Draft #6 - Mastering the Art of the Novel Restart

Time to Get Back on the Horse

Six weeks ago I was focused and motivated to jump into the rewrite of my novel and get started on Draft #6. I had made notes over the previous six weeks while reviewing my editor’s feedback on plot and character arc changes I wanted to incorporate.

The first week of May I began by outlining the first half-dozen scenes across the the three opening chapters and had written a new Chapter 1 before leaving for vacation on May 9th. I fully expected to get right back to it upon returning one week later.

One week later has turned into four weeks later that feels like four months later after my 16-day pneumonia hospital ordeal and another two weeks of recovery at home. I’m just now starting to feel well enough and comfortable enough to think creatively.

However, the last five weeks have been challenging mentally and physically. It is hard to think creatively and be motivated to work, no matter how much you enjoy the work and are committed to fulfilling your intended outcomes when you are in significant pain and discomfort.

As that subsides, the creative motivation slowly builds, and I remind myself of a strategy developed by a professional-speaking colleague and close friend, international rock climber Manley Feinberg II. He calls it “Mastering the Art of the Restart.” You can read how he uses this strategy, climbing the world’s tallest cliffs here.

In my four years of crafting this story, I’ve learned that the process of writing a novel is similar to rock climbing in that there are a lot of falls along the way. In rock climbing as you will read here, the falls are slips or missteps or lose your grip on something, and rock climbers expect them and plan for them.

As a first-time novelist, I didn’t plan for the non-writing falls that have caused delays in getting it done. I had no problem in waiting for the editor’s feedback, taking quality time to immerse myself in exploring that feedback to make suggested appropriate adjustments. Those were easy to navigate because they were part of the plan and process.

But, it's the unexpected life falls, like four weeks of pain, discomfort, and incapacity of a pneumonia attack. There is nothing like that to be a creativity killer.

So, this week I am committed to mastering Manley’s “Art of the Restart” to get back at it and adjust my draft six rewrite timeframe. I originally had hoped to have it completed by July 31, and now in looking at the rest of my summer, I think a more realistic draft six completion goal is September 30th.

There are two reasons for this. My wife and I have some travel plans for the next couple of months through mid-September, and I’ve decided on a couple of significant plot and character arc changes, including bringing someone who was a minor character more to the fore to significantly impact the plot and my main character’s motivations and decisions.

Stay tuned! And, thanks for following my debut writing journey.

‘til next time…