When do you give up on a book?

[Miss Moppet]

I don't mean a book you're reading, I mean a book you're writing. After years of work and heaven knows how many rewrites I am thinking of shelving my WIP. The frustrating thing is that I still like the premise, and so do several of the agents who have seen it, but I can't seem to make it work. It just isn't what I want it to be and I'm starting to feel that I am flogging a dead horse. The other thing is this summer I got a good idea for another project which I could move on to. I feel I might do better with something fresh, although maybe not.

One of the agents was willing to look at a rewrite so I will ask her opinion of the opening chapters. But I am really starting to think that I can't make it what it ought to be without a lot of editorial help which will not be available. I feel like it's not quite there and it just never will be, if that makes any sense. There is an ingredient missing, I don't know what it is but something's not right.

I would be v grateful to hear from anyone who has moved on from a project and what the best reasons are to do so.

[Margaret]

I think the time to move on is when you feel like you're flogging a dead horse. The revision process is terribly important, and of course it does get to be rather tedious before one comes to the end of it, so I don't want this to sound like advice to dump an unfinished project just because the revision process isn't as much fun as writing the first draft. But you say you've completed a number of revisions, Miss Moppet, so that doesn't sound like the case here.

If it helps, I think a writer learns an enormous amount with every single project, perhaps even the most with some of the ones that never reach the stage of publication. So it's definitely not wasted time!

I'd say, give yourself a treat and start working on your new project. It might not feel easier than the first one, because now that you've learned all sorts of new things from working on your first manuscript, your second may be more ambitious. But that's good! The challenge is part of the fun, and an ambitious project always has a special zing of excitement that gives it extra potential.

I have three unpublished manuscripts on the shelf (or more, depending on how you count the pieces of the one that wanted to turn into a trilogy). The third found an agent for me that I really like and garnered some nice responses from editors, even though they all turned it down. My fourth novel project, which I'm currently researching, will, I hope, be the beneficiary of all the hard work I did on #1-3.

Now and then, we hear about a novelist who became an "instant success" with his/her first book. What we don't hear about are all the unpublished manuscripts he/she wrote before the published one burst upon the scene. You can bet those unpublished manuscripts were a huge factor in the "instant success" of the one that got published!

[MLE]

Miss Moppet, no life experience is wasted. Now if you REALLY want dividends for the time spent on that WIP, go and get two books on writing (or pull ones you have already read off your shelf.) Then go through the manuscript and re-fashion it to the advice of expert A. And then do it again according to the precepts of expert B.

Then go back and write it according to the best of both, tossing the advice that stunk (some in every advice book, of course) into the mental round-file.

You may still not like the WIP. But the exercise will kick your writing to a new level in a way that starting another WIP with the same old skills will not.

[Miss Moppet]

I think the time to move on is when you feel like you're flogging a dead horse. The revision process is terribly important, and of course it does get to be rather tedious before one comes to the end of it, so I don't want this to sound like advice to dump an unfinished project just because the revision process isn't as much fun as writing the first draft. But you say you've completed a number of revisions, Miss Moppet, so that doesn't sound like the case here.

If it helps, I think a writer learns an enormous amount with every single project, perhaps even the most with some of the ones that never reach the stage of publication. So it's definitely not wasted time!

Now if you REALLY want dividends for the time spent on that WIP, go and get two books on writing (or pull ones you have already read off your shelf.) Then go through the manuscript and re-fashion it to the advice of expert A. And then do it again according to the precepts of expert B.

Good advice and I've done all that! I must have every writing book ever written. I've also incorporated much advice from agents, writer friends and everyone bar random people in the street. Nothing works. I do feel like I've learned from the process but I can't seem to bring what I've learned to bear on the revisions.

I'd say, give yourself a treat and start working on your new project. It might not feel easier than the first one, because now that you've learned all sorts of new things from working on your first manuscript, your second may be more ambitious. But that's good! The challenge is part of the fun, and an ambitious project always has a special zing of excitement that gives it extra potential.

Actually the new project would be much less ambitious than the old one. The old one was a complicated family saga stretching over 30 years and I had real problems deciding what point of view to tell it from. It could be that I was trying something I was too inexperienced to cope with. The new one would cover a 15 year period, with fewer characters, a simpler story, told in the first person (which I think, after years of thinking it wasn't for me, probably is for me after all) and definitely a lot shorter.

