Genesis of a Novel – Part X – More Procrastination and First Draft Finished!

OK, so I procrastinated some more. It happens.

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There sometimes comes a point in your draft that you have many more interesting things to do. This seems to come to me about 2/3 through a draft. It just happened this point came at a time when I had three other novels in process, and they all needed immediate attention.

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Legacy of Luck was due out in January, so I had to go through my three rounds of edits with my editor before it was published. The Enchanted Swans also needed to go through the same process. Call of the Morrigu was in the final edits before I submitted it to my publisher.

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This is when I found myself making more excuses. I found other projects more important, such as a promised review of someone’s book or a promised beta read. However, that just meant I had been out of the project so long, I feared jumping in again. I knew it. However, my need to finish projects is stronger than my need to procrastinate, in the end.

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Several months later, and a submission in late January of Call of the Morrigu finally freed me to start work again on Misfortune of Vision. After four months’ hiatus, I wanted to do a full read-through edit of what I had so far.

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While this took extra time, it had several benefits. First, it refamiliarized myself with the story details. Second, it meant I had most of the story already going through a first full edit. Third, it was a great exercise in getting back into the swing of things.

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It only took me about two weeks plus a few days to finish the first draft. I combined several planned scenes, but others took on a life of their own. In total, the amount of hours I estimate I spent on this first draft (just the writing, not the editing portion or the planning) was 55 hours for a 70,000 word first draft. The research came to about 25 hours in addition to that. So far, editing has been only about 6 hours, but that total will go up dramatically in future weeks.

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It is an amazing feeling to finish the first draft of a novel. It’s time to celebrate, no doubt! It’s a fantastic hurdle, one that many people never make.

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For the first novel, it was an adrenaline rush like being on a roller coaster. It’s still a rush, but tempered by the knowledge of the amount of time, effort, pain and sweat is still to come in the editing process. After the first novel, you have no idea what’s coming next. Now on my seventh novel, I am well aware I’m only about halfway done with this being in submittable form.

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I’ve already begun emailing myself notes to fix the storyline. Add a character here. Increase the stakes there. No, that character should react more like this. And I have to do a complete read-through (yes, despite doing it on the first 2/3 recently) to make certain all the details, timeline, subplots mesh and agree. In my last novel, The Enchanted Swans, I had a shift in the children’s ages, and got confused as to who was how old and when. But that novel took place over the course of 900 years. Since this new novel only takes place in a couple months’ time, that isn’t a factor. Also, most of the characters are older. Passing time takes on less significance for adult characters than for children, at least in terms of their changing reactions to events.

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And now into my editing phase, my least favorite part of the whole process. Wish me luck! After this, beta reading… the horrible waiting time.

More parts:

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I write historical fantasy novels, mostly set in Ireland, and a contemporary romance based on my parents’ 30-year search for true love. Don’t miss information on Celtic myth and history, as well as practical travel planning tips, and hidden places, in my travel books.

• Call of the Morrigú – Historical fantasy set in 1797 Ireland.
• The Enchanted Swans– Historical fantasy set in 500 BCE Ireland, based on The Children of Lir, an Irish Fairy Tale.
• Better To Have Loved– Contemporary romance based on the true story of my parents’ 30-year search for love
• Legacy of Hunger– Historical fantasy set in 1846 Ireland. Druid’s Brooch #1 (Now available in PRINT!)
• Legacy of Truth– Historical fantasy set around 1800 Ireland. Druid’s Brooch #2
• Legacy of Luck – Historical fantasy set in 1745 Ireland and Scotland. Druid’s Brooch #3
• Misfortune of Vision – Historical fantasy set in 12th century Ireland. Druid’s Brooch #4 (release date January 10, 2018)
• Misfortune of Song – Historical fantasy set in 12th century Ireland. Druid’s Brooch #5 (projected release date April 2018)
• Misfortune of Time – Historical fantasy set in 11th century Ireland. Druid’s Brooch #6 (first draft done – in editing)
• Turlough’s Tale – Short Story in The Druid’s Brooch series, set ten years before Legacy of Luck.
• Stunning, Strange and Secret: A Guide to Hidden Scotland
• Mythical, Magical, Mystical: A Guide to Hidden Ireland

More info at Green Dragon Artist :: Home ,

Christy Jackson Nicholas, Author , and

Tirgearr Publishing – Christy Nicholas

Green Dragon Artist Blog

About Green Dragon Artist

Celtic Fairies, Fables, and Folklore! Bestselling author (top #100 Amazon Canada, #1 in Paranormal Fantasy, Amazon Canada) Christy Nicholas, also known as Green Dragon, is an author, artist and accountant. After she failed to become an airline pilot, she quit her ceaseless pursuit of careers that begin with 'A', and decided to concentrate on her writing. Since she has Project Completion Disorder, she is one of the few authors with NO unfinished novels. Christy has her hands in many crafts, including digital art, beaded jewelry, writing, and photography. In real life, she's a CPA, but having grown up with art all around her (her mother, grandmother and great-grandmother are/were all artists), it sort of infected her, as it were. She wants to expose the incredible beauty in this world, hidden beneath the everyday grime of familiarity and habit, and share it with others. She uses characters out of time and places infused with magic and myth. Combine this love of beauty with a bit of financial sense and you get an art business. She does local art and craft shows, as well as sending her art to various science fiction conventions throughout the country and abroad. Facebook: www.facebook.com/greendragonauthor Homepage: www.greendragonartist.com Blog: www.greendragonartist.net Twitter: www.twitter.com/greendragon9