So going over the changes first and then reading the manuscript word by word is pretty effective. You don't get too bogged down thinking about how to change something after the fact. It's already been done. Now you can just read the manuscript like you would anything else, and you catch anything that snags right away. Especially typos. There's nothing that bugs me more than typos glaring out at you after your book has been published. It's like, how did that get missed after all the times you had read it, and after all the times an editor had read it?
Well, there is something that could be worse. Getting something so wrong that readers will think you didn't do your research. Now, I did do a good amount of research in The Vase, and learned about Mossad, the Kidon, and the IDF. But in that research I missed Shin Bet and Aman. But as I go back and research it now, I can't believe I missed Shin Bet and Aman. After all, they are two of the three main intelligence "communities" in Israel, and have been for some time. When I research them now, they are there plain as day. How did I miss them before?
To be clear, Aman is the military intelligence branch, Shin Bet is the national or domestic intelligence branch, and Mossad is the foreign or international intelligence branch. So if the intelligence activities were to take place outside of Israel's borders, then it's on Mossad. But within Israel, it's all about Shin Bet. So my story, taking place in Nazareth, which is inside of Israel, would be under the jurisdiction of Shin Bet.
So, okay, I got that now, and in time. I'm making all the changes and all the adjustments. The Vase will be legit now, and I won't look like a dummy for using the wrong agency. But I still can't believe I missed it before. No worries, it's not missed now.
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