As you can imagine, I'm knee deep in Christmas shopping along with work, youth basketball games, homework, etc. Hence the reason I haven't blogged in over a week. I'm also trying to write one WIP, revise another and there's a good book or two out there I'd like to read. So, what does one do.
It's a good problem to have. Too many wonderful things to choose from.
I find it really hard to write well when I'm not focused and even harder to revise. To ensure I don't tell instead of show in my writing, I really have to think, consider, muse, all of the above. I have to examine every word because it can be as simple as one word that makes the difference. I've written on my blog before about my struggles with time management. This time of the year is particularly hard.
In case I don't get here again before January 1st:
Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays and Happy New Year!
Tis the season to be very busy;-)
Wednesday, December 18, 2013
Sunday, December 8, 2013
The Info-Dump and When You're Writing Too Much
I'm knee-deep in revisions right now. I've gone through this particular WIP at least three times so far. Correcting grammar, fixing bad sentences and eliminating unimportant information. I have an issue with writing too much. My sentences are sometimes too long and I tend to "info-dump." I'm really working hard on this one trying to tighten prose and clip the dialogue.
Let's use men as an example. Men simply don't think or talk like women (at least based on my observations;-D). They speak in direct and short sentences. They're not typically detail oriented. A few of my chapters are devoted to the POV of my main male characters. I'm working hard to make this seem authentic. I write romance and I highly doubt most men would think about her "ebony locks" in colorful and flowery language. Instead, I believe he'd think about diving his fingers into her hair, feeling it against his chest, etc if he even thinks about her hair at all. We women might love to think they wax prophetic about our glorious manes but let's face it, it's not how they're wired. Men can be poetic and prophetic but I'm careful how and when I do this. I'm shortening their dialogue, clipping it, making it more abrupt.
Info-dump is another thing all together. We need to provide description. All the characters have back story. But, and this is a big but, we have to sprinkle these details in. Give clues and hints almost as if laying the foundation for a mystery (I admire you mystery writers because this is not easy to do). Chances are, when you see long paragraphs in a section with little dialogue, there is likely some info-dump going on. Check it out. Re-read. See if you can tighten the prose. Eliminate entire sentences or even paragraphs. That's what I'm doing now, or trying to at least.
It's important to note I'm still learning this. I'd love to know your thoughts on info-dump and how you avoid it. Revision, in my opinion, has got to be the hardest part of writing.
Let's use men as an example. Men simply don't think or talk like women (at least based on my observations;-D). They speak in direct and short sentences. They're not typically detail oriented. A few of my chapters are devoted to the POV of my main male characters. I'm working hard to make this seem authentic. I write romance and I highly doubt most men would think about her "ebony locks" in colorful and flowery language. Instead, I believe he'd think about diving his fingers into her hair, feeling it against his chest, etc if he even thinks about her hair at all. We women might love to think they wax prophetic about our glorious manes but let's face it, it's not how they're wired. Men can be poetic and prophetic but I'm careful how and when I do this. I'm shortening their dialogue, clipping it, making it more abrupt.
Info-dump is another thing all together. We need to provide description. All the characters have back story. But, and this is a big but, we have to sprinkle these details in. Give clues and hints almost as if laying the foundation for a mystery (I admire you mystery writers because this is not easy to do). Chances are, when you see long paragraphs in a section with little dialogue, there is likely some info-dump going on. Check it out. Re-read. See if you can tighten the prose. Eliminate entire sentences or even paragraphs. That's what I'm doing now, or trying to at least.
It's important to note I'm still learning this. I'd love to know your thoughts on info-dump and how you avoid it. Revision, in my opinion, has got to be the hardest part of writing.
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