I got through two more chapters today and I fixed my prologue, which I managed to screw up yesterday during a classic case of editing gone wild.
Sometimes, I just can't leave well enough alone. People will tell me a passage or chapter is really good, and then I'll spend hours tinkering with it. I'm not sure why that is, although I suspect it's connected to my perfectionism. Which is probably linked to ... oh, forget it.
Bottom line is, I need to edit my words, make them as good as I possibly can, and move on.
I think I'm getting close to screwing up enough courage to send out a query or two. A journey of a thousand miles can't begin until one takes that first step.
The book editor who has been combing the manuscript is almost done and I should find out very soon if there's any major problems with plot, character, etc. I've already instituted many of the changes she had suggested for the first several chapters. I'm becoming pleased with the manuscript, something I never thought I would do.
As a perfectionist, just the simple act of blogging becomes hell. When I first started, I edited and re-edited my posts until I realized I was using valuable writing time -real writing time on my real book - screwing around with my posts.
Now, I pretty much bang them out. I know it shows, and I'm sorry for that. And if I see a major problem, I still go in and fix it. But I also know that I need to hold back my perfectionism for the manuscript.
Okay. I'm going to hit publish post now and ... wait a minute. Does that paragraph make sense? Is that word misspelled? Shit.
No really, I'm going to hit publi....
Sometimes, I just can't leave well enough alone. People will tell me a passage or chapter is really good, and then I'll spend hours tinkering with it. I'm not sure why that is, although I suspect it's connected to my perfectionism. Which is probably linked to ... oh, forget it.
Bottom line is, I need to edit my words, make them as good as I possibly can, and move on.
I think I'm getting close to screwing up enough courage to send out a query or two. A journey of a thousand miles can't begin until one takes that first step.
The book editor who has been combing the manuscript is almost done and I should find out very soon if there's any major problems with plot, character, etc. I've already instituted many of the changes she had suggested for the first several chapters. I'm becoming pleased with the manuscript, something I never thought I would do.
As a perfectionist, just the simple act of blogging becomes hell. When I first started, I edited and re-edited my posts until I realized I was using valuable writing time -real writing time on my real book - screwing around with my posts.
Now, I pretty much bang them out. I know it shows, and I'm sorry for that. And if I see a major problem, I still go in and fix it. But I also know that I need to hold back my perfectionism for the manuscript.
Okay. I'm going to hit publish post now and ... wait a minute. Does that paragraph make sense? Is that word misspelled? Shit.
No really, I'm going to hit publi....
Ha! There should be a reality show for writers called "When Editors Attack" - all about the damage we inflict on our own work in the name of making it "better".
ReplyDeleteI found out the hard way that sometimes things that sound good in theory tank once implemented. (This is why we must always save ALL versions of the manuscript.)
I'm sure you've fixed it up and made it shiny.
:-)
Just wanted to say that I'm enjoying reading your blog. Keep posting, and good luck with the query!
ReplyDelete