Overcoming adversity to triumph!

Okay, it wasn’t that adverse. It was hot enough, despite the swamp cooler, to wilt the cat.

I looked like this too.

And in spite of the heat I finished the massive chapter-by-chapter, scene-by-scene summary of The Dinosaur Lords. How massive? It’s 25,198 words by itself.

All right. I know that news will frustrate some of you. When’s he gonna finish it? Huh? Huh? And the very fact some people who’re familiar with the project are so eagerly anticipating it is highly gratifying – and highly promising. And also appreciated: thanks for caring, kids.

I care too. I care a lot. This is going to be the best book I’ve ever written. It deserves to be great. It can be. So I am doing what I can to ensure it is.

In the past I’ve almost always had to rush the writing of my books. Because I let myself fall behind on deadline. That’s the major reason I decided to write this one on spec:  so that I could take the time to do it right. And while it’s taken way longer than anticipated and desired, I feel I am doing it right.

By the same token, inasmuch as it’s taken this long, I feel I there’s no point in rushing now. Kind of obviates the point of the exercise, doesn’t it?

Believe me: I’m not dawdling. Indeed, I expect the time and effort spent on this summary will decrease the overall time it takes to revise the book as well as make it better, faster. It enables me to see how the story exists, and what might need done to improve structure and flow.

Also, as I skimmed through the chapters trying to glean the important character interactions and incidents. I time and again found myself thinking, Uh-huh. Cut to the chase! And that’s a good thing.

How can that possibly be, I pretend to hear you ask? Because I need to trim this puppy down from north of 270,000 words. Way down. And I feel a lot more confident of my ability to do that without excessive effort – not to mention heartache – now.

Also I feel that I have a much better feel for the heartmeat of it all:  the characters, the overall story, the individual chapters and scenes. So that I can condense the yarn to what needs to be there to make it the most entertaining novel ever. Which, honestly, is what I’m shooting at.

Oh, more good news: there’s nothing, at least that I can see, hugely or fundamentally wrong with the thing.  I believe it’s sound. What it mostly needs is tightening and smoothing. And such restructuring as needs done can be handled, I think, by shuffling the order of chapters, or good old cut and paste.

So: it won’t be much longer. Really. I should have the rewrite done in a matter of weeks. And ready to get into the hot little hands of my awesome and generous first readers.

There’s also been concern expressed that the iron is cooling; that the big Dinosaur Moment is passing. I don’t perceive that. If it is true – well, this’ll heat that puppy white-hot.

Thanks, all, for your interest and well-wishing. What I’m doing with this, I do to make the finished novel worthy of you.

And, frankly, worthy of me.

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