Revision is hard. I always forget just how hard until I dive into it.

The good news is, I’m making headway on Blythe vs. the Werewolf! I’m hoping to post the first installment in January, though the exact date is TBD. I’m trucking along with revisions and thumbnail sketches, but I’m unsure on how long it’ll all take to get everything to a presentable level.

Although I’ve (mostly) gotten over the fear of things Not Being Perfect while I’m drafting, it’s taken some pushing and shoving to get to that point with my revisions. After all, edits are about fixing the stuff that doesn’t work, right? But I’m impatient. I know it’s going to take multiple passes to get it to a point where it’s readable, but I also want to get it done so I can show it off!

The more I work on BvtW, the more excited I get about it. That’s motivating! One of my worries, though, is that I’ll just keep grinding away at it, trying to get it “perfect” when perfection shouldn’t be the end goal. I don’t want to push it out too soon, either.

I dragged my feet on really diving into the revision process. Part of that was not really knowing where to start. Part of it is the fear of sharing my work, of people actually seeing it. I want people to see it, true, but I’m also afraid of anyone seeing it. The two constantly pull on each other, and the force of it paralyzes me.

And then another major contributing factor was the sheer amount of notes I’d accumulated across multiple notebooks and files. I spent a good couple of days gathering up all of that information, all of the potential changes I wanted to make, the bits of dialogue or descriptions I wanted to add. Organizing all of that stuff was kind of a nightmare! Then come the hard decisions, like deciding what version of a scene to go with, or cutting a fun to write bit of dialogue that really doesn’t add much to the plot.

Another thing I need to take into consideration is how much heavy lifting I want the illustrations to do. Will they function strictly as illustrations of what’s already in the text? Or is it okay for me to use them to show details outside of it? I’m leaning towards using at least the establishing shots to replace lines of description that could otherwise feel unneeded.

Anyway, this week proved to me that the best way is through. My approach to revising the first installment has been chaotic, to say the least. But! I’m making progress.

I completed what is probably the easiest of my revision phases, where I plug everything into an editing app to check for clarity and ease of reading. I struggled a bit more with my developmental edits, where I moved some things around, added details, and cut others. My next step is combing through the draft and cutting down my word count.

Since my self-imposed soft deadline is coming up, I want to make regular progress reports on how installment 1 is coming along (and do the same with future installments). It might even keep me motivated. Right now I’m at a high point, challenges and all. I’m bursting to set this thing free.