seeing red

[adelaidesean]

Five days before a deadline, this is not the kind of page I want to see:



And this is a draft I'm happy with!

\(--)/

Meanwhile, in not entirely unrelated news: scarecrow scares crow.

Comments

[halspacejock.livejournal.com]

Looks very, very familiar. Now tell me it's your 20th-25th draft and I'll know we're not only born in the same year, we're on the same crazy wavelength.

Cheers
Simon

[seanwilliams.livejournal.com]

Not quite that many drafts, I'm relieved to say, but then I'm not writing funny stuff. That must be a thousand times harder. I'm far too lazy to write comedy.

[halspacejock.livejournal.com]

It does add an extra dimension. The humour gets into my books in two ways - funny situations which come to me during the planning stages, and the little bits and pieces which pop up during writing and revision.

I don't polish the funny bits until the draft is nearly done. Hal 4 was nearly 150,000 words at one stage, and I knew it had to come in around 90,000, and I could have spent months shining up the humour in that missing 60k.

Shape it, polish it, ship it ;-)

[seanwilliams.livejournal.com]

Shape it, polish it, ship it ;-)

Do a little dance?

I don't know about you, but I still don't know when to celebrate each book: when the first draft is finished, when it's submitted, when the first finished copy arrives, when it appears in a bookshop...? The decadent in me wants all of the above, but first draft feels premature and by the time the last two come around, I'm working too anxiously on the next project to feel much like celebrating. As for submission, by that point I'm exhausted and pretty much hate the book. It's celebration enough to see the back of it.

So, confusion reigns. Unless I celebrate every day, which is a sure recipe for alcoholism. :-)

[halspacejock.livejournal.com]

I allow myself a huge sigh of relief when the final, final version goes in, but it's quickly followed by that oh-shit-what-did-I-miss? feeling.

First finished copy is nice, but I daren't open it. Bound to spot an error somewhere, and always on the first page I glance at. (I keep an errata file for each book.)

Book launch - I always feel like an imposter. I don't do book signings, and asking shops whether they want me to sign stock inevitably leads to the manager saying something like 'But then we can't send them all back!'

Post release there's a few weeks of activity to publicise the release, but my mind has already turned to the next effort.

[seanwilliams.livejournal.com]

Thinking about it, I realise that I get kinda excited when I see a cover flat for the first time. That might be the closest thing to actual celebration.

Mind you, I wonder if I'm being greedy wanting to celebrate at all. People in other jobs don't celebrate when the annual report goes in or just getting through another week. (Do they? It's been a looong time since I worked in the real world.) Maybe I want part of that mythical life that writers are supposed to have, the one with all the leisure and parties...

[satimaflavell.livejournal.com]

You mean all those stories about leisure and parties are lies? OMG, I don't want to be published after all.

I hope there aren't too many pages with that many edits, Sean. It really must be enough to make you hate the book by the time the editor signs off on it.

[callistra.livejournal.com]

People in other jobs don't celebrate when the annual report goes in or just getting through another week. Do they?

No, they don't, and I think they should. It took bloody hard work to get there for the whole team, they should at least show some sign that the company is proud of it's staff and the work they produce.

But that would be ... like... caring for staff or some hippy thing that real corporations don't do.

[damienw]

yes, there's nothing like a policy of "celebrate even small successes", which translates into the occasional email saying "hey, noticed you did x. thanks." :-(

[seanwilliams.livejournal.com]

But that would be ... like... caring for staff or some hippy thing that real corporations don't do.

Indeed. It amazes me, after all the studies showing the clear effect on productivity and therefore profitability of maintaining a happy staff, that companies still treat their employees so badly. When Amanda and friends complain about bosses and co-workers, I feel a happy glow that I've only got myself to blame if my working conditions aren't always the best. :-)

[seanwilliams.livejournal.com]

You mean all those stories about leisure and parties are lies? OMG, I don't want to be published after all.

That's what cons and award nights are for, I guess. No one will throw a party for us, so we have to do it ourselves. :-)

As for leisure, I count myself pretty lucky that I spend my day doing what I love. If facing a sea of red during an edit is the worst of it, then this really is the best job in the world.

[callistra.livejournal.com]

I never want to work in an office again. I love the idea of a nice steady paycheque, but the price is definitely a part of your soul. I am kind of happy with my soul in it's current state thanks.

I have to either get good at the writing gig or else sell lingerie again, I think. I'm hoping to do both LOL. I'm getting my word counts in order, next thing to do is actually make them good words!

[seanwilliams.livejournal.com]

Hurrah! Sounds like a great plan.

And what could be better than having lingerie as a plan B? I am jealous. :-)

[callistra.livejournal.com]

You'd look great in this red and black paisley thing I sell....

hee!

[seanwilliams.livejournal.com]

Ha! If only. :-)

[halspacejock.livejournal.com]

Well, they probably think that a quick thank-you will lead to (a) a request for a pay rise or (b) said employee seeking a bigger and better job elsewhere on the strength of their outstanding performance.

[satimaflavell.livejournal.com]

It's a great blessing that you still love what you do, even afterdoing it for so long.

And yes, roll on the next con. They serve very well for parties:-)

gee that looks familiar

[maelorin]

i've seen this kind of thing from both sides - author and editor. there is white space left - so it's not too bad. and your editor's handwriting is quite legible!

being a perfectionist law/tech geek, *and* knowing both roles, means i'm awfully brutal with my own work. and my editors/supervisors know this - and love me for it ^_^

[maelorin]

this is where having a supervisor who invites me over to his office for meetigns where we watch sunsets makes so much sense to me ^_^

Re: gee that looks familiar

[seanwilliams.livejournal.com]

your editor's handwriting is quite legible!

That's the nicest thing anyone's ever said about my handwriting!

I am brutal with myself too. Sigh. And I expect my supervisor to be brutal too. I am bracing myself for a ton of work when she gets back from OS.

Re: gee that looks familiar

[maelorin]

^_^

Re: gee that looks familiar

[maelorin]

perhaps sometime we should get together and commiserate ^_^

[millisynth.livejournal.com]

*smirk!*


(http://mine.icanhascheezburger.com/view.aspx?ciid=1223012)

[seanwilliams.livejournal.com]

Ha ha! You get 10/10 and a gold star.

Re: gee that looks familiar

[seanwilliams.livejournal.com]

Brutality loves company. :-)

Re: gee that looks familiar

[maelorin]

^_^

[or does masochism love an audience?]

[canadiansuzanne.livejournal.com]

Man, that's hard. I hope every page doesn't look like that.

[seanwilliams.livejournal.com]

Thankfully not. :-)