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This post is a reference post for my convenience. It's taken from my large post on
rewriting from a few years back. With some additions that I've noticed crop up in my writing more recently. (The horror.)
When I get my novel to the point where I think it's finished I have a ritual of searching on the following words. These are all words I have a habit of overusing. I'm always sure that I will have learned my lesson, that with each finished novel I will find I've overused fewer words. But, um, I appear to be a very slow learner indeed. Spoiler: I always overuse the majority of them. *Sigh*
These are the offending words:
And
eyebrow (raise, lift)
eyes
glance
good
got
gotten
had
head
just
look
mouth (open, close)
nod
really
seem
shrug
sigh
slowly
smile
so
still
stood
suddenly
then
very
walk
---
None ...
Posted by Justine at 8:57, April 23rd, 2013 under Sydney novel, Words & Language, Writing life, Writing process |
It is now TEN WHOLE YEARS since I became a freelance writer.
I know, right? How did that happen? Ten years!
And one more time because truly my disbelief is high:
I HAVE BEEN A FULL-TIME, FREELANCE WRITER FOR TEN WHOLE YEARS.
I know it's also April Fool's day but I truly did begin this novel-writing career of mine on the 1st of April. What better day to do something so very foolish? Back in 2003, having sold only
one short story, I took the plunge.
The first year did not go AT ALL well, but since then it's mostly worked out.
Here is my traditional
anniversary post writing and publishing stats:
Books sold: 9: One non-fiction tome, two anthologies (one co-edited ...
Posted by Justine at 9:12, April 1st, 2013 under Freelance Anniversary, New York City/USA, Praising, Publishing business, Sydney novel, Sydney/Australia, Vainglory, Writing goals & milestones, Writing life |
One of the most insidious myths about writing is that of the Tormented Genius. ((Which is a myth that applies to all creativity but I'll focus on writing cause that's what I know best.)) I blame the Romantics: Byron, Wordsworth, Shelley, that lot. Who were all:
[i]f you have not suffered, if you have not had your soul embiggened by your torment and anguish and substance abuse---preferably opium, but, hey, alcohol will totally do in a pinch---then you cannot write a single soulful sentence! If you are neurotypical ((They totally would too have used that word. Also I'm not sure I've met anyone who is neurotypical.)) and have managed to live past forty? Totally not a proper writer! ((Not an actual ...
Posted by Justine at 15:44, February 11th, 2013 under Liar, Ranting, State of the World, Writing life |
In early March I will be at the
Adelaide Writers Week. Which is the oldest and most prestigey ((Yes, that's a real word. Shut up!)) writers festival in all of Australia.
I've never been before. Indeed, I've never done any events in Adelaide unless you count going to a friend's wedding. ((Which, no, I don't. It was a lot of fun, but. I love weddings! So much love! So many wonderful speeches about love! So many opportunities for it to all go horribly wrong! Especially at doomed weddings between those Who Should Not Marry. Someday I'm going to write a Doomed Wedding book. Though to be clear: the Adelaide wedding was not doomed. Um, I think I'm digressing.))
Here ...
Posted by Justine at 13:26, February 3rd, 2013 under Cons & Other Gatherings, Sydney/Australia, Travelling, Writing life, Young Adult literature |
A few days ago I tweeted this:
I am sick of people who've never read a romance or a YA novel casually dismissing the entire genres. Do some research, you tedious people.
It was in response to yet another casual dismissal of YA in the middle of a discussion about something else entirely. So often does this happen, particularly in regard to romance, that I scarcely even register it anymore.
I'm happy for people to hate whatever they want to hate. Go, for it. I mean, yes, I think it's kind of silly to dismiss an entire genre. All genres have good and bad and mediocre examples. Yes, including, Ye Mighty Literachure. I could give you a long list of literary ...
Posted by Justine at 11:09, January 17th, 2013 under Bloggery/Internetty Stuff, Ranting, Whingeing, Writing life |
If there's one thing I hope I have made clear in the ten years (!) I have been sharing writing advice here it's that there are as many different ways to write as there are writers. If some writing advice doesn't work for you, then ignore it, try something else.
Some writers plan, some writers wing it. Some writers compose their drafts in their head and only when they deem it to be perfect do they start typing words. Some writers do their first drafts with pen and paper (shudder). Some writers start at the end of their story and work backwards. ((I'd love to try that last one but as I never have any idea how my books are ...
