Hey y'all.
So, I received my third revision letter (Or Help Edit and Learn Letter). Each HELL is becoming narrower in focus, and smaller in print, and this time around we will be looking at each paragraph... nay, even each sentence, to check for flow, consistency, and... some other stuff I can't think of at 8:00 a.m.
The Revision Letter:
I always read my revision letters through a soft-glow filter. It helps.
Sometimes I use rose-colored glasses instead.
This revision comes down to 4 steps:
1. Comb the Draft
...looking for signs of weakness. Am I repeating words? Are the characters repeating actions? Is anyone flinching?
2. Ruminate on Possible Changes
Is there a fresh way to express what is happening? Is that passage even necessary to the book? Can it be fixed? Removed entirely?
3. Adjust Accordingly
Make the mandatory fixes. Trim the fat, where possible.
4. Proceed
... on to the next problem area.
Over the course of the next two weeks, I will be working on these four steps: Comb, Ruminate, Adjust, Proceed. Or CRAP.
As I am in the process of CRAP (CRAP-ing?), it is always good to have some essentials on hand, and Monday night I was lucky enough to get a visit from the Diet Coke fairy.
I opened my front door to find a 24-pack of bottled Diet Coke on my porch.
I always knew that if I believed long enough, and hard enough, the Diet Coke Fairy would appear. It has been many years since I first heard the magical tinkle of the silver bells on the Diet Coke Fairy's sleigh. Decades.
My friends always told me I was silly to believe. But I can still hear those bells...
