Trying again

Last week was a setback. My editor didn't like the second book. So I went to the beach to hide out for the week in my mom's condo....to sit on the sand and read through the manuscript and think about what to do next.

And it worked. It was kind of funny in a way because the beach was so windy and here I come over the dunes with my SPF 912 sunscreen and my folding chair and Diet Coke and huge manuscript held together with a rubber band. The book was literally in danger of blowing away. And I just started reading. I came to some conclusions about how to handle the decisions facing me - what book to write next, who it show it to, etc. But the biggest thing is that in reading through the manuscript I was reminded how much I liked it. I was proud to have written it. Just realizing that was a kind of benediction.

So I'm back in Charlotte with some ideas for revision - revisions I want to make, recommended by no one else - and the sense that I want to go back into the book. For now I feel calm and focused. I say "for now" not to curse myself but to acknowledge that staying calm and focused is no easy feat in this line of work. But for now I feel good.