Reading

So I have moved into the phase of reading my own novel, now. I gave it a break for a couple of weeks, and now have picked up and begun to actually try to experience it as a consumer. It's turning out to be pretty gratifying. For one, I'm more than one fifth the way through, and the tone is a lot more cohesive than I thought the thing might be. Frankly, I built this story with such patchwork methods, I have been prepared for a lot of shifting and imbalance. And I know I'll find some of that yet. But the first sections are surprisingly coherent. Stronger than I imagined - and, let's face it, kids; I imagined the work was pretty good.

I just thought it would need some polishing, now that it's pieced.

In the first hundred pages of reading, though, I've been able to keep it very much to READING. Which is really freeing. I'm really not working on this anymore. And, for the first time, my novel is actually entertainment for me. And it IS entertaining! Bloody awesome.