Autumn Poetry

I'm participating in a daily poetry prompt/challenge...a poem a day based on a prompt sent by Robert Lee Brewer. (See PAD Chapbook Challenge.) Early in the morning I read his e-mail then, while walking the dogs, allow God and nature to inspire.

This time of year amazes me...the colors, the Truckee River, wind. I live in a corner of our world that is so blessed with beauty. People who think of Reno as gambling and divorce haven't really allowed themselves to discover our region.

The theme that is emerging in these poems is one of death. I guess that's not surprising given my past and the fact that it's November and things seem to die, while waiting for new life.

Autumn in Reno

Glorious Fall colors and Spring-like weather. What more could a writer expect? This is the time of the year for poetry.

A friend and I spent five days on the Mendocino Coast with the explicit goal of writing. We had an unfettered view of the ocean, a wide sampling of weather, daily visits from deer, buck, wild donkeys. It was an avian paradise, including a Golden Eagle.

So easy to create in those conditions. Not much housework, quiet, and beauty. I could get used to that.

Writer's Time Management--Any Suggestions?

Just got back from walking the dogs and I'm sitting here thinking about the gardening I need to do, the laundry stacked in the hallway, the manuscript waiting for me to finish editing corrections (before Monday when I fly out to spend some time with my mom), packing and my blog that suffers from neglect.

How much time have I lost trolling websites, Facebook, taking quizzes, making lists of what needs to be done? If you're a writer you get the point.

I'm a morning person but outside chores and exercise needs to happen before it gets too hot and I don't do well without my early morning "quiet time." And as I get a little older I encounter the afternoon energy drain that robs me of all creativity.

So, I'm on the way outside before the morning sun hits the rose garden and while I'm pruning I toss this post into the cyper-universe hoping for some suggestions.
What works for you? I'll mull over any ideas that come my way while I dig through the dirt and unearth the grass that has invaded the flower beds. In my next post I'll share what's come up...with a little help from my friends.

"Winter is Past" A Novel

I read somewhere that you shouldn't use biblical quotes as a title. Why not if it conveys something integral to the story?

That being said, it's important to accept the advice of an agent or editor who might have a better idea of what will sell. But, for now, the working title of my novel is "Winter is Past." I've toyed around with other options but so far I've come up empty.

My purpose in writing this novel is to remind the reader that we have within ourselves the strength we need to survive. The idea for the story emerged as a typical "what-if?" scenario.

I am a kidney transplant recipient and my biggest fear surrounding the whole process was "what if" something happened to Paula, my friend and living donor. When just such a situation occurs in my novel, Claire Bergano must deal with the source of her own inordinate fears and accept the harsh realities that will come her way over the course of a year.

"For, lo! The winter is past. The rains are over and gone. Flowers appear in our fields." Song of Solomon, 1:11-12 In Spring, Claire discovers the strength and beauty that was within her all along.

The title may or may not work, but the story is a message of hope.

Ten Suggestions for Rewriting and Edits

Here are some questions I find useful to ask when doing revisions/edits:

1. Does every scene move the story forward or serve to create character/setting? How can I tighten the narrative?
2. Where can I use more active verbs to improve the quality of my writing?
3. Have I overpopulated the narrative with adverbs?
4. How can I "show" an emotion, rather than tell it?
5. Does my "showing" work or is it too contrived?
6. Look for "echos"--repeated use of the same word.
7. Am I shifting from one point of view to another without clear distinction(such as a space or chapter change?)
8. How well-paced is my story? Have I varied sentence structure to speed up or slow down the reader?
9. Do my chapter or scene endings entice the reader to move forward?
10. Have I completed all my story lines or is the reader left with unanswered questions?

It helps me to set aside the manuscript for a while before tackling rewrites, but keep on working on something else! There are many other considerations, but this has been useful to me.

Can you help me network?

I finally finished another rewrite and decided it's time to get serious about building a platform and networking. My fear of cyberspace is that I will waste time that I should spend writing. How do you manage your time?

Any of you out there who have published a first novel or book of poetry--I welcome suggestions for succinct, pithy blogs or websites that can assist me in my goal of finding an agent or publisher.

What's been your experience with publishing excerpts of your work on-line?

On Rewriting and Critique Groups

I began my first novel (Working Title: Winter is Past) in April, 2003 when my last position (as community educator at Circle of Life Hospice in Reno) was eliminated. I didn't outline and had no idea where the characters would lead me. About mid-2005, I completed the first draft. In 2004 I attended my first writing conference (something I try to do annually) and the following year at the San Francisco Writers' Conference, I pitched the novel to 9 agents who all requested to see it.

The original draft was in first person but someone in one of my critique groups or at a conference told me that third person was better, that agents shied away from first person. This suggestion led me to diligently begin the tedious job of making that change.

In the meantime, (and a pile of rejections later) I've learned an important lesson...a lesson I believe is critical for everyone who's a newbie in the world of writing: DON'T ACT ON EVERYTHING EVERYONE TELLS YOU! Our writing is the child of our creative spirit and we are the only ones who know what will work best for us. I'm not saying to disregard every suggestion, just be discriminating and decide for yourself how to tell the story only you can tell.

I have spent the last two weeks in Palm Desert in a "sort-of" writing retreat. My purpose has been to go back to the first person and rediscover the fears and hopes of my protagonist...the emotions that drove my tale of loss and survival. Third person took me outside of my protagonist's head and heart and that just doesn't work for a character driven novel.

Since 2007, a second novel has been pouring out of me. It's in third person, male point of view and I've outlined it in detail. So far, it's working. I haven't looked at for a while but I'm anxious to get back to it.

But first, I have a little more flesh to put on Claire and her entourage in Winter is Past.