Editing, editing, editing...

At the start of this year, I made a promise to myself. I wasn't going to start a new novel until I'd put out all the works languishing on my laptop. So far, I'm doing okay. I've been working my ass off on The Followers and it's now with the editor. I should hit my June 1st release date as long as I keep my nose to the keyboard and my ass on the chair.

I am, however, really looking forward to moving on to something else. As much as I love my novel, I'm just plain sick of the sight of it. I've lost track of the number of edits I've done on the book now and considering I wrote the novel in 2007 (I think) I would say it's definitely ready to be read.

Yesterday, I read a good post over at Julie Musil's blog about the dangers of over-editing. I totally agree with what she says about being careful about over-editing our writing. As much as we want to make our work perfect, we have to make sure we don't end up taking all the personality out of it. I've read some pieces before where a writer has tried to take every 'was' 'that' and 'it' out of every line they'd written. The result was a static, jerky piece of writing and simply didn't flow.

I'm a big fan of the site www.autocrit.com to help with my writing, but I am careful not to go completely overboard with it. There are times when certain words simply need to be overused, like for example, when someone is having a conversation. People talk how people talk, and cutting out words people would normally use will end up making their speech sound stilted.

So, now I'm working on the edits that are coming back to me. I'm being thorough, but not too thorough, and I'm looking forward to June 1st when I can finally wave my novel goodbye.

Help Needed! Win $25 Amazon Voucher.

On June 1st, my next novel, The Followers, will be released. I'm looking to create as much noise as possible about the release of my new book, and I'm looking for help from each and everyone of you guys.

Here is my proposal. Each person who is willing to blog/facebook/or tweet about The Followers on June 1st will be given two copies of the ebook: one for themselves, and another to giveaway as they see fit. Each person who blogs/facebooks/or tweets about the book (including people who RT on twitter) will then be in to win a $25 Amazon gift voucher. Let me know what you've done by commenting on my post on June 1st or emailing me marissafarrar@yahoo.co.uk. Each blog/fb/tweet will count as an extra entry to win the $25 voucher!

Now, I know June 1st is still quite a long way off, but if you're interested in getting involved, make sure you contact me, but either emailing me or leaving me a comment. I'm happy to email out a synopsis/cover/etc to be included in blog posts.

Hoping to hear from you all! Marissa.

A Dicken's of a tale...

The first installment of my next novel, scheduled for a mid 2011 release, is now up on Free Fantastical Fiction. I'll be posting every Monday, with the first half of the novel released as a series before publication. There are also six other authors will be doing the same thing, each posting the next part of their novel, with a different post every day! Charles Dickens did the same thing with Great Expectations (not that I'm expecting my stuff to be anywhere on his level).

The novel is called The Followers and here is the blurb:

     The night Gabe Mitchell finds his friend dead, life changes beyond all recognition. Exiled from where he grew up and his family threatened by the local prophet, Eli, the seventeen-year old turns to the police chief of a neighbouring town.
     But all is not right in Gabe's fiercely religious hometown of Prosperity. While the community prepares for its centennial, the relative peace of the township shatters. Men report nightmares and visions of an old woman—right before dying in their beds.
     Gabe and the chief, Jake Tucker, discover a history far darker than ever thought possible. Soon, the young man starts to have visions of his own and can't help but wonder if he'll survive to save his family in time.
    The Followers is a story of family, ancestry, and knowing blood really is thicker than water.

I hope that's got the juices following and you'll head off to the new blog to see how it starts! And remember, this novel is pre-publication, so any thoughts or insights you have will be welcome, and you never know, they just may end up affecting the final novel. See you there!