Donna Maree Hanson, Author, Phd in Creative Writing

When I blogged yesterday, it made me think back to those 5 mss that I have been working on since I started writing back in November 2000. Technically, I wrote 700 words of a historical romance novel in May of that year, but was disgusted by my efforts. It doesn’t count. I started writing Relic in November, having a very strong image of, Leila, my lead character to get me going.

MS number one is Relic, a science fiction/fantasy with sex in it. I would probably die of embarrassment if I showed this to anyone now. However, it’s not quite in the toss out bin. Lucy Sussex advised me to keep it as the idea was good I wasn’t quite ready for the idea. So that is lined up for a full rewrite with some better ideas sometime in the future. I did start on a sequel to this as I had mapped out six books. However, I found it was more than I was ready for back then.

MS number two is Argenterra, a traditional fantasy, (Silverland Trilogy) which has a YA feel but I think is a bit too dark for YA. This has been revised many times. The beginning as recently as last year. I’ve had some good feedback on this…but I’m not sure how it will go in the wash. Currently, it is being considered by a publisher.

MS number three-The Crystal Gate, sequel to Argenterra, still in a draft form. I need to cut back on the beginning, from memory and re-sequence the ending. However, I’m pretty happy with it. I remember there was a strange turn of events in that story and it took me four months sitting on it before I could think it through. It worked out okay. I changed the ending I was planning and that led ideas for book three.

MS number Four-Dragon Wine, dark fantasy set in a post-apocalyptic world and a door stopper. This one got me a Varuna Fellowship and short listed for the Varuna MS development awards with HarperCollins. Current status: Rejected a few times: Some feedback from an agent saying it was too long and he hated the prologue. Also managed to talk to a couple of editors who had looked at it and basically it is next up for revision. Mission: to cut back on detail and get the story moving along at a better pace. I still think this is the best thing I’ve ever written in terms of scope and imagination.

Technically there is a novella in here-SF and YA. Can’t find a good name for it or a good home. Been rejected twice, mainstream and small press. Still, I have my thinking cap on. I really should resubmit it somewhere but that uses brain power and energy. It’s not going to get published sitting in my hard drive.

At a couple of retreats, I worked on Dragon’s Wane, (the sequel to Dragon Wine) but this is still a very rough draft of 160,000 words so I don’t call it a novel/MS yet because I haven’t gone through the agony of rewriting/revising. I really do have to find a new name for these creatures. Dragon give is such a cliche cast and it’s not cliche…need a new name for my monsters. I also worked on The Ungiven, the third one in the Silverland trilogy, but it’s not complete with only one character stream written. I got started on that because I had some interest in the first book then.

Oh and I forgot to mention my paranormal romance novel, which is at about 30,000 words so far. Don’t think I’ve looked at it this year though. I also started another fantasy novel, which I haven’t picked up for years…It was my first foray into dark fantasy.

MS number five-Ruby Heart, a Victorian gothic/steampunk romance meld.  Started this is January. This came out very quickly at 80,000 words at the retreat. I did a tidy up and sent it to 6 beta readers. One I probably won’t get feedback from at all. I’m about half way through the revision/rewrite/polish. I am hoping to send this out by end May to start the whole trying to get published thing yet again. Currently 90,000 words and half way through the revision.

I am hoping with this recent MS that most of my beginner writer’s quirk have been beaten out of me. I’ve written a few shorts over the years and quite a few last year . I find that this helps the prose because a short story needs to be lean. It’s a good discipline to learn. I do think writing short stories and novels are different things though, but there are cross over skills.

There are a talented few that write something great from the first time they try their hand. Some of us have to work hard to hone our meagre skills, driven on my the need to live in story, to create story, to get published. Whatever our dream is it is hard work. What have I learned in the ten or so years I have been practising?

Perseverance. Patience (I haven’t got this one worked out yet). Practice.