Status Updates From Mastering the Process: From...

G ood writing generally evolves from three sources: a knowledge of the elements of craft the extensive reading of the works of well-respected writers from various genres, and an enormous amount of practice. If creating a novel were easy, everyone would be doing it. The fact that it's not easy, the fact that it requires talent, knowledge, perseverance, discipline, and passion,

But for those for whom writing is a psychological and emotional necessity as well as a way of life, the more they know about the craft itself, the more they practice, and the more they work to develop a process that benefits them, the better the chances of finding someone willing to take a chance on them in the world of publishing.

Routine … 5 pages with rough draft ..or 50 pages with second draft. … write objective like two character analyses or 10 step outlined or two running plot scenes or to a timer ….

Self-discipline is all about being willing to delay gratification. It's all about doing what you have to do or need to do first and doing what you want to do second.

only. I want to be finished with the book because, frankly, after all the work I've put into it, the novel holds virtually no charm for me.
I also go through all of this because I'm a perfectionist. I take enormous pride in my work, and when I show it to someone-particularly to my editorI want it to represent the best I can do. Handing off a rough draft and telling my editor, "You figure out what to do with it,"

Why go through all this? you might well ask. I go through it because once I've sent the novel to my editor, I want to spend as little additional time on it as possible. I want my editor's letter to me to be very brief, suggesting

The other set I give to her in a sealed envelope. She opens this envelope immediately upon finishing the novel. Now she sees the questions that I feared might influence her reading if she'd had them in advance. These are questions like "I think I have too many Barbara Havers scenes. … then send third draft to my editor

set she reads in advance so that she'll know what I'm looking for from her. Examples might be "Mark any spot where your interest is flag-ging" or "Mark every place where you suspect someone of something"

When I turn from this information-gathering step, I generate a second draft of the novel by working directly on the first draft. I won't put anything into the computer until the second draft is completed. During this part of my process, I cut and paste when necessary, I slash anything that seems prolix, unnecessary, or overwrought. If the novel needs to be restruc-tured, now is when I do it, moving things around

I then generate an editorial letter for myself. It's going to take me some time to do the second draft of the novel, so I want to know what my objectives are and I want to remember these objectives throughout my creation of a second draft.

This is the point at which I'm evaluating whether an entire subplot will stay or meet its fate on the cutting-room floor. I ask myself if the subplot truly meets the needs of the novel. I ask myself if the subplot adds to the reader's understanding of place, character, and theme.

Then I get more serious. Having completed my as-quickly-as-l-can initial reading, I now read each subplot on its own. To do this, I first remove all subplots from the manuscript, having identified them with mini Post-its of various colors. Going from start to finish on each individual subplot, I look at the arc of this story, since a subplot, while thematically unified with the rest of the novel, must tell a

Revise as much as possible in one sitting or close to it. Following this method, I can generally tell if there are problem areas, repetitions, inconsistencies, too much of something, too little of something else. I can note if words or phrases have been overused. I can see if a subplot isn't necessary. Most of the time, I can also see if something is lacking:

I call the next structure Present-Past-Present. To create this type of scene, I begin the action in the real time in which it's going to play out. While I'm writing the opening of the scene in real time, I'm waiting to feel the logical point at which I can stop, back up, and deal with how-did-we-get-to-this-moment. Let's look at the example in parts.

Thus, the first approach I consider when structuring a scene is what I call the Motion Picture Technique. Essentially, what the writer does with this technique is to go from place, to setting of scene, to action.

Narrative climax to a revelation or choice in climax .. Direct dialogue
Indirect dialogue
Amount of narration
The use of summary narration
The scenic form itself

Plot point scenes contain new information, new facts, new agendas, or new characters who will come "onstage" to alter the direction of the nar-rative .. contains discovery … propel story forward… new setting and launching character into a new situation .. misunderstanding

The question is, how do you know when you need a plot point? The answer is, you need a plot point when the story slows or stalls and when a careful examination of what you've done so far tells you that the problem is not one of playing your hand (i.e., accidentally revealing something) too soon.

The first dramatic question appears in the last sentence of that first paragraph, contained in the words, in an effort to avoid both the though of he future and the memory of the past. Specifically the reader's interest should be caught with the memory of the past, and her interest, one hopes, will be heightened by that incomplete information. It's my belief that this makes the opening much more powerful than it w

Opening scenes are tough because their number one requirement is to hook the reader. The writer has various tools to employ in order to hook, however: the promise of excitement or intrigue or conflict, an indication of theme, a problem that a character encounters, foreshadowing of things

Opening scenes are tough because their number one requirement is to hook the reader. The writer has various tools to employ in order to hook, however: the promise of excitement or intrigue or conflict, an indication of theme, a problem that a character encounters, foreshadowing of things