![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Deep Into the First Draft
Jun. 24th, 2014 03:24 pmIf I've been quiet on LJ lately it's because I'm now 70,000 words into the first draft of Crossways, the sequel to Empire of Dust (which comes out in November from DAW) and another Psi-tech novel. My three book deal is for two psi-tech novels and a completely unrelated historical fantasy, but the deeper I get into Crossways the more I'm thinking that this will not be the end of the Psi-Tech universe.
The hook line for Crossways is: 'What begins as a search for survivors becomes a battle for survival.'
I can't explain too much of the plot without spoilers for Empire, but things barely alluded to in Empire come to the fore in Crossways, including the nature of 'jumpgate travel' and what lies in wait for the unwary in foldspace. My characters have undergone a radical change in their lives and now must become independent of the corporate empire which spawned them. As always happens in any amorphous bunch of people, some go their own way and others rise to the surface. Some take a bit of a break in this book, but are already crying out for a book of their own. Some character seeds sown in Empire are starting to flower Crossways and (to continue the gardening theme) others are almost ready for pruning.
My delivery date is August, so I need to achieve about 10,000 words a week to complete my first draft by the end of July and give myself a little time for basic revision before i send it off to my editor. That's do-able.
I'm having fun.
The hook line for Crossways is: 'What begins as a search for survivors becomes a battle for survival.'
I can't explain too much of the plot without spoilers for Empire, but things barely alluded to in Empire come to the fore in Crossways, including the nature of 'jumpgate travel' and what lies in wait for the unwary in foldspace. My characters have undergone a radical change in their lives and now must become independent of the corporate empire which spawned them. As always happens in any amorphous bunch of people, some go their own way and others rise to the surface. Some take a bit of a break in this book, but are already crying out for a book of their own. Some character seeds sown in Empire are starting to flower Crossways and (to continue the gardening theme) others are almost ready for pruning.
My delivery date is August, so I need to achieve about 10,000 words a week to complete my first draft by the end of July and give myself a little time for basic revision before i send it off to my editor. That's do-able.
I'm having fun.
