Book 2, Star Fall Update
The editor reviewing book 2 had medical issues. She provided a sample, chapter 1, three days ago and she indicated that she would turn around the rest of it soon. Unfortunately, I was supposed to get it back 3 months ago. Practically, I will not be able to get it released before the end of the year because of the delay. Once I get it back (I’m hoping today or no later than Friday), I will go through the review notes and make updates. At that point, I will run the novel through AutoCrits editing tools such as word choice, grammar, pacing, sentence starters, passive vs active voice, redundant word use, cliches, adverbs, ect… The process will take 4-6 weeks if I’m disciplined. After that, ideally, I would run it by an editor again but because of the long delay I’m encountering I am probably not going to do that— which means I will jump to the next step, proofing. I think at least 2 proofs are needed, and I expect the turnaround time plus my review of proofer edits to take about 1.5-2 months. After that, there’s formatting for publication which takes longer than it should. I do have preliminary cover art, but that may be revised during this time.
For chapter 1, I had a significant issue. I opted for a 6-month time gap between the end of Star Horizon and the beginning of Star Fall. The main reason is that although showing that period of time would have been interesting, it also would have been a different kind of novel— indeed, it could be an entire novel on its own. Who knows? Once the trilogy is done, perhaps I’ll go back and write a novella to fill in that time gap. As I’ve written Star Fall, that left me with a problem— the relationship of the two main characters, Kor and Charronna, evolved during that time. I showed the impact of their changed relationship in the narrative, but I needed more context, which meant weaving in backstory. Backstory at the beginning on the novel is generally to be avoided as it slows the pacing, which relates to a secondary issue, this being a sequel. The editor judged that I needed some quick reminders/references on who is who and events from Star Horizon. She noted that some people may read book 2 first, and for others several months or longer may have passed since they read book 1. That was easy enough to fix, but weaving in enough context for the reader to understand why they acted as they did (telling instead of showing the 6-month time gap) added about 3 1/2 pages to chapter 1 (which is quite a lot).
After reflecting on the changes, I feel that chapter 1 is more full-bodied— the pacing is slower— but it feels like something to savor, and it allows for the reader a more gradual introduction into the world. That may not be the thing for 2025 novels, but I think it’s the way to go with this one. As I’m going through the editor comments, I will submit chapter 1 for a second review given the significant changes. Though I mishandled the time gap, I’m giving myself some grace— I’m still learning, and the feedback is why I’m using editor.
On the plus side, during the wait, I have been working on Book 3! I’m about 30% done with the initial draft. I do not focus on generating pages / pushing the narrative out. A draft version for me has already gone through rewrites, edits, and a lot of reflection— I prefer to get it right the first time (as much as possible!) over fixing later. So, 30% is a lot of progress, and at this point I have a clear idea of the shape of the novel.
