Fine Tuning the Masterpiece

Have you ever written a masterpiece, forgotten about it for a few days, and come back to find it littered with discordant phrases or scenes? We’ve all had that experience. And when faced with our own less-than-stellar work, sometimes we’re tempted to throw it all away and start over, or worse, give up.

Let me tell you a story.

Recently I sat down at my piano after several weeks away. My fingers danced across the keys. I felt my shoulders relax and the tension of the day bleed away. But very soon I noticed a problem. Low D wasn’t working. No matter how hard or soft I pressed, no matter how I concentrated and bit my lip, no music came from Low D.

What could I do?

I could go ahead and play a symphony without Low D. I might pretend I didn’t notice or didn’t mind, like I wasn’t cringing every time the note didn’t play. I could improvise by adding in the even Lower D. That might make up for it. Sort of.

But after a few tries, I was ready to pull my hair out. 

I could quit playing piano. People quit things all the time. They change their life direction. Reprioritize. And piano is hard work. There’s lots of practice to achieve any sort of mastery. And while there are rewards, there are also problems, like notes that don’t work. It wouldn’t be a big deal for me to give it up, would it?

The thing is, I love playing piano. I love the way it feels to have my fingers move as if by magic while beautiful music fills the room. I love how the songs I play elicit emotion in other people. It can comfort them, stir their spirits, or make them think.

Sounds a lot like writing, doesn’t it? Back to the broken piano...

Another option would be to open it up and try to figure out what’s going wrong. This is usually my first approach. Poke around, find what’s broken, and try to fix it. Sometimes I take the piano apart, piece by piece. Not an easy task and not for the fainthearted. Sometimes I even manage to solve the problem on my own.

But often, I need outside help, a piano tuner, who can spot problems I overlook and who knows how to make the piano sing.

Writing is a lot like that, too. When we come back to a project and find it in need of repair, there are vital steps to take to refine our story and make it sing.

Take some time away from your draft.  

Taking a break from what you’re writing and viewing it with fresh eyes is often an illuminating experience. You will see your work in new ways. You will spot areas that need a little polish or maybe a heavy rewrite. Don’t be afraid of this. The purpose of early drafts is to get the words on the page. Then you make them pretty.

Put on your editing hat

Do overall story editing first – plot, character, pacing, etc. There’s no point in refining sentences to perfection when you might end up throwing them out later to adjust for larger, overarching issues.

After you’re comfortable with your large-scale changes, then focus on perfecting imagery and sentence structure.

Don’t be afraid to share

One of the best ways to see if your story is working is to share it with friends, or better yet, a critique group. Put on your thick skin and be prepared for questions suggestions. If you get some, that’s a great thing. No one bothers making suggestions if the work is a disaster. Ask people what they liked and what they didn’t. This can help your story development as well as your writing overall.

Hire help

Even the best stories receive professional editing. A good editor has a pulse on the market and can help position your book to excel. They can help your story hit the emotional and plot points you’re shooting for and identify areas where you need to put in a little extra work.

Best of luck as you polish your masterpiece! 

As for me, I’ll be calling a piano tuner this afternoon.

Working Edits with an Agent

You got an agent. Awesome! Now what? You go on sub right?
 

Well not exactly. Sometimes your manuscript is in great shape and it's ready to go on sub, but more often than not, your agent will have notes for you and things they want you to work on before you go on submission to editors. This is especially true if you've selected an editorial agent.

How do edits for an agent differ from editing notes you might get from a beta reader or a critique partner?
 

In a lot of ways the notes might be very similar. But in other ways, your agent may hone in on changes to your manuscript with an eye on what might make it more marketable. This is something your readers may or may not be able to help you with depending on how well they know the market.
 

What if you don't agree with the notes your agent give you?
 

Just like with your critique partners just because the give you notes doesn't mean you're required to incorporate them. Do make makes the most sense for your manuscript. But if you choose to not take a piece of advice, it might be good to consider why and have an honest discussion with your agent about your decision and why you made it.
 

You might even get some notes you've seen before and though your addressed. My agent asked for more worldbuilding, after I did an R&R for her with a primary focus on worldbuilding. My knee jerk reaction was wait, I just added 6,000 words of mostly worldbuilding, how could this manuscript possibly need more. I sat and stewed on it a bit and then asked my agent some clarifying questions. Turns out she was looking for something a little different than what I was originally interpreting the comment as. So it's important to take some time and level set your notes and make sure you and your agent are on the same page.
 

Overall it's important to remember you and your agent are a team. Work together on your edits and check in to make sure the direction if something that will work for the manuscript and make it stronger. You've got another person in your writing corner make sure you use them effectively.

