More on the Journey - Rewrites

So I will have to admit the rewrite is dramatically more difficult to write than the original manuscript.  This time around I am considering the audience, the market, the the science or writing.  There is so much more research involved on this end of the project, much more than I had anticipated.

Originally I just spewed out a bunch of what I would consider artful dialog and scenery.  There was a plot path and it flowed alright, but most certainly had holes in it.  For the rewrite I'm sitting back and looking at the work with the eyes of a reader.  What would they want to know about the characters or how would they like the book to flow.  I have thus added more push and pull between the protagonist and  antagonist giving the storyline more suspense.  It will hopefully give the reader a sense of urgency to read more to determine what the characters are going to do to one another and why the detest each other so much.

I have also new elements of the main characters struggle or conflict.  I believe this was lacking in the original, the reader will now not be left confused about this topic.  Quite simply he can not lose another woman in his life, the struggle with himself not reaching his mother's defense is quite crippling to his ego.  It is a battle which if he can win, will allow him to become the land's greatest protector.  Therefore now he is set on the task with the heroine of the book, will he and can he save her or will he fall short like he had once before?

Secondly, I have thought long and hard about the market the book will be read by.  I had originally set the stage for an adult book.  My current thinking has leaned me towards the young adult market.  I am testing the novel out in that genre editing the text as needed to attain this goal.  For instance, the first manuscript had the hero lose his wife.  This time around I have let him miss the opportunity to save his mother, brought his age down fifteen years, etc.  Logically speaking this should open up the market for the book allowing both older and younger readers some room to show interest.  Also it will leave me some flexibility in case I want to keep the characters around a while for future installments, for which I must admit I have some great ideas for.

Then there is the science of writing.  I have learned so much about what editors and publishers want in a book, I would be foolish not to incorporate this into the creation of the manuscript.  Quite specifically here lately I have discussed the opening lines of a book.  See this post for my explanation on this.  Also I have done a lot of research on the actual art of story telling and adding those elements into the book.  The conflicts, the overlining themes, foreshadowing, revelations, etc.

I look forward to sharing more with you all in the future... stay tuned.