In revising my novella, Second Chance, which is not nearly as good as I remembered it being, I came to the conclusion that the story's natural conclusion occurred way too soon, and the parts I wrote after that were simply filler. Needless to say, I'm disappointed in myself.
I knew I had to invent some interesting twists and turns (and ditch approximately the last third of the story), but I had no idea what those twists and turns might be. Yesterday as I was brushing my teeth, it hit me. Usually ideas strike me in the shower, so this was unexpected. I now know what to do. The whole point of the story is about a struggling musician, and don't ask me how I did it, but I managed to turn it into a boring pile of glop about of all things, a snowmobile shop. I worry about myself sometimes.
Yesterday I tested out my new idea and I like it. I didn't get very far into it, but the new narrative definitely holds my interest. Granted, this involves a major revision and jettisoning big chunks of text. It won't be done overnight.
In the meantime, I'm thinking I need to unpublish the current version. It's not good. It starts out great, but as I noted, the last third is rubbish. Plus, I'm going to design a new cover for it ~ and write a new blurb. It's a minuscule chance that anyone will buy it anyway, but I'm not willing to risk it.
Unlike the novel I condensed into a novella, this exercise is akin to writing a semi-new story, which makes me happy. I'll keep the good parts, but expand on them a bit. I'm still struggling with turning the love interest into an actual human, but I have included some of his reminiscences through dialogue, which fleshes him out a bit. I still need to do more. I also added more color in spots that needed it.
This new twist has, so far, an unknown journey. All the better. I'm happy to put some creativity and elbow grease into it.
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