I’m always surprised how little it takes, at times, to make something so much better than it was before. Last weekend, I knuckled down and rearranged our closet and bookshelves, tossed things we were “going to look at”…someday…but never got to. And dusted and scrubbed. When I finished, the house looked happy and sparkling.
When I cook, a little spice or an herb, a simple sauce, can make all the difference.
This Saturday, my husband helped me tidy up two flower beds. We clipped off dead stems and cleaned out withered leaves. The beds needed extra work since I neglected them completely last year. I couldn’t put any weight on my broken leg. I still have to use a cane, but now, I can weed and deadhead and even rake. I just can’t sit on my knees or shovel yet. And I wanted to plant two new cone flowers and two Shasta daisies. So I needed Mr. Muscle:) After pulling dead iris and daylily stems, trimming phlox, and cutting back money plants, the beds look attractive again. Next year, they’ll look even better.
Tweaking does a lot for writing, too. I started work on my second mystery. I let myself write the first four chapters to get a feel for the flow of the story and to hear my characters. Then on Friday, I went back to do rewrites. I changed sentence sequences, added description here, tightened there. Took out a few things that will work better later. And just like my house, my cooking, and flower beds, some studious tweaking made a world of difference.
Whether you tweak as you go or wait till The End, small things can make a big difference. Happy Writing! And have a great August.
Judi Lynn 
I really need to get around to tidying up my flower beds!
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It’s a lot of work, but it’s outside, and I enjoy it. Good luck with yours!
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P.S. I went to look at your blog, but it’s private. I enjoy your tweets and reviews, though.
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This is such a timely post for me. I’m 40K into my WIP and for the last few weeks something has been nagging at me. I like the plot, the characters and scenes, but something has been missing. It dawned on me over the weekend–I needed an obstacle in the path of my MC. Not just what she was facing in the story, but personally, in her life.I spent last night ironing out the details my head.Today, I went back to the beginning of my WIP and wove the new thread throughout the story. It took me seven hours to “tweak” but I’m happy with the results and feel it has enriched the story.
I’m jealous you’re already on your second mystery. You’re an Energizer Bunny! 🙂
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It always feels good when you finally figure out the “missing” piece. Because you can FEEL that the story’s off. It’s so much easier when you can spot a glaring error and fix it. It’s a lot harder for me when something should be there, but isn’t, because it takes longer to decide what’s MIA.
Wow! To me, it feels like you’ve flown through 40K on your new book. I’m still feeling my way through the first five chapters of mystery 2. Even with chapters mapped out, I always feel like I tiptoe through the beginnings of books, trying to find the right balance, You’re probably on a roll by now!
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Fingers crossed for both of us.
And I always fine the beginning the hardest too!
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