Book Two Finished – Let the Edits Begin

Last week I posted on Facebook that I had finally finished book two in my Charlotte Graves Mystery series. I cannot begin to tell you what a relief that was. Now the hard part of editing begins.

We have a saying in the writing world that goes something like this—Get the words on the page, even if it’s messy, or if the words aren’t very good. Just get them on the page because you simply cannot edit a blank page. This book, Grave Decisions, proved to be much more difficult to write than the first book. Too many things interrupted my writing, the least of which was C-19.

Even though it took a while, it has now been completed and it must now go through a few editing hands. Mine first.

Book Two Finished - Let the Edits Begin @DDuPreeWilliams #writing #mysterywriter #SouthernFiction Share on X

MY PROCESS

Writing a book isn’t easy. Set in 1968 in south Alabama, the historical elements must be right. I grew up in that era, but many things have escaped my memory. Lots of research had to be done. From big things, like what house décor looked like in those days, to clothing, to hairstyles, to what kinds of cars did each character drive?

Cars were big. Unless you had a VW Beetle. And I don’t remember any of my friends having one of those until I got to college. My friend, Dianne Wiggins Jordan, had a Corvair. It was pretty small. Another friend drove a GTO. And yet another got a T-Bird for her 16^th birthday. Here’s something not too many people know about me. I took drivers ed. in high school, but I didn’t get my license until after I married. I was 24, and cars weren’t that big a deal to me.

Police procedures were even more difficult. My first editor, Eva Marie Everson, was a jewel as we edited Grave Consequences, book one. Her late father had been on the police force and she even worked in the office at one time doing dispatch work. The things we learn about the people we meet often surprise us, don’t they?

I had to remember there were no cell phones, so one simply couldn’t send a text and have it seen immediately. Mail was how we sent letters, not email. And we didn’t have the Sony Walkman until the late 70s. No music was readily available via an iPhone.

I do remember we had these spiral notebooks we called Slam Books. Oh, my goodness. That just came to me. I hadn’t thought of those since that time. No clue where mine wound up. We wrote things like The Beatles, or The Animals, at the top of the page and our friends wrote in our book what they thought about them. At least, I think that’s how we did it. If I recall correctly, one friend wrote she really liked animals, especially horses. Had to laugh.

EDIT, EDIT, EDIT

So, now, it’s off to all the edits. Big edits. I worked some on this during the writing phase, but now, the big edits and revisions happen. Then I pass it off to my editor, and from there, we see where it winds up. At this point, I have no idea. But I’ll keep you in the loop.

Thanks to all of you who’ve been so faithful to read my work, both on my blog and my book. I have more books planned, some even started, but I must finish all the work on this one first. Question for you—would you like to see more Charlotte books, or are you ready to move on?

Wherever you are and whatever you’re reading, try to write a review of that book. Remember, it doesn’t have to be long, just honest. A simple—I loved this book and I know you will, too. Highly recommended.— is great! Any author would love to read those words. You may use a name other than your own, such as BookCrazyinNC. Or use your real name. Whatever feels good to you.

Thanks again for supporting my meager offerings before the Lord. Know I love y’all and I’m praying for each of you.

Blessings, y’all!

 

I try so hard to find songs that represent what I write about in my blog posts. This one is about the end of the book and the beginning of edits. Not exactly what this song is about. So thankful for the end that led to the beginning of a new life for each of us who make the choice to follow Jesus! So thankful for that precious gift of salvation. May this bless you.