I am facing my first challenge since I committed to finishing my book. Chapter 8 is really good, in my opinion. I am almost finished and ready to send it to the editors.
So why the rut? A few reasons. Chapter 9 takes the book in a whole new direction. Up to this point, I still consider the parts I have been working on to be the 'introduction'. From Chapter 9 until the end, all of the action takes place inside the city of Kilcrest. I planned this on purpose, as I find "travel" books to be annoying. There is a habit among Fantasy writers for the first book of a series to begin at one corner of a map and end on the other corner, with the protagonist mixing up into all sorts of shenanigans along the way.
In my mind, this makes it very difficult to explore the characters and settings in detail. Even the series that I consider to be the pinnacle of fantasy writing, Robert Jordan's The Wheel of Time begins in this way. Eye of the World is a great book, but I cannot help but think about how great it could have been if the action had been localized and Jordan started exploring the characters with the same depth he used in the later books.
So I've come to a mini swing-point in my book. I am excited about it, but it feels as if I am beginning a new story at Chapter 9, and this one's a doozy.
There's another reason I've slowed down lately--feedback has slowed. Everybody's busy, so I'm not complaining, but I am considering telling all my editors that I really need content feedback at this point and we need to step away from the intense grammar scrutiny. However, my writing is improving and the comments are extremely helpful, so I don't want those particular comments to stop altogether.
Anybody have any ideas? I'm thinking about asking only 2 or 3 people to grammar "edit", and asking everybody else to comment on the story, characters, contradictions, and questions. I don't want my editors to feel they have an obligation to microscope my writing, because they don't.
I don't want anybody to think I don't REALLY appreciate the attention to detail, but I don't want anybody to feel obligated to sit in front of their computers and notate the hell out of things either.
Starting next week I should be sketching out "Brand's Story", the section of the book told from his POV that should span several chapters. I'm looking forward to this part, it should be a lot of fun.
I understand your concerns. I think this time is crucial for you to stay motivated though - easier said than done I know. What ever can be done to keep you focused will help with your anxiety and keep pushing you forward. Whenever I stop drawing for a while, it's always like starting over when I do pick up a pencil again.
ReplyDeleteCan I also suggest to maybe not start writing at the beginning of chapter 9? Maybe take this section and treat it like you do with the entire book - start writing the parts you know and already have worked out in your head, then fill in the rest.
Hope this comment was somewhat helpful.