This morning, I finished the first draft of a short story I’ve been scratching at all year like a persistent insect bite. I’ve already written about the reason it took so long in my last post. Once I got a fuller understanding of my protagonist, writing it became much easier. Frequent pauses during construction of the manuscript mean that the plot structure is uneven. Like a shattered bone that wasn’t properly set, it’s going to require some pain in order to bring it back into alignment. I’ll fix the worst instances of that next week or the week after, but the heavy surgery will wait until I’ve gotten feedback from my critique group mid-month.
Next up, I’ll wrestle “Big Little Blonde” onto the page. I started this one in March, got distracted, took it in a wildly new direction, and then crashed because (again) I didn’t really understand the characters. I’ve decided to go back to the original concept but salvage the offshoot for a different story another time.
Next year I intend to revise No Humans Involved and begin seeking representation for it, write at least half a dozen new short stories, and start research for a third novel.
1 response so far ↓
1 Terry Odell // Dec 31, 2009 at 10:27 am
Good for you. I’m dealing with a new project, and it’s like starting from scratch. I’m hoping to be able to dive into serious submissions in 2010, although being in limbo (dealing with hubby’s retirement and the financial changes it brings, trying to sell our house and move across country) adds a stress factor.
Writing, whether it sells or not, helps center me.
(And if you want a bit more about setting goals, that was my blog post on Wednesday)
Leave a Comment