Recently I shelved a mystery novel I’d been working on for some time after I admitted to myself that it just wasn’t working. Sometimes I get an idea for a short story, make a couple of notes, and promise myself I’ll set aside time to work on it. If the story idea sparks something, I’ll start writing that day or the next. The problem comes later, after a few days or perhaps months, of writing and revising, reworking and editing, when I have to admit that this story doesn’t feel alive. If it’s a novel, I’ve wasted a lot more time but the result is the same.
I can’t be the only one who goes through this, but I wonder how it is that I don’t notice sooner that something isn’t going to fly. There will be no lift off, no launch into a soaring tale, no flight of mystery or terror or anything else. Do I keep going just out of perseverance? What are the signs I ignored? Were there signs? Yes, there were.
First, the plot doesn’t unfold, roll out in the major particulars like a carpet, but instead has to be constructed step by step. A plot is work much of the time; but also it is organic to a specific group of characters. Their behavior dictates what will happen next, but if I have to work at figuring that out, then something is wrong. The plot feels mechanical because it is.
Second, the main feature of the plot that has propelled me this far is usually a key scene that sets the tone, delivers a surprise or special insight, or defines an important character. If it occurs near the end of the book, it’s too late to define the story, which has to happen at the beginning. It has to be part of the opening of the story to generate interest.
Third, the characters don’t surprise me. They don’t feel original or interesting. They do what they’re supposed to do in order to move the story forward, but I haven’t been able to tap into their quirkiness or authenticity. There is little or no spontaneity in the story. There is no sense of discovery with them.
Fourth, I’m not enthusiastic. After graduate school and teaching, I worked as a freelance writer/editor and ghostwriter, which meant I had to meet deadlines to get paid. I can whip up interest in all sorts of topics because that’s my job. Whether it’s a pitch for money from a granting foundation or a how-to for car maintenance, I can write with zeal and passion. I can keep writing as long as I have to in order to get the job done. This is great in writing fundraising letters, agency reports, and the like, but not great in writing fiction.
Fifth, I’m not eager to show this new work-in-progress to anyone else. This sign is really a way of signaling the others above. I like feedback and I count on it to set me right when I’ve fallen off the clear path I thought I was following. Beta readers, including my agent, have sent me in a better direction with a few well-chosen words and the implicit confidence that I can make the work, whatever it is, better. If I’m not seeking someone else’s opinion when I have a completed draft, that’s a sure sign that I have reservations.
Sixth, once I decided to pack it in, I felt no regret, just relief.
So what kept me going on this story when I knew instinctively I should have dropped this project? If the climax was so important, was it worth saving and using somewhere else? The minute the idea came, I saw the short story I should have written at the outset. In an afternoon I had a three-thousand-word story that pleased me. In addition, it had my own sense of humor. It needs a little polishing and clarification in one or two spots, but this one I consider a success.
As a professor once said after I'd spent months researching an article I ultimately abandoned, nothing is ever wasted. (I used the material in another project.) This time, after a lot of pages that didn't move me, I have a short story I like and a blog post.
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