NaNo Fatigue

Before I can be accused of a falsehood, I want to admit I did not participate in the official NaNo this year. However, that doesn't mean I spent the month of November in a turkey-induced fog. I was up against a deadline that I rashly proposed to my new publisher and had until the end of November to turn my manuscript in to them. When I get to the polishing stage, words are more often deleted than inserted, so I knew there was no way I could do NaNo and commit myself to writing 50,000 words in a month's time.

But I met my deadline, with even a couple days to spare. Now comes the waiting game, while the manuscript, my shiny new story, gets reviewed and either accepted or rejected by the publisher. Fingers are crossed, but if it's rejected by them, I have other avenues available to me. I know that now, after four years in this business.

I do have a bit of writer's fatigue, though, which many writers experience in December, after a frantic month of NaNo writing. I'm taking the month to just do some research for my next series. I have a lot of ground to cover, since the subject matter isn't something I'm all that familiar with, other than a love for antique, heirloom roses. And rose hip tea. I'll take my time and become as comfortable as I can in an 1800s greenhouse exploding with hybrid roses. And Scottish lochs. Lochs and Roses. Should be a fun way to spend December, instead of existing in gloomy, snowy Ohio.

I also have three releases in December, which must be promoted. First up is the big bundle of all the books in the Cotillion Ball series, followed by Love's In The Cards, my contemporary Christmas novella. Then, I'll end the year with another historical, Dance With Destiny, cover still being designed, about a half-Ojibwa Indian and the white family he assists while the husband is off fighting the Civil War. My family had a story handed down over the years about having an Indian somewhere in our genealogy, which was mentioned by many who were researching various branches of the family tree. A DNA test a year ago put an end to the rumors, since it showed no trace of American Indian blood. But if so many had heard the story, and my ancestors shared claims of school harassment due to their Indian heritage, there must be some grain of truth to the story. Dance With Destiny offers up one explanation. I hope you'll enjoy it, and my other efforts from the year.























And next year? Hopefully, my story will be accepted by my publisher and I'll get to promote it. And I hope to write two of the new series. See you on the moors!

Happy Thanksgiving

It's been a busy year for me and my family, so there's no better way to end it than to take a step back and be thankful.

I'm thankful my family is relatively healthy.

I'm thankful I'm able to write what I want and to try out new genres and publishing platforms. A Regency Yuletide is my first foray into the world of indie publishing. And my first foray into writing a Regency. It won't be the last.

I'm thankful Pat, the sister who lives with me, remembers to be quiet in the morning so I can write. Mary, my dog, still hasn't learned that lesson.

I'm thankful I can end the year on a high note, with a contemporary Christmas novella, a super bundle of all the Cotillion books, and an American historical set at the outbreak of the Civil War, all coming out in December.

Dance With Destiny Cover?

For those of my fellow authors who are taking part in NaNoWriMo, the month is nearly over, and you can be thankful your goal is in sight, but your work isn't done. Here are a few words of encouragement from Stephen King.

So, how about you? What are you thankful for?

The Editing Cave

For about the past month, I've been in editing mode. The ninth and final book in my Cotillion Ball series is due to the publisher in a matter of weeks, and i'm tediously going through my checklist as I hone my rough first draft into a final version.

I took a workshop last month through RWA and the instructor made a comment that a first draft can be so rough it can sand wood. But, with the proper editing, no one will know what the first version looked like. As the child of a homebuilder, I love the analogy.

Stephen King once said, “To write is human, to edit is divine.” I knew we were kindred spirits. 

For me, the first draft is merely the first step. Each time I go back through my manuscript, from start to finish on each occasion, I have a set order to my process. Six, seven, eight times through. It doesn't matter how many times I comb through it. Each time, I'm looking at some different aspect of my work. Finally, when I can read through it with my hands off the keyboard, I can send it off. 

As I write this, I'm about 2/3 of the way through the fifth draft of the story, making what I hope will be my final edits–adding in the missing words, tying up the loose story threads, adding description and texture to the story. I should be able to finish it up by next week, and then read through it once or twice more before I send it off. But if it takes more read-throughs before I can keep my hands off the keyboard, so be it. Some books are harder to write than others. 

Every author has a different approach to the creation of a story. Some write out of order, laying down scenes as they appear in the author's imagination and then piecing them together like a big jigsaw puzzle. I admire these writers, since I can't do it. Some use an outline and synopsis to make it clear to themselves which way the story should go. I use this linear approach, but don't make it so detailed the story and characters can't surprise me as I write. 

Whatever process one goes through to get to the final, shiny, polished story, it shouldn't be rushed. There are too many books out there with typos and poor grammar, in both the traditional press and self-published works. I want my manuscript to be as clean as it can be when I let it go. If all the niggling little things are done when it goes to my editor, she can concentrate on the story line and strengthen that, instead of worrying over too many commas and the difference between heard and herd. 

For everyone participating in NaNoWriMo, I hope you take the month of December to turn your piece of sandpaper into a shiny, polished pearl before you send it off to an agent or publisher. Don't rush the process. The end result will be worth it.