Revising in the Home Stretch

I know what method of working has made the first 2/3 of my mss better. I’m just getting tired.

Don’t get Lazy Now! I’m on the last third. I know that I must rewrite a major scene for a subplot/secondary character climax. But much of these later chapter are in good shape. By now in the story, so much is set, the stakes are established, character arcs and plot arcs are underway, the scenes are focused and full of tension. My inclination is to avoid the work!

But I think it’s still essential to question everything! Runners know you can’t stop until you’ve actually crossed the Finish Line.

Questions I’m still asking myself:
Is this scene essential to the story line?
Is there a better way to present this scene?
Is there a better way to set it up?
Can I raise the stakes?
Is the dialogue snappy enough?
Could the reader possible be confused at any point?
Are the emotions still building?
Are the characters’ actions exciting?
Can I improve the language at any point?
Are descriptions static or full of emotions?
Can I connect scenes in any way?

Of course, each scene presents new challenges, so these are only a few of the concerns at this point. The main problem is to not rush this last section, to slow down and take each scene very seriously, as if this scene might prevent the entire book from working well. It’s very, very hard. I want to be finished! But I’m trying to keep to the working method that worked and trying to keep myself focused and working.

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Wisdom, the Midway Albatross

by Darcy Pattison

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I’m worried. :-/
Are my characters boring?

One-Note Characters

One common difficulty is to create characters with a wide range of emotions. Yes, your character may be chronically sad or mad; but if that note is hit over and over and over, it becomes boring. And unrealistic.

I’m afraid I’m on the verge of doing this for my main character. I’ve got to go back and track the small shifts of emotion within a scene, as well as the overall tone set for each scene. One technique is to simply write the dominant emotion in the margins of the mss and track what you’ve done.

The harder part is to build in those emotional changes in a book character. First, I’ll tackle the overall tone of the scene, lightening it up. This means small choices throughout, favoring more upbeat language throughout. It doesn’t mean I can’ use sad or mad as one of the emotions; it doesn’t mean that the character is overwhelmingly cheerful. It only means there needs to be a dominant tone of mad, but trying to get over it! And there needs to be lighter moments within the story.

For more on how to revise a novel see this series:
30 Days to a Stronger Novel

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Wisdom, the Midway Albatross

by Darcy Pattison

Giveaway ends March 11, 2012.

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Make supporting characters interesting

Wednesday, I went to north central Arkansas to teach a professional development class and on the way up, I listened to an audio version of T is for Trespass by Sue Grafton, the 20th Kinsey Millhone mystery.

At one point the detective calls a college to do a background check on a suspect. The supporting character here was the clerk at the college, and writing the scene was made more difficult because it was just a phone conversation. How do you characterize a minor supporting character when you only present them in one phone conversation?

Husky voice. Nasal voice. In short, the character’s voice. That’s about it, right?

Instead, Grafton gives the character a cold, and now, she is sneezing, blowing her nose, and she’s grumpy, all of which adds an extra layer of interest and conflict to an otherwise straightforward request for information.

The grouchy clerk tells Millhone it will take five business days to get the information, that is, five days after Millhone shows up with the signed employment application giving permission to release the information. Millhone is aggravated, but dutifully trots down to the college to show the application, only to find that clerk has gone home early because she felt so bad. Of course, that’s great for our heroine, because she innocently tells the new clerk that the information was supposed to be waiting for her. The new clerk retrieves the information in less than ten minutes.

The college clerk is a minor supporting character, but the quick characterization of a grumpy woman with a cold kept the story moving with a minor, but appropriate conflict that provided a nice plot twist when the information was retrieved fast, instead of slow.

Do you have minor characters who are cardboard cut-outs? Here are 4 quick ways to characterize better. For an extra challenge, while you’re sharpening your minor characters, look for a minor plot twist, too!

1. Ailments. Give them a cold. Or a broken arm. Or some other physical ailment that affects their speech, method of moving around, etc.
2. Role. Give the character an unusual family role, such as great uncle, the black sheep of the family, the third wife, or the last of fourteen children.
3. Job. Unusual jobs abound in the world: fireworks expert, laser welder, test kitchen for ways to cook rice, strawberry farmer, tarantula scientist, a person who cares for plants in skyscraper offices, or an Amish wife.
4. Facial features. The human eye can perceive slight differences in faces, so that each of the billions of people on earth looks unique. Work to find ways to describe faces in unique ways. Use metaphors, find the one details that stands out, or exaggerate a feature.

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Wisdom, the Midway Albatross

by Darcy Pattison

Giveaway ends March 11, 2012.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

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Characters Who Move

According to Mehrabian, 55% of communication depends on body language, 38% on tone-of-voice, and 7% on the words used. That’s bad news for novelists because we don’t have direct access to the body language as we work with our fictional characters – they are just words on a page. Adding body language to a character description puts the character into action and enriches the overall profile.

When you write a novel, you can describe body language and with the right descriptions, the communication embedded is apparent and you don’t have to interpret it for the reader.

Examples:

• Fingertip kiss–praise
• Nose tap–keep it secret
• Head toss–negatives
• Chin Flick–disinterest
• Eyelid pull–I am alert

Think also about giving your character(s) their own typical body language to mean certain things. For example, a girlfirend holds up her hand palm out and makes a shoving motion toward her boyfriend in a gesture that means STOP.

The Definitive Book of Body Language is focused on business communication, but it has interesting information.

Beware of overusing common forms of body language. For example, “he turned” is often used when a character shifts focus from one thing to another. Look for other actions to fill in here by putting something in the character’s hands or using something from the setting.

Read more in 15 Days to a Stronger Character

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Wisdom, the Midway Albatross

by Darcy Pattison

Giveaway ends March 11, 2012.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win