A curious thing happened the other day. Just as I let the first draft of my novel go into the hands of some trusted readers, I started thinking about ideas for other books to write. In the past week, I have scribbled down two ideas on post-its. I’ve gotten the itch to just move on to the next project. This is not a new phenomenon for me.
The crux of it? I don’t want to do revisions on my current novel that I know are necessary. I don’t want to face the beast of criticism (however constructive). I don’t want to really put in the effort to get this thing published. Because if I put in that effort and I still fail, I’m not sure I can handle the disappointment.
Or that’s what I tell myself. In truth, I can handle the disappointment. Based on experience, I can handle anything. But I never seem to latch on to that lesson.
For now, I’m going to keep my post-its with ideas for my next books, but I’m going to ignore them. I want to stick it out with my current novel, however painful. I feel like I’m already sick of the story and have no interest in fixing what needs fixing. And don’t get me started on the inevitable hassle of submitting the novel to agents…whenever it’s ready.
I came across this on Facebook. It appeared at just the right time. Thanks, universe.
