I'm Not Dead Yet!

It's been a very long time since my last update, and I'm feeling a tiny bit ashamed. All is not in vain however. During the last five months I have been working on corrections. Now the progress has been a bit slow due to other more pressing life matters, but I'm working on my book more regularly. I think once I realized I wasn't going to have my book out for the holidays of this year I got a bit depressed, which is a very bad state to be in when correcting.

Anyways, I'm correcting once again and things are going rather well. The whole book has been printed out, and I've been doing corrections by hand with a bright red pen--or blue when I can't find my red pen. It's a little daunting to see so many red marks all over each page, especially after the amount of times I've read each chapter over, but I think it's really pulling everything together nicely.

My main focus has been on punctuation and grammar this time, but there have been a significant number of rewritten passages and quite a few additions that are really helping make the book feel more whole. This read through has been extremely time consuming since I've been having to read through multiple grammar books and such. It's been making me wonder if I just wasn't paying very close attention in school when we did grammar, or if most of it just wasn't taught. I'm guessing it was probably a little of both.

I'm thinking I'll probably be starting up a twitter account soon. I've never used one or really even followed one before, but it seems like a convenient way for people to see updates and status reports for things, so I thought maybe I'd give it a try.

So, I plan on keeping up with this blog better than I have been. If for no other reason then to let people know I haven't thrown in the towel.

Until next post...

Day 17 Chapter 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40 & 41 Book 1

Alright, so I managed to zoom through the last seven chapters today. I don't know how I was able to manage that, but I did, so yay! There was mostly just typo problems and a few sentences that need to be rewritten to make more sense, but that was about it. I think I added a small paragraph to chapter 41 to help tie things together.

So I just have the hard copy left to go over and once I'm done with that, I think I'll be done and ready to get it published. It's been a long, long process and I'm happy to see it coming to an end so I can start on the second book.

Anyways, that's all I have to say for now, so I'll post back later.

Day 16 Chapters 29, 30, 31, 32, 33 & 34 Book 1

WOW!!! I managed to get through six chapters today. I'm not exactly sure how it happened either, a few of those chapters are quite long. But I managed to do it and I'm happy to say that I only have seven more left until this draft can be considered done.

Some of these chapters need a bit of work and some were actually in good shape. I'd say that chapter 32 need the most work and that chapter 33 needed the least. I didn't have to add anything major to any of them. I think the main plot elements and such work well the way they are, there's just some grammar stuff in them that need to be tweaked a bit.

So I start house sitting on Monday, which should give me a lot of time to work on this book. I know for sure that I will be completing this draft over that time period and will probably make good headway on the printed draft corrections. (which I plan to be my last read over). I think that over these two weeks I will also attempt to do some drawing for the book, or at least some time to improve my drawings to see if I can come up with something that will work for the book. I really hope I can.

Anyways, that's all I have to say for this post. I'm glad I'm making such progress and I hope to continue. Until my next post, I bid farewell.

Day 15 Chapters 25, 26, 27 & 28 Book 1

I managed to get a lot of chapters done today. I don't even know how I managed it. That being said I fell like there was very few corrections made, at least with 27 and 28. I'm not sure if that was due to me rushing through them a little, or if they really were in good condition. I mean I enjoyed reading through them and I didn't get that feeling when I read over certain passages where I have to deconstruct them and rearrange the words until it flows better, so I think that's a good sign.

Sadly I wasn't as thrilled with chapter 25 this time through as I had the last time. That was the chapter that I bragged about in an early post. This time through though I felt like there was a bunch of stuff that just...were worded to oddly. Like I described things in a stupid roundabout way instead of in a nice flowy normal way. I think I fixed a lot of this and I do feel that the original emotion I wanted to get form the chapter is there, it just needs to be strengthened a bit.

As for chapter 26 I think it was a pretty normal chapter to go over. There were a few minor things that needed attention, but nothing major. It was fun to read over and I think it's about ready for publishing. Yay.

