It's Out of My Hands

9/23/2014 01:43:00 PM Lexie Dunne 15 Comments

So I’m worried about turning into one of those people that talks about nothing but food, even though lately it’s been a pretty all-encompassing issue in my life (I’m really tired of being in pain and food is directly related to that). So if I’ve seemed quiet (apart from the griping about the copy-editing process), I apologize for that.

First off, some good news: my sister and I have a move-date. Thanks to procrastination and dealing with anxiety, it’s not until October 6th, which is honestly probably better because I’m in no way ready to move in six days, which was our original plan. I have a couple more calls to make, a brother and in-law to rustle up, and then packing begins in earnest.

Wait, October 6th? Aren’t you flying to NY on the 9th?

…yes.


Schedule’s starting to fall together for NY. My panel’s on Saturday and I plan to bounce around the con beforehand, hopefully meeting up with fellow Nice Girl Cay and a few fandom friends. Friday ushers in a meet-and-greet for the HC authors in town for the con, so I’ll be going to that, and I’m planning on going to see Sleep No More with Chloe (not sure if Mama Dunne or Chelsea want to go to a very strange version of Macbeth). Thursday is for travel, the Daily Show, and a birthday dinner (I need to pick a place!). I really want to make it out to MoMA, the Strand, and a couple of other places. Sleep does not appear to be an imperative on this trip.

In book news: SUPERHEROES ANONYMOUS is officially out of my hands. I don’t know if my process through editing was typical or if it wasn’t, what was atypical about it, due to that being my first time through the rigamorale. I do know that I started the process questioning everything. Every change was met with a little bit of heartburn and nausea and debate. By round three, I had to be distracted away from trying to balance carrot sticks on my nose in order to edit the thing.*

If Chloe were here, she’d point out that I have to be distracted from things like that to do most things anyway, so why should editing be different? Living with me is an adventure.**

The book went through an interesting editing process. I’m not a writer that writes first/second drafts (unless a scene isn’t working), but for this book, I had an official second draft. Several people I know have read the first draft and I think they’ll be surprised by the final product, considering it’s undergone some serious and cosmetic changes. The original had a few scenes that made me cringe, and they triggered some serious self-doubt. Getting a chance to rework those scenes was cathartic. Or, I should say, it’s cathartic now. In the middle of the edits, it was terrifying because I took the book in an entirely new direction and I panicked for days about what my editor was going to think about that. Mercifully, she adored the new direction, and I stopped digesting my own stomach acid.

But now it’s done. Unless there’s a horrifying catastrophe, I’m not going to touch it again until you see it in November. Which is…weird. Luckily, I’ll have stuff to keep me busy during this waiting period, like writing that sequel a couple of you are going to want after you get to the end of the book. And moving.

And Nanowrimo.

If you’re near St. Louis, my friend Jen runs all of the Nano stuff for the area and I have already promised to go to a few pre-Nano events and talk about what it’s like to get your Nano novel published. If you’re curious about doing Nanowrimo with me, I’ll start putting some resources and advice on the blog. I’ve been participating since 2002, and I’m excited for this year because the novel I’m considering is pretty neat, all things considered.

Anyway, I’ll be back on Thursday (new blog day) with my weekly roundup of cool links, and a post about something else. This is just a “What’s happening in my life?” post. In the meantime, check out this pretty neat Pinterest board I’m curating for no reason at alllllll.






* Results: I sadly do not have an aspiring career in being a circus seal performer, as I am uniformly terrible at balancing carrot sticks on my nose.

** Currently an adventure in deliciousness.

15 comments:

  1. Good luck with the moving and enjoy everything you've planned for New York.

    And after reading your post, I'm even more fascinated at what I might find in your book on 18/11/14.

    Stay well :)

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    1. Oh, you charming people across the pond and your different date order. I was wondering what the 18th month of the year was.

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  2. What can you expect from people driving the wrong way? :-)

    But yes, November is going to be an interesting month...

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    1. My Australian friend will debate this for hours--just to warn you. She says according to Caesar's standards, I'm the one on the wrong side of the road.

      And I'm hoping we all make it out of November alive...

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  3. I'm thinking - and hoping you are agreeable to it - but another podcast interview would be fun to do.

    Jesse Jackson - no, not that one - Karen and I have started up a new podcast called - tada! - JKL Media Podcasts! Pretty clever right? You know - Jesse, Karen & Lou - JKL..... ok maybe not, but it works for us.

    Anyhow, we plan to branch out from just podcasting about TV shows and going whole hog to include movies, music, tech, videogames and lastly - and in my mind most importantly - books.

    Maybe we can time it to so your interview would be released as close as possible to your release date. What sayest thou, O Wordslinger? Maybe you could ask Frea to tag along too.... ;-)

    Best wishes with your busy life and schedule in the upcoming months!

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    1. JKL??? Sounds a bit alphabet-soup. ;) I like it! And I like all of the participants. I'd love to come hang out and podcast with you guys again, that would be a really fun interview to do. I'm doing a 30-day launch sequence, so if you have a specific day you'd want to do it, I can slot you in for that date, no problem. Thanks for this opportunity!

      If I see Frea around, I'll bug her into coming along.

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  4. Awesome! Let us know a range of dates and we'll go from there!

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    1. I'm pretty much free anytime but the week of October 6th. ;)

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    2. How about we aim for mid October so that you can regale with us with your tales of your new Brandon bud?

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    3. Hahaha, that sounds awesome. Mark me down for whenever's best for you guys.

      Psst - it's Lexie with an e on the end. :)

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    4. 'Psst - it's Lexie with an e on the end. :)'

      Aha! My ploy to see if you read all posts worked! ;-D

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  5. I am also free pretty much anytime but the week of October 6th.

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    1. Just kidding! If it's Ok with Lexi or Frea or ..... whomever else - fine by us.

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  6. Squee! I got mentioned on your blog! The STLNANO folks have no idea what they're in for...

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Please keep it PG. My mom reads this blog.