Caught in the Contest Hype

It's that time of year again, where writerly folks are all abuzz about PitchWars. I mean sure it's exciting, if you get picked you get a mentor, some awesome manuscript notes, and access to an amazing list of agents reading your submission. It sounds like a dream come true, a match made in heaven, the stars aligning but wait...

Yes I said BUT

and this is a HUGE ENORMOUS BUT,

If that's all you're focused on, you're missing the point of pitchwars and writing contests in general. Let's be honest--and not to belittle PitchWars and other writing contests because I think they have great value to them--you can do everything PitchWars does for you on your own.

1) You can find an awesome beta reader (or several in fact) to help you shine up your manuscript.

2) You can edit and get additional feedback.

3) And you can query most if not all of the agents in contests and more on top of that.

So what do you need PitchWars and other contests for if you can do all this stuff on your own?

Networking - Writing is lonely. It's really easy to get lost and feel isolated, like you're the only one who has gone through this. But you aren't. Many others have. And contests are filled with mentors, hopefuls, and other industry people that are great to meet and interact with. Who knows, you might find your next CP match, an awesome beta reader, or some amazing fellow nerds like yourself. So get out there and talk to folks.

Editing tips - Contests almost always share tips and talk about ways to shine up your manuscripts. You can learn a lot of common mistakes to look for and make your manuscript stand out even more. I've picked up a ton of editing tips that I now use on all my work. So use this time to learn and grow as a writer.

Feedback - In many contests you will get direct feedback on a query, pitch, and/or opening pages. Use that to help hone in your work and make it pop from the first words. If you hook a reader right away, odds are agents will want to see more too. And if the contest doesn't directly offer feedback go back to the networking and find some new people to swap with to get that feedback.

Industry Wisdom - Many contests have writers that are further along in the writing process. Use them as a resource to learn about what comes next. What's it like to have an agent? go on sub? use a publicist? how do royalties work? etc. There's a whole huge writing world out there with tons of previous lessons learned, listen to the advice and gain a valuable perspective on the industry.

Reading material - Looking for new books to add to your to read pile? Looking to explore more in a genre? Need some research material? Contests are a great way to find new reading material. Whether it's the contest hosts/mentors' books, the books the participating agents are repping, or suggestions you get from fellow participants, contests are a great way to find tons of great reading material.

So the next time you find yourself biting your nails over a contest and freaking out about whether or not you'll get picked, take a step back. Look at the larger view of the contest. Get to know the participants, learn some new tips and tricks, and just have fun. Forget about who gets picked and who doesn't. Utilize all the opportunities that are right in front of you. And when you do, you'll be a winner whether you're picked or not.

The Power of Positive Critique – The Sandwich Method

I hate having to tell people what they did wrong. It’s hard and I don’t like disappointing people. And that is one reason why writing is so great--it’s subjective. Writing doesn’t have a lot of right and wrong to it. So when you critique you can focus on feedback that is telling the writer what’s not working for you as the reader. That said, if feedback isn’t delivered with care, it can be debilitating to a writer, especially one just starting out. This is why I love the sandwich method.

Yes I said sandwich, but unfortunately it’s not the eating kind. It’s the critiquing kind. So let’s decompose the sandwich method. In a standard sandwich you have the bread and the meat/veggie center. The bread is the good part. It’s got to be there otherwise you can’t have a sandwich. So when you critique someone it’s always helpful to start with something you liked about their work. Between characters, concept, story, setting, voice etc. you should be able to find something good about the work you are critiquing.

After first slice of bread comes the core of the sandwich. This is where you need to decide if you are a turkey sandwich, a ham sandwich, a BLT or something else. (I’m starting to get hungry) What goes on the sandwich is the things you want to discuss, what worked, what didn’t what might need some tweaking etc. You may choose to make this a turkey sandwich only and focus on just one issue that needs a lot of work, or you may decide you want a turkey with all the fixings, in which case you might discuss a lot of things you noticed. Just make sure you pile that sandwich with care. If you put the wrong combination of items it might not taste good. Or if you pile too high, the whole sandwich might topple over. Just like this…

I know that’s a bacon sandwich and what could honestly be wrong with bacon, but look at the structural integrity of that sandwich (sorry, I’m an engineer). That thing is a few strips of bacon from toppling onto that dirty table, and who wants gross bacon? Certainly not me. The same goes for meat of the feedback. If you pile too much on at once you risk knocking over the writer’s feelings. People have a threshold on how and what they can handle, so make sure you aren’t serving them a sandwich they can’t eat.

