Alina M 6/1/26 Alina M 6/1/26

Revision Reflections: 02

THE TLDR

I am currently on the exciting, yet trying, adventure of writing my first full-length novel that I aim to get traditionally published!

Project Disco a.k.a The Last Dance in the Disco Inferno tells the story of reclusive former starlet Elaine ‘Dayna’ Sims, spending the past three decades hiding from the glitter and grit of her past, when she’s unexpectedly approached by ambitious curator Tori Robinson, on her own costly rebrand undertaking, to archive Elaine’s life for a new exhibition. A dangerous dance of memory and mirrors begins as ghosts of Elaine’s disco era resurface, and the deep shadows of New York City threaten Tori’s exhibition. Are the secrets they’ve kept to protect their reputations worth more than the cost of the truth? For this final performance, they must decide to preserve the legacy of a public persona or reveal the truths behind the curtain.

In the disco inferno, the truth is the only thing that doesn’t burn.

On Fighting the Beast

I’m officially done with the second revision of ACT II in my current WIP, The Last Dance In The Disco Inferno, meaning I’m creeping towards the end of this draft, and I can’t believe how this journey has been taking shape thus far.

ACT II was just as difficult and all-consuming as the first time drafting. It’s like I’ve been squaring off in the ring with a beast that is solidifying its form, and some days I win as its creator, other days it knocks me out so hard, my eyes cross, and my mind jumbles from the task at hand.

In this second draft, I knew this section of the story would be difficult because I was approaching a complete restructuring of one of the timelines/POV’s. Having re-brainstormed and re-plotted the main conflict in one of the major storylines, I knew that this part of the draft would involve heavy mental gymnastics to not only heighten the stakes but also merge and twine the pieces of the existing elements so that the conflict’s impact would jump off the page.

“We revise—which is to say we write—to understand our intent, to understand our own stories, to understand ourselves-”

— Peter Ho Davies

With a new storyline inputted in the new chapters, I quickly realized this process felt like drafting for the first time again! I had great flow and energy at some points, and during others, the magnitude of the work ahead hit my self-esteem hard. As I was clarifying and evolving one chapter/section that had already been written, I had to shift to drafting another section that felt like I was producing infant words. I deleted so many existing moments, then included many new scenes to expand on Tori’s, one of my FMCs, backstories and character arc. Tori did not have as much depth as my other characters in Draft One, even though she was the driving force in bringing the central story to life. It felt like a puzzling maze that I somehow came out of the other end of, only to stare at the next, impending, larger maze ahead!

I recognize that this part of the writing stage is just the process of creating art. This is the work that is feared by many writers and even avoided by those who refuse to put in the work but expect the rewards.

I stand stronger now than before in tackling this beast because I see the potential of this story and the impact it can have as a whole. My characters are so much more layered than the first draft; their environments and the purpose within their missions are what drive me to the page every day. This draft truly has made me laugh with my characters, and tear up and hurt when they hurt. I know I have many paths to take with them still, but I feel so proud of this reconstruction so far.

Choosing to be an artist means that you have decided you aren’t going to take the easy road.

I accept the beast for what it is. I’m now deep in the cave with it, examining its inner core. And I refuse to give up because of the discomfort of staring it in the eye. A successful artist is one who doesn’t quit. I see the end near, and I see how this work is forming into the larger picture of what storytelling can be.

Cheers to knocking on the doors of this final ACT/end of draft two!

— Alina

Jun 01, 2026

Alina M 2/1/26 Alina M 2/1/26

Revision Reflections: 01

THE TLDR

I am currently on the exciting, yet trying, adventure of writing my first full-length novel that I aim to get traditionally published!

In the disco inferno, the truth is the only thing that doesn’t burn.

ON BEGINNING AGAIN

I’ve been in the midst of revision for Project Disco for the past 3 months, and WOW is this a different experience from writing a first draft. I learned quickly that revision is where the magic happens; it’s where the mold begins to bend and fold into the structure you’ve envisioned all along. I had a clear vision of how I wanted to revise the first three chapters of my manuscript as soon as I wrote THE END on the first draft. The story expanded so much by the end of the first draft that I knew I had a clearer direction for how I needed to introduce characters and conflicts in the beginning, but it still felt so intimidating! I felt the task at hand was too large for me to take on.

