Authors on Editing: Interview with Solveig Eggerz

When I discover powerful writers who are also teachers, I’ll admit that I always get a bit excited and my questions jump out of my mouth rapid fire. Being a talented wordsmith doesn’t always mean an individual can explain the process of writing to another, and that’s why I’m excited to present the following interview with Solveig Eggerz, which is full of bite-sized takeaways for writers across any genre.

Solveig Eggerz Interview on Editing

Solveig Eggerz, a native of Iceland, is the author of Seal Woman, an award-winning novel informed by the selkie legend. For many years she told folk and fairy tales in schools in Alexandria, Virginia. Using a blend of told and written story, she teaches writing at the Writer’s Center in Bethesda, Maryland, as well as “Sharing our Stories,” a writing program for individuals emerging from difficult circumstances. She holds a PhD in comparative literature from Catholic University. Her writing has appeared in such places as The Northern Virginia Review, Delmarva Review, and Palo Alto Review.

Q & A with Novelist and Teacher Solveig Eggerz

Kris: Is revision something you look forward to, something you dread, or something in the middle?

Solveig: I enjoy revision because it is often the stage at which I begin to grasp what I am trying to say and how to say it.

Solveig Eggerz revision quoteKris: At what point in your writing process do you begin editing?

Solveig: I never do the nit-picky copy editing until I am finished writing.

Kris: What about revision on deeper levels? Do you revise in stages with different focuses?

Solveig: I revise a million times, sometimes focusing on a particular character, at other times on an event that needs to be fleshed out. Sometimes I revise in direct response to what my 8 person writers group recommends.

Kris: Oh, there’s so much power in a trusty writers group or critique partnership. That’s a great note to mention. Now, a sense of place is so important in Seal Woman. How do you revise your writing, ensuring that you properly capture a true sense of the setting in your story?

Solveig: I go back to the place where I first introduced the setting and make sure I have provided enough detail for the reader to be able to envision the place. Advice: ground your character early in a particular, easy to envision place.

Kris: What about your characters? How do you ensure that your characters are truly alive?

Solveig: I keep asking them this question: given who you are (i.e., considering all your character traits), how are you most likely to respond to this particular situation?

Kris: It’s fascinating to me that you phrase this as a question to your character rather than a question to yourself. Characters can absolutely lead the way so often if we only let them. And speaking of what drives your story, when you’re weaving folklore into your own tale, what are you thinking about as you revise your telling of these old stories?

Solveig: What I am thinking about is–does this fairy tale really have any relationship to the story I am writing? If it does, what part of it? If I choose the sameness between my story and the old tale carefully, I do not have to revise the fairy tale.

Kris: What is your favorite editing tool or trick?

Solveig: Reading aloud. Wherever I stumble, I know I can discard something.

Kris: When you want to make sure every sentence shines, what do you look for?

Solveig Eggerz revision quoteSolveig: Extra verbiage, the use of “very.” Passive voice is usually a no, no. I try to replace all kinds of helping verbs and wimp verbs with verbs that actually show the action. For example, change “he drew a conclusion” to “he concluded”; “he engaged in cutting his steak” to “he cut his steak.”

Kris: When do you know that your book is actually “done”?

Solveig: When I have resolved what I set out to resolve.

Kris: What is something about revision that you think more writers should know?

Solveig: That revision is where the real writing takes place. The first draft is just a prologue to writing.

We talk of pre-writing, but this idea of the first draft of a book being merely a prologue to the writing process is both true and intimidating beyond belief. If we can hold that idea in our minds, though, it alleviates so much of the pressure of that initial storytelling. The revision can come later, the fine-tuning, the cajoling of words into art, the tightening of lines like a rope to tug at a reader’s emotions, and everything else we do to bring out the best in a story.

Thank you so much, Solveig Eggerz, for joining me for this interview, and happy writing, everyone!

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Writing Tip 224: “Ravish” vs. “Ravage”

“Ravish” vs. “Ravage”

There’s a huge difference here worth noting.

If you’re talking ‘bout the birds and the bees and the flowers and the trees and the moon up above, you might be tackling this thing called “love,” but here’s a hint: if you’re writing about a lover ravaging another, it’s not a happy love story.

To take it up a notch—and maybe a few decades forward—let’s talk about what’s happening when it’s getting hot in here.

Remember:

  • To “ravish” is to enrapture, to fill someone with immense delight, or to carry someone off by force.
  • To “ravage” is to devastate or destroy.

One can be a word that intensifies a moment. The other can be a brutal typo that makes the romance and erotica editors of the world wince.

