Yes, I’m still alive

While it may seem like my ambition died sometime in April, never to prompt me to publish on the Internet again, I’m back! Here’s a brief update on happenings in the last 90 days.

The novel’s major edit

The major edit of the novel took well into May, mostly because I had to figure out what to do about the middle muddle. The diagnosis: stale and poorly-paced content had to be removed while fresh, better content added. That took awhile. Deleting scenes was easy at first but then I faced some continuity issues, which prompted me to add references to existing scenes without destroying the pacing of what remained.

Once that was done, it was necessary to add two entirely new scenes to support one of the three story arcs that had petered out as the novel progressed. Along with fixed typos and language changes, I felt pretty good in May about sending v1 of the manuscript to my two beta readers.

Beta readers: worth their weight in gold

Both of my beta readers are thin, so they may actually be worth more than their weight in gold. Admittedly, I was nervous about this step. What if my writing was horrible and I was too engrossed to realize it? What if the story was really boring and I’m the only person weird enough to like it? How would I take the criticism? Well, let me assure you that using beta readers is AWESOME.

The betas identified where my writing wasn’t clear, transitions that didn’t work as well as I’d hoped, characters that needed a little more work. They also answered critical questions about how well the plot fit together and whether the relationships were realistic. Both gave me the same feedback about the story arc referenced above (the one that needed two new scenes), saying that they wanted even more of that content. Most gratifying of all, they both liked the book and each cruised through part 3 with little feedback, saying that they were fully captured by it.

Now that I have third-party feedback, it’s time to edit as needed to get the book to version 2 form. That will require more cutting, both in parts 1 and 2. It is now clear that my pacing in part 3 is just right. While my pacing in part 1 is good, improvements are needed. Part 2 needs a little more of one story arc and a little less of a second story arc. There are a couple running themes in the book that should be carried through more consistently, too.

With those adjustments, I think v2 will be a stronger novel, possibly worthy of reading by professionals. I’ve just started drafting a query letter (more on that in another post) with the plan to submit to agents in September and October.

Finally, balancing the aspiring novelist me with the work me and the personal me

Looking back at my WordPress stats, the posts that get the most interest are about writing. The posts about my personal life don’t have a lot of demand. That makes sense. Anyone reading this doesn’t know me and they are reaching the site looking for interesting views on writing. Duh.

But the work me is an important part of the aspiring novelist me story. My first work-effort priority, after all, is the one that pays the bills. Balancing that effort with the effort to write is a common challenge for aspiring novelists and I plan to comment on it more going forward. Less about the volleyball-obsessed daughter in these pages – though not in real life, of course! – and more about occupational concerns.

For example, one reason I’ve gone quiet for so long is that my company is preparing a public stock offering and I’ve been writing the offering circular. I have only so much writing energy per day, and the circular has been taking it all. That’s an interesting project on its own, one I may write about as the story comes to its close.

So, welcome back, aspiring novelist me! The process continues….