What Is It about Early Chapters?

[Introducing Characters-image by Ghostelle from Cockadoodle-DOOM!]

 I've noticed rewriting early chapters seems to take so much longer than later chapters.  I wrote and rewrote and rewrote again chapter one of book one of my chapter book series, Doomimals.  I seriously spent five to ten times longer on it than I did on all of the others because I needed to make sure it did all the important things: establish the characters and why the reader should care about them, establish the setting, stick my toes into the adventure that was about to hit like a tidal wave, show the characters making decisions that would lead them out of the normal world and into the metaphoric underworld, and make it all seem engaging and fun.  That's a lot for one chapter to carry.  And it all had to be done in as short a space as possible, so the reader would keep reading. 

[Editing-source]

 I've gone back to it multiple times and only occasionally find something to tweak.  That's when I know I did it right.  It will be better yet when I have readers go through it and tell me they felt the same.  I still have to go through that same draft and see if my husband and son can find more things to "funny up," places to make more engaging, endearing, amusing, or in other ways make the reader feel.

 

[Funny Characters-source]

I've now gone through the first chapter and made sure, as writing experts say, it ends not where it did end, by getting into the adventure with a new set of characters, but on a cliffhanger that hints at the adventure to come.  I'm now working on making sure chapter two is as compelling and engaging as it can be.  I want to make sure the character is consistent, funny, and endearing, as with the main character of the first book.  In short, I'm working hard to make these books as fun for you as I can. 

Onto Book 2

[Book 1: A focus on Characters (art by Ghostelle)]

One Done

If I were publishing book one as a standalone, it would be ready to go to the publisher, ready to be prepared to come to you.  However, it's really hard to break into the chapter book and even middle-grade fiction markets since one tiny book on the shelf doesn't draw the eye nor have a big market or ready-made fans. I've taken some stabs at reaching out to publishers and agents, always ending up empty-handed.  That's why I embraced the idea of a hybrid publisher.  Once all ten of these first books (plus the first three of my boy's) are ready, they'll be available for you fairly quickly.  The hybrid publisher only takes less than a month from acceptance of the manuscript to readiness for market.  

[A focus on book 2 (art by Ghostelle)]

Moving on 

But now, I have the other eight from the regular series plus the bonus books to prepare.  I have the vision.  I know what I need to do for each book.  For one thing, I need to work on making each book's protagonist the kind of kid you or your child will enjoy following on an adventure.  I need to make sure he or she is truly the hero of his or her own story.  I say his or her because I have three main characters, twins Davis and Kitt and their younger cousin, Tessa.  The first book is from Davis's perspective, second from Kitt's, and third from Tessa's.  I need to polish each voice, so you hear their voices and hear their hearts.  Davis the nerdy slacker's first book is done.  I'll be moving to Kitt, the image-conscious overachiever next. After that, I'll be working on Tessa, the shy animal-loving character.  

[On the road to revising the next books (art by Ghostelle).]

What Else They Need

I'll also make sure the kids' antagonists weave throughout the book, causing problems and working under the umbrella of the primary villain of the first set.  I didn't understand story structure when I first drafted these books.  I'll be making sure I follow the story structure (3-act, 7-act, and hero's journey's 12 points).  The first book now fulfills all of this, though it took a lot longer than planned.  On the bright side, I am getting time to work on writing, plus all the other books are significantly shorter than the first one. 

Now, to get to serious work on book two.  This will be exciting. 

Wrapping up book one

[An illustration from Cockadoodle-DOOM!]

 I was hoping to finish two of my book series by the end of the holiday, but at least I'm just about done with rewriting book one.  I really want to do Doomimals justice.  I want it to be a kids' chapter book series that transports and entertains, while having a sense of reality and groundedness. I want a structure that works within the tradition of the three-act structure, one that keeps the rules but doesn't feel dull or by-the-numbers.  Basically, I want to offer you and your kids something fun and funny but smooth and streamlined as well.  

[An illustration from Cat-a-clysm]

Book one, Cockadoodle-DOOM, has evolved a lot through the feedback from friends, my writing group, a freelance editor, and more.  But it is almost to a finished, polished state.  Then, I will move onto book two, Cat-a-clysm and treat that the same.  It's just a lot shorter, since it doesn't have to establish ground rules for the series as book one does.  It, too, should transport and entertain kids and adults.  I'll keep you posted as I finish each book and get it ready for you.  

[An image from Just Us Chickens.]

