Finish Your Novel 2018... Continued!

OK, I've had a crazy busy week, but I took a little time tonight to graph the tension of my novel. I don't have chapters; all my scenes are just one after the other, separated by asterisks. This was a really interesting exercise because I realized a couple of my scenes have a TON happening and could probably be broken up, while some of my scenes don't have much happening and could be cut or condensed. I also realized that tension isn't very well distributed, especially in "book 2" (this novel was written in two subsequent years during NaNoWriMo, so I think the tone of the second half is pretty different).

I would appreciate any feedback about what you think is missing or any advice about ways to mix it up to make the book more gripping throughout; it's meant to be a thriller so I don't want the action to lag for too long anywhere.

If any of my scene summaries don't make sense, I can explain. The numbers at the end of each description rate the tension of the scene, with 1 being the least amount of tension and 5 being the highest.

Book One   
The eight teens travel toward West Virginia, mentioning school closure, and pause at a truck stop.   1
Lars, Kinsey, Bobby, Derek, Monique and Rose have drinks at the truck stop bar, talk a bit more about school closure; Rose seems preoccupied.   1
Rose tells Derek to pull over because she senses a cop; they arrive at Hector's lodge late at night.   2
They settle in, having drinks and telling one another the lies they told their parents about where they were going. Marla and Diane make love.   1
Marla, Diane and Rose go for a walk after breakfast; Rose tells them things about the others that she's sensed. Back at the lodge, group chats.   1
Dinner goes well until Derek reveals a bit about the virus and kids who got it disappearing from school; they wonder if they should stay in WV or go home.   3
Kinsey and Bobby go to town for groceries and stop at a bar. He fights with waitress and busboy. Kinsey wonders how he knew busboy was waitress's son.   4
At dinner, Rose announces (and proves) she has psychic powers, reading Bobby's, Kinsey's and Lars's minds.   3
Derek talks to Rose, worried because he knows ESP is a symptom of the virus. She's excited about her powers and annoyed Derek thinks they're a disease.   2
Monique tells Lars she knew a kid taken from school and how she became paranoid, then euphoric, at the end. Reminded Mo of grandma's dementia.   2
Bobby and Kinsey make love; he reads her mind as she fantasizes about sex with a teacher. Bobby attacks her, they fight, and group comforts Kinsey.   4
Hector's team at the Organization discusses virus containment efforts. Boss tells Hector his son Derek is on unaccounted list; Hector says he's at home.   2
Diane and Marla search for Rose, who's been missing a couple days. Find her having paranoid delusions. They tell Derek; he doesn't want to leave for help.   3
That night the girls take Derek to where Rose is; he persuades her to come home. Delusions are turning to scary hallucinations.   3
Rose has another sudden change, becoming euphoric. Mo tells Derek this happened to kid she knew with virus. They tie up Rose so she won't run away.   2
Rose is found dead the next morning. Group argues about whether to stay or not; Derek convinces them to stay. They put Rose's body in a shed.   5
That night, while everyone's asleep, Mo leaves the bedroom she shares with Lars.   1
Mo's body is found the next morning, having killed herself. Group finds her note revealing she has the disease and didn't want to die the way Rose did.   5
Marla comforts Lars and takes him to sleep in her and Diane's room; meanwhile she, Bobby and Diane take Mo's body out to the shed.   4
Diane and Marla go to bed, forgetting Lars is in there. Comforting him turns into lovemaking. Afterward, they all experience psychic powers for the first time.   5
Kinsey and Derek realize the trio has the disease. Derek tells them more about the disease, talks about leaving since he's the only one who doesn't have it. Bobby seemingly kills him and runs away. Kinsey runs after him but can't find him. She and the trio put Derek in shed, then decide to leave the lodge. They can't find the car keys so decide to try and hotwire it.   5
Hector spies on the house and sees them taking his son's body to the shed; he's come to the lodge because he realized all the missing kids were friends of Derek. Calls the Organization to order a strike on the lodge.   4
While they work on the car, Bobby appears and attacks. He's shot by waitress from the diner and her boyfriend, come for revenge because her son has the disease. They kill Bobby and Kinsey; Lars shoots waitress and boyfriend dead.   5
Trio makes love again and sleeps. In morning they find the car keys in Bobby's pocket, as well as drugs and money. While packing to leave, they discover their telekinetic powers. Soon after, they sense Hector's men bearing down on them, and use their new powers to disable the guns and cars, and finally a helicopter. They leave and decide to go to Philadelphia. Once there they sell some drugs and meet Markie, a kind squatter who invites them to stay with him.   5
They go to dinner with Markie. That night in the squat, they express their love for one another for the first time.   2
They stay with Markie for a couple of weeks, until one day Diane's home alone and Lars and Marla sense that she's in trouble. Knowing Hector has found them, they tell Markie not to go back to his home right away, and say goodbye. Then they run to Diane's aid.   4
They find Hector sitting with Diane. He convinces them to stop running and come with him, where they'll be treated well. They can't read his mind very well, but they all sense that his son Derek might be alive.   4
Book Two   
Diane wakes from a nightmare, still in Hector's car. They realize they can't read his mind very well at all. They speculate but are unsure of where they're going.   1
They arrive at the facility, get settled into their quarters, and meet Leon, whose mind is also hard to read.   1
First day of testing/training, they read a random man's mind. Hector asks if they'd use their powers on humans or animals and they recoil. Find out Hector has been trained a technique for blocking his thoughts, and Leon has a "special" mind that's harder to read, which is why he was chosen as their attendant.   1
Back in their quarters, they make love, express longing for their old lives (college etc.), and have dinner.   1
After a few weeks, Hector takes them to see their parents, who haven't believed official accounts of their children's disappearance and could cause trouble if the kids can't convince them they're all right. The trio must help quell their suspicions or else they'll be killed.   2
The trio asks Leon to use his savant memory skills to bring them news; he memorizes TV news and web articles so they can later read them in his mind. Of particular interest is the presidential race, between the Republican VP and a Democratic upstart. Trio is given their first real assignment: spying on the thoughts of the Democratic presidental candidate (North) who Hector says is hiding something and suspected of harboring sympathies for North Korea.   3
