Here in Denver, we didn't get much of a winter. Seems like we went straight from autumn to spring with an occasional snow flurry to break the warm-weather monotony.
I was hoping that by now, I'd be pulling the wraps off my Work-In-Process. The original plan was to have the first draft completed by last December. Before starting the manuscript, I'd put together a rough chapter outline, a list of characters, and several subplots. Even early in the writing I realized that this was going to be a big, sprawling saga, and sure enough, when I typed THE END to the first draft, the completed work topped 109K words!
I began trimming the chapters but in condensing scenes, or cutting them out completely, I had to ask: does the story still hold together? Have I introduced new plot holes? Are the characters asking the right questions given how the background narrative has changed?
In wrestling with the revisions, what came to mind was that my WIP exists in two distinct planes. The first is the manuscript on my computer, the physical record of what I've committed to so far. The second is the story in my mind, where I conceptualize modules of plot and narrative, seeing them as components that react to one another with lives of their own. Each has its function, which is to develop the story. But change one detail and those edits can ripple backwards and forwards through the narrative. My job as the author is to manage the process in way that molds the story into something whole and plausible.
I came to regard my WIP as a living, organic creature. The first obvious image is that of me throwing a switch and cackling, It's alive! It's alive! as my misbegotten construction twitches to life.
However, I don't see my WIP that way. Not to stretch the metaphor too much, but I compare my story to the little lemon tree in my house. Slowly, with care, it grows. Ultimately, the results to the attention I apply to my work will be a tale that readers should enjoy: a captivating, satisfying crime novel of consequences gone very wrong.
I hoped to conclude this post with an insightful quote comparing the writing process to nurturing a living creature but I couldn't find one. And since I don't think on those lofty levels, I couldn't put one together that didn't sound cheesy. As to developments in my WIP, stay tuned.
