Billy Young's Blog - Posts Tagged "editing"

Editing has continued all week though it has been slow at times. I am making headway, adding in the things that I need to get the story moving again. I still have another seven chapters to work through before I catch up to where I left to rework what I had. When I say rework I really mean is that I added in things to the story, bring some characters in earlier, that sort of thing and at the same time feeding the main plot. Even chapters that I thought I was happy with have seen the hand of the editor to try to make them better. After I do finish the story I will still need to go through it all again a few times to build on what I have, add more background here and there, as well as try to create more visual pictures in words to set the setting or scenes where everything happens.
Editing can be the hardest part for me, as it is with many writers as you can get too connected to what you have already put down on paper. Sometimes you have to move things about, while at other whole chapters get deleted to be replaced. I have already replaced one chapter, as you may know because it was taking the story off in the wrong direction. You have to be ruthless sometimes when creating a tale, just like a sculptor can’t make a beautiful statue without chipping away at a block of rock.
My tubs that I planted are coming on well. I am still waiting on the herbs I planted to start through the soil but all the other veg. have sprouted. The rain we had here helped, I’m sure, though I have been out every day when it was dry to water and check on the progress. I have more planting in the front garden this weekend. Of course this is for my wife. She wants her flowers planted, so I will be out front digging the flower bed. I’m not really a flower person but Magz likes them in the front ands I must admit when I see what others can do, it does make me think how lovely those gardens are.

I was clothes shopping with the family today. Getting the kids school things in, to add to the misery the weather was throwing water down on us. I was soaked before I even got to the bus stop. From then on the damp weather followed us as the wife filled my arms to breaking. There is nothing more tedious than shopping for clothes especially for someone else, even when it is for the kids. Well at least it’s done now.
The lemon tree’s still struggles continue. It now has only one mature leaf left. But it has a lot of new growth. Unfortunately we haven’t had a lot of sunshine round my way and that is what it needs most at the moment. The weatherman has said that it is to get a bit more sun next week, of course we know they’re seldom good at getting it right. I’ll just need to pray and keep my fingers crossed.
Editing is almost at an end, or at least this edit. Once I have I’ll have a rest and a game of Civ 4 or something. While I play I’ll let my family get their first look at it so they can tell me if there are areas that need work. It is always good to get the view of others to give you fresh eyes. At the same time they will find errors that I may have missed. You always miss something when editing your own work, it’s what makes having a family a blessing. You know you can turn to them for the help you need, well at least mine is, my wife and kids that is.

I thought my job had come to an end yesterday after finishing the last order. Last night though while playing Civ 4 I got a phone call to tell me I was needed next week after all, which is great news. I was so dreading having to back on unemployment benefit. What makes it worse is that the staff, who is supposed to be there to help, make you feel as if you are something they have stepped in. I know that is unfair as some are helpful but just too often I have had to deal with those that treat the client badly. Well I don’t have to worry about that for at least another week and I have a long weekend to add to the good day it has been.
I still have a touch of the cold I had last week. It seems to just want to hang in the background, but I seem to be over the worst of it now. It really ruined my weekend last week though it had shifted mostly by the start of the new week, that is something to be grateful for. Nothing worse than working when you have a cold weighing you down.
I ordered a new graphics tablet as since my computer upgrade last year my old one doesn’t work with my new system, no serial port. Anyways I have a new one on the way, and I am looking forwards to using it to create the cover for Banshee 2. Talking of which my wife is still reading through it but there will be some editing to some areas near the start before passing it onto my son to read. In the mean time I will soon be able to work on the front cover though I haven’t worked out what I will do for it. Still that is part of the joy of self publishing, isn’t it?

Had my interview to resign on this week even though it is a rapid reclaim as I haven’t been in work for more than twelve weeks. You would think that it would be just a matter of turning up and showing proof of who you are well no. I was luck though, the lady I had wasn’t too bad so everything went without any real problems. Unfortunately she couldn’t stamp a form for funding to go on a training course to get my security badge. I have to wait till I have conformation that I am getting my benefits. In the mean time I’ve begun the great search for another job and glad to say that I have already applied online for several. Sadly they are only Christmas jobs, still it is better than the nothing I have at the moment. I’ll keep my fingers crossed.
I have been playing and learning Civ V all week. Well at least at night anyways. My wife isn’t in any rush to complete the editing and as I haven’t the money to publish that is fair enough, maybe I might make the book better as she will have been more thorough. Not that she hasn’t been great in the past but I tended to try and rush her more in the past than I have this time round. It is one of the things I would warn new authors about is rushing to get your work in print. Take the time to edit and rework it till it is perfect. It is so easy to think your work is ready and then find errors you had missed and if you self publish as I do that would cost you more in proof copies. Slow down, take your time and get it right, even if that means setting the book to the side for a few weeks so you can look at it with fresher eyes.

Finally Calum’s desk is finished. We got it done last weekend and as is the norm it took longer than I had thought it would. Still it was worth the effort as it turned out not to shabbily. Calum is made up with it which is what really matters. It did mean I never got round to much else over the weekend. Those two days never seem to last long enough for all the plans we have for them. It just takes that one job that you thought you could do in an hour or two to end up taking three times as much time to complete to throw everything out the window. Still one job done is always better than none.
Even though I didn’t manage to do any editing I did push the number of roughs up to five. That just leaves another ninety five to go plus a lot of editing. The editing is the harder part of course as you have to have something to work with. Yes I have five that I hope to work on this weekend while, with any luck, write some more rough drafts.
That is if the man flu stays at bay as I can feel that tickle at the back of my throat. Magz has been suffering with it for the past couple of days and being the sharing individual that she is she has passed it to me. I only hope it doesn’t hit me as hard and that after a good long lie in it shall pass quickly. Another weekend with the cold I don’t want. I had enough of that over December and I don’t wish to repeat.