You Don't Call, You Don't Write

Okay. I know I haven't added much to this blog since reviving it, but there is a simple reason for that: I haven't made much progress.

Except, of course, that I have. It's just that the writer often makes progress in the way that a stream makes progress on a rock or valley. You wear away at it bit-by-bit, always looking to improve it, always looking to strengthen it.

And that's what's been going on with the novel. I've been working on Chapter Sixteen and have, over the course of the last week or so, completed three paragraphs. Now, that accumulation involves a lot of backing up and reworking and rethinking and rewriting. Google documents has cataloged some 86 revisions so far, ranging from additions of text to complete reworkings of words, phrases, and sentences.

There have been more than a few deletions, as well.

And this is all on the part of Chapter 16 I thought was in good shape. It doesn't always come easily.