Posted by Justine at 11:00, January 15th, 2013 under Writing life, Writing process |
This is
my annual post where I sum up what happened in my professional life for the year and look ahead to what's going to happen in 2013. I do this so I can have a handy record that I can get to in seconds. (Hence the
"last day of the year" category.)
Last year was not a happy year for me so you'll be pleased to hear that 2012 was lovely. There was some huge personal changes and they were all very very good indeed. What I'm really saying is this post contains no whingeing. Phew, eh?
Books Out This Year
This is the first since 2009 that ...
Posted by Justine at 19:12, December 31st, 2012 under 1930s NYC novel, Fairy Godmother Novel, Fans & readers, Garden, Last Day of the Year, Reading, Sydney novel, Team Human, Writing life |
My mate Diana Peterfreund had
an excellent post on some truly terrible publishing advice doing the rounds at the moment. In passing she mentions that "as someone who has now published with four NY publishers and the aforementioned small presses---every publisher does things a little differently."
I have not seen that pointed out very often. I've seen oodles of folk point to how writers all write differently. That there are as many ways to write a novel as there are novels. But in most discussions about publishing the assumption is that all publishers are the same. Or at least the only differences is between small presses and big presses. Between the Big Six ((Hachette; Georg von Holtzbrinck Publishing Group/Macmillan; ...
Posted by Justine at 8:05, September 25th, 2012 under Bloggery/Internetty Stuff, New York City/USA, Publishing business, Writing life |
My last post may have given the impression that I am not a fan of rewriting. So not true! I loves it.
For me the first draft is the least fun because I’m never quite sure I have a novel until there’s a complete draft. The Sekrit Project is the first solo novel I've finished since 2008 so finishing this year was a HUGE RELIEF. I honestly wasn't sure if I would. If I knew how to write novels anymore. That made the first draft---even the most fun times of writing it---stressful.
So no matter how unfun some parts of the rewriting process are I have none of that anxiety: because I have a manuscript. I mean, yes, it's a less ...
Posted by Justine at 8:34, September 14th, 2012 under Praising, Sydney novel, Vainglory, Writing life, Writing process |
Went for a long walk yesterday through Surry Hills, Darlinghurst, Paddington, Rushcutters Bay. It's spring here and almost everywhere smelt like jasmine. ((
Sorry, Margo, but it truly did.)) The sounds weren't quite as lovely. Spring seems to be the season of renovations in Paddington so the hills were alive with the sound of jackhammers. That and really pissed off birds. One of which shat right in front of me: had I been a fraction faster . . . splat of eww on my head. ((No, I don't care that it's meant to be good luck.))
Mostly I was thinking about Sekrit Project, which I've been rewriting since THE DAWN OF TIME and seems to be getting no closer to as ...
Posted by Justine at 12:25, September 13th, 2012 under Ideas, Listening, Praising, Sydney novel, Whingeing, Writing life, Writing process |
It is almost impossible to avoid writing work that can be read as racist. If you're writing about people, you're writing about identity, and a huge part of identity is race.
We are all seen through the lens of race. We all see through the lens of race. ((Yes, even if you think you don't see a person's race.)) Whether we're conscious of it or not. If you're a writer you really need to be conscious of it. Because if you don't think you are writing about race, you can wind up writing things visible to your readers that are not visible to you.
Often that is a not good thing.
When our work is accused of racism we writers tend to curl up into foetal position and get defensive: I AM NOT RACIST. I AM A GOOD PERSON. HOW CAN THEY SAY THAT?
First of all---no matter what the actual wording---it's our work that's being called racist, not us. The reviewer does not know us---only what we have written.
Secondly, we live in a racist, sexist, homophobic, transphobic, classist etc. world. The odds of none of that leaking in to our work is zero. No matter how good our intentions. Besides intentions don't count for much. If it's not there on the page how is any reader supposed to guess what was in your head? On the other hand, there is no way you can completely bulletproof your work against criticism. Nor should you want to. Criticism will make you a better writer.
Thirdly, it's not about us. It's about the reader/reviewer's life and experiences, about what they bring to the text in order to make meaning. This is how we all read and this is why we all have such different views of the same texts. It's why I think Moby Dick is the worst, most boring piece of crap I've ever endured and why many people, even some whose views I respect, ((Hello, Megan!)) think it is a work of genius.
