How do I know when it's perfect?

IReidandWrite · Aug 24, 2006

I'm working on the proposed final draft of my novel.

I've promised myself that there would be no more drafts after this one, no matter what!

But what if it doesn't stack up to an agent? Will it be my pluck that could land me an agent?

Siddow · Aug 24, 2006

Who was it that said Books are never done, but merely abandoned?

If it doesn't snag an agent, maybe the next one will. Because you'll be writing the next one while this one is making the rounds, right?

Birol · Aug 24, 2006

It'll never be perfect.

blacbird · Aug 24, 2006

Ditto Birol. There is no "perfect". The best you can do at any given time is the best you can do at any given time.

Man, am I profound today.

caw.

MidnightMuse · Aug 24, 2006

Trust me, Pobody's Nerfect. There's always a section you can change, a paragraph you can edit, an ending you can alter. I can read manuscripts I wrote 5 years ago and still tweak sentences.

You just reach a stage where you STOP, mail out your queries and start another novel.

scribbler1382 · Aug 24, 2006

I've said this before, but books aren't abandoned, they're set free.

James D. Macdonald · Aug 24, 2006

nachonaco_Grippers said:
But what if it doesn't stack up to an agent?

Write another book.

The day you start sending this one around, start work on the next one.

UrsusMinor · Aug 24, 2006

Siddow said:
Who was it that said Books are never done, but merely abandoned?

WH Auden, but actually he said "a poem" was never done, but abandoned. Similar things were said by Paul Valery and Robert Lowell at various times.

My favorite assessment, however, is that of Iris Murdoch: "Every book is the wreck of a perfect idea."

HConn · Aug 24, 2006

If you think your book is perfect, it's not.

You'll never know if it's perfect or not. All you can do is look at it as objectively as possible, decide for yourself that it's as good as you can make it/other professional books you love, then send it out.

The real make or break point in the process is not your writing, but your ability to judge the quality of your writing.

Finally, if all the agents you query turn you down, it won't matter very much because you'll have a new, better book ready to go by then (hopefully).

Good luck.

maestrowork · Aug 24, 2006

There's no such thing as perfect. If you find yourself tinkering with it, then it's done. Send it out. Hope it stick. Write another.

If there's a major problem with the book, one way or another, sooner or later, you will find out. Then you can decide:

a) to rework it

b) to abandon it

Until then, being a perfectionist doesn't pay. All it means is that you will never finish anything. And that can't be good.

Birol · Aug 24, 2006

It depends on how you define tinkering, Ray.

Jamesaritchie · Aug 24, 2006

perfect

nachonaco_Grippers said:
I'm working on the proposed final draft of my novel.

I've promised myself that there would be no more drafts after this one, no matter what!

But what if it doesn't stack up to an agent? Will it be my pluck that could land me an agent?

It'll be a good story, good characters, and decent writing that lands an agent.

If this novel doesn't do the trick, you write another one. Then another one, and another one, and another one.

There never comes a point when you can't find something to change in a manuscript. Read it through one last time. Change anything you wish. Then submit it.

Forbidden Snowflake · Aug 24, 2006

It is never perfect, it is just the best you can do it.

maestrowork · Aug 25, 2006

Birol said:
It depends on how you define tinkering, Ray.

MY definition of tinkering is either:

1. moving things around, then back again, and moving them again...

2. changing a word here and there, then changing them back, then changing them to something else...

3. rewriting a sentence 15 different ways -- they all say the same thing, only slightly differently

4. changing a comma to a semi-colon, then to an em-dash, then a colon, then back to a comma... just to see how it looks

Etc.

Basically, to me, tinkering has nothing to do with a) characters, b) story or plot and c) actual prose. It's like moving a flower vase on the table by 1/5" and again and again because you can't decide where the vase should be, without realizing "it's ALREADY on the table." That's a sign of perfectionism and soon you will just have to say, "Enough is enough. It's done."

laurel29 · Aug 25, 2006

Would tinkering during your first draft explain why it takes you months to get to 20,000? :tongue

Since I have to fight the compulsion constantly now, I shudder when thinking of how bad I will be during the rewriting process. I would finish the rewrite and if anything really bugs you, you can change it but I'd stop. I know how easy it is to obsess over something. It really will never be perfect. We aren't perfect so how could we ever hope to create something that is...it would be inhuman.

