The other day I was happy to say I finished the first draft of After Image. It sat nicely at 79000 words and I am now into the texture pass. I think I learned a lot from November Sunrise in terms of getting a solid draft out there. I was a little slower on this but still very quick overall, but I think the pace is right. I was able to lock in more of the sensory detail that I had to add in later on in Sunrise.
This whole process has been a huge learning experience. Reading great crime fiction has also taught me a lot about what makes the genre so interesting and special.
My little spins on it currently have landed well with the select beta readers that have November Sunrise in their hands. The genre-blend hit at the right percentages. I had one person describe it as “sixty percent case, and forty percent simmering romance” and I thought that was perfect.
In After Image the weave is even tighter. The stakes are higher because of it. You got a man with something to lose and the drama writes itself. The texture pass should hopefully go quick, then its onto the typos and re-read. Then into the hands of betas and possibly the query trenches for select agents. I have November Sunrise out there with some particularly spot on agents. The trenches move slow but I should have a catalogue of work to show for my pace if things keep moving along like this.
As always (much) more to come…