Nearing the 1/3 mark on the edits. That’s a rough estimate, since some issues involve more work than others, but good progress, nonetheless.

One point in particular I have avoided without shame: a major character revision. Basically, this issue means rewriting 3/4 of a character’s dialog. Deep in my heart, I know the lines would work on a stage — and a screen — but none of The Eight heard his voice quite the same way I did in my head. Therefore, I failed to make a case for the character on the page. A damnable oversight. Even though the glitch is one item on the hitlist, fixing it might take longer than all the others combined. And that is why I dodge the inevitable, for now.

Next time, I’ll have a better feel for the reader.

I’m snowmobiling this weekend with friends. By a stroke of fate — and maybe a fat dose of luck — one of them brought a laptop, and I carry the novel on a USB drive, so I’m working on revisions in between relaxation in the lounge of the bed and breakfast. Thank you, fellow traveler.

Vermont is gorgeous. Now back to work…and fun.

Implementing fixes to the novel is a lot harder — and yet easier — than I expected. The hard part is finding time for the revisions. Perhaps that’s resistance talking. The conscious mind understands the edits are necessary, the unconscious mind wants to believe that the first draft is tighter than its present form. On the other hand, when I revise, I’m amazed at how much the suggestions improve the story; it lightens the load.

Not sure how long the process might take, but I’m roughly ten percent into the big issues, those items ranked five on the severity scale. In the meantime, I’m having fun.

Based on the Eight’s feedback of the novel — plus my notes — 77 areas require editorial attention. Each issue has a ranking of 1 to 5, 5 being critical, 1 being less so.

Triage ranking breakout for the 77 points:
21 5’s
20 4’s
24 3’s
10 2’s
2 1’s

While the triage matrix is accurate relative to feedback received, the count is misleading; it excludes grammar concern. This is not to downplay the importance of mechanics, only that I see it as an low-level issue buoyed by the revision process. As flow, plot and technical details improve, so too does grammar. Since I’ll tackle grammar in a second pass almost exclusively, the tally omits all but the most blatant clunkers.

To sum up my priorities for this revision:

1) Character psychology. Would a character do, say, or think what was written?
2) Plausibility. Point by point, does a scene add to the story? Does it fit with the scene before and after?
3) All darlings must die. Enough said.
4) Technical details. Now is the time to verify the chemical process that makes the leaves turn colors during fall.

Today I plot out a time estimate for the revisions. I’m aiming for a feasible delivery schedule that allows for winter illness and a snowmobiling trip.

Edits start tomorrow, possibly today.