STARTING OVER

            Sometimes you just have to admit whatever you’re doing isn’t working. You can toss it all and start over. Or, you can set it aside and start over. In either case, there may come a point when you’re not making progress, or what you’ve written isn’t what you expected.

IS STARTING OVER THE BEST IDEA?

            First off, you shouldn’t be competing with yourself. If you’re in such a way that you feel compelled to finish whatever you started because you don’t want to waste the time, think of this. The longer you feed that bad idea, or bad start, the more likely your frustration is going to be magnified.

            Maybe your idea just wasn’t meant to be. That’s no reflection on you. Anyone can have a false start or two. It doesn’t waste time, it’s a lesson on what not to do.

            It’s far more productive to quit while you’re ahead.

            Then again, making it a habit is not the best idea.

STARTING OVER AND OVER AGAIN

            This should not be happening. If you start something, stop and start over again every time you sit down to work a project, you’re never going to get anywhere. Ever.

SOLUTION

            The reason starting over usually occurs is back up at the top where I say an idea just isn’t working. The best way to avoid that is to plan.

            Yes, planning sounds like plotting and it can be if you’re a plotter. If you’re a pantser, planning can also work.

MY STORY

            It’s always best to lead by example and I have a few doozies for you. While I hadn’t thought about it in a long time (actually forgot until now), I also had a few false starts.

            Why?

            I never fully figured A, B and the title before I started writing. That’s why I advise to never start writing without a set plan. I’ve also seen it in plenty of other writers with as many of them as I’ve met over the years.

            I started one idea for a chase story. The only thing I can recall was the hero’s ring tone was Smoke On The Water. Somewhere, I still have the start of that story archived. However, it wasn’t fully formed so I just dropped it and started over. In another case, I never started writing. I got the title right off and pondered multiple ideas, but never figured A and B so I also have an empty folder with the title and nothing to show for it.

            False starts aren’t the end of the world. Never forming a complete idea before you start and not learning from that could be.

PRECIOUS TIME IS ONLY PRECIOUS WHEN YOU DON’T LEARN FROM IT

            The whole idea of false starts and starting over is that you learn from it and learn not to waste your precious time. The better you get at planning, the more likely you’re going to finish. Does that mean that every idea is going to gel?

            Once in a while, what sounded like a great idea doesn’t pan out in the writing process. In that case, save what you got and start over. You can always come back to it with a fresh outlook. Maybe you just didn’t see the light at the time.

SUMMARY

            There’s no such thing as wasting time when you’re formulating ideas. Not every plot is going to be a winner. As long as every idea isn’t that way where it becomes a habit, you’re eventually going to strike gold.

            Confidence comes with time and effort. You can always have self-doubt, but if you don’t let it get to you, eventually you’re going to succeed. If self-doubt is your focus, quit for a while and do something else. If writing is truly a passion, you won’t care whether other people will like it. You write for yourself. Eventually, through a false start or two, you’ll come up with a great idea that makes the whole process a pleasure instead of a frustrating mess.

            Happy writing!