If You Are a Dreamer, Come In...

Dreams. 

They're feisty, elusive little things, aren't they? Anne Shirley once said, "It wouldn't do to have all our dreams fulfilled. We would be as good as dead if we had nothing left to dream about." And yet, it can also be detrimental to our poor little souls to have our dreams constantly denied. The book of Proverbs says, "Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but when dreams come true, there is life and joy."

I don't know how you feel about the subject, but I tend to keep my dreams pretty close to the chest. For one thing, I know how vulnerable they are: some of the more fragile ones can be slayed by a single skeptical glance. For another thing, I tend to feel (erroneously, perhaps) that revealing them makes me seem weak, or even more seriously, that admitting I want them shows what a selfish prat I really am.

But I begin to wonder if I shouldn't hold them so close. I wonder if perhaps I ought to let them try their little wings from time to time. Because when it comes to other people, I find that I consider dreams to be among the most precious, sacred things the heart contains. Nothing connects me to another person faster than learning about their most cherished desire, even if that desire seems outwardly ridiculous. Almost always, I find myself saying, "Oh, you should!" Why? Because I believe it is important to dream. I believe it is imperative that we frail, ephemeral humans run headlong after the things tugging at our souls. How could we live full lives if we didn't?

So. Here are some of my dreams:

 

A wee cottage in the country...

 

with one of these,

 

and one of these,

 

and some of these,

 

where I could spend every morning doing this

 

and every afternoon doing this.

But of course, the dream that haunts me most looks like this:

Others I have cannot be captured so easily in images, but they linger just the same, whispering in my ear when I catch a glimpse of a sunrise, settling over my shoulders when I sit around a table with my family, brushing past my ear with the sudden strain of a violin.

Why do I bring all this up? Because I have begun to be convicted in the belief that it is of the utmost importance to encourage one another in our dreams. It's awful to see your dreams "deferred" (see this poem by Langston Hughes), but it is infinitely worse to have them scorned, discouraged, or even simply doubted. (Anyone who has ever had to explain their writing "habit" to a dubious acquaintance or extended family member understands the torment of that experience.) Conversely, the experience of being wholly and unflaggingly believed in is almost as wonderful as achieving the dream itself. When someone you love is willing to stand at your side in the face of grueling hard work and opposition, and say, "I know you can do this," you find, miraculously, that you can.

So I say to you now, do not be a doubter of dreams. Do not look into the soul of another human creature and say, "You can't." Because while it may only cause that dreamer to toughen her skin and overcome another battle against doubt, it might also break her. And this world is broken enough to be getting on with.

What say you? If you feel so inspired, share your own dreams on your blog and post a link here. I would love to come by and say, "You can."

Countdown to NaNoWriMo DAY SEVEN! (Evolution of a Manuscript)

Happy Halloween!  And...

Holy crap!  Holy crap!  Anyone else seeing a massive to-do list flying before their eyes right now, and wondering how on earth they'll manage to accomplish everything before tomorrow morning?  Anyone else wondering why the devil they didn't take care of all these things last week?  Anyone else suddenly doubting their ability to compose a coherent sentence, much less a 50,000 word novel--despite having done both many times before?

Yeah.  We'll get over it.  You know why?  Because NaNoWriMo is FUN.  And even if it is a major tax on that thing we like to call Spare Time, it's totally worth it.  It's like a kid being told to eat all the cookies on the pan as fast as possible: It seems like it shouldn't be allowed, and you know it will make you at least a little sick... but it's so opposite of what you normally do, you simply can't resist the outrageous fun of it.

 (Photo: https://store.lettersandlight.org/merchandise/nanowrimo-let-your-imagination-rain-poster)

Okay.  Let's get on with it.  Today's workshop highlights are from editor/publisher Stephen Roxburgh (see his other workshop here), and it's all about the Evolution of a Manuscript.  And from someone who's had lot's of experience watching a manuscript develop (Mr. Roxburgh has worked with many authors, including Roald Dahl and Madeleine L'Engle), I think this information is golden.

