I’ve been pushing myself to get novel three done – or at least the first draft. I have about five more days to accomplish my goal. I’m upwards of 57,000 as we speak with still a lot of interesting issues to be resolved.

My old friend Doubt popped in to say ‘hello’ today.

He rears his head from time to time and asks questions about whether what I’m writing is actually quality or not. I tell him that I’m not qualified to answer that question and would he please let me alone, but he reminds me that perhaps nobody will like this novel.

Will it be true?

I don’t know. Perhaps. But I always ask myself, ‘Do I like it?’

Yes, I do.

That, of course, is no guarantee of quality or likeability or writing success. I don’t have a ‘pop’ taste.  Perhaps its too gritty or too realistic or too much based on a foreign culture or ???

This is, I guess, just normal process. Success is never achieved in the first draft or in the writer’s mind. It’s only achieved at the reader level, and they are a fickle group. Who’s to say for sure what will be enjoyable and engaging or the overused phrase – a page turner?

So what’s a writer to do?

I guess a writer is to do what he or she is supposed to do. Write. Move on. Do one’s best. Draft. Re-draft. Edit. Change. Re-word. Re-edit.

And most importantly, never give up!

Doubts are in the normal cycle of things for writers, I have come to realize. Anyone who believes they have a masterpiece on their hands is either disillusioned or an experienced author with a seven-digit guaranteed advance.

I’m not quite there yet. And so sometimes I wonder if what I’m creating is good enough.

But then I must ask, what does ‘good enough’ even mean. Good enough for whom?

I must answer that one way: is it good enough for me?

If a writer can satisfactorily answer that question, then, perhaps, he or she is a success after all, sales and ratings notwithstanding.

Thank you, Doubt, for dropping by. You made me work through things once again, and now I’m ready to tackle the ending of my book.

After all, it is very exciting.