I have three unpublished manuscripts on the shelf (or more, depending on how you count the pieces of the one that wanted to turn into a trilogy). The third found an agent for me that I really like and garnered some nice responses from editors, even though they all turned it down. My fourth novel project, which I'm currently researching, will, I hope, be the beneficiary of all the hard work I did on #1-3.

This would be the third manuscript to go into the bottom drawer. The first one was a long rambling thing set at Marie Antoinette's court which was the product of my teenage years, and although it was the lodestar of my existence at the time I was quite happy to put it away later. The second was a contemporary novel - the only one I've ever written - which I enjoyed writing, but it really wasn't that good.

Now and then, we hear about a novelist who became an "instant success" with his/her first book. What we don't hear about are all the unpublished manuscripts he/she wrote before the published one burst upon the scene. You can bet those unpublished manuscripts were a huge factor in the "instant success" of the one that got published!

Sometimes the earlier stuff gets resurrected. And sometimes it probably shouldn't have been, but not always. I think this was the case with Barbara Erskine, she published Lady of Hay and then Kingdom of Shadows, but KoS was the earlier manuscript IIRC. I loved both of them. So perhaps I might come back to it one day if I am lucky enough to sell a book. I feel kind of sad at the idea of not ever telling the story.

[LoveHistory]

Not having been in the game long enough to even get to the giving up on a story stage, here's my advice:

Put it aside and work on your new idea. It may be that a year from now you'll realize what's missing from the current WIP.

[Divia]

I think you are so caught up in this one WIP that you can't see anything but misery. Like Love said it might be best to put it aside, try something new and then in 3 months a year or 10 you may have an AH HA moment and go back to it.

If you feel that no matter what you do is fruitless and those around you agree then I would say put it aside. If others disagree then youmay just want a vacation from the WIP and go back to it later.

I've given myself a month 1/2 and I am itching to get back to mine. I've been crappy and frustrated because I havent had time to work on it. Maybe that will happen to you.

[Miss Moppet]

Not having been in the game long enough to even get to the giving up on a story stage, here's my advice:

Put it aside and work on your new idea. It may be that a year from now you'll realize what's missing from the current WIP.

I think you are so caught up in this one WIP that you can't see anything but misery.

You're not wrong Divia! My friends and family are consistently unenthusiastic about the bits they have seen yet constantly ask when the book will be published. Every time someone mentions it I want to burst into tears.

Like Love said it might be best to put it aside, try something new and then in 3 months a year or 10 you may have an AH HA moment and go back to it.

If you feel that no matter what you do is fruitless and those around you agree then I would say put it aside. If others disagree then youmay just want a vacation from the WIP and go back to it later.

I've given myself a month 1/2 and I am itching to get back to mine. I've been crappy and frustrated because I havent had time to work on it. Maybe that will happen to you.

I think that is a good test. I've had quite a bit of time off from it because I was making notes for my new project, and then I started writing the Lady Moppet thing. And I'm more enthusiastic about filing my old utility bills than I am about going back to it. As I said, I still like the concept, it's just I am all out of ideas about how to make it what I wanted it to be.

I think you are all right and I should bench it and have a go at something new. And perhaps with time and experience I will get past the block, if I don't, at least I'm creating something new. I feel like I have learned from researching and writing the first one and I would approach a new one in a different way.

[Divia]

well when I think you are more excited about the electric bill then there are problems. :D

[Miss Moppet]

well when I think you are more excited about the electric bill then there are problems. :D

Actually I like organising stuff...but still!!!:D

[SarahWoodbury]

I would agree that to work on something else might be better for you, and at least give you a break from what you are doing now. I would also say that you might find you can 'steal' characters, plots, and scenes from your old books, in your new ones. I have 5 unpublished books now and have stolen from the first three quite often--even if only a paragraph here and there.

I also have a book just like you describe--it was my second novel and I still love the premise--but I have rewritten the thing--three times? four times? I was 150 pages into the fifth rewrite over the summer when I finally threw up my hands and realized that it was never going to work. Or at least I can't make it work.

[Miss Moppet]

I would agree that to work on something else might be better for you, and at least give you a break from what you are doing now. I would also say that you might find you can 'steal' characters, plots, and scenes from your old books, in your new ones. I have 5 unpublished books now and have stolen from the first three quite often--even if only a paragraph here and there.

