The Second Draft

This week has been a busy week for The Beast of Rose Valley!

I received the results from my editorial assessment and it was full of juicy feedback that put me straight to work. A hearty thanks to Allyson Rudolph for giving me pro tips for turning my first draft into an amazing second draft!

In the process of working on the second draft, I’ve excised multiple chapters from a particular PoV character, as well as added whole new chapters to amp up the intrigue, horror, and mystery. The heart of the story is still the same, but the second draft is shaping up to be much more focused than the first.

Allyson also called me out on some silly mistakes that Mrs. Hart (my high school english teacher) would be livid with me over. I promise to never mix up further/farther and fewer/less ever again! Also, the frequency with which my hands inexplicably capitalize words for no reason is quite perplexing.

Having the time to really focus on my writing has been invaluable, as I’ve been able to spend 8+ hours per day working on all of the changes. It would have taken forever were I just doing it in my off-hours from a full-time job.

I can see the finish line (in terms of the actual writing), and that’s very exciting! Now it’s time for some field trips to bookstores and the internet to identify agents that I might want to work with, and then the agony of writing short – but precise – query letters and synopses.

I’ll keep y’all posted!

6 Comments

  1. Amanda mefford

    Dean really takes issue with fewer/less. I don’t know how y’all even got along.????

    Reply
    1. J. Paul Barnett (Post author)

      In my defense, even grocery stores get it wrong.

  2. Jorel

    I keep wondering how much farther I would be in my side projects if I could dedicate my normal work time on them. Clearly it makes a big difference. Btw, have you considered an audio version of the book?

    Reply
    1. J. Paul Barnett (Post author)

      I don’t think it will ultimately be up to me. Assuming I find a publisher (which is the goal), it will all be about how they want to do it. But I think it would be awesome if there was also an audiobook!

  3. Michele Toman

    So excited for you! And I am sure Mrs. Hart is too. I bet she would even forgive you the silly mistakes, after giving you a 75, of course.

    Reply
  4. Jen Tobler

    Glad everything is moving along for you with your book. Exciting how much you have accomplished in a short time. Congrats on the progress

    Reply

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