Tag: editing

Going to Camp

~ JodiLea

I am sending myself to camp this April. CNW_Participant_Square

I will not be traveling there because it is a virtual writers camp (Camp NaNoWriMo).  No meds to pack, no boarding for Ziva. Yeah!!
Just me & my cabin mates with our laptops, caffeine, snax, and notebooks containing research notes, ideas, ad nauseam. Some of us are starting new novels and a few of us, myself included, are editing our November novels. Either way, our cabin is full of  Young Adult Fiction writers, so it has to be fun. Right?  🙂

BTW, I am looking for a sponsor – someone to donate $$ to those who work hard to keep the camp running. Interested? Click  HERE for more info!

Wish me luck!!

♥  TTFN  ♥

 

 

 

The Fermentation Process

~ JodiLea ~ 1 Comment

No, I am not making wine!  NoWine

I’m referring to my book. I have my completed outline/draft sitting in its folder – undisturbed. This is one of the most important steps for my pre-editing phase. Why?

Because I need to step back and remove myself from the story. I am anxious to edit and fix the multitude of errors, that I know are in there, so this is one of the most difficult steps I have.

For example, there is one major error I made in third chapter and I need to re-examine chapters before and after, and review my research notes to fix it. This will be a lot of work, and it must be done, therefore I want to do it and ‘get it over with’ so I can move on to areas more ‘fun’ to work on.

I must also get rid of a few ‘fun’ stuff in the story, or move it closer to the end. I, once again, have been overcome with romance. Not that there’s anything wrong with some romance going on. 😉

Anyway, I am keeping myself away from it all. Only jotting notes down if a brilliant idea pops into my head. (I’m still waiting…)  So, I plan to finish quilting my current quilt, cleaning out my office that is so cluttered I’m getting claustrophobic sitting in here.

I’ll get out and walk for a bit, while I can, a storm will be coming through and it will be rainy all week. Then settle in to watch my 49er’s beat the Saint’s, while munching on popcorn.

Anything but writing…

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photo credit: Leo Reynolds via photopin cc

I Am My Own Worst Editor

~ JodiLea

. Paperwork Mountian

Progress is slow on the cookbook today.  I can’t write a recipe without tweaking another one, or formatting something. I keep telling myself, “just write, and edit later”.

I hate when I don’t heed my own good advice. These large piles of recipes surrounding me, sorted in some order that I forget when I leave my desk then return, are not getting smaller.  I know the reason for this, but I can’t help myself.  I catch myself reading sections that I have already written, then I need to change a word or two. I might need to add a note, or remove something dumb.

This editing when trying to write is bad enough. But the next day I discover I don’t like what I did the day before, so I re-edit what I wrote again. I need to write at this stage, and I’m just not getting to it. Grrrrr…

If you wonder if I would be a happier editor than a writer, I assure you I would not. Then I crack-up because my spelling and grammar are so atrocious that I stump spell check. And the grammar checker constantly nags at me. I write how I speak most of the time, between the California Valley Girl, Kansas Farmer, and the Hillbilly dialects, it is amazing that I write at all.

At least, I think I can. 😉