What have I done to myself?

I’ve dabbled in many genres, but I like history. I’ve traveled and hiked Colorado and Wyoming to explore, learn, and meet new people. Sure, I like to read. I’ve seen the world from a variety of points of view.

So, wherein lies my personal demise? Putting both of the above into a manuscript—a western historical fiction book, to be precise.

Seems I had more energy and time before researching started. Call me a covert gossip, but I love researching…museums, ancient newspapers, historically correct reproductions of places and things, History Colorado, DPL, magically reincarnated people, reenactments, college dissertations….

Where did I first go wrong in this process?

• I didn’t go to the correct sources. I listened to well-meaning yet uninformed people. Research on the web is great, but there are lots of half-truths and outright falsehoods out there.
• I spent too much time on interesting—but alas, non-applicable—tangents.
• I thought I had a fair idea of what information I needed, but I failed to gather small details which took days to relocate.
• I pantsed way too much.

I was in the first stages of inexperience. That’s what’s great about RMFW’s resources, like the blog, the free programs, and of course the conferences. What am I doing now to better organize and utilize my time and resources?

• I reread, and applied far more from, Million Dollar Outlines by David Farland. (I’m plotting more first now, no matter what a previous blog of mine said.)
• I reread Writing the Breakout Novel by Donald Maas. Again.
• Now I know my characters like I should have known them before I began to actually write—i.e., what each character wants, how and why they reached this point in their lives, and the best time for my protagonist to ask herself “Who am I?”
• Therefore, a couple subplots can tie into my main plot and characters much, much better, with powerful emotional impacts for the reader.
• I hired an editor from my critique group to go over the first 50 or so pages to make sure it was compelling; to make sure the language pattern of each character is distinct; to check my (in)consistency of punctuation; and to make sure every paragraph had a beginning, middle, and end and ties into the following paragraph.
• I am communicating with experts to clarify processes of what my characters do.
• I checked three websites for 1860-1865 calendars. I now print monthly calendars where I write what each character is doing. This helps me keep track of each character, see where my pacing slows down, find places to add more emotion and tension, etc.
• I am reading even more books of the same genre as my story because a few agents asked me for comparison titles. What? There aren’t any I can find, but hey, lots of good historical fiction books out there! So, I’m hunting. I can’t be the first person with the ideas I have. Can I?

That’s what I’ve done to myself. Learned. Experienced the genre and determined historical fiction is where my heart lies. It is where I want, need, and love to write.