[stylist] when you know you're done with the book/story?

Tue Apr 14 21:12:07 UTC 2009

Jim,
I was the same with my compitition entry too. I kept hold of it for
about 3 months, until eventually it was just plain finished.

So now I have to wait and see what happens.

Helene.

On 14/04/2009, James Canaday M.A.  N6YR <n6yr at sunflower.com> wrote:
> Helene,
> your post raises another thorny question: how to know when you're
> done with a text!  with the story I submitted for the division's
> contest, I knew everything I wanted to do with it would add to its
> length and it was hard to get it under the 3000-word limit.  of
> course I read it through two or three times before I decided it was
> done, each time focusing on different issues for each readthrough.
>
> but we can tinker with our texts until the cows have come home, the
> moon has risen and the milk is cold in the pail!
> jc
> Jim Canaday M.A.
> Lawrence, KS
>
>
> At 03:35 PM 4/14/2009, you wrote:
>>Thanks Jim,
>>
>>In this case I think I did the right thing. My problem is that I keep
>>creating too many sub plots. I hope some writers like a bit of comlex
>>story lines. But then everything gets in a tangle. The chapter I
>>omitted just didn't work any more. It had to go. I think the new
>>chapter that I wrote to replace it is better.
>>
>>Someone said to me that easy writing made difficult reading.  Also
>>that being a writer was 10 percent asperation and 90 per cent
>>persperation.
>>
>>This is the hardest bit for me. To make it all fit in. I want people
>>to really WANT to read this book.  Soon I'll be wanting people to read
>>chapters to tell me what you think of it. Since I think (fingers
>>crossed) that I am at lasta nearly finished. Although I can't be 100
>>percent sure since 'nearly' for me as been going on since before
>>christmas. I keep giving my work a final read through and I'm still
>>finding bits that I feel aren't good enough although I'm satisfied
>>with most of it.
>>
>>Helene.
>>
>>On 14/04/2009, James Canaday M.A.  N6YR <n6yr at sunflower.com> wrote:
>> > well,
>> > Helene, it depends on your image of the work and the goals you
>> > have.  you may wish to have chapters that jangle the reader, come as
>> > surprises, throw the reader off, or lead down the proverbial rat
>> > hole.  sometimes the work you write is intended and imagined in your
>> > head is a boat floating calmly under sail, much harmony at many
>> > levels.  other times, your story might be running the rapids, dashed
>> > about by a racing stream.  or, it may have a motor and beat the water
>> > with a rhythmic drive and beat up river against the flow with each
>> > inch of progress, spray flying!
>> >
>> > as I said, I have trouble pruning, sometimes it feels like it would
>> > be easier to remove a finger, or certainly one of those expendable toes.
>> > jc
>> >
>> > Jim Canaday M.A.
>> > Lawrence, KS
>> >
>> > At 07:57 PM 4/12/2009, you wrote:
>> >>Thanks Tamara,
>> >>I find I'm having to rewrite the whole of chapter 29 since it just
>> >>doesn't make any sense now I've edited stuff out, but on rereading it
>> >>the ideas had flaws in them anyway. It seemed a good idea at the time
>> >>but now seems a little silly and out of place. I think the new chapter
>> >>29 will be an improved version when I can rewrite it.
>> >>
>> >>Do other writers get that, idea's that seemed good at first then you
>> >>go over it and think "Na, that doesn't work at all?"
>> >>
>> >>Helene
>> >>
>> >>On 12/04/2009, Tamara Smith-Kinney <tamara.8024 at comcast.net> wrote:
>> >> > Helene,
>> >> >
>> >> > Oh, yeah!  And I have also found that I will cut something, then
>> >> > forget
>> >> > to
>> >> > remove a reference to it in the dialog of another plotline, then,
>> >> > which
>> >> > I
>> >> > suddenly realize will make no sense to the reader...  One of the
>> >> > dangers
>> >> > of
>> >> > a long piece of fiction, I guess.  A time or two, I've caught
>> >> > instances
>> >> > of
>> >> > that happening in a book I'm reading, which is very confusing until
>> >> > it
>> >> > suddenly dawns on me what happened.  /smile/  Usually it's when a
>> >> > commercially popular sequel got rushed through editing.  So I guess
>> >> > we
>> >> > all
>> >> > do it.
>> >> >
>> >> > Good luck!
>> >> >
>> >> > Tami Smith-Kinney
>> >> >
>> >> > -----Original Message-----
>> >> > From: stylist-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:stylist-bounces at nfbnet.org]
>> >> > On
>> >> > Behalf Of helene ryles
>> >> > Sent: Monday, April 06, 2009 10:06 PM
>> >> > To: Writer's Division Mailing List
>> >> > Subject: Re: [stylist] When pruning leaves gaps
>> >> >
>> >> > I am still pruning away any unneccessary clutter from my novel. Some
>> >> > subplots can very neatly be cut out. At other times it seems that
>> >> > when
>> >> > you try pruning it leaves gaps.
>> >> >
>> >> > Has anyone else found that to be the case?
>> >> >
>> >> > Helene
>> >> >
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>> >> >
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