Rewriting, Editing, Leaving it new and fresh???

I am still in the first rewrite after independent editor review and corrections/suggestions. It is actually umpteen rewrites, truth be told.

I have read sites that suggest sending your manuscript out after the first write. I know I would scare agents off with my comma fest. It seemed like a dumb idea at the time, but the more I rewrite, the more I feel I should go back to the first draft.

The first draft was full of life and exciting. I have to wonder if I am losing my voice in all these rewrites, or is it just that I am losing my excitement?

Anyone experience anything similar? What are your thoughts on this?

VISTA, Agents and Tense. Hmm, a correlation?

So, here I sit fighting with VISTA, unable to write as I must type to write. I can hand write notes but my hand is unable to keep up with my brain for anything else. If I were on a desert island, I suppose I would get used to it, but really I am supposed to be sewing a quilt for my grandson for Christmas. But, no, I am screwing up the only computer I can work on.

It had two or possibly five versions of VISTA on it so I go online, find out what to do about it, download a program to fix it. Fix it! HAH! I now have nothing on the computer but five versions of VISTA and AOL. No Word, dang! No Jasc! No, nothing.

So, I go online again and decide this is a time to find possible agents. I decided to start by going down Miss Snark's First Victim blog list of blogging agents. And, guess what I found! I found an agent who has my same "Tense problem." AgentObvious

I have a horrible time with tense. The writer's group, in Wyoming, pointed out my tense issues, my daughter catches it and my grandson catches it and I read it and go, "HUH?"

I finally found out that I catch most of my tense problems, if I keep a book (it has examples of tense) open on my lap, as I edit, and look at it every paragraph, and sometimes sentence, to fix my tense. I really felt like such a horrible writer that I could not just automatically know my tense was off.

I am so reassured. Thank you AgentObvious.

Down to webpage basics

While, I have designed webpages for years (mostly for my artwork), I wanted to make the new webpage do several things: be entertaining to children, be a place agents and editors can go to for information, throw in some of my art and comply with accessibility guidelines.

Hopefully, I am doing the accessibility guidelines properly. That was the easiest part to do. I did it first and now will redo some pages as I have totally revamped my idea. I am back to basics.

I am not a programmer. I know a smattering of html and can use HTML Editor, Flash & Web Design Software CoffeeCup Software. I am not going to try to learn CSS, but utilize CoffeeCup to the best of my ability. I have given up dreams of curling pages, swinging beads and items that move when you click them. That is programming a specialist can do when the book is a success (power of positive thinking!!!!).

Right now, I want a presence on the web that showcases my books in a simple direct manner. I have found a sample design I like, with nothing jumping, swinging or moving. It is all about information. And, isn't that what people come to the internet for?

I am still doing my own graphics, for the most part, but the only way to actually get this done is to simplify. So, I have diagrammed the pages I want, I have a layout for the pages and I am off to put it together, on this rainy Sunday. Wish me luck!