He's a writer too. And he's got enough skills to help me edit my manuscript into something magical. But like any worthwhile journey, it's not going to be all sunshine and roses. I am now fully prepared for tears and trauma. Bring it M!
I can take anything now, because I just finished putting in his corrections for my first chapter. My thought pattern was like this,
"You gotta be kidding me, I messed up this much?"
"He's picking on me!"
"Well, I guess that correction makes sense."
"Fine! I'll put it in and if it doesn't sound good when I read through later, it's gone."
After that much trauma, I think I'm even ready to take a few rejections from publishing companies.
The plus side? The chapter I thought was already amazing is now completely AWESOME!!! So, I think it's ok to trust him. Just a little. Thanks M!
Monday, January 25, 2010
Discouraged
So the people from demand studios denied my application. Oh well. The idea has made me think of branching out into the freelance field anyway. Maybe they'll accept me later?
In other news I'm a little discouraged. Writers tend to be the hardest on their own work as far as how "good" it is. For me, I get periods of, "The whole plot is stupid" and loose the drive to write. But I'm not giving up. I'm going to do just as D told me. Read others experiences and hopefully be able to pick myself back up.
Writing is not an easy field. Far from it. Word smiths have to work hard to find the clearest most interesting combination of words to give their readers the best experience. That said. I apologize for the last couple of posts that didn't ring clear in the readers ear. Even in a blog, I should make every word count. It's hard, but the results are worth it. And the writing buzz is intoxicating. I just can't stop! I still have eleven months before my personal deadline. Wish me luck!
In other news I'm a little discouraged. Writers tend to be the hardest on their own work as far as how "good" it is. For me, I get periods of, "The whole plot is stupid" and loose the drive to write. But I'm not giving up. I'm going to do just as D told me. Read others experiences and hopefully be able to pick myself back up.
Writing is not an easy field. Far from it. Word smiths have to work hard to find the clearest most interesting combination of words to give their readers the best experience. That said. I apologize for the last couple of posts that didn't ring clear in the readers ear. Even in a blog, I should make every word count. It's hard, but the results are worth it. And the writing buzz is intoxicating. I just can't stop! I still have eleven months before my personal deadline. Wish me luck!
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Yeah for Jobs!
I applied for a freelance job online at demandstudios.com. A friend told me it was a good way to build a portfolio and gain experience. I'm a little apprehensive. From what he said, it sounded too good to be true. You know the saying, "if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is." But I'm going to give it a shot. And if I'm hired, I could start building a much needed published portfolio and an experience log. I could also earn some money to help pay for school. Still, I have those, "between application and hire or de-nire" misgivings.
Right now, I feel like a teenager applying for a credit card. You remember those days? No one would give you a card, because you had no credit. But you had no credit, because no one would give you a card. I'm hoping that this won't turn out to be the same thing, only instead of credit, its the number of published works.
My current "portfolio" is made up of saved documents from college assignments. But I hope to add to it by publishing my book, some articles, and whatever else strikes my creative fancy. I already want to sign up for the class that's in charge of the school newspaper. That way if demand studios doesn't hire me, I can start building a portfolio anyway and maybe apply again later.
Wish me luck!
Right now, I feel like a teenager applying for a credit card. You remember those days? No one would give you a card, because you had no credit. But you had no credit, because no one would give you a card. I'm hoping that this won't turn out to be the same thing, only instead of credit, its the number of published works.
My current "portfolio" is made up of saved documents from college assignments. But I hope to add to it by publishing my book, some articles, and whatever else strikes my creative fancy. I already want to sign up for the class that's in charge of the school newspaper. That way if demand studios doesn't hire me, I can start building a portfolio anyway and maybe apply again later.
Wish me luck!
Thank You M
So this last weekend has been rough. I enlisted my brother-in-law, M, to help me edit my book. He had offered to do something similar at the beginning of the year for an e-mail version of a writing group. He's a writer too.
This was before I had done the second and the third drafts so I sent him the rough copy to look at. Naively thinking that it was already mostly perfect and that I wouldn't have to change much. But the cyber writing group never took off. Life and school took over again, and the corrected document was left floating in my e-mail for months.
