To celebrate 13 weeks of winter, Winterviews is conducting interviews with various book and author communities across the internet. Once a week, we’ll interview a new community to find out what makes that community great.
Join us on the hashtag #13Winterviews, or join in the fun with tonight’s community spotlight #RewriteItClub on twitter! Without further ado, lets get down to the interview!
Can you tell us a little bit about #RewriteItClub?
#RewriteItClub is a weekly chat, and now blog series, about revisions and digging into your story to find the “why” behind the heart of your book. We look at the deep dive edits as well as the surface items. There are so many resources for line editing, filter words, drafting your story, etc. we wanted to provide something different, something a little more difficult to find help with.
K.J. Harrowick and I were talking one day about how we wish there were more community resources for the deep dive, developmental edits. There are multiple chats and outlets for writing your first draft or cleaning up your manuscript to get it query ready, but little about really digging in deep. We wanted to talk to other writers about the “why” of their stories and how they edit/develop their story after discovering the why. We became obsessed with this question and how it pertains to our own stories and the ones we read and critique, which is what sparked the idea of a #RewriteItClub : a water cooler space where writers can talk and work together to hammer down those large revisions.
What is unique about #RewriteItClub?
Our chats and topics make you think about your story. We skip most of the surface items and ask questions that make you consider your story, characters, world, etc. Not all of the questions we asked can be answered immediately. Most of them you may need to take time and consider how you would answer for your story. There is rarely one right answer since we all have different ways that work for us. But our goal is to help you see where you can beef up your characters, or trim down the world building, fill in a plot hole, and find the diamond in the lump of coal (okay so diamonds come from carbon, but the analogy doesn’t work as well that way).
In what way has being apart of #RewriteItClub made you a stronger professional?
I’ve gained so much knowledge from the #RewriteItClub. It’s been incredible to see how other writers navigate the same treacherous editing waters. As a professional I’ve been able to take these things and weave them into my own stories. I feel like writing has become less of a hobby that I hope to one day make a career and more of a career path with a solid plan to follow.
What one tip did you learn from #RewriteItClub?
I’ve learned various ways of plotting and identifying plot holes from the community. One community member taught me a way of plotting using stickie notes and note cards. It really helps anyone who is a visual person to see where you are weak in some chapters and strong in others.
Any advice or quote you live by?
Be patient. Being an author is not a sprint, it is a marathon and if you aren’t prepared for that it’s going to be that much harder to get where you want to be.
Hosting Authors
Jen Davenport & K. J. Harrowick
