tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2932500187353859270.post7835824663057106867..comments2024-02-13T15:37:51.463-05:00Comments on Ellis Vidler's Unpredictable Muse: What Makes a Scene?Ellis Vidlerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11918353154644739285noreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2932500187353859270.post-86904393463152038932011-06-23T05:20:10.000-04:002011-06-23T05:20:10.000-04:00Rebecca, that's one of the hardest things, to ...Rebecca, that's one of the hardest things, to accept that it doesn't have a place and delete a scene you love. Mine are called Outtakes and I keep them in a file for each book. Once in a while I find a need and can resurrect one in some form in another story.Ellis Vidlerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11918353154644739285noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2932500187353859270.post-43795684445649432702011-06-22T14:33:14.676-04:002011-06-22T14:33:14.676-04:00Star, sorry I didn't see this till now.
I oft...Star, sorry I didn't see this till now. <br />I often have to go back and add more description. I'm inclined to gloss over it the first few times around, but in places it really adds to the scene. It takes me a while to see the holes--and the muck.Ellis Vidlerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11918353154644739285noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2932500187353859270.post-37265074976602000312011-06-22T11:08:01.230-04:002011-06-22T11:08:01.230-04:00Very interesting Ellis. I love to read a scene, wh...Very interesting Ellis. I love to read a scene, whether it moves the story on or not (LOL). I just love descriptive passages. If we don't put them in, then how do we understand past times? Your four points are very informative.Stella Joneshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06699491230987143490noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2932500187353859270.post-59169413733051044022011-06-21T17:49:14.416-04:002011-06-21T17:49:14.416-04:00My husband, who is also a writer, and I were talki...My husband, who is also a writer, and I were talking the other night about conflict - in fiction, that is. And how each scene moves the story along. It is so easy to have a scene just because it is good and we like it, but if a scene doesn't really contribute, it doesn't have a part in the novel. Sometimes this can be difficult to face, especially when we are fond of it.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2932500187353859270.post-29592982820821213102011-06-19T17:29:56.563-04:002011-06-19T17:29:56.563-04:00Thanks, Vicki. I need to post them over my compute...Thanks, Vicki. I need to post them over my computer.Ellis Vidlerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11918353154644739285noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2932500187353859270.post-63967778466729801642011-06-19T09:46:38.738-04:002011-06-19T09:46:38.738-04:00Excellent post -- love the four points!Excellent post -- love the four points!Vicki Lanehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08114677510459055768noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2932500187353859270.post-55272187603234323102011-06-19T07:13:43.264-04:002011-06-19T07:13:43.264-04:00Thank you, Jacqueline. I need constant reminders f...Thank you, Jacqueline. I need constant reminders for myself. It's so easy to slip off the track.<br /><br />Jenny, That's something I've missed. I'll have to look for for it. Thanks.Ellis Vidlerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11918353154644739285noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2932500187353859270.post-19847855821131106432011-06-19T05:54:35.009-04:002011-06-19T05:54:35.009-04:00This is a great post--reminds me of Jack Bickham o...This is a great post--reminds me of Jack Bickham on SCENE AND STRUCTURE (he's one of my favorite writers on writing). I love the picture scenes, too!jenny milchmanhttp://suspenseyourdisbelief.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2932500187353859270.post-70961501845688605762011-06-18T19:53:13.447-04:002011-06-18T19:53:13.447-04:00Hi, Ellis,
Each point you've made is excellen...Hi, Ellis,<br /><br />Each point you've made is excellent and helpful to other writers.Jacqueline Seewaldhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09177500620940251009noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2932500187353859270.post-18139783792713407302011-06-18T10:27:36.978-04:002011-06-18T10:27:36.978-04:00Sandy, don't we all have those moments? When w...Sandy, don't we all have those moments? When what we've written goes from wonderful to wretched in a flash? You're right--the joys of revision. <br /><br />Writing this blog forces me to think things through and clarify what I think. I have something in mind, but then when I write it, it gets muddled.Ellis Vidlerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11918353154644739285noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2932500187353859270.post-84575164172834512872011-06-18T09:36:59.697-04:002011-06-18T09:36:59.697-04:00You have a real knack for breaking the process dow...You have a real knack for breaking the process down in a concise, easy to understand manner. Good job.<br /><br />I'm editing a ms. I thought I had finished and am adding brief scenes at the beginning of some chapters from the victim's POV. I don't want much, just enough to make the reader understand his life and death, so they're too short for a chapter of their own. Like Polly, Sandy Codyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02824301408180614516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2932500187353859270.post-84798495489404268732011-06-18T09:12:24.109-04:002011-06-18T09:12:24.109-04:00Polly, why not say something like "The next t...Polly, why not say something like "The next three weeks passed quietly, and then the dam broke (or whatever)"? I know you can think of something good.<br /><br />BJ, first, let me correct you--you ARE a writer, a good one. I think you lack confidence and are too easily discouraged. But thank you for the nice words.Ellis Vidlerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11918353154644739285noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2932500187353859270.post-56556422229619447342011-06-18T08:45:16.431-04:002011-06-18T08:45:16.431-04:00As a reader who is not a writer, I find your atten...As a reader who is not a writer, I find your attention to the writing process simply fascinating. Of course those inappropriate jumps in a scene have annoyed me. Now I know why. Letting us go backstage and watch the writer's process is a great favor to the reader. Watching a writer's mind at work is like peering through the fence at one of those huge big city construction sites. Oh!bjhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08489009541316310697noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2932500187353859270.post-16369650392215575292011-06-18T08:34:42.312-04:002011-06-18T08:34:42.312-04:00I'm faced with a difficult change of scenes be...I'm faced with a difficult change of scenes because three weeks pass in my story, and I don't want to write those three weeks. I sub-headed the time change under the chapter heading, but I wish there were some less obvious way to do it.Polly Iyerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05729656119287702191noreply@blogger.com