Editing This n That

As I said in Saturday's post, I'm back into the red-inking phase of editing for my... third, I think... book. (Or was Blink #3? If so, then Justice was #4.) Anyway, so far the process is going well, but going slow. Yesterday I got two chapters done - three if you count the fact that I decided I'm going to toss what used to be the first chapter and begin the book with the next chapter. I'll be posting that now-defunct chapter over at Tabula Rasa later. It's pretty good, but it's also all backstory and with the new direction I'm taking Justice in, it's no longer even necessary backstory.

The first other two chapters are now bleeding red-ink, and several pages of my notebook are covered in stuff that probably should've been in the book in the first place. I can't wait to type it all in, but I'm trying to wait until I have the whole thing done. (We'll see if my patience holds out that long.)

One thing I forgot about red-inking... It's HARD. Much harder than editing directly on the computer. It's forcing me to rethink the wording, the plot points, the very structure of how this book is laid out. My new beginning scene didn't take that long, because I really have edited it to death already, but the second scene - eleven measly pages - took me nearly two hours to mark up last night. I wanted to quit halfway through. My eyes were beginning to cross. But I promised myself I'd finish the chapter before I went to bed, and that's what I did. This morning, I'm tired but very satisfied with the progress.

I think once I type in all the edits, I'll be pleased with the results. (Which is why my statement about waiting until all the hardcopy edits are finished might not be correct.)

That's my weekend in a nutshell. How are things going with you?

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Sixteen? Yeah, Right

I don't know if any of you are watching the Olympics (frankly, I was torn between wanting to cheer on our athletes and wanting to boycott China), but tonight I caught parts of the Chinese 'womens' gymnastics. Now, the commentators pointed out several times that the rules state the athletes must be 16 (or turn sixteen during the same calendar year as the Olympics) to compete.

If any of those Chinese gymnasts are sixteen, I'll eat the manuscript I just printed out. One girl looked like she was maybe ten, at the most. The oldest looking girl might be fourteen, but that's pushing it. But all of their passports say they're sixteen, so they have to be sixteen right?

Yeah. That's what I was thinking.

And another thing. They were talking about one of the Chinese female divers. They made it sound cute when they told the story about her learning to dive. Supposedly, she was terrified of diving (so, yeah, diving was her choice... right), so her coach threw her off the diving board.

Isn't that the cutest thing you've ever heard??? :GAG: Sure, we've all heard stories about fathers who threw their sons into the water to teach them to swim. Barbaric, yes, but usually it works and knowing how to swim is one of those things that could save your kid's life someday. I don't advocate the method, but I see the reasoning there. And besides, it's the PARENT doing it. Not some coach/dictator tossing your baby out into space from a diving board so they can learn to dive and maybe someday be an Olympic athlete. Diving is not a skill one needs to stay alive in the real world.

Pretty warped, if you ask me. The American journalist who did the story and tried to make it sound like a Norman Rockwell painting should have her head examined. Seriously.

Don't get me wrong. The Chinese athletes are pretty amazing. You would be, too, if you were picked to be an athlete at the age of three, whether you wanted to or not, and then made to practive most of your waking hours. Our athletes may not necessarily be better athletically, but I think it's more amazing that they accomplish the same things and still possess a little thing we like to call 'free will'.

Is it just me or is this reminscent of the USSR's Olympic athletes back in the 70s and 80s? Funny how China keeps trying to seem like the new capitalist paradise over there, but they keep looking like the communist country they are. (I even heard China referred to as the Peoples Republic of Capitalism, which just made me want to gag.) Want to emulate America? Let people think for themselves for a change. If the little girl doesn't want to jump off the diving board, let her find something else to do with her life. If the other children want to be athletes, let them be athletes for themselves - because it truly makes them happy, not because it will make their country seem more important in the eyes of the world. Feh.

I'm just sayin'.

(Oh, and for a perfect example of the American Olympic athlete, look at Michael Phelps. The man is awesome. Poetry in water. He's a great athlete, a nice guy, and easy on the eyes to boot. Plus, he's drug-free - and he proves it several times a week. If I was a kid, he would be my idol.)
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Writer Hokie-Pokie

Two steps forward, one step back. Turn yourself around. It's called the Writer Hokie-Pokie. (I know, I know... the other thing is called the hokey-pokey. But this isn't that, so I spelled it different.)

Anyway, I don't know about any of you, but sometimes I have to go back to move forward. Manhunter is waiting on editorial suggestions from my CP and my beta readers. Nano is currently stalled. But I have to work. So what did I do?

I revisited one of my older manuscripts. The much-ignored, but still viable... AWJ. Or as I like to call it 'Justice'. (In case you haven't noticed, I like one word names for my early editions. It makes life easier.) Of course, I was working on it last night, and still skimming over the same old problems.

