Third draft complete

I've just finished the third draft of Conduit. Again, it's gained a tiny bit of weight (much like myself recently!) as a few things have been fleshed out. This is largely because I read an editor's blog that said one of the giveaway signs of a bad writer was back and forth dialogue with no interspersed actions, as if the speakers were standing still, staring at each other as they talk. I realised this happened a few times in my novel, so I added little nuances here and there. It also helped calm the pace a little bit. Overall, I think this draft feels more solid and less throwaway than the first. I'll give it another quick read through this week, possibly removing some of the stuff I just added, before printing it out and letting my friend (the Doctor of Literature) have a look at it.

I've also been researching agents this week. I've been doing this for a while, but this week I chose specific agents that I like the look of, found their submission policies, and added them to my list. In the first wave I think I'll send out three or four submissions, starting with two mega agencies and another fairly large one. I've also come across a small, independent agent who specialises in my genre. She has sold her clients to some impressive publishers, so I think she'll be well worth having a crack at. Not until after I get some feedback and make any resulting amendments, of course. And so will begin the cycle of submission, rejection, revision, submission, rejection, revision, ad infinitum.