Editing Darkness, Oklahoma

      Still not in the mood to write so I spent a lot of the day putting in the numerous corrections and additions that I've made so far in Darkness, Oklahoma. I realize that "not in the mood" isn't a reason to not write -- and I have put a few words on paper -- so I need to work on that. Full-time writers can't afford to be unproductive when their total income depends on their words. Since being a full-time writer is one of my goals, I need to work on my discipline. But not today. Today I put in about half of the corrections. I hope to put in the rest tomorrow. Then I'll print a new copy so that it can get marked up.
      How I write: I usually write the scene quickly. Then I edit it. Set it aside for a while. Then edit it again. I make corrections, recast sentences, try to make my sentences tighter and make the dialogue more natural. I also look for plot holes as I edit. I write down questions that I haven't answered somewhere in the book. I track characters and make sure their physical descriptions match all the way through the book. Or at least I attempt to do all that.
      I don't know any authors who don't revise and edit. But maybe there are amazing people who type perfect prose the first time. You can find them with Bigfoot and Elvis playing cards with those green guys from Roswell.
      This week I will -- I hope -- publish the January issue of the family newsletter. Next week, I will publish the February issue. The week after that, I have auditions for The Vigil, then we start rehearsals. The play will be performed March 28-31 and April 1. After the play concludes, I will throw myself back into Darkness, Okahoma, and plan to visit it by the end of May or the end of June. Then it goes to my first readers -- Crystal, Frenzied Feline, Michelle and Randall. While they're reading it, I'll be working on Dragons Gather or Figments or Queen of the Summerset Club. Then when they return their corrections and questions, I'll be working on it in July. I hope to have the final edit finished by my birthday at the end of July. A cool birthday present to myself. In all of this, I still need to finish the final edit of Murder at the Witch's Cottage and get it off to some publishers. I also plan to self-publish Floozy & Other Stories, a collection of my various humor columns.
      So that's my writing year so far. We'll see what happens as the year continues. And I think I will call it a night now. Y'all have a great day tomorrow and a great week. Good night!