Wednesday, March 07, 2007

Warbreaker + Writing Ramblings

 

First off, new Warbreaker Chapter: Chapter Fifty

We're in negotiations with Tor right now for a contract on this book, which is exciting and frustrating at the same time.  Exciting because I love working with Tor on books, and my editor really liked this one.  Frustrating because, like everything in publishing, negotiations and talks take a long, long time.  That's really no one's 'fault' really.  It's just how the industry works.  This will probably end up being a quick negotiation, when all is said and done.  However, that still means I have to wait for several weeks, all the while with a little voice itching at the back of my mind saying "Maybe they'll just decide you're not worth it, and decide to buy someone else's books instead."

I highly doubt that's going to happen.  Still, I wonder if that voice will ever go away.  Does Steven King worry that, in playing hardball on contracts, he's going to offend a publisher and end up with no deal?  Or, is that for those of us down in the mid-lists? 

I just added a very good chapter to Mistborn 3 (one it was needing) so I feel even better about the project.  I have to say this--thank goodness for writing groups.  I've found lots of authors, particularly those who get published, don't like writing groups.  And, in a way, they are a distraction from writing, and sometimes it's hard to sit there and be critiqued when you know the book has already been sold and that an editor thinks is's near perfect.

However, it's still only NEAR perfect.  Writing groups--at least mine--catch things that are important.  They don't usually have to do with book-wide chances.  More, chapter revisions, where they point out that a character's reaction to a certain event feels off, or that I've forgotten to include a character in a given scene.  These are a big help, and every time I do a revision, I'm happy I have those comments there for me to use. 

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