Revisions

Revisions may not be the most fun part of writing for most people, because let's face it -- there's lots of highlight-and-delete, and that can be depressing. And it's even a little sad to have someone whose opinion you trust say "Um, that stinks." But I have to say, revising is refreshing to me. 

I have a few great friends reading my latest manuscript and offering suggestions. Some are very broad (like "your main character isn't very nice") and some are specific ("don't you know when to use "its" and when to use "it's"? - and yes, on principle, I do). But guess what? When I get the suggestions and work them through and decide which ones to run with and which ones to politely ignore, THE SOTRY GETS BETTER! 

Isn't that amazing?

It's like two brains (or four, or six) really are better than one. And the better the brains working on it (and I only choose the greatest people to critique for me) the better the ideas get. And it's still my story, only sharper. Smarter. Even (*gasp*) funnier.

So hooray for revisions, and cross your fingers - if I stay on track, I'll have a new submission to the publisher within a month. This is very good news.