Reviewing Work

I've done quite a bit of reviewing work and having work reviewed today.

A fellow creative writing student sent me a copy of a short story she had written, asking me to look through it and comment on anything that needs improving. I found it an enlightening experience. Because I was distanced from the piece, I found it easier to see how a reader would read it. This gave me the idea that if I write something, then leave it to rest for a week or two, I could go back to it and make changes. And then I could pass it onto somebody to review.

In our seminar today we all reviewed each other's work. It was fascinating seeing how many different voices and styles there are in the group. It's also nice to see that people do like their work, and can comment critically on it as well as praise it.

My advice to you is when you have finished a first draft of a piece, leave it. Let it sit in a drawer, or in your computer untouched for a couple of weeks. Do other things. Start a new project. Get the story or poem out of your head. When you have a clear mind, come back to it. If it's word-processed, print it out. Reading from paper is much easier that from a screen, and you can make any scribblings and crossings-out easily.

Then rewrite according to the changes you have made. There might not be many at first, or you might have to rehash the entire thing. It doesn't matter. Once you have this second draft, show it to somebody else. Preferably somebody who isn't a close friend or family member. It should be someone who can give you an unbiased opinion on the work. "That's lovely" really isn't very helpful when you're trying to improve. Encourage them to critique your work, ask them to explain which bits work and which bits don't.

This extra input into the drafting of work is vital in polishing it off to that perfect shine.

Reigniting the Eagerness

I've had quite a creative day today.

I revised my first draft of a short story for my creative writing seminar tomorrow, and I'm quite pleased with the way it's going. I can tell that it needs a lot more work, but it's at least good enough to get some criticism and feedback from the group.

I've also read a lot more of On Writing, going through it with a highlighter. Whilst it pains me a little to mark up a book, I've found it very useful, and have managed to read and highlight about 150 pages in the past two days. It helps that the book is just so easy to read and get into.

Reading the book has made me eager to start writing. But I'm controlling myself and won't start until I've finished going through the book. It's full of useful information that I can't wait to implement.

The first time I read On Writing it reignited my desire to write a book. Rereading it has done so again. It has also made me realise that I ought to submit some of my work to magazines or competitions. I'll do some research into writing competitions and such things, and hopefully get some of my writing into print, perhaps even with a monetary bonus as well.

Determination has struck again.

Revising the Craft: ‘On Writing’

First off, I'm starting with the basics. I haven't written a single word on the page of the prologue or first chapter. I haven't even begun to map the world or the characters that will inhabit it. I'm beginning the challenge by reintroducing myself to the processes of writing and planning.

I've been rereading Stephen King's On Writing today. It's an excellent book for anybody who wants information about writing. I think it can safely be assumed that, due to King's successful career, that he knows what he is talking about.

The chapter I have read is one entitled "Toolbox". It gives an excellent analogy of the tools that a writer must use in all of his or her writing. It discusses vocabulary, grammar and paragraphing; the basic building blocks and tools needed for any kind of writing. It does not go in depth about using correct grammar, but it does give guidelines about some rules that should not be broken, and some that can be bent.

If you do buy the book, which I recommend you do, then it should be known that it is not just a step-by-step guide to writing. The first half is an autobiography, where King explains how he became a full-time writer. This is an excellent read in itself, and provides an interesting insight into an extraordinarily talented person. The style of his writing in the actual "guide" is easy to access, but still contains that authority that newcomers might need.

I shall continue to reread the rest of this book, and report back on anything that I find has helped me think about and improve my skills.

A Beginning

I came up with the idea to write both a novel and a blog around the creation of said novel only today. This is both for my benefit, and for your own. Hopefully, keeping a regular record of the way that I work will give a useful insight into the process of writing, helping improve my techniques and habits as well as your own.

As of yet, I have only the general concept of the novel, with a very brief view of the way I want events to happen. I have a sketch of the major characters and settings. It all needs much more work in refining and adding detail before I can even start writing my first draft.

Having read Stephen King's On Writing, I have taken his advice of Plot = Character + Dilemma. Both the main character and dilemma are in the conceptual stage, but hopefully they will come to life in the next couple of weeks.

This is my first attempt at properly writing a novel. I have tried in the past, but have never really gotten further than a prologue and first chapter. This blog will provide me with extra incentive to write as I will need to work on and write the novel in order to update this blog. Perhaps if I get some interest from other people then I will have the support and even further incentive to continue to write.

This blog will not give too many details about the exact characters or plot, since I would prefer to keep my idea as my own. This blog is purely to record the processes and problems involved in the great task of writing a fully-fledged novel.

I hope to update this blog regularly, if not daily then at least weekly. After each session spent writing I will make sure to record what I have done. I hope that you will enjoy reading it, and that it may be useful to anybody interested in the processes of creative writing.