Mid-Week Progress Report
Ok, I know I'm a little late should have posted yesterday, but things just got in the way...
So, I'm currently in the process of doing a total re-hash of my first ever novel All Will Be Well. This process had taught me loads... not least that I have come a long way since then.
My writing skills have improved ten-fold (most thanks in part to my mates at Writers Abroad) and I'm beginning to understand the editing part of things much more. I thought I did understand it, but I realise now that I thought it was just about spelling, punctuation, checking continuity. How naive could I be? I am now slashing, burning, killing off characters, changing scenes, settings and endings. A bit like writing a new novel I can hear someone say...well, no not quite. The heart of the novel is still there, the story I wanted to write is still there but it is leaner, tighter, more well-written.
I can't tell you how much back story I left in... back story is great and it is necessary but the reader doesn't necessarily need to know it all. It should be dropped in like little pearls, here and there and allow the reader to fill in the gaps. I just overwhelmed them with facts and events long past. And it's not that this was all waste of time, because I need to know the back story so I can nurture the little pearls... I suppose what it is showing me is that a writing project, however large or small, can be re-written, can be re-moulded and re-shaped to fit the purpose, the main objective of getting published! However, I'm a long way off right now and I'm trying to turn a very sad ending, into one with more hope. A little like me, in everlasting hope of getting this story onto some editors desk... so now for some more red ink!
Until later...
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