The thing that always amazes me when editing is how I can think something is wonderful, leave it on a shelf for six months to a year, come back to it, and then wonder what in the world I was thinking when I thought it was so wonderful. Now I'm not saying Book 2 is terrible at this point. It's actually shaping up quite nicely. All I'm saying, is that an author has choices to make when they tell a story, and sometimes it takes a while--and some distance--to gain perspective and figure out that one choice is a million times better than another. It also amazes me how with some passages I write, when I write them, I think they're so important and clever, but when I come back to them after letting things set a while, those passages end up being nothing more than a millstone around my story's neck. I can never quite figure out what I was thinking imagining they were so important to the plot/overall story. That's why its important to learn to "kill your darlings" I suppose. I've been doing a lot of that over the last month.
I think what I'm experiencing is a perfect example of a writer's two brains. Sometimes it's honestly like having a split personality. When I'm in "creative" brain mode, there is this freedom I feel to try out anything. Things just flow and I'm super forgiving of sloppy writing and long-windedness, simply because I'm just trying to put a story to paper. When my "editorial" brain comes out to play, however, watch out! That writer is unforgiving and brutal and shows no mercy or remorse when it comes to cutting the fat from a story. It's actually pretty amazing how contrasting, yet complimentary a writer's two brains are. I'm just glad I get to use both of my brains when I'm dealing with people and other life situations. ;-)
So, I have a few things I wanted to tell you about that happened in June. First of all, I got to go on this cool podcast show called The Good Word. Nick Galieti is a super nice guy, and it was so much less nerve wracking than I thought it was going to be to get interviewed. If you want to check out my interview, just click the link above, and maybe browse around and hear what tons of other cool authors have to say. All in all, it was a super fun interview! I had a great time.
The other very fun thing I got to do last month was visit Brigham Young University as a guest author for a Creative Writing summer camp. Okay, so one of the funnest parts of being an author (so far) is hanging out with aspiring author kids. They are so cool and incredibly smart. I was talking to these kids about my writing process, and the questions they asked blew me away. Not only that, but they were such great kids, and they even sent me a super cute thank you note. Honestly, I love kids. They make everything I do as a writer and a mama worth doing.
Lastly, I was involved in a neat-o-mosquito cyber scavenger hunt called EuphorYA. You can read all about that awesomeness here. I even shared a little sneak peek for Book 2. :-) Lots of fun stuff for the month of June!
For July, we have a book blitz going on right now--you should check it out and enter to win a $50 gift card. That will be followed by a blog tour in August. Now that life has normalized for the summer, I'll even be posting some more book reviews and Writing Gems.
So stay tuned, Retro readers!
Lovin' this post, Hannah. It's SO true how, once you step away for a long while, you wonder what you were thinking during that first draft lol Glad for the podcast and book blast links, too! Happy Summer! You've had a busy one already :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by Writersideup.com! It has been a crazy summer, but I'll take it. Hope yours is happy, too!
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