:::Short attention span moment... Phelps just took gold! Yay! He didn't even look like he was working at it either. Now, back to the actual post:::

Anyway, I think I figured out what my problem was. Sometimes when I'm editing on the computer, I have a tendency to skim. My eyes glaze over and I catch myself just reading the manuscript instead of looking for ways to improve it. The best way to solve the problem is to do what some people dread. I print the whole thing out and then over the course of the next few days (or weeks as the case may be), I red-ink the whole damn thing. Not only that, but I keep a notebook beside me for when my edits won't fit on the page. I have a whole boring system, which I'll spare you from reading about.

Starting tomorrow, I'll be sitting on the couch with my printed manuscript, my handy-dandy notepad, and a red pen - trying to figure out what needs to be adding, what needs to be deleted and whether the story I told is the story I wanted to tell. (And of course, whether I told it in the best way possible.)

I did this in the past with both Spectacle and Caldera. I must've printed out Spectacle a dozen times (which is saying something considering it was 147K words at one point). I even did it with Blink, but after that I went to the cheaper computer-based editing. Personally, I'd rather do it all on the monitor, but that isn't always the best way. Unfortunately, editing on the computer put me in the position I'm in, and the only way out is to go back to the old ways.

Back to the old manuscript. Back to the old methods. Here's hoping that by going back, I can move forward again.

That's it for me tonight, folks. I'm bushed. What do you think about the whole idea of Writer Hokie-Pokie? Ever had to go back to move forward?

Or am I the only nut in the cookie jar?

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Blog Makeover

You know the old saying about changing the things you can, right? Well, since there's very little I can change about what's been happening in my life, I can at least change my blog. ;o) Soooo, I'm trying out a new blog look. Maybe the fresh new look will give me a fresh new attitude.

Can't hurt, eh?

Seriously. Last night, I started writing a big huge post about how looking at the positive things in life can help when things are starting to get negative around you. Then something negative happened (don't worry, no one died or anything - what happened is depressing and discouraging, but not fatal). Needless to say, blogging about being Cheery Mary-Sunshine flew right down the crapper

Also needless to say, as a result, my attitude flew down with it.

Maybe the happy post will be posted after I retrieve my attitude.

Oh, and the contests that weren't? I'm almost inclined to say that since only three people bothered, no one wins, but that would be a shitty thing to do to those three people, so instead, I'll just extend the contest. (And to make it up to the three commenters, their names will go into the hat twice so they get better odds.) Now, you have until Wednesday the 13th to enter.

So, if you're inclined please go to Monday's and Tuesday's posts to enter. Just for fun, I'll up the ante, too. Whoever wins Monday's contest will get a book of their choice, PLUS an ARC I picked up yesterday. (I'm not telling which. It's a surprise.)

Job Titles

In keeping with this week's 'title' theme (See: Title Contest and Goofy Title Contest), I got to thinking about some of the job titles I've held over the years. True, I don't have a title any more (since I don't have a paying job any more), but between the ages of 11 and 34, I worked a lot of jobs.

Not every job has an official title. During my stints on different farms - I guess I was a farm worker - I did all sorts of stuff without a title to go with it. I could've been called a stall mucker, a fruit and/or vegetable picker, a tractor driver, a foal gentler (fun job, btw - I was the person who got the foals used to human contact), and if I stretched it, a equine exercise specialist - which is to say, I took a lead and the horses in a little circle with me at the center (better known as lunging, if I remember correctly). When I worked at a dog kennel, I was both a kennel cleaner and a dog washer/walker.

Sometimes, we have fun with job titles. For instance, when my sisters worked as housekeepers at a hospital, they referred to themselves as Environmental Engineers. Or when I worked for a company where I was basically the catch-all for anything that needed to be done in the office, I could've called myself Chief Cook and Bottle-washer.

Of all the real titles I've had, the longest was Executive Administrative Assistant to the Vice President of Operations. Try fitting that on a business card. Heh. And the shortest, I think, was Auditor. (One letter shorter than my short stint as 'Waitress'.) I think the one I liked the best was Executive Secretary to the President. Made me feel sort of "Hail to the Chief, he's your buddy and neighbor". The hardest title to explain to folks - even now - was Manufacturers' Representative. Try telling people you rep manufacturers of electronic components, and they start asking you about equalizers and speakers. (I lived with a guy for two years who never did quite get what I did for a living.)

And now, I am a writer. Not really a job title. More like a lifestyle. What I'd really like to see next to my name, maybe on a business card of the future: "Bestselling Novelist". ;o)

What's your current job title? What would you like it to be? And tell me what are some job titles you've had?

PS. Don't forget to enter the two contests this week. Enter early, enter often - win great prizes.

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Goofy Title Contest

In keeping with yesterday's hunt for a new title to give Manhunter, I thought we'd have a little fun today and come up with some goofy titles. (Besides, I'm feeling generous.)

Feel free to add as many as you like in the comments. The best one will win a prize (also to be drawn Friday) and if I can't decide which one I like best, I'll do the good ol' hat thing.

