rummages of the mind
Discussions, Information and Education
"Editing is fun!" -- No one, EVAR!" Sean Hoade www.seanhoade.com
Book three, Bonds of Contrition is done and now in the editing process and I am amazed by my progress. It was daunting at first, going one word at a time, line by line, becoming more painful by the hour. Core of Confliction was one story. As I went through, I found that some of the elements were so far ahead of the main story that I decided to split it. Yes, it had turned into a two book thing. In the midst of all this, I was still in the process of learning my craft, (still am) and came across two books; Plot Perfect by Paula Munier www.paulamunier.com and Characterization by Victoria Lynn Schmidt www.victorialynnschmidt.com. A revelation occurred and I found that each section of the story had its own theme thus a trilogy was born. Why am I revisiting this now? Because I am proud of myself for, as Chuck Wendig www.terribleminds.com demands, finishing my shit. After 8 years of procrastination and not writing AT ALL, I finally decided in November of 2013 to regain my passion. The bare bones of Core of Confliction flowed out of me during NaNoWriMo and I completed it in 26 days. Two years of tweaking, three editors who gladly took my money and a new fire in my loins (No, not an STD), I was confident to unleash my newly born flawed child to the world. It has been a journey that I should have taken years ago but I know now that I was not ready. Self doubt, fear of rejection, being a chameleon willing to change for whatever the audience wanted regardless of how much it harmed my soul. The things said to me left me discouraged. "Your language is too advanced, you need to dumb it down." "Writing isn't a real job. You need to go for a real career and do that writing thing later." "There are too many genres together, you should just pick one and stick with that." ***Crickets*** That is what I got whenever I pitched a new story idea in Creative Writing Class in college. All these words were pounded into me for decades until I turned 40 and realized I was miserable. I wasn't doing what I was passionate about. My original reason for going to film school was to learn the biz and become a scriptwriter/director/film editor because I felt that since I was going to be able to write, I may as well try passion number 2; Film. So, I never thought I would be writing again, let alone a trilogy, And to add to my pride, I have another novel 75% complete and a fifth at the halfway mark. With an arsenal of baby birds, stemming from the age of 15, inside spiraled notebooks stacked high in a plastic tote, I have 62 works in progress to choose from. My goal is to write a novel every two months and yes, I can do it. If no one bothers me for eight hours I can kick out 8-10K words. Bragging? Not even! That is slow compared to some of the writers I know. I want readers to enjoy my stories and fall in love with my characters. I want to bring someone a little bit of joy to escape into another world not theirs. To feel free, as I do, to broaden their creative minds. My journey into the published author world is just beginning. Always, learning, evolving and seeking out those who resonate with like minded tribes. Now, I look forward to completing the last installment of Core of Confliction, Bonds of Contrition, and many, many, many more stories to come! May we all reap the rewards that the universe has to offer us. |
Maquel A. JacobLover of the Arts, a foodie and down for a wine tasting tour year round. Archives
June 2023
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