The Coca Cola Logo Or Vending Machine Was Shown Only 10 Seconds Out Of 1:31 Minutes, In All These Scenes

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How To Story Edit Like A Pro - Novlr

Have you finished your first draft but are unsure what to do next? Learn how to story edit to get your draft to the next stage.

Story Edit Like A Pro!

If you begin a story edit with these questions to evaluate your characters, plot, and setting, you’ll be amazed at how this will help you improve your story!

Evaluating Characters

We’re going to look at characters first. 

The cast of characters is the list of characters in your story. These characters act and react. They create emotion. They show motivation. Without any of this, you don’t have a story. That’s a tall order for your characters. So how do you make sure you’re getting the most out of them?

Who appears in each scene?

Having a list of your characters per scene gives a specific method for evaluating how you’re using the characters and shows you when you need to revise a scene.

It’s time to revise a scene if:

There are too many characters in a scene. Is every character required to achieve the purpose of the scene?

An introduced character lacks detail or has too much detail.

There are names that are too similar and might confuse the reader.

What are their goals?

A character goal is what a character wants. She should want it so badly that your readers feel her need in their guts. And failing to achieve the goal will be devastating.

What gets in the way of their goals?

Characters will drive the tension in your story, and tension is what keeps a reader reading. Putting obstacles in the way of achieving the goal will raise the tension.

Evaluating Plot

Plot is what happens in the story. It’s what your story is about. Here are three questions to help you evaluate each scene and how they relate to the plot.

What is the purpose of each scene?

There must always be a reason any given scene exists in your story. That’s what we mean by its purpose. A scene without a purpose will distract the reader from the main story. It may even bore the reader.

Is there an entry hook opening each scene?

Whatever you read at the beginning of the scene that keeps you reading is the scene entry hook. Every scene must have one by the end of the first three paragraphs or so.

Is there an exit hook at the end of each scene?

Whatever you read at the end of the scene that keeps you turning the page to the next scene is the exit hook. Every scene must have an exit hook. This includes a secret revealed, a cliffhanger, a clue, or a story twist.

Evaluating Settings

Finally, while you perform a story edit, examine your settings. Settings are key to keeping your reader engaged, so don’t ignore them. 

Is the location you chose the best place for emotional impact?

Each scene must take place somewhere, and each location has the potential to ramp up emotion. Often a writer doesn’t think hard enough about where a scene takes place and doesn’t end up using locations effectively. Does the location elicit emotion in the reader or the characters? If not, choose a different location.

Are there objects relevant to the plot or characterization in each scene?

Watch a film without props or a backdrop, and you’d probably get confused or bored. You’d just be watching actors on an empty stage, which would make it hard to believe the reality they’re trying to portray.

Readers are much more engaged in a story if they can imagine the setting that stirs their emotions. 

Are some of the 5 senses used in every scene?

Sensory details keep the “stage” and characters interesting. Without them, both the setting and the characters will seem flat.  Using the POV character’s senses to describe the action will bring your reader closer to the character. So ensure the senses used show characterization or move the plot forward.

Writing Fanfiction: Tips for Avoiding Common Pitfalls

Fanfiction is an often under-rated genre. Tons of authors have honed their writing skills with fanfiction, not to mention the millions of writers and readers who love exploring familiar stories and characters! Today, NaNoWriMo participant Ville V. Kokko has a few tips for making fanfiction writing shine:

Fanfiction is a popular form of writing and one of the recognized genres for novels on NaNoWriMo. Yet, it’s also stereotyped as an inferior—some might call it silly—form of writing. While denigrating any genre as a whole is never a good idea, there are some common patterns in fanfiction that may contribute to this stereotype.

Of course, one of the popular stereotypes is that fanfiction is full of “Mary Sues”: overpowered, supposedly awesome self-insertion wish-fulfillment characters. I’ll skip that familiar topic and dive a little deeper into what’s behind it and what other fanfiction tropes can appear for similar reasons.

1. Give your characters some depth.

Fanfiction is almost by definition created by people who were touched by the original work enough to want to build something more out of its foundation. This can be a great fount for good story ideas: what if, what next, what about this character’s unexplored story, etc.

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No soy yo

Cuando puedas sembrar un arbol, en un vendabal (aun sorteando los vientos feroces) Cuando puedas regar una flor, en un desierto (necesitado de agua) Cuando puedas regalar una sonrisa, en el dolor (aunque estes constrenido adentro) Cuando puedas cocinar pacientemente, caldos olorosos entre gritos alocados Cuando puedas dar, no teniendo lo que tienes Cuando puedas... Tu universo sera diferente Y Veras

The tiny seed knew that in order to grow, it needed to be dropped in dirt, covered in darkness, struggle to reach the light.