We writers have to accept that despite due diligence, despite how careful we are, readers' responses to our work are exactly that: their responses. They will not always read our carefully crafted, thoughtful words the way we want them to. Sometimes they will find meanings in our work we did not intend them to find.
What follows is a discussion of how I have dealt with having my last solo novel, Liar, criticised for racism and transphobia. If you have not read Liar there are spoilers, though I have kept them to a minimum. But here's a cut anyway:
Posted by Justine at 7:40, September 5th, 2012 under Feminism, Liar, State of the World, Words & Language, Writing life, Writing process |
I write this from my perspective as someone who has published nine books and received many critical reviews.
I know that's obvious but I think it needs restating up front. I know what I'm talking about. People have loathed each one of my books with the fire of a thousand burning suns. People have wanted to throw them across the room, to burn them, to make sure they never get into the hands of impressionable teenagers, to remove them from library bookshelves, and have been bored into a coma by them.
I used to be really upset by negative responses now not so much. I was even upset by what is now my all-time favourite punter review: "Like a bad ...
Posted by Justine at 16:33, August 29th, 2012 under Bloggery/Internetty Stuff, Ironical (This is Writ), Writing life |
Recently I argued that the
best way to deal with a cranky author coming after you for writing a less-than-glowing review about their work was to delete the review but say why you had done so. My argument was that obscurity is the worst thing that can happen to an author. No reviews = no attention = no sales = no career. Bye, bye author.
Kat Kennedy (and others) responded in the comments (and on Twitter) to say that while she could understand responding that way she personally would not do it for three reasons: 1) She was proud of her reviews. 2) Some authors badgered reviewers into taking down their negative reviews. Why should they be given what ...
Posted by Justine at 8:01, August 24th, 2012 under Bloggery/Internetty Stuff, Fans & readers, Ranting, Writing life |
Lucy Says:
Hi Justine! Firstly, thank you for all your posts about writing novels and the basics; I’m a young writer and your blog has really helped someone so inexperienced!
I’m in high school in Sydney and if you grew up around here I assume you completed the HSC? Or an equivalent, if it’s more recent than I think. I was just wondering what subjects you chose. English is obviously essential for any student who wants to be a writer, but did you find any other subjects particularly helpful? Thanks!
Thanks for your kind words. So glad I've helped.
I would definitely advise doing some kind of tertiary study, be it at university, or some kind of trade school. Getting qualifications so you ...
Posted by Justine at 7:30, August 23rd, 2012 under Sydney/Australia, Writing life |
We've all seen A Star is Born, right?
Aspiring actress meets established alcoholic actor whose career is on the downward turn. He helps her get her break. They fall in love and get married. She gets more famous as he gets drunker and less famous. She tries to help him unalcoholify. ((Yes, that's a real word. Oh, hush.)) He fears that he is holding her back and goes for swim in the Pacific Ocean. A very long swim.
Moral: there can only be one! No marriage can support two actors or two writers or two artists or two anything that can lead to fame. THERE CAN ONLY BE ONE FAMOUS ONE IN A RELATIONSHIP! Otherwise there will be long non-returning swims ...
Posted by Justine at 7:31, August 22nd, 2012 under Ironical (This is Writ), Ranting, Viewing, Writing goals & milestones, Writing life |
Seems to me to be bleeding obvious that tweeting and facebooking and blogging and whatever other social media is the flavour du jour do not automatically equal vastly increased sales. Of any kind. But I'll talk about books that being what I am in the business of selling.
So I agree with
Nick Earls' post about how social media works for us author types. Except I don't have a cat and have never had a cat and will never have a cat. ((Apparently pets would not be down with the whole going back and forth between Sydney and New York City thing.))
Loads of authors are being told that they MUST tweet, blog, facebook, tumblr, whatever. Because if you ...
Posted by Justine at 7:19, August 17th, 2012 under Bloggery/Internetty Stuff, RSI, Writing life |
A friend of mine, a librarian and blogger and reviewer, has had a handful of authors attack her because she wrote what they considered to be bad reviews of their books. ((Mostly, of course, these were not bad reviews but more like three-star, has-some-good-points-has-some-bad-points kind of reviews.)) She did not enjoy it.
This is not an isolated incident. Reviewers have had authors dummy spit ((USians: look it up! You are online. You can find out the meaning of any unfamiliar word or phrase in heartbeat. Embrace this gorgeous future we live in.)) at them, sic their fans on them, and generally make them wonder why they're bothering to write reviews.
