Today is the day I discover my floor

[rolanni]

Asyouknowbob, we sent Fledgling on to the Nice and Infinitely Patient Editor Lady last evening.  Which means that today is the day that I shovel out the Debris of Creativity(tm), rediscover and make peace with my floor, do the filing and pay the bills.  This is an ambitious schedule, especially the filing part, but I have great hopes for the Rediscovery of the Floor.

Before I commence with the Great Throwing Out, I thought y'all might like to see what a Book in Progress looks like.  Below is a photograph of Fledgling, with Sharon, for scale.  The pile had been sitting on the floor next to the desk, at my right knee, and represents various re-writes, notes, re-rewrites and Ghod Knows What Else.  If we'd been doing this thing on a typewriter, I expect it would represent three complete drafts.  Computers make keeping track of some sorts of trivia harder.  Anyhow, here she is, weighing in at just over 22 lbs -- and they wonder why there are no trees in the forest...

Comments

[jhetley.livejournal.com]

Looks about right.

[keristor.livejournal.com]

Is that in submission format (double line spaced, 12 point fixed-width font)? If so then it looks like about the quantity I'd expect for three drafts.

(There are trees in the forest, you just can't see them for the wood...)

Happy New Year! And thanks very much for all of the books and stories.

[rolanni.livejournal.com]

Some of the pile is complete scripts in submission format. Some of it is double-sided, single-spaced bits that needed work, some are notes -- those are mostly handwritten, on yellow pads, or whatever little bit of paper happens to have been at hand when inspiration struck.

[(Anonymous)]

I heard there are university libraries that want such piles for literary scholarship. Now if I could only remember where I read that article...

~ Kath

[sleary.livejournal.com]

Hehhe! OK, my draft-in-progress is about the right size, then. (It's like measuring your kid against the yardstick on the doctor's wall!)

[growlycub.livejournal.com]

It's too bad that this 22 pound stack will get thrown away! Ebay in September after the publication of the finished book would probably result in enough money for a few nice dinners or other important things like cat toys. :)

I know I'd be intensely curious to see the transformation from online serial via a couple of drafts to final product and I'm sure I'm not the only one. :)

[laurajunderwood.livejournal.com]

There was a theory that when we moved to using computers, we would become a "paperless" world. Seems to me, as a user of computers, it is just the opposite. I cannot edit a novel without printed paper in front of me. Oh, I can go over it and do quick changes, correct a word here and there, but for continuity, I _have_ to have a paper copy, and I seem to print out a lot more of them too.

Did you ever do the "cut up the ms to rearange parts bit" when you were using typewriters?

I did... ;-)

Laura J. Underwood

[rolanni.livejournal.com]

Did you ever do the "cut up the ms to rearange parts bit" when you were using typewriters?

Oh, yeah. Conflict of Honors went together that way. We had all the scenes, we just needed to get them in the right order.

...you wouldn't think this would be hard...