Revision Process and Other Things

As always, the two weeks I promised in the previous post has turned into a few months. I'd apologize but I know for a fact that I haven't learned my lesson. I'll prove that five months from now when I post again.

In all seriousness, there hasn't been much going on until now. So I haven't had much reason to post. My nose has been to the grindstone, if you will, and that's good. Right?

First, the novel. 'Air'. The first draft has been completed! I did as I said: I buttoned up characters, timelines, plots, etc. The plan worked out really well for me. In the end, a few scenes had to be added, others cut. Now it flows, at least as much as first drafts are supposed to. There's one thing I decided not to do.

After printing out the entire thing, a phone-book-sized work of 630 pages, I decided to simply put it on a shelf and not show anyone. No one. Not even myself. There's a lot of good advice out there on the 'Googles' about editing. One such article is from Wendy Mass's blog post. I plan to lean on it quite a bit when the time is right. But the time isn't right. I'm going to wait. I figure, how can I edit something from an outsider's perspective when I lived it for three months straight. The last part of the each sentence would pop in my head before my eyes got there. So I put the first draft aside. It'll sit on my bookshelf, tucked in among works by Stephen King, George R.R. Martin, Peter Abrahams and others until July 1st. With luck, maybe some form of osmosis will happen, but even if it doesn't, I'll crack it open at the beginning of July, red pen at the ready. So what to do until then? That leads me to my next bit of news.

I've been writing a short story for the past few weeks, and as of last Saturday, it's been in the hands of my beta readers. They've been amazingly helpful. While I definitely need to fine tune the thing, the good news is that the story isn't too far off key. My goal is to coral all the feedback, make necessary changes and start submitting the story by July 1st. This story, by the way, is called 'For Davey'. I added a synopsis to the Stories and Novels page.

That's it! I promise to post status updates about both the novel revision progress as well as the short story submission status. But notice that I'm not promising as to when.

Thanks for reading!

-- Tim

Status of Things

Good evening all!

Even though the better part of my week (nights and weekend included) was claimed by ongoing IT-related projects, I still managed to decently chip away at my writing projects as well.

Critiques for my latest short story, "A Taste", have been coming in over the past two weeks, thanks to my amazing beta-readers. Over the last week, I've gathered and summed their critiques and fixed a lot of things that both the readers and I thought were lacking in the story. Yesterday and today, I put a few more rounds of polish on it. There isn't much more to do before I start submitting "A Taste" to different publications. I'm really excited about this story.

Though I love my first published short story, "The Death Bump", I can easily see how much my writing skills have improved since then. One beta-reader actually said that certain parts of "A Taste" made her 'shudder'. It's awesome to hear something like that.

Speaking of "The Death Bump", I'm thrilled to announce that it has been added to www.barnesandnoble.com. If you haven't already, please download it, read it and tell me what you think. It's free!

Lastly, with my short story nearly completed, I went back to the second draft of "The Sorcerer's Paragon". Currently editing chapter 5 of 34, I know that I have a long way to go, but I am at a good place and hope to have more to report on it soon.

One more thing: if you would be interested in being a beta-reader, please let me know. I'd be grateful for your help!

Thanks for reading!

-- Tim

Writing Process By Tim

Good evening all! It's been quite some time since my last update. For that I apologize. That being said, I've been keeping true to my writing routine: daily before work and weekends before the kids get up. The second draft of my novel is coming along nicely. Of course I wish the pace was a little faster, but all in all I'm happy with the progress. I have the first five chapters of my novel completed. I let some willing souls beta-read them for me (thanks to you all). The response has been positive so far.

My story 'A Taste' hasn't been touched in months. I blame it on my novel; I've been spending all my writing time on that. I may actually put the novel on the back burner this weekend and try working on the short story for a change of pace. As I said before, the first draft is complete, so I have to concentrate on adding a bit more color to it.

As I was working on my story this morning, I took a step back and thought about my particular writing process...that it might be interesting to talk about. Why? Because I don't really like it that much. But since it has worked for me so far, I won't be changing it anytime soon.

To me, the ideal style would be to crank out an entire story in a way that's akin to carving a wooden sculpture with an ax, wildly chopping away until a rough, vague idea of what was intended stands before me. Then, only when the course has been charted from beginning to end, would I go back and etch with a fine blade until the masterpiece I envisioned comes to life.

