Sunday, February 11, 2007

Death and the Novel

Well, the decision has finally been made. I have decided to spare the bad-girl-turned-good but kill her parents. As mentioned in an earlier post, I needed to decide whom to kill and why as I finish the climax of my WIP. Happily, our naughty girl gets her reprieve, but her parents bite it when the specter goes down. They deserve it anyway. It's their fault the girl was going wrong, and no thanks to them, she finally figures out what's important.

So I have this adrenaline rush--wooo! I'm within inches of finishing the climax, but it's like grabbing a hot plate from the oven without mitts. I just need to step away for a minute and run some cold water on my fingers! How many writers get so emotionally revved when they are about to finish the book? I would imagine most. There is so much tangled up in this process. First, it's just so exciting to conceive of the details of the climax...and I think that's a good sign. If I get this excited about writing it, I hope kids will get that excited about reading it. Second, the thought of putting my book to bed is exhilerating and depressing at the same time. Something fabulous is coming to a close (well, almost--can't forget revisions!) It's like watching your child graduate. It will have a new life when it leaves you, which is what you always wanted, but it won't be your baby anymore, and you feel the loss.

So if anyone else out there is nearing the end of their WIP, I'll have a drink in your honor. Cheers!

8 comments:

  1. Hey~ it's Dawnelle from the blue boards. Glad to see a familiar name here. :) Congrats on the cricket story~ I love that group. Are you still planning on the conference in April? I would love to go to one next year.

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  2. Thanks for stopping in, dawnelle! Barring any unforeseen catastrophe (like the furnace breaking--quick! knock on every piece of wood you can find!), I am still planning to go to the SCBWI-EPA retreat in April. It's so invigorating. And we eat like royalty!

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  3. Sounds fantastic- you'll have to blog about it for me! :)
    Dawnelle

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  4. Hi Ghost girl, it's sbk from the blue boards.

    I know exactly what you mean about the excitement and the sadness of coming to the end of a WIP. I just finished my 4th draft of my MG, which felt like a first because I had to totally rewrite the second half of it. I was so excited to finally be done that draft so I could take a break, but I knew I would never have that excitement again of not really knowing how it was all going to turn out.

    I actually cried when I finished. Anyway, good luck on completing that baby. Good luck.
    Linda

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  5. Hi , I saw this thread from SCBWI. Congratulations!

    I'm 'almost' finished too! I haven't left the house, except to get the kids. But I think my adrenalin rush is coming down.

    Way to go! Cheers!!!

    Chris Eldin ("Takoda" blogger name)

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  6. Hey~ I just added your link to my blog and wanted to make sure that was ok w/ you.

    Also, how did you get the pic by your comments?

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  7. Actually, I did as well. Hope that's not a problem.

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  8. Dawnelle and Linda D.--that's great! No problem adding my link. Thanks! The picture...when I was setting up my profile, there was a place to upload a picture from your desktop. I'd have to go back through the steps the get them all right, but check out the set up options. It will tell you how to do it.

    Thanks, Chris! Congrats to you, too! It's such a rush. Yesterday, I spent the afternoon picking through that last chapter and tweaking the climax. Then I had to decide how to start the final chapter/denouement. Do I continue the action more "real time" or do I pick it up the next day? I've decided to let a little time pass...like a deep breath before we say goodbye. One more short chapter and then...REVISION TIME!

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