Tag: editing

It was a cold, bitter day.

“It was a cold, bitter day. Snow was beginning to fall as the wind whipped from all directions. It was the wind that Mox had always hated most; the way that it cut through his body like a knife through butter. Even through the surrounding trees, the wind continued to whirl. No place was safe….”

 

An excerpt from my recently published book in ‘The Kingdom’ series titled ‘Hidden City’. Follow Mox at the beginning of his quest. A journey of truth and discovery riddled with hard choices.

Check it out!

And hey, look out for my next post as I continue discussing the different aspects involved in writing, editing, and the publication process. As always, feel free to ask any questions!

Here’s the synopsis of my book and a link to the site for purchase. You may also check out my facebook page Cameron Kielb- Author for chances to win the book for free  🙂 Enjoy!

~Endless human conflict has ended the comfortable technological era known to man – cell phones and video games are a thing of the past. Taking its place is an age of magic, earthly power, and an unknown disease, ravishing humanity. As fear of the unknown, of contagion, and of magical power creates divides and pushes people into hiding, one man thinks he has answers.
Mox, being with magic, is one of the few and the feared. Raised and taught by a family friend, Mox has developed his powers and cunning to try and find a cure for the rapidly growing disease. He believes these answers can be found with the father who deserted him long ago as a small child.
In an effort to retrace his father’s steps, Mox stumbles upon The Hidden City. Tensions run high as the distrust between the magic and non-magic communities is at an all time high. The Hidden City, its residents, and the truth will test him and his powers, but in the end, he just has to keep moving forward.

 

Happy reading and writing!

~Cam

Steady Progress for Big Gains

Writing a story is no easy feat. No matter the length of the story, it is hard to stay committed to process. In fact, I could argue that one of the hardest parts of successfully completing a book is the discipline required to stick with it. How many times have you had a great idea for the next best seller only to leave a short synopsis or rough version of ‘chapter one’ collecting dust in your notebook or hard drive.

I realized quickly that it would be important not to fall into this pitfall of a mistake. I enjoy writing and creating stories too much to see them go to waste! So with that in mind I created a process and goal to keep myself accountable to. I’m here to share with you that process of what’s worked with me.

The details of everyone’s goal will be a little different depending on the project and time available to give, but I believe the single most important feature is setting up a word count goal. That is, what is the bare minimum amount of words that I want to add to my story. I do it weekly… I had tried daily for awhile but it proved to be unrealistic for someone who has a full time job. Perhaps a full-time writer has daily goals.

For me, my bottom line number is 5,000 words a week. This actually isn’t that much but that’s the point. It’s the minimum amount I want to give. So even on a busy as h@#L week, I know I’m still making movement on the story. Nothing kills progress and momentum faster than a complete hiatus from the story. This is because when you finally get back into writing- you first have to get caught back up with the details of what you’ve established. That two week reprieve now costs you three or four weeks! It also opens your story for holes in the plot.

I mostly exceed this goal and when I do, great! Even more gained. 🙂 but those extra words a week above 5,000 are not as important–for me– as consistently hitting my goal.

Try it out! Keep that word count high enough to push you a little throughout the week without overwhelming you into quitting. That’s a whole different mistake. I promise, if you keep chipping away at that story you’ll actually stay more involved with, and enjoy the story that’s running wild in your mind.

Happy Writing!

P.S> Here’s a link to my recently published book. 🙂

~Cam

So many characters!

This morning as I was working on my newest book, it struck me just how many characters are in a story. How do we as writers keep them all straight?

I’ve found it’s important to establish if a character is going to be important to the story or just playing a part in the scene. It’s important to make this distinction because it will help determine the level of detail needed in creating the character. A major mistake I ran into when I first started writing was feeling like I needed every character to be some well thought out character. It made it a NIGHTMARE keeping all of these details straight… and for what!? You’re just opening yourself up for holes in your story. Unnecessary.

Since this realization I have worked hard to keep character details to the pivotal players of the book. The ones that we will actually see growth in. All of the other characters you just describe as you see them and move on.

For all of my characters that ARE important and need details- I literally have detailed notes on these character. What do they look like? How do they act? What motivates them? What scares them? My notes are very concise and to the point though. I do not have pages on each character. Just enough to keep me consistent when I’m writing about the character. You better believe I have these notes with me while I write.

Try it out!

Do you have any ideas or techniques you use regarding character development?

Let me know!

Also check out my book – The Kingdom: Hidden City

Link- The Kingdom: Hidden City

It’s my first book I’ve written and published and I’m quite excited about it.

Happy Reading!

~Cam