What can bloggers do when wrathful authors and their hordes descend up ...
Posted by Justine at 8:20, August 13th, 2012 under Bloggery/Internetty Stuff, Praising, Ranting, Writing life |
I don't know who first called it process porn but me and many of my friends like,
Gwenda Bond, call talking about how we write "process porn" and have done so for ages. ((Is it from that Pat Cadigan book where every obsession is called some kind of porn?)) There's something delicious about getting together with a bunch of writer friends and talking about how we dealt with this or that problem. "Once I realised the mc hates water the whole book opened up!" "The switch from third to first person was what nailed it." "Wrong pov. 30,000 words in and I realised it should be from the sister's not the brother's pov. Aargh!"
It feels wicked and indulgent ...
Posted by Justine at 7:13, August 9th, 2012 under Words & Language, Writing life, Writing process |
I have a writing problem which is shared by many writers: I struggle to get started.
I wrote about this problem a bit
way back in 2009 when I confessed to almost destroying my professional writing career before it even started. The first six months of being a full-time freelance writer was one great big procrastinatory guilt-ridden hell.
Since then I have reigned it in so that it's only a struggle at the beginning of a first draft.
For the first week or so on a new book it is a major effort for me to look away from whatever online or offline spectacle is calling to me in order to start typing. I'll have the open scrivener project with ...
Posted by Justine at 6:58, August 7th, 2012 under 1930s NYC novel, How To Ditch Your Fairy, Liar, Magic or Madness trilogy, New York City/USA, RSI, Research, Sydney novel, What to write next, Writing goals & milestones, Writing life, Writing process, Zombies |
Hmmm, I wonder if Holly Black would be interested in editing an anthology on that topic? It's almost as catchy as Zombies versus Unicorns. *cough*
@ronnidolorosa said that she'd "be really interested to read about your experiences in academia, and how it compares to being an author."
I was raised by two academics. Two lovely, smart, politically engaged and engaging, argumentative and enthusiastic academics. They both have PhDs. I kind of thought everyone got a PhD when they grew up. It's the main reason I have one. The majority of adults I knew when I was little were academics teaching and researching in universities around Australia and sometimes the world. I don't know when I first realised there were people in ...
Posted by Justine at 12:25, August 2nd, 2012 under Ironical (This is Writ), Publishing business, Writing life |
More than any other writers ((Except for those who write for children, obviously.)) we YA writers get grief over our subject matter. We are frequently told that we should not be writing about subjects such as sex, drugs, cutting, suicide, anorexia nervosa, etc. because our audience is vulnerable and easily swayed and it is our duty of care not to lead them down such scary paths.
Now, there are a tonne of smart, cogent ripostes to this argument. But I just want to say that we YA authors do not have a duty of care. It is not the job of YA writers to teach or guide teenagers. That is their parents' and guardians' job. Their teachers' and coaches' job. ...
Posted by Justine at 7:38, August 1st, 2012 under Writing life, Young Adult literature |
So here it is the final day of my blogging every day of July effort and I have succeeded! ((Weekends do not count. No one is online on Saturdays and Sundays. Scientific fact.)) And it was fun. So much fun that I'm going to keep on blogging. Not every day but at least once a week. Turns out I missed it way more than I realised. Missed you commenter types both here and on twitter. I think we had some really cool and interesting conversations over this month and I hope we'll have many more. *hugs blog* *hugs commenters* *cries*
I didn't do all the posts I promised I would. I know. I am badness. But I will do them. In ...
Posted by Justine at 11:57, July 31st, 2012 under Bloggery/Internetty Stuff, RSI, Sport, Sydney novel, Writing life |
Last week I very much meant to respond to Sam X's comment on my post about
becoming a brand versus writing what you want to write but last week was crazy busy. Plus I soon realised my thoughts were many and it was going to have to be its own post.
Here's part of what
Sam X said:
Still, I think there is a bit of a complication in what you wrote. “…whether you’re writing for yourself or writing as your job: write the books you want to write.” Writing as your job does require at least a token thought to the story’s marketability, and perhaps some changes to the overall story you’re telling so as to buttress that marketability–in ...
