I’m happy happy happy to announce that A Tale of Two Castles is out! Released yesterday, and I’m now on tour. Thanks to all you blog readers for your support and eagerness to read the book! Thanks to those of you who weighed in on the title, and more thanks to April for the actual title. This is my nineteenth book, not counting my early, unpublished efforts, and it never ceases to be thrilling.
New on the website is another stop on my book tour, this one in New York City on May 28th. Hope to see a few of you there or at the other events on my tour.
Also, the absolute final cover of Forgive Me, I Meant to Do It, is posted on the website, and I think it’s a hoot. There’s no poem in the book to go with it; my editor said no, but I did write one. I don’t think I posted it on the blog before, so here it is, a blog exclusive:
This Is Just to Say
I have taken a chomp
out
of your precious boat
on its maiden voyage
which
you optimistically
hoped would take you
around the world
Forgive me
I need
more fiberglass
in my diet
End of poem. Please laugh.
On March 4, 2011, Kilmeny of the Ozarks wrote, A couple of posts back you mentioned how often you restart your book. Does that ever make it hard to meet deadlines? I’m having a problem somewhat like this. I’m a “planner” and have to know my plot outline, characters and setting before I start the first draft. And right now I’m taking a course on novel writing from the Institute of Children’s Literature. I’m on my fourth assignment, where I’m supposed to write the first third of my novel. The problem is, when I started to do the edits my instructor noted on my chapter outline–my entire plot changed. Completely. My main character moved out of the real world into the fantasy world and her quest changed, etc. So I had to rewrite that and redo my characters… and I’m still not done. My deadline is in mid April, and I’m afraid I won’t be able to meet it. I guess what I’m asking is: how can I work on this “pre-planning” (characters, setting, research) while also writing? Sorry, I know it’s confusing. Maybe I just need some organizational tips!
And Charlotte wrote, I agree with Kilmeny of the Ozarks–it would be great to see a post about writing with deadlines. Personally, I’ve been working on the same novel for a little over five years now, and I’ve changed and changed and changed the entire plot over and over. It gets me worried that I’ll never finish–and as I want to write books for a living, this is kind of problematic!
How long did Ella take to write? Did you do a lot of editing before sending it to publishers? How did you know when you were done?
I can write about only my own method, and right now it seems as if I work like someone blindfolded, wearing oven mittens, and trying to repair a watch! I don’t outline. Whenever I’ve tried I haven’t been able to stick with the plan. Research is somewhat different, but I don’t know how to pre-plan my characters and my setting except in the most rudimentary way. Everything shifts once I start. Even my research needs change. A Tale of Two Castles is set in a fantasy Middle Ages, so I read about daily life during the period, but when I needed to know about medieval banquets, I returned to the books. (I don’t want to pass the novel off as historically accurate. It’s not. When my plot was incompatible with the facts, the facts went out the window.)
As far as deadlines go, I try to make mine distant enough that I don’t have to stress over meeting them. This mystery novel that’s giving me so much trouble isn’t due until 2014. At this point I’m still pretty secure about making it.
For those who don’t know, if a writer misses a deadline with a book, the book gets rolled over to the publisher’s next list, the next season. My editor assures me this wouldn’t ever be a problem, but I suspect otherwise. Editors move to other publishing houses. Publishers change direction. It’s best to be on time if you can.
Revision deadlines are tighter, but I’m a revising warrior and I blast straight through. I’m known for meeting deadlines, which, I think, gives editors a nice comfort level.
BUT meeting a deadline comes second to making the story as good as you can make it, and often that can’t be rushed. Of course, some working writers don’t have the luxury of lengthy rewriting and repeated fresh starts if the deadline can’t be moved. Then they have to settle for the best they can do in a limited time. Kilmeny of the Ozarks, I missed your mid-April deadline, but for others who are taking courses or attending school, this is another situation where you may have to accept a result you’re not entirely satisfied with. You have to meet school deadlines or sacrifice a good grade, but you can continue with your revisions later if the project interests you.
Kilmeny of the Ozarks, I hope the instructor’s comments that caused all your changes were helpful, even exciting and you thought something like, Wow! If I do this, then I can do that, and it will work in this new way I never thought of before. When I make a u-turn in a manuscript, it’s usually because I’ve glimpsed a better way to go forward. I may not celebrate the hundred or two hundred or three hundred pages I have to rewrite, but probably I should. The understanding I come to, which seems obvious in hindsight, I couldn’t have reached without the blunders.
