I haven’t actually been dead (thank goodness), but I feel like I’ve had a marathon crawl through Hades. I apologize for the long silence. I ended up chopping a few paragraphs off the end of chapter 50 (of Dancing the Maypole) and adding a short chapter 51. I then (in a prolonged moment of madness) decided I’d try to salvage my first epilogue. After spending numerous weeks banging my head I finally gave up the other day and accepted the epilogue wasn’t right and deleted it again. Last night I handed the book over to the Goblin so now I’m done done done! I didn’t want to write a post until I could say I really was done (as opposed to just torturing you with no it’s not done after all). I feel sick with relief. I think it will take several days for it to sink in that the maypole is wrapped. There’s just waiting for the Goblin to finish formatting the book and getting it on line. I don’t think I’ll really be able to relax until I see it on my website. Cross fingers that will be sooner than later!!!
My Regency Romance Novels
Progress report…
I’m making progress on Dancing the Maypole. This evening I finished the second edit of chapter 33. A picture is worth about 100,000 words…
The first edit was me going through the whole book with the new editing software (as well as re-writing). Then the Goblin goes through each chapter with red, blue and green pens. The second edit for the first few chapters took days (weeks?). It’s all a hellish blur! For the first month of editing I was working six days a week, but the Goblin (seeing I was starting to lose the plot) counseled me to take the whole weekend off. It helps to have a rest! This gives me time to day dream about other stories, draw, take pictures or watch a movie. The last seventeen chapters shouldn’t take so long.
Some of my favorite shots from my last couple of walks… [Read more…] about Progress report…
What will your desktopography be…?
I just discovered this website called desktopography. I assume there was a competition and artists from all over the world entered their work. These are works of art that you can download for free as computer wallpaper. I don’t like all of them, but most of them are visually WOW! They’re picture-stories…like illustrated covers from fantasy book covers (only more amazing!). I’d buy a number of these as posters. I’m going to download the moonscape with the balloon-ship…it’s so magical. I love it!
I will of course get some work done today. Dancing the Maypole is getting a mega-edit. I edit, then the Goblin prints off a chapter and takes out his red pen and scribbles all over my story, and then I mega-edit. Last week I made the mistake of adding a few words at the beginning of a chapter and the next thing I knew I was drowning in ripples of changes affecting numerous chapters. I’ll reach the finish line eventually. I’ll be that weird woman dressed in out of date lycra crawling on her hands and knees the last few yards, but I’ll get there. I keep catching colds which is slowing me down, but (when I’m not staring at my wallpaper) I’ll be sanding away at my latest story!
Still editing…when I’m not taking pictures…
It will take a few more weeks of editing before the story is ready to go on line. It’s getting a three layered mega-edit. I go over it with my new handy dandy editing program that checks spelling and grammar (but it doesn’t catch everything). So the Goblin then edits one chapter at a time. I then I go back over it again and smooth out anything I’d missed. The process is slower than I’d like it to be, but I’ll be less stressed when I send it out into the world.
In this neck of the woods Fall has arrived. The leaves are falling off the trees and the sky has turned grey. Earlier this week I woke to find the countryside shrouded in fog. I love fog! I tried to resist, but I had to take my camera out and see if I could find some pictures. It was cold enough to persuade most of the dog walkers to stay home, but not cold enough for gloves so for most of my walk it was like having the countryside to myself. I particularly wanted to try and capture the thinning trees with their sparse leaves dotting the fog. That was my hope. Here are my favorite shots. [Read more…] about Still editing…when I’m not taking pictures…
Dancing the Maypole is done…
I’ve decided that Dancing the Maypole doesn’t want an epilogue. After coming to a standstill in attempt number three on Saturday afternoon I sort of had a mini breakdown. I think the book is actually finished and ready to run, but I’m subconsciously trying to keep it in the gate (because that way no one can tell me it’s rubbish?). There’s this mutual growing rage between me and the story; it’s time to let go. So…I’m going to give myself a week to not think about Dancing the Maypole and then I’ll get started on the final editing. And hopefully before the end of October you’ll be getting an e-mail (if I have your e-mail) telling you it’s done and online. I hope you like long stories; this one is twice the length of ‘The Hired Wife’. I didn’t want it to be that long, but my characters don’t care what I think. So there’s fifty chapters and it’s done.
Closer to done…
After writing the equivalent of thirteen paperback pages for the (unfinished) epic-epilogue (of Dancing the Maypole) I decided to go back and read the last chapter over again. I’m really happy with it! Then I read the epic-epilogue (which threatened to go on on forever), and I had an awful sinking feeling. I knew the epic-logue was all wrong.
I gave in and mentally deleted what I’d long assumed would be the epilogue (I knew the story wanted one, I just wasn’t listening…again…) and after going to bed I tried to figure out what the story wanted (I love my job – I can work in a horizontal position with my eyes closed). This morning I started over and I’m so glad I did. I no longer feel like I’m stuck in a romance writing version of Tron where I have to write my way out of the game… One short epilogue and I’ll be ready to start final editing.