A Tweak to Perfection

At what point does one finally sit back and say, "You know what? That's done. I'm happy with it. And I'm not touching it again."?

Do you know how many times I've been there? I've written several plays. Even had them produced! And it would never fail--I would always find a typo or a needed improvement after the final script was printed. Doesn't that just irk you to no end?! And even when rehearsals would come about, sometimes we'd need to tweak a line to fit the actor's representation of a character, or the use of a prop, or to get a better laugh.

My published book, Asylum, has several errors. To see that in a printed book is rough on me. Breaks my heart. I've gone back through the document and corrected them, so when I get a chance to re-do it, I will.

That's the beautiful thing about this. Writing is art. And art is fluid.

As I've just put some final touches on the manuscript for my first book (for the 100th time!), I started delving into the second book's manuscript. I actually worked on them a bit together to align the stories. I wrote the second one prior to the first--the first one was borne out of backstory. Shameful, I know. But when the characters started whispering to me in the dark late at night, I had to do something to get them out of my head.

Crazy author talk. It happens.

And after examining Book #2, I'm realizing that I need to re-work some parts of it. If I remember correctly, it was the second novel I wrote. (My first one--Book #6 in the series--is horrid. That will take tons of work! Solid story, but amateur writing.) It's neat to look back and see how much I've learned through this journey.

Now, I'm nowhere near perfection. I'll be the first to agree to that! But I can say with pride that I am a writer. And I'm improving my craft daily. It's a good thing.

I foresee years of tweakage ahead. Even to that which I may deem perfect. Done. Not touching it again.

You know what? I will.