Friday, July 12, 2013

Old School Index Cards Rule




As I zeroed in on the ending of the second major revision of my WIP, I came to a terrible realization. My ending sucked.

First reaction: Overwhelmed. How can I fix it? It's too much work. Maybe I should trash it and start something new. Maybe I should go find some chocolate.

Second reaction: Find the chocolate and think things through.

Third reaction: Okay, I think I've got a new ending, but holy shit! It's too much work. New ending requires new stuff sprinkled throughout. Maybe I should trash it and start something new. Maybe I should open up a bottle of wine.

Fourth reaction: Open up a bottle of wine and get to work.

Here's what I did.

  • Bought the biggest sheet of foam core I could find. 
  • Printed out my chapter summaries from Scrivener's Corkboard (if you don't use Scrivener, the program has a virtual corkboard that lets you see your chapters at a glance.) 
  • Found a ten-year-old glue stick in a drawer and glued my chapter summaries to index cards.
  • Tacked my index cards to the foam core with color coded tacks for each plot line.
  • Added post-it notes for each new chapter that needed to be written and each chapter that needed changes.

As much as I love Scrivener, I needed a bigger visual than its corkboard provides. Now I have a gigunda board in my office, and seeing those post-its makes the work feel manageable. The color coded tacks showed me where I dropped plot lines for too long and needed to sprinkle in some reminders. Right now, I think I need nine new chapters and changes -- some big, some small -- to 18 chapters. But I get to check off the post-it notes as I go along. That makes me feel like I'm in control of the work, rather than the work completely out of control.

Sometimes, old school totally beats technology.

11 comments:

  1. I agree--it is so helpful to view your work on a board to help find holes. I did this a few months ago using poster board and color-coded sticky notes. That works well, too. I will have to check out Scrivener!

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    1. Becky, I would have gone for the sticky notes if I could read my own handwriting! Definitely check out Scrivener -- they used to let you try it for free - might still do that.

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  2. Whoopee! Your solution warms the heart of an old librarian. :)
    And yes, when I wrote a novel in the way distant past, I kept track of the action in a similar way.
    Sounds as though you're ready to roll and I can't wait to read your changes!

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    1. Getting there -- I'm trying to write a chapter and make another small change a day -- let's see where I land!

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  3. It sounds- and looks like- you're on a roll! =)

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    1. Yes, Leandra -- hopefully a roll to "the end."

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  4. Yup. Nice work there, J.A.---
    I remember an awful moment when a PB manuscript I was so fond of suddenly became a clear and utter failure in my mind. To this day I have not gotten back to it. Thank you for the inspiration.

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  5. Oh, Mirka - sometimes they just need a good, long rest. Sometimes we do, too.

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  6. An inspiring view! Here's hoping it does the trick...

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  7. Yay!! Sounds like a great solution, J.A.!

    (Whatever technology works-- whether it is new or old-- is the one that does the trick! Hope your revising is going well!)

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  8. Having read large parts of your manuscript, you CAN see it through....keep plugging and I like the part of addressing one change per day. It also gives you the rest of the day to reflect on that change.

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