People are offended by all kinds of shit. Ignore em Your videos are fuxking HILARIOUS and I watch them when i need a good laugh. Esp the romance novel reviews

Yay ❤ i love your channels and congrats on winning it!

that is very wild. i was never able to reach half- maybe a quarter- through the challenge. always need to cram for midterms and idk how to manage my time to force writing time into my schedule.

I miss you Caleb!! I would love it if you came back or gave an update when you are ready!

I didnt know about this channel! Man Im just glad to see you are ok lol!

we get to read you writing! I didn't know THAT! Congratulation on writing and having the courage to share with the rest of us, that's just brilliant.

I Feel like Colleen Hoover is waiting to rip you a new one about this book lololol.

I think there is too much toxic positivity in the writing community and it’s so much healthier to say gosh what i did was awful ok time to make it better. In my mind the most important thing is knowing what you want your story to be about and what you want your story to make you feel and what your finished product to look like.

I just had the same realization about a project I’ve been working on since 2017. I’m doing a ground up rework. The characters and world are mostly okay, but I’m realizing I need more work on the plot and structure of the story

As a writer, I feel this SO hard. It really sucks and can be incredibly disheartening trying to write a book, or reading back what you wrote and just HATING it all. I have so many stories/books I wrote throughout the years that I loved (and thought was really good) and when I go back and read them they're... awful lmfao. BUT writing the "first draft" is the hardest part. You have the bones! Use what's good and rewrite something better with it!

I don’t share my goals either. I stopped doing it when people would talk me down and make me feel like crap, or I’d do it to myself. They’re my feelings, I’ll hurt them if I want to. However, this year I was going to get the mailing list, the website and work with my editor, and then after making just under 23 dollars last year I said “f all of that, I’m not even reading this year.”

this same thing just happened to me within the last year or so and it's been revolutionary for how I do plots, which I've always struggled with. it's been great to realize that past stuff is terrible and cringy and needs to be buried and never uncovered and that I can improve it and it seems almost obvious how to do so now. like I cannot wait to actually write this stuff and then get to read it, it's so exciting, and it's going to be crazy how things will improve if I keep on this slow progress!! thanks for sharing this, i'm glad to realize how universal the experience apparently is!!

Omgg where did you get your sweather??? I fkn love it its amazing

Havent even tried to reread my draft yet but I already know i want to cut half the content and change it to first person 😭

The true mark of improvement in our craft is looking back to what we've worked on before and thought was the peak of our skill... and finding out it's kinda bad! and being able to pick apart the reasons why! and, also, go ahead and fix it! i love that feeling

Oh yeah, I have a book I wrote YEARS ago that I want to rewrite when I'm done with my current book series.

The best thing that happened for me was realizing that the book I wrote over so many years, over so many drafts, sucked. That it wasn’t good, and that I needed to let it go and move on to something different. 😂 not the same thing as what you’re going through, but there’s a triumph in realizing these things as a storyteller!

This is what improvement feels like. Congratulations!

I love this so much! Being able to look back at the writing that we used to think was perfect and being able to see so much to improve is such a satisfying feeling, and it's such concrete evidence of our growth. So excited for you!!

I like how you are looking at your old work, it shows you've grown as a writer and aren't afraid to admit that it sucks, or that it needs to be improved. I have a couple of books I'm working on, and all of them have been "nuked" at least one. At some point my stories kinda shift into their own gear, and whatever I have planned doesn't fit the vibe. Instead of trying to fix what I wrote, it's easier to start over. As long as the story hits specific plot points, the rest is up to them lol.

This was nice to listen to, hope the rewrite is fun! I just went through my old writing journals the other night and got inspired to work on my current darling wip that I've slowly been adding to over the past year. I look back at my old writing with such fondness because it reminds me of the kid I used to be, but damn you're so write about carrying baggage with every new story and rewrite.

Only good writers look at their work and see the flaws...great writers see flaws and set out to correct them

you are at the absolute best mindset for rewrites and editing! i envy you so much - i wish you the best with your rewrite and your touch ups ❤

Took me over a million trash words before i could put down respectable line work

An idea, write something new. Now that you know what makes a story good or bad, write something else. Then after the first draft of that new book, come back with what you learned and rewrite the old one. You will not improve if you keep writing the same story.

1) LOVE your content, been a fan since early 2020 ❤️ 2) I'm STILL in the middle of editing and rewriting my manuscript after about 2 years 😭

Completely unsolicited suggestion, but I really recommend re-writing everything, even the parts that are already good. Re-writing has become my favorite way to edit. Especially when it comes to sections that you already like, it is so easy to let your eyes just kind of skim it, because you've already read it a hundred times. I'll sit down with the full intention of re-writing a section word-for-word, and then when I'm typing it I'll realize, "wait, there's a better way to phrase this," or "oh no, I didn't realize I used the same word twice in this paragraph," or "I thought this section conveyed my meaning really well, but I've been superimposing an idea from my mind that isn't in the actual text." It's more work and it's really annoying, but it never fails to improve my writing overall. I'm really happy that you're getting so much motivation and inspiration this year! I hope it's a great one.

Omg Caleb I feel you. I remember i had to scrap an entire finished chapter after i realized it wasnt good.

We can always improve.

Knowing how to fix a book is the best feeling

The book will tell you what to do, not what you want.

Can you tell me, just in general, what the story is about?

