Sunday Links: December 4th, 2011 Edition

As part of my writing goals for December, I finished up a new short story Saturday and got it out on submission. This was the first of my "Write 1/Sub 1" stories for the month. This one ended up developing sort of interestingly. I ended up just starting freewriting with a setting and some characters and saw where it took me. That's something I basically never do, but it seems to have worked well in this case. So the lesson here is that sometimes breaking out of your existing writing routines can work well.

I also got a little pleasant surprise in my email this afternoon, word that one of my story submissions already out has moved on to a second round of consideration. Not a sale yet, but a nice little bit of encouragement for a Sunday afternoon.

And now, on to the links...

"Snack Dip as Revision Metaphor" (Michael J. Martinez) - Michael uses seven-layer dip as a creative way to discuss various aspects/iterations of revision. I'll admit, the idea of doing a half-dozen levels of revision is a bit frightening. Typically I end up going through no more than three drafts on a short story. But, novels are different and more complex. So I can see where a big, complex novel might require more passes through of revision to ensure that all of its various facets are in line.

"3 Tips for Curing Someday Syndrome" (Julie Musil) - Julie talks about how it's easy to put off what we want to accomplish to "Someday" and some ways to fight against that inertia. If you keep telling yourself "someday I'll..." for something you know you really want to do, the tips here are worth checking out!

"Most Common Mistakes: Are Your Flashbacks Flashy or Flabby?" (K. M. Weiland at Wordplay) - A collection of tips on things to do and NOT do when you're writing flashbacks in your fiction. This can be an effective device, but it can backfire by confusing your readers if it's not evident what's going on.

"How to Keep On Writing When it All Seems Pointless" (James Killick) - James talks about why you might not want to give up on your writing just because it feels like you're not getting anywhere... yet! And I love this part... "Dreams aren't cheap. You can't buy them in Tesco. You have to define them, hew their likeness from stone with your bleeding hands then eternally pursue them as they fly from you like phantoms." Wow!

Additionally, here's a recap of the posts from this week on my blog:

"'Adrift' First Draft Complete" - I'll admit, it feels like it's been more than a week, even though it hasn't been. This was the blog post where I announced that I had finished the first draft of my NaNoWriMo project and talked about where I would go next with it.

"November Goals Wrap-Up and December Goals" - I looked at my progress on my writing goals for November and set new goals for December.

"The Power of 'Can' - My Biggest NaNoWriMo Lesson" - One last look back at NaNoWriMo and what I learned from it.

Thanks for stopping by to check out these links. Have a great week!