Settling For Good Enough Isn't Good Enough
I don't know about everyone else, but often in writing there's that temptation to leave something as "good enough."
That scene isn't perfect, but I think readers will get what I meant.
That chapter is a little slow, but the ones around it can compensate.
That character's growth arc is a little wobbly, but it's close to what I want.
After all, it's hard solving problems sometimes. It's easier to try and tweak a scene that doesn't work over and over, than it is to admit defeat and rewrite the chapter from a different angle. It's easier to try and force a character to work than to cut them out completely. It's easier to say, heck, I've done enough worldbuilding about that culture, it's good enough!
But man, fighting that temptation is so crucial, because that's when it goes from just okay to holy crap I love this.
There's always that point where I get sick of editing something. I've read the book over so many times, I can't bear to look at it any more. I'm ready to throw up my hands and say, good enough! Isn't one dull chapter forgivable if the rest are strong?
Then when I force myself to bite the bullet, dig my fingers in deep, and uproot the problem, it makes such a difference. If I hadn't seen the results for myself, I'd have figured "good enough" was fine. But "better" is so much better.
I think this is where an agent and an editor really help me. Sure, I improved the MS a bunch after alpha and beta reader feedback. I thought it was good enough to send to agents. Then I realized how much better I could make it, all the opportunities I'd let slide. And I'm sure the same thing will happen again when an editor gets a hold of it. IMO, indie publishing authors can more easily fall prey to letting their books out in the world too soon. I know if I'd been in charge of my book's fate, I would have called it good and set up a release date for it by now. And it would be subpar! I made it so much better by being forced to critically rethink the whole climax and character arcs. I see self-pub authors make this same mistake all the time, and I know I would've done the same in their shoes.
I can't allow myself to settle for "good enough." It has to be great.
That scene isn't perfect, but I think readers will get what I meant.
That chapter is a little slow, but the ones around it can compensate.
That character's growth arc is a little wobbly, but it's close to what I want.
After all, it's hard solving problems sometimes. It's easier to try and tweak a scene that doesn't work over and over, than it is to admit defeat and rewrite the chapter from a different angle. It's easier to try and force a character to work than to cut them out completely. It's easier to say, heck, I've done enough worldbuilding about that culture, it's good enough!
But man, fighting that temptation is so crucial, because that's when it goes from just okay to holy crap I love this.
There's always that point where I get sick of editing something. I've read the book over so many times, I can't bear to look at it any more. I'm ready to throw up my hands and say, good enough! Isn't one dull chapter forgivable if the rest are strong?
Then when I force myself to bite the bullet, dig my fingers in deep, and uproot the problem, it makes such a difference. If I hadn't seen the results for myself, I'd have figured "good enough" was fine. But "better" is so much better.
I think this is where an agent and an editor really help me. Sure, I improved the MS a bunch after alpha and beta reader feedback. I thought it was good enough to send to agents. Then I realized how much better I could make it, all the opportunities I'd let slide. And I'm sure the same thing will happen again when an editor gets a hold of it. IMO, indie publishing authors can more easily fall prey to letting their books out in the world too soon. I know if I'd been in charge of my book's fate, I would have called it good and set up a release date for it by now. And it would be subpar! I made it so much better by being forced to critically rethink the whole climax and character arcs. I see self-pub authors make this same mistake all the time, and I know I would've done the same in their shoes.
I can't allow myself to settle for "good enough." It has to be great.
YES.
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