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Hi all Happy New Year and here's to it being a very productive one for your manuscripts! It's 6.30 in Tassie and I've just remembered it's Tuesday and that it was time to check in on the Writers' Forum. How are you all and how is the writing going.....or not? It has been Christmas week with so much festivity that I wouldn't blame you if you haven't opened your documents but congratulations to any who have kept up even a skeleton schedule. This sort of discipline will stand you in very good stead. Has anyone got any questions that I can attempt to assist with. It's not my intention to keep setting homework or exercises. That was just to get us going and this forum is essentially to help keep you motivated. I will continue to drop in each Tuesday. As no one's here at the moment, I might get back to my own manuscript but I'll keep checking through the night. Best to all. Happy Writing. F

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Happy new year, Fiona, and to everyone. 

Oh, it's hot in Adelaide at the moment - I envy you being in Tassie.

I've been dragging my heels with my writing over the last month, mainly because I started a new job.  But, I managed to hit the keyboard yesterday and today and things are cruising along again.  Actually, the heat has been a wonderful excuse to stay indoors and at the keyboard.

I've found that I've been backtreading with the story lately.  Mainly because I didn't start the story at the beginning and I need to give my main character some history.  He's obsessed and I need to give him a reason for that obsession.  I've never been a big fan of stories that jump all over the place in time, so I'm trying to keep it to a minimum.

I'd appreciate any ideas or techniques on how to move the story back in time, but without leaving the reader confused about what's going on.

Cheers

Mdx

 

 

 

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Flashbacks!!

Couldn't think of the word - brain's too fried... only working sporadically at the moment.

I'd appreciate ideas around dealing with flashbacks.  I've tried incorporating it into a conversation, but it wouldn't work the way I wanted it to.   I've now placed it in a reminiscing scene, but, once again, it's not really doing what i want it to.

Cheers

Mdx

 

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Merryd: I know the question was for Fiona but I thought I'd share the strategy I've had suggested to me. Just write it and sort out stuff like chronological order, dead wood and all of that during the second draft. My characters keep coming up with more and more surprises. I've made a little side file and put their backstories in that. That helps me out a little because that way I'm not obsessing over what I should perhaps be writing about my people and I can focus on pushing the story forward. Then when I start doing my second draft I can cut-and-paste stuff rather than having to sit down and write it all out.

As for me, I've been doing a bit of writing but I won't know how much until I transcribe. My computer is at the opposite end of the house to the air conditioner and it's been a little uncomfortable up here. I don't know whether it's the heat or my attention span (or the Christmas spirits) but I've had a hard time concentrating and found things going all over the place. With the family overseas though I haven't had too many distractions and have managed to convince myself that I've made something resembling progress.

 

Thanks, Fiona, for your continuing support. It's been something of a motivation, having to semi-regularly 'fess up on whether I've made progress. If nothing else it keeps my backside in my chair.

I did have one question but I think I'll save it for a rainy (or at least cooler) day. Oh, and happy New Year, all.

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Hi Marelle

Thanks for answering my plea.  The question wasn't particularly for Fiona... it was a general call for help.  There are a lot of people on this BB that have experience and ideas on writing manuscripts.

I'll try the strategy you've given me.  Much of the flashback is written now and I'll leave it sitting where it is until I've finished writing the first draft and the editing begins.  I'm probably going to be better able to see how it fits into the story when I can take a big picture view of it.

Cheers

Mdx

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This really is sound advice, Merryd, well done Marelle. My approach is always to push forward and not fret over stuff that might make me stumble and stutter in my rhythm. Marelle's got a good idea to keep the side file but essentially I think the notion to use all this extra information and layer it in on the next draft is really good. Get the skeleton of the story written. There's going to be more than just this one aspect of this particular character that is going to crop up. Loads of ideas will occur to you and nag at you so all of those will add the texture and colour of the story once you know what the main structure of the plot is. Get the story out of your head and into a manuscript. Write those extra bits that nag and yes, try keeping them on the side for insertion later. That may well work brilliantly for you. The main thing is that you understand what is motivating your character - that's very, very important and although it doesn't have to be written down yet, you need to know it. But it is also crucial for your reader so it's not something you can ignore and that will explain why you've been feeling twitchy about it - so that's good too. Flashbacks do work but need to be sparing or they just become irritating. The reminiscing idea is solid - one of the best ways to handle this. Or perhaps someone else who knows telling him about what occurred in the past. Or make it more magical. Perhaps a mysterious visitor. Or a dream......better still, a vision that shows him his past. If that's too vague, use something tangible.....something magical that shows him. Lots of ways to do this so don't worry. If you do feel comfortable with one of these suggestions or perhaps some other idea that they trigger, and if you can write it as you go, all the better. Good luck!

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Hi Merryd - I'm from Adelaide too - felt more like UAE the last few days though.  I have neglected my manuscript for over a year  but feel the irresistable tug again.  I have decided that even when I am back to teaching psych and am totally overloaded again - I will still write 250 words - a page - each day - hopefully my joining you doesn't make it too crowded or difficult here.  Even though I have not been writing it is always in my head anyway - I am always making notes and adding to the thread of the proposed series - and inspiration or realisation often comes at the weirdest times   - so - time to act on them and go the next step. 

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I'm glad I could be of some use, Merryd, and sorry if I came across sounding a little ... Well, I have all sorts of colourful descriptions for how I noticed that my last post sounded, none of them flattering. I was just a little hesitant because I'm pretty new here and just wasn't sure whether I should put in my two cents or not. I'm glad that the suggestion was of some use though. Yay.

Now, back to making use of this somewhat more pleasant day.

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Hey Marelle

Don't be so hard on yourself!!  I reckon  everyone on this BB has something to offer.  All you have to do is ask, and someone'll pop up and give you a hand.  It's nice feeling connected to something much bigger.

Fiona, I might try the 'magic flashback' later.  The reminiscing flashback is working better than the conservation flashback, but it's not quite what I was after.

Hey, Am - more the merrier (just means more people to help me out - hee hee).  Where do you teach psych??  I did 4 years of psych at Adelaide Uni - great fun!!

Cheers

Mdx

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Hi - at Adelaide Uni - am still in the Hughes building - you might have been a student of mine - I also tutored 1st and 2nd year students. 

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I was Frank Dalziel's last Honours student (1999).  A year of very mixed emotions for me.

So, if you were tutoring between '95 and '99, I'm sure I'd at least know your face. 

Mdx

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I stumbled across this forum 2 days ago. I was looking up Fiona's books to see what new stories she was working on. I really enjoyed Myrren's gift, the plot twists kept reading it.

But I have been reading your comments and ideas and I'm enjoying the education I'm getting from all of you. Its great to see an author like Fiona encouraging other people to write. I have only started this year to put story lines down on paper this year, and since I've only learned to use 'word' in the past 8 months so now I'm now typing. I only started writing to improve my grammar ans spelling, but I"m finding that I'm enjoying creating my own stories. My only aim at the moment is to write the story, what happens after that remains to be seen.

 

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"I don't have your eyes...but I have your way of looking at things..."

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Good for you Ebony. We all come to writing from different angles, for different reasons and at very different points in our lives. We also approach it in relatively unique ways and our aims, what we want from it, and why we're doing it are supremely individual. It's terrific that you are not piling too much pressure on yourself to perform and that right at this moment you are just interested to enjoy learning and to enjoy the experience and writing down the stories in your imagination. There may well be more beyond that and you might take your writing seriously enough to knuckle down and consider sending it to an agent or publisher, perhaps an assessor....whatever you do, I'm glad you've found the gang here. There are extremely supportive and do their best to drop in each Tuesday and catch up. You'll find friends here. Every success. F