When you Realize your Book is a Random Jumble of Words

Welcome back, readers! It has been a while since the release of my last posting, and I am sorry. The delay was caused by some unprecedented trouble with the editing of my second novel, Only Time Will Tell. I have been working to solve the issues in the manuscript, and this show will be on the road in due time. Today, I would like to inform you all on the problems in my sequel to A Month Well Spent, and how they could have been avoided.

Why all the Trouble?

The issues stemmed from my changed reading habits. While writing my first book, my chosen literature included works by Louis L’Amour, and other books with a similar writing style. This was a basic one, that provided the necessary information to the reader but omitted over-length sentences. These authors utilized uncomplicated writing to give the readers pure literature with clear messages. My own writing followed these good influences, creating a story that could readily be understood by my intended audience.

However, after the debut novel was completed, and I began moving on to later works, my reading choices were modified to include science fiction stories by authors Michael Crichton and Carl Sagan. These books were written for a more intellectual, adult reader group, who understood complex sentences and in-depth descriptions. Unconsciously, my native style began to stray towards these detailed novels.

This would be fine for a book geared towards late teenagers and adults, but with my audience of children, overly descriptive writing was not suitable.

Notice that in the Amazon listing for A Month Well Spent, it has a Reading Age of 8-18 years. This means that an eight year old must be able to read the book, but an eighteen year old cannot be bored by it. When writing for such a broad age group, an author must pay close attention to the choice of adjectives, sentence length and structure, and other key factors of his writing. He must also be sure that the morals and messages in the book can be found and understood by a reader of any age. If these cautions are not taken, the book will not be enjoyed by the planned audience.

These were the problems I discovered in Only Time Will Tell. My sentences were longer, and there were so many additional words on each page that could be removed without changing the story. This produced a somewhat diluted reading experience, unable to be comprehended by an eight year old, or even a twelve year old.

I was disappointed when I first realized this. However, I decided to use my struggle as a lesson, one that I could pass on to my fellow writers. Only Time Will Tell can be fixed, and modified to contain only the unclouded style of writing found in classic children’s books. It was not too far gone, I decided. I would fight through the rewrites, and use this experience as information I could remember for following books.

What Makes a Story Complex

‘What was so complicated about the original copy of Only Time Will Tell?’, you might ask. The answer is rather simple. The manuscript had an excess of words thrown in places they needn’t be. Primarily, the words ‘had’ and ‘that’. For example, I might have written the sentence that follows:

They had had the meal at a restaurant that had been near the water.

This sentence is rather confusing, correct? Now, I will remove the unnecessary instances of ‘had’ and ‘that’. With these chances, here is the edited sentence:

They had the meal at a restaurant near the water.

The sentence is much easier to follow. Still, however, some changes could be made to further improve the quality of the writing. After making more modifications to this restaurant story, the author might find that it sounds more like this:

The family ate their dinner at a restaurant by the water.

This is the version of the sentence that the writer would include in their completed book. It is sharp and concise, and tells the reader exactly what needs to be said. Furthermore, it allows the reader to imagine the details of the situation.

Those are the sorts of changes I am making to Only Time Will Tell. I believe they enhance the reading of the book by showing the pure, simple style used in the most remembered, classic children’s books. However, there are many possible fashions of writing. If I was Mr. Warner from A Month Well Spent, I might say the restaurant sentence like this:

The cheerful family devoured their delicious supper at an exclusive dining location, perpetually divided from the remainder of society, and situated in a secluded lagoon.

This version of the story goes into much greater depth, providing a detailed explanation of exactly what is happening. However, it is not suitable for an audience composed of children. A style like Mr. Warner’s is fine in short spurts, as a character’s dialogue, but do not allow it to filter into your own writing fashion. Overly extravagant writing can be humorous, as long as it is not used throughout your entire book.

Alright, I have covered all the topics needed for today. I will try to write posts more frequently, but there are no promises. Only Time Will Tell is nearing completion, and that takes diligence as well. If any of you readers have any comments on past writing experiences, or anything at all, I would be happy to hear them. See you later!