First off…hard to believe it has been two years since I posted. But maybe not. We’ve all been wondering what happened to the two plus years as we look back at the bloody great pothole of our lives and wonder, “What next?”. Time to look forward.
With that in mind, I’ve discovered that Beta readers are lifelines. Writing is hard, but re-writing can be much harder without a map, or direction, or feedback. Sometimes it feels like I’m writing on an ice-flow in the Arctic with nothing around me, with no signs of direction. This can lead to a lot of wasted time writing crap, and to getting stuck writing things that don’t work. Thank goodness for writing groups and Beta readers.
I am a member of two writing groups. One formed organically after I attended the Surrey International Writer’s Conference (SiWC) in 2018. Another I found from the writer Eileen Cook who gave me feedback at a Blue Pencil at SiWC. She suggested I check out the Creative Academy, which she co-founded. I did and discovered a historical writing group that meets once a month to knock heads, and once a month to share writing and give feedback.
And also discovered the Historical Novel Society and another huge group of likeminded souls. Manna from heaven.
From these two groups I’ve now found five Beta readers who have provided excellent feedback. Some if it I didn’t want to hear, some of it meant a ton of work, and some of it I disagreed with. No matter. The result has been more defined characters, filled plot holes, clearer voice and a more polished manuscript that once I’ve finished re-writing might be ready for an agent. Beyond that is the support of those who have said “carry on”, “keep going” and “don’t give up”, or who themselves have reached a point with their stories that they are getting serious interest from agents. Inspiring me to keep going and make it better. I wish I had found these groups before I had submitted my first novel to agents, when it was clearly not ready. Thus is the path of learning…
Now I’m excited to begin preparation of a trip to northern Spain in the spring of 2023 to retrace Chaucer’s probable footsteps before and during the Battle of Najera for research of The Storyteller’s War, novel three in The Storyteller’s series. My current manuscript is very drafty and I can’t wait to walk the hills of Navarre where the Black Prince and King Pedro led their army to face Pedro’s half-brother Enrique Trastamara on April 3, 1367. More on that trip soon…