I also have a book just like you describe--it was my second novel and I still love the premise--but I have rewritten the thing--three times? four times? I was 150 pages into the fifth rewrite over the summer when I finally threw up my hands and realized that it was never going to work. Or at least I can't make it work.

Yes, that's pretty much the experience I had. The other thing is it is really long, and although I kept cutting it it was still always going to be too long, and every rewrite has been a mammoth undertaking. I will definitely try to keep the next project within manageable bounds. I can actually write quite fast when things are going well, but because it was such a long project there wasn't much sense of progress.

[TonyHays]

Several years ago, I pitched three ideas to the editor who had just published one of my novels. They had the right of first refusal. One of the three was already about half written, and that's the one she wanted to see. Though it wasn't my favorite of the three, I finished it and sent it to her. A year later, she asked for revisions. I did those. We finally came to the mutual conclusion that while it was a good idea, it just wasn't working. I think it was at that point that I came to realize that not everything I wrote was going to be marketable. No matter how hard I worked on it. Sometimes you just have to give up.

But I second the advice about using bits and pieces of such a manuscript in other projects. I've done that too. And it keeps me from feeling like all the effort I put into the book was wasted.

[Miss Moppet]

Several years ago, I pitched three ideas to the editor who had just published one of my novels. They had the right of first refusal. One of the three was already about half written, and that's the one she wanted to see. Though it wasn't my favorite of the three, I finished it and sent it to her. A year later, she asked for revisions. I did those. We finally came to the mutual conclusion that while it was a good idea, it just wasn't working.

It must be much more frustrating when you've got that far in the publication process with a book. I did have one agent who seemed very interested at one point, but that's the furthest I've got.

[Libby]

I think that sometimes the more you work on re-writes the more tangled the whole thing becomes. I would set it to one side and work on your new idea. But don't throw it away. Never throw anything away.

When you mentioned that it was too long I wondered if you were trying to cover too much time and too many people. When you back to it you may find that there is one aspect of the story that appeals to you more than the others. Would it be possible to tell just a part of this story to make it more manageable?

[Miss Moppet]

I think that sometimes the more you work on re-writes the more tangled the whole thing becomes. I would set it to one side and work on your new idea. But don't throw it away. Never throw anything away.

No, I'm going to put it up in the loft, in 'manuscript corner'.:)

When you mentioned that it was too long I wondered if you were trying to cover too much time and too many people. When you back to it you may find that there is one aspect of the story that appeals to you more than the others. Would it be possible to tell just a part of this story to make it more manageable?

Not unless it got split into more than one book. At least I don't think so. It is really just about one character but a lot happens to her! I can't miss anything much out because the plot will fall apart and if I try to reduce the timespan then a lot of things can't happen because they wouldn't happen at other times. Really the only way would be to start from scratch and re-imagine it and I just haven't got it in me to do it one more time. I will say though, I'll think three times before taking on anything as complicated again!

[EC2]

When I was unpublished, I used to write in the hope of one day achieving my goal, but for the fun of it too. It was what I did as a spare time occupation. When one was finished, I'd revise it, probably about 3 times to polish it up and then straight away begin on the next one. I have 7 unpublished novels in my drawer. (well bits of them have been used further down the line. A massive chunk of The Champion comes from unpubbed number 4), but I never dwell beyond that 3rd or 4th polish. Unpubbed number 7 is actually the prequel to my first published novel The Wild Hunt. I was told by my editor (same one I have now) that had they seen this before TWH they would have published it, but it wasn't as strong as TWH, even though of a publishable standard, and they didn't want to take a backwards step. I've never re-looked at that novel since; it's still there in the drawer; a novel that might have made it but never did. I suppose if I had the time, I could one day put it online.
Bottom line: Polish to a certain extent, but don't linger. When it's time to say farewell it's time. Move on to the next thing and use what you've done as a stepping stone. It's not something to fall over. It's something to lift you up. I had to climb 7 novels of 500 pages apiece to get to the magical number 8!

[Miss Moppet]

Bottom line: Polish to a certain extent, but don't linger. When it's time to say farewell it's time. Move on to the next thing and use what you've done as a stepping stone. It's not something to fall over. It's something to lift you up. I had to climb 7 novels of 500 pages apiece to get to the magical number 8!

