Part The Third
It’s possible I overreacted.
Guess what I found out when I crossed the halfway point reading the manuscript last night?
The thing starts coming together!
Once you’re over the hump, almost exactly dead center in the story, it rather suddenly and surprisingly clicks.
That’s curious.
It’s also a huge relief.
Post-middle, the voice is there, the tone is correct, the sentences flow far better than they do (if they do at all) in the first half.
What happened?
Well, I guess I found Inlanders at that point in the writing process.
Or Inlanders found me.
Whatever the process, I’m super grateful for the results, because now I’m not so bummed about what’s left to read. And not so embarrassed about what I’ve already read.
But I did start rewriting yesterday anyway, right from the beginning, soon as I decided the whole draft had to be chucked overboard and left to drown. Peering hopefully at the back half of the book, though, I suspect I won’t need to cut as deeply into the living tissue there to perform any necessary surgery.
Might not even need anaesthetic.
W00t!!!
- Stephen Reese
