Tip of the Day: If you haven’t yet seen author Jackson Pearce’s vlog on how she imagined the writing process you MUST check it out. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WQ_-TOJhXXk FUNNY STUFF.
What’s your favorite part of the writing process? Getting the idea for a book? Brainstorming? Outlining? Writing the first draft? Revising? Editing? (Did I miss anything?)
I think I’ve figured out recently that my very favorite part is sitting down and writing something new. The time when I don’t have to care about how anything sounds really and can just write. Where each time I open the document I don’t know what I’m going to write about and I can just make up whatever I want.
Lately I’ve been revising. Revising, revising, revising. I’ve been going from one book to the next in this sort or rotation and by the time I get done with the last book I’m back to revising the first one again. It’s kinda like being stuck on one of these things:
Where you’re torn between it being fun and wanting to keep going and feeling dizzy and wanting to get off.
It’s not that I dislike revising but I’m itching to get time to work on something new. I just looked at the date on the last new book I was working on and it’s 3/26/08. Almost 5 months. That’s kinda depressing. And I know I won’t be able to stop revising and get back to it until probably late fall. Which, right now, seems pretty far away.
Maybe I’m just not as patient of a person as I could be.
I would love to write something and have it be perfect the first time. But of course that never happens. Some books I’ve revised half a dozen times at least. Probably more—I don’t keep track of that too closely. What is the most you’ve guy revised a book?
Kristina, Miss Soon-to-Pub
I used to love that playground ride as a child, but yeah as an adult going in circles doesn't feel that fun sometimes. Hang in there.
ReplyDeleteI have no idea how to count my revisions either. I rename a file each time I change something significant enough that just in case I want to go back to the previous version I can. I usually have around 60-100 files when I'm done (well at least "done" for the time being, since I've been going back and changing old books periodically, still). Granted I'm not sure all of those would count as revisions, since often it's just one chapter change or such. So I honestly have no clue how people judge the draft they are on. That is baffling to me.
I also love the writing of a new book the most. Although sometimes I get frustrated that it doesn't come out on the page as well as I had imagined. But still... I think it's because revision is hard work. I mean, all of writing is work, but you can play so much more during that first draft. I like to play!
ReplyDeleteHoly Crap Em! 60-100 files? Ok, you win-- you are the revision queen! :-)
ReplyDeleteAnd I agree Lisa-- I like to play too!
I never could figure out how many drafts I'm on either. Maybe people just approximate?
ReplyDeleteI like writing and revising: mostly I like getting a new idea, and sometimes that happens on the first draft, but not usually. And sometimes the first draft seems exhausting. Oh, that blank white page! But revising for a while definitely feels like that merry-go-round and I think "I want to go play on the swings now, the swings story won't have any of these problems, I swear!" HA!
I think for 24 HOURS I revised it like 12 major times. No kidding.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite part IS actually revising. While I love making up new stories, I don't like putting them on paper. SO MUCH WORK! :) BUt once it's on paper, I feel like I can get a group grasp on it and just plow through until it shines.