If only there was a committee for this.
I got quite a bit done yesterday. I now have the first 22,000 words of Camilla's story edited. I started the next part and, as I read through it, I realized something. She didn't have her truck and needed a ride from Jed. But... but... she had it before.
What had happened? I looked back and this is what I found:
* Chapter one: It's involved in a fender bender, goes to the shop.I've made some plot changes, including the beginning, which resulted in the first truck incident. And then somehow the rest just sort of happened. I didn't realize it until I read the first part from beginning to end. See what happens when you take chunks of it over large periods of time? You forget the little details.
* Chapter three: Mysteriously, Camilla has it back in order to drive to work.
* Chapter five: Now it's missing and she needs a ride from Matthew.
* Chapter six: It's back.
* Chapter seven: Nope, gone again -- she needs a ride from Jed.
In any case, I'll be spending today trying to figure out how to fix this problem because there are places she MUST have her vehicle and places that she simply can't, or it changes some big things.
Oh, the joy.
In other news, I picked up some books last week from a particular publishing line because it seemed like it was a line fairly appropriate for me. One was the last book in a series, so I set it aside for now. The one I picked up next and am desperately trying to read (it's going to skew my reading totals for the month because I'm having to force myself through it and it's taking a lot of time) is just plain awful.
The heroine is obnoxious and nasty to the hero, and yet he trails after her like a puppy (though he's actually a very powerful millionaire). He bought something from her father that had been in the family for generations, and she wants it back. She shows up, unannounced, at his office, asks to buy it back but says she won't have the money for at least a month because dear old dad spent it. After two paragraphs (during which we see how much the hero really wants this thing - it's he dream AND he worries about his competitors seeing him as a wimp) he says "sure".
What?
The book has an implausible plot, idiotic characters (why, oh why is this handsome millionaire attracted to this angry and snide woman? And why is the woman so nasty to a man who is, essentially, giving her exactly what she wants?) and the writing is stiff. AND, this author has several books in print.
I mentioned to my mom that I was thinking of giving a try to write for this line and she said, "You write better than that."
Ironic, isn't it?
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4 comments:
Oh, I KNOW! Reading books like that is so frustrating...
Tee hee hee on Camilla's truck - but at least you caught the inconsistencies before an agent or editor did!
Marianne, I just wanted to stop by your blog and say "Hi". Also, thanks so much for commenting on my blog. It's always nice to see a new "face".
I wanted to return the gesture so I looked at your profile and was pleasantly surprised. Not only do we like most of the same movies, but I checked out your website and LOVED the write-up on your two books!! I'm going on Amazon later to see if I can order them! :-) And I think I'll bookmark this blog so I can come back!
I know the feeling re inconsistency. My character got very concerned about her dog's needs--in Chapter 5. Before that, the dog had to fend for itself re food, water, walks, and going out to do its business. Oops. The dog is important later, though, so I had to go back and write her into earlier scenes.
And I have to remember to take care of her from here on out.
I find those inconsistencies in my work, too. In my murder mystery the heroine has a dog in the first two chapters. Then it apparently pulls a Houdini and is never seen or heard from again. *g*
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