Wednesday, January 23, 2008

NOT THE END

Good news: today I finished the first draft of ESCAPE FROM FIRE MOUNTAIN! And ahead of schedule too!! (My goal was to write 1,000 words a day and finish by the end of January.)

The final word count ended up right at 37,000 words, which is just right for a midgrade. But as any writer knows, the first draft is just the beginning. So. What now? I'll take this draft with me on Friday to my writing group. Then, in maybe a month or two I'll pick it back up again and see some of the glaring errors I've made.

But right now I'm gonna go make me a cup of red zinger tea and be very grateful for this day.

"What we call the beginning is often the end. And to make an end is to make a beginning. The end is where we start from."

- T.S. Eliot

6 comments:

  1. Congratulations Irene!! I always feel good when I have accomplished something. Is this a poetry book also??

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  2. Hi Alison! Yes, it feels very good to have accomplished what I set out to accomplish. :) This is the second novel for kids -- called a midgrade because it is for ages 8 - 12. It is set in 1902 Martinique and is about an American girl and a native boy surviving the eruption of Mt. Pelee. For some reason I got obsessed with Pelee (killed 30, 000 people in a matter of minutes) and have researched it for about a year. Now, finally, it has all come together in this novel! It's a survival book - very exciting. The editor I've been working with at Putnam on the Gee's Bend midgrade novel has first dibs on it -- I'll keep you posted. :) Meanwhile, thank you as ever for your support!

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  3. How wonderful!! My children are 12 and 8 and voracious readers...please let me know when it is published so I can order it!! Congrats again!!

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  4. I sure will. :) Cool that your kids are big readers! What are some of their faves?

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  5. Congratulations, Irene! Such a huge step towards completing the process. I feel very proud of you! My thirteen year old daughter is resting in bed with me(She stayed home from school with a cold today.), and I was telling her about your new book. She said that she would love to read it when it comes out. I told her that I would like to read it with her. Please keep us posted. Such wonderful news!

    I do hope that you are starting to feel better.

    Hugs,
    Debbie

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  6. Debbie, you have got to be the sweetest mom alive. You inspire me. I think I am coming out of the tunnel now.. been a tough week. Thanks for writing!

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