The making of “Behind the Brick” 12-6-12

So you’d like to write a full length novel?  You’ll get praise and attention and be rich, rich, rich?  You’ll be hailed as the next great literary hero?  I’m here to tell you that perhaps one day all your dreams will come true, but not without a huge amount of hard work, sweat and cramped fingers.  Only on a very rare occasion does success happen overnight, and the likelihood of your novel being the next great literary masterpiece are less than 1%.

I have been writing on “Behind the Brick” for six months and have 250 pages in the can…that’s about 57,000 + words.  The reason I have reached that point is because I write 5 or so chapters, re-read and re-write.  I won’t move on until I feel every sentence, paragraph and chapter are to my liking. I also spend most weekends on the road supporting my other books, so that too cuts into my writing time. I usually spend 2-4 hours a day on the work when I’m able to write.

Last night, 12-05-12, I was summoned by my reader/editor for some good old-fashioned, down-to-it talk about my book. She ripped my work a new one!! Why? Because she’s hired to do that. She want’s this work to be as good as it can be as much as I do and won’t tolerate pacing problems, editorial mistakes or unbelievable drivel. This is good and bad.  Good because it helps me see clearer where I need to make my corrections: But bad in that she cuts my baby down to size. If you want to write a novel properly, this is the price you pay.

I birthed this book out of my imagination and just when I think I have it; BAM, I don’t!! Trust me, I appreciate the constructive criticism and welcome her valued opinion. This doesn’t mean I scrap the whole book and start again.  There are some wonderful, magical things coming out of the work: I just need to fine tune them.  This is all a part of the process. I will re-read 1000′s of times before everything is just right.  My reader/editor will see to that!

I’m entrenched in a world that I’ve made. I’m struggling to find the right words in what has been my most difficult novel to write. The challenge feels like an obsession, as I try to be perfect in my “what-if” world. This is where a lot of my anxious energy is born. To properly write this or any fictional book, the “what-ifs” must be present. Oh, I’m able to differentiate between that which is fantasy and my real life, but I do think about it 23 hours a day. I ask myself “what can I do to make it better?” I wake up at 2 AM to write down ideas that come to me and I carry a pen and paper with me wherever I go.

So you want to write a novel and become famous? It’ll take a lot of work, patience, gnashing of the teeth and determination.  I’ll get this book right and when I do, I’ll feel great for about two weeks until I start outlining my next one. It’s what I do, it’s where I feel the most comfort. I’d often wondered what I wanted to do with my life….It took 40 years, but I finally found it. That doesn’t mean the work stops though….It means I get to work harder than I ever have at any job.  The great part is that, unlike a pointless job, I have work that means something and will be shared by whoever chooses to read me. If I don’t do it right, I lose readers and I lose my beloved craft.

obsessiveness, determination and anxious energy feed my craft and if I ever lose that edge, I’ll be finished. I feel that I love what I do too much for that to ever happen.  I’ll die at the keyboard…of writing and life!

 

Filed under: Behind the Brick Tagged: determined, obsessive, work, writing