Happy New Year! After two years (I know, I know) of not posting anything, I’m back. At least I intend to be back. What have I been doing in the meantime? Well, I’ve been working on my historical novel. After 18 months and with lots of help and support from an excellent book coach, I finished the first draft in June. I printed out the manuscript–all 600+ pages of it. Then I set it aside for several weeks to give myself some space (and some rest) from it.
Then I spent a couple of months reading my manuscript. The first time was to get a sense of it as a reader. Then I read it again with more analytical intent — to identify the various problems in the book and prioritize them. Then I started working on fixing the problems, starting with the hardest ones first. This is the “messy” part of creating a book that readers never get to see. But I assure you, the book we hold in our hands did not start out as tight and perfect and well-crafted as it appears once in print. Part of me hoped the revision process would be easier. So far, it’s not. Perhaps because I’m tacking the most difficult problems first. Ah well…it’s a journey! The lessons I’m learning about writing are part of the new focus I hope to bring to this admittedly old blog.
For my faithful subscribers, The Activist Poet Blog is now embedded within a new website (cathystandiford.com), because I realized that it might be easier for people to find me if the domain was my name. (As Homer Simpson would say, “Doh!”) The old activist-poet.com link should still work. Let me know if it doesn’t.
In the meantime, enjoy the New Year. And may all of your resolutions (should you make them) be easy to keep.
Cathy Standiford 
I know you never went anywhere, but glad you are back! And I am impressed with the work you have done on your book. Hope I get to read it sometime. Today is the first day of my REAL retirement. I know. I know. It’s about time. So many things to do. How precious time is.
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