Dear Rachel: Why should I bother?

Last week, a reader asked me a question about writing, and since I occasionally like to talk about what I do with the majority of my time (did you catch the understatement?) I answered. Her response to my response led the conversation in a slightly different direction, wherein she said that she wants someone to read the first few chapters of her work in progress, so she’ll know whether or not it’s worth finishing.

I have to admit, that statement bothered me. I’ve heard the same sentiment many times in the past few years, and it’s bothered me each time.

So here’s the thing: every story is worth finishing. Here are a couple of reasons…

First of all, there is absolutely no way that someone else will reasonably be able to tell you just from reading the first few chapters of your rough draft that the book isn’t worth finishing based on the quality of the writing or even the concept. Why not? Because it’s not done yet. The first couple of chapters of EVERYTHING I’VE EVER WRITTEN changed significantly during the second draft. Some were cut entirely. Some later became subsequent chapters after I backed the story up a bit and started earlier in the timeline.

(The third chapter of Rogue was originally the first.)

Both your writing and your concept will become smoother during the act of writing (and finishing) the book. All you need in the beginning is a good idea and a little faith in yourself. An outline doesn’t hurt, but it’s not crucial, especially if you’re still finding your own voice (the natural tone of your writing). The rewriting, revising, editing, polishing, and proofreading…all that comes later.

And honestly, if you think your work is done after the first draft, you need to sit down and reevaluate your reasons for writing. If you’re writing only for your own pleasure, fine. A rough draft is all you’ll ever need. But if you’re aiming for publication (in any of its varied forms), you should know that a completed rough draft is only the very beginning of the work.

Secondly, even if neither your story nor your concept is publishable in its current incarnation (especially if that’s the case), finishing the story is never wasted time or effort. It’s invaluable experience. It’s crucial experience, in fact.

Like most authors, I know LOTS of other writers. Lots of them. And of all the traditionally published authors I know, I can count on one hand the number of them who sold the first book they wrote. I didn’t even try to sell my first book. Or my second. They’re still buried in a seven-year-old hard drive (the modern version of the box at the back of the closet) because the writing wasn’t good enough and the concept wasn’t marketable. But if I hadn’t written those two novels (and finished them), I wouldn’t have improved enough in my craft to sell my third novel (Stray, the first one I ever sent out).

There is one thing that is true for every single writer in the world: we all need practice. That is a fact. No one is born ready for publication. Ask Steven King how many rejections he has (or read On Writing). Ask Frank L. Baum. Ask anyone. We all need practice. And we don’t just need practice writing stories—we need practice finishing them.

So, here’s my official advice to everyone out there who itches for publication but has never completed a novel:

Finish the book.

Dig deep and find that spark that interested you in your story in the first place, and feed that tiny flame until it roars to life. Write the story all the way to the end, even if it feels like it sucks, because you can fix it in the next draft. That’s the magic of the second draft—by then, you already know where the story’s going, so you can focus on polishing, rather than plotting.

So suck it up, stick it out, and make it happen. I promise you’re not wasting your time by finishing that book. You’re simply honing your skills.

P.S. Spellcheck tells me there are no errors in this post!!!

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