GUEST POST by Glenn Rolfe

 Today we welcome author GLENN ROLFE to One-Legged Reviews with a wonderful guest post.

“NEVER GONNA GIVE YOU UP/ I CAN’T QUIT YOU” 

For all my would-be writers and current writer buds out there…..

You have a story idea. You might even begin work on this project. You get a couple characters, a scene or two, maybe even a great idea for a monster or villain. Say you even write the first four or five or even ten chapters of this novella? novel?   Then, something comes up.  You have another book you promised someone, or you’re trying to make a deadline for an open call, or LIFE happens. You get pregnant, you start a new job with wonky hours, you get hurt, or whatever. That great idea, those new characters you just met, it all gets pushed aside or into the back corner of some file on your laptop.

I can’t speak for all writers, our motives and work habits all differ, but what I can tell you is that as long as you keep that beginning safe, you can always go back to it. And if you care about it enough, you can and will finish it.

I started my latest novel, THE WINDOW, back in December of 2011. It was the year I started writing. I’d written the first draft of my novel, BLOOD AND RAIN, and scribbled out a novelette called, “October House” (still gathering cobwebs on my computer).  I knew I wanted to start another book. After all, I was a writer now!  So I did. I got my idea from something that actually spooked me (my reflection in the kitchen window), and probably got four to six chapters deep before I set it aside.  I think it was a combination of things. I was busy trying to work on my short story writing, trying to join the ranks of accepted authors, and I probably did another revision or two on BLOOD AND RAIN.  Whatever it was, I got taken away from my new baby and it was a good year or two before I opened that file again. 

Over the years, I would open the file and peck away at the story. Writing new chapters, revising old ones. Eventually, I got toward the final act and stopped again.

Life’s weird, right? 

In late-2016/ early-2017, I hammered out the third act and finally finished the first draft. That’s five years after i got the idea and started the book. I stayed very busy in those five years, producing four novellas and two novels that I sold to publishers, and completing and selfpublishing another novel and two short story collections. But I never forgot or gave up on THE WINDOW. 

After completing the first draft I let my editor have a run at it. When I got the clean copy back, I sent it to some beta readers. Some loved it, some did not. I figured I’d take my shot with Don D’Auria and sent him the clean draft. Don came back with a polite “pass”, but he did offer me some keen insights on where it didn’t work for him.  Low and behold, a lot of his problems with it
mirrored much of the negative feedback I got form some of my beta readers.  I took a couple more months away from the story, and then with new perspective, I dove back in and began reworking, rewriting, cutting and building bits (in some cases chunks) of the story until I wound up with the version that came out on September 28th. 

I put a lot of work into this story over the last (nearly) seven years, but I really pushed myself into overdrive in the last three to four months. I have many people to thank for the final product. Every set of eyes, every bit of advice, every “I love this” / “I hate this” helped me to mold this story into one that I always knew it could be. 

I am so proud of this book. And I am so glad I never stopped believing in it. And I am so grateful for my friends and colleagues that made time for it and gave me their honest feedback. I honestly believe it’s my best book yet, and it never would have gotten there without my friends or my commitment to the promise and potential of this story.

If you believe in a story, never let it go. Go back in between projects and check in with it. See how it’s holding up. Say hi to your old friend. Sometimes they say hi back, and the next thing you know, you’re right back in the thick of things.

THE WINDOW is out now in e-book and will be available in print later this month. It’s a coming of age story with demonic possession as a son tries to save his father from the unimaginable. 

I hope you’ll check it out.

If you want more info on this book or have any questions for me, join me at the Goodreads group read. THE WINDOW is Horror Aficionados OCTOBER read. I’ll be in everyday with stories and answering questions. Join us here: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/19548778-october-2018-group-read-2-withguest-author-glenn-rolfe.

Get your copy of THE WINDOW here 

$2.99 in e-book or FREE with Kindle Unlimited