NEVER DELETE YOUR WRITING: Advice For Writers

"Writing is 5% talent and 95% persistence," -Unknown

One upon a sixth-grade Olivia, I wrote a Hunger Games fanfiction. And, quite frankly, it was gold. It was feels-y and well written (by sixth-grade Olivia’s standards) and so much fun.

But then, I deleted it. I must have had a brain aneurysm, because I hit ctrl+a and then backspace for some stupid reason. And since then I’ve been searching and searching for this fanfiction, and I was wanting to find it because it had a scene in there that I wanted to study and reread. However, I remembered that I DELETED IT. Gone forever.

And I narrate this sad little tale to you all because, writers: I beg of you, DO NOT DELETE YOUR WRITING. Because sometimes you’ll want to go back and read it. And enjoy it all over again, just as much as when you wrote it.

I know because I recently went back and reread significant sections of my first novel.

Believe me, 90% of it will be crap. You’ll cringe over your poor word choice and unclear sentences. You’ll shake your head at the stupid decisions your characters make. And, ultimately, you’ll think “holy chocolate chip cookie dough, what the frick frack, crack-a-lack, h-e-double-hockey-sticks was I thinking when I wrote this?” And you’ll feel like a shitty writer for a hot minute.

But then, you’ll realize that you feel this way because you’ve improved. You begin looking at your writing with a critical eye, seeing ways you can improve it, which is good!

But the best part is when you find those little gold nuggets in a sea of pyrite. Those scenes where the characters are brilliant and three dimensional, those scenes where the scene moves and climaxes beautifully, those scenes where the villain is pure evil, where the emotions connect, where the writing is eloquent and effective.

And that. That is where you appreciate your characters, your stories, and how far you’ve come. And it gives you a reason to keep going.

So, my dear writer friends, NEVER DELETE YOUR WRITING. Because when you read it later, you never know what great things might come out of it.

~The WordShaker

The Last Star by Rick Yancey Book Review: Olivia J, The WordShaker

"We're all stories in the end. Just make it a good one, eh." -Doctor Who

That was one hell of a conclusion. 

A FLUFF-TON OF SPOILERS.

If The Fifth Wave was a 4.50, The Infinite Sea was a 4.75, then The Last Star was a 4.45. 

As usual, I'll talk about the bad, first. 

1. Writing is occasionally confusing. 

This is just Rick Yancey's writing style, but at times, things happen so quickly or so vaguely, the reader's like 'oh yeah, they got shot' or 'wait, what is she doing again?'. And then, they'll have to go back and reread, breaking up the flow. 

2. Ben ends up with Ringer.

Now, don't get me wrong, they aren't my NOTP, but I just wasn't a huge fan. While at times they were cute, I didn't feel that they were really together, or that they should be. I just didn't feel the sparkle. But maybe that's because I really kind of disliked Ringer in this book. One could argue that they are foil characters, like Evan and Cassie, which is an interesting concept. However, I still found Ringer to be inhuman, unrelatable, distrustful, and cruel at times. 

3. More time with Cassie and Sam would have made the ending more impactful. 

While we had to spend time advancing the plot with the other characters, I would have loved to see more of the interaction between Cassie and Sam. While they grew into amazing characters, there wasn't enough time to see them together, to develop their relationship even more. While I still feel like the ending hit home, I felt that it could have been so much stronger, tied in better, and more heartbreaking if we got to see Cassie and Sam interact more, etc. I just wanted to see more of them together, because this is what The Fifth Wave Series is all about. 

~

And now, the almost insurmountable good. 

1. Masterful Storytelling. 

Mr. Yancey has a wonderful way of building suspense and then releasing it, like in the scene where Ben is searching for the Urbana Silencer. 

2. Quirky Writing. 

Never have these books failed at making me laugh out loud. Cassie is just so wonderfully funny, because she makes these quirky observations that are undeniably relatable. Even with the other characters, the writing is so viscerally real with an amazingly light-hearted twist - with grim humor - that makes it easier to bear and more relatable. 

3. FABULOUSLY REAL CHARACTERS. 

I cannot say enough about this section. And this is especially concerning Cassie, Ben, and Sams, and maybe even Ringer at times. Occasionally Evan, especially with his scene with Cassie in the middle section, where I'm not entirely sure whether they had sex or not . . . More on the confusion of Yancey's writing above. 

