Write to Live and Live to Write

Editing Shift. Setting the clock. Excited, no, not really. Terrified at my own love of failure. You betcha. More on the flip.

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Shift – Rewrote Chapter 2 Scene 1. My editor made suggestions, and for some reasons, I just fought the very idea. But it is done. (1172 of 3000)

Editing gives me a head ache. I think I write clear, clean, and economically, and the editor says overwritten, or in the wrong place, or…

Shift – Rewrote Chapter 2 Scene 2. (1438 of 3000 words).

Shift – Added an appropriate mention of the five POV Characters to Chapter 1.

Shift – Rewrote Chapter 2 Scene 3 (533 of 3000 words)

Ironville – Read and performed minor edits on Chapter 1 (2300 word) as part of diving back into that story.

A number of writers I really admire have suggested that writing a book is a form of monogamy. Others, write one novel while editing a finished work. Some just split their time between writing and editing novels, with short stories thrown in the mix. I more of the later, I think. I’m not sure if it will hurt my attempt at writing, but it is how my mind works.

Success

Day 1 of the BOOK in a MONTH system a resounding success. I completed the goal with 3014 words written.

Mood and Tone

I just realized that none of my master’s classes actually discuss the difference between mood and tone.  It is something I do without thinking, but until I looked it up so I could describe it in scene cards, I did not understand the difference between the two.

Inetteacher.com gives a good basic description (see link below) but this is something that I need to master for myself.

Inetteacher.com

Tone is the author’s attitude toward the writing (his characters, the situation) and the readers. A work of writing can have more than one tone. An example of tone could be both serious and humorous. Tone is set by the setting, choice of vocabulary and other details.

Mood is the general atmosphere created by the author’s words. It is the feeling the reader gets from reading those words. It may be the same, or it may change from situation to situation.

(Channeling my inner Herbert)

A Positive Meditation*

Believe in Me

See the Best in Every Situation

Focus on the solution, not the problem

Persist against adversity

*Adopted from BOOK in a MONTH by Victoria Lynn Schmidt Ph.D.

Today it begins.

Question for the day: can you write a novel in 30 days?

Let me back up. The real question on my mind remains can I write a novel in 30 days? I find lots of books about it. Of course, I’ve heard the stories. Ian Flemming wrote Dr. No in 3 days, or so I’ve heard. Barbra Cartland built her career on writing a book a month. Other writers out there do it, so it is possible.

But Can I?

To answer that questions, I’ve decided to put that question to the test. I bought a book titled, cleverly enough, “Book in a Month” by Victoria Lynn Schmidt, Ph.D. With education piled higher and deeper, she should know.

But again, I am sort of a fractured individual. I’ve written books, three months being my record, and can I really apply myself every day?

So, when do I begin, you ask? There are 60 pages to read. I look ahead to “Week 1” and see that the first day doesn’t look too arduous, well except for the, approximately, 2,666 words that I write a day, along with the other stuff that is involved in writing a novel. I’m not sure, but it looks like you are supposed to jump in and swim beginning on day 1. Today, I will read those pages and, if all things go well, I will start tomorrow.