A Revision Update, and Revisiting Obsessions of Old XIII

A Revision Update:

So close I can taste it.

The Saint of Santa Fe is basically done. Three final stages remain, however. The first consists of my wife, Erinn, reading the manuscript. She's an outstanding editor, no joke. Then, based on her feedback I will go over the novel one last time to address her comments as well as to check for inconsistencies. (As a novel evolves, certain things change from the way they were in the beginning. This may be the name of a character, the mood of a setting, the nature of a situation, and so forth. In the final stage I check all the "little" things so the picture remains tight.)

The last stage is the most fun because, as the writer, I'm one step from exiting a very long tunnel (this work took three years to complete—including a twenty month hiatus where I had to work to earn a living). In this stage, I prepare the title page, the table of contents, the dedication page (always a moving moment), the afterword, and the acknowledgments.

Once this is done, the manuscript goes in search of a publisher, and I move on to my next project.

An Invitation to Revisit an Obsession of Old:

My wife and I are fans of Bombay Cinema, more commonly known as "Bollywood." Our friends think we're strange for loving films that come out of India, but the truth is many of them are quite good and they invite us to see the world in a different way. Because of Bollywood movies, one of our dreams is to someday visit India for an extended period of time. Until then, however, watching Bombay Cinema will have to suffice.

(When I return to writing new articles for this weblog, I hope to produce a piece that explains how far my knowledge and taste for Bollywood movies has advanced.)

When this article appeared in The Panama News, I was gratified to receive emails from the United States, Canada, and India from Hindustanis welcoming my wife and me to the joys of Bollywood.

I invite you to read, or reread A Glimpse into India; or, My Love Affair with Bollywood.

An update: At the time I wrote this piece there were no Indian restaurants in Panama. We now are blessed with two.