Yes, the wanderer has returned, and in one only slightly bruised piece to boot! I am of course referring to last weeks stag-do (That’s bachelor party for those Stateside).
Now anyone who is familiar with these kind of events will no doubt understand the necessity to draw a veil over the details of the day itself (What goes on stag, stays on stag!). Suffice it to say that 12 straight hours of alcohol fuelled, karaoke crazed, shenanigans left your friendly neighbourhood seated person a little delicate and very grateful that last Sunday was not Blog Sunday!
However, that is now all firmly in the past and it is time to address matters new.
In With The Old
For me this has, somewhat ironically perhaps, meant revisiting things, and in particular revisiting the book that I might have written.
It’s done you see, finito, complete at 80k words... or at least I think it is. I’ve drafted, edited, and even indulged in a little light revision, thanks to the watchful eyes of my Aunt who very kindly agreed to be my first Beta reader, but that is where I’ve stopped.
The next step you see, would be to seek representation from a literary agent, who can in turn find me a publisher and this is where I find myself, stuck in the lay-by of uncertainty with a smoking big end and two flat tyres (and that’s no laughing matter for a wheelchair user!).
The Confidence Trick
It’s a fear thing I think because, although the two people to put eyes to my work thus far (the aforementioned Aunt, and my very own sainted wife) have been very kind in their response, I still foster doubts about my writing.
From what I understand it’s a reasonably common thing. Many writers find themselves on the see-saw of self doubt, rising to the heights of seeing value and craft in their work, only to be plunged back to earth when that little voice inside their heads pipes up about the ugly, nonsensical rubbish that is suddenly so evident on the page. It leaves me me with two choices.
The first is to just go for it. To find the first of the likely agents, write the query letter and wait for the inevitable ‘thank you, but no thank you’ or eternity of silence as it disappears into the void. This avenue could then quickly lead to Repetition Street, Despair Drive, and Give-It-Up-As-A-Bad-Job Boulevard (No through traffic; abandon all hope, ye who enter here).
The Wait Of The Word
The second option, and the one I’ve actually plumped for so far, is to seek further validation. I have done this by seeking, and hopefully finding, additional Beta readers and Critique Partners. Two of these are friends, one of whom I can rely on to be blunt and honest in their appraisal but who is understandably a little busy with his upcoming nuptials, and the other of whom is a published children’s author, with knowledge of the industry and a freakishly similar taste in fiction but who is understandably busy with her own recently published novel. (The Dragon In The Library – go check it out). Still, in the words of Robert A Heinlein ‘Waiting is.’ In the meantime I find myself slightly spinning my wheels (literally), not something that I’m all that good at.
This may come as a surprise to those that know my flair for inaction, but when I have a bee in my bonnet, I’m not one to react well to being waylaid on the path to it. This has led to something of a dichotomy. I will just mention that this is in no means a criticism or rebuke. The people I have asked to look at my work are doing so out of the goodness of their hearts and the circumstances of their own lives far outstrips the fragile vanity of my good self. No, it’s not them, it’s me, and more specifically my need to hear a little more encouragement before I can summon the courage to take that fateful plunge. It is to this end that, through the magical world of the internet I’m currently exploring other things I can do to fill the time.
No Change
I do, of course, have to be careful, there is not point making endless changes to my manuscript while people may be spending their valuable time reading it. That would just be a particularly shoddy version of The Never Ending Story (ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah ah-ah-aaaah), but I have received a book for my birthday on self-editing fiction, and I’m going to devour that, and perhaps save any ideas in a separate file. I’ve also joined a website built for people at exactly my stage, one that deals with the process of editing, re-editing, querying, and dealing with all the requirements that process entails.
It’s still a long road ahead, but I think I’ve at least started a few tentative steps along it. Confidence, validation, and impatience will no doubt do the rest, and give me that final push I need.
Until next time.
The Wait Of The Word
The second option, and the one I’ve actually plumped for so far, is to seek further validation. I have done this by seeking, and hopefully finding, additional Beta readers and Critique Partners. Two of these are friends, one of whom I can rely on to be blunt and honest in their appraisal but who is understandably a little busy with his upcoming nuptials, and the other of whom is a published children’s author, with knowledge of the industry and a freakishly similar taste in fiction but who is understandably busy with her own recently published novel. (The Dragon In The Library – go check it out). Still, in the words of Robert A Heinlein ‘Waiting is.’ In the meantime I find myself slightly spinning my wheels (literally), not something that I’m all that good at.
This may come as a surprise to those that know my flair for inaction, but when I have a bee in my bonnet, I’m not one to react well to being waylaid on the path to it. This has led to something of a dichotomy. I will just mention that this is in no means a criticism or rebuke. The people I have asked to look at my work are doing so out of the goodness of their hearts and the circumstances of their own lives far outstrips the fragile vanity of my good self. No, it’s not them, it’s me, and more specifically my need to hear a little more encouragement before I can summon the courage to take that fateful plunge. It is to this end that, through the magical world of the internet I’m currently exploring other things I can do to fill the time.
No Change
I do, of course, have to be careful, there is not point making endless changes to my manuscript while people may be spending their valuable time reading it. That would just be a particularly shoddy version of The Never Ending Story (ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah ah-ah-aaaah), but I have received a book for my birthday on self-editing fiction, and I’m going to devour that, and perhaps save any ideas in a separate file. I’ve also joined a website built for people at exactly my stage, one that deals with the process of editing, re-editing, querying, and dealing with all the requirements that process entails.
It’s still a long road ahead, but I think I’ve at least started a few tentative steps along it. Confidence, validation, and impatience will no doubt do the rest, and give me that final push I need.
Until next time.
No comments:
Post a Comment