{"id":7128,"date":"2018-10-22T18:55:42","date_gmt":"2018-10-22T07:55:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/?p=7128"},"modified":"2022-05-13T10:35:07","modified_gmt":"2022-05-13T00:35:07","slug":"industry-insider-how-do-you-know-when-a-story-is-finished","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/2018\/10\/industry-insider-how-do-you-know-when-a-story-is-finished\/","title":{"rendered":"Industry Insider: How do you know when a story is ‘finished’?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Industry<\/a>One of the most interesting aspects of any author workshop is the Q&A section at the end. You might remember this post, wherein I advised authors to be prepared for ‘anything’ when it comes to this particular aspect of a talk. But I confess I was caught short during my recent visit to the Burdekin Readers’ & Writers’ Festival.<\/p>\n

In my defence, it was the end of a very long, hot Friday, in a (mostly) year 9 workshop, when a year 11 student put up his hand and asked me this question:<\/p>\n

How do you know when a story is finished?<\/p>\n

I was focused on structure, so I blathered on about getting to The End, about three acts, about reading a lot of books so that you have an innate sense of story structure.<\/p>\n

And then I thought about it all weekend. Because, of course, he wasn’t asking me about how to get to The End of a story, he was asking me how you know it’s time to Let Go of a story.<\/p>\n

Which is a really, really good question.<\/p>\n

Such a good question, in fact, that I decided to get some help to answer it. So I asked a few author mates for their perspective and they all gasped in horror \u2013 because the answer is at once simple and complicated.<\/p>\n

But then they \u2013 in all their award-winning, bestselling glory \u2013 gave me their answers, which you’ll find below. They write across a whole range of genres, demographics, and styles. They write novels, novellas, short stories, and essays. Some have 30+ books to their names. In short, they know their way around a story.<\/p>\n

Click their names to find out more about that award-winning, bestselling stuff on their websites, and the title of their latest book (in brackets) to find out more about it.<\/p>\n

Ready?<\/p>\n

11 top Australian authors share how they know a story is ‘finished’<\/strong><\/p>\n

Natasha Lester<\/a> (The Paris Seamstress<\/a>)<\/strong><\/div>\n
\n

“It\u2019s never finished! I had to re-read The Paris Seamstress<\/em> for the eleventy-billionth time to proofread it for the US market after it had been published here in Australia and I made changes to it yet again! So I prefer to think of a manuscript as \u201cas good as I can make it at the time\u201d rather than finished. Finished is obviously much shorter and punchier to say though!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

<\/div>\n
\n

So the moment when I submit a manuscript is when it really is as good as I can make it right then. I\u2019ll always leave a manuscript to sit for at least a couple of weeks before I send it anywhere, have another look at it and then, if I\u2019m just tinkering rather than really editing or redrafting, it\u2019s reached the stage when it\u2019s ready to go.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

<\/div>\n
\n

For interest\u2019s sake, I did 13 drafts of my very first novel before it was accepted for publication; I now do around 5 or 6 drafts. I know they\u2019re not perfect \u2013 that even the published book isn\u2019t perfect \u2013 but it\u2019s my best work at that moment.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

<\/div>\n
\n

Which is a good test – can you say, hand on heart, that you\u2019ve done everything possible and given it your all and made it your best possible work? If so, then it\u2019s \u2018finished\u201d \u2013 for now!”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Jack Heath<\/a> (Liars #1: The Truth App<\/a>)<\/strong><\/p>\n

“You know you\u2019ve finished the plot when the reader can guess the rest. You know you\u2019ve finished the first draft when you can\u2019t think of any other things to change, and you can\u2019t stand the thought of looking at it again. But you\u2019ll have to read it at least four more times to implemented everyone else\u2019s suggestions \u2013 that\u2019s when the book is finished.<\/p>\n

Melina Marchetta<\/a> (Tell The Truth, Shame The Devil<\/a>)<\/strong><\/p>\n

“I find that if I can read a hard copy without scribbling notes on the page, then that’s it.”<\/p>\n

