The Devil Is The Details

I hope your Christmas was full of happiness and joy this year. As we approach the close of this year and the start of a new one it is always good to reflect back. However, that is a topic for later on in the week. Right now I have plans to discuss a different topic.

For the past month I have been vigorously working on my manuscript. Yes, it is the same one that nearly took my muse completely out of the game. To be honest, I could not deny that need that eventually burst out of me. I opened the computer, started reading it and, before I knew it, I was neck deep in perhaps the largest, most comprehensive revision I have ever tackled. How massive is this revision? Here are the numbers but keep in mind one point; I have sixteen pages to go before I reach the end.

Currently I have deleted approximately 3,000 words and I have added approximately 6,000 words for a net of an additional 3,000 words. This revision will span from the first chapter to the last chapter. I don't know what the totals will be when I am done but this is a drastic change to a manuscript. What happened? How did I delete so much and add even more?

First, I deleted redundant words or sentences that hampered the flow. I tightened up many sentences which called for the deletion of most of the words. Many of you can understand deleting words and may even think I haven't deleted enough. That is a possibility. What about all the added words?

As I read I discovered the need to build upon certain scenes while stretching out others. How do you build the one scene and stretch the other? Typically, if I am stretching a scene it entails more dialogs between the characters. By doing this you slow down the flow and perhaps shed a little light on a few plot points. When I build a scene I usually add more action or give more detail to the action taking place. The buildup will start early until it reaches the climax and then start again until you reach the apex of the entire story. Some would classify this as 'fleshing out' the story. The majority of the words I added can be contributed to these two aspects.

Why was this so massive? The change was so extreme that it impacted everything down to the smallest detail. This is not a 'get done quickly' process. Many times I am going back through the early chapters to verify what I wrote or a character did there so it makes sense and comes together in the later chapters. Items such as eye or hair color must stay the same (readers pick up on things like that). I ran into one example of this last night. I changed a fight scene in a chapter and continued on until I was writing the second chapter beyond that scene. This would be the point in time where I noticed that my new scene didn't make sense because I changed the earlier scene. I had to go back and change it to the original way. Why did I change it in the first place? First, we are always striving to get our best work on paper and second, I thought it read better. Of course once I put the pieces together I realized that the change wasn't needed at all. These are the little things we must pay attention to.

As I said earlier, I have sixteen pages remaining. What happens after that? I have a plan. Before I close I will say that letting it rest for two months was a smart move even though I didn't see it as such. I was able to see things and write things afterward that I think I would have missed out on if I waited for two or three weeks. There is something to be said about letting it cool down.

How do you prepare and handle a major revision?