Jelly Donuts - Good Middles

"Which way to the end?" (Lake District, England. Photo: The Writing Cocoon)

Still in the middle of my novel.  I suppose I shouldn’t write that as if it were news. The fact is, I’m going to be here for a while, so we all might as well get used to it. We’re deep in the woods, this novel and I. Remember how I struggle with beginnings in life? Well, middles may be trickier when it comes to novel writing.

At this point in my fledgling writing career, I’ve not developed a real working rhythm. Do I work on one project at a time? Mix in short story writing with novel and blog writing? Write two novels at once?

New story ideas keep popping into my head and not story ideas for this novel, but for the next novel. Then there are my multiple, in-progress short stories.   Should I take some time off from the novel and get them ready for contest or publication submission? Oh, and I’ve become more and more obsessed with the idea of flash fiction. Do I play around with ultra-short story telling for a while?

I’ve come to a place where a hard truth- that I thought I knew, but now realize I didn’t truly understand- is hitting home: writing is damned hard work. Writing may seem magical and cool, but there is no getting around it, writing is creating. And creating can be: difficult, emotional, exhausting, and flat out work. Add to that the fact that I’m not getting paid, lingering self-doubt, and a fear of failure, and I’ve got a mountain to climb in bringing forth my book. Just like every other writer. This is where the focus tends to wander for me.

Part of me wants to close this manuscript document, and click on that ever-so-alluring “New Project” option. Ah, a delicious new beginning to savor, mmm. It is the lure of the blank screen, where dangling plot threads aren’t blowing in the breeze and difficult choices don’t have to be made (I’ve decided a favorite character has to die, but I just can’t bring myself to pull the trigger).

The other part of me wants to go back to the beginning, ‘cause let’s face it, this novel is rough right now, like 24-grit sandpaper, like my heels after a summer in sandals, like a two day hangover, like a - well, you get the point. I am itching to abandon my place in the middle of the novel and go back to the beginning and rewrite. I was happy in the beginning, and now I can make it even better. I’ve learned so much already about myself and my characters and their stories. Plus, I have to re-write anyway, so why not start now?

Maybe I should go back to the beginning or start a new novel, but I’m not going to and here’s why: I need to finish the story. First, there is that whole accomplishment thing. I know it will help me to actually finish the damned thing, get it all out, have a complete project for a change. I’m trying to foster and feed this silly, fragile writing ego I’ve hatched, and accomplishments are its main food source.

Second, I really need to see what happens in my novel. I read somewhere that you have to know the end to write the beginning. With every scene I write, I learn more about my story and characters. I need to see the full circle, I think, in order to make a good revision.  Sure, a lot of what I’ve written/am writing will be cut or revised, but it might be easier to see my plot once I’ve finished the first draft. Things keep happening to my characters that I never anticipated. Who knows what else I might “discover” in writing through to the end?

Third, I don’t want to become a writer with a drawer full of half finished manuscripts. I think I’m realistic enough to know that once I let a half finished manuscript gather dust and move on to something new, it might not ever see the light of day again. This story deserves better than that.

I have written a little over 1,600 words today, in spite of my current lukewarm feelings toward the middle. Slowly I am getting somewhere in the storyline, even if it is only a few words at a time. I can almost see the end. Maybe something will just *click* and the rest will become clear.

How do you get through the middle?

Posted by Jennifer B. at The Writing Cocoon.