Donna Sundblad, author of Pumping Your Muse - Page 2

That first novel taught me a multitude of lessons. I’d written a story using trademarked characters and that manuscript now sits in my closet. It has a good storyline, but I’d have to develop my own characters to make it my own. Right now, I have three other novels in various stages, so that one will wait.

What is an editing technique for catching passive telling voice?

Learning the difference between passive and active is actually simple when you boil it down. The subject performs the action in sentences written in active voice. Subjects in sentences written in passive voice receive the action expressed by the verb. One gives, the other receives. Watch for words like “is, was, were, will be, has been and have been.” Not in every case, but most times rewriting the sentence without these words breaths life into the sentence so that is shows the action rather than telling about it. For more suggestions on how to move from passive to active voice you can check out my article, Warning Flags - Words to Use with Caution.

How can a new writer avoid endless re-writing and editing?

It’s easy to get caught up in a rewrite and editing loop, especially on longer projects. Pumping Your Muse helps writers push beyond this trap. It allows you to make scenes better but takes you beyond this to the development of new information in the process and forces the storyline to move forward. Scenes emerge out of order which helps the author to look forward to what happens next instead of dwelling on what needs to be changed. By the time exercises in this book are completed writer’s have a collection of scenes put in order on a timeline with enough information to know where the story starts, what happens during the course of the book and how the story ends. The trick is to write the entire story before you start to edit and rewrite extensively.

What are other current projects?

I’m finishing three novels, an anthology of bizarre short stories, and write a monthly column. Recollections a collection of regional true stories from southwest Florida involves interviews and writing. My freelance articles cover an assortment of topics from pets to inspirational.

Is Recollections stories from your extended family?

No, Recollections ~ An Oral History of Boca Grande captures colorful tales of life in a fishing village nestled on a barrier island off the southwest coast of Florida. Only seven miles long, Gasparilla Island is known as the “Tarpon Fishing Capital of the World.” A sample story can be found at U. S. Legacies. People that have lived on the island for generations gradually disappear, and their stories with them. Some die, others no longer remember and many relocate because they can no longer afford to pay taxes on property now valued at hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Article Author: Parker Owens

Visit Parker Owens's author page — Parker Owens's Blog