The Final Draft

On Thursday last week I finished what I thought would be the final draft of my book. Except that it wasn't. I thought I was all done and the story would just need proofing for typos, grammar etc but when I totted up the word count I found it had increased by at least 20%. All feelings of satisfaction ebbed away as it dawned on me that I would have to cut, cut and cut some more to get the wordcount down again. I'm now trying to decide which scenes will stay and which will go, trying to comfort myself with the thought I could use some of the cut scenes in a future book instead. But even with my most trusted readers trying to help me it's still so hard to decide! I'm currently itching to print it out so I can do a proper edit but there's no paper and not much ink left. I've just placed an order on the site that sounds like a very long river and I'm waiting for their delivery. My plan is to print out the whole darn thing and lay it out scene by scene. Maybe then I'll see what needs to go and what should stay? Maybe...

It's All Downhill From Here

I'm about 50% of the way through my final draft and, if I keep this up, I might (although I shouldn't tempt fate) finish well ahead of my self-imposed deadline. It's taken a long time and a lot of hard work to get to this point. The characters and their world become more real to me every day and I often talk to B about them as if they are real people. Fortunately B is very good at humouring me. I sometimes wonder if it's the writing process itself that makes many writers become eccentric, although I suspect that some (like me) were half way there already! It's hardly surprising when you're constantly imagining conversations between fictional characters, especially when they're having arguments with each other!
So, I hope to finish this final draft by late May / early June. Once I've done this and given it one final polish, I'm going to resend it to the nice agent who offered to reread it. The thought makes me excited and a more than a bit scared. I will have done my best but what if she doesn't like it? What if no one else likes it? It's a sobering thought and one I choose not to think about most of the time. It's hard when you've spent years creating something that you hope others will like, especially children. It's a tough old world and everyone's a critic in this digital age. Let's just hope that enough people like it to give it decent reviews.
But better to try and all that. Here's to everyone who ever dared to follow their dreams, regardless of the consequences!

Anyone for Tennis?

I'm still making steady progress with my book but, as ever, the real battle is the internal one.
My greatest enemy has always been self doubt, a common affliction especially for writers and would-be writers when it comes to believing in their work. For me it's a battle I think I'm winning. At the moment every negative voice is being slammed down by a positive one. But I think there are many fantastic writers out there who we've never heard of simply because they don't believe in themselves enough. And yet they are as good as and sometimes superior to many writers who are already published! I wish I could make them believe how good they are and convince them they can succeed. And if I ever do get published and get to teach creative writing I reckon it would be worth spending half the class working on people's confidence. It's a bit like the top tennis players - they all have the same skill set / level - in the end those that win are the ones with the psychological edge.
Regarding my work, I've promised myself that the book will get finished and resubmitted before the summer's out. Maybe it'll even be finished in time for Wimbledon?

Slow Progress

I'm still working on what I hope to be the 'final draft' (until someone tells me otherwise!) However it's been slow progress this last week as R has been extremely poorly and I've been snowed under at work. So it's been a week of sleepless nights and overtime. I've always been a bit of a night owl but lately I've been in bed by 8pm every night. This has, unsurprisingly, somewhat diminished my 'writing time'. I've still managed to write every day (bar Thursday) but the going's been painfully slow. And, as I abandoned the fourth draft and went back to the start again, I'm only about 20% of the way through the latest draft. I think it's unlikely that I will get the whole book finished by Easter but I'm pleased with what I've done so far (a rarity for me!) Here's hoping I can get the rest completed to the same standard and that someone loves it enough to one day publish it.

Reviving my Darlings

I'm about 10% of the way through my fourth draft and I think it's working. I've rewritten most of the dialogue and I think it sounds more 'real'. And now that I'm using close third I can use two POVs. This should make the narrative more interesting/varied but it also means I can restore some scenes I really liked but had to cut when it was in the first person. It also means the MS will be longer, but you can't have everything. All being well, I'm hoping to get it finished by Easter.

One Step at a Time

One of the agents I sent my MS to came back straight away, which was great. But she wants some major revisions. So, guess what I've been doing this past week? I've completely rewritten the prologue and revised the first three chapters. Thankfully I haven't been short of inspiration so far. And I think it's a lot better than it was. But, just like the heroine in my story, I still have a long way to go. Oh well, I've always enjoyed a challenge :)

The Scariest Prospect of All

So, my search for a literary agent has begun. I sent out the first 6,000(ish) words, synopsis and covering letter to an agent who is currently looking for the sort of thing I've just written. Now all I have to do is wait. It could take up to 8 weeks for a reply and I've never been good at being patient. I'll just have to keep myself busy in the meantime and hope the time goes quickly. On the other hand, if she doesn't like / want it, will I be able to take the rejection? The pessimistic half of me wants the time to go slowly and the optimistic half of me wants it to go quickly! But if she says no, then there are always other agents. And in two and a bit weeks I'll find out whether I've got anywhere in the Write Now competition. In the meantime I'm waiting for two young critics to get back to me with their opinions on the opening chapters - and for me that is the scariest prospect of all!

Done and Dusted!

Well I've finished the third draft of my book and am feeling very pleased about it. Did I say pleased? I'm ecstatic! It's taken three years and a lot of blood, sweat and tears to get this far but I'm glad I did it. The next step is trying to sell it, which is no doubt going to be even harder than writing the darn thing. But I'm ready for the challenge (I think!) Anyway, here's to 2013 - the Year of Getting Published (or at least well on the way to it).

The Impossible Deadline - I forgot to say...

...that I did hit my 'impossible deadline' - in fact I even got my compo entry in early! :) I'm now half-way through the third (and final?) draft. The next part of the plan is to get the book out to some agents in the new year :)

How to Finish a Novel

To get my novel finished I've decided to enter this competition. The prize is amazing - £10K and a publishing deal. The deadline is a month away. It's good to have a deadline and I like a challenge, but it means I must not only finish my second draft (rewriting at least one chapter per day for the next three weeks), but I also need to pick and polish the best 5,000 words and write a brilliant synopsis - simples!
I've been rewriting the entire first draft from multiple third person POVs into one first person POV as well as tweaking the plot, shaping the structure and tightening the prose. It's not been easy but it's definitely improved the first draft.
Because of family responsibilities I can only write very early in the morning or late at night, creating a steady cycle of sleep deprivation. Add in a few restless nights with R and my poorly tooth and it's quite possibly a recipe for disaster. So I have one month in which to achieve a miracle - let's hope it's worth it! :)