FINAL edit complete....

PHEW - the final edit is complete!  Now on to PROOFREADING?  Then the cover, the "about the author...", acknowledgements, reviews.... AND then we will be published.  

Seems like forever doesn't it?  But it will be out and you can take it to the beach to read;

I'll be back when I hear more...

Till,
Judi

Edit Number Two Done....

"She's Not You" book cover

Even with only very few changes sent back to me by the editor, I'm worked hard on this edit as did the editor.  I received the 2nd edit on Wednesday and then went through the entire book word by word looking for anything that I could spot in addition to the what the editor had seen.  And YES, I found a few things that had slipped through -- name of the town, a characteristic of a weird guy that I had cut out... on and on.  We are now looking for the needles in the haystack, but they are important to catch before the book is released.  I spent two entire days doing this.  Thought my eyeballs would fall out of their sockets!

So sent it back to the editor Friday with my comments and edits.... Round three coming up!

I already have at least one book singing and reading set up in Wellfleet on Cape Cod, the town that's the major setting for She's Not You, although the town is called Oyster Point in the book.  Savannah Georgia and Jackson Wyoming -- two of my very favorite places -- are also backgrounds for scenes in the book. 

I'll be working on setting up more promotions as the release time comes closer.  Still very exciting...

I'll be back with the third edit soon,
'TIL... Judi

Edit Number One Done....

Soon to be released debut novel

The first edit arrived on Friday.  I held my breath. First, her email laid out all the color coding that she had used in my manuscript for changes, strikeouts, additions, recommendations, etc.  It seemed a cut and paste for all authors she works with.  Then, at the end, she said, "The book was excellent--well paced, nicely drawn characters, and it kept me guessing. Great job!"  I let out my breath.

Expecting to see lots of dripping red ink, I opened up the file and started to flip through the pages.  I spotted a few word changes which were good changes, and then pages without anything.  She caught a few funny things - like "where did the broom come from?"  I had to laugh.  Where did that broom come from?  That pickup allowed me to tie a couple of things back to the character's quirks which worked great.  I had a few other small changes or rewordings and it was over.  Not that it didn't take me all day Saturday and part of Sunday to go over each page.  At the end she wrote, "Loved it."  So I returned it to her and will await Round Two.

One thing I did disagree with her about was the addition of an exclamation point within a quote... for example, "Help me!" she screamed.  I was taught never to write that way, that the verb should be strong enough to carry the quote, explain the feeling.. "Help me," she screamed.  Anyway, I'll see what she thinks about that disagreement.  

All in all, I'm still enjoying this journey... the road less taken. 😉

Will keep you updated as I move toward publication!

Till...  or is it 'til?
Judi

Well, I'm moving along trying to position myself for the release of my book.  My editor still has it and says she likes it very much.  We will see if I drown in the red ink 😀

So in the hopes that "She's Not You" will be released in a month? six weeks? I've set up a new website... simple clear and hopefully easy to use.  Please visit it at:   https://judigetchbrodman.wordpress.com/ or use the link listed on the right side, "Judi's web site."

Let me know what you think!
Till,
Judi

Working with the editor....

Judi's book cover by Solstice Publishing

My blog is almost four years old; I started in June 2014 under "A writer's dream..."  Some time in 2016, I was locked out of that blog... don't ask please, and I continued with this one.  When I first wrote, I was writing, editing and rewriting the very same manuscript that was just picked up by a publisher.  So it took me 3 1/2 years to produce a saleable story - even after I thought it was done!  And you followed me through my steps... writers groups, courses, more of the writers group and more workshops.  Each and every one of these steps brought this manuscript closer and closer to being a story that a publisher would be interested in.  And the work I did last winter with Heidi pushed me over the finish line.  YEA!!

This week I received an email from the publisher saying, "You are about to embark on a journey that few people go on. From final draft to completed book."  It struck me then how lucky I was.  And as my family said, "Part of it was luck, but most of it was your hard work and your terrific writing."  

This email also introduced me to my editor.  We've emailed and she seems to be pretty reasonable... I'll make the final judgement when I see her edits this week.  She and the publisher have said that the changes are mine to make so the story will maintain my voice.  And as a writer, that's pretty important.  We each have our voice, our way of saying things... as do our characters.  

I'm hoping this editing process goes quickly - I'm so excited and want the book out there.  I have been talking to another local writer who has published four books.  His main guidance is that I be true to myself, that I remember that it's my book and my story.

I'll continue to keep you up-to-date as I move along.

My muse is calling... :-) 

Till, Judi


#WorldBookDay

Truly random thoughts along the beach...

© photo by Judi Getch

I know as a writer, I'm suppose to collect random thoughts and write them down... I'm not always good about capturing them, but today, I needed to write and share them.  So here are my thoughts for today.

