The Countdown is On

I got back from the rodeo weekend yesterday afternoon and plowed right in, getting myself ready for the ACFW Conference. Wow, I leave exactly two weeks from today and I am so not ready yet.

First up, I'm back at it with the story, revising the beginning. Yep, you read that right. A trusted agent friend looked at the opening chapters and advised me to pace it better, cut to the chase faster, keep the reader engaged. So I've cut the first scene altogether and morphed some of the dialogue from that into the second scene. It was hard to let go of some of my pet actions and phrases, but they had to go.

I'm thoroughly convinced that after a time, an author can have trouble seeing his or her story from a fresh perspective. I've had the basic beginning now for months and I adopted the mindset it can be no other way. But the agent was right. I spent part of my weekend away pounding on my laptop and coming up with a new first chapter. Today I honed it. Now I need to do the same thing with the second chapter, getting to the murder faster.

In addition to getting my story ready for pitching, I have ACFW responsibilities to have done before leaving. Once the plane lands in Dallas, I hit the ground running and never stop until Sunday when I drag myself onto the plane and fall into the seat for my flight home. Two days later, I'll come up for air. LOL.

The rodeo was a blast. So good to get away, but already it seems like a dream.