Over the weekend, I finished my WiP with these words:
I couldn’t stop smiling. I STILL can’t stop smiling. There are few feelings better than knowing you’ve drafted an entire story.
Technically, this WiP was a re-drafting, or a rewrite. I imported scenes from the original story (which I wrote in June of 2010), but approximately 80% of the manuscript is new material. The characters are reimagined (I love them so much more now!) and their story is fresh and more complex. The romance is more authentic, the conflict bigger, and the stakes higher. It’s far from perfect, but for the first time in a long while, I’m truly excited about it.
And now I get to tackle my slightly intimidating list of revision notes:
I much prefer revising to drafting, though, so I’m looking forward to diving in. Time to make this manuscript shine so I can send it to my brilliant CPs and, eventually, Agent Vickie (cue nerves!).
As the summer carries on, my blogging will continue to be sporadic, but I’m slowly crawling out from my cave of WiP madness.
Yay!
Where are you in your writing journey?
katyupperman.com 
Hooray!!! This really is one of the best feelings. (Perhaps only beaten by reaching “the end” again after several rounds of revisions!) Congratulations, lady! Enjoy a little down time, and then good luck editing 🙂
Thank you so much, Erin! Finishing is fantastic, and celebrating with friends who get it is even better. 🙂
Congrats, Katy!!!! 😀 This is so exciting! You must have been so invested into this story after all these years, so a rewrite is very impressive!
You look very happy on your picture. Writing brings on such a palette of emotions and the magical words “The End” are very powerful 😀
I am currently drafting my second novel, the one with the ballerina & soccer player, and enjoying getting my chapters critiqued by Jaime as they go 😀
I love that your novel has a sports slant to it, Elodie. One of mine (POPPIES) is heavy on swimming. Good luck with your drafting, and thanks for helping me celebrate!
Yay! That is always a great feeling! Congratulations.
I always love stopping by your blog. You always look so happy. Thanks for always sharing your smile.
I’m on probably my 8th re-write of my novel. Hopefully I will put the final “The End” on it soon and move on to #2 in the 3-part saga.
Again, congrats and keep us posted on your progress. I’m sure there is a publishing deal waiting for you.
Thanks so much, Jenny! I am generally a happy person (:)) but typing THE END made me an elated person!
I totally get what you mean about your 8th rewrite… These WiPs can be never-ending! Good luck with wrapping yours up and continuing on with the 2nd and 3rd parts. I’m in awe of those of you who are capable of sagas and series. I think I’m more of a stand-alone girl. 🙂
I said it on Twitter, but I’ll say it again: yay for you! I am still between projects, ugh. I have some notes from a month or two ago on that political fantasy I mentioned, but it’s mostly backstory; I’m still trying to figure out what’s actually going to happen once all the players are set up.
Thanks, Sophia! I was “between projects” for a good long while, mostly because I wasn’t mentally ready to tackle this one. Once I got to that place, though, the momentum was an amazing feeling. And I know what you mean about plot… what a pain in the ass. 😉
So exciting Katy and congratulations! It takes heart and determination to rewrite like that and you’ve clearly got both:)
Thanks, lovely! As do you! 🙂
Congrats!! I will be rewriting a WIP at some point in the next year, and I’m a little daunted. Good luck with the revising–I hope you take some time to celebrate first. 🙂
I think rewrites can be more daunting than starting from scratch. It took me forever to figure out how to “fix” this one (I’m STILL not sure it’s entirely right), but once I got going, I found it to be a very rewarding and enlightening experience. And yeah… I’ll definitely celebrate a bit. 🙂
Yay, Katy!!! So excited and happy for you 🙂 This is such an incredible milestone. I think it sometimes takes even more work to reimagine a story than to write one from scratch. Congratulations!
Temre, you were a huge player in my motivation to finish this thing… Thank you SO MUCH. And thanks to for being willing to trade work with me. 🙂
Congrats! 🙂 Sometimes there are no finer words than “The End.”
Agreed! Hope everything’s going well in your writing world, Crystal!
Yay! What a great feeling. 🙂 Happy revising!
Thanks, Jaime! As I said, revisions are fun for me… This is the easy part (if there is one!). Hope your revisions are going well!
YAAAAY!
(Love, Agent Vickie)
YAAAAY is right! I am so excited (and terrified!) to send you this manuscript. Very, very soon… 🙂
Congrats! That’s a huge accomplishment. I hope you did something nice for yourself to celebrate! Enjoy revisions!
Um, yes, I ate a HUGE bowl of ice cream with crumbled pretzels and chocolate syrup on top. 🙂 Hope all is well in your writing world!