So yeah, four chapters done in one day. I really hope I can do this the next time too. I don't know how much time I'll have tomorrow to work on these chapter. I have a funeral to go to and then I have work later in the day, so I'll see if maybe I can get through the next chapter. If I do, it'll probably be the only one I do get through. It's a long chapter. And next week I start house-sitting again so I'll have plenty of time to go over the chapters. I'm expecting to get done with all the edit on the third draft and hopefully a lot done on the hard copy.

Alright, I will post back later.

Day 14 Chapters 22, 23 & 24 Book 1

I was able to get quite a few chapters done today. I surprised even myself since I was so distracted when I started I didn't even think I was going to get through chapter 22 at one point.

Anyways I think that chapter 22 had to have the most work put into it out of the three. I feel like there was a lot I had to change with it, but I think it worked out fine. There was a battle scene in it that just needed some tweaking, it felt a little boring at times with my wording and such, so I fixed that up a bit. Chapter 23 & 24 had some stuff to fix, but were not too bad. I actually really enjoyed reading through them again, which I'm going to take as a good sign.

So I think I'll have more time to work on chapters on Monday. I just hope I can be as productive as I was today. If I can crank out this many chapters every time I sit down I'll be done in no time at all.

Until my next post, see ya.

Day 13 Chapter 21 Book 1

I finished going over another chapter the other day. It need some tweaking and some expansion on certain things, which I believe I did well. There was an emotional bit in the beginning that needed to be a bit stronger and I think I was able to do that (although, I'll see how I feel when I read through it again). It needed a bit of fleshing out and more of the usual malfunctions I tend to find in my chapters.

All this correcting is draining me. I need to keep telling myself that this will make me grow as a writer, which I do think it's doing. Anyway, I've got a lot of free time ahead of me today so I will try and get some more chapter done. I hope to post back later tonight.

Day 12 Chapter 19 & 20 Book 1

Another long break between updates. A lot of crap has come up lately, including a death that has taken my mind off my story as of late. However I am back and correcting again so here's the update.

I don't know if I'd say 19 was in the greatest shape to begin with or that it is in the best shape it could be now, but I think it's okay as it stands. It's definitely not my best chapter, but it's much better than it was a few critiques ago. As for chapter 20 it was in good shape to begin with, still very enjoyable to read through, but I was able to elaborate on things this time through that I think added a bit extra to the chapter. All in all I think there is some things that need tweaking, but so far it seems like chapter 20 is just about ready for publishing.

So with these two chapters done I now find myself half way done with this batch of corrections. I get this sinking feeling that I won't be publishing my book by Christmas, but I'm still holding out hope. I keep thinking about how I never seem to be 100% happy with my book and I just have to keep telling myself that I will probably never be 100% happy with it weather its 1 more critique from now or 100. So I think after I go over the chapter one more time on the hard copy I will be done. I'll just have to force myself to publish at that point I think.

Okay, until next post then.

Day 11 Chapter 16, 17 & 18 Book 1

I got three chapters done today. I know it's been a long time since the last batch, but things have been a bit hectic lately. Anways I'm back in the mood to do some corrections so I'll be trying to do more this following week.

These three chapters were in good condition, especially chapter 17. It might have had something to do with the fact that most of it is dialogue, which I feel is my strong point when it comes to writing. 16 is short so there wasn't much to do there and 18 mostly just had some grammar issues. I don't recall adding anything to major to any of these chapters, just a bunch of corrections.

So that's all I have to say on those chapters for now. Until next I post.

Day 10 Chapters 14 & 15 Book 1

I finished two more chapters the other day. Chapter 14 was in rough shape, but I think I got it into a pretty decent state. There were a few passages in particular that I felt I was able to really enhance. As for chapter 15, it was in pretty good shape to begin with. There were a few awkwardly worded bits of dialogue, but I cleaned them up. I feel like this chapter is a bit more of an emotional chapter than a lot of the others so it was very important for me to make sure that my writing didn't hamper the emotion any. There were a few instances where I found dips in the emotion and I did tidy those spots up well. So overall I'd say that 15 is one of the closest chapters to being ready to publish. Yay

Anyway, I don't know when I'll do more corrections, but hopefully it'll be soon. Until next post.

