Post-Clarion: the Journey Begins

Last night I spent several hours going through the crits of my cricket story and making revisions. I cut close to 500 words, but added new ones back in. My husband (who knows cricket) reckons it's significantly better now. Thanks, Clarion buddies!

Today I've been working on my novel -- my novel, which I've been working on for 15 years off and on. It's sort of archeological: you can trace changes in my own maturity and writing style as you go through the chapters (although I'm smoothing out any truly glaring examples of this as I go, I hope). In other words, I'm really, really familiar with the "flavor" of this novel, and how I feel and think while I'm working on it.

Today, though, my head felt different while I was working on it. Clarion has changed me so fundamentally that even the most old-sweatshirt-and-faded-jeans of my projects feels new and different.

It's going to be interesting to watch myself work....