Thanks to the wise words of the kind commentators, I have got on with the edits. There's a lot more work that I thought, but I think I have a handle on it. More of the historical strand is great fun, even if hard work, because at one time I was discouraged from writing it! Now I'm sorting a pile of coloured cards (scenes from the two strands) I can see that most of the pink ones - from 1585 - are at the front of the book, and need to be seeded through more evenly. Also, the agent loved the references to Elizabeth Bathory, and wants her to feature more strongly. It is hard making changes but I was lost as to how to finish the book, and now I am looking at each component carefully, even if I don't completely agree with every detail.
The problem is, I have tried to link one scene with the next, as they cross from the main strands. Losing those links means creating new connections and identifying the old ones so I can remove them. I've spent six hours at my desk and all I seem to have created is pretty patterns with lots of pink and green cards, and a muddled storyline on the computer. Hopefully I'll be able to unravel them tomorrow! I've set myself the deadline of next Wednesday - perfectly reasonable normally, but I'm going to be away on the Island catching up with friends and family, then we've got house guests (though very supportive ones!). It's going to be hard finding the time so I'm going to blitz it tomorrow and Wed before we pack up to go away. I can see I'm going to be glued to the laptop every evening!
Meanwhile, I'm loving the research into a strange paraphilia which makes women into serial killers...fascinating.
It's surprising how changing one little strand can affect the whole novel - no wonder you're in a bit of a muddle!
ReplyDeleteThe research sounds fascinating though.
I love the nerdy research bit, but apparently, that what was caught this agent's eye! If the research is good it makes the fiction bit more plausible.
ReplyDelete