W.O.E. Is a Necessary Evil and Why you must endure it

Back in 1998/1999 I knew an aspiring writer who made and sold CDs of her books. I thought what  an original idea this was — to record your book onto a CD and sell it. Never heard of such a thing. This writer included pictures and music too, since the CD was designed for use with your desktop computer. Selling price $5-$10. Amazing! I never bought one thinking this was too expensive and was probably a personal fad.

We see now that this author was way ahead of the times (Hello Audible!) but her CDs didn’t catch on with any mainstream group. They did illustrate something I’ve never forgotten:

Listening to the words and reading the words are NOT the same. The mood, tone, nuances, emotions and even characters are different when heard instead of read. Little did I know then that this lesson would be more important to me almost 14 years later.

This brings me to W.O.E. – Writer’s Oral Edit – and why it is a necessary evil and why you MUST endure it. 

Writers today are repeatedly admonished to complete their edits by reading every word aloud. I hear the advice from every recognized authority on publishing from established authors to writing coaches, to established editors and agents. They will harp on this issue and bloggers keep posting about it. Why? Because it is probably the MOST NEGLECTED of the self-edits. And it is the easiest!

When I ask writers if they are reading their works aloud, invariably I get a shy but resounding “no.” I hear, “I want to. I know I should. I should have. I feel embarrassed. I don’t read well out loud. I didn’t have time.”  Excuses and not even good ones.

Their answers do not surprise me because I can tell from their work that hey didn’t have a WOE. I’ll explain how I knew in a moment.

• First, why is reading aloud so dang important?  Because the human speech has a modulating rhythm that has natural highs and lows like undulating water. Sometimes we are calm and other times excited, angry, scared, giddy and this rocks the smooth waters. This is how a written story moves, too, with the emotional impact of your words. But the undulation continues to flow smoothly despite the switch from calm waters. Therefore, writers must achieve a natural rhythm to the story when they write but these shifts in rhythms cannot be verified unless you hear them.
• Second, reading aloud allows the writer to hear the character voices. Not in the head where imagination can fill in the gaps, but out loud where the voice cannot hide. If the tone is wrong coming up off the page, the writer will hear it and feel it. The feeling is a critical fix. Also, each character must have a clear personality which can disappear when reading silently. But when a character is heard, it is easy to sense when elements are missing. The same goes for POV (Point of View).
• Third, reading aloud showcases overused and over extended words. Typically mine are: so, just, as, but, and, very, and perhaps (just to name a few of my worst mistakes). When a writer reads aloud escaping the frequency of the words is impossible. The words will pop up and make you hear how annoying they are when overused and how it drags the story down.
• Fourth, reading aloud lets a writer sense when transitions aren’t working. The story feels wrong because the smooth shift didn’t happen. You didn’t hear it so the reader won’t find it either.
• Finally, reading aloud tests the emotional impact of your words. If you don’t feel anything when you hear it then guess what? You have failed your readers! (and Green Arrow will put you down). Sure, we writers love our words but hearing them lays them bare and the feelings are bared too. We need to feel the whole of it and we can do that only when we hear it. 

These five reasons for reading aloud I lovingly called the Writer’s Oral Edit, my WOE, because woe to the writer who thinks there isn’t any time, that it is a silly tool, who fears the outcome will create more work (isn’t that the point?), or who claims not to read well aloud.

Okay, you have issues. So how do you fix your woe over WOE? Practice. Every day read what you write when you journal or when you do your writing exercises (because I know you are writing every single day!) Read your WIP (work in progress) aloud at the end of your writing session. LISTEN to yourself. Record yourself and play it back. Let the computer read to you. Have a friend (who reads out loud well) read to you and hear what you are writing.  Most of all — LEARN TO READ YOUR WORDS OUT LOUD. 

No matter what. NO MATTER WHAT. The WOE is critical to a writer’s success.

As I indicated earlier, many times I can tell when a writer skipped the WOE because the characters all sound alike, the book is clipped, or the sentences ramble on forever. All of those mistakes, and more, are easily heard and fixed by just one WOE.

I do at least three oral checks. One as I write. Two after the content edits and the third when all the other edits are complete and the book is considered finished. You’d be surprised at the nuances you hear when you think your work is done. Also, I read to a friend, a beta reader or my Personal Author Assistant (PAA). It is very important to have someone else give you feedback.

