I hit the 75K mark on my YA contemporary novel this past weekend. That was my original target word count. Yet, I tend to undershoot myself and always go over the target. I don't have much left to write to finish the ending, so I should be done with the first draft this coming weekend! Probably just a few 1000 more words!! YAY me!
Then I'll spend February adding the villain's point of view in my fantasy romance novel. Something I should have done when I wrote the original, and always thought I should do. This gives me a chance to let my YA contemporary percolate before I dive into revisions with a fresh mind come March.
First step in revisions: As I write a first draft, I always keep a running list of revisions, ideas, plot fixes, etc. Plots and sub plots always seem to change as Muse takes over my brain (or my fingers). So I have to go back and cut out characters I don't need, sub-plots that got dropped, expand sub-plots left weakened, cut scenes, move scenes, fix and sprinkle backstory, etc.
2nd step: stay tuned!
