diff --git a/engine-proto/gram-test/Engine.jl b/engine-proto/gram-test/Engine.jl
index 0539326..a160291 100644
--- a/engine-proto/gram-test/Engine.jl
+++ b/engine-proto/gram-test/Engine.jl
@@ -120,6 +120,7 @@ function realize_gram(
     # find negative gradient of loss function
     neg_grad = 4*Q*L*Δ_proj
     slope = norm(neg_grad)
+    dir = neg_grad / slope
     
     # store current position, loss, and slope
     L_last = L
@@ -135,7 +136,7 @@ function realize_gram(
     empty!(history.last_line_loss)
     for backoff_steps in 0:max_backoff_steps
       history.stepsize[end] = stepsize
-      L = L_last + stepsize * neg_grad
+      L = L_last + stepsize * dir
       Δ_proj = proj_diff(gram, L'*Q*L)
       loss = dot(Δ_proj, Δ_proj)
       improvement = loss_last - loss