Yeah, I know, it’s all about the bacon. But you can’t have a sandwich without the top piece of bread. And that bread is again the good stuff. (Yes better than the bacon I SWEAR!) So make sure you cap off your feedback by again saying something nice. Start with good and end with good. If you do that, you’ll reel the writer in with what they really need to focus on without crippling them. Otherwise you might end up like this guy…

And we all know things didn’t turn out so great for him. So stick with the sandwich method. It allows you to deliver feedback in a nice way that will help the writer see what needs work without sending them home sad and hungry.

How do you like to give and/or receive your feedback?

 

You Got Feedback, Now What?

Feedback can make you want to twirl or tear your hair out. But when you get it from a critique partner, beta reader or maybe even an agent what do you do next? You’re drowning in notes and suggestions, some seem awesome, some don’t make sense, and others conflict with each other. How do you break down all the notes and decide what is useful and what information you should be listening to? Surely that agent critique holds more weight than your critique partners, right?

Well that may not always be the case. There are a number of things to consider before diving into revisions. If you aren’t careful you can give yourself whiplash from all the back and forth and end up with an over edited manuscript and/or query.

Are you saying no for the right reasons?

You should never blindly follow feedback from someone, I don’t care if they are an agent, editor, published author, or critique partner. Writing is subjective and what one person loves someone else might hate. Therefore just because someone is an “industry professional” doesn’t mean he or she knows everything or that his or her suggestions are right for your book. Only you know your book best, so you have to choose advice that works for you, even if that means sometimes ignoring industry experts.

Now I’m not saying you should ignore every agent, editor, and author out there, but you also don’t have to take every piece of advice you get from them as the final word. Honestly, some of my best feedback has come from unagented writers who are readers first. They understand good storytelling because they spend a lot of time reading. But that's not to discredit industry professionals, they can help make your book more marketable or see  your book from a different angle. Each person can bring a unique perspective to your work and it's important to realize not everyone will agree. I recommend not always weighting feedback by who it came from, but really evaluating each piece of advice and trying to decide if it will make your manuscript better or not.

Does the feedback resonate with you?

Are the notes sparking ideas or are they making you nauseous and confused? Well, good notes may still make you nauseated, but they also give you that push and drive to want to work on things. It may not happen right away, in fact a lot people (myself included) need a little time to let it sink in. I know my first instinct is to get defensive and start explaining everything I got feedback on. But once I have a chance to sit back and really think about it, things become a lot clearer. I start getting ideas about the things that need to be changed and how to go about making it happen. The things that don’t resonate don’t seem to fit into my story and I'm able to let them go.

Are you hearing the information from multiple sources?

If you hear some feedback once or maybe twice, it might be okay to ignore something. But if you start hearing something three or more times, it’s probably time to take a step back and re-evaluate. Multiple people saying the same thing usually means you have something that is confusing to the reader, a character and/or plot point that isn’t working or something that isn’t resonating with your readers. But also note, if the same feedback is coming from a public critique on a blog or forum, you may want to scrutinize the advice. Public critiques can be great, but sometimes people repeat things because they see others saying it not because they truly believe it. So you have to weigh the feedback from public settings in a different way.

Are you running from the work?

Writing is hard. Editing is hard. Nothing in this industry is easy. And if you are saying no to a major revision because you're scared, you think it’ll take too long, or you don’t think you can handle all the work, you are probably saying no to a revision for the wrong reason. Don’t run from the work, embrace it. I know some of my best revisions have come out of some of the most extensive notes that I was pretty scared of at the beginning. But in the end the hard work paid off and I ended up with a manuscript that was a million times stronger. It might seem like an uphill battle when you start, but when you finish you’ll be on the top of the mountain enjoying the view.

At the end of a revision, the feedback you received should make your manuscript shine. If you are ever unsure about some feedback it never hurts to try it out. You can always go back to your previous draft if it doesn’t work out. Feedback is designed to help you improve your work not cripple you and/or your manuscript. Always be sure to take the necessary time to think through the advice before diving into edits. A little extra time up front will provide the clarity you need to make your next draft the best one yet!

How do you decide which feedback is valuable to you?

MG Minded Talks - Revisions, Editing, and Critiquing

Welcome to another installment of MG Minded Talks! We will ask each of the bloggers a series of questions and they will share their responses. This month we are talking revisions, editing, and critiquing. Here's the questions:

1) How many drafts do you usually go through before you think it's ready for submission (agent, editor, querying etc.)

2) How do you know when your manuscript is "finished"?

3) What are your favorite kind of revisions?

Brooks B.

1) I generally edit as I write. Which makes for a longer draft time, but when I'm finished, it's generally ready for CPs or my agent.

