What Do You Do?

A great thing about being a full time writer, you can schedule those pesky appointments like the dentist and haircuts any day, any time. It's nice and relaxing, but those wonderful hairdressers and hygienists always want to make small talk.

"Are you off of work today? What are your plans for the rest of the day? Where do you work?

Now maybe I could do some marketing by sharing things about my job as a writer. But I really just want my teeth cleaned and my hair cut. People have so many misconceptions about writers and their jobs.

Yes, I work at home. A lot of people do that for their jobs full time or part time. I can work in my sweatpants or PJs. I can get a cup of coffee or glass of wine anytime I wish. But I'm still working.

Writing isn't a hobby. It's work and I do it almost everyday. Sometimes I think because so many people have to do at least some writing at their jobs, they believe writing is easier or less time consuming than it is. They are wrong.

“As far as I’m concerned, the entire reason for becoming a writer is not having to get up in the morning.” —Neil Gaiman 

Writers don't just write. We can't. There are too many other things we're responsible for if we want to make a living at this. (Or at least make some money.)  Submitting our work takes time both to research and prepare those query letters. Promotion and marketing, the bane of a writer's life, can be the biggest time suck of all. Writers who self published have even more work to do. Many writers have obligations to professional organizations they belong to such as writing groups.

So, I don't want to talk about my job when you have that sand blaster cleaning tool in my mouth, but I'm a full time writer and I work at home. Stop asking me.

“The beautiful part of writing is that you don’t have to get it right the first time, unlike, say, a brain surgeon.” ─ Robert Cormier

And the writing is going great. I started a new series on January first and already have written 30K in the first book. It's going great and I'm loving the story and characters. I know I'm going to cut a lot of what I've written out when I get to the second draft, but it's on the page for now.

“I’m writing a first draft and reminding myself that I’m simply shoveling sand into a box so later I can build castles.” ─ Shannon Hale

At one time, perhaps 10 years ago, I considered getting my MFA. But I was too busy at the time to attend even a low residency program let alone suck up the cost with two children still in college. So I never did, but I know a number of writers who had great success with the manuscripts they developed while attending Seton Hill's MFA for writing popular fiction. Instead of focusing on literary like so many programs, they're not afraid to go with the genre fiction courses. An entirely online MFA program is offered by University of Texas, El Paso. I've seen good reviews on their program and might have considered it 10 years ago.

Does your dentist talk to you while they're poking around at your teeth? Do they learn that in dental school? Ever consider getting an MFA? Are you having a good January in writing?

Sprint Journal and Vacation

You've heard me mention that I now use a sprint journal. Some of you have asked questions about what exactly a sprint journal is and how it helps raise your word count. Today over at the IWSG blog, Ramona DeFelice Long, an author, editor and writing instructor who introduced me to the sprint journal at a workshop during the conference I attended in May. She graciously agreed to do a guest post for us. You can also learn about her upcoming class on her blog.

I finished my edits on Sunday. I was surprised how many little things I found to change on a manuscript that has undergone so many rounds of editing. The first publisher who contracted Keepers of Sulbreth took it through five rounds of edits as did Musa Publishing before they closed. Now it is in the hands of my current publisher for a final read through before it's reissued next month. As I finished up yesterday, I tried to put a number on the drafts this book has seen or how many times I've read and made corrections. It has to be well above twenty from that first rough draft five years ago. At the aforementioned conference, the keynote speaker, Ridley Pearson, mentioned that he sometimes does more than fifteen drafts of a book. I begin to understand how that happens. But it's done now. Yippee.

A few fun facts as July winds down from The Old Farmer's Almanac.
July's birthstone, the ruby, was once thought to bring health to the wearer. 
Friday, July 31st, is the Full Thunder Moon and is also a Blue Moon. If you recall, the last full moon was July 1st so we have the rare second full moon in the same month.

