Process of the Second Lambeth Croak Novel

When I began this blog, as I was finishing the first book, it never occurred to me that it would be almost three years before the second one was completely finished, I'm just waiting on my cover designed and then I can upload to Amazon. Writing long fiction has been a huge learning curve for me, I have heard some writers say that the second book was often the hardest, and that's certainly been the case here. Paradoxically, I'm already a third of the way through the 3rd book in the series, not sure yet whether there will be a fourth, as I also have a Victorian novel in the works.

More Than One Project

In recent months I have discovered that having more than one book at a time on the go works well for me. When I get fed up with a character, or I get stuck on a plot point or beat I swap to the other project and let my brain mull over the problem from the first one while I am working. Whether this would work for everyone I don't know, all writers are different. Some, like me, work better with more than one project on the go, while others would never think of starting work on something else while they were still struggling with the first one.

Working Methods   

Every writer discovers their own way of working, but sometimes others want to know how writers, and particularly novelists work. I have to say that my methods are probably not the best, otherwise why else would it have taken me three years to complete the second one? I think that the first book is like climbing a mountain that you've never climbed before; you keep going until you reach the top, because if you stop, you're unlikely to get started again. What I found with the second book was that I got off to a flying start and then I dried up.

I tried resolving potential plot problems, writing in short or long spurts, and revisiting my original premise, I think that somewhere along the line I lost focus and weeks would pass without a word being written. Eventually, after much coddling from husband and friends, I managed to knuckle down and completed the draft early this year. Since that draft, the book has been edited three times based on comments from my beta readers, and it is now, apart from its cover, ready to go.

What I've Learned

I have learned a lot from the process, not least that my brain works better when I have more than one project to work on, besides my bit of freelance work. I've written poetry for years, but have found that quite difficult in the last year, so I'm hoping to get tips from my writing group to get back on track with this. When I'm fed up with writing altogether, I either knit or paint watercolours - not sure what either of these things has to do with the process. I think that these are also creative undertakings, but require less thought than writing and less pressure - even though that pressure might be self-imposed. I've found that editors may also exert pressure, mine is certainly glad that the work on the second novel Lambeth Croak "Death Gangland Style, is finished apart from the cover. Do you get stuck with your writing?