June 18, 2012

Son of the Shield Update

Well, June 16th has come and gone. I'm sad to say I didn't get Son of the Shield finished completely. There are still a couple of spots in need of fixing/editing/filling in/rewriting, and there was simply no way I could get them all finished by June 16th. A little disappointing, yes.
However, since setting a deadline for myself I've made an absolutely huge amount of progress, and I think it'll only take me a few more days to get the rest of SotS tidied up and in shape, so let's just say I'm filing an extension on the deadline.  : )
As I've gotten SotS closer and closer to completion, I've found myself worrying about how good is good enough. How do I know when it's ready? I tend to be a perfectionist when it comes to my writing, so I've also been concerned with knowing where to draw the line between 'I've told the story God wants me to tell in the way He wants me to tell it, and that's good enough' -and- 'I know I can make this paragraph flow just a little smoother, I know I can make this description a little more vivid, I know I can make this action more intense'. Where is the line between wanting my work to be as good as it can be so that it reflects well on Christ, and wanting my work to be as completely perfect as I can possibly make it to satisfy my perfectionist pride?
Not an easy thing to figure out, let me assure you. But I spoke with a good friend about it yesterday, and he advised me to let God tell me when the story is done and to take Him at His word when He does... whether the work is as good as I want it to be or not. God is just, my friend reminded me, and He will give me the information I need to make the right decision at the right time, if I'm willing to listen and trust Him on it.
So, with that in mind, I'm going back to work on SotS to fill in the last remaining holes in the new draft. As I mentioned before, it should only take me a couple more days... no more than a week, max. I know those holes have to be edited and filled in, because they're in such a mess they don't make any sense and the story doesn't make sense without them. But after that's done, it just might be time to close the laptop and let God tell the story He wants told, in the way He wants it told, whether it comes up to my perfectionist standards or not.
We'll have to see.
I'll be posting updates throughout the week as I finish up the last little pieces - and I'm going to be starting on some of the fun SotS special features I hinted at earlier too, so stay tuned. Our 'Son of the Shield is finished' party has had to be pushed back a few days, but we're still going to have it, mark my words.

3 comments:

  1. I'm sorry you didn't make your deadline, but it's good that you're so close to be finished! We're pulling for you! And looking forward to those special features ;D

    ReplyDelete
  2. I want to see these special features too, Mary! Excited to see what you're going to come up with. :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Not too much of a letdown, I hope. You're closer to the end than you would have been.

    ReplyDelete

What are your thoughts on this post? I'd love to hear your comments, questions, or ideas, even if you don't agree with me. Please be aware that I reserve the right to delete comments that are uncivil or vulgar, however.