Okay so I'm not sure how you guys edit your novel (or whatever you're currently working on) but I have a very hard time with changing my work. Now, it's not that I'm attached to what I've written. I can usually spot the things that are wrong in my book, but I'm just unsure on how to fix it!
As I have previously mentioned, I've been having my mom, my younger sister and a close friend read through it and tell me whatever they think might need to be fixed. Of course, we came across a problem. In some of the scenes, my characters looks are inconsistent. Sometimes a girl has brown hair, sometimes it's blond. Some of the characters change between two versions of what I've imagined them to be. To fix this problem, Alyssa (my sister) and my best friend helped me come up with descriptions for each person which was going along pretty well, until they came to a disagreement. The second main boy in the story looks completely different in their minds. The funny thing is, I've imagined the boy in both ways! So not only are they in disagreement, but I'm torn between what he should look like! I know that this really shouldn't be a problem and that I should just make a decision and move on with it... but this is my first novel and I can't help feeling that it has to be perfect.
Of course, I know that it won't be perfect, even in the final draft. I still think it's a good thing to shoot for... don't you?
Have you had any problems that should be an easy fix but you just can't find the solution?
--Jess
As I have previously mentioned, I've been having my mom, my younger sister and a close friend read through it and tell me whatever they think might need to be fixed. Of course, we came across a problem. In some of the scenes, my characters looks are inconsistent. Sometimes a girl has brown hair, sometimes it's blond. Some of the characters change between two versions of what I've imagined them to be. To fix this problem, Alyssa (my sister) and my best friend helped me come up with descriptions for each person which was going along pretty well, until they came to a disagreement. The second main boy in the story looks completely different in their minds. The funny thing is, I've imagined the boy in both ways! So not only are they in disagreement, but I'm torn between what he should look like! I know that this really shouldn't be a problem and that I should just make a decision and move on with it... but this is my first novel and I can't help feeling that it has to be perfect.
Of course, I know that it won't be perfect, even in the final draft. I still think it's a good thing to shoot for... don't you?
Have you had any problems that should be an easy fix but you just can't find the solution?
--Jess
8 comments:
I want to read your story
Thanks ryan!
Hi! Editing is the fun yet really hard part of writing. It's fun because you know you can make your book even better, but it's hard because it can seem overwhelming. I say, take it little by little, and you'll get it as close to perfect as you can. Best of luck with it!
<3 a new follower :)
Try doing character worksheets for each one. You can find some online (try childrenspublishing.blogspot.com). You will find that if you have a definite understanding of who they are (inside and out) the writing will be better. It's worth taking the time. I have fun sometimes perusing google images to find a pic that reminds me of the character. :D
My biggest problem is that I still haven't actually finished a novel. AHHHH! You go girl.
It happens all the time. The thing is in order to complete a story you need to make decisions. Listen to everyone but decide for yourself. It's your story and no one is supposed to understand it better than you.
This may sound odd, but it doesn't matter if readers visualize the characters the same way. As long as they believe they know what the character looks like, that's fine.
It's important to have a background page with each character's description -- remember, it only has to include what you mention in the story. Here's what I did for one of my characters:
Ensign Kendrick Nakajima: A young ensign. Tall for a Japanese person. Very straight-laced, by-the-book. Has a younger brother and sister. Black hair. Twenty-two or twenty-three. Hard, wiry muscles. Injuries: His right ear gets a cut from the fan in his quarters.
Thanks!
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