Okay, I know I TOTALLY dropped the ball on this series. In fact, I'm pretty sure I was supposed to wrap it up about 3 months ago. #Shannonfail
But hey--since I spent the greater part of the last 3 months in various forms of Revision Hell--I've actually found quite a few new tricks to share, so ALL THE SLACKING PAID OFF---HAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!
So...in case you missed the earlier posts (or have just forgotten them over the last three months *coughs*), here's links to PART ONE, PART TWO, and PART THREE of my revision process. And now we're up to PART FOUR--which was *supposed* to be the last stage. But um...ha, it SO isn't.
Well...I guess it is, but I'm realizing I can't cover it all in one post. So there will definitely be a PART FIVE and maybe a PART SIX. I can ramble about revision for a long time. Especially this stage--The Agent Stage.
Now, all literary agents are different, and not all are hands on editorially. Laura happens to be VERY hands on editorially--one of the main reasons I wanted to work with her. But for some of you, this stage may not exist (though most of the things I will be covering apply whether you have an editorial agent or not. Just substitute the word "Agent" for "critique partner").
Okay, so to get to this stage I've written the draft, revising lightly as I go. I've gone through it myself, based on the "Things I need to Fix" file. I've revised again based on CP feedback. Reread the whole thing in one sitting to watch for consistency. And, finally decided: yes, it's ready to send to Laura! Which...usually means I write up the email and then spend 2 or 3 hours in the: AHHH I'M SCARED TO HIT SEND zone before I finally get brave enough to send off the bad boy.
We'll fast forward through the 2-3 weeks I then spend obsessively checking my email for feedback and whining to anything with ears (yes, that includes my cats) about how afraid I am that she'll hate it. (no need to give you THAT close of a glimpse into my neuroses).
And so we arrive at the moment a lovely email from Laura Rennert with a subject line that has my book's title and the words: "My comments" pops up in my inbox.
So...I've gotten several of these emails over the last year, and I've sort of developed a system for opening them--and it goes something like this.
By: Shannon Whitney,
on 2/15/2011
Blog: Shannon Whitney Messenger (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Revision, Shannon Sharing, Shannon Style, Add a tag
For those of you who haven't been following this series (or just don't remember because I ramble about so many things it's hard for you to keep up) I've spent the last two weeks talking about my revision process. I've covered my drafting process HERE and my own personal revision process HERE. And today I'm going to talk a little about what I call the third "phase" of my revision process: The CP/Beta Phase.
Mind you--as you know from those previous posts--my poor CPs have already been involved throughout the whole process. In fact, by the end of this phase, they'll have read my draft three times (have I mentioned how amazing the Sara(h)s are? Cause um...YEAH! They = awesome.) So obviously the CP/Beta phase has a lot more to it than: send draft to CPs. (Though that would have made this post nice and easy to write).
Why the big guns? Because what I'm really talking about in this post is: how I work through critique notes. Which is not an easy thing to do.
Though, I'll admit. I'm currently a very lucky girl. I have two wonderful, smart, talented Critique Partners who have the perfect blend of "getting what I'm trying to do" and "pushing me to make me better." They still give me a ton of notes to wade through. But I never have to worry that I will completely disagree with their take on my project.
It...wasn't always that way. For a long time I didn't even have CPs. And then, as I tried to find them I had some...interesting experiences.
Nothing against those readers--at all. Writing is just subjective, and not everyone will like the same things or get what you're trying to do or read things as fast as you'd like or work well with you. It happens. And I'll talk more about finding CPs in another post someday (once I figure out what the heck to say in it) but for now, since we're talking about critiques, I'll just briefly cover how *I* judge if I can work from a critique, or if it's...off.
Here's the thing. I actually have a very thick skin. No really, I do. I couldn't have survived film school if I didn't. (Let me put it this way: we had to read our scenes out loud, in front of the class, and then everyone--including the teacher--told you what you did wrong. It. was. brutal.) So...I'm good with criticism. I don't ENJOY it. But it doesn't freak me out. At least, not when I can see their point. And I'm pretty darn good at seeing their point.
So when I get notes back on my draft, I've learned to listen to my gut reaction to them. Let's face it: even though we all know we're going to get notes back, and they're not going to say: IT'S PERFECT--DON'T CHANGE A THING!, deep down, we're secretly hoping it'll be like: add a few commas here, tweak these five lines of dialogue and you're golden. So...when we get back SIGNIFICANTLY more notes than that, it's kind of like a punch to the gut. Like, "crap...I have a lot more work to do."
