It feels like I’ve been in solitary confinement for months! However, I’m so pleased to be able to report that I now have a complete draft of Shallow Breath, and we’ve moved straight on to editing. I’m looking forward to being able to tell you lots more in the coming months, as we head towards publication in Australia in December, so stay tuned.col-md-2
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Finally, after six long weeks of work, I have finished the structural edit of Beneath the Shadows. It’s lovely to put my head up again, as I’ve literally been working morning, noon and night, around my toddler’s waking hours, to get everything done. I am already thinking of things that need changing or tweaking, but I will get another chance to do that when the copy-editing begins. I have a little bit of a love-hate relationship with this side of the editing process, which is ironic since I’ve been a book editor for the last ten years. But editing someone else’s work is fun. Editing my own novels seems to be much more gruelling, since I find myself continually re-examining every aspect of plot, characters and writing, and coming up with more and more problems or weaknesses that need fixing. However, I thrive on the challenge, and so far I’ve had two great editors who have really pushed me to make my books stronger.
So, while I’ve been taking a break, I’ve been dabbling with my bookshelf on goodreads.com. I now have an author profile, which I’m still working on, and you’ll find my latest book reviews on there as well as on this website. You’ll notice they all tend to be rather positive, but I often don’t finish books I’m not enjoying, and as a result I don’t feel entirely qualified to comment on them! I’m currently reading and loving Water for Elephants, so you can expect another positive review soon!
Lately, quite a few aspiring authors have asked me for advice on what to do when you feel your novel is ready to go out into the world. So, while I have some downtime, I’ll shortly put up a blog or two with some general advice and information. Good luck to you all. Book publishing is a tough world, but it’s a very exciting and fulfilling one too, and I love being part of it.col-md-2
I’m about to start editing Beneath the Shadows, and I’m very excited about it. It is through this process that my book will gradually evolve from its raw first draft into a finely polished finished piece. With a background as an editor I feel very open to the editing process, which can be pretty daunting and confronting for a writer. Everything from characters, plot and pace, and the strength of the writing itself, is examined thoroughly during editing; and as a result the book can change quite a bit, sometimes in ways the author never envisioned. Come Back to Me was a much better book after editing, and I’m sure that it will be the same for Beneath the Shadows.
Beneath the Shadows is currently at the structural editing stage. So we’re looking at things like how the chapters work, both on their own and with one another; whether the characters are developing fully; if there are gaps that need filling, or sections that need paring back. So wish me luck, and I’ll post some updates on how it’s going.col-md-2
An older version of this blog also appeared on the Random House ‘Random Blogs’ website on 8th April 2010
For me, for a long time my writing was my hobby, and as such I would get through everything else first, promising myself writing time later, as some kind of reward. However, it’s far too easy for that time to never arrive. It was only when I dedicated myself to finishing Come Back to Me at the end of 2007 that I really made the strides forward that I needed to then pursue publication. Now I do try to schedule time to write, but it’s not always easy. I have an active one-year-old little girl, all the general aspects of life to keep going, and my husband would quite like some attention sometimes too, I think. I have just finished my second book, and managed it by making the most of the time my little girl was asleep or my husband was here to care for her, as well as having the help of a wonderful childminder for a few hours a week. (Also invaluable was a well-timed visit by my mother!) Although I used to write at all hours of the day, for now I have to make the most of this dedicated, limited time. I usually have lots of scribbled notes to work through by the time each session comes around, as when I’m busy on other things I still make sure to make notes on ideas so that I can refer back to them later.
