Nancy, it sounds like you're hitting that low spot most people get when they're writing a long story. The initial enthusiasm for the new project has worn off, you've been living with these characters and their problems for what seems like forever, you pretty much know what's going to happen in the end, and you're just
tired. Hang in there! It's worth the slog, honest.
I guess sometimes I feel that the story has gotten 'cumbersome' and I wonder if the reader really wants all the detail. I know there have been many parts that I've just plain deleted because I didn't think people would be interested. I will re-think that.
Depends what you mean by detail. If you mean details about what Caitlyn ate for breakfast, or what colour shoes she's wearing, then no, we don't want that.
We also don't want the life history of minor characters, or side stories about how Jon fell in the water aged six and had to be rescued by his Dad.
But we do want the detail about what the characters are doing, thinking and feeling as your story unfolds. Yes, we can get some of that from their dialogue, but not all of it.
As regards characterisation, I won't discuss that here, because it's a subject which can get very contentious and we've already had an awful lot of debates about it. I may email you privately, but not soon - life is somewhat hectic at the moment and my brain feels like useless mush right now rather than a razor sharp intellectual instrument.
Yvonne
