Deleted Scenes

I miss the days of DVDs when you could watch deleted scenes and bloopers from movies. Some disks came with so many deleted scenes, it was almost like watching the whole movie over again. 

Ever wonder why film editors decide to remove certain bits, whether it’s simply about keeping the final production to a certain length or for some other reason? Have you ever watched a deleted scene that you thought made the whole story make more sense and should have been kept in?

The same happens with books.

If you’ve been paying attention, you know I’ve just released another book. What’s different about this one is that I’m self-publishing it, which greatly reduces the amount of time between my final revision (the point after which I can’t make any more changes) and the book’s release date. I had just sent out the manuscript to my pre-launch team members who agreed to read it before its release, post their reviews on launch day, and help me promote the book before and after that day.

The next morning, while stepping into the shower, I thought of a scene in the book that I’d written in the original draft but which I couldn’t remember seeing in my latest revision.

As soon as I could return to my desk, I compared the two. Sure enough, that scene appeared in the first but not the last version. I then recalled what had happened.

If you’re an author, you know that working with an editor can sometimes feel like dumping all the puzzle pieces out of the box onto a table and having your editor help you put it together in a way that improves the picture. My editor, Shari, had suggested, and I agreed, that my prologue needed to go. I pulled a few snippets from it that I deemed important, worked them into the main story, and deleted the rest.

But I’d missed one. This particular scene didn’t make or break the story, but it did make the ending far more logical. Because Shari and I had both read that bit, it was already in our minds. It just wasn’t on the page. Now, although the ending made great sense to both of us, it would be less meaningful for readers.

Isn’t that like life? We base everything we do, say, or decide on our limited knowledge or experience, and frequently on the opinions we’ve already formed. We communicate to others assuming they have the same information we do—which, of course, they almost never do. What makes sense to us may not necessarily be so obvious to the other person and we wonder what’s wrong with them.

I’m glad the final revision hadn’t been released and I was able to put that paragraph back into my book. I hope I can remember this experience going forward. May God use it to make me more patient and considerate. More clear in my explanations and more gracious in my expectations. More understanding when others “don’t get it.”

And when I’m the one who “doesn’t get it,” may I ask better questions instead of writing the other person off like a deleted scene.

Five Ways to WIN with Thrift Shopping

I’m frequently asked which part of the writing journey I like best. That’s easy. While I do NOT enjoy hammering out that first draft and catch myself embracing almost any excuse to avoid it, I adore the editing part. When my editor returns a marked-up manuscript, I can hardly wait to dive in and see what improvements she suggests. I accept more than ninety percent of the changes my editor makes because I know my work will improve, and I learn so much.

Occasionally, though, an editor gets it wrong because they don’t understand the situation. Such was the case on my most recent manuscript (The Last Piece, releasing in November), where a character loves finding deals at thrift shops. She describes her thrift shop experience as “win-win-win,” explaining why. My editor assumed I’d used one too many “wins” and crossed one out.

I rejected her suggestion and stood my ground. Three wins. And truthfully, I probably could have thrown in a few more. So let me count the

Our local MCC Thrift Store and MCC Furniture Plus are prime examples. In case you’re unfamiliar with the process, the store receives donations of used items which it organizes and sells with the help of a few paid staff and an army of volunteers. Who exactly wins here? Let’s count them:

1. First, the donor wins because MCC provides a way to dispense with unwanted items, hassle-free. No need to wait until you collect enough to organize a yard sale, price it, advertise it, set it all up, reschedule for weather, haggle with customers, watch the cash box, or pack the unsold stuff at the end of a tiring day. Simply drop your items off at the store’s back door during the hours specified—throughout the year—and you’re done.

2. Shoppers win because they find what they need at a fraction of the price of new. When our kids were young, I’d give them each twenty bucks and let them thrift-shop for their own clothes. They learned to do math, make choices, and live with the consequences of those choices without costing me a fortune. Most of my clothes still come from MCC and I’m fairly certain I wouldn’t live more happily in designer clothes. I scored half my small appliances there, too, along with our kitchen table and the collection of candles I like to burn while working at my desk. And don’t get me started on my weakness: dishes!

3. The planet wins. Every year, perfectly usable clothing is thrown out and new clothing is made. This wasteful cycle uses and disposes of more resources than necessary and harms the earth. MCC invites customers to “take the pledge” to check out a thrift shop before looking at any new clothing.

