That terrible stage of writing

[auroracloud]

It is time for another round of "Oh shit, my writing is awful and this story is terrible and I can't stand to read a word of what I've written, and I will now go and hide under my bed so nobody finds out what a lousy writer I actually am". As well as doing everything I can to avoid editing my story.

I wonder if it's possible to get a fic finished for a fest/challenge/exchange deadline without this stage. I haven't yet succeeded.

Don't mind me, just trying to do the final edits to my Winter Companions fic. Which is probably terrible.

Time to brew another pot of tea, and then bravely attack the parts I didn't yet...

ETA: AND NOW I RAN OUT OF CHOCOLATE DAMMIT.

ETA2: My really good Darjeeling tea is helping, though. Hope it doesn't screw up all of my sleep.

Comments

[trobadora]

I wonder if it's possible to get a fic finished for a fest/challenge/exchange deadline without this stage. I haven't yet succeeded.

I'm not sure it's possible to finish a fic at all without that stage. Or at least I've never experienced it myself! *g*

[auroracloud.livejournal.com]

Always comforting to know it isn't just me. ;-) Yeah, that would be why I apparently need to sign up for something with deadlines to get anything finished. I must have written tens of thousands of words of fanfic this year without finishing and publishing anything since Fandom Stocking. It's so much easier to move onto something else than get through this stage unless I have to.

[trobadora]

Yeah, I really hear you on that. There have been times when I've been posting without deadlines, but most of the time it's a deadline that pushes me to actually finish something.

Good luck finishing your fic!

[auroracloud.livejournal.com]

I wonder how to get even some of the unfinished fics finished and posted. Probably I have to promise someone I'm going to finish them and then feel compelled to stick to it.

Thank you! At least you know I'm working on it. :-D

[navaan]

I agree. I always go through this stage towards the end and it takes a while for me to make peace with whatever the end product is. :P

[scolaro]

What you describe is the (almost) permanent state I'm in when writing. XD
Go get 'em, gurl!

[auroracloud.livejournal.com]

I wonder how anyone ever gets anything written!

Thank you for the encouragement! *charges at the story*

[elisi]

LOL

It just means you're normal. Happy writing!!

[auroracloud.livejournal.com]

That's good to know. The question is, how to get through this normalcy and get the story finished? Preferably before morning...

[elisi]

Well, personally I love editing. It's by far my favourite part of writing. The actual getting words on the page is difficult and it very rarely behaves, but when editing I have stuff to work with and I can change it and move it around and shape it.

Of course there are times when everything just refuses to behave and I hate it all. (Thankfully, readers can't tell, and often like stuff even if I don't.)

[auroracloud.livejournal.com]

I love editing until this part. When I've already edited the piece a couple of times, and then I should get through the remaining problems and there's a deadline very close indeed, then looking at my writing and getting it to behave is suddenly unbearable. I enjoy the first couple of rounds of editing, but the finishing stages are always like this. *sigh*

[navaan]

"Oh shit, my writing is awful and this story is terrible and I can't stand to read a word of what I've written, and I will now go and hide under my bed so nobody finds out what a lousy writer I actually am"

No! Your story is not terrible! I know it's hard to convince yourself when you're in the stage of being so out of love with it, but it's really not true. :P

I'm in a post-RBB and general state "nothing you write will ever be good enough", "nothing you write will ever matter to anyone" phase and I suppose all of us have these phases and I think I've never finished and posted anything without going through a "this is the worst drivel" phase before doing so. There is always the stage where you edited so much that pretty much every word seems terrible to you.

Don't let it get you down! Sometimes it's necessary to push through and then let it go - stop editing or push through the edits, whatever your gut tells you is necessary.

[auroracloud.livejournal.com]

No! Your story is not terrible!

But maybe it is!

I did get it mostly into shape, though, but I'm still in the stage where thinking about it fills me with dread. There are a few things I'd like to fix yet in the coming days (Dora said it's okay if I do *g*), but I think tonight's not the night for doing that, what with how I stayed up till three to finish the edits.

Though it's also kind of exhilarating to put that much time into writing. I need to do it more often. Only with more sleep.

There is always the stage where you edited so much that pretty much every word seems terrible to you.

Yeah, I guess it's just inevitable.

Thank you for your support!

[navaan]

Though it's also kind of exhilarating to put that much time into writing. I need to do it more often. Only with more sleep.

It is. I had these very glorious days during RBB and I already miss that. It's exhausting, but also so intense. Exhilarating is the right word! I want to get there again! It was real fun.

Looking forward to the fic. ;)

[tinny]

You wrote that so well it made me laugh!

*HUGS* I hate that phase, and having to get through it on a deadline is hell.

More good luck!

[imagine-peace.livejournal.com]

Hehe I know that feeling.