Revising (for this writer) is painful. It's absolutely essential, but I find that what was brilliant in the draft is pretty humbling as I revise. "Out, damn cliches!" or "Hey, Did I say the same thing 2 chapters ago?" or "Damn, this character isn't adding a thing to the story. But I like her! I can't get rid of her. But I have too. Rats."
Revising is like rebuilding a messy spider web. You must snip this strand-- but will that whole section collapse? Maybe if I pull this little piece web across here...
A decent revision takes lots of time and patience and you must be willing to cut those amazing pieces of brilliance that lead the story nowhere. I once had two chapters in THE BLENDING TIME where Jaym and D'Shay pulled off a great con job for a free meal, but had to cut the entire gorgeous scene because the agent (rightly so) thought it broke the story's tension. 'Twas agony to cut, but it make the story SOOO much better.
There are lots of good writing books on the revision process. Anne Lomott's "Bird by Bird" is one of my favs. Just remember, good revising will get an agent/editor to read you stuff. A poorly revised piece will be deleted/trashed after one or two pages. It's worth the work.
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Well, there you go. Make that scene into a short story and tick it here on your website as a freebie. No good con should go unappreciated by readers!
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