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I very rarely ever go back to read anything I’ve written, with the exception of stories that are currently in progress. If that’s the case I’ll go back and re-read a few chapters in order to establish tone and pace for the next chapter.

It’s very difficult for me to read anything thing that I have completed for the simple fact that I know I will find something in them that needs changing. I am one of those terribly self-conscious writers that fret over every single word that is put on paper. Going back to re-read something tends to feed the flames of doubt for me. That being said, though, I will sometimes look at my very early stuff whenever I get the feeling that I have no business playing in this sandbox.

I’ve only been writing as a hobby for a little under four years now, and in some of my earlier stories you could tell that I was very new to the whole fan fiction scene (back when it was a struggle for me to get five hundred words per chapter). I am nowhere near where I want to be in terms of writing ability or honest-to-goodness storytelling, but I can say with some confidence that I have come a long way since January of 2012. So when I re-read it’s usually one of those this is where you were, and this is where you are now moments. If anything, I’d say my stories serve as a map of sorts of how I’ve grown as a writer, with each piece getting progressively stronger in terms of plot, style, and overall quality.