OK, it’s almost there. Tentatively entitled ‘A West Cork Mystery’ my novel #4 is almost ready to see the light of day. It’s been beta read and critiqued and I’ve taken note of the amendments required.

Times past I’d be rushing this into print now, but not so this time around. For one thing I’m going to approach a few agents/publishers for the first time. I think this one is marketable and it’s probably about time I tested my work in the shark-infested waters of commercial publishing. I’ll try the Irish market first, then see what a few experts at the Winchester Writers’ Festival have to say. Then, if there’s no interest, nothing has been lost and I’ll eventually throw it out there anyway.

Through impatience and a lack of understanding of the process I have usually published almost as soon as the final chapter is done. This is at the opposite end of the spectrum to those writers that draft, re-draft, agonise, polish before they’re happy that they have it as perfect as they can get it. Almost all the advice I read is that one’s first draft is usually rubbish and it needs three, four, even more drafts before it can be thought of as becoming a finished product.

Well, maybe that’s where I’ll fail as an author. I just don’t have that patience and stoicism within me. But I AM going to go through it at least once more, line by line. I am told my sentences are often too long 😦 I use too many adverbs 😦 I overuse the word ‘very’ 😦 I think I can deal with these things without a total re-draft. And my lovely beta reader likes the book despite its shortcomings 🙂

Then a good professional proof-read and, as far as I’m concerned, it’s done and I’ll be very happy with it. I’m not sure how I’d react to a professional editor instructing me to make wholesale changes, but most likely it won’t get to that stage.

Now, I understand I need a ‘query’ to agents/publishers. I’ve knocked up what I think is a killer. Anyone out there that understands these things care to look at it for me? I’d be very grateful.