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For all the writers interested in how the process works, I plan to give you a regular 'blog' of sorts on each stage of writing this book. I never quite know what people want to hear about but perhaps there's some of you embarking on novels and unsure of what's involved. So ... I wrote the initial rough manuscript - the skeleton as I like to think of it - and then put it away while I went overseas for three weeks. I tend not to read my work as I go along. In fact it's not even a tendency if I'm honest....I just head forwards and never look back during the draft process. That's why I try and write very steadily in four to five day blocks of three hours per session. By keeping this continuity I can keep the previous week's part of the story in my head and juggle the various plot threads. It doesn't require me to read what was written the week before or even the day before in other words. And I leave myself a leading sentence before the weekend begins as I know no writing, only family stuff, will take place. But come Monday I have that leading sentence to remind me where to leap off from. But I still don't read backwards and because I dont plan ahead what I'm going to write or where the story might go, I am always working in the present...if you get my drift. I was pleased to get that rough draft into the computer before I went away - it was the perfect time to close the story and leave it. It cured in my absence and I realise that although my head was filled with an entirely different research project on a very different genre during that three weeks, I think back of mind allowed Valisar to ferment somewhere deep. When I returned I had wonderful distance from the tale and also a sense of freshness and no doubt a lot of new ideas even though I wasn't consciously aware of them. I am now reading through the story for the first time! What fun this is. There is so much I'd forgotten I'd crafted and I am always amazed at how the story seems to bolt together even though I write in the quirky manner that I do. I'm enjoying the tale and naturally I am now refining and polishing as I go. Plenty is changing. I'm adding in fresh ideas and deleting bits that I think are distracting for the reader. Of course, all I'm doing is getting this to what my editor considers is First Draft and opening it up to the major work that will be done on the manuscript from early 2008. I will deliver the First Draft just before Christmas. Three editors - based in Sydney, London and New York - will then go to work on the First Draft and put forward their suggestions for structural and storyline amendments. I will have to consider all of these ideas and then see how I would like to work them into the Second Draft. This is called the Structural Edit....and in my opinion is the most important. It is where the absolute hardest yards will be done on the book and for me is the longest, most gruelling part of the journey from story idea in head to published novel on the bookshelf. More to follow in coming weeks.

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Fiona, when does your army of draft readers become involved (not your editors; the others who help out)?? During the First Draft, after or the Second Draft? And how quickly do your Editors get your Draft back to you?? Cheers Merryd

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Good question, thanks Merryd for reminding me to mention this crew of very important people in my life. Two of them have already been reading as I've been moving along. I give them blocks of chapters. They have clear instructions on what they're reading for. All are obviously reading for story enjoyment i.e. am I entertained? But each have their various roles....Pip for story power, Sonya for very nitty gritty continuity/glossary, Gary for timelines. They're happy to read in this stop/start manner. Now I bring in two others who are reading right now and will get their comments to me before I do the send to the three editors. Jude is reading for pacing, characterisation, not to mention her wealth of experience as a bookseller telling her how readers may react to this new story from me. Plus Sam who is reading with all the same needs in mind, except she's a fantasy specialist and is looking at it from a purely editorial point of view And of course, Ian. Ian reads with the hideously savage eye of a newspaper editor and he hates waffle, anything that doesn't feel absolutely credible, slow patches, etc. I will have all of their input before the HC editors see the manuscript. In the meantime, I will start Matt moving slowly through the manuscript so he can start designing the map. Your second question. How quickly do the editors come back to me. Well, we have Christmas and everyone's summer holidays getting in the way of this one. I will deliver in december but I don't anticipate anyone will read it until January. But I would anticipate receiving all the notes from all three editors back to me by the beginning of February. I will likely have about four weeks to do the structural edit but I'll only need up to two, perhaps only 10 days. I hate to have it sitting around and prefer to drop everything and immerse myself fully into the story. This is going to be published in October in Britain in hardback. HC in London is going to need everything signed off and ready for print no later than around July so its team has time to do pre-publicity, marketing and last minutes sell in. The actual sell in by the reps into the stores will likely be done around April! Yes, terrifying! So we need advance reader copies for media and booksellers by mid year, which is why I have to work so quickly at these early stages to give myself as much time as possible for the editorial process. F

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Hi Fiona, Thanks for your insight into this area of writing. Very interesting to hear what happens behind the scenes - and can appreciate now why it takes as long as it does to get a book out.

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Thanks, Fiona. It is really interesting to hear the 'behind the scenes' stuff.

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Good stuff, Fi. 

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Slàinte!