This week I remembered it, and decided to take a look at what he had sent back. I've heard that writers are usually blind to their mistakes, but this is ridiculous. You'd think after so much time and effort that I'd maybe get just a few comments. Nope. The second page was blanketed in red correction boxes. Mostly for commas.
It just goes to show that four years ago I wasn't ready to be publishing anything just yet. But I am convinced that I'm ready now. Which is why I have asked him to look at it again. This time, I hope its a better version than the one he originally had to suffer through. Having gone through the book myself almost twice knowing what I know now, I feel his pain.
This was before I had done the second and the third drafts so I sent him the rough copy to look at. Naively thinking that it was already mostly perfect and that I wouldn't have to change much. But the cyber writing group never took off. Life and school took over again, and the corrected document was left floating in my e-mail for months.
This week I remembered it, and decided to take a look at what he had sent back. I've heard that writers are usually blind to their mistakes, but this is ridiculous. You'd think after so much time and effort that I'd maybe get just a few comments. Nope. The second page was blanketed in red correction boxes. Mostly for commas.
It just goes to show that four years ago I wasn't ready to be publishing anything just yet. But I am convinced that I'm ready now. Which is why I have asked him to look at it again. This time, I hope its a better version than the one he originally had to suffer through. Having gone through the book myself almost twice knowing what I know now, I feel his pain.
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Fact: - Writing does not pay the bills. Even on average.
This evening I considered a question I probably should have thought about when I was first banking my hopes on this career path.
What does it pay?
Before, I could care less. I enjoy writing, it is my passion, I don't want to do anything else, hopefully I'd be a stay-at-home mom yadda yadda yadda. But I'm older and wiser now and I do know that living costs a lot at best. And the Lord isn't just going to toss me prince charming with his perfect pay check at the exact right time I want to move out of the house for good. Besides, marriage is a goal that I want to wait for a while. I want to try living truly on my own first. (with a dog...maybe)
So what is the average advance for a writer?
I stole this from another blog,(http://justinelarbalestier.com/blog/2004/12/24/average-first-novel-advances/) while researching this question. The guy is also an author and his article is... informative.
Here's the breakdown.
"1962: $1,000
1965: $3,000
1970: $10,000
1976: $700
1982: $7,500
1984: $7,500
1985: $2,500, $8,000
1989: $3,000
1990: $15,000
1995: $4,000
1996: $4,000
1997: $7,500
1999: $2,500
2002: $6,500
2003: $13,500
2004: $350, $10,000
Average advance: $5,920"
But this is all relative to how much the publisher thinks they can sell, your agent, the economy, and how tightly you can hold on to your royalties. In one part of the article he mentions that for 7.5% of the shares you can get $1.50 from each $20 book sold. Does that sound like it pays the bills? Especially if your book is a washout? (one of my biggest fears as a first time novelist is being a complete failure, I wont' quit, but it'll still hurt my pride) You don't even get a penny until the advance is paid up. Like a bad loan, only the writer is the one who makes off with the check.
Bottom line. Very, very few people can live off their writings. I'm going to have to work and study harder and pray that I become one of them. At least in the bottom margarine of those who do. I don't ask for much in life. I dont' even have an ipod. For now all I want to pay for is school, and maybe (if they really like my book and I get a descent advance) be able to start a mortgage account. That's a realistic goal for a first book don't you think?
What does it pay?
Before, I could care less. I enjoy writing, it is my passion, I don't want to do anything else, hopefully I'd be a stay-at-home mom yadda yadda yadda. But I'm older and wiser now and I do know that living costs a lot at best. And the Lord isn't just going to toss me prince charming with his perfect pay check at the exact right time I want to move out of the house for good. Besides, marriage is a goal that I want to wait for a while. I want to try living truly on my own first. (with a dog...maybe)
So what is the average advance for a writer?
I stole this from another blog,(http://justinelarbalestier.com/blog/2004/12/24/average-first-novel-advances/) while researching this question. The guy is also an author and his article is... informative.
Here's the breakdown.
