If you are a writer, chances are you know how necessary, and painful, editing your work can be.  You finish writing your newest masterwork and all you want to do is get it out to an adoring audience.  But you know that there is still work to be done and so you go through it over and over (and over again).

By the time you think it might be good enough to go to an agent or publisher you are thoroughly sick of it.  You might even be tired of writing.  Sound familiar?

But what about all those other stories flitting through your mind?  The first thing you should remember is that it isn’t the writing that you are tired of.  You are tired of being “Stuck” on one story.  You are tired of ignoring all the other ideas you have.  You need something new to get re-energized.

This was the situation I was faced with not even a month ago.  I was just finishing a multi-month, major rewrite of one of my stories and I was tired of the whole thing.  I had made myself a solemn promise not to start anything new until the rewrite was done.

The problem was, once the rewrite ended, I didn’t feel like doing ANY writing.  I didn’t want to take any of my story ideas and bring them to life.  I didn’t want to bother with query letters to agents and publishers.  In other words I needed something to get me excited again.

I knew I wanted to write a story specifically to be podcast.  I knew the premise of the story and some of the characters.  I pulled myself up by my bootstraps and started writing the new story.  That exercise of doing something new was exactly what I needed and I felt my motivation soar.

That new energy and excitement might be just what you need to find an agent or publisher (a task not quite as onerous as editing can be).  Or maybe you just need to feel like a writer again.  I know some authors do both writing and editing simultaneously to avoid burning out.  I’m not wired that way or at least, I’m not disciplined enough to do it that way yet.

Maybe one day.

All I know is I am back in the writing frame and I’m having fun.  That’s all I ever really needed.  I was getting too caught up in trying to make everything perfect.  I forgot what I love about writing which is the creative process.

Personal Update

My one story is still in front of a publisher.  The full manuscript hasn’t been there too long so I’m trying to exercise patience.  My novel rewrite is complete and I’m letting it sit for a few weeks before I do the much needed final edits then it will go off to a publisher.

I’m working on a new story that will go directly to podcast.  It is a Science Fiction comedy (at least, I hope it’s funny).  I want to write a few episodes before I start recording but I’m already happy with the direction it is going.

I also have one more completed book (a YA adventure) that I’ve got to start sending out.  I’ve been following several agents on twitter so I think I will do some studying on queries and send a few out.  I’m hoping if I follow their good advice I will get at least on interested.  It will be an interesting experiment.

Tags: discipline, editing, energy, motivation, new, story, writing

Writer’s write, but is that all they should do?  It’s a question I haven’t asked myself in quite a while.  I’ve been so caught up in getting my podcast going, my Fantasy novel edited and new story ideas generated that I forgot to slow down.

I haven’t exactly been neglecting my friends and family, but I do think I’ve been running on autopilot to some extent.  I’m not sure what clued me in but I have realized that in order to write about people and the lives they lead, I need to appreciate the life I have too.

That’s not to say that I shouldn’t think about writing or actually sit down and do the writing.  It simply means that I need to be more aware of what’s going on around me.

Take yesterday for example.  My son was racing his Cub Car at our weekly Cub Scouts meeting.  For those of you who haven’t ever experienced this, picture forty boys aged 8 – 10 racing their homemade cars down a track soap-box style.  The boys have, for the most part, built and painted the cars themselves.  The cars are small with a maximum weight of 142 grams (5 ounces) and are propelled purely by gravity.  The excitement in the school gymnasium where we meet was palpable.

My son didn’t win the races and it was watching him that I realized just how much he has grown up.  If I hadn’t been paying attention I know I would have missed it.  Was he disappointed?  No doubt.  Did he handle himself with maturity and grace?  Absolutely.  I couldn’t have been more proud.  And because I took the time to pay attention, I know my son better today than I did yesterday.  I also have a clearer understanding of how he is growing up.

I don’t want to cheapen the moment by saying it will make good fodder for a story.  Will I use the experience in my writing?  Almost definitely, but I’ll try to do it to pay homage to the man he is becoming, not as some cheap trick to pull out of my bag.

And that’s not all.  If I’ve been missing that with my son, what about my daughter?  She’s a teenager now and I know has good days and bad.  I tried talking to her as an adult, not as a father dictating to his child.  Surprise of surprises, it worked.  Maybe in my automatic state I’ve forgotten to grow up with my kids.

It’s a mistake I won’t make again.

My family has always been there to support me in everything I do and I’ve tried to reciprocate in kind.  I just never completely realized how truly terrific they all are.  Time to stop just writing about life and start appreciating it more.

As I said earlier, I don’t know what made me finally see this.  There was no great revelation or clap of thunder.  Just the realization that I was somehow missing something.  If I can do it justice, I might just create some characters you’ll remember.

Personal Update

For those of you who haven’t listened to the podcast, I can only ask “Why not?”.  Also, I can tell you I’ve got a full manuscript out in front of a publisher.  Cautious optimism is the order of the day.

I’m also considering doing script frenzy (starting today, no less).  If you want to join me, please drop me a line and we can do it together.

Have a great week!