With my quick edit finished, I'm in kind of a tough spot.
I'm not going to look at that work in progress again for probably six weeks. This is a little tip I got from reading Stephen King's ON WRITING, so you leave it for awhile and then take it on with fresh eyes. The tough part is that I don't want to put it away, and I'm going to have to force myself to not do anything with it.
The timing is interesting, as I'll be away from it for all of November, where I plan to write during National Novel Writing Month. However, I'm having a tough time leaving it alone. I've dumped so much into it over the past couple of months, and it has consumed a good chunk of every day during that time.
But this is a crucial part. I know I'll be able to tackle it better when I come back to it with an open mind, since I've been so up close and involved with the thing over the past couple of months. I've got to let it marinate.
By the way, if you're a writer, and have not read King's ON WRITING, get thee to a bookstore posthaste. You can read it in two or three days, and it will be a vital, vital tool in your working. I know it was for me.
That book is awesome. I've had it since my freshman year of college - and the two tips I've never forgotten have been 1) what you're doing now - to put something away until you can look over it with fresh perspective and 2) don't overuse adverbs! (Something I really used to struggle with)
ReplyDeleteLucky you with the timing so that you can focus on nanowrimo :) I think I'm going to be about two or three weeks too late, sigh.
I wanted to sleep with my manuscript when I finished the first draft, but I put it away for several weeks anyway. Going back to it was very rewarding but also enlightening. Mistakes were much easier to find and everything seemed very new.
ReplyDeleteI'll go get Stephen King's book and try to finish it before November 1st, since I am also participatin in Nanowrimo. Thanks for the recommendation.