Monday, December 13, 2010

Waiting is Not Always a Bad Thing.......

For those of you who have been following me on my journey, the first part is complete.

That is, I have completed my first draft.

That is, I have written a book.

*deep breath* *collapses*

Granted, said draft is no where near being ready to be sent out into the world, but it is finished.

I have taken the advice of other wise authors who are in varying stages of publication and have let the story sit, mesh, gel, morph, congeal in my head. I haven't touched it in a while.

And boy do I miss it! I miss my characters and my villains and the kissing (especially the kissing). I miss the magic and the world.

But I can see that I needed the space from it.

I'm so glad that I listened because now I am able to go back through my printed manuscript, cross out a paragraph (or several pages), and write, "Really, Janelle? Really?" (Tamy laughs whenever I do this around her. I can't imagine why.)

I've been able to really flesh out aspects of the world that are missing from the story and see things that just don't make sense.

At the same time, I am also able to go back and see a part that I really like and draw a heart next to it. Or a smiley face. There is a certain scene that I feel in my stomach whenever I read it. I know what Skye is going through in that moment. And I feel it. Every. Time. (Yes, Di. You know which scene I'm talking about.)

Now I'm ready to jump back in. I'm ready to polish this baby up and send it out in to the world. I'm ready to cut what needs to be cut, even if it's something I adore, for the good of the story.

And it's gonna be a lot of work!!! But I'm ready for it!

The question is are you??? ;o)


Do you let your writing sit before you revise??

20 comments:

Danielle La Paglia said...

First of all, CONGRATS!!!!!

Second, yes, I have to give myself a little space. I did this while it was out with my beta-readers. By the time I got it back, I was ready to dive in again.

Kristina said...

I am so glad to have met you and I am so happy that you got to type those hallowed words, "the end". You are amazing. And I'll have to get back to you on your question.... :)

Diana Paz said...

Nice post lovey!

To answer your question, I let mine sit for the same reason you do. And it's actually been pretty true, since when I go back after letting it sit, I find lots to change :/

I used to think I loved revisions. I LOVED revising Sinister. Now that I'm in Twists, I went through the first fifteen chapters in a week and then... hehe, well you've heard my whining. I'm really finding it hard!!! I hope your story gives you an easier time!!

Jeffe Kennedy said...

I like to let it sit for a month - seems to work for me!

Linda G. said...

Congratulations! That rocks. :)

Yes, I always allow a WIP to marinate for a while before diving into revisions. It's amazing how much more clearly you'll see it after a little time away from it.

Tina Lynn said...

I usually do, but this time, I'm not. I have a million reasons why, but mostly you can chalk it up to impatience. Yay for revisions!

Seleste deLaney/Julie Particka said...

WOOHOO!!!!! :) Huge congrats :)

Usually I give myself a lot of time before revising. This time? As soon as I'm healthy enough to think straight, I'm diving in. Thankfully I had an awesome alpha-reader who pointed out a lot of the stuff that needed fixing, so I'm not revising blind. I prefer to take some time off though (and not forced time off because of being sick :P)

Janelle Alexander said...

Dani - Thanks! And I am ready to dive back in too!

Kristina - :o) Thank you, beautiful!! I can't wait to hear your answer!

Di - Yes. I know we have the same reason considering you are one of those "wise authors" who pounded that into my head! ;o) And I hope it gets easier... Chap 1 has been pretty rough...

Jeffe - a month sounds good! I think this one has sat a bit longer... :o/

Linda - Thanks! And oooo! Marinate! That's a good one! It has been more clear, and I'm way less attached to certain things I thought I was so sure of.

Tina - Can't say I blame you!! (And can't wait for it!!)

Sel - Thanks!!And I can't say I want you to wait on your current one though--can't wait to meet Remy!! (and get more Max. Right? RIGHT?!)

John Ross Barnes said...

Congratulations! I'm no where near there yet.. but have been enjoying your journey.

Janelle Alexander said...

Thanks, John! I'm glad I can share it! :o) Good luck with your journey!

Melanie Sherman said...

Congratulations. You've written a book! I waited a couple of weeks to do a word cut revision, then the "look" revision, the "walk" revision, the "ly" revision, and finally the content revision. It is work, but I think you will love it. I'm excited for you.

I found you from Tina Lynn's award blog. I'm giving you a big follow! :)

Jason Beymer said...

Congrats! I try to let mine sit for 2 weeks after a first draft, but I'm rarely able to keep myself from tearing into it. I've found the longer I let it sit, the better it is for that next round of edits. Good luck!

Carla said...

CONGRATULATIONS!!! Yes, I have to let my writing sit for at least a day--even for short articles--before I revise. Blog posts are the exception. ;)

Carla @ carla-jansen.blogspot.com

Susan Oloier said...

Loved your post. (I am your newest follower, by the way, and will be checking back in for sure).
I do let my work sit. My very first manuscript was completed nine years ago, and I now revising it again. I think it is a process that can go on forever if we let it.

Jen said...

Hi Janelle! I followed over from the DNA Writer's blog. Congrats on finishing your manuscript! That's such a huge accomplishment.

I always let my books rest before I begin edits. And I let them sit again before I read those edits and continue polishing. I have a nasty habit of waiting too long though...

Best of luck in the edits! Happy to meet you,
Jen

Janet Johnson said...

Best of luck with the edits! It's so fun to see the story become even better than you imagined. :)

Maeve Frazier said...

Congratulations on finishing your first draft. Good luck with the polishing up!

Wicked Stepmother said...

I also recently finished my first novel. I was reticent to let it sit and marinate because I was afraid that I would lose momentum. What I found was that
-I definitely need time away from the story
-I'm still not quite ready to jump back in it yet
-This turned out to be the ideal time to start fleshing out the other characters and ideas in my head and I am no 10K into my second and completely different novel.

So in short I totally agree with letting things sit I think it's wise and will allow you (and me when i get there) to be more effective in the edit, revise polish process! Congrats!!! It's such a great feeling isn't it?!

Eleni Alexandraki said...

Congratulations on your 1st draft! It's the 2nd draft that kills you... anyway, good luck with it!

Carolina M. Valdez Schneider said...

First off, congratulations! Huge accomplishment! And yes, I always work on something else and try to take my mind completely off it, so when I look at it again, it's totally fresh. But I revise in stages, too. Usually, it takes about 4 or five drafts before I feel it's clean enough to hand off to beta readers. And then I revise as many rounds as it needs until it reads like a book. Overwhelming, but be sure to save every draft so you can find things you might want to use that you changed. It's a long journey, but well worth the effort.