The online diary of a dreamer creating Contemporary Romantic Fiction - because Every Woman needs Love and Laughter in her Life.

Thursday 20 December 2007

Word Stew


Nicola Marsh has an excellent post today on the merits of allowing your work to 'stew' so you can return to it with fresh eyes before submitting. http://www.nicolamarsh.blogspot.com/


I find this a very hard thing to do, but my current WIP needs it.

I can already see gaps in the hero's internal conflict and one section needs work on pacing - it seems flat. The opening chapters need more angst. Everyone is too 'nice' to eachother.

So the whole file, notes, print-outs, post-it stickers, everything, is now inside the box file.

Sitting there.

On my desk.

Taunting me.

Calling me a wimp for not soldiering on.

I shall now punish it by storing on the top shelf of the bookcase for a week before going back to it.

This work needs to be submitted. I need to feel it is the best work I can create.

In the meantime...there are one or two other things to do around the place this week.

Excuse me while I look for a roasting tin large enough for a brace of wild rabbits.

Whilst stirring the home-made tangerine marmalade.

And sorting out the contents of the freezer which seems to have a lot of smoked fish. And preparing a shopping list for tomorrow's supermarket dash.


And glancing longingly at the TBR pile. A week may not be long enough.




5 comments:

Deborah Carr (Debs) said...

What a brilliant post, as usual. I know how you feel and would love to find a shelf high enough to hide my wip on. Damn thing is driving me mad.

Kate Hardy said...

Thank you so much for posting that YouTube link. Lovely voice, lovely song - and the perfect mood music for writing, right now :o)

Merry Christmas. Good on you for letter your work stew. And hope Mr Ray-Anne is better so you can really enjoy the festivities.

(Good luck with the supermarket dash. I chickened out and had mine delivered. No queues, no bored kids irritating each other, no hassle.

Kate Hardy said...

Oh - and you're a bad influence. o:) - I ended up buying two albums this morning. (I like Norah Jones and Joni Mitchell - and I can heard both in some of her other tracks YouTube. Gorgeous.)

Ray-Anne said...

You are most welcome Kate - she does have a lovely voice, and it is a great track, so I feel no guilt at all. Hope you enjoy the albums. I am surprised she is not better known in the UK.

Of course, letting the work stew does create the risk that when I come back to the WIP I will think it is the worst thing that I have ever created, and fit only for hte bin, but I suppose I would rather find that out than the editor.

Now. Dental hygienist then shopping. Lovely.

Romance, Rumours and Rogues said...

Ray-Anne,
congrats on resisting the temptation...I know exactly how you feel!!!
Let it sit. It's tough, I know. Just think how excited you'll be when you get to start the lovely editing process :)