I was having a hard time finding a song that I thought fit my story, but then I heard Owl City’s Fireflies.  It’s funny, because it actually fits both of my WsIP.  Score!  I’m trying to create playlists, but for now, my one song will have to do.

It won’t let me embed the real video (Which is really dumb, if you think about it – MTV rarely plays videos anymore so what better way to get your music out than blogs, etc.?  Another post for another day…), so you’ll just have to deal with listening only.

Secondly, I think I have OCD.  Not in the normal way, but in the, I can’t make myself move past the first chapter of my story because I am an insane editing freak, way.  My solution?  I signed up for NaNoWriMo.  

There is no real prize other than self satisfaction, but you are supposed to crank out 50K words in one month (November).  I am going to force myself to get that much in on Vintage, come hell or high water.  Anyone else signed up? I hope my husband forgives me for locking myself away at night and cranking this bad boy out.

The interesting part about working on my young adult novel is the rush of emotions and memories it brings back.  The good, the bad, and the ugly.

The story I’m working on is drawing from some experiences I had when I was in school.  I’ve felt my face flush, the anger rise, and the giggles start to escape.  It’s crazy how that works.

That is all. :)

I’m treating my writing a lot like I’ve treated my photography – pick a skill and work on it.  With my pictures, I found it completely overwhelming to try and teach myself everything all at once. 

So, for example, one day I went out and said, “Amanda – today, you are going to focus on capturing the best light for the eyes.”  No, not literally.  I’m not the crazy woman in the park that talks to herself, don’t worry.

If I’d tried to focus on improving all the components of lighting, composition, etc., I would have left the session a defeated mess!  Breaking things down into little pieces made it more manageable and I’ve been able to improve without completely frustrating myself.

So this is the piece of writing that I’m making my focus currently.  My favorite books do such a good job with it and it’s something I want to acheive with my own writing.  I think it’s the essential component of a good story because the reader is able to create the images in their head and mold them to fit their vision.  I like to be lead to see what the author wants me to see without being explicitly told.

I’m going back to my current projects and finding the spots where I explain stuff.  My goal for now is to change it so that these details and characteristics unfold naturally – through dialogue, setting, or whatever.

For example, in my original draft I had this statement:

There were few things about myself I was happy with.  It would surprise most of my friends to find out my self-confidence was this low. I hid it pretty well, mainly with carefully placed sarcasm.

I’ve completely taken this ‘tell’ statement out and am instead going to attempt to ‘show’ this through conversations with her friends that happen throughout the book.  If I’m good at what I do, I shouldn’t have to tell my reader this detail for them to understand it.

Someone suggested this book that addresses this subject, so I’ve added it to my Amazon ‘to-buy’ list: Self-Editing for Fiction Writers