Heather Ames's Blog - Posts Tagged "indelible-series"

When I first presented an earlier version of "Indelible" to the Alameda Writers Group's Fiction SIG (Special Interest Group) it was shorter, far less edgy and had a fish-head prologue that I had been convinced to add by a very large Romance Publisher, to meet their guidelines for a Romantic Suspense. The prologue was added to tone down "frightening" aspects of my opening chapter.

Thanks to the AWG, I removed said prologue, pretty much left the opening the way it had originally been, and revised from there. The framework for the book was always in place. What I added was more meat, more conflict and more thrills for the ride. I also brought Brian Swift's brother, and Kaylen Roberts' boyfriend, Tim Madison, out of the shadows and made him into a flesh and blood character, although he's never actually on-stage.

This book, which my then-agent marketed as a Romantic Suspense, was actually a mainstream Mystery/Suspense with some romantic elements, and could never meet the Romance industry's restrictive guidelines even while hiding behind a curtain pulled by a 3 page intro.

As the months rolled by and the pages of my revised and lengthened manuscript were presented at the SIG, another member of the AWG kept telling me that "Indelible" was the first book in a series.

I kept disagreeing. "Indelible" was a stand-alone. However, as the book progressed and the sub-plots developed, I realized she was correct--this was, indeed, a series. Listening to critique group members in this wonderfully supportive and insightful group led me onto a different path, and the one to publication.

I just read an excelled article on how Jewell Parker Rhodes writes. Some of her methods really spoke to me. The old adage about sitting in front of the computer screen and just getting it done in first draft only works for me part of the time. Jewell talked about how she writes in ebbs and flows, spending time reading, researching or just thinking and dreaming.

Me, too. I've been printing pages of character interviews this weekend. Reviewing what they said and preparing to tackle a return interview between Brian and one of the witnesses in "Swift Justice." Just "getting it done" won't work this time around. My brain has to figure out some of the dialogue and interactions before I sit down to write.

I sent back the revisions for "Swift Justice" to my editor. After I get back the manuscript back from her, the final step will be a last pass to clean up any missed typos, after which it'll be ready for formatting. I'm ready to go back to "Night Shadows," so I can keep my deadline of completing the revisions for a late fall pub date.

"Swift Justice" is being proofread. The editing has been completed, and the publishing will be, as soon as I get to the end of this last read-through. The projected publishing date is the end of June.

"Night Shadows" is mid-draft, and the goal for publication is in October.

My website is in the process of being updated, and will contain more information on both books.

My website updates have been completed and the site looks great with a new look at www.heatherames.com. Not only is there a teaser for "Swift Justice," but the first chapter's there to read. There's another teaser for "Night Shadows." Paula Johnson did the updates. We chatted on the phone a couple of times and I did my homework to get her what she needed. New books, and a new look that reflects the tone of these books.

I have almost completed the first draft of Swift Retribution, finally. The upheaval of selling a home and then buying another in a different town right after back-to-back visitors really put the brakes on my writing time. For a while, all I did was pack and unpack, not to mention clean two homes like they were a full-time job.

I have to confess that it hasn't been easy to get back into the rhythm of writing after that hiatus, which was compounded by the discovery that my new office is an iceberg in winter.

My laptop also decided to go belly up after multiple crashes that occurred completely out of the blue at random times, resulting in me revising and rewriting the same group of chapters multiple times, too.

Finally, I realized that it was down to either purchasing a new laptop or spinning my wheels indefinitely. I chose to move forward with a new laptop that is faster and hopefully a lot more reliable than its predecessor, which gave me ample years of service before retiring itself.

I currently write on the dining table, in a warm space. Once the weather leaves these below-freezing nights (we're currently in the 40s during the day instead of the seasonal 50s for temps, too,) I will be able to repaint the office to get rid of the hideous mauve walls the previous owner left and get myself back at my desk, which will make me more productive, I know from experience.

Even when the laptop was crashing, I was making good progress with the draft. Now I tend to get distracted. But perhaps that's because I have a videography class to attend, joined the local branch of Willamette Writers and have two upcoming appearances this weekend. Life has become busier again.

I'm going to be working on the cover for Swift Retribution this week. I have a rough blurb for the back of the book and an equally rough logline already. I've set myself a deadline to complete this book by the end of summer.

I have an upcoming reading and signing at the La Tea Da Tea Room in Tillamook in September, and I want to have Swift Retribution, Book 3 of the Indelible series, available for purchase at that time.

I feel like during the creation of a book's first draft, I stumble through the plot with the characters. We all get to know what the premise is, what the complications are, and get introduced to the secondary players. Some are new, some are retreads, but no one gets finely-tuned, molded or cleaned up.

The second draft, everything changes, although, hopefully the main thread of the plot and the characterizations do not. I fill plot-holes, I tune-up motivations and I add features and backgrounds to the newbies.

This third book in the "Indelible" series brings more complications to every aspect of life for Brian Swift and Kaylen Roberts. I really shook the dice and cast them wide.

Now I make sure I link all those dice and reel in any that have over-reached. For me, the second draft is the most challenging. I'm 40% through it. Once I hit that 50% mark, I'll see the home stretch in my future.

Nice.