How does that differ from my method, you ask? This is generally how things go (don't laugh): I first define the purpose for the chapter, what the chapter needs to accomplish in the grand scheme of the story (so far...nothing unusual). Then I start writing, hoping to do what I mentioned above...write like a mad man until I reach the end, saving the fine-tuning for a later date. I can get through a few paragraphs in that manner if I'm lucky...a few sentences if I'm not. The next thing I do is reread what I wrote and fine-tune it to no end until I am absolutely satisfied that it is as perfect as it can be. 

After that, I write some more in that lovely, loose fashion until I find myself compelled to revisit the very first sentence and reread the entire thing again. I again make my myriad of edits and updates until I am thrilled with the results. So it goes until I finally carve out an entire chapter. I feel like I'm knitting a sweater, always tightening the stitches that I already completed, while the rest of the threads dangle hopelessly below. Because of this insane method, each chapter takes weeks upon weeks to complete. On the plus side, once a chapter is done the subsequent drafts are little more than touch ups.

If there are any other writers out there reading this, I'd be curious to your process. How to you pull the stories from your mind and pour them on the paper? In dribs and drabs or by the pail full?

Thanks for reading!

-- Tim

Updates...it has been awhile!

I apologize for my two-month-long disappearing act, but be assured that I have been dutifully chipping away at my novel, page by page, since my last update. I'm happy if I get a page written per morning during the week; on the weekends I aim for two or three. In between those thin slices of writing times, there's the day job, other obligations, etc., etc., etc.

I am glad to say that since my last update (the one about my scorched lawn), not only has my grass revitalized significantly, but the pages of my novel have, just as slowly, piled into chapters. I am about two chapters from completing the secondary character's POV...which means I'm two chapters from completing the first draft of "The Sorcerer's Paragon"! Then it's on to the tons of necessary revisions...but hey...one small victory at a time.

I have been pouring my "writing" time into the novel; so I have no updates to report for my next short story, "A Taste", or the research I was doing for my next longer writing project. I have a few ideas for more short stories too. I've jotted them down for safe-keeping but refuse to do more with them until I make headway with my current projects. "The Death Bump" is still online, available in the Spring/Summer issue of Allegory E-zine. Please check it out and let me know what you think if you haven't already. Also, please become a member of my blog. I plan on plastering some of my work here soon, but I want to make it available to those who would actually want to read it. I think I can limit those snippets to members in that regard.

As far as my reading goes, I am nearing the end of "A Game of Thrones" by George R.R. Martin. It has a great central story line that is told through the eyes of the various members of the Stark family. Each character not only does his/her duty to add vivid color to the overall plot line but spins deep, interesting side-stories of their own as well. I have the next book in Martin's "A Song of Ice and Fire" series, "A Clash of Kings", but I may switch back to something a little lighter before I take that one on. I am a big Stephen King fan. "Roadwork" is one of his older novels that I haven't read yet. I may pick that up next.

Thanks for reading!

-- Tim

Presenting...The Death Bump

I'm proud to say that my first short story has been published! Please check it out at Allegory Ezine and while you're there, please check out the other exceptional stories as well.

I have another short story in the works as well. Currently it is completed as a first draft, but needs a lot of polish before I submit it anywhere. Once I complete the first draft of my novel, I will give the short story the focus it needs.

Drop me an email with what you think of The Death Bump. I love any and all comments. They all do their part to help me hone my craft and are much appreciated. 

With this post, I'm breaking the champagne bottle over the bow of my new blog. I never had a blog, but I am looking for an easy way to get word out to anyone willing to read my stories. This looks like it will fit the bill nicely.

Let me start by saying "Welcome" and "I'm glad you're here!"

This blog came into being one day after my first-ever acceptance letter. It was for my short story entitled "The Death Bump", which will appear in Allegory's May issue. I'm absolutely thrilled! My goal is to get a few short stories published while I work on finishing my first novel. I'm hoping that by the time I'm done with all the revisions and ready to look for a literary agent, I'll have my name out there...at least a little.

I have a handful of ideas for more stories, and I'm excited to get them written down..and to share them with you. A first draft of my next short story, "A Taste" is complete. I am really trying to finish the first draft of my novel before I put more time into the short stories. Another five chapters and I should be there.

The novel is in the fantasy genre, and my short stories have been dark fiction so far. I have some lighter ideas in mind, but the darker ones are definitely a lot of fun.

I think that's all for now. Thanks again for visiting!