Hah! There's a fair amount of overlap in Jordan's edits with your comments. The circles diverge, but there's a pretty sizable shared part in the middle of that Venn diagram!
Excellent reflection on the process, Owen. It is good to see that you are open to the comments that make sense to you. It also is important to be willing to reject comments that do not make sense to you. Or maybe to move in a different direction altogether from a comment. As the novelist, you get to make the final call.
One of the things I appreciate most about the way Jordan provided his edits is he made it clear that it's my book. His notes and comments are only that, not directives. In fact, there is only one single point when he said, "You really need to lose this." (He was right.)
Much of his feedback spurred orthogonal solutions. Just seeing things through a different perspective freed me from my myopic understanding of the book.
I try to add comments to each redline I make. I have found it surprisingly easier to get changes through than if I just make the redline without explanation. Although I shouldn't really be surprised by that, since I know from psychology that giving any reason at all (even a nonsensical one) makes people more willing to let you do something such as cut in line.
“I won’t lie. I’m trying to write a great novel. Maybe that’s arrogant. So be it.”
I love this commitment to mission. I want to write a great novel, too; however, regardless of whether I could do that, I am not willing to make the sacrifices necessary to strive to that goal. Writing is a hard game (for most). I will continue to be a reader of great novels — looking forward to reading yours.
Thanks, Michael. One of the reasons I've tried to write this novel in public, as it were, is because I found it dispiriting to see the chasm between my initial drafts and the finished work that's been bound. Nobody writes great stuff without the work, the frustration, the dead ends. In the small chance that what I end up writing turns out to be something worthwhile, I want to leave a record of the process so that those who come after see that the finished work was not birthed from Zeus's head fully formed.
Hey! Pretty sure I said your characters have always hated each other. ;)
Hah! There's a fair amount of overlap in Jordan's edits with your comments. The circles diverge, but there's a pretty sizable shared part in the middle of that Venn diagram!
Excellent reflection on the process, Owen. It is good to see that you are open to the comments that make sense to you. It also is important to be willing to reject comments that do not make sense to you. Or maybe to move in a different direction altogether from a comment. As the novelist, you get to make the final call.
One of the things I appreciate most about the way Jordan provided his edits is he made it clear that it's my book. His notes and comments are only that, not directives. In fact, there is only one single point when he said, "You really need to lose this." (He was right.)
Much of his feedback spurred orthogonal solutions. Just seeing things through a different perspective freed me from my myopic understanding of the book.
Eh, there were more redlines in the last contract I reviewed. 😆
But I am glad to see that things are progressing and that you see the feedback for what it is, and not as judgment of your ability as a writer.
Hah. Yeah, this was more of a comment-fest than a redline bash!
I try to add comments to each redline I make. I have found it surprisingly easier to get changes through than if I just make the redline without explanation. Although I shouldn't really be surprised by that, since I know from psychology that giving any reason at all (even a nonsensical one) makes people more willing to let you do something such as cut in line.
Yes, it’s a Jedi mind trick when redlining 🤣
“I won’t lie. I’m trying to write a great novel. Maybe that’s arrogant. So be it.”
I love this commitment to mission. I want to write a great novel, too; however, regardless of whether I could do that, I am not willing to make the sacrifices necessary to strive to that goal. Writing is a hard game (for most). I will continue to be a reader of great novels — looking forward to reading yours.
Thanks, Michael. One of the reasons I've tried to write this novel in public, as it were, is because I found it dispiriting to see the chasm between my initial drafts and the finished work that's been bound. Nobody writes great stuff without the work, the frustration, the dead ends. In the small chance that what I end up writing turns out to be something worthwhile, I want to leave a record of the process so that those who come after see that the finished work was not birthed from Zeus's head fully formed.