Initial Deadlines

For those of you who missed the blog last week (you know who you are), I apologize for the unscheduled hiatus. As this book edit-for-hire grows more and more intense, time is becoming an increasingly rare commodity.

I'm working on moving the blog(s) to an online e-zine / newsletter for writers. But that's not going to happen as quickly as I thought it might. So, for at least a little while longer, I'll continue to muse online right here. But perhaps not every day. It all depends on the whims of the mighty editing gods...

A few weeks ago, I mentioned that I've made a pact with a friend of mine who's a script writer and features director.

We were both talking about ideas we had for cheap & scary horror / thrillers. We both liked each other's ideas -- but we're both terribly busy doing other people's stuff. So we've made a pact to each finish our respective screenplays by Halloween. With penalties for failure to make a particular deadline along the way.

Well – 12 o’clock midnight last night was our first deadline. We had to deliver an outline of our projects to each other or forfeit a $10 Amazon.com gift certificate. I finished mine and sent it with ten minutes to spare. As of right now, I haven’t seen his…

Already, this pact has been good for me. Though I procrastinated on it and got it done just under the wire – it did get done. Self-imposed deadlines are better than no deadlines at all. And, so often, the hardest deadline to make is the first one.

If you have something you’ve been hoping to get done, I encourage you to set yourself a series of attainable deadlines for doing it. If necessary, make yourself move heaven and earth to make the very first one. Then, your project will be officially “begun.” Something will have been done on it. It will exist somewhere other than just in your mind. That can provide the impetus you need to head toward your next deadline – and meet it, too.

The important thing is that you make your writing a priority. Remember the writer’s Golden Rule: No one cares more about your writing than you do.

If it’ll help you stay on track – you can always send me an Amazon.com gift certificate when you miss a self-imposed goal. It appears that I have begun to collect them. ☺

Passion Praise

Yesterday, I got the following e-mail from Danielle Stephen, the brilliant illustrator who is working on a children’s book of mine:

“I have had a lot of time to work today. At the edge of the table I'm typing at - the dedication page is completely painted and complete. I did not know how I would feel about the final outcome - or if it would meet my expectations - or if it was going to be a lot more difficult than I thought to make it look right - but with what I ended up with I LOVE IT! I am just picturing it in print and opening a book up to this page and I just LOVE the way it turned out. It is more than I envisioned!!! It is rather large so I am going to try to find a way to scan it in portions and send it to you soon. I hope that when you do finally see it you are as thrilled as I am.

“I am also about half way finished with the next series of pages. I'm hoping to have those finished when I get time to work tonight. As long as I get a chance to work on this I will.”

I can’t tell you how wonderful it is to have someone bring that sort of energy and passion to work on a project of mine.

And she’s not just enthusiastic – she’s actually doing the work. In less than two weeks, she has accomplished more on this project than the other illustrators we worked with got done in two years. She hopes to be done with everything by this fall.

That, in a nutshell, is the difference between wanting a thing and doing a thing. Danielle has never illustrated a children’s book that made it into print before. That’s ok – I’ve never written one that got printed either. But she was a Top 10 Finalist in a children’s book illustrating contest. She has her Master’s degree in Art. She teaches other artists, and is a working muralist. She always wanted to do a children’s book, and when I approached her about joining in on my little project, she read the text and jumped at the chance.

She’s not worried about keeping tabs on every penny spent. She sees this project as a huge opportunity for her to do something she always wanted to do. When I approached her out of the blue (I’ve never met her. She did a mural for Paula, a friend of mine. After yet another artist bailed on our project, I asked Paula if she thought Danielle might be interested in talking to me.), she jumped at the chance.

She’s as excited about seeing this book take shape as I am. And that is the brass ring of all collaborations. When you find someone who believes in something as much as you do, that’s the person you want on your team.

So, if you want regular work in your field, the formula for success is simple. Do your homework. Hone your craft. Make contacts. Get the word out that you are capable and competent.

Then, when opportunity knocks, take advantage of it. Don’t talk yourself out of a great opportunity by telling yourself that you’ve never done something like this before. Don’t worry about being adequately compensated for your time (you probably won’t be).

