HS - Editing #2, Day 2
Today's progress
Did I mention I keep changing the ending each time I touch the draft?
Somehow, I managed to nearly complete this editing phase...with relative minor changes. Perhaps it means I need to step back couple of days so that I don't look through rose-glass.
I do hope the ending stays the same, as that means it was 'solid.' Hah, as if.
I have been trying to focus on word choices and verb choices. I'm quite proud that I caught few sections that were wrong and few other that I think I improved.
Also, there are two sections that I know I killed, no, butchered grammar rules. I hoping I know what I am doing and readers too. If not, those two critical parts--climaxes--may need to be re-written. But so long as the ending stays when I finish this round, I will be happy.
I am still debating whether to throw it over to critters AFTER I show it to DW, or submit it straight to some 'zines... I'll have to wait and see DW's reactions.
I'm probably getting cold feet about throwing myself at the mercy of thousand hungry critique-ers...
On Writing, in general
I have been reading up on the last chapter of Techniques Of The Selling Writer (Swain) past few days; the last chapter summarizes the whole book, and I wanted to skip over to the revision section.
One of the main theme of the book is MR units. Swain writes these Motivation-Reaction units should be there from sentence level to paragraph level to scene level to...the entire book! I tried this approach with SS piece two years ago (another piece I didn't revise) and I think I over-analyzed that one, breaking 'another' rule, dont' limit your story.
I can't find the passage so I need to paraphrase, but essentially, you need to know where the story is going but don't control it's path every step of the way. More importantly, between the 'goal' of certain scene to the next, there should be freedom.
I think with SS story, I outlined too much. It could have worked if I was writing a novel but since I wasn't, it felt too crammed: there were no freedom in between the scenes because there were no room for such in a short story...and I was trying to write 5000 words at most.
Swain also warns, as others have, against rewriting a story already written; it's easier to revise than write a new one.
In my case, I have never truly revised a story properly so I will give myself some slacks: after I write the next SciFi short story, which is new, I might go back and revise the CINDY (a horror) or the SS (a fantasy)...as it seems there are few zines I want to try my hands on.
I have been reading many how-to-write books and I think I am beginning to see what I can learn from which books. Actually, I believe I feel this way each time I put them down, only to realize what I wrote afterward isn't that much of an improvement...though I can't deny I am learning a think or two from each one of them...slowly accumulating over the years. Probably lack of practice, more than anything else, is the culprit.
If DW approves latest revision, AND I somehow make a sale, I will probably talk about that 'other' book...until then, mum's the word.
Did I mention I keep changing the ending each time I touch the draft?
Somehow, I managed to nearly complete this editing phase...with relative minor changes. Perhaps it means I need to step back couple of days so that I don't look through rose-glass.
I do hope the ending stays the same, as that means it was 'solid.' Hah, as if.
I have been trying to focus on word choices and verb choices. I'm quite proud that I caught few sections that were wrong and few other that I think I improved.
Also, there are two sections that I know I killed, no, butchered grammar rules. I hoping I know what I am doing and readers too. If not, those two critical parts--climaxes--may need to be re-written. But so long as the ending stays when I finish this round, I will be happy.
I am still debating whether to throw it over to critters AFTER I show it to DW, or submit it straight to some 'zines... I'll have to wait and see DW's reactions.
I'm probably getting cold feet about throwing myself at the mercy of thousand hungry critique-ers...
On Writing, in general
I have been reading up on the last chapter of Techniques Of The Selling Writer (Swain) past few days; the last chapter summarizes the whole book, and I wanted to skip over to the revision section.
One of the main theme of the book is MR units. Swain writes these Motivation-Reaction units should be there from sentence level to paragraph level to scene level to...the entire book! I tried this approach with SS piece two years ago (another piece I didn't revise) and I think I over-analyzed that one, breaking 'another' rule, dont' limit your story.
I can't find the passage so I need to paraphrase, but essentially, you need to know where the story is going but don't control it's path every step of the way. More importantly, between the 'goal' of certain scene to the next, there should be freedom.
I think with SS story, I outlined too much. It could have worked if I was writing a novel but since I wasn't, it felt too crammed: there were no freedom in between the scenes because there were no room for such in a short story...and I was trying to write 5000 words at most.
Swain also warns, as others have, against rewriting a story already written; it's easier to revise than write a new one.
In my case, I have never truly revised a story properly so I will give myself some slacks: after I write the next SciFi short story, which is new, I might go back and revise the CINDY (a horror) or the SS (a fantasy)...as it seems there are few zines I want to try my hands on.
I have been reading many how-to-write books and I think I am beginning to see what I can learn from which books. Actually, I believe I feel this way each time I put them down, only to realize what I wrote afterward isn't that much of an improvement...though I can't deny I am learning a think or two from each one of them...slowly accumulating over the years. Probably lack of practice, more than anything else, is the culprit.
If DW approves latest revision, AND I somehow make a sale, I will probably talk about that 'other' book...until then, mum's the word.