Dear Fellow Writers,
My head hurts.
I love to read. And I know I'm not alone here. Reading is what inspired most of us to write. Reading is also research. We read great, stupendous, history making authors! We also read stuff that we wonder how it got published, or is it just me?
And here we come to my gripe. I am reading three or five or six good books right now (I have books in every area of my house and in my car and on my ipad, never at a loss for reading material!) And I understand that I am not going to find an outstanding Hunger Games quality book every time. BUT! One of the books, a great story, is hopping heads like a frog crossing the street in a Merry Melodies cartoon!
The reason this bothers me so much, is that I have been brow beaten not to do this. I am talking hops in mid paragraph - I know what everyone is thinking all the time! Before I was a writer and knew all the rules, it wouldn't have bothered me so much. But I know now! And I am working very hard to get published and this rule is a big one!
It's just not fair! And I can't do anything about it, except complain and stick my tongue out at it. Hmpf! Anyone else know what I'm talking about?
Sincerely,
Patty Page-Pouter
But I know what will turn that frown upside-down. A haiku!
For Sensational Haiku Wednesday. It's Spring!
Senses of Spring
scents of fresh cut grass warbling birds choose
waft in on warmer breezes crunchy bugs and juicy worms
caressing shy buds to feed fluffy peeps
sudden darkness looms calm after the storm
with streaks of electric blasts sun and babes peek out to see,
spectacular show smell, hear, and feel Spring!
 |
| I love bunny spotting in Spring! |
And speaking of haiku, I just found a very fun haiku CONTEST! Nate at Wheel's on Fire is hosting a Robot Haiku contest, now through May 7th. Prizes! Robots! Haikus! Who can resist! Futile!
36 comments:
Oh no, I can't cope with head-hopping mid-paragraph! That's crazy! I would probably have put that book down. I don't like to be confused when I'm reading lol!
Um, I agree... but I think I've been guilty of that in my current WIP. My narrator is omnipotent - another big no-no - and I'm currently trying to work out what I should do about it.
I do sometimes wonder how a book got published or how it got past all the editors and proof readers with glaring mistakes.
Sometimes it gives me confidence in my own writing. Other times I wonder how bad MY writing is if I can't get published but (my perceived) rubbish can.
The historical romances I used to read head hopped all the time. It didn't bother me then. It does now.
Knowing the rules can be a major pain when you're a reader. I start analyzing things now when I read, which is good and bad.
I love Christina's season posts. She has the best pictures.
I know exactly what you mean about poor quality writing getting published while we languish over every word because we have been punished in the past.
It makes me terribly mad and terribly motivated to get my stupid book finished so I can roar with laughter when I get published.
Or something like that.
Nice Haiku!
We have Bunbuns under our shed. We give them ranks. Commander, Captain, Private. I think they like it.
Heather
Wow ~ awesome Spring haiku ~ excellent and love the bunny photo ~ I too love spring time looking for Bunnies ^_^
Love the change in mood mid post. LOL. Awesome. I read a lot in spurts. There's just too much stimulus going through my brain at one time and I fell like I'm going to pop. Yeah, reading too much gets me that way.
The Trader Joe's by my house just did a food Haiku contest - I totally thought of you!
That bunny is so dang cute!
I know what you mean about the head hopping. My deal w/ rules is that its okay to break them IF it's done well - and doing things well typically means the flow is smooth and readers aren't even thinking about the execution. So if you noticed it and its grating on you, chances are it's not done well. Which only makes it more frustrating. Grrrr
Oh yeah, it's frustrating to see rules tossed aside by big authors. Why can't I do that?
Eeeek, I know how you feel about head-hopping in the same paragraph! I don't mind multiple POV, but it must be separated by chapters, or a scene break at least. Knowing all the rules can be a major pain sometimes, LoL.
Lovely spring haikus and that bunny is so adorable!!
Just think of how much better your book will be. At least there will be no head hoping confusion! What book is it, so that I can avoid it?
It's good to be sensitive to those rules...to know the difference..
