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Lost Wanderer said in January 26th, 2010 at 4:24 am

Oh my god, this is so amazing. Now I will have to take Margie’s class. Can’t resist anymore. Thanks Shonna for doing the excellent host author event.

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Lost Wanderer said in January 26th, 2010 at 4:43 am

I pick Option 1

The character’s emotions made me instantly sympathize with her, and the example she uses are so everyday – moving out of a home, losing virginity, that they have universal identification.

It’s also hooked me, and I want to read more to find out what door is that, and what will happen when she opens it. What doesn’t she want to do? Since she mentioned being a police officer, it also makes me wonder if she is at a suspect’s house, and suddenly has an instinct of danger. So again, I want to read more to find out if I am right.

The cadence is beautiful. Sentences move in a rhythm that makes me feel what the character is feeling. I empathize with her, and I think that’s what Tana did perfectly. Her writing connected a reader to her world.

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Amy Deardon said in January 26th, 2010 at 5:52 am

I’m breathless with the depth of the editing process. Thank you Margie for your insight!

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Jenna Victoria said in January 26th, 2010 at 6:41 am

Wow, Margie — along with all my notes from your Defeating Self Defeating Behavior lectures, this post is a keeper! It has come at a perfect time, as I deep dive into my own manuscript (which is finally getting additional chapters after five YEARS of stalling)… you truly are an empowering teacher!
Beth writing as Jenna Victoria
luncheonchair@gmail.com

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mcrowley41 said in January 26th, 2010 at 6:48 am

As always Margie, your suggestions are so amazing helpful. Must go edit!

margaret

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Cindy said in January 26th, 2010 at 7:08 am

I’m hoping to start edits soon and this checklist is awesome. Revising will take a while so I can apply the empowering character emotion stuff I learned last year. Can’t wait for the Deep Editing workshop. I’ve heard raves about it, and I think I really need it.

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Courtney Powell said in January 26th, 2010 at 8:45 am

Hi Margie!

I have printed this so I can post at my desk and be in my face and am also taging a copy on my thumb drive that I take with me everywhere for when I have some extra time to work on my MS.

I want to read this every day before I review/revise what I wrote the day before. You have a treasure of gems here!

-Courtney

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Jenna Bayley-Burke said in January 26th, 2010 at 9:30 am

For me, what both did right was anchoring the action in emotion. Making the reader not just understand what was happening, but feel it.

I learned so much this weekend. Thank you again!

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Lynda K. Scott said in January 26th, 2010 at 9:30 am

Margie, you never fail to provide new insights into the writing process. Thanks so much!

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Teri Brown said in January 26th, 2010 at 9:35 am

Thanks Margie for more gold! after spending last weekend with you I didn’t think there could be anymore, but it looks as if you are a never-ending goldmine!
Teri

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Shirley Corder said in January 26th, 2010 at 9:54 am

Tana gets her “show don’t tell” right. During this paragraph she gives insight into the character’s background as well as her present state of mind.

Margie, thanks for excellent teaching – again.

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Julie Robinson said in January 26th, 2010 at 9:59 am

Margie, Thanks to your EDITS class, I was able to spot Robert’s epistrophe right away. Being an “ing” person myself, I have to watch it, but his use of Name, followed by an “ing” verb, followed by “the” article, and a noun has a nice cadence to it. The last part, ‘race away,’ trailing the last phrase enhances the concept of ‘race away,’ in an almost lingering manner on the tongue. I also liked the ‘w’ alliteration in watching the world.

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Katie said in January 26th, 2010 at 10:22 am

I recently received feedback from an agent who loved my hero but had a hard time identifying with my heroine because of the plot. Unsure of how to fix the problem without destroying the storyline, I let it sit.

Then, this last weekend, Margie’s workshop happened.

After highlighting a zillion pages to verify my balance was correct, I went looking for missed opportunities to replace overused phrases with fresh writing. Found several. Then I inserted an instance of touch, deepened voice cue information, fixed almost-there conduplicatio and anaphora devices, powered up a few of my figurative language, and upped the stakes by adding several emotional hits to passages that needed to be more impactful. I ended by changing two of the bland “smiles” to ones that added a lot of characterization without killing my word count.

Ten hours later, I’m still shocked at the difference. My heroine is a changed woman. Identifiable. Worthy of empathy and interest, despite her unusual circumstances.

If you get the chance to take Margie’s workshop, do. Your manuscript and everyone who reads it will thank you :-)

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Laurel Newberry said in January 26th, 2010 at 10:25 am

After spending the weekend in your workshop I am feeling enlightened and empowered and excited about my writing again.
I just wish I could work on all of my projects at once because I keep thinking of ways each of them could benefit.

On the other hand, you’ve added to my TBR list in a big way. I think I need a clone.

Thanks Margie!