I completely agree with you; this is exactly how I felt over this fanfiction I’m returning to write and complete. Looking back at the earlier chapters that also holds my earlier experiences in writing, I can see that it’s not too bad but felt rushed and empty. Another set of early chapters showed my involvement in imagery more. The expression is good, the writing is good, but the plot flow upon the imagery felt random and off, as if it’s there but I didn’t end it properly before going on another paragraph or dialogue. Now, I’m keeping the story as it is and just continue it with the direction on how I’ve been understanding not only characters, plot, and setting but also the flow, the imagery, and the hidden meanings from information I’ve learned from sources and my self experience for months to years. I really like how my fanfiction was also like a journal on how much I’ve developed as a writer, so here’s to the both of us on how our writing skills are growing! Also, Fourth Wing…? Good luck, dude 🙂

I'm revising a YA fantasy that I wrote...six years ago? Set in England, with witches, and a charming village, and lots of parties, and also an otter that's a scamp. So I'm with you in coming back to your story! Best of luck with your writing! ❤

It happens to all of us. 2021 I wrote 30k words of a serial killer romance and 80k words of a crime thriller and had to shelf both of them because coming back to them after months away and reading them with new eyes, I was like "What the fuck was I thinking with any of these creative choices?" It doesn't matter: no writing is wasted and all of it contributes to your voice and your skill-level and will still contribute experience to future stories. I think my book Storm of Masks is actually boring and mid as fuck, but I'll make sure the sequel is much better. Stephen King hates a ton of his books. Grimes hates plenty of her songs. Artists don't always like our own work, even when others adore it. It's part of living a creative life.

I just got to the end of the video where you mentioned fourth wing and I'm literally screaming 😱 i literally bought it for the exact same reason but I'm scared I'm going to hate it so I'm also re-reading the Percy Jackson/ Heroes of Olympus series

The best advice i ever got was write five books before you write THE ONE. So that's what i did, i wrote the first draft of the book I intended to be my debut (it was fun but awful) then after two years i wrote four more, going back to the first book every now and then to fix my "mistakes" but i was so attached to the project that the editing was minimal at best. I finally finished the fifth book and realised I was just very unhappy with the condition the first book was in so i then went back and decided it would be best to rewrite the entire thing from scratch. Best thing I've ever done honestly and something I'm blown away with how much I've developed in not only my writing style but also how i approach the same characters differently and learn new things about them that I would never have even considered before. All this to say is that it's comforting in a strange way to see someone go through the exact same spiral as me 😂

I knew i wasn't going to be able to finish my 100k goal during nano so i set it back for march 5th which is my birthday. I'm currently at 78k words on day 86 and expect to be done by February. The first two months absolutely flew by but as soon as I got to 50k my progress has definitely slowed down. BUT, I'm not giving up. I've been working on the story unofficially for six years and this is version eight I believe. The pain is definitely worth it looking back since I'm finally happy with where the story is now and have a rough outline for the rest of the nine books in the saga. Your videos definitely kept me going 💛!

Speaking as a writer myself, I'd say you have a very good outlook on the process. Some writers break down at the slightest hint of inadequacy, but the truth of the matter is that one's early work will always seem poor quality after you gain enough skill. The proper mentality is to focus on long-term goals, the sense of 'One day I'll get there as long as I try hard' and not 'I suck now, so I might as well give up.' It seems like you're treating the faults with your project as an opportunity for problem solving, something to learn from and improve upon, rather than something that will hold you back. I wish you well in your writing.

The KZfaq algorithm is eerily accurate omg. This is exactly what I needed to hear to get back to my drafts 😭

So great how excited you are about editing your novel and making it better! Just cause you mentioned dissecting "The Fourth Wing" There is a great critique on the channel of "Plant Based Bride"!!! Wishing you lots of fun editing and sending you creative vibes :)

I'm doing exactly the same thing! Can relate with feeling like chapters are too bad/boring. I love your writing channel, following right away!

What a great attitude to have. I'm happy for you.

i’m currently working on the first draft of my novel and everything is so awkward. i needed this video🥹

Read save the cat by Blake Snyder. It breaks down story beats and hero's journey.

This video encompasses why I watch writers on KZfaq because NO ONE GETS IT. From keeping my goals secret lest I fail them, finding out my writing is boring, seeing the obvious only after years of rewrites - I felt like I was listening to my own brain narrate how this process functions but in Caleb's voice. Writing is a different beast for everyone, but the battles are uncannily similar. This has motivated me to go back to my early drafts and review things with a fresh perspective. I'm re-energized!! Keep fighting, Caleb - I wanna buy your book someday, dammit

One thing about me is that I’m going to drop everything to watch your videos 🫣

I feel this way with my poetry all the time! I'll write something and I'll feel amazing about it, it feels like the best thing I've ever written. And then I'll go back to it a few days or a few weeks or a few months later and be like "oh this kinda sucks" and I see all the flaws. I've recently been energized to try and improve my writing pretty much every day so it's happening more and more often; and it's partially encouraging and it's partially really frustrating. I don't always know what I need to do to improve a piece I no longer feel is good, so that's really frustrating and something I'm still trying to figure out how to learn. I know I need to read more work and also try to find as many styles as possible to read. Still unsure how to do that/where to start. But I'm excited for it and I totally feel you on being excited when your work sucks!