But that is an ENTIRELY DIFFERENT FEELING from: "wow...they, hated my project" or "wow, I completely disagree wi
By: Shannon Whitney,
on 2/1/2011
Blog: Shannon Whitney Messenger (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Writing, Revision, Shannon Sharing, Shannon Style, Add a tag
As promised last week, this month I'll be using my Tuesday, Shannon-Style posts to talk about what is probably the most painful and difficult part of the writing process: Revision.
By: Shannon Whitney,
on 1/18/2011
Blog: Shannon Whitney Messenger (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Querying, Shannon Style, Add a tag
Okay, we've talked about Query format (and what I think should and shouldn't be there). We've talked about writing the hook. So now we're down to the body of the query--or the meat, as I like to call it. The part where you have to condense those 300+ pages of awesome manuscript down to one or two killer paragraphs that leave the agent thinking YES--I ABSOLUTELY MUST READ MORE!
I'll tell you right now, it's not easy. But I have a few pointers that helped me, so I will pass them on to you guys.
Once again though, I MUST point out before we start that, amazingly enough, I'm still not an agent. (nothing has changed career-wise for me these last couple weeks). Nor am I a query ninja or shark or any of those other names donned by the real pros at this. And remember, there's a reason why I'm covering this stuff under the "Shannon Style" label--this is all just my own personal approach. If it differs from something an agent says on their blog or website as far as how they prefer to be queried--please, I'm begging you, don't listen to me.
(Heh--can you tell I'm nervous about people blaming me for rejections? Yes, I'm THAT paranoid)
I should also point out that for most of us, writing a query letter is a very time consuming process. (There's a few lucky ducks out there who crank them out in a flash, but let's face it, no one likes those people). Yes, it's only a page--and not even a full page at that. But it's a ridiculously important page in which your entire career kind of rests. So yeah, don't expect to bang out this bad boy in a day and ship it off in a mass email to every agent in the biz (and while we're at it, PLEASE no mass emailing!)
Think of how much time and heart you poured into polishing your manuscript, and make sure you make all the same steps with your query. Really push yourself when you write it to get it right. Then revise. Send it to critique partners. Revise and send it to beta readers. Revise again. I'm also a big proponent of online query workshops or professional query critiques (which I will talk more about next week).
Basically: put in the time, sweat, and tears to get it right. I KNOW queries are boring to write. I KNOW they can be so frustrating you want to pound your head into the wall. Believe me, I KNOW. But this is your career--and your dream. Don't cut corners and risk ruining either of them.
Okay, so I'm going to start by breaking this down to lists of "Dos" and "Don'ts" to hopefully make it nice and easy. When writing the body/meat of your query:
DO:
-Focus on your main character and the main plot of your story
-Keep the sentences short, clear, and specific
-Use enough details to make it very clear what makes this YOUR book, not one of the millions of others out there
-Incorporate the voice of the novel
-Limit yourself to two paragraphs (three can be okay, but they better be AWESOME)
-End with a "call to action" that leaves them wanting to know what happens next
DON'T:<
By: Shannon Whitney,
on 1/11/2011
Blog: Shannon Whitney Messenger (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Shannon Style, Querying, Add a tag
Okay, so...to me a hook is one (or two, if you really need it) KILLER sentences that grab the agent's attention right from the start.
Whether you follow my suggestion and have the hook be the first sentence of the query, or whether you start with the stats sentence and follow with the hook, YOU NEED TO HAVE A HOOK. It will probably be one of the hardest sentences you ever write, but push yourself to do it because it makes such a difference to the quality of your query.
Basic tips for hook writing:
-Start with your main character
-Give details/specifics that establish a major aspect of the plot of your book
-Feature something that sets your book apart from everything else
-Don't be vague or coy
-Keep it short and powerful
-Use words that let you showcase your voice
And I know what you're probably thinking right now: wow--that's a LOT of stuff for one (or two) sentences--and you're right. You can't do EVERYTHING with a single hook. But this is where you start--your list of goals--and then you whittle things away to make the sentence more powerful as you go.
I base this partially on personal taste, and partially on something my agent--the lovely Laura Rennert--always recommends. She says that for pitching a project, the ideal is: Who, What, Where, and Why should I care? And since a query is basically a written pitch, and your hook is the very first part of that pitch, you want to cover as much of that in your hook as you can.
Now to me, the most important part of that is the: Why should I care? Which so often seems to be forgotten in the hooks people write.
