~~I'm afraid I err on the side of "repainting"--moving the clauses and annoying the commas--more often than not. I find I'm reluctant to really tear out the walls and re-imagine the scene altogether. Thanks to my writing buddies at Books and Writers, I'm working on a major remodeling of my climax for FRIENDLY FIRE. Check HERE for to first version and HERE for my rewrite of a bit of the initial scene.
~~What about you? Do you ever get stuck with a scene that needs a full overhaul? What helps you change your first take on the scene?
I've had scenes like that. Usually they're ones I have to decide on whether they need to be in the book at all. Sometimes I just chuck them and the story flows better without them. Other times, I do a little painting, but rarely do I entirely deconstruct a scene and build it all back up all over again.
ReplyDeleteI've dumped a few in the trash myself. ; ) And sometimes they're the ones I *love*.
DeleteWow! How relevant to my life right now.
ReplyDeleteI tend to go in with a sledge hammer when a scene just isn't working. Which is why I am in the middle of re-working an entire chapter! Too much?
As much as I am pulled away from my WIP by Life, I just find it hard to make necessary changes without starting at the beginning. For me, that's at the start of the chapter, generally speaking.
I've grown a lot as a writer,I think, I hope, since I started the WIP. It is taking every ounce of my being to NOT go back and start over at Chapter One. Bad writer! Very, very bad. It is a first draft, after all.
Thanks for the push, Zan Marie. STILL trying to schedule regular visits and begin participating on Book Writers! I'll get there.
Glad the post hit home for you, Scarlett. I really need to sledgehammer a few right now and I'm reluctant. I know--I'm a whimp. ; )
DeleteBTW, you'll never regret time spent at B&W. I love the place.
I'm a dedicated remodeler. I love trying to figure out what would make a scene better. But today, most of all what I love is applying these terms to revising scenes--brilliant!
ReplyDelete(blush) Thanks, Charlotte. I'm the daughter of a master carpenter and my husband is very handy, too. In fact, the photo of the wall coming down is of him when he replaced the siding on our 90+ year old house.
DeleteWhat a fun and apt analogy! I really do tend to repaint a lot, myself. I'd rather cut out difficult scenes entirely than try to remodel them, sometimes. But move around sentences and emphasis and commas and arguments enough, and the scene really does become something new!
ReplyDeleteGlad you like my images. I'm trying to remodel my first scene and it's as bad as the worst nightmare renovation. ; )
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