Sunday, July 04, 2010

So, the Editing is Done. What Next?

I just returned from my trip to Penticton and had a lovely time meeting people at the markets and at my book signing. One of the great things about selling books is that people come by to chat about all sorts of things. I’m pretty sure I have the basis for some great characters in future novels. I’m also pretty sure that I’ll be taking motorcycle lessons next year, based on one customer's account of all the fun men and women my age are having on the road.

Now that my Casey Holland novel is safely with the publisher, I find myself in a bit of a quandary. What do I work on now? Given what I’ve learned these past 2-1/2 months, revisions will be needed on my second Casey mystery, which means draft #10 is coming up, though I’m not ready to start it yet. Maybe it would be better if I put the right side of my brain to work and continued working on the first draft of the fourth mystery. On the other hand, the third book still needs another rewrite. Perhaps I should just put novels aside for a bit and finish polishing the short stories I’d also been working on before the editing started.

I don’t remember what it’s like to work on only one book at a time because I haven’t done so for over fifteen years. Do you novelists out there continuously juggle more than one project? If so, what tricks do you use to manage? I’d love to hear from you.

As always, my amateur sleuth, Vancouver-based, Alex Bellamy mysteries can be purchased at
FATAL ENCRYPTION, http://tinyurl.com/ddzsxl
TAXED TO DEATH, http://tinyurl.com/czsy5n

2 comments:

Meredith Greene said...

My husband and I juggle multiple novels, a construction business and four children. Simply cutting television from your life makes such a thing possible, along with forcing yourself to write each day.

On a side note, we're looking to procure a new editing service/individual; can you recommend anyone?

Debra Purdy Kong said...

Hi Meredith and thanks for your comments. I can recommend a great editor, Joyce Gram. She worked on my novels, but has also edited many different things: newsletters, educational manuals, nonfiction work. If you're interested, I'll give you her email address.