A Writer's Week #61: Calm Before the Storm

Winter is limping to its bitter end this week. We just had what I hope is the final snowstorm of the season. I am so over snow right now. We did not have too many storms this year, but the ones we had were big. So, bring on the sunshine, I'm ready for it!

This writer's week was rather slow and dull, unfortunately. There was not much going on except for some writing. On that front, I was not as prolific as I would have liked to have been. I've been fighting a cold, which has made me a little sluggish. Because of that, although things flowed really well when I did write, I didn't spend as much time as I could have writing. I guess I should relish this slow period, because I'm getting poised for a flurry of activity in the next few months. More on that a little later.

I wound up writing 2,000 words, which has been about my average for the last three or four weeks.. I really wish I could write 3,000 words a week, which is what I had been doing earlier on. Still, right now The Deliverers 3: The Golden Dragon of Ang is at 26,100 words over 24 chapters and 114 pages. It's coming along really nicely, and I'm generally pleased with the way the story is progressing.

I do have one concern, though. In the book, the Deliverers are visiting a place called the Dragon Islands. These are five islands that resemble parts of a dragon. Their adventure takes them to all five of the islands. That's fine, but here's the problem. I'm 114 pages into it and they're only on the second island. If I keep up this pace, this book is going to be even longer than book 2, which I think will wind up being about 270 pages. The way it stands now, book 3 could be over 300 pages easily. That's pretty long for a middle grade novel, unless your name is Rowling.

My wife has read it and says the pace seems to be okay. I have not read it all the way through, but I guess I should. If the pace is indeed all right, then I suppose I can live with whatever length it winds up being. If it does drag, then I can always cut, although for me that's hard.

I'm also a little worried that there is less action than in book 2 so far. Golden Dragon is more like Sharky and the Jewel in that there's a little more mystery to it. Like the first book, the characters have more distance to travel. Oh well, I still think it's good, it's just different. Each of the books seems to be its own animal. While they all have similarities, they are all radically different, and that's a good thing.

So, what's on the horizon? Well, more writing, obviously. Aside from that, narrator Jimm Singer and I are lining up reviewers for the audio version of Sharky and the Jewel so I should be sharing those with you starting this month. If you haven't checked it out you should--the link is at the top of this page. I should finally be getting a glimpse of the cover for book 2--I'll share it with you when I do. School visits will be starting soon and once Order of the Crystal Lion is out, I'll be appearing at some shows. I'll let you know the details as things are set up. Have a great week!