Anna Spargo-Ryan<\/a> (The Gulf<\/a>)<\/strong><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. When you write something, you know what\u2019s supposed to be in it, all the background information and research. You have all this context that a new reader won\u2019t have. In that sense, I think it\u2019s very difficult to know when your own work is finished. Writing a book is a team effort. I rely on other people \u2013 not to tell me whether or not the story is finished, but to help me see why it isn\u2019t<\/em>.<\/li>\n
  2. I also think you get to know your weaknesses as a finisher. I write rushed, terrible endings. I know that the first time I write an ending, it\u2019s not finished, and probably still isn\u2019t finished until I\u2019ve rewritten it four or five times. I always think <\/em>it\u2019s finished, but I\u2019ve come to know better.<\/li>\n
  3. \u201cFinished\u201d always comes sooner than I expected. I\u2019ll be writing and writing and then, suddenly, it will be done. That happens to me at first draft stage, and at final proofreading stage. It\u2019s like a magic trick (the only magic trick that exists in writing).<\/li>\n
  4. Lastly, most writers \u2013 and other artists \u2013 will tell you that nothing is ever truly<\/em> finished. There\u2019s a point at which you just have to abandon it. I sometimes read over my published writing and think, oh yeah, I would change all of these things. But you could honestly keep on doing that forever<\/strong>, and I think often you wouldn\u2019t even necessarily make it a better work on the whole. Would this sentence be better written a different way? Maybe. Will it make the whole book so much better? Probably not. I read once that the painter John Olsen (I think) would take a brush to exhibitions and touch up his work while it was hanging on the gallery walls. There\u2019s a point at which you have to recognise you\u2019ve done as much as a project needs<\/em> and that\u2019s not the same as doing everything you<\/em> wanted to do, but it doesn\u2019t make it any less finished. Let it go.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Pamela Freeman\/Pamela Hart<\/a> (The Desert Nurse<\/a>)<\/strong><\/p>\n

    “I know it’s finished when the characters\/plots etc don’t bug me when I’m waiting in line, or at the traffic lights \u2013 if my mind is disengaged and the book doesn’t appear in it, it’s probably done.”<\/p>\n

    Krissy Kneen<\/strong><\/a> (Wintering<\/a>)<\/strong><\/p>\n

    “I know I am about to be finished when a new book starts to knock on my brain. I get the urge to move on because the new book feels so much more interesting. I start to read and collect material that relate to the next book. This is how I know I am about to finish a project. Pretty soon after this I can put the final sentence in, read over the book and just feel the urge to submit it. Moving on is a sure sign it is done.”<\/p>\n

    Alan Baxter<\/a> (Devouring Dark\u00a0–\u00a0<\/a>coming 6 November, 2018)<\/strong><\/p>\n

    “I know it\u2019s finished when I\u2019ve had it read by a couple of people I trust and addressed their concerns, and it subsequently doesn\u2019t keep knocking on my brain for more. I never trust that feeling unless others have read it, too.”<\/p>\n

    Cat Sparks<\/a> (Lotus Blue<\/a>)<\/strong><\/p>\n

    “When it comes to judging my own work on this score, I am almost always wrong when I initially decide a story is done. Everything I write needs to be composted for at least three months, enough time for glaring errors of style and judgement to become visible to my own eyes. Sometimes longer.”<\/p>\n

    Ian Irvine<\/a> (The Fatal Gate<\/a>\u00a0– The Gates Of Good And Evil #2)<\/strong><\/p>\n

    “I don’t show my work to anyone for an opinion, I judge it myself. And I like to meet my deadlines, so I normally submit on the day or a few days later. Occasionally, well in advance, I might ask for an extra month, in which case I treat that as a firm deadline.”<\/p>\n

    Dmetri Kakmi<\/a> (Mother Land<\/a>, plus essays, short stories and novellas)<\/strong><\/p>\n

    “For me a piece is never really finished. You can always do better. But I do recognise when I\u2019ve done the best I can for the time being. I stop and send it to my trusted editor, who then pushes me beyond whatever barriers I might have. Ultimately though I know when a story is ready to go into the world, flawed or not. It\u2019s a gut feeling.”<\/p>\n

    Jacqueline Harvey<\/a> (Disappearing Act<\/a>\u00a0– Kensy and Max #2)<\/strong><\/p>\n

    “I know it\u2019s finished when I feel like I\u2019ve brought together the loose ends and untangled the mysteries \u2013 the last line really needs to give me a feeling of \u2018ahh, it\u2019s done\u2019 (either that or I\u2019m crying tears of joy for my characters).”<\/p>\n

    \"writing<\/a>I hope you found this helpful! Are you new here? Welcome to my blog! You can find out more about me here<\/a>. <\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