Just jump at the chance to show the world what you’ve got. Let your excitement and enthusiasm show. It’s intoxicating to everyone else involved in the project.

Let the Games Begin

Today, slightly at odds with my better judgment, I made a pact with my friend Paul for each of us to finish an as yet un-begun screenplay by Halloween.

I couldn’t say no. The whole thing was actually my idea. I really didn’t think he’d go for it.

Now, if one of us doesn’t make the deadline (or any of three mini-deadlines, the first of which is a working outline by August 28), we owe the other a gift certificate to Amazon.com. The rationale is that getting an online gift certificate is just tedious enough to make it worth our while to have the work done on time.

While part of me (a big part, actually) wonders why on earth I would willingly put MORE to do on my plate, the writer in me understands.

Paul and I had been talking about our respective ideas for thrillers and / or horror flicks that would be fun to write and cheap to make. We’re both horrifically busy doing other people’s things. And I know that if I just let myself work on my scripts “when I have the time,” they’ll never get written. (It appears that the days when I had hours to myself to write and create to my heart’s content are long – long! – gone.)

So, I reasoned, if I could write a 50,000 word book for someone else in 2 months, I should be able to write a 100 page script for myself in that amount of time. We’ll see how realistic and reasonable that rationale is, as I juggle this into the rotation of actual “paying” work.

I’m challenging all serious writers who regularly read this blog to join in on our little quest. Make a pact with yourself to finish a “certain special something” that you’ve been wanting to get to for some time now. Have a working outline of it done by midnight, August 28 (the final project does NOT have to follow the outline exactly).

The other deadlines are as follows:
• At the end of week 5 (Sunday, September 18), the rough draft of the project must be 1/3 written (for screenplays – the first 30 pages).
• At the end of week 8 (Sunday, October 9), the first 2/3’s of the project should be done (for screenplays – up through page 60).
• On October 31 (Halloween night!), the full first draft is due.

Come up with appropriate penalties (like the afore-mentioned gift certificates) to keep yourself on target. The penalty for missing the final deadline should be a whammy – more than the other three combined.

Any takers?

Using What You Have

I spoke to my editor at Trafalgar Square on Friday. We talked about Geoff's book (I should hear more from her on that this week), the outline for the next book (should hear more on that this week, too) and discussed this current edit-for-hire project.

I have focused all of my initial efforts on a particular chapter that the publishers (it's a joint venture between Trafalgar Square and a publisher in the U.K.) felt had a hole in it. What an understatement. It turns out that the "point" of the book -- the obvious reason why someone would buy it -- is missing.

And so, rather than begin my edit at the beginning, I started with a chapter in the middle, looking for ways to plug the hole.

I had hoped to have that chapter finished and sent it out last Friday. However, the process ran into a slight electronic snag, and I'm looking at finishing things up today.

It was only after working on the mid-book edit that I went back to the beginning and started critically looking at the work as a whole. While the project is rife with mistakes -- spelling errors, usage errors, incomplete sentences and sweeping generalizations -- I was unprepared for the magnitude of the problem. ("I warned you!" the publisher laughed.)

For instance: the very first word of the entire manuscript is misspelled!

And that's not all -- the very first sentence of the entire manuscript has two usage errors, an agreement error, and a flat-out sloppy workmanship error.

Here's the thing: I don't mind. Things like this keep me in business. But it can quickly put you out of buisiness if you're submitting manuscripts in this condition. Sure, the occasional mistake might make it into the final draft. But shoddy workmanship shows a disregard for the editor that publishers don't find amusing. It can also drastically slow the book's progress into print.

The moral of the story? Use what you have. A simple spell-check could have taken care of the basic errors in this manuscript. (If you think a word is spelled correctly, but there's a little wavy green line under it, take the few seconds necessary to have your computer look it up. And here's a little tip: it's "Acknowledgments," not "Acknowledgements." Your computer probably knows this.)

Running a grammar check would have highlighted most of the usage problems and misspellings that made "real" words. Now, I loathe grammar check. It annoys me beyond words. But that's not the point. If you're not sure of your spelling or your grammar, use the tools widely available to you before sending something that represents you off to someone who is going to PAY YOU to put it in print.