I can't tell you how often--when I critique queries--I see a hook that goes something like this:
By: Shannon Whitney,
on 12/7/2010
Blog: Shannon Whitney Messenger (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Shannon Style, Writing, Revision, Add a tag
Okay, I had a request from a follower to talk about my methods for writing dialogue, so I'm going to give it a try. But I should probably preface this by saying that the title of the post is a little bit of a misnomer. I will be talking about writing dialogue, but I won't be talking about how *I* write dialogue, because I honestly don't know how I write most of the dialogue I do. I write dialogue almost completely unconsciously. (No really, I can't tell you how often I stare at the screen and think: where did THAT come from?)
Thanks to all my character building exercises (and my way too vivid imagination--my characters are so real they talk to me) I don't really spend a whole lot of time thinking: what would the character say here? I just know. In fact, I usually get so lost in the scene that it's like I can't type fast enough to get the conversation down, and I only really know what I wrote once I go back and reread.
That doesn't mean I don't have to revise though. Usually I have to cut at least a third of the dialogue simply because the characters rambled on way longer than they needed to. And sometimes I'll have to revise because the character(s) hijacked the scene and took the emotions somewhere I don't want them to go, so I have to step in and find a way to stop them from saying what they seem to want to say. (Yes, I realize how crazy I sound. I swear I'm relatively sane.)
But none of that is, I'm sure, particularly helpful to any of you, since I have a feeling most of you are far more normal than that. I do maintain, however, that one of the key elements to writing dialogue is knowing your characters.
I know filling out character profiles can feel like drudgery, but it is so worth it. So if you're struggling with dialogue, that's my first and best piece of advice. Step back and get to know your characters better. Figure out what makes them THEM, what makes them different from everyone else. Their dialogue usually comes naturally after that. (You can find more info on how I build my characters HERE.)
I'm sure that's still not enough, though, so I'm also going to share three tricks I learned in film school (screenplays are allllllllllll about the dialogue), that I have occasionally used to shine up some conversations in difficult scenes:
Remove the dialogue tags and reread: One of the hallmarks of good dialogue--imho--is that it needs to be specific to the character. Your reader should know who's talking just from the way the dialogue is worded, without needing a dialogue tag to tell them. And dialogue should never be interchangeable between characters. Each character should have their own distinct "voice." So the best way to check that is to remove all the dialogue tags and reread the scene to see if it's easy to figure out who's saying what (and don't worry, you'll put them back in when you're done). If you can tell who's talking without being confused, you probably have the dialogue right. But if you have to stop and think, "who's saying this?" you need to revise.
Act out the dialogue out loud: I know most of you probably read your draft out loud to yourself before you declare it, "done" (and if you don't, you should try it. It's AMAZING what you find that way). But that's not quite what I mean. I mean: pretend you're auditioning for a play and the scene you're performing is your book. Read the lines that way, attempting to convey the emotion or comedic timing or verbal cadence of the characters. I know it's embarrassing (best to do this one when no one else is around) and I know we're not all actors, so it probab
By: Shannon Whitney,
on 11/30/2010
Blog: Shannon Whitney Messenger (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Writing, Shannon Sharing, Shannon Style, Add a tag
Last week I showed you guys my obsessively organized brainstorming method, and since I mentioned that I also work with a separate character profile, I thought I'd cover my character building methods this week.
Now, I'll confess, I happen to be one of those writers whose characters are VERY real to them. Like, so real they talk to me and hijack my plots and run my life. (Yeah...my husband thinks I'm weird). So my main characters tend to come to me pretty complete, already talking to me and bossing me around. I still fill out the character profiles, but it's mostly just recording the stuff I already know, rather than building the characters and discovering them.
But for my side characters--who I like to be just as detailed and unique as my main characters--writing the character profile is invaluable to me.
So, here's my character profile template:
- Name.
- Appearance.
- Friends.
- Family.
- Faults.
- Strengths.
- Etc.
- Has she entered puberty?
- How does she feel about those changes to her body?
- Is she wearing a bra yet?
- Getting zits?
- Shaving her legs?
- Has she started wearing make-up?
- Ha
28 Comments on Creating Characters--Shannon Style, last added: 12/3/2010Display Comments Add a Comment
By: Shannon Whitney,
on 11/23/2010
Blog: Shannon Whitney Messenger (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Shannon Style, Writing, Add a tag
Last week I showed you guys my "loose outlining" method, (if you missed the post you can find it here) which is actually part of the way I brainstorm a project. So I thought I'd use this week's "Shannon Style" post to show you the rest of the ways I brainstorm--even though I have a feeling you're going to laugh at how ridiculously organized it is (I know, it's supposed to be a "storm" for a reason--but I'm a tad OCD, okay?)