The Stages of Novel Writing:

-          VISIONARY STAGE

o       Replace the concept of DRAFT with that of a PILE.

o       In the imagining stage, let go any sense of structure.  Don’t cling to anything.  Don’t let the technical questions hamper you down.  JUST WRITE.  As long as your imagination is giving you things, write them down! 

o       Words on paper may be rubbish or discordant, but at least they are more than just a thought.

o       Give yourself the freedom and opportunity at this stage to Just Write.

o       Don’t put it on the clock!  Don’t try and put a time limit on a project. [UNLESS YOU'RE WRITING FOR NANOWRIMO. :) ]

o       It is not a test of will.  Wrestling a project to the ground doesn’t work.  This kind of work does not lend itself to full-frontal assault.  Your story doesn’t want to be forced out.

o       In this stage, just let yourself write.

o       “Writer’s Block” comes from setting the bar way too high.

o       The things that happen when you let yourself go and loosen up are marvelous.

o       You can interrupt the process at any time to add, etc.

o       You have to know so much more than your reader, and the only way to know is to write it.  So write down all your backstory and character webbing, even if you know you'll never use it in the story.

o       Under-imagined characters don’t bring anything to the book.  Always write it out, even if only for yourself.  Give yourself the time.

o       We’re already disposed to be hypercritical of ourselves.  Don’t do that at this stage.

-          REVISIONARY STAGE

o       Revision requires distance: objective, critical viewing of the story.  Stand up above it and see if it has a recognizable shape.

o       People tend to revise by going back to the beginning and reading to the end—doing the same thing over and over—merely tweaking and polishing.  Not Re-Visioning.  (You can’t polish a turnip.  You can only rub it.)

o       They also try to track too many things at once.  Juggling too many things at one time is NOT productive.  Look at only ONE thing at a time.  Don’t get sucked in to polishing.  Look at the big picture first.

o       Take the Heart of your story and examine every scene that encompasses it.  See if it is all moving the way you want it to. 

o       View your work analytically. 

o       Only look at one piece at a time.  Focus.  Does each scene move the plot?  Does it accomplish what I want it to? 

o       Flag the things you want to come back to.

o       Flag the places that slow things down.

o       If two encounters do effectively the same thing, lose one.

-          Crude, and startlingly effective Revision Tips:

o       Have in your mind to see clearly.

o       It is an endless cycle of refinement

*         Put the MS away for one year.

*         Try to work on something else anyway.

*         Take the time to get away from it, and distance yourself.

*        Reset the font, margins, and line spacing.  This will force you to have fresh eyes.

*        Don’t start on page one.  Shuffle pages, and read them one at a time, out of order.  This is very good for refining.  You’re not caught up in the story.

-          THE MOST ADVANCED STAGE OF EDITING

o       Looking at every word, every encounter, and making it the best possible word/sentence to notch it up and intensify it.

o       Your language should burn with a hard, gem-like flame.

o       Ask yourself: how do I want my reader to feel right now?  Is there anything at all I can do to intensify or enhance that?

o       Revision is seeing something anew, in another way.

-          Some Other Notes

o       You have to be consistent.  The last word in a Manuscript after it is published IS THE MANUSCRIPT—not anything the author might say about it.

o       If you don’t know what should  be happening in your book, there is a problem.

o       “Maybe they won’t notice…?  Maybe this will slip by them and they’ll give me the Newbery anyway…?”  NO.  If there’s a problem with your manuscript, you’d better fix it.

o       The Mushy Middle is the hardest part.  If you can tighten it and get the pacing right, you’re doing well.

o       Most people submit prematurely.  They don’t hold on too long, they let go too early.  That can dig your grave, because most professionals won’t give you a second chance with the same book.

(Photo: http://writeitsideways.com/last-minute-preparations-for-nanowrimo-a-checklist/)

Any thoughts on all this?  Personally, I found it to be a very useful way of looking at the whole process--from brainstorming to polishing--all from an editor's perspective.  Mr. Roxburgh's advice is good for NaNoWriMo, but it carries us well beyond November.  Anyone have any thoughts or opinions (or experiences) to add?  

Happy NaNo-ing!  Come back tomorrow morning before you start for a wave farewell and a NaNo share-fest!

