Insecurities About Newness/Fresh Approach?

Insecure moments are part of the landscape, I find. Certainly it's wise to get good critiquers/beta readers, but that sinking feeling is totally part of being a writer. I don't know a writer who doesn't have it (and all my immediate family and several of my friends are published writers).

I think I said somewhere else on this board that insecurity like this is not a result of the work being crap—it's a result of caring a lot about the work. In other words, not a bad thing.

Not that this will make you feel any better, because I haven't sold mine yet either, but the novel I'm currently shopping gives me the same fears about lack of originality. I think it's solidly written, and my readers and one agent (who eventually rejected with kind words) have complimented my pacing, but the same agent said the story just didn't surprise him.

All we can really do is keep a stiff upper lip and keep submitting. I've only sent two queries so far so I'm definetely not ready to give up. It doesn't sound like you've shopped yours at all yet, so your rejection rate's better than mine .

Think of it this way: you're not going to be surprised by this thing anymore, because you wrote it. So yes, find other readers. Ask them specific questions. Not just 'was this original,' but 'if you had to name three books it reminds you of, which would you pick and why?' (hint: if they all pick The DaVinci Code, you might be in trouble). Not 'did it grab your interest,' but 'tell me the exact page and paragraph numbers where you set it down to pick up again later.' If the answer is 'page one, paragraph two,' you might have troubles. Not 'was the plot fresh or stale,' but 'every time you set the MS down, jot a few sentences in the margin about what you think's going to happen next/how you think the story's going to end.' If they guess the whole thing correctly all the way through, you might be in trouble.

Mostly, though, just don't get down on yourself and keep on keepin' on. Good luck.

If you've got characters the reader can relate to, strong conflict(s) that drives the story on, you're pretty safe. I've read many books that tell the "same" story but it's the fresh characters that make me drawn to it.

Let your good friend read it! (She will give you solid feedback; even in the negative!)

I definately think you are too close to the story to know for sure what you have!

I think that the idea about asking those who you do let critique this piece to write down their thoughts in the margin as they find a stopping point would be ever so helpful! I would also say, you know which friends/family members are going to give you blank replies so search out those who will have meaningful replies!

C.S. Lewis, when he was writing about prayer,
said something like ...

'The prayers that are most pleasing to God are not those full of exhaltation and belief. The prayers most precious are those we make when we no longer have the strength to believe, when we have no expectation of being answered, when the exhaltation is gone and the well is dry and we pray only by force of will.'

Which is a very poor paraphrase.

Setting aside whether Lewis is right about prayer,
this is a fine description of what the Muse finds most pleasing.

Some of your best work will be done when you not only wonder whether the work is good,
you hate it so much you don't care whether it's good or not.

Kay_XX said:

If you've got characters the reader can relate to, strong conflict(s) that drives the story on, you're pretty safe. I've read many books that tell the "same" story but it's the fresh characters that make me drawn to it.

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I agree, and I'd like to add another thought, which isn't totally separable from Kay's comment. If your writing style is derivative--borrowing from the styles of others, it may be less likley to present a unique take on a familiar storyline. If your writing style presents a unique voice, and the characters resonate with readers, it's more likely to catch notice.

I am also insecure about my story. It might just come with the territory. :\

There's nothing that's really new. In fiction we tell the same stories again and again.

Your work may or may not strike you as original three years from now, Storyteller. Did you have these fears when you started, or only as you draw nearer the finish line? It is a scary thing to share a work you've labored over in solitude for so long, and you may be spitting on it before someone else does just so that you can be first.

If you can put your finger on why it seems unoriginal, then you have work to do. (And I agree with the respondant who said there are no original stories. Characters, yes, plots, no.) If you can't, then wait until the verdict from other readers.

Meanwhile, if you can, consider this book a process of your education as a writer, not necessarily the result of it.