Second Draft Done!

It is such a nice feeling to get to the end of the book and know that my first pass through it is done!

I've really enjoyed reading my book. There's lots that needed to be changed,

edited, adjusted and moved. I cut out a lot of words and even merged two chapters that had no jeopardy. Making each scene in those chapters shorter added a bit more conflict, I think.

I hope, anyway.

I find I second guess myself a lot. I've been reading all these books about reading and just hoping that I'm doing the right thing.

Scenes can only stay in the book if they have a mission that moves the plot along or shows character development. They have to contain conflict, stakes, have a clear beginning, middle and end. There's so much to remember and I hope that I've included it in every chapter.

It's such a relief knowing that it's done, for the moment. I'm going to leave it now for a couple of days and read through the next draft and see if it flows after the first edit. All I want is for it to make sense, flow, become a page turner and be a good story. I can make it into a good story just by wishing it, right? Right?