Ah, rules for writers. I tend to ignore them. Now, how to get a publisher ...
There are many books out in the world that I've read that make me say, "how did this get published when I can't get anyone to even look at what I've written?"
Unfortunately, I never know how to answer that question.
Nice haiku!
oh . . .I strongly dislike random head hopping. Stick with a character or two, and head hop with a scene change, that's it! Grrr. - sincerely, Bearish Book-reader
- Loved your spring haiku . . .I missed posting for SHW, but maybe next week.
Yes, yes, yes! Head-hopping drives me insane. Grr...
Love the haiku! Thanks for telling us about the contest. :)
Head-hopping is one of my big pet peeves. I often wonder at some books how they got published. Unfortunately sometimes it's all about luck and who you know.
A book with mid-paragraph head-hopping? Probably published back in the day... when there were fewer writers so they "got away" with these things...
Great haiku... mmm, reminds me to get back to regular SHW postings...
I'm with you, Tara. Now that I understand the writing "rules," it's amazing how often I come across popular fiction that breaks a whole mess of them. It bugs me (and it bugs my wife even more, since I always complain to her).
Anyway, thanks for the shout out about my contest! And Sensational Haiku Wednesday? How was I unaware of this? Okay, here's one for spring:
Rain, rain, go away,
Come again some other day.
Yeah, that's my haiku.
Yeah, it completely drives me nuts when people are going through and just throwing the rules out. It makes me wonder if they're even rules at all...
But of course, they're not. They're guidelines.
I think you're right - as writers we notice things that most readers probably don't or, whatever it is doesn't bother them. Head-Hopping drives me nuts, too. Not only because it usually ruins the story (for me, anyway) but because I'm so careful to not do it myself and then to see published books do it.... Urgh.
I used to not understand head-hopping, but now that I do, I consider it a cardinal sin. When I run across such things, I now look for what the author did right. Had to be something...
Your haikus are so lovely. I've missed them.
wonderful self-talk prior to your fab haiku....and, yeah, I know what you're talking about....
It is super frustrating when I read a published book and am dumbfounded at the quality, or rather lack of quality in the writing. How did they get an agent? And a book deal? It's those marvelous stories that I can't put down that sure make me try harder in my own writing :)
Head hopping in mid paragraph or just from paragraph to paragraph can throw me off. I'm of the mentality that I head hop only when breaking for a chapter or new section.
Head hopping used to be an old style of writing that's now gone out of fashion. It's a shame, because as a reader I don't mind getting into all the characters heads. Oh well.
Thank you all so much for commiserating with me! And I am glad to be writing haikus again. They help me choose words wisely. Thanks!
Annalisa - my MS is multi-headed too (only 4). it's fine to do, but I make the different pov's very distinct with chapters or separated sections, like a good little girl =)
Heather - I love the rankings! like Watership Down!
Nikki - thanks for thinking of me!
JA - email coming your way, and it's MG if that makes a difference
Mary - the story is good, just not well told (and a reviewer compared it to Harry Potter!)
Nate - you should join in! every Wednesday!
Lynda - I never noticed before I learned the rules (I was terrible at it myself!) Just so obvious now!
Really awesome set of spring haiku here Tara. Love them all.
Aww! The bunny is so cute!
And I know what you mean! Pre-writing, I probably wouldn't have thought too much about head hopping. Now, I can't stand it. But the problem with rules is they are more guidelines and don't have to be followed, even though it makes us wonder how such things get published by going against the rules. But I sympathize.
I can't handle changing POvs in anything I'm reading---it makes me giddy!
I smell the fresh scent of spring in all your haiku!
Elusive Spring Storm
fabulous images of spring in your great haikus
i love the scent of freshcut grass
spring haiku and tanka
Some rules really need to be followed! Books that bother me are easy to put down... and books I can put down don't beg me to pick them up again.
Great haiku - I can smell the fresh cut grass!
Great post and snippets of Spring ~~ thank you for sharing!! (And for the visit)
Happy week ~~ Enjoy the spring! :)
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