Bad updater, but lots of progress.
I know, I know, I know, I have been very bad at updating this blog. I really have no excuse, so I’m not going to try and a give one, I’ll just update you on what has been going on. The last time I posted I was anxiously waiting for first reader comments. Well they came back and they were generally good, with the exception that the first third dragged a little and the last third needed more detail. So it went into edit, I cut a lot of the first third, combined two chapters (chapters 2-3), added a bit more action, you get to see characters control the elements a lot quicker. The middle third stayed roughly the same and then I added quite a lot to the last third, including upping the blood count, now the book does have the battle scene I avoided before. The action was just needed parallel the angst levels and the teenage girls levels. After all that was done I sent it out again.
As well as sending it out to second readers (again feedback mostly good – but it did need another word cut), I also sent it to The Writing Show Podcast’s Slush Pile (http://www.writingshow.com/podcasts/2011/01162011.html), this is a Podcast run by Paula B and looks at first chapters to look at their potential. It is a wonderful podcast and gave some invaluable advice, oh which I am very grateful for. Firebound’s (still my working title) feedback starts abot the twenty minute mark and overall I was very happy with it. The style and voice is right for the market and it is very well written with a character that you are rooting for from the start. That naturally made me very happy, as I think that my main character, Abigail can be somewhat of a brat especially when the story starts. The negatives that the cliff-hanger wasn’t big enough for a first chapter, which has now been changed, it was still too long (hence yet another word cut) and that the prologue wasn’t needed. Now I love the prologue so that was really hard to hear but she was right, it was just back story, it was passive and it didn’t introduce the main chapter, so painfully I cut the prologue.
With all the feedback in, I worked on giving it another cut and have a draft that I am happy with just in time for the writing festival that I am going to. (http://www.writersworkshop.co.uk/festivals/index.shtml) And the rest of my time has been preparing for that, sorting out my back story and world details etc, working on synopsis and query letters again and starting book two. But I will go into all of that in lots more detail in the next few posts.
Right now it’s all up to date – I will talk to you soon. I swear. Feel free to beat me with a big stick if I don’t.