Guess that Character Blogfest!

Today Jen Daiker (unedited) is hosting a rather clever blogfest.  The idea is this: each participant provides a short snippet from a story they've written--without including any physical description of their character--and then everyone makes guesses at what that character looks like, based solely on voice and action.  Yeah, like I said: clever.  So, I've opted to participate with a snippet from BEAUTIFUL MONSTER.  If you already know what Yseult looks like, just play dumb.  Or guess, and act like you didn't know before. 

*

The fresh night air rushes at me the moment I am through the doors.  I sink onto the grass beneath a tree in the gardens where I am confident I’ll not be seen and lean against its trunk.  The moon is full tonight: a brilliant, glowing orb in the endless sky.  I have read that the night of the full moon is a night of magic.
       

It will take something like magic to save me from the Marquis, I expect.

There is a lilac bush growing beside me, and its heady fragrance makes me lightheaded.  I plunge my face into the blossoms and inhale deeply, wheeling back with eyes closed in a sudden ecstasy of hope. 

“I wish to be free of this,” I whisper as a breeze brushes my cheek with the lightest of kisses. “I wish to be seen for who I am, as a person—not as a decoration.  I wish...”  I open my eyes and look up at the brilliant moon, shimmering with power and enchantment.  Up there, in the vast darkness, it is free.  My hands tingle strangely and I am seized by a wave of grim determination.  I clench my fingernails into my palms until a sharp pain shoots up my arm. 

My voice is low.  I have never been more serious.  “I wish for a way out.”

 *

Okie-doke.  Come back tomorrow, and "find out who is right... and who is dead."*  Er, that is, find out who is right, and who is... not.  And please, pretty-please go check out the other entries, because they are awe-some-poss-um.

*Author's Note: Please be aware that often the writer has virtually no control over the amount of The Princess Bride in her system.  Often quotes will ooze into her life and posts without her approving--or even knowing about--it, and in such cases, it is best simply to let them have their way.

{tell me your favorite word}

The thing about being a Wordsmith (aka, Writer) is that you hang out with words a lot. 

Probably, I would venture to say, more than the average person.  If you're not spitting them onto a blank page, you're swirling them around in your brain, or flipping madly through a Thesaurus (which I've always thought should be the name of a bookish dinosaur) to find one, or possibly even staring at one in someone else's writing, and wondering how That Word came to be there and why.  Maybe sometimes you even take ages and ages to formulate a verbal sentence, because you know a word exists that will flawlessly express what you're trying to say, and you'd rather flounder around in the archives of your vocabulary than choose a word that is less than perfect.

These facts lead me to a specific conclusion, my dear Reader.  And that conclusion is that YOU have a favorite word.  I don't think I'm wrong.  Because I have a favorite word, too.  Shall we swap?

Here's mine:

im·ag·ine

 [ih-maj-in]/ɪˈmædʒɪn/ Show Spelled -ined, -in·ing.

–verb (used with object)

1.to form a mental image of (something not actually present to the senses).

2.to think, believe, or fancy: He imagined the house was haunted.

3.to assume; suppose: I imagine they'll be here soon.

4.to conjecture; guess: I cannot imagine what you mean.

5.Archaic . to plan, scheme, or plot.

–verb (used without object)

6.to form mental images of things not present to the senses; use the imagination.

7.to suppose; think; conjecture. 

I love everything about the word imagine.  I love it in ALL CAPS and I love it in lowercase.  I love it hand-written, and type-written.  I love it bold and italicized, and even in Impact Font, which I hate.  I love the way it sounds and the way it feels on my tongue.  I love what it means.  I love that it contains the word "mage" and the word "image" and almost the word "magic."

While I was at Chautauqua, Peter Jacobi said this about my word, and I almost fell out of my chair in a violent swoon of love: Imagination is the first of our senses we should take care never to let fall into disuse.  It is what makes us human.

(I'm even swooning now.) 

But that brings us to you, Dear Reader.  Because I know there is a word you love as much.  I hope you'll share it.  Because we could all use a bit more word-love in our lives.