On Friday, May 8,\u00a0we focused on revising using a multi-layered approach I playfully call “Miss AnnMarie’s Thirteen Steps to a Perfect Final Draft.” \u00a0Is any final draft ever perfect? \u00a0I don’t know… but if you follow these steps you WILL get about as close to perfect as is possible for you, at the stage of your writing that you are in right now.<\/p>\n
1. Let it cool.\u00a0 Give yourself some time away from the piece.\u00a0 During this time, you can work on another project, but you have to leave that draft ALONE.\u00a0 It\u2019s very difficult to edit a draft when you still feel like you are living in that world.\u00a0 You need space in order to be objective.<\/p>\n
2. Now print out your story and read it all the way through, from beginning to end, with fresh eyes. \u00a0Be tough.\u00a0 Ask yourself the hard questions, like: \u201cIs this a story that readers will want to keep reading?\u00a0 Is there enough conflict to keep a person interested in the plot?\u00a0 Are there enough difficult decisions to keep a person interested in the protagonist\u2019s character?\u201d\u00a0 Write down any questions or thoughts that come to your mind.\u00a0 Work on adding anything to your story that you think is missing.<\/p>\n
3. When you\u2019re satisfied that there is enough conflict and excitement in your story, read it again, and look for any characters or scenes that just aren\u2019t necessary in the story.\u00a0 When doing this layer, you have to look at your whole draft, always keeping your ending in mind.\u00a0 Everything in your story should flow toward that ending like a river to the sea.\u00a0 Is there anything\u2014characters or scenes–that does not further the progression of your story from beginning to ending?\u00a0 Take a deep breath, and say goodbye to the things you don\u2019t need.<\/p>\n
4. It\u2019s time to reread using the maxim \u201cShow, Don\u2019t Tell.\u201d\u00a0 Look for anything that you are telling or describing when perhaps you ought to be letting it play out dramatically for the reader instead.\u00a0 Read plays or movie scripts for inspiration.\u00a0 Close your eyes and try to imagine your story playing in your mind like a movie.\u00a0 What does the scene look<\/em> like?\u00a0 Try to remove any background information that could be shown dramatically.\u00a0 You never want to tell the reader things about your characters that, with a little bit of suggestion, the reader could easily figure out on his own.<\/p>\n 5. Now read your draft again to see if there are any written passages that might take away from the reader\u2019s enjoyment of your story.\u00a0 This includes: prose that is too \u201cwriterly,\u201d that doesn\u2019t sound like the narrator\u2019s voice and becomes the \u201cauthor\u2019s\u201d voice, and paragraphs that sound like you\u2019re trying to lecture the reader about your opinion.\u00a0 Your story should flow like a \u201ccontinuous dream\u201d (John Gardner, novelist and critic).\u00a0 Nothing in your writing should stick out like a sore thumb or get in the way of your reader just losing herself in your exciting plot and characters.\u00a0 Don\u2019t interject your personal opinions where they are not needed.\u00a0 Your plot and your characters should stand alone to be appreciated by the reader just as they are.<\/p>\n 6. Now read your draft out loud and focus on what you hear.\u00a0 Focus on the dialogue.\u00a0 Do your characters\u2019 words sound realistic, considering who your characters are and what their situation is?\u00a0 Do they further the plot?\u00a0 Do your characters talk about unimportant things?\u00a0 Does the conversation flow naturally?\u00a0 Do your characters have trouble \u201cgetting to the point\u201d?<\/p>\n 7. Do a careful, close read of your story to see if there are any errors in continuity.\u00a0 Again, your story should be a \u201ccontinuous dream.\u201d\u00a0 Think about the last time you saw a movie or TV show and noticed that there was a car parked on the street nearby and suddenly it\u2019s gone\u2026\u00a0\u00a0 You probably laughed at what a fool the director was.\u00a0 But remember that you\u2019re just as likely to make mistakes like that in your writing.\u00a0 So look for anything that \u201chaters\u201d would make fun of so that you can catch it before the haters do!<\/p>\n 8. Now read your draft with an eye for anything that you\u2019re not completely sure you got correct or accurate.\u00a0 This is another thing you have to do or else the \u201chaters\u201d will get you for it.\u00a0 This is really hard and you may want the help of one or two readers you can trust.\u00a0 You want to make sure that you haven\u2019t made any assumptions about society or nature or science or people or animals that are incorrect and easily disputed.\u00a0 If your story has a dog in it, give it to a dog owner to make sure the dog\u2019s behavior sounds realistic.\u00a0 If your story is about a person from another culture, give it to someone familiar with that culture.\u00a0 If your story takes place in outer space, give it to someone familiar with science and physics so that they can make sure your scenes are plausible.<\/p>\n 9. BREAK.\u00a0 You have done a lot of work on your story.\u00a0 It\u2019s time to take another cooling-off break.