Anyway, Rick Yancey has such a beautiful ability to craft deep and real characters. Previously, Sam forgot his ABC's, and then he killed Constance, and immediately following, he remembers his ABC's as well as his mother's face. This scene was brilliantly executed, with just the right amount of horror at a six year old killing someone and just the right amount of emotional catharsis and sympathy. 

Ben's reaction to Dumbo's death was heartbreakingly gold. Not only was the writing delicate yet real, the whole scene connected to the reader. You connected with Dumbo mostly because of Ben's reaction. Ben taking out the time to bury him in a sea of death was beautiful and appropriate. Yet another display of Ben's resilience and strong character. 

Now, a whole section has to be devoted to Cassie's awesomeness:  

4. CASSIE'S LAST ACT. 

A good chunk of the last act is dedicated to Cassie saving her little sliver of the world: and becoming who she was really meant to be. 

On the fourth day, she is downloaded with almost the entire consciousness of humanity via Wonderland. This portion of her narrative, she becomes a beautiful foil to Ringer, becoming everything she is not. 

Cassie becomes humanity. She becomes who we are, viscerally relatable, with a heart and a soul the size of Texas. What's so great about this is that only now we see that Cassie was always humanity, that this was her purpose. And when she sees the pod, the readers know exactly what she's going to do. 

And it's perfect. 

Not enough words can come to mind to describe the amazingness of Cassiopeia Marie Sullivan. You'll just have to read - or, rather, experience - it for yourself. 

And the conclusion works because humanity has defeated the aliens. Because it's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind. 

source: iztarshi.tumblr.com

~

Truthfully, I'm okay that not all of the 'aliens' have been defeated. I'm okay that we don't truly know who the Others are. 

But overall, The Fifth Wave Series is definitely a must-read. I love it. 

~The WordShaker

Omaha Beach, Original Score by Adam Young: Review

"I'm just going to write because I cannot help it," -Charlotte Bronte

*Sorry for not posting last week. I am currently on vacation, and not only am I busy, internet connection is spotty. Fortunately, this is the first week I've missed this year!*

I'm not going to lie, The Ascent of Everest scared me a bit. While it wasn't musically or compositionally poor, I don't think that it told the story very well. I mean, I still listened to it because it was enjoyable music, but it was in no way my favorite. It lacked that storytelling element present in all of the other scores. Read my review of The Ascent of Everest here. 

However, this month, Adam kept what the score was on the down-low. He didn't post as frequently about it on his Instagram, and barely talked about what it was about, hinting at it in his captions like he has with other scores.

But truthfully, Omaha Beach might be his best score yet. It rips and tears at the fabric of your soul with the pounding bass and drum lines, and the strings and horns complete the anxiety-ridden and perseverance-saturated score. While RMS Titanic still has a special place in my heart, this soon might snatch the top spot.

Listen to Omaha Beach here. 

1. H-Hour

Intensely full with a complete orchestra, this opener is clipped, the driving force behind this epic battle. 

2. Seasick

Anxiety-ridden with electric guitar, this track beautifully displays both the actual seasickness of travel with the anticipation of certain death. 

3. On The Beach

A stunning balance of tense battle sequences with a full orchestra and tragic failure with violin and gunshots, this score climaxes into a beautiful piece about bravery and horror. 

4. Bloody Omaha

Disturbingly beautiful, one can only be stunned at the chaos of this track, horrified at the violence and death exploding around the young soldiers. 

5. The Cliffs

With throbbing notes of bass and violin, this track sneaks along with the intensity of pushing on. 

6. Troops Advance Inland

Slamming with guitar and synth, and heartbreaking with piano, this track truly captures the blindness and violence of battle and the realization of immense tragedy. 

7. Reinforcements

Peaceful with synthesized rain and victoriously defeated with the orchestra from H-Hour, the fact that these are the Allies' saving graces is revealed in the serene stun of battle. 

8. The Longest Day

Just like the quiet ending of RMS Titanic, heaviness hangs in the air with lonely horns and harrowing strings, and you can nearly see the soldiers having won by a the width of a hair not celebrating with the world around them, but dragging their comrades home in a hollow victory. 

~

Beautiful. Heartbreakingly real. And viscerally courageous and shockingly breathtaking. A must listen for everyone. 11/10 would recommend.

Reviews:

Apollo 11

RMS Titanic

The Spirit of St. Louis

The Ascent of Everest 

~The WordShaker