: Re: When is 'enough', enough? So, I've been going through advice for aspiring writers, and naturally, that includes quotes from famous authors, interviews, their top tips etc. One thing I've noticed

@Deb2945533

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It depends what you want it to be good enough to accomplish. If you plan to self publish, it is good enough when you are happy with it. But if you want a certain number of sales, then you might need it to go through a few more iterations.

If you want to traditionally publish with a big publishing house, then it might need more than that. In this case, I believe the process is is not black and white. (1) You may think it's good enough, and (2) you may have beta readers that say it's good too. but (3) an agent may read it and say that it isn't and ask for more revision. Or they may think it is good enough and then look for a home for it, and (4) the publisher might want you to change things. Or you might be flatly rejected at these stages and need to figure out for yourself what the problem is.

It's also possible that a story could always be better - and in that case you need to at some point walk away because you've hit diminishing returns. But in brief, there are certain questions you should be able to say yes to. 'Am I satisfied?' 'Are other readers satisfied?' 'Does the storyline follow accepted guidelines for structure, pacing, and so on?'

When you feel like it's at that point, then your opinion takes a back seat and the opinion of other people matter more., particularly agents and publishers if you want to go that route. To complicate this further, any rejection on their part may be down to your story being a bad fit, not bad writing.

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