Morning Pages: Wildcat

Welcome to Morning Pages — it’s time for a monthly roundup. I hope you have your pencils sharpened and ready to write. Want to join in on the fun? Pick a prompt, set your timer* and get ready to let the words flow. Feel free to post the results of your work in the comments below where we chat about writing and (if the mood strikes us) get a craft discussion going.

If you want critique from other commenters, use #YESTHANKS in your comment. Otherwise, you can tell us about your flash fic and the process you went through to write it. And of course, I’m always open to hear what you think about my excerpts! You can follow the links below to find them on Patreon (but please bear in mind: I post MPs as-is without any polishing).

*you can write for as long as you want, but most folks choose 15-30 minutes.

What I learned this month: SO MUCH, friends.

I’m currently taking two classes on editing fiction: one at the developmental level, one for line-editing. Though I already had an experienced editorial eye for substantive (ie: dev) edits, line editing I’ve largely picked up by reading/talking to other writers.

The line editing class has helped me build out my theoretical knowledge of style and voice — so helpful! It’s also validating to have a pro editor with 10+ years in business going through my edits line by line and affirming that I do, in fact, know what I’m doing — even if I’m still learning the language to describe why.

My dev editing class has been helpful mostly on the process/business end. I’ve been doing manuscript critiques for years and studying craft for longer, so I’ve focused mostly on honing my editorial voice and creating systems for myself to ensure my editing is thorough, professional, and time-efficient. It’s also been a lot of fun to learn about the business of editing from my teacher!

All of this makes me very curious about other writers’ editing processes. I’d love to hear about yours. Hop down to the discussion questions, and let’s chat in the comments!

The Prompts:

“Write a text-only or dialogue-only story between two or more characters.”

Texts from the President: an Oceana ‘verse AU.

“I wouldn’t mess with him, if I were you.”

Cyprian Cavish from Deathmark gets warned about Jael Soti. Does he listen? Of course not.

“One of your characters is getting ready for a party. What do they wear?”

Jael from Deathmark has an eye for fashion.

“Catastrophic climate change makes the oceans rise until there’s almost no dry land left. The haves are those who keep command over it. Everyone else takes to the sea. How do people live?”

“Nessie.” A tug captain living and working on a floating island starts to notice something strange in the water…

Get Involved!

Answer the prompts or dive straight in and respond to others’ comments — let’s share our knowledge, our experience, and have a discussion we can all learn from! Don’t want to miss a post? Subscribe to the blog in the sidebar to get notified about new posts.

Today’s questions:

• How do you edit your books? (Beta readers, self-editing, pro editor, etc.)
• If you self-edit, what’s your process?

Looking for more writing? Become a Patron!

In addition to flash fiction, my Patreon hosts full-length novels, artwork, behind-the-scenes worldbuilding, and more. Click below to check out the tiers I offer and support the blog!