Secrets of the Writer’s Journey (repost)

A full year has passed since I launched this blog in August of 2010.  Looking back, I learned quite a bit about the nature of the writer’s journey.  By writing about it and hearing from others on similar paths, or from those who offer support along the way, I’ve come to appreciate that no undertaking is ever completed alone.  As such, I will share some of what I’ve learned.

I’ve reflected on the pilgrimage over the last twelve months and have discovered the following:

• The publishing landscape has shifted with the advent of self-publishing eBooks via Kindle, Barnes & Noble’s PubIt, or Smashwords.  Many new breakout authors are coming from the ranks of the indie published, and many big names are putting out new work themselves via e-publishing.  This change alone has altered my intended path to publication.  I have decided to forgo traditional paper publishing in the near term and will focus my efforts on what many call indie publishing.  I am in the process of forming a small publishing company and will be publishing my own work electronically.  More details about that next month.
• My writing goals have expanded.  When I started discussing my own journey and what I knew or thought I knew my only work in progress was Book One of an epic fantasy series. Since then, I’ve put that book on hold to write a new Book One (it takes place ten years earlier).  I’ve also written two novelettes (stories around 10,000 words in length) for near term e-publishing.  One via an anthology with my writer’s group, Quindecim, and the other as a standalone story that serves as a prologue to a contemporary/historical fantasy I’m outlining for release next year.  So rather than just one epic fantasy project, I have five distinct works in progress.  The key will be to finish them all and get them in publishable condition.  I’ll post more about those experiences as they occur.
• Feedback is critical to improvement.  “A writer writes” is my mantra and favorite slogan, but perhaps I should expand that to be: “A professional writer writes well”.  What is “well”?  Writing well, means having a professional level of story craft.  This comes from practice, practice, practice.  And it comes from feedback from your first reader and beta readers.  We writers are not the best judge of our own work.  We all need a few trusted readers to read our stories or novel chapters and tell us what works and what doesn’t from a story perspective.  Does the opening hook the reader?  Does the ending satisfy?  Do the characters resonate?  Is the pace right?  Are there confusing descriptions?  Is the setting clear and grounded?  Many, if not all, of these questions can be answered for the writer by trusted readers.  If you don’t have some, get some. Friends, colleagues, family, may all be willing to help.  It is also preferable to have at least one writer provide feedback, to add an even more critical review of the story.  Join a writer’s group and get feedback from peers.  The feedback is invaluable.

Even though I haven’t yet completed one of my longer works, I am pleased with my progress so far and can still see the pilgrim’s road quite clearly ahead.  Looking back, we’ve had some good discussions about these Arcane Roads.  For newer visitors, I’m listing below a few of the most popular posts over the past year.  These generated the most interest and/or comments.

• Where Do Ideas Really Come From?
• Outlines are for wimps
• Resist the e-Revolution?
• What is a novelist’s pilgrimage?

The writer’s journey, or the pilgrimage to publication as I’ve dubbed it, is an endless road of discovery.

For the writers out there, what has your journey been like the past year?  For you readers out there, what roads are you traveling?

Reaching the summit

With a couple of days to spare, I’ve dragged myself up the steep trail and have planted myself firmly on the summit.  The elusive first draft of my novella, “The Last Portal,” is complete.

Whew!

My wife/muse/first reader gave me the thumbs up, so I submitted the story to my anthology group this past Tuesday for editing.  Thus begins at least two rounds of scrutiny and polishing to elevate the story to its peak altitude (mountain metaphors intentional).

So, what was my process for writing a 16,000+ word story?

Since this story is set in the fantasy world I created for my novel series, the world-building had already been done.  I decided on characters and a single significant event that would be considered a legend or myth by the protagonists in the novels (which occur chronologically some 5000 years later).  The same way we look back thousands of years for our history, mythology, legends, and origin stories.

So, I came up with characters who would do something so significant they would be remembered as legends or myths in the story world.  My goal was twofold: produce a new original story for my group anthology and deepen the story world of my upcoming epic fantasy novel series.

To complete this story, I wrote between two and three hours per day for three solid weeks.  I estimate the first draft of this story took me at least 32 hours.  That seems long, but at 16000 words, that averages 500 words per hour.   I am not a blazing fast writer, since I often stop writing to think through the scene or the characters actions and how the plot should progress.  I had written an outline and short synopsis for this story, so it wasn’t discovery writing.  Even with a story plan, I spent big chunks of writing time thinking through a plot point or deviating from the outline for a better story path.

The result is under review by my writing group.  I’ll update soon once I get some feedback.

The process of collaborating on an anthology project has inspired me to expand my focus on short fiction.  I have rekindled my enthusiasm for short fiction, finding the process creatively satisfying.  Thus, I will soon have another new project to discuss as I prepare another novella for publication.  More details to follow.  Yes, another teaser.  This project is even more exciting to me because it is a novella that introduces a potential stand alone novel in the historical/modern fantasy genre.

What do you do to reach the proverbial summit in your writing?  How do you stay with a story until the end?