19: June 10 Writing Update

I’m on Week 3 of summer break ALREADY, and I’m not quite sure how to feel about it. The weather is glorious, I’ve had plenty of time to myself, yet I’m feeling antsy. Going from the breakneck speed of school to the snail’s crawl that is summer break can be a bit jarring. At least I’ve had plenty of time to write.

My Dreamweaver project is cruising along. For those that don’t know, The Dreamweaver is my upper middle grade fantasy I’ve devoted HOURS to over the last year plus. I finished the third draft this past Sunday, so it’s time to reread the manuscript and search for plot holes, redundancies, and character concerns. I feel relatively confident that the parts are in the right order, and my chapter 1 and 2 rewrites feel better than my previous draft. I’ve printed off the story, and this one is housed in a blue binder. Looks spiffy. I’d like to finish the next revision by the end of the month and then reach out to a developmental editor, one I’ve used in the past.

I’m at the embryonic steps of developing another story idea, this one centered around a ten year old girl and a dragon. My last two manuscripts, which I will refer to as “Arie 1” and “Arie 2,” had both a pre-teen girl protagonist and a dragon; however, this is where similarities end. Dragon Detectives will be a first person fantasy stand alone with series potential clocking in ideally at 25,000 words, perfect for that “middle” middle grade genre.

What about my summer reading goal? I finished Rick Riordan’s The Lightning Thief (for the third time), gathering information on how a successful upper middle grade author’s mind ticks. I also am in the middle of reading Kate DiCamillo’s Flora and Ulysses. That is such a clever book, and it’s a perfect example of how succinct writing works. I also have a Carl Hiassen novel in my bag—I love his reads!