What’s Ready. Set. WRITE!, you ask? It’s a summer-long writing intensive that encourages goal setting and accountability, and provides an opportunity for writers to cheer each other on at any point in the process—be it planning, drafting, revising, and/or polishing. The event is hosted by Alison Miller, Jaime Morrow, Erin Funk, and Katy Upperman.
I’ll be checking in weekly to share my progress, and if you’re contemplating joining the fun, there’s still time! Full event details HERE.
How I did on last week’s goals
Revise another 25% of SHUTDOWN — Check! I actually managed to get through the rest of the novel, so this revision is officially complete!
Finish reading THIS SONG WILL SAVE YOUR LIFE — Done and done! This was a sweet (and fun) YA contemp. I especially loved all the music/DJ details, and the fact that the romantic subplot was just that—a subplot, not the main focus of the novel.
My goals for this week
- Proofread SHUTDOWN on my iPad to catch any outstanding issues, then send it to a beta reader
- Formalize a revision plan for VENGEANCE ROAD (My edit letter arrived last week, so I’ll be diving back into this world)
- Read another YA contemporary (I’m thinking… LOVE AND OTHER PERISHABLE ITEMS)
A favorite line from my project OR a word/phrase that sums up what I wrote/revised
Here’s an excerpt from SHUTDOWN, in Matty’s POV:
But she was already stepping away from me, just like she had that day at the pond, suggesting that we head back into town and see if there was anything good to eat. If I were Cole, I’d just grab her and kiss her and get it over with. I’d be confident and unstoppable. That’s what I’d done with Bridget. But Lola wasn’t Bridget and I wasn’t Cole. This was different and I wanted it to be different, but even that realization didn’t make me feel any better about the fact that I sucked at this.
You’d think kissing the girl you’re going to be with for the rest of your life would be easy.
And it’s not.
The biggest challenge I faced this week
As I mentioned earlier, my revision letter for VENGEANCE ROAD arrived and it was hard to not jump straight into it. I read through my letter and the fully marked up ms, despite the fact that I was so close to finishing my SHUTDOWN revision. Thankfully, after taking in all my editor’s feedback and realizing it was completely doable, I was able to dive back into SHUTDOWN and wrap things up.
Something I love about my WIP
It’s nearly time to hand it off to a beta-reader. Who doesn’t love hitting a huge milestone?
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That’s all I’ve got til next check-in. How was your week of writing/revising?
