So, here’s what I’ve been working on lately.

Magazine articles. Editing projects. A middle grade manuscript-in-progress. But mainly, I’ve been revising.

My MG girl-and-golem-fight-antisemitism story that won the Sydney Taylor Manuscript Award also won a partial grant from PJ Library, and I’ve been making changes based on some of the feedback I got. The PJ Library folks have already helped me more than they realized—they asked that I submit an edited version using Track Changes in Word.

The thing is, I love Track Changes. I use it all the time as an editor. But never once did it occur to me to use it when editing my own work. Honestly? It’s a game-changer.

Making changes, deleting blocks of text, or even changing individual words can feel intimidating when it’s just words on a screen. What if I change my mind? What if my computer crashes and I forget where I was? The changes feel so permanent, even if (obviously) they’re not.

With Track Changes, I can see instantly what I’ve changed and where, and if I need to undo something, I can. Using it, I think like an editor, not a writer, and it’s freed me to look at the manuscript in a different way. I’ve made changes I never would’ve thought to make before, revamping or deleting entire scenes. (Though somehow the word count still grew. Sigh.)

I don’t know if this is the version that gets published, but I know it’s a stronger, more cohesive story than it was before, and even the previous version was strong enough to win two different work-in-progress awards. So I’ll see where this version takes me. But seriously, fellow writers, try using Track Changes if you aren’t already. The real writing is in the revising.

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It’s been a scary and sad year for many reasons, and Oct. 7 is coming up. Your Jewish friends are not okay. I’m not asking anyone to state their stance on (any aspect of) the war. All I ask is that people remember what a complex, traumatizing, long-running, maddening topic this is for so many of us, and to be respectful of that. Hoping for better times ahead for everyone.