Every writer has a unique process. You may have to re-outline. Do it or you try a different way of working. I think it’s good advice when possible to just keep going when the story changes, advice that I often don’t have the self control to follow. A friend once told me one should continue even if the gender of the main character changes! I can’t, not when the underlying assumptions of a story shift. Otherwise I soldier on.
When rewriting against a deadline, when actually writing, not taking a shower or walking the dog, put the deadline out of your mind. It’s a distraction. You’re doing the work, which is hard enough without also worrying.
Writing speed varies from writer to writer. Some of us can bang out a novel in three months, some in five years. Ella Enchanted took me two years and I was working full-time at a non-writing job; Fairest took four years and I had quit my day job. Sometimes it depends on the book. Charlotte, you may spend seven years on this book and finish the next one in six months. I find that my struggle alternates: hard book (hard to write), easier, hard, easier. I suspect my subconscious is so exhausted by the difficult ones that it sends me a simpler project next.
On the other hand, maybe what your subconscious is sending up is fear, fear of finishing, fear of sending your work out, fear of rejection, fear of never having another good idea. All of these fears are unsurprising, whether you have them or other readers of the blog do. So maybe it’s time to stick with the latest plot, improve it as much as you can, and move on. Whatever happens to it ultimately, you’ve learned from the writing.
The worth of a book has nothing to do with how long it took to write. The reader doesn’t know if we spent a decade laboring over it or a fevered twenty-one days. He can’t tell if we revised a gross of times or if it went straight from our computers to the copy editor, who didn’t change even a comma.
I had a lot of help with Ella. I was taking a writing class and I belonged to a critique group, but that didn’t stop me from detouring two-hundred pages while my teacher and my critique buddies kept wondering out loud where I was going. When I got back on track I did revise a great deal. I always know I’m done when I find myself changing words and then changing them back.
Writing is weird and mysterious. We control the story and yet it feels like we have no control at all. And both are true.
Prompt time!
∙ Your main character, Eraxo, has an awful case of writer’s block and a looming deadline. Although his writing is blocked, his ingenuity isn’t. In the time freed up by not writing he invents a device to slow time and give himself as long as he needs to work through his writing paralysis. He sits at his strange machine, dons the headset, turns the dials, lifts the levers, and pushes the start button. Everything works. He’s slowed time. But he discovers that place changes with time and that creatures live here who are invisible at humanity’s ordinary tempo, and they are not happy about being discovered. What happens?
∙ Your main character, Eraxa, recognizes she lacks the writing spark, but she wants it. She loves books and the glamour (ha!) of being an author, and her ethics are not strong. She’s as clever as her brother Eraxo, so she invents a time-travel machine. She will go into the future and steal a bestseller, then return to the present and submit it to the book’s publisher as her own. However, in the future she makes a dire discovery about the future of books and reading and publishing. When she returns to the present she has new and unexpected choices that challenge her questionable moral fiber, her courage, and her foresight. What happens?
Have fun, and save what you write!
Amanda L. Davis says:
I would be interested in reading those 200 pages of rambles from Ella Enchanted! I'm sure there are other people who would be, too. I love that story world. 🙂
Caitlin Flowers says:
I can't wait to read Tale of Two Castles! Thanks for another awesome post 🙂
MNM says:
I have a story that I have restarted a couple of times because I can't decide what POV to use. I am also having trouble figuring out if this story should be told using a diary format. How do you decide which POV would be best for your story?
Wendy says:
I cannot outline. I always have to do some planning ahead — especially with my latest projects, which have more involved plots — but I can't go so far as to plan every turn and chapter. So much happens and changes when I write that if I tried to plan everything it would just make the writing process worse. I love writing this way, actually: you make a lot of discoveries.
MNM – When I'm trying to decide what POV to use, I think about the purpose of my story and the characters. One of my projects has a lot of characters, and sometimes I need to reveal things to the reader that the main character can't know yet. In this case I use third person omniscient. In other stories I want to zone in to my main character's particular experiences and emotions and even flashbacks, which would be better told in first person.
What you're aiming for in a story can really change things, too. If it's about multiple characters' context in the world, go for a broader POV. If it's about one experience or dilemma, centered around one person, try something closer.
Diary format is a really cool option, and is good for telling experiences with a certain voice. When doing this, think about what your main character would put into a diary. At the same time, you'll have to add more detail than would necessarily be in a real diary, because you don't want to bore your readers.
Good luck with your story!
Grace says:
This makes me feel a lot better about all my do-overs and long breaks in writing…
Thanks for the post, Ms. Levine!
P.S. the cover for "Forgive me, I meant to do it" looks great!
