Today I promise you the most incoherent post thus far. In my attempt to fit in work, home-selling prep, critique group and my Revision Smackdown, I stayed up until almost 3 a.m. last night. Work today is going to be awesome.
In terms of the Revision Smackdown, if you look a couple of posts down, you'll see that today I am supposed to be working on chapters 18 and 19. Folks, I was already dabbling in Chapter 19 last night. I can't get too excited though, because these revisions are so freaking rough, I could get a splinter on them. I desperately need to get some distance from this thing, and I'm not just talking about flying 5,437 miles away from my laptop.
If you're a frequent visitor, you may have noticed that the books in my Goodreads Currently Reading widget rarely change. She's been reading Across The Universe for two weeks! Slowest reader ever! Like most of us who are in love with books, I'm actually a very fast reader, but lately I've been denying myself the pleasure. I know, I know: a good writer needs to be reading constantly, but there are only so many hours in a day. By the time I make it to turning on my Kindle, I'm already in bed and I've got about fifteen minutes until my eyes start rolling back in my head.
I am so looking forward to getting away and putting all my spare moments into reading. Reading on planes, reading on trains, reading when all my travel companions are speaking Turkish and I so rudely zone out to catch a few pages on my phone. I've got an ocean of great books waiting on my Kindle, and I'm ready to dive in. I want to freeze my ocean of books into ice blocks and skate on it and melt it in the springtime and drink it! (Bonus points if you can tell me what awesome movie that's from...)
Reading is the best way for me to get some distance from my own voice, to make the words I've written look unfamiliar. Do you find that this is the case for you, too?
There definitely isn't enough time in the day, or work and chores takes up too much time. Even weekends tend to fill up with clutter.
ReplyDeleteI wish I could get on top of my own version of the 'Revision Smackdown'. Right now, it's going at a crawl--about a chapter a week. Each chapter is about 20 double-spaced pages, and I'm rewriting each one, but still. I want things to happen faster! =)
ReplyDeleteAnd yes, I think that after revisions, the best thing to do is go read several (well-written) books, then come back to your novel and find all those glaring errors you missed. =) (It doesn't work all that well if you start this reading thing in the middle of revisions. *living proof*)
Haha, no, I guess that's why I'm not really reading anything these days :)
ReplyDeleteWell done on the Revision Smackdown! You are kicking ass!
ReplyDeleteI totally agree about needing to read to get distance. It also helps me get inspired when I am sick of thinking about my own book because it reminds me what I am actually trying to achieve (and no, it isn't the sweet comfort of total madness...though that's where it seems I am headed some days!).
I think taking a break and not thinking about my book gives me the best distance. I try to catch up on things like reading and critiquing for my CPs and homework, and then get back to it after a month or so. I find around 2 months give or take I start really forgetting it and that's really not good 'cause I figure out without writing I have soooo much more time to do other things like facebook and hulu. It's hard for me to get back into the swing of writing everyday.
ReplyDeleteI LOVE reading!
ReplyDeleteI agree that reading novels you haven't written can really get the creative juices flowing! After I finish a novel--while I'm waiting to revise--I read at least 30ish books (they are MG or YA...I'm not a super speed reader). Helps me find the flaws in my own writing.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree. Sometimes you have to get away from your own writing and read something else. I haven't had much time to read yet either. I get ten minutes here, five there, twenty there. It doesn't lend itself to fast reading lately, so don't feel bad about that. Good luck with your revisions!
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