Lisa Hill: The Editing Process

Visit the RNA Facebook group or browse on social media and one of the most talked about topics amongst writers is – editing! We all have our favourite ways to write and edit our work and it can be interesting to find other views and perhaps use a snippet or two to help with our own writing. Today on the RNA blog we welcome author, Lisa Hill. Here Lisa explains her experiences with the editing process. Welcome, Lisa.

For those of you who know me, you’ll know I’ve not long graduated from the NWS. I was a member

of the scheme from 2010 – 2016 and in that time benefited from some thorough reports full of useful advice. What they didn’t contain, however, is a hand to hold with my downfall; the editing process. Having undergone the process with a professional editor in the past year, I thought it would be helpful to give those, like me, who struggle with editing an insight into perfecting your manuscript:

1. Take yourself out of the manuscript

Your first draft is your creation. It’s where you get to have all the conversations you want your characters to have with each other, let them go off on their adventures, really let your imagination flow. Now it’s time to get a grip on reality and that inevitably means getting tough. You might have the funniest scene which you absolutely love but if it has no relevance to moving the story forward, do you really need it?

2. Start a Novel Log

For me, a novel log was a revelation and I actually started using one from the beginning in my latest novel. Using a log you can diarise what’s happening in your novel and it’s so useful to refer back to. I use a page for each of the following:

·      Main Characters, including mini-bios of their age, appearance, main motivation etc.

·      Cast of Characters, including every character which has a name. This is most useful to look back on, for example, if you have a waitress that gets an odd mention and you can’t remember what you’ve called her.

·      A list of house, restaurants, pubs, shops etc, fictional and actual places.

·      A list of geographical places, again both fictional and actually in existence.

·      A list of songs, films, books and trade names.

·      A time-line. Probably the most important of all in the editing process; if you keep a note of dates and what occurs during your novel on these days, not only will it help you in remaining consistent, it will also assist you in deciding if you need to add time (e.g. are your hero and heroine ‘getting it on’ too quickly?) or condense.

3. Don’t try to edit everything at once

Something I was very guilty of. It might seem like a laborious task, however, the more times you read through your novel, the more times you will pick up errors. I had a manuscript where I had revealed twice (very dramatically) to the anti-hero that one of my heroines was dying! I now break my edits down into the following revisions:

·      Rewriting: The first round of editing is to go through your manuscript and identify what you can do without, what needs adding in (to reinforce your characters’ motivations) or where the sequence of events needs moving around.

·      Editing: On the second round, focus on actual scenes; where you need to cut a conversation short and lose words or lengthen one to add words and create tension.

·      Grammar & Spelling:  Often known as line edits, your final round of edits should be to comb through for grammar and spelling mistakes and to properly polish.

One final tip is that I find uploading my manuscript to my kindle for a final read helps me to identify any left-over niggles. Although if you are like me (and it is probably the creative in all of us) I am usually still agonising over certain lines in crucial scenes.

I wish you luck in getting your manuscript to the next level of publication and please don’t hesitate to drop me a line if you have anything you’d like to ask about my blog post.

About Lisa:

Lisa grew up in the village of Bussage, in the Cotswolds until she returned to Cheltenham as a teen.  She is married to her very own hero, Matt, and has three sons, Hamish, Archie and Laurence.  Her first encounter of a romance author was chats over the garden wall between her father, Godfrey, and Mrs Cooper from the neighbouring village of Bisley.  It came as a surprise in later life to find that Mrs Cooper was in fact Jilly Cooper!  Lisa’s writing inspiration now comes from other Cotswolds authors including Jill Mansell and Katie Fforde.

Lisa writes contemporary romance with a light-hearted tone.  What interests her most is people, their interactions, emotions and relationships. Lisa is a graduate of the Romantic Novelists’ Association New Writers’ Scheme and attributes this supportive and informative scheme to her winning the Choc Lit Search for a Star competition 2016 with her debut novel Meet Me at Number Five.

Links:

Blog

Facebook

Twitter: @lisahillie

Amazon

Thank you Lisa and good luck with your book. 

If you would like to write for the RNA blog contract us on elaineeverest@aol.com

Clare Chase: Settings in romantic suspense

Today we welcome Clare Chase to the blog.

I’ve always found novels with a strong sense of place compelling, and been fascinated by the powerful effect setting can have on an unfolding story. Of course, it’s a crucial aspect of all forms of fiction, but where suspense is involved, the right setting can help the writer in all sorts of ways.

A character’s immediate surroundings – the house they live in, for instance – can point to a person who’s off balance. Suspense builds as the reader anticipates the effect their skewed world view might have on developments. You don’t have to go as far as Dickens went with Miss Havisham to introduce unease.

Wider setting is also a huge bonus when creating mood and tension. Daphne du Maurier’s Jamaica Inn comes to mind. Mary Yellan’s awful journey in appalling weather, from her familiar village, to the remote moorland home of her aunt and uncle, remains vivid. The reader is immediately sucked into a threatening and oppressive atmosphere.

And then there are the physical practicalities of a location. Because Mary’s geographically so far away from help, and the landscape around her is so harsh and unforgiving, we’re intensely conscious of her isolation.

In my own debut novel, You Think You Know Me, I used two locations: London and the Lake District.

