How do you know when a story is ready?

Jamesaritchie · Jan 20, 2014

JLCwrites said:
I have nothing to add that hasn't already been said before me. You definitely need to edit and edit, and edit some more. Then, after two or three revisions, give it to another pair of eyes. Find someone who will be honest with you and listen to what he or she has to say without arguing or trying to defend your writing. If it was perfect, then your reader wouldn't have any criticism. There is always something that can improve! I've had two shorts in two different anthologies and I am certain that I would look at them now and see corrections I should make. It might upset you to hear about the things that 'didn't work', I know I've felt frustrated, but after giving it some thought, my beta reader is always right. After that, then you might have something worth submitting.

It is a process, no matter what your experience/education is.
Good luck!

If you actually needed to do any of this, I never would have sold a story. Neither would several of the more famous writers I've known.

As soon as anyone tells you you need to do something, they're probably wrong.

Jeeze, if beta readers had a single clue, slush piles wouldn't be horrendous, but they are horrendous, and it seems like every manuscript comes with a cover letter saying how much the beta readers loved it.

OJCade · Jan 20, 2014

I've got to agree with James here. Beta readers are not a necessity; I don't use them myself.

Some writers find them really valuable and that's fantastic. Some writers don't use them at all and that's fine too. It's like every other method of writing: find the way that works for you and go with that.

etherme · Jan 30, 2014

Is a story ever really "ready"? I know I can spend weeks, months, or YEARS tweaking! Sometimes you just have to say "enough is enough" and send her out into the world!

TheBostonian · Feb 5, 2014

It's ready when I like it and at least one other reader likes it. Usually this reader is my sister, an excellent editor and poet in her own right. And she's a lawyer so she gets right to the point

The Bostonian

Jamesaritchie · Feb 5, 2014

TheBostonian said:
It's ready when I like it and at least one other reader likes it. Usually this reader is my sister, an excellent editor and poet in her own right. And she's a lawyer so she gets right to the point

The Bostonian

How often do the stories she approves sell? And what happens, God forbid, if you should ever lose her services?

ErnSanGiacomo · Feb 25, 2014

I usually go through 2 or 3 drafts. Then I feel comfortable enough to present it to a critique group. After the group, I'll address a few things and then its off to beta readers.

Koelsong · Feb 25, 2014

Some stories need revision, some don't. Sometimes you're lucky that they come out fully formed and only need a buff and a polish. Others need a bit of structural rearranging to heighten the impact. And some need to be thrown out and rewritten from scratch.

It entirely depends on the story. The more you write, the more you'll be able to see when a story is ready, and when it needs more work.

Someone upthread said it is better to write more new stories than to endlessly revise old ones. I completely agree. Revise until it feels good to you, then submit. Don't aim for perfection because you'll never get there.

M.

maxitoutwriter · Mar 22, 2014

Haha, I have the same problem with wanting to send off a first draft. If you think it's good though, you'd better do some more critical analysis. Always something to be improved.

nastyjman · Mar 24, 2014

I live by this quote by DaVinci: "Art is never finished, only abandoned."

If I feel a bit confident and satisfied on a story, I'll format it as a manuscript and save it as a final draft. Once done, I resist looking at it as it might tempt me to fiddle a word and spruce up a sentence.

I have to do this since I don't want to remain in revision limbo--I want to move on and write the next story.

Shadow_Ferret · Mar 25, 2014

I find that the stories I write in one evening and immediately submit do a lot better than the ones I agonize.over.

It seems I start second guessing myself the more I sit on a story and just make all sorts of random changes for faults that don't really exist.

How do you know when a story is ready?

Jamesaritchie

OJCade

etherme

Making my own luck

TheBostonian

Jamesaritchie

ErnSanGiacomo

Koelsong

maxitoutwriter

nastyjman

not nasty at all

Shadow_Ferret

Court Jester