Holy Crow, I wrote that?

darrtwish · Jul 13, 2008

Today has been a lazy day for me, as far as re-writes on my novel goes, and so I've just been reading what I have so far over , looking for tense trouble and typos, and as I'm reading it over I get the strangest sensation of realising it's really good. I kind of just say "Holy Crow, I wrote that?" I'm kind of stuck on realising that I can write really good stuff.

Has anyone else experienced this?

willietheshakes · Jul 13, 2008

Yup, I've experienced that (shallow though it may seem to admit it). I love those scenes where it's almost as if someone else -- someone better -- wrote them.

And there is also a complementary pleasure: reading through a first draft and hitting a scene where all you can say is "Wow, that's shitty. That's gonna go."

Mumut · Jul 13, 2008

It's a great feeling, isn't it?

Alpha Echo · Jul 13, 2008

Oh yeah. The first time I noticed was when I had my first beta. She highlighted sentences and passages that she liked, and when I reread them, I was like, "Wow. I wrote that?"

I know exactly how you feel! Congrats!

Soccer Mom · Jul 13, 2008

willietheshakes said:
Yup, I've experienced that (shallow though it may seem to admit it). I love those scenes where it's almost as if someone else -- someone better -- wrote them.

And there is also a complementary pleasure: reading through a first draft and hitting a scene where all you can say is "Wow, that's shitty. That's gonna go."

Oh yeah. I know both of those feelings!

mirrorkisses · Jul 13, 2008

darrtwish said:
Today has been a lazy day for me, as far as re-writes on my novel goes, and so I've just been reading what I have so far over , looking for tense trouble and typos, and as I'm reading it over I get the strangest sensation of realising it's really good. I kind of just say "Holy Crow, I wrote that?" I'm kind of stuck on realising that I can write really good stuff.

Has anyone else experienced this?

Oh my god, this happens to me A LOT. I get really down on myself and a work, so I take a break.... Typically months go by on these breaks. Then I decide to look back, and WTF?! I'm a good writer! I can't believe I didn't think this was good!

I don't think it's vain or selfish to think this. It's good to recognize your talent.

Chrisla · Jul 13, 2008

One of the advantages, I think, of letting a manuscript just rest for a while. When I'm writing, I'm so immersed, I really can't see it clearly. I'm just trying to express myself in the clearest, best way i can. Then, when I read it later, some of it makes me cringe. But some of it -- wow, it's really good stuff. Those are the moments that keep us going!

Stormhawk · Jul 13, 2008

I'm in the process of editing now, and I'm laughing at some of my own jokes and situations. It's weird, almost like a guilty pleasure, but at the same time...it feels good.

SPMiller · Jul 13, 2008

I get the peaks and the valleys. Between drafts, some stuff needs to be deleted and totally rewritten. Other stuff can be cut-pasted wholesale with nary a change. It's crazy. I don't understand why the quality of my output can vary so much; it doesn't make sense.

tehuti88 · Jul 14, 2008

I get this a lot. (Before anyone goes thinking I'm bigheaded, I get the "Holy crud, I wrote that??" *insert horrid face here* feeling a lot, too!)

Most recent example, I started rewriting a novel I wrote years ago and now the original version is just...ugh. But the rewrite had to go on hiatus as I worked on other things. I recently went back to browse a few of the rewritten chapters and just stared at them with wide eyes. I cannot remember writing this stuff. And not because it's lousy. It's a lot better than I figured it would've been. Why the heck don't I remember writing it?? *LOL*

I mentioned in another thread around here how I often laugh at the jokes and goofy comments the characters make in my stories...I can never seem to remember writing those, so I figure they were all unplanned, which is all the more surprising as I'm not a terribly witty person in real life. It's weird to enjoy one's own writing so much especially when you can't remember writing it!

DeaSis · Jul 15, 2008

I've done that too.

Do you ever sit back and wonder if something really is funny to an average reader or if it's just you, because it came from your head. (So of course you'll think it's funny)

I think that is the driving force behind my love of writing plays. You get to sit in the audience and know instantly if they really get it or not by seeing if they laugh in the right spots. That, more than anything else, has made an impact on my dialogue writing ability, and my sense of timing for humor.

