Last week, I mentioned that I was on a major writing kick. I definitely was, writing well over 100 pages in three days. And about half way through those pages, I kicked into high gear, writing some pages that I felt very, very good about.
I immediately did the math, and figured since I was 193 pages into it, I'd have a full draft within a few days, figuring the draft might run about 250-260.
Well, that's not how it works. I made a few discoveries last week about characters, and story arc, and conflict, that necessitated me going back into the early chapters and fixing things up. I could have moved forward, but I didn't think it made a lot of sense, given how the entire structure of the book was on such shaky ground.
So I spent the last few days editing, heavily editing the first 70 pages or so, to fix the relationship between my two "bromancees."
Then, just now, I got back to where I'd left off, and finished Chapter 25.
Do I think it's good yet? No.
I think I'm barely surviving the first draft, which is much different than I felt last week.
And that's the secret: in the process of writing, if you are anything like me, you will feel a wide array of emotions and feelings about what you're doing -- everything from "this is the greatest thing ever written" to "I can barely write an English sentence."
This, my friends, is natural. For an artist, anyway. The manic-depressive thing, where you go from one polarity to the other, seems to be something many of us writers share.
I'm learning to go with it. That means surviving the days when I'm pretty sure I can't write a complete sentence, and enjoying the ones where things feel great, without letting it get the best of me.
All in all, I must say I like this process! And I hope to have a good book within a month or so to share with my agent and editor at Penguin.
Jan
12
The blog formerly known as...
...Wadorf to Your Astoria is done. Through. Finished.
This will be the final post here.
But fear not! If you go over to my brand-spankin' new website, billkonigsberg.com, you will see that I am still blogging over there. And on that site, powered by the fine folks at wordpress, you may comment using your Facebook account.
Sorry, Blogger. We liked you, but we needed more. We needed actual comments!
So thanks to those of you who perused this blog regularly.
This will be the final post here.
But fear not! If you go over to my brand-spankin' new website, billkonigsberg.com, you will see that I am still blogging over there. And on that site, powered by the fine folks at wordpress, you may comment using your Facebook account.
Sorry, Blogger. We liked you, but we needed more. We needed actual comments!
So thanks to those of you who perused this blog regularly.
Dec
27
To Recap...
Just four more days in 2012... Hard to believe how quickly --
Who the hell am I kidding?
This was the slowest year in the history of man. I don't mean that in a bad way. It just went slowly. To me, last December seems like years ago.
It was a great, slow year:
1. My agent sold my next book, Openly Straight, to Arthur A. Levine Books (Scholastic).
2. I got involved in a very cool project at ASU, to be explained/described in due time.
3.
Who the hell am I kidding?
This was the slowest year in the history of man. I don't mean that in a bad way. It just went slowly. To me, last December seems like years ago.
It was a great, slow year:
1. My agent sold my next book, Openly Straight, to Arthur A. Levine Books (Scholastic).
2. I got involved in a very cool project at ASU, to be explained/described in due time.
3.
Dec
21
Finding the perfect partner
People often ask me: Bill, how did you find the perfect man?
Okay, no one outside of my head has ever asked me that. While people do often say nice stuff about Chuck, about him being handsome and funny and kind, I have found that people rarely ask questions:
A) Like the aforementioned outside of bad movies and trashy novels
B) Of me in general in which advice of any kind is sought.
So while this has not been asked of me, I do feel as though I have some expertise on the subject.
Okay, no one outside of my head has ever asked me that. While people do often say nice stuff about Chuck, about him being handsome and funny and kind, I have found that people rarely ask questions:
A) Like the aforementioned outside of bad movies and trashy novels
B) Of me in general in which advice of any kind is sought.
So while this has not been asked of me, I do feel as though I have some expertise on the subject.
Dec
10
Now Me vs. Later Me
About four months ago, I took a home test and found that my blood sugar was in the "pre-diabetes" range.
