New years realizations
I’ve just escaped the cave of revision writing and turned in the manuscript that consumed the last couple of months. I say “consumed” but that’s hyperbole…sort of. Actual writing time was only a couple of weeks. But thinking about how to fix a plot problem took a lot more time, sitting around staring-into-space time. It took me that long not to really “fix” the problem, but to let go of it. This was a plot point that a lot of readers had a problem with, including my editor and my agent. But I was married to it and tried over and over again to make it more subtle, less “on the page” but still in the book. It was, in my mind, an important part of the story. And so after some passionate arguments, everyone agreed to let me keep it.
Until I had a conversation with my editor last month. In one last-ditch effort, she expressed that this part of the novel still bothered her, and for the first time I was able to see things her way. I don’t know what happened, but I was finally able to let it go. (I told my husband later that a good editor gets you to make a change and then think that it was your idea all along-and that’s sort of what happened here.)
I needed to hear, over and over again, that this part of the novel was not working, and had to re-work it about ten times before I said: “Oh, jeez, that’s not working.” Why was I so stubborn? Why did it take MONTHS before I was able to agree with my readers? I don’t know. It was like a blind spot--I could not see until suddenly, I could. And I’m happy to admit that it was finally really freeing to cut that whole chapter and replace it with two other chapters that work so much better.
I really hope I can take this lesson into my next novel-taking advice, trying something new, not falling so in love with my words or my plot that I can’t imagine changing them. And, conversely, knowing when to fight for certain parts of a book. But ah, to know the difference. As a wise woman once told me, “There are no good writers, only good revisers.” Point taken.
Until I had a conversation with my editor last month. In one last-ditch effort, she expressed that this part of the novel still bothered her, and for the first time I was able to see things her way. I don’t know what happened, but I was finally able to let it go. (I told my husband later that a good editor gets you to make a change and then think that it was your idea all along-and that’s sort of what happened here.)
I needed to hear, over and over again, that this part of the novel was not working, and had to re-work it about ten times before I said: “Oh, jeez, that’s not working.” Why was I so stubborn? Why did it take MONTHS before I was able to agree with my readers? I don’t know. It was like a blind spot--I could not see until suddenly, I could. And I’m happy to admit that it was finally really freeing to cut that whole chapter and replace it with two other chapters that work so much better.
I really hope I can take this lesson into my next novel-taking advice, trying something new, not falling so in love with my words or my plot that I can’t imagine changing them. And, conversely, knowing when to fight for certain parts of a book. But ah, to know the difference. As a wise woman once told me, “There are no good writers, only good revisers.” Point taken.