    For more brilliant writing advice and tips from top authors and other industry insiders, join my online writing community Write With Allison Tait. Click here for all the details<\/a>.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    One of the most interesting aspects of any author workshop is the Q&A section at the end. You might remember this post, wherein I advised authors to be prepared for ‘anything’ when it comes to this particular aspect of a talk. But I confess I was caught short during my recent visit to the Burdekin […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":7131,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,705,5],"tags":[721,714,723,716,702],"class_list":["post-7128","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-advice-for-writers","category-industry-insider","category-writing","tag-australian-author","tag-author-life","tag-how-to-write-a-book","tag-tips-for-writers","tag-writing"],"yoast_head":"\nIndustry Insider: How do you know when a story is 'finished'? - Allison Tait Author<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Writing secrets: how to know when a story is finished? 11 top Australian authors share their writing secrets on knowing when to let a story go.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/2018\/10\/industry-insider-how-do-you-know-when-a-story-is-finished\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Industry Insider: How do you know when a story is 'finished'? - Allison Tait Author\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Writing secrets: how to know when a story is finished? 11 top Australian authors share their writing secrets on knowing when to let a story go.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/2018\/10\/industry-insider-how-do-you-know-when-a-story-is-finished\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Allison Tait Author\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AllisonTaitWriter\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2018-10-22T07:55:42+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-05-13T00:35:07+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Industry-Insider-How-to-know-when-your-story-is-finished.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"800\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"800\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Allison Tait\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Allison Tait\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"8 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/2018\/10\/industry-insider-how-do-you-know-when-a-story-is-finished\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/2018\/10\/industry-insider-how-do-you-know-when-a-story-is-finished\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Allison Tait\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/#\/schema\/person\/277afd61b41e1b23d976e1ae2f09cf46\"},\"headline\":\"Industry Insider: How do you know when a story is ‘finished’?\",\"datePublished\":\"2018-10-22T07:55:42+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-05-13T00:35:07+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/2018\/10\/industry-insider-how-do-you-know-when-a-story-is-finished\/\"},\"wordCount\":1525,\"commentCount\":2,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/2018\/10\/industry-insider-how-do-you-know-when-a-story-is-finished\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Industry-Insider-How-to-know-when-your-story-is-finished.png\",\"keywords\":[\"Australian author\",\"author life\",\"how to write a book\",\"tips for writers\",\"writing\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Advice for Writers\",\"Industry Insider\",\"Writing\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/2018\/10\/industry-insider-how-do-you-know-when-a-story-is-finished\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/2018\/10\/industry-insider-how-do-you-know-when-a-story-is-finished\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/2018\/10\/industry-insider-how-do-you-know-when-a-story-is-finished\/\",\"name\":\"Industry Insider: How do you know when a story is 'finished'? - Allison Tait Author\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/2018\/10\/industry-insider-how-do-you-know-when-a-story-is-finished\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/2018\/10\/industry-insider-how-do-you-know-when-a-story-is-finished\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Industry-Insider-How-to-know-when-your-story-is-finished.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2018-10-22T07:55:42+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-05-13T00:35:07+00:00\",\"description\":\"Writing secrets: how to know when a story is finished? 11 top Australian authors share their writing secrets on knowing when to let a story go.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/2018\/10\/industry-insider-how-do-you-know-when-a-story-is-finished\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/2018\/10\/industry-insider-how-do-you-know-when-a-story-is-finished\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/2018\/10\/industry-insider-how-do-you-know-when-a-story-is-finished\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Industry-Insider-How-to-know-when-your-story-is-finished.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Industry-Insider-How-to-know-when-your-story-is-finished.png\",\"width\":800,\"height\":800,\"caption\":\"Industry Insider: How to know when your story is 'finished' | allisontait.com\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/2018\/10\/industry-insider-how-do-you-know-when-a-story-is-finished\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Industry Insider: How do you know when a story is ‘finished’?\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/\",\"name\":\"Allison Tait Author\",\"description\":\"Adventure, Mystery, Almost History\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Allison Tait | Author\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/logo_sm1.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/logo_sm1.png\",\"width\":600,\"height\":286,\"caption\":\"Allison Tait | Author\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AllisonTaitWriter\",\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/allisontaitwriter\/\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/#\/schema\/person\/277afd61b41e1b23d976e1ae2f09cf46\",\"name\":\"Allison Tait\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/e4dfb414ad67df8aa68d6a62bc02c6ba2a7f718fd8f98b9b00f49451ae17f246?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/e4dfb414ad67df8aa68d6a62bc02c6ba2a7f718fd8f98b9b00f49451ae17f246?