I think you're right and I should move on - I just feel a bit reluctant because I almost never get good ideas, so I hate to let go of one. I have friends who are just the opposite and never know which project to work on first. I wish I was like that! Plot is not my strong point and never has been. But I do think you are right.

[Divia]

Thats good advice EC. I'm on my 3rd rewrite now.

[LoveHistory]

Perhaps it would make a better trilogy/series.

[Miss Moppet]

Perhaps it would make a better trilogy/series.

Actually writer friends said if I did get an offer for it I would be told to make it a trilogy because otherwise it was too long. It's a possibility, but I'm not sure if the three sections by themselves would be strong enough to qualify as a "book." But maybe. If so, I would be quite pleased actually because I certainly spent enough time and effort on it for three books.

[Margaret]

My friends and family are consistently unenthusiastic about the bits they have seen yet constantly ask when the book will be published. Every time someone mentions it I want to burst into tears.

I would strongly recommend not showing a WIP to friends and family - only to other writers you work with as part of a critique group oriented toward giving and receiving constructive criticism. If you can avoid it, I think it's best not to even mention you're working on something.

Family and friends who don't write themselves don't understand the huge amount of work that goes into a manuscript and will not see the promise in an unfinished piece of writing, nor can they easily judge part of a manuscript out of context of the whole. And, yes, with the best intentions in the world, they will ask you every time they see you or talk to you how your writing project is going. Because they don't understand how very long it takes to complete a manuscript, find an agent, and then find a publisher, their well-meant questions will come across as nagging pressure. (You mean you haven't finished it yet??? Gee, why is it taking so long to find a publisher???) Typically, people who don't write themselves (and don't hang out on boards like HFO) think a person could easily whip out a finished manuscript in six months or less, and it doesn't occur to them that a first draft is not a final draft.

I was unable to avoid mentioning a project to my mother, because I visited her as part of one leg of a research trip. I finally had to very sternly (several times) tell her not to ask me about the book again. Her constant well-intended questions were impeding my work, because every time I thought about working on the project I would think of her. It was as if she were hovering over my shoulder. Shudder.

[Miss Moppet]

I was unable to avoid mentioning a project to my mother, because I visited her as part of one leg of a research trip. I finally had to very sternly (several times) tell her not to ask me about the book again. Her constant well-intended questions were impeding my work, because every time I thought about working on the project I would think of her. It was as if she were hovering over my shoulder. Shudder.

Yes, I basically couldn't avoid it either because I was staying with family when I started it and I couldn't keep them from seeing I was working on something. But they would have twigged that something was up given the amount of time I've devoted to it over the past 10 years. Also, my father bought me a laptop when I couldn't afford one and my old desktop was ready to give up the ghost. So I'm grateful that they have been supportive and I didn't mind them asking about it at first but as you say, people don't understand how long these things can take and the longer it has dragged on, the less I want to talk about it. I wasn't too worried that they didn't like the book because it's the last thing any of them would read anyway. So it didn't bother me much - until no-one in the book world liked it either. Then I got upset.

[Chatterbox]

I have one friend who asks me twice a week "When will you be done?" I have told her not to ever ask me again -- so now she prefaces the enquiry with "I know you told me not to ask, but..."

I am slowly going demented. The questions raise my stress level to unendurable points... I'm tempted to say -- when it's on bookstore shelves. (June 15). But even that won't be true, because then I'll be caught up in the whole marketing kerfuffle. Sigh.

[Chatterbox]

Miss Moppet -- re the OP...

Sometimes the best thing you can is just to walk away. Not in the sense of burning the MS and your notes, but just to give yourself time and space to breathe. I've done that on my current NF WIP, expecially with the ultra-critical last two chapters. For a few weeks, all I did was read and let my mind wander. Sure enough, it would wander back to the topic and I'd find myself thinking about it in fresh and more creative ways. The result was a rewrite of the last chunk of the book that is much better and more focused.

I think the same thing is possible with a bigger, longer term project like a novel. Your nose is pressed so clearly up against it that you can't see it with a fresh eye any more. Put it away for six to 12 months. Work on something else. Go on holiday. Then, either I will bet you start finding fresh ideas flowing to the surface (that will almost certainly happen when you start getting frustrated with your NEW project!!) or you will go back and re-read what you had written with a completely fresh/clear mind, and go ah-ha, that's what wasn't working.

