"Don't be afraid to throw words out. While I always keep a "cut" file of chapters, paragraphs, descriptions that I have decided to cull, if I feel something isn't hitting the mark, I have learned not to be afraid of simply tossing it and starting again. Sometimes it takes a false start to flesh out the hero and heroine and help you pinpoint where the story starts and the themes you want to explore."
~Sarah Mayberry
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The winner of this week's 5-page Super Critique is Coleen K
Please use our contact page to collect your prize!
And don't forget to comment below to enter (you have all week!)
6 comments:
Your advice about using early versions to get to know the characters and the story is soothing. I save those in an 'X' file and almost never consult them, but that file is a security blanket. I am getting better at letting go of scenes that don't quite work.
I wish more writers would cut. Sometimes I can see it, why can't they?
marypres@gmail.com
Sarah,
This is very good advice. Instead of feeling like it was a waste of time working on those earlier drafts, it is important to think of it as getting to know the characters, instead.
It's kind of like those little moments in a marriage. The ones only the two of you understand or appreciate, but they're the ones that really strengthen the relationship.
Kristina, what an excellent analogy!
I really wish I'd knownm this sooner, back when I gave up writing after so many first chapters thatI knew weren't working but didn't know how to fix. Now I know I'll end up cutting most of my first draft first chapter, and maybe even chapter two and three as well.
Knowing that frees me up to keep writing instead of stopping too soon, thinking I can't write. Of course, I still can't write well enough for Harlequin, but at least I'm finishing stories now!
I wonder if pinpointing the theme before making a start on the story would prevent some of my false starts. I hate cutting large chunks of the beginning.
This is great advice. I like the idea of a "cut" file, of keeping cuts rather than throwing them away. Should make it easier to stomach!
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