Having finished another chapter, the twenty-fifth, I feel that I only have three more chapters to write to have finished the first draft of A Tortured Soul. That will probably bring the first draft in at between 115000 and 120000 words. And that’s not counting the prologue or epilogue which I will be the last things I write after reviewing the first draft and being satisfied that it’s ready for a final proof read before release.
I’m in what I shall call the ‘post-plot wind down’ phase of the book. That’s the bit where some of the loose ends are tied up and the situation is moved on to set things up for the third and (at this point I believe it to be) final book in the series.
If anything this is going to prove to be one of the most tricky parts to write. For example, in the chapter I’ve just finished, I can’t help but think that
- it’s a bit of a lull after all the drama of the preceding chapters and
- the timeline is a bit ‘rushed’.
In chapter 25 I’ve moved the story’s timeline about a month in the space of a few paragraphs – and changing some things for some characters significantly at the same time. But the changes are really quite ‘mundane’, if I can use that word, compared to what happened in the chapter before and I really didn’t want to spend anymore time than I had to talking about the housing market or decorating.
I mean, really, would you read that?
I don’t know, maybe in the review of the first draft I may find some way to flesh it out that keeps the reader engaged and develops some element of at least one of the characters personalities or back-story. But I doubt it.
I just hope that I don’t end up feeling this same way about the remaining three chapters that I’m still to write.