We can all use a little help from our friends. And in the editing world, spell check and grammar check are our friends. Don't hesitate to use them!

Simplify, Simplify!

I spent some time yesterday talking with my friend Paul, a scriptwriter and film director. He gave me some feedback on a script I was a little too close to. Then I gave him an opinion on a project he was working on. Then we bounced other pet ideas off of each other.

Throughout our discussion, one theme emerged, time and time again – keep it simple!

We both found areas of weakness in the other’s script where the waters were being muddied by Too Much Stuff. Too many characters… Too many things going on… Too much backstory. Just too much.

As Paul reminded me: there is only 90 minutes in a movie to tell your story. It has to be succinct and to the point. So now, I have two options – find the main story I want to tell in my screenplay, cut everything else, and spend the whole movie developing the single thread, OR keep everything, flesh it all out more, and make the screenplay into a novel.

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again – short stories translate into great movies (see “The Shawshank Redemption,” for instance).

Novels, however, rarely do. There is too much in a book to condense into two hours. Much must be cut, go by the wayside or be ignored in order to make the movie the right length. Often, that means tampering with a book’s structure and internal construction. Which is why great books often make for inferior movies – their stories require more than two hours to tell.

Once you have a work completed, ask yourself how much time will be allotted to it on the audience’s end. In other words – people can spend hours, if not days, with a book. With a movie, however, they invest 90 to 120 minutes of their time. A TV show needs 30 to 60 minutes of commitment (if you’re really compelling and they don’t have a remote handy). Articles require only 5 to 10 minutes to read.

Armed with that knowledge, edit your piece accordingly. Find the most important part – the thing you most want to say – then focus only on it. Polish it so that it shines for the time allotted according to the medium. Strip out everything that distracts from the story. Erase all other plot lines. Get rid of anything that needs explaining, unless it directly relates to your point. Axe all periphery characters.

Simplify, simplify, simplify. In doing so, not only will you make your story stronger, but you will also crystallize your point – making your future pitches for the project stronger and more focused.

It’s Not About Me

I listened in on a teleseminar yesterday evening that talked about how to increase your chances of getting booked as a guest on national TV.

Now, it’s not that I think I belong on Oprah or Montel, mind you -- but several of the people I write for would make good, knowledgeable, articulate, mediagenic guests. It’s not inconceivable that they could be on such a show. So it makes sense for me to know something about the process. Then, when the time comes, I may be able to offer some useful advice.

The guest speakers included a former “Oprah” producer, a Fox News producer, and a producer for Montel. Without exception, they all agreed that people seeking to get on their shows made several key errors.

The mistakes they cited included the usual errors of poor professionalism that tend to be hallmarks of many writers (harassing the producers, stalking them, sending lengthy, rambling e-mails, and getting huffy when told “thanks, but no”).

Another mistake people commonly made when trying to get booked on a show was having no idea what the show was about! Many authors evidently try to get on Montel or Oprah without ever having watched the show, and without having any concept of the show’s format or audience. That’s just inexcusable stupidity or laziness on the writer’s part.

But the mistake that they really focused on had to do with an author’s approach. Too many people, they said, try to get on national TV because they have written a book and they know that sales will increase if Oprah puts them on as a guest.

While this may be true, the reason that sales increase is because the watching audience sees something of value or interest in what the guest author has to say. And that, more than anything else, is often overlooked when trying to get booked.

If you want TV exposure, keep the viewing audience in mind. Keep the producer’s busy job, with it’s many responsibilities and deadlines in mind. Realize that most TV segments are no longer than 5 minutes long. Then ask yourself: what can I say in 5 minutes that will pique the audience’s interest enough to keep them from clicking the remote?

When you are a guest on TV, your purpose is not to sell your book. Don’t keep mentioning your website or contact information every 10 seconds. Instead, have a clear, easily identifiable reason for being there. Know why total strangers would want to have you in their living rooms or bedrooms. Know what you have to offer them. Rest assured that at the end of your segment, the show will mention your name and your book.

