Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Twofer Tuesday - Not Much to Offer

I finished going over the hard copy of Biting the Dust the other day. The final push was on Saturday with seven or so chapters remaining. I decided I wanted it done so I put my head down and did it.
On the one hand that's good. On the other I was useless all day Sunday and most of yesterday.
At least I have an excuse.
So far the only major change I have to make is to switch a scene over to a later chapter or cut it completely. I favour cutting simply because it's quicker and the scene's not all that important.
It worries me that I can't sort out what else the ms needs. Right now I think it's okay the way it is but for a bit of clean up. I am sensible enough to realize that's probably a danger signal.
Once I've cleaned it up I'll set it aside and work on something else for a while.
Maybe then I'll see what it needs. If not, I'll go looking for some beta readers to give me the hard truth.
Meanwhile, since I did sort of edit, and that counts, here's a bit from Biting the Dust.

"Eury averted her gaze in what she hoped was a demure manner. It wasn't her nature to be demure, but she'd seen other young women do it. If they did, then maybe she should, too."

I started reading the second Discworld novel on the weekend. Terry Pratchett is really growing on me. Here's why:

"'Rincewind, the tree said-'
'Trees can't talk,' snapped Rincewind. 'It's very important to remember that.' "

-The Light Fantastic, by Terry Pratchett (Corgi, 1986)

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14 comments:

the Bag Lady said...

If you need a volunteer to read your novel...... (*hand shooting in air*) :)
Happy Tuesday, cousin!

Leah J. Utas said...

Why, thank you, df Bag Lady. Happy Tuesday to you, too.

Clare2e said...

It sounds like you're almost ready to let that MS cool on the windowsill for a bit.

I'm sure I mentioned with many SQUEES how much I love Pratchett! Crawls into the heart like something leggy on the underside of a leaf.

Crystal Phares said...

I like your two lines. Good luck on finishing up the MS.

Ann (bunnygirl) said...

I don't know how you're doing your hard copy edits, but one thing I've found helpful is to upload to Lulu as a private project and have it sent to me as a book. I get a whole new perspective on it that way, and it's easier to edit while curled up in bed.

Lulu has formatting info for both trade and pocket sizes, and you can order a generic cover. As a private project, it's not considered published and no one else can order it.

Leah J. Utas said...

Clare, I love your Pratchett description. And yes, it's about ready to let the flavours gather.

Crystal, thanks.

Bunnygirl, that's a great idea. I don't know how to go about playing at Lulu, but I thought the other day how great it would be to have it as a book so I could see where I needed to work.

messymimi said...

I've never been very demure either, so I already like this character.

Thanks again for the peek.

Reb said...

Beta reader? Did I hear my name? I like your lines... 'Demure nature' no one I know ;)

Clare2e's description of Pratchett is bang on ;)

Leah J. Utas said...

Thanks, Messymimi.

Reb, yeah, I don't know anyone like that either.

Barbara Martin said...

Your lines are interesting, and so is a character who's not demure but practicing at it.

Editing can be a chore, but it's a very good idea to let new work chill a little before going back to it.

Writing Without Periods! said...

Aw editing. I used to love to edit. What fun and yours sounds great.
Mary

Leah J. Utas said...

Barbara, thanks. This one's been resting comfortably for a few months. I took care of the obvious typos onscreen then ran out a hard copy to find other mistakes. Once these are in the bag I'll leave it to simmer for a few months.

Mary, thanks. Fun's a stretch, but it's better than having nothing to edit.

Frank Baron said...

You can definitely go bugshit crazy by staring at the same frickin' ms for months and months. You're wise to put it aside for a while.

I should give Pratchett another go. I tried reading one of them a decade or two ago and just couldn't get into it. I suppose it makes sense to start from the first book, eh?

Leah J. Utas said...

Yep, Frank. That's about the size of it.

Discworld is a cool place. I say have another go at it and see what happens. I've barely started the second one and I've already laughed out loud.