Getting Better

12/2/18

I don't know what sort of crud I've got, but it's been a slow recovery.  The fever finally broke, but I've still got a bit of a cough.  The problem is, I'm still finding it hard to concentrate.  My body just wants to curl up and sleep it off, while I wanted to spend this weekend writing instead.  That's just not going to happen.  I need this crud to go away so I can get back to a regular routine that includes getting some writing done. 

I was able to get a last edit of Wounded Alpha completed and I went ahead and submitted it to LT3.  The call doesn't close until the end of January, so LT3 won't take a look until then, but now it's one less worry on my plate.  I can instead focus on all the other things I know will be coming, including a lot more edits.  Until then, I am going to continue plucking away at all my stories to see if I can get some completed. 

One thing I was able to take a look at was Thunderbird (one of the stories I'm hoping to submit with my fairy tales), and I'm concerned about it.  Way back when, I submitted it to LT3 and they rejected it.  They were kind enough to provide a reason why and after looking through the manuscript again, I can see that they were right.  I need to add a few more scenes in order to smooth out the issue, but I'm not finding that an easy task.  The problem is, as the story stands now, it flows nicely.  The plot and the world building both work as they are.  I just need to make a few tweaks to one of my characterizations, and one or two additions to the romance, yet I can't  decide where to cut into the story to start adding those changes.  Anywhere I try, I leave blatant hatchet marks in the plot and the flow immediately dies.  I don't want to scrap this story as I think it's the most unique one in the bunch, but I can't resubmit it as it stands, which means I've reached an impasse.  Does anyone have any suggestions? 

Aside from fixing Thunderbird, I have two other stories in my fairy tale bunch to finish.  A Heart's Dream started out as yet another Cinderella rewrite, but I'm trying to get it to go more of a Sleeping Beauty route.  I think that will fit better with the characters, but planning that out has been really slow going.  Trip Trop Trail, my Billy Goats Gruff rewrite, hasn't been worked on at all.  I was trying to get A Heart's Dream completed first, which has left Trip Trop Trail patiently waiting.  Unfortunately, it's going to have to continue to wait as I have a few other things I need to get done first.  Only once all three of those stories have been completely worked out can I start looking at final edits and formatting, which is months away.