Caroline Starr Rose

picture book and middle-grade author

  • home
  • Bio
  • Blog
  • Books
    • Anthologies
    • Blue Birds
    • The Burning Season
    • Jasper and the Riddle of Riley’s Mine
    • May B.
    • Miraculous
    • Over in the Wetlands
    • A Race Around the World
    • Ride On, Will Cody!
  • Author Visits
  • Virtual Visits
  • Events
  • Teacher Resources
  • Contact
  • Writing One to One

Returning to Book World: Revising Alone

Leave a Comment

It’s been years since I’ve had a summer where I haven’t been on deadline. I turned in Miraculous months ago and assumed I’d have an editorial letter by now. As I’ve waited, I’ve written a picture book, have researched a novel idea, have made some last touches on my October book, and have returned to my novel on my own.

I knew Miraculous still needed work when I turned the manuscript in. (I’m seasoned enough to know the real writing happens once my editor get her hands on a draft.) The thing I wasn’t sure about was how to proceed. But distance and time have been a gift. Now I can see places where the conflict didn’t carry much weight or where characters needed an early-on interaction to help later scenes make sense. I could happily live in Book World forever, going deeper, pushing further, discovering, exploring, enjoying the place and the characters that become more clear each time I visit.

Is it possible I’ll need to make changes once my letter comes? Absolutely. But that doesn’t make this time a waste. I learn something every time I open the document. I see things I couldn’t before. I find inconsistencies. I discover ways to strengthen my prose. I better my craft. I learn what it means to write by simply digging in.

I’m grateful for this deadline-free summer of learning on my own. My letter will arrive when it needs to. For now, I’m discovering the story I mean to tell and the words I need to do it.

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Pinterest
  • Email

Filed Under: Miraculous, the writing life

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Meet Caroline Starr Rose
  • Email
  • Instagram
  • RSS
  • Twitter

my books

Subscribe to my newsletter + to receive regular blog posts

categories

  • A Race Around the World
  • authors
  • Blue Birds
  • books and reading
  • classroom connections
  • encouragement
  • faith
  • family
  • historical fiction
  • home
  • Jasper and the Riddle of Riley's Mine
  • May B.
  • Miraculous
  • non-fiction
  • Over in the Wetlands
  • poetry
  • publication
  • Ride On, Will Cody!
  • teaching
  • The Burning Season
  • The Notebook Series
  • the writing life
  • this and that

Copyright © 2022 · Caroline Starr Rose · Site by Design by Insight

I participate in Amazon Services LLC Associates and Bookshop.org, affiliate programs that allow me to make a small commission if you click through and make a purchase. Thank you for supporting this site!

Sign up for biweekly blog posts + my quarterly author newsletter and receive a printable quote from my novel, Blue Birds.