So, last month I did a post about when it’s time to revise. Then, two weeks ago, I talked about timing and how that plays into querying strategy. I had this whole plan for finishing out my querying for DUET, not because I want to give up on it but because I’ve been working on something else that excites me, too.

And then I got an email that changed my plans. Not an offer of representation but the next best thing–an email that said “if.”

You know the one I mean. It’s the one that says, “I love the idea of this and I want to love it enough, but I don’t quite. However, if you do xxxx, I’d like to see it again.”

I feel a bit like Cinderella. If I can make these revisions work, I can go to the ball. Not that I’m comparing the agent to the wicked stepmother. It’s just that I know I have a lot of work to do and then maybe I’ll get an agent. (Here’s where I sing “Someday My Agent Will Call” to the tune of “Someday My Prince Will Come.” I must be in a Disney princess mood :).)

I’m not going to share the nature of the revisions, but right now the manuscript looks a bit like this picture:

Back when I was writing the first draft of my new WIP, I said it would be nice to have a pattern to follow, like the patterns I follow for my cross stitch projects. The same week I posted it, I realized I’d been doing the stitches vertically when the pattern was actually horizontal. Ahhhh! I decided to take out the stitches–about a thousand of them–instead of starting with a new piece of cloth. I took this picture to show how it looked when I started over. You can still see the residue from the threads I pulled. I had no idea how appropriate that analogy would be later. Because the revisions I’m doing make sense so far. It’s looking more and more like I wrote DUET vertically when it should have been horizontal.

And here’s where timing continues to play a crucial part. Several agents still have the current version of DUET, but until I know I can make it work the new way, I’m not ready to ask them to hold off on the version they have. I’ve also entered a couple of contests that if I advance to the next round, I have to decide whether to withdraw or ask them to accept an updated entry. So, for now, I’m revising as quickly as I can, and I feel pretty confident about the changes I’m making. In the meantime, you may not see as many blog posts from me as usual.

Anyone else been where I am?