Do-Overs by Sydney Salter

Real life doesn't really give us true do-overs. Dumb things we say live in people's memories. Choices we make have rippling consequences. Random events change our lives forever. And there's not much we can do about it, aside from doing our best to create a fresh start.

Bummer.

Writing, however, gives us endless do-overs! I recommend it to everyone. Even my diary allows me to reflect on what I wish had happened when things go awry in life. Fiction is by necessity a process of doing over. Flat characters must be rounded. Cliched plots reworked. Points of view switched. Voices altered. Dull scenes axed. The list goes on and on…

When I speak to pre-published writers, I always emphasize that any piece of writing can be made good enough. I don't believe in those so-called drawer novels. Nonsense. Revise the thing if you loved the idea enough to write it in the first place.

Just try it!