Proof Copies, Spotlight Moments, and the Saga Taking Shape
- mckenzietrakks
- Apr 2
- 2 min read
There’s something almost ceremonial about opening a proof copy, but this time, it felt a little like stepping into the wings before a show. The house lights dim, the orchestra hums, and for a heartbeat, you’re suspended between nerves and exhilaration. That’s exactly where I found myself when I saw my second novel, in proof form, for the very first time.
This book has a different kind of pulse. My debut was firmly rooted in historical fiction, but this story stretches its arms into saga territory. It follows a woman whose voice can fill a hall, but whose life is shaped just as much by the silences between the songs. Holding the proof copy, I could suddenly feel the sweep of her world — the backstage whispers, the admiring crowds, the family secrets humming beneath every note she sings.
So, I sit down with a pencil, a stack of sticky notes, and a cup of something just strong enough to keep me honest. Proofreading on paper is a different beast entirely; on a screen, you’re close to the words. On the page, you’re close to the story, and see clearly the rhythm of its crescendos and pauses.
There’s a show-business flavour to this stage of the process, too. I’m scanning for continuity like a stage manager checking props before curtain-up. I’m listening for the emotional pitch of each chapter, making sure my heroine’s journey — from rehearsal rooms to heartbreak, from family duty to the bright, dangerous promise of the stage — lands with the right resonance.
And then there are the little surprises. The lines I’d forgotten I wrote. The moments that suddenly feel bigger in print. The tiny mistakes that make me laugh out loud — the literary equivalent of going onstage with your hem tucked into your stocking. Proof copies are humbling like that. They remind you that writing is both craft and chaos, discipline and improvisation.
But the best part? This is the moment the book stops belonging only to me. As I turn each page, I can feel the saga taking shape — the generational threads, the emotional inheritance, the way one woman’s voice can echo through the lives around her. It’s a story about ambition and sacrifice, about the families we’re born into and the ones we build under the glow of the footlights.
And as I mark up the margins, I’m not just correcting commas. I’m tuning the story, note by note, until it’s ready to step out onto the stage and meet its audience.
You can find my first novel Julia Sleeps here, I do hope you'll check it out!
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