But the important thing is to realize it’s not about you – it’s about the viewer. Ratings mean everything. If you can appear on a show and not lose viewers – if you know the demographics and can offer the target audience something new, something of value, or something fascinating, you will be giving the producers what they want. And that, in turn, gives you the exposure you want for your project.

Rider’s Wednesday: One Rein – the Key to Lightness

I returned yesterday from a nice long weekend visiting my parents in my hometown in Pennsylvania. Haven’t been “home” in almost 2 years. Came back to a 90+ degree heat wave. Ah, Michigan!

While my horses are happy to stand in front of the barn fan during these "oven days," I know that some hardy souls are still working their animals. Yesterday, I got an e-mail from a friend who has questions about getting her mare light on the bit. Her horse – a lovely Percheron that she rides and drives - is not as light as she would like.

When people say that a horse is not light, they generally either mean that the animal grabs the reins out of their hands, or lugs heavily on the bit.

Clinton’s advice for such situations is the best I have encountered. With heavy, bit-hauling horses, he advises that you don't ride with two hands on the reins for a while. Do nothing but one-rein stops (using a simple snaffle bit) for at least two weeks. Go for a trail ride or do your ring work, but only use one rein to turn or stop.

While in this phase, do not put any pressure on both reins at once. Work only on getting the horse light from side to side. Review all of your bending and flexing exercises. Remember to release the rein as soon as the horse yields to pressure.

Extensive single rein lateral work does wonders for lightening a horse up. It also makes a horse responsive and respectful when you DO eventually apply pressure with both hands.

On Grammar and Commerce

I received a call from a good client yesterday. I’ve done a lot of work for him in the past, and hope to continue working with him in the future. But after he told me what he wanted from me, I must admit to some trepidation…

In a nutshell, he wants to hire me to transcribe dictation. That, in and of itself, is not a problem. My concern lies with the fact that I have already written up a project that covers much of the same information for him. Though I adhered religiously to the materials he provided and used his phraseology throughout, he still feels that the resulting text does not sound enough like him.

In other words, I cleaned him up too much.

“I know you’re all about being grammically (sic) correct,” he told me. “But I’m a bit of a redneck. I want people to think they’re hearing me talk when they read.”

And so, he will be sending me tapes that he wants transcribed exactly as dictated. I’m allowed to edit out “um’s” and “er’s.” And I’m allowed to finish a sentence if he stops in the middle of one and never completes it. Other than that, however, I’m to leave well enough alone. No condensing or clarifying. Above all, no copy editing!

Since he hates to read, he will not even proof the typed text. He will, however, package it and publish it himself.

Now, you and I both know what the finished project will look like. Rather than make him look good, it’s more than likely going to go a long way in the other direction. I don’t believe that it’s going to have the desired effect on those who buy it and read it.

And yet – God help me – I said I’d do it. I voiced my concerns and made my opinion clear. But then I told him I’d write anything he wanted, as long as my name doesn’t appear anywhere on the finished project.

If the client wants what the client wants, why should I let a little thing like correct sentence construction stand in the way of a regular paycheck? It’s not like ignoring the rules of grammar is akin to an ethics violation. Besides – maybe I’m misjudging both him and his constituency… maybe the result will be a brilliant example of “verbal text.” I really like what this guy has to say; it’s not at all like when I worked writing soulless ads at an agency.

I told myself these things over and over after I hung up from the call. Still – when it comes time to commit that first ungrammatical, poorly constructed, vague or redundant sentence, I know I will guiltily glance over my shoulder for the Syntax Squad to appear and read me my rights…

Rider’s Wednesday: Bounce, Diapers and Other Household Helps

Yesterday, a friend forwarded what initially looked like one of those annoying spam e-mails. It was all about the phenomenal qualities of “Bounce” dryer sheets, and how they could be used in different ways. As I read it, I realized that I was already familiar with some suggestions (I knew about their bug repelling properties), but that others were new to me (used sheets make great “tacky cloths” to pick up broken glass shards or sawdust).

