Friday, March 19, 2010

Fasten Your Seatbelts. It's Going to be a Bumpy Ride...


What are you working on this weekend?

If you live in Houston, you know that this glorious sunshiny-spring weather is saying bye-bye tomorrow morning …

So, forget about clearing out your flower beds or dining al fresco. Crank up the gas on the fireplace and make yourself a warm cup of … tea, coffee ... pick your poison.

OH, and don’t forget your Snuggie. We Cakers are fond of them & recommend them highly for writing and/or reading during inclement weather.

Which brings me back to my original question … what are you working on this weekend?

Are you continuing your journey through a first draft? Are you thrilled with it, excited to work on it, can’t wait to return to the world you’ve created? Is it Newbery or Printz worthy? Is it destined for the bestseller lists?

Or … and stop me if I’m wrong … do you dread returning to it, because you’re so sure what you’ve written so far sucks worse than anything ever written? Ever? Well?

Or … are you in the middle, and find yourself, after a good start, sagging. Sagging middles. They’re horrible.

Or … are you near the end, reveling in what you’ve accomplished so far but absolutely terrified by the fact that YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW IT ENDS?

And then of course, maybe you’re at the end. You’ve done a wonderful job writing a decent first draft. And then you realize … it’s time to start the second draft.

Yes it’s true, the journey of a writer can never be described as smooth. There are hurdles, there are potholes, there are roads that end abruptly in a free-fall tumble off a cliff.

But whether I’m working hard on that first draft, or the 10th draft, I try to remind myself that every published author has been down this very same road. Except for those dweebs who do everything perfect the first time.

But let's not discuss them. Let's instead sit back and enjoy the wind in our hair as we watch the sheer rock face go whizzing by. Because we know that at the bottom of that ravine, after we climb out of our smashed up jalopy … we'll find a better story.

Right? Right. Now go get that Snuggie. It's time to write!

6 comments:

  1. Just finished my second draft this week. I'll sneak in a little revision time now and then, but this weekend my family has birthdays and a new baby to celebrate. More revisions to come after meeting my fab critique group on Tuesday.

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  2. I'm still plotting - waiting for a break through. :)

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  3. I'm reading and plotting, although not for my own work. Still fun though!!

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  4. Plotting evil plans doesn't count. :-)

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  5. I'm glad to see another plotter waiting for a breakthrough!

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