Sandra Kring (via earthenspirit)

Capitulo 7: Las historias se repiten

Por ahora nadie los ve, pero acaban de destruir el satélite Juno que gira alrededor de Jupiter, y van camino a la Tierra con una flotilla de 16000 naves espaciales, 3 mil submarinos camuflageados dentro de cohetes y cuyo propósito es entrar en las aguas de la Tierra, traen también 40 mil tanques de guerra, apostados en las plataformas de asteroides, y escondidos como los caballos de Troya bajo las rocas, con tecnología láser para apostar una flotilla en la exosfera y a la órden de mando, todos los sátelites de la Tierra caerían como moscas con aerosol en el espacio, que construyeron en sus galaxias, sin la mirada terrestre que tenían travez de sus satellites desparramados travez de las galaxias.

*Cuánto falta para llegar, pregunta Volka, el capitán de la nave, y de la tripulación mientras mira las estrellas que pasan a su alrededor, y la estela de nubes que sus naves dejan al pasar las velocidades del tiempo varias veces, y cuyo fenómeno puede ser observado en la Tierra como una nube de gases tóxicos porque aún las distancias no son lo suficientes para distinguir verdaderamente los objetos en la lejanía, y el satélite que tenìa la posibilidad de observarlo todo, en esa distancia, acaba de ser destruido.

“Quince días” expresa el Almirante tras checar los instrumentos de Registro que indicaban 787,000,000 kilómetros para llegar a la Tierra.

Digámelo en horas Almirante, expresó Volka tras sentir un cosquilleo en su piel por la misión que está por completar, y tratando de acortar los tiempos y tener ideas de la proximidad de su misión.

360 horas terrestres, agregò el Almirante Irko, dos semanas, Comandante.

Y Volka sonrió y movió sus labios en señal de satisfacción, sintiendo esa agrado de las misiones cuando están a punto de empezar. Volteó a su alrededor de su ventana de oficial de mando, con su cobertura de 180 grados, y miró la inmensidad de su flotilla como mares vastos cuyas olas pasan y retoman y bañan todo lo que existe a su paso. Millas y millas alrededor de naves que parecían como abejas que se acercan a un panal, excepto, que en este caso, la miel era a la Tierra que pretenden conquistar, si todo salía como lo previsto, porque tratar con el genéro humano es siempre tratar con los impredescible cuando se mira empujado entre la espada y la pared.

Volka había nacido en Jupiter. Sus tatarabuelos habían sido inmigrantes de las regiones de Kasgar China, y el país, en una de sus innumerables expediciones espaciales, decide enviar parte de su población rebelde a una colonia alejada para conquistar el planeta, y procesar todos sus elementos provenientes de Siankiang. 

Estas oleadas de humanos en el planeta, a la par de una multitud de científicos, hicieron posible la conquista del planeta Júpiter, porque transportaron hidrógeno, que sustraían de ahí con enormes y gigantes aspiradores y después los procesaban en recipientes de kilómetros y kilómetros para distribuir alrededor de la galaxia, y por el cual obtenían tremendas ganancias de un planeta que daba a borbotones el especial líquido. Pero la vida ahí era inhumana, trabajando tres cuartos del día y sólo unas horas de descanso. Por sistemas de gobierno, eso era apropiado para mantener la mente ocupada en seguir un procedimiento, una producción que rendía frutos en oro al gobierno, por lo cual los sistemas de producción eran aberrantes y extenuares y parecieran los sistemas de esclavos en las antigüas colonias afroamericanas de los 1800’s. 

Volka sabía lo que era el trabajo extenuante. Lo había vivido, por eso se juró a sí mismo ante su tatara-abuelo que liberaría a su pueblo de las extenuares ligaduras con un sistema que les comprimía el alma, y empezó a introducirse en el terreno militar, y poco a poco asciende tras llegar a ser lo que era hoy: General de 5 estrellas con una misión que el país afitrión pensó que realizaraía para ellos, excepto que la mente del general estaba en su pueblo y su sacrificio, y hubo rebelión en sus mandos que Volka manejó con destreza para que coroneles, lugartenientes, cabos, soldados le siguieran y ahí estaban hoy. 