Soon, I will have the first ten books published and ready to be read in one collection for you, along with bonus materials such as a video game, a card game, and some bonus books, including the first three of my boy's superhero chicken series Just Us Chickens.  I'm looking forward to bringing these all to you soon. 

Making Progress

[heart of the books: source]

One thing my first set of Doomimals books have been missing is a center: a central villain, a central purpose, and a central motivation for my heroes.  And they all needed to be tied together.  Basically, it's been missing a heart.  It was a crazy bunch of events, one after another, but it wasn't clear how they tied together.  

[Hourglass: source]

So during this brief time I have a lot of freedom, I've been working on installing that center, that heart, on tying all parts together in terms of the opposing motivation of villain and heroes.  My nephew, a recently published author, confirmed that is the one big thing he was missing from these books.  He's been one of my mentors through this writing venture, so it's good to hear I'm on the right track. 

[Summer Reading: Source]

It's fairly clear I won't get all books revised and ready to go by the end of this this brief holiday break.  But if I can get through the first two books, that will be significant progress.  I'll shoot to have them all ready to go by summer, when kids everywhere will be seeking something to read.  

 

Winter Break=Writing Time

[busy-source]

 I kept hoping that I'd be able to squeeze time in for writing n the middle of work and chaos of my life.  But I've been working more than ever before, with a to-do list a mile long every time I paused from my regular job, including another job that ate up far more time than it should.  But now, we're moving toward the holidays, my load is lightening up.  Both jobs and my other burdens (other than mommying) are about to release their grip on me, for at least a few weeks, until a new semester begins in earnest.  

[Into a good book-source]

I plan to make a lot of progress toward bringing you those books I've been promising you, both the Doomimals chapter book series I've been writing and the bonus books, Just Us Chickens, about my boy's superhero group of chickens.  Ideally, they'll come to you before summer comes.  I don't have a set date yet, but when I do, those who watch this blog will be the first to know.  

My Nephew's Book

 

My nephew, Thomas Paxton, and I have been working on our books in parallel courses for years.  He has finally published his, indie style, and is paving the way for me to publish mine.  He will be my guide, as he has been on many things, as I go that way sometime soon.  His book, Crimson Nightfall: Everything Burns, is a dark fantasy about kids caught up in a dark war.  It's available for you on Amazon. 

He calls it a story of healing.  He's even received a voice of support by one of his favorites, Darren Shan.  The summary of his book reads as follows: 

In the world of Terra'Far, a nightmarish reality of monsters...A chorus of darkness and light...
Peter Wulfric gets lured into a blood-thirsty dance of shadows with Abraxan, the Gatekeeper of Souls.
A war of souls brew[s] between King Kresh and Priestess Alex, two monarchs, which rises from a pit of death.  A boy must learn to embrace his heritage as Shadowfang...Peter, his trusty hell-hound Aries, Vyrima, Sam, Vilus, and Orion adventure through the depths of darkness. Together, Peter and his friends who comprise the Shadow's Hand must rise to face the Unholy Trinity to prevent destruction to their world...

I have ordered this book and look forward to reading it, myself.  It's very different from my chapter books, but I know if you like dark fantasy that delves into the soul, this will be worth reading.  

Video Games!

[board game--source]

Now that my teenaged son is done with his first draft of the first ten Just Us Chickens books (remember--his chapter books on silly super chickens) plus some bonus books, he's now hard at work on a new project.  He's been learning about how to program video games.  We're wanting to include video games and card games with both my series and his, just for you.  He is working on inventing a card or board game.  It will most likely be a collectors' card kind of game that will come for free with the full edition of the first set of books.  With each set, you'll get more cards, so you can always play the characters you (or your kids) love.  

[video game controller--source]

He's also working on a role-playing video game for Just US Chickens.  You will be able to play adjustable versions of Impeckable, the hero who's a few feathers short of a full load, Shadow Chicken, a balloon-folding chickeny echo of a certain Dark Knight, and the heroine Death Layer, who rides around in the Invisible Something or Another (they can't tell what it is because it's invisible), uses her Lasso of Lies (a certain other weapon may be more useful but is copyrighted), and exploding eggs, as well as many more crazy characters we hope you'll love.   This game will be available with each Just Us Chickens set you buy.  It will also be sold separately.  

[Kids playing--source]

He also plans on creating a side adventure within the Just Us Chickens video game that features my characters, the characters of Doomimals.  He'll also have a several-level retro video game wherein the main characters of Doomimals fight through several monsters using various powers.  Fight alongside Tessa, Kitt, and Davis through several of the monsters you'll read about in the series.  This, too, will come free with the purchase of the series of books.  Be watching for future news.