Loving What You Write: Recycling

So, I'm still working on coming up with new content for the blog, but I have lots in mind. For now, I'm not sure you've all seen this post I wrote on Randomosity Writers a while ago. I talked about loving what you write, and I thought I'd share it with you guys. I've seen a lot of people get discouraged, but I hope this post will encourage you! Next week, I hope to have some of that original stuff I promised. ;)

Loving What You Write

  When you write a story, you’re going to feel sensitive about it, that’s just the way it goes. Trust me, it can be a tad bit depressing to write sentences that just feel loaded down by a herd of elephants. (That was an interesting simile…) What I mean is, when your sentences move so slow, or just don’t sound clever at all, and your dialogue is… blah.
 Half the time, in my opinion, that’s just your feelings. I mean, sure, a story is going to need refining, just like any worthwhile craft, but your original writing is sure to have that new spark. I love reading stories by my friends that have scant to no editing. So here’s a few tips on how to get past the feeling down about your story, and learn to love what you write.

 Quickly write your first draft A lot of people like to edit as they write, but that can be a stressful and tiring way to do it. I, for the most part, try to just get through the first draft as quick as possible, even if I know that there are many things that need fixing, or something isn’t completely accurate to the timeline. It’s best to just write. After that,

 Take a break from your story If you start reading/editing your story right away, it’s only going to depress you. “I spent a month writing this? I spent six months writing this?” Don’t give into the temptation to read your finished work. Instead, set it aside for a few weeks, or a month, and take a break. Maybe read a book you’ve been wanting to read, or start on a new story your passionate about. By the time you come back after distancing yourself from your story, you’ll feel a  lot better about it.

Share your story This is hard for many people. As I said, we’re very touchy or sensitive about our work, and we don’t like to have “prying” eyes reading what we’re still unsure about. But one of the biggest confidence boosters a person can get is if you share your story- with the right people. I’m not saying post it on the internet where the world can see, because there are some mean people out in the world. Some might even steal your idea. But if you share your story with another writing friend, even if they point out some grammatical or sentence structure mistakes, they’re sure to say something good too. You can also share it with family. I’m very close with my sister’s husband’s family. It’s the most wonderful feeling when you have a bunch of kids all wanting you to read them your story, it almost makes you melt. :)  One more…

Go back This is the one I was thinking. One way I can really get back into my story is if I go back several chapters, or even the beginning of the book, and read that part you thought was funny, or just remember why you wrote this story- remember why you love it. If you can get to the heart of your story- the core- then you’ll love it again, especially if you remember why you wrote it in the first place.
And that’s all for today! I hope this post has been helpful in any way to you. Have a great day!
Bethany

What are some ways you get back to loving your story?