Stepping back from your work
A bit of perspective
WRITING:
I have just today finished my first run-though of Ray Adams VI - I guess you could now call that the second draft? I’m never sure about that. For a second draft to exist, do you need to have the first draft as a distinct file? I have four versions of Parallels saved, each representing a point where I’ve given it to my publisher and they’ve come back with some more direction. But my own self-published stuff tends to just be a document, which I mess about with.
I’d be fascinated to hear if that’s how other writers work. Do you draw a line under a version at any point, and make any future edits in a new document? Can you point to versions 1, 2 and 3, or more of a text?
I guess if I was making bigger changes, it might be worth doing, but the Ray Adams work in particular is very much written in a linear style. I tend not to move around chunks of text, because it’s all unfolding in chronological order, so I’ve yet to really partake of any massive structural edits for any of my books1. The kind of detail-orientated micro-edits I’m making, well, once they’re made I’m unlikely to want to retract them, so I just work from the one document.
I’ve decided the next step is to pass it around to a few beta readers, to try and get a handle on what other people will think of it. This isn’t to say that I think it’s actually finished. I would take at least one more run at it before passing it to my proofer, but I think, having put a reasonable amount of work into it in recent weeks, now would be the time to let it settle. To marinate it.
Especially true as my edits tailed off as I got to the more recently written sections, as if I was too close to the mindset in which they’d been written, so actually need to give it some space. I think it’s important to step away from a piece, to give yourself some perspective. Put it down and come back to it in a few weeks, maybe the New Year, with fresh eyes, to see if it still hits the spot.
All in all, though, having given it the once-through for the first time in its entirety, I’m pretty pleased. It’s not as disjointed as I’d feared the extended writing process may have rendered it, nor as saggy, and I think it’s closer to what I’d had in mind than I’d expected.
And what’s next? Well, that’s the exciting bit. With Parallels elsewhere2 and Ray Adams VI officially on the backburner, it’s time to see what delights I can cook up for the next James Kinsley.
I’m currently waiting to see if my publisher thinks there might be legs in my novella Last Call for Sin, and at least part of me thinks that my next James Kinsley should be non-genre, which could mean picking up Untitled coming-of-age novel again. Science Fiction is very definitely my bag, but given readers’ response to the emotional truth of Playtime’s Over, I don’t want to abandon that strand of my storytelling. That said, I have a really exciting new idea for something in HP Lovecraft territory…
Finally, I’m hoping that next year I might get the chance to get out there and see if I can shift a few copies of Ray Adams in person, at some kind of con or indie book fair. Obviously, this would require an initial outlay on stock, so if you’re planning on purchasing Greyskin, Playtime’s Over or any of the Ray Adams titles, and I’m thinking about the approach of Christmas here, or have ever considered chipping in at my Buy Me A Coffee account, now would be an especially good time.
I have enjoyed:
Down Cemetery Road - I’ve mentioned before my love for old BBC documentaries featuring Sir John Betjeman, but shout out to this gem which we caught recently, where he meets up with Philip Larkin3 to talk about poetry and Hull. Ashamed to say I had the barest awareness of Larkin when I lived in Hull, and zero interest in poetry. My loss, as this short film is absolutely delightful.
In a word, Phwoarr The Sheriff of Fractured Jaw - Kenneth More can do little wrong in my eyes, and his turn here as the cultured Englishman abroad, in this instance a gunsmith in the Old West, is a joy. Somewhat against his will, he’s forced first into the role of Sheriff, then into the arms of Jayne Mansfield, all the while confusing the rowdy locals by being civilised and drinking a lot of tea. Marginally less whimsical than the premise suggests, and a little more grown-up.
Now I definitely had a caption for this, where did I put it? Spencer - I’m no fan of the Twilight series, yet I’ve an unending fascination with, and respect for, its two emergent stars, both of whom seem to have devoted their lives to making as many un-Twilight films as possible. Here, Kristen Stewart plays luckless princess Diana Spencer, over three days at Christmas in Sandringham, as her marriage to HRH Sir Prince Charles is disintegrating. Naturally, nobody comes off particularly well, although there’s a glimpse behind the late Queen’s reserve that points to the biggest villain perhaps being Tradition. I had little interest in Diana, but this is possibly the most sympathetic I’ve been to her, in no small part because of Stewart’s captivating, mesmerising portrayal.
Ah wait, I can see what’s happened here… Goodies Food Hall - and most specifically their breakfasts. Just the far side of Long Stratton on the A140. My word, that’s one heck of a breakfast…
Greyskin (Deixis Press) and Playtime’s Over (Propolis) are both available direct from their respective publishers, as well as from all the usual places, online and off. You can also support my work by buying Ray Adams’ self-published books, or by simply buying me a coffee.
You can also pay for this free newsletter, if paying for free stuff is your jam.
I also review books on my website, most of which are available through my affiliate book shop on uk.bookshop.org - it’s a great alternative to certain online monopolies, and supports independent bookshops. Affiliates also get a % of books sold through them, so go have a look.
More on that next time
Played here by Stephen Merchant.