I can't say I was shocked, because it wasn't the first time I'd had that result. But I was horrified, because it was rising from the last time I'd had it checked. I decided that if I wanted to avoid having diabetes, I needed to change my diet and my exercise.
I did both.
I can't say I was shocked, because it wasn't the first time I'd had that result. But I was horrified, because it was rising from the last time I'd had it checked. I decided that if I wanted to avoid having diabetes, I needed to change my diet and my exercise.
I did both.
Oct
31
The Shoulds
Tomorrow is the first day of NaNoWriMo, also known as National Novel Writing Month. Every November, all sorts of writers take on the challenge of trying to write a draft of a novel in a month. Note that I say "Draft," because very, very few novels are finished in one draft, and while some writers might be able to draft and then revise a novel in a month, I don't think that's a very realistic goal.
For me, especially.
For me, especially.
Oct
25
DON'T De-Friend Me
I'll tell you what, people who plan to vote for Mitt Romney:
I disagree with you, and not just a little. Your support of the Romney/Ryan ticket feels like a kick to the stomach, because as a gay man, this stuff is personal to me.
But you know what? Don't de-friend me.
In his Huffington Post blog post on Oct.
I disagree with you, and not just a little. Your support of the Romney/Ryan ticket feels like a kick to the stomach, because as a gay man, this stuff is personal to me.
But you know what? Don't de-friend me.
In his Huffington Post blog post on Oct.
Oct
23
The Gay Jackie Robinson?
What would happen at an all-boys boarding school in Massachusetts if an athlete came out as gay?
This is NOT the subject of my upcoming novel, Openly Straight. In fact, it is the setting for that novel, but it is the plot of my first novel, Out of the Pocket.
I mention it because of a comment I received last week from a former student at a school I visited three years ago.
This is NOT the subject of my upcoming novel, Openly Straight. In fact, it is the setting for that novel, but it is the plot of my first novel, Out of the Pocket.
I mention it because of a comment I received last week from a former student at a school I visited three years ago.
Oct
18
Openly Straight - The Cover
Here it is, boys and girls! The cover of my forthcoming novel "Openly Straight."
Like it? I love it!
I love that it is a visual representation of the story. Given a choice of all the labels my main character, Seamus Rafael Goldberg, can choose, he chooses the most innocuous one. He just wants to be a "normal kid."
I had no idea, when I wrote this, about how much I was writing about myself. That's how clueless I can be about myself.
Like it? I love it!
I love that it is a visual representation of the story. Given a choice of all the labels my main character, Seamus Rafael Goldberg, can choose, he chooses the most innocuous one. He just wants to be a "normal kid."
I had no idea, when I wrote this, about how much I was writing about myself. That's how clueless I can be about myself.
Oct
3
Using Songs in Novels
Today I've decided to be one of those helpful authors and let you know what happens when you attempt to use copywritten song lyrics in your novel. So if you are not a regular reader of this blog, I'm guessing you found me because you just used those lyrics to Rapture by Blondie in your novel, and then you thought, "Wait. Can I do this?"
The answer is: yes and no.
I love using lyrics.
The answer is: yes and no.
I love using lyrics.
Sep
7
Vacation, all I ever wanted...
We are back from our first full-fledged vacation in about three years!
Chuck, Mabel and I went to Northern California for two weeks, and what can I say? Paradise!
We had such an amazing time doing nothing and loving it. We drove about 900 miles each way and stayed for nine days at a place called Driftwood Bungalow in Manchester, California. It's about 150 miles north of San Francisco, about 30 miles south of Mendocino.
Nothing is there, and that's how we wanted it.
Chuck, Mabel and I went to Northern California for two weeks, and what can I say? Paradise!
We had such an amazing time doing nothing and loving it. We drove about 900 miles each way and stayed for nine days at a place called Driftwood Bungalow in Manchester, California. It's about 150 miles north of San Francisco, about 30 miles south of Mendocino.
Nothing is there, and that's how we wanted it.
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