It’s an interesting dilemma that I’ve been faced with the past while.  When should I rewrite a story and when is an edit the correct choice?

I’ve come to the conclusion that the choice should be entirely dependent on the the story itself.  Having said that, I realize such an on-the-fence answer doesn’t really help to make the decision any easier.  Here are some of the thoughts I’ve had when considering the topic.

1. When I read the story, am I happy with all the major elements? (character, setting, plot, etc.)
2. How many times has the story been rejected and did I get any useful feedback?
3. Does the story fit any particular publisher’s requirements?
4. Have I had anyone read the story (i.e. first readers) and provide me with feedback that I can act upon?

I wrote the story and was pretty happy with it.  Then I tried sending it out to publishers a few (three) times only to have it rejected each time.  I decided to get another opinion so I gave it to one of my writing friends to critique.  He never actually did a critique and only commented on the story several months later after much harassment.  His comment?  ”I can see why no one would publish it.”

As you can immediately see, the comment didn’t actually prove useful to me in any way except to make me doubt my own writing ability.  I promptly shelved the book for over a year before I had the nerve to read it again.  The good news is I had kept writing in the intervening time and had improved.  I was able to quickly spot many of the flaws with the novel.  These flaws weren’t with the characters, the setting or the plot.  It was more in how the story flowed.  I decided to keep everything and perform a rewrite.

This leads to an interesting side-discussion.  When you are doing a rewrite, should the writing be done in the original document or in an empty one?  When I started the rewrite process, I turned tracking on (in Word) and started typing.  It didn’t take too long before I found myself getting hopelessly addled.  That was when I cut the new text out and started a new document.  Keep in mind, there isn’t anything to prevent me from referring to the original story.  I just have a fresh slate.  I think I will leave the original where it is and write the story over completely.  It just feels like the right decision.

The second story I’ll use as an example is my most recently completed one:  Summer Camp Secrets.  I wrote the story very quickly (45 days, I think) and let it sit for a week before I reread it.  I also had a couple trusted friends critique it for me (yes they actually did it and no I didn’t ask the person from the first example).  The reviews came in very positive and I had a great feeling about the story when I read it.  I knew it wasn’t quite perfect based on the feedback so I chose to simply edit it.

The edit went very quick and the story is already out looking for a publisher.

There is one more story that could go either way for me.  My ‘Mik Murdoch’ novel has been edited repeatedly.  I’ve actually cut it down substantially from what it originally looked like.  It is currently out at a publisher being reviewed and I have some hope that it will be accepted.  If it isn’t, I have a plan to perform some selective surgery and put in a minor rewrite.

Why?  When I wrote it I put as much adventure in as I possibly could.  I finished knowing the book could easily be a series and when I looked at it several months later, I could see more than one story-line embedded within the greater book.  One publisher commented that I tried to do too much with the story and ended up not doing enough.  In other words, too much action, not enough character.

With that in mind, if it is rejected again, I plan to pull out one major story line (of approximately 14,000 words) and put it aside for a future book.  Then I will tighten the book up and increase the character development.  Call it a hybrid if you like, but once complete, it will be back out looking for a home.

I haven’t really touched much on questions 2 and 3 so let’s take a moment to talk about them.

In question two, I mentioned number of rejections and publisher feedback.  Arguably, ‘Mik Murdoch’ partially fits this one in the feedback category.  Aside from that, if your story has been rejected by every publisher (and/or agent) you have approached maybe a rewrite is in order.  It may also be time to search for outside feedback from a critique or writer’s group.  The story may need work (edit or rewrite) or it may need to be shelved.  A lot of early stories simply aren’t good enough to be published.

In question three, I mentioned finding a publisher who actually represents the genre you’ve written in.  Sometime a story is too different to fit under any one category.  In this case, involve outside feedback (either critique group or writer’s group).  You may find that the story actually does fit a genre (mostly), but it breaks a few fundamental rules that require rewrite or editorial changes.  You may find that it fits a genre you’ve never heard of or you may simply find that the story is too experimental for any market.  It may be that you need to shelve the story or try to create a market for it.

As you can see, there is no cut and dried solution to the question:  Rewrite or Edit.  In fact, there are other alternatives like shelving a story.  It all depends on your circumstances and only you can make the choice.

Personal Update

Summer Camp Secrets has been packaged and sent out!  Last Thursday it officially hit the mail.  I’m thinking of putting together and sending out a query letter to a few publishers in the mean time in case it is rejected.  Hopefully I’ll garner much interest and won’t need it, but a backup plan is important.

