Monday, January 22, 2007

Deep Cover

I'm hibernating this week - me, my laptop, my manuscript, and seventeen boxes of microwave popcorn. (And THAT DOG, perched at my feet, waiting for a buttery kernel to fall).

THE BOOK is due to my editor next week - the final version, the one that says, "This is my very best!" Yikes.

In an attempt to head off obvious disasters, I'm reading my prose aloud, looking for tense changes, personality changes, or other things that make memoirs such fertile ground for critical stomping come review time. Nothing like nine months of trying to be "real" to completely mess with your head - I've reached the point where my main character seems like some other poor girl...and really, I wonder as I read, why didn't someone stop her from dating all those losers??? Fortunately, few things are as funny as our own bad decisions (presuming there's a happy ending in there somewhere), so I get to giggle quite a bit as I enunciate all the details of the many failed attempts to protect me from my own best thinking :)

Okay, I'm not even sure that last paragraph makes sense... I hope you're all having a great week, and I'll pop my head back out from time to time to get some air (and perspective). Back to the cave for me!

8 comments:

Beck said...

And that is why I'm scared of REALLY writing. Best of luck to you!

anne said...

Wholly impressive. Best of luck.

Stacy said...

Trish, you rock. I'm sure your memoir will turn out to be brilliant.

I might not be able to understand how stressful this week must be for you, but I do envy you. You've worked your dupa off, you have important things to say, and it will pay off.

By the way, I intend to interview you for my e-zine around the time your book is published. I won't take no for an answer.

LEstes65 said...

I have no doubt that it will be worth the wait. When you're done, you can help me write my book.

Scratch THAT DOG on the back for me.

xxxx said...

Yayy! Good luck! (And I wonder why people don't stop me from being, well, ME every single day.)

Jenny said...

Good luck! Sounds like you're working hard.

Karen said...

Just wanted to pop in and say best of luck! I'm sure it will be great!

Alyssa Goodnight said...

I suspected a little thing like a deadline might be why you've been so absent from the blogosphere lately...

Stay focused and congratulate yourself as you go--I'm sure it's fabulous and funny, and there's nothing better.