I'm supposed to be working hard to finish a manuscript and I'm having a hard time with it. I guess it's a bit like writer's block, but I know where the story is going (as a matter of fact, the end is written), but the characters are in this stage of change and new discovery and its the hardest part to write. I know how they change, I know what takes them through it, but putting those emotions and growing pains on paper is hard.
Tonight I spent some time in the beginning of the manuscript. I went to this wonderful workshop given by Harlequin Superromance author Anna DeStefano about revising. She suggested writing the first draft start to finish and then going back and making changes. She said that a lot of writers do a few chapters, rewrite those, then write a little more, get stuck, go back and rewrite some more. I haven't had the luxury to sit down and pound out a book in a long time. Working full time, raising my daughter, these things get in the way. So I have a lot of time to think about my stories, my characters and where the book is going. Too much time, I'm afraid. Plots change, characters develop. And these are things they are supposed to do, but I can't move on to the rest of the story until I fix the thing in the beginning that's bugging me. And fix I do. However, I think the fixes I made today will help me finish the rest of the book in a timely manner (in the next week before I leave for Texas).
And then it's on to the next story.
Today's Goal: Unsticking my writing
Yesterday's Achievement: The Heart of the Negotiation finaled in the 2007 TARA Contest. I couldn't be more thrilled.
What I'm Grateful for: Ditto
