OMG!

[dracunculus]

I just finished (the first draft of) my novel!

I feel...kind of shocked. I've failed at trying to write a novel before; this is the first writing project of this length that I've completed. (Final word count: a perfectly respectable 79,649 words.)

It's silly. It's rough. It's clumsy in a lot of places. I don't think I stuck the ending. But I did

Comments

[rivkat]

Congratulations! That's just fantastic!

[dracunculus]

Thank you!

[plasticsturgeon]

Woo hoo! Congratulations! I'll have to read the last two chapters when my brain is feeling a little more coherent.

[dracunculus]

I didn't realize you'd gotten through so much of it already!

[minniethemoocha]

Dude! That's awesome! How did I miss this? Please put me on your filter. I want to go back and read it!

[dracunculus]

Okay, I just added you!

[minniethemoocha]

Thank you!

[bateleur]

who slogged though the entire thing

It was in no sense a slog!

As for harsher feedback, I didn't feel I was holding much back. Your pacing is good, so that won't need much attention. The main thing I'd be inclined to focus on is carefully adjusting the earlier sections of the book to avoid cliché and make sure the reader doesn't write it off as same-old-Arthuriana before they've seen where it's going.

[dracunculus]

I will do that.

I also think that I probably need to change the setting to bring it up to the present day. "Ten years ago" is kind of a hard pitch: it's not long enough in the past to be "period," just dated. I strongly suspect it's the first thing an agent or editor would ask me to change.

Unfortunately the time-setting is kind of integral to the novel in more than superficial ways: in 2010, Viv wouldn't have the same kind of trouble finding an apartment; she wouldn't be going to lavish launch parties for silly companies; the city's water supply has been re-routed so it no longer passes under the Pulgas water temple; and I wouldn't be able to do the thing at the end where I kind of imply that the dot-com bust is a result of fairy glamour withdrawn. So it would force me to rethink some key scenes. I don't *want* to do it, but I think I really should if I want to have a chance of actually selling the book.

[bateleur]

Actually I wouldn't recommend it. At least not yet.

If you submit to an agent a novel which would be publishable but for the fact it's set ten years too early then that's a huge win and you'll be fine. It might delay publication due to extra editing, but as a hitherto unpublished writer that's the last thing int he world you need to worry about.

In reality, most agents (and submitting directly to publishers barely ever works) will only read the first three chapters of any book submission before rejecting it. Some ask for a synopsis too, but unless they like the first three chapters they likely won't read it.

Any unpublished writer making the choice to aim for commercial publication is basically announcing their intention to perform a near impossible task anyway. Don't make it any harder than it has to be!

[dracunculus]

Any weakness can be an excuse to reject a manuscript, especially in such a crowded & floundering market. I think I should make the text as strong as I possibly can before sending it out.

And technically I'm not unpublished -- I have published short stories and, as a journalist, plenty of nonfiction articles :)

[bluedevi]

Woo! Brilliant news. I'm really impressed. And I need to go back and catch up, too, but I love your writing.

I sent off your comic yesterday, btw.

[dracunculus]

Oh yay! I'm looking forward to it!