Getting Back Together With A Manuscript (I hate you! I love you!)

Regular visitors to this blog may have noticed a change in tone a while back. I'd been having serious relationship problems with my manuscript, and Taylor Swift's latest song perfectly described my attitude.

I'd sing to my Work In Progress, "We are never, ever, ever, getting back together!"

Like, EVER.

I wondered if the colossal amount of time spent on this book was a colossal waste. Even though I knew writing time was never wasted, I thought my time on my book was the exception.

But contrary to the song, me and my manuscript are back together again and happier than ever. What changed? I began by asking myself these three questions:

1. Do I love the story?
2. Is it worth telling?
3. Do I, as a reader, like reading it and think others will enjoy it, too?

I answered Yes to all three questions. So how did my manuscript and I mend our tumultuous relationship? Here's what worked for us:

Recognize problems and be open to solutions

Our gut tells us what isn't working. It's like the relationship therapist who helps us see what needs to change. 

Once I recognized problem areas, I searched through my notes for old, unused ideas. I thought of new ideas. I asked for advice, received it, and didn't brush it aside. I read blog posts by Janice Hardy & Martina Boone with new interest, focusing on how that information would enhance my own work. Literally...I was open to anything.

Give it time

This is always a biggie for writers, and I had to re-test my patience. Like a petulant child, I wanted my solutions now. 

My relationship-therapist-gut was on overdrive. I wanted to dump anything that frustrated me and write something new. But many times the good bones were there, I just needed to tweak this or that to make a scene more compelling. But when a scene needed to go, I had absolutely no problem cutting it. And once I'd written fresh scenes, I gave them time to marinate until I revised them.

Time. Time. Time. 

Appreciate the good

Once I'd cut the blah and enhanced the good, my own work looked lovey-dovey again. There was plenty of quality in my story, I just had to chill out, be patient, and let my mind wander. Once I started actively searching for solutions and applying them to the manuscript, it no longer seemed like a colossal waste of time. Re-reading passages became a joy again, and I got that feeling. You know the one.

Have I been in this position before? Yep. See my post "Is your story worth saving?" Does my manuscript still need work? Yep. But now that we're back together again, I'm thankful I didn't give up on it. Our relationship is totally worth the hard work.

Have you ever wanted to break up with your manuscript? If you stayed together, what saved your relationship? Do you have any other revision advice you can share with us?

And just for fun, here's Taylor Swift's song that I sang to my manuscript in frustration:

photo credit

Write With Authenticity

Au-then-tic: not false or copied; genuine

I heard an interview with Taylor Swift, and the questioner asked how she came up with ideas for her songs. Swift said, "I go to high school and write about it." And then she added, "And I try to write with authenticity."

Sounds so simple! Many of her songs chronicle high school angst, yet they resonate with people of all ages. It seems to me we could follow the breadcrumbs of her songs, and see what she was experiencing at the time it was written.

I don't have all the answers, but when I thought about what it meant to write with authenticity, here's what I came up with:

Be true to your writerly self

I'm amazed by the successes of fantasy and dystopian novels, but I doubt I'd ever write one. I marvel at the creativity involved in building a whole new world, and I'm impressed by those of you who write in those genres. I gravitate toward contemporary dramas, and know that that's where my authentic writerly self belongs. Not that I'd shy away from a different genre if I felt compelled to experiment with something new.

Your unique life experiences add value to your stories

I love the idea that only we can tell our stories. In her book Bird by Bird, Anne Lamott tells how she handed out a writing assignment to each student, and even though the topic was the same, she received a different story from each student. We each view life differently and handle situations in ways that no one else can duplicate. I love how this transfers to our writing. No one else can authentically write exactly what we've written.

Tap in to genuine emotions

We've each felt love, fear, shame, happiness, pride, and embarrassment, and sometimes it's easier to bury the bad stuff and only remember the good. But if we dig deep, remember it all, and write about it, our work will shine with authenticity. At least that's what I'm hoping for.

David Morrell said, "You have to follow your own voice. You have to be yourself when you write. In effect, you have to announce, 'This is me, this is what I stand for, this is what you get when you read me. I'm doing the best I can--buy me or not--but this is who I am as a writer.'"

Tell me, what does writing with authenticity mean to you? I'd love to hear your thoughts.

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