`

ibid. · Aug 25, 2006

when it feels like you will spontaneously disembowel youself if you ever have to modify a single word of it again.

priceless1 · Aug 25, 2006

I recommend putting it away for a while. Write another book in the meantime. After a few months, pull it out and give it a good read with fresh, objective eyes. It's also a good idea to let some knowledgeable beta readers take a look at it.

popmuze · Aug 25, 2006

Once you've finished this draft, write a query and start sending it to agents.

If you get a lot of form rejections to your query, then you need to work on it. If your query gets you a lot of requests for the book, but form rejections for the book, that's not a good sign. After a certain number, enough time will have gone by so that you may have a fresh attitude about the book if you feel it warrants another rewrite.

If you're lucky enough to get real comments from agents, see if you notice any trends before you take it off the market. If everyone has a different reason for turning it down, keep submitting.

If you're lucky and talented enough to get an agent or an editor who wants you to revise, then you're in the upper echelons. If you can rewrite to their specs, you're in good shape.

If you do better than that and get it published, you're obviously home free--until the reviews come out, advising you that your perfect book will never be perfect in the eyes of everyone.

pianoman5 · Aug 25, 2006

HConn said:
The real make or break point in the process is not your writing, but your ability to judge the quality of your writing.

That's the truest observation about the nature of writing I've heard in a while.

If only that ability could be taught...

illiterwrite · Aug 25, 2006

ibid. said:
when it feels like you will spontaneously disembowel youself if you ever have to modify a single word of it again.

Oh good, that means I'm finally done mine!

aric77 · Aug 25, 2006

'THIS IS THE BOOK THAT NEV-ER EEEEENDS :Guitar:

AND IT GOES ON AND ON MY FRIEEEEENDS
SOME PERSON START-ED WRITING AND NOT KNOWING WHAT IT WAS
AND NOW THEY'LL KEEP ON WRITING IT FOREVER JUST BECAUSE.....' :e2dance:

(repeat until slapped or thrown in jail. :e2point:

)

IReidandWrite · Aug 25, 2006

aric - you are now my best friend!

aric77 · Aug 25, 2006

great! i knew that if i kept at those daily affirmations, i'd make friends! i'm going back to sitting in front of my mirror. :Jump:

KrishnaJewel · Aug 26, 2006

nachonaco_Grippers said:
I'm working on the proposed final draft of my novel.

I've promised myself that there would be no more drafts after this one, no matter what!

But what if it doesn't stack up to an agent? Will it be my pluck that could land me an agent?

For me I know I have 'it', whether it's an article or working on my books, I know I have hit it when it clicks inside me. I cant explain it, it just clicks inside. Like I have been holding my breath and I can suddenly breath.

As for stacking up....look how many times J.K. Rowling had to submit her first Harry Potter before someone said yes! Now look where she is!

aric77 said:
'THIS IS THE BOOK THAT NEV-ER EEEEENDS
AND IT GOES ON AND ON MY FRIEEEEENDS
SOME PERSON START-ED WRITING AND NOT KNOWING WHAT IT WAS
AND NOW THEY'LL KEEP ON WRITING IT FOREVER JUST BECAUSE.....'
(repeat until slapped or thrown in jail. )

LOL!!! Someone as mad as I am!!

triceretops · Aug 26, 2006

Writers are usually the worst critiques of their own work. But if you can make as good as you can and attrack an agent for rewrites/acceptance, just remember to ready yourself for ANOTHER round of editing be it light or heavy. Alas, if a publisher wants it, be prepared for MORE tweaking until all parties agree and are comfortable with the outcome. You are only the first line of editing, and just hope that it is enough to send it on its way to eventual publication.

Tri

How do I know when it's perfect?

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