By FotoosVanRobin from Netherlands (Reindeer steak) [CC-BY-SA-2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
Impatience is one of the things that keep causing problems for me. I want everything and now. But the more I live and learn the more I think that I need a better preparation in everything. In writing it means better outlining, research and editing. You don’t want to publish in haste and without proper editing unless you want to make yourself a laughing stock. And it’s just half a problem. You risk damaging your credibility as a thorough writer if you don’t take the post-production step seriously.
It’s easy to say that one needs to go from A to B, but how do you proceed from A to B? This week I dug out a new bunch of great tips. Enjoy!
- Rita Herron summarizes common pitfalls of a beginning writer. Check your first draft for these before sending it out for editing.
- Kristen Lamb elaborates on what it’s like to be a writer. Be aware of what you are getting into.
- C.S. Lakin explores the importance of setting up visible plot goals early in your story.
- Creativity is on vacation? Struggling to come up with ideas? Here’s some help from Allan Douglas.
- And finally there are some very informative posts on self-editing from Karin Cox. The ‘Modifiers gone mad’ section is especially useful and amusing too.
I have read a few books containing sentences like “Running away from the killer, a sense of despair crawled into my heart”. I can vividly imagine “a sense of despair” as a shapeless monster running away from a killer and at some point crawling through a dog flap with “My heart” printed above it on the red door.
Honestly, if you can’t see these things, make sure you hire a good editor. And when you are done, feel free to have your steak the way you like it.