El almirante Irko, su viejo amigo tambien lo sabía. Sabia que estaba precisamente en ese momento histórico donde empujaba por un cambio, o las repeticiones de los mismos sistemas, en círculos viciosos, dejarían donde mismo. Era tiempo de un cambio, por eso estaba ahí.

Todas las historias de las civilizaciones empiezan así. 

Las civilizaciones tienen sus etapas de grandezas o infortunio dependiendo de las decisiones que toman y cómo entrelazan y resuelven las grandes riesgos de su crecimiento. Su grandeza o decadencia, estará en la medida que resuelvan los problemas ingentes que los agobian. 

Si algo enseńan las antigüas civilizaciones de la otrora Tierra en sus inicios, era como el del Imperio Romano o el de Grecia, o el Imperio Francés o Español o Americano o Británico, es que los grandes movimientos radicales en el interior de sus filas, crearán los semilleros de buenas frutas que los harán crecer o perderse, en una ley del péndulo que solamente vira de izquierdas a derechas atraves de la humanidad y alrededor de los tiempos.

La vida en Karkamistán no era diferente, ni la de sus hombres, por lo que parecía ya venir a una cultura atrayente, con una metrópoli que la vida le había dado todo, y todo estaba a sus pies: tecnologìa, recursos humanos, tierras, aguas, innovaciones que están a la luz de otros, y esos otros desean poseer lo mismo en otras tierras y lugares lejanos.

La naturaleza humana, sigue presentándose igual atravez de todas las historias antigüas, contemporáneas o futuras…. La ley del péndulo invariable, reconocible atravez del tiempo, donde existen seres humanos dignos de encomienda por las labores y trabajos que realizan, y como todas las historias, los humanos siembran o destruyen sus propias ecologías con sus planteamientos, con sus direcciones, con sus actuaciones.  

Porque aqui ya estaba la trama y era, una vez más, si la historia de la humanidad podría generar nuevos sistemas para su propia sobrevivencia, e inclusión de nuevas culturas sin dejar cortaduras en la piel de los nuevas generaciones que están por venir. 

Así pues, este era el momento, era el momento de la historia, y las historias estaban hechas de grandes hombres y grandes civilizaciones.  A donde iría la humanidad estaba por verse, porque dependería de su talento, de su entrega, de su capacidad para proteger la vida, pero también de pelearla por sobrevivencia, no por dominio, y era ahi donde quizás, se pudiera ganar la Guerra que se venia, no por una cuestión de dominio, sino mas bien de sobrevivencia, porque ya la cuestión no era el promulgar edictos buenos o malos, leyes que promuevan bienestar o edictos que afecten a poblaciones, sino más bien, se trata de la vida de las personas en un tiempo determinado, con una causa, con una vision de vida. 

Y las respuestas a todas esas preguntas estaban por venir, porque apenas habían destruído el satélite Juno, gravitando atravez deJupiter.

You Inspire Me: To Writing Groups Who Become True Friends

Writing isn’t as solitary a pursuit as many think. Inspiration comes in many forms, but most often, it comes in the shape of people. All month long, we’re asking writers to write a Not-So-Secret-Admirer’s Note to the people who’ve inspired them to take up the pen. Today, participant Suzanne Shaw celebrates her writing group:

Dear Colleen, Kay, Niki, Teresa, and Traci,

Yes, my wild, inspired sisters—you are the reason I am able to write, not just reclusively as writers must, but also as part of a small but vibrant writing community. Aren’t I lucky to have this opportunity to write out loud about what a difference you have made in my life! 

How could we have imagined when we first met at Hedgebrook, a retreat for women writers in Washington state, that we would still be in almost daily contact over a year later? We were together in a historical fiction master class for only a week, learning from the phenomenal Deborah Harkness and reveling in Whidbey Island’s magic. Although Hedgebrook and its dedicated staff remain close to my heart, you are the gift that keeps on giving. Even now that we are scattered from the West Coast of the US to Germany, thanks to technology we are there for each other almost every day, and sometimes even in the middle of the night.

What we have in common connects us — our obsession with historical fiction, alternating fascination and frustration with the writing process, and a passion for red wine with salt and pepper potato chips. I have seen most of you at least once in the intervening year and I cherish those times, too. Only with true friends can you meet and take up the conversation again without missing a beat. And what conversations! Encouragement, sympathy, understanding, humor — each of you has these things in abundance and shares them unquestioningly.

Thanks for always being there, convincing me I can succeed, and cheering me over all the hurdles. Maybe I could do it alone, but I’m glad I don’t have to try.