Day 9 Chapter 11, 12 & 13 Book 1

I made quite a bit of progress today. I finished correcting three chapters. I'm not really sure how I feel about them though. I think I made a significant amount of changes to chapter 11 and I think it turned out fine, but I did feel like parts of 12 were a little bit less great and even more so for 13. I don't know if I just ran out of juice as I went or what, but I do know that I'm going to have to look over them again, I'll probably just read over them tomorrow on the hard copy and just go over them again when I read over the hard copy as a whole.

I felt like I found a lot of the same things in these three chapters as I did in 10. There were the nonsensical sentences that I had to fix and an awful lot of boring passages that still need to be fixed up. I just feel like 13 was rushed through originally or something, the writing isn't my best. So I'll have to address that, but otherwise I think 11 and 12 are fairly good, especially after my corrections today.

So this brings the third draft to 1/3 completion. It a nice feeling to have only 2/3 left and I hope to soon reach the half way mark. Anyways, I going to go now and try to clear my mind. Too much correcting for one day.

Day 8 Chapter 10 Book 1

I finished correcting chapter 10 today. I was a bit surprised that I was able to get it done. I had to stay later at work yesterday so I didn't have time to work on then and I was called in today so I wasn't sure if I'd have time to finish it before I had to leave, but I triumphed. Anyways, there wasn't too much to do to this chapter. Nothing was majorly changed or anything, but there were some really odd sentences that didn't make any sense. I think that they must have gotten messed up during one of my other read throughs since it seemed like there were two thoughts present in the sentences that didn't connect. I just hope I'm not doing anything like that this time through...

Anyways I need to go get ready for work. I hope to do chapter 11 on Monday, it's a little shorter so maybe I'll be able to fit in two chapters, that is if I don't get called in to work again. Alright, till next time.

Day 7 Chapter 9 Book 1

I was able to finish up chapter 9 today as I had hoped to. Not too much to say about this chapter. There were some paragraphs that needed some attention and a few spelling errors including the name of a character that I'd been misspelling since I introduced him. I think there was only one instance where I had spelled it correct and that was the first time I had mentioned it. It was just a slight change of a letter, but I still think it's pretty amusing that I didn't realize it until this time through.

I did add in a few lines of character development for some of the soldiers in this chapter, just so it's evident that they are there and to add a bit of comic relief.

Anyways, I think I'll have some time to do chapter 10 on Saturday, hopefully I can fit in an hour or two tomorrow just so I can be sure to finish 10 on Saturday. It's a bit shorter than the chapters of late which have been 10 pages or more. So I shouldn't have a problem finishing it. Alright, I'll type back later.

Day 6 Chapter 8 Book 1

Well, found quite a bit of time before Thursday to get some work done on chapter 8. I just finished correcting and it was fairly easy going. There were things that needed to be changed obviously, but there wasn't much of anything too major to worry about. I think it's a pretty solid chapter, especially after this last look over. I do still recall the very early stages of writing this chapter and my first time correcting it a couple years ago. There were some big flaws in it that I think I've remedied very well over time.

When I had first written this chapter there were these four characters, soldiers, that were in it, but were nameless, uncharacteristic props basically. After reading it over a couple times I felt like there was something that just wasn't working with the chapter and I couldn't figure out what it was. Then I decided that I could get more out of the plot line if I changed the unnamed soldiers into four characters, each with a bit of their own motives and attitudes and it really seemed to change this chapter and the few that follow it dramatically. I guess it was just one of those choices I'm very glad I made.

Well, I should still have free time on Thursday so I'll try and get chapter 9 finished, or at least a good deal of it done then. Until next post then.

Day 5 Chapter 7 Book 1

I finished going over chapter 7 the other day and I must say that it was a hassle. I went over the first page of the chapter many, many times and I'm still not completely happy with it. Granted it's much better than it was before I ripped into it, but I'm just feeling a bit down about it. Although, after I forced myself to move on from the first page things seemed to pick up. I had to fix a few little things here and there, but it was basically in great shape. There were a few odd misspellings that I can't believe I didn't find until this time through, but I guess that's sort of the whole reason for a third draft.

