You read that correctly! The rough draft for the ghost story is done…nearly two months ahead of projections.
Writing Goal One Step Closer to Completion
When I etched my writing goals into digital stone a few weeks ago, I didn't expect to have completed the ghost story's rough draft by mid-January. At the time, the best-case scenario seemed to be sometime in February, and the most likely case was in March or early April. I had recently fractured my arm, and while that didn't keep me from writing, it did slow me down a wee bit. Hopefully, this speedy completion of the rough draft bodes well for the edit.
This makes me feel outstanding because it's always great to get a story out! It also puts me closer to my other writing goal, editing the fourth and final volume in The Allison Lee Chronicles. The editing job necessary to spit-shine that story is, well, monumental.
Editing Deets
How colossal is the editing job for the ghost story? Good question! Here are the deets.
Number of chapters: 47
Estimated average chapter length: 1,665 words
Estimated total words: 78,300
This is more chapters than I originally planned—I was shooting for 45, so 47 is pretty darn close to bullseye. I'm happy with that. I'm also pleased in terms of word count. I was aiming for somewhere between 65,000 to 75,000 words. I think a handful of words over 78,000 puts me in a great spot. The fully edited volumes of The Allison Lee Chronicles came out on average to around 88,000 words, and each was at least 10,000 words shorter after the edit. I'm already considering eliminating a subplot, so dropping the ghost tale below 75,000 words shouldn't be too difficult. As with many things in life, time will tell in the end, but I am hopeful I can have the edit knocked out by June. Wish me luck!
Commenti