Second draft is done

I just completed the second draft of Hostile Planet.  It clocks in at just over 92,000 words.  So I added about 3,000 words between drafts.  That's a much smaller percentage than usual, and I chalk it up to my more detailed outline.

I still have to go back and separate it out into chapters, but that's no big deal.  And the cover is almost done, too.  I was seriously flirting with hiring a cover designer, but I think the one I made myself might just be good enough.

I suppose my next step is to finish up the Neutral Ground outline and make sure it's as perfect as it can be.  And I'll need to start working on a cover for that book, too.

Using weather to set the mood

Weather is a great tool to use to set the mood of a scene.  It doesn't come naturally to me--I have to remind myself to do it--but I think it almost always improves the text.  And, in cases where the mood might not be otherwise spelled out, the weather can solidify that mood in the reader's mind.

For example, consider this scene:

Killian stood in the midst of the mourners and watched Jenny's casket disappear.  The gravediggers cranked the mechanism, and the straps unspooled, lowering her into the ground.  Above them, a gentle rain pitter-pattered on the green canopy like some funereal drumbeat. 

Killian had no umbrella, and his hair was matted. Drops of rain rolled down his face.  He didn't wipe them away.

The others sniffed and coughed, but exchanged no words.  There was nothing to say, really.  A bright, beautiful young woman was gone forever, and for no good reason.

Killian shivered.  He was soaked, and the cold and damp was leaching into his bones.

Now consider the same scene, but with different weather and reactions to that weather:

Killian stood in the midst of the mourners and watched Jenny's casket disappear.  The gravediggers cranked the mechanism, and the straps unspooled, lowering her into the dry, hard-baked soil. 

Killian wiped the sweat from his brow for perhaps the millionth time.  His undershirt was soaked, and he undoubtedly had sweat stains.  For that reason, he kept his suit jacket on.  Taking it off wouldn't have helped much anyway.

Some of the others swayed in the heat, but no one exchanged words.  There was nothing to say, really.  A bright, beautiful young woman was gone forever, and for no good reason.  It was as tragic as death got, and enduring the sweltering day was just another part of the social contract.

Killian began to get dizzy.  He stuck a finger inside his collar and tugged, trying to loosen its grip on his neck.

And one more variation:

Killian stood in the midst of the mourners and watched Jenny's casket disappear.  The gravediggers cranked the mechanism, and the straps unspooled, lowering her into the ground.  All around, wisps of fog curled around suit-legs and panty-hosed calves, shrouding the land in cloudy mist.

Killian couldn't discern many details from where he stood.  The gravediggers were only shapes, wraiths moving back and forth under the canopy's shadow.  The fog condensed wherever it could, and he felt soggy, like a wet sponge.  Drops of condensation occasionally rolled down his face.  He didn't wipe them away.

The others sniffed and shuffled their feet, and the sounds were alien in the fog... malevolent, even.  Many eyes darted around, wary of the twisting shadows and their ghostly noises, but no words were exchanged.  And there was nothing to say, really.  A bright, beautiful young woman was gone forever, and for no good reason.

Killian shoved his hands deeper into his pockets and scowled.

In the first example, I was going for a sad, solemn mood.  In the second, I wanted to add a little tension.  And in the third, I wanted to make it mysterious and a little scary.

Did I succeed?  Well... that's for the reader to decide.  ;)

If you're not using the weather to help set or bolster a mood, then consider giving it a try.

Cleanest first draft ever (so far)

I'm working on the second draft of Hostile Planet, but I'm not finding a lot of fault.  I usually do some major surgery on first drafts--moving entire scenes around, adding new scenes, and so on--but this book has been different.  I think it's due to the more detailed outline I started with.  I simply didn't have to conjure up much stuff along the way, so everything fits well together.

Conclusion: the more detailed the outline, the better the first draft.

Back in the saddle... sort of

I've mostly gotten over my illness.  I still have a bit of a cough, but that's it.  I'm trying to get back into my exercise routine.

Mercury and Mars are out for a round of beta reading.  I've started working on the second draft of Hostile Planet.  I've also been going over titles and book covers for the trilogy.  And I've got an 8,000-word outline for Neutral Ground, the second book in the Wheel of Fire series.  Not sure if it still needs any more work, though.

Tentative plan is to release the trilogy books in February on consecutive days.  I don't want to do all three the same day--too easy to screw something up.  Once the trilogy books fall off the Hot New Releases list, then I'll put up Hostile Planet.  It would be great if I could get book three, Fever Pitch, up soon after the trilogy books hit the 90-day cliff, but that's optimistic.

At some point, I'll need to go over the various promotions and decide which ones give me the most bang for my buck.  My marketing budget is limited, so it's basically just going to be the small-fry mailings at first.  Unless, of course, I get a Bookbub, in which case I'd beg, borrow, or steal to scrape up the cash.  Nothing beats Bookbub.

So that's that.  Lately, I've been browsing the internet for images I can use as spaceships.  The trilogy covers will just be the planets, but the Hostile Planet cover needs to have some space action, and that's where I'm not sure I can deliver.  But we'll see, I guess.

Still sick

My sinuses are better, but I've got a persistent cough.  It's been two weeks.  I was hoping I'd be back to normal by now.  :(

I did a little reading--Algernon Blackwood's The Empty House and Other Ghost Stories.  Some were good.  Some had weak endings.  All were good at creating a creepy mood.

I'm almost ready to send Mercury and Mars out for beta reading.  Obviously, my illness has delayed things.  But hopefully I'll have this bug beaten soon.

Hurricane Hermine is here

The outer bands, anyway.  It has just begun to rain here.

I'm far enough inland so that it's nothing to worry about.  It'll be a few days of on-and-off rain, and then it'll be gone.  My thoughts go out to those in Florida, though.  Best wishes, y'all.