14 January 2008

Towards the end

I'm getting towards the end of my current rewrite -- with less than 25,000 words to go. Now, to many writers that would be a big swag, but this is a big fantasy novel. I feel like I'm in the final stretches, and my enthusiasm to get to the end is waxing. I have found, however, I've moved more from rewrite to big edit at this point. Not quite sure why this has happened. Maybe it's because the later sections of the book were written later than the earlier sections and needed less? Maybe not.

After this comes a final editing pass -- this time on a print out, whereas at the moment I'm working on screen. What this pass is about is to make sure there are no typos, that the text is consistent (sometimes, with so many drafts still in my memory, I might insert something that relates back to something and not realise that the thing it related back to was omitted or reworked in this draft), that it all makes sense. I also want to have a quick look at a couple of particular aspects that someone mentioned may need a little attention. Easy stuff, and much quicker than a rewrite. Fun stuff. I love the editing stages, adding texture and layers and all of that. Then it's off to a couple of trusted readers for final comments and out into the wide world. Exciting stuff. And nerve-wracking. And then my dilemma is whether to hop right into the next book, or spend a couple of weeks reworking some short stories and getting them out. Might do a bit of both. And there's the group novel waiting patiently in the background too. So, plenty to go on with.

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