You’ve ignited the inspiration, braved the start, sacrificed your heart and soul, persevered for the past several weeks, and you are now at the stage of refinement and fine-tuning. Almost there. Just perfecting the nearly perfected.
Suddenly, you realize that you’ve been at this stage for far too long. Days and weeks have passed by, and you are still perfecting the nearly perfected. Still “almost done.” So, how do you know when your work is complete? When and how can you convince yourself that it’s time to put your creative project to bed?

Art and creative work can always be ameliorated and fine-tuned since there are no guidelines or definitive ‘finish lines’ that tell you when a project is done. It is up to the artist, the creator to make this decision – to deem the project “complete” or “good enough.”
Since perfection, in my opinion, does not exist you may easily spend an eternity getting it “a little more perfect” – getting your project one step closer to that mythical, arbitrary idea of perfection.
Whether it may be a rehearsing for a theater performance, recording and mixing a music album, editing a film or documentary, adding even more detail to an already elaborate art piece, or re-editing a novel for the thousandth time, at some point you have to deem the project complete. After all, your idea of “not good enough” may come through as “spectacular” to others.

When I write, I first get everything down on paper no matter what – not thinking about spelling, not thinking about grammar, not thinking about flow. I am just materializing what’s in my head onto paper. No self-censorship, no self-editing, and no self-judgement.
The second time around, I rework the paragraphs while keeping a close eye on word-flow, story development, “the big picture”, and basically how the writing will translate to the reader.
The third time around I fix any grammar and spelling mistakes.
Then I go over it once more, looking for anything that could be improved.
Then, if it looks good, I call it “DONE.” And I move on.

If I find myself rewriting the same sentence a half-dozen times over, I quickly settle for which sentence sounds best. Then move on to the next sentence. As long as the reader can interpret my writing with clarity and ease, then that’s all that matters. Write it, read it, re-write it, and move on.

My wife (who is also my copyeditor) and I were at this stage just over two weeks ago. We declared our book “perfect enough.” Then we sent all the files to the printing company and gave them the green light to print the book.
Today, we are holding a copy of this beautiful book. It is the most amazing site – like a baby being born, opening its tiny little eyes, and seeing the world for the first time.
It is one thing to decide that your project is finished; it is another thing to hold it in its full glory for the first time.

Is it perfect? In my opinion, close enough.

Always keep in mind that your typical audience is not looking for “perfect”, they are looking for “unforgettable”.

To all artists, writers, and creative beings – keep doing what you are doing. Keep creating and keep putting yourself out there. Get it done and call it done. (And move on.)

Johnny Wilson
Life Writers LLC
Co-Founder, Lead Writer