Today was a tough writing day — not because of getting the words, but because the words are about things that hit me hard. Family, and what that world could mean, and should mean, and also what it sometimes doesn’t. This chapter is deep inside the magic of the world… and the conflict there comes… Continue reading Ohio 3: A thing about family – the VERY good writing day
Category: How To Revise Your Novel
Second take on Ohio 2 done in first draft
So… I didn’t use a word of the first version of Ohio 2. Even my “and’s” and “the’s” are brand new, and fresh and sparkling. NOW, HOWEVER… the novel sits for a week or two or maybe three while I outline Ohio Three. Ohio Three will also be brand-new. I won’t even be reading the… Continue reading Second take on Ohio 2 done in first draft
Last day of the year… and about ready to get back to work
It hasn’t been the best year in my life. It hasn’t been the worst, either. I wrecked four first drafts of my Ohio Series (books two through five) by exuberatant pantsing. After a longish Think Week and some time spent away from fiction writing and away from deadlines, I’m rested and ready to go through… Continue reading Last day of the year… and about ready to get back to work
Today went better. I love a LOT of Ohio 3.
I made it a nice chunk of the way through Book 3, and there is, in fact, a whole lot of story that’s worth saving — that’s funny, and in places moving, and overall very strange — but which fits the world I’ve built and the characters I’ve put into it. So after a few… Continue reading Today went better. I love a LOT of Ohio 3.
Replotting Ohio 2… The Experiment that Went BOOM!
Book 2 has a lot of salvageable material. A lot of awesome world stuff, some wonderfully funny scenes, some pretty scary scenes. It was fun for me to read, and I made myself laugh a bunch of times, got a little teary-eyed, did a light revision and passed it off to my Editor. Matt, however,… Continue reading Replotting Ohio 2… The Experiment that Went BOOM!
And more of the same… OHIO 2 (NO… THREE) Revision
I’m going through all five novels. At the moment, I’m tearing apart Book One, which I got right, to find out where I need to take Book Two THREE in the revision. It’s a complicated process, and I’m managing to give myself regular headaches going through it. And all of this is my own damn… Continue reading And more of the same… OHIO 2 (NO… THREE) Revision
Still replotting, still restructuring on Ohio 3
There’s damn little I’m going to be able to save. Ohio 3 is lost in the weeds. So at this point, I’m barely even looking for things to save. I’m just looking for the story I wanted to tell but didn’t, and if I can use any of what I already wrote, great. If not…… Continue reading Still replotting, still restructuring on Ohio 3
Here’s that Wrong Left Turn In Albuquerque… and it’s as bad as I dreaded.
The first sixty pages of Ohio 3 held up fine. Starting on manuscript page 61, I went in exactly the wrong direction, dropped the really good local character I had in place for one who broke my otherwise tight worldbuilding through two novels and the start of this one all to shit, threw in a… Continue reading Here’s that Wrong Left Turn In Albuquerque… and it’s as bad as I dreaded.
Starting the Ohio 3 Read-through/Revision
Okay. I have the manuscript printed out. I did some brainstorming in the shower on how I can save as much of what I remember of the story as possible WITHOUT breaking what I did in the first two books, or the last two. Worst case, I’ll end up writing a completely new novel. That’s… Continue reading Starting the Ohio 3 Read-through/Revision
Good news, BAD news on the Ohio Novels.
Finished up the type-in revision of Ohio 2 yesterday, and I love the book. Printed out the revised manuscript this morning, and have it set up for Matt to edit when he has time. And then I opened up Ohio 3. <cue theme from Jaws: beat head repeatedly on desk with vigor and frustration… but in… Continue reading Good news, BAD news on the Ohio Novels.
