The Cycle of a Book plus #giveaway

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News Flash: Laurie Pinnell is our lucky winner! Congratulations, Laurie, and please check your email.

Edith/Maddie, usually writing from north of Boston.

But today I’ve accompanied Hugh to Mass General Hospital in Boston for his first hip replacement, which is day surgery. Because I’ll have a lot of waiting around until I can bring him home, I brought the final printout of the manuscript I’ve been working on since August. I can sit and work on that anywhere.

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Photo from Wikimedia Commons

Murder at Cape Costumers is due December 1, so this is nearly my last chance to read it straight through and make sure I’ve tidied up loose ends, made the clues and red herrings work, and filled plot holes. It’s the seventh Cozy Capers Book Group mystery, and some big things are going on in Mac Almeida’s life, along with an important secondary plot.

I’ll have two more weeks before the deadline to tweak final bits, but in there is also care giving for my sweetie, Thanksgiving, which I host, and the release of Deadly Crush.

For this post, I thought I’d walk you through my process in writing a book. This is the 38th (I think) manuscript I’ve completed, so I pretty much know what I need to do in the four months I have to do it in. Other writers are sure to have different steps and different ways to accomplish the same goal, and there’s no one right way. (Beginners, don’t ever let anyone tell you there is!) But here’s mine:

  1. Crank straight through the first draft. Because I’m not much of a plotter, sometimes that includes wading into the fog and pushing aside veils of mist, but I can usually get the bones of the story down in about two months.
  2. Revision pass A: I resolve all the places I left a note to self that reads, [CHECK THIS]. Some of it is research, some is checking prior books and series history, some is checking a scene I wrote toward the start of the current book. All those places would have slowed down my first draft if I’d bothered to check them at the time, and we all know what can happen when you head into the internet: you might not resurface for two hours.
  3. Revision pass B: Look at the storytelling. Does every scene relate to the one before and the one after? Do beginnings and ends of scenes grab the reader’s attention? Does every scene move the story forward?
  4. Revision pass C: Look at the language. Do I include the senses where they enrich the book? Have I used the most elegant language I can in the service of the story? Do I have too many dialogue tags or not enough? Are descriptions important to the story or will they make readers skip them? And so on.
  5. First paper readthrough: Print it out, sit and read it straight through like a reader will, and mark up the paper with a green pen. Then fix all that stuff and run a spellcheck.
  6. Send it off to an independent editor. Work on a short story or clean my office in the interim.
  7. Fix what she recommends. I usually knock off all the easy stuff and then address the stickier parts.
  8. Second paper readthrough: It’s just like the first one. That’s what I’m doing today. (I print on the other side of already printed paper that a couple of friends save for me, so it’s less waste of paper than you might think.)

9. If I have time, I like to read the whole thing aloud. (Some people have Word do this.) It’s amazing what you can catch by hearing the book.

10. Final tweaks, final spellcheck, and send it off to my Kensington editor.

More steps happen after the manuscript is accepted, like editorial comments, copyedits, and proof pages, thank goodness. And then the book is printed and ebooked and recorded in audio and released into the world! That’s happening next Tuesday with Deadly Crush. Look, my box of books came in!

Readers: Questions about the process? Did anything about it surprise you or seem to be missing? I found one last ARC of Deadly Crush I’d love to send one of you.

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Published by Edith Maxwell

Agatha Award -winning author Edith Maxwell writes the historical Quaker Midwife Mysteries (Beyond the Page) and short crime fiction. As Maddie Day she writes the Dot and Amelia Mysteries, the Country Store Mysteries series, the Cozy Capers Book Group Mysteries, and the Cece Barton Mysteries (all from Kensington Publishing). She lives north of Boston in an antique house with her beau and cat Martin, where she writes, gardens, cooks, and wastes time on Facebook.

73 Thoughts

  1. WOW! I never realized all that goes into writing and getting your book published! Amazing!! Thank you for all you do to write the wonderful books you do for us!!

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  2. First, I’ll be keeping you and Hugh in my thoughts today. Sending healing energy.

