The Joys of Writing
The first book is up and running; the second is with the genre editor (the final stage after several re-writes, sense checks, spelling checks, and going through the non-genre editor). So I thought I'd give the third book a final run through before pushing it over to the non-genre editor.
So the first thing is tidying up the middle section, which deals with a lot of plot. Fine and dandy except something strikes me about the plot. Hmm...maybe I need to backtrack a bit and rewrite the whole approach to one of the early characters.
Then, yesterday, it strikes me that really, I shouldn't introduce a character in the last section of the book, out of the blue. Besides, it's partly a crime novel, so I have to give the reader the chance to guess at most of the plot. Hmmph. OK, I can do that. And the character wants more involvement. As ever, when you start writing more around a character, the character starts suggesting stuff. More backtracking.
While I'm still in the middle of that, this morning another part of the plot shouts out to be treated in a different way. Then, while I've gone yet further back, I realise that this whole thing about the interaction of time between fairyland and Midearth needs fine tuning concerning how people get into Elfhame and what the rules are.
Ach, damn. I'm now involved in a major re-write. Nothing wrong with the book, it's just it needs locking everything together in just the right way. And that will mean resorting to a spreadsheet to keep track of who knows what, when; avoiding duplication of information; building the clues in just the right way; ensuring consistency in the way the magic works, and keeping all that in pace with the internal timing in the book.
Ho hum. That's the next few weeks blown.
So the first thing is tidying up the middle section, which deals with a lot of plot. Fine and dandy except something strikes me about the plot. Hmm...maybe I need to backtrack a bit and rewrite the whole approach to one of the early characters.
Then, yesterday, it strikes me that really, I shouldn't introduce a character in the last section of the book, out of the blue. Besides, it's partly a crime novel, so I have to give the reader the chance to guess at most of the plot. Hmmph. OK, I can do that. And the character wants more involvement. As ever, when you start writing more around a character, the character starts suggesting stuff. More backtracking.
While I'm still in the middle of that, this morning another part of the plot shouts out to be treated in a different way. Then, while I've gone yet further back, I realise that this whole thing about the interaction of time between fairyland and Midearth needs fine tuning concerning how people get into Elfhame and what the rules are.
Ach, damn. I'm now involved in a major re-write. Nothing wrong with the book, it's just it needs locking everything together in just the right way. And that will mean resorting to a spreadsheet to keep track of who knows what, when; avoiding duplication of information; building the clues in just the right way; ensuring consistency in the way the magic works, and keeping all that in pace with the internal timing in the book.
Ho hum. That's the next few weeks blown.