So I have been working hard and staying focused on making my dream of becoming an author come true. I am now at the halfway point for my first novel! I still have A LONG WAY to go, but I am happy with my progress and cant wait to get it done and move on to the next one. I want to say thanks to everyone here for lending a hand to each and everyone of us.
Fantastic. You've still got a lot to look forward to. When you write that final sentence and know you have finished the first draft of a whole book, you will feel even better than you do now. Then comes the hard work. The editing and polishing. Don't let your euphoria at finishing the first draft allow you to skimp that next step and go galloping off to query submission or self-publishing before the MS is ready. But once you have a full draft finished, you've created the raw material that can end in a published novel. There's no feeling quite like "I have written a book!"
Sweet, can't wait to be at that point myself, I've only just now finished my first chapter (last night actually, and started on my second at the same time). I've restarted my book so many times now I'm really hoping I don't have to again, but I seriously think I have something good now, finally. Just curious, but how many pages do you have and what's your word count so far?
Well pages is kinda tough to answer, because it will change when i format my book to the proper size. As for word count, 35,500. I'm not quite done with the next chapter ( 23 chapters BTW). Its only my first copy with only my wife proof reading it every once on awhile. So its got a long way to go before it's considered done. BTW, don't stop writing and start over. Just keep going till you're done. I would have quit a long time ago if i had started over. Honestly I have three books Im working on all at the same time. The one is half way done, the other two are like 2 and 3 chapters in, just from notes or something that came to me.
Run! It's not too late! You can still learn to play the oboe or take up dog-sledding! RUNNNNNNNNN! Kidding. Congrats. Keep it up.
So I suppose you're going for 70 to 80 thousand words? I do have to say though that the chapters seem a bit short from this though, but at the same time chapter length is up to the writer. Mine would also be a tad long by the same measure. I kinda had to start over because I was getting some great critique, harsh, but great. At the end of it, I realized my story needed to start at another point, and now that I've found said point I think it's much better. I can now go forward knowing I have a launch to the book. In this case it worked out for the best.
The hard part comes in the form of editing,beta readers, and more editing. Critiques are great when/if you get them.
You're doing now what some people dream of doing until the day they pass on. You are in the very midst of accomplishing your dream, and the dreams of others. Go gett'em, tiger!!
Concur with @Sam Webb , as you finish a paragraph, scan for SPaG and consistency, run-on sentences. When you finish a chapter, allow yourself one revision, targeting mostly SPaG and flow. When you read it, can you follow the dialogue or do you have too many/too few tag lines, simple stuff? Writing is enthusiastic, wow, everyone will love this, editing is critical, who wrote this crap? Don't mix the two or you will kill your momentum. When I picked up "The Eagle and the Dragon" 4 years ago, after it had taken up space on my hard drive for 13 years, a quarter of the way done and not yet to China, I went back to edit what I had because I had new information to weave into the beginning about how the mission got launched, and also to reacquaint myself with the story. That editing actually made me enthusiastic that it might yet be a good story, and I reacquainted myself with my characters. It was a real pleasure, after that, writing that first new chapter in 13 years! Then I had one chapter (#70 out of 81) that got rewritten four or five times before I was satisfied. That one hung up on my FMC's character development, she was moving far too easily into her very challenging new role and she should be encountering more obstacles, more self-doubt. Other than that, I didn't mix major revisions with writing the first draft. After I finished, I spent about 15 months editing through 7 major revisions.
My goal is 80,000. I am hoping to get it there in the next month or so. As for chapters, I agree that its up to the writer and their story. I have had some people read a few chapters already, and have received positive feed back, but its still very early and well before a I get it edited.