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Donna Keihle said in January 26th, 2010 at 10:40 am

If you are staring at a manuscript and wondering which direction to go – the bottom of a drawer or the shredder try the FQ and Deep EDITS. You will be amazed at the revelations you’ll experience.

After using Deep EDITS on my first manuscript I entered a contest with a book so new to the page the ink was still tacky. I won out of thirty-four entries! Thanks to Margie’s EDITS and 5Q’s I’m a better writer the first time.

No this doesn’t mean you’ll never have to edit again…improvement is always available to all of us:)

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Danielle Monsch said in January 26th, 2010 at 10:41 am

Thanks so much for all the help, it’s a lot, but I know my writing will benefit so much from opening myself up to these queues. I’m looking forward to your class at Writer University, I’ll be taking it!

Danielle

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Nicole Zoltack said in January 26th, 2010 at 10:50 am

What an insight into the writing/editing process. Thank you so much, Margie!

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Judy Wiebe said in January 26th, 2010 at 10:52 am

Thanks again, Margie. Just when I think I’ve come to a dead-end in my writing, you uncover a new door and show me the way.

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Delle Jacobs said in January 26th, 2010 at 11:06 am

One more from this last weekend’s workshop: I’m so glad we brought you to Portland, Margie. I don’t need rah-rah workshops. I need a workshop that helps me take a great idea that isn’t quite carrying its weight on the page to one that emotionally impacts in just the perfect way.

Right now I’m exploring ways to give a story told partially in letters more immediacy and emotional impact. The letters are very important, but they certainly are limiting! If you have any ideas, I’m listening.

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Penny Rader said in January 26th, 2010 at 11:21 am

Margie, do you usually use the 5 Qs after you’ve written the first draft, or do you use it as a planning tool?

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Gail Fuller said in January 26th, 2010 at 11:36 am

OMGosh, what an amazing post! I’m printing this out so I can take it all in. Thanks so much!

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Anna Alexander said in January 26th, 2010 at 12:43 pm

Holy cow! I have printed this list and tucked it safely in my notebook to pull out when needed.
Thank you Margie!

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phoquess said in January 26th, 2010 at 12:57 pm

This series of posts has been so useful as I begin my rewriting/editing stages of my manuscript… thanks so much!

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Stormy said in January 26th, 2010 at 12:57 pm

Thank you so much for sharing some of your fantastic writing tips this month, Margie! Your lecture packets are definitely going on my must have list!

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Jeanne Vincent said in January 26th, 2010 at 1:43 pm

I just love it when a scene comes together. :) Great tips, Margie, and thanks for the reminder about Brenda Novak’s annual diabetes auction. I’m putting it in my tickler file!

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Sarah McDermed said in January 26th, 2010 at 2:42 pm

Margie,

More powerful tools to improve our writing! Thank you! At the Portland Workshop last weekend, you answered the questions I couldn’t quite give voice to – the questions that lurked in my peripheral vision when I read my work. You will definitely be mentioned in the credits of my first published book! Thanks you, thank you, thank you!

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Diana Cosby said in January 26th, 2010 at 2:45 pm

Margie, as always, I love your insight. Your classes have really helped my awareness of what works and why as well as allowed me to take my writing up a notch. I’m determined to be a NYT Best-Selling Author, one whose foundation is cemented in Margie’s fabulous classes. :) Take care and may 2010 be filled with blessings!

Sincerely,
Diana Cosby, AGC(AW), USN Ret.
Romance Edged With Danger

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Helen HP said in January 26th, 2010 at 3:24 pm

Once again, thank you, Margie! I will be taking more of your classes.

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Terri P said in January 26th, 2010 at 4:05 pm

Great refresher course. I need to dig out my
EDITS lectures and reread them.

LOVE your courses, Margie.

Terri O

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Clover Autrey said in January 26th, 2010 at 4:35 pm

Margie’s workshop is the BEST I’ve ever taken. I learned more from her about editing in a few hours than I can even comprehend. I still pull out her notes and now, thanks to this, I have more!

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Terri P said in January 26th, 2010 at 5:02 pm

Margie, is “walking the dog” those paragraphs that describe mundane life and don’t move the story forward?

Thanks,

Terri P

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Margie Lawson said in January 26th, 2010 at 5:17 pm

HELLO EVERYBODY!

You all WOW’d me with your comments. Thank you!

I wish I had three spare hours right now so I could respond to each of you.

Great comments.

Great to see you!

Great insights too. :-)

Plus — I enjoy saying, “Hi! Thanks for sharing and making me smile.”

I’ll add a SPECIAL HELLO to all the writers I met in Portland this last weekend. I stretched brains for two full days — and I enjoyed working with them so much, I hated to leave Portland.

