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writercisesOriginal Posting Oct. 14, 2015
Writer's Digest, April 2003, pp. 24-27, had an article by Laurie Rosin with the title 10 Tips for a Stellar Revision. The focus was on 10 basic concepts to help you do revision. While the details are worth reading, here's a short summary of what I thought were the important points.
1. A revision takes as long as it takes. Don't get in a hurry. Relax, take your time, and see what you can learn from the process.
2. Revise toward a marketable length. Especially first-time novelists often write too long, and have trouble revising this huge mass of material. Think about cutting unnecessary material before you polish. Is everything as tight as possible?
3. Torque the power of your scenes. Scenes, characters, settings -- make sure it all works towards your story. Frame your scenes with a quick here's where we are, who's there, how much of a gap from the last scene, who is the point of view and what are they thinking?
4. Begin scenes close to the action. In media res isn't just for openings!
5. Tease the reader forward into the next chapter."Each chapter's conclusion should leave the reader excited, anticipating what might happen next. Good endings, linked to powerful beginnings in the succeeding chapter, keep your audience fully engaged." What is the protagonist planning/worrying about? What is the antagonist doing? Look ahead, but save the full impact for the next scene.
6. Replace discussion with action. Meetings and routine activities are dull. Skip it, and keep your characters in action!
7. Give your antagonist some depth. Bold, intelligent villains make heroes shine! What does he want, why, and what is he willing to do to get there?
8. Make sure your dialogue matters. Characters should talk like themselves, not all the same. Make the dialogue real!
9. Incorporate your research where appropriate. The job is inform and entertain. Help the reader learn something new, give them some fun facts, something interesting.
10. Dramatize, dramatize, dramatize. Make the events immediate and real. Watch for stretches of narrative without dialogue -- you're probably telling! Let the point of view character show us the story, instead of the storyteller.
Okay? So rvise. Revse. Revise!
Writer's Digest, April 2003, pp. 24-27, had an article by Laurie Rosin with the title 10 Tips for a Stellar Revision. The focus was on 10 basic concepts to help you do revision. While the details are worth reading, here's a short summary of what I thought were the important points.
1. A revision takes as long as it takes. Don't get in a hurry. Relax, take your time, and see what you can learn from the process.
2. Revise toward a marketable length. Especially first-time novelists often write too long, and have trouble revising this huge mass of material. Think about cutting unnecessary material before you polish. Is everything as tight as possible?
3. Torque the power of your scenes. Scenes, characters, settings -- make sure it all works towards your story. Frame your scenes with a quick here's where we are, who's there, how much of a gap from the last scene, who is the point of view and what are they thinking?
4. Begin scenes close to the action. In media res isn't just for openings!
5. Tease the reader forward into the next chapter."Each chapter's conclusion should leave the reader excited, anticipating what might happen next. Good endings, linked to powerful beginnings in the succeeding chapter, keep your audience fully engaged." What is the protagonist planning/worrying about? What is the antagonist doing? Look ahead, but save the full impact for the next scene.
6. Replace discussion with action. Meetings and routine activities are dull. Skip it, and keep your characters in action!
7. Give your antagonist some depth. Bold, intelligent villains make heroes shine! What does he want, why, and what is he willing to do to get there?
8. Make sure your dialogue matters. Characters should talk like themselves, not all the same. Make the dialogue real!
9. Incorporate your research where appropriate. The job is inform and entertain. Help the reader learn something new, give them some fun facts, something interesting.
10. Dramatize, dramatize, dramatize. Make the events immediate and real. Watch for stretches of narrative without dialogue -- you're probably telling! Let the point of view character show us the story, instead of the storyteller.
Okay? So rvise. Revse. Revise!
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