I finished my manuscript with the 90 Day Novel Challenge, and now that I’m attempting to edit it, I hate it. I know that’s pretty strong, but I have this wonderful idea for a new novel that I like so much better, and I’m even going to attempt to pull back on the dialogue a bit more. Would it be terribly bad of me to give up on my other novel altogether and finish this better one? Or will I feel the same about this one after I’m done with it? The 90Day challenge was incredibly helpful for me, and I will carry all that knowledge with me forever, but I didn’t have any experience when I started it, so what came out was what I had in me in the beginning, and now I have something so much better because I finished it! This new story could just relate so much more to the reader, and the main character is actually me in sci-fi form, so I can just ask myself questions and make the story incredibly relatable!
I feel so discouraged with my other book that I don’t know if I’ll be able to stick through the the end and actually get it edited. There is so much pressure and I don’t work well with pressure! LOL!
So yeah… should I give up or not? Is this just the feeling everyone feels? As I read the book I’m editing I can see straight through the plot, and it is so simple. There is way too much dialogue, and not enough strong description, and the story is just complete garbage. That’s what I feel about it anyhow. I just wish I had a little encouragement. 😛 I could technically fix it, but as I contemplate that it feels insurmountable. I’ve never edited a novel before, and it is extremely foreboding!
Thanks for sticking me out!
-Colleen
Hey Colleen. That’s a tough question to answer! This is really the place where you want a mentor who can look at your work, knows your personality and goals, and can give precise feedback and direction.
I typically advise people to complete a sensible revision process before trashing a manuscript. I recommend the 4-step revision plan, which you can get for free right here on The Company’s website. It’s a compartmentalized, step-by-step method to make an intelligent investment in your work.
A good revision process will not only (maybe) fix your novel, but will also teach you a lot about your work. A lot of times, that revision process is where you’ll make exponential growth as a writer.
It’s really difficult to have an accurate perspective on your own work after you finish that first draft. Some people love it, some people hate it, but oftentimes, they’re both wrong! It has a lot more to do with their personality than it has to do with the quality of the manuscript. Chances are that the manuscript has a lot of good going for it, but needs a lot of work in revisions–this is where 90% of manuscripts land if they’ve followed a good plan like you have.
However, if a manuscript truly is bad and you know you’re not interested in finishing it, it can be OK to just move on to a better project. You don’t get any hero points for slogging through and finishing it. Especially for a young writer like yourself, I’d rather see you keep your energy and momentum high. There’s no sense in chaining yourself to a revision that you hate and end up discouraged with your writing all together.
Real facts are that most manuscripts shouldn’t be published, even after they’re revised. You want to write a lot and grow a lot before anything goes to market, so if it makes more sense to keep your energy up with a new project, you’re probably not losing anything.
Without looking at the manuscript, it’s really impossible to say what your next steps should be. I know I’m not really answering your question, but I hope that something in here is helpful. 🙂
You are so amazing to have done all that you did with this book/writing. You surpassed some very large hurdles which you could describe by completing the challenge. There is no failure in this accomplishment or the next one. They are all part of the process of developing in something that you enjoy and inspires you to grow.
I was actually thinking about this on my walk this morning so it is a God thing that I come home and read your question (seriously this is the first thing I did when getting home). I outlined multiple steps in my thinking which I won’t describe here to arrive at this thought:
It is okay if your first writing is not the one you continue on with. It is the one where you learned by doing. This book may be an idea that you come back to but go with an idea that excites you now. Especially if you have the motivation to go through the entire process again and how convenient that it starts in January.
Thanks for the encouragement, Dave!
I’m like you too. But we are making progress on this.
If I hadn’t written it, I wouldn’t have seen how important it is to think it through better beforehand, because it’s harder to change afterwards.
Maybe next time I’ll write it as a short story first to get the gist of it…
Romans 15:13 “Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost”.
Thank you Plamen! I’m glad I’m not alone 🙂
Hey Colleen,
I’m so glad you asked this question! Even now, I find myself struggling with it in my current manuscripts.
I agree a lot with Brad, especially what he said last about not every manuscript being published. It’s a hard lesson to learn, but so so important. Not everything you write should be published.
I just had a manuscript that I wrote, edited, and then, after a developmental edit, decided it was going to take way too much work to improve. I either needed to completely rework the plot or become a different writer.
My one bit of advice would be this: Don’t toss the manuscript completely! Make sure you save the Word file somewhere so that, in the future, if you ever DO want to work on it, you can find it. It’s also great to keep your old writing so you can see how much you’ve improved!
🙂 Great work on completing your manuscript!
This was very helpful, Allie. I’m going to take your advice and set it aside, but not delete it. I really love it, just not with the love that is going to get it published. 😉 I really want to finish and publish a novel someday, and I’ve made it my goal to do so and not give up. Thanks for your encouragement in the process, I know I wouldn’t have got this far without your help in the cohort! Thank you soooooo much!
Thank you sooooo much, Brad!!! That really helps! My main problem is that this would be my second manuscript that I fail at, and my family doesn’t want me to fail. I think I really should just try again, I WANT to try again, but I also know that I will probably be unhappy with this new one once I’m done. But I’m NOT going to give up! I think I’m going to do what Allie said after your answer and just put this one aside. I feel terrible doing it, but with no help in the revision process, I think I should have something I’m a little more happy with. I just hope my family understands.
Thank you again!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!