Hey, Timothy. I enjoyed reading this deep dive into your writing journey this year. Jia Peach seems interesting as I love shared universes and connected storytelling. As for the seven drafts idea, I'm lucky to finish the first draft of a novel, let alone the seventh draft. But I'm sure that will come with time as I'm still in the learning process for how best to finish a novel that works for me. I'm honored to be listed among the others as a resource for indies on Substack. Here's to SXP living up to the About page! Happy New Year!
Thanks, Winston! I am not crazy about the Seven Drafts approach, although it's as valid as any. I didn't pick up the book until I'd gone through a first vomit draft, cleaned it up on a second run-through, then hired a plot coach to help nail down the holes in the story, then hired two manuscript evaluators (both were extremely helpful in their own ways). As I was making the revisions based on the ME's suggestions, I attended a local writers' group gathering where an agent talked about the industry. That's who mentioned the Seven Drafts book, so I bought it. I finally finished the book this month and found it very valuable, with a lot of good ideas beyond the various kinds of drafts.
I write many ––MANY––drafts. Coming from screenwriting, I'm used to writing one draft after another. It's not so difficult when it comes to writing screenplays. However, writing a novel is a totally different ballgame. Novels are long. Writing a novel is a marathon. ~ And the marketing. 🙈 But you can do it, step-by-step. 👏 I've been giving lots of development notes over the years. Important is to find somebody who gives non-judgemental constructive criticism. Personally, I don't have to like the story, but I have to 1. make sure the story makes sense, and 2. I need to give suggestions on how to improve the manuscript. Therefore, I'll go through four rounds of reading and giving notes. First round: I read the manuscript and look for structural problems and pacing. Second round: character arcs. Third round: Dialogue and inconsistencies. Fourth round: overall language. ~ HAPPY NEW YEAR!🎉🤗
I mentioned the Seven Drafts book; there's a great section on how to give good feedback, which echoes some of what you said. Things like writing a couple of paragraphs to show you read and understand the book; talking about what's working and why; mentioning what isn't working and why; giving more overall observations, whenever possible, in the form of a question; and signing off with something positive. I think doing a read-through and giving constructive criticism is in and of itself, an art! Thanks for your note :-) Happy New Year!!
I will look into the Seven Drafts book. Some of my clients told me I have a different approach to how I give development notes. I write all my thoughts and notes into their manuscript and add suggestions onto their page (if I have any) on how to improve the story, character, etc. ~ 😄😃
Hey, Timothy. I enjoyed reading this deep dive into your writing journey this year. Jia Peach seems interesting as I love shared universes and connected storytelling. As for the seven drafts idea, I'm lucky to finish the first draft of a novel, let alone the seventh draft. But I'm sure that will come with time as I'm still in the learning process for how best to finish a novel that works for me. I'm honored to be listed among the others as a resource for indies on Substack. Here's to SXP living up to the About page! Happy New Year!
Thanks, Winston! I am not crazy about the Seven Drafts approach, although it's as valid as any. I didn't pick up the book until I'd gone through a first vomit draft, cleaned it up on a second run-through, then hired a plot coach to help nail down the holes in the story, then hired two manuscript evaluators (both were extremely helpful in their own ways). As I was making the revisions based on the ME's suggestions, I attended a local writers' group gathering where an agent talked about the industry. That's who mentioned the Seven Drafts book, so I bought it. I finally finished the book this month and found it very valuable, with a lot of good ideas beyond the various kinds of drafts.
I write many ––MANY––drafts. Coming from screenwriting, I'm used to writing one draft after another. It's not so difficult when it comes to writing screenplays. However, writing a novel is a totally different ballgame. Novels are long. Writing a novel is a marathon. ~ And the marketing. 🙈 But you can do it, step-by-step. 👏 I've been giving lots of development notes over the years. Important is to find somebody who gives non-judgemental constructive criticism. Personally, I don't have to like the story, but I have to 1. make sure the story makes sense, and 2. I need to give suggestions on how to improve the manuscript. Therefore, I'll go through four rounds of reading and giving notes. First round: I read the manuscript and look for structural problems and pacing. Second round: character arcs. Third round: Dialogue and inconsistencies. Fourth round: overall language. ~ HAPPY NEW YEAR!🎉🤗
I mentioned the Seven Drafts book; there's a great section on how to give good feedback, which echoes some of what you said. Things like writing a couple of paragraphs to show you read and understand the book; talking about what's working and why; mentioning what isn't working and why; giving more overall observations, whenever possible, in the form of a question; and signing off with something positive. I think doing a read-through and giving constructive criticism is in and of itself, an art! Thanks for your note :-) Happy New Year!!
I will look into the Seven Drafts book. Some of my clients told me I have a different approach to how I give development notes. I write all my thoughts and notes into their manuscript and add suggestions onto their page (if I have any) on how to improve the story, character, etc. ~ 😄😃
Thanks for the mention!!