As with many other writers, it may well be necessary for me to continue my day job of editing to make a living. Then I will not only have to remind myself to make time for my writing, but to work hard to make sure that time actually happens. When the task at hand seems enormous, I also remind myself to just make a start, and that if I keep doing that every day, one day I’ll reach the finish line! And, if I don’t find the time I need, I may have to look hard at the things I am making time for. I once heard a popular fiction writer in England talking about how if you just turned off EastEnders, a prime-time soap opera that runs for half an hour four nights a week, and used the time to write, in six months you would have a book. It’s worth thinking about.col-md-2
This blog also appeared on the Random House ‘Random Blogs’ website on 6th April 2010
It is always interesting to see how writers respond to editorial guidance. Some are completely open to suggestions, others are not, and there’s a third category who seem to be keen for a critique, but then either don’t like the reality, or don’t seem to alter anything much as a result. What many writers appear to get stuck on is the ‘Well, I like it’, or ‘It has to happen because…’ response. A writer becomes so attached to a piece of writing, or a certain event in their plot, that they will hold on to it come hell or high water. But I believe that the more malleable you see your work, right up to the point it becomes set in print, then the more likely you are to create a better book. This doesn’t mean you have to follow any or all editorial suggestions, because ultimately, and quite rightly, the author has the final say. However, it is worth remembering that editors are there to help you produce the best finished product you can, not to ruin your treasured script! Therefore their comments should not be dismissed too lightly.
That’s the theory, anyway, coming from an editor’s perspective. But how did I go as a writer? Well, I had this experience with Come Back to Me. The book had a prologue, which was the very first thing I wrote for the novel, and I loved it. Every time I reread the prologue, it made me think that maybe, just maybe, I could get this thing published. So when the script came back with a big pencil line streaking across the first page, I did have a bit of a gulp. And, if I hadn’t had an editing background, I would have probably argued passionately for it to remain – because I loved it. However, the thing is, while I felt it was a fine piece of writing, it interfered with something more important: it delayed the real start to my story. So when I’d had a few minutes to think about it, I knew the editor was right. The prologue was a personally beloved part of an earlier draft, but it didn’t belong in the finished piece. So out it went. And the book is better for it.col-md-2
Click here to listen to me talk about Come Back to Me, writing and editing with Valerie Khoo at the Sydney Writers’ Centre.
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I had a fantastic time at the Perth Writers Festival. It was a new experience for me to be on panel discussions, and I am very grateful to Grant Stone, Michael Koryta, Helen Merrick, Liz Byrski and Anita Heiss for making it such a thoroughly enjoyable debut. I very much enjoyed talking about book editing too: first of all in a Publishing Seminar on the Friday before the main festival, with Georgia Richter, Jon Doust and Donna Ward, and then with 25 brave participants at my workshop on Saturday afternoon – where we spent 3 hours in a room without air conditioning on a 40 degree day! It was lovely to meet so many fellow booklovers over the course of the weekend, and to cap it all off, Come Back to Me was launched on a balmy Sunday evening in the beautiful Sunken Amphitheatre at UWA, by Amanda Curtin, author of the wonderful WA-based book The Sinkings. Thank you to the organisers and volunteers at the festival for making everything run so smoothly – I’m in awe of the organisational skill that must go into such an event. I’m looking forward to doing more events in future – but first I have the small matter of a book to finish!col-md-2
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I am sometimes lucky enough to be allowed to write on other people’s sites or blogs. You can check out some of my previous posts by following the links below:
On Writing (10 August 2011) on The Australian Bookshelf
Writer on Tour (14 April 2011) on Adventures of an Intrepid Reader
The literary/commercial fiction divide (14 Feb 2011) on Natasha Lester’s blog http://whilethekidsaresleeping.wordpress.com/
A shifting landscape, a perfect backdrop (13 Feb 2011) on www.lisaheidke.com
