« The mystery of plot | Main | Bedside reading »

Never satisfied

Some days I read what I've been working on and a twisty feeling of unease works its way through my body. I find myself thinking, "This isn't very...good. I remember it being good. Why is it not good any more?"

Tonight I found that I'd remembered chapter one as better than it is.

When faced with the dilemma of unexpected suck you can do several things:

1.Drink
2. Go to bed
3. Work on something different
4. Quit writing entirely and become a go-go dancer

Some days, option #4 seems like a great idea. But that's just nonsense. I don't own go-go boots.

Tonight's solution to suck is to work on smaller problems with the narrative and research details. Little tasks to distract me from my "everything I write is awful" moment.

And soon enough I'll rework the entire chapter so that the next time I read it the unease doesn't slither up my spine. Or such is the hope.

Post a comment

(If you haven't left a comment here before, you may need to be approved by the site owner before your comment will appear. Until then, it won't appear on the entry. Thanks for waiting.)