On Editing – Ascribe Writers

Piecemeal

April 22, 2024April 19, 2024 Andrée Levie-Warrilow Leave a comment

ONE OF THE BIG THINGS about creative writing is how much a part of one’s self shows up in the work, even when the theme is something completely fabricated.
I liken writing to a piecework quilt: beyond the grammar and words one selects to stitch everything together (although that can colour everything), in most of what we write, what we design – plot, theme, characters – everything originates as a pastiche of everything we have lived and learned. Just like those quilts that use symbols of colour and form to send a message, our minds gather up all those elements that we have to hand from our experiences and knowledge, even when we’re creating something uniquely from our imagination. Read more

Sparking Discussions with an Ambiguous Novel Ending

February 5, 2024February 5, 2024 Lori Twining 1 Comment

There is severe pressure on writers to have an excellent opening sentence, with an intriguing first page and a gripping first chapter. Most writers spend quite a bit of time rewriting this section of the book more than any other part of the novel. My current novel has had at least ten different first chapters, and I’m not even going to mention the hated prologue (I have written a few and deleted them all).

Then, there is the problematic middle that everyone talks about. I have a whole shelf in my library dedicated to writing your way through that. Truthfully, Write Your Novel From the Middle by James Scott Bell is one of the better how-to books for approaching this situation. It is easy to read, short (only 84 pages), and concise.

What we don’t hear much about is how to end the book. How do you deliver a satisfying ending that makes the reader walk away with a smile? How do you nail the ending and create a stir so magnificent that they are banging on your door for the next book?

Life Keeps Happening, I keep Writing.

January 22, 2024January 21, 2024 Diane Ferguson Leave a comment

Last I left you, dear reader, I had submitted my first fifty pages, query and synopsis for critique, to a NYTimes bestselling author and I was awaiting her notes. In the meantime, my husband had knee replacement surgery and I lost what was to be my bountiful writing time. But hey, life happens…

Sound familiar? That was how my blog opened on November 27th and finished up like this:

Now I’m energized to go back to my old novel and fix the beginning, hone in on my climax, and then finish fixing the writing…And to top it off, my husband’s knee is on the mend and he’s back to driving which means I now have the writing time I was craving. But of course, Christmas is coming…

But then, life happened–again. On December 4^th, playing hockey, I injured my knee. Now it was my turn on the couch. In some ways, the timing was good, we had all the equipment at home: ice packs, walker, cane. And my husband was now well enough to take care of me.

Hard Choices

November 27, 2023November 26, 2023 Diane Ferguson 2 Comments

Getting ready to write with my new twinkle lights.

And it happened to the author / editor I was waiting for. She was busy promoting her latest book and then fell ill, but remained in touch so I always knew what was happening. While I waited, I played around with ideas for my new novel, re-read writing books, bought more writing books. And a surprise book showed up. At first, I thought maybe I lost track of my purchases, but then remembered the author saying she wanted to send me this book.

Back-to-School?

August 28, 2023August 28, 2023 Diane Ferguson Leave a comment

As the leaves start to turn and the geese gather overhead, it’s hard not to think about back-to-school. I loved school. While many were mourning the passing of summer, I was anxious for the start of September, new books, new clothes, new class. So many exciting possibilities. (Yes, the excitement soon waned by mid-October.)

I LOVE learning and I LOVE reading. Two things that school was all about. Of course, seeing all my friends was a bonus too. Since I loved school, I knew I wanted to go to University—didn’t matter what I was learning, as long as I was in school. I decided to become a Chartered Accountant (now called a CPA). This was a path that would take seven years to complete. The culmination of that was a 16 hour exam spread over 4 days with a 50% failure rate. I made it!

The Beginning of the End

April 10, 2023April 9, 2023 Diane Ferguson 4 Comments

Living in Canada means living with weather. When I lived in Toronto, there were ways to ignore it, but when I moved to Grey County, I soon realized there was no denying winter as it piled outside my door. I did learn to embrace it through: snowshoeing, cross-country skiing and eventually hockey. And I also learned there was no better time for a writer than in the depths of winter. And then there was that pandemic. For us introverts, it was a perfect time for writing.

Slowly things are opening up, or maybe I’m slowly opening up. Sometimes, I feel like I’m crawling out of a dark cave, adjusting to the light, checking out the horizon. And it’s not just covid, but my daughters have just come of age, so I’m also waking from the world of intense parenting—at least it felt intense! Obviously, the job doesn’t end here, but the duties are less time-consuming.

A night out with writer friends to see Barbara Kyle and C.S. O’Cinneide, presented by the West Grey Public Library, provided lots of inspiration for future projects!

And I’m also coming out of a long period of editing my novel, getting it ready to submit. And as close to the end as it’s seemed, the finish line keeps getting moved back. Al-most-there-just-a-bit-more-to-do. I’d printed off a copy and read through and made edits before handing it to other friends to read.

Transitions

February 13, 2023February 13, 2023 Diane Ferguson 1 Comment

“Transition: (a) a passage or change from one place, state, condition etc. to another; (b) passage in thought, speech, or writing, from one subject to another. ” (From the Canadian Oxford Dictionary.)

If we’re lucky and kind to ourselves, we will live long lives. And in that life time we will be different people, wear different hats, be different ages. Some will change more than others, but we will all change to some degree. When we take that same concept to our writing, we’re talking about the character arc. How does the character change over the course of the novel?

(There are stories where the protagonist doesn’t change, but I don’t particularly like those stories.)

All stories have characters, but I love stories where the main focus is the character development and plot is secondary. I’m interested in people: how they live, how they feel, how they function, how they survive. They say that fiction is the art that comes closest to representing human consciousness. I want to know what goes on inside people’s heads.

5 STEPS TO IMPROVE YOUR WRITING – FOCUSING ON REPETITION

January 16, 2023January 15, 2023 Donna Judy Curtin 1 Comment

The art of writing isn’t just about art. It’s also about skill. Sure, perhaps you have been inspired to share your stories and get a novel published, but there is a big difference between jotting down a few journal entries and being sufficiently accomplished and persistent enough to get published.

Published authors have worked incredibly hard to hone their craft. Acquiring the competences needed to draft a novel that readers can’t put down, sparking imaginations and poking dusty hearts, is much more than an overnight trick. Read more

Category: On Editing