Sitting on a manuscript, by Natasha Woodcraft

Last month, I talked about building rest into your writing process. It’s a hard thing to do. Part of it, for me, is ‘sitting’ on a manuscript.

My writing has been through several stages in its short life and currently I’m doing editing work for others while I sit on my own manuscript trying to figure out what the flip to do with it. The answers aren’t coming readily.

When I wrote my debut novel, I was desperate to publish it as soon as possible. It’s a common issue. Most of us writers have a tight timeline in mind, and we have to be gently eased out of it. When I was ‘oh so close to hitting the publish button’, I made the decision to enter it into a contest where I would get feedback on the first few chapters. It meant waiting about 5 months, which seemed like FOREVER at the time. But that wait was invaluable, and I learnt a lot. Having revised that debut many more times before it made it into the world (and since), I actually wish I’d sat on it even longer. 

Back to the present day. I’ve been sitting on one WIP for over a year now, and another one for a few months. They are both long books, in two different series. I sort of finished one before I started the other (which is probably the right thing to do) but because I write in series, things tend to not entirely finish at the end of the book!

So what is sitting? For me, sitting means putting a manuscript down for a bit to chew over and prayerfully consider feedback before you revise it again, or go forward with a publishing option. This may need to happen several times. Getting constructive criticism is a must. Sometimes answers we seek, or corrections needed, are obvious to others. 

Occasionally though, I’m still not sure what to do after that, and when I take a decision to God, he doesn’t answer immediately. Often, I’ve only learnt a lesson I’ve needed at a point beyond the deadline I’d set for it. I don’t know how sitting would even be possible if I had someone else setting my deadlines, and yet for me, writing what I do (faith-based fiction), it’s become essential.

Sitting can be rather uncomfortable. Like a pea under the mattress, it often keeps me up at night. That's kind of the point though. You're seeking those peas – seeking the things which aren't meant to be there. And, if you’re a (fake) princess with a slightly obsessive, perfectionist streak like I am, you might struggle to start and stop editing at the right times. 

Recently, I wrote a short story as a new lead magnet for my website.  I originally wrote the story in 2 days and edited it in 2 days. Done. Dusted. Move on. It felt marvellous! Then, it was great to get feedback on it at FABCHOW* last month, because I hadn’t looked at it since I wrote it, and fresh eyes are always invaluable. One more day incorporating that feedback, and we were finished. (You can read the results by signing up to my newsletter, if you like ;-D )

By contrast, my 150k novels never seem to end. They take a long time to write and even longer to sit on. It almost made me want to give them up. Almost…

But, I love big books! They are what I love to read, and what I love to write. So, at what point do I stop sitting? That’s a tricky one. Currently, I feel too busy to even open the manuscript again. But when I do get to it, at some point I will have to finish it and let go. The message therein needs to get out into the world, and it’s if imperfect, then, so be it. I’m an imperfect person, living in an imperfect world. We never stop learning and, I suppose, the ideal is that each thing we write will be better than the last. (Though I’m sure it doesn’t always/usually work that way.)

Perhaps there’s a certain beauty in imperfection after all – a truer reflection of reality? Perhaps imperfect books are actually better? I don’t know. 

What do you think?

Natasha Woodcraft lives in a slightly crumbling farmhouse in Lincolnshire with her husband, 4 sons and a menagerie of animals. She believes stories have power to communicate deep truth and transform lives. Her published novels, The Wanderer Scorned & The Wanderer Reborn, explore God’s redemptive purposes for messy people by reimagining the tale of Cain & Abel. Also a songwriter, Natasha peppers her emotional prose with poetry and song. 

*FABCHOW is an acronym for the ACW Historical and Biblical writers Zoom group. If you'd like to know more about joining, Bobbie Cole is the lady to speak to.