Hector goes to a hospital where Derek has just awoke from a coma. He is much changed; bitter and angry. Hector catches him up on what's happened and says he has a plan for them to stay close from now on.   3
The trio spies on North in a hotel, managing to triangulate to tune into his thoughts among hundreds. They discover what he's been hiding: His daughter is engaged to a felon, and his family hopes to keep it a secret until after the election. The trio is relieved he's not a traitor and report back to Hector.   2
The next day, Leon's memory of the news reveals that North is now embroiled in a scandal about his daughter's engagement. The trio realizes the Organization used them to find dirt on North to sabotage his campaign.   3
The trio discuss what happened and wonder what to do, including briefly contemplating escape. They don't come to any conclusion.   2
Hector takes Diane away, and they discover it's an experiment to see how their powers fare when they're not in physical proximity. When Marla and Lars are taken to their testing room, they encounter Derek, who will run their testing while Hector's away. They are shocked by his appearance and demeanor, but do the exercises they're given.   4
Diane is driven to another Organization facility and given the same exercise as Lars and Marla.   2
Diane finishes her tests and is taken to living quarters. She tries and fails to reach Lars and Marla's minds.    2
Marla and Lars slip into an unhappy routine without Diane. They try to talk to Derek but he's hostile. They ask him about Diane but he won't tell them anything.   2
Diane gradually becomes less able to do the exercises as well as Marla and Lars, and she slips into erratic behavior and paranoid beliefs.   3
Diana is brought back to the original facility. She's paranoid and frightened of Marla and Lars, but Hector lets them bring her back to the living quarters to see if proximity to them reverses the virus's progress.   3
The trio stays in isolation for several days, and Diane gradually starts to recover. Her psychic abilities return.   2
The trio reads a news story in Leon's mind about how North's campaign is recovering from the scandal. His election prospects seem brighter again.   2
Hector again asks the trio to try their telekinetic powers on humans. When they refuse, he takes them to observe Derek doing tests on a man with twin sisters who have telekinetic powers, whose minds are impenetrable to the trio. Hector says it shows how it doesn't hurt and asks them again. They agree, if he lets them have a holiday as promised and if they get to meet the twins. He agrees to try and lets them out on the rooftop patio to have beers and enjoy the sunshine.   3
Hector tells them they'll be having a tropical vacation with the twins. They perform their first human-manipulation experiments and it goes well.   2
The trio arrives on a secluded island with the twins, Mary Jean and Alicia. The five enjoy the tropical atmosphere and have dinner. Trio goes to bed in their hut.   1
Lars gets up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom, and is acosted by the twins trying to seduce him. He's tempted but manages to resist, and they seem irritated but amused. He goes back to his hut, upset.   3
The next morning, Marla and Diane are hurt and upset when they read the events of the night before in Lars' mind. They go for a walk and gradually feel better, having makeup sex. They come upon the twins and watch unseen as the girls use their powers to torture and kill a lizard. The vacation ends and the trio are relieved to get away from Mary Jean and Alicia.   3
Hector tells the trio they'll be training for a new assignment: learning to manipulate a subject to use a rifle. They refuse, but Hector shows them footage of a sniper positioned outside Lars's parents house.   4
The trio begins to train. After a few days, they encounter the twins and Derek at their now-regular rooftop happy hour. Back in their quarters, they wonder what the twins are training for, and discuss whether they should (or could) go through with what seems to be an assassination assignment. Having their families' safety in the balance makes it harder to decide.   2
The trio is blindfolded and taken to the location where the assignment will happen, to familiarize themselves with the hidden location they'll be bringing their hypnotized subject to. They start training on how to get a hypnotized person to use a gun. They wonder who they're supposed to kill, and use what they remember of the location to have Leon do research. He figures out it's a university and finds a schedule of events. One is an upcoming speech by a liberal Supreme Court justice. They realize he must be their target, so the president can replace him with someone conservative in case his VP doesn't win the presidency. They begin to contemplate how they could foil the Organization's plot and possibly escape.   3
The day of the event, Hector takes them to the university and gives them earpieces to communicate with him. They walk their subject up to his perch and ready the gun. They see the twins with Derek; Hector tells them they're just there for backup, but it complicates their plans. When it comes time to shoot, instead they hold Harold and Derek with their minds and force the justice to walk out. The twins begin controlling two of the secret service agents to carry out the assassination. Bystanders are shot instead, and Hector and Derek are trampled by escaping audience members. The trio tries to control the twins' bodies but can't, so they control two audience members to attack the secret service agents. Lars makes the justice escape and the twins begin trying to kill the trio. In the battle, they try stopping Lars' and Marla's hearts but can't. Then they hurl heavy objects at them but together the trio creates a force field. They reanimate their subject to shoot Mary Jean. Alicia tries to help her and they levitate wildly into the air; Alicia's killed by broken glass of the skylight.    5
Trio escapes, using Hector's debit card which they'd stolen earlier via telekinesis (and his code by reading his mind) they withdraw money and take a cab.   3
The president and two advisors discuss what to do in the aftermath. They've received a letter from the trio demanding millions of dolllars and that the president steps down or they'll reveal state secrets gained through a computer hack. Gladstone decides he has no choice but to give in.   2
In a secluded cabin, the trio receives the news that North won the presidency. It's revealed that Leon helped them with the hack, fake identities and more. The virus will leave them as their brains mature; they're staying in hiding until then. They hope for a better future. After dinner, they go outside to look at the stars.   1