 

When the novel begins, Anna, the heroine, has just moved to the capital. London was a good location on practical grounds. It allowed her plenty of glamorous opportunities to pursue her career as a freelance journalist, and was a realistic setting for a story focussed on crime in the art world. But beyond the practical, it was also perfect in terms of atmosphere. I love the bustle of London, the frenetic pace, the crowds and the buzz. And as Anna’s caught up in a passionate love affair, pulled along by excitement, uncertainty and the first hints of danger, this pacey backdrop worked.

And then, as the mystery deepens, her desire to find out the truth leads her to the Lakes. You Think You Know Me is set in winter, and Anna finds herself driving through dark, deserted lanes, caught in torrential rain, her mobile dropping in and out of coverage. I’m always staggered by the beauty of the area when I visit, but on dark, stormy days, the awe-inspiring masses of mountains like Skiddaw and Blencathra become menacing. The hairpin bends, steep inclines and the narrowness of the roads mean any escape is going to have to happen at an agonisingly slow pace. What’s more, there are plenty of places where there’s no mobile coverage at all, so calling for help can be tantalisingly out of reach.

 

My next novel is the start of a mystery series, and has a Cambridge setting. I find the city endlessly intriguing, but realise there are dangers with writing about somewhere I know well. I need to make sure I can still see what’s unique about the city, even though I’ve become an insider. Luckily, Cambridge is full of surprises, and sometimes things that shock, so it’s not hard to see it afresh, even after all these years.

Biog:

Clare Chase writes fast-paced romantic mysteries, inspired by what makes people tick. She reads everything from Jilly Cooper to Sue Grafton, and finds romance complements crime perfectly, doubling the intrigue.

Clare wrote dodgy whodunnits in primary school, read English at London University, and honed her creative writing skills working in PR.

In her spare time, she enjoys drawing, cooking and wandering round the pubs and galleries of Cambridge, where she lives with her husband and teenage daughters.

 

 

Links:

Website and blog

You Think You Know Me on Amazon

Twitter: @ClareChase_

Facebook Author Page

Thank you, Clare!

The RNA blog is brought to you by Elaine Everest & Natalie Kleinman

If you would like to write an article for the blog please contact us on elaineeverest@aol.com
 

I'll Drink to That!

Today we meet Karen Aldous 

Karen lives with her husband and dogs in the beautiful Kent countryside where they brought up their three children. She enjoys activities which can be shared with family and friends walking, cycling and skiing.

Inspired initially by Jilly Cooper, Karen continues to adore great stories and writers. She attributes her passion for writing to three Ps - People, Places and Property. Her career allowed her to indulge in them all, providing useful material for her debut novel, The Vineyard.

What gave you the idea for your book and how long did it take you to write?

Provence and the Riviera and imagining how lovely it would be to live there, but I didn’t want my main character to inherit a vineyard in France. That would have been too easy for her. I wanted her to be a completely independent single mum who was inspirational, creative and determined to provide for her child. It took me ten months to write altogether if I count the time actually writing and editing but it was in my head for about ten years.

Why did you decide on that particular location?

I chose the location simply because Provence is stunning and I would love to own my own vineyard there.
Cannes has a cosmopolitan and glamorous appeal, not only for my character but also to readers. I know I would want to escape there in a book. I actually used Meopham, my home village in Kent, as my setting. It has a vineyard, it's beautiful and one of my favourite walks goes down through a lovely valley. 

How did you carry out your research?I used the information I gathered whilst in Provence and revisited Cannes staying in the apartment which became Lizzie’s home. It was perfect because it was located within a community rather than the touristy areas. I also did a week-long Wine Growers course at Plumpton College in Sussex. The Internet too is an invaluable research tool; if there is anything it can’t answer, it will lead you to the experts that can.

How did you learn your craft?

I read a lot and over the years I’ve been writing on and off, starting novels or short stories but never really sending anything out. I completed a BSc Hons majoring in Psychology with literature because there were very few creative writing courses around at that time but I subscribed to Writing Magazines and read books on writing. There are so many more nowadays. However, in the last two years I’ve been much more focused on my writing, joining the Romantic Novelists’ Association New Writers’ Scheme (NWS) and a novel class at The Write Place Creative Writing School, both of which have been invaluable. My weekly class improved my skills and motivation and the critiques I received from the NWS guided me to the professional standards I needed to attain. Both have been huge contributors to my writing confidence too; the helpfulness and friendliness of fellow writers has made learning my craft a real pleasure.

If your book was turned into a film who would you like to play the main characters?

Jessica Brown-Findlay or Emily Blunt as Lizzie, Jude Law as Cal, Sheridan Smith as Sophie and Emma Thompson as Lizzie’s mother Caroline.

Can you tell us something about your next book?

My next book is set both in London and, the beautiful Lake Geneva, the Swiss Riviera. Gina is fascinated by the Chateau de Chillon and its past haunting inhabitants. As she discovers more from one in particular, her life begins a path she could never have imagined.

If you were to take part in Desert Island Discs what would be your choice of book?

I would probably take the largest notebook I could to write in and write as small as I could because I wouldn’t know how long I would be there. But I know that’s not the point. I think it would have to be Pride and Prejudice. Jane Austen provided the best template for women writers and it never fails to entertain as well as teach me

Thank you for sharing with us today, Karen

Amazon UK: The Vineyard

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