Signature Editions

When I'm working on a book, I tend to be fully engaged,  going to the computer for about three to four hours a day. I compose on the screen and write in scenes, although in the first few drafts I'm never quite sure about the ordering and chronology of the scenes. I try to make sure each potion has it's own tension and moves the story forward. Body Trade took me almost four years to write. I'd alternate between Rosie's voice and Tanya's and it wasn't until the third draft that I introduced some of the factual stuff from the Hartwell inquiry. Sometimes I sketch out a scene at one of my bi-monthly writing groups (I can't speak highly enough of gathering in community). With a rough scene blocked out on the page, I'll listen for feedback, and then go back to the scene the next day to polish it. Right now, I have two book project on the go at the same time, so it's a bit less intense. I'm sure one will overtake soon however, because I'm fairly single-minded when it comes to writing projects. That being said, I like teaching and reading gigs to break things up, because I get a lot of my energy from other people and writing can be quite a solitary profession.