Revision Tools from Alex's Nano Rebellion

Hey guys! Hope writing's going well, especially if you're doing NaNoWriMo. :)

For my NaNo project this year, I'm trying something new. Instead of writing 50k words in a first draft, I'm cutting and rewriting 50k words in the manuscript I've been revising.

It's been challenging to get through the first week, but revising under time pressure has taught me a lot about my own editing process, so I'm sharing what I've learned thus far. Whether you're rebelling and revising with me, revising as you write, or looking for ideas for December's edits, hopefully there's something in here that can help you out.

When I use a feeling by name, I double-check that I'm not telling in that sentence. 

One of the really awkward things about revising is reading over all the stuff you thought was super hot, and then cringing when you spot all the telling you're doing. Naming emotions tends to get me into trouble. Unless you're doing an awesome take on feelings like Kelsey and personifying emotions *obligatory Fear fangirl moment* or inside a character's head, dialoguing, or something to that effect, then chances are these emo-nouns are telling where there needs to be showing.

And when you start looking for them, it's kind of intimidating. Because they're EVERYWHERE.

oh god not you again

Most of the adverbs that I cut are things like "angrily" or "quizzically" or "vehemently"-- all of which aren't that needed if I'm making my dialogue convey the rage, confusion, or urgency it should. Sometimes it's fine (my rule of thumb is that in dialogue anything goes), but I don't want things like "His fear was becoming suffocating." or "Love wasn't something he had time for." making it to the next draft. That's the telling that I want to get rid off.

Minor characters are where it's at.

One of my CPs and I regularly geek out over how awesome minor characters are. Why? These are people you added to your story to accomplish a certain function, but in true writerly sleight of hand you can't let the reader know that. So, you do the only thing you can do, which is to make them utterly amazing and hilarious.

While my main pair is busy with their own problems:

My minor characters are also busy:

"I'm sorry, are you having an emotional conflict? I can't hear you over the sound of how awesome I am."

What's great about minor characters is the amount of freedom you have. Maybe you just need one around as a benchmark for how much your protagonist has changed, but don't let that stop you from making them awesome. My favorite dude in this manuscript is my main character's father-- I love snarky, angry people, and this guy is such a guilty pleasure to write that whatever scene he comes into he pretty much steals the limelight (and all the olives out of the fridge). 

Taking another look at diversity.

The story I'm revising is a contemporary taking place in the present. I want to be sure that my manuscript accurately reflects the people you'd find if you went there-- whether it's the race demographic or LGBT characters. And yeah, I'm a white, straight girl trying to write characters that aren't those things. I'm really nervous about messing up. I'm completely prepared for someone to tell me that I'm doing everything wrong, and that I am exactly zero, none, no good.

my feels

But more than I'm anxiety-attacking about offending every person ever, I know I can write human beings. I can write angry people (see hilarious angry father a few paragraphs ago). I can write serious, pragmatic, but secretly goofy people, and I can also write happy people hiding a deep sadness. I can research my heart out. And maybe (probably) I won't get it exactly perfect, but I'd rather try than stop myself because I'm too afraid I'll fail.

Revisions are my time to tighten up character identities and push myself. If you're also writing diverse characters, needing/wanting ideas or help, and not yet checking out the cool stuff that Diversity in YA is doing, get on that! They are awesome. :)

Beat management-- aka, no one shakes their head that much in real life. 

I love my dialogue tags, but a lifetime of watching TV shows has made beats an integral part of my writing. I swear, most of the things that I am cutting out of this manuscript are "She nods." or "He blinks." Don't get me wrong, I love beats. But relying too much on the quick, two-word ones sometimes makes your poor characters end up like this:

"But you need to know it's me doing the speaking, so here you go."

I feel like I'm writing the reaction gifs of my characters sometimes, and sometimes that needs to get pared down or re-modded. I really like having my characters do things while they're talking, so I can use the beats to have them accomplishing different tasks-- like putting a straw into a juice carton or climbing up trapdoors-- instead of always nodding along or staring incredulously.

Research is fun. Also, addictive. Also, the internet is scary. 

I've never been to the city where my manuscript is set, but I have Google Maps'd that place and gotten an idea of the local layout. I've researched weather conditions, local landmarks, and cool places for the characters to explore. Have I gone on streetview along neighborhoods to get an idea of what it looks like to walk through it? Yeah. Have I picked out a real house I think would be totally perfect for my main character? Yes. 

Is it creepy and insane that we have the technology for me to do this?

Cut the superfluous stuff and get to the magical cookies. 

