Thought Patterns

Okay, not exactly inside it 'cause that would be scary. Frightening. And probably very gross.

I thought I'd share the page of notes I have sitting on my desk when I am working.

Still not quite sure about the diff between effect and affect but I am getting close. Passed and past still elude me. But that's what paid editors are for, right?

I finished the edits of Simple Sarah. Phew.

It is a freakin' fantastic story. I have always loved it and believe it will be one of my best work.

Now to decide how to deal with it. Do I keep going and write the next one? Or do I send this one off as soon as Lorna is done reading it?

Keep writing is a good thing because then the facts are kept in line and I have the privilege of changing the first one should the second or third one change it.

Sending it off is a good thing because then it is OUT OF HERE.

This is different that the BG books. In the BG books, each one focuses on different characters. They all share the same geographic location and characters from one book will/can appear in other books. But there's no real story line that is shared other than location and time. Any of the books can be read in any order.

With the Simple Sarah books, it is the same storyline in each book following the same characters.

Opinions? Thoughts?

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Listening to: Joan Jett & The Blackhearts - Heartbeat
via FoxyTunes

I've made great strides in the editing of Simple Sarah. I went through all of the print out, making notes as I went. My beta readers, D and R, did a freakin' fantastic job!

I am on page 310 of what is so far 365 pages. It has climbed to over 91K, which is the best part. There are sections where I will back up and add a scene or two and there are scenes to add and/or work on in the sections coming up.

I've still not come up with a name for the nation. I stare at it and my brain freezes.

Meanwhile, I have been slowly going through the huge honkin' double spaced print out of BG3. I am only at page 59 with about 200 more to go. The story isn't finished but I need to go over it and decide where it is going.

When finished with SS, I will print it out (single spaced) and turn it over to Lorna for her critical reading. She's read it so many times, though, but I don't think she's read this version so it will be a treat. While she is reading that, I will get back to work on BG3.

So that is where I am now and what I have been doing.

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Listening to: Paul Simon - Diamonds On The Soles Of Her Shoes
via FoxyTunes

I printed out 251 pages of a novel. BG3, to be exact. 251 pages and roughly 56.5K words. This is just over half of where it will be, hopefully, when finished. With the print-out, I can go over what I have already written and do some minor editing. Then I will be able to continue with the plot holes I keep finding.

Oh what fun. Oh what joy. Oh the giddiness I feel deep in my bones.

I am busy editing SS based on the notes from my wonderful beta readers.

And today I am going to jump feet first back in to BG3 and finish it, dammit.

I got bins to start the filing and am managing to keep the desk relatively free of clutter. Each evening or morning, I clean it off from the accumulated crap. Mt. Dew bottle(s), styrofoam from a box, a new box of pens, paper towel roll, empty bag of corn chips…you get the idea. Lorna and I went to Office Depot last yesterday to spend that rewards card I had. We got the bins, the pens, and a few other things. We wandered through the office furniture section. Big mistake. I wish we had the room to have a real desk. Or at least a prettier one. Mine is made from 2×4, brackets (Simpson Strong Ties rock!) and half-inch plywood.

I miss having a true portable computer. My Dell laptop is 4 yrs old this week, bless its heart. I had hoped to have a new one by now but you know how it goes.

I got Simple Sarah back from D and R. They did an awesome job of reading it, doing some proofing, and giving quality feedback. Exactly what I needed them to do.

I went over the printed manuscript. D had squished it from 365 pages w/ 12pt font and double space lines to 95 pages w/ itty bitty font and single space lines. Eeegads, I need new glasses! Oh, anyway, I went over it last night, glancing at their notes, mainly. They knew it was a rough draft so they didn't feel the need to truly proof it, but they did note where errors were startling or oh so obvious. They made comments about how they felt about a scene, what lines they liked, where they got confused, etc. I laughed at some of the errors they found. Like, in the beginning, they go to a pub called The Cracked Mug. Later, I must have forgotten its name and thought it was The Broken Mug. One of them noted "Did the mug break from its crack?" In another place, the recruits are on a force jog/march and at their first break, their packs are inspected. I said "Three recruits were found to have not all the required contents." Snort. What were they missing? A kidney or perhaps part of a liver? D and R just underlined it and put a question mark. No snide remark on that one.

Their biggest problem was the name of the nation. In its beginning as a nation, it starts out as "Einthobia" then later, the nation changes its name as "Thobia" to signify an important part of their history. Both D and R hated it. Absolutely cannot stand it. R disliked it the most and had a hard time with it throughout the book.

So I need to rename it, you reckon?

The other nations on this continent are:

Nations of the Coalition:

Thobia - southwest
Freehold – north central
Algeanda – east of Thobia
Confederacy of Domains – east of Algeanda
Wain
Venial Commonwealth – north of Wain, east of Freehold
Frore
Bohome – northwestern most

Suggestions? I could really use some help.

Got this from an email list. Every writer should hear/see this. Honest.

The Impotence of Proofreading from the I Am Bored website.