Monday, April 1, 2013

My Revision Needs Revising

I'm really struggling to get on with editing and revising my work. I have four manuscripts on my hard drive, waiting for me to rewrite them from a cruddy first draft into a reasonable second, and then a ready-to-show-people third. I want to get on with it, I really do, but at times it can seem so very daunting.

My depression plays a part, of course. All tasks seem impossibly hard when I'm down, revisions included. I can't even crack my laptop open during those times, so editing is out of the question.

When I'm feeling better, though, it just seems like exactly what it is: a lot of work waiting to get done. That bothers me more than it used to. It would seem like I've got the deck stacked against me, or rather like I've stacked the deck against myself.

Having said that, I have managed to revise the first 100 pages of a project called Kids Who Know. Longtime readers of this blog will remember me describing this novel as the best book I'll ever write. I feel very strongly about this story (obviously), but perhaps I shouldn't have hyped it up so much in my mind. That's a lot to live up to. Will I ever produce a draft of this book that will meet such a lofty goal?

If I don't try, however, I'll never advance any further with my writing career. I've got one very important thing on my side - I want to succeed as a writer. Therefore, I must persevere. Bit by bit, I will.

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