For a start, I have sent my first draft to a publisher, and I now have an agent. I know! It looks like my book might actually be published. How scarytastic is that?
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| Illustration copyright Matt Clare at Mono Design |
I have also taken on board advice about how to improve my first draft which has required me to:
- get in contact with Vietnam Veterans
- interview Veterans
- do more extensive research on the Vietnam War
- do more extensive research on PTSD
- read books on structure to make the flow of material work better
Oh, and one of the new threads I am writing has forced me to reassess the entire nature of the relationship I have with my deceased father? Yeah, no biggie.
I keep thinking I should write a blog post, but then I get an email from a Veteran, or a brain wave about my story goal, or a new piece of Vietnam history drops into my lap, or I freak out about how the hell I am going to pull this whole thing together and read non-fiction books for hours to see how other people do it.
At least I don't have writer's block. What is the opposite of that? Writer's tsunami? That's what it feels like: a huge wave of information and ideas bearing down on me that I am running full pelt to keep up with. I keep siphoning off what I can, scribbling notes, recording thoughts into a dictaphone, making phone calls, writing, reading, editing. But I still feel like I am barely keeping up.
I am looking forward to the day when the wave finally levels out so I can start editing. Then I can send out the second draft to some of my cleverest friends for feedback. And edit again. Did I mention all of this has to happen before the end of the year because my agent has let publishers know she will be "sending my manuscript wide" then?
I wish I could borrow Hermione Granger's time turner to buy me some extra time. I will keep you posted on how I go. Or, given my track record of sporadic blogging, maybe not.
Have you ever had a writer's tsunami?