Okay, here is a VERY edited down version of what my "brainstorming file" looks like (usually they end up about 10-15 pages long, but I whittled this down to two to keep it simpler for this post, so keep in mind that this is really just the starting point)
(And I know these are kind of hard to see--though if you click on them you should be able to read them better--but don't worry, I will explain them below)
- Main Characters
- Setting Ideas
- Basic Plot in One Paragraph
- Inspirational Music
- Inspirational Pictures
- Books to read/reread
- Random Thoughts/Partial Ideas
- Loose Outline
- Rejected ideas
By: Shannon Whitney,
on 11/16/2010
Blog: Shannon Whitney Messenger (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Writing, Shannon Style, Add a tag
Since everyone seemed to enjoy the peek into my critiquing method last week, I thought I'd start a new weekly post series, giving you guys a glimpse of my approach to various writing elements/processes. But fair warning: my head is a crazy place to be. Enter at your own risk. :)
So today I thought I'd tackle my approach to outlining. And those of you that know me are probably thinking, "WHAT???? You hate outlining!!!!!!!" Which is true. Well...actually, "hate" isn't really a strong enough word. I loathe and despise outlining with the intensity of a thousand fiery suns, and nothing--for me--guarantees a dull, lifeless draft more than outlining the darn thing ahead of time.
But...I'm not totally a pantser either. I'm a connect-the-dotser.
I am way too OCD to just jump into a draft with no idea where I'm going or what I'm doing. So I do a lot of brainstorming before I start (in a very organized way--I'll show you guys my brainstorming method in another post). And part of that brainstorming is what I like to call a "loose outline."
Here's what I HAVE to know before I can start a draft:
- Starting point
- Inciting incident
- Major turning point
- Major turning point
- Major turning point
- Hopelessness
- Climax
- Resolution
Starting point: My best guess at where the story should start. I'm usually wrong, and end up changing it later, but I pick the most logical place I can and work from there. Note: my goal is to always come into the story as late as possible. I want my inciting incident be less than 20 pages away from my starting point. Preferably 10.
Inciting Incident: Now, obviously, some stories follow a more untraditional plot structure, but most of what I write tends to be fairly plot driven. Which means at some point something needs to change for the character to really get the plot started--and the sooner it happens the better. (For example: in THE HUNGER GAMES, the Inciting Incident would be when Prim's name is drawn and Katniss volunteers to take her place.)
Major Turning Points: These can also be called "complications" or "reversals of fortune." Basically, I'm an evil writer, and I like to make sure nothing goes easily or smoothly for my characters. So I want to plan at least three major turning points for them along their journey to make them really struggle. I usually do way more than three--though several of those will be "minor" or sub-plot related--but the rest I like to leave up to the drafting process. I won't start until I have three awesome ones planned though.
Hopelessness: Have I mentioned that I'm an evil writer? Well, I am. In my screenwriting training we were taught that it was absolutely essential to push the main character to the point of "hopelessness"--and it's exactly what it sounds. Strip the character of pretty much everything they care about, make it seem like there's absolutely no possible hope for any sort of resolution, and then hit them one more time right where it counts, just to seal the deal. So I try to figure out the big things I'm going to rip away from my poor characters, and some idea of how I'm going to do it, before I dive in.
Climax: Usually follows the "hopelessness"--or, sometimes is wrapped up in the "hopelessness"--but we all know what this is. It's where everything that's been building comes to a head and boils over. The character must now face the problem head on. I absolutely cannot start writing a book until I know this, because it's the spot on the horizon that I'm driving the story to. My goal. I may not know exactly how I'm going to get there, but I have to be able to see where I'm headed. Otherwise I'll get hopelessly lost in the weeds and never find my way back out.
Resolution: I don't have to know al
Thanks for warning us. Yes, curling up in fetal position would be my first reaction.
I don't have as thick skin as you so I would probably freak out for awhile before I could dig in. But I'd love to have an editorial agent that would help me like Laura does for you.
I think my first reaction is defensiveness. Then I look at my writing, really look at my writing, and realize they're right and I can fix this.
You are awesome for sharing. Still building my thick skin, but it's coming right along. :)
Oh, and my stomach is clenching for you. :)