Sarah Joseph

Writer sharing the raw process of writing short form articles, crafting novels, and juggling work with passion projects from none to done.

[Sarah Joseph @HelloSarahJoe]

While waiting for feedback from my beta readers, I’ve been experimenting with writing some short canon prequel scenes to my upcoming medieval low fantasy debut. You may start to see some of these scenes floating by starring my main or secondary characters. 😁

One benefit of these writing exercises is that I’m getting to know my characters even better since I’m exploring their thoughts and feelings and hardships before the book even starts.

[Sarah Joseph @HelloSarahJoe]

Editing your manuscript is one of the toughest things a writer does. As someone who is also in the trenches, I wish you the best.

I find that having a system with checklists and routine really helps. Ticking things off a list gives me those small “wins” that keep motivation high.

I also like to make sure that I take time to step away and do something tangible in the real world. Work out. Make a pot of tea. Sounds like bike riding is your thing but maybe you need something else if you’re still feeling burnt out.

Ideally, you want to tackle each chapter by dividing it into small, achievable goals. That way you can reduce the psychological load.

Hope this helps.

[Sarah Joseph @HelloSarahJoe]

@ReadsDesi I want to deepen the internal conflict because this chapter is leading up to an irreversible choice. Each way has its own downfalls, so he has to pick the choice he thinks will have the least damaging impact. Then, in a later chapter, he’ll need to live with the fallout.

[Sarah Joseph @HelloSarahJoe]

Today I’m starting developmental edits for chapter 10 of my debut low fantasy novel.

This chapter is interesting because I’ve been rearranging a few of the scenes with ones from chapter 12. This means that I have a lot of transition smoothing ahead of me to make sure that each scene fits in its new spot. However, that’s not it.

Both chapters 10 and 12 currently need some rewrites because they’ve got potential to keep raising the stakes in different ways to help us understand why my male lead can’t act on his impulses right away (which will us some glorious tension), but they aren’t quite there yet.

Right now, the first draft is bare bones, but with a little time I’m hoping to make it someone’s favorite chapter in my book.

[Sarah Joseph @HelloSarahJoe]

I’m on to editing chapter 10 of my debut novel!

But before I let chapter 9 go, I was curious about the final word count.

Holy smokes, this chapter went from 6,500 words down to 4,600. This is probably the largest cut I’ve made so far and it was so worth it.

Some of that word count has been shifted around to another chapter that needs some beefing up, but I was able to delete a good chunk of it.

Now, I’m left with a chapter that I feel really good about.

[Sarah Joseph @HelloSarahJoe]

@pensandpoison This is so painful to read.

[Sarah Joseph @HelloSarahJoe]

@Daniel_Goene I hope so! Editing is hard, but the end product is so rewarding that it’s worth it. I love that feeling at the end of a great chapter edit.

In the words of Shakespeare, “Too light the winning makes the prize light.”

Right now the prize seems pretty heavy 😂

[Sarah Joseph @HelloSarahJoe]

@AlyssaMatesic There’s a lot of freedom in having your first draft be messy. As someone who recently finished on and am currently about a quarter way through my second draft, nothing has been more fun than taking a first draft and making it sparkle.

[Sarah Joseph @HelloSarahJoe]

Today I’m hopefully finishing up chapter 9 of my second draft. This chapter needed significant rewrites, and I brought the word count down from 6,500 to 5,100. Still a chunky chapter and I’m hoping to make things more concise before I move on.

The real problem I’m seeing is that I have a lot of detail and some of it is a bit overwhelming. While it’s “cool to know,” some of it doesn’t really suit the primary message of the chapter so the reader is left wondering what’s important.

Hopefully I’ll be able to find more appropriate places for it all.

[Sarah Joseph @HelloSarahJoe]

When I first started writing my novel, I had no idea who I wanted the villain to be. I had three different options, and since the identity of the villain is hidden for the majority of the book, this means that for draft one, there’s really no real way to predict the big reveal since I didn’t know it myself.

This intrigue is one thing I’m trying to preserve as I revise my manuscript for draft two.

[Sarah Joseph @HelloSarahJoe]

@ReadsDesi I didn’t know who I wanted the villain to be in the first draft, so by the time I got to the end, I figured it out. Now it’s just a matter of foreshadowing and planting false leads as I go through the manuscript. So far so good!

[Sarah Joseph @HelloSarahJoe]

Starting draft 2 edits for chapter 9 of my novel!

This chapter is a bit wonkier than some of the others because I wrote it with a different book ending in mind. Because of that, it needs some significant rewrites.

While I’ll need to change much of the chapter, I’m glad that I plowed forward and wrote it. If you’re writing your first draft, don’t worry about making it perfect right now. The magic will all happen later!

[Sarah Joseph @HelloSarahJoe]

@ReadsDesi Mostly who the villain is 😂

[Sarah Joseph @HelloSarahJoe]

@Frances_H_Denny I write every single day. Even if it’s just two sentences, it’s more than what I had yesterday!

My two sentences rule often just gets me started. It’s a way to gaslight myself to just continue and write more. Oftentimes getting started is the hardest part.

[Sarah Joseph @HelloSarahJoe]

Grounding dialogue is challenging but fun at the same time. Here’s how I do it:

1. Play with the setting, whether that’s the weather or the room itself

2. Figure out what body language or physical world interactions could reveal something beyond what is being said in dialogue

3. Cut every detail that doesn’t have a purpose

[Sarah Joseph @HelloSarahJoe]

@itsdylanmercer Yes, 100%! I sometimes use a text to speech software too. I love audiobooks, so if it sounds clunky then it goes on the rewrites list. I should read my stuff out loud more often though. Great tip!

[Sarah Joseph @HelloSarahJoe]

I took Psychology on a whim in college. It was supposed to just be a filler elective, but it actually was more useful to me in my writing career than my English classes.

[Sarah Joseph @HelloSarahJoe]

As a low fantasy author, magic isn’t something I enjoy unless it’s done well and in an interesting way and has clear rules. If it at all feels like “wave a wand and your problems are solved,” I’m out.

I’ve only read one book from Brandon Sanderson (Mistborn), but I have to say that allomancy really works for me. The rules make sense and are specific, and it’s such a unique idea that it grabs your attention. I loved seeing the creativity.

[Sarah Joseph @HelloSarahJoe]

@marrissaa_quin Yes, vaguely. I’m a pantser turned plotter-ish so I’ve got a loose outline. But I like to outline in acts so it’s not super detailed yet.

[Sarah Joseph @HelloSarahJoe]

@Daniel_Goene Ooh that sounds like a great exercise. I’m imagining the wife bracing her palms against the kitchen counter, shifting her weight from foot to foot while the husband refuses to acknowledge her existence. Great scenario for exploring silent communication.

[Sarah Joseph @HelloSarahJoe]

Today I’ve been working on a challenging scene. My main character is oblivious to the feelings of another, but I want to write the scene in a way where the reader can pick up on the truth if they are paying attention.

Here’s my strategy:

1. Ground the dialogue into the setting.

2. Have the other character interact with items in the room in a way that shows what they are feeling.

3. Keep my main character distracted.