Those writers had an impact on me . . . because I’m passionate about my love for Colorado. :-)

I’m sitting in a library parking lot in Denver–getting a hit of WiFi before my hour-long drive up the mountain. I need to hit the road. Cliche alert!

I will post several more comments tonight.

PLEASE CHECK BACK LATER TONIGHT! I’ll announce the winner — and chat some more from home.

THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!

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Margie Lawson said in January 26th, 2010 at 5:35 pm

A BIG REQUEST FROM MARGIE –

I’m featuring a new author on my How-to Author Series on my blog tomorrow. His name is Phil Yaffe, he wrote for the Wall Street Journal, and has a how-to book coming out soon: The Gettysburg Approach to Writing & Speaking Like a Professional.

My REQUEST — Please drop by and say HI to Phil!

He makes some excellent points for fiction writers in the interview I’m posting tomorrow.

Hope to see you on my blog tomorrow!

THANKS!

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Betty Booher said in January 26th, 2010 at 6:34 pm

Awesome workshop this weekend!

What I learned:

Our words have to work and work and work. Every time our words slack off, we miss the opportunity to communicate with our readers, to force our story pictures into their heads, to wrench their hearts just a little bit harder.

Thanks, again, Margie!

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Margie Lawson said in January 26th, 2010 at 7:17 pm

HELLO LOST WANDERER –

Good analysis of Tana French’s passage from IN THE WOODS. I love her writing too.

I’m sure you noticed her FRESH WRITING.

My hand was on the door handle when for a split second out of nowhereI was terrified, blue-blazing terrified, fear dropping straight through me like a jagged black stone falling fast.

WHAT IS BLUE-BLAZING TERRIFIED?

It’s fresh, fresh, fresh. And fresh writing boosts you toward the NYT bestseller list.

I’m betting she wanted big-time power with alliteration and cadence. It worked well for me.

Thank you for sharing your analysis.

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Margie Lawson said in January 26th, 2010 at 7:20 pm

Hello Breathless Amy!

Yay! You are intrigued with the power of Deep Editing. Smart!

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Margie Lawson said in January 26th, 2010 at 7:23 pm

Hello Beth-writing-as-Jenna!

I know you’ll be digging deep and learning all the intricacies of DEEP EDITING – as much as your brain can stretch.

You’re uber-smart too!

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Margie Lawson said in January 26th, 2010 at 7:24 pm

Margs —

Hope you had a masterful editing day!

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Margie Lawson said in January 26th, 2010 at 7:31 pm

Cindy –

Glad you are adding power to your WIP with what you learned in Empowering Characters’ Emotions. I teach DEEP EDITING: The EDITS System, Rhetorical Devices, and More in May. If you can’t wait that long, you could opt for the Lecture Packet. :-)

Have fun with your revisions!

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Vonnie Alto said in January 26th, 2010 at 7:31 pm

What a fantastic workshop you gave in Portland! Finally, I got to meet you and hear you speak in person. You are such a darling!

Taking both your masterclass on “Emotion/EDITS” and the online class of “Defeat Self-Defeating Behaviors” is giving my writing a powerful boost. Margie, I can’t thank you enough for this incredible enhancement to my writing. I now how to use emotion in my stories.

The most important thing I learned is that a writer can empower her story by carefully digging deep into its heart and soul to mine its inherent treasure, word by word, line by line. It’s the content (i.e theme, plot, characters) that inspires the rhetorical devices, emotional hits, dialogue cues, and cliche twisting that will propel a story from mediocre to outstanding NYT stature.

What a magnificent “A-ha” insight!!! Thank you so much, Margie!

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Margie Lawson said in January 26th, 2010 at 7:34 pm

Hello Courtney!

Sounds like you’ve been bitten and smitten by the Deep Editing addiction bug. Me too.

It’s a good-for-your-writing bug. :-)

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Margie Lawson said in January 26th, 2010 at 7:40 pm

HELLO JENNA B-B from Portland!

I had such a fabulous time with you all in Portland!

Yep. Those authors use what I teach in my writing craft courses to immerse the reader in the POV character’s emotional set.

You can do it too.

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thewhatifgirl said in January 26th, 2010 at 7:44 pm

My head is whirling. I am at college-level thinking. I like it.

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Margie Lawson said in January 26th, 2010 at 8:17 pm

HELLO WHAT-IF GIRL!

It’s graduate and post-masters level.

I taught undergrad, masters level, and post-masters degree courses. My courses for writers are definitely at the masters and post-masters level.

Wish I could award college level credits to writers who completed my on-line courses and Immersion Master Class sessions.

Thank you! Glad your brain is happy.

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Barbara Rae Robinson said in January 26th, 2010 at 8:24 pm

I’m another from the fabulous weekend workshop in Portland! All I can say is that it was fantastic and I’m still sorting it all out in my mind.

Barb

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Margie Lawson said in January 26th, 2010 at 8:40 pm

HELLO TERI BROWN!