“Art happens in revisions” — Leigh Bardugo

As I was working on those beginning chapters, I was reading a book on editing called The Artful Edit: On The Practice of Editing Yourself by Susan Bell, it was the right book at the right time. It examined structural and thematic editorial collaboration done with Max Perkins and writer F. Scott Fitzgerald for The Great Gatsby. I didn’t know that the majority of the chapters would focus on their collaboration, but I decided to rewatch the 2013 film adaptation simultaneously. I was able to visualize, along with the written examples, how certain editorial choices of the story enhanced elements of the plot structure and character arcs that were not there before Max Perkins’s editorial touch.

Now I’m obsessively, more than before, examining books and films’ openings and story structures. I’ve become so fascinated with how beneficial a detailed and passionate editor’s eye can be on a writer’s work.

“If you stuff yourself full of poems, essays, plays, stories, novels, films, comic strips, magazines, music, you automatically explode every morning like Old Faithful. I have never had a dry spell in my life, mainly because I feed myself well, to the point of bursting.” —Ray Bradbury

With the reassurance and promise to myself that I can take my time with this manuscript, that there isn’t a metaphorical gun to my head to get this perfect in one go, I dove in and revamped my ACT I outline. Fleshing out with details and changes I knew I wanted to include, some new chapters and some deleted and meshed together, it all started forming sharper edges to its mold. Now having finished writing/revising ACT I, I can see it’s sooo much stronger, and that much closer to the story I know it’s meant to be.

Now to completely re-outline ACT II. (spoiler, it’s giving me a temporary aneurysm...to be shared in next Revision Reflections)

— Alina

Feb 01, 2026

Alina M 10/12/25 Alina M 10/12/25

I wrote a book no one will read

Backstory

I had never really seen myself as a novelist, 7 months ago. When I was younger, I used to enjoy making little stories and reading books. I even won a young authors’ award in 5th grade for a Tom and Jerry-esque story I wrote and illustrated. I wrote about that book and my experience stepping into the light and embracing the title writer in my post Fear of Being Seen Doing What I Love.

Fear Of Being Seen Doing What I Love

Even though I’ve known writing brought me joy, as an adult, I never wanted to take the steps to actually try writing a full-length novel (50k+ words). I have a history of fear of failing. I grew up an overambitious, high-achieving child, teen, and young adult. I hate not being good at something; I despise it truly. But in my mid-20s, I felt lost. I kept exploring different hobbies and interests, but nothing stuck until I found my way back to writing (and then my frontal lobe development hit HARD, y’all.)

Three months before my 30th birthday, something shifted.

The end of my 20s started closing in, and I found my way back to writing. I found poetry. Specifically, I read Renee Watson's Black Girl You Are Atlas at a bar by myself with a glass of red wine, and it sparked my creative soul. Poetry brought a bright light into my life that I never knew was desperately needed. I made 15 poems in the span of 2 months (10 of those being published with magazines and zines now at the time of writing this). I experienced a burst of creative energy like never before.

A story appeared

A few months into 2025, a sunny day in March, I was driving home from work, and was jamming out to Donna Summer- I Feel Love.

A little about me, I LOVE the 70s era, I love black queer culture at that time, and disco music truly brings me joy. I am also VERY gay, and I thought I’d love to read a story about Donna Summer and a disco-filled gay love fling. I laughed at the thought. And a quote from the legendary Toni Morrison came to mind,

“If there’s a book you want to read, but it hasn’t been written yet, then you must write it.”

I had always thought of this quote, but never had an idea that sparked inspiration until that very moment. The spark lit and blazed in my mind. This story grew to include many elements that are so important to me: LGBTQ love, identity struggle, acceptance, found family, and possibilities of living your truth.

Immediately, I doubted myself. I thought it would be too difficult. I knew I had a unique voice within my poetry, but fiction writing was a whole different beast. I felt I wouldn’t be the right person to tell a story like this. It felt too big, too important, too different from what I’m used to writing. But I sat and envisioned this story, of black queer bodies chasing their dreams, discovering themselves through social and political strife, and it all became a lot simpler.

These characters are me; these characters are many Black queer creatives out there presently and throughout history. At the end of that night, I just knew bringing Black queer stories into the world was what mattered most, and I owed it to myself and others like me to at least TRY to tell this story.

My Writing Process

Below are a few points on what I’ve learned as I wrote my first draft: about creating a writing practice, discovering rituals that were perfect for me, and the tricks that helped keep me dedicated to finishing the story, to get to that momentous ending that only ~3% of people actually accomplish.

5 things that helped me reach that 3% group

1. Outline! Outline! Outline!

I am type A with any task I give myself. Like I said previously, I hate to fail, so I knew I would have a low chance of “failing” if I had a roadmap to the end. I found that having an outline allowed me to be focused when I went to sit and write. I knew the scenes I wanted to have on page, and where they were leading to.