I am so jazzed!  And that's something considering how devasted I was just three weeks ago when my book imploded! 
Thes were my goals last week and here's my progress report:

1) Dissect the next 3 chapters of my HF novel: I've completed Ch 1-3 and one of my minor characters has just stepped out of the background in a major way.  Whoopee!
2) Finalize new Inciting/Triggering Event, & Opening Scene  - I've got this figured out including new ways to reveal the boys' personalities!
3) Develop chronological scene list for the entire book w/focus on what's missing - I'm about halfway through this process.
4) Create a sequential list of already-written scene 'islands' including word counts - DONE - I have 65,000 SFD words so far!

This week's goals:
1) Complete chronological scene list with MORE focus on what's missing.
2) Keep mining that HF book for gems that help me see my story more clearly particularly as it relates to portraying historical events, i.e. narrative summary & backstory vs. action.
3) Draft my new opening scene.

Updates on my progress: I read a few more pages of the self-published paranormal novel I'm reading for inspiration/comparison. It's a fast read but I've just been so busy it's hard to fit it in!

I also made a VERY general rest-of-the-year plan. I now need to chunk it out into smaller weekly goals or daily tasks, but here's what I have so far. Let me know if you have any thoughts or suggestions (I realize it's not much to respond to; will share my more detailed plan as I develop it.)

February-March: Finish plot structure, with faster pace, added tension points and character development

April-May: Write missing scenes so I have a full draft

June-July: Copy edit and proofread; start marketing preplanning

August-September: Send to test readers and gather feedback; continue marketing preplanning

October: Make edits from reader feedback; launch marketing

November: Break for NaNoWriMo; continue marketing

December: Final proof and format for e-book publication in January; continue marketing

Hi again-
I began my novel as an 'island writer' because I took a class through The Loft called, "Your Book Starts Here". This class was Part 1 of 3 but Part 2 hasn't been offered for over a year now.
I just followed the teacher's instructions. She suggests you keep a list of ideas/topics and write from that. At the same time, you create a W-Plot storyboard with triggering events, turning points, and climax/resolution to lay out your 'story' and to keep you thinking/writing ideas/topics that might work. At some point you take all your islands and based on your storyboard, you compile the islands in sequence into one document.  This becomes your first draft. She promotes this approach because an island may fit in more than one place and because you haven't written in order your brain is open to considering alternative arrangments of your story.
Writing islands has worked to a certain extent but I feel I've been floundering for at least six months. Kate's class offered some concrete exercises and her suggestions/advice has helped me see a path forward. 

I posted my update on the 2/11 thread, so I'm copying it here:

I'm a couple of days late, but I did manage to keep up on my plans and finished character arcs for everyone -- as I said, not necessarily doing each day's work on the day, but catching up when needed.

This week I'm working on some better introductory scenes for my secondary and minor characters. I realized they were introduced in clumps and not individually. I figure if they can't hold a scene on their own, I can probably get rid of them all together :-) And, if/when I get those scenes done, my next task is to make sure that the character arcs match up to the overall plot (adding scenes, etc as necessary to make sure that important points are included explicitly).

Hope everyone has a good writing week!