Loose Ends

I was talking with my friend Roberta yesterday about getting to the end of your book.

I would still be writing had I not imposed a deadline for the first draft. Even then it was way to long.

In the "Cut" phase I am trimming out superfluous plot lines that result in a ton of loose ends.

Now I am not going to have every little thing tied up in a bow. In fact there are a few subtle things that are seed stock for future plot lines.

In the books I love they have a real conclusion and a deneumont. 

Loose ends and even worse, arbitrary ends bug me. If the last chapter of a book concludes nothing and I have to wait a year for the next book, it has to be a VERY good story. Otherwise, I am really pissed.

Simple examples of books that tie up loose ends but continue would be the Harry Potter series books. They tie up enough loose ends for you to be happy. Other stories leave you hanging like it's just the end of a chapter. The Tunnels series did this and it  bugged me. I was feeling like it was done to just get me to buy the next book. A ploy. The thing that sucks is when you read faster than the author writes. I am so not doing that.

--Loose ends will be tied. But leave them wanting more!


  

Still on the Cut

I am about half way through on the cut review. I have already cut out about 71,000 words.

It is getting tougher now to trim.

My goal was to get to 105,000 words. It has been recommended to me that it was a good length for a first novel I have been told by published authors.

A big problem is that I keep adding text in the revision. I love some of these chapters and I feel that I am too close to them.

Steven King said that after his first draft was done he would put the draft away and move to his next project and come back to it months later for the edit and revision. I might do that eventually after this trilogy.

--Back to work.

What are the Odds?

I found out today that 17% of the population actually says they are going to write a novel. Only about 1% of the population actually finish a complete first draft.

Fewer still get published. Even though Self Publishing is now possible. It is a bit complicated, but not too much for me anyway.

I also read that most self-pubs are never really proof read or edited enough and suck because it that!

--I have made it this far! Now to power through.