I'm trying to get a handle on Scene breaks (POV shifts, etc.). What are your thoughts on the two pages below; too many **** or not enough?
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Even when a publisher specifically request **** in their submission guidelines?Just use a single #. No matter who tells you otherwise, this is the correct way of doing a scene break. It's a proofreaders' mark, and every editor and typesetter who speaks English, and many who do not, know exactly what it means. Asterisks mean nothing. Period. An editor or typesetter will probably know what you mean, but they;re still wrong. Always. Asterisks, and other symbols, are for published books, not for manuscripts.
If you sell a novel, your copy edited manuscript will be filled with proofreaders' marks, so it's good to learn what they all mean in advance.
Thanks and I put here because all I want now is feedback on my scene breaks;before continuing. After which, I will seek another beta bud.Jamesaritchie is very fixed in his opinions, Francis, and likes to be grumpy. I don't know why.
If you're submitting to a specific publisher, follow their submission guidelines precisely. So if they ask for "****", that's what you use. Heck, if they ask for a pretty picture of a starling and a nursery rhyme to indicate a scene break, that's exactly what you give them.
I know you want advice on how to handle scene breaks, but I'm concerned that you have a lot of your own work out here in the open. I can move this to our Share Your Work rooms, where it'll be protected from searches and hidden from general view; but it might get critiques then, and I'm not sure that's what you want for it right now. Can you let me know, please?
Yup, it's been a while; back at ya.francist, I think you've used the scene breaks correctly as the POVs shift or time elapses. I disagree with James that the # symbol is always and only correct, especially when many publishers now specify asterisks.
However, I have to question whether you need to break scenes as often as you are. Having a scene of only three lines seems jarring and unnecessary, especially when the next scene is in the same POV. You might serve the story better to insert a line like "Three hours later..." and keep it in one scene.
Maryn, who hasn't crossed your path in a while, so Hi!
Thanks for the concern Old Hack. Text was deleted. BTW: when I complete a first draft, if I like story/plots/characters etc, I get a copyright forthwith.
I don't think Old Hack's comments had anything to do with copyright. I believe she was concerned about the post contents being 'freely available to everyone' by being outwith the password protection of the SYW Forums - it was not a concern that anyone would pinch it or want to pinch it.
When you say - I get a copyright forthwith - do you mean you register it? Your choice of course, but what possible purpose does that serve? Registration has to be done again if the manuscript is altered at all - even by you in a second draft.
Copyright is yours the moment you type whatever you're typing -you don't have to do anything.
Yes, I get them registered; whereas I was under the impression that such would offer a measure of protection. As you can tell, grammar is not my forte -thank goodness for beta readers-; my strong point is creativity. I've never encountered writer's block. I hope I didn't jinx myself. Where was I, duh... oh yeah, most -cept me thus far- can learn good grammar, but very few can dream up interesting stories. I thought having your work registered would prevent someone from stealing your basic story.
Copyright is yours the moment you type whatever you're typing -you don't have to do anything
Details please?
As above, Francist44.
And registration of copyright doesn't prevent anyone stealing anything. It is to help the genuine creator prove his ownership of the copyrighted material when trying to obtain redress if anyone does steal the work concerned.
There's a thread running at the moment in which we talk about copyright, here. Go and read it, and read the links, Francis, and you'll probably find your answers on the copyright issue.
Another note--applying for copyright yourself can make you look amateurish to industry pros.
Not to mention extra work for the publisher.
Ideas are a dime a dozen. Worry about writing a great novel, not about who is looking over your shoulder.
Does anyone know if an unpublished novel in the last one hundred years was stolen and published by someone else? I know there have been lawsuits about a novel coming out that is in question to another novel already out, but never an unpublished novel being stolen and published by someone else.