Wednesday Check-in
Posted: July 28, 2010 Filed under: Wednesday Check-in, Writers Write | Tags: Donald Maass Workshop, walking, writers, writing, Writing the Breakout Novel Workbook Leave a comment »Writing the Breakout Novel Workbook: 69 tasks completed out of 591 possible, 10 since 7/21.
Miles walked: 3 since 7/21.
I flew through Lessons 8, 9, and 10. I’ve worked on these things before. A little tweaking, a new paragraph here and there, and I’m good to go. Lesson 11: Developing the Antagonist is the red meat of revision. I started last night. Basically, the writer looks at the book like the bad guy (antagonist) is the hero. Not in white hat/black hat terms, but from the perspective, “What is the antagonist’s story?” Like many, my villain is a little cardboard. She needs muscle to fill her space, to make her menacing, and to show her motivation for things she does. Step 2 asks me to:
Create an extra dimension: write down your antagonist’s defining quality. Write down the opposite of that. Now create a paragraph in which your antagonist demonstrates the opposite quality that you have identified.
Her defining quality is ruthlessness, an inability to feel compassion for those, who stand in her way. Last night, I came up with the idea for the opposite. She feeds feral cats. Those strays are infiltrating my thoughts already. I can’t wait to put them on a page.
I walked a few miles around the neighborhood. I dug out the yoga routines, as well. The best thing I can say about yoga is I’m relieved when it’s over.
Writing Toward Normal
Posted: July 24, 2010 Filed under: Writers Write | Tags: family, writers, writing Leave a comment »I had a bad day.
Nothing bad happened. I took Coco to her violin lesson. Her teacher was pleased. She practiced. Cherry read a book. I cooked dinner. Bacon came home. We ate. We went to the pool. Everyone was happy.
After my family was tucked in bed, I put on headphones and listened to this white noise thing. I keep expecting the government to release a warning. Caution, this recording has been known to eat brain cells. But, it helps me focus.
I wrote. I feel better.
Wednesday Check-in
Posted: July 21, 2010 Filed under: Wednesday Check-in, Writers Write | Tags: Donald Maass Workshop, walking, writers, writing, Writing the Breakout Novel Workbook Leave a comment »Writing the Breakout Novel Workbook: 59 tasks completed out of 591 possible, 4 since 6/16.
Miles walked: 0 since 6/16.
I have finally finished Lesson 7: Personal Stakes from the workbook on pages 48 and 49. I wrote in longhand and then typed the revisions into Scrivener. This exercise did more to change my story than any so far. I wrote six completely new scenes, altered the point of view on a number of others, and revised fifty-six pages of text. My manuscript is formatted in single-spaced pages, so roughly one-quarter of the book has changed. I started working on Lesson 7 on April 28. I finished yesterday, June 20. I coped with plenty of interruptions, but in the end, I put my head down and ploughed through because I could see the benefits on every page.
I walked everyday on vacation, but at home, it’s too hot and the girls are with me all the time, so I’m not getting any mileage.