    Second, as always, I’m in awe. I know I CAN put out a book in four months because I have. Under extreme duress. But my stress levels have crept up so high that I need to slow down. I think my sweet spot is nine months per book.

    I have a December 1 deadline too!

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  3. WOW! Didn’t know they could do hip replacement and send you home in the same day. Sending my prayers for Hugh to have a speedy and successful recovery leading to more mobility pain free days ahead. Prayers for you do because waiting the long hours or being a caregiver afterwards isn’t an easy thing either. ❤

    Loved my ARC of DEADLY CRUSH! Highly recommend this 5 star book to everyone. I've often heard that publishing a book is almost like having a baby. After all the work that went into it, I can see why it most definitely is your "baby" when you can finally see it in print. Then like a proud "parent" you beam when the public gets to hold and read it. Congratulations!
    2clowns at arkansas dot net

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  4. I tidy my study while awaiting editor and beta reader comments, too! It’s cathartic to rehouse those piles of paper and discover there really is a table surface there, all nice and clean for the next round of rewrites. I’m agog at your output! Keep ’em coming! bdewolfe at roadrunner dot com

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  5. Hi Edith. I hope Hugh’s hip replacement surgery is a breeze–and the healing process, too. I’ve only done four books, and I go through more or less the same steps you do, but each step takes me longer. I’m not sure how many readthroughs and revisions (which are sometimes partial rewrites) I do before the book goes to my editor at Seventh Street Press, but you’re much more efficient. Thanks for outlining your process–it’s fascinating to hear about those details!

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  6. Thank you for sharing your efficient process. I like to call the revision after the first draft “housebreaking.” 🙂 Anyway, good wishes to you and Hugh with the hip surgery and recovery!

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  8. Interesting. Lots of work. I edit a lot of nonfiction, but when a former student sent a fascinating creative wok for me to consider, I was hopeless.

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  9. I never cease to be amazed at all the work it takes to get a story from concept to completion and I am totally grateful for all of you who can do it! Thank you for sharing your process. As one who benefits from a new hip, I’m sending lots of good and healing thoughts to you and Hugh. As I am sure his doctor told him, walk, walk, walk as much as he can and then just a few steps more each day!

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  10. Best wishes on the surgery and recovery.
    I didn’t realize that reading the book aloud would be part of the process.

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  13. I have a deep appreciation for all authors do to bring us readers a good story. Thank you all for your diligence to the craft!

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  16. When I taught creative writing in a high school, one of the hardest things for them to understand was the need for a series of revisions. They just wanted to write once & it was finished. I love the writing advice in Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott & would quote her advice to the students often. Most of my own writing was academic, not creative, and I would write a bit, edit then continue, editing as I progressed – then final editing to the finished product. I agree about listening to the final draft – preferably having a friend read it to me.

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  17. Sending healing vibes to Hugh and supportive ones to you.

    Over the years of reading this blog, I have learned to appreciate all the more all the work that goes into a well written book. And I sure can tell when someone skips steps along the way. Thank you for your diligence in making our reading a wonderful experience.

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  18. First and foremost know I will be praying for you and Hugh that his hip replacement goes without a hitch and recovery is quick and complete.
    Second, you go to a lot of work to write the wonderful stories you share with us. Thank you for that. I have an increased amount of appreciation for your books knowing what all it entails to get them available to us. I certainly would be honored if I were to receive the copy you have to give away.

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  19. WOW! That is a lot to unpack!
    First, sending positive healing thoughts to Hugh. Sending you hugs and energy to keep up with the added care.

    That is an intense process!
    Back in my younger years, when I would happen upon a mistake, I would question how an author could let that slide by. The older I got, the more I realized that when writers are making revisions and changes, it would be very easy to miss those mistakes and I’m surprised it doesn’t happen more often. Seeing what your books go through makes sense, but we don’t always think of that when we’re yearning for the next installment. Nothing but respect, you are awesome. Thank you for sharing your world with us.

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  20. I find it amazing that you can write a rough draft in two months. That’s dedication and focus. (No need to enter me in the giveaway.)

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  21. Very interesting! Now I see why it takes so long between books. I don’t know how you keep everything straight when you write more than one series. Love your books and I’m looking forward to reading “Deadly Crush”.

