Pitch Wars nears its end. The showcase is just around the corner. The best way I can sum it up is to say, “Wow! What a journey.”
I’ve learned so much and my manuscript, Ilya’s Gambit, has come so far. No matter how the showcase turns out, I’m proud of what I’ve been able to accomplish. With priceless feedback, advice, and encouragement from my mentor, the story of my heart has become one that fills me with awe and wonder. Honestly, it was hard to edit it toward the end because I kept getting swept away by the story. I knew what would happen, I could recite many of the passages from heart, yet it still sucked me in with ease. That’s got to be a good sign, right?
I ran a comparison of my pre-Pitch Wars manuscript with the current version. Here’s a snapshot from that:
There’s not a single page that doesn’t have some kind of changes. Not one. In fact, there are many more littered with color than ones with just a few splashes of red. I’d encourage everyone who performs a major revision to do this to their work. It’s a great way to see just how far you’ve come and how much work you really did.
A few days ago, I had a moment of crisis. What if this is the best I can ever do? How will I possibly write something I love more than this manuscript? What if I’m an idiot and everyone hates it? It’s not the first time I’ve felt this way. I’ve had similar thoughts after each manuscript I’ve finished, but the idea of leaving this story behind (at least for a little while) and working on something new is very intimidating.
So what comes next?
The Pitch Wars showcase commences on February 5th. Agents will have the opportunity to read my pitch, a short excerpt, and then request my work if they are interested in reading more. I really hope for requests. I’d love to find my perfect agent match.
Regardless of how the showcase turns out, I plan to query this novel. It’s ready. I’m ready. While I’m back in the query trenches, I’ll be focused on drafting and revising other works. I love Ilya’s Gambit. I know I’ll end up coming back to it and revising even more in the future (hopefully once I have an agent), but I need a little break from it for now.
Once the showcase is over, I’ll be back with another post on my final thoughts regarding my Pitch Wars experience.