Monday, February 23, 2009

Back to the edits

I've spent the weekend reading through - and making notes on - the first two books of the Season trilogy. Oh, okay, and perving on the buff bods in their body-hugging shirts and bike pants... mmm...

Where was I? Oh, yeah. Editing. Sometimes, when you're pounding away at the keyboard, getting those words down, an event seems like a good idea at the time. (This is the stuff I wrote for the 2006 Nano.)

Summer's Rule reads well enough, but I got tripped up at one particular scene and had to ask the question: can you really have sex between prison bars? I'm thinking... maybe. Awkward and less than satisfying... probably. I'll have to do some research. Academic research, thank you very much! Things like how far apart the bars have to be (it's a private prison cell, think old Western cells), where is the horizontal bar, body width, muscle strength, and... well, stuff like that.

I need to put in more imagery. I don't think I need to boost the emotional side - two scenes near brought me to tears - but on the whole, this book is nearly read to go out there into the big wide world.

Winter's Heart is actually the better of the two - editing-wise. I didn't find anything major to fix - although I'm sure somebody will.

Today, I'm working on Autumn's Fall. I know this one has problems; not the least that it's unfinished, so there'll be writing involved.

My goal, when I send the first out, is to say that the trilogy is complete; no waiting around for the rest.

So it's back to make sure the characters haven't changed in appearance, that the ongoing sub-plot is maintained and the action continues - oh, and if it is possible to have sex through prison bars or if I'll have to change it...

4 comments:

Pandababy said...

Get a copy of Lynn Viehl's (aka Jessica Hall's) "Heat of the Moment", copyright Sheila Kelly 2004, (Penguin Group publishers in Australia). Check out Chapter Fifteen (Pages 212 - 218). Sex on a moving motorcycle has to be number one in the "Top Ten List of Do Not Try This At Home" stunts.

So if PBW can do that, you can surely work out the 'sex through prison bars' scene!

Jaye Patrick said...

Snicker, snicker... you made my day!

I have all Sheila's books except Afterburn and I was eyeing off the Jessica Halls last week.

I'll have to read it again - I'd forgotten that scene.

Thanks, P.!

Pandababy said...

You're welcome :)

Can you get Afterburn there?

Jaye Patrick said...

Yes, but... I wasn't much of a fan of Biorescue so I just didn't buy it.