The Trendsetter

As a writer you have to write and edit your manuscript. This is very tricky because you are first the author and then must switch positions to become the editor of what you’ve written. Ouch! This is too much painful work!

But the reality is this: you have to experience the process of editing your own work if you decide to be a writer. No exceptions and no easy way out because no one writes flawlessly the first time. And don’t even let me mention the business side of writing yet where you will confront the editor at your publisher.

I remember one of my fellow writer friends who told me she will get sick for a week right after she finishes her manuscript. Then she has to drag herself to edit the draft next. When I saw her during a writer’s conference she really looked like she was just recovering from an unknown disease.

How you do the editing task is up to you. Some writers will edit right after completing the manuscript, while others prefer to edit while writing. Whichever technique is best for you it is the editing process itself that takes the most out of you as a writer.
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When you go to see a movie what types of movies do you like to view? Do you like comedy, heavy drama, adventure or futuristic themes? By asking yourself this question you can determine what type of story you are interested to write - if you plan to put your writing skills to test.

Finding your interest in the type of story will help you to develop a framework for your fiction. When you are able to narrow down your interest, then you can go to the next step of listing down your characters. But first, let us explore three common types of stories just mentioned.
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In my previous blog I wrote about how to obtain facts for use in fiction and mentioned that I preferred to use my own experiences when illustrating the setting for the characters since this is the best way to show the reader what I see, smell, taste, hear and feel about these place(s). However, if I am not able to experience the setting(s) where I place my protagonist, I will go for the second best – looking for other’s sensory experiences in describing these places.

This is exactly what I did last week. I needed more information about a particular arrondissements in Paris where the setting took place for my novel Antara Dua Kota. I did find some, but it was written by tourists who had been there for less than a week. But I needed a comprehensive description by someone who actually lives there. Before bugging the bloggers who have been to Paris (as tourists) for help, I decided to go to my local library to see if I could find what I am looking for.

I didn’t find anything specific, but I found a novel titled Lion Eyes by Claire Berlinski. I read it at home and I couldn’t put it down. I read it that night cover-to-cover.
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Have you ever experienced the fear of writing? Something like when you start to write your fictional piece or memoir you feel that you reveal yourself too much? That you feel everyone will find out about your dark secret in your writing?

In Ralph Keyes book titled The Courage to Write he discusses in depth about how fear prevents the writer from writing. I also believe that fear of writing is one element of the writer’s block that is related to having difficulty when starting to write or when continuing writing.
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Since I blog everyday on how to write fiction, I use the advice I blog about in my own writing. I am presently expanding my short story Antara Dua Kota into a novel (it is not in English, though). And I am currently working on outlining the plot to fit it into a novel. I have set the theme as general as possible: it is about how love can conquer everything. This will help me to get a larger space for the characters to maneuver themselves.

The difference between a short story and a novel is the length. Secondly it is the focus. Usually a short story focuses on a single plot with only very few subplots and the characters don’t have much space to show who they are. The writer can only focus on one plot and are either able to solve the problem or the writer uses a cliffhanger type of solution and drops a hint what the protagonist does to achieve what he/she wants. In a novel, you have a lot of time and space to add more to the plot and develop subplots for the characters.
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