tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7313130055534395503.post638678588048590365..comments2023-09-17T06:13:58.403-04:00Comments on Unshakeable Hope: When Good Enough Takes TimeHeidi Willishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18420802651029097379noreply@blogger.comBlogger13125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7313130055534395503.post-79135836152623971312011-12-27T17:30:29.749-05:002011-12-27T17:30:29.749-05:00mondal - it's a fine line between tinkering an...mondal - it's a fine line between tinkering and tweaking... and believing in yourself enough to know it's good. :)Heidi Willishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18420802651029097379noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7313130055534395503.post-81011896430848017332011-12-14T13:00:56.083-05:002011-12-14T13:00:56.083-05:00I had a book I worked on for probably four years a...I had a book I worked on for probably four years and it didn't need to be that long - that was just me simply procrastinating too much and tinkering too much.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.britishfooddepot.com/" rel="nofollow">British Food</a>mondalhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07246504680051766052noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7313130055534395503.post-61845301433713732822011-12-05T22:43:06.128-05:002011-12-05T22:43:06.128-05:00Well, I suppose I would keep at it till it's d...Well, I suppose I would keep at it till it's done. I can't imagine myself just stopping before I've hit that point. And I'm pretty sure I'm an even s-l-o-w-e-r writer than you claim to be! ;o)Name: Holly Bownehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01079363337603264641noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7313130055534395503.post-60538560652920947862011-11-29T14:26:26.819-05:002011-11-29T14:26:26.819-05:00I hear you on the re-writes. It is the worst part ...I hear you on the re-writes. It is the worst part about writing because you could go over a work a million times and still find something to change. Not to mention that many writers do not believe they have written good enough to be published. I have just finished a memoir that is due out in January. It has taken quite some time to get to where it is going and I still don't know where that is.lol Anyway, forge ahead with your work in progress.vinniehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11219103861928116382noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7313130055534395503.post-41928761030744751262011-11-28T16:06:10.138-05:002011-11-28T16:06:10.138-05:00Great post, I needed to hear it. The novel I'm...Great post, I needed to hear it. The novel I'm currently working on I started over 2 years ago. I haven't even finished the first draft. Yeah, take that news to the bank!! lol I have stopped and written a few things since then, but still. When will I be done? Before I die, I'll promise you that! :)Nicole McLaughlinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13467516937078644466noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7313130055534395503.post-71595495008441974162011-11-20T13:06:25.370-05:002011-11-20T13:06:25.370-05:00I think I spent 7 years on Trouble. But I can'...I think I spent 7 years on Trouble. But I can't remember. There was a baby and moving house and life and all minds of stuff during that time so no matter how long it took, it was a very chopped up process. I think I finished the first draft in 2001. Is that right???? That's 10 years ago!!!! That can't be right. 2006? It's been on three or four different computers, so it's been a while. <br /><br />And of course last year after one last constructive rejection I set it aside. I lost track of revisions around 20 and just had to walk away. <br /><br />But not permanently. Because I am a sucker for punishment apparently. <br /><br />This current project will NOT take that long. That's a lesson I've learned. <br /><br />You know what, I just remembered. I started writing Trouble in 1995, or what would later become Trouble. That is waaaaay too long!!Heidi Yantzihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17030476894610426776noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7313130055534395503.post-12946608659687462502011-11-16T23:05:56.819-05:002011-11-16T23:05:56.819-05:00I feel the same way sometimes. My first manuscript...I feel the same way sometimes. My first manuscript took a year to write and edit. The first agent I queried asked for the full. Then she told me a major issue that needed to be fixed. So my rewrite took another 9 months. The agent read the rewrite and said it was great, but she didn't love it. She also said that it was completely personal preference. So now I wonder if I should do more tweaking or simply re-query. Friends say if she didn't point out any issues, I should just re-query. <br /><br />Who knows though. I think I'm hitting that 2 year mark too. :)Rachelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12870655070026853342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7313130055534395503.post-28404438204886683712011-11-16T22:30:42.632-05:002011-11-16T22:30:42.632-05:00Roxanne - LOL!! So true for me too! I'd be whi...Roxanne - LOL!! So true for me too! I'd be whipping out books like nobody's business if the internet had never been invented! :)Heidi Willishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18420802651029097379noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7313130055534395503.post-5509497874465507312011-11-16T22:00:09.996-05:002011-11-16T22:00:09.996-05:00I sometimes think that it wouldn't be taking m...I sometimes think that it wouldn't be taking me this long if not for all the procrastinating I've done.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7313130055534395503.post-8555635835247611612011-11-16T12:59:46.689-05:002011-11-16T12:59:46.689-05:00I think the "how long?" question can var...I think the "how long?" question can vary from project to project, like you've also found. Not every great idea comes to us fully formed. Some need our interactions with them over a period to really gel. Others arrive very clear-cut and it's a matter of getting it down piece by piece, usually pretty quickly. (One of these days I'll get an idea like that for something other than a poem or short story. Ha!)<br /><br />I think there is a huge expectation differential regarding "productivity" depending on genre. Lit fic readers expect titles more slowly than genre readers.Laurel Garverhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03657218435228802535noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7313130055534395503.post-45079183782217600602011-11-16T12:09:40.557-05:002011-11-16T12:09:40.557-05:00Y'know, I think it depends on the novel and wh...Y'know, I think it depends on the novel and where you're at in your writing journey. I had a book I worked on for probably four years and it didn't need to be that long - that was just me simply procrastinating too much and tinkering too much. I don't think I was improving it so much as not embracing the notion that I needed to finish something and move on. <br /><br />I think there probably comes a time when we instinctively "know" that the novel is done and we need to let go. Hearing that voice and heeding it is the key.Melissa Amateishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16086267508858187716noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7313130055534395503.post-71726820797799290842011-11-16T12:01:35.913-05:002011-11-16T12:01:35.913-05:00I can get a rough draft down fast, but time until ...I can get a rough draft down fast, but time until it's ready??<br />My biggest thing is that I can't see the story without setting it aside and working on something else.<br /><br />And yeah. We ALL work at a different pace, and our books are meant for different audiences, so yeah, timing will be different . . .Jolene Perryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14809468564016928636noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7313130055534395503.post-27641707087783575262011-11-16T11:55:39.608-05:002011-11-16T11:55:39.608-05:00I hit that point with my first book. What I have n...I hit that point with my first book. What I have now is going to have to be enough. And it might not be enough to get it published, but I'm okay with that, because I learned a lot writing it.Pattihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00685341739870191402noreply@blogger.com