When
people ask how long it takes me to write a book. I usually say “about six
months.” But it isn’t really that simple. That’s the average time from start to
finish, but I usually have several projects going at once because I like to
rest each story between drafts and return to it with fresh eyes. There is also
a forced rest while a manuscript is with my beta readers.
It’s
also not that easy to know when a particular project begins. I may have the
idea months before I start researching it, or I may do a little research here
and there before I start working on it in earnest. For purposes of the “six
months,” I’m counting from when I start the bulk of the research and
immediately follow it up with a first draft.
Knowing
when a book is finished is easier. If I waited for perfection I would never
finish, so I quit when I’ve reached the point of diminishing returns. That
completes the writing process (although a publisher could ask for subsequent
edits) and moves me on to the submission process.
The
photo at the beginning of this post shows the bulletin board that hangs above
my desk. You may not be able to read them, but the four sheets on the bottom
are the chapter outlines from two of my works in progress. The one on the left
is a book about the Pullman strike, for which I am currently working on the
third draft and incorporating my beta readers’ comments. The one on the right
is about a trip around Cape Horn in gold rush days. I just finished the first
draft and will begin the second after sending my Pullman book off to my copy
editor.
I
also have a book about a lighthouse keeper’s daughter that is between the
second and third drafts. I am ready to polish it and send it to my beta readers,
but they just finished one. So I’m going to set the manuscript aside for a
while and give them a break.
As
you can see, I don’t spend a solid six months working on any one book, but the writing
process does average six months from start to finish.
Then
I send the manuscript out to agents or publishers, and that’s when the real wait
begins.
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