Get Finished

Good advice to give anyone considering publishing a book is simply to get started – in other words, just start writing. Stop thinking and start doing.

So let’s imagine now that you’ve done that – you’ve started writing this marvelous creation and you’ve even decided that you’re going to publish whether you’re picked up by a traditional publisher who will swallow the cost, or not. You’re determined to publish either way even if you have to go it alone by self-publishing. Perhaps you’ve already found help in the form of professional assistance to aid you in your publishing efforts.

Now everyone is just waiting for you to finish writing your masterpiece. It seems like an easy ask, but anyone with experience in the publishing industry will tell you countless stories of authors who simply cannot let go. They keep adding to the story or information, making countless (often unnecessary) changes. There are often many ways to say the same thing correctly. Neither is wrong or better, it’s just a matter of personal preference.  And so the author changes and changes and changes, going around in circles like a dog chasing its tail until he or she sometimes comes full circle and even changes it back to what it originally was!

Some authors literally take years to write what could and should have taken months. They toy with specifics and nitty-gritty nonsense that often adds no value but simply draws out the process and frustrates everyone involved. If it’s not wrong and says what you want, let it be. Indeed, some authors say they find it really difficult to let go as it’s like letting go of “your baby”, something you’ve personally created from your heart and soul, blood, sweat and tears. Yes, but at some point even the baby must fly the nest in order to launch itself into the world.

So get finished! Most people have started a myriad endeavors, but not half as many people have finished. Nothing is worth starting if you’re not going to finish. What’s the point of an unfinished work that never sees the light of day. Finish it already!