Sunday, March 22, 2009

I'm not Revising Today, But I Am

I left the most current draft of CROSSING CHALK (middle grade novel) on my desktop at school, so I won't be revising today. Wait. That's not true. I will be revising, but I won't be axing and adding paragraphs directly to the manuscript. I'll be thinking about what needs to be done. I'll be:

1. Plotting the betterment of my plot. 
2. Characterizing the characteristics of my characters. 
3. Cutting the unnecessary while tightening the pace. 
4. Listening for voice. 
5. Plugging holes.
6. Tying everything together in a big, fancy bow...

All while creating a story that hopefully speaks to someone. Okay, not just someone... a million someones.   

During my current revision, I'm addressing the big-picture issues. Character motivations. Good surprises. Bad surprises. Surprises that don't make any sense. Voice inconsistency. I'm hoping it only takes a week, but if it takes longer, then so be it. You only get one chance for a manuscript submission and you have to make it count.

"You can't rush art." -- Toy Story 2


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3 comments:

  1. It sounds like you have a great plan in place. I especially like that you're looking for voice inconsistencies...I pretty much find those in EVERY book I read (except for picture books). Good luck!

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  2. Sounds a lot like what I'm doing.

    Good luck!

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  3. Thanks for the good wishes! It's getting there, slowly.

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