The reason any writer needs an editor is because we are all too close to our work. And the more work we do on a project, the more we need someone with a good understanding of what it is we are trying to accomplish and a sense of how to get there help us identify where we are falling short. Friends and family may be supportive or may nitpick; they are almost always the wrong people to take stuff to. You need someone independent, knowledgeable about writing and what it takes to make a book 'click'. Books can help by giving you fresh approaches, but it should be you responding to the book, I think, rather than following its advice as a prescription. It's like any kind of self-help book; the value lies in its ability to make you recognize and act on something you have known all along and haven't been able to articulate.

Good luck with whatever you decide to do...

[Miss Moppet]

The reason any writer needs an editor is because we are all too close to our work. And the more work we do on a project, the more we need someone with a good understanding of what it is we are trying to accomplish and a sense of how to get there help us identify where we are falling short. Friends and family may be supportive or may nitpick; they are almost always the wrong people to take stuff to. You need someone independent, knowledgeable about writing and what it takes to make a book 'click'.

I know. I wish there was someone like this in my life but there isn't. I have to rely on my own judgement which really doesn't work. Re-reading the book, which I haven't done for a few months, I am absolutely amazed that, after so many years of very hard work, it is so bad and so far from what I wanted it to be. I have no idea how to make it better so I'm not going to waste any more time on it. At the moment I really doubt that the new project will be an improvement but one thing is for sure, it can't be any worse.

Thanks to everyone for taking the time to share your thoughts and comments.

[Margaret]

At the moment I really doubt that the new project will be an improvement

Trust that it will be, Miss Moppet. You have learned things in the process of writing your last manuscript that you don't even know you have learned. Plus, you learn new things with every book you read, whether you like them or not.

[Chatterbox]

I would still argue that you're too close to the project to decide whether or not there is value there or not. Similarly, you don't know whether the new project will be better or not. Anything that comes easily, I have learned over a quarter-century of earning my living via writing (OK, journalism, for the most part, but still...) is rarely good. Making something basic much better is never simple, easy or uncomplicated. Give yourself a break; take a breather; try something different. That alone will be a test of the merits of the project. If it it sticks in your mind and continues to tug at your skirt, so to speak, demanding to have attention paid to it, then you will feel driven to go back to it and try again. But there is no point in making that effort when you are so burned out and frustrated.

[Leo62]

I know. I wish there was someone like this in my life but there isn't. I have to rely on my own judgement which really doesn't work. Re-reading the book, which I haven't done for a few months, I am absolutely amazed that, after so many years of very hard work, it is so bad and so far from what I wanted it to be. I have no idea how to make it better so I'm not going to waste any more time on it. At the moment I really doubt that the new project will be an improvement but one thing is for sure, it can't be any worse.

Thanks to everyone for taking the time to share your thoughts and comments.

Miss Moppet, if you can afford it I'd really recommend trying one of the reputable editorial agencies like Cornerstones or TLC. They don't come cheap but they're one of the few ways you'll get the kind of dispassionate, informed, professional feedback you won't get from your family and friends (even if they're writers :D).

I used Cornerstones for my last novel and found them really helpful. Some of what they said was hard to hear, but it was exactly what I needed. They're not cheap but worth every penny IMO.

[Miss Moppet]

Making something basic much better is never simple, easy or uncomplicated. Give yourself a break; take a breather; try something different. That alone will be a test of the merits of the project. If it it sticks in your mind and continues to tug at your skirt, so to speak, demanding to have attention paid to it, then you will feel driven to go back to it and try again. But there is no point in making that effort when you are so burned out and frustrated.

Part of the problem is that quite aside from the difficulties with the book, the rest of my life has been very stressful for the past six months - my permanent part-time job came to an end in May and I haven't been able to replace it. That leaves me with freelance work which, thanks to the recession, is thin on the ground. So I have major financial worries on top of everything else. I don't find that kind of thing easy to deal with and it just drains the energy which might go into being creative.

Leo, that explains why I can't afford an editorial agency! I actually never considered it because my budget was very tight even before I lost my regular income. But recommendations are always useful so thank you.

I definitely will approach the new book in a different way. Whether it will have better results or not, I won't know till I try.

[Divia]

Miss Moppet, if you can afford it I'd really recommend trying one of the reputable editorial agencies like Cornerstones or TLC. They don't come cheap but they're one of the few ways you'll get the kind of dispassionate, informed, professional feedback you won't get from your family and friends (even if they're writers :D).

