I'm doing 24 things
317 pages out of 350 now edited in the fourth draft. Somewhat slower than I expected – partly that I’d not put in as many hours, but mostly because I’ve been rewriting more than I thought I’d have to. It’s worth it though.
Neil's Life List
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1. write a novel and get it published
16 entries . 17 cheers346 people -
2. Teach my children to appreciate art, passion and the beauty of nature
11 cheers2 people -
3. Spend more time with friends.
627 people -
4. Memorise "If" by Rudyard Kipling
2 cheers3 people -
5. Memorise 14 bible passages
2 entries . 4 cheers1 person -
6. build a memory palace
2 entries9 people -
7. travel south of the equator
2 cheers15 people -
8. learn the constellations
1 entry . 5 cheers884 people -
9. Organise a fundraising event for Amnesty
2 cheers2 people -
10. Go on an African Safari
3 cheers776 people -
11. see the northern lights
1 entry . 3 cheers19,098 people -
12. lose 5 kg
2 entries171 people -
13. Drink a Purple Tropical Space Hamster
1 entry . 3 cheers1 person -
14. Learn Romanian
1 entry . 1 cheer183 people -
15. go to a ceilidh
1 entry . 4 cheers1 person -
16. See Evanescence Live
2 cheers34 people -
17. Ice skate in Central park, New York
2 people -
18. get a saxophone
1 entry . 1 cheer5 people -
19. learn how to use a quarterstaff
5 people -
20. try snowboarding
1 cheer137 people -
21. Sell one of my photographs
2 cheers38 people -
22. Swim with dolphins
8,314 people -
23. drive on a race track
8 people -
24. build a tardis
1 entry . 1 cheer7 people
Recent entries
In the fourth draft I have
- identified and fixed three significant inconsistencies/plot holes
- identified a load of places I’ve used “seem” and “feel” and updated the sentences to use stronger phrasing
- searched for every -ly adverb and culled a load of them.
- so far done a general edit up to page 131 (out of 350) with lots of turning telling into showing, cutting phrases to make it punchier, and a fair few typo and grammar corrections.
220 more pages to go on this draft … I had a week off over Easter so need to make up for lost time.
I’ve just finished revising the first chapter of the fourth draft; I re-ordered some paragraphs to make sure it started with more of a punch, and cleaned up a few little sections (mostly cutting unnecessary fluff). Twenty-seven more chapters to go on this revision.
I guess Draft 5 will be when I need to read it aloud and check for the rhythm and feel of the passages.
