“Writing is the flip side of sex– it’s good only when it’s over.” ~ Hunter S. Thompson

Oh, man, how true that is.

I love to start a new project, when the plot and characters are all shiny and new. I love to explore the world, the little nuances that make that story different from every other one I’ve written.

About 3/4ths of the way through, I’m ready to move on to something new. The last quarter is torture. And then when it’s done, there are revisions. Lots and lots of revisions. It can be torture. But writing those two sweet words, “The End”?

Pure, orgasmic bliss.

Nothing feels better than finishing a story, and it’s that feeling that keeps me writing on days when I’m tempted to set aside the manuscript I’m working on and start writing something shiny and new.

Thing is, I didn’t always have the kind of discipline needed to go that extra mile and finish a project. Know what it took to actually FINISH a story? I entered a contest, and when I won, I had to submit the entire manuscript. I did finish, and though that manuscript didn’t sell, I got some excellent feedback from the editor.

And I got the added bonus of getting that I-Finished-The-Story high. Before that, I’d started about a million stories, none finished.

So if you’re like me, you get sick of a project and want to start something new, keep in mind that the words “The End” are some of the most satisfying words ever.

Now get to writing. I want you to write The End.

Go. Now.

This entry was posted on Saturday, November 24th, 2007 at 12:01 am and is filed under Larissa Ione. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.