Posted by Justine at 7:41, July 30th, 2012 under Publishing business, Sydney novel, Writing goals & milestones, Writing life |
I'm not going to link to where I saw this particular bizarre notion. Mostly because it's not something that's found in one place. I've come across the same sentiment in various locations offline and on- over the last ten or so years. So it's kind of irrelevant who said it most recently.
But here's gist of the argument:
YA writers only do it for the money. They don't care about the effect their [insert negative adjective] work has on children only about making money.
I'm fascinated that this argument gets made at all ever. I don't know a single writer who became a writer to make money. Everyone I know is a writer because they can't not be a writer. It's a compulsion. ...
Posted by Justine at 8:25, July 27th, 2012 under Ranting, Writing life, Young Adult literature |
Yesterday I did my first school visits in Sydney. ((Actually, they were my first visits as an author to any school in Australia. That's because for the duration of my writing career I have mostly been in Australia during the summer when schools are not in session.)) I went to Willoughby Girls High and Ravenswood Girls School on the North Shore. ((Or as we inner city types think of it Here Be Dragons.)) I was dreading it as I always am when I have to speak in front of people I don't know. Why can't I stay home and write?! Waaah! I hate public speaking! I hate school visits! Etc.
But then, as always, I got to Willoughby Girls High ...
Posted by Justine at 8:16, July 26th, 2012 under Book tour, Cons & Other Gatherings, Praising, Sydney/Australia, Writing life |
Posted by Justine at 5:21, July 20th, 2012 under Words & Language, Writing life, Writing process |
Yesterday, as I predicted, I finished the first draft of my sekrit project novel. And there was rejoicing throughout the Hills of Surry. ((As in Surry Hills in Sydney. Not the hills of any other Surry around the world. I hear there other ones.)) Well, at least throughout my little corner of it.
It's the first solo novel I've written since Liar which I finished lo those many years ago in 2008. I shall admit that given the RSI and other injuries and annoyances I had begun to wonder if I was ever going to finish another solo novel again. Had I lost my mojo? Would I have to do collaborations for the rest of my career? ((Not that there's ...
Posted by Justine at 7:49, July 17th, 2012 under Sydney novel, Writing goals & milestones, Writing life |
Since so many of you have kindly inquired about how I'm doing ((I appreciate it. Thank you. It really makes a difference to know that I'm not alone with this.)) I figured best to answer you all in a post. Also Sarah Zarr recently posted
about her own trials and tribulations, which reminded me yet again of how common these injuries are.
Yes, I am still dealing with pain. My RSI ((Repetitive strain injury. Basically RSI describes a whole host of different conditions that are caused by a repetitive action such as typing. But many others get RSI too: house painters, factory workers etc. etc.)) has not improved, but it has not gotten worse, and I have learned to manage ...
Posted by Justine at 10:18, July 16th, 2012 under Admin, RSI, Sydney novel, Whingeing, Writing life |
I've had several folks respond to the discussion of
bad reviews and bad books pretty much as Trudi Canavan did in the comments:
"I stop reading. Life is too short for bad books."
To which I can only respond, well, yes, obviously. One of the great pleasures, for me anyway, of being an adult is finally realising I am under no moral compulsion to finish every book I start. I can put boring books down! I can walk away from bad books without being sullied by reading the whole thing! Oh happy day!
On the other hand---and I know this is not just me---sometimes I really enjoy reading a bad book. It has to be a particular kind of bad. ...
Posted by Justine at 6:34, July 12th, 2012 under Bloggery/Internetty Stuff, Reading, Words & Language, Writing life, Writing process |
In the comments on Writers and Editors,
Sarah Dollard delivered a fascinating treatise on how TV scripts are produced and what a script doctor does. I could not let be lost in the comments so here it has its own post. Take it away, Sarah:
As requested, here's a rundown of how the process differs in television.
The job of the TV script editor can vary wildly from show to show, genre to genre, country to country. I can only speak about working on soap in Australia, and on numerous dramas here in the UK, as both writer and a script editor. From my limited understanding of the system in the US, things seem very different there; they don’t strictly have ...
Posted by Justine at 8:06, July 11th, 2012 under Guest post, Writing life, Writing process |
Last month I got into a discussion on twitter---inspired by this
Jennifer Crusie post---about the extent to which an editor can rewrite their authors. Crusie thinks NOT AT ALL and I completely agree and said so, which led to a back and forth with a good editor friend of mine,
Juliet Ulman, who said she rewrites her authors. I happen to know many authors who've been edited by Juliet and love her editorial style ((I had my editor submit my one adult novel to Juliet because I'd heard such good things. It didn't work out but I mention this because I want to make it clear how much I esteem Juliet's editorial acumen.)) and it became clear to ...
