Yes, Virginia, Writing is Hard

“Can you write a book without rewriting a book?”

On May 31, 2023 author Kate DiCamillo wrote a fabulous post on Facebook answering the above question posed by a third grader. Her response was exactly what I needed to hear. Maybe you need to hear it too.

Look for this picture:

https://www.facebook.com/KateDiCamillo

Her advice prompted my response below.

I’ve tried writing a book without rewriting a book. (Spoiler alert: It hasn’t worked for me.)

“Old me” spent hours, weeks even, working on finding the perfect word, the perfect description, the perfect paragraph. Days spent on sentences that might get cut from the final draft. Months spent on words that might get moved around or replaced.

Writing is hard (for me anyway) and I thought if I could get it perfect the first time…

“It never comes out right the first time.

You have to rewrite.

The only way out is through,” says Kate DiCamillo.

“New me” is still a work in progress. I’m trying to remind myself that perfection is nearly impossible to achieve, especially in a first/discovery draft. I’m working on allowing the words to be “just okay.”

Maybe this will be the year that I finish the scene, finish the chapter, or even finish the story.

Thank you, Ms. DiCamillo, for confirming that writing IS hard (it’s not just me), that there are no shortcuts, and the only way out is through.