The day after I made my last post my laptop started playing up again. It completely stopped registering clicks on the trackpad, which made it impossible to do very much at all. I could open a document and read it, but without being able to select text, editing was too laborious to contemplate.
What I was able to do, however, was read my ms from start to finish. I didn't make any notes, I just wanted to get the feel of the whole thing, as if I was reading it for the first time. The verdict? I'm much happier with how the conflict evolves in this draft. I also think the writing gets stronger in the later chapters - I was almost able to forget I'd written it and was just enjoying the story while I was reading it. However, the earlier chapters feel a bit rushed, as though I'm too desperate to get to the good bits to give the reader time to catch her breath. I also don't think they have a well developed sense of place. When I wrote them I was wary of swamping the story with too much description, but I think I went too far the other way. Also, on re-reading Kate Walker's excellent 12 Point Guide to Writing Romance, I think I'm short on sensuality in my writing - i.e. engaging all the readers senses. So my challenge is going to be to rewrite the first three chapters, throwing in glimpses of the world my characters are moving in using not just sight, but scent, texture, taste and sounds. Only I mustn't overdo it - it's a precarious balancing act!
My biggest problem is Chapter One. I completely rewrote it for the New Voices comp, and as it didn't get so much as an honourable mention I clearly can't leave it as it is. I'm still looking for inspiration on that one...
Anyway, back to the laptop - after spending hours at the weekend, I managed to find something called 'mousekeys', which are a set of keys that can be used to replicate the mouse functions. So although my trackpad button still doesn't work, I now have a way of selecting text etc, making my laptop usable again. Halleluia!
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