    Hope all goes well with Hugh’s hip replacement.

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  22. Healing and strength for Hugh’s hip, and gentleness for him and for you in the recovery and strength rebuilding process. (Also patience.) As to your “how I write” essay: The “read it aloud” is so important. A step emphasized by my legal writing professors…because how often words that look good and correct to you on paper are not well-connected when spoken aloud. In legal writing, the reading aloud has the additional benefit of preparation for oral argument. Thank you, Edith, for your insights.

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  23. Well, that’s interesting to read! Such a process, but know it is appreciated! Hope Hugh is doing well, I’m having my first hip replacement in January and I’m pretty nervous about it.

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  24. What a woman- talented and so organized. I enjoy your books – would volunteer to read any of your ARCs. I appreciated you sharing your process- I keep trying to stay on task-just writing the story- end up editing previous chapter before moving ahead. You’ve inspired me to “just write it!” Healing thoughts sent for Hugh, and patience for the patient. Also- take care of you, too.
    Kathryn Crabtree
    Author- Celebrating women of a certain age, invisible to many, who solve mysteries. The bad guys never see them coming.
    The Mystery of the Smoldering Mattress- A Nancy Drouillard mystery

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  25. A great guide to the steps of writing a book, Edith. I’m relatively new to this, but heartened by how much your process sounds like mine, although I outline before I write the first draft. Best of luck in December with your latest–MURDER AT CAPE CUSTOMERS!

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  26. Although I don’t have any questions about the writing process, I want you to know that I am grateful that you write cozy mysteries for us. You bring pleasure to our lives! Thank you!

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  27. Hope Hugh recovers quickly. Sounds like you have your hands full between his recovery and the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday. Sounds like your process is pretty thorough to me. I could not think of anything to add.

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  29. I am not a writer, but I taught English for years and years along with art, AP and regular art history, Texas history, computer, Speech, was the yearbook sponsor, and the newspaper editor. All of this took place over my 38 1/2-year career. When writing printouts, etc., I used to have to print them out and then read out what I wrote. The reading it out always helped me. There were always errors. You got too close to your writing and did not see the errors at first, or second, etc. Invariably, if I printed it out, I would find more errors.

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  30. Thank you so much for sharing your process. It seems pretty straight forward, but not easy. Do you usually have a lot of research that you have to do for a book? Would it depend on the story line? God bless you.

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  31. I am a retired special education teacher. I notice spelling and noun/verb tense errors in everything I read!! I was surprised to learn that you read the book out loud.

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  32. Thank you for this overview of the process. A question about Step 6 – is that something your editor requires, or do you find it’s helpful to have an independent editor review the manuscript before you send it along?

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    1. No, my editor doesn’t require it. I just really like somebody who knows writing to give the book a sanity check. If I had a couple of beta readers who were skilled like that, I might not use an editor, but she’s really good (and doesn’t break the bank).

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  33. Edith, thanks for sharing your process. It’s quite straightforward (like you!) and yet it works. I am not as good as you at skipping the research until I’ve completed something, and I revise constantly as I write anew. However, I make ample use of comments in Scrivener for things to check or more research to conduct if my writing is going smoothly. I add layers of complexity in additional passes, which includes more revisions. But I might try to streamline my next project (I’m almost at the end of this one) to see if some of your process helps me through more quickly while continuing to be thorough.
    Give my best to Hugh. I hope his surgery goes as smoothly as peanut butter on toast.

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  34. Thanks for sharing your meticulous process! I also read my nearly-final draft aloud. It is amazing how doing that helps sharpen the text. Holding Hugh in the light and hoping his recovery goes smoothly.

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  35. Hope surgery was a success…sending prayers for a good outcome…I love your books & know that writing isn’t an easy career but you stories are appreciated & enjoyed!

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  36. Great article about your process! Thanks for sharing. 🙂
    Here’s hoping there were no complications for Hugh and that he’s now home, resting comfortably, and getting around easily. Happy Thanksgiving!

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  37. Thanks for sharing your process! I’d imagine you’ve internalized the mystery story structure, which must be helpful with that first draft. Has your process changed over the course of your career?

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