LISTEN TO YOUR CORE

WHAT I’VE BEEN UP TO

The last time we chatted, I was finishing up a final round of revisions on my latest project and getting it ready to submit to my agent. The timing of this is notable because we first went out on submission with a different project two years ago, the weekend before Halloween. Now, almost exactly two years later, I finally had a new project for her to consider. I say this because I want to keep it 100 with you all: publishing is hard. Projects die on submission. Having an agent or a published book (even a series!) does not mean that everything I write will go straight to publication. (As much as I wish that was the case…)

I started this project in October 2022. In this time, I’ve written 4 drafts, including 2 complete re-writes; I’ve received 4 beta reads with comprehensive feedback; I’ve gone through twelve rounds of revisions; I’ve workshopped it twice. If I were more established, perhaps I would skip a few steps and go straight to working with an editor. But I’m not, and that’s fine.

This industry is frustrating, and slow, and the only thing I can control is my craft. So that’s where I’ve decided to focus my time.

Fast forward to mid-November:

I just got an email from my agent yesterday… and it’s ready. Well, there are a few little edits to make, but it’s finally ready. For submission. Probably in the new year.

So now we wait. Again.

I’m so grateful to be where I am with this project, and to have the team around me that I have. It’s taken a long time to get this story down on paper and now I can’t wait for the next steps.

WHAT IS YOUR CORE TELLING YOU?

This isn’t a wellness newsletter. I’m not asking about your stomach muscles.

I’ve been spending some time with Cheryl B. Klein’s The Magic Words: Writing Great Books for Children and Young Adults. It was recommended in a recent workshop I took with the lovely and wise Nova Ren Suma. It is chock full of thoughtful prompts and exercises to help writers plan out their novels.

I tend to skim craft books, and as excellent as this book is, it’s no exception. But then I came upon an exercise where Klein asked the question “What is your novel’s core?”

It was a thinker. The funny thing is that Klein quotes Maggie Stiefvater (hail qween) in her description of what the core is. Steifvater says this:

I’ve been sitting with this for days. Weeks, even. As I’ve started digging into a new project (“patience” may be my word for the year, but it’s not my forte) this is something I’ve been thinking about a lot. What is my non-negotiable? What is the thing that inspires me and makes me want to put my butt in my (not ergonomic) chair to put words on the page?

I woke up in the middle of the night (as I am wont to do these days) and it hit me. And let me tell you, it was not what I expected it to be. It’s not the sexy thing. It’s not the loudest thing. It’s the thing that made me go, hmmm… let’s do a deep dive on YouTube about this. Okay, so it was several deep dives. You get it, right?

As I started drafting a rough outline of my new project, I’ve kept the core in mind, and let me tell you—once I did, that outline came together a lot faster. (Remember, me and patience? Not friends?) And now I’m excited to dig back into it.

So, if you’re digging into a new project or embarking upon a revision, or even in the middle of drafting for NaNoWriMo, ask yourself what the core of your novel is. If that feels to esoteric, maybe consider these questions:

All of this is to say, listen to your core. It knows better. 🙂 

BACKLIST BOOK CLUB

THE LIGHTNESS OF HANDS by Jeff Garvin has it all: a character who is juggling homeschool, homelessness, and her bipolar II diagnosis; a cross-country road trip with her father, a failed magician who is struggling with his own demons; and a quest to pull off the most epic magic trick of all time on live television.

I give it 5/5 doves.

That’s it for now! I’m going to try to get back into a regular schedule of monthly newsletters. I’ve missed connecting with you, dear Reader. So, until then…