Posted by Justine at 0:22, July 10th, 2012 under Publishing business, Ranting, Team Human, Writing life, Writing process |
Recently on Twitter I mentioned having read the first chapter of A Very Bad Book. As usual people asked that I name it. As usual I did not.
I don't name books I hate, or authors I think are talentless, ((Unless they're dead. YOU SUCK HENRY MILLER! Every single thing you ever wrote was the crappiest, most self-indulgent, most misogynist filth ever written. Moby Dick is the most boring pile of poo ever published! Though I am fond of Melville's short stories. If only he had stuck to that length.)) for lots of reasons. The main one I give is that as an author it's hard to do so without looking jealous if your target is more successful than you are, ...
Posted by Justine at 6:40, July 3rd, 2012 under Excuses, Ranting, Reading, Words & Language, Writing life |
StreetAngel has done it again. In fact, she is producing a
whole week's worth of fanart to celebrate Team Human landing on 2-3 July. ((Depending on whether you're in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, or the USA. I have heard rumours that some copies have already been sighted in the wild.))
I am beside myself. These are so lovely and full of so many details from the books and oh! I know, I know, I am very daggy about fan art. It's just
so new for me to have any.
I have placed the art below the cut because I know some of you want no spoilers no matter how tiny. For the rest of you---feast your eyes!
Posted by Justine at 9:05, June 29th, 2012 under Fan art, Fans & readers, Praising, Team Human, Writing life |
I have decided to put this here voice recognition software to the test in the month of July by blogging every day. ((Except weekends. Cause, come on, no one is on the intramanets on the weekend. Scientific fact.)) Yes, I will blog every single day of July 2012.
Tell Me What To Blog
If there's anything you would like me to blog about please let me know! The comments are below in the manner of most blogs. ((I thought about having them above but my web designer said no.))
I've had a few suggestions on Twitter:
@SirTessa wants me to write a complete post without correcting any of the voice recognition software mistakes. I WILL DEFINITELY DO THAT.
@WanderinDreamr wants me to ...
Posted by Justine at 22:37, June 12th, 2012 under Bloggery/Internetty Stuff, Fashion, State of the World, Team Human, Whingeing, Writing life, Writing process |
Since a few of you expressed mild interest in the speech I gave at
Sirens in October last year I thought I would share it with you. The theme was monsters and my speech involved me showing many monstrous images. Yes, that's my disclaimer, I wrote this to be spoken to a real life audience with funny pictures and the funny may not work so well without the kind and appreciative live audience. Or something. *cough*
Here it is:
Monsters I Have Loved
Ideas = Brain Monkeys According to Maureen Johnson
Like every other writer ever I get asked “where do you get your ideas” a lot. Today I thought instead of answering that question in the ...
Posted by Justine at 7:02, May 31st, 2012 under Cons & Other Gatherings, Fans & readers, Feminism, Ideas, Ironical (This is Writ), Listening, New York City/USA, Praising, Ranting, Reading, State of the World, Sydney/Australia, Travelling, Viewing, Writing life, Writing process |
Cassandra Clare has written an important piece called
Rape Myths, Rape Culture and the Damage Done. If you haven't read it already you really should. Be warned: she discusses much which is deeply upsetting.
What I want to briefly comment on here is the notion that to write about rape or war or any other terrible thing is to automatically condone it. Cassie writes:
[T]he most important point to be made here is that to depict something is not to condone it. This is a mistake that is made all the time by people who you would think would know better. Megan Cox Gurdon in the Wall Street Journal,
for instance, excoriated YA books for being too dark, zoning in ...
Posted by Justine at 13:27, May 22nd, 2012 under Bloggery/Internetty Stuff, Feminism, Praising, Ranting, Writing life, Young Adult literature |
To my friends, acquaintances & family: you do not have to read my books! Truly. My being a writer is not meant to oppress you in any way! Read what you want or don't want. Forget I write books at all! Be free!
Okay, scratch that, family, you do have to! But everyone else is in the clear.
