In a post on Writers in the Storm, Laurie Schnebly Campbell offers advice for how to tell when your story is done. “We’ve all been through that question,” she says. “But for just about any writer, there are times when it’s hard to know WHEN the work is ready to go.”
While it’s tempting to keep tweaking and revising, at some point you have to let go. But when do you draw the line? At what point do you decide that a few changes aren’t going to make the book any better? Campbell suggests a few tells.
Are you:
- Rearranging things instead of changing them?
- Wondering why you like this story in the first place?
- Unable to envision when you’ll be done?
If you’ve reached this point, Campbell recommends acknowledging that you’ve done the best work that you’re capable of today and give yourself a deadline to send it out. To someone. If you still put it off, set the project aside and start writing something else.
