(no subject)

[felis_ultharus]

A miniature non-update on my blog, explaining the lack of updates. I've been goofing of all week, except for at work and on my novel.

As for my novel, the relaxation in other areas seems to have really helped in that one. I passed the 75% mark on my massive edit. If I can keep up my current rate, I'll be four-fifths finished in three days.

Other than that, it's just been Kingdom Hearts -- which is very fun, and the Disney elements (which still make me cringe) decrease as the game progresses. I'll post a review when I'm done.

Next week, I'm working extra hours, so there'll be little time for video games. I want to finish my novel this month, because my goal is to start sending it out by the end of October.

I also really have to get cracking on my research -- I didn't go into the archives this week, and still have a good 50 years of Montreal indictment records to go over.

Comments

[seal7.livejournal.com]

So, I get confused with your writing- I remember that you were already passing parts of the novel you've been writing ever since I've known you around; is the massive editing that's going on now still on that one?
Because I also faintly remember you said you suddenly started going on a different one...

[felis-ultharus.livejournal.com]

Guess it is getting kind of confusing now.

To recap:

• Spent five years working on novel #1. This novel was terrible, and while I could get a handful of individual scenes and images perfect, everything else was terrible, and it had no structure. You read a chapter of one of the earlier versions of this failure.
  
• Novel #1 wasn't a complete waste, though -- I'd developed the discipline to work on it for hours each day, and all my failures taught me how to do it right, if I started from scratch.
  
• Novel #2 started in October 2005.
  
• Since then, I've rebuilt it twice from the bottom up. Both were miles ahead of the first. Version #1 was barely publishable, #2 was publishable, but mediocre at best. Both attempts taught me a lot more about writing.
  
• Meanwhile, I've been rereading many of my favourite authors, asking people about what they like, and trying to understand what gives people pleasure in reading. I've been trying to mould those factors into a style I like and around ideas I want to express.
  
• Version 3 of the second novel was completed last spring. It is by far the best thing I've ever written, and I believe (I hope) it is above-average publishable.
  
• I then did two quick edits -- one for coherence, one for factual errors and errors of consistency.
  
• Next step was moving into my massive edit -- where I go over each ten-page block 3 times, checking for flow, style, and the rhythm of the words, and naturalness of dialogue on a fine level.
  
• By tomorrow, I should be four-fifths through it. I believe all edits will be complete by the end of August.
  
• Once that's done, I'm handing a portion to node357 (Sean), because it deals specifically with our mutual hometown and I want to see if his perceptions of it match mine. I'm also printing up three paper copies of the complete novel to circulate among friends (this was very helpful after version 2).
  
• In October, I'm going to start asking for paper copies back, hopefully with pencilled-in suggestions.

I hope that makes some sense of it. I'm not sure I'm being coherent tonight.

[seal7.livejournal.com]

Ahhhhhhhhh, that's how it is! Yah, makes sense now :) thanks.

[felis-ultharus.livejournal.com]

No problem. I could probably talk endlessly about it if I thought more people were interested in the details :p