Tuesday, January 22, 2013

Clean the Manuscript We've Written

(my actual backsplash)

My husband and I built our own home. I'll describe the kitchen, and you can guess if you know the era.

Oak cabinets
Black Appliances
White tile countertops

Did you guess 80's? 90's? You're correct! We built the home through most of 1997, and moved in on March 20, 1998.

Not too long ago, I became obsessed with changing the look of our kitchen. Mostly the countertops. The white grout between our tiles was dirty, and dulled the entire room. Granite would be beautiful, but I'm tight-fisted with money, and I'm having a hard time parting with the cash.

One morning I realized that complaining about the dirty grout was silly. Why not just clean the countertops I had? I bleached every grout line, and it brightened the whole room. It's still outdated, but at least it's outdated and clean.

I just needed to do the work.

When I'm frustrated with a manuscript, I feel like it's hopeless and want to trash the whole thing, replacing it with something new and sparkly. But I soon remember that the new manuscript will also reach the same frustrating stage.

In my opinion, we shouldn't have several messy and unpolished pieces of work. We should go the distance. (Need revision help? See the Writer's Knowledge Base search engine on my sidebar) It might even be a good idea to have at least two manuscripts going, in different stages. Maybe one on draft 2, and the other on draft 6. That way when one gets tiresome and frustrating, we can switch to the other. 

Yes, some manuscripts will end up being practice books, and that's tough to swallow. But during times of frustration, we can also remember that just because it's white tile with dirty grout now, doesn't mean it can't be pretty granite when we're finished. 

We just need to do the work. 

Tell me, when you're slogging through revisions, do you ever switch to a shiny new idea? Do you ever feel like the book you're working on will never reach the polish stage? And most importantly, what are your kitchen countertops like? Formica? Tile? Granite? Quartz?

34 comments:

  1. Outdated and clean - that made me chuckle.
    I enjoy the revision stage and if I have a challenge, I run it by a test reader or critique partner.
    I think you would label my countertops cheap.

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    1. That's a great idea to run it by your readers. Amazing what a fresh set of eyes can do!

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  2. Yes, I have a couple manuscripts like that that I love but both need some major work and reenvisioning and I always debate whether to do the revision/rewrite or not. They constantly call to me.

    And my kitchen is outdated too, so you're not alone. ;)

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    1. Ha! Nice to know I'm not alone with the outdated kitchen!

      I have a manuscript like that too, Laura. One where I wonder if I should go back to it. Hmmm

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  3. I can't leave a manuscript unfinished for long, fortunately. I start new things occasionally when I'm frustrated but guilt always drags me back.
    My kitchen is badly in need of an update. I can't even put into words what the countertops look like.

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    1. That's good that you can't keep a manuscript unfinished! No dust bunnies on your work :)

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  4. I obviously agree with you, seeing I have been working on a manuscript for almost four years. ;)

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    1. Some of the greatest books took a long time, and they were worth the wait!

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  5. I must admit that I started my second manuscript partly because I was trying to avoid the revision of my first one. And now that first manuscript has been gathering dust in the meantime. But something about the New Year and all those resolutions that everyone (including me) made has motivated me to finish what I started.

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    1. Good for you! I have a feeling your own fresh eyes on it will make a difference. Good luck!

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  6. Ugh, this is where I am right now. I find myself dreaming of other ideas because I'm stuck on a revision. I just need to suck it up and do some serious cleaning :)

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    1. Jess, I totally know how you feel! I do this myself. I've been taking notes about the shiny new idea and made myself clean house. Good luck to you on yours!

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  7. I guess I buy new granite too easily. :P It's a problem because at some point my head swims and I feel like I need to be able to focus on ONE thing. That's a trick I need to work on.

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  8. Can I just say I have three full length practice novels. And it sucks, but I only queried one. I knew the other two were bad.

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    1. Beth, I have a couple of those myself. But you know what? That time was not wasted. We sure did learn a lot from those practice books.

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  9. I'm a solace to my OCD so I can only do one project at once. I see it all the way through. As for my countertop, it's a black & gray granite. I like it, but I would've chosen something else. It's kind of like hair; no one's ever satisfied with what they have & always wants what the other guy has.

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    1. Oooh, I'll bet your countertops are so beautiful!

      I think it's great that you see a book all the way through. And look at what you've accomplished!

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  10. When we bought our house, our plan was to update the kitchen in 5 years. Yeah, right. It's been almost 25 and while we've painted, we haven't really updated. Soon!!!

    I've usually got 2 or 3 on the go so that when I get too frustrated I switch to another - but I tend to get stubborn and keep on digging :)

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    1. Jemi, I work the same way you do. Keep a couple going, and keep digging til I get it right.

      You crack me up about the 25 year remodel. Houses are never finished!

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  11. I just get creative and make it work! Sometimes the simplest things can fix the problem. A tweak here, and a poke there.
    And for tile... my discovery...
    Get a sanding block. A little square sponge sander... and a bottle of cleaner/sealer spray. Spray your grout, and then use the sanding block. Cleans with minimal work, and you're sealing it too.
    Yes, sometimes we have to get creative to make it work.

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    1. Karlene, you are a genius. Does the cleaner/sealer whiten white grout? I think I need to give it a try! Thanks for the tip.

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  12. Formica, I think. Lol, not sure. It's this white with streaks of gold. I hope to re-model it someday soon. The whole kitchen has to be done due to some flooding that happened when a hidden water tank burst. As for the manuscript, I'm also sort of doing that now. I'm tearing up some of the old and replacing it with new material that works better. I actually enjoy doing so as I can see the difference it makes in the story.

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    1. Traci, it sounds as if you're on the path to an awesome revision. Good luck to you!

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  13. Yes, I give up, with writing into the computer, nothing is ever lost. I'm overcoming this problem at the moment by finishing one children's book that has been with me too long, and serialising my book for adults beginning on the 30th January. Should keep me on my toes. :0)

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    1. Carole, you are a busy woman! I can only imagine how much your writing has changed since that earlier children's book. Good luck to you.

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  14. We bought our house a few years ago and it was all 1970's on the inside. We did a big renovation before we moved in, so I'm really lucky to have Silestone quartz countertops, which are amazing.

    But yes, I'm feeling frustrated with my current WiP and just need to GET TO WORK. :)

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    1. Amy, I'm drooling over your countertops. I'll bet they're gorgeous.

      Hang in there on that revision. You'll get it!

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  15. Yay, you! I was hoping you'd bleach the grout. Don't know why, but I'm not a fan of granite counter tops. Tile has a timelessness about it --dare I say a touch of romance-- the meals lovingly cooked, glasses toasted?--and, then, you tied it in to what we write. Great job! I've got some pages that need some bleach.

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    1. Tile with a touch of romance? Hey, I like that! I'll remember that the next time I have to bleach the darn grout. Good luck on your revision :)

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  16. Always soooo tempting to start a new shiny. I'm finishing up revisions now. If I didn't stop to write a new poem every few days, I'd lose it!

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  17. I've never abandoned a project---not through revisions anyway :) But man, this stage can be HARD... But I've also learned to love it... If I don't enjoy the part of the process that's going to (probably) take the most time, I shouldn't be in this business! :-)

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  18. Oh yes indeed, I've been there. There's a book I wrote in the sixth grade that'll I'll never go back to. ;) Seriously! And there is one that I wrote fresh out of high school that I will go back to soon and put in granite counter tops. :)

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  19. I don't abandon projects, but I do usually have at least two going at different stages so that I can shift gears if I feel like giving up on one for a little while.

    My countertops: plain ole formica. But there is so little counter space that I don't have to see much of it. It's covered with stuff ;)

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