Next, Letter Nine

It's up. I've been thinking really hard about what to do and this is what I decided. The new letter number nine.

I decided to pass on this letter, well... at least postpone the dramatic stuff a little. I can't possibly put the original letter number nine up, because it just won't work... yet.

Terrwyn I love this new development you're working into Mirth story. It's so very exciting. I'm hoping you'll be willing to write the next bit of Mirth's story - and then I'll have Ange respond to that.

Right now, I can't have Ange responding to such a happy gleeful letter from Mirth with her own tale of doom and gloom and woe is me. I can't picture that at all. At least it doesn't fit the dramatic curve of the story, over all.

So, basically I'm passing the baton back to you rather quickly. I hope you don't mind.

Oh, and, I'm don't mean to be bothersome - but can you possibly somehow get Lackscroft and Roe into your the next letter (or the one after that would be ok too.) Because I must have them meet Mirth - so she can be their dark maiden. It's vital to a future letter.

Anyway, I hope this makes sense.

This is how my brain works (yes I know it's weird)

After I posted Letter 7 something about it bothered me, but I couldn't put my finger on it. What was it? The poems, I realized, the poems were sticking out too much and ruining it. I decided to change it, so I striped the poems from the interior of the letter and just put them on the bottom.

It's a temporary solution. I have no idea what do with with them.

First, let me share with you my thoughts while I was revising Letter 7, they went as follows:

Re: Revising and When is it good enough?

I'm starting to hate the endless revisions. I'm feeling really frustrated with them. It's a really terrible attitude to take. I know. I know. So I'm trying to give myself a positive outlook in this post. I will try anyway.

Regarding (or Re:) Revisions. Revising. Rewriting. Reworking.

Writing, and rewriting, it can go on and on and on. What drives me to do this to myself? I found this article about rewriting, called Writers on Rewriting . It has a collection of quotes from different writers about the subject, everyone from Earnest Hemingway, E.B. White, Vladimir Nabokov, Dorothy Parker and many others. It makes me both encouraged and discouraged to read them over.

The Fairy Tale Conspiracy Begins

I've been neglecting the blog lately, but I have a good excuse, really I do.

Tada: Letter 5, in which our heroine is in a pickle, she meets some mysterious commentators and uncovers a terrible evil plot by a hideous fat man.

I have to say conspiracies are really hard to write. I have such respect for any author who writes about a conspiracy. I've been working on this for a week, this letter was my worst so far. I was almost tempted to just post it and get your opinion, but by that point it was such a huge mess. So I did my best to fix it. It still needs works.

And, you'll notice there is something very important missing. This is the only letter that I didn't write down the messengers.

Terrwyn, do you still have the original letter and envelope for this one? It would be soooo helpful if you did and I don't have to recreate it. This is the envelope where Lackcroft and Roe make their first appearance. (heaven help us.)

The right way to write?

"A window is a window, but there is looking out and looking in" Margaret Atwood

The other day I decided to dig through some of my notes on revising. I've said it before. I really have no idea what I'm doing when it comes to revising. I'm still trying to figure it out. And I've collected tips, quotes from authors, editors, lists of the top eight ways to edit, articles from Writers Digest on book doctoring, Writers Boot Camp, Characterization, an interview of Margaret Atwood, and my notes from a writer's retreat -- the list goes on and on.

I looked at everything and it made me very, very depressed. Urgh. too much. Why is it so painful? I didn't want to think about the story or do anything with it, except maybe shove it under my bed: out of sight, out of mind.

But then . . .

Then I read through letter 2, from Mirth, and it all went away. I got so excited. It was fun. (Isn't that rule #1?) I loved it oh so much. And suddenly it didn't matter that I'm so bad at revising or don't know how to do it.

I have this list about what to include in the first three pages of a manuscript (like the physical description of the characters...) I was once told do not have conversations with more than two characters, but I do that all the time. So I've decided to ignore all this advise. (Maybe not all of it.)  But I'm not going to stress about it or change things just because it 'proper' or its a rule.

I'm going to stick with my gut reactions. Instinct. Intuition. There is no one right way to write a novel. Rules can be broken (rule 5, I believe).

As long as the story still works and is good enough - that's what matters.

Here is some advise I will follow:

"Learn the rules, then follow the rules, then learn when to break them."

letter number two.

Well, I did Letter Number two. It was hideous trying to edit. I'm sure there are more mistakes in it than I care to correct. So please, any suggestions, corrections,ect, feel free to make!

and above all, enjoy reading it!

Letter #2