So fun to meet and chat and hug this weekend.

And — lots more gold. I promise.

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Cindy said in January 26th, 2010 at 9:19 pm

I already signed up! As soon as I posted the comment I went to sign up. Didn’t want to forget.

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Kitty Bucholtz said in January 26th, 2010 at 9:35 pm

Margie, you are so awesome! Stephanie, Shonna and I just had our weekly conference call and we’re pumped to re-start together our Deep Edits lecture packet. Yay! Then I thought about that Defeating SDB lecture I bought and never read – reading it right now! AWESOME! I found an unused journal, cleaned my desk, and am sharpening my saw. Thank You, God, for Margie!! It’s going to be a GREAT week!

Thanks so much!!
Lots of love and hugs to you!
Kitty :)

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Margie Lawson said in January 26th, 2010 at 9:37 pm

HELLO EVERYONE!

YIKES! This was my LAST POST for Routine’s For Writers.

I will miss you all!

A HUGE THANK YOU to Shonna, Stephanie, and Kitty for inviting me to be their guest. It was my kind of FUN!

An extra big hug goes to Shonna for setting up my blogs and making them look so good.

I wanted to have TWO WINNERS – and I have two winners. But when I pulled TWO SLIPS OF PAPER from my big wooden salad bowl, I read the same first name on both pieces of paper.

Our two winners are Terri P and Teri B.

CONGRATULATIONS TO TERRI AND TERI!

Terri and Teri – Please e-mail me and let me know which Lecture Packet you would like.

You can read the course descriptions for all SIX of my Lecture Packets on my website: http://www.MargieLawson.com

I look forward to connecting with you all on-line again. If you have questions about my courses or Lecture Packets, you can contact me through my web site.

Oh — Remember my DARE DEVIL DACHSHUND CONTEST!

You may win one hour of my deep editing brain!

Wishing you all Happy Deep Editing!……..Margie

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Shonna Slayton said in January 26th, 2010 at 9:50 pm

Margie, you are a rock star. We had a blast with you this month. :)

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Margie Lawson said in January 26th, 2010 at 9:55 pm

Kitty and Shonna and Stephanie –

So cool that you three are going to do a group dive into your Deep Editing Lecture Packets. Sounds like you are setting yourselves up for big-time success!

Kitty — Enjoy taking charge of your writing life with DSDB!

Happy Hugs to the three of you!

All smiles…………Margie

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Julie Breese said in January 26th, 2010 at 10:35 pm

I’m late but had to post anyway! What a fabulous checklist. It’s truly terrifying but in a good way. :)

Thanks for everything, Margie!!

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Margie Lawson said in January 26th, 2010 at 11:47 pm

Julie B –

Ah — you like my terrifying-in-a-good-way scene checklist. Cool!

Thanks for chiming in even though you were too late for the drawing.

All smiles………..Margie

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Margie Lawson said in January 26th, 2010 at 11:50 pm

Vonnie –

Your insight is as accurate as it is eloquent.

VONNIE WROTE:
The most important thing I learned is that a writer can empower her story by carefully digging deep into its heart and soul to mine its inherent treasure, word by word, line by line. It’s the content (i.e theme, plot, characters) that inspires the rhetorical devices, emotional hits, dialogue cues, and cliche twisting that will propel a story from mediocre to outstanding NYT stature.

What a magnificent “A-ha” insight!!! Thank you so much, Margie!

VONNIE — THANK YOU FOR SHARING YOUR INSIGHT. IT’S PERFECT.

BIG HUGS………….MARGIE

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Kathy Crouch said in January 27th, 2010 at 12:06 am

Hey Margie, a bit late here. I ran across your blog by accident OH NO AN ALMOST missed opportunity. HUgs and thank for posting the five. I needed them as I have a wip I hope to enter in a major contest. I sent the link to the blog to my critique partner telling her we need to use these things to look over our work when we send it to each other. I hope to take your class again I think if I keep taking them eventually they will sink in and become second nature to me. Hope to see you in July in Nashville. :-)

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Cher said in January 27th, 2010 at 9:39 am

Ain’t she the bee’s knees!!

Hey, Margie! I know I’m late but just saw the announcement and wanted to drop by anyway.

Cher

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Laurie Edwards said in January 27th, 2010 at 2:07 pm

Love the advice. Thanks so much for sharing! And I’d love to win another lecture packet!!

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Kathryn E said in January 28th, 2010 at 2:11 pm

This is excellent advice. Thank you~

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Edie Ramer said in January 29th, 2010 at 11:07 am

I’m coming in really late, and your blog is awesome. I’m doing the first round of revisions on my WIP, and I see I’m doing much of this. So, Margie, your lessons are sinking into my brain!

I’m off to your blog now, though I see I’m late there too.

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