Do you ever read your old stories?

[MayorReynolds]

I've been away a long time. I'm just getting back into this place with pep talks that 2021 will be my year of writing more, including new submissions to the site.

Other than the obligatory editing and revising before posting, I've never read my Lit stories after they met approval. Truth told, I'm afraid to now. I worry about cringing as a result of eight years worth of aging and reality itself around me changing.

Meanwhile, I watch as my old stories still get favorited. I wonder if there is some magic in there after all, but I don't dare look. I also got a recent comment stating that one of them has, apparently, a rape scene, though I never, even when I was winging it drunk down the page, intend to write anything nonconsensual. My intent was always 100% that my characters were having fun and loving it. Now I'm thinking, "Christ, then I'm definitely never clicking that one ever again."

 

[holliday1960]

Yes, and each time I do a re-read, I learn something, either about myself or about the scope of my ability to string words along in a somewhat coherent fashion. (Or not, as the case may be.) I think you learn as much or more from reading your own work as you do from reading the works of others.

 

[Reshbod]

Occasionally I have re-read some of my stories in the past. Yes, there are some cringe worthy moments, but I also find there are some parts that are better than I remembered them being. Not that I am a great writer, but for me, I feel better about my writing and it encourages me to keep trying and work harder.

Another thing is that it can spur other ideas on themes or ideas not followed up on.

Finally, I also had someone comment that one of my stories contained rape. That is something I never intended. I did go back and re-read it and didn't see it. Sure, some of it may be dated now but there was nothing forced about it in my opinion.

 

[sirhugs]

I did not for a long time, but now sometimes revisit them if I am trying to find a certain vibe that I had back then, or if something older gets favourited or commented upon, I might just for nostalgia sake.

When I returned form my hiatus, I had a story I had to write, so had no need then to revisit the catalogue.

 

[beachbum1958]

Yes, occasionally, but usually not, because they make me cringe, that 'Jeez, did I really write that? Crikey, what was I thinking? Going to have to seriously edit that one!' reaction. I know I never will, looking back is not my thing, but I do wish upon reflection that in any particular story I'd expressed myself better, or been less prosaic and a little more gentle, or more legible. Maybe when I'm old and grey and bored to death with retirement I'll revisit and edit some of them.

 

[MayorReynolds]

Finally, I also had someone comment that one of my stories contained rape. That is something I never intended. I did go back and re-read it and didn't see it. Sure, some of it may be dated now but there was nothing forced about it in my opinion.

Mine was something about hiding in a closet with a screwdriver. When commenters point out these references I have no idea what they're referring to because it has been THAT LONG since the story was in mind.

There was a time when I thought about doing an edit sweep, but I don't like the idea of George Lucas'ing old work.

Although now I sorta get what old George was thinking.

 

[Candy_Kane54]

I go back and read my stories all of the time. I need to make sure that what I'm writing now doesn't contradict anything I've already published since the stories are all in the universe I've created and interact with each other, some more than others.

I do cringe a little when I read my first submission. I tried a little too hard with that one and it doesn't flow as easily as my later works. One day I may go back and rewrite it but not just yet.

 

[Omenainen]

I do read my own, that was the point of writing them in the first place, to get to read something that I like. I'm smug like that. Then again, I can't say I have old stories, I only published my first a few months back. There's always something that could be expressed differently, but I don't edit them, what's done is done and I don't want to get stuck chasing perfection.

 

[Fervid]

Yes, and each time I do a re-read, I learn something, either about myself or about the scope of my ability to string words along in a somewhat coherent fashion. (Or not, as the case may be.) I think you learn as much or more from reading your own work as you do from reading the works of others.

Exactly. I'm trying to work on my writing, and it's purely amazing how many awkward phrases suddenly materialize if you leave a story alone for a while.

So then I polish and re-publish. I must be driving Laurel crazy (thanks for your patience, Laurel or helper).

 

[oggbashan]

I re-read SOME of my stories and leave others, usually the very early ones, alone.

They provide inspiration for future stories but what can annoy me is the errors in a few. Just as a result of seeing the thread title, before even opening it, I went back to two recent ones and found I had made my usual mistake of changing a name. I submitted two edited ones a few minutes ago.

 

[karaline]

I've been away a long time. I'm just getting back into this place with pep talks that 2021 will be my year of writing more, including new submissions to the site.

Other than the obligatory editing and revising before posting, I've never read my Lit stories after they met approval. Truth told, I'm afraid to now. I worry about cringing as a result of eight years worth of aging and reality itself around me changing.

Meanwhile, I watch as my old stories still get favorited. I wonder if there is some magic in there after all, but I don't dare look. I also got a recent comment stating that one of them has, apparently, a rape scene, though I never, even when I was winging it drunk down the page, intend to write anything nonconsensual. My intent was always 100% that my characters were having fun and loving it. Now I'm thinking, "Christ, then I'm definitely never clicking that one ever again."

I used to a lot more than i do, i don't have much free time anymore.