First drafts are meant to be a skeleton of a story. Taking the time to create an outline of what the beginnings, middles, and ends could look like helps to not stray too far off the path. Doesn’t need to have every single detail of the story, but should hit the ideal main points your characters are going to go through and connect in some ways.

Most story structures look like:

An opener
An inciting incident that changes everything
A series of crises that builds tension
A climax
An end

But listen to your creative voice, what your characters and story are going to experience that you, as the writer, envision matters and makes an impact.

Books like Save the Cat Writes a Novel by Jessica Brody provide the most common story structure that you see in books. Also, researching other writers and noting the style of outline they use that you can adapt to your own story is so beneficial as well. I recommend Abbie Emmons How to Write a CHAPTER-BY-CHAPTER OUTLINE for Your Novel.

2. Rituals = Consistency

Building a ritual gained me consistency to write for the most optimal days throughout the weeks during this first draft process. These activities taught me and those in my life that I was preparing to get into my writing; it also taught me the importance of transitions in and out of writing days.

A ritual for me looked like:

Reading for 10 minutes before writing
Journaling 1-3 pages of my process before or after a writing session
Putting on a specific playlist dedicated only to my writing time

Explore what rituals look like for you. Is it lighting one specific candle that gives you the special scent for your book? Is it throwing on a specific cozy sweater when you’re writing? Or are you going for a 10-minute walk to think about your story before starting to write? So many options that can be curated for you specifically.

3. Celebrating milestones and telling others you’re writing a book

This was the part where I struggled the most in the beginning, but it seemed to be the MOST beneficial for me during this whole process. Many people recognize that writing a book is no easy task. I found myself wanting to hide in fear that if I failed, no one would know it. But I quickly learned that the people I had told gave me the encouraging pushes to finish, to share my ups and downs with them, AND to celebrate with them.

I had milestones for completing the outline, for various word count markers (5k, 10k, 20k, 50k, 70k, 80k), for chapters I completed, milestones for each ACT of the story, and I wrote a letter to myself to open and read once I finished the manuscript. I wanted to be sure I celebrated each step and moment because I wanted to remind myself that I was dedicated to my craft and that was worthy of celebrating.

4. The WHY

After a few low word count days, days were I would completely write trash and feel horrible about it, or simply have no motivation to get words down on the page, I always let myself take a short day or two break and reflect on my why. Everyone’s why will be different, but my why was that these characters’ journey felt so real, their dreams, their heartaches, their struggles, they are so real and important, and yet they haven’t been told, and it is my job to tell their story for them. The process of the first draft is for the writer and the voice to connect. That’s it.

So, go to the page with your why, write a small summary of your why, and put it on your computer wallpaper. Create a photo gallery of photos and quotes that inspire the why. Anything that will connect you back to the reason you want to tell the story. The story is for YOU to read, for YOU to journey through, and to keep. We owe it to ourselves.

5. Consuming content on craft (cater it to you)

Lastly, it is well known to be a great writer; you must be a great reader. I found myself reading various books on connecting back to the creative self and being dedicated to whatever that craft is, as I was writing this first draft. Find what works for you and what fuels you.

These books had nothing to do with grammar, or sentence structure, or any of those nitpicking things when it comes to writing. I solely focused on content that spoke affirmations to the life of writing and being an artist. Books that kept my why at the forefront, that reminded me to follow the calling to share my story, for me as a black woman to never be the bully in my own head, to put my creative goals to the highest priority in my life. I showed up for my craft every day, believing I can finish what I started, that I can show myself I am dedicated to myself and my journey.

Some favorite books:

We Need Your Art: Stop Messing Around and Make Something by Amie McNee
Write on, Sisters!: Voice, Courage, and Claiming Your Place at the Table by Brooke Warner
1000 words: A writer’s guide to staying creative, focused, and productive all year round by Jami Attenberg

Recommend listening- specifically for BIPOC Writers: Stop Creating Art for the White Gaze w/ Toni Morrison

So you finished the first draft, now what?!

Writers and authors know, revision is where the magic happens. Revisions and drafts, on drafts, on drafts is where a story really begins to gain some meat on its skeletal bones. So though no one will read my story (yet), I am glad to have finished; now to take a much-needed few weeks away from the story, so that I will come back to it with open arms, ready to tinker and tweak and edit until my eyes bleed. How fun!

- Alina

Oct 12, 2025