Today's Revision Strategy: Stay On Target

This morning , while e-celebrating wrapping up the last major set of revisions on my co-written (and totally banana-pants) academy novel, a friend of mine asked me to sum up my approach to revision.

So I did. And then I realized, DANG, there was a blog post in there.

GASP!

What? Dee, actually finish a blob post?

It’s wild times here, folks. I’m doing my best to turn my new leaf and get the posts happening.

Before I dive into revision fun times, let me just say: Writing this book with the incomparable Sara Lunsford has been the best experience. And WOW. This book is the best kind of candy: ridiculous, fun, full of sexy, dorky candy. Who knew the nano novel I drafted in a mad frenzy in 2014 would get reborn in such an awesome manner?

It’s also been a logistical adventure. Once we’d both take a crack at my old word document and figured out how to take the heart of my 2014 baby and let it realize its full evil academy potential. We had to age-up our main character, shuffle the plot, and dig into the sexy.

And when it came to revision, I needed the best tools in my writerly toolbox.

1. Stay On Target

My nerdy heart hopes you’ve watched the original star wars trilogy. Well, most people pick Yoda or Obi Wan—its Davish Krail, one of the Y-wing pilots facing the first death star. Wise dude, that dude.

What does “stay on target” mean to me?

It’s how I remind myself to keep the purpose of each chapter/scene in the front of my brain while revising. If there are lines/paragraphs/etc that are taking away from that purpose, then those chunk probably need to die with the first Death Star. (Though, in truth, I cut and paste them into a special off-cuts doc, cuz you never know…)

2. Feet On The Ground

This time-tested standard for dealing with anxiety attacks has also become part of my writerly repertoire.

Basically this is me, making sure scenes are active and that my character is physically located in the setting (this is big for how I check and manage scene choreography, because it’s easy to lose track of other characters and the surrounding area when your mc is trapped in their head).

Are my characters standing in a real space, with real spacial awareness—or are they rambling alone in their heads? If I put their feet on the ground and make them MOVE and TALK and INTERACT, how does the scene change?

3. Embrace My Candy

Do I love something in a scene/story but am avoiding digging into it because I think it's "dorky" or "dumb"?

Fuck that noise.

I’ve realized that I have a terrible habit of trying to cover up my dorky heart, to bury the nuggets that please me out of fear other people will find them stupid. Know what happens every time I kick that attitude to the curb? Something awesome. (Example: my co-written, about-to-be-released academy book).

If I'm not going the distance because "who else will like that" I need to remind myself that LOTS of people will love the candy that I love. Get over my fear. And make those foil-covered pieces of word candy shine bright.

4. Marie Kondo Is Wise

Tidy tidy tidy.

Seriously. I’m not just polishing on a revision, I’m sweeping up messy sentences and organizing repeated content. Got dead words and sentences saying basically the same thing? Pick the best and delete the rest (or, you know, save it in that off-cuts file).