the shape of a story, and surprises
Dec. 17th, 2012 09:34 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
marycatelliSome times when you revise you discover surprises beside those that the gremlins left -- tearing up your deathless prose and turning it into something dead, leaden, and lifeless. Some times the story's shape is not what you half remembered.
Like, the ending events took up far less space that you remembered. This can be influenced by how you revise. I always find things that need to go in, and so the second draft ends up fatter. Comparing how far I got through the expanded version to how far I have to go in the still lean version is misleading.
It can still be surprising.
To be sure, it raises question of exactly how monstrously long this monster is going to turn out to be. . . .
Like, the ending events took up far less space that you remembered. This can be influenced by how you revise. I always find things that need to go in, and so the second draft ends up fatter. Comparing how far I got through the expanded version to how far I have to go in the still lean version is misleading.
It can still be surprising.
To be sure, it raises question of exactly how monstrously long this monster is going to turn out to be. . . .
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Date: 2012-12-21 03:56 am (UTC)Happy birthday, Ms. Catelli, and may the future bring you happiness and success, and may fortune smile upon all your ventures and works.
===|==============/ Keith DeHavelle
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Date: 2012-12-21 04:00 am (UTC)And thank you.