Since I began writing several years ago I have put my novel manuscripts through so many stylistic changes, critiques, and restarts that I have effectively written a novel's worth of beginnings (up to 30,000 each time). I plot in the pre-writing and writing stages, and though my plan for the latter half of the book often ends up resembling a rough guide than a strict chapter by chapter summary, I invariably stop after two or three chapters because of a niggling feeling that the story isn't working.
This week I decided to start over again (!), and while it is liberating that I'm no longer held back by a story that has stalled, it is also equally frustrating because I don't know if I will be repeating this cycle in six months’ time.
Some published writers regard all their false starts as a long apprenticeship phase while others quote word counts that writers must complete before they find their supposed voice.
I would like to hear the experiences and advice of other writers on this. How do you know when your story is working? How often have you returned to the start (or deleted a significant portion of your work) because of some niggling feeling that your foundation or path is the wrong one?
That is a lot of rewrites, Caitlin! What kind of difficulties did you face when writing the sequel? I've heard some writers say the first book is the hardest, but then some other writers who say that the second book harder because it is judged by the first. Thank you for commenting; I'm happy to say that my early planning is coming along well.
I've lost count of the amount of times I rewrote my first novel. I think there was at least six complete rewrites, last time I checked, and a lot more mini ones.
The problem I had was that while I was drafting it, I didn't write in a linear fashion. I wrote the main plot events first, then set about filling them in as I saw fit. I ended up getting writer's block, so found that starting the whole thing again allowed me to re-find my character's voice and allow me to finish the "first draft" (that was really the second).
I then found that to smooth things out, that it was useful going and rewriting it again. After this third draft, I had a friend of mine read it, who gave me some suggestions that led me to rewriting the entire thing. Then there was a smoothing draft of that one (draft five), which then got another read and general approval from my friends.
While I was writing the sequel, I thought of a few things to change in the first, and ended up rewriting it again (number six). And then rewrote it again to smooth things out again.
Whoops. I guess that means I wrote it seven times - but only six rewrites!
I don't think starting again and again is a bad thing, as long as each draft is productive. It's better to rewrite things a hundred times rather than end up with a rubbish book.
Did you know about the "How Strong is Your Book Idea?" service when you began your current novel or was it something you discovered much later? Since I'm returning to the start, I am considering the service to keep me on track (and to force me to write a really great opening chapter and synopsis). I don't mind having my work pulled apart; after going through many critique session with other writers it almost always helps to have fresh eyes go over your work.