I'd like to work on chapter 8 now, but I have to go to work soon. It'll be so nice when writing can be a full time job. Anyways I don't think I'll have time to work on more corrections for a while, there's a possible window tomorrow, but I'm not sure if I'll actually get the free time. Otherwise I think thursday will be the next day that I don't work. Oh, well, I'll type back later.

Day 4 Chapter 6 Book 1

I just finished going over chapter 6 and I'm very pleased with it. The chapter was in good shape as it was, but I felt like I was in the perfect writing mood tonight. I was able fix so much in this chapter that I haven't since I first wrote it. There were certain descriptive passages that I haven't been happy with. Things that were meant to describe a places that the characters visit and it was a jumbled, icky mess before. But tonight it was like I could just see clearly for the first time. I was able to completely deconstruct what was written and just put down what I envisioned and do it in a way that feels very fluid.

Sorry, I don't mean to toot my own horn, but it feels really good to be in the zone since I haven't been there for a very long time.

Well, I guess this is all I have to say about this chapter. I'm not sure when I'll have time to go onto chapter 7, I'm thinking Monday...I don't like the fact that I don't have free time this weekend. Oh well. Until Monday.

Day 3 Chapters 4 & 5 Book 1

I put my energy to good use yesterday and finished two more chapters. Surprisingly they didn't seem to be in too bad of shape. They need the usual grammar tweaks and a bit of rewording, but overall the flow of both of them was pretty fluid. I added a bit the certain descriptions and such, but nothing major, I felt the content expressed what needed to be expressed as is. Also, after printing them and numbering them I'm now up to just over 40 pages. 40 pages in 5 chapters. I think that's pretty good.

I'm not sure if I'll have time to work on any chapters tomorrow. Wednesdays are always hard for me to get stuff done on. But I'll definitely try and do chapter 6 on Thursday.

Day 2 Chapters 2 & 3 Book 1

Sorry for the gap in posts, things have been kind of busy lately and I've been finding it hard to find time to work on the book, but I have done two more chapters. I think these chapters have come a long way, especially since their initial type up. They're much more fleshed out now and a lot of the wording has been tweaked to make them sound smoother. I added about a page to chapter 3 and I think it has helped flesh out the chapter better. I added some character development and a lot more description to things that felt awkward or flat. I've also read over bits and pieces of all 3 chapters since I've printed them out and I've been finding it easier to spot and fix things with the hard copy.

I feel like things have gotten very difficult with this book lately. I'm constantly doubting myself as I read it and then I find me praising myself when I figure out a great way to combine two sentences or find a terrific way to reword something. Then I usually start fretting that I've over looked things and the book will feel very uneven. So working on these corrections takes me on an emotional roller coaster that makes me hesitant to come back it. I'm also starting to feel pressed for time with the deadline I've set for myself. November is coming up awfully quick and it feels like there's still so much left to do.

Even though I'm being a bit beaten about by this whole process, my mind is still set on pushing through and finishing the book. I've done too much work on it to just stop and it still means so much to me to finish. This is where my career in writing will begin and I'm not going to let these emotional speed bumps slow me down.

Okay! Now that I've charged myself up I'm off to go use this energy to work on chapter 4.

Day 1 Chapter 1 Book 1

Wow, two posts in the same day. I guess I'm on a roll. Anyways, I just thought I'd do an update on things. I decided that my next phase was going to be unifying and formatting each chapter. What does that mean? Well I need to make sure that certain things are consistent throughout the entire book so I'm going through it again with my sight set more toward terms and places and spellings of words that are part of my storie's world. So I'm basically making sure that places in my story are consistent in spelling throughout so there isn't a "Median Island" as well as a "Meridian Island" that are both the same place. (by the by Median Island is the decided name for the island. If anyone was curious).