I used Cornerstones for my last novel and found them really helpful. Some of what they said was hard to hear, but it was exactly what I needed. They're not cheap but worth every penny IMO.


How not cheap are we talking? Its hard to sink x amount of money on an unsold book. I like the idea but I dont know if I'd be willing to part with the cash.

[EC2]

Hilary Johnson's Author's Advisory Agency is good too. Used by RNA members - and not just the category writers. Her expertise runs the gamut. She was a speaker at the HNS Conference at the New Cavendish Club in London a few years ago. Don't know how much she charges either, but I can vouch for her being bona fide. Url here: http://www.hilaryjohnson.demon.co.uk/

[Leo62]

How not cheap are we talking? Its hard to sink x amount of money on an unsold book. I like the idea but I dont know if I'd be willing to part with the cash.

Divia, I don't know how much they charge in the US but I paid around £400 for a full report on my novel. For that, they read the whole thing and sent about 9 pages of detailed feedback. It's important to go with a reputable agency as there are some sharks out there - personal recommendations are the best way to go if you can get one.

Cornerstones looked at the first chapter of my novel for free, just to make sure I was at a point where they could help me. The couple of paragraphs of feedback I got from that persuaded me that it was worth going ahead.

Miss Moppet - sorry to hear about your situation. The Literary Consultancy do offer bursaries - might be worth checking out...
http://www.literaryconsultancy.co.uk/services.php#acebursaries

[EC2]

It might also be worth looking at the Arts Council of England to see if your local arts council offer readings. I know the East Midlands used to do it because I used to read for them in the days when I had time. That was Notts, Derbyshire, Leics, Northants and one other (can't remember) Anyway, they ran a scheme by which people could have their scripts professionally assessed in the way Leo describes. Cost around £20 and the Arts Council stumped up the rest of the fee. When last I heard they were using a consultancy called Storytracks. I don't know if other areas under the Arts Council run similar schemes in their literature development programmes, but might be worth a look down the library to find out.
Sorry to read about your job Miss Moppet. I hadn't read the earlier post pages properly and only picked up on it from Leo's post. Hope you find something soon.
I really loved your Adventures in Time Travel story. You have real talent - and I mean that. Please keep going!

[Margaret]

Cornerstones looked at the first chapter of my novel for free, just to make sure I was at a point where they could help me.

A very good policy. It's a good idea, I think, for anyone considering an editorial service to start with just a review of the first chapter. That way, even if they charge something, at least you're not out the substantial amount of money any service has to charge for a complete manuscript (it's time-consuming to produce a careful, constructive critique), if the feedback doesn't prove helpful for your specific project.

I've never used one of these services, because of the cost. I've been part of several writers' critique groups and found them extremely helpful - though one always has to use one's own judgment about the feedback. The early stages of being involved in a critique group can be kind of stressful, though, as one gets used to offering and receiving critical comments (hopefully balanced with praise). I wouldn't advise starting one at a time when you're already under a lot of stress. But you might consider it when things settle down. Depending on where you live, a local writer's group might help you find one or put one together, or you could post a note at a local bookstore or another writers' hangout. There are also online critique groups - I've never used one, but some of the other people here may be able to suggest some good ones.

[Divia]

There is some great advice and links in this thread. THanks everyone :)

[Miss Moppet]

It might also be worth looking at the Arts Council of England to see if your local arts council offer readings. I know the East Midlands used to do it because I used to read for them in the days when I had time. That was Notts, Derbyshire, Leics, Northants and one other (can't remember) Anyway, they ran a scheme by which people could have their scripts professionally assessed in the way Leo describes. Cost around £20 and the Arts Council stumped up the rest of the fee. When last I heard they were using a consultancy called Storytracks. I don't know if other areas under the Arts Council run similar schemes in their literature development programmes, but might be worth a look down the library to find out.

I actually applied to the Arts Council at one point for money but got nowhere, although I included a very supportive letter from a major agency. I wasn't too surprised as their funding has been cut, in London at least, to fund the Olympics and there is even less money to go around than there was before. I didn't know about the reading thing though so I'll look into it.

I really loved your Adventures in Time Travel story. You have real talent - and I mean that. Please keep going!

Thank you so much and I'm so glad you enjoyed the story. I wish I found other things as easy to write as that!