This weekend, I sat down to get started on my last run through this revision. I reviewed my notes from my fabulous writers’ group. Having some distance from the last workshop, I had an idea of what I wanted to take and what to leave.

 

The notes suggested a couple of different directions for points in trouble. Some editorial notes mark trouble spots with the perfect solution. Having too many solutions offered for the same issue can be overwhelming. What if none of them seems quite right? Then I know there’s definitely an issue there, but the solution needs to be my own.

 

My brain felt a little scattered and I was afraid I’d forget some part of things as I got down to it. Instead of spending all my time in my manuscript, I opted to rewrite a lengthy jacket copy. Where’s the excitement? Where’s the obstacle? Where’s the tenacity in the character to overcome the odds?

 

It’s said that you can’t really teach something until you understand it thoroughly. I think the same goes for writing: you can’t write a believable character or an intriguing plotline until you know what’s behind it and where it’s going. Taking some time to focus on that, I hope, is going to make this a more efficient and fruitful pass than those before. It will be easier to tell where I left off and my edits will be more consistent.

 

Time will tell if I can prove this theory!