The other thing I've been doing is formatting the chapters so that they'll be ready to just send off and get published. So I'm changing them from left alignment to justified and I'm printing them out on both the front and back so that I can get the numbering correct. I'm also taking into consideration the blank pages since the publisher needs those counted in.

So I thought I'd try and do a chapter each day for 41 days and post about them as I go. We'll see if it works out, I'm not sure I'll run across enough things to talk about without getting repetitive. 10 to 1 the posts will be fairly small the next month.

Alright, so today I did chapter 1. I was pretty surprised by the quality of it this time around. When I just read over it a couple weeks ago it was in a pretty primitive state, but I guess when I went over it I must have changed enough to raise my opinion of it. It still had some rough edges which I think I smoothed out pretty well.

I read it over again after I printed it out (this time out loud) and once I got used to reading it out loud I thought it was pretty good. I think I was most impressed with the dialogue. I thought that it read very well out loud. It also looked pretty cool printed out with it justified, very professional. I also found a very stupid spelling error I didn't catch.

Alright I'll try to do another chapter tomorrow and post back.

3rd Draft Finished

Well, I just finished correcting the entire book. It was a momentous task. First I started with the note my editor had made and then I went and reread every chapter over again. I added a bit here and there, but I feel like most of what I did was fix paragraphs that either had boring, repetitive or awkward structure to them.

Overall it was a tiring process, both physically and emotionally. I thought that my biggest problems would just be my grammar and syntax, but that seemed to be just the tip of the iceberg. It turns out coming face to face with the first chapters of my book were more daunting than I assumed they'd be. I remembered them being really good and entertaining and as I wrote the book I would often think to them as a standard for the later chapters. Well when I reread them I found that they were less than great. They were actually pretty rough. I mean I understand why they are, after all they were written about a year and a half to two years before the rest of the book. On one hand it's great that I've grown so much as a writer, that I've fallen into a certain groove with my writing. On the other hand it's a big blockade to know that I need to bring those chapters up to the quality to the ones at the end so that the book feels balanced.

Anyways, I think I fixed them up pretty well, they need to be looked over a bit more, but basically the book is coming to a state that is close to publishing material. I'm not sure what my next step is going to be. I know I need to go over the book again and work on making everything uniform and just make sure that I'm satisfied with the story elements. It's all just a bit grumbly, but once this gets closer to publishing I think I'll be happy with the amount of work I've put into it.

Well, I'll type back later.

Prizm

As promised, I've finally decided on the title for my book series and I'm happy with the design I've come up with. So without further ado...

It's been a long and mind-boggling task just to think up a name and look for a title, but I'm pleased with this result. I think the simplicity works and the design is stylish enough without going overboard.

Well, I think I'll go and work more on correcting my chapters. I'll type back soon.

Back on Track

It's been a long time since my last post (I feel like I write these comments often...) and I've just started to come back to my book at full force. I have been doing some stuff over the past few months, not a lot of productivity through. I've done a great deal of outlining for the second book and it looks to be shaping up great. I feel a lot of excitement toward the ideas I have got planned for it and hope that I can get them down on paper as well as they appear in my head.

My editor has finished reading my first draft and has left me great constructive comments and corrections that I have just recently started to implement. I do feel like the feedback I've received is going to help make my book stronger. It puts my mind at ease to know that I can have people read my book and for the most part come away with a coherent recollection of what it was about. Yay!

Also over the last couple of days I have been fiddling with the title of my book series, as well as a logo to go on the cover. I've spent a lot of time and consideration working on both: thinking up a name and a look for the logo and I'm about 90% sure that I will go with what I have; however I'm not at a high enough confidence at the moment to share the logo with all of you, but soon. Very soon. I just need to let it sink in a bit.

Um...so yeah. I plan to spend much of my free time working on the corrections my editor has made and then comes the fun part of getting to really rip into what I've written and make sure I'm getting the essence of my writing and ideas out on the paper. I'm really looking forward to going head to head with this forty-one chapter monster. (Here's hoping I come out on top)

Until next time.