January First Week Wrap-Up
Due to the holiday, we had a short week; however, I hope it's been a productive one for you. If you haven't had a chance to nail down your writing goals for this upcoming year, take the weekend. Then the next step is to be resolute about them.In the upcoming weeks, the rest of the Noodlers will share their tips on getting a book started, and staying on top of their goals. I shared in the comment section of the last post is that I really enjoy writing my goals for each day - there's a lot of fun in marking them off with a flourish when I'm done. But the important thing is to find out what works best for you.
Fridays here at the WNP blog we reserve for Q&A and upcoming releases. Saturday we take off, and return on Sunday for a preview of the Noodlers and topics they'll be discussing. So until then...happy goal-setting, happy writing AND happy reading!
We have another great line-up of Noodler releases hitting the stands this month!
The Vanishing Viscountess by Diane Gaston
A woman of innocence and notoriety...
The prisoner stood with an expression of defiance, leather shackles on her wrists. Adam Vickery, Marquess of Tannerton, was drawn to this woman, so dignified in her plight. He didn’t recognize her as the once innocent, hopeful debutante he had danced with long years ago.
Marlena Parronley, the notorious Vanishing Viscountess, was a fugitive. Seeing the dashing, carefree marquess of her dreams just reminded her that she couldn’t risk letting anyone, especially Tanner, get caught up in helping her escape. He would face the same punishment she did. The hangman’s noose.
Visit Diane at her website - http://www.dianegaston.com
The prisoner stood with an expression of defiance, leather shackles on her wrists. Adam Vickery, Marquess of Tannerton, was drawn to this woman, so dignified in her plight. He didn’t recognize her as the once innocent, hopeful debutante he had danced with long years ago.
Marlena Parronley, the notorious Vanishing Viscountess, was a fugitive. Seeing the dashing, carefree marquess of her dreams just reminded her that she couldn’t risk letting anyone, especially Tanner, get caught up in helping her escape. He would face the same punishment she did. The hangman’s noose.
Visit Diane at her website - http://www.dianegaston.com
A Perfect Stranger by Terry McLaughlin
Charismatic Nick Martelli is all smoldering good looks and animal magnetism. Unfortunately, he's not the man Sydney Gordon is nearly engaged to—the man who's waiting for her to come back from Europe and accept his marriage proposal.
And Nick's certainly not what you'd think of as ideal husband material. Sydney needs somebody steady to help her rein in her impulsive nature… Doesn't she?
You can get all the goods on Terry's at her website by visiting here.
posted by Jill Monroe @ 10:30 AM
10 Comments:
Looks great!
I do have one question. Why is the month of Research so far along into the year, instead of at the beginning?
I have a feeling this question really brands me as a "newbie" writer, but I couldn't quit wondering, so thought I may as well ask.
Thanks!
That's a great question, Gillian. I think we brainstormed topics and put them in an order that we thought would be most helpful.
Many writers get bogged down in research (because it can be so interesting!), and don't get down to the business of writing. Sometimes focusing on research too much can prevent a writer from exploring characters and plotting.
And research isn't all up front. An example for you would be the first historical I wrote. I researched planations, furniture, the time period in general, etc. When I finally got around to writing the story, I used some of the notebook full of research in a prologue I ended up cutting. Other bits and pieces I kept, but I discovered in revising it that I needed to know how to sail and what a person sailing in a certain part of a certain ocean might encounter. So guess what? Back to research.
Research can happen at any point. And it shouldn't overcome the importance of the story, IMHO.
Gillian - I'll also put this question forward to the rest of the group next Friday. Writing without having the research is a great question, and I know there will be a lot of interesting responses.
Hi, Gillian! Great question. And Mo, what a great answer!
FWIW, here's my perspective on research. I do very little up front. As a result, my first drafts are filled with notations in square brackets - [research weather conditions] and [check out parenting magazines] and [find out the location of the firehall in this neighborhood]. These are all from my current project, BTW.
In the past I used to do a lot of research before I wrote a story, and then I dumped all that information into the story. Those "info dumps" stood out like a sore thumb. Now I write the book and only put in enough factual information to make it realistic.
Please keep in mind, though, that while this works for me, it might not work for everyone, and it might work for all genres.
Mo,Jill, and Lee--Thanks! Your responses make a lot of sense.
I can see how concentrating on the romance between the h/h first and then inserting specific research details later would be a good way to make sure that romance stays front and center!
And yeah (glancing at the teetering pile of research books), I bet I spend a tad too much time looking up details that are never making it into the story....
Looking forward to next week :)
I, too, enjoy writing a daily goal. I will probably never convert from planner to Blackberry, because I so enjoy making check boxes and coloring them in once I've finished a task.
(Really, it's the little things...)
Hi all. All my friend talk about this place all the time so thought I'd check it out. Since one of my goals for 2008 is to enter the GH, looks like this will become a regular stop.
I put up a new calendar and I think making myself write each day how many words or pages I write will do a lot of good. Seeing the numbers right there in front of me should get me motivated and give me a feeling of accomplishment. I hope it works.
Terrio,
We hope posting those numbers works for you, too!
Gillian,
When I was reading the list of blogs for next week, I noticed that noodler Diane Gaston will be blogging about research on Thursday the 10th. Her topic is "How Much to Research Before You Write the Book." So definitely head back to the blog that day. I know she'll have some great advice.
Oh, I'll definitely be here every day that the internet is working and I can catch a moment's peace.
I spent snippets of my day going over my completed manuscript and I started counting the number of times I used "looked" and then all those "ly" words...pitiful, I'm telling ya :)
So I'll be soaking up the words of wisdom.
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