I don't know if the rest of you feel this way, but in almost every project I reach a point where I get totally discouraged. I'm revising away, working my way through the ragged awful prose of my first draft, and I start to feel like there is no way I'll ever make the book work. There's no conflict. The characters are stereotypes. The writing is cliche-ridden and just plain awful. I'm starting to feel like there's no point in keeping on going with it.
But I love this story. I loved writing it. I threw my heart and soul onto the page and tore out pieces of myself I've never offered before. While I was writing it, I loved it. Why is it so crappy now? Why is the pacing so languid? Why can't I get my characters to the place they need to be?
My big problem is that I can't figure out where I've gone wrong, where I made the wrong choice and fell off the track. I know I get back on it later, but right now, I feel like the book is wallowing around, directionless. And it's making me depressed.
Is this where I give up on this one and move on? Or do I keep throwing myself against the wall?
Maybe this is the time when you seek a trusted, objective, writerly point of view? A fellow writer in your genre may be able to help you find magnetic north. As it were.
ReplyDeleteHang in there!
Some Dark Romantic
I think everyone feels like this at some point. I think you either: set it aside for a month, and come back to it feeling more refreshed and able to look at it with slightly more distance, or as Mina suggests, gets a crit from someone in your genre/who you trust.
ReplyDeleteAsk yourself this, Are you telling the story or are the characters? When I write, I don't feel like I do much. My characters go through the story, which plays in my mind like a movie, and I just try to type fast enough to keep up with them. Letting go of the control made my writing better. Perhaps you are trying to control too much. Let the characters and story sweep you away.
ReplyDeleteOh, and don't give up. Please!
I'm going through this same thing right now, as I do with every story. Since I suspect you already know the answers to your questions, I'll just say it will be awesome when you're done, because your stories always are, and your readers will be waiting patiently ^_^
ReplyDeleteI'm facing a similar issue with one of my projects. After working for ages and getting close to an agent, my feedback was that the beginning didn't show enough potential. I'm turning it over to my CPs with the question of what would you change if this was your story. Usually feedback comes within the confines of the established story, improving what's there. This time, I'm asking for everything that isn't in the story.
ReplyDeleteYou'll never know if it'll amount to anything until you try. The truth is - the real work starts during revisions and it's hard, hard, hard. But every word you write, every project you complete, makes you a better writer. (Too bad there isn't a shortcut, huh?)
ReplyDeleteI know I get to that point often. It's a struggle sometimes. Is there anyone you can let have a read and make some suggestions, someone who's opinion you value? It really helped me to get that feedback and ask for areas of improvement, as Sarah mentioned.
ReplyDeleteDo you belong to critique group? when you start to doubt yourself, you need a second set of eyes to look at it. Sometimes we are our worst critic.
ReplyDeleteIt's funny.... I have an awesome critique group. It's their comments that have made me doubt myself.
ReplyDelete