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Allison Tait\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/author\/altait\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Industry Insider: How do you know when a story is 'finished'? - Allison Tait Author","description":"Writing secrets: how to know when a story is finished? 11 top Australian authors share their writing secrets on knowing when to let a story go.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/2018\/10\/industry-insider-how-do-you-know-when-a-story-is-finished\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Industry Insider: How do you know when a story is 'finished'? - Allison Tait Author","og_description":"Writing secrets: how to know when a story is finished? 11 top Australian authors share their writing secrets on knowing when to let a story go.","og_url":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/2018\/10\/industry-insider-how-do-you-know-when-a-story-is-finished\/","og_site_name":"Allison Tait Author","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AllisonTaitWriter","article_published_time":"2018-10-22T07:55:42+00:00","article_modified_time":"2022-05-13T00:35:07+00:00","og_image":[{"width":800,"height":800,"url":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Industry-Insider-How-to-know-when-your-story-is-finished.png","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"Allison Tait","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Allison Tait","Est. reading time":"8 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/2018\/10\/industry-insider-how-do-you-know-when-a-story-is-finished\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/2018\/10\/industry-insider-how-do-you-know-when-a-story-is-finished\/"},"author":{"name":"Allison Tait","@id":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/#\/schema\/person\/277afd61b41e1b23d976e1ae2f09cf46"},"headline":"Industry Insider: How do you know when a story is ‘finished’?","datePublished":"2018-10-22T07:55:42+00:00","dateModified":"2022-05-13T00:35:07+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/2018\/10\/industry-insider-how-do-you-know-when-a-story-is-finished\/"},"wordCount":1525,"commentCount":2,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/2018\/10\/industry-insider-how-do-you-know-when-a-story-is-finished\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Industry-Insider-How-to-know-when-your-story-is-finished.png","keywords":["Australian author","author life","how to write a book","tips for writers","writing"],"articleSection":["Advice for Writers","Industry Insider","Writing"],"inLanguage":"en-AU","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/allisontait.com\/2018\/10\/industry-insider-how-do-you-know-when-a-story-is-finished\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/2018\/10\/industry-insider-how-do-you-know-when-a-story-is-finished\/","url":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/2018\/10\/industry-insider-how-do-you-know-when-a-story-is-finished\/","name":"Industry Insider: How do you know when a story is 'finished'? - Allison Tait Author","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/2018\/10\/industry-insider-how-do-you-know-when-a-story-is-finished\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/2018\/10\/industry-insider-how-do-you-know-when-a-story-is-finished\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Industry-Insider-How-to-know-when-your-story-is-finished.png","datePublished":"2018-10-22T07:55:42+00:00","dateModified":"2022-05-13T00:35:07+00:00","description":"Writing secrets: how to know when a story is finished? 11 top Australian authors share their writing secrets on knowing when to let a story go.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/2018\/10\/industry-insider-how-do-you-know-when-a-story-is-finished\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-AU","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/allisontait.com\/2018\/10\/industry-insider-how-do-you-know-when-a-story-is-finished\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-AU","@id":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/2018\/10\/industry-insider-how-do-you-know-when-a-story-is-finished\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Industry-Insider-How-to-know-when-your-story-is-finished.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Industry-Insider-How-to-know-when-your-story-is-finished.png","width":800,"height":800,"caption":"Industry Insider: How to know when your story is 'finished' | allisontait.com"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/2018\/10\/industry-insider-how-do-you-know-when-a-story-is-finished\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Industry Insider: How do you know when a story is ‘finished’?"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/","name":"Allison Tait Author","description":"Adventure, Mystery, Almost History","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-AU"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/#organization","name":"Allison Tait | Author","url":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-AU","@id":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/logo_sm1.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/logo_sm1.png","width":600,"height":286,"caption":"Allison Tait | Author"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AllisonTaitWriter","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/allisontaitwriter\/"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/#\/schema\/person\/277afd61b41e1b23d976e1ae2f09cf46","name":"Allison Tait","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-AU","@id":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/e4dfb414ad67df8aa68d6a62bc02c6ba2a7f718fd8f98b9b00f49451ae17f246?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/e4dfb414ad67df8aa68d6a62bc02c6ba2a7f718fd8f98b9b00f49451ae17f246?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Allison Tait"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/allisontait.com"],"url":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/author\/altait\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7128","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7128"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7128\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7131"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7128"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7128"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7128"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}