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Who can retire when I have a WIP

Can't afford to retire anyway, and writing has become an obsession. Chasing down my laptop, phone, or notebook is a common way of life now. Little scraps of paper filled with new ideas work great too.
Anyway, I'm 65, and I started writing after my 64 birthday. Recently finished my 1st draft, now for the hard part--leaving it alone for awhile before diving back in. Oh I named it The Vessel. Working on some background material for book 2. Thanks for reading!!
AR
 

LCatala

Minstrel
Welcome, good luck on your writing.

"Leave your first draft alone for awhile" is a common advice given to writers, but it's not a hard and fast rule, some published writers don't do that.

What genre do you write in?
 
Welcome. Good look with your project. Just be warned, stories have a tendency to generate ideas for more stories. The road goes ever on and on...

As for leaving it alone, I don't. Or rather, in my current process I start my second draft right after the first. When I get to the end of my first draft I will know of a lot of things which need changing. Some character motivations are wrong, I missed a critical bit of foreshadowing somewhere in the beginning, I missed a complete chapter, that sort of thing. So, I go back and add those things in and polish up the prose right away after finishing the first draft. Only then do I let it rest for a while (which I manage to do by sending it off to an editor, but that's a different story...).

Each writer has a different, unique process. Understand why the advice is given and then decide if it is for you. For me, my memory can resemble a leaky colander, so during that first re-read I tend to be surprised by everything I've written anyway. And I'm not specifically attached to certain words or phrases, so that doesn't get in the way of my editing.
 
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Welcome Asher! So good to have you aboard here. Oh, those ideas will keep on coming and yes, letting your project sit is a very difficult thing to do, but it's good to get a bit of distance. Best of luck with "The Vessel" and all you create. :)
 
Urban fantasy. The MC, Matthew Suarez discovers on his 18th birthday his family has been entrusted with the burden of providing a vessel for an ancient jinn. The jinn transferred his essence just before death into a Suarez boy, an Iberian ancestor of Matt's.
The jinn wants revenge. A demon killed him, his family, and most of the Suarez's. So a blood oath was performed. Those are always fun, right? He discovers having the jinn is great for awhile. He's never sick, but before he knows it, he's 58 years old, and lucky him, he still looks 30. His youth ends up getting him trapped by a demon who is curious: why does this guy look so young. Anyway that's the start of Matt's adventure, and I haven't said a word about the Nephilim. Aren't they always the stars of any book? Mine are always being beaten and tortured. They're such great sports!! Matt is always amazed how resilient they are.
Anyway, a week felt like an eternity, so it's 2nd draft time. I will admit, the ending is a cliffhanger, and the second book starts where the first one ends. Cliffhangers always use to annoy me as a reader, but it felt like the best possible ending. I've written a couple chapters for book 2. That's my book, thanks for reading.:eek:
 

LCatala

Minstrel
I would advise of finishing the first book (as in, finished finished, revised and beta-read) before starting the second one; there's no point starting a sequel when the first story is still in motion and could see significant changes after feedback (but ultimately, do what feels right to you).
 
Good advise. I started a reread last night, but had to stop--- couldn't focus on the words anymore. Wish I didn't need 6 - 7 hours of sleep every night! It ruins your whole night:dead:
 

Ned Marcus

Maester
I like to leave a book for a while too, but I usually do it after a couple of drafts. I think it saves time in the long run, and it helps in a series because I can see where the second book's going, and then go back and make any necessary changes to the first book.
 

Alrik

New Member
As another perspective, I usually write multiple books at once. Nothing against the advice of others, there's simply no one best method that fits every writer--or every project.. Lately, I like having the next couple of episodes in progress. This makes it easy to pop back to the beginning when I realize I need foreshadowing. I write fiction for a living, so that affects my production pace. Have fun with it.
 

TWErvin2

Auror
Asher the Red, never to late to start!

Getting that first draft finished is a major step. It's one many writers never accomplish. Press on!

Terry
 
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