October's Writing Progress
I've started editing Stone & Silence and am pleased with what I've done so far. I've identified most of gaps and inconsistencies, and have fixed a good number of them. I deleted one chapter that started a subplot that didn't really go anywhere in the rest of the book, but I think most of the first draft will remain, with just some cleaning up to make it more pleasant to read.
Some of my earlier books changed drastically from first draft to final draft. I'd like to think the reason I need less editing now is because I'm a better writer, and perhaps I am. Having edited several of my books, I now recognise when I'm writing a scene that's similar to one I cut in a previous book, so I don't write those sorts of scenes any more. Also, I think I trust my instincts more now. The books that needed a lot of editing were written when I was hoping to land a publishing deal, and I was torn between writing a book that I wanted to write and writing a book that I thought an agent would think he could sell to a publisher. Nowadays I don't have that worry. Instead I worry, "Will someone who's read the previous three books enjoy this one?"
The book is currently 126,000 words, or near enough the same length as it was at the end of the first draft - I've added about as much as I've cut. The way I edit makes it difficult to track progress. I don't edit chapter 1, then chapter 2, then chapter 3 and so on. Instead I look through the notes and comments I wrote during the first draft, and that my critique partners have given me, and pick one to work on (or decide it's not valid and delete it). I track the number of those, which I suppose is a way of measuring progress. I started with 666 comments (dun dun duh...) and now have 299. You could interpret that as meaning I'm halfway through, but a comment could be anything from "think of a name for this minor character" to "write a new chapter to fix this massive plot hole." It probably averages out...
I recorded some more of the audiobook for Death & Magic. I'm up to chapter 17, which puts me just over a third of the way through. I haven't had too many trains passing through lately, but recording was interrupted for about ten minutes last night when someone brought a tow truck up to the front of the block of flats to remove a car. Ah well... that's what the editing suite is for...
Some of my earlier books changed drastically from first draft to final draft. I'd like to think the reason I need less editing now is because I'm a better writer, and perhaps I am. Having edited several of my books, I now recognise when I'm writing a scene that's similar to one I cut in a previous book, so I don't write those sorts of scenes any more. Also, I think I trust my instincts more now. The books that needed a lot of editing were written when I was hoping to land a publishing deal, and I was torn between writing a book that I wanted to write and writing a book that I thought an agent would think he could sell to a publisher. Nowadays I don't have that worry. Instead I worry, "Will someone who's read the previous three books enjoy this one?"
The book is currently 126,000 words, or near enough the same length as it was at the end of the first draft - I've added about as much as I've cut. The way I edit makes it difficult to track progress. I don't edit chapter 1, then chapter 2, then chapter 3 and so on. Instead I look through the notes and comments I wrote during the first draft, and that my critique partners have given me, and pick one to work on (or decide it's not valid and delete it). I track the number of those, which I suppose is a way of measuring progress. I started with 666 comments (dun dun duh...) and now have 299. You could interpret that as meaning I'm halfway through, but a comment could be anything from "think of a name for this minor character" to "write a new chapter to fix this massive plot hole." It probably averages out...
I recorded some more of the audiobook for Death & Magic. I'm up to chapter 17, which puts me just over a third of the way through. I haven't had too many trains passing through lately, but recording was interrupted for about ten minutes last night when someone brought a tow truck up to the front of the block of flats to remove a car. Ah well... that's what the editing suite is for...
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