I’m Done with the Manuscript.
After writing almost daily for five years, I’ve now completed the manuscript. It’s a huge storytelling piece about food and history that will be mingled with beautiful photography and printed on art paper. I’m so excited for you to read it!
Did you know that Sumerian brewers were almost exclusively female, and that they drank beer through straws?
To complete the manuscript, I’ve read 262 books and academic papers about ancient Mesopotamian food and history, and consumed countless hours of documentaries and podcasts about the subject. This has been the fuel to my writing.
I’ve also visited Mesopotamia (Iraq and southeastern Turkey) on three different occasions. I’ve been to various museums displaying Mesopotamian artifacts and consulted with 14 Near Eastern scholars, three of whom have fact-checked my manuscript (see last month’s progress update).
Looking at past manuscript drafts, the version I completed is the 7th draft of the book.
That’s partly because I expanded the scope of the book, as my knowledge about Mesopotamian history grew. But also because I want to give you the best possible reading experience.
My indispensable family (from left to right: sister, mom, dad), who know how to cook, brew beer, write recipes, write code, edit footage, and much more.
Now What?
The next step is to clean up the manuscript from typos and errors, which shouldn’t take more than a few days, after which I’ll send it to my story editor. Yes, there will be an 8th draft of the book.
Unlike the scholars who fact-checked my work, my story editor will look at it from another perspective. Are things understandable? Is anything boring? Can things be clarified to make the text flow better?
After my editor and I have worked through those parts, there’s another step before I sign off the manuscript. Beta readers! I’ve already collected several people’s interest.
If you want to be a beta reader, just write to arim@tableofgods.com
One Last Good Thing…
I’ve been absent from social media for over two months. In mid-May I decided to devote all my focus to completing the manuscript. Since that’s done, I’m ready to post content about Mesopotamian history again.
