Because Andy Said So

Me: Hey, Novel. Are you okay? Novel: You know? I really don't think I am. Me: Want to talk to me about it? Novel: Do I want to talk to you about how you're destroying me? Me: I'm not trying to destroy you. I'm trying to make you better. Novel: How about we start with talking about how you told me you were going to revise me, then opened a blank document. How is that revision? How are you not just replacing me? Me: It's still you, Novel! Yes, there's a lot of rewriting, but it's refining what came before even if the words are different. I'm replacing your words, not you. I'm keeping the look and feel of you, the heart of you, the themes of you... Novel: It doesn't feel that way. Have you even seen what you did with my outline? You hacked half of it away. Half. YOU MURDERED HALF MY CHAPTERS! Me: Okay. I did do that. But the chapters you have can be longer now. Act I is down to four chapters, but those four chapters take up twenty three ...

Me: I think we're done for now, Chapter 1! 1: Yeah, I think so. The stuff you came back to add today was good, I felt. You changed a little more than I was expecting yesterday, but it's cool. 2: I have a question though. Me: It's not really time for our briefing, Chapter 2. 2: Yeah, I know. But I'm really confused about something. Me: Okay. What is it? 2: I thought you were REVISING me. But you appear to be completely rewriting me? So far I contain five and half thousand words, none of which were in the original manuscript. Me: Well... Okay, that's fair. I pretty much am rewriting your content. The things I wanted to tweak changed the scenes we did today enough it felt easier to do that than not. 2: Uh huh. And the next scene is going to be the same, isn't it? Me: It is. 2: So in what way is this project a revision and not Yet Another Rewrite? Me: I'm going to keep more of most scenes. It's just that your scenes do a lot of introducing and ex...