Announcement: We are in the countdown phase for the publication of my new novels. The date on the internet is 1 September. We will see how close we come, or if the publishers meet the deadline. My Aegypt novels will be titled Ancient Light, and the next two books will be called Sister of Light and Sister of Darkness. These were the original titles. They will be released individually and as a 3 in 1 volume. The proposed cover and info can be found at www.ancientlight.com. I'll keep you updated.
Introduction: I wrote the novel Aksinya: Enchantment and the Daemon. This was my 21st novel and through this blog, I gave you the entire novel in installments that included commentary on the writing. In the commentary, in addition to other general information on writing, I explained, how the novel was constructed, the metaphors and symbols in it, the writing techniques and tricks I used, and the way I built the scenes. You can look back through this blog and read the entire novel beginning with http://www.pilotlion.blogspot.com/2010/10/new-novel-part-3-girl-and-demon.html.
I'm using this novel as an example of how I produce, market, and eventually (we hope) get a novel published. I'll keep you informed along the way.
The four plus one basic rules I employ when writing:
1. Don't confuse your readers.
2. Entertain your readers.
3. Ground your readers in the writing.
4. Don't show (or tell) everything.
5. Immerse yourself in the world of your writing.
All novels have five discrete parts:
1. The initial scene (the beginning)
2. The rising action
3. The climax
4. The falling action
5. The dénouement
The theme statement of my newest novel, Valeska, is this: An agent of the organization becomes involved with a vampire girl during a mission, she becomes dependent on the agent, and she is redeemed.
Here is my proposed cover for Valeska:
If you accomplished the assignment to describe the room you are in, you have a first draft. The next step is to edit this first draft. Of course you should fix any grammar, spelling, or punctuation problems. These are basics and shouldn't even need to come into consideration in terms of this level of writing skills. Now, you may say, but I notice some errors in your writing. No kidding. There are always basic grammar errors in all writing--sometimes they slip through into published books. Forgive your writers and realize errors come in all kinds of shapes and sizes, but there is a difference between knowing better and not realizing there is a problem.
Back to the point at hand. Editing does mean fixing any errors in the writing you find, but editing primarily means getting your point across. Writing on the most basic level is about communicating. Writing on the novel level is always about entertaining. So, the primary of writing is this--did I get across the description of a room (this room). Many writers find that they write too much and must pare back their words. I find the opposite. I usually add words to clarify. Clarity is very important to me and in the communication process. Writing is not about using the least words possible, nor is it about using the most words possible. It is about using the words that are necessary, and if you are writing a novel--it is always about being entertaining. Entertaining and entertainment is the focus. This is the goal of all novel writing. I will say, it is the goal of all good fiction writing. The problem is, how do we interject entertainment into the description of a room (scene setting).
More tomorrow.
For more information, you can visit my author site http://www.ldalford.com/, and my individual novel websites:
http://www.aegyptnovel.com/
http://www.centurionnovel.com
http://www.thesecondmission.com/
http://www.theendofhonor.com/
http://www.thefoxshonor.com
http://www.aseasonofhonor.com
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