[wwfward]

I've had a story idea and been tinkering with it for years. Now I think I finally have decided on the storyline that will comprise the novel. But I'm afraid I'll fall out of love (or not be as excited about it or even burnt out) once I do start writing the book. How do you guys handle a work in progress? Do you fall in love with the idea, the characters etc. until you finish the book/series or should it be treated as a project to be finished without any intense emotional attachment to it?

[Rocket Sheep]

No, you need the passion to write the first draft and the ideas need to excite you for as long as it takes to write that first draft. If the ideas don't excite you... change them for something that does.

Is there a worse crime than a writer who bores him/herself?

Once it's finished then you need to disconnect the emotion and start being analytical. It's a death sentence for your work to analyse it before it's finished. In fact, posting your doubts in a forum before it's barely started may also be a death sentence. Run away! Run away and write as if your life depended on it!

[JRMurdock]

Always remember, it's called a first draft for a reason. You're allowed to suck the first time around. So go and write like no one is looking. Clean it up later.

For me, I write like a madman and edit edit edit later. If the idea isn't hot enough to keep me interested for the 3 or 4 weeks it takes me to do a first draft (or 2 or 3 months) it's not worth the effort. For if *I* lose interest, how can I expect to keep an audience?

[MrBF1V3]

Yeah, if I find I've lost interest in the story I'm writing I'll go back and change it until I do like it. If I can't manage that, it's time to scrap the project and move on. I don't take it to the point of writing as wish fulfillment, a satisfying ending isn't always when everyone gets what they want or what they deserve. (though sometimes it's kind of fun to write the bad guy getting his :p)

B5

[Ranke Lidyek]

Great advice. DON'T rewrite or question! To question is to die.

That said, write with excitement and from the heart. If you have a problem with that scene... leave it blank with a note to finish later and continue with your tale. If you write excited, it carries in your voice.

The "head" can come later.

Write on,

Ranke

[kmtolan]

I've never lost interest in a project mid-way through. The reason for that in my case is by the time I start writing that first draft, I'm already fortified by a plot outline and character bios. Watching both come alive - and get changed, is all it takes for me to press on.

Things can get a little hairy if I find that major plot or pacing changes requires me to back up in a first draft ( I really hate that), but once I'm plowing forward again the thrill is back.

The trick is not to get too overwhelmed and thereby discouraged. By deciding to write first, second, and so-on drafts helps prevent this as you set simple goals for each completion. For me, that means the first draft is just to get the story out. Second draft is to prod it into a good plot. Third draft deals with wordsmithing.

Kerry