La! Not that I'm all that wonderful! (I just reread what I wrote and don't want to give you the wrong impression) Only that hearing my words spoken out loud by others, and the response of an audience proved to be instructive.

dirtsider · Jul 15, 2008

I haven't gotten so far as to let a ms sit in the editing fermentation bin just yet. I do have a couple points in my current WIP where I feel good about my writing. I haven't gotten to the "WTF was I thinking?" point yet, though. Although I'm not so attached to my WIP to cringe when I have to edit. People have complimented me on my dialogue, though.

One piece of advice from one of my writing groups I thought was really helpful: when reading your ms aloud in front of a writing group, let someone else do the actual reading. That way, you can hear it yourself while they're doing it. You know the emotions of your own piece so you tend to infuse them when you're the one doing the reading. And since it's all in your head anyway, you have the tendency of filling the blanks as you read. If someone else is doing the reading, they'll be focusing more on the words and the story itself from a more objective POV.

jannawrites · Jul 15, 2008

dirtsider said:
One piece of advice from one of my writing groups I thought was really helpful: when reading your ms aloud in front of a writing group, let someone else do the actual reading. That way, you can hear it yourself while they're doing it. You know the emotions of your own piece so you tend to infuse them when you're the one doing the reading. And since it's all in your head anyway, you have the tendency of filling the blanks as you read. If someone else is doing the reading, they'll be focusing more on the words and the story itself from a more objective POV.

That's a great idea!

And as for the original post, I have encountered that feeling. Maybe not as often as the self-doubts have overtaken me, but it rawks!

seun · Jul 15, 2008

This happens to me sometimes and always makes me slightly uncomfortable. On Sunday, I finished the first draft of a story I'm really happy with. In about three hours, I wrote 3500 words which is the most I've written in one session for a while.
Thinking about it later that day made me feel as if someone else had written it which was a very strange feeling.

tehuti88 · Jul 15, 2008

DeaSis said:
Do you ever sit back and wonder if something really is funny to an average reader or if it's just you, because it came from your head. (So of course you'll think it's funny)

I constantly wonder. I have no way of knowing if anything I write is funny or what, especially since my sense of humor doesn't seem to match that of anyone around me. For example, whenever I should tell my parents what it is in my writing that I find so funny, they never laugh, they just give me weird looks.

They're the same way about the rest of my writing too, though. :/

I'll occasionally get someone who comments on my work (which is very rarely) saying that something was funny, but they're usually not specific on what it was!

inkkognito · Jul 15, 2008

I just had this happen the other day and thought I was nuts. I was reading a clip and really liked one particular description. I thought, "Did I really write that?" and even when back to the original manuscript. Yes, I actually had. Hmmmm, I hope it's not pre-senility!

Mr Flibble · Jul 15, 2008

Actually it's even better when your hubby says 'What, you wrote that? Wow.If I didn't know it was true, I wouldn't believe it'

Actually I'm not sure if that was a compliment.

Cassiopeia · Jul 15, 2008

It's the same with painting or any creative endeavor. It is a good idea to do write and then leave it for a day or two. Then when you come back you have fresh eyes for the edit.

When I get into trouble is when I let how "others" would write my story interfere with my own writing style. I go back and think, good grief, who wrote that?

Not everything I write is brilliant but I have my moments. Not a better feeling in the world than knowing you can do something you always wanted to do.

Polenth · Jul 15, 2008

DeaSis said:
Do you ever sit back and wonder if something really is funny to an average reader or if it's just you, because it came from your head. (So of course you'll think it's funny)

I have the opposite. I write things intended to be serious and people tell me they're funny. I usually go with the flow when that happens. They're still enjoying it, even if it's a different way than I'd intended.

Bartholomew · Jul 16, 2008

Can't say I've ever had that feeling.

Holy Crow, I wrote that?

darrtwish

willietheshakes

Gentleman. Scholar. Bastard.

Mumut

Well begun is half done...

Alpha Echo

I should be writing.

Soccer Mom

Crypto-fascist

mirrorkisses

Chrisla

practical experience, FTW

Stormhawk

Angry Bunny Girl

SPMiller

Prodigiously Hanged

tehuti88

Mackinac Island Fanatic

DeaSis

dirtsider

Not so new, really

jannawrites

no, really

seun

Horror Man

tehuti88

Mackinac Island Fanatic

inkkognito

Onlyifyouwanttowillyoufin daway-Enya

Mr Flibble

They've been very bad, Mr Flibble

Cassiopeia

Otherwise Occupied

Polenth

Mushroom

Bartholomew

Comic guy