Draft 7 revisions

Typically once the book is typed in a revision of a draft involves marking up a complete print out and then inputting all those changes into the electronic copy. I'm on the second half of that cycle now creating what I call the seventh draft.

This draft is going well, I think, but definitely a lot slower than I predicted. I thought I would have it done by the beginning of September, and it looks like I'll be about 3 weeks off. It's the first half of the cycle that was slow. Inputting the changes is, on the one hand, more tedious, but on the other hand, doesn't take the kind of creative energy that is available only in small doses. Today, for example, I put in about 5 hours versus 2 on normal working days. I feel exhausted, for sure, and am looking forward to the weekend. If I didn't have paying work to worry about, I'd probably finish up in one more long day. I do have a lot of distractions, though, at exactly the wrong time.

Judging by the pace over the last few days -- about 20 pp/hour -- I guess I have about 6-7 hours left. It's just a question of when I can get those hours.

So, when I'm done with this draft, what does that mean? I should know better than to try and answer that question. Every draft feels like it has to be the last one until I get a little distance from it and start to see a less rosy reality. But I feel like this draft is the last one.

I have a roster of readers lined up, and I'll distribute it to them. And in the meantime I'll probably start working on summaries and pitch letters and researching agents.

So, I guess I'm about a week from this book being done enough to consider sending it out. Yikes.

I really am very tired.