"1962: $1,000
1965: $3,000
1970: $10,000
1976: $700
1982: $7,500
1984: $7,500
1985: $2,500, $8,000
1989: $3,000
1990: $15,000
1995: $4,000
1996: $4,000
1997: $7,500
1999: $2,500
2002: $6,500
2003: $13,500
2004: $350, $10,000
Average advance: $5,920"
But this is all relative to how much the publisher thinks they can sell, your agent, the economy, and how tightly you can hold on to your royalties. In one part of the article he mentions that for 7.5% of the shares you can get $1.50 from each $20 book sold. Does that sound like it pays the bills? Especially if your book is a washout? (one of my biggest fears as a first time novelist is being a complete failure, I wont' quit, but it'll still hurt my pride) You don't even get a penny until the advance is paid up. Like a bad loan, only the writer is the one who makes off with the check.
Bottom line. Very, very few people can live off their writings. I'm going to have to work and study harder and pray that I become one of them. At least in the bottom margarine of those who do. I don't ask for much in life. I dont' even have an ipod. For now all I want to pay for is school, and maybe (if they really like my book and I get a descent advance) be able to start a mortgage account. That's a realistic goal for a first book don't you think?
Monday, January 18, 2010
Revisions, revisions, revisions...I could hang myself with a rope made of revisions.
Not surprising really. Since I made the original manuscript when I was sixteen and have rarely touched it since. I'm still convinced that it's a good story plot with excitement and a clear message. It's the execution that needs work. The stuff that demands readers to journey to the last page.
The problem comes from me settling into a coma-like state while I'm writing. Everything makes sense from a dreamlike standpoint. But to someone who's awake and alert and wants an adventure. I might as well give them a pillow and some NyQuil.
The good news is that I've found an antidote to my sleep writing. Don't work on any chapter or scene for more than an hour. This trick keeps me on my toes and my brain awake to the position and logic of the plot. It still needs a lot of work. But I'm convinced that I'll have a publishable work by the end of January, if not February.
I still need to fix some overall problems I noticed from creating my second draft. So I'll be hoping chapters for the next couple of weeks. Then I'll go through for a third-draft and hopefully by then (cross-fingers) it'll be almost ready for an editor to help me make it perfect.
The problem comes from me settling into a coma-like state while I'm writing. Everything makes sense from a dreamlike standpoint. But to someone who's awake and alert and wants an adventure. I might as well give them a pillow and some NyQuil.
The good news is that I've found an antidote to my sleep writing. Don't work on any chapter or scene for more than an hour. This trick keeps me on my toes and my brain awake to the position and logic of the plot. It still needs a lot of work. But I'm convinced that I'll have a publishable work by the end of January, if not February.
I still need to fix some overall problems I noticed from creating my second draft. So I'll be hoping chapters for the next couple of weeks. Then I'll go through for a third-draft and hopefully by then (cross-fingers) it'll be almost ready for an editor to help me make it perfect.
Friday, January 8, 2010
Life is meant for learning
Between learning how to improve my writing and how the publishing system works. I am also learning a few other basic facts of life.
1. No one became healthy by eating tasteless foods.
2. And not everything is cured by Windex.
Yes, as part of my personal "Find the Best Me" attitude I have this new year I am learning how to cook healthy foods and exercise on a regular basis. To be honest, the learning how to cook is the best part. Just like word smiths find the best combination of words to give others the best experience; cooks find the best combination of ingredients to make everyone at every meal say, "YUM!" Thinking up different recipes and spices is really fun.
But, like other humans, I have also been fighting a cold for the last week. No fun! The good news is that I've reviewed several chapters since I've been stuck on bed rest. This quest to become more educated, healthier, and generally more cheerful is going to be full of bumps in the road. I can feel it. And I can't wait! Bring on the adventure!
1. No one became healthy by eating tasteless foods.
2. And not everything is cured by Windex.
Yes, as part of my personal "Find the Best Me" attitude I have this new year I am learning how to cook healthy foods and exercise on a regular basis. To be honest, the learning how to cook is the best part. Just like word smiths find the best combination of words to give others the best experience; cooks find the best combination of ingredients to make everyone at every meal say, "YUM!" Thinking up different recipes and spices is really fun.
But, like other humans, I have also been fighting a cold for the last week. No fun! The good news is that I've reviewed several chapters since I've been stuck on bed rest. This quest to become more educated, healthier, and generally more cheerful is going to be full of bumps in the road. I can feel it. And I can't wait! Bring on the adventure!
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