On Wednesday I'm leaving for Myrtle Beach where all my children will gather for Friday. On Friday, my oldest natural son will marry his lovely fiance on the beach as they both have dreamed of doing. Hopefully, we'll have some good weather. So this will be my only post for this week but I'll be back a week from now for the first Monday in August. There will be pictures.

Are you ready to learn about sprint journals? After how many drafts and edits do you get tired of reading your own work? Own any rubies? I don't. Maybe that's why my knees hurt. Did you know July was a once in a blue moon kind of month?

Drafting

I'm having more fun with this first draft than I usually do with such a beast. The sprint journal is helping me keep my ideas in front of me and in order. I love my characters so I'm excited to sit at the keyboard and write their story every day. Also, with everyone out of the house, I have a lot of time alone to work on my writing.

I recently read an interview with Patrick Rothfuss. You may remember I posted about one of his books during the A to Z titled The Name of the Wind. His second novel, The Wise Man's Fear was

also a great novel. That novel was published in 2011 so it's over four years I've been waiting for the next one in the series. Not as bad as George RR Martin but I'm getting a little impatient. That is until I read Patrick's interview.

Despite the amazing success of his novels, Patrick Rothfuss is a family man first. He also uses his blog for charity fundraising. He does a lot of touring and spending time with his fans. Book #3 is int he works but he seems like such a regular guy with his priorities in order. And he mentioned in the interview that he does 'hundreds' of rewrites for each book. Is that impressive or crazy? But his writing is quality so his process works for him.

Another thing Patrick mentioned in his interview is how his degree as a chemical engineer influences his writing. If you've read his books, you understand what he is saying. I find my science background creeps into my writing too. He also makes the point that writers come from very diverse backgrounds and levels of experience. Not all writers have degrees in journalism or creative writing.

Ridley Pearson mentioned at the recent conference I attended that he does a minimum of four rewrites but eight is not an unusual number. I usually do three drafts before I send anything to my publisher though some books have suffered more rewrites than that.

On a personal note, I won't be posting this Friday as my husband and I celebrate our 33rd anniversary. He'll probably buy me flowers and a gift card to a bookstore. He told me he needs some new socks. LOL. I love that man. A quiet dinner out together will be celebration enough for us. We're so content.

"In three words, I can sum up everything I've learned about life: It goes on." Robert Frost

Can you imagine doing 100 rewrites on one of your books? Does your degree or day job creep into your writing? Do you feel like your priorities are in order?

Can't Get There From Here

My husband has been a painter for over forty years. Even when he still was a teacher, he painted in the summer and on the weekends. When he was younger and no one had GPS, vacationers would often stop and ask the painters how to get to Hershey Park. Though usually only a few miles from the park, my husband and friends would often joke with the lost travelers that they couldn't get there from where they were. They should go home and start over.

Sometimes I feel that way when I'm writing a first draft. Often I feel that manuscript is so terrible that it can never become a publishable novel. The characters are underdeveloped. There are holes in my plot or the science doesn't make sense. There's no tension in my romance novels. All these doubts assail me when I work on a first draft. There seems no way to fix it. It just can't get to publication from where it is and I need to start over or perhaps even forget the entire story.

That's why I always set it aside for a few weeks before I try to fix it. Once I get back into it, I find that many parts of it are not so bad after all. And the parts that aren't working can be fixed. Sometimes I need to move a part of the plot or a character's reactions in a different direction. Maybe I need to but part of it away and add something more in another section. Usually I can get it to where I want it to be.

So like those lost tourists, I can get my writing where I want it to go. I made need to change the route a little to make up for some wrong turns. I might even need to stop and ask for some advice from my critique partners to get back on track to my destination. Whenever I feel discouraged by a first draft, I remind myself of all the other times I felt the same way. I can get there from where I am.

Do you like your first drafts or do they require a lot of work? How soon do you dive into editing after you finish a first draft? Do you remember when you had to ask others for directions?