Progress Update
So it's been a week or so and I thought I'd give a bit of an update on the progress of the major editing project that is PTB. In terms of A4 pages done, I'm now up to 399/534 and have given myself the last few days off to try and draw together some more enthusiasm to finish the task. Given just how many university courseworks I've got coming up, I'm getting a bit tired of my word processor I must say. On the plus side, I have only one academic conclusion, 2x 2,000 word essays and a presentation to do before I can officially say I've finished university! Dissertation is pretty much done, so all that needs doing for that is a few minor updates and then printing and binding it. Fingers crossed, I should have all my essays done by the end of March.
So what has my editing involved this time round?
Well as opposed to drastically re-writing the whole thing as I have done on previous occassions, this time round my task is mainly in the way of proof-reading. Thus far I've come across about 5-10 incorrect words (e.g. saying 'death' instead of 'deaf' or vice versa) which the spell checker naturally doesn't pick up on. I've also cut down a few of the 'wordier' sentences from the first book especially to bring it more in line with how I write now in 2010 as opposed to when I first started writing PTB way back in January 2004.
Away from editing, I'm currently in the process of sorting out my cover illustration with a good friend of ours, David Lawrence, who is an illustration student of all things (strange the people you know!). Had a meeting the other day to discuss the sort of direction I want to go in from his early sketches so hopefully given a few months everything will be sorted in that department. Then all that remains is to sort out the publishing contract with Lulu, get their GFX designer to sort out the layout, pay for all that (argh!), then receive my very first sample copy. It's wierd actually, to think that I'm finally getting round to self-publishing it after all these years, though if anything, now is the best time now I'm finishing my undergraduate degree.
Reading back over the three books, it's strange to see how my writing has changed and evolved. Certainly if I set out to write the same books again, they would in actual fact read as completely different books, if anything, because I have different ideas about the world than I did then. It's really strange to see all the little subtleties and hidden messages that I remember putting in, and remembering the associated stories and anecdotes behind why I did the things that I did. What has impressed me however, is going through the second book, I've come to find that some of the scenes I remember being very good, really are as good as I remember them being! In fairness I wasn't really expecting to find anything that I, as a writer in 2010 would be proud of writing now, but the truth is, there's some really good stuff in there! Hopefully, all things being well, I should get some inspiration together now to get to work on my next book. Having had a bit of a brain-wave in a particularly boring lecture the other day, I actually have a plan for the first few chapters of my Darkest Hour replacement book, which will incorporate alot of my previous ideas, but take a totally different line. If I'm honest with myself, I can't wait to get this self-publication thing done so I can start on writing again!
Exciting times.