Sunday 7 August 2011

Paper edit, music, Chrysalis



The paper edit is well underway. I'm finding that the above picture is what happens on a better page, and on most pages there is way more scrawled handwriting, crossing out and rewriting, and sometimes when I'm too exasperated to do better, just a note that says something like "Rewrite", or "summarise?" or "too sudden". I'm up to page 53, and there are 188 pages all in all. So I'm a fair way in, but the prospect of getting through the rest is a wee bit daunting sometimes. Not that I'm letting it freak me out - not at all! I'm just plugging away. Not even doing a bit each day, I have to say. But I've been doing other stuff.

For instance, these are MY SONGS but the music is performed by a guy called Billy Bedard, who I've been collaborating with. The lyrics, music and vocals are by me, but he's added his own touches here and there, i.e. adding a bridge where there wasn't one previously. Sometimes it means I have to rearrange how I sing things, but that's okay. I've also recorded vocals for his songs too, but the tunes are not available anywhere online yet. He intends to wait until he has all 30 of his songs recorded before releasing anything. There isn't any money in this, but I'm doing it for the fun, and the passion for music. Collaborating is fun, if you do it with the right person!

I've also written this week's Chrysalis story, which I am really quite happy with. I'm currently revising it, but it was nice to be able to prove to myself that all my Chrysalis stories from now on weren't going to be post-apocalyptic tales of lonely woe. Hehe.

16 comments:

  1. My pages tend to look the same. After a while, if have to fix the mistakes, rewrite the sections, and print it out and start again.

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  2. Good work on the page edits! I'm sure you'll make it through in tip-top shape. My pages looked very similar in some instances, and in others, entire pages were X-ed out. Bad news. But if it must be done than it's not that bad.

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  3. Above all else, I'm pretty impressed at how productive you are.

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  4. It's great that you can write music. I can't do it. I was a vocalist, trumpet player and music major and had to write a few things for my music major (classical) but when it came to writing pop stuff, I couldn't do it. I always have too many songs running through my head so I just wound up stealing other people's songs. :)

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  5. @L. Diane - yes, I've already been tempted to do that with what I've edited so far. But I'm holding out till I'm done with the whole read-through.

    @Lindz - thank you! And honestly, if I could X out an entire page here and there I'd be happy - I need to cut words.

    @Rusty - thank you! :)

    @Danette - well, I never sit down and write out music. I mess around on my guitar and come up with something to put words to. I "stumble upon" new chords, or rather chords that are new to me, and go from there. Sometimes I'll have some words written down, and the chords will come later. I don't write proper music though, like sheet music.

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  6. I haven't done a paper edit in a while, but I remember pages like that. "Other stuff" is good, too. Good luck with the music and the editing!

    -Vicki

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  7. I wonder if it would be possible to write a post-apocalyptic tale that wasn't of lonely woe? I mean, a happy post-apocalyptic story? Hmmmmm....

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  8. @Vicki - this is the first time since university that I've done any proper official-like paper editing.

    @Michael - intriguing notion! Sounds like a Chrysalis prompt...hehe

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  9. Wow. Go, you! You are very versatile. And songwriting seems like so much fun. My niece has recently gotten into it. Over vacay, we worked on one together and had a ball doing it.

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  10. I agree with Danette. I can't write music because other lyrics are always popping into my head and it drives me nuts. I have three lines that are original, and I wasn't even thinking about it when I wrote them.

    I am so behind on Chrysalis it's not even funny. And I can't get back into the feel of the one I was working on because it doesn't have the same tone as my Camp NaNo project.

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  11. @Liz - thanks! That sounds like a lot of fun for you and your niece. Does she play guitar or anything?

    @Brooke (and Danette) - when I write lyrics, they tend to be more like poems. I firmly believe that anyone who writes poetry can write a song too, if they're musical anyway.

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  12. Good luck with all the editing! Sometimes I like paper edits the best too.

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  13. I'm glad you said the pic was what happened to a better page, because my paper edits are messy as! ;)

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  14. Congratulations on the songs!
    Your paper edits look and sound a lot like mine. I'm starting the next round on Saturday. Good luck with the next 135 pages!

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  15. Best of luck with all the editing and such :) <3 a new follower

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  16. @Lauri - thanks!

    @Lynda - glad I'm not the only one...hehe.

    @Deniz - thank you! I'll need that luck. and good luck with your new round!

    @Kelley - thank you for following & for the comment!

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Thanks for your words, me hearties! and don't forget to leave a link to your blog somewhere I can find it!