Falling Back In Love...

…with your own story. I’ve spent the last few weeks plagued with doubts about my story. It’s too unfocused, it has cardboard characters, it has weak development, its juvenile, etc… Of course it may be none of these, but that’s how my mind has been. The last worry is a little ironic considering I’m writing a YA novel. It’s supposed to be juvenile! Anyway, I went back through and read a bunch of scenes further back in the story and, to my great amazement, I found it to be interesting and intriguing. Almost like someone else had written my story for me and I got to see it through their words. I like it, I really do. It’s not probably my best potential, but it’s certainly not a bad start either.

I think most of my doubt came from making unfair comparisons with books I’m reading. I see this book and say “well I don’t do that” or “they do that so much better,” yet I never turn around and see what I do that isn’t in the books I’m comparing my work too. There’s only so much you can squeeze into a 100,000 word novel, so it’s really a matter of picking your priorities. I know that’s very generalized, but this would be a really long post if I went into it all.

I’m just hoping my entire writing career isn’t a neverending series of love it / hate it waves. Doubt is a big bad enemy to my writing mojo. I need to build my confidence out of bricks instead of sticks, I suppose.