Contractions

It's been so long since I have blogged! However, I have a viable excuse. Would you like to hear it? .......Of course you do. As some may know, I am a student and it takes a lot of work to juggle writing, classes, and blogging. So to make my life easier, I stopped blogging for a bit, but now I'm back and ready for the summer. I really need a break from college life.

Anywho...

A few updates... I have paused writing Neacel and Jess' story to focus on my original WIP for Aiden and Elle. I have to be fair. They were here first.

I tanked the last version of their story (I've had about five different ones) and am currently working with a combination of the ones I have. It has made it much better to my surprise. (Why didn't I think of this two years ago?) I am a solid 8K into the new draft. ^_^

Now on to today's topic....

I speak for myself when I say contractions are a part of everyday speech, unless I'm writing a term paper where it is informal to write that way.

Since I write YA, I try to stick with how I remember teens speaking when I was growing up. (I'm only 19 heh) No one spoke "properly" because that was considered lame. Plus contractions are just more fun.

But when does it get to the point where you are using too many contractions in your work?

I have lost count how many contractions I have used thus far in my current WIP. I don't know whether to think this is good or bad.

My female lead, since it is in 1st person, constantly speaks in contractions. The gods, Greek mythology, never speak in contractions. Did I do that on purpose? Yes. I want to differentiate between the older and the younger, but when does it become too much.

I'm trying to keep a fine line between going overboard, but I don't want to change my lead's voice, but I also don't want it to become distracting for the reader.

What are your thoughts on contractions in YA?

-AshMash

Oh and for your viewing pleasure....

(Google)

Writer's Block

Have you ever been writing and realized that you're just...stuck..

Sort of like this...

 (Google)

I've been suffering from this for a while now. (ANother reason I haven't posted much. Sorry!) But I've learned a way to resolve this.

 (Google)

When I realize that I'm suffering from Writer's Block. I rewrite the entire chapter that I'm working on. I know what you're thinking. Why am I going backwards?

A) Though I don't realize it, my muse is telling me that something is off with what I've written and I'm unable to continue.

Solution: If I rewrite what I've already written then perhaps I can find where I went wrong and correct it. It does help I must admit. After I correct the problem, even if it's just one word, I am able to continue until, again, I make another mistake.

Sometimes, it's not always the entire chapter that is awry. It may be just a scene, but I can only rewrite this way if I know exactly what the problem is. (75% of the time, I don't.)

I didn't use to do it this way though. Before, I wrote a scene that popped in my mind no matter the place in the manuscript. For example, I would be writing chapter 1 and when I couldn't write anymore, I began on chapter 27. 

Though this was successful for a spell, eventually I just had bits and pieces of a story that didn't always come together. I even tried to just write pieces to go in between what I written, but in the end I had a very sketchy manuscript.

Result??? Trashed.

I'm not saying that my new way will work for everyone, but I do think it's a productive way of finishing a chapter without having bits and pieces missing.

Do you have a specific way you get through writer's block?? If so, leave me a line below.

Thanks for reading,

-AshMash