Creativity Updates

Well, upon winning NaNo 2010, I was on a writing high. I was convinced I would have a finished first draft by the end of December. But then life took over. Here it is Christmas Eve, and I'm still sitting at 57,313 words. Now that does mean I've written about 6,000 words since NaNo's completion, but that's not really a lot for 24 days.

However, other things have fallen into place a little more, so it hasn't been an entirely unproductive month in terms of writing.

First of all, I have done a lot of research into the ePublishing industry, and this is something that I am strongly considering for my first series. Should I choose this path, my goal is to make an online presence for myself while I continue honing my writing skills. Then, when I gain some confidence in my writing, I'll submit something to a traditional publishing house. (Also, there are two traditional publishing houses that I have pegged as good fits for my first series, and neither of them are currently taking submissions.)

While I have been working toward the finalization of the first draft of the second book in my series, Ethan, I have simultaneously been working on finishing up what I hope is the final edit of my first book, Katie. I am two-thirds of the way through the edit, but as I'm editing a print copy, I still have to put my myriad changes into Scrivener. I have currently completed the first seven chapters of that tedious task, and have sent those chapters to a chosen few who I trust to give me their unbiased opinions. (And to my mother, who I'm pretty sure will just love it because she's my mother!)

Also, I have come up with a title and subtitle for the next book that I will attempt to write when my Finding Yourself series is complete. However, I'm not ready to put that up on my blog just yet. It's still a surprise!

The First Gigantic Step

I just completed the first draft of my first novel yesterday. What an accomplishment! I can hardly believe that I completed it, yet at the same time I want to keep moving forward with it, although it has reached the end.

From everything I have read online, I guess my next step is not to start my rewrite, as I have such a strong desire to do, but to just read through it once without making any changes. This will be the hardest part of entire process, I'm sure, as I'm such a perfectionist about my writing that I'll want to make at least minor changes on each and every page. (I've already reread this blog post half a dozen times, and I'm still writing it!) But who am I to question those who have tread these waters before me? I will take the advice that I've read written in so many different ways, by so many different writers, and I will fight the temptation to start rewriting, read through the novel, and take lots of notes along the way.