After twenty years of writing for others, I am seriously working on my own first novel. Let’s be honest, I’ve been working on it for a few years—am actually rewriting it for the seventh time. Why is this taking so long?

It started out as a movie script for a variety of reasons, but the characters kept telling me it was supposed to be an historical novel, so I finally listened after the first few rewrites. Then I had to adapt to painting the description  in words instead of designing sets. The characters also did some morphing, but the story had to remain the same—it’s historical, after all.

What surprised me was that I had to find my very own story-telling voice. For years I have practiced putting complex ideas into an easy-reading format, keeping articles confined to short word-counts, and making my sentences clear and concise. Great practice, by the way, that I highly recommend. And novels are like jigsaw puzzles,  every piece has to fit into just the right spot—and there are lots of pieces—think  big picture while concentrating on the details.

The good news is twofold:

1. This time it’s right—I like it!
2. I found a publisher—Principia Media.

I have a two-month window to finish rewriting. Guess what I am going to be blogging about? You got it.

Join me on this exciting journey. Your encouragement and comments invited!