Gonna Make It

Remember that scene from The Three Amigos, where Steve Martin’s character, Lucky Day, is in shackles and is trying to escape from his cell? He’s almost there, almost free, just about to pull the lever and then bam! He suddenly slams back into the wall and has to start all over again.

Well, that’s exactly what my experience with finishing my manuscript has been like for the last three and a half years.

In 2010, I was inspired to write a book. Something happened to a friend that got my wheels turning. I started asking the “what if” questions and eventually created an entire story in my head.  So, I sat down and started writing. I worked on the first draft for a little over a year. I remember the joy I felt when I wrote the last sentence. Whew! There, I was finished! I patted myself on the back. The only thing left to do was find an editor and have them fix any typos and grammatical errors. Right?

Gonna make it.

Wrong.

I did find a great editor. She had years of experience and was very professional. I remember my first meeting with her after she had read my manuscript. I was expecting her to say something like “I had to make a few revisions, but oh my God, that was one of the best stories I’ve ever read!”  I would lower my head bashfully and say, “Oh you’re just saying that. But, please go on.”

Uh, no. It’s actually funny to think about how naïve I was back then.

Needless to say, that didn’t happen. Not even close. She started by telling me the things she liked about the manuscript and then, very politely, listed all the things that were wrong. It was a long list. I had made numerous point of view violations, had scenes that were going nowhere, had underdeveloped characters, too many adverbs, scripted dialogue, I was telling not showing, etc. etc. etc.

What the what? I slowly turned to look over my shoulder. Was she speaking to me? Surely, she must have read the wrong manuscript.

She went on to tell me how I could fix it, but it was going to include taking the manuscript apart, dissecting it, placing each scene on an index card, getting rid of the ones that didn’t move the story forward, creating entirely new ones, putting the manuscript back together and then focusing on character development and dialogue.

Ugh! That was a lot of work. I felt like throwing in the towel, it seemed too daunting a task.

Slam back into the wall.

I took a few months off and considered just forgetting it. Moving on. But, as much as I tried, I couldn’t stop thinking about the story. So, I got back in the saddle, followed my editor’s advice and basically started over. Fast forward two years later. She sent me an email that read “I’m excited to tell you your manuscript is finished! It’s gone through the final proof and it’s ready for publication!”

I was thrilled. I was there. I made it!

So, I had the final manuscript printed out, sat down and read it.

Hmmm … I was underwhelmed.

Don’t get me wrong, it was a VAST improvement from my first draft. It was okay, but far from great. There was something missing. I let my editor know how I felt and she was surprised. Could I be more specific? What exactly did I feel was missing? But, the truth was I couldn’t put my finger on it. I knew it could be better but I didn’t know how. After going a couple of more rounds, I realized my editor was just too close to the story and had probably taken me as far as she could. I was grateful for her guidance, work, and everything she taught me … but I needed to find another editor. Someone who could help me make it really shine.

Slam back into the wall.

So, a few weeks ago, I found a new editor. She’s awesome. With new eyes, she’s coming at the story from a completely different angle. She’s helping me breathe more life into the characters, primarily by focusing on the dialog. I feel a lot better about the manuscript now. I’ve actually fallen in love with it all over again. It should be ready to publish in a couple weeks.

Gonna make it.

Let’s see if I can finally pull the lever.