Wednesday, March 17, 2004

Bitten by the Bug

The particular bug in this case is the revision bug. Not the entirely good brand of revision, but the nitpicky, jittery kind, taking a big chunk of yesterday. As mentioned in my previous entry, I submitted a mainstream piece Monday. Not long ago, I thought the story my best. Now--I don't know why--I no longer think so.

Admittedly, the story is the closest to real life I've written, and I've had trouble shaping its events into fiction. There's a roundness to fiction that doesn't have to apply to life. Fiction is held together by reason and expectation. Life happens any way it can.

The last rejection I received made me consider revising the story from first- to third-person. After a read-through, I decided third-person wouldn't work. It's a question of fine tuning distance while staying in first-person. And it's turning out to be tough.

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