We had feedback this week on two of the chapters we’ve written for the Clovenhoof novel.
To make life interesting, these were chapters three and six, as we decided it made more sense to start in the middle. We’re still happy with that decision, as Iain has just written the beginning, and felt it came very easily because we’re now so familiar with the characters and their situation.
So how did the feedback go?
Very well I think. There were suggestions and ideas for us, and we’ll be discussing those in order to capitalize on them. Our biggest fear was that the humour might fall short, but we got a definite thumbs-up on that score. There were some who smirked, and some who laughed out loud, but the consensus was that we’ve managed to make it funny.
We also worried that the writing styles might be noticeably different. We’ve worked hard to blend them, which is why we make sure that one of us plots, the other writes, and then we swap back to edit each chapter. We were assured that they were very similar in style.
We got a whole page full of other observations. I will share a few.
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It’s clear to all readers that we both adore the character of Nerys, and that in her own way she is naughtier than Clovenhoof (Satan) himself. It is true that if we find a new and inventive way to have Nerys take all her clothes off, it fills us with glee.
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The style is very British. We actually wanted this, so we were pleased to have it pointed out.
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There were multiple suggestions and queries about whether Clovenhoof should have supernatural powers. We decided, right at the start that he wouldn’t, because we wanted him to have a hard time.
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“Smut” is subjective. Nobody slapped us, or said we’d caused offence. Perhaps we need more…
Many thanks to everyone who took the time to read our chapters and give us such useful feedback.
