Draft three of book two is now officially complete, marking a major milestone in getting the manuscript ready for publication. I mentioned in my last few updates what needed to change, and now the work is done. There are still quite a few steps left to go, but finishing draft three feels like the true turning point. Drafting the initial story is always the biggest time sink, but polishing this version of draft three has been the tricky, delicate process required to make it the best book it can be. The manuscript will be heading back for line edits next, which should take us to the end of the year, ready for typesetting, final proofing, and publication in the new year.
What Changed in the Rework?
So, what changed? A lot. At least compared to book one, working through draft three required a much heavier revision. I am not sure if book one was simply a cleaner first draft or if I learned how to execute better revisions by the time I reached this stage. Either way, I am very happy with the additions. I always thought revision would be entirely about trimming, but for draft three, it was about adding a few layers of garnish to finish it off.
In all, every chapter was touched, ranging from minor wording changes to completely reworked scenes, and on occasion, full rewrites to accommodate changes to the plot. Act one felt like it took the heaviest hit in the process, but every act had some form of rework centered around major plot lines and key characters. Not even the interludes escaped untouched.
Expanding the Narrative and Planted Plot Threads
Numbers-wise, the revision for draft three saw the addition of six new chapters, taking the total from 60 chapters to 66. This might seem dramatic, but almost all of it focused on Clio’s plot lines and making that journey feel less rushed. Spending more time with her and the team helps unpack the adventure they’re on, reducing the feeling of filler and making the reader’s journey feel like a more rewarding investment rather than a bullet-point list of events happening between scenes.
On a side note, I wrote these new chapters in full gardener mode. I did not outline in the way I do for the first draft. I knew how the scenes needed to fit within the context of the book, but I simply wrote. It was pure creative freeform with no strict plan, letting the scenes appear organically. This is closer to my natural state. Outlining is key to a good story for me, but it is nice to sometimes just see where the narrative takes itself.
I also threaded a lot of plot around Xavier, mostly into the interludes but also reworking his chapters throughout the book. This gives his storyline more attention and makes his final decisions and motivations much clearer. Similarly, Rea—now renamed to Valen—had a lot of work put into adding scenes across the book to build out who she is and what drives her. I had a lot of fun with this. Valen is one of those morally grey characters, and fleshing out why that is, proving there are valid arguments on all sides of any disagreement, was quite enjoyable.
Rewriting Chapter Quotes and Final Word Counts
Similar to book one, I have a running thread at the start of each chapter: the chapter quotes. These tell a mini story that runs in parallel to the main narrative. This section was completely rewritten for draft three. Do not panic—I saved what I could of the original and added it as bonus content because I still find it interesting. However, this new thread runs much closer to the main story and is deeply embedded in what Clio and her companions are up to.
So, what does all of this mean for the final manuscript? The book is longer—six new chapters, two new interludes, a new archive section, and a slightly longer chapter quote thread add roughly 20,000 words. This brings the total word count for draft three to 180,000, making it slightly longer than book one at 170,000.
It has taken longer than I wanted and was quite daunting at times, but my developmental editor, Leilani, has been fantastic at bouncing ideas around and helping me lock down the right direction. Also shout out to Rob for working through a few key plot points with me. It took three weeks of part-time work, amounting to roughly ten days of solid effort overall.
I am very happy with the rework, even though I was already pleased with draft one. Pushing through draft three taught me that revision is not fun in the traditional sense of the word, but it is deeply rewarding to witness your work improve. Completing draft three has helped me get more comfortable with the process, which takes the pressure off initial drafting and allows for an organic growth of the story that is less possible within the rigid outlining structure I rely on at the start.
My line editor has promised the manuscript back wrapped and under the tree for Christmas Eve. For now, I should turn my eyes back to book three, and perhaps I can get a head start on that before the year ends.
If you haven’t started the journey yet, you can pick up Book One, Whispers from the Machine, on Amazon or Ingram.
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