Every time I walk along the beach my mind flashes back to my time in the Marshall Islands.  Don't ask me why because I can't give you a good reason.  It could be the beach, but the beaches down there are covered with poisonous stone fish.  I could never tell what was a real rock or a stone fish hiding, so I'd always walk the beaches wearing shoes.  Maybe it's the sunrises and sunsets, tropical and vivid... .   I remember those so well.  I had to be up early to catch my flight to work, but first had to walk to the Officers Club for breakfast just as the sun rose.  Or maybe it's the feel of the humid air on my hair and skin.   I have naturally curly hair and the humidity wreaks havoc with it - still.  I have to smile... those were great days.  We worked long hours but on our days off, a gang of us would reserve a boat and take off.  There was no fee... just go.  Swimming was difficult off the boat because of the GIANT men of war.   The guys of course never cared, but then the next day at work, they suffered with the huge welts that the men had left on their backs as they floated by.  For some reason, the smell and sounds of the ocean bring me back to Kwajalein.  I guess maybe I should write an entire blog on my time in the Pacific... I'm so glad that I took those opportunities to travel when they were offered.

Then as I continued along, I met a lady who identified with my Tee... Wellfleet of course.   She had spent her childhood summers in Truro, the next town north of Wellfleet, at a rented cottage on Ballston Beach.  The cottage was taken during one of the large Nor'easters to hit that area.    I had spent probably those same years as a kid in Wellfleet.  We talked about how much fun it had been to be a kid down there... the swimming every day, the family around, cookouts on the beach... those summers felt like they went on forever.  I could see the happiness on her face as she remembered her days spent there with family.  Her Dad had died early as mine had.  We had much in common.

I finally sat down on the beach to sip my coffee.  I had sat in this very spot ten years ago with my long time girlfriend - we had met on our first day of work in the Human Resources office.  We always laughed about that day because she thought that I must have been a secretary or Administrator because of the way I was dressed and how I looked... I certainly couldn't be an engineer like her.  She had come to visit me at the beach... she loved the ocean like I did.  We sat in the sand talking about everything... boyfriends, husbands, weddings, work.  .  The only thing that we didn't talk about was her dying... it was like the scene in the movie Beaches (Forever Friends) - the two friends sitting on the beach at sunset.  I cherish those days spent with her... we went through much after that, chemo and more chemo, but the ending was the same.   .

This is why writer's keep a journal... to catch these random thoughts.  These were mine today... along the beach.

Till,
Judi

A Father's Belated Gift...

After I wrote the blog entry yesterday, I found the airport piece that I had referred to.  I wrote this story years ago, capturing what I personally felt.  Here's a bit of it...

"People milled around, waiting to board a flight leaving for Los Angeles from my sister's arrival gate.  One group stood right in front of me, an older man saying goodbye to his daughter and her family.  I tried not to eavesdrop, but something in their body language drew me to their conversation. 

 “I’ll miss you Dad.”

“I’ll miss you too, my darling.”  He hugged his daughter tightly, closing his eyes.  He pulled back and touched her shoulder length brown hair. 

 “I really wish you would think about flying out to see us this summer.  It’s not a long trip.  You can stay a month or longer if you like.”

“I’ll think about it.”  Her father smiled a placating smile that only a parent can pull off.  I had seen that look on my own father’s face.

“Think about it, please.  We are hoping to come back for the holidays,” she added, trying to make him feel better.

“That will be wonderful.”  The sadness in his words said it all.  For him, being alone, it was a long time from May to the Christmas holidays.

An announcement to board their plane interrupted the conversation.

“Oh Dad, I hate to leave you.  Please fly out and visit us.” She hugged him, tears filling her eyes.

“I’ll think about it, my dear.  Don’t worry about me, I’m fine,” he whispered, the grief of her leaving etched in his lined face.

“We have to go.”  She kissed him, touched his cheek, and then, grabbed the hands of the children while her husband embraced the older man.  Seconds later, the family ran down the passage way, waving back to where he stood.  They were gone, the door closed, and he and I were there alone, in what felt like a total vacuum.  The life and vitality that filled the room only moments before had been sucked out.  Even I felt it.

The plane taxied away from the door.   He stood in front of the large plate glass window.  I sat behind him.  He watched for his daughter’s plane to take off; I waited for my sister’s plane to arrive, both lost in our own thoughts.

A few minutes later, the huge LA bound airplane lifted off the runway in front of us.  He knew it was her airplane.  Without thinking, he reached up his hand and touched the aircraft through the glass as the plane fought its way up, higher and higher - a final contact, the final embrace with a child as she flew away. 

In that one moment, the poignant tableau of a father trying to connect with his daughter one last time touched me so that even though he had been in my presence for all of ten minutes, his words and actions stayed with me to this day.  I often wonder if his daughter knew how much her father loved her and missed her as soon as she was out of his sight.  Did she know how much her leaving hurt him, how he couldn’t let her go, yet did?

The sorrow of the loss of my own father surfaced.  I have learned over time to keep the sadness of living without my Dad locked away.  Yet, this day, this father and daughter interchange unlocked it all.  I yearned for one last goodbye moment, like the one I had witnessed.  I hadn’t had that.  One minute he was there – the next minute he was gone. 

I wanted him to see me like this father saw his daughter, a grown woman with children of her own.  I craved to see the love on this stranger’s face for his daughter on my father’s face for me as he touched my face and hair – once more.  I wished for things I couldn’t have."

I don't think that I can add much to this... till,

Judi