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Allison Larkin

Internationally Best-Selling Author

You are here: Home / writing / Tweaking

Tweaking

July 6, 2009 Filed Under: writing

I know you haven’t heard from me all that much lately. It’s because I’m back in the rewrite process. The last round was pretty significant. This round is more about tweaking. A little more here, a little less there, some technical things, a few reworded sentences. But it’s still hard to dive back in.

I think the editing process requires a lot more attention than the writing process. For me, writing is something that happens in conjunction with everything else I do – I’m driving to the grocery store and I think about my main character – I’m doing yard work and suddenly I know the back story of one of my secondary characters. Writing is a freeing process that’s about getting my ideas down. Editing is about getting my ass in the chair. It’s about drowning out everything else that’s calling to me (and trust me, even laundry can start to look appealing when the daunting task of rewrites is at hand) and just sitting there and putting myself in my book and problem solving.

I enjoy the process, but it feels heavier. It requires me to keep 90,000 plus words in my head. Can I describe his eyes that way, or did I use those words to describe them already back on page 136? If I condense these two chapters into one, how do I get my main character from point A to point B? It’s a lot different from that unplanned road trip, throw some snacks in the car, make sure you have money for tolls, see where you end up, kind of feeling that goes along with writing a first draft.

If I can get in a good 3-4 hours of rewrite work in a day, I’m thrilled (and mentally exhausted). And then all I want to do is read or watch TV – (currently ANYBODY OUT THERE and CALIFORNICATION – both are excellent).

And as much as a part of me wishes I could just fast-forward to it all being done, another part of me is clinging to every second I can get with Van (my main character). Because, the work will get done, and then Van and I are going to go our separate ways for awhile. If you’re not a writer, this is going to sound crazy, but I’m going to miss Van so much that the idea of it makes me a little weepy. She may just be a figment of my imagination, but she’s still one of my favorite people.

3 Comments

Comments

  1. Dingo says

    July 7, 2009 at 5:38 am

    I can’t wait to meet Van.

    Reply
  2. Courtney says

    July 7, 2009 at 5:08 pm

    I can’t wait to meet Van either! I’m so, so excited to read your book next year.

    Reply
  3. Corinne says

    July 8, 2009 at 10:30 pm

    I agree, I already love Van and I can’t wait to dive into her world. Keep writing about your writing process, it’s fascinating. xo

    Reply

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We are in the habit of starting and ending our day We are in the habit of starting and ending our days side by side in our lawn chairs, while the light rises or dims. It’s still chilly at the outer edges of the day. Sometimes Roxy shivers. I bought her a sweater, but she won’t wear it. Sometimes I try to wrap her in my jacket, but she’s not having that either, so I throw her ball and try to get her run and then she comes back to her chair, warm for a little longer. #dailyroxydog #huskychihuahua #dogssittinginchairs
“I got a secret I should tell. I’m going up to “I got a secret I should tell. I’m going up to heaven in a split pea shell.” ~ @petermulvey43 Words Too Small to Say
Happy as a dog in a freshly dug nap hole. #dailyro Happy as a dog in a freshly dug nap hole. #dailyroxydog #huskymixesofinstagram
I saw this little dresser at my favorite magic ant I saw this little dresser at my favorite magic antique store sometime in November and didn’t buy it. But then, of course, I kept thinking about her. She’s the perfect size for my office, and I found those drawer pulls hilarious. When I finally went back in December, I told myself I was shopping for wall art, because I assumed she would be gone. But she was right where I’d seen her last: balanced on another dresser with boxes of old picture frames and tchotchkes piled on top (the true mark of a magic antique store). I didn’t even realize she had a towel rack — that she was a wash stand, not a dresser — until I asked about the price, said I’d take her, and my favorite magic antique store person asked if we needed to unscrew the towel rack to fit her in my car. I suspect this little sweetie is not from the days of necessary wash stands so much as from a country kitchen in the 80s. She was in rough shape, and not made from wood worth stripping and re-staining, but her price reflected that. I had to disassemble that door and put it back together, but I’d been in the market for some experience working with old furniture, and she made me feel brave about trying. I thought about painting her something more neutral, but I’m so glad I didn’t. She deserves to be pink. She’s not perfectly painted and needs a few touch ups. I learned some things about chalk paint and finishes. The drawers stick a bit. Eventually, I’d like to line them with fabric and when I do, I might plane the edges to smooth things out. But goodness, I love her in a way that I wouldn’t if I hadn’t spent time cleaning away her cobwebs and scrubbing the grime from her hilarious drawer pulls. She’s also become a little shrine for the book I’m working on, which makes me love her even more. I’ve always been a person who sees some soul in certain things, and I’m learning to cherish that idiosyncrasy, because there’s so much joy to be found in a brave little toaster or an underdog wash stand. We’re not here in the world for all that long. We may as well love some bright little things. #furnituremakeover
After Roxy started stealing my seat, I dragged a s After Roxy started stealing my seat, I dragged a second lawn chair out. She nudges me over and we sit in our chairs, side by side, and watch the sun set. Well, I watch the sun set. She spies on the neighbors. #dailyroxydog #dogstagram #sundayevening
I truly don’t understand how anyone is this cute I truly don’t understand how anyone is this cute. I never get used to it. There’s no immunity. She’s adorable beyond what pictures can capture. #dailyroxydog #huskymixesofinstagram #ilovemydog
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