Man, I think now, at long last, the first chapter of the romance novel is DONE!!!

After going over all of Jenn and Lizzie's notes, as well as some excellent feedback from my mom, romance reader extraordinaire, I was able to incorporate all of them, more or less, as I hacked and slashed my way through the revision. It went surprisingly well. And what I have now kicks ass, if I say so. It reads well as a novel, as well as a romance novel.

If I can revise all the remaining chapters the way I did this first chapter, this novel will sell itself. I already told Elizabeth that she's my official Romance Copy Editor and Critiquer. She did a bang-up job on this chapter. (She does it all, I tell ya, an amazing woman!)

One thing that working on this romance novel is doing is making me really get inside the heads of my two main characters, and make me really dig deep into their emotions. Up 'til now I've always been very minimalistic when it comes to describing a character's inner feelings and thoughts. But this romance novel is forcing me to be more explicit.

And that's good. The biggest suggestion I got from a professional editor for my first novel, The Prodigal Sons, was to delve more into the emotions of the characters. So I'm thinking that once the romance novel is done, I will go back to that novel and add that stuff. I already found a small publishing house I want to send it to, when it's all revised.

I still have to do my outline, but I'm almost there. Just need to throw down all my plot ideas and see what happens. Then it's off to the PO tomorrow, and then on to other projects for a few weeks. It never ends, and for that I am glad. Later.

Now Reading:
The Philip K. Dick Reader (found the official title!)

Now Playing:
"Red Heaven," Throwing Muses

Today's Quote:
She left her car and went to the port side of the ferry. She passed by two men and two women standing next to their Harley-Davidsons, drinking from bottled water, and she dodged hungry seagulls swooping in for crusts of bread thrown by a group of children front of an ancient station wagon. She could have taken the shorter ferry ride from Hatteras Island, but Ella preferred getting into the right frame of mind with a long, slow ride on the ferry across the Pamlico Sound. The wind blew salty spray into her face as she turned in the direction of Ocracoke and the ship hidden under the water on the far side of it.

Discuss