"Cornered" short story published today!

My short-short-short story (a form otherwise known as "drabble") titled "Cornered" was published today at The Were-Traveller!  This is the one I was griping about a while back ... I was stuck at 102 words and needed to cut two, managed to cut one, then spent an hour (!) tinkering with it to get that last word cut.  Thankfully, it's now found a good home, in esteemed company ... there's some awesome work available in this edition.  Go check it out!  You know you want to!*

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*Yes, I realize I've used my monthly allotment of exclamation points in one blog post.  Sometimes, you've just got to use more than one.

Monday Author Website: Rachel King

Today's site isn't exactly what I expect of an author site, and reminds me of the work of several of the mixed media artists that I have the privilege to "play" with on occasion.  But this site can certainly hold its own, even amongst stiff competition.

Rachel King, New Zealand Author

I stumbled across Rachel King's website while looking for something else, but it intrigued me enough that I stayed to take a look around.  I like the layout and the arranged randomness of the home page, which includes images relevant to her novels, a text box with a brief "Latest News" section, and the list of links to her work, about page, and blog.  

The pages within her site all carry over from the same theme, and their simplicity makes it easy for the reader to navigate through.  I especially like the sidebars for each novel (Magpie Hall is my example, here).  The cover image for the novel sits atop four icons that link to separate links:  (1) about the book; (2) background; (3) reviews; (4) buy the book.  The simplicity is striking in an age of cluttered pages, and the originality of the icons really helps her site stand apart.  

I was certainly intrigued enough by her design to click through to her books, despite the fact that I was somewhat crunched for time.  So I'm recommending three things:  go take a look at her site, then check out her books and her blog.  I've ordered a copy of Magpie Hall, which I'll be adding to my summer reading pile.

Self-editing for fiction writers

     "It is wrong.  You should not do that," Jack says.  His arms are crossed grumpily across his frumpy suit.

     There's little question that editing, whether you do it yourself or have someone else do it for you, is integral to the writing process.  But if you're like many writers, you enjoy the process of writing, but aren't so fond of editing, especially if it's your own work.  I'll confess that I struggle with self-editing, even though I work as a professional editor. 

     So arm yourself with these five strategies for revision to amp up your writing, and tackle the persnickety problem of self-editing.

Shelve it

You've heard it before, but if you're like me and often working to a deadline, you might wonder if it's really worth putting your project away (for a few days, a few weeks, even a few months) before you take out your editing pen.  Trust me, it's worth it.  Even if you only have a few hours, put it aside, go do something else, and come back to it later. 

Often, when we're up to our eyeballs in a project, we miss things because we've been working so closely with the material.  Some of these will be little things, like double words, protagonists who start off with blue eyes and have green by the end of the story, and characters who don't talk or behave quite true to their established character, not to mention plot gaps, things we may have forgotten to write, and other odd happenings.  Setting a work aside allows us to gain perspective and to look at it with fresh eyes.  And you'll catch far more awkwardness and mistakes than you would if you hadn't given the work time to percolate. 

Be a reader, not a writer

It's true:  writers think differently than readers.  When you're editing, make sure that you're thinking like a reader.  Don't forget to think about your particular breed of reader and why they read.  You want hook them, keep them reading long past the time they'd intended to stop.  So think about the things that draw readers in and keep them interested.  What might your readers think?  How might they feel?  How might they react to your character?  To the plot?  To the setting?

Do a close read and edit

     Oftentimes, writers skim through when they edit.  After all, they know their own work, they know who did it and how, and they know how the story ends.  While skimming is tempting, don't succumb to the temptation.  A close, line-by-line edit can be a powerful tool, and can help you to catch things that don't quite work, things that are easily missed if you're skimming to edit.  Break your work down into manageable chunks, whether by scene, by chapter, by section, or by stanza to make line-by-line editing more manageable.  Editing like this requires focus and time, but it's well worth the payoff:  a more cohesive and better-flowing product. 

 Read it aloud

     This sounds rather silly, and I know that people often look at me as if I'm a bit batty when I suggest it, but it really does work.  If you're uncomfortable reading aloud to yourself, read to someone else (or, even better, have them read it to you).  If all else fails, your dog/cat/fish can be a captive audience, and they really won't care if your writing falls flat. 

