Still working

by Donna Andrews of the Femmes Fatales

By the time you read this, I will be Bouchercon bound. I hope to see some of you in Toronto for this year's convention, and for those of you who can't be there, I'm sure my fellow Femmes and I will be sharing our adventures at Bouchercon in upcoming blogs.

But just so you know it, there's one thing I'm definitely packing—the completed but not yet completely revised and polished manuscript of Toucan Keep a Secret.

Although it's quite possible I won't touch it the whole time I'm gone.

With any luck, after I finish packing and getting the house tidy enough that I won't faint when I walk back into it and—well, doing everything else I need to get done before my departure--I'll have time to sit down and read through the whole manuscript one more time. And scribble all over it with tweaks and notes about things I need to fix. Maybe even do some of them.

But while I'm at Bouchercon, even if I never pick up the manuscript, I'll be doing one of the most important things a writer can do to a book: cooling it. Taking a little bit of time away from the full immersion of the last few months, and especially the intense drive to finish of the last few weeks.

Cooling the manuscript doesn't mean I'll forget all about it, although it does mean I'll try. I'll listen to other writers talk about their work. I'll let fresh influences and inspirations come into my brain. And I'll try to let my subconscious chew on the manuscript.

When I get home from Bouchercon I'll swing into revision mode. With any luck, having been away from the manuscript for over a week will give me a little distance on it. Enable me to see what's working and what's not working. Maybe even come up with a few brand new ideas about improving the plot or the characters. It's happened before. Sometimes the best thing you can do for your book is to get away from it for a while.

Then again, I'm taking it with me, just in case. In paper and electronic form. If something someone says in a panel suddenly sets off a light bulb and tells me exactly how to make some small part of the book better, I can do that.

Although I'm hoping the light bulbs don't show up until Monday or Tuesday. I think my book and I need a little time away from each other.

See you in the (real or virtual) Bouchercon bar!

 

 

 

Comments

[Elaine Viets]

Cooling a manuscript is a good writing technique, Donna. If you let it alone for a while, it's easier to spot plot holes and typos when you go back to it. Love the title.