I’m glad she forwarded the information my way. The e-mail wasn’t spam. Spam is never useful. ☺

Still, as I was looking around my barn and tack area last night as I let the horses out, I couldn’t help but notice how many household items I regularly use in ways other than their makers intended. And so, in the spirit of “Hints from Heloise,” I’d like to offer the following:

• Tuck a sheet of Bounce under the headstall of your bridle or halter to keep mosquitoes, gnats and – to some degree – deerflies away from your horse’s face and ears. (Use original scent. No other brand works as well. Don’t ask me why.)

• Maxipads make great bandages. They’re sterile, they’re absorbent and they don’t stick to wounds. You can tape them in place or wrap vet-wrap around them, and they’re really easy to change (as opposed to icky, sticky gauze pads).

• Disposable diapers are also excellent bandages. Again – sterile, absorbent and not inclined to stick. They are especially wonderful for deep, nasty or complicated leg wounds. You can smear antibiotic wound salve directly on the inner cotton part of the diaper, then wrap it around the leg. Use vet-wrap (or duct tape) to hold the diaper in place before finishing off with an outer bandage. Best of all – because they’re so cushy and padded, there is much less danger of wrapping the leg too tight.

• A cheap blinking light intended to keep trick-or-treater’s safe at Halloween serves as a perfect hazard light. I bought one on a whim for a buck or two 9 years ago. (It actually has a pumpkin stamped on it.) I keep it in my tack trunk. I clip it onto the back of my shirt collar whenever I’m driving or riding along busy roads – especially at dusk.

• One part Murphy’s Oil Soap mixed with 5 parts water is an unbeatable quick tack cleaner. Keep it in a spray bottle in your tack box. Not only will it clean your tack, but it also takes care of mildew, conditions leather and acts as a mild fly repellent. As an added wintertime bonus – it doesn’t freeze until the weather is considerably colder than 32 degrees.

Cleaning Day

A friend called yesterday morning just as I was getting ready to write up the day’s posting. As we talked, I abandoned the computer (I’m not the greatest at composing one thing while having another conversation. It’s good to know your limitations.) and started in with the day’s work -- cleaning the guest room. That explains yesterday’s “hiatus.”

Now back to our regularly scheduled program…

Since Geoff’s book is out, I’ve been picking away at all the little things that I put off for so long. In addition to cleaning my house, I have also spent some time straightening up the office and my computer.

I made folders for everything from hardcopies to extraneous e-mails I want to keep. I threw away unnecessary or redundant notes from the project. I put all like and related items in one place. I burned backup CD’s of book-related things and filed them. I deleted a lot of unnecessary things cluttering up my desktop. I updated my “Stickies.” It feels GOOD!

If you’re ever stuck with writer’s block (which I don’t believe exists, but some people swear they have it) or are feeling less than inspired, try giving your files a good dusting. You might discover gems you’d forgotten. You might find an old article or story that you can spiff up and submit somewhere new. You might also run into some old notes that re-inspire your creativity.

While you’re cleaning, be brutal. A woman who lived just down the road from our house moved away a few years ago. Before she put her house on the market, she enlisted the help of a good friend of mine and together they threw out over 11 full-sized dumpster loads of stuff! The house wasn’t more than 1200 square feet from stem to stern. Papers were everywhere, with only a narrow path leading from one room to another.

The woman considered herself a writer of sorts. In addition to groceries she had purchased in 1963 (I’m not even kidding,) she had stacks and stacks of notes, ideas and snippets. My friend confided that she could probably have filled another whole dumpster if the woman had let her. But no… She was going to “use them some day,” and they had to be saved.

Seriously – when you clean, make sure you’re really going to follow that brilliant idea and get some use out of it. If you have an “Odds and Ends” file, realize that it works both ways. Don’t just continue to feed it fantastic ideas. When you’re working on something, dip into the file and pull out a gem or two.

Don’t let your “tickler file” become an unwieldy catch-all that just accumulates things you hope to use someday in the future. Follow the old American Folk saying: “Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without!”

If, in your cleaning, you unearth things that you once thought were fantastic, but which no longer appeal to you – throw them away. If you find something that once seemed groundbreaking, but is now merely derivative – get rid of it.

A good, thorough re-examining of your files can not only help make you more organized and give you something constructive to do if the words just won’t come -- it can also free up some space that you can later fill with newer, even more brilliant words of wisdom.