By I am in the process of edits, which means a lot of reading punctuated with spurts of writing/changing and a fair amount of admiration for writer-me who strung together some pretty decent words.
My writing process goes a little something like this:
- Zero-Draft, just get the plot onto the page
- Character Study, get the details down for reference
- First Edit, smooth out the plot on the page and add description/scene/dialog as needed
- Put the book down and work on something else for a while.
- Second Edit, clean up typos, fix plot holes
- Continuity Edit, make sure character descriptions and the like are consistent
- Read the whole thing out loud, fix things as they come up
- Polish
- Start the next book
I am on step 5 for the second book in the Blood Witch series. I have completed step 1 for book 3. Book 1 is complete (at least until it finds an editor) and I have begun querying agents.
This is kind of the sweet spot for me, the time I am most happy with my writing. I love these characters. I love the world(s) I’ve built. There will still be a period of doubt, when I’m sure the whole thing is crap, but for now, I am wallowing in the love.
I don’t write to get rich or famous. In fact, I’ve made less in royalties in the years I’ve been publishing than I used to make babysitting as a teenager. I write because I have stories to tell, characters to introduce to the world. It’s nice to make a little money, sure. Would it be awesome if everyone loved these stories as much as I do? Sure. But it’s just icing. The cake is where I find satisfaction.
My coffee is almost gone, so I guess it’s time to get back to baking…I mean editing. Happy Sunday, Readers. May it be pleasant.
Photo by American Heritage Chocolate on Unsplash
Natalie J Case 