Jenna Royal says:
I loved the poem! 'I need more fiberglass in my diet . . .' awesome. 🙂
I was getting worried about my story – only one dialogue remained the same from the first draft to the second in the first 100 pages! I'm not planning on changing to much in the next draft, but then, the changes I'm making are much more extensive than what I planned. This makes me feel better about it, and more confident moving forward. Thanks. 🙂
bluekiwii says:
The poem was funny. I like it.
The quote in this post that really helped me out is: "I think it’s good advice when possible to just keep going when the story changes…" In the past, I've tried doing lots of pre-planning for a story and then I find that I go in an entirely different direction. Your advice to keep going even when your writing takes different turns then your plans, is really helpful, and something I'll keep in mind.
So I have a question for everyone here. I often have the problem that I concentrate solely on one character as I do a scene and the result is that often neglect the other characters in the scene –making his/her speech patterns, overall behavior, and, well, "character" inconsistent. This often happens because I'm so in tune with the main character's mindset, that I sort of forget the mind processes that the characters reacting to the MC have. How do guys avoid this?
April says:
What fun prompts! I might take them for a spin just for fun. 🙂
My contact in the US said your book showed up in the mail! Now I just have to wait for her to ship it to me here… Can't wait!
Sharazad says:
@bluekiwii: I sort of revise my writing as I write. I'm not revising like, "Wow, this is pig slop! I'll never write a decent sentance ever!" I'm doing it like, "Hmm. What's a stronger verb? How about – puffing?" And when my characters start sounding wooden or (and this happens a lot to me) one character starts hogging all the quips, I go back and revise. "Sharon's a smart girl. She'd never say THAT in an argument. What would I say if someone called ME a liar? Well, how about I have Sharon say-" I tend to start giving all my creativity to the character I like best, or the character I agree the most with, but I try to make everyone more or less equally witty. It's mostly a matter of not accidentally dumbing down everyone else so that my main character can enjoy a feeling of supreme intelligence – and I with her. Hope this helps!
Chicory says:
Just wanted to let you know I've read `Tale of Two Castles.' I loved it. Elodie is easy to identify with, and you had me really guessing as to who committed the crime.
gailcarsonlevine says:
bluekiwii–I'm adding your question to my list.
Chicory–Thanks! I'm very glad to hear it.
marveloustales says:
I usually try to keep going when I realize I need to make a big earlier change in a story–sometimes I'll actually make notes on what needs to change in the earlier scenes, to help me when I get to the second draft stage. It usually works…although I just broke that rule recently with a chapter that had me totally confused trying to keep track of things after realizing I needed a change!
Fascinating point that the reader can't tell how long a writer spent on a book–and I'm sure that's true 99% of the time. Although it also made me think of the way Tolkien spent years on Lord of the Rings, and Lewis wrote The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe in a few months–and I think it shows for both of them! 🙂
Chris Moriarty says:
Hi Gail! I'm a longtime reader of yours and also a writer. I actually volunteered myself to teach a kids' writing class in my own town after reading about your class in Brewster NY, and I was wondering if you'd be willing to let me sit in on one of your classes next summer since I don't live too far away. I taught K-8 art long ago, and I've been in several critique groups, but I've never taught creative writing. I feel like I have a lot to learn! I'm enjoying this blog too, and finding a lot of good advice for my own writing as well as for teaching others. So, thanks! (Small world moment: I grew up on Morningside Heights, just a couple miles south of your old neighborhood…)
bluekiwii says:
@Shazarad
Your response was helpful since I saw that someone else–besides me–wrote the scene and went back to revise the other character's behavior and dialogue. Sometimes though…I realize that the supporting character would never act like that…yet if I revise, certain actions wont occur the same way, so I have to revise even more. It will be interesting to see how people keep their supporting characters from remaining in character as they write (before the revision). Thanks for your response though, I'll keep doing your suggestion.
gailcarsonlevine says:
Chris Moriarty–I'll be happy to have you visit, and maybe I can sit in with you some time, too. I suggest you get in touch with Tony Hirt at HarperCollins. You'll find him at the CONTACT page on my website, and then we can communicate directly.
Aria says:
Please please PLEASE say you'll do a sequel for Tale of Two Castles. The ending is like reading the lines once upon a time. I love your books. I'm impatiently waiting for my niece to be old enough to read Ella Enchanted, a favorite of mine since it came out. I also wish to commend you. I've read a lot of books…. like over 1,000 or some such nonsense. 700 at least, and something that drew me to this book was your ogre. I'm quite impressed that you wrote a completely different ogre than the ones in your previous books. Like I said, I do hope you'll write a sequel.
Clara Warford says:
I already requested A Tale of Two Castles from the library :).
MNM says:
@Wendy- thanks for the advice!