Fantastic news today, in that I have broken ground on the Beyond Conviction sequel! It has been kicking around in my head for much longer, but such milestones should always be celebrated as and where they occur.
In the past few hours, I've belted out the entire prologue, over three thousand words! Finally solidifying several details and actually getting a propper start on the project beyond random notes and ideas. Things are still very much in the first draft stage and subject to significant change.
After having spent so long working on polished, near-final drafts, nitpicking and obsessing over every minute detail, it's a kick to return to the chaos of raw creative flow. It feels like an almost gorilla writing style after the refined pros and dialogue of Beyond Convictions' manuscript.
I would like to remind any aspiring writers that your first draft is going to look nothing like your final. If you get stuck on a line of dialogue, a description, or whether to use a semicolon or comma, don't be afraid to skip over it temporarily and get the rest down on paper. Writing a novel is an intensely iterative process, and it will get better as you take run after run at it. As you go, you'll get a much better feel for what works and what doesn't, who needs to be there and who doesn't, and a scene you were so sure would play out one way goes in an entirely different direction. You have a vision, focus on getting that vision onto paper, the obsessive correction will come later.
-C.J Watson
Comments