How to Know When to Quit (And Start Over)

New authors often find themselves lost in the creative wilderness, wrestling with the decision of whether to keep wrestling with a problem manuscript or cut their losses and start over.

Writing a book is a challenge. There’s no shame in realizing that a project isn’t working as planned.

Let’s look at some signs that it might be time to call it quits and reboot your current project.

Constant Procrastination
If you often find yourself procrastinating when it comes to working on your manuscript, it could be a subconscious sign that your creative energy is better spent elsewhere.

Because throwing good energy after bad can lead to …

Exhausted Creativity
Readers know when you’re phoning it in. Because drained creative reserves leave your writing feeling forced and uninspired. Starting fresh on a new project can be a great way to reinvigorate yourself.

Related:

Stagnant Progress
If you’ve been working on your book for months – or even years –  but your word count barely fluctuates, something isn’t working. Writing should be a steady process with a beginning, middle, and end, not a never-ending cycle of revisions that lead nowhere.

Pro editor tip: If you find yourself re-inserting elements cut from previous versions or undoing changes made during prior polishing rounds, chances are you’re stuck in a revision spiral. Stop what you’re doing, take an honest look at the project – objective third party feedback is a must – and decide if it’s time to publish or start over.

Because creative energy is limited, and you don’t want to suffer …

Loss of Passion
Writing a book should be energizing. Or at least not excruciating. If you’ve lost the enthusiasm you once had for your story, it may be time to reevaluate.

I advocate treating authorship as a business. But let’s be honest: I could be driving a forklift or selling crack if I just wanted to make money. This is a labor of love.

So if sitting down to write feels like a burden, rethinking your current project might be the answer.

And forcing it can yield substandard results, which can send you into a …

Feedback Loop
You’ve shared your work with critique partners, beta readers, and most important of all, editors, right? Good; you’re thinking like a pro. But if the feedback consistently points to major issues that require extensive revisions, you may be better off making one of the toughest, but most professional, choices an author can face.

Continuously revising a flawed manuscript is counterproductive. As a writer, your single most profitable activity in a monetary and artistic sense, is writing. If you’re spending more time revising than drafting, the balance is off, and you’re losing out. Which is another reason why pro authors minimize their revision burden by using a pro editor.

And yes, I’ve had to tell some – not many, just a few – author clients that their manuscripts contained fatal intrinsic flaws that made them unpublishable. But they thanked me because they had independent confirmation that they’d reached dead ends and had to turn back – which meant they could start making progress.

“What are some red flags that a book project needs a fresh start?” you ask …

Plot Holes and Inconsistencies
Nobody makes just one structural edit. Each change requires making changes to other story elements to maintain continuity.

So when your story has plot holes or inconsistencies that seem impossible to patch up without causing a ripple effect throughout the manuscript, it might signal that there are faults in the story’s foundation.

The only fix: Break out the jackhammer, tear that unsound foundation out, and rebuild from scratch.

Before it gets to that point, though, you can head off the need for drastic action at the brainstorming phase. In particular, beware of …

Lack of Clarity
If you struggle to explain your book’s central premise in a clear and concise manner, it may not be you. Instead, your concept may be poorly defined. A new beginning might help you crystallize your ideas.

This point is key, because nothing makes readers put books down like unclear writing. Don’t give them the excuse!

Then again, perhaps what you want to say has changed. Writing is a transformative process, and you may not be the same artist now that you were when you started writing.

If that’s the case, it’s OK to course correct for …

Changing Goals
Sometimes, our personal and professional goals evolve. If you started writing with one objective in mind but have since shifted your focus, it’s fine to reconsider your project’s direction and realign it with your current aspirations.

So, when should you decide to hit the reset button on your writing project? The answer varies from writer to writer and project to project.

However, if you recognize several of these signs in your work, it may be time to seriously consider starting over. Remember that letting go of one project doesn’t mean failure; it’s often a step toward growth and improvement as a writer.

Before making a final decision, take some time to reflect on what you’ve learned from your current project. These lessons can be invaluable for your next book.

Starting over can feel daunting, but it’s also a chance to apply your experience and creativity to a fresh canvas, creating a work that resonates with your audience.

Writing a book is a significant undertaking. Like any major endeavor, it’s important to recognize when it’s not working. Trust your gut, and be open to starting over if it’s the right choice for you and your readers.

Remember: Writing is a journey, and sometimes backtracking to a new path leads to more rewarding destinations.

---

In this week’s patron exclusive, I review Tales from the Darkside: The Movie. Get access to your choice of recurring perks, including each week’s patron-only post and our elite Discord. Join the Neopatronage revolution now.

---

Special Offer: All writing is persuasion. But knowing what approach works and when can be a challenge. Let best selling ghostwriter Joshua Lisec show you the best persuasive techniques to supercharge your writing. Check out his offer now.

---

Get all the specs on every super machine of the Yzu War at your fingertips.

A #1 bestseller in Classic Sci Fi!

Read it now: