More Revisions, More Mayhem

People have been asking how my novel's going. Here's a visual update of the third draft so far, based on word count:

Revisions: Killing My Not-So-Sexy Darlings

For no particularly good reason, I've been tracking my progress with the third draft of my work-in-progress by charting the effect of my revisions on word count.

When I started last month, the word count stood at 103,095 words, down about 5,000 from my second draft. I began the third draft by adding more than 2,000 words. This is not the direction most revisions are supposed to go. After all, there's an old saying that when you revise, you have to "kill your darlings"; in other words, eliminate anything that doesn't move the story forward, no matter how well written you think it is or how attached to it you might be.

When the word count peaked at 105,601 words, the killing began. Gradually, at first. Then I hit the 104k mark. At that point, I was up to Chapter Seven. This was the chapter I had been thinking of as the "Sex Chapter" for reasons you can probably guess. As the chart shows, it was there that I embarked upon a rather murderous rampage. Some of those scenes, which I thought were pretty good when I wrote the second draft, made me cringe when I read them in preparation for revision. Cutting pages that you may have spent days or weeks or even months writing isn't easy. But in this case, I took up the task gratefully. This wasn't killing darlings. This was mercy killing.

The trend continues. I'm now about halfway through the manuscript and the word count stands at just above 100,000. I know from my previous drafts that I still need to add another scene or two for continuity in later chapters, so the count may climb once again. But I also know that there are still plenty of not-so-sexy darlings in the remaining chapters. There will be blood.

My Writer Mantra for 2012

I listened to an interview recently with New York Times best-selling author Caroline Leavitt  (“Pictures of You” is her most recent award-winner) and was struck by something she said toward the end of the show. She was talking about how important it is to know the rules but not be so bound by them that you can’t move forward.

  “Be brave,” she said.

Caroline seems to be a most gentle soul, but it was as though she’d reached through the speakers and slapped me.

Be brave. Her words made me realize that the reason I’ve been practically immobilized in my efforts to get my current manuscript done is… fear. Fear that this sophomore effort will be, well, sophomoric. Fear that my agent will hate it, fear that my editor will be disappointed, fear that the publishing company that took a chance on me will regret that decision. Fear that my first readers, my wife and kids, will hand the manuscript back to me with sad, nice-try eyes. Call it one-hit wonder fear. Flash-in-the-pan fear.

Be brave. What I heard was, “Shut everything else out. Focus solely on writing the best story you possibly can. Have the guts to write what you want… and the cajones to finish the job.”

Caroline Leavitt

Be brave. My mantra for 2012.

Thanks, Caroline.

Join the Writing/Reading Conversation

Through December, I'll be hanging out at the Reader-Author discussion over at The Next Best Book Club blog on Goodreads.

I'm really enjoying the comments and questions, and would love to hear yours. Join us! Click here.

My Kind of Town(s)

Given my recent luck with delays and canceled flights, I can't say I'm looking forward to heading off to LaGuardia Airport on Thursday. But I am excited about my destinations.

On Friday, I'll be signing books at the annual convention of the National Council of Teachers of English, which is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year. I've also been invited to be on a panel Saturday morning with several other authors. Our topic: "Books on Families and the Peer Cultures of Our Times." It's been awhile since I've had to answer questions from an English teacher, never mind a room full of them. But I'm really looking forward to it.

After the panel, it's up to Milwaukee for an afternoon (2pm) reading and signing at the one and only Boswell Book Company. If you're in the area, please come by! It's a great indie bookstore.

Unfortunately, I'm flying back to LGA that night, so I won't have time to to re-discover some of the beers that made Milwaukee famous... unless, of course, there's another delay or cancellation.

What an Editor Does

I'm sometimes asked about the role an editor plays once a book is written. I get the feeling that the question-behind-the-question is, "Did you get into any interesting screaming matches with your editor?"

My answer never fails to disappoint, since I agreed with virtually all the changes suggested by my editor, the wonderful Liz Van Hoose of Viking. (By the way, she always had the sensitivity and class to refer to her edits as "suggestions.")

Anyway, this morning I came across a blog post this morning that does a great job of answering the question around the editor's role. Find it here:

What an Editor Does, by Steven Harper - Penguin Community Blog post

What's your question or observation about the author-editor relationship?

More on The Next Best Book Giveaway from The Next Best Book Club

Here's a chance to win one of ten free copies of the paperback edition of Bill Warrington's Last Chance.

All you have to do is go HERE and make a comment. That automatically qualifies you for a chance to win one of the books, as well as a personalized bookplate, signed by yours truly.  Then, all through December, there will be an ongoing Reader/Author discussion on The Next Best Book Club on Goodreads. I'll be answering any and all questions about the book, writing, procrastinating, first drafts, letting others read your work-in-progress, working with editors, dealing with reviews... you get the idea.

I am flattered to be invited on TNBBC and can't wait for the Reader/Author discussion. Please join me. Remember to enter the Giveaway today!

TNBBC's The Next Best Book Blog: Book Giveaway: Bill Warrington's Last Chance

TNBBC's The Next Best Book Blog: Book Giveaway: Bill Warrington's Last Chance: It's time again for our monthly Author/Reader Discussion giveaway! We are pleased to be hosting James King in December to discuss his n...

Southwest Connecticutians... Join us!

Back to the Heartland

 One of the highlights of my recent mini book tour in Ohio was an early-morning interview on WNWO, the NBC affiliate in Toledo. Anchors Michael Henrich and China Sellers were incredibly friendly and hospitable and made the whole experience a delight.