\u00a0 You know at this point that your story is basically exciting enough, interesting enough, and there\u2019s nothing glaringly inaccurate or inconsistent.\u00a0 Give yourself a break so that you can have fresh eyes for looking at the tiny details.<\/p>\n During this break, you are to read at least twenty different poems and at least three short stories<\/em><\/strong>.\u00a0 Try to read them aloud if possible.\u00a0 Immerse yourself in other writers\u2019 language.\u00a0 Listen for the lyricism of their writing.\u00a0 This is the time to read \u201caward-winning\u201d authors\u2014universally acknowledged good writers, not beginners.\u00a0 Let these master craftsmen sink into your subconscious so that you will internalize their wisdom.<\/p>\n 10. Once you\u2019re ready, and you\u2019ve gotten some new distance from your recently-revised story, think about the poems and stories you read during your break.\u00a0 Read your draft with an eye for imagery and sensory detail.\u00a0 Are you painting a vivid picture with your words?\u00a0 Are you conveying the sights, sounds, smells, tastes and feels of your settings?\u00a0 Are you making the reader feel like she\u2019s THERE?<\/p>\n 11. Read with an ear for the diction.\u00a0 Diction<\/em> is, quite simply, your choice of words.\u00a0 Is your writing beautiful?\u00a0 This is the time to get out a thesaurus and look up some of your most common words and phrases to see if you can find a new way of expressing the same thing.\u00a0 Take out any clich\u00e9 similes, metaphors or idiomatic expressions.\u00a0 If you\u2019ve heard an expression somewhere before, it does NOT belong in your writing (unless you\u2019re saying something new or important about that expression). With every sentence, ask yourself, \u201cIs there a better way of saying this?\u201d\u00a0 Also, it\u2019s very important at this point that you start to recognize if there are certain words or punctuation you have a tendency to use too often.\u00a0 You may need a trusted reader\u2019s help for this.<\/p>\n 12. Read your draft again and check for grammar or spelling errors.\u00a0 Read your story like a copy editor, just paying strict attention to the words on the page.\u00a0 Look up any words you aren\u2019t sure about.\u00a0 DON\u2019T TRUST MICROSOFT WORD SPELL CHECK!\u00a0 If you\u2019re not a great speller, find someone who is and ask them to look at it.\u00a0 Also, highlight every single instance of the passive voice and try to change it to active voice.\u00a0 What is passive and active voice?<\/p>\n The forest fire destroyed the whole suburb. (active) Beautiful giraffes roam the savannah. (active) 13. Now it\u2019s time to seek a few different people\u2019s honest opinions of your story.\u00a0 It\u2019s best if you find people who actually read stuff in the genre that you\u2019re writing.\u00a0 You have already done the work making your story the best you could on your own.\u00a0 Time to see if there\u2019s anything you\u2019ve missed.<\/p>\n The most important thing here is to respect your readers\u2019 opinions and DON\u2019T ARGUE.\u00a0 You don\u2019t have to take all their suggestions or follow all their advice.\u00a0 Nobody knows your story as well as you do, so don\u2019t automatically change things based on what somebody else suggests.<\/p>\n However, KEEP AN OPEN MIND.\u00a0 After all this work you\u2019ve done, it\u2019s worth finding out what readers actually think. \u00a0Your critics might have some valid points.\u00a0 If more than one person says the same thing, it\u2019s even more likely to be grounded in some sort of real problem worth solving.\u00a0 You have to be committed to doing anything you can to make your story the best it can be!\u00a0 Once you\u2019ve done this work, you\u2019re ready\u2026 So send it out to lots of editors and cross your fingers.\u00a0 Good luck!<\/p>\n <\/p>\n I encouraged the kids to take a look at their own manuscripts using this thirteen-step approach, and then I offered up one of my own for them to hack away at! \ud83d\ude42 \u00a0I’m not going to share it here, because I am quite embarrassed of it. \u00a0It’s probably my worst story EVER, but that’s kind of the point. \u00a0I wanted to give the kids something they could easily critique using this method. \u00a0I gave them colored markers and had them go step by step, jotting down notes or underlining passages in each color.<\/p>\n We covered a lot of theoretical ground in this class, and not as much actual writing, but I hope these insights will inform their writing!<\/p>\n Exciting news:<\/p>\n Kids ages 11 and up are invited to attend the Teen Writing Workshops this summer, which will be facilitated by successful, published authors. \u00a0Not only will you get to hear the tips and tricks of well-known writers but you will also get to have your writing critiqued by them! \u00a0You must register if you want to do a critique session.<\/p>\n The first workshop with Nicole Maggi, author of The Forgetting, and Michelle Levy, author of Not After Everything, will be Wednesday, June 24 from 6-8 pm in the Central Library Studio on 4th.<\/p>\n
\nThe whole suburb was destroyed by the forest fire. (passive)<\/p>\n
\nThe savannah is roamed by beautiful giraffes. (passive)<\/p>\n