I am 2,700 words into the rewrite of my fantasy novel.  My goal is to have a minimum of four chapters (approximately 10,000 words) in the can by the World Fantasy Convention where I will be actively pitching it.  Depending on my success I may take November and use Nanowrimo to knock 50,000 additional words off on the story so I can be ready for any full-manuscript requests.  If I’m really lucky, I’ll have between 20,000 and 30,000 words down by WFC so a big Nano push would see it done before December.

No answer RE: Mik Murdoch yet.  The book is at the third publisher this year.  The first read the sample chapters and synopsis and promptly asked for more.  They eventually passed on the story but gave me actual feedback.  The second publisher sent me a form letter.  I still have hopes for this story.

If you expect to be able to retire off your first contracted novel, you might want to stop reading right now.  I don’t want to be the one to dash your hopes and dreams.

Still with me?  Maybe your expectations for your writing aren’t so crazy then.  Notice I said ‘Maybe’.

Let me begin by saying that it does happen that first authors sometimes get a massive advance on their first books.  People also win the lottery all the time.  Unfortunately, it always seems to be the other guy (or girl) who does it.

There’s a reason for it too.  It’s called the media.  What do I mean by that, you may ask?  Simply this:  the media doesn’t report on Jill Author who gets a $1,000 advance on her first book.  It doesn’t even report on Joe Author who gets $10,000 for his first book.  Those types of stories aren’t interesting.

Instead, the media reports about the one author (out of 10’s of thousands) who gets the big money that happens once every couple years or so.  Starting to sound more like the lottery yet?  How about the saying that by the time you can wallpaper a room with your rejection slips you will be ready to be published?

It’s starting to sound like a lot of work for little gain (financial, that is).

Still, don’t despair.  A living can be made through writing.  There are many avenues to follow to have a journalistic career.  You can use novel and short-story sales to supplement your income.  It is a hard road to travel if you don’t have a little help though.

I have a friend who has five books out and a sixth on the way.  The majority of his income stems from school visits, workshops and doing editing for other writers.  He still finds it a struggle sometimes to be a full-time writer.

That really made me think.  You see, when I first considered the idea that I could become a full-time writer, I said I would be able to go full-time once I had five books written.  In my mind, the five books would generate enough royalties that I would get a good-sized check every month.

That still COULD happen, but I’m not expecting it to.  Rather, I’ve adjusted my expectations somewhat.  Now I’m hoping that my writing will allow me to retire a few years earlier and give me a good supplemental income on the side (not to mention the social aspect of signings, conventions and school visits).

Note that I said retire, not change careers.  Changing careers was what I first hoped for.

Am I bummed out by this forced change of plans?  Not in the least!  I’m not writing solely for financial gain.  I enjoy creating characters, worlds the stories that surround both.  I want to feel the thrill of seeing my books on the shelves of my local bookstore and enjoy the time spent with fans who appreciate what I’ve written.  The money, when it comes, will be a nice added benefit.

Am I saying it’s impossible to become a full-time writer?  Again NO!  If you have spouse who has a regular income or you live somewhere where the cost of living is low or if you DO get that big first advance it can most definitely happen.  I’m just saying ‘DON’T COUNT ON IT!”  The road to disappointment and despair is paved with unrealistic expectations.

Case in point:  I know a first-time author who co-wrote a book with another first writer.  His writing partner (he found out after the book was in print) expected the royalties to pay her way through university.  She had expected huge checks to start arriving daily as soon as the book hit the shelves.  All without any effort other than writing the book.

Oddly enough, that didn’t happen.  She isn’t writing anymore.  He still is.  The difference?  He knew he would have to work his butt off to make some (not lots of) money and she had no idea how the real world works.

So rather than telling yourself you will make your first million off your debut novel, look for it to hit the shelves and build from there.  That is the road to real success.  And you never know, you may be the next person to hit the jackpot with that massive advance.  Just don’t expect to be.

Personal Update

I’ve almost finished packaging my second novel for submission.  I’m almost through writing the synopsis.  It will be in the mail this week.  I’ve also finished rewriting the first chapter of my fantasy novel.  Chapter two will be underway this week.  I’ve also decided to do Nanowrimo again this year (unless I have a contracted book distracting me).  I pitched a story to my kids and they are after me to write it.