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Revision Plan

New WIP

January & February Bookshelves

Hey Friends!

 

If you follow me on Instagram, you already know, but in case you missed it, I didn't do a newsletter in January because I broke my foot on New Year's day. Working at my desk on my PC has been a huge challenge because of the pain in my foot, and because of my low vision, working on a laptop doesn't work well for me. 

 

But I managed to work on a couple of things during January via my phone. And in February I've been able to sit at my desk more often to work on old and new projects. 

Book Two 

For the last two months, I've slowly worked on revisions of book two in my Divine Witches duology.

I found an amazing writing software called Fictionary that helps with revisions along with a revisions process that Jessica Brody (author of Save the Cat Writes a Novel) does when she revises. I realized I was doing some of her process and I liked how she broke things down further, so I tried it by using Fictionary and Trello.

Jessica’s process helps you break down your revisions into three phases. Story structure Revisions (aka developmental edits), Scene Revisions, and Line Edits. 

 

First, Jessica suggests doing a quick read through of your WIP. Do Not Edit! no matter how much you want to fix things. Only take notes using the comments in Word or in a separate document (or notebook). Next, create a story map with notecards, Excel, Trello or Fictionary (just like what I’ve called a book map in the past). You will use this to help with your revisions. You can create a story map by writing out 1-2 sentences for each scene in your story.

For example, on my Trello board each card has a short description of a scene. 

 

By having a story map, you can see all your scenes and move them around, which is super helpful. You can see my Trello revision board pictured below. Jessica color codes the cards to show which scenes are To Write (anything new to add to the MS), To Revise, and Written (Scenes that are written and don’t need overall developmental edits at this time.) I've done the same thing for mine.

 

This process has helped me see what needs work the most and start there instead of getting 

sidetracked and jumping all over my MS and revising it over and over. 

 

If your revision process is messy and you feel overwhelmed by revisions, I highly suggest checking out Jessica’s Revision Workshop videos on  the NaNoWriMo YouTube channel or her Revision Course on Writing Mastery Academy, where Jessica goes more in depth on her revisions process.

If you have questions or want me to go into further details about how I'm using this process for my revisions, please let me know. 

Contact Me

On Instagram, I’ve mentioned how reading books with antagonists with black eyes bothers me (especially when they’re demonized) because I have black eyes due to my rare eye condition Aniridia Syndrome. I’ve had an idea for a new WIP for a while that can educate readers and authors about Aniridia Syndrome. So in January and February I brainstormed, plotted, outlined, and started drafting my new #ownvoices Urban Fantasy WIP. 

In this WIP the MC, Nori (Eleanor) has Aniridia Syndrome which causes her to have black eyes and to be visually impaired. I'm planning to make this a serial or series of four or five books. I haven't quite decided yet.

Comps for this WIP include:

Grimm

Buffy

City of Bones

Supernatural

Pandora's Box

Stay tuned for more info in future newsletters.

My Books

*** DISCLAIMER: ***

All images used in the aesthetic above are not my own.

They are inspirational images that I found on Pinterest or covers of books I've read this month, so they are the property of their respective owners.

​If you are one of these artists and want your artwork removed please email me.

January

In January, I read eight books. For the #Buzzwordathon I read When All the Girls are Sleeping. Of the books I read in January, I highly recommend The Ex Talk, Heartless, When All the Girls are Sleeping, These Hollow Vows & Witch Haven. 

February

In February, I read four books. I read The Shadows Between Us for the #Buzzwordathon and really enjoyed it. I highly recommend it, along with Ace of Spades.

You can see all my reads on Goodreads.

GET YOUR COPY TODAY

The Destined Divines is the first book in the Divine Witches duology. Full of twists and turns, unique magic, suspense, a touch of romance, and endearingly flawed characters, this YA Paranormal Mystery is perfect for fans of Sarra Cannon’s, The Shadow Demons Saga, Libba Bray’s, The Diviners, and Kim Chance’s, Keeper.

 
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If you have any questions on my projects, books I've read, or writing, please don't hesitate to reach out to me. I'm happy to answer your questions! Also, if there's ever anything you'd like to see in future newsletters, please let me know!

Until next time...

Keep reading...writing... and dreaming. :) 

Always,

J.J.

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