writing angst
It seems, when it comes to revision/rewriting (whatever the hell you want to call this that I'm doing) I'm impossible to please. If I don't find anything to fix, I twitch out because I know the problems are there and I'm just too stupid to see them. If I do find things to fix, I twitch out because it's so damn hard to fix things now, harder than in the beginning when the fix only had to be good. Now the fix has to match ends with a whole damn novel.
See this chapter? Well no, of course you don't, but take my word. It's nothing but plot. Plot and setting. No character whatsoever. Well at least the setting part is good.
Is there enough tension?
Sight seeing in chapter four? Is that REALLY necessary?
I think the voice...tone...something has completely changed between the beginning to the end. How in the name of heaven to fix that, or does it even need fixing, or is it even true? Maybe I'm imagining it.
Maybe I didn't start in the right place at all. Maybe I should have started at chapter two. But my main characters aren't IN chapter two.
And oh jeeze, It's hard to make Muriel do bad things, hard to let other people be exasperated with her, when I feel sorry for her. On the other hand, I don't have to live with her, thank the universe. I only have to live in her head, but only for short stretches.
Speaking of bad things, the body count isn't nearly high enough, I'm sure of it. Who else can I kill off to raise the stakes?
Sigh.
Tweaking is easy, but this feeling along and watching for landmines is stressful.
Still better than drafting, though.
Maybe there's something interesting on the Discovery Channel.
See this chapter? Well no, of course you don't, but take my word. It's nothing but plot. Plot and setting. No character whatsoever. Well at least the setting part is good.
Is there enough tension?
Sight seeing in chapter four? Is that REALLY necessary?
I think the voice...tone...something has completely changed between the beginning to the end. How in the name of heaven to fix that, or does it even need fixing, or is it even true? Maybe I'm imagining it.
Maybe I didn't start in the right place at all. Maybe I should have started at chapter two. But my main characters aren't IN chapter two.
And oh jeeze, It's hard to make Muriel do bad things, hard to let other people be exasperated with her, when I feel sorry for her. On the other hand, I don't have to live with her, thank the universe. I only have to live in her head, but only for short stretches.
Speaking of bad things, the body count isn't nearly high enough, I'm sure of it. Who else can I kill off to raise the stakes?
Sigh.
Tweaking is easy, but this feeling along and watching for landmines is stressful.
Still better than drafting, though.
Maybe there's something interesting on the Discovery Channel.