If it helps, remember “ravishing” is an adjective that means captivating and entrancing. These are good things. Ravaging is not a good thing.

So next time you write about the stars in the sky and a girl and a guy and the way they could kiss
à la the 1964 pop charts or next time you want to quote Nelly lyrics, think hard about your spelling. There’s no worse way to kill a heated moment than with bad word choice.

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Writing Tip 223: “Short Shift” vs. “Short Shrift”

“Short Shift” vs. “Short Shrift”

Have you ever been given short shrift? How about a short shift? It’s time to know the difference.

If you’re working nine to five, you don’t have a short shift. Depending on your job, you might feel like you’re often given short shrift, though.

If you go out shopping, maybe you could buy a short shift dress. You wouldn’t want to buy a short shrift dress, because one, it doesn’t sound like a power piece for your wardrobe, and two, I really don’t have a clue what that might look like. Maybe you could just blame that one on bad signage, I suppose. Someone should have done some editing.

Remember, if you’re looking for the phrase meaning ignored or given little consideration, “short shrift” is correct.

“Shrift” is an old word referring to confession that we don’t generally see anymore. The expression “short shrift” was used for the first time by Shakespeare in Richard III, and in this usage, it was referring to a literal brief confession. The metaphoric use that we’re familiar with today didn’t come until centuries later.

“Short shift” is a common enough typo, but it’s not one that you want to repeat or wear or print on any retail signage.

Be careful to avoid this misspelling, folks.

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Authors on Editing: Interview with David Kazzie

So many people say they’ve always wanted to write a book, but only a fraction of these people actually do so. The hard thing to discover is that after the passion and drive, the determination, the desperation, and the belief in your story, once you hit the last page, you aren’t actually close to being done.

It’s in the editing process that stories are spit-polished to a shine, and this week’s interview with author David Kazzie is packed with advice to bring out the best in your work.

David Kazzie editing interview More

Writing Tip 222: “Burned” vs. “Burnt”

“Burned” vs. “Burnt”

I’m sure Smokey the Bear would have something to say about this. Or maybe even Rogue Smokey… that guy’s burns would spread like wildfire.

Some days are full of social media burns so severe people are looking for ointment. Other days, people are posting Pinterest fails of recipes gone wrong. But the word that comes up again and again is that “burn.”

Have you ever been “burned” by bad spelling? Ever been “burnt” by it? Is there a difference? More

Authors on Editing: Interview with Kristina Wright

The diversity of a single writer sometimes blows me away. Sometimes we have this idea that writers have a single genre that they write within, a genre in which they excel and that must be their favorite. And then you discover writers like Kristina Wright, accomplished erotica writer, romance writer, and mommy blogger.

Kristina Wright editing interview More

Writing Tip 221: “Toe the Line” vs. “Tow the Line”

Toe the Line vs. Tow the Line

Wondering if it’s “toe the line” vs. “tow the line”? Here’s your hint.

If this expression brings to mind a great heave-ho of a rope, you might be thinking about (and spelling) this expression incorrectly.

Reminder: The idiom meaning “to do what is expected” or “to follow the established rules” is correctly spelled “toe the line.” More

Authors on Editing: Interview with Osita Iroegbu

Osita Iroegbu InterviewEditing doesn’t just mean proper comma placement. Revision allows for a new examination of clarity, content, and a shift of perspective. Today’s interview with Osita Iroegbu dives into these complicated issues that are essential for every writer to consider to be true to their subject matter, thoughtful about the surrounding world, and to elevate the conversation at hand.

Osita Iroegbu, a first generation Nigerian-American, is a community advocate, educator and communications professional. She previously worked at the Richmond Times-Dispatch newspaper as a general assignment reporter and at Legal Times weekly news magazine where she covered lobbying on Capitol Hill. She spent time as a public relations practitioner at Richmond Redevelopment and Housing Authority and Virginia State University where her work included speech writing, media relations, and community engagement. She also taught and co-instructed mass communication classes at Virginia State University and Virginia Commonwealth University. Osita, a Richmond native, is currently a PhD candidate in VCU’s Media, Art, and Text doctoral program where she researches the intersection of media, race/class/gender, health, and social justice. She is co-founder of the African Community Network, a nonprofit organization providing resources and services to African individuals and families in the Greater Metro Richmond area, and founder of the Little Princesses Mentoring Program, which links girls living in underserved communities with positive women in college. She occasionally writes editorial pieces for the Times-Dispatch as a guest columnist and has a newly-found affinity for Afrofuturistic literature and art. More

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