Editors on Editing: Discipline for Spring Writing

Post #5 – Women’s Memoirs, Editors on Editing – Kendra Bonnett and Matilda Butler

[Kendra and I are the Co-Coordinators for Story Circle Network’s Editorial Service that gives you easy access to a team of professional editors. These editors are attuned to the stories women write — memoirs as well as fiction. Your manuscript deserves respect…the best treatment…and an editor who understands you. That’s why SCN Editorial Service exists. When you’re ready for an editor, we’re ready for you.

Mary K. Swanson is one of these professional editors and also a writer. She’s sharing some of her thoughts about writing as well as giving your writing prompts. Earlier today, she posted on Story Circle Network’s Telling HerStories blog about Prompts for Winter. In her post on Women’s Memoirs, she takes us into the discipline needed in the spring of our writing.]

DISCIPLINE FOR SPRING WRITING
Mary K. Swanson

It’s spring in your mind, and you don’t have enough time to record, much less write, all the ideas that are bursting from you. You handwrite the beginnings of a short story or novel or memoir vignette during lunch, or you remember that the statute of limitations has expired on your outbreak of high spirits in college, and you just can’t decide which succulent idea you should flesh out first.

Inspiration is intoxicating, but like a fruit-infused, alcoholic beverage, it can leave you with little memory of what you did while under its influence. Using a few strategies, tools and some personal grit, you can ensure that you have plenty of ideas for a writing winter.

Brain Rewind
Do you ever find yourself telling yourself a story or remembering a scene from your past while driving, or on a bus or plane, or even at work? Be prepared with a tool to record or type your ideas—anywhere.

1. A recorder for your car that allows you to download recordings to your computer.
2. An app for your smartphone that helps you easily record and label your ideas.
3. Online writing software or a virtual location like a blog or wiki so you can work anywhere you have an Internet connection.
4. Get an easy online backup system like Mozy or iDrive.

NextGen Napkin
With digital photography, you can instantly send photos to your friends. Another use for a digital camera is to record your paper notes and sketches so you can easily retrieve them later. If you would rather go straight to digital with your handwritten notes, you can use a touchscreen.

Comic Book Heroes
Maybe you have the bones of an idea for a story, but between work, home, and kids, you just don’t have the time to write. If you’ve got ideas but limited time, try writing the comic book version or your scene, chapter, or novel.

A comic book concentrates on scene (usually a page or two) and dialog (those little balloons), with just a small amount of narrative. You can use the format to record your ideas and work out a tentative plot and set of characters, or recreate a scene from your life that rings true.

You don’t have to be an artist to write the script for a comic book. With a few simple rules, you can use the comic book format to clarify your thoughts.

1. Whenever you introduce a new character, write a quick description.

2. Dialog should be short; every word counts.

3. Give a factual description of scenery and action.

4. Each page (scene) is a maximum of eight panels long.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
For more information about Mary K., visit Story Circle Network’s Editorial Service

Mary K’s best advice to writers? “Sit down and write. What’s written can be polished, what’s not written is forgotten.”

Tagged as: Editors on Editing, memoir editor, Memoir writing, working with editors, writing