A fascinating look at the mechanics of writing a novel

Gary Corby writes delightful and fun mysteries set "in the mean streets of Classical Athens."  When you read his work you are transported back in time by prose that looks effortless.

That kind of work doesn't just flow off the pen.  Well, actually it does.  Then he has to go back and revise and polish to make it look effortless.   Here's one of the tools he uses to SHOW rather than tell (ha!)

These kinds of graphs are amazingly useful.  I've created more than a few myself when novels I've been reading seemed out of whack.  When you can see an imbalance in character's page time it makes it easier to know who gets chopped, or beefed up. It can also show you if the climax to the novel is in the wrong place, or (heaven forfend) missing altogether.

If you're revising your novel, this kind of graph might give you some very interesting insights.