Lost

How many times have I found stories about writers whose writing got lost? By fire or other forms of destruction, the work seems lost, but when the writer disciplines himself to rewrite, the work is better for the rewrite.

A month ago (could it have been so long??) my hard-drive crashed. Short of spending an exorbitant amount to attempt a recovery, we tried every avenue to no avail, but I greatly appreciate the efforts of my husband and our good friend, David. I felt lost, for my novel had been saved (on a separate drive) up to chapter 6, but I hesitated saving chapters 7 on becausse I felt that I had possibly taken a wrong turn and had been reading and rewriting for months. Now it is lost, including the wrong turn, and for a while, so was I.

I questioned what God was trying to teach me. I loathed my hesitation, my laziness, my horrible error. And then I became resigned. I had not lost everything, and I wondered if I could be one of those disciplined writers who rewrite better. Could it be for the best?

I choose to think so and have outlined the important scenes I remember and look forward (and dread, truth be told) to giving it life again. I'm afraid and happy, feeling I must get it right this time ... (and save it in multiple places.)