Well, I’ve come down to the last 20% or so of the revisions to BLOOD WILL TELL. The time to make some hard choices is coming right up.
I’ve already made the decision to give this one another try by the traditional route. I’ll redo the query letter, research some new agents, and start sending it out there again, this time as paranormal romance. That’s not the hard choice.
The decision is this: Do I want to be prepared, in case this one still doesn’t get anywhere through traditional channels, to put it out there myself.
If so, then I have more work to do. Not just learning more about e-publishing. If I want to make it a success, then I really need to be able to put the sequels out at or close to the same time. Sequels that aren’t written yet.
You see, up ’til now I’ve pretty much concentrated on the traditional route. And the conventional wisdom in that arena is that it’s better not to start the sequel until you’ve sold the first book. The reason is that if the first book doesn’t sell, the rest of the series has about the same chance as a snowball in . . . well, you know the rest of that saying. It’s better, in that venue, to write something new that may have a better chance.
But, for e-publishing, that turns around completely. Those who’ve done best with e-publishing have been able to follow up with more books in the same series to really build readership.
So now, as I complete the revisions to BLOOD WILL TELL and then a revision to the beginning of MAGE STORM and send both of them back out there into the world, and wait for first reader responses to SEVEN STARS, I have to choose what to work on next.
New stories, like THE BARD’S GIFT (alternate history) and THE HARBINGER (a total re-imagining of my earliest novels).
Or the sequels to BLOOD WILL TELL (BLOOD IS THICKER and SPILLED BLOOD) and MAGE STORM (WILD MAGE and DRAGON MAGE).
Happy Independence Day
Meredith Mansfield, Author 
Hmmmm, Just wondered, how many rewrites do you average on your work. My human averages seven. He says his cycle is: 1 vomit idea on key board, 2 initial continuity clean-up, 3 first craft cleanup, 4 story-plot improvement, 5 character continuity cleanup 6 craft edit and 7 polish. It varies down to three and as high as twelve. He’s tried but to take something from mind to ms in less but he doesn’t feel he that he puts out something he can be proud of.
Sandy
http://www.sandysays1.wordpress.com
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Hmm. Well, it does vary depending on the story. I try not to over-revise. I did that once and managed to suck all the life right out of the story.
Generally, it averages about 3 drafts before I have something ready for readers. Then, depending on the amount of change that comes out of that, one or two rounds of revision based on the readers’ comments.
If that led to only minor revisions, I’ll let it sit for a while before I do the polishing edit. If the revisions were more major, I may go out to a second round of readers.
That’s five to maybe as many as nine drafts, I guess.
I’m learning that I need to wait a little longer before the polishing edit and that, if I do, I may end up with another round of revisions.
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