Tuesday, July 30, 2013

I'm Back....

...Well at least to a degree. Last Friday marked two weeks since my surgery and my foot is now completely unpacked and I can wear my shoe again. Even better, I can take a bath in the shower, not the sink. ; ) That said, I still have to take it slow to manage the swelling.

While I was laid up, I have been rereading FRIENDLY FIRE as it stands now. Unfortunately I've fallen into two holes caused by an earlier version of the story. I'm happy to report that I've been brainstorming "earth-moving" ideas to fill these holes. And, even better, I've finally crossed over into areas of the manuscript that I've read and worked on earlier this year. That means the road has smoothed out to just bumpy.

FRIENDLY FIRE started out as MOTHER'S DAY and centered tightly on Laura Grace's journey from childlessness to motherhood, but the story was much bigger than that narrow focus. As it branched out and widened in emphasis, it became a story about how widespread abuse is. As this theme was revealed, the front of the story no longer fits. That's what I've got to address. Some really good scenes will have to be ditched, but that's the story of most books as they make their journey from idea to finished (or at least final) draft.

How do you handle old scenes that no longer fit?
Do you struggle with cutting them or do you try to "renovate" them to fit?

And there's something really great to look forward to!
Rachael Harrie and Cally Jackson are planning the Fifth Writers Platform Champaign for September!!!

Check out these posts and get ready to rumble. ; )

Rach Writes    and   Cally Jackson Writes