“The great art of writing is knowing when to stop.” Josh Billings (1818-1885), Writer
Knowing when to stop isn’t easy, is it?
The more I write, the more I understand the profound truth of this single sentence: “The great art of writing is knowing when to stop.”
This is front and center for me, because for the last few days, I’ve grappling with the need to stop revising my children’s fantasy and submit it. For days, I’ve been tinkering, tinkering—striving to get the opening just right, so I can attract an agent. Why? I keep thinking: If I just add this or take away that—maybe then it will be close to perfect. It will sing and dance off the page and I’ll be on my way.
I’ve been driving myself nuts, frankly, giving myself a headache and I’m still not sure whether I’ve got it just right.
But here’s what I’ve realized as a result of all this—I could tinker forever! There’s a always a better word, a more charming phrase, a thought that adds dimension to my story.
But none of this will matter if I don’t get it out into the world. And to get it out, I need to let it go.
What to do, what to do? If you are in the same spot, here are a few thoughts to remember that have helped me and might help you:
You can always fix it later: Nothing is cast in stone. Luckily, we’re writing stories, not creating a statue of David like Michelangelo!
Keep it simple: Here’s a Fortune cookie tag I read every day to remind me not to overload my work: “Keep it simple. The more you say, the less people remember.” So true!
Say it once and move on: We all have a tendency to say something we believe is important in more than one way—just to be sure our readers get it. Most of the time this is more confusing than clarifying. Resist!
“Don’t get it perfect, just get it going:” This is an entrepreneurial saying that really applies to writing as well. At some point, it’s more important to get our work out so it can be seen, than to make it perfect—especially since “perfect” is mostly a figment of our imagination.
If you have a technique for recognizing when it’s time to stop writing, please let me know. I’d love to share it as we all write on!
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Dear Karin, I just took a class on making macarons in Paris and learned that at some point, you must stop beating the mix or you will ruin the filling! Such a lesson can be learned as we might tinker with words. Let it go! Congratulations on getting the work done. Best regards, Diane Masucci
Dear Diane,
Thank you so much for your words of wisdom! Wow, a macaroni class in Paris—sign me up! I took your wonderful advice, “Let it go!” As a Sign from the Universe and I’m doing exactly that—so thank you for getting me unstuck! That’s what friends are for. I so appreciate your support and encouragement—I love all my cherished KWD readers—you are fabulous! By the way, think you have a little story in the making. You could call it “Macaroni and Manuscripts”—very inspiring! Write on, Karin