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when in doubt, edit...
Feb. 8th, 2007 11:34 amI've been stuck on "trust" for a while. So I've been re-editing "Running and Falling." I can take anything I've written, trim it by ~10% while adding content at the same time. (I don't know if I can do this for anyone else's work.) I don't think this is scalable. Otherwise, all of my stories will eventually be one word long. (But that word will be so evocative!) Unfortunately, I think I need to let the story sit still for a while before I can do that.
Anyways, there are fewer wasted words. I think this latest attempt at a hook works better. Of course, the beginning of a story is supposed to teach you how to read the story. One of the main problems I've had with this one is to figure out what you need to know right away and what, frankly, can wait. I usually avoid great globs of backstory at the start of a story. More often, I go in the other direction and no one has a clue what's happening. I think I've fixed that. In any case, exposition is tricky.
The other problem I typically run into is with line of direction. (Note: If you don't read![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
matociquala's LiveJournal, and you write, consider starting.) One of the things that VPX pointed out was that I definitely have problems sustaining a thought over the course of a sentence (much less a paragraph). This surprises no one who knows me. So, an edit with that in mind is always a good thing.
This takes the story just under 5000 words, so I'm sending it off to Strange Horizons rather than Asimovs. Yes, SH says they take up to 9000 words. However, most of the stories they publish are no where near that length. Also, I want to send "Resistance" off to Asimov's.
As for actual writing, after much flogging about and writing of text (some of which I might even keep), I finally figured out why "trust" isn't going anywhere. The main character has no reason to do anything besides keep the current situation stalemated. *smites forehead* Must think of a reason why the current situation can not hold...
(Edited to fix markup.)
Anyways, there are fewer wasted words. I think this latest attempt at a hook works better. Of course, the beginning of a story is supposed to teach you how to read the story. One of the main problems I've had with this one is to figure out what you need to know right away and what, frankly, can wait. I usually avoid great globs of backstory at the start of a story. More often, I go in the other direction and no one has a clue what's happening. I think I've fixed that. In any case, exposition is tricky.
The other problem I typically run into is with line of direction. (Note: If you don't read
matociquala's LiveJournal, and you write, consider starting.) One of the things that VPX pointed out was that I definitely have problems sustaining a thought over the course of a sentence (much less a paragraph). This surprises no one who knows me. So, an edit with that in mind is always a good thing.This takes the story just under 5000 words, so I'm sending it off to Strange Horizons rather than Asimovs. Yes, SH says they take up to 9000 words. However, most of the stories they publish are no where near that length. Also, I want to send "Resistance" off to Asimov's.
As for actual writing, after much flogging about and writing of text (some of which I might even keep), I finally figured out why "trust" isn't going anywhere. The main character has no reason to do anything besides keep the current situation stalemated. *smites forehead* Must think of a reason why the current situation can not hold...
(Edited to fix markup.)