And here’s a tidbit — WOE is important for me because I have 12 different characters who speak in my upcoming novel. I have 12 points of view and each character must have a unique voice. You only hear the difference well when you read them aloud and then tweek them! It’s like a house full of people who need a voice that stands out from the crowd, 12 times. I need the WOE!

Embrace your WOE. Let this be a lesson for you here and now. When you practice this and embrace the WOE you’ll enjoy a better quality novel and so will your readers (who are also reading aloud whether you realize it or not).

One last thought about reading aloud in general. If you hope to be published (or are published), you must engage in live author events like book signings or panels. You will be asked to read aloud from your novel. Unless you are a hermit, you cannot skip this moment. You don’t have time to be shy, feel silly or awkward. You must step up and become the voice of your book and do so comfortably. What you give the readers in that moment stays with them forever. You are the book’s voice — so practice until you read aloud well and with confidence.

Now, go write. I’ll be listening.

Thank you for coming by.
I remain, Yours Between the Lines,
Sherry

Happy Labor Day! From what I’ve read on numerous social platforms, those born from about 1975 and forward don’t really have any idea what Labor Day is all about. If you are like me and born in the mid ’50s through the ’60s, you learned about the events leading to the holiday and why it matters.

To most people either the day is one for activity (read, activism), or a day of rest. Both are correct and both are wrong.

In a very small nutshell, Labor Day was created as a Federal Holiday in 1894 by President Cleveland because of a strike in the Pullman Company, in Pullman Chicago. The strike which culminated in bringing unions to the forefront of the country, cost $80 in damage and the death of 30 people. The strike by the Pullman Company (who made luxury rail cars) was supported by the American Railroad Union (ARU). Workers lived in Pullman housing. And when the great depression of 1890 struck, Mr. Pullman tried to keep the company afloat first by dropping wages by 30%. But when he refused to drop his housing costs to meet the reduced wages, trouble erupted. Everyone had two cents to offer and nothing much helped. So the workers struck in 1894. The ARU said they would no longer work on Chicago rail cars and the Chicago rail system broke down. Rather than defy the strike boycott, 125,000 workers over 29 companies quit their jobs. Non-union strikers caused the problem, violence broke out, federal troops were called in. The president’s making of a federal day off was only a part of the appeasement to union workers and brought about the end of the ARU but an increase in a desire for union assistance.

So we take Monday off to remember those who died in support of hard working men, men who desired a fair wage to meet their responsibilities in housing provided by the company. Reduce the wage and reduce the rent. Pay me what I need, was all they asked. As a result, if you sit at home and away from school or your job, you do it in the shadow of men who died for that honor.

Yes, it’s not the same as men who died for our country. But it should be remembered with respect, whether or not you support unions today.  Today’s union climate is a whole ‘nother issue for another day. On this day, we sit in gratitude for time off to rest with our family and celebrate the social and economic achievements of our American workers. (Here’s a cover from 1946).

As writers, we want to know the history. Historical fiction is very popular right now. But fiction rooted in truth means understanding the truth of what happened so you can write fiction about it. Or understanding lessons from it so you can write alternate realities built on real incidents. Better, how about some science fiction where the union lost that day? Writers need to know truth no matter what you write. The truth makes our fictions, our tales, have muscle and grip us more surely than making up what we think happened.

For those who see this day as the “official” end to summer, then stop wearing white! And get shopping those sales. Remember not to work too hard.

I hope you celebrate the day and do it in reflection. However you remember and celebrate the day, write about it. The day is part of a social consciousness that must be remembered. Who better to remember than the writer?

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In other news – I am pleased to announce that my memoir, Breaking the Glass Slipper, is a 2017 Kindle Book Awards Semi-Finalist! I am completely blown away and humbled. This is the fourth award for this novel, a book I am very proud to share.

Also, Slipper is nominated in Metamorph Publishing Summer Indie Book Awards, Biography category. Voting is open to all for free. Vote once a day through Sept 11. There are oodles of other fabulous authors who crave your vote too. Please have a look here and don’t forget to vote for me in the Biography group! Thank you.

