When It is Time to Rewrite: 4 Steps to Improve Your Manuscript

My fourth novel, Crazy Little Thing Called Love, is due to my editor on August 1. Yes, I am aware that is a mere 29 days away. No, I am not counting hours or minutes — yet.

With my fast draft in hand … well, spread all over my desk and sometimes all over the coffee table in the family room … I am ready for rewrites.

Yes, yes, I am.

First things first: there are certain things I don’t do when I am this close to deadline and deep into rewriting.

I do not clean my house.
I do not cook.
Hmmm. Reality is, I don’t clean my house or cook that much when I’m off deadline. I’m just being honest here. When I’m off deadline, I’m plotting a new novel or I’m dealing with second round edits or galleys . . . or something! I’m thankful my husband loves me.

Use FOCUS to craft vivid scenes

I went to my first My Book Therapy (MBT) retreat in 2009 – the first-ever Storycrafters Retreat. I’m four years further along the writing road, on deadline for my fourth novel, and I often review things I learned at back then. One of my favorite MBT techniques is FOCUS, an acronym that helps you craft vivid scene descriptions.
FOCUS stands for:

First Impressions

Observations

Close Up

Simile (or Metaphor)

Solving the Problem of a Paralyzing Premise

I was thrilled my publisher wanted a third book from me – and just a bit proud that the pitch I’d worked so hard on had done just what I’d hoped it would do: grabbed my editors’ attention – and landed me another book contract.

But what’s that Proverb about stumbling over pride? Yep, I fell flat on my face a few months later. That oh-so intriguing one sentence pitch had me in a headlock and refused to give up and say “Uncle,” so that I could wrestle it into a synopsis, much less a real story.

Beyond that single sentence I had a whole lot of nothing.

Getting Personal with Our Readers

It’s one thing to endow imaginary characters with hopes and dreams and Dark Moments and Wounds, Lies and Fears. It’s something else all together to go mucking around in my oh-so real hopes and dreams … and hurts.

If we want to write real characters who make our readers laugh out loud or cry as they turn the pages of our books, they we have to delve into our hearts and remember the events and the people who made us laugh out loud and cry behind closed doors — or in public.

Emotion: It Don’t Come Easy

My decision to layer in stronger, deeper emotion into Somebody Like You cost me more than I ever anticipated. Why? Because if I wanted my imaginary characters to express emotions that my readers connected with, I had to tap into very real emotions inside me.

While the story is a contemporary romance, it also examines themes of twins and family, widowhood and grief, loss, estrangement, brokenness … all wrapped around the Story Question: Can a young widow fall in love with her husband’s reflection?

Another question I had to answer? How honest was I going to be as I wove stronger, deeper emotion into my novel?