Where I Am...Plot Holes and Travel Plans

Literally - I am sitting at the table watching the morning sun. I am in a happy place here thinking about PENDEROWN and also a thousand other things.

First just to say all my photos of the Summer Party are up over at the RNA Blog. I am tempted to put up a few out takes here but that might not be fair.... It was a wonderful party as always but down on numbers due to two other parties in the publishing world that evening. This was actually good because I did have the chance for a few proper catch ups and hello how good to finally meet you in person chats. Everyone is eagerly anticipating this year's conference which now doesn't seem too far away.

So on the flight I read through the synopsis for PENDEROWN - it is an awful one, but it is workable and as it is, at this point for my eyes only, that is okay. I hated doing every minute of it but boy can I see how it will help. As I wrote it out in long hand (yes, doing much more of that lately) I could see plot holes as I worked through the story. These holes were visible to me in the synopsis but interestingly not as I read the script. What does this tell me? One I am a crap reader of my own work (might be true)? Or I had pulled off something else in the script that hid the plot holes? I think it's the later and I think this is really important for those of us who haven't cracked the publication bit yet.

Why? Here I am going to call upon the rejections I have received and the work I recently did on the synopsis for A CORNISH HOUSE. Each rejection bar the computer generated one for the M&B has mentioned how well I write - early on I thought so what's the problem then? As my rejection letters or emails or chats became longer and more of open conversations I wondered what was up...these people were still willing to talk to me and see my work, the comments were almost all praise so what the hell am I doing wrong. When you get theses snipets of feedback and encouragement you flounder - I don't mean it isn't wonderful but no one tells you how to understand what the comments mean let alone how to fix or improve. I am finding now several books and innumerable rewrites down the line I keep having these moments of...so that is what so so meant when she said this...

It may well just be that I'm thick or could be just that I have to learn each skill one at a time. So when I read Penderown after such a long break I saw problems from useless scenes, repetition, etc but I was also carried away with the story (good). The characterization except for Demi worked. Because of all that is not crap in my writing the plot holes were hidden which the synopsis made very apparent. Having done a synopsis after draft one - painful though it was hopefully will have saved me a rewrite or two. I now also understand some of the comments in said rejections - boy were they right and their practised eyes saw so much while they acknowledged the good. They could immediately picked up the problems which until now I couldn't see and to be honest there are probably more things yet that I don't see....

So I have work to do before I begin writing again however when on the plane the other day I did write and again in long hand (because I was too lazy to get the netbook out). As i began I thought I was writing the the penultimate scene - emotional and final. I wrote as fast as my pen would take me and eight packed pages later I looked up and smiled. Job done except for polishing and connecting.

Wrong. I was doing my blog check and stumbled over to Julie Cohen's blog and then today here. The scene I wrote needs to come much sooner. It will make things worse and hopefully the ending better and stronger - well at least I hope so.

So now I am going to take my research list which i made up during the read through and begin that - I am itching to begin the rewrite but I think it's best if i fill in the holes now and who knows what other twists may come out of the research.

BEAR UPDATE: They are having cinnamon rolls for breakfast

Today DD and I are off to the Victoria and Albert to see the Grace Kelly exhibition. Confession - when young she was the person I wanted and tried to look like most. I failed miserable but hopefully was just that little bit more elegant than I might have been otherwise...

TRAVEL UPDATE: It looked like BA's Cabin crew strike had scuppered my plans to go to my uni reunion but plans are under way to get there by other means (and no not swimming the Atlantic or rowing either!)

The Lost Pages Found and Character Arc

St. Anthony and Jane Jones to my rescue and the lost pages of PENDEROWN have now been printed off, duly read and the little scene cards made up. So now no excuse not to write the synopsis....yesterday I began to look at Victoria's story or journey, which ever you wish to call it. I like it and at the moment it works. As I expected I stumbled when I looked at Demi's. When I sketched out the bare bones of what happens with her it's just okay - only just.

So before I begin weaving these two stories together(and that's already worked out) I need to fix Demi. In preparation, I went back to Julie Cohen's brilliant posts on Character arc here.

Today I will focus on Demi and where my inner voice is screaming - not just quietly speaking. Before I can put the synopsis together I need to figure her out and get to know here better - because right now many interesting things happen to and around her, she has her odd moments of glory but basically she is a piece of limp lettuce and this just won't do.

Is this exercise just another way to procrastinate writing the synopsis? Maybe but I just think it might be good procrastination if that is possible.

Have you had a a limp lettuce character you had to throw in the tub of ice water to perk up? If so how did you do it?

The Dreaded Synopsis

Yesterday I promised to blog about my recent struggle with rewriting a synopsis so here I am. First I want to post two links that have helped:

http://anitaburgh.blogspot.com/2010/03/cpt-and-synopsis.html

http://www.publishabestseller.com/2010/03/680/

I read both before I began work on the synopsis for A Cornish House. For me the thought of condensing 100,000 into one page is a nightmare. I actually find the one sentence thing easier so that is usually where I begin.

Back when I was struggling with my first synopsis, a wise soul told me to write it as if I was explaining it to a friend. This I did and the story was condensed - it was a mess of ten pages but it was better than a blank page. Since that first one, I now find my first pass is about four pages and here is where the work begins - the cutting.

First cut - the things I mentioned that aren't central to the book- I lose about two pages.

Second - am I saying things concisely or am I rabbiting on? -another half page gone

Third - down to the nitty gritty - word choice, adverbs, names.....

example:

Maddie uses a strong antibiotic to tackle dysentery. The diarrhoea disappears but the nausea remains. Maddie checks her diary and realizes that she must be pregnant.

Maddie falls ill. Other symptoms disappear but the nausea remains. Maddie is pregnant.

So having already brought the synopsis of ACH down to a page ages ago, what value have the past few days' agony brought? Well, I hope a stronger synopsis, but also a closer look at the story. When I had disciplined myself and whittled it down to just the main action I noticed that Maddie was accepting a lot of things = things were happing to her and she was reacting but not acting - so did I have a limp heroine or a limp synopsis???? This was a headache inducing question. I know what I wanted the answer to be but what was the truth....still checking this.

I also had to accept that I couldn't tell the story chronologically and have it be an effective synopsis. This really bothered me, but I had to get past the keeping the secrets of the book until they were revealed in the plot order. Once over that hurdle it made things a lot easier.

The final stage is to make sure that the document still makes sense as it stands. When I am so close to something it is very easy to think - yes, that works when it doesn't. I know this book inside out well at least I had better, but who ever reads the synopsis doesn't have that luxury. So I have to step back and read it without knowledge (not easy) and ask the questions:

1. have I told enough?

2. have I told too much?

3. does it make any sense?

4. does it actually tell the story that is written? (very important)

So today I am doing yet another pass and I don't think I am quite there but I still have time - thank God.

Catch Up

The boys have gone back to school and the laundry from Cape Town is done. Now to catch up on all that I didn't do in the past two and half weeks. I did write though so I will update the word counter shortly.

While in Cape Town it gave me time to think about the reports I have had back on ACH. At first, as always, I wanted to retreat even though they hadn't told me it was crap. In fact, if I look at both, it was much more positive than negative, but as with things I was too close. So clear air and blue seas gave me some much needed perspective. Today I slashed the synopsis from three pages to one. I hate doing this, but this time I found it really helped me to focus on what I needed to change and what I don't. It left me feeling that the story as it stands is the one I want to tell and it may take some more editing, but it will find its way.

So I will be subbing it at the end of this week to one of my open doors. If nothing else it will provide me with more feedback - good or bad. It might open dialogue which would be wonderful.

Now head down to catch up with edits, blogs and life...........