Hathe revisited

Another rejection, but a more positive one than I've ever had before. A positive rejection? Yes, there is such a thing. This one was from Deborah Nemeth of Carina Press, a new digital publisher, for my romantic scifi novel Hathe - my first and most beloved book.
     The reason it was positive?She said to re-submit once I had revised it in line with her suggestions. And they were very much to the point, very clear and helpful. Biggest fault - my control of POV. As she pointed out, you really can't change your POV half way through a paragraph.  I also use quite a bit of ominiscient 3rd person in that book, which is not what editors want. She says they prefer deeper POV to more effectively involve the reader, to make it a " page turner". Plus she agrees that the book needs to be split in two.
     So that's what will be keeping me  busy for the next few months. completely revising a 150 + thousand word book, into two books. With proper story arc and satisfying conclusion to each book, and revising the POV and any other problems. It already splits into two parts, but will need a tweak to end of Book 1 and start of Book 2 to make them truly 2 separate books. As I said, it will keep me busy...

I have just about done my first read through of Gorge Creek, before getting down to serious editing. It's not as bad as I had thought. Some bits need cutting, but mostly it's sounding OK. Better than I expected. That's the advantage of leaving it alone for a while - you get over that "I've had more than enough of this story" stage. 
    In the meantime, I've had an exam for the extramural English paper I'm doing this year, and have read through the feed back I got from the Wild Rose Press editor, Susan Napier. In hindsight, it was spot on and very helpful. As a result, I am now in the middle of writing full character backgrounds for my hero and heroine. They are helpful, I have had to concede. I am finding out heaps about my characters that I didn't know, and that came across in the story, where I have glossed over stuff, or just left it. Mostly, I am giving them a proper family background, and trying to understand better who they are, why they do things, and what would be their normal reaction to things happening to them.
     I've also only now discovered why I find the non-verbal bits between dialogue so difficult. I didn't know the characters well enough to know what their actions would be when they were not talking. Sounds basic. But it's taken me years to learn this.

No go from The Wild Rose Press

I had a very long email from Susan Yates of The Wild Rose Press. It was a rejection of the partial I had sent her. Obviously very disappointing. But she did take the trouble to explain at some length what it was about my novel "In Hills of Gold" she found problems with. And in a week, when I have got over the initial pouting, I will look closely at the manuscript again and see exactly where the problems lie. She also included links to articles that further explain and assist with the problem areas in my writing. That is pretty good for an editor, to go that extra mile to assist a potential author. I wish she had said yes, but a long helpful reply is still a good response..

Request for partial

I've had an email tonight from Susan Yates of The Wild Rose Press for the 1st 3 chapters of my NZ Historical romance "In Hills of Gold". So I've changed them to US spelling, gone over them with a fine tooth comb, and sent the partial off. Now to wait - all toes and fingers very much crossed and everything inside me too scared to hope.
We'll see.

Gorge Creek finished.

I've done it. Finished the first draft of my current book, tentatively titled "Gorge Creek". There's still heaps of editing to go, stuff to cut out, parts to rewrite so they  make sense, awkward bits to cut and lyrical bits to add. But the first draft is done. The story is ended. It's taken nearly 4 years, from that first idea but the story is now all done. And that feels brilliant!!!
    The way I look at it is this. In the first draft, you write down What you want to say. The remaining drafts are where you figure out How you are going to say it. And that is so much easier.

What to do between submission replies?

I am in waiting territory at the moment. I have a number of agent and publisher queries pending. Replies to some of them are due soonish - but not soon enough. The usual advice is that you should send away a query, then get on with writing or editing the next WIP. It's good advice. Very good - in theory. In practice, you can't help being on edge until that answer comes back. Maybe this time - in the words of the old song. It's what all writers hope for. It does happen to some people. The trick is to keep up the belief that it will happen to you, one day.

Climax of Gorge Creek

I have finally started it. I am now writing the climactic chapter of Gorge Creek, my NZ historical romance. I first saw this scene over 3 years ago and it has taken me this long to get my hero and heroine here. Very exciting. It's also a bit scary. In my head, I know exactly what happens now. But can I get that on paper?I once read something a well known NZ writer said about being amazed at what her fingers produced when it came to writing. I know what she means. In your head, you have one story. But when you start writing - and I handwrite, then type onto the computer later - your fingers, characters and story take over, and you never quite know what is going to come out on paper. But that's half the fun of writing.