Today I am so pleased to welcome Maggie Kavanagh to Joyfully Jay. Maggie has come to talk to us about her latest release, Inner Sanctum (The Stonebridge Mysteries, Book #2). She has also brought along a book to give away. Please join me in giving her a big welcome!
Sometimes it Hurts: Let’s Talk About Revision
First off, I’d like to thank Jay for hosting me today for my Inner Sanctum blog tour. This is my first visit to her blog, and I’m very happy to be here! Inner Sanctum is the second book in the Stonebridge Mysteries series and the sequel to Double Indemnity, which was released earlier this year. These books chart the course of the relationship of the two main characters, Sam and Nathan, and should be read in order if at all possible. Each also develops a new mystery, though there are interweaving threads through all three.
What I want to talk about today is the dreaded ‘r’ word: revision. I used to be an English instructor, and I taught college writing courses where the main emphasis was on process, from the initial idea, to the first draft, through revision, to the ‘final’ draft. This concept is often foreign to students, who are used to banging out an essay the night before the due date handing it in with only the most cursory spell check. I understand, because once upon a time I was one of those students too. Of course, when you decide to write professionally, you start taking revision a little more seriously. You realize that cutting text is just as important as polishing and reshaping it. If you are writing novels, you realize you might have to chop a whole chapter, or worse, maybe two or three.
Even though I taught in a classroom for ten years, I didn’t personally understand the meaning of revision until I began Inner Sanctum.
I rewrote this novel almost completely after the first draft, and it was one of the most frustrating and ultimately rewarding experiences of my writing life. After feedback from the publisher, I realized it wasn’t doing what it needed to do. As a second book in a series, the trajectory needed to be just as compelling, if not more so, than the first—and it wasn’t. The mystery lacked tension and the relationship between the MCs didn’t have the same flair. I’d written it too quickly to make a deadline, and I had suspected there were problems. Now I had to fix them.
After you’ve written a 60K+ novel, the prospect of starting almost from scratch—of entirely eradicating one storyline and replacing it with another—is daunting, to say the least. I may have cried. I definitely ate a pint of ice cream. And then I got to work. My strategies for revision sound a little like twelve-step program, but here goes:
1) Recognize you have a problem. This is maybe the hardest step. When you pour your heart—and all your time—into creating something that turns out to be not so great, it is painful to scrap it. We are all our own worst critics, and there are times when the voice of self-doubt is not accurate or helpful, but there are also times it is very important. If you suspect there are problems in the narrative, and you try to convince yourself they don’t matter, but still they bother you, well, that’s a warning sign.
2) Get dispassionate feedback. So you think there might be something wrong in your book? Get someone you don’t know personally to read it—better yet, get 3 or 4 people. As wonderful as friends and supporters are, getting the lowdown from someone who isn’t personally invested can be a huge help.
3) Take some time off the project and work on something else. I think distance can really help with major revisions. Once you’re not as emotionally attached to what you’ve written, it’s easier to see the flaws.
4) Don’t give up. It’s so tempting to scrap an entire novel as worthless when the revisions are daunting, but don’t forget to see the good stuff too.
Do you have revision strategies? What are the things you do to get through the tough moments in life—yoga, meditation, heavy drinking? A random commenter will receive an ebook copy of their choice of either Inner Sanctum or Double Indemnity!
Excerpt
The car was on fire. Bitter smoke made each inhale painful, filling his lungs with caustic burning rubber, metal, and gas. Sam blinked and tried to orient himself, but he was upside down, strapped to the backseat, while all around him a wall of fire blocked any chance of escape. It was so hot, he felt like he was trapped in a vise. The air squeezed around him like a living, malignant force.
A man groaned from the front seat.
“Dad?” Sam called as recognition hit him. “Dad!”
His father’s silver-black hair seemed to dance in the hot, smoky air. Sam reached for the seatbelt buckle keeping him trapped, but the lever was jammed. He cursed. The windows were broken, but it was impossible to climb out. “Tim? Mom,” Sam screamed. He blinked and tried to see with his burning eyes, but his mother and Tim were gone. Outside, a circle of onlookers stood around two lifeless bodies, making no move to help. His father groaned again. His head pressed awkwardly against the steering wheel. A trickle of blood dripped from his mouth, bright red even through the wall of smoke.
“Dad!”
Sam shuddered, heart thudding hard as he lurched awake, back in his apartment. He gulped huge breaths of air, but something was around his neck, and he couldn’t move. Only then did he realize Nathan was holding him. Sam settled back against the familiar, comforting weight as his breathing slowed and the remnants of the nightmare began to dissipate, leaving space for sleep to claim him once again. He could still taste smoke at the back of his throat.
But he wasn’t dreaming anymore.
Blurb
Six months into a relationship, things have heated up between political blogger Sam Flynn and FBI special agent Nathan Walker. Though Sam is happy with Nathan and proud of his own sobriety, he’s anxious about what their future holds. Things are also heating up in Stonebridge, Connecticut, as a series of deadly fires puts the community on edge and eventually threatens Sam’s comatose brother. As Halloween approaches, fears rise that the arsonist will strike again.
