Friday, May 13, 2016

Day 358...Making the Hard Part Easier





Welcome to Day 358...And making the hard part a little easier.

To be perfectly honest, for me, the hard part of writing a book isn't the actual writing. In fact, the plot lines, the locations, the character development, it all comes pretty easy. When I sit to write, I can write and the ideas just seem to flow.

It's the next part of the process - the part where you have to refine, make the dialogue less wordy and the descriptions cleaner - that's the struggle. I second guess every word I'm cutting or adding and I question if one sentence would fit better in one paragraph versus another.

Editing is by far the hardest part for me. And it's not just spotting issues with the spelling or the grammar. It's putting on your sharpest lenses to spot where there's too many adverbs, a passive versus active voice, or those instances when telling when I should be showing.

For me it's hard. Damn hard. 

So in trying to make it a bit easier...

I remember just how important editing is in the success any story.  Which helps me push through another sentence, another paragraph and another chapter - cutting, adding and shaping my book into everything I hope it to be.

I keep a strong mental picture of the story line in my head. In a way I feel the whole novel has already been written and I'm just brushing away at some dust or carving away at some blocks to uncover the masterpiece waiting to be revealed.

I break the editing process down into chunks...chunks of time or chunks of output - finishing a paragraph or chapter or sometimes even just working to refine a single sentence that I've been stuck on. Every movement of word and idea and every moment of time invested is getting me closer to the last page.

And finally...I use a helpful checklist as a reminder of what I should be watching out for.

I mean who doesn't love a good checklist? My days revolve around them.






Here's Today’s Takeaway Lesson…


"I Saw An Angel In The Marble & Carved Until I Set Him Free"  Michelangelo

Here's to Being All In,


Maggie 


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