Oddly enough, I currently find myself in the opposite situation. I started uploading a multi-chapter story in March, and I haven't reread it once, I just keep posting updates. At first the updates were quite frequent, because i wasn't working, but now they are far more intermittent. I really ought to reread it from the start, just to be sure everything makes sense and the style is still uniform.

 

[KeithD]

Most of the stories I post here were written a year or more before, so, when I review them again before posting here, I've read them again. Most have been published in the interim, so that's another additional read/review after it was initially written.

 

[AllenWoody]

I do, quite frequently. With the exception of a couple of my earliest stories I'm still proud of them, and even the early ones still turn me on when I read them.

I like to see what worked, and what didn't, and sometimes I even read a story just because someone added a comment and I re-read it on the way to the final page.

 

[RejectReality]

All the time. I've read back through even epics like Danica more than once ( in excess of 450k words )

Most of the time, it's to refresh my memory for an upcoming story, but I read my RR stuff fairly regularly as well, and few of them ever see a part 2 or side story. Those that do are usually because I've read back through them and found a spark.

There's nothing I've written since I started here that makes me cringe horribly. Most that did were tweaked years ago into something I'm far more satisfied with.

Anything I wrote before I posted the first chapter of Danica here? Yeah, not so much. Cringe and sometimes full-on laugh worthy. Even some of those have seen adaptations, though. Harvest of Blood was a rewrite of one of those old cringy stories. I also actively mocked another in an LST3K episode, giving it new life.

 

[mfan2112]

I'm afraid to go back to my early work. I know I would cringe at some of it. My editing pen would be out fast and the whole work would get rewritten. In the year that I have been writing, my standards and expectations of myself have evolved.

But at some point I think I will give the old work a good scrubbing.

 

[Blind_Justice]

Do I re-read my old stuff? Absolutely. If not for fun, I do it for reference. Much of my work is interconnected and I want to make sure the links are as watertight as possible.

 

[SamScribble]

I do occasionally re-read old stories. And most of them are OK. In fact, I often find myself wondering who wrote them.

 

[oggbashan]

Since I first saw this thread I went back to a recent story and pulled up the final draft, as submitted to Lit.

I changed the type size to increase it substantially.

I found twelve typos, none significant but annoying, in three Lit pages. e.g. 'ahd' for 'had' and 'an' for 'and'.

I have now submitted an edit.

PS. As soon as that is posted, I will probably find more.

 

[TarnishedPenny]

Yes, and each time I do a re-read, I learn something, either about myself or about the scope of my ability to string words along in a somewhat coherent fashion. (Or not, as the case may be.) I think you learn as much or more from reading your own work as you do from reading the works of others.

This.

 

[Bramblethorn]

Not much. I'll re-read if I have some specific reason to do so - e.g. I want to check whether I already used a name, or I'm providing an example of something for an AH discussion. But I don't tend to re-read mine just for the fun of it. Writing stories is a way to get stuff out of my head so it stops bugging me.

 

[eroticstoryspinner]

I will read mine to confirm things I have notes about as all my stories are set in the same universe. I also have character crossovers between the active series I also like to make sure that I am not repeating the same descriptions word for word or reusing scenes.

I have been rereading a lot lately because the I am working on a story when the POV character in the new story was present in scenes of prior stories.

 

[holliday1960]

I do occasionally re-read old stories. And most of them are OK. In fact, I often find myself wondering who wrote them.

Really? The irony! I do the very same thing, Sam... in fact, every time I re-read one of your stories, I ask myself, who DID really write that? (Certainly not that quiet kid in the corner with all those bright crayons )

 

[BelleCanzuto]

Not much. I'll re-read if I have some specific reason to do so - e.g. I want to check whether I already used a name, or I'm providing an example of something for an AH discussion. But I don't tend to re-read mine just for the fun of it. Writing stories is a way to get stuff out of my head so it stops bugging me.

Me too. I've started re-reading several of my stories after they were published, but since I already know what's going to happen, they just don't hold my attention.
One of my stories has over 180k views, more than three times as many as my next most viewed story. I've started re-reading it three or four times to try to figure out what might have made it so popular. But I've only made it a page or so before I quit.

 

[Reshbod]

Mine was something about hiding in a closet with a screwdriver. When commenters point out these references I have no idea what they're referring to because it has been THAT LONG since the story was in mind.

There was a time when I thought about doing an edit sweep, but I don't like the idea of George Lucas'ing old work.

Although now I sorta get what old George was thinking.

I think the story as written is a very effective learning tool and gage on how far a writer has come, pun not intended but kind of. If one pulls a Lucas, then and erases the original it's hard to see how you've changed as a writer. Lucas is a model of what not to do. The folks who updated the original Star Trek did it right by fixing some things but leaving the overall story alone.

 

[RelentlessOnanism]

I do, on occasion, albeit usually only certain sections, rather than an entire story from start to finish. Occasionally I notice a typo or grammatical error, and occasionally I see something and think ‘I could have phrased that better’, but usually, and I’m going to sound like a bit of an arrogant prick here, I’m pretty impressed with what I’ve written. But, and again this will sound pretty big-headed, I’m quite a big fan of my own work.