Skip to main content

Newsletter

.

Third Draft Blues

As you guys will probably know, I am still in the process of writing “the angels of fire” trilogy. For the first novel “The Damnation Plays” I am currently on my third draft. This means that I’ve written two other earlier versions and have slowly streamlined and honed my writing and ideas to make it into a publishable novel. However, I am aware that it won’t all be ready even then because I still need to send it to my trustworthy and friendly beta reader.

I’ve written novels before but I’ve never published them. They’re somewhere hiding away in my proverbial attic waiting to see the light of the day.  However, this is different. I am planning to publish the “Angels of fire trilogy”. This brings another different set of pressures upon me as an author because I want to give my readers the best possible experience reading my novel.

I’ve also discovered the flaws of my novel whilst writing the third draft. For example, I’ve got a minor character getting hurt in a pivotal scene but in the subsequent scene I didn’t manage to follow it up as none of the main characters asked the question to see whether this character is still okay. It’s these sort of things in the continuity that can ruin a great novel. On the other hand though, I’ve discovered some great scenes and dialogues that I could expand on.

Third draft are tricky in the sense that you know what’s going to happen so it can be hard staying on track to finish it. However, that didn’t stop me from discovering some surprising twist and turns to add to my story.

One of the greatest advice someone gave me about writing is to ‘not lose sight of the story’. I know I’ve got a good story on my hand – according to me anyways- and it would be a shame not to publish it and let the world know. Isn’t it what we all want as authors?

Now, I just got to plod through the third draft, finish it and await the dreaded feedback. More to come…

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Some writing groups are dreamkillers

When I was a writing beginner I found comfort in writing groups. They can give support and encouragement to young authors and some tips to improve. On the other side of the coin though they can be the very thing that destroys a budding career. When I started to dream about writing big, I joined a lot of writing groups on the internet - mind you, this was back in the early 2000's - and I found that they were very supportive and everybody cheered each other on. Now, with the rise of social media it seemed that the tides has turned and everybody has something to criticise each other on. Perhaps this ties back society - due to upheavals happening in the world right now people has become meaner as there's a lot more stress inducing things going on.  I've always tried to be gentle on new writers, and I probably won't criticise them by saying that they could look it up on Google. I've always been of firm belief that It takes time to get to the position you're at now an...

Writing a good villain that is unforgettable

 In this post I will be sharing my opinions about my experience of writing a good villain a.k.a the antagonist in a story or a novel.  I must admit - I love a good villain. It simply gives a story an edge. I believe that the same effort devoted to writing the hero should be devoted to writing a villain. What I despise most is a lazy, card board cut out villain when the whole story has been going so well before.  A good villain lift up the story, gives the hero a challenge and give us a reason to root for somebody. Furthermore, a villain doesn't have to be a physical person. It could be a force of nature, circumstances or unexplained phenomenon, but a villain must be compelling.  ⭐Make your villains have a cause other than serve as a plot device. A fully fleshed out villain should have a cause to behave the way they're behaving even though the cause might not seem rational to the readers or even the author themselves.  ⭐Make them sympathetic but at the same time ...

North of river Eve free for a limited time

Readers check out these groups for deeply discounted books. Find your next summer read here.  ALL GENRES: The entire country is one giant daycare! E-Books Under $6" https://storyoriginapp.com/to/FBtPYqC Re-Kindle: Kindle Unlimited Authors – ALL GENRES: JUNE"  https://storyoriginapp.com/to/lcsp0o6 Also, North of River Eve is free to download for a limited time. Get it before time runs out and most importantly don't forget to leave a review.