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 I promised you some information about the oral read-through on my current WIP (work in progress) and I will write about it. I’m going to wait one more week because Terri and I have one more meeting and then I’ll have some words of wisdom for you. So I didn’t forget, ok?__________________________________________________

Finally, here’s my Monday #pinyourpen. I’ll have this on my Facebook page and Twitter. Hope you’ll come out to Facebook and share yours too.

Thanks for stopping by! I hope your Labor Day is safe and shared with family and friends.

Until next time, I remain,
Yours Between the Lines,
Sherry

Today is Monday, August 21, 2017. A rare event will occur this afternoon, a total solar eclipse. And even more rare, the contiguous United States will be able to view this incredible event. There hasn’t been a coast to coast eclipse since June 8, 1918!

There are many kinds of an eclipse: total solar, partial (common), annular (most of us never know about these and you need special filters to even see it), and lunar (at night and most can see if weather permits). Of all these, the total solar eclipse is the most rare and most sought for viewing. 

This will be a once-in-a-lifetime event for nearly everyone.

Most folks have not had the opportunity to view a total solar eclipse. In the last 100 years, there have been only seven in the US and limited numbers of the population were included, and then, weather also impeded viewing. 

• 06/30/54 – Northern NE through western Michigan and some of Minneapolis
• 10/02/59 – Massachusetts only
• 02/20/63 – Central Fla, then hugged the coastline up through Virginia’s eastern shore
• 07/10/72 – North Alaska
• 02/26/79 – WA, OR, ID, MT, ND (many missed this because of rain/clouds)
• 07/11/99 – Hawaii and was clouded out

So, you ask, I’m not a scientist, what’s the big deal? The big deal is what it looks like, how nature reacts, to see darkness during the peak period of the day, to feel how air changes and how you change during the rare moment.

In the Dark, Middle, and Medieval Ages, an eclipse portended danger, deviltry, disaster, death, sickness — all things that were considered evil and scary. That’s because most did not understand the nature and the reason for the eclipse’s happening. 

Today we understand why an eclipse occurs and it is much less scary but there are moments during the eclipse that are still worth your attention. Animals will react differently. Birds will hush and roost. Day animals will seek cover and many night animals may emerge. Often wolves and dogs will howl. Some believe there will be significant shifts in the tides (though I cannot attest to this). And the sky will turn black. Crescent shadows will appear on the ground (worth taking pictures of). 

It is a moment when we can feel one with a universe and realize how small we are within the constantly shifting nature of it. This is an event you cannot stop, stall, or change. It does tend to make one feel a little bit small when you are out of control.

Everyone will be affected differently. Be sure to have your glasses and proper filters for cameras (and cell phones). Do not risk eye damage! Do not try to drive and watch. Do not drive with your eclipse glasses on. DO stop and appreciate the moment.

The actual eclipse will be about 2 minutes and 30 seconds. The rest of the time, the moon will be traveling across the sky and and gradually across the sun. All in all about 3 hours of the most incredible event ever. 

The next total solar eclipse will pass over Mexico, central US and Canada on April 8, 2024. And then we in the US will have another contiguous event on August 12, 2045 (see the map below).

If you are a writer, live the moment. Breathe the change in the air. Share the experience with others and see their reactions. Listen to nature as it reacts. Listen to humans as they pause their lives to experience the event. Be one of them standing still.

Whether you watch live, watch on TV, or decided to skip the moment, you are in the rare event. Record your place in it. Write it down. Find something to remember whether you watched or not.

And if you are a writer/author/journalist — use this memory, capture the emotions, discover something to use for memoirs, historical fiction, special feature reporting, short stories, speculative fiction — don’t let the moment eclipse your memories. Capture then and use them! Eclipses make wonderful fodder for foreshadowing, creepy murder mystery moments, horror stories, mad scientist motivations, feral shapeshifters, vampire emergence, noire-esque villainy, knights and oaths…it is food for every pen, everywhere. What you learn will be invaluable.

I’m going to enjoy this rare moment because I may not have any chance of one again. We have our viewing glasses and our flag and we’ll take a selfie to remember we were there (hubby and me). 

One last personal thought — think, for a few precious minutes, we will all be able to look up and see the same thing. We will be one under the heaven. I think that’s worth letting everything else be eclipsed for two minutes. See you under the sun.

Thanks for stopping by.
I remain, Yours Between the Lines,
Sherry