A FEW DAYS AGO, I finished another book and sent it off to the publisher, something I’ve done over 40 times. Having been over the long trail of writing so many times you might think I’ve grown accustomed to the process.
I haven’t.
Like children, every book is different, each with its own personality, twists, and turns. This is true for every form of writing I do. Those who produce creative works--paintings, sculpture, poetry, books, journalism, short stories--whatever, on a regular basis know that creativity is fickle. If creativity were a pitcher in a baseball game it would throw spitballs.
I write fast these days, and some aspects of the work come more easily. After penning more than 3 million words, stuff better come more easily. My instincts have improved, my self-editing is better (but far from perfect), and my story sense is more mature.
So why isn’t the work easy?
Because creative works seldom is. Oh, sure there are those times when something comes to us on a silver platter. Many are the stories of songs written in half-an-hour, or a recording session that comes out perfect first take (Roy Orbison’s Pretty Woman for example). Many more are the tales of wrestling with a project like Jacob wrestled with the angel.
I’ve noticed that in my writing I go through a full spectrum of emotions, usually associated with time and page numbers.
Page 1: Whoo-hoo, what a life. I love this project. It will be the best work I’ve done.
Page 5: I’m a hack. Whatever made me think I could write?
Page 10: Eh, ain’t so bad.
Page 25: Why are the first 50 pages so hard?
Page 50: Why are the first 75 pages so hard?
Page 100: I’m cookin’ with gas now, baby. Look a me, I’m a steamroller!
Page 110: I’ll never finish this book.
Page 150: Stupid character. Turns out to be a woman instead of a man. Does he, I mean she, know how much rewriting I have to do?
Page 200: Ooo, nice turn of phrase.
Page 203: Who wrote this junk?
Page 300: I now believe there is an end in sight.
Page 307: The end just disappeared.
Page 350: Epilogue, my favorite chapter.
Page 360: THE END, sweetest words in the English language.
Day 1 after finish: Must check formatting and character names.
Day 2 after finish: Must fill in blanks left to remind me to do some research. Stoopid research.
Day 3 after finish: Whoo-hoo, just sent the manuscript off to the editor. What a relief. What a joy. I did it again! Yeah, baby!
Day 3 plus 30 minutes: They’re going to hate it. Now they know I’m a fraud.
Day 3 plus 40 minutes: Did I remove that horrible scene I meant to delete? Nuts?
Day 3 plus 45 minutes: I’m going to Starbucks.
Three days later . . .
Page 1: Whoo-hoo, what a life. I love this project. It will be the best work I’ve done . . .
Yep, that’ s my roller coaster world. My guess is, it may be similar to your world too.
And it’s worth it.
So what’s a writer to do? Write anyway. It’s our calling, our fulfillment, our joy, except on page 5, 25, 113 . . .
Alton Gansky
Register for Southwest Christian Writers Studio by calling
1-800-797-4222
Alton, I'm glad to know that even professional writers go through the same self-doubt and emotions as aspiring novelists. Thanks for the encouragement!
Posted by: Allison Martin | 08/15/2011 at 07:40 AM
This is too good!
Page numbers may vary, but everything else is spot on.
Oh, and by the way, my day job is painting portraits of horses for people. I've been doing that for over 30 years. In a lot of ways, it's exactly like writing. All the stages are the same, but the names have been changed.
Posted by: Carrie L. Lewis | 04/18/2012 at 02:19 PM
I shared this on my Facebook profile AND on my new author page. Great stuff!
Posted by: Christina Berry Tarabochia | 04/18/2012 at 09:49 PM
And here I thought it would get easier as time went by. That theory has been blown to bits! :)
Posted by: Linden Barrick | 04/19/2012 at 05:10 AM
Indeed, you have encapsulated the experience of writing. But if we didn't have those lows, would the highs feel as high? Writing, like life, is all about balance!
Posted by: Susanne Bellamy | 04/20/2012 at 05:23 PM