When Sam encounters the main suspect, seventeen-year-old orphan Damon Blake, Sam’s not sure what to do. He knows obstruction might land him in jail, but he finds himself increasingly skeptical of Damon’s guilt. He takes matters into his own hands and investigates, but doing so means keeping Damon’s whereabouts a secret from Nathan and the police. Meanwhile, Nathan wonders what Sam is hiding and grapples with insecurities of his own. Sam wants to confide in Nathan, and Nathan wants to trust Sam, but they discover negotiating new love can be as dangerous as solving crime.
Bio
Maggie Kavanagh writes gay romances that explore flawed, human characters finding love. She went to graduate school for English literature and reads and writes voraciously, whenever she can get a moment alone. You can find her in the wee morning hours typing away with coffee at hand and cat in lap, happily embodying the romance writer cliché.
While she focuses mainly on contemporary romance, don’t be surprised if a historical or supernatural tale slips into the mix, as she’s always eager to discover different genres. More fiction is forthcoming soon, so stay tuned!
Giveaway
Maggie has brought the winner’s choice of a copy of either Double Indemnity or Inner Sanctum to give away to one lucky reader. Just leave a comment at the end of the post to enter. The contest ends on Monday, September 28th at 11:59 pm EST.
- By entering the giveaway, you’re confirming that you are at least 18 years old.
- Winners will be selected by random number. No purchase necessary to win. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning.
- If you win, you must respond to my email within 48 hours or another winner may be chosen. Please make sure that your spam filter allows email from Joyfully Jay.
- Winners may be announced on the blog following the contest. By entering the contest you are agreeing to allow your name to be posted and promoted as the contest winner by Joyfully Jay.
- Prizes will be distributed following the giveaway either by Joyfully Jay or the person/organization donating the prize.
- All book prizes are in electronic format unless otherwise specified.
- By entering you are agreeing to hold Joyfully Jay harmless if the prize or giveaway in some way negatively impacts the winner.
- Readers may only enter once for each contest. Duplicate entries for the same giveaway will be ignored. In the event of technical problems with the blog during the contest, every effort will be made to extend the contest deadline to allow for additional entries.
- Void where prohibited by law.
It depends–sometimes I take a walk, sometimes I indulge in a bout of stress baking (though I try to fill the freezer instead of eating all the cookies myself). A vintage episode of THE MUPPET SHOW (not the new one, at least so far) can put my problems in perspective…things may be tough, but at least I haven’t been turned into a chicken or been chased by a gorilla…
Haha, good point. Nor have I, Trix. Perspective is very helpful. Thanks for commenting!
To get through the rough times I resort to humor and reading. Telling bad jokes helps relieve stress and is better than crying. When things getting really bad I go to my comfort read list. I pull out one of my favorites and emerge myself into another person. I let reality slip away for a while. I relieve reading has saved my sanity over the years. Look forward to reading this series
Thanks for commenting! Those are all very good tips, too. I hope you enjoy the series!
I find that chocolate and time are two great methods of dealing with revising. Thanks for a thoughtful post!
I forgot chocolate! How could I! Glad you enjoyed the post; thanks for stopping by.
As a non-writer I have no constructive advise other than keep doing it becuase I want to read it!
Readers are always the perfect inspiration! Thanks for stopping by and commenting 🙂
I’m not a writer, so I don’t know that I necessarily have the best advice. I would think a good team would be invaluable. I often suggest beta readers when I’m doing reviews. An experienced beta can find editing errors, suggest different ways to word things, help with flow – all kinds of things that could stimulate creative processes. And most betas are happy to be able to read something by a favorite author so it’s a win-win. I can’t create something to save my life, but I do know when something isn’t spelled right or when grammar could be better. 🙂 And when all else fails – wine!
Wine and beta readers=the most essential combination. I owe so much to my beta readers; honestly, I don’t think I’d ever finish a project without them!
I usually just do a lot of whining (which may help me but drives everybody else batty) before I take a deep breath and get to it. 🙂
Whining is underrated, I agree! Thanks for stopping by and for your comment!
Great advice, thank you for sharing it. I’m not a writer and I don’t think I have any good advice to give that can be construed as useful. When I was in school and had to write papers, I use to take tiny little breaks between re-reading to help recharge.
I have a story that is sitting at over 60K and I know I’m going to have to do major revisions to it now that I know about POV and not to head hop. So I feel your pain. But I also know that the bones of the story are really good, so it should be worth the pain to do a rewrite.
I don’t really have good advice on what to do when things get bad/rough, but what i do in those situations is to cry, be sad and then just go on with your life (there really isn’t any other option, because life goes on). Thanks for this post and the giveaway chance .
Please count me in. Thanks.
Maggie, this post makes me want to give you a big hug. I know you’ve worked hard on this series. 🙂 Fantastic job and congratulations on publishing the second in the series!
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