DONE!

Well, I did it, folks. I completed the rough first draft of Deep Water. It came in at 192,023 words. Thirty four chapters and an epilogue. My goal was to write 1,000 words a day. Let's see how I did. It took me 167 days to write (September 9, 2011 to February 22, 2012). That's an average of 1,149 words a day. Not too shabby. I expect I have a lot of work to do in the rewrite. I barreled through without ever really going back to check on things as I wrote.

So there you go. Our chapter titles: Metal Men, Water Dream, Wrath of the Patriarchs, Among Merchants, Lord-General, Dark Passage, White Fire and Gray Teeth, Ashes of the World, Agony and Bloodstone, Naresen, The Shattered Shield, On the Wall, Fire in the Sky, The Breaking of All Things, Lords and Madmen, On Calethis, Shadows in the Fog, A World Ever Broken, Nethil and the Wives, Blood and Fire, Hunger and Grief, Dekir's Town, Smoke and Ashes, Dream Sick, Words of Madness, Off the Cliff, Fading World, Washed Away, Hammer and Fork, A Quiet House, The Shadows of Setheria, Echoes and Memory, Descent, Lights in the Sky, Epilogue.

Those chapter titles are subject to change, of course, as are many things. I expect to add scenes along the way and pare down the excessive prose. Well, there you go. That, ladies and gentlemen, is technically the seventh novel I have written in my adult life. Is it the best? Possibly. Klowns might be better. We shall see.

Eppy's Log

Well, well, well, we're currently writing the epilogue, which unfolds as a series of very short chapters taking our surviving characters back across the tortured landscape to the uttermost end. If I carve out enough time, I will finish the novel tomorrow. There's about 2000 words left to write, maybe a few more, depending on how much I delve in. Deep Water currently stands at just over 190,000 words.

Magnificent Spinach

Well, I passed the 180,000 word mark. Not only so, but I am literally writing the climactic moment of the entire novel. We are right in the midst of it. 181,100 words is the exact count. We had a near drowning, and now we get to enjoy a near stomping and lots of terrible booming voices. And then, ladies and gentlemen, then we will be winding things down. We are looking at more like a 195,000 word novel, at this point. Very close to my original projection of 200,000. Deep Water is within a few days of being completed.

Odors and Such

It's possible I underestimated the length of the book in my last post. Deep Water now stands at 170,750 words, and the climactic chapters are only beginning to unfold. A creepy conversation is about to happen, followed by violence, another creepy conversation, more violence, a terrifying attempt at winning, revelations that shatter the fabric of being, and then the overly long denouement. So there you go. Still, that means we are closer than ever before.

Tapioca and Toast

Deep Water stands at 162,337 words. We are seriously exactly one chapter away from the climactic encounter. Touching conversations just took place and fateful decisions were made. That means our noble hero has only to walk a little bit more and then face the rancid heart of all things. I can see the book reaching about 175,000 to 180,000 words at this point, depending on how thorough I make the ending.

The Churning of the Butter Fever

Well, we press on, folks. Deep Water is finally reaching the climactic events. I would say we are exactly two chapters away from meeting a certain chief enemy upon his throne and discovering shocking things. But first a skinless dog must make a potentially last glorious appearance. Then there will be two chapters of absolute hell on earth. Then some bittersweet denouement and a slightly drawn out conclusion. And there you go. That's all that remains. We're at 157,651 words.

latest chapters:

27 - Fading World
28 - Washed Away
29 - Hammer and Fork
30 - A Quiet House

And, oh, that chapter 30 is going to end with such emotional turmoil. My stars, the turmoil. The boy, the girl, the request, the crushing grief, the guilt, my stars...