First, I do months of character development and historical research.
Then, I develop a story for those two main characters using the three act plot structures.
KM Weiland, Writers Helping Writers, and HeartBreathings are some of my favorite resources.
After the plotting, a first draft can take anywhere from four to nine months. I do several passes of rewrites and highlighter revisions before releasing to beta readers. After getting feedback, I incorporate and revise again. I beta another round. Then, it’s time for cleaning the work as best I can before sending it off to my editor.
Just a glimpse behind the scenes.