Inspiration (9 Feb 2011) on The Random Blog
Mothering and writing for a living (8 Feb 2011) on http://anjwritesabout.com/
Endings: Beginnings in disguise (4 Feb 2011) on The Random Blog
Stories within stories (3 Feb 2011) on The Random Blog
Losing the plot (2 Feb 2011) on The Random Blog
The North Yorkshire moors, the perfect setting (1 Feb 2011) on The Random Blog
At long last, meet Grace (31 Jan 2011) on The Random Blog
On writing and editing (31 Jan 2011) on http://www.ahthepossibilities.com/
Sara Foster is grateful for… (31 Jan 2011) on http://anitaheissblog.blogspot.com/
Breathing Life into Landscapes (4 Nov 2010) on www.fleurmcdonald.com
On pursuing publication (9 April 2010) on The Random Blog
Finding the time to write (8 April 2010) on The Random Blog
Friends and family readers (7 April 2010) on The Random Blog
Your editor is on your side (6 April 2010) on The Random Blog
When characters get minds of their own (5 April 2010) on The Random Blogcol-md-2
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To see reviews of All That is Lost Between Us, click here. To see reviews of Shallow Breath, click here. To see reviews of Beneath the Shadows, click here. To see reviews of Come Back to Me, click here. The Wonders of Research, Write Note Reviews, Jan 2016 What Lies Beneath: Interview with Sara Foster, Rowena Holloway, Jan 2016 The Psychology of Georgia, Book Muster Down Under, Jan 2016 AusRom Today’s Must Read list 2016, Jan 2016 ‘Teen’s Secret Anguish: The West Australian, Jan 2016 ‘Deep Connections’: Interview with An Adventure in Reading, Mar 2013 Interview with The Musings of Monique, Mar 2013 Interview with The Australian Bookshelf, Feb 2013 Interview with The Reading Room, Feb 2013 Interview with 1Girl2ManyBooks, Feb 2013 Q&A with Book Muster Down Under, Feb 2013 Interview with Book’d Out, Dec 2012 Jenn J McLeod’s Author Harvest ‘bales up’ Sara Foster, Dec 2012 Interview with Write Note Reviews, May 2012 Interview with The Examiner (WA), 2 May 2012 (and on Skinny Cap with Two Sugars) Interview with Auslit’s Authors Compare site, October 2011 (on setting) Interview with thereadingroom.com, October 2011 Interview with Monica Kade at Career Confessions, May 2011 Sydney Writers’ Centre podcast (Beneath the Shadows), April 2011 Recommendation on www.shesaid.com.au, April 2011 Interview with Colosoul (Independent Youth Magazine), April 2011 Interview with femail.com.au, April 2011 Interview with The Australian Literature Review, 16 February 2011 Interview with Claire Williams at Flourish online magazine, 11 February 2011 ‘Online extras add to thriller’s mystery’, North Coast Times, 1st February 2011 Sara Foster answers Booktopia’s Ten Terrifying Questions Sydney Writers’ Centre podcast (Come Back to Me), March 2010 Interview with www.chicklitclub.com, February 2010 ‘Sara turns over a new page in Perth’, North Coast Times, 2 February 2010 (www.inmycommunity.com.au) ‘Perth helps to bring out the creativity in author’, West Australian, 2 February 2010 I am sometimes lucky enough to be invited to write on other people’s sites or blogs. You can check out my guest posts by following the links below: New Year, New Beginnings (14 January 2013) on Fiona Palmer’s website Researching Shallow Breath (29 November 2012) on Nicole Alexander’s website On Writing (10 August 2011) on The Australian Bookshelf Writer on Tour (14 April 2011) on Adventures of an Intrepid Reader The literary/commercial fiction divide (14 Feb 2011) on Natasha Lester’s blog http://whilethekidsaresleeping.wordpress.com/ A shifting landscape, a perfect backdrop (13 Feb 2011) on www.lisaheidke.com Inspiration (9 Feb 2011) on The Random Blog Mothering and writing for a living (8 Feb 2011) on http://anjwritesabout.com/ Endings: Beginnings in disguise (4 Feb 2011) on The Random Blog Stories within stories (3 Feb 2011) on The Random Blog Losing the plot (2 Feb 2011) on The Random Blog The North Yorkshire moors, the perfect setting (1 Feb 2011) on The Random Blog At long last, meet Grace (31 Jan 2011) on The Random Blog On writing and editing (31 Jan 2011) on http://www.ahthepossibilities.com/ Sara Foster is grateful for… (31 Jan 2011) on http://anitaheissblog.blogspot.com/ Breathing Life into Landscapes (4 Nov 2010) on www.fleurmcdonald.com On pursuing publication (9 April 2010) on The Random Blog Finding the time to write (8 April 2010) on The Random Blog Friends and family readers (7 April 2010) on The Random Blog Your editor is on your side (6 April 2010) on The Random Blog When characters get minds of their own (5 April 2010) on The Random BlogLinks to author interviews and general articles:
(www.inmycommunity.com.au)Links to my blogs elsewhere:
