14 March 2013

N is for Narration


10 Signs Your Narration is Failing


  1. You're writing in 1st person POV and every sentence starts with an "I" or "My".
  2. There is no white space on the first page of your manuscript.
  3. It takes you 3 sentences to describe what should only take you a few choice words.
  4. The first page of your manuscript reminds you of the Star Wars opening crawl.
  5. Your manuscript contains a mixture of past and present tense verbs...everywhere.
  6. A scan for the word "that" in the first two chapters of your manuscript retrieves a count of 89. Likewise for the linking verb "was".
  7. The first page of your manuscript makes you think been there, done that.
  8. There exists a typographical error on the first page of your manuscript, worse...it's in the first paragraph.
  9. You haven't mastered the use of there, their, and they're.
  10. Your narrator herd a noise instead of heard it.


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16 comments:

  1. Hah! This list is really actually very helpful. Seems simple and obvious, but yet, sometimes I don't think about how sloppily I might be writing. Your post is funny, but there's a lot of substance there for a Top 10 list!

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    1. Thanks, Pang! I could do larger lists on my pet peeves here, but thought I'd save some for future posts.

      I get sloppy too, and my OCD really kicks into gear when I'm on my 10th review of a one pager and STILL find a mistake! It's the thing that slows me down so much. I've since stopped proofing comments I leave on other blogs (yes, I used to proof those).

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  2. Funny! How I wished I had this list a couple of years ago when I was editing for someone.
    Number 4 is my favorite. Lol!

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    1. Haha, Krystal jane! I actually had to look that one up. I couldn't think of what to call it besides the Star Wars beginning where the words scroll up to give you some back-story. It just didn't sound right. :D

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  3. Number 9 drives me nuts in other people's facebook posts, never mind in narration. Ugh. Awesome post!

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    1. OMG, so true! Same with: your and you're. :)

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  4. Great points! Especially love 1, 2, and 9.

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    1. Yes, you kind of HAVE to have that white space on the first page or I'll put it down 8 times out of 10. It's pure laziness on my part, but it's the truth.

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  5. Oh boy, oh boy!! That is so true. I'm sitting here reading this and sadly going, yes, yes, yes, guilty... Thanks for sharing this.

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    1. I know some of these are terrible to say, but when I pick up a book to read, I'm lucky to have the time, so I value the experience. But, if none of these things exist, I'm likely to get through the entire book, because once I'm past chapters one and two, the author pretty much has my attention.

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  6. Great list! #2 and 6 drive me insane. Whenever I read too many "thats", I start editing them out.

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    1. Thanks! My first hook to a book is the back cover blurb, then the interior blurb, and so when I open to the first page, I'm usually halfway sold on the book. If I see absolutely no white space on that page, OMG!! So frustrating, because now my first impression is like going on a date and the guy just won't shut up!

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  7. Great points. #9 drives me nuts when I see it on facebook or other sites...

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    1. It makes me wish I had edit authority whenever I see this. lol

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