Reading an entire book is a big time commitment. And the older you get the more painfully aware you become that you are not going to be able to read all the books you want to before you die. It's a very long time since I finished a book I wasn't enjoying. If it's not grabbing me within a page or two then we ...
Posted by Justine at 12:40, May 10th, 2012 under Excuses, Frippery, Ranting, Whingeing, Writing life |
Below is a story that I wrote in my late teens. I remember the day I finished it. I was so full of joy and pride in my genius. It was the best story I had ever written. (True fact. I was rubbish back then.) Maybe even the best story anyone had ever written!
Posted by Justine at 8:08, April 26th, 2012 under Team Human, Words & Language, Writing life, Writing process |
. . . I finish a whole manuscript.
. . . I learn how to rewrite that whole manuscript.
. . . I get five/ten/fifteen/one hundred/etc rejection letters from real-life agents.
. . . I knuckle down and rewrite the book again. And again. And again. Etc.
. . . I get a request for the whole manuscript from a real-life agent.
. . . I get an agent.
. . . I get five rejections from publishers.
. . . I get ten rejections from publishers. (Would you believe twenty rejections? How about thirty? One hundred? One thousand? One million?)
. . . I start writing my second/third/fourth/fifth/etc book despite the fact that the first/second/third/fourth etc book hasn't sold yet.
. . . I get an offer from ...
Posted by Justine at 11:57, March 27th, 2012 under Frippery, Ironical (This is Writ), Publishing business, Writing goals & milestones, Writing life |
Every time I mention
my RSI people suggest that I use voice recognition software. I do use it. And though I hate it I know that it has transformed gazillions of people's lives. There are people who literally could not write without it. For them VRS is a wonderful transformative thing. Bless, voice recognition software!
I am well aware that what VRS is trying to do is unbelievably complicated. Recognising spoken language and reproducing it as written language is crazy hard. ((Very few humans are one hundred per cent accurate at the task. Even court reporters make occasional mistakes.)) The way we make sense of what someone says is not just about recognising sounds. We humans (and other sentient beings) ...
Posted by Justine at 8:42, February 17th, 2012 under RSI, Ranting, Whingeing, Words & Language, Writing life, Writing process |
This is
my annual post where I sum up what happened in my professional life in that year and look ahead to what's going to happen in 2012. I do this so I can have a handy record that I can get to in seconds. (Hence the "last day of the year" tag.)
This was not a fabulous year for me but it was a whole lot worse for so many other people around the world that whingeing would be tacky. I'll focus on the good:
Finally, finally, finally we were able to announce,
Sarah Rees Brennan and I, that we wrote a book together, Team Human, ...
Posted by Justine at 11:02, December 31st, 2011 under 1930s NYC novel, Food, Garden, Last Day of the Year, Praising, RSI, Team Human, Whingeing, Writing goals & milestones, Writing life, Writing process, Zombies v Unicorns |
I have very exciting NEWS!
I wrote a book! The book is sold! It will be out early next year!
Even more exciting and this is the best part: I DID NOT WRITE THIS BOOK ALONE.
I wrote it with
Sarah Rees Brennan, who is not only a wonderful friend, but one of my favourite writers.
The book is called Team Human. It will be published by Allen & Unwin in Australia and Harper Collins in North America and will be out 3 July 2012.
And here is the cover, which totally proves this is all real:
(We got to sit in on the photo shoot for it. Fancy, huh?)
Writing Team Human was the ...
Posted by Justine at 3:22, September 17th, 2011 under Team Human, Writing life, Writing process |
Yesterday's post on
my lack of love for voice recognition software seems to have left some with the impression that I'm doing badly. Not so!
There are many people with RSI or other injuries like carpal tunnel much worse affected then I am. There are some who can no longer hold anything, let alone a pen. My RSI doesn't impinge on many activities other than writing. Also I have the resources to get the help I need (physiotherapy etc) to manage my condition. I'm extremely lucky.
I am, in fact, in the best shape of my life. Strengthening my core muscles and shoulder girdle (boxing is excellent for that as one of the commenters yesterday noted) has helped a great ...
Posted by Justine at 7:31, August 13th, 2011 under 1930s NYC novel, Bloggery/Internetty Stuff, RSI, Whingeing, Writing life |
Okay, I totally shouldn't be writing this. But
Janni Lee Simner issued a call for authors to say that it's okay to give us bad reviews. I want to add my voice to those saying, "Go forth and shred our books into tiny pieces." ((If you hate them that is. Feel free to praise should you want to. Feel free to meh them also. Whatever you want!))
