Did it. I finished writing my next book in the War Unicorn series, standing now at 64K. The writing was a long and hard part. My relief is sweet, but short. Now onto the next hard(er) part (whole novel revision) before more revisions and sending off to my first editor for even more revisions.

Most of my chapters have already sailed through my critique group. They are a remarkable group. I find it amusing how one can spot things the others don’t, and that’s true for each person. I love my critiquers!

For this first whole novel revision, I’m basically using Darcy Pattison’s book Novel Metamorphosis. It’s meant as a workbook. The spine glue on my copy is coming apart even though the only writing in it is Darcy’s signing on the title page. The book is well-worn because I’ve used it for nearly every one of my manuscripts. This particular book is a bit more complicated than my others, so I needed wider eyes to evaluate it.

I just finished my Connotation Worksheet, found on page 69 of her book, but expanded it. In order see my characters more clearly, I adapted her basic form to my own categories. I have many characters. By doing this, I am able to see where to strengthen the individual’s relationship to his various aspects. These are some of my categories across the top of my page:

CHARACTER    FAV FOOD   SECRET   AFRAID OF   ANTAGONIST   MAIN GOAL/DESIRE

 Okay. Enough sharing with you all. Off to do more analyzing of my novel so I can revise better and delight you each with this book coming out in September. And here’s the cover reveal: