I have come to the incredibly painful conclusion that it is time for "The Sometimes Sword" and I to part ways. It has been an amazing several months, and I have pinned a lot of hopes and countless hours on this book. However, I have come to the realization that despite my best efforts, "The Sometimes Sword" is at best a step on my journey, and nothing more.
I will continue to write, and as I type this, I am concocting the beginnings of another book, one that will hopefully incorporate all that was good in "The Sometimes Sword", and none of the bad. To be honest, I'm feeling pretty emotional about it, and saying goodbye to these characters will be incredibly difficult to say the least. But, I have to be realistic, and if I ever want to be read by real audiences, I can't cling to something that is fundamentally flawed.
And so I say goodbye to you, Sometimes Sword, you will always remain with me, my first book, my first success, and hopefully not the last. Thank you for teaching me how to be a better writer.
Chale and Astrid, thank you for being my friends.
It's always a tough decision to scrap something (I think of it as material I can recycle later into something else). Don't throw it away, and keep writing. Advice I wish I were following right now.
ReplyDeleteAnd you do have some options. First, you could try short stories. They're a lot less complicated than a novel, which isn't to say they're easier. They're just shorter.
Another option would be to start something else, and see what happens. If you do that, and come back to The Sometimes Sword later, you might find it's better than you'd thought it was.
Or, you could spend some time reading, to recharge your batteries. When my writing isn't going well I tend to read in different areas than usual - such as history, science, whatever - hoping that I'll get some new insights or ideas.
Obviously this is easy advice to give, difficult to follow. I should post this comment on my own blog, to myself. Good luck.
I absolutely agree with you on all this stuff. As for recycling, I went into this new project with that idea (to use elements of TSS), but eventually decided not to disturb TSS, as I think I may someday resurrect it once my skill has increased. I also want to start fresh with this new book, with new ideas. I need to exercise my brain.
ReplyDeleteAs for your advice to me applying to yourself, I know what you mean. It's hard to practice what is easily spoken of.
Do you have any plans to start/continue some fiction?
Plans, yes. Actual likelihood of it happening in the near future is fairly low, however. There are too many other real-life things clamoring for my attention right now.
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