2) That's tough, but when I feel like it has enough peak-and-valley moments with the conflict and the loose ends of the plot and subplot are tied up in a nice enough neat little bow, I can call it ready. If I don't then I'll continue to edit forever.

3) Ones where someone has a brilliant suggestion that adds more tension, raises the stakes even higher, causes more conflict. It's mean, but it makes for good story. J

Stacey T.

1) Totally depends on the book. If it's one I had a strong plot for and it came out well, it may not need much. I always at least do a big picture read through, fixing anything that doesn't seem right (might be a lot or might be just some tweaks) and then a more nitpicky copy/line edit and lastly I do some searches of words I over use. There are usually a lot of them!. Sometimes I realize new problem or a better fix later and have to go through the steps 1 and 2 over again. And again. Til it's finally right. So 3 minimum, max? Unlimited.

2) It's never finished! But usually when I'm excited about it and I've completed both steps 2 and 3.

3) I like the big picture read through. I like seeing it as a finished product and planning out what I can do to make it better.

Jamie K.

1) That really depends on the book, the feedback I get, and how frequently I start a new file, but I tend to average somewhere between 7-15. I always edit as I write so that helps make my "first" draft a little cleaner. After that, I usually have an alpha reader that checks for understanding and places where I might need more or less information on a micro level. Then I do a couple rounds myself, a full read through for continuity and flow, and an abused words cull where find replace with highlights words I tend to abuse or tend to make sentences weak. Then I send the manuscript off for various rounds of beta readers for a high level overview. Are the plot, characters, pacing etc working.

2) Well a manuscript is never really finished, but when I feel confident in the story and that I've addressed all the big issues readers have brought up then I feel the manuscript is ready.

3) The abused words cull. It's usually where I see the biggest transformation. The plot and characters don't usually change during that edit, but the writing really starts to shine.

Tom T.

1) I typically need to go through 3 or 4 drafts. I tend to write whatever is in my head at first, so it doesn't make the most sense in the first or second draft, and has pretty poor technical aspects. It's only when I get to my 3rd or 4th draft that everything is really fleshed out.

2) Honestly frown emoticon mine is never finished. I always feel like there is something I could change, or tweak, but I think it's finished once my head is about to explode looking at it. If I find myself changing the same area over and over again, it's typically me just OVER-editing.

3) The revisions where it changes the whole flow of my story for the better and triggers that flag in my head that goes "I LOVE THIS STORY"

Jason R.

1) Usually 4 drafts. After the initial draft of word vomiting, the 2nd draft is to fix macro plot/character stuff. The 3rd is copy editing, language tightening, adverb hacking, etc, Then beta readers get it, and draft 4 includes their feedback. Then it goes to my agent.

2) For now, it's mostly finished for me when it goes on submission, but even then, changes will likely still be necessary down the road before it's published

3) My favorite revision is the draft after my beta readers read it. Their feedback helps me bring the characters more fully to life on the page to better match what's in my head.

Dan K.

1) 3 or 4 drafts. First draft is me telling myself the story. Second draft is me trying to figure out how to tell that story to other people. Three is to make sure it's not a piece of crap. If I still need another, then four is to make sure each word counts.

2) My manuscript is finished after 3 or 4 drafts and particularly, after that draft where I've made sure each word counts. Now, I think I know myself pretty well and believe me, this is just me talking but I know that my 15th draft is not going to be much better than my 4th draft. So, for me, If I can't have a pretty compelling story by my 3rd or 4th draft, I'm in trouble. It's also worth noting that I'm not in the business of trying to win Newberry awards. I just want to make kids laugh and let them have fun for a bit. I stay focused on that.

3) Favorite kind? I don't have any favorite kind but I'll tell you the two most important kinds of revisions I do. Number one is the revision where I go through and look for places where "nothing is happening". I do that sometimes. Just have people talking so I can have some funny dialogue. Problem is, stuff has to keep moving forward. So, sometimes I need to just look for these lull spots and cut them, change them, fix them. The second most important kind of revision I do is when I go through and make sure each character is really speaking and acting according to their own unique voice.

Tom M.

1) I do a lot of editing as I write. After I finish an entire draft I'll go back and give it a second look to see what doesn't work, and after that it'll be ready for my agent. She's fairly editorial, so I know after she reads it I'm going to get some great notes from her. 

2) The manuscript is finished when I start circling back on revision ideas instead of pushing them forward, because there's nowhere else to go. And, of course, when printed, published copies exist.
 
3) I feel like a suck-up saying this, but I LOVE getting agent notes. She tells me what's working and if I need to develop it more, and she'll point out different ideas or approaches for things that might not have occurred to me on my own, which will push me in exciting new directions.