tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5429542410238239360.post1561649731385410764..comments2023-08-16T07:15:32.801-04:00Comments on BookingIt: Some Useful and Rather Unmild AdviceJessica Nelsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12365768876905444157noreply@blogger.comBlogger23125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5429542410238239360.post-68708485832552122642012-11-01T16:18:09.843-04:002012-11-01T16:18:09.843-04:00Hahaaa, Sarah!
You're welcome, Karen. :-)
M...Hahaaa, Sarah! <br /><br />You're welcome, Karen. :-)<br /><br />Me too, Stacy.Jessica Nelsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12365768876905444157noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5429542410238239360.post-24212809760746801062012-11-01T11:18:50.930-04:002012-11-01T11:18:50.930-04:00I've studied character arcs too much in the la...I've studied character arcs too much in the last two years to NOT implement them in a story, LOL. Thanks for sharing the link, Jessica!Sarah Forgravehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09101753891967001104noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5429542410238239360.post-14659757292773542012-11-01T10:02:05.183-04:002012-11-01T10:02:05.183-04:00I will check it out. Thanks for the tip! :)I will check it out. Thanks for the tip! :)Karen Langehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18177923284595298347noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5429542410238239360.post-3348709280508447202012-10-31T20:40:40.259-04:002012-10-31T20:40:40.259-04:00Thanks for sharing this, Jessica! What a great art...Thanks for sharing this, Jessica! What a great article. I love how he says the most important thing is a well-told story, and what that is sort of up to us as authors. Stacy Henriehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03303383087338174942noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5429542410238239360.post-35208502357512560762012-10-30T18:49:10.619-04:002012-10-30T18:49:10.619-04:00WHOA!! I suddenly feel a little better about my ow...WHOA!! I suddenly feel a little better about my own writing skills. I'm the family FUBAR when it comes to rules (grammatical or otherwise). This dude is right--owning the story and creating something tasty is far more important that making sure it's written "just so." <br />Bethany Crandellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08465408035247412662noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5429542410238239360.post-84958317533323443012012-10-30T12:11:19.269-04:002012-10-30T12:11:19.269-04:00That was an excellent article! Thanks for sharing ...That was an excellent article! Thanks for sharing it. I've heard other experts say the same kind of things. And you can really spot a novice writer who's trying too hard to keep all the rules--their writing sounds stilted and fake. <br /><br />Happy Day, <br />JenJeanette Levelliehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12898750484193832082noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5429542410238239360.post-37429489743698922052012-10-29T19:36:14.696-04:002012-10-29T19:36:14.696-04:00Hi Jess,
Ah, but try to get what he describes as ...Hi Jess,<br /><br />Ah, but try to get what he describes as a poorly written book past an agent or editor! With the number of writers out there, they want not only a compelling story, but also a well-written one.<br /><br />As a reader, I may enjoy a story, but experience confusion that pulls me out of it. I don't think this is an either/or issue. We need both story and stellar writing.<br /><br />Blessings,<br />Susan :)Susan J. Reinhardthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07461276857852409546noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5429542410238239360.post-72606014303306600842012-10-29T13:31:45.667-04:002012-10-29T13:31:45.667-04:00Brandi, I also see these rules talked out a lot by...Brandi, I also see these rules talked out a lot by writers but not so much by editors...<br /><br />Susanne, I forget to look for adverbs! LOL I probably should...Jessica Nelsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12365768876905444157noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5429542410238239360.post-38434479659999380012012-10-29T13:26:15.769-04:002012-10-29T13:26:15.769-04:00Interesting article--I'm glad you shared, Jess...Interesting article--I'm glad you shared, Jessica! I limit adverbs, but sometimes, nothing else will do. I agree: know the rules and know when you need to tweak them a bit.Susanne Dietzehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09710634601407161821noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5429542410238239360.post-80984669533276209462012-10-29T12:52:55.300-04:002012-10-29T12:52:55.300-04:00I gave a sigh of relief. It is a freeing article. ...I gave a sigh of relief. It is a freeing article. For so long, there have been all of these rules upon rules of what you MUST do in order to be a published author, but we all can name at least 5 books we've read recently that didn't follow the advice of what we've been taught. I think the publishing world is changing. People are looking for stories to be entertained. I can think of few people that actually read what's deemed to be quality literature. I also think it's mostly a CBA thing.Brandi Boddiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08017741568841209088noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5429542410238239360.post-20164440727797968172012-10-29T12:50:32.403-04:002012-10-29T12:50:32.403-04:00You're welcome! I thought it was an interestin...You're welcome! I thought it was an interesting article too.Jessica Nelsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12365768876905444157noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5429542410238239360.post-77302234103097175342012-10-29T12:07:42.931-04:002012-10-29T12:07:42.931-04:00What a great article