Writing Feverishly and deciding that writing a book IS WAY TOO HARD

I have one more week of my "official" summer break left. It's been long. Three whole months of no work. Soon, my structure-less days will end. I've been writing like crazy. Rewriting my first novel, making sure the plot lines are threaded throughout the story, and the biggie, ensuring my character's motivation is consistent. That, I have to say, is really freakin' HARD!!! Arggh!

Just when I think I have it right, I'll re-read a chapter and groan. With rewrites, the biggest hazard, as least for me, is eliminating an important piece of information (not intentionally) the reader needs to know. You know, a logistical question that pops up in critique groups, a problem that needs to be mentioned but not elaborated on, then poof. You rewrite and take it out, thinking it's not important because you're going in a new direction. I'm probably not making sense. But that's where I am. Ironing out the consistency's. And it's really difficult.

This is what occurred to me. Writing a novel is painstaking. It really is. Do I sound negative? Good. It's reality smacking me in the face.

But, and there is always a but, I love my story. I believe it has potential. I know I'll rewrite until I'm happy with it.

But...

"Don't sit on it too long," people have said.

I seriously don't understand this contradiction. I think the best thing you can do is sit on it (or rewrite it) until it feels right. Maybe it means, don't expect it to be perfect. Believe me, I don't. I just want it to be enjoyable.

To lighten my mood, I visited my favorite bookstore, Chaucer's, and picked up a few tantalizing novels.
Savvy by Ingrid Law, the paperback version of An Abundance of Katherines by John Greene, and The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Perilous Journey by Trenton Lee Stewart.

I plan to write a few more hours today, maybe switch gears and focus on my second novel. My critique group has a fun writing exercise that we're doing next week...looking at plot lines and chapter details to ensure our story is flowing the way it should. Perfect timing, I think.