I've spent the past few weeks working hard at the day job and researching various subjects for my new book.
My next book deals with witchcraft and ghost in a small village in the remote highlands of Scotland. The initial idea seemed fine to me; however, when I started to research the Scottish witch trials of the 1500s, I discovered that they had all taken place in the Lothian region of Scotland, I.e. the lowlands. Many frowns and head scratchings later, I had a brainwave - the lack of highland witch trials could be used to develop the plot.
All seemed to be going well until I realised that I was spending more time researching stuff and creating copious notes. I know from experience that this approach to writing doesn't work for me - research, yes; detailed plotting, no. As a result, I became bogged down in the
So, I put the notes away and took a few days off, worked on something different for a week. Over that week, it's become clear to me where I've gone wrong. I've thrown out a lot of plot lines, some of which I've no idea how to resolve. The last couple of days, I've been editing the first draft (at least, the 20,000 words or so that are written) and cutting ruthlessly. I've got it down to about 14,000 words now and it reads much better, the prose is tighter and doesn't wander. Moreover, I can now see how I want to progress the story. Is it how I originally envisaged it? No. But does it feel right? Most definitely.
I'm hoping to really plough on with it and have the first draft finished in the next couple of months or so. Once it's finished, I'll compare it to my notes to see just how far off the track I was. For now, I'm going back to my golden rule: write, write, write. Research as and when you have to, but for God's sake, keep writing!
