I like that you mentioned that the parts we rush through or skim over when re-reading our own work tend to be the parts we probably need to rework. It should be obvious because that's what I do when reading other people's stories and I'm thinking "Get to the point! Give me the good stuff!" Thank you for the video :)
ISNT IT! It’s mesmerizing. I hate cats. I HATE cats. Including all three of my dear, fluffy, little monsters. I can never get anything done… (or is it my seven dogs?). 😊 Great video.
Oh, man! This was a hard one to hear. I struggle in so many areas. It’s good to remember, though, that I am growing in my craft. I am better now than I was a year ago. Hopefully, I will be better than I am in a year from now. Thanks for the videos.
I knew before I started I sucked and that is why I spent more than 20 years fixing all that. 10 books written and I'm still working on making my stuff better. There is no end to becoming a better writer and once you see daylight that only lights the way to improve more.
Alright, I subscribed BECAUSE you took the shock feature off. Now let's never speak of it again, Carl. >_> Also, I love the hotel story and yeah, with many things that I do, there IS that thing that I reeeeeallly don't want to touch but KNOW I have to. >_< Thank you for another intriguing video! And yay, kitty! What a good cat, chillin' on the side. :D
I'd definitely agree with the concept that when you're re-reading your own work and you find yourself skimming or skipping sections, these are absolutely areas you should focus on. 100%. However, I actually believe it's more important to play to your strengths than to try to shore up your weak points (assuming "weak point" = "area you're simply not interested in," vs. "area you realize is very important but you avoid only because you suck at it"). So if you are poor at dialog but you enjoy (and are trying to write) books with lots of dialog, then yes, you should absolutely work on your dialog skills. BUT... if you don't care for books with lots of description (and you're not interested in writing books with lots of description), then don't worry about your lack of floral prose and just concentrate on (a) what you're good at, and (b) what you like. At least, that's my subjective .02... and it's worked for me.
Yeah, me too. Especially all the advice to improve description... I'm like, "I always skip long descriptions when I'm reading -- why would I want to write that?"
My big weakness is pretty fundamental. Flat characters. It's a HUGE problem. It is pointed out to me, and I see it myself as well. I try new things, but none have worked so far. It's like a tattoo, ground into my skin and impossible to remove. I keep trying, but I'm beginning to think I just suck at writing. At least that part of writing. And all good stories are character driven. So... But I haven't given up entirely. I still watch videos and go back over my manuscript armed with (usually) good advice. I keep failing, but I refuse to stop trying. I do wonder if this is just permanent, though. Feeling discouraged.
Granted I'm bad at most things, I even attempted once to write a book based on a compilation of the blurbs of Amazon's top selling books (excluding ones part of franchises) and when I finished writing the premise and showed it to people they thought it was very funny, despite the fact all the books I used for template were serious books. That said my main problem is length, when I write I find it hard to make up the high word count expected of novels (according to Readsy the average length expected of a novel 70000 words with more description heavy genres like Romance being 120000 words and more action heavy such as detective novels coming down to 50000) as if a piece of writing gets too wordy my dyslexic brain switches off and tells me it needs to move more. Is there any way to deal with the "needs more happen!" instinct? English isn't my first language so I may have phrased that wrong.
My problem are action/combat scenes. It feels like I need ten tons of knowledge to do even a halfway decent job. Sure I try to pick up pieces wherever I can but they're so small it seems hopeless. I cannot stand 'adult' scenes in books so it's hard for me to find examples of well written combat since it's nearly impossible to know which books have good action without all the bedroom garbage. If any even exist. I'm still trying but I really don’t know how to improve.
Do you watch the Ryker Writes channel? He also talked about this general topic Monday, improving rather than accepting mediocrity. I want to improve my storytelling and my productivity far more than I worry about the qualitative issues other writers obsess over more than readers. That said -- It is hard to find your own writing problems, then accept that they are real, and then buckle down to do the hard work of fixing them. My critique partner worried that I have too many long and redundant explanations of the paranormal lore of my story. I countered that each occasion was a different character asking different questions and getting different answers. Nonetheless, I made a duplicate of my very long novel... Deleted everything except these 'lore' scenes... re-read them all looking for boring things to delete... Just about nothing. I cut very little. Literally days of effort, no result. Either the scenes are good, or I am still too close to see a problem.
