Yesterday I said that I was going to start editing. That was one part to keep me honest and one part wishful thinking. I'm happy to report that I was successful. I edited chapter one and part of chapter two. Now the train has left the station, and I will have the novel edited in about a month (hopefully).
A month? Well, 42 days. A month and twelve days. That is August 17th, 2017. Here let it be said. Then I'll pass it to my alpha-reader for reading notes. Then I'll take yet another pass at it. THEN I'll start working on book two. Let's call it October. Shall we pick a date? How about October 25th, 2017.
Here's a silly thing I did on my last revision. I thought my chapters were too long. I thought it would pick up the pace of the novel if the first few parts were divided into smaller units.
The problem is that each longer chapter had about one main point. If that chapter were then broken into three chapters, only one of them would be left with a point. So, as part of this edit, I'm bringing the parts of the baby together. At the same time, I'm looking hard at the orphans without a point. Are they really necessary? They are prime candidates for deletion.
That all means that chapter one is not "finished" until all the orphans are brought back.
In chapter one, we are introduced to Kerr, some soldiers, and time travel. When I come upon the action in another chapter, I'll drag it back, kicking and screaming.