Towards the end of working on What Happens in New York, I really, really hated it.
I couldn’t stand to look at those bloody pink tights.
Whenever someone asked me about it, my back stiffened.
I hated it.
I really and truly hated it.
But I had a deadline, and I had to reach it.
I’d let the people around me down otherwise.
The longer I worked on it, the more I hated it. I’d stared at it for too long.
I mentioned this to one of my colleagues, who’s a graphic designer, and he said he feels the same way about the creative projects he does, too.
So you see? Hating your creative work is totally normal.
The longer you spend with it, the harder it can become to look at it, especially if you’re working towards a deadline.
Unfortunately, sometimes you have to fight through the hatred and keep going.
Deadlines, as annoying as they are, are there for a reason. They help with productivity levels, and in some cases, they pay the bills, too.
But what about when you really can’t stand to look at something and you have a looming deadline? What should you do then?
You suck it up.
Sorry.
There really is no other alternative in this situation.
Think about a loved one. You don’t like them every second of every minute of every day, do you?
Some days you really, really hate them. Some days you wonder why you put up with your partner/child/parent/sibling (delete as appropriate). But you do. Because deep down, that love is still there.
And it’s the same with your writing.
Deep down, somewhere your love of writing—and of that project—is still there. You may not be able to feel it, but it is. You started on the writing path, and giving up on it would be like giving up on your child before they’ve reached 18. You wouldn’t do that, now would you?
So why give up on your characters?
I think this is the difference between the people who “love to write” and the people who actually DO it (and do it for a living): we know it has warts and goddawful patches… and we know (learn) how to push through them…
Insightful post. Thanks!
I totally agree! If you want to do it for a living you have to do it for more than just the love sometimes. Thanks for reading!