brightlotusmoon | Nervous writerbrain is nervous. Also, here's a migraine.

I have been having one of those "Wow, I truly suck at writing" days. Went back through the book, edited the crap out of the first two chapters, wondered if my characters were really this irritating and boring, or if my writing voice was really that irritating and boring. My paranoia about creating an unnecessary Mary Sue has become somewhat extreme.
Too much exposition? Not enough exposition? Too much character description? How awesome and amazing do the Other Characters think the Main Female Protagonist is? She is not awesome or amazing. She isn't supposed to be. She is just a person. A weak, scared, troubled, uncertain person who is fully unprepared for what she has to do to save the world.
But some readers will call her a Mary Sue anyway. Because she is pretty and has powerful powers. But all the main characters are like that. That is the point.

Neurosis. Anxiety. Feh. *wrings hands*

One thing I learned in workshops was to edit out as many adverbs and adjectives as I could. Adverbs especially can be overused and easy to abuse. I did that to Chapter One. I feel much better.
I should probably read more Margaret Atwood. She writes with a lovely sort of simplistic yet stunning style that conveys volumes in few words.

Mm. Can't think straight. Lying down now.