Revisions - Re-envisioning your story

As you've probably guessed, I received some revisions today. I don't complain about them. For one thing, I spent so many years wishing an editor would give me the time of day, I know that it's actually a privilege to receive feedback. I also know my editor is as invested as I am in making my stories as good as they can be so she's not saying what she says to torture me or anything. It's vegetables and cardio, for my own good.

But revisions are a challenge. In this particular WIP, the heroine has just had a baby so I feel like I need to make at least a month go by before the hot and heavy stuff starts between her and the hero. I thought I'd keep them in London and send them to Italy once she's pretty much been cleared to 'resume relations.'

My editor has asked if I can get them to Italy sooner. No, I whimpered mentally. Not because I think it's a bad idea, but because writing is a process of making decisions and if you don't decide and commit, you have a wishy-washy story that wanders around all over the place. So you make a decision and you hold it in your heart and then... revisions.

What if they do go to Italy? In the original draft, I had them going directly to the ancestral estate, but should I move that month they spent in London to his townhouse in Naples? Suddenly a whole new set of decisions has to be made and the story that I had in my head has to be, well, re-envisioned.

Now, on the personal side, my husband is renovating our en suite. We--I'm using the royal we because he's doing all the work--have taken out a shower and are putting in a tub and shower, moving a  wall to do it.  When I told him about these revisions, he said, "You don't have to tell me about the challenges of revision." No sympathy there, apparently. Not that I'm complaining.

Side note: while I was writing this post, he called me in to look at said wall that is being removed and we realized we both had completely different visions of how the other side of that wall would turn out. It backs onto our closet and he thought shelves while I said I thought it would be completely open. We both stood there staring at the same bare studs, trying to see what the other was proposing.

And then he said he'd have to move some studs and put in another one over here... It's all about studs in our house at the moment, as he holds a hammer and wears worn out jeans. But I digress...

The point is, revisions are part of just about any process, I suppose. There is no way that every word that goes onto the page is gold. Goodness knows, there are published stories I want to go back into and tweak. Even as I write this short post, I'm backspacing and changing my mind and clarifying my thoughts.

Most importantly, if you're not willing to look at things from other angles, then go in and do the work to improve, you're going to have to keep climbing into that grotty old shower. No one wants that.

So I'm going to quit using the writing of this post to avoid the hard work of making new decisions. Time to get on with my revisions. Are you re-envisioning anything in your personal story?

Ripping It Apart!

In most any DIY project, mistakes are made. You step back, look closely and realize that you missed something or overdid something or something just isn't right. And in that moment, people (ahem...me!) take one of three approaches -- they look away and continue DIY-ing, they go back and try to fix it or they rip it out and start over. 


I've been crocheting and sewing since I was a girl and I've had teachers of both taking different approaches. Some were flexible -- oh, that's not too bad, just do ___ to compensate). Some were rigid -- that's wrong, take it/rip it/pull it out. Some were more critical - and not in a bad way. They could assess how the mistake or misstep would affect the overall finished project and recommend which path to take whether to rip or to ignore or a mix of both.

And I grumbled and complained my way through it all! But I learned as I went. . . or so I thought! Fast-forward from sewing and crocheting to now - writing.....

Over the 34 books I've written and are working with almost a dozen different editors at 5 publishers, each of my editors has taken a different approach to the writing version of rip/pull, ignore or that mix - revisions. Now, I'd love to tell you that I am the bestest writer you've ever read, but sadly, that is not the situation. And, from what I can tell about the publishing and writing industry, there just aren't any? many? authors who don't need to revise their work at some point. 


Some editors love to pull things apart - to move scenes, reimagine characters and plot, to tear it all apart and piece it back together in a completely different way. Some delicately apply their skills, creating a new thing out of the old with a light touch. Some do both, depending on the story and the writer. 

And I've worked with them all! And yes, it's painful. And yes, I complain. 

But, it's a critical part of the process of a writer putting their words and story into a readable form. An editor cleans things up. A good editor picks up on errors and issues. A great editor clarifies the writer's vision of their story and helps mold it into a great book. 

Right now, I'm in the middle of revising not one, but TWO different manuscripts with two different editors from two different publishers and I'm writhing in pain! LOL! 

BUT - I know it will all work out. I know the finished projects AKA the books coming out next Spring will be stronger and better for the pain. I know I'm learning more about my strengths and weaknesses as a writer in working with great editors.

So, how about you? What's your latest DIY project? Do you rip it out when you've made a mistake in your DIY projects? Do you ignore it and move on, hoping for the best? C'mon - be honest - we're all friends here! 

Terri's next book, RISING FIRE, will be the first book in her new WARRIORS OF DESTINY series from NAL/Signet in March 2015! Visit her website or her FB profile or page for lots more info about everything! 

***Terri's winner is Luanna Stewart!  Please email totebag@authorsoundrelations.com with your mailing details!***