Ben
asked
Lev Grossman:
Hi Lev! Do you have a set routine for writing a book in terms of number of drafts, and time taken to do each draft? At what point does an editor/copy editor have input?
Lev Grossman
I wouldn't call it a routine exactly. I do write all the chapters in order -- I don't skip around (if I don't feel like writing a particular chapter, it usually means there's something wrong with it). Every time I finish a chapter I tend to go back through the rest of the book and revise it a bit and make sure the new stuff tracks with the old stuff, which means that by the end of the first draft I've already rewritten the book a fair number of times.
But I'll do four or five more full passes before I show it to an editor. I don't like to bring them in too early, I prefer to wander in the wilderness for a year or two first.
But I'll do four or five more full passes before I show it to an editor. I don't like to bring them in too early, I prefer to wander in the wilderness for a year or two first.
More Answered Questions
Allison
asked
Lev Grossman:
I adored The Magicians, but the first five or six people I lent/recommended it to after reading it hated it - they found the main character unlikable, which has never been a deal-breaker for me, but apparently was for them. Was it actually your intention to create an unsympathetic protagonist and see how that worked, or do you think (like I kind of do) that my friends are just tripping?
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