How did I do during NaNo? Okay. I didn't reach 50K words, but that was due to getting sick. And I'm still sick. However, I can't gripe too loudly because I have managed to get the first third of the book into a cohesive format. My focus now is editing and filling in gaps. That's good news for my beta readers because I'll have something for you to read soon.
I admit I've struggled a bit with book 2, even though I already knew where it was going and had many key scenes written out long ago. When you write a first book, you set a bar. You then have to go higher than that for the next book, and then the next, and so on. The moment you don't go higher, you lose readers.
Book one had some great world-building experiences for me, great discoveries with the characters' personalities. Book two is suppose to take those same elements and go deeper, farther, and better. One nice thing about writing a sequel is you already know the characters and the conflict. You slip back into writing them as easily as putting on a favorite jacket. Making sure they are experiencing growth and change, and not becoming redundant is the harder part.
I know a couple of people mentioned that not everything was resolved in book 1, or that some things weren't explained satisfactorily. So I find myself smiling as I work on book 2 because those things unfold there. That's where they were meant to. Book 1 and 2 were originally one book.
I've had people ask me when the ebook version is going to come out for book 1 (Trefury: Mendi's Curse). The simple answer is, not until book 3 is written. Ebooks are easy to download and consume. Considering the nature of this story, which comprises three books, you'd find it more frustrating to zip through an ebook version of book 1 then have to wait for the rest. I know it slows sales and buzz momentum, but I've always said story comes first. I want to write a great story. It takes three books. And they won't be ebooks until I have the whole thing done and presentable.
Last week I was deep underwater in the story. I was exploring legends and necessary backstory. And I rewrote my TOC based on the corrected timetables I had to draw up to keep things straight. This week, if my cold goes away, I expect to be meeting survivors on an outer Callorin island and getting back into the battle of wills between Cortnee and Thssk. For the latest up-to-date news on my writing progress be sure to follow me on Facebook.
I admit I've struggled a bit with book 2, even though I already knew where it was going and had many key scenes written out long ago. When you write a first book, you set a bar. You then have to go higher than that for the next book, and then the next, and so on. The moment you don't go higher, you lose readers.
Book one had some great world-building experiences for me, great discoveries with the characters' personalities. Book two is suppose to take those same elements and go deeper, farther, and better. One nice thing about writing a sequel is you already know the characters and the conflict. You slip back into writing them as easily as putting on a favorite jacket. Making sure they are experiencing growth and change, and not becoming redundant is the harder part.
I know a couple of people mentioned that not everything was resolved in book 1, or that some things weren't explained satisfactorily. So I find myself smiling as I work on book 2 because those things unfold there. That's where they were meant to. Book 1 and 2 were originally one book.
I've had people ask me when the ebook version is going to come out for book 1 (Trefury: Mendi's Curse). The simple answer is, not until book 3 is written. Ebooks are easy to download and consume. Considering the nature of this story, which comprises three books, you'd find it more frustrating to zip through an ebook version of book 1 then have to wait for the rest. I know it slows sales and buzz momentum, but I've always said story comes first. I want to write a great story. It takes three books. And they won't be ebooks until I have the whole thing done and presentable.
Last week I was deep underwater in the story. I was exploring legends and necessary backstory. And I rewrote my TOC based on the corrected timetables I had to draw up to keep things straight. This week, if my cold goes away, I expect to be meeting survivors on an outer Callorin island and getting back into the battle of wills between Cortnee and Thssk. For the latest up-to-date news on my writing progress be sure to follow me on Facebook.
YAYYYYYY!!! *Happy Chair Dancing and Squeeing* So happy I'll be able to read book 2. So very happy!
ReplyDeleteKeep the pressure on me, Angie, and I'll get done faster. lol
ReplyDelete