By Timothy Deal
July 3, 2014
It’s been several months since we last heard about Jaysynn Kyzer, the outcast emperor of Thyrion. Unfortunately, the blame for the delay rests mostly on myself. I’ve actually been working on the next book in the Jaysynn series since last fall, temporarily trading my behind-the-scenes role to write one of our premier novellas for reasons I’ll go into in a future blog. Even though my book is about the average size of a CotW novella, it’s still easily the longest piece of fiction I’ve ever written. That is part of the reason for the delay.
The good news is that a solid first draft has been finished and is currently going through the revision process, which I’m optimistic will be relatively brisk. I’m a video editor by trade, so tweaking and revising does not intimidate me nearly as much as completing an entire first draft did.
Still, going through the process of writing a book has reminded me of the dedication and hard work it often takes to get creative work accomplished. Despite the joy of a completed chapter or the rush of writing an action scene, a lot of writing can feel like grind work, the discipline of sitting down in front of the laptop during precious free time to move characters where they need to go. At one point in the story, I channeled this feeling during Jaysynn’s journey through a desert:
The trek seemed noble and beautiful and glorious while gazing upward at a starlit sky. It felt burdensome and dreary and exhausting while plodding face downward in the glare of the sun.
As anyone who’s written a book or sought a career in the entertainment business could tell you, creating a quality story in any medium is not easy living. It’s often hard work that requires a sacrifice of time and energy, even if you’re doing it as a hobby. But if you’re able to take satisfaction in your finished product, it’ll be worth it.
Granted, I’m not saying anything new here that authors, directors, artists, etc. haven’t said before. “Genius is 1% inspiration, 99% perspiration” and all that. (Thank you, Mr. Edison.)
But this definitely became more real to me on the other side of writing my first draft. There are some truths that we need to experience to remind ourselves of the fullness of said truth. And sometimes we need several reminders throughout our lives. For those of us who live in a culture of self-gratification, the benefits of hard work and persistence are something we need to relearn regularly. And I was grateful to relearn this lesson through writing my novella. Hopefully, it will be a reminder to carry through to future projects.
In the meantime, be on the lookout in the next few weeks for the next story in the Jaysynn series: New Wells Rising. I hope you’ll enjoy it!
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