If you’ve been paying attention to our collection of interviews in this latest “writing process” series, you’ll note some familiar tidbits. One is having people who can review your work and give you an honest opinion. Jennifer Fromke has a crit group she really loves, as well as her husband, who isn’t her normal target reader. I can relate to this.
I enjoyed Jennifer’s answers and I know you will as well.
Do you tend to write nonfiction or fiction?
I write contemporary women’s fiction. It’s what I read. It’s what I live.
How long does it take you to finish a book?
My first novel took about a year. I’ve only written one complete manuscript so far. My second novel is taking longer because I’ve joined a short story writing program this year. My short stories take about three weeks.
I live so much while I write, and I think the living makes the writing better. Sometimes I think the story takes longer because I need to live, allowing the story to marinate and sharpen in my mind.
What’s your usual approach? Seat of your pants or outline?
I’m in between these extremes. I like to plan most of the plot ahead of time, to ensure I have the proper elements set. But then I start writing and things change as I go. I always have the end in mind. I know where I want the story to go, but I don’t always know how it will happen.
How many rough drafts do you usually go through before you’re satisfied?
I don’t write separate drafts. I write a couple chapters, submit them to my critique group, and then I adjust the chapters based on their comments. As this is happening, I’m writing more, and when I get stuck, I go back to the beginning and make adjustments as I go. It’s a very fluid process for me. As I re-read what I’ve written so far, it helps me know where the story needs to go, and as I make things happen on the other end, I can sharpen what comes before with added details. I guess you could say I take a very circular approach. I’m constantly editing as I write, and writing as I edit. Some days I will only write new things. But at the end of those days, I’ve at least edited the new section a small bit. Can’t help the editor in me, it’s my favorite part.
Do you have someone you give you manuscript to for feedback before you give it to an editor or agent?
YES! I belong to a crit group called the Yay-Sayers. There are five of us who support each other, critique the work, pray for each other, and brainstorm plot solutions together. They are an enormous support to me and I trust them whole-heartedly. We all write women’s fiction, though our styles are very different.
I also have a friend in town who is a voracious reader and she proofreads my things for typos/grammar issues before I send it to the publisher.
Sometimes writers get so close to a piece that they aren’t good at judging what needs to stay and what should be edited out. How do you get perspective when this happens?
This is difficult. I like to have my husband read everything I write. He is not my target audience, so he has a wonderfully objective perspective. If it doesn’t make sense to him, I need to make it more clear.
The other thing I try to do is look at each scene and imagine the whole story without it. Would it stand up? How much of the scene is actually necessary to the whole? Can I add that one detail to another scene and scrap this one? Oftentimes, I’ll evaluate this before I start writing the scene, so I know what the goal of the scene is. For instance, I may need to introduce a new character, and show how this person gets under the skin of my main character. This might be setting up further action at a later time. So then I ask, do I need a whole scene for this? Or can I slip it into another scene?
What’s your latest project?
A Familiar Shore is my debut novel releasing March 23, 2012.
Meg Marks is a young lawyer raised off the coast of the Carolinas. An anonymous client hires her to arrange his will, and sends her to meet his estranged family at their lake home in northern Michigan. After a shocking discovery, she finds herself caught between his suspicious family and a deathbed promise her conscience demands that she keep. Will she sacrifice her own dreams for revenge, or will she forgive and leave the door open for possible happiness?
Where can we catch up with you online?
You can find me here: http://www.jenniferfromke.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/jenniferfromke
Twitter: https://twitter.com/ – !/JJlakelover