Do Not Power Off or Unplug

Today my computer issued this warning: "Do not power off or unplug your machine. Installing update 5 of 26." 

Yikes! Has it really been that long since my computer updated?  Seriously, where have I been?  How did it happen that my writing computer has been silent and I have been unproductive for so long?  Bad, bad writer

If I were my own employee, I would have placed myself on probationary status by now:

 "So...how long has it been since you showed up for work?"


(Cough) "About...four weeks." (squirming)

"Weeks?"  Steepled fingers.  "I think months."

"Months?  Maybe.  I guess so.  But you know how summers are at my job.  Nine hour days in 90 degree heat.  With kids.  All day."  Big sigh.  "It really wears me out."

Silence.

"I'm not as young as I used to be." 

More silence.

"And now chamber choir rehearsals have started up again.  We're already singing Christmas music."

"That wasn't part of your job description.  Why are you letting it interfere with your duties?"

Silence.  Shuffling feet.

"I like singing Christmas music."

 "You don't like writing?"

Really long pause.

"Well?"

"I'm thinking."  Chewing lower lip and frowning.  "I like how I feel when I'm done, when the story really comes together.  But it's hard work.  And I work hard all day."

Silence.

"I've been reading a lot of great fiction.  You know, um, for research.  A writer's gotta know what's out there."

Pen tapping on desk.  "I think a plan of action will help you get back on track."

"Do I have to quit singing Christmas music?"

"Not if you can work it into your plan.  Where's your day planner?"

"Here." An avalanche of books and papers slides to the rug as I dig out the planner and blow dust from the cover.

"Write this down: 

1. reorganize your work station so you don't waste time 
2. set a writing schedule, time of day, days of the week and the month 
3. set a daily word count
4. meet with other writers to stay plugged in and encouraged 
5. read a good book on writing technique

"I'm already working my way through Writing 21st Century Fiction by Donald Maass."

"That's good, but don't get bogged down. You need to finish your rough draft.  What's your word count so far?"

"About 30,000 words."

"That's a great start. Since you have work to catch up on, you should consider putting in some overtime.  Go someplace where you won't have distractions if you can.  And consider signing up for NaNoWriMo."

I nudge a paper on the floor with my toe.

"What's the matter?"

"I sorta don't like my manuscript anymore.  The characters are boring and the story is a snoozer."

"Every writer feels that way at some point.  Once you get the rough draft finished, you'll gain momentum and feel like it's worth telling again."

"How do you know?"

"Trust me.  I've been there."

I feel better already.

"So, sign the plan of action and I'll place it in your file.  You have two months to show significant improvement."

 "Wow, you're strict."

"You have no idea."


 In two months

The X-Files

Wednesday’s post on the “Almost Dead Files” is a stellar example of Latayne’s natural talent and genius.  I think we all agree it would be a crying shame if she never completed the manuscript.  Maybe one day she will be able to fit it into her hectic life.

Out of curiosity, I plugged in my old flash drive and pulled up my first novel with every intention of posting a paragraph or two.  How bad could it be?  After all, it was taken to committee by the first editor who read it.  (Bless her heart)

The story couldn’t have been farther removed from what I now write.  The 50,000 word manuscript was a Gold Rush romance set in early California with a newly widowed heroine who is alone in the world and thrown into dependence on the one she blamed for her husband’s death. I researched at night and wrote scenes during afternoon nap time at my home day care.  The story poured easily from some deeply creative space, so again, how bad could it be?

Um…there are no words for how bad it is, so I won’t subject you to it.  But I will perform an autopsy. Here are some of the classic mistakes I made on my first draft:

Opened too far from the action

Flashback in the first chapter

Predictable premise

Heroine too snarky

Didn’t check the guidelines from the targeted publisher

Didn’t target a publisher

Wrong POV

Superfluous/duplicate characters

Passive word choices (yawn)

Too much description

Overuse of hyphens

Stilted dialogue

Rambling elevator pitch

Here are some things I did right (on the rewrite):

Extensive research, invested in books on life during the Gold Rush

Chopped the first three chapters

Used flashbacks sparingly and farther from the opening

Wrote more natural dialogue

Improved the heroine’s likeability

Researched publishers and modified scenes to meet their guidelines

Changed the POV to first person

Included the hero’s POV

Limited the number of sentences that began with “I”

Cut duplicate, unnecessary characters (or combined them)

Cut description that did not serve a purpose

Added a few twists to the plot

Improved the elevator pitch and practiced it

I deleted more than I added to the final draft. Cut, chopped, changed, limited are words that mean business. I remember that I had to step back from it for awhile before the knife was steady in my hand.  A lot of work had gone into all those words, but I knew the story was better off without them.

 What is the most important thing you learned from writing your first draft of your first manuscript? We'd love to hear!