I am so excited! Early this morning, I finished another 5,000 words for my upcoming novel, Losing Dani Strumm. I am now in what I consider to be the home stretch!
This is my favorite place to write a novel. The home stretch is where I bring everything together that has taken place throughout the book, and everything makes sense.
In a series, the home stretch is a little different. In Pandemic Dawn, the home stretch completes the book and sets up the next book. Losing Dani Strumm was always meant to be a single story in a single book, so there is no "next book set up."
To me, the final chapter is the most important and rewarding, leaving the reader daydreaming about what happens next. Not really an open-ending, but a conclusion that makes you want more, even though you have all the answers.
I first felt this when I read The Time Machine by H. G. Wells. The story was complete, and there was enough resolution, but I wanted more. I love that about science fiction.
I cannot wait to get writing the final chapter! This is the longest I have ever taken to write a book. However, I feel it is well worth the effort. I love the story, and that is very important to me. I can only write when I "feel it," and I must love it to keep it.
I made the mistake of getting a "great idea" after planning the storyline. Trying to fit that idea in really threw me for a loop, and I messed up about four chapters of work. They were beyond repair, and I had to toss them out and return to my original story.
I am glad I threw them out. This story is much better.
So, it's off to the composing contraception to click the input buttons and magically make thoughts convert to words on an electrical display that will then convert those into a paper product known as a book.
It makes it more exciting to say it that way.