and it's so true. I recen...What a great article and it's so true. I recently read a best selling author who uses three adverbs in the first paragraph of the book and it's considered to be a well written book. Thanks for the link.Pattihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00685341739870191402noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5429542410238239360.post-40391686540371482522012-10-29T11:27:47.405-04:002012-10-29T11:27:47.405-04:00Interesting article. I'm in the camp that says...Interesting article. I'm in the camp that says you have to know the rules before you can break them. You need to have a good reason for breaking them.Lindsay Harrelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09379628592162011068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5429542410238239360.post-78964045780251820232012-10-29T11:18:18.663-04:002012-10-29T11:18:18.663-04:00Erica, true! Sometimes we need that backstory, I t...Erica, true! Sometimes we need that backstory, I think, esp. for certain genres.<br /><br />Georgiana, the more I think on it, the more I think it's a CBA thing.<br /><br />Linda, I loved your book I read! It was SO good. Jessica Nelsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12365768876905444157noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5429542410238239360.post-17778471800243445662012-10-29T11:09:56.769-04:002012-10-29T11:09:56.769-04:00Ooh, I liked the article! It gives me hope...as a...Ooh, I liked the article! It gives me hope...as a bad writer, that maybe I'll be okay. As a reader, I prefer compelling stories over well-written stories too!Linda Kagehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00259042112816376940noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5429542410238239360.post-6601615046553075292012-10-29T11:09:42.646-04:002012-10-29T11:09:42.646-04:00"I think one needs to know the rules, and the..."I think one needs to know the rules, and then judiciously apply them, and chuck them if you feel the need." <--- That is GREAT advice from the article. The rules are well drilled into my head, and I often wonder if CBA is a little more rigid in requiring them in ABA, or if that's an illusion put out by the close-knit CBA community.Georgiana Danielshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08148430180111786272noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5429542410238239360.post-65414574559766773862012-10-29T11:02:50.383-04:002012-10-29T11:02:50.383-04:00That was...frank...and rang with truth. I just fin...That was...frank...and rang with truth. I just finished a novel by a Pulitzer-prize nominated author and my first thought was "If she'd entered the first 50 pages in a contest, she'd have finished dead last." <br /><br />It was all telling, a brief overview of a famous person's childhood, that set up the rest of the story.<br /><br />But it worked for that novel.Erica Vetschhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08772984806574666959noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5429542410238239360.post-15733544219360143302012-10-29T10:59:17.171-04:002012-10-29T10:59:17.171-04:00Loree, I feel like I'm chewing on it too. I wa...Loree, I feel like I'm chewing on it too. I was surprised and interested in what he said about wine. Never knew that!<br /><br />Very true, Sandra. Knowing about rules does push us to make our writing stronger.<br /><br />Agreed, Melissa! :-)<br /><br />Cindy, wow, very interesting point about the difference in CBA and ABA. I think I'm going to ponder that a little too...Jessica Nelsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12365768876905444157noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5429542410238239360.post-19628591534463773022012-10-29T10:39:33.717-04:002012-10-29T10:39:33.717-04:00I limit adverbs and definitely believe showing not...I limit adverbs and definitely believe showing not telling is good. But see, all those examples he gave of the exceptions are general market fiction. I DO read some Christian fiction that ignores the rules a little, but for the most part, there is a lot of rule following going on. And THOSE are the books I'm learning from, so I guess I'm a rule follower, too.Cindy R. Wilsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13488732331021750408noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5429542410238239360.post-65319781010239642272012-10-29T09:30:27.783-04:002012-10-29T09:30:27.783-04:00You know, I totally think it comes down to knowing...You know, I totally think it comes down to knowing when and how to break the rules. And possibly that's more gut instinct than anything else, but I'm not willing to toss out every rule I ever learned...nor do I wanted to be trapped by them. There's gotta be a sweet in-between. :) Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17620457068731162013noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5429542410238239360.post-32395521988372354282012-10-29T08:37:04.827-04:002012-10-29T08:37:04.827-04:00Going to go read it!Going to go read it!Terri Tiffanyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07771622379178654235noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5429542410238239360.post-24284425041934847562012-10-29T08:36:26.069-04:002012-10-29T08:36:26.069-04:00What a freeing article! Although I must admit that...What a freeing article! Although I must admit that the rules like "limit adverbs" have instilled good habits in me, like always digging deeper for a stronger verb.Sandra Orchardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01236883194496601011noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5429542410238239360.post-9969762630460744752012-10-29T08:31:39.150-04:002012-10-29T08:31:39.150-04:00Wow! I want to read that again...and chew on it.Wow! I want to read that again...and chew on it.Loree Huebnerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09845600356878587780noreply@blogger.com