Susan Dennard has a great post on this-- pretty much, if you're not excited to write a scene, your readers aren't going to be excited to read it either. It's like you're constantly at war for being the most awesome thing on your reader's mind. 

Kill every darling. 

Slay them. If it sounds cute, it gets cut. I keep my cuts in a separate document (which is how I'm keeping track of my word count for NaNo), so it's not like any darlings are killed forever. But more often then not, when I read through things in my cuts doc I can see why they were too weak to stay in the draft. If it can't hold its own in the manuscript, if my liking it is the only reason it's in here, then it has no place in the final version. It's tough love, but it's making the story better. 

Any darlings left must be at least this fabulous.

And that's my report from revision land. How are your NaNoWriMo projects going, guys? Or if you're revising like me, share your favorite tricks for gettin' it done. :)

When Alex Yuschik isn't writing her next YA novel, she's working on someone else's as an intern at Entangled Publishing. She writes about lock picks, ghosts, the abandoned places in cities, and how not to strike bargains with stars. Between sneaking in time to game and rocking out to indie music, Alex spends the rest of her free time working towards her PhD in mathematics. You know, as one does.

You can find her on Twitter @: http://twitter.com/alexyuschik

Or drop her an email at: alex.yuschik@gmail.com

And also visit her website @: alexyuschik.blogspot.com 

The Secrets to Writing an Awesome Supporting Cast

If there's one thing that disappoints me the most, besides predictable plots and lack of detail, is when there's a supporting cast that has no point whatsoever but to push the main character from Point A to Point B. Yes, that's what they're there for, however, we also need our supporting cast to be just as three dimensional. Throwing a character in for the sake of the story is weak and unfair to your readers. Give us a reason to care about these people. For example: *SPOILER ALERT FOR THOSE WHO HAVE NOT WATCHED THE SHOW SLEEPY HOLLOW* The wife. Can we all agree that her character is completely pointless? She shows up in Ichabod's dreams and conveniently reveals bits of information needed for the story line in that particular episode. Thankfully she hasn't made an appearance in the last two episodes, I don't think, but, damn did that irritate me! I want to rip my hair out every time she shows up. GO AWAY, POINTLESS CHARACTER! YOU ARE NOT INTERESTING AND/OR NECESSARY.

Okay. Now that I've finally gotten that off my chest, let's begin!

1. Give them depth. 

Answer these questions (without info dumping, of course!): Where did your main character meet supporting cast? What is the supporting cast like? What's their background? Where did they come from? Why are they important to the main character? What is their relationship with the main character like?

Questions like these will create that background info we need to better understand why the supporting cast is essential to the story. They're not just place holders, they are chess pieces. Each piece has a motive/a reason to exist. What is theirs?

2. Don't make that token character a "token character." 

For instance, if you have a gay character who is portrayed as a stereotypical gay character, you've lost me completely. I cannot tell you how offended I get when a character is so unlike a real life person. Making your gay character flamboyantly gay, or your blonde girl completely ditzy, is beyond offensive and unrealistic. This may sound harsh, but it's true. I'm not the only person rolling my eyes at this, believe me. If stereotyping your characters is all you have to make them stand out or seem "different", maybe you should consider a different direction for that character.

People want to relate to them, not feel singled out.

3. What's a character without personality?

A flat character makes for a boring character. Don't just let them spew a bunch of info to get the point across. Give them something that makes them memorable. Sarcasm. The guy with all the one-liners. The girl who is super smart minus the ever-present-black-framed-glasses. (It's okay. Girls without glasses are smart, too.) The band guy who doesn't have long black bangs and wears eyeliner. The girl who rocks the violin. Give us SOMETHING that makes these characters realistic. Make them someone  YOU would be friends with, or ARE friends with. Not someone you THINK a teenager would be friends with.

These are definitely not the last of the bullet points, but this gives you a place to start. Or, at least, something to think about. Having a supporting cast that is more well-rounded and meaningful makes for an entirely different story. Consider this when you read through your manuscript and ask yourself if your main cast is all they can be to bring this story to life. Don't be afraid to ask your critique partners to really dissect that aspect of your writing. What are your strengths and weaknesses when it comes to your supporting cast?

If you have other suggestions you'd like to add, please feel free to post them in the comment section! Cheers!

Heather Marie is a YA writer who loves all things creepy. She enjoys writing horror/supernatural stories that make you question that feeling of someone watching over your shoulder. Heather spends most of her days reading and writing and plotting her next idea. When she's not in her writing cave, she enjoys watching creepy TV shows with her husband and picking apart plot holes in movies.

You can find her on Twitter @: http://twitter.com/xheatherxmariex
And visit her website @: http://heatherxmarie.blogspot.com/