Finally, I wrote a 1000-word story. I was excited to have something “long” (yes, you may snicker). I was so in love with the voice and the language, I thought it was great. I gave it to my writing group for critique, they spotted places where more information was needed but didn't give any “big picture” comments. So I thought, wow, that was quick: a finished story, and swiftly dispatched it to several competitions.
Read the rest of the blog post here. Does this happen to you too?
5 comments:
I am also sometimes too quick on the gun with regrets after the send button is pressed. Off to read the guest blog....
(Off topic- my word verification word is MATHLET- how sweet is that? That's about the math I can do nowadays, little mathlets. )
I've been guilty of this, for sure. Thankfully, I've become more disciplined. The urge to rush work out must be resisted. I never regret waiting, versus .... Time gives me distance from my work, allows me to re-see and re-imagine it.
I've done this only recently when I heard of a competition (um wonder where?) and quickly wrote a bunch of stories to add to some I already had and sent them off only to sorely wish I had waited another week or two. You live and learn. Off to read your guest blog now :)
Lauri - I love MATHLET, I am finding I can barely do maths anymore, can't even add up restaurant bills properly. So much for the uni degree, eh?
Ethel, good for you, I am impressed. You are right, waiting is not something to be regretted, and it's cheaper!
Rachel, hmm, is it my fault? Argh, sorry! Good luck, though, you never know...
I always dread reading back anything once it's submitted, as it is at this point that I notice word repetitions, clumsy phrasing, and the odd ghastly typo.
The problem is that time seems to have little to do with this - I think the very act of submitting somehow lifts the veil...
I see writing as being a bit like sculpture. You have to carve your story out. For me, the first draft is there to provide the raw material for this process, and nothing more.
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