I told you last Thursday to come back today for an announcement on my revision progress, so here it is: I'm not done yet.
When I realized I wasn't going to make it, I had a mini-melt down. For one thing, I hate it when I don't achieve goals I set for myself, and for another, I needed a celebration and a break. The first revision pass is always a long haul, and I'm ready to be done.
I started beating myself up, wondering why I hadn't been able to do this. Then I looked at the last four weeks since I declared I would finish by June 15th. Here's what I came up with:
102 Number of days I have gone without taking more than one day off in a row
25 Number of hours, on average, I have written each week since May 19
10 Number of chapters that required a total rewrite, rather than simple revision
3 Number of surprising and exciting emails I've gotten this week
25 Number of chapters, approximately, I had left on May 19
8 Number of chapters, approximately, I have left today
I'm counting this as a win. Did I complete the draft? No. However, I did work as hard as I could to get as much as I could finished. The number of chapters that needed to be rewritten took me totally by surprise. Those require way more work--way more time. If I'd known that number, I never would have aimed for June 15.
I'm still very, very close. Tonight, I'm wrapping up the section where Darcy confronts Wickham in London. That brings me to the final quarter of the story, and back into territory that's fairly clearly outlined by Pride and Prejudice. I believe I will finish on Saturday; I'm going out to celebrate even if I don't.
