I don’t usually mirror entire posts from one blog to another, but this one, which is a Writing Craft post, is both pertinent to a current project (the Horngard I book) and to every writer, because all of us write a “bad” first chapter from time to time…and don’t fix it right away. What do Read More…
Category: Revision
Again, And Again, And Again
….creeps in this petty pace from day to day…(or something like that.) No, Horngard I has not yet fledged completely and was handed back to the nest by the helpful Agent who pointed out that just flapping wings wasn’t flying, and the primaries were only half as long as they should be. Metaphorically speaking. Horngard Read More…
On The Way
NewBook I is on the way again…I emailed it to my agent yesterday and he got it (confirmation email, yay!) so there’s that. I took the rest of the afternoon off for a walk outside and horse chores. Today I opened NewBook II’s file. You may recall that it is/was a little over 20K word, Read More…
Holiday Period
Whatever holidays you celebrate in this season….or firmly avoid, in this season…I wish you all as pleasant a passage from December to the New Year as possible. We will be having a quiet holiday season, since we can’t drive at night and thus can’t go to the Sing-Along Messiah, or any performances, or attend the Read More…
Agent Response
Great relief of writer to find that yes, the whole package is back…my agent called Friday and we had a good long talk. The book IS a book. It is a reasonably good book. It could use some work, but he enjoyed it, stayed up late to read it. Also, all the things he talked Read More…
Done-de-done-done
NewBook is done. Three rounds of revision, wrestled to the mat on space, time, person, place, etc. issues. From here on out it’s nitpicking time because it’s DONE. 172,125 words, counting chapter titles, datelines (actually places, mostly), 31 chapters (may need some chapters numbered differently, that’s an editorial decision I’d take advice on.) It’s a Read More…
Stage Three Revision
Stage Three overlaps Stage Two, because–especially this time–there’s no reason to ignore 3rd level problems while reading aloud to someone from the computer screen (there is no print-out yet.) So if I find an entire paragraph that’s now redundant (a Stage Two problem) I just delete it, or a temporal-sequence problem, I mark that section Read More…
Closer and Closer…
Progress is still coming and the book is still GROWING. I didn’t ask it to grow past 150K, I swear. But it swore back that I need another chapter of this, and two more chapters of that, and by the way I’d left an entire Very Important POV dangling. So. Still growing. New Stuff is Read More…
New Beginning In
NewBook’s new beginning has now been approved by two different first-readers (and many thanks to both of them!!!) so Chapter 1 is now anchoring one end of the book and the Good Ending (which has no chapter number as yet because things are still fluid in the last third and I need *uninterrupted* working sessions Read More…
Second Revision Draft
Second revision draft is now on chapter 22. This book, thanks to the years of not writing and brain foggy stuff, may take more than one run through the “Construction Phase” to get things right, but every thing so far is willing to be nudged in the right direction. My metaphors for the problems are Read More…