After pulling out my hair following the developmental edit and trying to re-write the content and arrange it in a more logical sequence (and get my timeline sorted), eventually I turned out another manuscript. I've never been over a piece of work, word by word quite as much as I have with this. At times I was convinced it was one big mess and wondered why I hadn't formulated a logical plan instead of just writing the damn thing! But eventually, following months of hard labour, I was ready to send it for copy editing. Before I did this, I sent it to to a few friends as I felt I'd lost the ability to spot my own mistakes. Friends reviews are always kinder than getting impartial advice - and sometimes that's a nice thing!
- Catherine Louise