revisions
Memoirs of a Drowning Man
Hey Gang. Yep, it’s really been 7 months since my last update. SIGH…
THEN
I gotta be honest with you. It’s been a crazy year, and, unfortunately, my site maintenance fell by the wayside. Since my last update, I was:
- Laid off from my day job of 10 years (Boo! Hiss!)
- Given a new title for my
Summer 2013YA debut novel. WHISPERTOWN is now FAKE ID - Bumped. Meaning my Summer 2013 YA Debut novel got pushed back to early 2014 (not necessarily a bad thing)
- Asked to revise said novel twice (1st time was a MAJOR overhaul, completed in July, 2nd time is LESS MAJOR, currently in the works)
- Getting my ass kicked by my demanding new day job
- Completing 2 new novel proposals that I can’t talk about yet
- Blogging here and here (doesn’t mean I don’t love you all)
- Catching up on my sleep deprivation (Yes, I am fully deprived now)
Like I said, CRAZY!
NOW
Going Forward: As soon as I get an idea of what the FAKE ID cover will look like, I’m going to hire a designer to redo EVERYTHING! Obviously, there will be announcements when these changes are in the works.
I want you to keep coming to the site, but I don’t want to make empty promises about how often you’re going to see updates here. I’m struggling to keep up right now. I can guarantee you’ll see big changes on the site this year. In the meantime, if you haven’t LIKED my FB Fan Page, or followed me on Twitter, I kindly ask that you do so.
I provide a lot of micro-updates through those social media sites because it’s easy for me to send a short message from my phone, as I’m much more mobile these days.
So, I apologize (again) for the neglect, and if you’ve enjoyed my work in the prior years, I ask that you stick with me a little longer. Big things are in the works, but big things aren’t always fast things. Your patience and support is always appreciated. I wouldn’t be here without you.
Soon, gang. Soon.
Speak up:
comment| TAGS:
books, L.R. Giles, publishing, revisionsBroken Promises/My Cave
I started the year telling you I was going to update this blog weekly. Didn’t happen. I know you don’t appreciate it, but I hope you can understand my reasoning. I’ve been in my cave. Not hibernating. Writing. A lot. Two-novels-and-a-short-story worth of writing.
Because I’m CIA-like in my distribution of information, here’s how we’ll refer to my current batch of works-in-progress (WIPs):
WIP #1 – WHISPERTOWN. You already know about this one. It’s currently in its 5th (or 6th, who’s counting?) draft and as soon as I receive editorial notes from HarperCollins, I’ll be revising again. Remember, writing is rewriting.
WIP #2 – Untitled Fantasy-Action Hybrid. Currently on Draft #2, starting Draft #3 this week.
WIP#3 – Untitled Horror-Action Hybrid. I completed Draft #1 yesterday. Letting this sit for awhile.
I tell you all that so you know I’m not sitting on my ass playing Call of Duty (well, that does happen sometimes). Still, you deserve an explanation if you’ve been a long time follower.
I will try to do better here. In the meantime, for more immediate updates and musings, I recommend liking my Facebook Fan Page or following me on Twitter. With current time constraints, I’m able to send updates through those tools more frequently.
Thanks for hanging in there. Big news soon folks.
Speak up:
comment| TAGS:
publishing, revisionsThe month in review and overcompensating
I’ve been having trouble keeping up with the blog…surprise, surprise. Ever since I started a blog many years ago, I’ve gone through spurts of white-hot intensity where I’m dropping posts 3 times a week, responding to comments, and just being That Guy. Then, the inevitable drop-off comes. I don’t have much to say. I’m distracted by a writing project. I just lose track of time. Then I happen to notice the date of my last entry and succumb to guilt akin to a dieter blacking out and waking up in a bakery, having massacred all the cupcakes. Like now.
It’s been a pretty busy month, and I’d like to catch you up on a couple of things. So, see, this is how I apologize, by overcompensating. That’s healthy, right?
My New Hangouts
Because I’m so great about timely blog entries here on my own site, it only made sense that I’d agree to write for TWO OTHER blogs as well. I’m now a regular contributor at Sleuths, Spies, and Alibis – a group of YA Adult Mystery writers who blog on all topics related to crime, literature, and kids (what a combo). I also contribute to The Lucky 13s – a group of debut YA authors across many genres who all have pub dates in 2013.
There’s a lot of good stuff at both of these blogs, so be sure to check them out.
Recent Interviews
In case you missed them, I participated in a couple of fun blogs/interviews for Aimee Salter and Daisy Whitney.
In Other News
I’ve finished a draft of a YA Urban Fantasy novel and hope to get that revised soon so I can tell you more about it. And I’m halfway through a YA Paranormal novel (really it’s Horror, but I’ve been told the P-word in more aesthetically pleasing than the H-word nowadays). Again, more on that soon.
That’s all, folks. For now.
Speak up:
comment| TAGS:
Bloggers, reading, revisionsRevision Help
I’m working on revisions for my Young Adult mystery WHISPERTOWN. I’ve gotten feedback from several knowledgeable people with the consensus saying that the story is fresh and compelling. Any negative feedback I’ve received has centered around a few plot points, which are easily fixed, and an inconsistency in voice…not so easy.
The book is a 1st person account told in the voice of a tough 15 year old boy. And one critic pointed out there are a number of times when it doesn’t sound like that. So, going through the book line by line, I’ve spotted some obvious areas, but it’s a balancing act. I still have to maintain vivid descriptions, still have to weave in pertinent info, but word choice and cadence are key. The fact that I have very little access to actual teens doesn’t help…that lends to the ‘you don’t know what you don’t know’ problem.
Is anyone out there a teen (or knows a teen) willing to give the latest revision of my little book a read? I could really use some help from an experienced reader in the 13 – 17 range who’s able to say, “Someone my age wouldn’t say it like that”.
Here’s a brief description of the book:
15 year old Nick Pearson is pretending to be someone he isn’t. Not high school pretending. Witness Protection pretending. And the #1 rule is “stay low-key”. But, when his sole friend Eli dies in the school’s journalism room under mysterious circumstances, and Nick stumbles upon the conspiracy Eli planned on exposing, staying low-key takes a backseat to staying alive.
Newspaper Nerd Eli had a secret, an in-the-works story codenamed “Whispertown”. And it’s got a lot of folks interested. Like corrupt cops, the town’s shady mayor, and certain high-ranking government officials. Teaming with Eli’s estranged (and gorgeous) sister, Nick sets out to unravel the mystery and still maintain his cover. He’ll have to use all the deviant skills he’s gained from his racketeering dad, assassin godfather, and their Serbian gangster boss to find the truth. However, each clue brings him closer to answers he may not want. Whispertown is bigger than he could have ever imagined, and in its shadow stands a killer…a killer Nick fears may be his own father.
Any takers? If so, email me here: lrgiles [at] cox [dot] net