YAY KATY! I’m so excited for you…I know how much you wanted to get this finished by the end of June. WOOO! 😀
I’m trying something different with this draft and getting feedback on chapters as I go along. It’s really different for me to do it this way, but it has actually been SO helpful for me. So I’m about 16k words in and I’m wrapping up making changes based on feedback before I move on from there. We’ll see how it goes.
Thanks, Jess! It’s been so fun and so productive to “hang out” with you in the evenings… I was needing that accountability. Definitely a habit I can get into!
I’ve tried getting feedback after each chapter like you’re doing. I like aspects of it, but at the same time I’m sort of OCD about going back and changing details in the story after I’ve written on. My crazy doesn’t want anyone reading my stuff until it’s as perfect as I can get it on my own! Glad it’s working for you though. Whatever it takes, right? 🙂
Congratulations! How exciting to reach that milestone. Way to go!
Thanks, Kitty! Hope your writing is going well!
Woo hoo! Congrats! I love that feeling, especially after a rewrite because at the start those sound seem so daunting. I’m revising after a giant rewrite and very much looking forward to The End. 🙂
Yay, Tracey! Sounds like you’re getting close. I’m rooting you on from the west coast!
Yay! *happy dance*
I’m in the middle of a rewrite. There are definitely similarities to the previous draft, but between the ginormous plot holes and the fact that my MC, Calanthe, was totally annoying…I’m barely even looking at the other draft.
Thanks, Steph! It’s been great working along side you in the evenings via Twitter. The company and the accountability have done wonders for my motivation! And yeah… I know what you mean about an annoying main character. Mine was a pain in the ass before (whiny and weak and indecisive). I like her so much more now that she’s reimagined!
I know! Between working in the evenings via Twitter, and then having CPs who are as excited about my story as I am (meaning they keep pestering me for more…), I feel like it’s much easier to stay motivated!
YAYYYY KATY!!!!! I’M SO HAPPY FOR YOU!
I’m in the middle of a down time….I just finished going through my novel twice – once with CP notes and then again just to look it over. Next I have to resend it to my CPs. I can feel that I am SO close to being done w/these revisions that I’m throwing caution to the wind and entering a query contest next week.
Yay, Rachel! So excited for you, and I’ll definitely keep my fingers crossed for you regarding the query contest. So cool!
Yay congrats!! That’s really exciting. I’ve never done a rewrite but it sounds daunting so good for you for getting it done!
I’m starting another round of revisions on my WIP (hopefully my last before I query!), and also finally starting a new story. I’ve been working on my current WIP for over 3 years so it’s time to start something new. 🙂
Thanks, Ghenet!
Yay for querying, and yay for starting something new! I’m starting to think vaguely about what I might want to work on next… Talk about daunting!
Congrats! Those 2 little words–THE END–are joyous words, if I must say myself…and I do. I’m on my last revision of my 2nd book, and then will start sending it out to be read by Beta readers. Good luck with your revisions now!
Thanks so much, Char. Good luck with your revisions and with applying beta feedback. That’s what’s up next for me as well. 🙂
I’ve already told you this, but here it is again…YAY!!!! I cannot tell you how excited I am for you (and for me – because I know there’s some awesome awesomeness coming my way!)
Congrats, friend! As for me, I’m chinking at the blob I will hopefully someday call a masterpiece. 🙂
Oh, it will definitely be a masterpiece (and yay for me because I get to read more in a few days!:)).
Thanks for being such a huge support and motivating force, Alison. I’m not sure I would have had the drive to get this thing done had I not been so excited about getting your feedback. You’re the BEST!
I love finishing stories! Especially when you get to reimagine something. 🙂 Congrats!
Thanks so much, Alexandra! And thanks for keeping me company via Twitter as I plug away. Work time is so much more fun with friends!
Congratulations! I agree that revising is much more fun than drafting…can’t wait to get there myself!
Thank you, Molly! Hope the drafting is going well for you!
Yay! That is so awesome. Those are my two favorite words in the English language. 🙂 Congratulations!
Haha! I think they’re mine too, Ciara! Hope your writing is going smoothly. 🙂
Yayyyyyyyyyyyyy, Katy!!!!!
I am so, so, SO, sorry I missed this post! But so very proud of you, too! We’ve both been very busy – and it’s insane we finished our massive rewrites at the same time! What a relief it is, isn’t it?
And I know what you mean – I can’t stop smiling!!! It’s like I’ve got a hanger stuck in my mouth! 🙂
Please keep me posted on how it all goes; fingers crossed your CP’s have nothing but fabulous words for you, and Agent Vickie just loves it!
Congrats, Katy and happy 4th of July!
Thanks, Erin! You’ll have to keep me posted on the feedback you get. I feel like we’re rocking in the same boat. 🙂