Phew! I completed the first draft of Ivy, the sixth and final book of The Katherine Wheel Series just after midnight last night. It\’s been a long haul and it\’s a big book. Hopefully, I managed to pull all the threads together from the previous five books. The manuscript is now with my editor, who, I\’m very confident, will let me know in no uncertain terms!
Now I have the nailbiting wait for the verdict. After that, it\’s the second draft, which is usually not as onerous as the first. The thing is with creating a story in the way I write is that I have to not only research, and remember it as I write, think up creative solutions for what I am trying to portray for my characters, but also I LIVE it! It\’s a wonderful experience in many ways. Sort of like watching a video across your mind\’s eye but I do experience everything I put my characters through and that\’s what makes it both thrilling and exhausting.
I went to bed very late but it was impossible to sleep as I went over and over the story from every angle. Just as I was dropping off, at about three in the morning we had a tremendous thunderstorm, almost directly overhead. I gave up after that so today I\’m taking it easy!
Of course, there is now the fun of creating a cover, a blurb and a strapline but I may leave that for another day and just get out into the garden.
www.intheplottingshed.com 