The Reward For A Job Well Done… In my day job, I’d been working hard on a project for nearly a year, but turned the last of my work in back in December. Then, all I could do for that project was wait for everyone else to be done with their part. Tuesday, we had a big, milestone test, and it passed. But? It’s far from done. But, my day job isn’t the only place where that happens, my writing works the same way. I work hard, polish it up so it passes my own tests, and then I send it off to beta readers, or critique partners, or agents. I wait… maybe not-so-patiently for my writing to pass their ‘tests’, and then I hear back (or pass the no-answer-means-no-thank-you deadline). So far, my responses have been positive — or at least neutral. No one has told me my writing sucks and I should stick to reading. But? They all have ideas for improvement. Ways for my work to get better, for the plot to flow more naturally, to give the emotional core of the story a greater impact, to make the setting and main character something that an agent can connect with and draw them in. Both of my projects already have a form, a function, and a shape. Now, it’s time to really see what I can turn them into. This coming year is a year of revision for me. Taking rough manuscripts and turning them into a polished form. Rough stone to elegant statues. Where are you with your projects? Are they still ideas and raw material? Or are you ready to polish them ’til they shine?