IWSG: Into the Abyss: The Draft is Done!

What a thrill. Last Sunday, I finished my current project, Rivers of Stone, after three years of work. Research, writing, editing, revising, more research, editing, and rewriting. Done. Well, really, done for now. 

I’m ready to send this story off to my beta readers and switch my writing attention to that wrap-around stuff (the cover, the blurb, the newsletter, the media kit).

I want to let go of this story for a little bit, these characters I know so well. But, remember the principle of selective observation? That we notice in the morass of data around us those bits that are most useful?

Yesterday, PBS interviewed Colum McCann about his book, Letters to a Young Writer. McCann commented about how to dig into character: “It’s not just what they ate for breakfast, but what they wanted to eat.”

What a fantastic way to move into deep point of view. My reaction? I wanted to revise my story one more time to see if the story captures what my characters want. Even writing these kinds of notes down as part of a character sketch would inform motivation, conflict, and plot. 

And I’m still wondering if my story has enough sensory detail and if I should go back just one more time to check out just how those five senses invigorate my writing (I lean to touch, hearing, and sight more than smell and taste).

Image @bytoropov (Yusuf Toropov)

But, I’m still setting Rivers of Stone aside. Because I could spend yet another year picking away at revision.

So thank you, IWSG. You came to the rescue with Bryan Cohen’s article this month, “What the Heck is Copywriting Anyway?” 

Cohen says copywriting “is the act of writing all the words that go outside of your book. Book descriptions, emails to readers, and advertisements all fall under the copywriting umbrella.”

In my heart, I know I’ve taken Rivers of Stone as far as I can. That’s why I’m thankful for those beta readers. So, while I wait for their responses, it’s time to make a schedule, play with book covers, and draft my book blurbs. 

Let my inner copyeditor loose! I want to say, “Wish me luck,” but what I really need is persistence and courage. Let’s do this.

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