tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4024721400572472213.post4030985116944981527..comments2024-01-12T00:48:48.031-06:00Comments on Go Teen Writers: How do you turn off the internal editor?Stephanie Morrillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13128389560727867719noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4024721400572472213.post-58588515492468129962012-02-26T12:01:01.102-06:002012-02-26T12:01:01.102-06:00So glad I'm not alone!! I tend to be a perfec...So glad I'm not alone!! I tend to be a perfectionist, so my voices are always yelling "too many adverbs, find a stronger verb" "you can't do that, that's a passive sentence" and "you just stated the same thing three different ways", especially if I'm not in the middle of some exciting escape from bad-guys. Often they're right and I have to force myself to go on until I've finished the chapter, at which point I go back and fix some of the things that are bugging me. When my internal editor is going on about something that has larger story impacts, I call my aunt (because she is the best editor/encourager ever) and tell her what's wrong. She listens and nods and tells me that yes, that is something I will need to note/fix but that it can wait until my second draft. Having someone else tell me that whatever needs to be fixed is NOT the end of the world and that it doesn't have to be fixed RIGHT THIS MINUTE helps a lot.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4024721400572472213.post-30974671890796047062011-05-17T14:49:42.074-05:002011-05-17T14:49:42.074-05:00I had a couple questions about adverbs. They'r...I had a couple questions about adverbs. They're like adjectives, only they describe verbs. So quickly, loudly, boldly. In general, you want to avoid them. Why say, "he walked quickly" when you can say, "he jogged"?<br /><br />Alyson, I'm no expert on short stories. I know there's not much of a market for selling them, so if you're using them strictly for practice, I say just write however long you feel the story needs. If you're wanting to sell them, I'd Google "short story magazines" or something and see what kind of word counts they request.Stephanie Morrillhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13128389560727867719noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4024721400572472213.post-84043066403580654362011-05-17T06:33:54.425-05:002011-05-17T06:33:54.425-05:00How long should a short story be?
I figured it wou...How long should a short story be?<br />I figured it would be good to start writing a few short stories before I start a novel. <br /><br />Alyson :)Alyson Schrollhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10985230257033740736noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4024721400572472213.post-54824017387471842462011-05-17T00:14:57.926-05:002011-05-17T00:14:57.926-05:00Love this post.
I have lots of voices in my head ...Love this post. <br />I have lots of voices in my head all the time when I'm writing lol. <br />Though honestly I really don't fully understand a lot of the writing names for things like "adverbs" and stuff. <br />I know the simple stuff like nouns and verbs... grr... frustrating. <br />Now the voices I have in my head a lot tell me; I'll never be good enough to be published.<br />I blast music and look through old books to get inspired to help them go away. =) It boosts my self confidence and get's me excited about writing again. And laughing at how terrible my writing was 2 years ago, lol.Jazmine~https://www.blogger.com/profile/06246960020080246030noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4024721400572472213.post-21691034941179934792011-05-16T19:09:09.290-05:002011-05-16T19:09:09.290-05:00Thanks for answering its going to help me out alot...Thanks for answering its going to help me out alot.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4024721400572472213.post-63738730965609189722011-05-16T18:11:06.714-05:002011-05-16T18:11:06.714-05:00Great post! Very encouraging!
What I always do whe...Great post! Very encouraging!<br />What I always do when I'm stuck is read, the section that I'm having trouble with, over and over out-loud, giving them voices and trying to bring it to life. Somehow it makes me see what I'm doing wrong and how it should be to make it better. Sometimes I just put it down for a while and then pick it up later. Little by little it starts to show signs of life.Faithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03150290024386704712noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4024721400572472213.post-63313012068427157782011-05-16T17:33:10.234-05:002011-05-16T17:33:10.234-05:00"Woo-hoo, the voices! I'm so glad they..."Woo-hoo, the voices! I'm so glad they're here today!" <br /><br />You made me laugh out loud. Good start to the morning :) <br /><br />Hmm. When I'm writing... I don't really think about adverbs and stuff. To be honest, I never really "got" them. Oh, we learned them in english. But the meanings certainly didn't stick around! I just write. <br /><br />As for the voices... I don't know. I write in a diary everyday, but I just... write. And when I'm writing my novel... well, I don't know. ;)emiihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02042164350910286833noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4024721400572472213.post-76637191466548698282011-05-16T14:30:24.676-05:002011-05-16T14:30:24.676-05:00Locking up that internal editor is HARD! Once at a...Locking up that internal editor is HARD! Once at a NaNo meeting, we drew crayon pictures of our internal editors, then put the pictures into an envelope and sealed the envelope with tape. No noise from the editor for the entire month of November. <br /><br />I never opened that envelope. I keep it on my desk to remind myself. :) It's a silly, simple thing, but it worked for me. :)Erica Vetschhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08772984806574666959noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4024721400572472213.post-68553659464312776402011-05-16T12:26:21.682-05:002011-05-16T12:26:21.682-05:00This is probably my biggest obstacle in writing an...This is probably my biggest obstacle in writing and why I haven't been able to finish a manuscript. Even when I was a little girl, I'd read books and think "wouldn't it be fun to write books" the next thought was always "You'll never be good enough at it" those thoughts will most likely forever be with me, huh? <br />Maybe it is something I have to put at the top of my "to work on" list.Tonyahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14500897912581589616noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4024721400572472213.post-91738042565912067472011-05-16T10:59:02.401-05:002011-05-16T10:59:02.401-05:00Yes, you're awesome at that!Yes, you're awesome at that!Stephanie Morrillhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13128389560727867719noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4024721400572472213.post-54531250336708074702011-05-16T09:46:31.961-05:002011-05-16T09:46:31.961-05:00And when Roseanna is emailed, she says something t...And when Roseanna is emailed, she says something that boils down to this: are the voices giving you CONSTRUCTIVE criticism? Are they pointing out things you CAN improve? Then listen. But if they're giving you DESTRUCTIVE criticism--like the kind that say you'll NEVER do something/be something/achieve anything--those are the voices you ignore.Roseanna Whitehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02245767775900250399noreply@blogger.com