Musings

Check back soon to see my new blog!

UnFinished Objects

Are UFOs stalling your writing career? What is a UFO, you ask? An UnFinished Object. Many writers do have one or two unfinished objects in their bottom drawer. There's nothing unusual about that. But if you have a trunk full of UFOs and you haven't completed a writing project you started in quite some time, then maybe it's time to examine your habits.

Take a look at those projects and determine why you gave up on them. There are lots of logical reasons to abandon a manuscript: Boredom with the story, unable to solve a story problem, excitement over a new project, too much work to fix it, no one liked it, couldn't get pass the sagging middle, discovered the concept isn't marketable, to name a few. Each of these arguments can be a valid reason to stop or a bad reason to stop working on the manuscript. It depends on the situation.

I stopped writing a traditional romance story when I realized a complete rewrite of the four finished chapters was necessary. (A great critique partner and an editor evaluated these four chapters). The premise was wrong for the line I wanted to write for, I had already lost interest and I had a new project I really liked. For me personally, I have no desire to work on a story that I am not crazy about. Life is too short. Besides, that lack of passion is bound to be evident to readers. Was I wrong to scrap the manuscript? I don't think so. I have two completed romance novels, so I know I can do it. The time spent writing those chapters wasn't wasted. I learned that better planning before starting a project can avoid plotting and character problems.

However, if I had developed a pattern of not completing projects, then there would have been cause for concern. A writer learns by taking a story from beginning to middle to end. You learn about pacing, escalating conflict, character growth, resolution, and a whole slew of writing concepts that only comes from finishing a manuscript. Your development as a writer occurs with every novel you start and finish.

You don't have to finish everything you start. Just be sure the reason you're stopping isn't stalling your career. And you are stalled if you consistently don't have a project in the marketplace. If you find yourself in the same situation year after year, UFOs plaguing you, it might be time to sit down and figure out how you can change your writing habits to help you complete something you'll be proud of. I still have the occasional UFO sighting, as do most writers, but not so many as to open an X-File on me.