Ready, Set ... Revise

Here’s the deal: Ready, Set, Write! is a summer writing intensive that encourages goal-setting and accountability. Plus, it provides an opportunity for writers to cheer each other on—whether they’re planning, drafting, revising, and/or polishing a story. The event is hosted by Alison Miller, Jaime Morrow, Erin Funk, and Katy Upperman.

HOW I DID ON LAST WEEK’S GOALS

Nailed ’em. Just kidding. I didn’t have any goals last week because I was completely swamped with Real Life stuff. That’s infinitely less exciting than fictional stuff, so I feel like I’ve been justly punished for slacking.

MY GOALS FOR THIS WEEK

I just got back one last set of notes on my YA sci-fi mystery, so this week is all about that WIP:

• Revise Mystery WIP based on beta notes
• Do one last read of Mystery WIP to make sure it’s in the best possible shape.
• Do one last revision of Mystery WIP query
• Bonus goal: Determine first five agents to query with Mystery WIP next week. 

A FAVORITE LINE FROM MY PROJECT OR A WORD/PHRASE THAT SUMS UP WHAT I WROTE/REVISED

Considering all of my past RSW updates have been about the fantasy I’m planning, I’ll go with that. Here are a couple images that best describe the world-building I did over the past week.

PHOTO BY SIGMUNDUR ANDRESSON

PHOTO BY HOWARD IGNATIUS

BY IGOR OZHIGANOV

THE BIGGEST CHALLENGE I FACED THIS WEEK

Clearly everything. With the new job, it’s been a bit harder to meet self-imposed WIP deadlines. I might be going too easy on myself but I’m also trying not to overdo it as my wrists heal.

SOMETHING I LOVE ABOUT MY WIP

I haven’t started writing my fantasy story yet, but one thing I love about it is the idea of identity. My main characters live double lives, and I want to get at the ways they’re different based on the situation or who they’re with and whether they even know which is their true self. They’re going to have to deal with a lot of emotions connected to discovering who they are, like guilt, shame, and pride. And hopefully I can pull it off.

How’s your planning/writing/revising going?