Tuesday, December 18, 2007

Drafting or Revising?

Ugh...I can't decide which is harder on my brain these days, drafting new stuff or revising old stuff. I'm working on Summer's Song, a full-length contemporary, and it's the 2nd or 3rd time through. This time, though, I'm making some major plot changes. So some scenes I have to write from scratch, and others I either have to revise or figure out where to move. I've been doing a lot of shifting around of chapters, too, which is making my head spin. I keep forgetting where the characters are in their whole growth process. Hmm...maybe I should actually jot down some notes? I do have an outline, but I keep straying from it.

And I just want it to be done! I can see the ending, I know where I'm going, but darn it, the actual process of getting there is slowing me down. I'm losing patience. I'm having the hardest time lately parking myself in a chair and just WRITING.

Help.

Your Psyche is Yellow

You have a ton of energy - both physical and mental endurance.
You are rational and logical, and you can help almost anyone think clearly.
Optimistic and bright, you also have a secret side that's a little darker.

When you are too yellow: You will do anything to get your way, and no one will be the wiser

When you don't have enough yellow: you lack confidence, drive, and humor

4 comments:

Marianne Arkins said...

What you're doing is HARD because little things can be affected when you make changes in an already complete manuscript. So, you add scenes or change them, and then you have to go fix all the stuff that's been impacted.

It's why I had editing. Ugh. I don't envy you, though I can't WAIT to read Summer from cover to cover.

Hey... my word verification is "payuf"... yanno, like "payoff". See, it's a sign!

windycindy said...

Good Day! My psyche is "Green!"
It fits me to a tee. Hang in there,
all will work out! Cindi
jchoppes[at]hotmail[dot]com

Dru said...

Don't lose patience. You see the ending, you just have to keep going and before you know it, you'll be at the end. Good luck with Summer's Song.

L. Lemanski said...

Wow! Be happy with what you've done already! It is such an accomplishment even to get to this phase.

Heck, I'm happy if I can read a book much less write one!

Personally, I do think revising can be harder. Those final tweaks mean so much and I'm going to take a guess that you are your worst critic . . .

Good luck!