Catch the Wind
The 5th Draft was completed early July, and it is now going through the editing process.
The cover art is currently in production. I can't release the preliminary sketches, but let's just say that the cover art is going to be fantastic. The artist, Gabrielle Ragusi, has been able to come up with several ideas that capture exactly what the book means to me. You can see her portfolio here:
https://www.gabrielleragusi.com/projects/portfolio
So at this point, I'm personally doing nothing with Catch the Wind. Once the editing and cover art are finished, then it's time to put together the final layout of the novel and begin the final production.
The cover art is currently in production. I can't release the preliminary sketches, but let's just say that the cover art is going to be fantastic. The artist, Gabrielle Ragusi, has been able to come up with several ideas that capture exactly what the book means to me. You can see her portfolio here:
https://www.gabrielleragusi.com/projects/portfolio
So at this point, I'm personally doing nothing with Catch the Wind. Once the editing and cover art are finished, then it's time to put together the final layout of the novel and begin the final production.
Red Horizons, Crimson Skies
With Catch the Wind out of my hands for the time being, it has been time to begin the major writing for the second of the three novels.
I am currently in the middle of Draft #3.
So what does that mean? Well, this will give you a window into my writing process.
I am currently in the middle of Draft #3.
So what does that mean? Well, this will give you a window into my writing process.
- Draft #1 — the goal is to simply finish the novel and figure out what it's about and where it goes.
- Draft #2 — now that I know the story, it's time to nail down the first level of the plot: what happens, i.e. the events told in the story, from beginning to end.
- Draft #3 — Now that I know the specific plot elements, now it's time to do major revisions of the structure of the story. This is where I'm at right now. Here's what I mean by the structure:
- I changed the main POV in the first section of the novel. I really like this change, but it has been hard. We're talking about a story that has been more or less figured out for more than 15 years, and now I'm narrating everything from a new point of view.
- Three prominent characters were added. The story needed some light-heartedness to bring some mood balance to what is in some ways one of the heavier stories I've ever come up with.
- Figuring out how to put the backstories into the novel. There's a pretty involved backstory to each of the three main characters, and I had to decide how to place those in the novel.
- Draft #4 — now revise the plot. Instead of thinking of it in terms of what happens, I think of it as what the characters choose. This makes the story more active and the characters more engaging—they're not just reacting to the events, their choices become the focal point. Additionally, I look for where characters' personalities can come out more, where their motives need to be more clear, etc. After Draft #4, it's time to give the story out to test readers.
- Draft #5 — after getting feedback from test readers, it's time for the final revision based on their reactions. After this draft, the story is ready to go to editors for the formal editorial work.
Children of Pandora
Not much to say here. Real work on this final story won't begin until I'm done with the writing of Red Horizons, Crimson Skies.
I have a lot of thoughts on where this story is going to head, and I've done some preliminary outlining. But I don't expect major work on this novel to begin until about October.
I have a lot of thoughts on where this story is going to head, and I've done some preliminary outlining. But I don't expect major work on this novel to begin until about October.