You do not have to be nice about a book you hate.
However, I also want to say that it's not our place to say so. Reviews are not for authors. They're not even about authors. You do not need our permission to write about our books. Because once they're published they cease to ...
Posted by Justine at 18:54, March 6th, 2011 under Magic or Madness trilogy, Reading, Writing life, Young Adult literature |
Holly Black recently posted on the subject of the so-called
YA Mafia, which apparently is a "cabal of writers who give one other blurbs, do events with one another, and like each other's books." Also if you cross them they can ruin your career.
In her post Holly said such a cabal does not exist. I suspect she's right. Certainly none of the YA writers I know are involved in such a group. However, there are many YA authors I don't know. Could be a few of them plot darkly together. Who knows?
Thing is plotting ain't doing. As Holly points out, YA authors do not have that power. I have recommended twenty or more of my writer friends to my ...
Posted by Justine at 18:32, March 3rd, 2011 under Bloggery/Internetty Stuff, RSI, Writing life, Young Adult literature |
This is
my annual post where I sum up what happened in my professional life in that year and look ahead to what's going to happen in 2011. I do this so I can have a handy record that I can get to in seconds. (Hence the "last day of the year" tag.)
For reasons I'll explain in more detail below (but are mostly I was not online much) 2010 was ridiculously productive for me. I now have more than 100,000 words of my 1930s novel. Most of it written this year. And I declare those words to be good. ((I'm sure when I re-read them I'll be less thrilled but right now I think they're fabulous. I'll ...
Posted by Justine at 13:06, December 31st, 2010 under 1930s NYC novel, Admin, Cricket, Excuses, Last Day of the Year, Liar, Publishing business, RSI, Writing life, Zombies v Unicorns |
Due to
boring circumstances beyond my control, I will not be online much for awhile. Fortunately I’ve been able to line up a number of stellar guests to fill in for me. Most are writers, but I also thought it would be fun to get some publishing types to explain what it is they do, teach you some more about the industry, and answer your questions, as well as one or two bloggers.
I do not know
Bernice McFadden, but when she wrote to me about possibly doing an exchange of blog posts, I decided to invite her to guest post here because I have been hearing wonderful things about Sugar for years, and because her story is both ...
Posted by Justine at 11:38, April 28th, 2010 under Guest post, Publishing business, Writing life |
Last night Scott read to me
Mark Twain's essay on Deerslayer by James Fenimore Cooper. I'm sure most of you are familiar with it but I was not. Dear readers, I laughed. A lot.
Mr Twain, it seems, was unfond of Cooper's writing. In one of the bits that made me laugh the hardest, Twain sets out the "nineteen rules governing literary art in the domain of romantic fiction," and exactly how Cooper violated them. The fifth of these rules requires that
when the personages of a tale deal in conversation, the talk shall sound like human talk, and be talk such as human beings would be likely to talk in the given circumstances, and have a discoverable meaning, also a ...
Posted by Justine at 8:21, April 21st, 2010 under Fashion, Reading, Writing life |
Due to
boring circumstances beyond my control, I will not be online much for awhile. Fortunately I’ve been able to line up a number of stellar guests to fill in for me. Most are writers, but I also thought it would be fun to get some publishing types to explain what it is they do, teach you some more about the industry, and answer your questions, as well as one or two bloggers.
Margo Lanagan is probably the award winningest Australian YA writer of all time. She deserves every single one. When I'm asked who I think the best living YA writer is, which is a really dreadful question given how many wonderful ones there are and how I ...
Posted by Justine at 12:04, April 19th, 2010 under Guest post, Sydney/Australia, Writing life, Writing process |
Tessa Kum is a wonderful writer. She does not write full-time. She has not had any novels published. Like the vast majority of writers she finds time to write at the edges of her paying job. She knows, however, many career writers and sometimes
winds up in conversations where they tell her what a real writer is:
Various people at WFC (World Fantasy Convention) told me what it is necessary to achieve in order to be a 'writer'. You must make this amount of money per year from your writing, or you must sell this many stories, or you must be able to live solely from your earnings as a writer. Most of these people shot me down ...
Posted by Justine at 18:29, March 22nd, 2010 under Bloggery/Internetty Stuff, Publishing business, RSI, Writing goals & milestones, Writing life |
