Rewrite Afterthoughts

 This is just me rambling about writing.

Pretend I'm using a typewriter for my punk rewrite. I had two stacks of pages. On the left, old chapters and scenes from the last publishing, T flying to LA, the divorce, three amigos, etc. On the right, new writing, like every Theroux family scene and storyline that did not exist in the Lit version. I had to stitch these together, throwing away many scenes, entire chapters, into my overflowing wastebasket of crumpled pages.

Some unused pages were set aside in a third stack. Maybe I can use them down the road. The glory hole material was set aside and then redeployed two years later than its original place in the timeline. Now that I'm done rewriting, I still have dozens of these orphan scenes that never got a call back.

The first ten chapters of VIP were heavy on the old story. In the teens, it shifted quickly to mostly new writing. In the last eight chapters, my piles were down to a few old scenes: lunch with Mila, Doc, and Martin, and Jenna's visit. And the new material: Hangar X, the BP sessions, the fashion chicks, and the final showdown with DB. 

As you were reading those final chapters, I was having doubts and rewrite afterthoughts. I don't know if I got it right. 

Jenna's Venice trip was the final chapter of Punks, and the narrative was written as such. It doesn't really fit where I placed it in VIP. The lunch at Flanny's was part of the epilogue. I liked that scene, so I kept it. In hindsight, maybe it didn't belong there. That conversation should have been used earlier, or thrown in the bin. Those are two examples where mistakes were made by blending the old pages with the new. 

If I were rating the final chapters, I couldn't give them 5 stars for author satisfaction, but I'm pleased with the overall VIP work, even though I did not get some things right.

The end of this book was all about closure on several fronts, first Mila, then Jackie. The mob hit chapter with Joe and Luke was fun to write and a nice break from all the legal crap. It served a purpose. After years of being at odds with her big brother, Jackie finally realizes that no matter what, Joe is there for them.

I had to dispose of David Benjamin once and for all. That scheme required chapters of setup and development before the payoff. I read the deposition and final chapter recently, before you did. I thought it was cheesy. I like how he torpedoes their legal proceeding, but Joe's dialogue was a little dumb in spots. 

In dispatching his nemesis, Joe also has closure with Laura. There's no doubt who is in charge at Guerilla Records, and she can shut up now. And now Joe has a mini empire to run. Is that what he wants?

I'm certain my rewrite project burned me out. The curse of the rewrite is that you get tired of your own story, working on the same scenes and chapters. I'm sure readers can relate. My dark moods of late disqualify me from using words like 'thrilled' or 'elated,' but I'm pleased to be done with 2025, this year, this project, and to turn the page. I'm back to writing productively after some rough patches.

--- SPRING OF 2026 ---

That's when Joe will return. I am currently writing the first draft of chapter 13 of White Wedding. I have scenes written for later chapters, and I also wrote a rough ending.  Having the ending figured out halfway through a book makes it so much easier to follow a path. There's my destination. I must write my way there. 

And because I wrote that ending to White Wedding, there will be another book following Joe and Tina's nuptials. I had planned on ending the chronological punk timeline after the honeymoon. Then I wrote the ending to WW, and a 1999 story was right there, too perfect to not write. The punk addicts will love it.

Because I wrapped up all Joe's hostilities, major and minor, at the end of VIP, I must create new adversaries and allies for Joe and his fiancée. And I bring back an old one. There will be more cross-pollination between punks and detectives, as Joe and Tina hire Kat to dig dirt on a new foe. 

I did what I set out to do with Tina. She is a costar with her own stories, but the fashion storyline will not be a major theme going forward, aside from a few fashion dramas that complement the bigger picture, like Joe introducing her to Kat and Vivian.

If you're a reader who finds Tina a little annoying, I nailed it. That's precisely what I want. Why? Because spouses can be annoying. I need to make this realistic. Joe and Tina are imperfect. For every smart move they make, they take a wrong turn. The battle for the pants is on.

You may have noticed that XXX scenes disappeared late in VIP. I just wanted to get to the finish line. There will always be naughty scenes, innuendo, sexual tension, and anxiety, but I can't predict how much erotic content there will be. That is decided in the moment, when writing, and it must serve the story. 

All of that is months away. I have other works ready to publish for 2026, the writing that got me through the darkness. I enjoy crime writing. It's a very different process.

I promise you'll never see 229 chapters in one year again, 16 of Sunset '77, and 213 chapters of punks. I added 81 chapters in the 2025 rewrite, mostly in Anxiety and VIP. Going forward, the books will be shorter and more focused on the main event.  WW is looking like 24-ish chapters.

Before you see any of that, it's crime and mayhem, coming soon.