So, it’s just under a month ago that I announced I was going to finish writing “Unbreak My Heart” this year. A lot can happen in a month, or can it?
Time for an update on my progress so far.
If you are not familiar with the “Unbreak My Heart” you can read about my decision to finish writing the book here.
Writing Unbreak My Heart
This is progressing a little slower than expected as there’s not been much time to focus on writing over the last month. So perhaps that should be it has progressed AS expected due to lack of writing time.
There has been progress in the planning though. I’ve spent time with both Andrew and Tanya, of Editing To A T, working on the focus of each chapter and their sequence within the book. As a result, it’s starting to really take shape.
At the moment I am focusing on polishing and updating the chapters that I wrote two years ago. I’ve nearly finished going through the 16,000 words that I wrote then. The challenge has been to polish the writing while retaining the rawness of the emotions I felt when originally writing them. I’m revisiting areas where healing has taken place. This is good from my personal point of view yet I don’t what the book to lose its impact because I am making retrospective changes.
I think my biggest challenge is rewiring the brain into full writing-mode. On the days when I have been able to dedicate time to the book, I have made huge progress. I simply need to remember that spending time on “Unbreak My Heart” is a priority now rather than a “nice to have. Not sure if I should use the word “simply” though!
Editing
For me, editing is one of the hardest parts of writing. I still get very nervous about sending my finished draft out for someone to cast their expert opinion over my work.
“All good writing is swimming under water and holding your breath.” F. Scott Fitzgerald
Waiting for the suggested updates to be delivered is not too bad. It’s the plucking up the courage to open the email and read the comments that get’s me. I know it has to be done and yet I often delay it for as long as possible. It’s like holding your breath for one, two, three seconds longer than normal. Eventually the pressure in the ears, and the desperate need to take a breath, is greater than the fear that’s been holding you back.
I count myself very lucky to be working with Tanya on “Unbreak My Heart”. Over the last year she’s become familiar with my writing style due to working with me on the magazine. I’ve also become used to her editing style. We’ve created a “house-style” that we are both comfortable with. I’ve learnt to use a single space after a full stop, exclamation mark or question. I’m also in the process of learning to use “while” and not “whilst”.
All of this means that there are few changes suggested.
Yet I still fear those red “tracking changes” marks. It goes back to when my father used to return my letters and postcards “red-penned” to highlight my spelling mistakes. Unfortunately, his actions stopped me from creative writing for many years. Over the years I have managed to slay most of my WritingDragons, although the red-pen still makes me quake a little, especially if I am feeling fragile.
Tanya is great though. She has a very light editing touch and reassures me in advance if there have been many changes. These are often because I have raised a concern about the tense or tone of the chapter. So, if there are more red pen marks that usual, it’s often because I have asked her to make suggestions about something that I am not happy about.
Thankfully we have a relationship built on those all-important elements of know, like and trust. Which makes all the difference to an anxiety-ridden creative type who still get’s nervous about her writing ability.
Design
It was confirmed yesterday that Steve Price will be the book’s Graphic Designer. I worked with Steve about four years ago and was very impressed with the results. He’s also worked on many projects with one of my closest friends.
When I contacted Steve a couple of days ago about the book, he remembered exactly who I was. In fact, he still has a copy of “Bottom Biting Bears” that I sent to his children as a gift. This means I know that I will be treated like a person and not a faceless client number.
The personal working relationship with professionals is so important. There are plenty of good designers out there. However, the quality of relationship you have with your editor or designer when writing a book is paramount.
Even more so I think when writing about such a personal subject. If it’s not a relationship based on mutual respect and trust the project will suffer. Fortunately, I am gathering a great team around me.
The Writing Iceberg
So why am I spending time writing these updates. Well there are five main reasons:
- They keep me accountable. I need that accountability to focus my mind and ensure that I spend the time writing “Unbreak My Heart” that the book deserves.
- Sharing my progress will “keep the dream alive”. I will be celebrating my success through these blogs and processing the challenges. Both of which will help keep me motivated.
- It will start creating a buzz about the book. Well, that’s the hope anyway!
- Some of you may be thinking of writing a book too. Sharing my experience could help you with your writing.
- People who have no experience of writing a book don’t always appreciate the time and effort involved. The Writing Iceberg is a great way to illustrate what goes into writing a book. These updates will put some flesh onto the bones of the iceberg concept.
You can read about the iceberg theory of writing here.
So, writing a book is a lot like Creating A New, Beautiful And Courageous Existence. There is often far more going on under the surface than people are aware. It’s this behind the scenes work that is where the magic happens.
You can read more about “Unbreak My Heart” here. There is also a complete chapter for you to read.
There is no practice makes perfect today as this is an update on my progress.
Be kind to yourself …
In CANBACE friendship!
If anything I have written resonates I’d love to hear from you in the comments. I appreciate that this can be a difficult subject to speak openly about. If you don’t want me to publish your comment on the website, please let me know. I will keep your words private.
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