(My writing process is evolving, so this is not how I write now, but it is how I wrote The Convergence).

I’ve mentioned before that I wrote The Convergence first by reworking the story in my head. When I started actual writing, I first wrote a few scenes that were really vivid and pivotal, but this made it hard keep continuity. So…I went to the beginning and started there.

The first draft of the fist half was rough. Really rough. Mostly dialogue without a lot of description. I would write a scene with all dialogue first and then go back and fill in the rest. The further I got into the book, the fuller my scenes became on take one. Then there was editing. Lots of editing.

The hardest part about editing is waiting. When the book is really fresh, my editing is off. I’m just too close. So there’s ‘marinating time’. I really hate this time, but if I step away from the book (usually for a month) then come back it’s much clearer. The first time I did this I was amazed at the inconsistencies I found. Yes, ‘marinating time’ was painful, but worth it.

When my book was done (I use this term VERY loosely) I sent copies to my first round of beta readers. They edited for content. After another round of edits I sent it to my second round of betas and they edited for grammar as well. Then I went to a writer’s conference and came back with fresh ideas (yea!) and a need to cut 5,000 words (not so yea). After much editing and darling killing, I was done (again).

Even now, I tweak my book every time I look at it. It’ll never be perfect, but with help (lots and lots of help) and work (loads of work) hopefully it’ll come close.