Rewrite, rewrite, rewrite

I've been going through Sharyn's 'to-do' list for my manuscript and I did a whole heap of writing on the weekend. I think it's going okay.

Alot of it is going back in and putting in 'clues'. Well, not so much clues as bits of information that add to the story so that there is more of a consistent build up to the climax.

That's where having an independent person reading your manuscript is so helpful - they can see the bits that you're missing; the bits that you've assumed people will work out (often because they were actually in earlier drafts and you've since cut them out!)

One of the things Sharyn and Viv picked up on was that I had virtually no physical description of the main characters. That was something I had included in earlier drafts but had gradually cut out so there was none left (because of course I know what they look like!).

But it's a bit tricky for me because I hate large hunks of description, especially physical description. I prefer a lighter touch so the reader can picture their own version of the character in their head.

Hopefully with this last rewrite I've got the balance right. If not I'm sure the manuscript assessor will tell me :)