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So, here's the first in a series on how I write. Remember, y'all asked for this, so don't cry when you find out how incredibly OCD I am when it comes to this kind of thing. :)
(Okay, to be perfectly honest, I'm pretty OCD about a lot of things, but that's neither here nor there. This is about the editing.)
Step One: Write completed first draft.
Notice the word "completed" up in there. I do not edit while I'm writing my first draft. If I try to, I never finish said first draft. If I find something that I hate, I grit my teeth, throw down a lousy facsimile of what I know I want down and MOVE ON. It can be fixed in the rewrites, but only if there's something there to fix in the first place. I know some people revise on the fly - I can't. YMMV. And yes, I have used the whole "Insert fight scene here" to get me through a draft.
Step Two: Walk away.
Unless I'm on a tight deadline, I let my drafts sit for months. Belladonna Dreams, the novel I'm editing now, has been sitting on my thumb drive since March. I've just now printed it up and started editing it. Even on a tight deadline, I let stuff sit for a few days. You need some distance. And trust me, it needs to sit. Otherwise, I look at it, shudder, and trash the entire thing.
Step Three: The printed page is your friend.
Then, once it's done sitting, I print the entire monster out (Dreams clocked in on this draft at 292 pages, just as an example.) and I read through it. While I'm reading through it, I have a notebook beside me, and an assortment of colored pens. This is where the OCD comes in, but it works for me.
As I read, I re-outline the book in the notebook, using various colors. Here's what the outline for the first chapter of Dreams looks like in my notebook:
Chapter 1: Charity ball. Intro to Sapph, Maggie, Vinnie. First hints of trouble w/Sapph. Dream. "I'm calling in my favor." Alis call.
These notes above are in blue. Then, in green (but Val is not HTML-savvy enough to do it here) I have, "Who is this guy in the garden? I need to answer this question for me, not necessarily in this book."
I color-code because I need to see both what's in the book already (blue) and what I need to add (green). As I go on, if I have symbols or recurring themes I want to highlight, those will be red. By the time I'm done, I have a map I can follow as my rewrite.
Okay, more later. This is an on-going process, after all, and it's time for me to head home.
(Okay, to be perfectly honest, I'm pretty OCD about a lot of things, but that's neither here nor there. This is about the editing.)
Step One: Write completed first draft.
Notice the word "completed" up in there. I do not edit while I'm writing my first draft. If I try to, I never finish said first draft. If I find something that I hate, I grit my teeth, throw down a lousy facsimile of what I know I want down and MOVE ON. It can be fixed in the rewrites, but only if there's something there to fix in the first place. I know some people revise on the fly - I can't. YMMV. And yes, I have used the whole "Insert fight scene here" to get me through a draft.
Step Two: Walk away.
Unless I'm on a tight deadline, I let my drafts sit for months. Belladonna Dreams, the novel I'm editing now, has been sitting on my thumb drive since March. I've just now printed it up and started editing it. Even on a tight deadline, I let stuff sit for a few days. You need some distance. And trust me, it needs to sit. Otherwise, I look at it, shudder, and trash the entire thing.
Step Three: The printed page is your friend.
Then, once it's done sitting, I print the entire monster out (Dreams clocked in on this draft at 292 pages, just as an example.) and I read through it. While I'm reading through it, I have a notebook beside me, and an assortment of colored pens. This is where the OCD comes in, but it works for me.
As I read, I re-outline the book in the notebook, using various colors. Here's what the outline for the first chapter of Dreams looks like in my notebook:
Chapter 1: Charity ball. Intro to Sapph, Maggie, Vinnie. First hints of trouble w/Sapph. Dream. "I'm calling in my favor." Alis call.
These notes above are in blue. Then, in green (but Val is not HTML-savvy enough to do it here) I have, "Who is this guy in the garden? I need to answer this question for me, not necessarily in this book."
I color-code because I need to see both what's in the book already (blue) and what I need to add (green). As I go on, if I have symbols or recurring themes I want to highlight, those will be red. By the time I'm done, I have a map I can follow as my rewrite.
Okay, more later. This is an on-going process, after all, and it's time for me to head home.