Love,

Suzanne

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I met Vikki Carr long time ago thanks to my sister. She used to wake up in the morning by listening to Vikki Carr’s songs using my old stereo system. She listened that Spanish song “Total” that says “At the end, if you would have loved me I would have forgotten your love/ You see, it was a lost time the one you have meditated to tell me now that this can not be possible”.

I liked that song, really, as I like to have this interview with the one that woke me up in the morning in a mysterious way. She is right now through the phone, with a set of pre-determined questions underling the kind of relationship with the entertainment business people.

Vikky Carr, according to her website (http://vikkicarr.com) was born in El Paso Texas "and raised in Southern California, the eldest of seven children, who later change her name to Vikky Carr." She started singing at the age of four, but it was not until 1961 when she signed a contract with Liberty Records. She recorded He's a Rebel which became the first hit in Australia, and later on she sang It Must Be Him "which charged up the charts in England" says her website.

With almost 50 years of professional experience as a singer, we had this awesome opportunity to talk with this wonderful woman, who have tasted the fame without losing her charm, her singularity, her qualities as a human being, and this is my way to thank her for this interview, which in this case is focused in making entertainment deals around the world due to her singing career.

  How do you deal with people in a negotiation process, do you play hard o soft ball?

“I think the artist should always be dedicated to his art, and let the manager or lawyer deal with those details of negotiation. My function is to sing to an audience and I do not want to get involved in those little details of the agreement. When I get involved in the contract is just in the final phase when it is time to sign that deal”, said Vikki Carr.

To his manager, Dann Moss, playing hard or soft ball depends on “who you are negotiating with, in what country you are negotiating with, because people in different countries negotiate in different ways”. To Vikki Carr’s lawyer you need to make sure that the money is there, in the USA, before the performance because “you do not want to get involved in a lengthy negotiation process” in case something is wrong. The Japanese, he explains, when you sign a contract “their word is their bond and integrity is their word that they will honor that contract”, while in the Middle East, he explains further, the negotiation starts when you sign the contract. We need to understand, resumes Vikki’s manager, “what every person or country or people put into the importance of a signed contract, and their words and what it means to them.” It is also then when we have a beautiful negotiation process.

  Have you ever applied dirty tricks in a negotiation?

  “We always play clear, says Vikki, and we do not want to make dirty tricks and we try to play fare. We recognize that everybody in the game should get something; however there have been times when the singer gets less than the other agents in the process, and this is the reason I got an agent who deals with those issues.”

I think at the end of the day, replies Dann, a good philosophy is that everybody needs to win something, and you cannot take everything off the table. Everything is about sharing, he explains, and “we need to make sure that the people we are negotiating with, make money so they can come back and do another contract”. According to the manager they do not take all the marbles off the table in a negotiation process.

Dann Moss is Vikki Carr's lawer. According to his resume Dann was a co-founder and partner in the Law Firm of Thompson, Shankman, Bond and Moss. The firm specialized in the entertainment and communication industries. Dann then began, his own practice discovering and building new artists, negotiating television, publishing, licensing and recording agreements and producing international television specials and motion pictures.

  What happen -I asked- with those people that are tricky in your negotiation and what do you do Dann?  Have you ever found people like that, trying to get advantage from you?

  Yes, says Dann, in Paris. We had an agreement with my director and the theatre manager to reserve 27 seats for 3 sets of camera that were supposed to record the show. We marked those seats in the planogram to make sure those seats were not sold to the public so we can record the show. A month later we came back to put our cameras in place using those spaces, and the theater manager approached to me to tell me I could not use those seats since they were already sold. I told the manager our agreement and he said, “I am sorry, they are sold”. Don’t worry, I said, I will take care of the problem and talked to my secretary to print an invitation saying “Please excuse the inconvenience. You are cordially invited to seat on the stage for the performance and I personally invited to a champagne reception with Ms Silva Gartan after the show”. Then the manager came and said “you can not have people on the stage and I said “that is your problem”. Obviously, he said finally, there were more people giving out their seat so they can go to the reception. In that way, he concludes, we separate people from the problem.

To wait for something seems to be an integral part of the universe and the way it works. It takes 13 nights for the moon to turn full. It took 40 nights for Moses to receive the Torah. It takes 9 long months for a human embryo to evolve & finally take birth into this world. Teach your soul to wait, when there's nothing else to be done. To wait patiently with all the beauty in tact, certain of the promise that when the time finally arrives, the king himself will send for you, just like Joseph, after waiting for several years imprisoned...

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