Revising Purchas

[poliphilo]

I'm in the middle of revising the four interconnected novels over at purchas. I wrote them very fast- in less than a month each- and with very little forward planning. My main mistake- first time round- was to introduce a new villain in book # 2 when I had a perfectly amenable and very similar one to hand. That has been rectified. I have also rewritten a chunk of the second book where the action was particularly implausible and one of my people was acting out of character. Otherwise it's been a matter of going over the surface with a soft cloth.

Now I need to get started on book #3. 

Comments

[ideealisme.livejournal.com]

Cool!

I confess I was a little concerned when in your last post about this you implied that novel writing was for the young and then burned out after a while. While there might be some empirical evidence to back this up, I felt that it also could be a way to help persuade yourself not to go ahead with the project - because at any age, writing a novel is the hardest thing you might possibly do in your entire life. But you have an aptitude for writing that it would be a shame to neglect.

You have a powerful "walk-away" tendency that in many cases might be a good emotional decision for you - I'm just not sure in this case it's necessarily the right move for you.

Just my 2p and feel free to disregard - the most important thing is to be happy with life regardless of anyone else's advice :)

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

There's a fifth Purchas book that's half written. Ever since I wrote that post about not writing any more novels I've been wondering about finishing it- and then maybe writing a couple of sequels. At the moment I just don't know. The ideas are there, but they're not flowing. I would actually like to write more, but I'm not sure if I can or should.

[ideealisme.livejournal.com]

Is it that you feel that new writing would distract you from the task of having to edit the previous four novels to a standard that satisfies you, or is it fear of the ideas not coming?

I'm trying to outline right now on a novel I already have in first draft. There's no way around it - it's hard, horribly hard. But (I imagine when I finally finish the damn thing) very rewarding. Huh. I almost believed my own hype there for a second.

I think you would have many great ideas once you got started and your imagination was well warmed up. I'll have a look at the other blog and see what it's about, I am interested now!

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

I'm not sure the ideas are there.

In 2006 I wrote these four short novels very fast. It was an exercise in improvisation- and I was pleased with the results. I forget when I started the fifth novel, but it was a good while later- and- though it started off well- it ran into the sand around the 20,000 word mark.

It could well be that I've said all I've got to say about this bunch of characters and their situation.

[ideealisme.livejournal.com]

They're there. If my own experience is anything to go by. But if you are bored with the characters then that will show and it's wise not to push it.

[dadi.livejournal.com]

Ohhh new Purchas! I can´t wait!!!

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Not new, I'm afraid- just revised.

Though there is the chance that I may write more. There's a fifth, unfinished Purchas story- but I don't- at the moment- know how to finish it.

[strange-complex.livejournal.com]

Oh, good news. Returning to stuff you wrote some time ago with fresh eyes is very helpful. It becomes like a collaboration between two versions of yourself - younger and older. And we all know two heads are better than one. I hope that by the time the two of you have each added your magic, it will be ready to go off to some publishers.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Thanks.

After a gap of four years the stuff that doesn't work comes leaping off the page.

There may be more books to come; at the moment I really don't know.

[veronica-milvus.livejournal.com]

Glad to see you writing again. Perhaps Purchas might have another adventure?

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Possibly. There's a half-finished fifth book- and I'm looking into completing it. Right now I simply don't know if I can.

[manfalling.livejournal.com]

I'd definitely like to see more Purchas, kind of makes me happy you're going back to it (even if only to tinker and re-edit). It seems like a great output source, a great way to express yourself and use creative energies that are otherwise mostly channeled (I imagine) through this blog.

I wonder if you've considered writing about Purchas in the modern day? Is that perhaps the premise of the fifth book? What would she make of the modern world? What kind of position would her enemies be in? Surely that would provide a whole new raft of ideas for you to write about with her. You could even go on into sci-fi territory, if the fancy took you. That's one beauty of the Purchas premise.

Also I wonder if you've thought of re-submitting to agents. Already you've done editing that might help with that. The books were short so that might have been an obstacle- I wonder if it would be possible to compress the four into two books, each longer? From my perusals of the Writer's Yearbook it seems most publishers/agents want at least 80,000 words. Any less is a novella and hard to sell.

Well, whichever way you go, I'm keen to see it.

Mike.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Strange you should suggest that. I was only thinking this afternoon that one way forward would be to revisit the characters in the modern world- or perhaps in the 20th century. I don't have any storylines in mind, but maybe if I sat down and just started to write one would suggest itself.

The fifth book is set in the 18th century. It begins well...