I have just finished the rewrites for Anne-Marie. Tomorrow I will give the whole thing one final read to make sure that I haven't made some horrendous mistake, and if all is well it will be in the post to Ampersand on Tuesday.
At the start of this process Lord Alexander's Cipher; or, the Bridekirk Behemoth was 101,572 words long, spread over 11 chapters. It is now a trim 89,775 words, broken into 21 shorter, more pacy chapters.
But there is more than just an 11.6% reduction in length. In the course of revising LAC;o,tBB I have, I think, made the story more plausible, yet more exciting. I have made the heroine more real.
I have also corrected three significant continuity errors. I have amended more than a dozen cases where the wrong character is apparently in the scene. I have picked up seven cases of misdescribed relationships. I have corrected hundreds of more minor errors in grammar and spelling.
Looking back at what I sent to Ampersand in the first place I can only conclude that they were mad to sign me up when they did (but don't tell them that). I just hope that they now have a book that they can work with. It is certainly a much better book than it was at Christmas.
Now for the sequel. I have a month for research before I start writing it.
4 comments:
Many congratulations, Stephen. (Not to say envy. Oh to finish this draft ...)
Good luck to the behemoth.
Jenny
well done stephen,I can't wait to read it too.
LOVED your comment on Miss Snark- it led me to your blog. Your blog has me interested in your book- I'll look forward to it. Anyone who can think of rubbing boy scouts together has a voice I need to read.
Congrats, Stephen. Let us know when it's available for purchase.
Rubbing boy scouts together? I missed that one. Under current Boy Scouts guidelines, that is a forbidden activity, even if it would make for some interesting sparks.
Post a Comment