ARTICLE: An Editor's Humbling of This Aspiring Fiction Author

Seventy-five minutes and 750 words. 

That was what I received last Friday from a publishing professional fiction editor. The former was our conversation; the latter was the document she sent recapping my charge. 

The session focused on my plan for the story, including the plot, the motivations and arcs of my main characters, and how they relate to each other, and answering the questions the reader is reading to find out. 

I thought I had those nailed. I guess not. 

I left with more questions to answer than answers to questions. (Like how was my actual writing? We didn't even get to that topic yet because the story details above weren't completely flushed out, yet.) 

But our feedback conversation allowed me to understand that these were necessary questions I needed to answer to move my story to the next phase. 

My first draft was finished on October 16, 2023. I revised that in draft two, which I completed on December 31, 2023. In advance of my first editor session I chose to refine the story again in a third draft completed on February 15, 2024. 

Before I embark on Draft #4, I've got some homework to do. 

I have four main characters, and each needs more development around their motivations and moral journey from the beginning of the book to the end. And I need to develop better how specifically each relates to the other on their respective journeys. 

More clarity and less confusion are the messages I took away from my editor in our first conversation. So, it's back to the developmental stages. Draft #4 coming soon. 

For all you Beta Readers, hang in there. We're probably looking at May 1st for Draft Four. I have another editor session scheduled for March 25th, during which we will review my updates. 

If you're not in the Beta Reader program yet, and would like to, click here to learn more and join me on the journey. 

Feel free to leave a comment or question below to keep our conversation going, I'm happy to share even more specifics about what I Iearned from a real publishing professional book editor. 

Stay tuned. 

Thanks for reading, 'til next time...