investing in these things it will be difficult for you to learn all the nuances of the writing profession. That said, there are some solutions that don't require big buck investments:

*Computer.  A friend of mine wrote for many years using two very old computers. One hard drive was used for writing, the other one was connected to the main computer and backed up everything from the first computer, which meant he had two hard drives with his book on them. It took some technical know-how to set it up but cost him about $100.
*Software. Most computers come with a word processing software. If yours doesn't, or if you're still working off of Word 2000, look on eBay for discounted upgrades. If you need to (or feel better about) buying new, look for a student copy, assuming you have a student in your household. It can save you a lot of money.
*Ink and postage can be use minimally if you do all your editing on the computer and focus on e-doc submissions and critique sharing.
*Writing books. Check your library sales or check thrift stores, but understand that books on writing are very niche and therefore hard to find amid the general mass of books out there; you might get lucky though. Many of my favorite titles sell for less than $5 on Amazon.
*Dues for Writing Organizations. Would mom pay your dues as your birthday present every year? Can you sell something on eBay. Get creative.
*Writing Conferences. Sometimes you can volunteer to help with the conference and get a discount, but you really need to know people before they will trust you to be helpful. You can also ask for the admission as a gift from people in your life, or save up for it. Don't feel like you have to travel to another state or go to a conference every month to benefit--one writer's conference a year close to home is a great start.

The fact is that a writing career isn't free. It takes time and it will take some money and each person has to figure out what they can do. However, if the book you're writing is worthy of the time you put into it, isn't it worth the necessary financial investment it will take to make it the best it can be? You don't have to fly to Maui, you don't have to have your own personal writing library or buy the newest computer out there, but you do need to ask yourself what you can do, and then you need to do it.

Also, keep in mind that once you get published, the expenses will increase and you don't get paid right away--unless you get an advance. You will have to carry expenses for awhile before you get paid anything even after your book is out there so finding a way to work some of these things into your current budget will help prepare you for that end.

Happy Writing!