Today's Guest Post Brought To You By S. P. Bowers

i Sara! Thanks for guest posting today!

Sara, who blogs over at her space subtitled it's just me, was kind enough to drop by to talk about... Manuscripts.

Hmm, how'd that wine glass get there?

Take it away, Sara:

Like many of you I have a few novels tucked away in my virtual desk drawer. I sincerely hope most of them never again see the light of day. I'll admit to some pretty bad writing. Made worse by the fact that I didn't think I needed to rewrite. Don't laugh, I was young and naive. While I did try edits on a few of them my current novel is the first one I have really put this much effort into rewriting.

I heard Kiersten White say "Ideas are captured in first drafts but books happen in editing." I firmly believe this. Look at your old novels. Any of them read more like a series of scenes about the same people than a real book? Or do they still resemble brain spew from NaNo?

First drafts are wonderful. I love drafting. I love the rush that comes with being bombarded by a dozen new ideas at once. I love the newness of the experience. But where drafting is the honeymoon, glorious and wonderful (ok, I was horrendously sick on my honeymoon but I hear some of them are glorious and wonderful) editing is a marriage. Sure it may have morning breath and you may be sick of all the dishes in the sink but it's the living and working together that gives us a deep understanding and love of each other.

It's only when we get to know our novel, word after horrible word, inside out and upside down that we are able to form it into a cohesive whole. Otherwise known as a book.