4. Volunteers win. Some of our local volunteers have served for decades. They enjoy what they do, they do it with excellence, and they consider the team family.

5. Recipients of the profits win. MCC supports both local and global relief, development, and peace projects of the Mennonite Central Committee. MCC delivers disaster relief. It helps girls stay in school. It helps prevent the spread of diseases like Covid-19 in vulnerable communities. By donating that shirt you never wear, or by buying one you will, you respond to basic human needs and work for peace and justice in 60 countries as well as in your home town. Can any regular retail store say the same?

Well, there. My editor was wrong, but so was I. It’s not that I used too many “wins.” It’s that I didn’t use enough. Every thrift shop purchase truly is a gift to the world.

Whoever is kind to the poor lends to the Lord, and he will reward them for what they have done. (Proverbs 19:17)

 

How to know when it's time to take your characters to bed

So, I’m editing my third novel, Bleak Landing, which releases in August. I’ve learned that I love the editing process more than the actual writing, probably because you’re taking something you had to tear your hair out just to get onto the page and now you’ve got help to polish it and make it much better. I’m learning that a good editor is worth their weight in coffee pods—and not the cheap kind. 

The way it works is, I receive my manuscript back from my development editor, Shari. What was once three hundred plain, black-and-white, double-spaced pages is now a rainbow of Track Changes, averaging three or more per paragraph. I’m eager to dig in, knowing I have about two weeks to work my way through all Shari’s comments and suggestions and return it. Then we do a second, shorter round the same way. A few weeks later, I’ll get it back from the copy editor and go through the process one last time before my baby is completely out of my hands.

Right now I’m in the middle of the first round. Most of the time, it’s just a matter of clicking on either “accept” or “reject” or choosing a more precise word. Sometimes it means clarifying a whole sentence for the reader or deleting an unnecessary one. Sometimes it’s verifying a historical element. Occasionally, Shari challenges me to rework an entire scene to make it more engaging for the reader. She’ll write something like, “This is a little pat/cliché. I know you can give me something even stronger.” Or “I’m not sure this is convincingly romantic enough.”

If that challenge happens to come at 8:00 on a Friday night after I’ve met my obligation at my day job, grocery shopped, made dinner, cleaned the kitchen, and already spent a couple of hours editing at a desk that’s in desperate need of tidying and the pain in my shoulders is screaming for relief—I can get a little surly. I want to yell at Shari, “You’re wrong, you tyrant! I can’t give you something stronger. This is it. I was proud of that scene! It’s the best I can do. So shut up and leave me alone!”

Yeah, that’s when you know it’s time to close the laptop and call it a day. Take your characters to bed with you and pray they’ll show you better words by morning.

In the middle of this process, my second book, Maggie’s War, is launching—a bit of a timing misfortune on the publisher’s part. But I can’t whine about it and still appear professional, especially when I’ve only just got my nose in the door of this business. So I’m juggling plans for three launch events, radio interviews, and newspaper ads. I’m keeping track of receipts, preparing speeches and door prizes, and responding to early reviewers. Oh yes, and it’s really time to put up another blog post. And how can I answer questions about the second novel when my head’s all wrapped up in the third? The characters and situations are all muddled together.

Seems a bit much for a woman who still can’t get through the day without a substantial nap.

But guess what? Lots of writers would kill to have the problems I’m describing. I could have called this post “Be careful what you wish for.” After all, I wanted this. Prayed for this. It seems when God opens a flood gate, he does a thorough job. Sure, I could throw up my hands and say “forget it.” I could return the manuscript just the way it is, collect the remainder of my advance, and call it a career. The book would still be published. Sales would be disappointing. Reviews would be dismal. A chance at another contract would be gone. I could spend the rest of my life on the couch watching Netflix or reading other writers’ books, ignoring the words on my laptop’s wallpaper: “I want to see what happens if I don’t give up.”

It’s seven a.m. and I’ve had a decent sleep. My desk is still a mess. The bathroom’s dirty and laundry waits. I’ve got a book launch in three days. But I’ll go back and tackle that troublesome scene because, deep down, I know Shari is right. I can do better. And I owe it to her, to my readers, to myself, and most of all, to my Creator, to give it my very best.

But first, another cup of coffee. The cheap kind. Sigh.

“As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.” Proverbs 27:17