Friday, December 18, 2015

Miss me?

I shudder to see the last dated entry on this blog......I didn't just drift out of the picture. I dropped off the cliff. I'm not sure what exactly did me in. There isn't one specific thing I can point to; more  a combination of too many balls in the air and one of them had to drop.

So I dropped this, and for that I am extremely sorry.

When we last we spoke (well I spoke and hopefully you read), I was writing furiously plodding along, in an attempt to actually write a complete first draft of my book. The problem? I seemed to be doing many more things related to writing (including this blog), than actually WRITING THE BOOK! 

Seriously, what was the point of a writing blog, if I was doing more writing here than anywhere else? So I guess I went cold turkey? I needed to get my act together and finish the book. Even if went no where else than to my hard drive, at least I had done it. So that's what I did.......

I WROTE A BOOK! 

Yes, after many stops and starts, baby steps, pecking away at the keys for hours, and sometimes just a few minutes, it is finally done. Well, at least the first completed draft....ugh.

I did edit for another couple of months, until it came to the point that I could no longer see the things that needed to be corrected. You stare at the same words over and over and it all becomes a blur. I know it needs more, or maybe less. It needs editing, analyzing, and probably some big time changes. So I finally sent it out to some people with writing backgrounds and whose opinion I trust. So now I wait (patiently), for their feedback, and work to thicken my skin. I'm hoping the good of the story will outweigh the bad, but I'm also very aware of how insanely difficult the whole process is. So I'm doing my best to keep my expectations realistic. But for now, I am allowing myself a minute (ok maybe 5), to just be proud of myself for completing it.

I have a group of writing friends who inspire and motivate me to keep pushing. I know they are part of the reason I was able to finally finish the book. Three of them have books out or coming out (insert sound of clapping), so this just inspires me even more to keep pushing. Check them out....

Dee Romito - The BFF Bucket List

Kate Karyus Quinn - Down With The Shine

Alyssa Palombo - The Violinist of Venice


So that's that - the self imposed exile is over. Hopefully it won't be long before you're hearing from me again. 

~ Adrienne