Tag Archives: revision
Top 10 Angry Editing Songs
I’ve run across several blogs and articles talking about the music writers like to have playing in the background while they work. Some refuse to listen to anything with lyrics because it’s distracting, while others need to have a specific musical artist speaking for the characters in the novel under construction. Music in the background […]
Pulled in Different Directions? Just make a damn decision.
We all get that occasional pull to do something different. Stop a project, a job, or a contract, in midstream and toy with something different–something new. I’m never sure if it’s boredom, or the thrill of the hunt for something new. But that urge for something fresh seemed to hit me this week and it […]
Story Surgery
There are times in my writing process I feel like a hired gun with a scalpel. A slice here, a nip and tuck there–gut the beast. Readers, editors, agents and publishers all shout (okay maybe not really shout–but it seem that way at times) for me to make a change in a POV, or my […]
Power Your Rewrite
To Rewrite, Rewire or Rip Out… In the process of making a stab at rewriting my latest work in progress, I had an epiphany, of sorts. Well, not a lightning bolt to the temple kind of moment, but more of the rub your socks on the carpet kind of jolt. Enough to get my attention, […]
Do You Suffer From Revision Brain Syndrome?
Revision Brain Syndrome (RBS) RBS is destined to be added to the list of serious psychological maladies in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders – 5th edition (DSM V) as a condition plaguing millions of writers. (cue Sarah McLachlan sad puppy music here) Self-diagnosis is difficult and I’ll warn you now to stay […]
Writing And Torture
Behold the art of torture. Pain, discomfort and fear are powerful motivators. Extorting confessions and achieving compliance through coercion is a “tradition” dating back thousands of years, usually in the name of God, King, or Country. Fast forward to the present and the “Bringers of Pain” continue to wage war on innocents, but the motivation […]
Traveling (and Writing) with Your Dogs
A getaway to finish a revision on a manuscript seemed like a good idea. Revision and edits on a manuscript are moving along well, but slower than I hoped. Constant interruptions from phone calls, doorbells, and the siren’s call of unattended yard work, lure me away from the pages. A couple of days on the […]
James L'Etoile
James L'Etoile 