I’m no chef, but I can cook. (What? You haven’t tried my chicken tortilla soup? For shame!) I really love one pot dishes—throw a few ingredients together, put the top on, done. The dish has practically cooked itself. Every writer has their way of going through the revision process, but I promised myself this time around that I wouldn’t rush this book through. So I’m taking some time to let my book simmer in my head for awhile, giving it time to get some flavor. Stepping away from my book gives me perspective and helps me work out any kinks before I delve in, red ink pen in hand.

So how long do I wait? This is the tricky part. Ideally, you want to step away from you’re novel, but you don’t want to stay away so long that you’ve forgotten their voices. I’m giving myself two weeks to not touch it. It’s hard, because I get the itch to write but I make myself slow down and to really think any new plot twists or turns through before adding them. Just like with cooking, you have to taste before you add any additional spices. It might be that you don’t have to add anything at all. (I wish! If this book were a stew it would need salt, pepper—oh who am I kidding, just throw the whole spice rack in.)

Revisions are my favorite part of writing. For me, writing the first draft is killer. I think about all those empty pages in front of me and think, “Oh boy. Time to feel you guys up with words.” But with revision, I see all the words and get excited because I’m just making it better. I’m just adding a dash of salt here, sprinkle of pepper there. But the major work is done.