When It's Time To Say Goodbye

Saying goodbye is hard. Sometimes, it's devastating. But, time really will soften the pain. Today I'm going to talk about letting your manuscript go.

New writers have a tendency to not want to rewrite their work. I know this because that used to be me.I've mentioned before that I used to send my stuff out fresh off the printer. I might have checked for typos but I was in such a rush to get my manuscript out the door. The sooner I sent it off, afterall, the sooner I'd get my acceptance letter.

Hah.

I wrote the rough draft for my first novel, Saving Eden, in about 6 weeks. I rewrote it for close to two years. It really needed that long. I'd go through, edit, rearrange, chop chapters that didn't work, layer in the details, etc. Then I'd print out the thing, give it to a test reader and rework it depending on the readers comments. Then, I'd print it out and give to another test reader and so on.

Rewriting is very, very good. It's also very neccesary if you ever want to get published, or any good for that matter.

However, there comes a time when you must part with your baby and send her out into the world.

Don't send her out before she's ready: half dressed and with muck smeared across her face. Nobody will like her and she'll be made fun on.

But, when you're sure she's dressed and ready and all your test readers agree, send her.

Let go. Mail her off to the editor or agent, say a prayer that you've prepared her and then move on.

You may feel like you're losing the love of your life. But there will be others. There should be. Now.

Don't wait a day after sending out your ms. Get right to work on the next one. The quickest way to get over one love affair, is to begin another.

So, pucker up and get typing.