The road to hell is paved with good intentions. As I mentioned in previous posts, I am having trouble figuring out how to proceed with the revision process. Since NaNoWriMo worked so well for completing the draft, I thought I would try it for revision. I have now done almost two weeks, using the hack where one minute equals one word and have posted a total of 1,403 words. Although I have consistently spent at least an hour a day on the manuscript since January 1st, the structure of NaNoWriMo has become somewhat oppressive and I don’t think it would be productive to continue.
My new plan, which I’m willing to admit could also be a flop, is to read through the manuscript as if I were reading a published book. Hopefully this will give me a sense of how a reader might approach the book. This kind of reading should give me information about what is missing, where I need to strengthen the writing and where I need to cut.
I am also going to work on my query letter and a book proposal since if the University Press I sent chapters to says no, I will have to start sending these items out to other publishers and agents. I know I will get more rejections than acceptances, so I am steeling myself for that.
I don’t think I will be doing NaNoWriMo again, at least until next November but you never know. Hopefully I will resolve my confusion about revision and not need to post about that again. Next week’s post will be on one of my usual topics, either beer, brewing, women, or nursing. Have a good week.