On another note: Is that a 1956 Ford Thunderbird model on your shelf? I nearly bought one myself, as that's the car a main character drives in this book. Funny that you referred to a burning hotel -- my story is mostly in a hotel, but it's the car that burns at the end.
For me (struggling with loads of lore as well, I'm a chronic over writer, I call it the Tolkien syndrome) it's been useful to look at the lore-filled scenes and long long conversations not as whether or not they're 'good' or 'useful' per se (because they may well be) but whether or not they're absolutely necessary to serve the very very central plot thread. Economical writing is not ALWAYS the best and all genres have room for diving into some 'useless' stuff, but if you get consistent feedback for too much lore exposition, it may well be that it genuinely isn't bad writing at all! The scenes could be very good indeed. But even in that case, if they give the reader a pause in the grand scheme of things and it happens a lot, the result is a laggy plot and they might still be better cut out, rearranged or condensed a bit. A little lag here or there is no dealbreaker, but you know. Everything in moderation. Wishing you the best of luck!
@@jasminv8653 - Yes, it is a very subjective choice... And a difficult one. It'd be easier if I could look at a scene and objectively determine if it's good or bad and has to go!
I tend to take a more holistic view, rather than looking for identifiable weaknesses. Looking at the manuscript as a whole, I look for bits that are (metaphorically) sticking out in an unsightly manner, hammer it down, and then polish it smooth.
I like that you mentioned that the parts we rush through or skim over when re-reading our own work tend to be the parts we probably need to rework. It should be obvious because that's what I do when reading other people's stories and I'm thinking "Get to the point! Give me the good stuff!" Thank you for the video :)
I had to watch it 2 times because that cat's presence is deafening!
ISNT IT!
It’s mesmerizing. I hate cats. I HATE cats. Including all three of my dear, fluffy, little monsters. I can never get anything done… (or is it my seven dogs?). 😊
Great video.
It was my second time through the video before I realized there was someone talking.
Oh, man! This was a hard one to hear. I struggle in so many areas. It’s good to remember, though, that I am growing in my craft. I am better now than I was a year ago. Hopefully, I will be better than I am in a year from now. Thanks for the videos.
I like your thoughtful commentary and your charismatic co-star.
I'm not even a cat person, but I LOVE that cat! Oh, and the content was pretty good too. Thanks Carl.
I knew before I started I sucked and that is why I spent more than 20 years fixing all that. 10 books written and I'm still working on making my stuff better. There is no end to becoming a better writer and once you see daylight that only lights the way to improve more.
Good points on focussing on improving what you're not good at. I enjoy your humour!
I pressed the sub button and got shocked 😭
1:10 That cat is like "Are you paying attention?"
This applies to more than writing. 👍
Alright, I subscribed BECAUSE you took the shock feature off. Now let's never speak of it again, Carl. >_>
Also, I love the hotel story and yeah, with many things that I do, there IS that thing that I reeeeeallly don't want to touch but KNOW I have to. >_< Thank you for another intriguing video! And yay, kitty! What a good cat, chillin' on the side. :D
I'd definitely agree with the concept that when you're re-reading your own work and you find yourself skimming or skipping sections, these are absolutely areas you should focus on. 100%.
However, I actually believe it's more important to play to your strengths than to try to shore up your weak points (assuming "weak point" = "area you're simply not interested in," vs. "area you realize is very important but you avoid only because you suck at it").
So if you are poor at dialog but you enjoy (and are trying to write) books with lots of dialog, then yes, you should absolutely work on your dialog skills. BUT... if you don't care for books with lots of description (and you're not interested in writing books with lots of description), then don't worry about your lack of floral prose and just concentrate on (a) what you're good at, and (b) what you like.
At least, that's my subjective .02... and it's worked for me.
Yeah, me too. Especially all the advice to improve description... I'm like, "I always skip long descriptions when I'm reading -- why would I want to write that?"
