There's nothing quite like realizing at 9pm that you have no post ready to go up at midnight, but here goes!I've been reading through the final edits of Fugitive for the past several days, and the one thing that stands out is that I know I could have done better. It's amazing how much I've learned since I last edited that manuscript. Just yesterday I went to the meeting of the INRWA and the guest speaker gave us plenty of useful pointers; some that I'd never heard before. I guess it just goes to show that writing is, indeed, a learning process, sort of like practicing nursing or law. You can't know everything at the outset, you have to gain experience along the way.
I figured out a lot of things on my own before I was published, and I've learned quite a few since then--most of which I wish I'd known from the start. It would have made my life (and editing) much easier!
I wonder if my readers realize what a rookie I am. I've had thirty years to become a good nurse, but writing is a relatively new activity for me. I have to assume that those folks who review my books don't know anything about me; they only know what they read on the pages of my novels. Can they tell that I'm only a beginner? Probably. My writer friends are all very encouraging, but I still don't know everything I think I should about being an author. Unfortunately, I have to keep writing whether I know what I'm doing or not. I attended plenty of workshops at the conference in DC and came away with an even stronger conviction that I'm totally clueless!
After I finished with Fugitive, I probably should have drunk a toast or something, but all I did was send the corrections in an email and then open up the file for Hero. I'm glad I did, though, because I've had such a pleasant surprise! I'm not seeing a million things I'd like to change, so I must be improving. Either that, or I'm just slightly brain-dead from all the editing. Time will tell.
Meanwhile, here's a nice new hunk for you to enjoy. Frank Sepe is his name. Donna sent me several pictures of him. He's a little too beefy for my tastes, (she thought so, too) but you be the judge.
