Julia Karr's Blog, page 4

Book 3 progress report...

Over 82K now... it's all coming together... racing to the climax.

Teaser:
"[People] need to see for themselves what’s really going on."

The writing continues...

Passed 80K in Book 3 of XVI Series.

Today's teaser:

"Don't let this love slip away," Wei said.

Working hard on book 3!

1300 words today (78K total) XVI Series Book 3

Teaser "[Men] must advocate as strongly for the equality of women as they do for their own rights."

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

Today in particular seems appropriate to share a quote from the draft of XVI Series, Book 3, on which I am working.

"Violence destroys the road to freedom."
So glad that we had a man like Martin Luther King, Jr. So sad he was taken from us much too soon.

Skeletons & First Drafts

This morning as I was writing in my daily journal, I was thinking on the first draft of book 3 of the XVI series. I'm bearing down on its completion and I was looking ahead to editing/reworking. All of which led me to journal about the convoluted structure of my first drafts.

I don't fit squarely in the middle of either the plotter or pantser model of writers. Upon this morning's reflections, however, I could refer to myself as the skeleton dresser. I may not be alone!



What I mean by skeleton dresser is this...

I generally start a first draft with my main character, the basic plot, and what I see as the end result. As I build upon the story, other characters enter/leave, subplots weave in and out, motives become murky, clear up, or change completely, etc. My first drafts are filled with highlighted and capped directions to myself, such as:
rewrite thisdid (s)he really know this beforeif this happens then you have to change thatoooh, I like this direction better, go forward from here...  If I see my first draft as the skeleton of the book-to-be, then all these changes, about-faces, revelations are hung upon the bones of the story, embellishing it and making it fuller. Also made me think of when I played dress-up as a kid, I piled on an excess of ornamentation! Hats, scarves, jewelry (not just one bracelet, but an armload!), gloves, lipstick, perfume... whatever there was that seemed good at the time. And, it was always too much! 
Now, back to the skeleton analogy. When the first draft is done, it's time to look at the skeleton with all its adornments and start removing some, shifting some, maybe adding a little more here, and taking away a little more there. After I have it looking acceptable to me, I let someone else (my critique group) see the skeleton in all its glory. Then they get to make/suggest their adjustments, which I can (or not) accept and I go back in and adjust the skeleton's dressings.
When all is said and done, and I don't think it needs any more or less, the most interesting phenomenon occurs. The skeleton has transformed into a real person. The first draft has become a real book. And, along the way, I've had fun doing it! 
For my writer friends - is this how you approach first drafts? As dressing the skeleton? I'd love to know!

Back in the writing saddle & a new website

After some issues with my website, I am switching to this format. It may take a while to get everything up and running the way I'd like it to be. But, I'm so excited about the work I'm doing on the third book in the XVI Series, that I'm going live here right away!

Just a little teaser from today's writing...

"I would not be the first person to find solace for a broken heart in someone else’s arms."

Looking forward to updating the new website & keeping in touch!

German “Truth” Release Day!

Today is the official release day for the German edition of Truth – called “The Sign“.  Happy Book Birthday!

XVI Series – Book III in progress

NaNoWriMo is over for 2014, but the first draft of Book III is not yet complete. For those of you who are following my progress, I will update my status here, and on Twitter, and on my Facebook Author Page.

A little teaser line from Book III:

“She loved him desperately—but desperation and love do not equal happiness.”

Word Count: 57,464 (out of an estimated 75K)

Upcoming Event

I’ll be reading at the following:
First Sunday Prose Reading and Open Mic

Presented by the Writers Guild

With Guest Readers:  Hilda Davis and Julia Karr

Sunday, Dec. 7

3:00 to 5:00 pm

Boxcar Books 408 E 6th St

Abegunde is an egungun (ancestral) priest in the Yoruba Orisa tradition, Reiki Master, and doula with a focus on the recovery of ancestral memory from the Earth and human body. Her writing has been published in numerous journals and anthologies, including The Kenyon Review, Best African American Fiction 2010, Beyond the Frontier: African-American Poetry for the 21st Century, and nocturnes (re)view of the literary arts.  She is the recipient of fellowships from Cave Canem, Sacatar (Brazil), Ragdale, and Norcroft.  She is currently a doctoral candidate in the department of African American and African Diaspora Studies at IU.  More information about her work can be found at: http://iub.academia.edu/MariaHamiltonAbegunde http://abegunde.com

Hilda Davis is a first-generation American from Staten Island, New York.  She began writing to discover and develop her voice, and is enjoying the process. She is currently a first year M.A. Candidate in the Department of African-American and African Diaspora Studies at Indiana University Bloomington.

 

Julia Karr lives in Bloomington, Indiana with three persnickety cats and one really chill one. Julia’s first paid publications were poems, followed by her first book, XVI, a young adult futuristic thriller that began its life as a NaNoWriMo novel. XVI and the sequel entitled TRUTH are published by Speak/Penguin Books for Young Readers. She’s currently working on the XVI series final book, which is also coming out of NaNoWriMo.

 Come early to sign up for Open Mic!

 

Strange research – Book III

Possibly the weirdest thing I’ve googled yet…

“testing DNA on a decomposed body”

The things a writer gets to investigate!