Dateline: above the garage in Portsmouth RI, 17 March 2005
Today I finished the substance edit on Chapter One, then re-edited the entire text a second time, adding three bits I realized I had used many times in the brief and somehow had assumed had gotten into the text, but they hadn't. All important points to me, so glad they got in.
Hard to explain, but for now hard for me to remember the entire text at 140,000. Need to have read/edited it at least 10 times before it gets very solid in your head.
After the second read, finished just now at 2100, I did a spellcheck and then sent back to Mark. Printing out the second edition now. It begins the new pile in the Author's Box, and the old, first draft, in 18 separate sections, now goes into the archives. This second version is printed out in chapters. The third edition that will go to Putnam on 1 April will be one, big single file.
Spoke with Mark over the phone this afternoon. We talk scheduling for my two Esquire projects--both DC-based. First trip, set by the handlers down there, will come before the 1 April book date, so that may slip the weekend into Monday, 4 April, as a result. May result in some last-minute rewriting too, given with whom I'll be talking.
Mark is threatening to kill my "Iraq Lessons Learned" section that would otherwise start off Chapter Two. He has a good point, so it's a tough call. I cover Iraq so much in Chapter 1 that it may feel too much like a regurgitation, meaning we cut for the classic reason: pacing (as in, "Enough already, let's move on!"). Still, the section with some good bits--many, I think. So what to do? If it gets cut down too much, it can come off as cursory. Again, a tough call that we'll discuss quite a bit.
Still, we're both feeling awfully good on Chapter 1. It is the King Kong of the book (though 5 is my favorite), just like Chapter 3 in PNM. I predict most reviews will never make it past Chapter 1, it's that big.
Editing it wasn't hard, and yet it felt like passing a stone. Very intense, small work, like engraving or something. I get much more tired doing this than writing, but I like it a lot more. It's actually more relaxing.
However, if I was doing this on my own, I know I'd be freaking right now--big time. So having Mark along for the entire process is really great. Stressful for both families, but we have a blast doing this. It's like a mind-meld that goes on for way too long (you can almost hear Spock screaming in the background!).
A short comment on Wolfowitz for World Bank: He does have the background, and he'll probably do a really good job. He wants to be his own guy, and this is one helluva job for someone with his long career of working with foreign governments. To me, it's putting in the WB a guy who's really smart on developing Asia (former ambassador to Indonesia famous for his immersion techniques), and that's a huge plus right now. Getting all of Asia into the Core is more important than fixing the Middle East in the grand scheme of things--a lot more important. Having someone Bush really trusts in that job is key--a very good sign. It's yet another amazing turn for a guy with an amazing career. I honestly see it as overwhelmingly positive, understanding the many misgivings many have about him. Comparing him to McNamara is nonsense, really. Two very different people. Wolfowitz is no technocrat, not even a Vulcan. Deep down, he's far more romantic in his understanding of the world than anyone realizes, in my opinion. He'll do fine. It'll be a great choice in the end.
Want to go work out. Have for four days in a row, usually at 10:45 pm to 11:30pm. My 45-minute stints on treadmill are great, because I watch DVDs on Mac. Go very vigorous speed-walk, with strong uphill tilt. I have gone from Shatner Episode #79 (last one) to maybe Episode #60 (still third season, but I'm feeling tighter). If I stay disciplined, my goal is to return to the Shatner waistline of . . . oh . . . "Charley" in Year 1.
Watched the BBC Colin Firth (Mr. Darcy)--Jennifer Ehle (Elizabeth Bennett) version of "Pride and Prejudice" while I worked out these last several days. Really my favorite single soap opera of all time. Must finally read the book someday. Just one of the best productions of anything I've ever seen, so I love watching it again and again (maybe my tenth time now). Gonna do "Sense and Sensibility" and then "Emma" next. Then I'm not sure, maybe a bunch of Kurosawa samurai flicks (lest I become too sensitive).
Baby's cranky, and mother-in-law here. Nona and spouse leave for NYC and a bunch of musicals and plays, so I have all four kids, plus kitty, plus puppy to myself. I expect to get ooodles done on the book between now and Monday, and drink the rest of the beer from our Chinese feast . . .
Oh, and get down to maybe Shatner in Episode #55, which I think was "Specter of the Gun" (a favorite).
| Permalink |
