My Crazy Corner

Bringing Life to a Book Through Revisions

The book that eventually turned into Soul Taken had gone through many versions. Looking back, those versions had given me the knowledge of where I wanted the main character, Maggie, to go. One character I never thought much about was mysterious Jackson, the catalyst to Maggie’s story. Through all the versions, he always stayed the same. It wasn’t until I had one of my first calls with Carina UK that one question had turned the book and series into something totally different. My editor said something to the effect of, “I want to know more about Jackson.” Immediately a million lightbulbs went off in my head. When I got off the phone I started brainstorming who this character was to the story, and to Maggie. I knew part of his story but I really wanted to know how he got to where I put him. As I started to rewrite his history, Jackson developed into something I’d never dreamed. Instead of a flat one dimensional character, he turned 3-D right before my eyes. And all it took was one suggestion to bring him to life.

Whether you are in a critique group or working with an editor, revisions can be a magical place to excite and create more to your story. Sometimes being an author is solitary work. We dig into this world and then when the first draft is finished we come out of that hole and sometimes don’t know what to do next. The saying “two eyes are better than one” is definitely true in this instance. I’m blessed to have many friends who will read my work (along with my fab editor!) and ask the important questions to bring the best story I can write to all of my readers.

If you’re a writer, do you find having others read your work help bring it to life?

 

Soul Taken is the first novel in THE LIFE AFTER trilogy. Visit her website for more information about her and her books. www.katlynduncan.com

Katlyn now lives in southern Connecticut with her husband and adorable Wheaten Terrier and she is thrilled to finally share her stories with the world.