5:53 I'm here watching this *to see the cat.* 😝😝
Obviously. **Cat eyeroll**
My big weakness is pretty fundamental. Flat characters. It's a HUGE problem. It is pointed out to me, and I see it myself as well. I try new things, but none have worked so far. It's like a tattoo, ground into my skin and impossible to remove. I keep trying, but I'm beginning to think I just suck at writing. At least that part of writing. And all good stories are character driven. So... But I haven't given up entirely. I still watch videos and go back over my manuscript armed with (usually) good advice. I keep failing, but I refuse to stop trying. I do wonder if this is just permanent, though. Feeling discouraged.
I like that your cow cat is in the videos now
Good stuff, Carl!
Granted I'm bad at most things, I even attempted once to write a book based on a compilation of the blurbs of Amazon's top selling books (excluding ones part of franchises) and when I finished writing the premise and showed it to people they thought it was very funny, despite the fact all the books I used for template were serious books.
That said my main problem is length, when I write I find it hard to make up the high word count expected of novels (according to Readsy the average length expected of a novel 70000 words with more description heavy genres like Romance being 120000 words and more action heavy such as detective novels coming down to 50000) as if a piece of writing gets too wordy my dyslexic brain switches off and tells me it needs to move more.
Is there any way to deal with the "needs more happen!" instinct?
English isn't my first language so I may have phrased that wrong.
I am watching because of the cat. Obviously!
kitty 🥰
This book 2. It's... a mess. It's slowly burning while all the guests hang out inside drinking champagne.
You lit a hotel on fire?
Yes, he did. And he finally came clean.
It's always nice to meet a fellow Charlie Parker fan.
You right, you right, you right. No lies were told.
That one thing is my life💀💀
My problem are action/combat scenes.
It feels like I need ten tons of knowledge to do even a halfway decent job. Sure I try to pick up pieces wherever I can but they're so small it seems hopeless.
I cannot stand 'adult' scenes in books so it's hard for me to find examples of well written combat since it's nearly impossible to know which books have good action without all the bedroom garbage. If any even exist.
I'm still trying but I really don’t know how to improve.
Read a few Jack Reacher books. Best selling action series. Just about zero 'romance.'
@PaulRWorthington
Thanks, I'll look into them.
I didn't understand what do you mean with bedroom garbage... Do you mean extreme violence?
@@thiagofigueiredo2976
Sexual content
No shock. Me thinks he be fibbing.
Do you watch the Ryker Writes channel? He also talked about this general topic Monday, improving rather than accepting mediocrity.
I want to improve my storytelling and my productivity far more than I worry about the qualitative issues other writers obsess over more than readers.
That said -- It is hard to find your own writing problems, then accept that they are real, and then buckle down to do the hard work of fixing them. My critique partner worried that I have too many long and redundant explanations of the paranormal lore of my story. I countered that each occasion was a different character asking different questions and getting different answers. Nonetheless, I made a duplicate of my very long novel... Deleted everything except these 'lore' scenes... re-read them all looking for boring things to delete... Just about nothing. I cut very little. Literally days of effort, no result. Either the scenes are good, or I am still too close to see a problem.
On another note: Is that a 1956 Ford Thunderbird model on your shelf? I nearly bought one myself, as that's the car a main character drives in this book. Funny that you referred to a burning hotel -- my story is mostly in a hotel, but it's the car that burns at the end.
For me (struggling with loads of lore as well, I'm a chronic over writer, I call it the Tolkien syndrome) it's been useful to look at the lore-filled scenes and long long conversations not as whether or not they're 'good' or 'useful' per se (because they may well be) but whether or not they're absolutely necessary to serve the very very central plot thread.
Economical writing is not ALWAYS the best and all genres have room for diving into some 'useless' stuff, but if you get consistent feedback for too much lore exposition, it may well be that it genuinely isn't bad writing at all! The scenes could be very good indeed. But even in that case, if they give the reader a pause in the grand scheme of things and it happens a lot, the result is a laggy plot and they might still be better cut out, rearranged or condensed a bit. A little lag here or there is no dealbreaker, but you know. Everything in moderation.
Wishing you the best of luck!
@@jasminv8653 - Yes, it is a very subjective choice... And a difficult one. It'd be easier if I could look at a scene and objectively determine if it's good or bad and has to go!
I tend to take a more holistic view, rather than looking for identifiable weaknesses. Looking at the manuscript as a whole, I look for bits that are (metaphorically) sticking out in an unsightly manner, hammer it down, and then polish it smooth.