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Over time, I’ve learned it’s better to resist that temptation, and to let the whole story sit at the back of my mind and simmer for a while. But I’m impatient. And I feel I’m wasting time, not adding to the word count, not being a writer. But that simmering time isn’t unproductive. I know fresh ideas about my story will creep into my mind. Some will be big, but most will be little tweaks — a better adjective or verb, layering in some setting, using the five senses. It’s a bit like cooking a winter stew. You have to let your story simmer on the backburner for a while, add in a few seasonings — some pepper, parsley, maybe a bit of lemon rind. There are no short cuts to this slow cooking.
So I dither and fuss quite a bit before I make that plunge. It’s even worse if what I’m sending out is the result of a Revise & Resubmit. This happened to me a few months’ back when a senior editor sent me a detailed R&R letter. I must have read that revised manuscript until I got cross-eyed, until I wasn’t even reading the words anymore, they were so ingrained in my eyeballs.
But after a while I have to hit that send button. If I don’t, the story nags at me, taking up valuable thinking space which I should be devoting to the next piece of writing. It’s as if the characters won’t leave until I boot them out the door. I’ve done my best with them (at least, I think I have), and it’s time for them to venture out into the world.
And of course, when/if the rejection does come back, and I re-read my story and see all its flaws in crystal clear vision, invariably I thunk my head and say, “Of course! Why didn’t I see that before I sent it?”
Which just goes to show you, there’s never a right time to hit send.
So I dither and fuss quite a bit before I make that plunge. It’s even worse if what I’m sending out is the result of a Revise & Resubmit. This happened to me a few months’ back when a senior editor sent me a detailed R&R letter. I must have read that revised manuscript until I got cross-eyed, until I wasn’t even reading the words anymore, they were so ingrained in my eyeballs.
But after a while I have to hit that send button. If I don’t, the story nags at me, taking up valuable thinking space which I should be devoting to the next piece of writing. It’s as if the characters won’t leave until I boot them out the door. I’ve done my best with them (at least, I think I have), and it’s time for them to venture out into the world.
And of course, when/if the rejection does come back, and I re-read my story and see all its flaws in crystal clear vision, invariably I thunk my head and say, “Of course! Why didn’t I see that before I sent it?”
Which just goes to show you, there’s never a right time to hit send.
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