For some reason, we can "hear" some errors that we have difficulty seeing on the page, which is why reading aloud works so well.  We'll catch awkward turns of phrase, sentences that are too lengthy, and descriptive sequences that seem to go on without end.  So take the time to read it aloud, and make sure that you're truly listening when you do.

Read, lots

In my experience, writers who read a lot write better than writers who don't.  When reading others' work, take a look at what works, and what doesn't.  If a particular passage really strikes a chord with you, take the time to write it out, long-hand with a pen on paper, to get a feeling for how it was written.  When you come across something you really like, as a reader, take a look at it as a writer, focusing on the elements that went into it, and how those elements connect with the reader.  Read as much as you can, from a variety of sources, not just within your own genre.  After all, the more you read, the better your writing will get. 

Conclusion

There are many, many other suggestions out there--a quick Google search for "how to self-edit" results in 275 000 hits--but editing, whether you do it yourself or not, has a significant impact on your final product.  Just take a look at how a fairly minor edit changes our initial example.

"It's just wrong," said Jack, his grumpiness evident as he crossed his arms tight against the frumpy suit he'd insisted on wearing.  "You shouldn't do it."

It's still not perfect, but it's a far cry from the stilted original.  A closer edit, taking into account the five suggestions we've looked at, would help it even more.  So shelve your work, read others' writing, then return to your work, read it aloud as a reader (not a writer), and do a close edit.  See how a little perspective, and some elbow grease, can change something drab and mundane into the kind of prose (or poetry) that jumps off the page, grabs your reader by the throat, and drags them kicking and screaming into your fictional world.  

Monday Author Website: Caroline Tiger

In my aimless surfing, looking for good author websites, I've discovered a few interesting things.

First, there are a lot of "5 Elements Your Author Site Needs" pages out there, all with varying suggestions, and many without a real idea of the function / purpose of an author site.  In my technical writing classes, I repeat time after time:  know your audience and your purpose.  If you haven't identified these, you're going to waste a lot of time writing copy that's not going to get read or used the way you intended it to be read or used.

Second, there's not a lot of what I'd call "real" information out there for authors on website building.  Yes, authors know that they need to follow the rules of web design and the rules for writing copy for the web.  But no one really addresses the extra elements that author sites need and, if they do, they don't go into enough detail for my liking.  I want to know more, damn it!

Thirdly, and call me nit-picky if you will, there's often no rationale behind why element or concept x should be included in your site.  Personally, I want to know why something should be there, especially if I'm spending time and money to add it!

Anyway, enough blathering, and on to today's site.

Caroline Tiger's Web Site

This simple, easy-to-navigate site provides the reader with connections to Caroline's latest book and articles, gives a brief overview of who she is and what she does, and links to her three blogs.  At first glance I like the site, and can see why it ended up on one of the lists of "good author websites" I surfed through last week.

The layout is easily scanned, the links across the top of the page are simple and clear, and the page is not overly lengthy.  No scrolling is required on either my desktop computer or my iPad in vertical orientation, and only minimal scrolling is required on the iPad on horizontal orientation.

The information is clear and concise, and her "About" section gives an information-packed overview of who she is and what she does (and has done).

A closer look, however, reveals a few problems, none insurmountable, but a bit off-putting, just the same.  While I like the set-up of the home page (brief about section, recent book and blurb, and recent articles), the most problematic for me are the artifacts in the Welcome text, which can easily be edited out.  In addition, the font size shows up quite small on every computer/monitor/smartphone/tablet combination I've tried ... it doesn't seem like a big thing, but even little problems or irritants to a potential audience can result in that audience moving on to another site.

That being said, I quite like her "Books" section.  It's easy to see what she's written, there's an informative little blurb for the top three books, and she's included a small image of the cover.  I also like the mouse-over text for each image, which begins "Read more about book x."  I'd like to see the same type of blurb for the books in the "Other Books" section on this page, and I'd also like to know which of the books listed is the referent text for the Financial Post's comment, as this isn't information that's listed anywhere.

My only other quibble with Caroline's site is that it doesn't appear to have been updated recently, and neither have her blogs, which might make a reader move on to another site, if it seems that nothing much is happening at the moment.

Regardless, I like this site, and it's drawn me in enough that I'd probably go looking for her books the next time I'm in the library.

