Tag: novel revision

Where Do We Go from Here?

Written by Ellen Morris Prewitt on October 29, 2020. Posted in General, Racism to Reconciliation, Writing. 6 Comments on Where Do We Go from Here?

The revisions to my Mississippi novel have reached the “listening to the computer read to me” stage. I’ve received wonderfully helpful feedback from Beta readers and spent 2 months implementing it. “Implementing” sounds so neutral, but I wrote another 20,000 words and revised the ones I already had on the page. Now...

In Case You’re Following Along

Written by Ellen Morris Prewitt on May 17, 2016. Posted in Writing. 10 Comments on In Case You’re Following Along

Today, I finished polishing the first ⅔ of Jazzy and the Pirate. That means I have ⅓ to go. I’m not giving away too much to tell you the rag-tag group of characters has arrived in New Orleans, ready to save the city from the onslaught of Hurricane Katrina. Many questions have been answered. About the Pirate’s agenda. About Jazzy’s...

Reading the Vision Out Loud: Part III (or Slowing Down)

Written by Ellen Morris Prewitt on April 29, 2015. Posted in GOD, Writing. 7 Comments on Reading the Vision Out Loud: Part III (or Slowing Down)

I’ve slowed down. Reading aloud the first eighty pages whizzed by, but now it’s dragging a bit. This is as it should be. As the story grows, more strands are woven in, and I must be more analytical to make sure I don’t drop a stitch (how’s that for a knitting metaphor by a non-knitter?). I notice things my characters,...

The Next Loop

Written by Ellen Morris Prewitt on April 27, 2015. Posted in Writing. 10 Comments on The Next Loop

I told y’all I was going to keep you in the loop—how many times have I made such a promise then let my commitment fall by the wayside? I’m trying to have more stamina this time, so here goes. The next step in revising: I’m about to embark on reading The Bone Trench out loud. I’ve incorporated all the action points from...

Revising, Ellen Style

Written by Ellen Morris Prewitt on April 23, 2015. Posted in GOD, Writing. 7 Comments on Revising, Ellen Style

I’ve never done this before, but—hey, that’s how you keep from getting old, right? Try new things? So here goes—I’m folding you in, inviting you along, opening the curtain, and showing you how the sausage is made. Yesterday I began the revisions to The Bone Trench recommended by my editor Gretchen. I’ve posted about this...

I Can’t Blame the Agent

Written by Ellen Morris Prewitt on June 23, 2014. Posted in General. 4 Comments on I Can’t Blame the Agent

If you’ve been following this blog, you know I spent about fourteen months attempting to rewrite my manuscript, Train Trip: Lucinda Mae’s Quest for Love, Honor, and the Chickens, into a novel a particular agent could successfully represent. At the end of this process, the agent declined representation. This is not her fault. Every...

The Stink of Failure

Written by Ellen Morris Prewitt on May 27, 2014. Posted in General. 10 Comments on The Stink of Failure

I have just sent—for the last time—to the interested agent Train Trip: Lucinda Mae’s Quest for Love, Honor, and the Chickens. After three (count ’em, three) prior attempts, I have either successfully managed to revise the manuscript into a “market ready” product or I have not. I am telling y’all this because I need...

The Circle of Life is Not Supposed to be Static

Written by Ellen Morris Prewitt on April 15, 2014. Posted in General. 2 Comments on The Circle of Life is Not Supposed to be Static

I interrupt revising Model for Deception to revise Train Trip, bringing with me the streamlining lessons learned from revising Model for Deception only to return to Model for Deception with the additional streamlining practice I’ve gained revising Train Trip as I read American Gods, learning how to craft a slightly different novel so I can...

Which Novel Next?

Written by Ellen Morris Prewitt on March 8, 2014. Posted in General. 9 Comments on Which Novel Next?

If I tell you my one-sentence pitch, will you tell me which novel you’d rather read? Model for Deception When her model partner disappears, a Memphis fashion model uses her “clothes whisperer” skills to investigate the case, only to discover clues to the murder of her long-lost favorite cousin. In the Name of Mississippi A young documentarian...