I’m expecting my WIP, Rule of Fire which is the sequel to Born of Water, back any day now from the editor. I’m so excited about that as getting it back and getting to work on it again is pivotal to finally picking a publishing date, which I need before launching the cover reveal. I feel tingly just thinking about it!
Initially, I took a break after finishing my round(s) of edits to Rule of Fire. I read several books and had a lovely time! Then I decided to tackle a few short stories in April to being to set the tone for a new story line that I will be tackling when the third book in my current series is finished, Spirit of Life (plan to be writing that this summer). I was hoping to whip off four short stories before May arrived. Well, it ended up being only one. But I’m beginning to get a feel for the characters and story despite the scant progress.
After slogging through one tough short story, I decided there was something else I could work on while waiting for Rule of Fire to return: I could do a quick run through of Born of Water before formatting it for CreateSpace and the world of print on demand.
A few people had pointed out things missed in Born of Water by my previous editor. I figured I’d clean it up and release the updated version before Rule of Fire and prior to the formatting switch. Boy, that was another time estimate that was way off.
I’m immersed not only in the story again, but in edits. What the heck?
Admittedly, my writing and editing skills have significantly improved in the year plus since I released Born of Water. There are days I’m surprised at what I didn’t know. I’m one of those people who learn best by the ‘trial by fire’ sort of tests, so I know my improvement comes by doing. But I’m surprised by the awkward phrasing, missed commas, or other trivial edits that should have been caught by me if not my (former) editor the last time around.
I’m very grateful that I decided to re-read and re-edit. Not only because of the embarrassment factor of wanting to fix typos, but because I’m actually please with the story. This round is focusing the writing, tightening it up that little bit it needed to really shine. But the thing is, the potential was already there.
I know every author loves their work (at least I hope so!). But I’ve been really enjoying going back through Born of Water and pulling out lines I love. If you follow me on Twitter, then you’ve seen some of them. I just love to quote tweets from my book. And this read through is giving me so many to share! 😀
Have you ever re-read previous work you’ve written and been either incredibly pleased at the story or surprised at the missed edits?