For months now, I’ve bullied myself over my book. I harangue myself for being past the deadline–the one I thought I should have reached by now. Each time I read through my manuscript, I make changes and pray they will be the last. Strangely enough, I’m beginning to actually enjoy the process of late. Polishing up my book will simply taking longer than I had anticipated, but will be much better in the end. And besides, why have a deadline?
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I imagine how difficult it is to polish up your book til it is perfect (is anything ever perfectly perfect?).
Yep. I think polishing has to simply be put on hold for a while, so it can finally shine.
I worked on my book, After Sybil, for over ten years. That included a 4 year contract with an agent that went nowhere, but involved a lot of rewrites to suit her vision, not mine. Then, after I ended her contract, I rewrote the entire book. The more I re-read, the more I found to fix, or so I thought. I was on a revision wheel that never stopped running. Finally, I gritted my teeth, closed my eyes, and said, “So be it.” Off it went, and I sold enough copies to make me happy. Now, I have another story/book finished, but I m back on the same revision wheel. The more time I agonize over it, the more I see wrong with it. Argh-ggg! I just wanted to vent with someone who seems to be a kindred soul.
Nancy P.
I don’t foresee that I’ll be off my own revision wheel anytime soon. Guess that’s the way of the self-publisher.