Monday Author Website: All Things From My Brain

This post is first in a series on author websites.  I''m interested in what works for readers, what keeps them interested in an author (and that author's works), and how authors can use their websites to attract and keep a diverse and lively audience.

All Things From My Brain

I found science fiction author Patrick Hester's blog (and website) while, ironically, looking for information on how to prevent Scrivener from doing odd formatting things when I cut and paste text from elsewhere into it.  I didn't find what I was looking for, but I did find a number of good tips for using Scrivener, so I'll be sure to be returning.  

The addition of useful information (on whatever topic is relevant) is excellent, especially if it's updated frequently.  Patrick's Scrivener Quick Tips are a regular feature on his site, so I'll be sure to revisit Patrick's site for further tips.  And revisiting is certainly something that we want to see ... I've lost track of the number of cool sites that I visit once and never return to, either because they're static or because there's nothing there to draw me in and keep me returning.  

Of more interest, however, than Patrick's Scrivener Quick Tips, is the Writing Progress sidebar that Patrick has placed on the right-hand side of his blog, underneath the usual authorly stuff (Follow Me, links to his latest books, and an Other Stuff I've Written section).  

I quite like the idea of showing progress.  I've seen it used elsewhere, but think that it works particularly well for authors as it gives readers, waiting with bated breath for the next installment my their favourite author(s), an idea of how things are progressing, what to expect in the upcoming months, and when they might expect to see excerpts and complete works.  In some ways, it may even help keep us writers on track, knowing that we've got those numbers out there for readers to see.  

I like the graphical representation, rather than a list of dates, as it gives readers an at-a-glance view of what's coming next.  As a fan of authors who sometimes take a very long time to write (Jean M. Auel, Diana Gabaldon, and George R. R. Martin, just to name a few), I'd love to see this because then I'd know to expect something this year, or next, or even the year after.

Gim Suey Chong: Our Quiet Man

Raymond Douglas Chong, author of Orchid Flower Love Poetry, has just had a short historical piece posted at the Angel Island Immigration Station Foundation's website.  The piece, published on the Immigrant Voices page, is titled Gim Suey Chong:  Our Quiet Man.

Written by Raymond and his brother Michael George Chong, this short piece briefly describes the life of their father, Gim Suey Chong, a fourth-generation "sojourner to Gold Mountain, America."   

Take a few minutes to read about the trials, tribulations, and successes of this intrepid man!

Feast or Famine

The title of this blog is just so true ... sometimes Mommy writes, and sometimes she doesn't.  The last few weeks have been a good example of both.  I got a lot of writing (well, more like editing, but revising and rewriting does count, in my book) done while we were on vacation in Surprise, AZ.  When I came home, a day-and-a-half before the rest of the family so I could teach my Monday morning class, I was feeling energized and looking forward to a full afternoon and evening with the house to myself before I had to pick everyone up at the airport.

Then disaster struck, and back to Arizona I went, travelling while our youngest son was in surgery to fix a badly broken arm.  We dealt with the hospital, prescriptions, travel plans to return home, and took care of my poor little man, who was a real trooper through the whole ordeal.  We got home (on a direct Phoenix-Saskatoon flight!), my mom came to stay for a week, and we thought the worst was over.  Then when we went for his one-week x-ray and checkup, the unthinkable had happened:  the pins and the bone fragment had moved, and they were going to have to do surgery a second time.

We're now a week out from that second surgery, they're happy with where things are (even though the alignment isn't quite perfect, but that would've required a much more risky and complicated open reduction, rather than the closed reduction that was performed twice), and the cast should be off and the pins out next week.

So, did I do any writing?  Ha ... not a jot.  I haven't even made it to the gym, used the treadmill at home, or even done any yoga.  But things are beginning to return to normal, and I think my brain is starting to shift out of mommy-emergency mode into normal-mommy mode, so I'm hoping the next several weeks will be more productive ;-)  I've got a backlog of editing that I'm just beginning to get a handle on, and the fact that we still have feet upon feet of snow is keeping me from procrastinating in the garden.  The launch date for my next project is fast approaching, so I do have a bit of writing to do there ... and, surprisingly, writing non-fiction on a tight deadline isn't a problem at all.