Here's a few to get you started...

I Burned For You, So You'll Burn For Me
Flamin' Hot Mama
Hunka Hunka Burnin' Love
Trophy Wife Seeks Fireman
The Pyrophobic's Cookbook

Come on guys, you can do better than that. If I think of anything else, I'll add it to the list along with any of your suggestions.

Now, as for prizes... Still stumped, but I have some idea of things you might like. The winners can each chose one from the following for either contest:

Allison Brennan: The Kill, Killing Fear, Tempting Evil
Allison Brennan, Karin Tabke and Roxanne St. Claire: What You Can't See
Karin Tabke: Master of Surrender
Lynn Viehl: Evermore, Twilight Fall
Edward Willett: Marseguro (hardcover)
Isaac Asimov: I, Robot

Or you could just say 'grab bag' and get three old paperbacks of my choosing.

I'll add to the list if I find any more good books laying around. (BTW, I've read all of the above in the past two years, so if you're not sure what they are check out my lists of books read over on the right. Those posts have links.)

Oh, and you can enter both contests. If the same person wins both, they're lucky as hell and they get two prizes.

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Title Contest

Yes, folks, you heard it right. I'm having another contest, and it has to do with titles. Now, I know most title contests you read about on the blogosphere are held when the book is already in the publisher's hands and close to being a real book. (That statement makes me think of Pinocchio.)

In my case, I'm just not jazzed about my working title on Manhunter. Sure, it fits the work, but it just isn't zippy enough. And if I don't think it's zippy, no agent worth his/her salt is going to get grabbed by it either. So...

I'm giving you all the chance to pick a title, or to suggest your own. And since I'm not getting reams of blog traffic lately, the chances of winning should be pretty good - unless you're all peaches and point some people in my direction. The more the merrier on this one.

First, the book... Here's the blurb (subject to change):

***Blurb deleted because it sucked eggs.

12:30pm - Trying again...

Jace Douglas is afraid of fire, but as an agent with the Serial Crimes Unit, she doesn’t get to pick her cases. When a series of seemingly disconnected men turn up dead, but the method of their deaths is very connected, she has no choice but to follow this string of fiery murders. With the help of the best back-up crew a woman could ask for, as well as one pushy but altogether too attractive local cop, she sets off on a cross-country journey to catch a killer before another man dies.

Emma Sweet looks more like a trophy wife than a murderer, but as she watches her husband burn alive in his Mercedes, she knows her trophy life is over. So many more men deserve to share the same fate, and although the specifics may be different, the pain they caused remains the same. As she meanders from state to state, crossing the names off her list while she ends their lives, she knows she’s only one step ahead of Agent Douglas. She doesn’t care if she gets caught really, as long as the last name on her list—the first one to break her heart—gets the justice he’s earned before justice catches up with her.

Here's the logline and hook instead:

After infidelity drives a trophy wife to take ‘carrying a torch’ one step too far, Agent JD must follow a string of fiery murders across country to catch a killer before the past engulfs them both.

Dwelling on the past can be murder.

(Not the best blurb in the world, I know. I'm working on it. Did I mention how much I hate blurbing?)

Now the possible titles:

Serving Justice
Sweet Revenge
Sweet Fire
Revenge is Sweet; Justice is Sweeter
Fiery Vengeance
Car-B-Que
Vehicular Man Slaughter
Jace’s Justice
Fire In Her Eyes
Deadly Revenge
A Woman Scorned
Predators
Predator and Prey
The Fairer Sex
Gender Bias
Past Mistakes
Sweet Killer
The Weaker Sex
Old Flames

As for the contest, pick a title you think works for you, or offer one of your own. If I use the title you pick, you win. (Or if more than one person picks the best title, I'll just throw all the names in and draw from a hat.)

What do you win? Well, I don't rightly know at this point. I have a boatload of books I could give away. (In fact, I have a store's worth.) So, by the time I announce the winner on Friday 8/8/08, I'll have a list of potential bookish prizes for the winner to choose from. And if you know what you might like from my store, put it in the comments along with your title choice.

Let the games begin.

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A Look at The Writing Life

If you haven't read Virtual Workshop #7 over at Paperback Writer - "The Writing Life"- you really need to take the time to do it. It starts out harsh (and believe me, I almost quit reading) but persevere. Read the whole thing. I was glad I stuck it out, and I think you will be, too.

In other news, I've been quiet because I spent most of Friday and yesterday reading. Today, I'm hoping to get more writing done. (Which will be hard since I'm right in the middle of Crichton's The Lost World. Maybe if I finish it quick I can spend the rest of the day writing. Heh. Yeah right.)

Okay, enough about me. What are you up to these days? Read any good books? And how's that writing life treating you?

PS. Stay tuned for tomorrow's contest announcement. Tell your friends. Let's see if we can't rock the contest out tomorrow. =o)
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