Hello, all.
*sigh*
So little time.
*sips hot apple cider*
It feels like I’ve been spinning my wheels, stuck in the mud, and going nowhere. So much time has been going to this rewrite. It’s necessary, believe me, and Salt and Silver can’t progress until this is done. I have to relearn who a couple of the characters are after throwing a few new curve balls at them.
And the fixes, the new tensions, the momentum of it all…It’s so much better than the original.
But it’s taking far longer than expected.
Don’t get me wrong, I fully understand the importance of editing/rewriting. If not for editing, most stories would be complete garbage. The ones that wouldn’t be complete garbage, would still be rough as hell. Loose ends would fray, rather than being tied off. Plot holes would swallow entire worlds. Characters would be flat. Grammar and spelling would be appalling.
So, yes, I know this is a vital step in my writing, this rewrite. But I’m so excited to move the story forward, rather than fixing the messed up first half.
Of course, working overtime every week certainly doesn’t speed the process. Every extra minute in the factory is one less minute typing.
Every author knows the struggle of not having time to write, though. Hell, every person who ever existed has felt the pressure of time, except maybe those who lived before time was invented.
But I have to wonder…did they feel it, too? The onward march, the fleeting nature of life? Were they, perhaps, able to perceive the crush of time, even if they had no idea what they were feeling? Did cavemen lament another day passed, another day closer to death?
I digress. That’s a concept for another day. At any rate, I have no answer. All I know is that time is a cruel mistress.
And certainly cruel, tonight.
I just worked a 12 hour shift, and then came home to do a bunch of cleaning. My husband and I are having a new dishwasher installed in the morning, and the house mustn’t be a wreck when the installers get here. (*rolls eyes at own need to impress total strangers*)
Also, note that I said morning.
I am not a morning person. My job usually works quite well with that, given that I don’t have the seniority to get day shift.
But appliance installers…morning works for them.
So, I’m typing all of this up as quickly as I can, for the sake of going to bed. I could wait until tomorrow, but…let’s be honest. I’m going back to sleep once the dishwasher is installed, and the strangers leave my house. Lol.
Anyway. I’m very ramble-y today. For which, I apologize.
So, some positive stuff.
I’m nearly halfway through the rewrite. 41 pages of 102 done.
And I did get some important world building stuff done this week. I made a world timeline, nailing down exact dates for important events. From the start of plagues that happened nearly 400 years prior to the story, all the way to invasions and wars that changed the landscape of the countries involved. I even figured out birthdays and…death days.
I also finally made a map. I had it in my head the whole time, of course. But seeing it on paper, rough sketch as it may be, is helpful. I’ll do a better one later, and I may even put that one online.
So, while it doesn’t feel like enough progress, it actually was a decent amount of work, given the amount of time I actually had. I suppose I should also consider the fact that no amount of progress ever meets my standards for myself.
Again, a topic for another day.
Before I go off on another rant, I’ll let you all get back to your day.
Keep reading. Keep writing.
Later.